#[never tell me the odds voice] never give me the aux

[mackeydoodledoo]

Heroes

Pairing: Daniela Dimitrescu x (Fem!)Reader

Summary: You’re a sucker for classic rock. You’re a sucker for women. Getting a woman to get into classic rock is a milestone for you. It’s your senior year of high school and you had participated in a Senior’s Art Showcase; not only attracting a staff member of Musician’s Institute, but also your high school’s most popular yet edgy girl: Daniela Dimitrescu

Warnings: Awkwardness, High school Bullying, Mention of Separation Anxiety, Self-harm scars, fluff at the end

A/N: As someone who is a musician that dreams of becoming an actual musician, this is a whole vibe: getting scouted by a staff person who is apart of a music school and attracting a woman just being a musician.

“Heroes” - David Bowie

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Late-Fall As you play the last chord on your bass guitar of your song that you had written for this showcase, you receive a standing ovation. You could just barely see outlines of people standing for your performance. You could feel some kind of sweat along the sides of your head. Not only from the bright auditorium lights but the nerves almost getting the best of you.

You put your bass into your case and hoist the case across your body but turn around when you hear someone clearing their throat.

“Y/n Y/l/n was it?” A complete stranger asks

“That’s me,” You say, “I’m sorry, you are?”

“Derek Frank,” He introduces himself, “Bass instructor at Musicians Institute.”

Not knowing what else to say you only shake his hand. Maybe for slightly too long...

“I’m impressed by how you incorporated guitar-like chords on your bass,” He comments

“Thank you sir,” You say, chuckling nervously, “To be quite honest, it wasn’t too difficult to compose really. I just took them an octave down and wrote them out on tabs in case I’d forget and... All that... Jazz..”

Smooth y/n... Smooth...

“Well, I’d like you to give you a full-ride scholarship to Musicians Institute, working under me in the Bass classes,” He announces

Your mouth hangs agape, you didn’t expect to get that kind of offer. You don’t answer him right away as you were still trying to even process the offer.

“I’ll let you think about it,” He chuckles, “Here’s my card.”

You take one of his business cards and he makes his leave. you turn to him and watch him exit the building.

“You sure have a way with music,” A voice calls from behind you

You turn back into the other direction and notice Daniel Dimitrescu; Your school’s most popular girl. All the girls are pining after her. Yet, here she is; in your presence. 

“Thank you,” You say, “I-uhh, haven’t been able to get around to the fine art section of this showcase yet but I’m heading over there right now.”

“Perfect, I’ll join you,” She slightly smiles, coming up right next to you

You walk next to Daniela in silence, trying to think of a way to talk to her.

“Weren’t-weren’t you in the fine art section though?” You ask, finally breaking the silence

“I was, but then I heard how the performing arts section had a prodigy bassist performing. That sounded way more interesting than just standing around, greeting people,” Daniela explains

“Is that so?” You ask, sounding slightly flirty

“Was that flirting y/n y/l/n?” Daniela smirks at you

“Maybe,” You joke, but also not joking

Daniela leads you to her exhibition spot and you’re greeted in awe. 

The graphite... Ink... My god she’s a real artist... 

You also happen to notice some photographs that seem to be tattoos she’s done.

“And a tattoo artist?” You ask, gazing at her work, “You must be the prodigy instead of me.”

“Apprentice,” Daniela corrects you, “I’m currently an apprentice at the tattoo shop downtown. But, that won’t last very much longer.”

“Why’s that?” you ask, looking away from her artwork to look at her

“I got a full-ride scholarship to a private art school in the city,” She sighs, “But, I’ll make sure I’ll find a way to make it work.”

“You will,” You encourage her

After the senior art showcase, you and Daniela were out in the parking lot, walking to each others’ vehicles.

“Would you possibly want to get a coffee sometime?” Daniela asks out of the blue

“I don’t see why not Dani,” You smile, closing your trunk after placing your bass case in there

You didn’t really notice the change in color in Daniela’s cheek however you take out your phone and hand it to her. She does the same for her phone and the both of you part ways for the night until the next morning for school.

During the entire morning Daniela had no absolute time to even just say hi to you as you were always disappearing in the school halls between classes. She was hoping she’d see you at lunch however, when she had noticed you not in your typical spot in the corner of the cafeteria, the only other place she thought of was the band room practice rooms.

“Sorry ladies I have to go find someone,” She says, standing from her seat

The girls that swarmed around her, watching her sketch a design into her sketchbook all groan in annoyance and begin dispersing back into the cafeteria. Daniela rushes out of there and right across the hall into the band hall. A few band kids give her an odd look.

“Have you seen y/n?” she asks, despite knowing you might be in the practice room

“Practice room C,” one of the band kids answers

“Thanks,” she says, rushing past them

As you were playing a long to a song, you could slightly hear the door being knocked on. You look over and a smile sweeps across your face as You put your bass against your stand and run up to the door.

“Hey stranger,” You smile, “Come here often?”

“No,” Daniela giggles, stepping into the practice room, “I came to see you. I also need a break from all of the pining girls...”

“Alright,” You sigh, smiling, “ Make yourself comfortable.”

She sits in a chair and watches you, intently.

“What do you want to hear?” You ask, picking your bass back up

“Impress me,” She only says

You chuckle and throw in some slap bass to a song you were doing. Daniela couldn’t help but almost laugh at your ‘bass face’ as you let the music speak for itself.

“What?” You ask, smiling

“The faces you make when you play,” She laughs

“Oh, right,” You chuckle it off, “That happens when a musician lets the music take over our souls and we tend to make faces.”

“Your faces are cute if you tell me,” She smiles

Before you could talk more the bell rings.

“Blast this school,” Daniela growls, “Are you doing anything after school?”

“No why?” You ask

“Meet me in the student parking lot,” She says, leaving the band wing

You spend the rest of your time in the band room as you have pretty much finished everything that was required for your graduation. However, you do wait at the doors leading to the student parking lot. As the final bell rings, you leave through the doors but wait outside for Daniela to come meet you. You look over and see her with a flock of girls following close behind. She manages to see you and speeds off into your direction.

“Hey you,” She smiles, “You ready?”

You nod happily and she swings her arm around you, making sure to let hose girls know who she’s taken an interest to. 

“Where are we going?” You ask

“You’ll see love,” She smiles as she leads you to a convertible vehicle.

“Is that-?”

“Yep, that’s my baby right there,” Daniela smiles

She opens the passenger door for you and you smile at her whilst seating yourself into her car. 

“A gentleman indeed,” You smile

“Oh you shush,” She teases

She gets into the driver’s side door and begins to drive.

“Hey, you got any music?” Daniela asks almost at the top of her lungs

“I do, pass the aux,” You smile

She passes a thin cord to you and you plug in your phone. You scroll through your phone. As the song starts, You look over at Daniela, hoping she’d vibe to the song.

“Wait I’m really vibing with this babe,” Daniela flirts, “What is this??”

“Have you never heard of Classic Rock?” You ask

She shakes her head.

“Girl, I’m about to open your ears,” You smile

As Daniela continues driving, the both of you hold your arm out of the vehicle. You let your hand ‘fly’ like the wing of a plane. 

“You sure do have taste y/n my dear,” Daniela smiles, “Play some more after this song!”

“You got it!” You smile

As you listen to the intro and the intro vocals, you decide to sing your heart out.

And you, you can be mean And I, I’ll drink all the time ’Cause we’re lovers and that is a fact Yes, we’re lovers! And that is a fact Though nothing will keep us together We could steal time just for one day

You look over and notice Daniela smiling. Not sure whether it was from the good music or your vocals. But, you were still having fun so you didn’t care about what she thought. 

Well, I care though...

We can be heroes! Forever and ever! What d’you say?

As you sing the last line in the refrain, you look at Daniela; Your right hand over your chest and your other arm reaching out to her. She laughs as she takes her free hand into yours, linking your fingers’ together. 

Later when Daniela finally stops driving, you turn down the radio and look out to a gothic coffee shop.

“Welcome to my favorite place to be,” Daniela smiles

“Oh my goodness,” you say

“What is it love?” Daniela asks, getting out of her car

“I’ve just never been here before,” You say, “This place suits you super well.”

You follow Daniela into the coffee shop and you follow her into a spot, seemingly she normally seats herself in whenever she would come in here.

“How long have you’ve been a regular?” You ask

“About a couple of years now,” She answers you, “Sometimes I’d even skip class for this place.”

“Would you now,” You chuckle, “Maybe I’d skip with you one of these days.”

“Since when are you a rebel?” She asks, giggling

“Since meeting you love,” You smile

“Everyone falls for me in time,” Daniela flirts

“Not me,” You smile, "Somewhat."

"Somewhat?" She asks, taking somewhat offense to your comment

"Like, I've noticed you in the halls at school, but you've never really captivated me until the senior art showcase." You explain, "But hey, you got me now right? Better late than never."

"You're right," she smiles

During the outing, your focus was concentrated on a book.

"Whatchu doing?" Daniela asks, trying to see what you were so focused on

"That is for me to know and for you to find out," you smile

Once the both of you were back on the road, you notice the sun beginning to set.

"Hey I know an amazing place to watch the sunset," you smile, "You want to come along?"

She smiles as she nods to your suggestion. She follows your direction and the two of you end up on the cliffside near the outskirts of town.

"Come on Dani hurry!" You say, breaking into a run towards an open spot along the cliffs

Daniela walks over to you as you gaze out to the wilderness below. Along with the sunset going below the horizon.

"Welcome to my favorite spot," you smile, "Where I go whenever I'd feel at my low, I'd come here, take in the scenery."

"By yourself?" She asks

"Well, yeah," you sigh, "But, if you'd like to come on adventure outings with me I'd love your company."

"I'd like to y/n," she smiles

"By the way, do you have a record player?" You ask out of the blue

"Yeah why?" She asks

"You'll see," you smile, “Also, I’m about to send you a playlist I made of all the classics I loved listening to growing up.”

You send it to her, “You don’t necessarily need to listen to them right away. It’s for whenever you feel like it.”

Mid-Winter In the next month, Daniela had been your ride to school and in the next week, during finals, came Daniela's birthday. Daniela told you how her mother is throwing her a huge birthday dinner and how she won't be able to spend her birthday with you.

"Hey it's okay Dani," you smile, "Besides, I got you this."

You hand her a wrapped folder-looking present.

"I gotta go to band," you smile, "I'll see you on Monday."

You step up onto your toes and gently place a kiss on Daniela's cheek. You turned your heel before you could see Daniela's reaction. You also didn't see how some flock of girls noticed your cheek kiss gift to Daniela. She looks down at her present and unwrap it; a Rare David Bowie "Heroes" Promo Vinyl and a card. Once she opens the card, a senior photo of you falls into her palm.

"This is one of my most prized Vinyl's," Daniela reads aloud on the back of the photo, "But, I'd want my favorite gal to have it since you love it as much as I do."

Daniela squeals of happiness and gently hugs her her newly added vinyl to her collection. She runs over to her locker to place it in there for the rest of the 

"That girl will get in our way," one of the popular girls snarl

"We have to do something about this," another one says

During lunch you were minding your own business, it was a rare occasion that you'd be in the cafeteria. You look up when you saw 3 torsos in your peripherals

"Stay away from Daniela," one of the popular girls comes up to you, "She's ours. Not yours."

Daniela perks her head up to her name being called. 

"I'm sorry?" You ask, "sorry not sorry I attracted the coolest girl in school by flexing on an instrument. At least she sees something in me that has potential, I don't know why you three gawk over her when you have nothing to show off to her for."

One of the girls opens her basic white girl coffee and splashes it into your face and clothes. You burst out of the cafeteria, back into the band room, not caring about if Daniela saw.

"That'll teach her," she snickers

"What the hell was that?!" Daniela asks, snarling at them

"Hi Daniela," one of them tries to play it off, flirtatious-sounding

"Don't you 'hi Daniela' me," Daniela yells, "Answer. My. Question. What the hell was that?!"

"She’s taking you away from us," one of the girls blurts out

"I'm not even into any of you!" She growls at them, "Don't even flock around me anymore. And if I see you three doing so in the slightest, I will make sure you get the same treatment you treated y/n.."

She takes her backpack and runs into your direction. Of course it was into the band room. She manages to find you in your same practice room however, it was dark. She opens the door and sits next to you. Daniela then opens her backpack and takes out a pair of leggings and a hoodie.

"You okay?" She asks

She looks away when you change your pants in a hurry then stripping down into her hoodie. The smell of lemon and mint eased your senses.

"Yeah," you lean against her shoulder, "Thanks for the extra pair of clothes..."

"No worries," she says, "I'm sorry for them. I didn't even realize that they would do such a thing..."

"No it's okay," you say, "It's not you who should be apologizing. But those three never will. So I'll be over it in time."

The both of you leaned on each other until the bell rang. However, you were about to leave for class until you felt Daniela snake her arm around your waist.

"Class can wait," Daniela says, "I'm staying with you..."

You feel your cheeks heat up as you lean your head back onto Daniela's shoulder. You take out your phone, thank the gods it didn’t get stained with coffee and plug in your earbuds. You put one into your left ear and offer the other one to Daniela to put into her right ear. She takes it, places it into her right ear and you begin playing the first song that came up.

“Why’d you only call me when you’re high?” - Arctic Monkeys

“You like them too?” Daniela smiles, trying to lighten the mood

“I do,” You smile, but looking in the empty void of the practice room

“Well, we have one group we both like,” She smiles

After school you explained to your band teacher why you didn't show up to class, thankfully your band teacher is lenient and excused you for mental health reasons. You and Daniela decide to get dinner together per Daniela's suggestion. She wanted to make it up to you for letting that cafeteria incident happen earlier in the day and for you to celebrate her birthday with her a day early. You didn't want to go anywhere fancy so Daniela gets the both of you food from her favorite coffee shop and takes the both of you to your cliffside spot.

"So Bela has a glass eye?" You ask, "Is that why she always has her hair covering her right eye?"

"Yeah because we like to fuck around with her and continuously steal it and hide it from her." Daniela laughs, "If you didn't know, I have two different eye colors."

She lifts her bangs to show you. You kind of look in awe before she puts her bangs back down.

"My other sister; Cassandra has a lazy eye," she says, "So basically my family is full of broken people..."

"Maybe it isn't a bad thing all the time," you say, "Having imperfections are what make you who you are really."

You roll up your right sleeve and reveal some silver scars.

"Sometimes past relationships can go awry and... Make you do things you regret," you sigh, "But hey, these were from like.... 3 years ago so I’m doing a lot better than last time."

She gently takes a hold of your arm and places many kisses along and over your silver strands. You felt your cheeks heat up once more.

"You're right," Daniela agrees, "Well, I know now you're alive to tell the stories about them. If you're comfortable with doing so."

Once again she snakes her arm around your waist and leans her head against yours.

"Your family also sounds interesting," you add

"Interestingly Chaotic," Daniela jokes

"Chaotic is more fun," you flirt

Daniela lifts her head away to look at you. You look down at her lips and lean forward. Daniela meets you halfway.

"I've decided to go to California for Musicians Institute," you say, when you pull sway from Daniela’s lips

Daniela freezes.

"Dani?" You ask, looking at her, cupping her cheeks into your hands, "What's wrong?"

She doesn't say anything but plays it off like nothing happened.

"Sorry-it's nothing," Daniela sighs

"Are you sure?" You ask, "You can trust me."

"It's okay, I'm sure," she says

"Well, whenever you're ready to talk about it," you say

Spring Seniors are itching to get out of high school. Everyone either had committed to colleges, gotten a date for prom. But you? You got yourself the top prodigy artist in the school as your girlfriend and gotten into one of the best music schools for your field of music. Best of both worlds. It was after school Daniela had slipped a note into your band locker to meet you at your guys' hangout spot at the edge of town. You park at the parking lot and see a blanket laid out near the cliffside; Daniela sitting there; noticing her red hair.

“Dani?” You call out, shutting your car door

She turns to you and you could easily see a smile across her face as you catch up to her.

“Hey you,” you smile, sitting right next to her, “What are we doing out here?”

You look out to the cliffside; the forestry and the giant lake in view. Your favorite place to be when you want to be alone; has officially turned into a place you want to be, with Daniela. 

“y/n, when we met that night, I’ve felt something in me that I have never felt with any other girl,” Daniela confesses

You felt your heart beginning to thump in your chest. 

Why was she beginning to confess everything now?

She turns to you and you notice a small instrument in her hands; a ukulele. You watch her left arm make a chord; it was pretty... 

Tear in my Heart?...

Sometimes you gotta bleed to know

Daniela easily struggles to make the chords and sing at the same time. However, you weren’t paying attention enough to know she’s struggling.

But it takes someone to come around To show you how

You watch her attempt to sing to you... For the first time ever, you were so touched. 

“Fuck,” She growls

She stops after realizing she’ll never finish the song properly however, you reach out to her and engulf her in a hug.

“You learned how to play ukulele? For me?” You ask

“It’s-it’s not perfect but- but I really wanted to impress you,” She confesses, “But, I’m still working on figuring out how to sing and play this thing at the same time.. I’m sorry it’s bad...”

“Dani, it wasn’t bad,” You smile, “I’m so touched... You took the time out to do this for me. If I’m going to confess something, remember when you and I went out to your favorite coffee shop and I ‘wasn’t paying attention’ to you?” 

She nods, “How could I forget?”

You reach into your backpack and take out your own sketchbook. You flip to your bookmarked page and reveal that you had done a graphite drawing of Daniela. 

“It’s not perfect either but-”

Before you could continue, Daniela leans her head towards yours and places her lips gently onto yours. When she pulls away to look at you, you open your eyes and begin processing what Daniela had done. However, your hands put down the sketchbook and cup Daniela’s cheeks and your lips crash onto hers. You climb into her lap and she snakes her arms around your waist.

“Dani,” You call her name, breathlessly

The both of you pull away to breathe and you could see the smile sweep across her face. 

“You learned how to draw? For me?” She asks the same exact question you asked her

“Technically I know how to draw but, I can’t draw as well as you,” You smile

“You kidding?” Daniela asks, reaching for your sketchbook, “you got my eyes- the Blue and green, the choker I always wear, my hair including the little hairs on my shaved side, beanie detail... You did it all babe.”

“I did?” You ask, in awe

She smiles as she nods at you. You give her another kiss before finally the question you had comes to mind.

"Now what is it that you really got me out here for?" You ask

"y/n y/l/n, would you like to go to prom with me?" She asks

"Yes Dani, a million times yes!" You happily say

You kiss her again before the both of you decide to talk on prom outfits.

"I was thinking we could match the color of your choker," you suggested

"We could," she smiles, "I'm down. One condition; I'm wearing the suit."

"No complaints there love," you smile

After the both of you settled a day to get your prom outfits, the both of you just begin to watch the sunset.

"When are you moving again?" Daniela asks

"End of August," you reply, "I'll be sure to come visit or if you're able, come visit me."

"I'll take you up on that offer," Daniela smiles, still trying to hide how sad she is that you’ll be moving soon

The two of you went to prom however, got so bored the both of you decided to ditch it and make your own prom. The both of you ended up staying at Daniela's place for the first time for yourself at least.

"Is this is girl that swept my daughter off her feet?" Her mother comes in

"Yes mother," Daniela smiles, kissing your temple

"Oh aren’t you a dream,” She compliments, “Daniela has told us so much about you.”

“Mother!” Daniela yelps, hiding her heated cheeks

“Oh, is that so Ms. Dimitrescu?” You ask, looking at Daniela, who was clearly blushing

Summer You pretty much got instantly accepted into the family. You’ve spent most of your summer with them. 

“Do you have to go?” Daniela asks, her arms wrapped around you like a sloth

“I do,” You say, “I told you before, it’ll be okay, we’ll make this work.”

“I know,” She sighs, “But, what if we let the long distance get the best of us?”

“It won’t baby, not as long as we make the communication thing happen. That’s key.”

“I- just...” Daniela stutters

“You just what?” You ask, propping yourself on your elbows, looking down at her

“I have separation anxiety,” Daniela confesses, “I don’t want you to go, I want you to stay here... But, I don’t want you to stay here just for me...”

“Dani...” You say, “I would stay here for you if I could.”

Your fingers caress her cheek as she leans into the palm of your hand. 

“Don’t stay here for me,” She says, “I- Just don’t forget about me...”

“Dani babe, How could I ever forget about the girl that I attracted? Saved my skin from three petty girls? Especially the girl that did some music for me, regardless if she had no prior music experience. I could never forget you my love.”

You drop your head down to give her a long, lingering kiss.

“Plus, if I had the choice, I’d take you with me in a heartbeat,” You smile, pulling away

Daniela smiles as she wraps her arm around your neck to drag your face down to hers. 

3 Months Later... You knock on the door to the Dimitrescu Estate and notice Bela had opened the door.

“Is Daniela here?” You ask Bela

“Daniela, your girlfriend is here!” Bela calls from the front door

“You want to come in or what? It’s cold.” She smiles, “Welcome back.”

Daniela practically jumps down the stairs as soon as she sees your face appear in the doorway.

“Baby!” Daniela screams happily as she picks you up to give you a big bear hug

You hug her tightly as she spins you around all excitedly. The two of you share a kiss before hearing Bela and Cassandra jokingly barf at your PDA.

“Welcome home honey,” Alcina smiles, giving you a giant hug, “How is California?”

“Insane,” You sigh, “It’s a whole different world.. But, I’ve been video chatting with your daughter every night.”

“Daniela has been almost moping about every night after the two of you video chat and-”

“Mother!” Daniela interrupts before taking you gently by the arm and dragging you right back out of the front door

The both of you headed to Daniela’s signature coffee shop to catch up. Despite it only being 3 months you’ve moved to California for your music career.

“I’ve finally gotten around to listening to your playlist since you left,” Daniela confesses

“I’ve sent you that like ages ago,’ You slightly chuckle, “But, I’m glad you’re enjoying it.”

“I practically listen to it wherever I go; drives, around campus, even at my apprenticeship.” Daniela explains, “Clients are loving my girlfriend’s taste in music.”

“Awwww,” You blush, “I’ve began taking some other music genres to practice bass. Well, taking them from my professor when he assigns video assignments.”

“So, what is it you want to do when you play your bass?” Daniela asks

“Oh?” You ask her, “Well, I’ve been to many concerts and I really love how all of the musicians would be performing on stage to millions of people. I want to do that too.”

“Who do you have in mind?” Daniela asks

“That depends on who’s hiring,” You say, “But, If you really wanted to get answers out of me; Waterparks, Panic! At the Disco... To name a few.”

“Those are some big bands,” Daniela leans back into her seat, “But, I know you’ll be able to do it. And when you do, I’ll come to every single show; make one of those giant posters where it says: ‘my girlfriend is the bassist!’.. That kind of thing.”

Your face heats up and you shove your face into a mug of coffee. Daniela lets out a peppy-giggle and lifts her head so her face is toward the ceiling.

“Lets drive,” She suggests

“I’d thought you’d never ask,” You smile

As soon as the both of you had gotten into Daniela’s car, she puts a couple of fingers under your chin to gently pull your face towards hers, the both of your lips molding to each others’. You flip on the radio and put in your playlist. The familiar riff of the first song the both of you had listened to together. 

[amphii-writes]

Random Haikyuu Head Canons I Have

these are all taken from my discord server cause i remember to write them there, if you want to request fanfics, my requests are W I D E open! there is also nO order! these are just all the headcanons i could find tbh

warnings: mentions of blood, and just overall wild times, swearing

Asahi loves knitting sweaters because his shoulders are broad and he also loves seeing the reactions from his teammates when they get a sweater from him! He says he buys them but he doesn’t

Aone likes knitting socks because he has big feet and he loves fluffy knee high socks but his team will never know

Asahi and Aone regularly hang out and knit together! (after asahi wasnt scared of him anyways)

Nishinoya gives you shiny rocks he finds because “your eyes shine like them!”

Yamaguchi likes to have your head rest on his chest while cuddling!

Aone likes to bake

Aone dressed like a polar bear because koganegawa told him to- halloween was amazing

daICHI HAS A KISS THE COOK APRON

Daichi secretly can make some kick ass steak and is amazing at grilling sorry

Okay but real talk, Kenma and Yaku swear like sailors and it scares everyone because they always whisper the most foul, insulting things under their breath. Hearing it is like seeing a cryptid

Speaking of cryptids, Fukunaga and Shibayama are THE most true crime, mythology, and mystery obsessed fanatics on the team and often fanboy about it together 

Fukunaga’s obsession with moth man has gotten to an unhealthy stage

Kenma absolutely had a vampire phase and has read twilight. Only Kuroo knows and has sworn to secrecy via blood pact

Kuroo’s a musical nerd. Knows all of the lyrics to Hamilton, BMC, DEH, Heathers, Rent, Beetlejuice, Etc. Kenma considered dropping him because of it

Iwaizumi tells the worst dad jokes and Kyotani, wanting to beat him, started doing it too and it drives everyone insane

Yahaba and Matsukawa get along surprisingly well. Both are true crime freaks and bond over their forensic files obsessions

Matsukawa didn’t really like his thick eyebrows so he got one of his female friends to pluck it for him, but almost cried and gave up after the first hair. Oikawa called him a pussy for the next year

Hanamaki jokingly flirts with everyone on the team so most of them just got used to it, but it still confuses Kindaichi to the point of mental breakdown

Makki called Kyotani ‘puppy’ as a joke once and now mad dog is truly terrified of him

Kyotani’s dog absolutely ADORES Oikawa and it’s the funniest shit to the rest of the team

Mattsun and Makki play DnD and once convinced Yahaba and Kyotani to join. Kyotani kept rolling to fight everyone and Yahaba was a bard that kept rolling to seduce everyone. They kept yelling across the board so they had to kick them out

Outside of his school uniform, Goshiki specifically wears only plaid

Tendou makes little chocolates for the whole team every once in a while so they don’t think he’s scary

Semi and Shirabu once had a fistfight in an abandoned McDonald’s parking lot while Tendou filmed and Goshiki cheered them on

Everybody makes fun of Shirabu’s haircut but nobody dares to say it to his face. its gotten to the point where they say he got it done by a blind old lady

There’s a running joke about Shirabu also getting his haircut from prison but Goshiki is starting to suspect that it may not be a joke

Yamagata and Tendou are good friends with the mutual goal of collecting as much blackmail on their team as possible

Tendou loves animals generally considered to be ‘ugly’ like rats, crows, reptiles, etc.

80% of Goshiki’s playlist is shit overplayed on the radio. Him, Shirabu, Tendou, Kawanishi and Ushijima have a permanent ban from the aux cord

Nobody watches YouTube with Ushijima because he never skips the damn ads (other than tendou)

Suna once said y’all’dn’t’ve unironically and made a first year cry

Akagi once said UwU unironically and had an identity crisis.

Osamu has one of those rainbow gaming keyboards and is constantly on a discord call. Atsumu always yells weird shit in the background to embarrass him and once pretended to be him

During Seijoh group chat arguments. Hanamaki and Mattsukawa like to drop facebook minion memes in just to piss everyone off even more

mattsun and maki both have separate photo albums in their phones labelled ‘minion memes to piss everyone off’

Hinata carries a pocket knife and no one has no fucking idea why

mattsun and maki both have matching rat fursuits that look like they actually where in a sewer- they chased oikawa around

For all his talk of plant analogies and metaphors, Ushijima cant grow shit

Goshiki’s Bangs are the way they are because his favorite character was Rock Lee from Naruto

Oikawa has watched Ouran High School Host Club front to back so many times and he can quote all of Tamaki’s lines by heart -He keeps bothering Iwaizumi to “be his Haruhi, since you’re shorter than me”

Koganegawa has definitely gone as an Angry Bird for Halloween

Fukunaga has those reflective cat eyes, and he has terrified Yamamoto on several occasion

Hanamaki and Matsukawa have a teddy bear that they pretend is their child and they share custody

Suga always sprays whipped cream straight into his mouth whenever he sees a can

Nishinoya definitely bit people as a kid

Nishinoya would be the guy to wear shorts all year round and even if it's snowing, he'll insist he's not cold

Tendou is still stuck in his emo phase and would fangirl over Creepypasta with me and I appreciate that (me too buddy, me fuckin too)

Kyoutani LOOKS like he’d listen to viking death metal, but in reality he listens to Mother Mother and knows all the words to Ghosting

Sugawara would definitely encourage me to dumb shit and not stop me, and you’re all dumb for thinking he wouldn’t 

KENMA IS NOT ‘uwu owo’ SHY, HE IS ‘your fucking gross’ SHY SO LITERALLY STFU

Bokuto listens to Nicki Manaj. And knows all the words. To every. Single. Song.

Ushijima for some reason knows an odd amount of 90′s-2000′s R&B and he will hum along to the songs if they come on the radio (he also loves Dolly Parton) ((he says he relates to her music))

Bokuto once ate instant ramen for an entire month

TERUSHIMA DID TRY TO FUCK A PLANT WHILE SHITFACED AND GOD I STAND BY WHAT I SAID

atsumu let’s you put makeup on him and pretends to eat the brushes (do yk what im talking about- like n o m)

tendou ran for school president as a joke but actually won

i 100% believe that all of karasuno’s third years apologize when they bump into inanimate objects, but when suga is really tired or stressed out, he’ll yell at them instead.

Tanaka, Nishinoya, and Taketora have a group chat called "Bros who want sum hoes" and they send each other hypebeast memes and shit

Sugawara knows how to do a bunch of flexible shit because he sometimes goes to yoga with daichi and asahi's moms, its fucking hilarious

tanaka and noya both breakdance- they work as a team and sometimes go to tokyo for underground competitions- saeko drives them

Daichi knows a little ballet- nobody other than Kiyoko knows because they saw each other at the ballet class and had to work together- dont tell tanaka and noya that he lifted her though

Osamu once put glitter on Atsumu's pillow- he still finds hot pink glitter on shit

kita knits and crochets with his grandma

Kita's grandma knows everyone's names because kita talks shit bout them, her favorite is Aran

Kuroo has burnt his eyebrows off doing an experiment. His goggles didn't cover all his brows,,, so he just showed up to practice like that. No eyebrows and a chemical burn

kenma has played all kinds of games, but he was dared to play corpse party by kuroo. He wasn't scared because of the gore, he was thinking about the trauma the characters went through. Punched kuroo the next day because that game was fucked up

Lev isn't a strong swimmer, so he often grabs people by the head to keep himself up. happened with kenma and lev couldn't walk due to the force of kenmas suprised water kicks

akaashi has those fancy pens that you have to dip in ink and they're so nice

Bokuto has and will eat pencil erasers again

Daichi once almost lost his shit at his team but instead he lost his shit at the door that decided to stub his toe on the way out of the gym. not the best thing to be found yelling to.

Yamaguchi for sure has been dragged to one of terushimas parties because he didnt wanna say no. oh and terushima has like frat boy level parties too. Yams has for sure had some wild nights and doubts anyone other than Tsukishima and the party-goers will ever know

Akaashi can actually flirt very well! He reads romance novels sometimes and has analyzed any and every book in his possession! so he's actually quite charming

Daihsou unironically posted on twitter after mika broke up with him "I still see her shadows in my room"

Mattsun and Maki run a fake oikawa account; its been going ever since twitter even started getting popular and they even started sending messages in spanish. The posts would range from "I love all my fans!" to flirting with them :) Oikawa is pissed cause the account got verified before he did and most of his fans also follow the fake oikawa. Tooru has no idea who runs it JUST IMAGINE OIKAWA JUST LIKE RANTING TO THE SEIJOH 3RD YEAR ALUMNI AND JUST "no Iwa-chan, you dont understand! they run a fake account and pretend to be me!" while makki and mattsun laugh their asses off

Oh, kenma for sure has pretended to be a girl on discord and has gotten someone to buy him stuff. after they do he says in his normal voice "fucking simp" and then hangs up and blocks the other persons discord

Yamamoto, despite his rough appearance, loves kids and has and will be a human jungle gym

suna in middle school had a game with his friends about who could make kids cry the fastest

The twins switched places back in middle school and nobody could tell because of how great they are at acting like eachother

Daichi once arrested coach ukai for public intoxication after a game :|

Daichi has arrested many people from his old volleyball team but the most memorable case was when he arrested tanaka and noya for reckless driving. poor idiots got so scared when they saw their old captains face in their mirror and started to pray

tanaka, while trying to intimidate someone, once said "You dont gotta tell me twice, i may be straight but these hands are bisexual" and he often cringes at night thinking about it

Kageyama, as a comeback to Tsukishima, said "one thing about us royalty is that we love to feast" and he also fuckin hates what he said

the third years made a cult for Kiyoko. they chant every wednesday "i'll do anything for kiyoko, she makes me go loco"

oikawas fangirls are known to be fucking rabid

yAMAMOTO AND KENMA AFTER THEIR FIGHT WERE FORCED BY KUROO TO MAKE IT UP: so they dyed their hair together

Makki and mattsun sang two trucks in front of the entire team. everyone was so confused. Makki: "twO TRUCKS HAVIN SEX!!" Mattsun: "oH yEs!"THEY'D SWITCH OFF AND HAVE LIKE CHOREOGRAPHY TOO LIKE THEY'D DO A TANGO WHILE THE SONG IS LIKE "two beer trucks, making love"

tendou once called Oikawa "mr. no-nationals" and got kicked in the shins before iwaizumi could save him

Tsukishima had a my little pony phase

you work with matsukawa at a morgue and he makes dead people jokes while you fix some dead guys face with wax and makeup he'd be like "so didnt he like,,, stick his head out of the sunroof of a moving fuckin car??" he'd be singing dumb ways to die the entire day

i feel like Kuroo has one crazy accident a year. like it might not be deadly but its fucking crazy like for example: Kuroo for sure has ridden in a shopping cart at past midnight with kenma (who pushed him down a hill) causing Kuroo to get scratched up hella well. he lied and said he spent the night with a girl and kenma fucking hated himself cause he would be the girl if that was true

Mattsun has flirted with the 4th years moms before (AS A JOKE), and because of this: he is known as “fuckin milf hunter” sometimes by the team

Warning, this next headcanon is talking about cannabis, weed, mary jane, the zoink root. so if your uncomfortable, please dont read below :)

dude i wanna get high as SHIT with Asahi 

i think Asahi would be one of those mfkers who takes one hit and is gone 

ASAHI ACCIDENTALLY GOING TO PRACTICE ZOINKED 

IMAGINE HIM SEEING TSUKISHIMA AND JUST "he looks so judgemental,,, im scared" 

OR LIKE A MAD DAICHI AND JUST "i'm gonna,,, im gonna go jump out the window now" 

Noya and Tanaka would know tho, i feel like they'd have a 6th sense when it comes to weed. they probably get some from Saeko cause she'd rather they do it in the house. they'd smell asahi like fucking dogs and just so,,, big guy had fun without us huh? 

DAICHI WOULD KNOW ABOUT ASAHI BEING ZOINKED, SMASH HIS FACE INTO THE WALL, TURN AROUND WITH A RED MARK ON HIS FOREHEAD AND WITH A BEAMING SMILE AND FEUX ENTHUSIASM SAY: "YOSH, LETS WARM UP!"

[writerwrites]

Had Spoke, Had Woke

Pairing: Ransom Drysdale x named!Reader

Summary: You’re a new waitress at a famous restaurant in New York City and you’re still trying to get your footing. Little do you know, when the hostess seats a single male patron in your section of tables it’s a bit of hazing. Notorious lothario, Ransom Drysdale, is a regular. Will you end up as another notch on his bedpost?

Word Count: 2k

Warnings: Sexy flirting if you squint, but no written sex scene. Mentions of boss’ voyeurism kink and implies Ransom might have an exhibition kink... again, that’s not written in here. Language. Cliffhanger?

A/N: *THIS IS A ONE SHOT* This is the Week 2 prompt to the Optimistic Captain Donut Challenge created by @captainchrisbaby​ @captain-a-rogerss​​​ , @optimistic-dinosaur-nacho​​​ , and @donutloverxo​​​ … The Week 2 Prompt will be in bold in the story. PS. Jammies!

Getting a job at the hot new Italian restaurant in Boston felt like pure luck. Aaliyah had no experience, few recommendations, and an odd availability because, in her senior year of college, she had an internship on top of her classes. Her life was a delicate balance of maintaining high grades to appease the donors of her scholarships, presenting well at her internship in hopes of a foot in the door, and working as often as possible to keep a roof over her head after graduation. That plucky attitude worked well, quickly getting Aaliyah into the position of a waitress, but the attention had consequences.

When the tall, broad shouldered blonde came in for the third Thursday night in a row, she’d picked up the hint that all of the staff had an opinion about the guy. Assuming that he hadn’t been placed in her section because the manager didn’t want a regular having a meal spilled on him, Aaliyah went about her own business, no time to engage in the whispers every time he came in. The decision to keep out of the restaurant gossip made her few friends and in a lush restaurant social climbing was a key focus of the menu. With confident strides, Aaliyah maneuvered through the bustling restaurant taking orders and slinging them back. Then her gaze landed on the only table left in her section, a booth that could have sat four, now occupied by the attractive blonde that never seemed to be in short supply of cable knit sweaters.

Chewing her lip, she swallowed down her options. First, she could go back to the floor manager and verify it wasn’t a mistake. Not the best choice but the man could make it out unscathed with a more experienced waitress. Second, she could play it off to the best of her ability and show the managers and staff that she was determined to do her job well. It didn’t seem like much of a choice and when his eyes landed on hers, an impatient squint demanding her to cross the room and assist him, her feet were already making their way to him. “Good evening, I’m --”

Her words were cut off, “I know who you are, Honey.”

The pet name rolled off his tongue like melted butter and Aaliyah shivered. Just as she picked her mouth off the floor and went for her pen to take his order, the man carried on again. “I’ll have the pan-seared halibut.”

Unfazed by the cutoff it was the pet name that bit and the waitress bit back. “Then you must have mistaken me for the midnight cocktail waitress in the underground. It’s Aaliyah, actually. You have the choice of two sides. I recommend the braised fingerling potatoes with garlic shallots and fresh herbs.”

The man was processing the cheek and Aaliyah’s mouth went dry as he watched her through long lashes, teeth nipping his own tongue. “Fine. Any drink recommendations, since you’re feeling so complimentary.”

She was no sommelier, but she didn’t miss a beat. “We have a sauvignon blanc from New Zealand if you would prefer a fruit note to the herby dinner, or a sauvignon blanc from France that stays with the theme of the meal you’ve chosen.” Aaliyah smiled, proud of herself, like a well studied student at an exam.

“I’ll have it with the Oregon Pinot Gris.” His tone was surprisingly amused, making the young waitress all the more unsettled by his unblinking gaze.

“Yes, Sir.” It was his turn to squirm, though she didn’t notice the way he moved his legs to adjust himself under the table.

Aaliyah turned on her heel and walked away, all too aware of the pair of deep blue eyes still on her. He unashamedly carried on that way through the entire meal, summoning her back now and then for more wine and then a glass of her recommended sauvignon blanc after a couple of bites of his halibut. She didn’t move when she brought it, stubbornly waiting for him to admit he was wrong. A few coworkers stared at her shocked with her behavior. When he brought the wine to his lips she stared at the lingering droplet and his gaze was back on her, tongue lapping it up, some unspoken incantation that it wasn’t just the food he found satisfying. “Sir.” Aaliyah purred with smug confidence and left him to finish his entrée.

When the manager pulled her from the floor by the wrist into the office she thought she was in for it. Instead, he dropped a key into her palm. “Mr. Drysdale will ask you for dessert, Chef will make it, the staff will clean and leave. He’ll take his time and pay in cash. You’ll need to clean up his mess and lock up so that we don’t have to wait on you tonight.”

“You just let him do that?” She scoffed.

“There are few patrons that tip as well as Mr. Drysdale and his family could tear down this block with one bad review. No stunts, just give him what he wants, clean up, and send him on his way. It’ll be a long week for you to know whether you cost us our best customer or not, so don’t.”

It wasn’t harsh, a clean cut and matter of fact plan no different in presentation than the specials on a chalkboard outside the restaurant, but it left Aaliyah with more questions than answers. Her eyes fell to the key, tucking it in her pocket before heading back to the floor to wrap up her other patrons and check on her sweatered guest. “Would you like a dessert tonight, Sir?”

The plate of halibut and vegetables was clean, his wine glass low. “That depends on whether you would like to join me with more of the sauvignon blanc.”

“I’ll bring you the bottle and the tarte aux fraises for dessert?” Her tongue twirled over the French with ease, this time noticing how his hips picked up briefly out of the seat. “If that pairing sounds satisfactory, of course, Sir.”

He gave a nod and Aaliyah walked away with confidence that she had survived the ordeal of having this patron in her section. She came back with the wine, pouring him a glass and leaving the bottle on the table, letting him know that she would be back with his dessert and to wave her down while she helped the other waiters. But, as soon as she was in the back of the building, the hostess caught her eye from the staff locker room. Aaliyah slipped in, opening her own locker to put the key in her bag. It wasn’t until her back was turned and other waiters came in that she heard their bets. While she may not have made out every detail she knew whatever was going to happen wasn’t over.

The second the last whispering voice walked out and the patron’s dessert set gently in front of him, he asked her an unexpected question, “Care to join me?”

Aaliyah had to wonder if this was what the whispering was about, whether or not she’d sit with the guy, share a drink, share dessert, settling on the nagging question: What else did he expect? Careful not to show any sign of weakness or overt interest, she sat across from him, pulling off her apron and busying herself with folding it onto her lap. “I apologize your weekly entertainment has been left to me, Sir. The other waitresses were a bit upset to see the favorite regular placed in the new girl’s section.”

His fork cut through the tarte, popping a bite into his mouth as he watched her and he didn’t speak until he’d washed it down with the wine, pushing the then emptied glass to her. Aaliyah poured and he spoke. “They do this every once in a while. Think about it as… pulling out the weak ones by the root.”

She watched him twirl the fork in the air as he explained his view on the hostess’ decision. There was something wicked in the way he spoke about people, like everyone in service was just a hair above a stray dog in his eyes. Still, as she looked at him, really watching his eyes, she found herself drawn into him. Aaliyah found herself determined though, to do as her boss had asked, to appease him, but she was no stray dog. If anything, she was a feral cat, more likely to take what she wanted than to put up with anyone’s antics. Maybe that’s why she knew how this was going to go. “You weed out the weak ones every Thursday?”

Ransom looked up from his wine glass, but not to Aaliyah. Her eyes left his throat to where his icy blue gaze had moved. She hadn’t really thought about it before, the cameras all around the place. He didn’t speak again for a few more minutes, washing down the last of his dessert. “I’m friends with your boss, we went to college together. I know that he’s probably watching this little dinner in his bed on his laptop.”

Aaliyah poured the rest of his wine into his glass, surprised to not see her hand shaking despite her racing heartbeat, “Do you tell this to all your little weeds?”

“Sure, I’m not a monster. Though I’m sure anyone with more than two brain cells knows there are cameras in here. It’s logical to assume that a waitress that mistreats a customer when their boss isn’t looking should assume the boss is going to look at the cameras to see what really happened.”

“As much as I want to assume everyone I work with is logical…”

The corner of his mouth turning up into a sinister little smirk told Aaliyah more than enough about the man she was entertaining and what he knew about what he was doing. Ransom seemed to be done with the chit chat, throwing back the last of his wine. “The question is are you…”

Aaliyah cut him off, resting her hand on top of his. “You’re going to pay your bill and cross the street so that the camera for outside seating isn’t going to catch me leaving this place with you. While you wait for me to clean up these plates, you can decide: your place or mine. I’m sure if you like the thought of someone watching you fuck a waitress on a restaurant table gets you off then there’s plenty more we can do outside of this place.” She could see the gears turning, his lips pressing into a thin line. “Spank me later for being so bossy, Sir.”

She watched his tongue ghost across his lips and, for a moment, she wondered if she wanted him as badly as he wanted her. That was the problem with feral cats, no one could own them but they still liked their back scratched once in a while. Slipping out of the booth he got up too. His long, broad frame casting a shadow over her and the table. The proximity took Aaliyah’s breath away and she looked up at him, thinking she’d been outplayed, her thoughts already on him taking her on the table, plate and glass smashing onto the floor. Instead he slipped the money into her pocket, a wicked grin on his lips as a whimper passed her lips from the smallest amount of physical contact. “I don’t like to be kept waiting.”

“Then don’t make me take longer than I need to.” Aaliyah nodded to the door and he draped his coat over his arm. The second the door clicked behind him a string of curse words passed her lips as she picked up the table and took it to the kitchen, cleaning everything and setting it to dry. A decision had to be made, her dark eyes moving from the front exit to the emergency exit out back. His voice rang in her head and a knot in her stomach told her the repercussions would be severe, be it for standing him up or keeping him waiting. The thought alone told her she wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight. Pressing the restaurant key into her palm she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and took the anxious first steps toward her long evening, she’d endure the consequences tomorrow… Fuck it.

[mikauzoran]

Platonic Alyadrien/Adrienette/DJ Wifi: Drunk Ladybug on My Balcony? Yeah. This is Fine.: Chapter Three

Read it on AO3: Drunk Ladybug on My Balcony? Yeah. This is Fine.: Chapter Three: The Mission

Alya turned so that she was kneeling on the seat of the couch, draping herself over the back of it to smile beguilingly at her boyfriend as he moved about the Césaires’ kitchen. “Soooo…”

Nino paused, looking up from the vegetable and hummus plate he was preparing to arch an eyebrow at Alya. “‘So’?”

“You know who this mystery girl who Adrien is in love with is,” Alya asserted matter-of-factly.

Nino frowned in confusion. “Yeah?”

Alya nodded, looking at him expectantly.

The furrows in his brow deepened. “So…what?”

“So, who is she?” Alya sighed in exasperation at his inability to read between the lines and divine her aim.

Nino returned his attention to arranging cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, and thin slices of zucchini onto the plate. “Al, I know you’re just trying to be a good friend to Marinette by helping to set her up with Adrien, but the identity of his crush is something he told me in confidence after years of secrecy, and I know it’s not something he’d be okay with me telling people, even you.”

“Oh, come on,” Alya whined, sticking out her bottom lip in a pout. “Baaabe.”

Nino shook his head, beginning to clean up the knives he’d used to cut the vegetables and the blender he’d made the hummus in. “Nope. Don’t ‘Babe’ me, Al. My lips are sealed.”

“But it’s really important,” she groaned.

“I love you, Alya, but Adrien trusted me with this,” Nino explained patiently, aware that his girlfriend didn’t always see reason when she was on the scent of a scoop. “Bros don’t tell their bros’ secrets, even to the women they love. I’m sorry.”

“But Ladybug’s kwami gave me a quest to find out who Adrien’s crush is!” Alya protested.

Nino paused in the middle of rinsing the blender to turn and look back at his girlfriend with an odd expression. “Ladybug’s kwami did?”

Alya nodded earnestly. “I told you it was important.”

Nino hummed thoughtfully, weighing this new information. “That’s…very interesting.”

“So, you’ll tell me now?” Alya inquired hopefully.

Nino pursed his lips, considering. “…No,” he decided, turning off the faucet and placing the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. “I don’t think I should. Adrien doesn’t want people knowing, and I respect that.”

“Oh, come on,” Alya groaned again, dropping her head to the back of the couch in defeat.

“Sorry, Al,” he chuckled, bringing the hummus and vegetable plate over to the living room area and setting it down on the coffee table so they could snack on it as they watched their superhero movie of the week.

“You suck,” she grumbled, turning around and slumping into the couch cushions.

Nino smirked, sliding in beside her and giving her temple an affectionate smooch. “Insert obligatory sexual innuendo here.”

Alya rolled her eyes, slipping an arm around his shoulders. “Hush. I’m mad at you. Stop being cute.”

“Sorry,” he chuckled, reaching for the remote. “It just happens sometimes.”

 “Sorry I’m late,” Adrien greeted a little breathlessly (as if he had run to get there) as he slid onto the bench seat across from Alya at the on-campus café. “Fencing practice ran a little late, and my father would kill me if I went out in public un-showered afterwards, so…”

“No worries,” Alya assured, pushing the remains of her pain aux raisins across the table to him. “Eat. You must be starving. I’ll go up and get your drink.”

“I love you so much,” Adrien declared with misty eyes as he eagerly scooped up the pastry and took a small, polite bite that did nothing to betray how hungry he actually was because God forbid anyone get a picture of Adrien Agreste scarfing down baked goods.

His father would ground him for bringing dishonor upon the company and for tarnishing the family name.

Alya really hated Gabriel Agreste. That was a large part of the reason why she wanted to get Adrien married off so he could live a happy, peaceful life with Marinette who would smoother him with the love he deserved and not exert control over every aspect of his life.

“I know,” Alya chuckled, getting to her feet and giving her friend a warm smile as she pushed her righteous anger to the back of her mind. “What are you drinking today? Cappuccino? Latte? Mocha?” she tempted.

“Just a cortado, please,” he replied, fishing out his wallet.

Alya rolled her eyes and waved away his money. “What? Watching your weight? I’m getting you a flat white. I’m sure you burned enough calories for a full-sized drink during fencing.”

She turned on her heel and headed for the counter before he could protest.

She returned shortly with the promised drink and a pain au chocolat, grinning as she saw Adrien’s smile expand in delight.

“You are the best person,” he breathed, looking like he was about to cry in gratitude.

“You’re too easy, Agreste,” she chuckled, setting down her purchases and retaking her seat. “So…you and Kagami…”

Adrien quirked an eyebrow, pausing with the coffee cup halfway to his lips. “I just saw her at fencing. What about Kagami and me?”

“Is anything romantic going on between you two? I’m asking for a friend,” she fibbed smoothly without actually lying.

Adrien laughed, setting his cup down as he shook his head. “Kagami and me? No. No way. I mean, I know we kind of had a bit of a will-we-won’t-we thing going on when we first met, but we decided we were better just as friends. She’s like a sister to me now. Besides, Kagami already has a gir—uh—someone she’s seeing,” he quickly corrected, holding his breath and hoping that Alya wouldn’t make out what he had been about to say.

One look at the surprised, open-mouthed expression on her face told him that there was no such luck.

“Kagami has a—”

“—Shhh!” Adrien cut her off, waving his hands as best as he could in the limited space to silence her. “It’s a secret,” he hissed, looking around to see if anyone had heard. Fortunately, it didn’t seem like anyone was paying attention. “Kagami’s mother would flip if she found out, and Chloé and Kagami would never speak to me again, so…please?” he begged frantically.

Alya’s eyes grew even wider. “Chloé?!” she spat incredulously, keeping her voice low. “Kagami and Chloé?”

Adrien buried his face in his hands, groaning in misery. “Somebody put duct tape over my mouth already. I shouldn’t be permitted to speak. Maybe my father is right, and I should just stay quiet and look pretty.”

“I wouldn’t go quite that far,” Alya snorted, reaching across the table to gently peel Adrien’s hands off of his face. She gave them a bolstering squeeze and smiled encouragingly. “Chin up, Sunshine. No one’s going to hear about this from me. Promise.”

“Thank you,” he whimpered meekly, shoulders slumping in exhausted relief for a moment before he collected himself and resumed his perfect posture.

“No worries,” she assured, releasing his hands. “Eat your pastry, you goof.”

“Thanks,” he sighed, happy to comply.

“So…” she led in, taking a sip of her own chai tea latte.

He looked at her and inclined his head slightly to show he was listening.

“Are you involved with anyone romantically right now?” she inquired conversationally.

His gaze dropped to the table between them, and a melancholy air washed over him. “No. I’m not,” he grumbled with a sigh, and Alya got the impression that this was a sore subject.

She should think so, seeing as he had supposedly been in love with the same girl for seven years with no hope in sight.

“You sound kind of wistful,” she noted carefully, wary of pressing the wrong button. “Got someone in mind?”

“Yeah,” he muttered into his flat white. “Fat lot of good it’s doing me.”

“Who is it?” she asked in unfeigned concern. “Anyone I know?”

He shrugged sullenly. “I don’t really want to talk about it, Alya.”

“Okay, but…if you tell me who she is, maybe I can help set you two up,” she offered, feeling a little bad now for calling him out to manipulate him into revealing the identity of his crush under false pretenses.

He shook his head and gave her a tired, forced smile. “Thanks, Alya, but I don’t think anyone can help me. I think maybe I just need to finally give up on her changing her mind about me.”

“Oh,” Alya replied quietly, pensively biting her lip as she contemplating her next move and what would be best for both Marinette and Adrien.

“It’s hard,” he confessed down at his pain au chocolat. “Over the past few years, it’s felt like we’ve grown a lot closer. I know I’m important to her, and she does love me in her own way. It’s just not the same way I love her, but…from time to time, just when I’m about to finally give up for good and try to move on, she’ll do or say something that makes me feel like maybe I do have a chance if I just hang on a little longer. Every time,” he reiterated with a bitter smile, “it’s just enough to keep me going for another six months, another year…but I think I need to call it quits for real this time. It’s been seven years, and nothing’s changed.”

Alya abruptly decided that she did not like this girl Adrien was pining after. She began to think that Tikki had intended for Alya to find out the identity of this girl, track her down, and eliminate her so that Adrien could get over her already and move on to see how wonderful Marinette was, and then they could both live happily ever after.

“Yeah, no,” Alya snorted decisively. “Adrien my cupcake, no offence, but this girl sounds like she’s using you.”

He blinked at her, utterly taken aback. “What? N-No. She’s not. She’s just… She told me from the very start that she was in love with someone else. I’m the one being stupid waiting around for her to get over that guy. I’m the one misinterpreting the things she says and does and letting myself have hope. She’s never once led me on, Alya.”

She shook her head, giving him a pitying look. “Adrien, I know you love her, so you think the world of her, but it sounds to me like she’s playing with you like a yoyo to make herself feel better about the other guy who doesn’t return her feelings.”

He opened and closed his mouth several times, trying and failing to come up with a better argument than, “No. You’re wrong”.

“Hey,” Alya called gently, reaching out and taking his hand in hers. “Maybe I’m completely off base. Maybe I’m dead wrong, and she really is wonderful, and this is all an honest misunderstanding, but you’re my friend, Adrien, and I’m worried about you, okay?”

He swallowed and nodded, not quite trusting his voice yet.

“You’re one of the best people I know, and you deserve to be happy and loved right now, and, from what I’m hearing, it doesn’t sound like this girl is good for you. Maybe it’s totally not her fault, but that doesn’t change the fact that she’s hurting you. You with me?” she verified softly, as if she were patiently explaining something to the twins.

He nodded again, resignedly this time. “Yeah. I get what you’re saying…and I think maybe you’re right. Even if La—er…” He froze, searching Alya’s face in a panic to see if he’d given himself away.

She leaned forward eagerly. “Go on. ‘Even if Lay’…what?”

Adrien breathed a sigh of relief, sitting back and pulling his hand gently out of Alya’s. “Even if she doesn’t mean to, she’s hurting me, and it’s not good to keep myself in this never-ending loop. It’s not healthy.”

Alya stuck her lip out in a pout when she realized that she wasn’t going to get more than the first syllable of a name.

“Thanks, Alya,” he continued with the beginnings of an authentic smile. “I really appreciate you looking out for me. It means a lot.”

“Sure thing, Cupcake. Any time,” she promised, letting go of her frustration as she comforted herself with the fact that Adrien was bound to slip up sooner or later. “And I really mean that. Any time you need someone in your corner or someone to talk to, I’m there. You’re more to me than just my future-husband’s best friend, you know? I really do care about you, even if I’m crap at showing it sometimes.”

“Thanks,” he repeated, looking genuinely touched as his eyes turned dewy and a light blush rose on his cheeks. “Seriously. Thank you. I care about you too, Alya. I’d still hang out with you, even if you weren’t my best friend’s soulmate.”

“Bros?” Alya held up her fist, offering it to him.

“Bros,” he affirmed, lightly bumping his fist to hers.

At the contact, they both pulled back, making cartoonish explosion sounds as their hands opened, fingers spread wide.

They then promptly broke out in giggles.

“So,” Adrien remarked timidly once they’d both settled down. “Concerning moving on and getting over my unrequited love…”

Alya arched an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

“How exactly does one accomplish that?” he inquired sheepishly, hand going up to rub at the back of his neck. “Any advice you could give would be seriously appreciated.”

Alya grinned like a fox at this unexpected perfect segue. “I am glad you asked. Typically, the best way to get over someone who’s not healthy for you is to date around and find someone who is.”

Adrien pursed his lips, not so sure about this advice. “I don’t know, Alya. I kind of tried that with Kagami, and it was sort of disastrous.”

“Yeah,” she agreed, “but you and Kagami didn’t work out, and you never really tried again after that, did you? I mean, I’ve never seen you in a relationship…unless you’ve been really discreet, and I just missed it?” She tipped her head to the side in question.

He looked back down at his plate, picking up the pain au chocolat and muttering, “No, my love life just really is nonexistent,” into it.

Alya hummed, not impressed. “Okay. So, you tried moving on once, and it didn’t work out, so you gave up. Well, you’re older and wiser now, so maybe twenty-year-old Adrien will have better luck with this than fourteen-year-old Adrien.”

“I doubt it,” Adrien grumbled ruefully around a mouthful of pastry.

“How about we suspend our misgivings for a sec and just try it?” she suggested. “You want to be in a loving, healthy, uplifting relationship, don’t you?”

“Yes,” he sulked, unable to get past his doubts.

“Have you ever considered dating Marinette?” Alya smoothly put it out there.

Adrien nearly choked. “Marinette?” he repeated incredulously, eyes going comically wide. “As in Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

Alya frowned, irked by this response. “Yeah.”

“Marinette and me?” he laughed at the very idea, and Alya started to think that maybe Adrien Agreste was unworthy of her best friend until he continued, “Alya, Marinette is, like, lightyears out of my league. If I asked her on a date, she’d laugh at me because she’d think it was a joke, and then she’d feel really bad when she realized I was in earnest because Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a serious contender for best human being ever.”

Internally, Alya smiled because that was exactly the right answer, and she was going to see these two married and happy if it killed her.

“Like, what would she even see in me, Alya?” Adrien sighed, taking a disheartened sip of his gradually cooling flat white. “Marinette’s so cool and funny and clever and compassionate and creative and…I mean, not to even mention how gorgeous she is…”

He sighed again, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t stand a chance with her.”

“Why not?” Alya prompted, very satisfied with the information she had collected. “You’re rich. You’re smart. You’re literally a model.”

“Marinette doesn’t care about superficial stuff like that,” he snorted, waving away her counterarguments. “I mean, me being smart is a plus, but it’s just book smarts. I have very little practical knowledge like how to pay bills or cook or clean a house. I’m a huge dork, I’m clingy and needy and emotional and—”

“—Who the hell told you that rot?” Alya growled, cutting him off.

Adrien blinked at her, surprised. “I mean…I don’t think anyone ever told me that exactly, but…I guess those are the things Father complains about most, so…” He shrugged helplessly. “…I don’t think Marinette would really go for someone like me, Alya.”

Alya clicked her tongue, giving her head an indignant shake. “Adrien, you are seriously one of the sweetest, best people I’ve ever met. Like, seriously. You’re always so optimistic and happy and kind, even when the world gives you crap. You’re a genuinely good person, and there’s a lot about you that anyone with half a braincell could love. You need to ditch this negative self-image you’ve got because, I’m telling you, it’s bull.”

“…You really think so?” he asked hopefully, wanting to believe it.

She gave an indignant snort. “Boy, I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t think so. When have you ever known me not to speak my mind?”

“Never,” he chuckled, mood brightening.

“Exactly,” she harrumphed. “So, when I tell you that you’re amazing, you know I mean it, and you know I’m right because I’m always right, right? Don’t you dare disagree with me, Agreste.”

He broke out in a full-on laugh at that, nodding as a wide, shining smile stretched across his lips. “I wouldn’t dare.”

“Good.” She couldn’t keep a straight face any longer, and a broad grin twisted up the corners of her mouth as well. “In all seriousness, Adrien, you should think about asking Marinette out. She adores you, and you obviously have quite the hefty crush on her as well, judging by how you were so easily able to wax poetic about how awesome she is earlier. You should give it a chance. She’d be good for you.”

He dropped his gaze back down to the table, his smile dimming as he rubbed at the back of his neck. “I don’t know, Alya. I mean…I do like her. I could see myself maybe able to fall for her, but my feelings for the other girl have been so strong for so long, they’ve kind of gotten in the way. I don’t want to mess things up with Marinette. I admire her so much, and she’s one of the best friends I have. I seriously screwed up with Kagami and almost lost her friendship forever, and I don’t want to take that risk with Marinette. She’s too important to me.”

Alya bit the inside of her cheek, simultaneously fighting the urge to crack her skull open on the table because this was too dumb and, at the same time, swooning because the boy was painfully sweet and romantic. She could see what her best friend found so attractive.

“Besides,” he went on as an afterthought, “she doesn’t think of me that way. She’s told me several times. She was just a really big fan of my father’s work when we were younger, and she just thinks of me as a friend, so…”

Alya almost stormed out of the café to go find and shake Marinette. “She told you that?”

Adrien nodded. “Yeah. I mean, there were a couple times when I started to get the wrong idea, and, when I asked her about it, she told me, so I know she doesn’t have feelings for me like that.”

Alya pursed her lips. “Well. Maybe if you turn up the charm and flirt with her a little to let her know you’re interested, she’ll change her mind.”

Adrien blinked. “But…I already flirt with her. You know. For fun. Like what I do with Nino. Well,” he backtracked, “not as explicitly as Nino and I flirt, but…”

“Flirt harder,” Alya demanded, almost losing her cool as she realized the futility of her seven years of work trying to get those two idiots to kiss already.

Adrien didn’t look convinced. “I don’t know, Alya. Like I said, I’m not sure I want to risk my friendship with Marinette over this.”

“Think about it, okay?” she stressed, reluctantly accepting that it was mostly out of her hands.

All she could do was keep encouraging Adrien to make a move because trying to get Marinette to confess her feelings hadn’t worked so far, and Alya doubted that it would even make a difference if she told Marinette what Adrien said about how much he admired her and thought he might be able to fall for her. Marinette probably wouldn’t believe her, and Alya knew that, brave as her friend was, she didn’t have the courage to be honest about her feelings with Adrien. If Adrienette was going to happen, Adrien would need to make the first move.

“Marinette’s response might surprise you,” she encouraged. “You don’t have to confess undying love or ask her to marry you or even commit to being her boyfriend. Just think about asking her on a date. Super chill. No pressure. Just. One. Date. Okay?”

“…Okay,” he hesitantly agreed. “I’ll think about it.”

“Good.” She blew out a long breath, exhaling the stress. “Now. Moving on to things of vital importance. Are you coming over for movie night on Friday, or has your father plotted against us yet again?”

Adrien burst out laughing at her deathly serious facial expression and tone of voice. “Oh, I will absolutely be there, even if I have to sneak out.”

“Good. I love him dearly, but Nino has crap taste in foreign films,” Alya snickered. “You bring the movie; I’ll supply the snacks.”

“Epic,” Adrien chuckled, shooting Alya a conspiratorial wink. “Have you ever seen Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak?”

[factoffictionwriter]

Tiva Fic Amnesty #11

Here’s the start to a reunion fic - pre 2019 madness. I wrote this several years ago, so Cairo wasn’t a thing. This was all I got around to writing before it was forever banished to my ‘unwritten’ folder.

Ziva leaned against the doorframe, a warm mug of coffee in one hand and a sippy cup filled with tea in the other (cooled to room temperature and decaffinted, of course). She watched them sleep for a minute, Tali curled protectively around her stuffed dog and Tony curled protectively around her. 

Kelev had been a last minute addition to the go-bag. The dog had been a gift from none other than Schmiel Pinkus on the little girl’s first birthday. He had been struggling with several health issues at the time, but that hadn’t stopped him from visiting his girls to celebrate one full year of a new life. The old man passed away just a few weeks later, and Tali had been really affected (as affected at a one-year old can be). The little dog, the last gift given by a man who fawned over both of the David girls from the moment they were born had become a true staple around their home. An absolute necessity, to be honest. And Ziva had become so accustomed to the little toy being glued to her daughter’s side that she found it very hard to part with it. It was bad enough she had to separate from her daughter, did she really have to lose the stuffed dog as well? Couldn’t she just keep it with her and let it’s presence act as a stand in for the curly haired girl? Would that be so terrible? 

But in the end, the dog had made the trip to America because, frankly, Tali would not be able to sleep without him. And his comfort would be even more important as the girl started to realize that her mother was gone. 

She had used similar logic when deciding to stuff the old photo in the bag as well. The photo had sat on Tali’s changing table since the day she was born. The girl knew the photo like the back of her hand. Seeing it would bring her peace and joy. And if it sparked some sort of memory for Tony as well, then it was two birds with one frame, was it not? 

Tony stirred slightly, perhaps drawn back to consciousness by the enticing scent emanating from the mug.

He tightened his arms around his daughter for a moment before opening one eye. He looked around the room until he noticed Ziva standing there. He squinted up at her. 

“That coffee?” he asked, his voice gravely from sleep. 

She nodded. 

“For me?” 

She smiled as she pushed off the frame and made her way around to his side of the king bed he currently shared with a 2 year old. She set the mug on the side table before moving around to the other side, slowly shaking her daughter’s shoulder and offering her the sippy cup. 

Tony sat up reluctantly, watching the way Ziva’s small, fragile hands caressed their daughter’s hair and listening to the soft lull of her voice as she mumbled something in Hebrew that caused the toddler to perk up and reach for the tea. 

As Tali sipped happily, Ziva looked back over at him, “It is only noon. You will likely need the caffeine if you are to make it through the rest of the day.” 

He nodded and reached for the mug, choosing to believe that the warm was from her hand holding it before and not just from the warm liquid, “Jet lags a bitch.” 

She shot him a look before brushing curls out of Tali’s face. No cursing around the child. He would have to get used to that. 

Tali yawned and moved to be closer to her mother, snuggling up on the woman’s lap, her dog all but forgotten on the bed beside her. 

“Someone is still tired,” Ziva cooed as she watched her daughter, “If only there was something less addictive to help keep her awake.” 

“Sugar?” He asked as he sipped from his mug. 

Ziva shot him another look. 

He held up a hand in surrender, “Sorry. I’ve only been doing this parent thing for about a week.” 

She winced just a bit at the accusation in his voice. He silently scolded himself. Now was not the time to be angry with her. Now was the time to make amends. To get his family back. 

“Are you hungry? I was thinking about running down to that cafe across the street and getting some sandwiches or something. I can bring it back here if you want.” She barely glanced at him as she adjusted the toddler on her lap, who was once again fast asleep. 

Tony looked at her for a minute. Her hair was down with only the front pinned out of her face. She was wearing a thin, flowy white shirt that buttoned in the front with a black tank top underneath. She had on jeans with frays and rips around the knees. She looked younger somehow. Like she spent the past 3 years figuring out how to turn back the clock and reclaim her youth. In a way, he supposed she had. No better way to turn back time and redefine your life than to raise a kid. 

Then he looked down at Tali. Her sandy curls wild from sleep. Her fuzzy purple pajamas sitting sideways on her body from all the twisting and turning she did in her sleep (definitely Ziva’s kid). She looked peaceful. More peaceful than he had ever seen her. He felt like he was getting just a glimpse into what their lives had been like before he became involved. The two girls, smiling and laughing with each other, spending all day playing together and all night sleeping beside each other. 

That was the first thing Tony noticed when he visited the burnt remains of her little Israeli farmhouse: the charred pieces from the supposed nursery did not contain evidence of a bed. 

“Tali started sleeping with Ziva when she outgrew her crib. They both seemed happier with that arrangement, so they never got around to buying another bed,” Orli explained as she carefully walked through the debris. 

He stared at the metal frame in what was left of what he assumed had been Ziva’s room, trying to picture her curled up beside a sleeping Tali. 

“They were pretty close, huh?” 

Orli stopped walking and turned to look at him, “Ziva was everything to that little girl. And Tali was the same for her mother. They were best friends. Completely inseparable.” 

Tony nodded as he bent down to pick up an odd object that kept catching the light. He held it up. A picture frame. Not wood, but some sort of weird wire design. The glass was broken, and the picture inside was blackened with soot, but he swore he could make out the figure of a woman holding up a little girl in what looked like a princess dress. 

“She told me that Tali was her savior. After you left years ago, Ziva was… well, she wasn’t happy. She hardly spoke to anyone and was truly struggling to find her place here. But when she found out she was pregnant, I think it gave her something to live for. She immediately started making plans and buying supplies. She was determined to be a good mother. She was determined to give that little girl everything.” 

“Everything but her father,” he mumbled as he carefully slid the photo out from under the glass and stuffed it in his pocket. If this trip didn’t end the way he planned, he would ask Abby to try and fix the photo. There was a chance it was the only one of mother and daughter that would ever exist. 

Orli moved closer to him, being careful not to overstep her bounds. She knew Tony didn’t like her, but she also knew that it was her job to make him understand. 

“She regretted that, Tony. More than she would even admit out loud. I saw it in her eyes as Tali watched TV or played with her toys. When she looked at that girl, she saw you. And that was both her greatest gift and her most torturous possession. She wanted to tell you, but she knew you would be mad that she had waited so long.” 

“Well, she wasn’t wrong.” 

“Yes, I know. And she thought about it constantly. If she hadn’t been in such a dark place when she first found out she was pregnant, maybe she would have been willing to tell you then. But the fact was that she waited, and she wasn’t sure how to fix that. But she loves you, Tony.” 

It had taken him several hours to process her intentional choice of words. Loves. Not Loved. Just like he had told Gibbs that Ziva loves Paris. Maybe he and Orli would get along better than he thought. 

So the next day he booked two tickets flying into Charles de Gaulle and was on the way to a tiny hotel he remembered from their visit when he stopped by the infamous cafe where the two of them had eaten before catching their flight back to the states all those years ago. He and Tali sat on the sidewalk, splitting an order of Pain Aux Raisins and talking about their next steps (or more like him talking and her mumbling along as she pretended to understand his questions about strategy and coverage). 

“So, what do you think? Should we get some sleep and wake up in the morning ready to search? How about we split up? You head toward the Eiffel Tower, I’ll head toward the Arche and we meet at the Louvre?” 

Tali nodded excitedly as she reached for another pastry, and he laughed quietly to himself. He let himself wish, just for a second, that he had brought senior along with him. It would be nice to leave Tali with him and know that she was safe and taken care of so he could focus on the search. But, oh well. This was something the father-daughter duo would do alone. An important bonding experience. 

And a bonding experience it was. The two made funny faces and laughed together through the whole walk to the hotel. And maybe it was the laughter, or maybe it was the busy parisian streets, but either way he had been completely unaware of the slim figure following behind them at several paces. Unaware until he turned toward the large glass doors of the building and saw a familiar reflection behind him. 

“Ima?” Tali asked as she leaned forward in her seat and tried to see around the side of her stroller, unsure of whether or not she was seeing correctly. 

Ziva stepped around him without a word and offered the little girl what appeared to be a plushie of the Eiffel Tower before bending down to kiss her head, “Shalom, Motek.” 

Tali smiled and looked down at her new toy as Ziva stood up and turned toward him. 

“Hi,” she said simply. 

“Hey,” he replied dumbly. 

She nodded slightly, as if showing that she accepted his greeting before stepping around him again and motioning for a taxi. 

The three of them were silent as they were driven to her little two bedroom apartment farther up town, and she barely had to glance at the two to know that they were both exhausted from their flight and still very much functioning in a different time zone than their current one. She ushered them into the back bedroom and insisted they sleep it off. He noticed that the sheets smelled like her as he slid underneath them and pulled his daughter closer to his chest, and he’s pretty sure it was that comfort that had both of them slipping into a ridiculously sound sleep. 

And now, some 12 hours later, the three of them are all sitting in a bed together discussing lunch plans. It was all so domestic.

He watched Tali reach up and grab a fist full of her shirt, sensing that her mother was talking about leaving again, if only for a few minutes. He felt about the same way. 

“Nah. We can all go down together later.” 

She looked up at him confused, “You are not hungry?” 

He shrugged, “I am. But I’d rather we all go together.” 

Her eyes narrowed at him, but only for a moment. Then they turned shy - apologetic even. She couldn’t fault him for being cautious. She’d developed a reputation for running lately.

[bitchiha]

Can I get a Naruto, Harry Potter and Marvel ship please? I'm average height with hazel eyes and long, dark-brown hair. I'm sarcastic, stubborn, laid-back, down-to-earth and very open-minded. I love reading, writing, listening to music and taking naps. I love animals, nature, the winter and the fall. I daydream a lot and I'm terrible at social situations (unless I'm really comfortable with the people that are with me). Thank you so much!

Voila!

I ship you with...

Shikamaru Nara!

When he first meets you he’s already like 0-0 wow pretty, but he doesn’t say that of course. He likes that you’re not loud or overbearing, but at the same time you’re not too quiet. You won’t let yourself get pushed around by anyone and you’re also pretty sarcastic, which is a bonus because that means you’ll get each others humour.

One day when he’s walking around the village and he sees you laying on the roof of your house. He was kinda curious as to what you were doing, so he goes up there to check and it turns out your cloud watching. You make some sarcastic comment at it him which he’ll chuckle at, but lay down next to you anyways and watch the clouds with you. Then it kinda all goes downhill from there.

He’ll like lazy things you do together like laying on the grass and cloud watching or more like he cloud watches while you go walk around looking at all the animals in the forest. He likes when you daydream because you look cute when you do it and it’s also an opportunity for him to tease you, but don’t be afraid to be snide back, he lowkey likes it.

WILL TAKE NAPS WITH YOU 24/7!! Like you two may not have been planning to have a nap, but you both wanted one so why not? Sometimes you both won’t get anything done tbh

Will complain about going on little nature walks or exploring for animals, but he secretly likes it. He will definitely make you rest periodically for ‘cloud watching breaks.’ Since your both really go with the flow and down to earth, your dates are more spontaneous. Like he’ll knock on your door and ask if you wanna get some barbecue, or you’ll knock on his door and say it’s a perfect day for a walk. You two can listen to music together while you’re on walks or cloud watching. He thinks his music taste is superior though and will always want the aux cord.

Bonus if can bring you cloud watching and you’ll read a book instead, putting your head on his lap as you do so. He just lives for the little quiet moments like that and will definitely make a routine of asking to cloud watch with him. Also likes if you just talk to him while you’re together like that. It can be about your book, about a new song you like or a decent mission you went on. He just lives for your voice.

Will wanna play Shogi with you, he likes that you really put an effort into the game. You may not be the best, but you’re trying and that’s all that matters. It also really boosts his ego everytime he beats you at Shogi because he wants to make sure you know he’s really smart.

Thinks that both your awkwardness with social situations and your daydreaming are really amusing. He won’t tease you too much about daydreaming all the time because you look pretty when you do it and he doesn’t wanna deter you from it. However, he will get a real kick out of your awkwardness though. Like he won’t be a bitch about it because he wants you to be comfortable, so he’ll try and ease your stress. But beware, if you do something embarrassing or stupid by accident he will laugh his ass off.

You can definitely push him around a bit too. Like you’ll only take the lazy shit 50% of the time. Plus, if you didn’t push him around he would never do anything, so don’t feel bad about it. You’re doing him a favour.

Remus Lupin! (marauders era)

Andrew Garfield is his face claim I don’t give a fuck that’s his face claim fight me

He’s probably been crushing on your for timeee. Like since first year time. Despite your own awkwardness in social situations he’s still too nervous to talk to you.

It isn’t till like fourth year, when you’re hanging around the black lake trying to find the giant squid, that Remus Lupin actually approaches you. Sirius, James and Peter were all hiding behind a tree waiting to hear what your answer would be. They had noticed Remus’ interest in you since first year and they teased him endlessly about it. It wasn’t until this year that they actually managed to get him to ask you out.

When he comes up to you his face is all red and his hands are clammy. You’re really nice to him though, minus the fact that you were a little bit awkward around him. I mean you had little conversations before about animals (you were always reading books about them) and your classes. You were more than happy to hear him ask you out on a date to Hogsmeade though as the feelings he had for you were mutual. That begins the start of a cute and wholesome relationship.

Since you like nature so much, you usually end up lounging outside on lazy school days. Like if its spring and the weather is amazing, you’ll lay on the grass together and read. He’ll love it if you read to him, or sit in his lap so you can both read the book. If it’s fall, you two would walk around the castles courtyard and watch the leaves fall and crunch them with the soles of your shoes. You would probably listen to music on a Walkman Sirius smuggled in for him as you walked around.

If you’re dating a marauder, you basically become one. So that means you’re involved in a lot of antics. You fit in pretty well, you’ve got that sarcasm to bark back whenever Sirius or James want to get sassy. You’ve also got the stubbornness that keeps their plans going, if the prank fails the first time, it will just have to be even better the next time. They’ll love you like a sister and will never allow you to get introuble for their pranks.

Will also love to read the works you’ve written yourself. He will be super supportive and even come up with ideas for you to write about and they’re surprisingly good! Can proofread your work if you want him too bc we know he’s smart asf

When you find out about his ‘condition’ he’s embarrassed, but you reassure him that you aren’t afraid of him and he won’t hurt you. Sometimes he can be too self concious and you’ll have to knock some sense into him.

Will die of happiness if you buy him chocolates. Like make it a routine thing where a certain day of the week, or month you would give him chocolate. He will brag about it constantly to the other marauders. He’ll like whip out the chocolate and be like “oh yah, look at this? Wanna know who got it for me? Y/n!” And there just like: he does this every fucking time

Peter Parker!

So you meet him at school, I can see you being a friend of Michelle’s. You’re definitely more approachable than she is, so he talks to you more and more and eventually Michelle just starts saying “go out already” when ever you two talk. So then he finally works up the courage to.

He’ll come up to you after school at your locker and he’ll give you a flower or something bc he knows you like nature. He’s so nervous when he actually asks you and you can see his face get red and he’s sweaty. You say yes ofc and he’s so happy. Anyways, the first date will be at Central Park bc that’s like the only form of nature he can find in New York. Then he’ll take you to that Thai place he usually goes to with Aunt May.

After that you two become inseparable. You’ll come over to his place and read while him and Ned build their LEGO Star Wars shit. Sometimes you’ll help but other times you’ll read or watch them.

Peter can be a sassy little shit, but guess what? so can you. Will have sass offs of sarcastic remarks for a good half an hour.

You’ll find out his identity as Spider-Man at the same time as Ned. Like the two of you were supposed to hang out at Peters and finish the LEGO Death Star and then spider man crawls through the window and your both like: bitch wtf

Anyways he will 10/10 swing you around New York with him. You’ll probably lay on the roofs of a building and watch the sun go down. He will web a lil hammock for you two to lay on and it would just be so chill.

Likes to listen to music with you while you’re on the subway together. You two are just commuting to school and whips the AirPods out, one for you and one for him. The two of you will alter in who will play the music that day. Also will get sandwiches with you after school and treat you everytime, even if he’s borderline broke.

Will brag about you to aunt may 24/7 and will get all his romantic advice from her. So sometimes the romantics gestures he makes are a little sappy but you can tell he’s trying so you don’t care. Since you really like nature he’ll put an effort into doing things that involve it with you. Like you’ll go out of the city to pumpkin patches in the fall or in the winter you could have a snowball fight on the way to school and in the summer you’ll go on walks in the parks a lot.

Will also brag about you to the avengers and show you off through pictures on his phone and they’ll be like: bruh we get it shut up twerp. But they ship you guys anyways so.. and when he’s on missions he misses you a lot so expect him to ft at odd times. Like he’s fighting a bad guy but he misses you? Expect a ft call. He’s on a top secret mission that is deeply classified? Expect a ft call.

Also he will send you memes 24/7 and expects memes in return. It’s common courtesy, jheez ppl.

[breanime]

After You

Request from @drinix:  After You by Meghan Trainor for Logan?

WARNING: this is VERY angsty, mentions of drug abuse, and I don’t wanna give it away, but it is HEAVY. Read with caution, sweeties.

*gif not mine*

You sat at the back of the room, legs crossed and your hands in your lap over your skirt. Some of the people there recognized you; you could tell by the way they looked at you as they walked past. You even heard one of Logan’s work friends whisper “that’s her” as they looked you up and down. You didn’t mind. They were so low on your radar, none of it mattered. You kept staring forward, watching the priest prep for the ceremony, and waited for Logan.

It was his day, after all.

It hurt, of course, being there. You and Logan had ended things a little over a year ago, right after he and his future brother-in-law had gotten back from Westworld. Things had been different after that. You and Logan had a deal about Westworld—robots were okay, real people weren’t, but after his trip, you caught him cheating. Before that, you’d noticed him drinking more and going to the office less, and you suspected he was using drugs again. It wasn’t long before you found him passed out on your apartment floor with a needle in his arm.

Logan had been staring at you with watery eyes. You’d been able to get him on the couch, but he was still shaking from the strength of the drug. You could barely see him through your tears.

“Please,” you begged, on your knees in front of him, “Please, baby, let me take you to rehab. Let’s get you help.”

“I don’t need help,” he sniffed, wrapping his arms around himself, “I—I’m sorry.”

“Hey, hey,” you had put your hands on his knees, trying to warm him, “It’s okay, I’m not mad—”

“—But you should be,” he blinked down at you, his dark eyes looking so tired, so sad, “I fucked up, Y/N. I fucked up with William, I fucked up with my Dad, the company—I fucked up with you.” He closed his eyes then, and you watched the first tear spill down his cheek, “None of it, none of it matters to me except you.” He shook his head, his thick dark hair becoming even more disheveled in the process. “I’m sorry, Princess, I’m so, so, so sorry.” He had started to sob then.

You sat up and cradled him in your arms, running your fingers through his hair and shushing him. He kept whispering “I love you”, “I’m sorry”, and “I fucked up” into your shoulder. Logan was always slim, but he felt so hollow in your arms. He had lost weight. At some point, you had crawled onto the couch with him and laid down with his head on your chest.

You talked all night, reminiscing on good times and trying to convince him to let you take him to rehab. Slowly, Logan started telling you some things that had gone on in Westworld, and about how his father and William were starting to push him out of the company. He told you about how he was scared, and about how worthless he felt.

“I love you,” you had whispered into his hair, “Please, baby, let me help you.”

He had looked up at you then, big brown eyes swimming in tears. You could see how broken he was, how scared and hopeless, but more than that, you could see how much he loved you reflected in those doe eyes. “I love you,” he said back, voice low and shaking, “I want to be better for you.”

You dropped him off at rehab the next day.

His sponsor was there, the one from the rehab facility. He nodded at you from across the room. You nodded back. He had been a good sponsor to Logan, and a lifeline to you. The first time Logan left rehab, the two of you spent hours looking for him. Logan had cried in your arms when you’d found him, apologizing to you and his sponsor, who promptly took him back to treatment. It didn’t stick. It was odd, seeing him here. Of all the people there, dressed up and looking like they could care less, he was the only one—besides yourself— who you knew genuinely cared about Logan.

Logan.

He was just a few feet away from you, at the front of the room, but you couldn’t bring yourself to get out of your seat and go to him. He broke your heart again and again, and he was breaking it all over again today.

You stood in front of Logan, tears running down your cheeks. He wasn’t looking at you, but he was crying too. You hadn’t seen him in a month; he’d left rehab for the last time, burned every bridge at the center, and disappeared. Then he had shown up—clearly using again—at your door and greeted you with a simple “you need to let me go”.

“Wha… What are you talking about?” You’d asked, chin trembling as you spoke.

“You need to let me go,” he repeated, staring right into your eyes, “Our time is up, Y/N. I can’t… I can’t give you what you deserve. I’m not good for you, not good enough.”

“Don’t say that,” you begged him, “don’t… Where have you been?”

“I have to go,” he said, not answering your question, “I don’t… I can’t…” He sighed, dropping his head before looking back over at you. “You have to let me go. Move on. Meet…meet someone new.”

“I don’t want someone new!” You cried. “Don’t you get it—there won’t be anybody after you! You’re it for me, Logan!”

“I’m poison!” He screamed back. “Look at me—look at us!” He gestured to your tear-soaked face. “Look at what I’ve done to you, what I’ve put you through!”

“I don’t care!”

“Well I do, Y/N! I do!” He shouted back. His eyes were red, drowning in tears. “So I need you to move on, I need you to find someone good to give your love to, someone worthy!”

“Please,” you shook your head, physically hurting over how much you loved this poor, broken man, “Please don’t go and leave me alone.”

Logan closed his eyes and turned his head, refusing to look at you. “I have to.” You could see his hands shaking at his sides. “Because I love you.” He looked up at you one more time, eyes haunted. “Goodbye, Y/N.”

You had watched him walk away, screaming his name after him, hoping he’d turn around.

“Don’t leave me alone!” You screamed into the wind. “I’ll never find anyone after you! I just want you, Logan! I just want you!” He didn’t stop, his step didn’t even falter as you cried for him. “Logan! Logan!”

He didn’t even turn around.

That had been the last time you’d seen Logan, and just like you said, you hadn’t found another lover after him. How could you? He was everything to you; broken and hurt and incredibly infuriating—there wasn’t another person on the planet quite like Logan. He haunted your dreams, was in every waking thought, always on your mind. And now, after all this time, you were here to see him.

Your lip curled in disgust as Logan’s father walked past you. The very sight of him made your blood boil. Logan’s sponsor was the only one in the room—besides Logan himself—that you didn’t hate with a passion. Even Juliet, in her beautiful dress, crying prettily next to her husband, made your stomach turn. None of them loved Logan, not like you. He was yours; he was your whole world.

And now he was dead.

The priest was ready now, and you watched as he addressed the room. He spoke about souls and Heaven and sin, and you knew Logan was rolling his eyes in the afterlife. You zoned out during the sermon, staring past the priest at the coffin. You had been scared to approach before, but now you were ready to see him. You took a breath, realizing that this would be the last time you ever saw him.

Time passed slowly, but finally, they invited people up to view the body. That’s what they called him: the body. Logan’s sponsor was in line, and you wanted to talk to him, but even more, you wanted to be alone with Logan. So you waited. The Delos family left pretty soon after the sermon, sneaking out the backdoor, and the crowd started to disperse a few minutes after that. Slowly, you stood. Each step was painful, bringing you closer and closer to the man you loved. You took a shaky breath when you were just a few steps from the coffin. This was happening. This was real. You closed your eyes for a moment, trying to calm yourself, before opening them and looking down at him.

He looked like he was sleeping. Cause of death had been overdose, you’d been told. But he looked more like himself than he had the last time you’d seen him alive. You stared at him and felt the tears well up in your eyes. Maybe the priest had been right about Heaven. Suddenly you hoped he was right.

“I told you, Logan,” you whispered, staring down at his scarily still form, “there’s no after you.” The tears were rolling freely. “I love you.”

As you walked away, tears streaming down your face and heart more broken than you’d ever thought possible, you thought you’d heard Logan’s voice, clear and sweet, in your ear.

I love you, too.

*******************************************************************************************

I...am sorry? I don’t even LIKE writing Logan angst because he’s already such a tragic character, but the song was about lost love so.... here we are! Thanks for reading, guys.

TAGLIST:  @floralpeaceofmind​ @delicatelilyflower​ @dylanobrusso​ @ladyblablabla​ @banditthewriter​ @something-tofightfor​  @starsfragments​ @blackcoffeeandgreenteaforme​ @hisgirlwednesdayaddams​@fictionwillneverdie @maria-beretta​ @sadnessxvodka​ @ymariejp​ @sunnycolors​ @moonlightsay​ @its-all-o-kay @damagelove​ @keyeluh @itsmylife98​ @funerals-with-cake​ @littlemermaidprobz​ @teacuplotus​ @king4thesirens​ @mrsjaxtellerfan​ @thebabblingbook​ @tartelette-aux-fraises​ @madamrogers​  @charlylama​ @iaintnofurry​​ @k-buggz2001​​ @whitewolfslittlesilverfox @drinix​ @elanor-of-imladris​ @blah-blah-fuckit-shit @julliiaaq​ @holamor​ @ymariejp@shadowhunterscloset @songtoyou​ @anabella-baby @heyitslexy @luminex3 @sithskywalkers @carlaangel86@sssilverssserpent @jupiter-blake @binbons-is-theloml @captainblackeyes @importantkidmakerfire @luminex3 

[fresh-outta-jams]

Can You Hear Me?- Part 5

Johnny x Reader Author: MoRo

Prompt: Oooh okayy, I’d like to request some Johnny fluff please? Like maybe a soulmate au 

Summary: You were unconcerned about soulmate things because getting it was the end of your final year in collage and time was counting down until graduation. But what happens when your soulmate suddenly appears right before your finals exams and it turns out he’s been there for much longer than you knew? Having your soulmate in your head was not something you needed but the more you get to know him, the more you appreciate him being there. College!Johnny x reader

Note: ALMOST THERE EVERYONE!! Warnings: More flufffff Word Count: 1.7ish

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

"Finally..." You breathed out with a sigh of relief as the last exam leaves your fingertips.

Now it was finally break and not a moment too soon. You were bursting at the seams to see your soulmate.

"It's noon, you should be done with your exam by now. Soooo how did it go? Did you do amazing as always? I bet because you're basically a genius." Johnny bursts into your head talking a mile a minute.

Speak of the devil.

You laugh at him and stretch your arms as you walk back to your apartment to pack. "I dunno. I felt like I did decent but we'll see in a few days once grades get posted."

"Lemme know how you do?" He asks gently.

"Of course." You respond back. You found it really sweet how invested Johnny was in your education. He was like your own personal cheerleader, constantly rooting for you on the sidelines and always giving positive words of encouragement. Somedays you felt like you didn't deserve him.

You can feel the warmth of Johnny's smile as he says, "Thank you babe." Then he hops to the next topic. "Have you eaten yet?"

Reaching for your building's door knob, you twist it open. "No not yet. I was too nervous. But I'll eat after I pack with Maeve. I need to say goodbye to her before I leave for home." You let him know your plans before he can mother hen you for not eating. He was also VERY invested in your health, both physical and mental.

"Ahh okay good. Make sure you eat." He says in a caring tone before gasping. "Oh snap, my exam is in like 10 minutes. Gotta go babe. I'll talk to you after if you have time?"

You nod as you pull your suitcase out and begin to fold things to pack. "Of course, you know where I'll be. Good luck on your exam! Do great!" You send him a feeling of encouragement down the bond.

He chuckles softly. "Thanks baby. I love you." Then he's gone.

In two weeks you'll see Johnny. Johnny Seo. Your soulmate. Your boyfriend too technically. Two weeks. You couldn't wait.

Now that you didn't need to focus anymore for finals, your mind was all over the place never being still. You watched one of his YouTube videos every night and fell asleep with the image of his handsome face on your eyelids. You couldn't wait to hug him and touch him and kiss him.

Clutching the shirt to your chest, you squealed a little.

"Well someone is happy." A voice outside of your head makes you open your eyes. It was your best friend.

"Maeve! You're done with your exam already?" You try to change the subject as heat creeps into your cheeks and tips of your ears making you red.

Maeve laughs at your weak attempt. "Yeah, I finished early. It wasn't too hard." She gestures to your red cheeks. "Johnny say something?"

You laugh her comment and fold the shirt you were previously clutching to your chest. "No he's taking an exam right now. I'm excited because break is here and I can finally go see him." You smile brightly at your friend.

She shakes her head and smiles back at you. "My Lord you are head over heels for him." You can feel your cheeks heating back up.

"Is it that obvious?"

Maeve plops down on your bed, laughing as she messes up some of your folded piles. "Like the sun shining Y/N."

"This looks good on you though." She gestures at you with a hand. "You seem healthier actually. Like there's more color in your skin and you don't look dead everyday." Maeve squeals as you throw a shirt at her.

"Hey now! What's that supposed to mean!?" You tease her.

Shielding her face from another attack, Maeve speaks from the shelter of her arms. "I mean, like you look like you're eating regularly now and sleeping more." She throws the shirt back at you.

Catching it, "I guess you're right. He reminds me to eat and to sleep more when I get in those moods where I'm so focused. Johnny's kind of like an alarm clock in my head but like one I can't snooze or ignore." You explain while folding the shirt back up.

Maeve sits up and laughs. "Did you just call your soulmate an alarm clock?"

"I guess I did." You laugh with her. When she says it, it sounds funny.

Picking up a pile of clothes, you lay it down in your suitcase and repeat until the suitcase is full. Maeve stays the whole time updating you on her exams, her soulmate, and how much she's going to miss you over break.

After dinner with Maeve, you give her a hug goodbye and promise to text her when you get home. Then you pick up your bags and head home.

"Time to go home?" Your soulmate asks, munching on some fries at the other end of the bond.

"Yeah but I'm kind of sad." You admit to him.

Johnny nods on his side of the connection. "Yeah I know what you mean. You don't want to leave all your friends and your freedom at school but you are happy to go home and see everyone."

"Yeah exactly!" You plop down into the drivers seat of your car and turn the key in the ignition. Johnny always seems to know what to say too. He's uncannily good at reading people you've cone to find out.

"Oh love! How did you exam go? I completely forgot to ask you when you got done." That was another thing, he NEVER forgot. Which benefited you because with your bad memory you're surprised you remember the basic things, like breathing.

"That's alright, I knew you were with Maeve and I didn't want to interrupt. It gave me time to pack." He tells you. "But I think it went well, it was just presenting our final project to the class."

Plugging your phone into the aux, you clicked on your most recent favorite song and blasted it as you  pull out of the school parking lot and headed in the direction of home.

"Ah that's good then. I'm glad everything went well!" You tried to respond back to Johnny but you were jamming out too hard to the song to really pay close attention.

Then you hear laughing coming down the bond. Deep belly laughing. "What are you laughing at?" His laughter took your attention away from the song.

"You, you dork. I can hear you jamming out all the way over here. You must really like that song." Johnny continues to bust up laughing.  

"Oh my goodness really!?" You suddenly got self conscious. "What can you hear?"

"I can hear you singing the lyrics, like not singing singing but you thinking about the lyrics as you sing them. But I can also feel your happiness and excitement. Like it is just coming off the bond in full force." His deep laughter dies down to a soft chuckle as he tries to breathe.

"Oh my goodness I'm so sorry to just be invading like that." Now you felt bad about basically blasting the song at Johnny.

He laughs again. "Babe don't worry, I don't mind. Besides I like this song too. You have good taste, totally jam worth."

You laugh at that comment. Johnny may be smooth talker and know just what to say all the time but he's really just a giant dork. For someone who looks so cool, you can't believe how much of a big goofball he is.

It was another thing about him that you loved a lot.

The hours pass quickly with good music and Johnny. Soon you're pulling into your driveway and you turn the key off, shutting your car off.

"I'm home." You say to Johnny.

You shoot Maeve a quick text before climbing out of your car and popping open your trunk to grab your bags.

The front door swings open and your mom is standing there, smiling at you. "There's my baby!" She says from her place on the steps.

You smile back at her and close your trunk.

"Hey now, you're my baby. I'm not sharing." Johnny says, lurking in the corner of your mind. You roll your eyes at his comment despite your blushing cheeks.

"You're such a baby." You fire back at him. You hear his laughter again. "How did you even hear that?"

"I know, I'm just teasing. Oh I'm home now by the way." He checks in with you. "And honestly I'm not sure...I can sometimes hear things but they're like real far away and quiet. Most of the time I ignore them if I can hear them."

"Hmmm... that's odd. Oh and me too, as you heard." After hugging your mom, you drag your things to your room.

Johnny shrugs on his end. "I try not to think to hard about how it works, makes my brain hurt." He laughs and you laugh with him.

"Are you talking to someone?" Your mom appears in your doorway with clothes hangers in her hand.

You blush and stop what you're doing. You weren't doing anything bad but it feels weird to share your relationship outloud to someone other than Maeve.

Then your mom sees you don't have your phone out. "Ohhhh, was it Johnny?" She smiles and hands you the clothes hangers. You nod and take the hangers from her.

"You'll have to tell me more about him later. Oh and tell him I said hi." Then she gives you a wink before leaving your room.

"Uh Johnny, my mom says hi." You say down the bond, face still red.

"You'll have to tell her I said hi back." He responds, sounding distracted.

"Are you busy right now?"

He sighs. "No I'm just unpacking while mom is talking my ear off since I haven't been home in a while. She keeps getting irriated when I'm not paying attention. How about we check back in and talk before bed? That way you can tell your mom all about me and I can do the same." He says in a light teasing tone.

You roll your eyes at him and chuckle a little. "Okay, tell her I said hi then. I'll talk to you later then. I love you Johnny."

"I love you too Y/N." Then he's gone, leaving that empty spot that never feels right until he's back.

You finish unpacking and hanging things up and then head downstairs to see your family. 

[mrspaigedolan]

Stay With Me - G.D Part 1

Warnings: mentions of depression/ anxiety

Hey guys! Let me know if you want a part two to this. Also, please no harsh criticism. This reader/character if very real to me. If anyone ever needs to talk about mental health or anything please message me. My messages are always open. Also please request some imagines!

(Based on the song Lover, Please Stay by Nothing But Theives

Y/N P.O.V

Thursday night

‘Lover, I know you’re weary.

Eyes are tired, from the night’

Checking my phone for the thousandth time this hour. It was nearing 3AM. My eyes are wide open, slowly drying from my blinking slowing down. I don’t know why I’m still awake. All that I can hear is his soft snores next to me as his arm was laid around my waist.

My thoughts always kept me up. He knew I had struggled in the past. I refused to let him know that I was struggling again. He is just so perfect and I don’t want my burdens to be his. Yes we are dating but he doesn’t deserve to feel this way. I do. I deserve it. I didn’t want him to worry about me. I’m not his problem. I love him and I want to keep him safe. I hate everything about myself. He doesn’t need to know I still think this way.

Putting my phone back, I slowly moved his hand off my waist praying not to wake him. I placed a pillow where I was laying for him to cuddle with. I slowly slid off the queen sized bed that I had been laying on. I went to the closet we shared and I slipped on my shoes. I closed our bedroom door ever so lightly trying not to wake my sleeping boyfriend and his twin in the room beside us. I walked downstairs as quietly as I could. Opening the drawer we kept our pens and notepads in beside the fridge and I wrote him a note.

“Went our for a drive. It about 3AM right now. If I’m not back when you wake up, don’t worry. I’ll bring back breakfast. (Yes, for both of you) I love you forever and always.”

‘Lover, come to the kitchen floor

Tiles are cold, so am I’

As I finished writing my note I slid down the side of the fridge slowly coming into a ball. My head was in my knees and my arms were wrapped around them. Tears slowly falling and sobs. If you would just stop overthinking, you wouldn’t have to feel this way. No, you deserve what you’re feeling. Every ounce of it.

I decided to finally go for a drive. Grabbing my keys, opening the apartment door and walking down the hall. The halls were quiet. Lonely. I pressed the elevator ‘down’ button. The doors opened and I walked in the l elevator continuously pressing the ‘door close’ button hoping that no one would come in. As I pressed the lobby button I wrapped my arms around my waist. Taking a deep breath smelling his scent. The tears kept coming. I love him. I do. He doesn’t need to know about this.

The lobby doors opened and I walked out. Walking to my car I opened the door and got in making sure to lock the door behind me. Reaching for the aux cord I realized I left my phone on the bedside table. Sighing, I put my car in drive and drove off. I have no idea where I’m going. So I’ll let the road take me wherever.

‘Lover, I feel your sorrow

Pouring out of your skin’

Grayson P.O.V. (10PM previous time)

Y/N has been really off lately. I can tell something is wrong. I hate to push her on the subject because I know that if she wanted me to know, she would tell me. At least even tell Ethan because of how close they are. The bags under her eyes are more prominent. I can tell she went back to therapy. Based on her being gone for an hour and a half every Wednesday. I wish that she would tell me what’s going on. I wouldn’t even know how to help her but I would definitely try. I don’t know how to bring it up without her becoming even more anxious. All I know is that I love her and I hope that my plan works out well this weekend.

I heard the shower turn on and I decided to join her. I went to open the bathroom door but was suddenly stopped by the lock on the door. She never locks the door.

“Babe, can you unlock the door?” I questioned.

After a couple seconds, I heard feet shuffling and he door lock click. I opened the door and saw her open the shower curtain and get in. I undressed and stepped in with her. She was leaning against the wall, arms crossed over her chest, eyes closed letting the water run over her. I could tell that she was exhausted. But yet, she still looked so beautiful. It was like the first day I met her all over again. I ran my hands through her hair and she opened her eyes to look at me. Her icy blue eyes turned gray, dull and not as vibrant. She opened her arms and wrapped them around me. I loved it when she did this. Standing in the shower hugging while the water ran over us. My heart is racing. She still makes me feel some kind of way. I hope that she knows that she can talk to me, take all the time she needs with me, asking me if she needs something. I will always give it to her. I love her. I just really really hope my plan works.

‘So take from me

What you want, what you need’

Y/N P.O.V. (Current time)

I continued driving down the road as it started to rain. Looking at the trees passing me. Some alive and green, some dead and brown. As my eyes turned back to the road I saw a pull off spot and got out of the car. Holding myself walking through the woods in the rain. I had no idea where I was and I liked it that way. Grayson and I loved to go on adventures. My adventure buddy was at the house. I felt terribly alone. I deserved it. I deserve to be alone. I kept walking through the woods. Some of the leaves were slippery from the rain. So many of the tree branches blocked the way of the walking path.

After walking for awhile, I decided to go back to the main road. Which was almost a highway, but not really. I stood by the side of my car watching the traffic go by, wondering where they were all going to and what they were doing, who they were going to see. Maybe they couldn’t sleep and decided to go for a drive like me. I looked up and closed my eyes feeling the drops of rain hit my face forcefully. I quickly opened my eyes when I heard a horn and saw an 18 wheel truck right in front of me losing control and hydroplaning.

I only had two thoughts in that moment.

1. Maybe this is supposed to happen

2. Please Let Grayson and Ethan be okay

‘And I don’t want to be alone

If I am tonight, I’ll always be’

Grayson P.O.V.

I heard my phone going off. No way it was 8am already. I tried to hit snooze but couldn’t find the button. Grunting I opened my eyes and looked at my phone. Y/N want beside me which was odd. I was getting a call from a number I didn’t recognize. I answered.

“Hello?” I spoke my voice being raspy

“Hello, is this Grayson Dolan?” A woman asked

“May I ask who is calling?”

“This is Tracy from the UCLA medical center. I’m calling to let you know that Y/N Y/L/N has been in an accident. We looked up her chart and we see that you are h-“ I sat straight up in bed dropping my phone in the process on our hard wooden floor. My face instantly got red. Tears filling my eyes threatening to spill. I quickly picked the phone back up realizing that I needed her information before rushing out of the house.

“Hello? Sir, are you there?”

“Yes! Yes! I’m here!”

“Please come down as soon as possible and we can check all of her information.”

I hung up the phone grabbed a shirt and a pair of pants since I was only in my underwear. I pounded on Ethan’s door. Fully sobbing now.

“Dude get up please! I need you to come with me, Please!”

He opened the door slightly annoyed.

“Dude if this is a prank for a video it’s no-“ I cut him off

“Y/N was in an accident we need to go to the hospital now! Get ready!”

Ethan ran into his room fully awake now. I ran downstairs and saw a note on the counter.

“Went our for a drive. It about 3AM right now. If I’m not back when you wake up, don’t worry. I’ll bring back breakfast. (Yes, for both of you) I love you forever and always.”

The tears came even faster. I brought the note to my cheats hugging it thinking of her. I can’t loose her. Ethan came running down the steps. He was now crying too. They were best friends. No, they are best friends. I showed Ethan the note.

“She was gonna get us breakfast..” I said quietly starting to sob even more.

Ethan grabbed my shoulders and looking me in the eyes. His eyes teary.

“Grayson, stop. She needs you right now. Let’s go, come on.”

We both ran to Ethan’s Jeep rushing to the hospital.

‘Please hang in there babe. I can’t loose you’

I whispered to myself. I can’t live without you.

[heartbreakerholland]

a temporary home pt. 2 [t.h. & h.o.]

Word Count: a rocky 5.9k

A/N: yay i’ve finally got it up!! let me know what you think 🤗

[masterlist] [join a tag list]

[pt. 1]

•••

Distant music entered your dreams until you softly woke. You opened your eyes, met with yellow morning light that glowed around the room, peeking through closed curtains. You stared at them and wondered why they didn't seem right until you realized it was because they weren't yours.

You lifted your head slightly and looked around the room, realizing it was Harrison's. The curtains were his. The duvet covering your body was his, as well as the clothes you wore. The heavy mass next to you was him, still asleep and laying on his belly.

You rubbed your eyes and carefully sat up so not to wake him. You checked the time on your phone from the nightstand next to you, reading it was too early in the morning for either of the boys to be up. You laughed at yourself while you assessed your surroundings, amused that you didn't remember you were now living with them. It wasn't the first time waking up in Harrison's bed, but for some reason it felt odd. New. Promising.

You realized the music that invaded your dreams happened to be coming from the ceiling, which was probably from whoever lived above. Your new neighbor, you could say.

Quietly, you left Harrison's room and tiptoed to what you could now call your own. You shut the door and said to yourself, "Alright, Y/N. Just unbox really quick then you can eat breakfast." Your eyes went from one side of the room to the other, the messily placed bags and boxes overwhelming you.

-

Tom woke to the glorious smell of cooked food, which immediately got him out of bed with eager confusion. Harrison cooked from time to time but only ever at night, so the smell was an odd intruder.

The brunette lumbered out of his room and caught on to the sound of soft voices from the kitchen.

". . . sounds fun and all, but I could never go with my friends because I was always working." Silverware clinking plates followed after your voice.

Tom didn't try to be quiet when he approached the two bodies, his feet shuffling heavily against the hardwood floor, but a deeper voice carried on with the conversation.

"Well now you've got no excuse, so I'm definitely taking you, love." Harrison didn't even try to hide his excitement. "Should be fireworks tonight as well."

The blond seemed to be waiting for your response, but you looked up to have your gaze meet Tom's when he finally moved to your line of sight. Harrison was sat closest to him on one side of the kitchen island, back facing away from Tom, while you were stood on the other side. Your plates on the island still had food on them, and Tom realized the two of you were still eating. He sat next to Haz and rested his elbows on the countertop.

You smiled at him. "Good morning, Tom! Want me to fix you a plate? I just finished cooking like ten minutes ago, so food's still warm." You were already turning around to ready his breakfast before he could even nod.

"Oh, sure," he said, a bit surprised. His eyes still felt heavy from just waking up and he was definitely too tired to object or question your manner. "Morning, mate," he said to Haz, and patted his friend's back as a greeting. "What're you two on about?"

Harrison turned his body to face Tom's, clearly wide awake and beaming. "Apparently Y/N's not been to that fair they have 'round here every year, so I'll be taking her today." He proceeded to eat the sunny-side up eggs on his plate, and Tom stayed silent despite knowing Harrison hated eggs cooked like that.

The situation was almost funny to him. Harrison met you long before introducing you to Tom, and it was obvious there was a deeper connection Haz had with you. He did anything for you, and that was the clear truth when James slyly took you away from your best friend. Harrison backed off and allowed the distance because he knew how much James had meant to you at the time. Even when you lost your way, Haz was looking out for you in his own ways. Anybody would be jealous with your relationship with him, it being obvious that you'd never meet the same level with anyone else.

It was stupid, really. He thought Harrison had better judgement than to wait for a silly girl, but you still managed to have the blond boy wrapped around your finger and you didn't even know it. It was frustrating, knowing who you were and what you've done. He had to look out for his best friend, but it was difficult when Harrison's vision was clouded by you ever since he met you. Instead, the problem could only be dealt with and never vanished completely.

You placed a plate full of food in front of Tom as well as a mug of tea and the needed silverware.

He gave you a lazy smile. "Thank you, darling." Instinctively, Tom winced and grabbed a fork, gripping it tightly. It was obviously too early for him for his disliking towards you to manifest. Grogginess was truly a burden.

It wasn't that you stole his best friend from him. Tom was almost happy, even, for Harrison. Anything you did made him happy, and Tom noticed how he tried to do the same for you. Then he learned what truly happened before you met James, and Tom couldn't forgive you for that. Ever since then, nothing sat right for him. He could only be a mere onlooker who had the fortune of learning how you worked. Nothing you did could have been truthful, for all he knew. Nothing could be real.

Harrison confusedly glanced at him, but you paid the slip-up no mind. "Oh, you should come with us, Tom! Maybe meet a cute girl or something, show the world that you're alive, who knows."

If he weren't still waking up, he'd have noticed by now how oddly chipper you were acting. Instead, he was casual and reminded himself that it would be rude to scoff down all the tempting food in front of him. "Have you not unpacked yet?" he asked you.

"I started two hours ago, actually," you answered. "Just finished before cooking breakfast. . . So does that mean you'll come to the fair with me and Haz?"

"I've actually got a date," he announced, which wasn't a lie. He took a bite out of his food and nearly melted. "Mmpth thee yew ferr ackookly."

You and Harrison chuckled. "Swallow then talk, mate," Haz said. "Swallow then talk."

He gulped down the food. "Might see you there, actually," he corrected. Tom reached for his mug and brought it up to his mouth, noticing your attention was on him. He squinted at you but took a mouthful in anyways, which only resulted in him splattering the tea back in the cup.

"Ha ha," he said. "Think you're funny, eh, Y/N?"

Harrison amusedly watched the situation unfold with food in his own mouth.

You shrugged with a smirk. "Get that bitter taste out, yet?"

Harrison swallowed his food along with a laugh. "Y/N put too much sugar, eh? Guess you deserved that from last night, mate."

Tom had to give it to you, you were clever. Always clever. He looked at his friend and saw the humor in his eyes, and it was hard not to have the same look on his own face for once. "No, actually. She's put salt in my tea. Fuckin' salt. . . Can you believe it?"

Haz finally let out the laugh he was holding. Nonchalantly, you said, "Just thought your tea should be as salty as you, Thomas."

-

Later in the day, a knock came from your closed door as soon as you finished getting dressed from showering. You opened it to be greeted by a certain blue eyed boy, whom you welcomed in to your room. He sat on the foot of your bed while you sat yourself at your vanity.

"Ready, yet?" he asked. "Figured we should get there soon or else there'll be no parking."

You looked at each other through the mirror in front of you, to which you realized he was dressed and ready to go himself.

"Almost." You smiled at him. You were honestly nervous about going, but Haz didn't need to know that. You knew he would feel guilty for bringing you along, and he deserved to enjoy himself. You had to give him that.

A moment of silence ensued before he spoke up again. "Y/N? Is there another reason why you've not been to the fair yet?"

You sighed and looked down. Should you tell the truth or make up a white lie?

"I. . . uh."

The reason was embarrassing. It was because of James, whom you should've been over by now considering how long ago the breakup was.

"Yeah," you confessed. "James took me the first year we were together. We didn't go after that because he didn't want to, then after the breakup I was afraid I'd see him there. . . Still too many memories, y'know?"

Harrison made his way to stand behind you and rubbed your back. He gave you a soft smile through the mirror. "Fuck James," he said bravely. "We'll make better memories on our own."

You turned your head to face him directly and smiled back. "Thanks, Hazzy."

After a beat, you both got your belongings and made your way to the fair.

You sat in the passenger seat of Harrison's car, automatically entitled to connect your phone to the aux cord and play DJ for the car ride. Both of you began mumbling to your music while Harrison started the drive, still adjusting to the scene.

You turned down the volume so he could hear your next words. You faced your body towards him and though he couldn't do the same, you knew he was listening.

"Look, I know it can be really annoying if I talk about James so much, so I'm sorry. . . But is it okay if I do right now?" Having to confess that your ex was the reason you avoided the fair had left the thought of him lingering in your mind.

He raised his eyebrows, both hands steady on the steering wheel. "I'm all ears, love."

You took a breath. Harrison was safe. A safe person who could keep your words safe.

"It's taken me a while to realize," you started. You racked your brain to vocalize what you'd been thinking for quite some time now. "He's done a lot of damage, Harrison." You watched your hands fiddle together, unsure why what you knew for so long was difficult to say out loud. "I can't completely trust anyone anymore because he ruined that for me, y'know? Well, except for you, obviously. . . But it's hard to put my faith in people now because I could never know what their intentions are."

Harrison glanced at you worriedly. He stayed silent and you could tell it was because he was thinking of what to say. After a moment, he finally replied. "He hurt you, Y/N. He was the one who manipulated you and did all that shit and s'all on him, not you. It's fine you're still getting over it, but not everyone's James."

Harrison placed his right hand on your thigh and squeezed a little, silently telling you to look up at him. You did, and he gave you a comforting smile.

He spoke up after another moment. "You really don't seem as closed off as you make it sound," he confessed. "Looks more like y'just try to make everyone happy. Tom's noticed as well. Mentioned it before, I think."

You sighed. You were surprised to hear the two even noticed. You knew you did it, not on purpose, for reasons you didn't want to say. "Yeah. . ."

Your best friend glanced at you again, feeling your discomfort. He rolled down his window and stuck his head partially out with a smile. "Fuck James!" he yelled to the wind.

You started laughing. Suddenly your window was being rolled down as well, courtesy of Harrison, who nodded at you to follow him. "F-Fuck," you began, but burst into more fits of laughter.

It was a funny idea, thinking if you were a random passerby and heard somebody shout curses out their window for a certain James.

"Fuck James!" he yelled again, this time at the windshield.

"Yeah," you said with a big smile. You turned to stick your head out your window, not caring about what the wind could do to you. "Yeah!" you yelled this time. "Fuck James!"

"Fuck James!"

"FUUUUUCK JAAAAMES!"

Your antics continued for a delightful minute, the two of you repeating yourselves over and over. It stopped with only laughter to follow.

You could never be happier with your relationship with Harrison. Life was hard for everyone, but being best friends allowed you to carry your burdens together. You were thankful that you could tell him anything and know he'd do the same, even if it included all the nooks and crannies of a bad relationship.

"Oh, I love this song!" Harrison exclaimed out of nowhere. He turned up the volume which tugged your thoughts away, and took the liberty to belt the lyrics with the artist, and you did the same. Just like that, the bitter aftermath of your ex was gone with the wind, if only for a moment.

You and Harrison simultaneously grabbed each other's hand over the console. You raised both of yours, taking his with you while his other stayed on the wheel, and jiggled in your seat to match the beat of the song. Nothing unusual.

You looked over at your best mate, who lifted his face towards the sky every now and then to comically emphasize the energy in the music while he sang. You did the same as well, both of you filled with laughter waiting to come up between each breath.

You could never thank Harrison enough for being your closest friend. He was there to give you the rational idea of things just as much as he could give you a good laugh. You couldn't call it a day unless you had your banter with him, and you could never call it a night unless you wished each other a goodnight. You knew each other like you knew how many fingers you had, a matter of fact that you'd always be in each other's lives unless it was damn well forced out. (Even then, you'd still have nine more fingers.)

The song ended, but the next one came and it was all the same.

This was what a normal car ride consisted of. This was what being content felt like. This was a good home.

-

"You really didn't have to try and win that big banana for me," Tom's date, Beth, told him.

He had an arm around her waist while she hugged her small stuffed prize. They were leisurely walking around the venue of the fair, day slowly turning to night already.

He shrugged. "Y'said it was cute, so I figured you ought to have it. 'M sorry you've got to settle for less, darling. Guy at the stand was a bloke anyways." It was embarrassing, really, putting so much effort only to get a stupid little stuffed banana instead of a big stuffed banana.

She giggled and looked up at her date. "You do know all the games are rigged, right?"

He paused and wanted to slap his forehead. Did he really forget? "That would've been nice to remember, actually."

She laughed again then said, "I'm sorry you've wasted so much money on me. I can pay for things too, y'know."

Tom shook his head. "What? 'S'not a waste, love. If you're happy, I'm happy. I've got a job anyways, I can pay for it."

For first dates, this one was going scary well. Too-good-to-be-true well. He hoped nothing would happen, even like spilling a drink on Beth. He was genuinely excited to see what could happen between them in the future, and he hasn't felt like that for a girl in quite some time now.

"Oi! Is that my div?" a familiar voice called from behind.

Naturally, Tom would assume it was just a stranger calling for another stranger, but he knew the voice too well. He stopped and turned around to face the caller, with Beth doing the same since Tom's arm was still wrapped around her.

He smiled, happy to see the blond boy heading their way. When Harrison finally made it to stand in front of the two, Tom introduced Beth. "Beth, this is my best mate, Harrison. Harrison, this is Beth."

"Lovely to meet you," Harrison smiled. "Oh, this is Y/N! Where'd she go off to?" He turned around to see you following close behind, then stopping to face everyone.

Tom's face fell. Fuck, he thought. I forgot she was here.

"Y/N," Harrison began. "This is. . . Beth, was it? Yeah, this is Beth."

Your face lit up and you immediately began talking to Beth animatedly, as if you've known her for longer than two seconds.

Tom pulled Harrison to the side. "Mate," he whispered. "I love you and all, but can you try and leave us off to it? The date's going really well and I don't want a double date or anything."

Harrison chuckled and gave Tom a friendly slap on the back. "Yeah, I get it. I take it you won't be coming 'round tonight then?”

The brunette shook his head. If he wanted a one night stand, he wouldn't have gone through all this trouble for it. He saw something in Beth, and he genuinely hoped things went well with her. "This is different."

Harrison looked taken aback, knowing how difficult it really was for Tom to feel a connection with someone like he was showing now. "Well we're definitely having a chat when you get back. . . But I'll make sure we stay away," he winked.

Tom sighed in relief and quickly hugged his friend with a thank you. The two made their way back to you and Beth, who were still in what looked like an exciting conversation. It almost impressed Tom, how fast you got along with her, but he couldn't let his mind wander now.

He instinctively wrapped his arm back around Beth's waist. "Shall we go now, love?"

She shook her head with a light in her eyes, much to Tom's surprise. "Would you mind if we have a double date or something? I'd really hate to lose Y/N—"

His grin turned fake and he willed his grip on her not to tighten. "H can just give you Y/N's number, love. I'd hate for the queues for food to get long—"

"Oh!" you interrupted, matching Beth's eagerness. "I'd love to have a little double date! That would be so fun—"

"Maybe another time, love," Harrison joined. He saw the pain in Tom's eyes and knew this wasn't a situation they wanted to prolong. He wrapped his own arm around your waist, slightly tugging on your side to subtly pull you away from Tom and Beth. "I've actually got something I wanted to. . . show you?"

Beth turned her body to face Tom's completely and showed him her full attention. "Please, Tom? It would be so fun!" The boys glanced at each other, speaking with their eyes. They couldn't escape like they thought. Tom spared a look at you, hoping something fashionable like lasers would come out of his eyes. What could you have possibly said to make his date like you so fast? He smiled at Beth. "A game wouldn't hurt, I guess."

-

You and Beth walked together side by side, the boys following closely behind. You didn't normally make friends as fast as you did with her, but something clicked that made it so easy.

"That game was such bullshit," the girl said to you comfortably. "You got the basketball in the hoop! The lady never said you couldn't touch the rim! Bullshit, I'm tellin' ya."

You laughed, her rambling lifting your spirits.

The sky was completely dark now, the only lighting coming from the fair venue. Rides and stands for games and food completely lit up your surroundings, so brightly that you could've been convinced it was still daytime. Chatter from the average passerby filled your ears, as well as screams from various rides and live music playing somewhere you couldn't see. Variations of cooked food constantly moved past you, putting your nostrils in overload from all the scents. Everything about the fair gave such a classic feeling, which you enjoyed completely, especially with friends accompanying you.

Out of nowhere, Harrison appeared at your side and Tom at Beth's.

"Hey, love," Harrison said. He put a loose grip on your arm, nothing out of the ordinary. You turned your head to face him and vaguely noticed Beth did the same with Tom, as he called her name too.

"Mind if I pull you over for a second?" your best friend asked with a smile.

Not thinking too much of it, you looked around for a spot for the two of you to sit and talk. Your gaze focused on a game instead, more specifically the infamous strength tester game.

"Oh, Hazzy!" You lifted a finger to point in the direction of the attraction, catching the attention of Beth and Tom as well. "I bet I can beat you there!"

You began to walk faster, not caring if anyone followed. Harrison jogged past you immediately. "You're fucking on, div!" he practically yelled.

You, Beth, and Tom all leisurely caught up to Harrison, who was already paying to play. Tom went next in line, just about forgetting you and Beth behind him.

You crossed your arms and chuckled, standing next to Beth while the two of you watched Harrison.

Beth copied your motions. "Typical," she said amusedly.

"They work out a lot," you shrugged. "Sometimes they need to pull the ruler out, y'know what I mean?"

She laughed and you watched as Harrison nearly got it to the top, but not completely. You laughed at that, knowing you wouldn't hear the end of it for the next couple days.

"Beth? No way!" a voice said from behind.

The two of you turned around to be met with an unfamiliar face.

Beth smiled. "No way! Y/N, this is Josh, we—erm—went to secondary school together."

You greeted Josh, but before you could get any further in conversation, you noticed it was your turn to play. A small wave of guilt washed over you, barely noticeable, when you realized you and Beth completely missed Tom's turn. You knew he would blame you if he realized.

You stepped forward, trying to clear your mind and focused solely on beating Harrison's score. The boys were watching off to the side, which you knew was so you could feel added pressure. You grabbed the mallet and lifted it past your head, noticing an odd weight appearing and quickly vanishing at the end of it. You thought nothing of it, and slammed the mallet on the base of the tower. You watched eagerly, nearly having tunnel vision as you focused on your score.

"Damn it!" you exclaimed. You got the same score as Harrison.

You turned around only to see both your roommates as well as Josh knelt on the ground with Beth laying on it.

"What happened?" you asked innocently. You didn't even notice your roommates leave their previous spots.

Tom angrily turned to face you. "You, fuck's sake! You hit her with the mallet, Y/N!"

Your hands immediately went to cover your mouth. Shock rushed through you, knowing you were the reason your new friend was on the pavement in pain. You watched the three boys bent over her, hearing their words of worry.

"I should go home," Beth announced with a hand on top of where you guessed she was hit.

"Yeah, I'll give you a ride, love," Tom agreed. He stood up and got ready to help his date up.

She declined him, instead allowing her friend, Josh, to do so. "Actually, I think it would be better if Josh did." Tom's back faced you, but you knew his face fell because you felt yours fall itself.

Beth and Josh gave him an apologetic smile.

"Oh," his voice faltered. "Uhm, okay. . . I'm so sorry this date didn't go too well, but. . . I hope I can see you again?"

She glanced at you. It was then that you wished you warned Tom sooner of what she told you about her true feelings throughout the day: She lost her interest in him. It was why she was so adamant about having a "double date." Beth didn't know how else to break it to Tom, so you agreed to the plan since you felt bad for the girl even if you considered him your friend.

"I'm sorry, Tom," she said. "Probably not."

Before anything could get tenser, you walked closer to the small group. Harrison and Josh silently observed everything, and all three boys followed you with their eyes.

"I am so sorry, Beth," you told her. You leaned in for a hug, her reciprocating, and you whispered so the boys couldn't hear. "You won't stop talking to me, will you?"

You felt her body rumble with light laughter under your arms. "No, of course not," she whispered back.

The two of you let go and you let out a sigh of relief. Maybe you physically hurt her on accident, but at least she didn't want to stop being friends. You did feel a bit bad for basically shutting down Tom's date, but you silently thanked the night sky for having both of you trade phone numbers earlier in the day.

With no further goodbyes, Beth left with Josh. As soon as they got out of earshot, Tom turned to you and hovered a menacing finger over your chest.

"This is your fucking fault," he hissed.

Harrison immediately stepped forward and placed his hands between you and Tom. "Woah, mate. It was just an accident."

You could see the red in the brunette's face as well as a couple veins popping out under the lights of the fair. He faced his friend, and you were worried he would direct his anger towards him. You readied yourself to defend Haz. Tom was right; this was your fault and you were ready to own up to it.

"She fucking got on with Beth and basically ended our date right then and there. She spent more time with Beth than me which probably made Beth decide she didn't want a second date. She saw that dumbarse game and got us to play it. She was the one who hit Beth with the fucking mallet. This is her. Fucking. Fault."

Okay. Woah. That was a lot to own up to. You had no time to defend yourself as Harrison did it for you, though frankly, you didn't want any of it.

"Mate," he pressed. He stood himself closer to Tom which nearly alienated you from the two. "It was an accident. Beth forgave her and you should too. If it's not meant to be then it's not meant to be."

Tom's eyes were bulging out of their sockets. His fists were clenching and unclenching, and his eyes never left Harrison's. "I don't care, mate! Beth's not Isabella! But—"

"Woah, Tom," you interjected, moving around to get between the boys. You were shocked to hear that name, knowing how low of a blow it was to Harrison. You completely faced Tom now. "That's not cool. Just say shit to me. Haz doesn't deserve that, and she has nothing to do with this anyways."

He stepped forward and lowered his head closer to you. His next words came out in a deadly, threatening whisper. "You've not changed a bit, Y/N. Fuck you."

-

The drive back home was silent, Harrison having decided too much was on your mind to talk. He couldn't blame you, considering his thoughts were racing just as much.

The day was such a blast that he honestly wouldn't have believed it would go downhill. Double date with Tom and Beth or not, fun was fun. However, he was still trying to decide why he had such a good time. Part of him was dismissing it as just an eventful day at the fair with his best friends, while another part of him lingered on one particular friend to be the reason.

His history with you was. . . well. He met you, you became one of his best mates, then he met another girl. He and that girl dated, they broke up, then you met James. You ditched Harrison for James, you and James broke up, you came back to Harrison, then were best mates all over again.

It should have been as simple as explaining it that way, but it really wasn't. If he had to explain the dynamics and feelings between you and him, then it was just plain weird.

How would he explain his eagerness to spend time with you, or his genuine interest in yours? How could he word his thoughts that told him some people simply balance each other out, like how neither of you could complain about your constantly cold fingertips because it felt just right in the warm crooks of his back? How might he tell you that he slightly enjoyed your rivalry with Tom because not only did it show the effort you were willing to put for your friendship, but also because it was always a valid reason just to talk to you?

He could never explain any of that. He tried with Tom, but Tom just accused Harrison of having a crush on you and that wasn't it. Crushes were spontaneous and filled with nerves and stuttering and risks. What he had with you was comfortable with warmth and silky words and content. Crushes were temporary. What Harrison felt was permanent, having lodged itself in his chest since he met you, and from how long it's been there? He knew it would never leave.

He parked his car, finally making it back to the flat. Harrison looked over at you, half asleep and leaning on your arm against the window.

"Y/N," he said softly, shaking you awake. "We're here, love."

You groaned, wiping off drool from the side of your mouth. "I don't want to go inside. . . Tom will be there and he hates me," you whined.

The blond chuckled at your childish words, signaling to him that your sleepy state was overpowering everything else. "S'alright, I'll talk to him. Just go in your room and you can go back to sleep."

You slowly blinked. "Okay. . . I'm sorry we couldn't see the fireworks."

"S'alright, love," he repeated himself with a smile.

He followed your slow moving figure from behind as you entered the flat, groggily making it to your room while he made his way to Tom's.

Harrison lifted his hand in front of the closed door but hesitated and held it in the air. He glanced down at his socked feet from removing his shoes when he entered. He planned how the conversation would go during the drive, so why was he hesitant now? He might as well have prepared for a public speech, readying his points to be made and questions to ask.

He shook his head and looked back up at the door in an attempt to clear the nerves. He knocked then slowly turned the doorknob after a beat.

"Aye, mate. It's me," he announced. "Y'alright?"

He peeked his head in, seeing nothing out of place. That was a good sign, him knowing Tom would have broken a few things if he really were angry enough. The room was dimly lit by a single lamp.

The television was softly playing Love Island while Tom's focus was on his phone instead. It was odd, considering it was their favorite show to watch at the moment.

Tom didn't bother to look up from the light of his phone screen, so Harrison invited himself in and shut the door behind him. "Aw, watching without me again?" he joked.

Tom grunted in reply which only emphasized his clear pouting, which came along with his arms crossed over his chest.

Harrison sat himself on the foot of the bed, facing his friend. How would he do this? Should he stick to the script he imaginatively wrote? There were a number of things that Haz felt needed to be brought up, but should he mention all of them?

He sighed. This was hard.

“I’m sorry for bringing her up,” Tom started, to his friend’s surprise.

Haz knew who he meant. . . Maybe he wouldn’t have to stick to that stupid script.

“S’all right, mate,” he replied. He rubbed his face with his hands, still unsure where to steer the conversation. “I get it. Was kind of a dick move for me to say what you told me back then, I guess. You’ve just got to know that Y/N didn’t mean for all of that to happen. If anything, blame Beth for not being straight with you.”

Tom put his phone down and paused the television, giving Harrison his full attention. They looked at each other from one side of the bed to the other.

“I’m fine now,” the brunette stated. “Just still pissed about Y/N and all. She can move in—that’s fine—but not get involved with my love life, mate. Y’know what I mean? She’s done enough already.”

Harrison chuckled and briefly looked down at his hands. “Yeah, a bit. . . What’s your deal with her, anyways? It’s not looked like to me that she’s done anything too bad.”

Tom visibly gulped. He glanced between his own fiddling fingers and his best friend’s eyes nervously.

“Y’sure y’alright, Tom?” Harrison asked. He got up and moved closer to him. “You don’t look so good.”

Tom nodded. “Yeah, yeah. I just, erm. . . Y/N’s always. . . rubbed off on me the wrong way, I guess. She don’t seem so right. . . Not all the time, at least.”

Harrison chuckled again and slapped Tom on the back. “You just make her nervous, mate. That’s all. If you warm up to her then she’ll do the same, I’m sure.”

Tom nodded vigorously. “Yeah, I’m sure that’s it.”

The blond got up and walked towards the door, ready to leave. “Can you just do one thing?”

“Mmm?”

“Talk to Y/N, Tom. Whatever you’ve got against her, talk it out or something. You’re living with her now, can’t make things awkward.” He placed his hand on the doorknob, ready to turn it.

“Wait, Haz?”

He turned back around to face Tom.

“Uh,” Tom began. “I’m sorry again for bringing up Isabella. Wasn’t cool.”

Harrison smiled at him. “Don’t worry about it, mate. Like I said, s’all good. She’s got nothing to do with any of us anymore.”

Tom darted his eyes away from Harrison’s. “Yeah.”

[filmfanatic82]

Still My Person (Part 1)

AO3 Link (Here)

O’s POV:

“For the last time, no,” O huffs out with frustrated breath of air.

“You’re being crazy, O. It’s only twenty minutes away. I’ve been going there for years now and love it. Denise is seriously like the ultimate hair whisperer. Even Lexa approves of her and you know how picky she can be. I'm sure she can squeeze you in if I just give her a call.” Clarke shifts herself around in the passenger seat, digs into the back pocket of her black skinny jeans, and fishes out her cell phone. “Way better option than driving two hours to some random barbershop in the middle of nowhere just cause a friend of a friend recommended it.”

“No.”

“O…”

O glances over at Clarke, cell phone ready in hand, and is suddenly hit with a gut-wrenching wave of conflicting emotions. Their knuckles ever so slightly whiten, as they curl their fingers tighter around the steering wheel. Part of O, wants nothing more than to just turn the car around, right then and there, and tell Clarke to forget about it. But they know better. Doing that will only trigger Clarke to dive straight into one of her famous impromptu “I love you and will always support you” speeches and frankly, O just can’t handle sitting through it…  

Especially not today.

It’s not like O isn’t beyond grateful for Clarke’s unwavering love and support. Actually, it’s the exact opposite. In all honesty, they wouldn’t have made it even half as far in life, if it hadn’t been for that girl sitting beside them in the passenger's seat of her Jeep Wrangler.

Ever since that fateful day back in elementary school, some fifteen or so odd years ago, when an overly social 8-year-old Clarke happened notice a painfully shy 5-year-old O’s lack of a lunch and freely offered up her peanut butter and jelly sandwich, Clarke has been the one constant in O’s lie that they can continually count on no matter what the circumstance or situation. She’s always just there. No strings attached or questions ever asked.

And life, unfortunately, has truly thrown them both more than their fair share of curveballs. They’ve been by each other’s side through the loss of parents, friends, and those that were supposed to love them unconditionally, never once doubting in each other’s level of commitment or endless love for one another.  

Clarke, in short, is so much more than just their best friend. She’s their family… The only real family that O’s got.

And yet, if O’s being completely honest with themselves, Clarke isn’t the one that they desperately wish was by their side at this very moment in time. Yes, Clarke is so many, many things to them… but she just isn’t their “person”.

“You don’t have to come, Clarke,” O quietly responds, eyes returning to the open road. “I can drop you off and--”

“O Blake Griffin, don’t even think about finishing that sentence. You and I both know, I’d never in a million years let you do this alone. Even if it means accompanying you to the middle of bumblefuck nowhere.”

A small but noticeable smile creeps across O’s face as Clarke’s words fully sink in. “That’s a first.”

“What?”

“You used my new name.”

“Yeah. Well I’ve been dying for the right opportunity to try it out ever since you changed it. Gotta say, it’s got a nice ring to it. Especially the Griffin part.” Clarke gives a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders as if to say it’s no big deal. And yet, her matching smile says else wise.

“I was always meant to be a Griffin.”

“Just like you were always meant to be O,” Clarke counters with a warm and loving tone to her voice. “Now where the hell’s your AUX cable? I’m so not doing this ride listening to nothing but Disney’s greatest hits.”

“What’s wrong with Disney?”

But Clarke doesn’t even humor O with a response. She simply reaches over, snatches up the nearby cable, plugs in her phone, and then queue up some music. “Don’t get me started.”

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Two hours and a few pit stops later, O finds themselves camped next to Clarke on a row of less than comfy metal chairs, in a some no named barbershop on the outskirts of a town called Angel Grove, nervously flipping her cell phone over and over again in her hands.

O had first heard about this place from her jiu jitsu instructor Zack. It had come up randomly one day after an extra grueling grappling practice, where O had found themselves beyond struggling with their outwardly feminine appearance. Each time they would swap partners, it was the same pronoun song and dance. Yes, O had long hair. And yes, thanks in part to not being able to where their binder during practice, they had a clearly visible chest. But they weren’t a girl. Nor a boy. They were just O. A concept that most of their neanderthal like counterparts couldn't seem to wrap their heads around to save their lives.

After the twentieth or so time of correcting a classmate on the use of the female pronouns, O had been more than ready to throw in the towel, but then, seemingly out of nowhere, Zack stepped in and in his own, unique way somehow managed to put the entire class in their place simply by telling them that the next person who used the wrong pronouns when referring to O would have to spar against him… without the use of their hands.

It was a small gesture, but none the less, meant the world to O.

Afterwards, Zack had suggested that the two of them go grab a beer together at a nearby bar. O had been more than hesitant at first to say yes. They simply just weren’t the type of person who up and agreed to hang out with a perfect stranger… Especially, the seemingly hetero male variety. But there was something about Zack that made O feel at ease. Something that they rarely seemed to be able to find in others.

And so one beer turned into half a dozen, and before O realized it, they were spilling their entire life story to the lovable goofball of a boy sitting across from them. They talked for hours on end about everything and anything. Childhood. Friends. Losing parents from illness. Coming out; Zack as pansexual and O, first as bisexual and later genderqueer.

Then, when the conversation shifted to O’s current struggles with who they are and more importantly, who they want to become, without missing a beat, Zack reached for a bar napkin and scribbled down a name and address, telling them that if they were really ready to make a change, that they needed to go meet a friend of his named Tommi. That, out of anyone, Tommi was the one who could best help O take that plunge.

“Ouch.” O winces in slight discomfort as Clarke gives them a hard elbow to the arm.

“Look,” Clarke whispers while motioning towards the raven haired girl sitting with her back towards them in a nearby barber chair.

“What?”

“That girl.”

“What about her?”

Clarke gives O a slightly exaggerated eye roll and shakes her head. “You blind? She’s freakin’ hot.”

O briefly glances up at the girl, who’s too busy texting away on her phone to even notice that they are talking about her, and then back at Clarke with a general look of confusion. “Clarke, you’ve got a finance...”

“Technically, Lexa’s still just a girlfriend. Unless you know something--”

“I know nothing,” O blurts out, in a rushed exhale of breath that signifies one thing and one thing only… They’re lying through their teeth.

“Riiiight.” Clarke chuckles with an all knowing smirk. “Well, anyways. I can still think a girl’s hot. Especially a girl that looks like that.”

O gives a half shrug of her shoulders and then goes back to compulsively rotating her phone, checking the screen for any new notifications with each and every flip.

“Still nothing?”

“Nope.”

“She’ll come around, O. Promise. Raven’s just being--”

“It’s fine,” O abruptly cuts Clarke off, not wanting to go any further on the topic. They shove their phone into the back pocket of their jeans and then let out a light sigh.

Clarke scoots herself closer to O, playfully resting her head on their shoulder. “Liar.”

“I’m fine, Clarke.”

“And I look forward to my Sunday morning couple runs with Lexa,” Clarke responses, sarcasm dripping from each and every one of her words.

“I’m okay.” O closes their eyes and rests their head on top of Clarke’s, taking momentarily comfort in just existing in her pseudo sister’s presence, encompassed by the ambiance sounds of the shop around them.

“O, right?”

O’s eyes pop back open at the sound of their name and instantly comes face to face with nothing short of a real, live greek goddess of a woman. Her warm smile seems to radiate beyond the boundaries of her face, virtually lighting up the space around her. It’s infectious and suddenly, O feels as if she can breath again.

O raises their head, gives a slight nod in response, attempting to match the woman’s smile. “Yeah.”

“I’m Tommi. Let me finish up with Kim here and I’ll be with you in a moment,” Tommi replies, giving a little bit of a flirtatious wink before turning back toward the raven haired girl in the chair.

“I take it back. Tommi’s hot.” Clarke perks up, eyes glued to Tommi’s ass. “Like hotter than hot.”

“One word. Lexa.”

“Two words. Just looking,” Clarke responds in her ever so irksome, sing-song style voice. “Geez. Lighten up. You’re no fun, O.”

“Yeah. I’ve been told that.” O exhales as they feels their hand unconsciously move towards her back pocket. They stop, though, just short of reaching for their phone and instead opt to run their hand over their signature ponytail as a singular and sobering thought runs rampant through the confines of their head…

Just maybe their “person” isn’t really their “person” after all.

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

“Okay. So what are we doing today?” Tommi asks as she finishes adjusting the cape around O’s neck and pumps up the chair.

“I… Um… I…” O trails off, suddenly at a complete and utter loss for words. They’ve rehearsed this countless times before in their head and yet, now here in the moment, it seems like an impossible task. Why is it so painfully hard just to go ahead and pull the trigger?

O’s eyes dart over towards Clarke, who’s lounging in the empty chair to their right, and shoots her a desperate plea of a look.

“O’s wants something that screams I’m here and I’m genderqueer with extra emphasis on the queer part.”

“I’m gonna kill you,” O mutters under her breath, shaking her head in disbelief at Clarke’s response.

“What? It’s true.”

“Girlfriends?” Tommi asks as her eyes ping-pong between the two of them.

“Us?!” Clark immediately jerks forward producing an extremely unattractive hybrid of a snort and a laugh. “Oh God no! No. No way. We so aren’t… Not that there’s anything wrong with… It’s just…”

“Clarke.”

“O’s my little sis-- Shit!” Clarke buries her face into her hands, as the classic telltale signs of embarrassment sets in. “Fuck. I didn’t mean to--”

“I know.”

“Is she always like this?” Tommi laughs unable to mask her growing level of amusement at the two of them.

“Unfortunately.”

“Am not.” Clarke reaches over and slaps O in the arm. “Let me try this again. O’s my amazingly wonderful, kick ass, little sibling. And, before you ask, yes, we’re adopted. But that’s besides the point. We both do have girlfriends--”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” O cuts in with huff of annoyance.

“Fine. Whatever. I’ve got a girlfriend and you’ve got a person. A person named Raven, who’s currently being a major ass cu--”

“Clarke!”

A sudden and uncomfortable silence falls between the three of them as no one seems to know exactly what to say of do next.

Then--

“I just need to look like me,” O quietly states with a long exhale of breath. “If that makes any sense.”

“Total sense.” Tommi gives O a light squeeze of understanding on their shoulders, then grabs hold of O’s ponytail holder and with a simple flick of the wrist tugs it free. O’s long, chocolate locks cascade down, blanketing the better part of their shoulders and back. They suddenly can’t seem to remember the last time they had it cut. Maybe two years ago? Or three? Definitely way before the beginning of this journey.

Tommi starts to work her fingers through O’s hair, taking her time to examine how it falls as she flips it from one side to another. “I’ve got an idea, but it’ll be a pretty big ass change. You 100% positive you’re ready for something like that? Cause if not, I can always cut it in stages. Maybe bring it up here to your shoulders first and then in a few weeks--”

“No. I’m ready now,” O interrupts with a hint of a tremble to their voice. They give themselves one last good look in the mirror, swallowing back down the lump of fear in their throat and then, mustering up all of the confidence they can find within themselves, a gives a slight nod of confirmation back at Tommi. “Let’s do this.”

[imheresothedeadcanrestinpea-blog]

Do strong female characters still exists?

It’s me again. Been a while, right? well... this post has been created thanks to a random thought in my brain were I compared Sarah (from Labyrinth) and Tauriel (yes, her again, I know that many years have passed but I’m still pissed by her existence).

So what do we understand by “Strong Female Character” or, better yet, what do we want as one?

Lately the entertainment industry has placed in our brains that a Strong Woman is the one who can kick ass just as good as a man. Is it like that? My answer is no.

A Strong Character (male or female) is the one that doesn’t give up no matter if the odds are on it’s favor or not. Someone who literally has the world against but is still ready to fight in the name of whatever he or she protects because deep down he/she knows is the right thing to do according to his/her morals. It’s quite important to highlight the “ is the right thing to do according to his/her morals” so we don’t fall through the ilussion that everything this character does is good or in name of a greater good: no everybody is goodie-goodie, you know... a villain can -and should- be a strong character too. He/she must evolve by learning from his/her mistakes and assume the consecuences of his/her actions. Doesn’t it sounds more compelling than an “super awesome strong character”? It does to me.

Strong Female Character

In the field of “women inside fictional stories” you can find the typical “Damsel in Distress”, the (so feared) “Mary Sue” and, I’d like to believe, the “Strong Female”.

For several years the Damsel in Distress was the norm. That virginal, pure, sweet girl or princess that had to be rescued from the claws of evil so she could live happily ever after in the arms of her beloved was The Thing. She was a role model back on the day when girls had to marry beasts (that sometimes were kind of a good guy after all) like Belle, or “be nice” like Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Snowhite. Beeing physically weak was (apparently) quite appealing in a young woman and it was even better if she was ill as well (nothing to serious,off course, but enough for her to lie in a couch all day suffering... and I’m not making this up, I’ve read it in Agatha Christie’s autobiography. She complains more than once of how her grandmother seemed to wanted her to embody Camille’s -or La Dame aux Camélias- lead character so she could get a husband). All of us has seen this girl at least once.

Time passed by and women became a little more powerful year after year. And no, I didn’t made a big jump from 1700′s to the final days of 2016. I’m talking about those women who started to write and, while doing it, creating a new place for women. Louisa May Alcott, the Brontë sisters, Jane Austen, Mary Shelley are the names that all of us know and many might have read -I didn’t, I’ve only read Shelley’s Frankenstein, the others are not my cup of tea- and I’m quite sure that there are many many more. With them Strong Females were born. I know, “all of them dressed in pretty dresses and had no violent action nor knew how to fight... how could they be Strong Females?” well... maybe because they were always fighting to have a voice? or because they were trying to break the tradition of beeing a daugther to become a wife and later a mother? Jo March, trying to be a writer and not caring if anyone said that she wasn’t feminine enough (when she cuts her hair to get some money or because she whistles!), not to mention certain sacrifices she (and her sisters) do to live day by day, is a strong character. Would you deny it? Maybe she’s not “the one” that will end an evil goverment, she won’t beat the crap out of her enemies nor will face the world alone holding nothing but a pocket-knife... but she’s strong and anyone can relate herself with her (and a young woman who doesn’t like “Little Women” and never could read beyond the chapter of the party at Laurie’s -after trying to read the book twice- is saying that!). Josephine March can kick some serious Strong Female’s asses today and she was “born” in 1868! Those were real Strong Females and that’s why nowdays they are still considerated role models -maybe-.

The All Mighty Mary Sue: now we found a big jump in time... times where women gotta be everything (good, pure and innocent at the same time that she’s a master assasin who can kill a hundred men blindfolded in the middle of the dark). I know that “Mary Sue” has becomed pretty much a curse word specially among those who write this type of characters -or at least enjoy them-. No-one likes to say that they like a token character that is as empty as the head of a Barbie doll and brings nothing to the story beyond her charming presence. Ok, there is another kind of Mary Sue, the Lead Character, she and her issues are the main reason why the story exists (Bella Swan from Twilight is a good example). In both roles (side character or main one) she’s worthless and depends A LOT of the men around her. Main Character Bella is nothing without her relationship with Edward, Jacob and her dad. Sure, she’s got some female friends but, in comparison with those three guys, she hardly talks to them. How do you think the book would’ve been without the love story and the differences with her dad? Side Character Tauriel (sorry, I can’t help it) is nothing without her relationships with Thranduil, Legolas and Kili. And she has NO female friends. What other version of this character could’ve existed without all of it?

Strong Females in movies

As I said, lately we had wave after wave of “strong female characters” that are just amaizing in everything they do and, sometimes, are even better than the men around them. Is it bad? No, but it could be a big “yes” depending on the story or in how often we get to see it.

All movies nowdays seem to believe that having a super-powerful woman is good and having a more “traditional” one is as bad as having a damsel in distress. Times have changed, I know, we do not need to “have” a man to be someone as it used to happen in the ‘50s... we can save ourselves, we can use guns, we can fight but does that mean that we are strong? Physically strong: sure... Strong-strong? not quite.

Of course it’s awesome to see a good fight on a movie (I quite enjoy them) but beyond the fantastic moves of this character we love is there anything to back it up? Is there a good reason to take that road? Was there a better choice? Here’s the random thought on my brain that made me write this article. Scene comparison ahead:

Labyrinth (1986):

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

Let’s see... In both cases the heroines (filled with anger while thinking of calling Tauriel like that) find themselves against someone who doesn’t let them go on or their journey to save a baby brother (Sarah) or hot dwarf  a bunch of dwarves (Tauriel). In both cases this obstacle is an authority figure, Sir Didymus -guardian of the bridge- and Thranduil, the Elvenking. It’s the same dilemma... but two different reactions. Sarah, a teenager, chooses to talk to the guardian, to be reasonable with him so she can get his permision... and she has it! Tauriel, an adult elf, chooses to shut up and threatens the King’s life.

“You idiot! Tauriel is trying to save the dwarves lifes, there’s no time to talk and be nice! It’s a war!” Oh, really? What if I tell you that Sarah only has 13 hours to save her baby brother before he turns into a goblin? Actually maybe she has less than three hours to save him in that scene, considerating that sometime later we see a 13 hours clock marking 11 sharp. She doesn’t have that much time does she? We saw that Ludo defeated Sir Didymus and that he’s also capable of holding him in his hand, Sarah could’ve easily asked Ludo to hold him until she crossed the bridge... heck! she could’ve kicked Sir Didymus out of her way and cross! But she didn’t because she didn’t needed another enemy behind her and she had no reasons to be a jerk. Tauriel decided that convincing her King to help her was a waste of time. After all why a man that knows her, raised her, gave her a job, and send his son to get her back to his kingdom (so she wouldn’t get into trouble) would care about her or her needs? He’s a  cold hearted King, after all (major eye roll).

Which one is the strongest (and again, we’re not talking about physical strength)? The one that chooses to be gentle and polite or the one that chooses brutal force? It can be resumed in this: wisdom or brutality?

It’s quite funny that the question of wisdom or brutalilty shows up since Tauriel is a Silvan Elf, and they are -as said by Tolkien- less wise and more dangerous. As I said before “less wise” doesn’t mean “stupid” nor means “savage” as everybody seems to believe. Tolkien was reffering to the way of living of this elves, who turned away from the Valar’s invitation to join them and decided to live in a more “natural” way. A possible paralel to our society would be the hippie movement... we wouldn’t call them savages, would we?

As a character that was created to show how merceful we are it’s quite shocking to see Tauriel taking such a violent turn to get what she wants. The worst thing now is that we (anti-Tauriel people) can’t even say that that’s how teenagers behave, since Sarah in her 15s has shown the opposite reaction.

I ask you: of all the movies you’ve seen this year... did all the women took the high road instead of the easy one -that one beeing beating the crap out of someone to get what they wanted-? If violence was used: was this choice the only option? Did them had a really good reason to do so? If the answer is a “yes” congratulations! you’ve watched a movie with a strong female character (or at least, a good try to be one).

Can a Female Strong Character fall in love?

Of course she can!

Many people believe that their favourite females are criticized because they’ve fallen in love. Once Upon a Time said it first: love is not weakness, it’s strength. Everything’s OK if the girl loves someone, the problem begins when this love is the only reason why she moves a finger or when there’s nothing more for her than it or when love blinds her and makes her take stupid choices (and even forget her awesome set of skills).

Believe it or not, there’s a title for those strong females that after falling in love became -pretty much- damsels in distress or that were never intended to be Strong Females: Trinity Syndrome (you can read more about it here)

A strong female who falls in love? Glad you ask. The first one that comes to my mind is Lisbeth Salander from the Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson, she goes through hell and yet falls in love but it never really affects her personality in a negative way (she was distant to people around her and opens up to Mikael -the guy she loves- but only with him and SPOILER ALERT once her heart breaks she’s still the same one). What about Princess Leia (RIP Carrie Fisher) she was tough, and smart and completly capable of comanding a group of rebels... but she falls in love anyway and it doesn’t change her at all. Any ot Tolkien’s women who fall in love are still the same and because of their love they push the boundaries and accomplish great deeds (Lúthien), others doesn’t need to fall in love to do so (Éowyn, Haleth). There are many more examples, sadly no so many from the last decade.

I’d like to do just one more comparison before finish this part.

Singin’ in the rain (1952)

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

Both of them ended up facing the love of their lives (yikes! in Tauriel’s case). Both men think that only because of their looks (probably) they got the girl and will live together happily ever after but first, they have to charm her and both go the wrong way with sexual innuendos, touches and glances. Kathy Selden (RIP Debbie Reynolds) knows what’s going on and thinks of the best way to get out of such situation, she even uses physical strength when it’s needed. She won’t let a men to get his way with her. Tauriel knows what’s going on and decides to go on with the game... say what? Girl, you hardly know him! He could be a dangerous prisioner... and you’re flirting with him? How did you get the title of Captain of the Guard? I wonder if any orc has pulled such a move on her and if she reacted the same way.

Again, we have a strong female and a female (I’ll even say that she’s how men would love to see women behave).

Conclussion

So? Do they still exists? Yes, I think. There aren’t many, but every now and then one shows up (Lisbeth Salander is the last one I’ve meet so far).

What about all the other women in the movies and books? They could be strong characters if the writers could put a little more effort. So far we have the male idealization of a woman (you know: super hot, awesome fighter, love-sick puppy, independent but not that much) and the female version of this male idealization (fighter, sometimes insecure, lives to love her man and protect him, etc). It’s quite scary if we see them like that. I wouldn’t be frightened if all girls grew up the way I did; I know, I’m not the best example out there, but I know that I was taught not to let anyone (male or female) to put me down or to “show me my place”. And this teaching came from my family, not movies, TV shows or books (at least not in my early years) this three tools were for entertainment purposes, nothing more.

Today we live in a different world were the image prevails and this is the same world were parents have no time to be with their kids or doesn’t know how to prepare them for the world out there or don’t want to be the kind of parents that smother their kids by controlling what they watch or read because that will make them “bad parents”. It’s not like that, kids depend on us all. WE have to be their role models, not a character or toy. How come that I grew up playing with my Barbie dolls and I don’t want to be a supermodel or blonde or super skinny? Because I had a good education at home. How is it possible that I grew up watching and admiring the Disney’s princesses and yet I’m not looking for Prince Charming nor I care if I look like them or not? Because I was taught the difference between a movie and the real life. I also learned, many years later, that gender doesn’t matter: if a character has a good set of morals we can apply them too... who cares if said character was a men or a woman?

I wish that newer generations could be able to learn that you have to be yourself, that makes you strong not your ability with the sword but the reason why you’re using it and the fears you’re facing.

I wish that newer generations wouldn’t need a Strong Female Character because they’ll be their own.

[atakportal]

The best smart speaker for playing music loud

New Post has been published on https://idealz.cloud/2018/07/07/the-best-smart-speaker-for-playing-music-loud/

The best smart speaker for playing music loud

Max volume is loud AF • Does everything Google Home and Home Mini does • Sick bass

Google Assistant can’t hear you well when speaker’s set to highest volume • Finicky touch-sensitive control strip • Twice the size of HomePod

Google Home Max is the most powerful Google Assistant-powered smart speaker with the loudest volume and deepest bass.

There’s only one reason to buy the Google Home Max and that’s to crank the volume up… all the way up.

Otherwise, it’s like having a crazy powerful and expensive gaming computer with the best graphics card, but only using it to play Minesweeper. It’d be a complete waste of your money.

With a $400 price tag, the Home Max is the most expensive smart speaker, when compared to an Amazon Echo ($100), Google Home ($130), and even Apple’s HomePod ($350). The hefty sticker price is worth it, though, if you want to feel the bass… because you will feel it.

Since the launch of Google’s Home speaker in late 2016, the tech giant has expanded its Google Assistant-powered smart speaker family with the Home Mini ($50) and Home Max. 

The Home Mini is great if you’re just starting out with a smart home, but sound quality isn’t a top priority. The Home is still Google’s best value for both a smart home hub and good, room-filling audio. The Home Max occupies its own class with the loudest sound and deepest bass in the group.

One big speaker

The Google Home (center) is huge compared to Apple’s HomePod (left) and Google Home (right).

Image: raymond wong/mashable

Whereas the Home and Home Mini are compact and blend in with your home decor, the Home Max is a big honking speaker. It’s nearly twice the size of a HomePod and about as large as a Sonos Play:5. There’s no hiding it in any room.

The Home Max is also heavy, weighing 11.68 pounds, which means you’ll want to carefully consider where you place it. Delicate bookshelves are a no-no.

A better look at how massive the Home Max (center) is.

Image: raymond wong/mashable

Google offers the Home Max in two colors: Chalk (white case with gray fabric front) and Charcoal (black with black fabric front). Both look fine, but I feel like Google missed an opportunity here to make the fabric fronts customizable. You can swap out different bottoms for the Google Home so why not on the Home Max? 

Props to Google for rounding the corners and keeping the design as clean as possible. Frankly, there are only so many ways to make a directional speaker and the Home Max’s design is one of the least visually offensive once you’ve figured out where to put it.

The touch-sensitive strip is as responsive as physical buttons or voice controls.

Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE

Like the Home, buttons, controls, and ports are kept to the bare minimum. Up top is a touch strip for controlling playback. Tap it to play and pause and swipe on it to control the volume. 

Considering how responsive the touch-sensitive controls on the Google Home are, I was a little disappointed to find the strip on the Home Max to be inferior. On several separate occasions, the strip failed to register my taps and swipes. 

You’re better off just commanding the Google Assistant to do all of these things, which is what you’ll be doing most of the time anyway. But I still think it’s funny how the voice controls are more responsive than the physical controls.

Every smart speaker should have a physical mute switch somewhere. Thankfully the Home Max has one.

Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE

Around back, there isn’t much, but what’s there is important. In the center is a microphone mute switch. And in the lower left corner is a socket for power, a USB-C port for connecting an ethernet adapter, and an aux audio port. The power cable’s a pastel green on the Chalk version and though it gives the speaker a little pop, I think it’s is an odd color choice to pair with the speaker’s white and gray colorway.

Turned up to eleven

Your home might not even be able to handle the Home Max’s highest volume.

Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE

With a name like Home Max, you don’t even need me to tell you it’s a loud-ass speaker. Inside, Google’s packed in quite the sound package. 

The speaker’s got a pair of 4.5-inch woofers for your bass and dual 0.7-inch tweeters for your highs. There are also six Class-D amplifiers, two for each of the woofers and one for each tweeter. 

Combine these beefy specs with six far-field microphones for picking up your voice and measuring the acoustics of the room it’s in for auto-sound calibration and, well, you’ve got one powerful speaker that’ll raise the roof.

Compared to a Google Home or Amazon Echo, the Home Max is in another realm of loud. Apple’s HomePod gets pretty darn loud at its highest volume, but the Home Max is louder.

The Home Max plays audio in stereo, except when it’s positioned vertically. Then, it switches to mono.

Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE

The Home Max can get so loud you can sometimes feel it. No joke, the hairs on your arm will stick up. Its vibrations will rattle your furniture, and it’s no wonder a rubber pad for the speaker to sit on is included in the box.

If you live in a house and want to rock out, the Home Max will not disappoint. However, if your living situation’s like mine — a post-war apartment complex with wafer-thin walls, floors, and ceilings — you won’t be able to get much out of the Home Max’s maximum volume setting. Not if you want to continue living in your apartment without getting visits from angry neighbors or the cops.

If you live in a spacious house and want to rock out, the Home Max will not disappoint.

At 100 percent volume, sound quality breaks just a little. To my ears, there’s more distortion compared when the Home Max is playing at max volume than on HomePod. Apple’s smart speaker is somehow able to maintain a cleaner sound separation at higher volumes, which I value more than pure resonance.

If you somehow have the dough for two Home Max speakers, you can pair them together for even louder sound. I didn’t get to test this out, but at SXSW Google had an an activation where they had two Home Maxes paired together inside of a custom lowrider. And holy sh*t, it double the loudness.

Of course, this is not to say the Home Max doesn’t sound good when it’s playing at “normal” room volume, because it does. 

Like HomePod, the Home Max is a warm-sounding speaker. Listening to “Sorry Not Sorry” by Demi Lovato, her vocals are crisp and prominent and don’t get drowned by the track’s beat.

“Closer” by The Chainsmokers definitely sounded clearer than through an Echo or Google Home; the song’s gentle claps and synths never overpower Halsey’s verses. On punier smart speakers, the same song is more muddled and you don’t get as much dynamic range.

You can pair two Home Maxes together for even louder volume.

Image: raymond wong/mashable

Where the Home Max really shines is with bass. Oh, man, does it bring the bass. In a blind listening test with several Mashable colleagues, they unanimously crowned the Home Max the champ for bass-heavy tracks, blowing away the HomePod and Sonos One.

I played “Hotline Bling” by Drake and “Yeah!” by Usher, Lil Jon, and Ludacris for each of them, and every single one agreed that, at a 50-80 percent volume level, the Home Max is able to produce a thick low-end. At max volume, you can feel the bass lightly punching through the air if you’re standing a 1-2 feet in front of the speaker. 

Sick sound first, smarts second

Don’t forget the Home Max can control your smart home, check the weather, and all those other great things the Google Assistant does.

Image: raymond wong/mashable

The Home Max is a smart speaker, which means it’s powered by the Google Assistant, which can do all the things the Assistant does on the smaller Google Home or Home Mini. It can play your music, tell you the weather, search for things on Google, and control your smart home devices — to name just a few of the many skills it’s capable of.

These are all great — the Assistant is more intelligent than it was when the Google Home launched and it’s far superior to Alexa and Siri when it comes to understanding context and voice commands.

But I’d argue the Assistant is of secondary importance on the Home Max because if you’ve got the cash to drop on this smart speaker, you’re doing it because you care about sound quality. Especially at deafening levels.

The Google Home Max has some minor flaws like the sometimes wonky touch strip and the Assistant has trouble hearing a “Hey Google” voice command over loud-playing music unless you shout. But neither of these are deal-breakers. The Home Max is overkill for most people, but at least it’s an option if you’re all about that bass.

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