#(mostly bc my ex was trying to use it to groom me)

[agave]

one piece is weird as hell because you watch a couple episodes and then you have to pause and stare at the wall to process the trauma that happened when you were 15. no? just me?

[lmnlad]

hey whats ur coloring process? just asking bc ur coloring is amazing to me n im rlly curious bc i cant seem to make anything similar to it

really late to answer this (been a month,, i just finished 1st term exams, my department's week, and im barely breathing fr) but honestly i have no idea myself— mostly i just go for what looks like would work?

for the main pallet or color scheme of a piece, i really prefer using warmer tones. so i often run my flat colors through orange and red on multiply and use yellows on overlay. i also use a ton of greys and "dark but not enough to be #000000" for lineart or rendering.

with rendering a colored and shaded piece, i really like merging everything visible on a single layer and painting on it. it's a little harder this way especially if you want to adjust your colors on a specific part of a drawing or a separate layer, but i do it for the added detail of going off the lineart and trying to go from there.

also! i have been trying to shade and without any layer modes and just pick colors by eye. practicing and getting a hand of color theory really helps with it! there's a ton of references on YouTube and a lot of places where you can find material on the subject.

here's a sped up process of my groom!ace art:

i re-used the blue on the ribbon to render the hair and lightly used grays in between his coat and waist coat since they were both very dark. you'll see me do this a lot with my work: using grey or a de-saturated color to highlight and separate dark ones.

and here are also some step-by-step ones of OC arts!

despite the fact that they all follow the same process, they aren't that consistent which is alright for me, cause i rather build on style better than the uniformity of my work. all of this was done with Clip Studio Paint Ex! hope it helps!

[favvnsongs]

Hey so what is ahead to still waters 👀👀

I - oof even what is Ahead to still waters, indeed, lmfao.

Uhm, so very long story short-ish:

Atsw is the sprawling, all over the place, sometimes a gritty traumatic war drama, sometimes an indulgent opulent space opera, occasionally an uncomfortable psychological horror, more often than not a heartbreakingly tragic and agonizing and tenderly romantic monsterbeast of a catradora(...?) fic that happened when a dubcon chipped!catra/adora pwp drabble morphed into Cry little sister and then that au morphed a second time into Ahead to still waters.

It's @trashcanpunch and I's favorite fic-child and we basically come crashing into one anothers DMs on a constant basis to scream feelings at each other. I mean mostly like angsty feelings as if we're on two different sides of a vicious guerilla war and heartbreaking plot moments or snippets or whatever the fuck are spike pits in the jungle but... yknow.

Lmfao no but uh. basically. Atsw, much like Cls, is the "what if" exploration i guess based on if adora&co had left catra behind after catra had helped to rescue glimmer off of prime's flagship.

(mind you that the backstory "lore" of the universe is only like... 5% canon compliant bc I dont fuck with canon when it comes to aus it's stupid and I dont like being limited like that lmao)

no but uhhh. yeah. without the events of Save the Cat, adora never really becomes she ra again. meanwhile, catra isn't forcibly baptized in the mountain dew pool of doom against her will and shoddy chipped and shoved into the hivemind. rather prime sees how much she's hurting and how much internal conflict and despair she's got in her, and very gently and tenderly and so so so uncomfortably grooms her into turning on etheria. essentially handing over not only everything she knows willingly, but also taking the light willingly, joining the hivemind willingly, but also giving herself over to the war effort bodily in letting him use her physically for the creation of little sister, who is kinda sorta an entirely separate personality? it's weird. that whole aspect is sorta... it hasn't been ironed out yet.

(if any of y'all are familiar with my aus, youll know nothing is concrete and everything is always changing and being retconned lol so things may change but)

catra is essentially given the light rather early? and the light and the chips and the hivemind all work differently than in the show, obvs. and she wants to repay prime for giving her a new home and a place of belonging and a purpose?

(oof and I loooove prime in this au. like. i love him because I have such a love hate relationship with him. and I think that's his entire point?? because he'll Make You Like Him??? and make you trust him??? and it's just So Good. and then you'll be reminded that he's an absolute fucking monster it's Amazing)

no but. so. catra. but also little sister. so like, catra is given the light and she's been relieved of her despair and her grief and her anger and bitterness and pain and all that jazz. she's also done some other shit too but we won't get into that here lol. she's earned her place, so to speak. but she wants to do more. she's a true believer. she has seen the truth and heard it from on high and followed him from out of the darkness with pure blind faith and been rewarded. she has really truly deeply drank the koolaid.

prime basically through some weird process splits her - personality? entire wholeass consciousness?? idek. but there's catra and little sister and theyre two different people but they're not and they have two separate personalities but they dont. and they have different memories and knowledge of things but then at the same time they dont. they share a body and a soul but thanks to chip shenanigans and prime's influence, little sister is intentionally so much stronger than catra, she's the one in control most of the time? and yeah sometimes, though very rarely, catra can shove her way to the front but more often than not prime has to allow catra to be present.

(it's not like she'd want to be anyways. committing warcrimes and whatnot. she's comfy where she is. as long as adora's safe she's okay to let little sister be of service to lord prime's plans. that's okay. as long as adora's okay, she's okay.)

but then yknow turns out prime is getting kinda bored af with the war and the heart of etheria isn't like. he doesnt really want it to blow up the universe bc that's dumb as fuck?? lmao what. he mostly either wants to harness that magic so no one else can have it who Would blow up the universe bc there are much more evil fuckers than Prime out there and they aren't members of the evil version of the space united nations or whatever who are all like "so hey uh what's the deal with basically that giant bomb I guess you were gonna take care of or something...?" or he wants to conquer etheria and her surrounding planets (which is mostly his current plan but etheria is kind of just... being a bitch..) bc he cant really just. leave something like that sitting in what is his backyard now. but either way he's getting really fed up and he's all "alright we're gonna just mass chip everyone fuck it i don't care" or something like that, and then honestly prolly destroy all the runestones or something and then just pack up and see if the planet explodes like a pressure cooker.

but also prime has a bit of a soft spot for catra (I mean its more that that but we're not gonna get into that rn) and shes all 🥺👉👈 do you think mebbe I could go and talk to adora and see if i could convince her to join the light? she might be so happy to see me that she'd say yes?

and little sister and prime are all "lmao this kid" and "oh you sweet summer child, how precious you are. sure, it's worth a try" but at the same time they both know that adora isn't an idiot and that she's gonna put two and two together and realize pretty quick why catra isn't dead and why she has a chip but hasn't been seen in years. and oh gee yeah I mean you've been committing God awful horrific atrocities but sure I'll come with you and join ur cult ex bestie sure ♡•°` so little sister pretty much promises prime that she'll kidnap adora if/when she says no to catra both bc adora is a good asset to have Anyway and bc like it or not she's got a soft spot for catra too, even if she's a spoiled little fuck who gets special treatment.

so adora obvs says no and catra is all 🥺 and little sister is all 😤🙄😒🗡🗡 and so adora gets kidnapped...? politely taken prisoner? ... rescued from maybe being blown up? ... reunited with her ex-bestie who she abandoned to prolly/potential doom? lmao pick one. catra is pouting bc adora was mean and rude even tho catra was so excited and happy to see her again and adora is grumpy and stubborn and impolite and little sister is like "I hate you both So Much" and prime is all "drama! I love it :3"

aaand I gotta go run errands and try to be productive so I guess thats all the explanation you'll get for now.

@trashcanpunch can prolly sum it up MUCH MORE seriously than I can tho lmfao

[indulgnces]

hi howdy hello!! i go by jess and this is my first time playing my sweet bb girl, so i’m pumped! more about my girl audrey below the cut!

❛  ( SARAH JEFFERY )  ◈  dude, shut up ! AUDREY ROSE from DESCENDANTS is on screen. their fans swear they’re just DETERMINED & OUTGOING, but we’ve all seen their JEALOUS & STUBBORN side ! according to TRUMAN WIKIA, they’re TWENTY-ONE years old, BISEXUAL, & identify as CISFEMALE ( SHE/HER ). they’re currently a STUDENT & are RELIEVED about life in truman. luckily they have HER DIARY & HER SONGBIRD NECKLACE with them & can visit THE FAIRY COTTAGE whenever they want. penned by JESS.

sooooooooo confession: i’ve never watched a descendants movie from start to finish 😬 I know! crazy considering I’m playing a character from the movies, but like, have you guys ever seen a character and just be like wOW, that is My Type of character? cause that’s what happened with audrey. descendants 3 came out and was trending, and I checked the tag and like was 👀👀👀 to audrey to the point that I watched queen of mean and got HOOKED. caught a replay of the movie and watched all the audrey parts while skipping over the rest. since then I’ve been in love with my girl and she’s been on my mind so much that I’m returning to rp after a small break to play my girl. In preparation I skimmed through descendants 1 & 3, and adurey’s youtube short story so I’m good to GO. 

CANON LIFE

“A lifetime of plans, gone. Our family status, gone. Audrey, you were supposed to be his Queen, and you let him slip through your fingers. Your mother could hold onto a prince in her sleep.” 

daughter of sleeping beauty and prince phillip, princess audrey has been groomed since she was a child by her grandmother to become the queen of auradon. she’d been friends with prince ben since she was a child, and was expected to marry him when she got older.

grew up used to the finer things of life, and as such, audrey was a bit self-absorbed and spoiled. became the most popular girl in school due to her status and beauty. was cheer captain. finally became romantically involved with ben at some point in high school. life was going exactly as planned. 

then ben decided to invite 4 villain kids (vks) from the isle of the lost to auradon, and everything went to shit. the stark black and white, good vs. evil mentality was deeply ingrained in audrey’s psyche, so she was very much AGAINST the idea of any isle kids coming over. convinced the vks were up to no good, she never warmed up to the them, and bullied them (mostly mal) at times. and you know what? she was RIGHT

mal used a love potion to steal her boyfriend, who then humiliated audrey by serenading mal during a tourney match, where audrey was cheering at. no one gave two shits though?? or suspected foul play at all?? they just cheered and were like “ah, cool! our soon-to-be-king has suddenly declared his love for this new vk who’s only been here for a few days! how awesome and totally natural !! “

audrey was still plenty popular by the end of the movie, but her fairy godmothers decided to treat adurey to a spa trip, which turned into an extended trip that required her needing summer school bc she missed so much school (aka why she was absent for descendants 2)

by the time audrey came back in descendants 3, everyone was ALL up mal’s ass crack. ben proposed to mal in front of everyone, serenading her with the SAME song he did in the first movie when he ceremoniously proclaimed his love for mal while simultaneously dumping audrey, and everyone cheered AGAIN for their union. damn thing broke audrey’s whole ass heart. on top of that, her grandmother chastised audrey for her failures in securing ben and basically failing the family. 

she also lost her status come d3??? like, at the end of d1, she was still cool as fuck. but come d3 girl is not even being invited to her friend’s birthday parties anymore?? she has no friends?? no one gives two shits about how she must be dealing with everything? and wow does that not help things at all.

that night, in her loneliness and anger, audrey decided to steal the queen’s crown from the artifacts museum. it was a petty thing. she was hurt, and just did NOT want to see the crown she’d envisioned as her own for all her life be placed on mal’s head. she didn’t have a goal beyond taking the crown. however, when she went to the museum, maleficent’s scepter sensed audrey’s emotions and desires for revenge, and revealed itself to her. it’s glow lured audrey to it, fed into her emotions, and bing bang boom, audrey became the ultra fabulous QUEEN OF MEAN 

under the scepter's influence, she put half of auradon under a sleeping spell, the other half she turned to stone, then she made ben a beast after he rejected her, and made mal an ugly old hag. she was foiled at the end by mal, and ended up falling under a sleeping curse as a result. with no True Love’s Kiss to awaken her (rip), the heroes ended up getting Hades to use his magic to wake her up.

at the end, she apologizes for her crimes & her emotions were finally acknowledged when mal and ben stepped up and apologized for their inconsiderate past actions to audrey (wELL, they never actually apologize?? they say ‘I owe you an apology” but both don’t like actually say sorry, and that’s 100% something audrey has noticed for sure). she celebrates at the end with everyone else when the barrier is brought down and is last seen dancing with harry hook 

POST CANON

totally headcanon that she’s still not 100% happy as she’s shown in the end while dancing around okay

she’s STILL lonely!! she STILL wants those apologies!! she’s STILL lost about what to do with her future now that her whole life plan has blown up in smokes. she’s HURT okay. her friends? abandoned her! ben? abandoned her! that one hurts the most bc after spotting that pic of audrey/ben as children together, I 100% hc that they have been best buds for years before falling into a relationship. and while it’s clear ben was not really ~in love~ with audrey ( i image they ended up getting together bc it was just Expected yknow?), audrey still had feelings for ben. even if it wasn’t true love (she def wasn’t In Love tho she thought she was), she did still love ben. he was her best friend, and the fact that he never came around to apologize to her for humiliating her the way he did after the love spell broke HURT. 

also hc that she had to take a remedial goodness class following her stunt 

the ending given to her is life a brief showing of her and harry hook smiling at each other all soft like before dancing, which like, i’m game for, but in terms of her actual future, audrey was trying to figure out just how to do life moving forward following everything

TRUMAN

“Tell me it was all a bad dream.”

yeah so I said audrey was relieved about her life in truman? 100000% true!

her life was incredibly sad and lonely before, so convincing her that all that shit was all just a bad dream was an incredibly easy thing to do for the descendants actors okay (im sad for her bc of this tbh)

her life as she knows it: she still comes from a family of high status and money. not technically a princess, but she sure does act like one. believes she was born and raised in truman, but was sent to boarding school at auradon prep since she was a child, where she thrived and grew into a typical Popular Girl (head of cheer team/one of the most beautiful girls), before returning to truman after graduating. basically she believes she had the same perfect life she had before in canon, minus the vks, ben, and the whole fairy tale/royalty stuff (basically everything that ruined that perfect life).

all that other extra stuff, including going all queen of mean and losing ben and being drop kicked by literally everyone, is just POOF, fuzzy memories, bad vivid horror story nightmares! every now and then she’ll witness an engagement, or spot a serenade, and it’ll trigger an overwhelming sense of sadness, but for the most part, she’s content putting her life behind her. her new life is a much happier one. that could totally change once she starts encountering people from her past life again.

only really recognizes her family members as family members, and maybe recognizes some past auradon friends (maybe chad charming as her ex since he’s the only one who didn’t totally abandon her rip)

since “returning” to truman, she’s entered university on the island. she wasn’t sure where she was going with life, but she knew she’s always been really good at drawing and really good at event planning. so in uni, she decided to keep her artistic talents as a hobby and pursue a career in event planning. in pursuit of this, she’s a senior at college, majoring in hospitality management.

PERSONALITY

positive: determined, headstrong, outgoing, self-assured, polite, moral, dedicated 

negative: jealous, stubborn, demanding, bossy, petty, close-minded, seemingly mean (tho she doesn’t consider herself mean, okay? she just can come off as mean/rude)

CANON CONNECTIONS

ben & mal: need them both bc they are the ones who hurt her the most so i’d loooooove to play out these dynamics in truman!! they’d be the most Triggering faces for her 

jay & harry & chad & uma: underrated audrey ships i’d love to play out bc literally crumbs are given to the majority of these dynamics, and so I want to just...explore them?? three of these 4 are vks and 2 of those 3 are people audrey actively pursued in some sort of ~connection~ at the end of the movies when the Couples got together, and she did that even tho she is very Moral and has confusing feelings about vks, and i just wanna know more!! 

TRUMAN CONNECTIONS

yeah this is getting long, so I’m planning on posting a whole separate post in the truman plot tag for these wanted connections! 

and yeah! that’s everything on my girl! if you’ve made it this far, you’re the best my dudes!! I’m gonna be on mobile for a good portion of the day before coming on at night, but if you’d like to do any kind of plotting with my girl, just go ahead and hit that like button, and I’ll slide in y’alls dms! ♥

[banditthewriter]

Redo - Logan Delos

Prompt: So, can I request an angsty imagine about Logan? He and reader met and they had a great night together, so they started dating and Logan was so so enthusiastic about her bc he was feeling this connection, but one day she dumps him bc she misses being single and "free". Then they meet again some time later and he is all hurt and shady. I would love a sweet ending, but it's up to you. Thank you very very much! ♥ Prompter: @skwriddle

This was an interesting request and I hope I did it justice! Beware some angst below? 

Tags are at the bottom. Let me know if you would like to be added to one of my tag lists! *gif not mine* Enjoy!

*****

If a guy doesn't want to be tied down, that's normal. If a woman doesn't want it, there's obviously something wrong with her. That was all that was going through your mind as you made your way up the stairs towards your bedroom. It had been a while since you'd seen or even heard about Logan, but hearing his name tonight had made you relive every instance. Mostly you relived seeing his face the night you told him that you weren't interested in a relationship. You hadn't thought Logan was capable of looking surprised until that moment. Of course your brother had noticed your reaction and had laughed, draining his scotch before he stood to leave. "He was such a player before you. You should have been flattered that he was giving that up for you." After giving in the temptation to slam the door in Carter's face, you had sulked around the bottom floor before you decided that sleep was a good idea. Maybe you should thank Carter for telling you that Logan would be at the engagement party. At least this way you wouldn't be blindsided by your ex. Once you were done with your shower, you curled up in your bed and closed your eyes. It had been six months since the last time you had set eyes on Logan Delos and you weren't sure how you were going to handle seeing him again. ------ "I think you like me more than you think," Logan said as he tugged you onto his lap, his hands immediately going to your hair to make your tilt down and into a kiss. "I think you're attached." "Barely," you mumbled through a smile, brushing your lips against his in a tease. "Oh barely huh?" He pushed you backwards onto the couch and then hovered over you with a fond smile. "I think I'll have to do what I can to change your answer." "I look forward to it," you said with a smile as he finally lowered himself down against you. ------ "I'm Y/N Y/L/N," you said as you held your hand out to the gentleman across from you. He barely took his eyes off of you as he accepted your handshake. He brushed his thumb against your hand as he did it and you felt your pulse quicken. "Logan Delos," he said with that same pompous attitude he had used when he first arrived, but the look in his eyes told you a different story. Something told you that there was more to this man than what met the eye. ------ Logan crawled into bed with you, wrapping his arm around your waist and giving you a squeeze as he got settled in. The surprise felt like it was enough to knock you on your ass if you hadn't already been in bed. "I thought you'd stay at the premiere," you said softly, treading carefully. Uncertain. You always felt uncertain around Logan these days. His playboy status hadn't been revoked as much as paused since the two of you started seeing each other but every day you waited for him to live up to the stories from his past. "Nothing interesting out there. I'd prefer to be with you anyways." He wrapped his arms around you and pressed a kiss to the back of your neck. You felt his breathing settle and closed your eyes to try to sleep. Was he being genuine? ------ "Are you kidding me?" You were looking at the print outs that he had given you of apartments. Places he was looking into with you. To live with you. "We've been together for almost a year," he said, confusion lacing his words. "I know I've never really had a long term relationship before but I'm pretty sure this is the next step." "I think you're a little too serious about all of this. I'm not ready to settle down," you said as you looked away from the papers and met his eyes. He looked shocked by your words and you swallowed before you forced the next words out too. "I think we should take a break." There was a moment where it seemed like Logan wasn't sure how to respond, but then he pushed forward and grabbed your arm. "What are you talking about? No, we don't need to take a break." It was all too much. The constant uncertainty of him breaking your heart, the apartment browsing, the emotions he was causing in you. "Fine. Then let's break up. I'm sorry Logan, but I won't stay with someone when it's obvious we're not headed in the same direction." It felt thin but after a moment he released your arm and took a step back. He gathered the papers off of the table, his fingers causing them to crumple, and gave you a tense nod. "Guess I should thank you for deciding this now, huh?" And before you could even say another word, he was gone. ------ The day of the engagement party, Carter was being a complete asshole. He kept reminding you that Logan would be there and "isn't it going to be funny when he's there with a Playboy bunny and you're with your brother?" Of course you were quick to remind him that that meant he couldn't get a date to the party either and that was enough to get him to shut up. While the rest of the guests moved around and mingled, you stayed off to the side. As long as you had a glass of wine in your hand, you didn't need to even talk to another person for the entirety of the party. But then you saw Logan and your breath was stolen. He looked amazing. You always picked on him for his tailored suits but they looked good on him. His hair was a little longer like he hadn't had it cut in a while and you tried not to remember how it felt to run your fingers through it. He was talking to the groom and looking around as if he was searching for something. His date? No. No, he had been looking for you because his entire body froze when his eyes met yours. Shit. Shit you weren't prepared for this. But he was already headed towards you and you knew you'd have to make small talk. "Y/N," he said as he approached, raising his glass. You listened to the ice clink and wondered how many he had had already. "Wasn't sure you'd make it." Probably thought that you'd bail after finding out that he was going to be there. And honestly, you should have. "Wouldn't miss it," you said with that false bravado that had gotten you so far. And then, a little cruelly, "What, no date?" He stared at you for a moment before he laughed. The uptick in his mouth was familiar, but there was still a distance in his eyes that you hadn't ever seen before. "Yeah, well the last girl I dated broke my heart. Made me a little more wary of who I go out with." He raised his drink and drained it in one go before he put the glass on a nearby table. "Excuse me." You turned to watch him disappear, his shoulders tense as he disappeared into the crowd of people. ------ The bathroom line was ridiculous so you slipped further into the building. You'd been here a few times and you knew where another bathroom was. Right as you turned into the hallway, you saw Logan standing with the groom-to-be, Greg, and you darted back to keep from being seen. "It's for the best Logan," Greg said with the accompanying sound of a back slap. "Obviously you wanted more and if she wasn't ready for that, it wouldn't be fair to either of you." "Yeah," Logan said back, his voice dejected in a way you'd never heard before. "She looks good though. You see her?" "Yeah, I saw her. You tell her she looked good when you two were talking earlier?" "No, I told her that she broke my heart. It was not my shining moment." There was a laugh and you heard their voices getting louder as they got closer. Quickly you darted into a nearby empty room to keep from being seen. "Come on, let's get some coffee into you. She might have left by now." Once their footsteps faded, you stepped out of the room and closed your eyes for a moment. You'd done a number on that man. You needed to face yourself and figure out your next step. And whatever you did, you needed to talk to Logan again. ------ He was sitting by himself watching the crowd. You hovered uncertainly for a moment before you moved to sit next to him. If he was surprised, he didn't show it. "I should have said I'm sorry," you said as you fidgeted, playing with the hem of your dress before you made yourself stop and face him. "It wasn't fair that I just ended things like that. We should have talked about it. Maybe there was a middle ground we could have come to. Instead I made the decision on my own and that wasn't fair to you." He turned to face you and then lifted the coffee mug to take a sip from it. You knew the gesture well; it was something he did when he was buying time. When he let it rest on the table, you waited to hear his response. "Was that you saying sorry?" Unable to help it, you laughed as you ducked your head. "I am sorry Logan. You may not believe it, but I am. I've spent the last six months so stubborn in my belief that I made the right decision and that you weren't bothered, that you'd have someone before you even left the building, but I realized tonight that I was just in denial." Logan crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair a bit as he looked you over. "I gave in too easily. I should have stayed to fight for what I wanted." "Why didn't you?" It was a question that had haunted you for six months although you liked to pretend it didn't. He sighed and leaned forward, lowering his voice so that no one would overhear. "I was told over and over by anyone that would stand still long enough that I wasn't good enough for you. They all told me that you'd realize it at some point. Guess I figured that was the other shoe finally dropping." Both of you had gone into the relationship with preconceived notions and it wasn't fair. To think that you could have been happy if either of you had just talked about it instead of running when the moment came. This man had made you undeniably happy and you were pretty sure you did the same for him. With that in mind, you turned towards him and slowly reached out until you could cover his hand. "Would you like to get something to eat with me sometime?" His lips quirked up and you saw that he was trying not to smile fully. "You want to continue where we left off?" "No," you said quickly, shaking your head. "No, because I don't think that was the real us. Not the honest version of us at least. No, I want a redo. What do you say Logan? Up for another try?" A moment passed where you were sure he was about to tell you to hit the road. Instead he turned his hand to wrap around yours. "I'd like that."

X

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[deliverydefresas]

darling just dive right in, and follow my lead

I’m gonna say it right here, right now; it’s a mess, sorry.

not proofread bc i am me. 

“My best friend is getting married to your best friend and we have to walk down the aisle together, I remember never really liking you but you look so good in this, wow”

“Ugh, I hate weddings.”

“No one’s going to marry you so don’t worry, boo; you’re in the clear.”    

“Fuck you, Balsano.”

“You’ve been there and done that, Smith.”

He knows she’s seconds away of slapping him, but annoying his blonde friend had always been too much fun to pass out. He hasn’t seen her in almost seven years, but teasing her is still as fun as it had been in high school, and he likes it. It’s a sense of familiarity in a place surrounded by strangers.

Leaving Argentina after his junior year of high school was to be expected. His parents moved around a lot and staying more than a couple of years in one place had been basically impossible in his childhood, so he tried his best to not get attached to people he knew he was probably never going to see again the next year. Of course, leave it to Gastón to not allow that.

Even after leaving, his best friend made sure to keep in touch, refusing to be just another face he acquainted through the years. So, he e-mailed, texted, called, even visited him once or twice on their senior year; ultimately leading to both enrolling in Oxford and rooming together through all semesters.

Matteo had seen Gastón go through many phases on his life, and he was there when he broke it off for a couple of months with his girlfriend when he left for England, saw how difficult the distance had been on him; but he also saw Gastón pick himself up and fight for the love of who, by tomorrow evening, would be his wife. He was proud, and more than happy to see his best friend marry someone who made him happy, too.

He did resent the fact that he barely knew anyone in the wedding, though. He was stuck with Queen Ámbar and Her Royal Bitch attitude.

“No wonder you and Gastón are friends, you both are dicks.” She huffs, and if it weren’t because her hair’s up, he’s sure she’d flip it like she used to in high school.

He snorts. “And you need to get laid.”

By now, Ámbar’s patience is gone. She flips him off and turns away, ignoring him. Matteo’s about to joke his way out of her anger when his best friend approaches them, his grin so wide it takes half his face. He’s holding two glasses of whiskey, and hands him one.  

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the Blake’s power couple of our generation! The flashbacks are real, and so are the déjà vus… that glare and that smirk… so 2016.” Ámbar flips him off, too, and walks away, cursing them lowly. Gastón shouts before she’s out of hearing range, “Nina’s looking for you, by the way! Bridesmaids meeting!”  

This takes Matteo off guard, “Ámbar is a bridesmaid?! Didn’t she hate Nina in high school?”

His friend snorts, “they still can’t stand each other, but one of Nina’s friends from college ditched the bridesmaid position because she had a job interview out of the city. We had to fill her place.”

“And you thought of Ámbar?!”

“Not really,” Gastón admits, “we asked Delfi first, but then she got pregnant and said she wouldn’t walk the isle 36 weeks pregnant.”

Matteo interrupted him, “dude, you asked your ex-girlfriend to be one of your fiancée’s bridesmaids?”  

His answer is a shrug, “Nina and she are friendly, and her husband is one of my groomsmen. It’s chill.” Then he continues, “anyway, after that we asked Jazmín, but she said there was no way in hell she was wearing a yellow bridesmaid dress.”

“So Ámbar was your last option?” Gastón nods, sipping his drink again, “how did you even got her to agree? I can’t see her saying yes, much less after you asked both her best friends first.”

“I have no idea how Luna did it, and frankly, I’m scared of the answer.”

“Luna? Who’s Luna?”

The name didn’t ring a bell. Not like many in this party did, but Gastón said most of the guests were from high school, and he didn’t remember any Luna’s back in the Blake.

“Nina’s best friend, and Maid of Honor. Y’know, the girl you were supposed to help plan this wedding and walk down the isle with?” Gastón is teasing him, and he knows it, but he can’t help but panic a little.

“I was supposed to help plan this? What the fuck, dude?”

“Bro, I’m messing with you. Between my mom, Ana, Nina and the girls handled everything. I was lucky they even let me choose part of the menu and cakes.” The idiot is laughing at his expense, so he joins him once his moment of panic goes away. He might be a jerk, but he was a nice jerk. He knew weddings could be stressful, and that usually everyone had to help so in the wedding the bride and groom could relax and enjoy their party, his mom had warned him about it. However, Gastón had only asked him to plan his bachelor party and that was it. So, that’s the only thing he did besides showing up to suit appointments and, well, show up to the celebration.

“Okay, but how come I’ve never met this Luna girl, then? The wedding is tomorrow.”

Gastón looks at him confused, “you haven’t seen her? She’s followed Nina around the whole night. Besides, she went to the Blake with us, she’s been Nina’s best friend since Junior Year.”

Matteo digs on his memories of his last year on Argentina before leaving for England, trying to picture the girl Gastón was referring to. He remembers Nina hanging out mostly with a red head and a blonde, Jim and Yam, who were her other two bridesmaids, and then he remembers a girl got transferred from México and Nina and her getting attached to the hip.

He can picture her now. She was super short, like 13-year-old short, had long brown hair and pretty eyes, always laughing and daydreaming. They had barely talked back then, since Matteo left Gastón alone so he could talk to Nina when they met in the hallways, running to catch Ámbar before their next class started. He also remembers him flirting with her once or twice and she quickly turning him down and calling him a snob.

“Oh. They’re still close?”

“Super close. Like you and I, they went to college together. Nina loves her a lot, she’s the sister she always wanted, encourages her to try new things, doesn’t push her.”

“You seem to like her a lot, too.” He comments, finishing what was left of his whiskey. Gastón’s smile is a genuine one, nodding to his question.

“She’s the main reason Nina gave us another shot. And she’s genuinely one of the nicest people you’ll ever met; difficult not to like her.”

“So, without her there would be no wedding tomorrow?” Gastón nods again.

“Basically.”            

“Well, I should thank her, then. For making you and your bride happy.” His best friend laughs, and starts walking to the bar, gesturing for him to follow. “I must ask, is she as short as I remember her?”

“She grew a little on senior year and a little more when I saw her on a visit to Nina in college, but she’s still tiny. Why?”

He shrugs, “curious, I guess.”

Gastón asks for two glasses of water when they reach the bar, and fails to notice his fiancée walking to them. Nina smiles at him as hello, and he smiles back. The girl was shy, and barely talked to him most of the time, but he never took offense on that. She was shy, sometimes overly so, but she loved his best friend like he loved her.

“Boys,” she calls once she’s close enough for them to hear her. Gastón’s smile turns into a happy grin when he sees her, “our parents want a picture of us before the wedding, can I steal your boyfriend time for a moment?”

Gastón nods immediately, asking her to take them to their parents. Matteo grabs the glasses of water before following behind; he still hasn’t said his greetings to Gastón’s parents, or Nina’s, or anyone who isn’t Ámbar and Gastón, so he takes it as the opportunity to.  

They’re almost near their parents when he hears Ámbar’s snarky tone, “look, Fratman and Robin are here, now. And Neurotic Bride too, yay.” He turns his head to her voice, and is surprised when a brunette elbow her on the arm, asking her to be nice. He doesn’t think Nina or Gastón heard her, or if they did they ignored her, because they don’t look back their way, they go straight ahead where there’s a photographer waiting with their parents.  

“I knew you were missing me already, darling.” He teases as he approaches them, Ámbar rolling her eyes while the girl, Luna if his memory is correct, looks at him curiously.

“I didn’t know Ámbar had brought a date to the wedding.” She says, and Matteo smiles when he notices her voice has changed a little. He can’t tell if she’s taller, since she’s wearing heels, but she’s grown, alright. Her chest and hips are a little rounder, her face a little slimmer. Her hair is still long and wavy, her eyes a pretty shade green. She’s a beauty.

“She wishes.”

“He wishes.” Both answer at the same time, and Ámbar speaks again, “he’s Gastón’s idiot of a best friend and his best man. Matteo Balsano.”

Luna’s pretty eyes shine in recognition, and he’s proud she seems to know who he is. “It’s nice to see you again, Matteo.”

“Likewise, Luna. I’ve heard you’re the responsible this wedding is even happening at all.” She’s blushing, and he grins because she looks lovely, her dress is a pretty shade of pink and suits the blush perfectly.

“Oh?”

“Gastón told me you helped them get back together.”

“Oooh. That was all them, honestly. I only told her to follow her heart, I’m glad it worked out this way.”

“Me too. If not, we wouldn’t be here, and I would have missed seeing you tonight. You look very pretty.”

Her blush only intensifies with the compliment.

“Lunita,” Ámbar calls for her attention, glaring right at him, “I think Nina wants a picture with you and Simón.” The blonde basically spits the guy’s name, but it’s enough for Luna to look back where Nina and a guy around their age are waving to gain her attention. She excuses herself, smiling apologetically at him, he doesn’t know if it’s because she doesn’t want to leave, or because she doesn’t want to leave him with Ámbar. She still leaves. “What are you doing, Balsano?”

“What? I’m the best man, I should be friends with the maid of honor.”

“You didn’t even acknowledge her in high school.”

“Neither did you, what’s your point.” His tone comes off defensive, and Ámbar smirks when she sees him squirm a little, “since when are you friendly with people, anyway?”

“Shit happens. Pigs fly. Life changes.” She’s vague about it, which means she doesn’t want (and won’t) talk about it.

So, he changes the topic. “Who’s Simón?”

Her smirk turns into a scowl, “the guitarist is Luna’s friend from México, and one of the groomsmen. Remember the Nico and Pedro from the roller?” he nods, “well, they’re a band. Ironically, and pathetically, they’re called the Rollerband. Maybe you’ve heard of them.”  

He had heard of them. They weren’t quite as popular in Europe, but some of their songs played enough back there. Now he understood why Gastón liked them so much.

“I’m guessing he’s not of your approval?”

“He’s even a bigger idiot than you are.”

Again, she doesn’t specify what she means by that, and he doesn’t push. After that, night falls into a quick pace. He doesn’t talk or hangs out with Luna that much after that, busy catching up with his best man duties and trying to talk to everyone he can, thanking them for being there for Gastón and Nina.

He does notice, however, that every time he looks at Luna, she’s looking right back at him.

The next morning is a frenzy. Everyone seems to be in a hurry, and his best friend is a mess of nerves. He’s almost sure Gastón has stopped himself from throwing up at least twice.

By noon, he’s ready to get this over with.

The wedding is supposed to start at 13PM and by 12:40 he’s called to stand with the rest of the groomsmen and bridesmaids in a little room inside the chapel, so he leaves Gastón with his parents. He tells them all hello, not surprised to see Jim and Yam together, but curious about the other two groomsmen who he hadn’t seen before. One of them introduces himself as Ramiro, Yam’s fiancé and one of Nina’s college friends. The other one seems more familiar, and is surprised to find out he’s Pedro.

“Wait, you’re Delfi’s husband?” Out of all the couples, he didn’t see that coming. Pedro had been shy and chill, while Delfina was, well, intense.

Pedro’s smile was a proud one, and even he could tell he was head over heels for his wife, “of three years.”

“Soon to be father of her son.”  A voice he doesn’t recognize says, and he tilts his head towards it, to the wall Simón is leaning on.

“Nobody asked for you comment, guitarist.” Ámbar scowls from her seat near the window, flipping her hair away from her face. It’s just now that he notices all bridesmaids have their hair down, a small braid and a pin being the only “do”. He also notices Luna isn’t there yet, most likely still with Nina in a different room.

“And nobody asked for your whine, little gem.” Simón’s tone is playful, and something more, but he can’t exactly pinpoint it. The guy must love teasing her, or provoking her, because he’s not one bit bothered when she starts name calling him, and responds to each with glee.

He also notices it must be a normal occurrence, since everyone looks more amused than anything.

They don’t stop their bickering until Luna comes into the room, announcing that it’s show time. His eyes scan her appearance from head to toe, smiling when she looks at him, realizes he’s checking her out and blushes a little. He’s not ashamed to admit his breath hitched a little when he saw her.

Everyone starts emptying the room, laughing when Ramiro almost trips on the door. He offers her his arm, which she gladly accepts before they leave the room, closing the door and following the rest to the entrance of the chapel.

He leans until his lips are above her ear, and whispers, “you look beautiful, Luna.”

And she does, very much. Yellow suits her a lot more than it suits the other girls, so Nina must have had her in mind when she picked the color. The fit of the dress is perfect on her, too, and accentuates her figure nicely. She, unlike the other girls, has half her hair pinned in a pretty bun, and her pin is a little bigger. Matteo guesses it’s to state she’s not a bridesmaid, but the maid of honor.

“Thank you, Matteo. You look very handsome, too.” He grins at the compliment.

Jim and Pedro go in first, followed by Yam and Ramiro. Luna has to remind Ámbar to smile when it’s her and Simón’s turn. Finally, it’s their time.

“Don’t let me fall,” she whispers, squeezing his arm slightly.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Luna offers him a small smile as thanks, standing straighter before turning to the crowd and widening her smile. It only takes them a minute to reach the end of the aisle, and he can’t help himself from kissing the back of her hand before she releases his arm to stand next to the girls.

He winks at her before he, too, takes his place next to Gastón and the rest of groomsmen.

The wedding is beautiful.

Matteo’s pretty sure everyone got teared up, because even he did at one point. Nina’s parents are a sea of tears even after the ceremony ends, crying at everything and at nothing. He’s almost sure the poor girl is lowkey embarrassed. His best friend hasn’t stopped smiling, and Matteo’s happy he’s happy, and in love.

The actual party hasn’t started yet, everyone is busy enjoying the dinner before they announce the first dance and they’re asked to join. The couple has done their speeches, as have Luna and Matteo, and the proud parents.

Matteo’s happy he’s sharing Luna’s table, too. All the bridesmaids and groomsmen plus their dates are seated in one big table next to the bridal one, where Gastón is feeding Nina mushroom soup.

The table doesn’t grow in quantity that much, since Yam and Ramiro are each other’s dates, and Ámbar, Simón, Jim, Luna and he are dateless. So, it’s only Pedro who brings someone. Delfi looks different than how he remembers; he doesn’t know if it’s the fact that she’s pretty much in her last weeks of pregnancy and is glowing from it, but she looks happy and in love.  

“So, what’s the laundry story?” Luna asks him once their plates of soup are done, sipping water from her glass cup. He copies her movement, taking a sip of his own glass.

“It was in the Nina-less era of college. Gastón went out one night, and came back to our apartment really, really wasted. I sent him to his room to sleep it off, but he said he wanted to pee first. I didn’t really realize how wasted he truly was, so I thought he could be alone and not cause damage, y’know?” She nods, barely turning to look at the waiter to thank him for changing her soup plate for the main course, “when he took more than five minutes, and I didn’t hear the flush I went to check up on him, thinking he had fallen asleep in the bathroom.”

“He didn’t?”

Matteo snorts, “I wish he did. The fucker peed on our laundry basket thinking it was the toilet, and started crying once he realized it wasn’t. And then cried harder because “he was a mess” without Nina.”  

“No!” she gasps, and then laughs out loud. He had hated his best friend that night. His favorite shirt was there, and they had to throw away at least half of those clothes. There was no way, even deep cleaning them, that he’d wear clothes peed by Gastón.

“What are you laughing about?” Ámbar wonders from Luna’s other side, catching the attention of the others. Matteo tells them the story, and they too burst a laugh. The topic is changed to drunk stories and memories of their younger years.

He feels somewhat left out, because he wasn’t there when most of the stories happened, but he doesn’t let it bother him. At one point, Simón makes a comment about one of Ámbar’s skinny dipping adventures that gains him a slap and makes the blonde leave the table. He excuses himself to go after her, sighing when he sees Luna’s reproachable eyes.

“What’s their deal?” he asks to no one, but it’s Delfi who answers.

“Ámbar’s tired of waiting for him to finally man up and ask her out.”  

“Wait, she likes him?”

Luna looks amused at his confusion, “you haven’t noticed? I say it’s pretty obvious, even I have and I’m clueless in this stuff.”

“He more than likes her. I mean, they both have been screwing for months.” Pedro snorts, subtly pushing more vegetables to Delfi’s plate when she’s looking away.

“They screwed last night, and I’m pretty sure they did again this morning. Ámbar didn’t make it to her room until 9AM, I checked.”

Matteo finds that he is, in fact, not really surprised. No wonder she got all pissy about the guy.  

Even after the topic’s moved to the wedding, and Ricardo’s crying speech, Luna seems distracted, and he catches her looking frequently to where Simón and Ámbar disappeared to.

“They’re probably making out right now, don’t worry.” He tells her quietly, trying to ease her worry. She smiles.

“I know, I just can’t help it. He’s my best friend and she’s my cousin, I just want them to be happy.” She sighs, “plus, Nina and Gastón are going to dance soon, then their parents and then it’s our turn. They need to come back soon.”

“Your cousin?” He’s shocked, and he sounds like it, too.

“Yeah, you didn’t know?”

“But she didn’t even talk to you in high school?”

“Oh, that’s right! You weren’t here in senior year!” That leaves him even more confused, so she explains, “I don’t know if you know this, but I’m adopted. I’m originally from here, but when my biological parents died, they couldn’t find me any other relatives, so, I was put up for adoption. Mónica and Miguel – those are my adoptive parents- adopted me and we moved to México when I was still a toddler. On my sophomore year I decided I wanted to find who my parents were, and if I had any family left, so we came back. The truth came out on my junior year – and Ámbar’s senior- and I found that I had family left. My aunt had adopted Ámbar, thinking she was me. That wasn’t the case, obviously, but I learnt to see Ámbar as my cousin and gained an aunt and a grandpa, I can’t complain.”

“That’s… very mature of you.” She laughs at this.

Cake gets them momentarily distracted, and they both ask for a double piece, not really caring if any other person is left without cake. Not that it was possible, since Gastón asked for two five level cakes to begin with.

Conversation flows easily between them. He doesn’t feel pressure to appear cool, or funny, or interesting, because Luna on her own makes him feel that way. He has to agree wholeheartedly with Gastón’s description of her; Luna’s the nicest girl he’s ever met, and she has a natural charm that just makes you like her. If he hadn’t had a crush before, he surely has one now.

The guitarist and his little gem get back to the table just as Nina and Gastón’s first dance as a married couple is announced, looking all flushed and lips swollen.

“Did you two had fun christening the bathroom?”

His comment earns him Ámbar’s middle finger and a nervous laugh from Simón, plus Luna’s bony elbow against his ribs.

They all watch in silence how their friends sway on the dance floor, biggest grins and stolen pecks every now and then, enjoying themselves and the moment.

“I want that one day.” Luna’s whisper is so low, he’s almost sure it was meant just for her to hear.  But he can’t help to question.

“A wedding?”

Luna’s soft eyes flicker to him, and shakes her head lightly, but doesn’t answer him out loud. By now, the bride and groom are dancing with their parents, laughing while they sway. They know they’ll be called to the dance floor soon, so Luna suggests for all to stand up and get there already. Delfi declines dancing, her belly too heavy for her to even sway comfortably, but urges her husband to take Jim.

She’s right about being called soon, because as soon as they’re near the dance floor, the host asks for them to join their friends and their parents. Matteo doesn’t hesitate to take her hand and lead her to the center of the floor, swirling her a little before pulling her to him and sway to Michael Bublé’s voice.

She sighs contently, and leans her head on his chest. He welcomes the gesture, his grip on her waist tightening a little. He doesn’t know if it’s too soon, or if he comes too strong, but he gets it now. He wasted the chance when they were younger, now he’s decided to try.

“Luna?” she looks up, her eyes waiting for what he’s going to say, and he knows what she means now. She looks confused for three seconds, before his words dawns on her. “I want that one day, too. Hopefully with you.”