#Angular 19

[codebriefly]

New Post has been published on https://codebriefly.com/brief-note-on-signals-angular-19/

Brief Note on Signals - Angular 19

Angular 19 introduces an exciting reactive primitive called signals, offering developers a simple yet powerful way to manage local state and derived values without the boilerplate of external libraries. In this blog post, we’ll explore:

What signals are in Angular 19

A detailed, working example of signals

Use cases for signals in real-world apps

Differences between signals and NgRx Store

Table of Contents

Toggle

What Are Signals?

Detailed Working Example: Counter Component

Use Cases for Signals

Signals vs NgRx Store

Conclusion

What Are Signals?

A signal is a reactive primitive for storing and tracking state in Angular 19. Under the hood, signals notify subscribers whenever their value changes, enabling automatic updates in templates and computations.

Declaration: import from @angular/core

245Functions:

signal<T>(initial: T): Creates a writable signal

computed<T>(fn: () => T): Derives a signal from other signals

effect(fn: () => void): Reacts to changes without returning a value

import signal, computed, effect from '@angular/core'; // A simple writable signal const count = signal(0); // A derived signal const doubleCount = computed(() => count() * 2); // Run an effect when `count` changes effect(() => console.log(`Count changed to $count()`); );

How It Works:

Read a signal’s value by calling it: count()

Write by invoking its setter: count.set(newValue), or via count.update(x => ...).

Subscriptions: computed and effect track dependencies and re-run when inputs change.

Detailed Working Example: Counter Component

Let’s build a reusable counter using Angular 19 signals.

// counter.component.ts import Component, signal, computed from '@angular/core'; @Component( selector: 'app-counter', template: ` <div class="counter"> <h2>Counter: count() </h2> <button (click)="increment()">Increment</button> <button (click)="decrement()">Decrement</button> <p>Double: double() </p> </div> `, styles: [`.counter text-align: center; button margin: 0 8px; `] ) export class CounterComponent // 1. Create a writable signal count = signal(0); // 2. Create a derived signal double = computed(() => this.count() * 2); // 3. Methods to update increment() this.count.update(n => n + 1); decrement() this.count.update(n => n - 1);

Explanation:

count holds the current value.

double automatically recomputes when count changes.

Calling this.count() in template triggers change detection.

Use Cases for Signals

Local Component State: Manage form inputs, toggles, and counters without services.

Derived State: Compute totals, filters, or transforms via computed.

Side Effects: Run business logic when state changes using effect.

Lightweight Stores: Create scoped stores per feature module instead of a global store.

Pro Tip: Combine signals with Angular’s Dependency Injection to provide feature-level state containers.

Signals vs NgRx Store

Feature Signals NgRx Store Boilerplate Minimal; no actions or reducers Requires actions, reducers, effects, selectors Scope Local or feature-level Global or large-scale apps API Surface Signal,computed, effect createEffect, createAction, createReducer, etc. Learning Curve Low; JavaScript API Higher; Flux architecture Debug Tools Basic logging via effects Redux DevTools, time-travel debugging Use Cases Simple, reactive state & derived values Complex state flows, undo-redo, advanced debugging

When to Choose What?

Use signals for local state, quick prototypes, and smaller feature modules.

Opt for NgRx Store in large enterprise apps needing advanced tooling, middleware, and global consistency.

Conclusion

Angular 19 signals offer a declarative, lightweight, and expressive approach to reactive state in Angular applications. Whether you need simple component state or derived data flows, signals can simplify your code and improve performance. For global, complex state management with robust tooling, NgRx Store remains invaluable—but now you have an elegant, built-in alternative for many scenarios. Please feel free to add comments if any queries or suggestions.

Keep learning & stay safe 😉

You may like:

What’s New in Angular 20

Testing and Debugging Angular 19 Apps

Performance Optimization and Best Practices in Angular 19

[random-knowone]

prev oh boy i hoppe you like this riddler fanart i made for you !

i spent so much time on it as im sure you can tell hope there isnt anything wrong with it teeheehee

you put some body fat on that middle aged man right now or so help me god

[kyprogramming]

6 - PostgreDB and Prisma Setup - Next.Js-15 eCommerce Project (React js , PostgreSQL , Prisma, ShadCN , Paypal , Stripe integration)

5 - Bind Sample Products - Next.Js-15 eCommerce Project (React js , PostgreSQL , Prisma, ShadCN , Paypal , Stripe integration)

4 - Theme & Menu - Next.Js eCommerce Project (React js , PostgreSQL , Prisma, ShadCN , Paypal , Stripe integration)

3 - Project Layout - Next.Js eCommerce Complete Project (React js , PostgreSQL , Prisma, ShadCN , Paypal , Stripe integration)

2 - Environment Setup - Next.Js eCommerce Complete Project (React js , PostgreSQL , Prisma, ShadCN , Paypal , Stripe integration)

1- Introduction - Next.Js eCommerce Complete Project (React js , PostgreSQL , Prisma , ShadCN-UI , Paypal , Stripe integration)

[death3x]

#SST24

Day 19: Angular

Name: IVB Watch

"This is the time. Make it stop."

Made in Cinema 4d with Corona Renderer

[northopalshore]

Rising signs in the Groom Persona Chart: Their features

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The rising sign in your GPC tells you about your future spouse's appearance, physical attributes and how they present themselves. Picture it like reading their birth chart lol.

୨୧ Please do not repost without consent ʕ⁠´⁠•⁠ᴥ⁠•⁠`⁠ʔฅ🔉

In the signs & degrees:

♰ Aries (1°, 13°, 25°):

Your future spouse could have very angular features, perhaps their eyes could be sharp or very striking. They could have an eager look to them, or they could look like a kid in a way. You could think that they're impatient or they may like to rush things a lot. They could have a great physique or look very hot. They could wear a lot of gym clothes, tight fitting outfits or just athletic wear in general. Either a dork (Maximilian Goof aka Goofy's son lol) or a gym rat.

♰ Taurus (2°, 14°, 26°):

They will dress very comfortably, while still looking extravagant. They could look sophisticated and very, very attractive i.e perfect smile, perfect teeth. They could be taller or heavier than you. They will be very calm, down to earth and put together. They could have a well built physique, and tough body.

♰ Gemini (3°, 15°, 27°):

They could have a slender face, pale skin and a narrow stature. They will look very expressive when they start talking, but have a rather dull resting face lol. They could look rather breezy if that makes sense. Not one to wear anything too fitted. They could have great facial symmetry. Something about their teeth will be very prominent i.e straight or very white.

♰ Cancer (4°, 16°, 28°):

They could have very soft, rounded features. Doe eyes. They could have a slight glow to their face and their eyes. Curvy body, soft lips. They could wear a lot of baggy or vintage looking clothes. They could gain weight quite easily. They will look kind and mellow. They could have a very inviting smile.

♰ Leo (5°, 17°, 29°):

Gorgeous hair, and that face card doesn't decline. They will love dressing in old Hollywood vintage clothing, old money or loud and expensive. They could have very wavy or curly hair that will catch anyone's attention. They also have a slight cocky look to them. They are attractive, and god do they know it.

♰ Virgo (6°, 18°):

They are usually very petite/short and frail looking. They could look compacted but not aggressively so. They will look very clean and polished. There will not be a single speck of dust on them nor will you spot an unironed spot on their clothing. They will love wearing comfortable yet elegant looking clothes. You'll notice they tend to lean on a specific silhouette or colour that they like.

♰ Libra (7°, 19°):

" They have the face of an angel and the body of a greek god" Beautiful. Elegant and gentle. Looking at them will leave you at a daze. They look good and know exactly how to dress for their body. All of their facial features blend in harmoniously, could have a symmetrical face too. Oval faces, bright eyes, pretty smile.

♰ Scorpio (8°, 20):

Usually, they will have very striking eyes. They could have eye bags or just darkened eyes in general. Like virgo, they could love to stare at you lol. Every feature they have will accentuate their eyes. They are very attractive ( s*xually) , everything about them will be sensual and seductive.

♰ Sagittarius (9°, 21°):

There could be a significant size difference between you. They could have very long legs, curly or fluffy hair, and animated facial features. They will look very charming, but goofy in a way. One look at them and you know they're somebody fun to be around. They could laugh a lot and look stoic (contemplating) at times.

♰ Capricorn (10°, 22°):

They could look very cold or uninviting. He could have a very relaxed yet also somewhat stern look on their face even with neutral emotions. They could look very mature, their eyebrows could often be furrowed lol. They could have very prominent bone structures i.e nose, hollow or defined cheek bones. They could look very "boney" in general lol. Very masculine.

♰ Aquarius (11°, 23°):

They could be very tall or slender. Their heads and arms could be quite prominent something about them will catch a lot of stray eyes. They likely have features that are rebellious in nature. They could have odd hairstyles/ colours (especially) or tattoos or piercings. They could dress very.. exotically? Strange? Their fashion style could be quite questionable to say the least but never are they boring to look at.

♰ Pisces (12°, 24°):

They will have very sad, sultry looking eyes that look almost sympathetic 24/7. They will seem like they're not really "there" with you i.e lost in thought or deep contemplation. They will have very rounded features. Their cheeks could look very puffy or rounded when they smile. You could think that they're too good to be true. Their skin could have a greyish undertone, almost like the moon is beneath their skin.

Note: If there are conflicting signs of their appearance for example you have Virgo rising (small, petite) in 2° Taurus (bigger, heavier) then it means your fs is considered large for a virgo i.e.gains weight easily, and are very well built or muscular while still not being overly built (lean).

───────────────── ⋆⋅ ♰ ⋅⋆ ──────────────────

*** entertainment only, reader discretion is advised***

Thank you for reading ♡

@northopalshore

@northopalshore groom persona chart 2024 all rights reserved. Disclaimer

[rongloa]

𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐃𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐀 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 | 𝐌. 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐘𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒

↜ CONCEPT | CHAPTER ONE — current ↝

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲. falling to earth like a comet—brilliant, burning, and broken. you don’t know their ways or their meaning. but there’s no harm in finding one thing for yourself.

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠(𝐬). mark grayson x fem tamarenean! reader

𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭. future slow burn, future gore, heavy angst, two aliens falling in love w/ each other, invincible series typical violence, extreme misunderstandings, eventual nsfw ( more to be added )

𝐚/𝐧. okay tadaaa! i couldn’t find a good way to start the story without having mark’s pov first. it’s been a long time since i wrote in third person, please go easy on my old 19 year old heart. other than that enjoy guys!

Mark isn’t quite sure why, but no matter how beat up and bruised he gets, Burger Mart is always his go to comfort. Yeah, he used to work there and it was a semi-miserable placeholder until his powers came through, but something about the greasy burgers he shouldn’t even think of eating are just what he needs. He shudders when he thinks about how they’re cooked by kids his age, but takes another bite regardless. Grease drowning his taste buds and the obscene amount of sauces gathering at the corners of his mouth.

Another bite has small bits of stray lettuce fluttering off like morbid green butterflies down past the windows of the apartment complex he chose as his lunch bench today.

The Teen Team were off doing god knows what, he can remember Rex droning on about some silly training exercise or maybe Doc Seismic? The villains just keep appearing and disappearing at this point. It’s not even abnormal to him anymore, just another part of his routine.

Yeah, this was his life.

He’s licking ketchup from his thumb and index shamelessly when, what at first, he thought was thunder—distant, but unnatural. The kind that made your ribs hum and your heart skip a beat with how loudly it travelled. Mark’s eyes flicked toward the skyline just in time to see the very air tear open. A light—an unnatural, blinding flash that painted the whole city in hues of green and gold, like it was another sun spawned right above Chicago. Not fucking good.

And something—someone—bursts through it, a blur of glowing limbs, trailing smoke and sputtering flashes of green.

And just like that, lunch is over.

He doesn’t even think as he drops his half-eaten burger, crumpling the wrapper in one hand as he launches off the edge of the building, mask pulled back on.

Just as he kicked off an immediate alert from the GDA was blaring in his earpiece, the only thing he could remotely make out through the static was Cecil’s voice barking: “Portal opened above Soldier Field Stadium—brace for a fight, and do NOT engage until you assess the situation.”

Too late.

Another one rips across the airspace, jagged and roiling, like it was folding upon itself over and over. He didn’t slow as he flew, not until he saw the needle point that came through the portal.

Three dark, angular shapes emerged, bursting from the edges of the portal with engines that screamed like tortured metal. They were armed. Fast. Purposeful. Starships of some alien species.

Not just one, but two. Two random portals opening right above the lakeside home of the Chicago Bears? Okay, no. Not right now, he shouldn’t even be thinking about football he doesn’t even watch it?

This is pretty bad.

That was the first clear thought cutting through the adrenaline pounding in his skull as he tore through the sky, wind screaming in his ears even through the material of his suit. He could still taste the lost burger on his tongue and feel the ache in his shoulders from yesterday’s training, but all of that vanished the moment the sky first opened up.

And someone was falling out of it.

No, flying—barely. A girl, lit from behind by a glow of hair too long and thick to be human, weaving mid-air like her body was seconds from giving out. Her movements were desperate. Not graceful. Not heroic. Just instinct.

And behind her—the three sleek, black alien ships screaming after her with weapons hot. He didn’t recognize the design, but his gut clenched anyway, flipped a little too hard. Nothing about them looked friendly.

Who the hell are they? Who the hell is she? It churns so oddly in his stomach. By appearances, the ships are the bad ones, but how can he be sure that she isn’t the criminal?

Mark’s body reacted before his brain could organize anything else. His arms locked forward, fists aimed ahead, and he rocketed faster toward her, trying to get a better look, to close the distance.

She was unlike anyone he’d seen—tall or maybe she just seemed that way, oddly toned and battle-worn, skin glowing faintly like a sun kissed her. Her hair blazed behind her like molten metal, so lucious and bright threaded with orange, alive. Even from a distance, she didn’t move like a human.

And her eyes? Bright. Wild. On fire.

He saw the fear there as he flew parallel to her, even before she turned away from him and darted toward the empty stretch of industrial rooftops. She thinks I’m with them, a thought that makes his heart sink yet he’s unsure why.

One of the ships flanked him—gleaming with unfamiliar symbols etched across its hull—letting out a shriek as it fired, a high-pitched frequency Mark felt in his teeth more than he heard. A hand to his head to stop the rattling, he banked right quickly and the ship flew right past him.

“Hey!” He tried calling after her but she only spared a glance. Maybe a wave? Okay definitely not, trying to wave at her seemed to make her even more scared, “I’m here to help!”

She didn’t answer, just pushed herself forward. Those green lights from before flickering at her fists like she was running on fumes. Still, she kept flying away from the built up areas—from the civilians—kept taking the fight to higher altitudes, even as she started to sway in the air.

She’s trying to protect people. Even now.

Another shriek followed and it seared so close to his back he could feel the shudder in his body. But it wasn’t meant for him. The charged black shot was meant for her as she weaved through the buildings.

The girl dodged just in time. She corkscrewed mid-air, her body trailing light. Green energy sparked from her hands, unstable and flickering, but she didn’t slow. She looped between buildings, drawing the ships after her and away from the crowded streets below.

She’s fast, Mark realized, pushing harder to catch up. Not just fast—trained.

That was all the confirmation Mark needed.

She launched a blast over her shoulder. It wasn’t precise—more like a flare of raw power than a targeted shot—but it zipped past him and clipped the edge of the lead ship’s wing, sizzling through the hull with a shriek of melting alloy.

“Alright, okay, okay.” A breath and then another.

Readying his aching shoulders as the ship barrelled ever-forward. He pumped the flight breaks, and the ship slammed right into the shoulder he steadied. The wing of the leading ship tore away from itself like bit of paper. The impact rippled across its plating, panels buckling beneath his shoulder, human wrecking ball. He grabbed hold, swinging it by the frame towards the water, the ship whistled so loudly as it flew, systems screaming, trailing smoke and debris like a dying meteor. His shoulder throbbed from the impact, but the satisfaction was worth it.

“One down!”

The girl looked over her shoulder at him in mid-flight—eyes wide with something like surprise. But before anything could be exchanged, a second ship swooped in from above, its cannon rotating and locking onto her.

Mark’s instincts screamed. “Watch out—!”

The other ship in that split second completely ignored him, flipping him away with the raw power of the engines. He just took out the most advanced looking ship, and they just flew right past? Hyperfocused on her.

Snapping from his stupor he moves right back into motion. Don’t stop, he grits his teeth, body pushing into motion once more— It’s not over yet, Mark.

They were trying to flank the girl from both sides. Mark moved fast, putting himself between her and the closest one. But this ship was faster, smarter—it fired a charged blast before he could dodge, slamming him in the chest.

Pain flared white-hot across his ribs as he crashed into the side of a parking garage, metal shrieking as he bounced off it and spun through the air. The car alarms made his ears ring as he was vaulted over the edge of it, concrete rubble and dust coating him in a chalky-grey hue.

Stopping himself mid-fall, hovering with clenched teeth, coughing hard as dust congealed in his lungs like a hard paste.

Okay. That sucked.

These ships were definitely not Earth tech.

By the time he looked up again, she was finally making her move. Why now? He was utterly lost.

Today was kicking his ass without bothering to give him an answer why.

She called out in a language Mark didn’t understand or recognise, her energy dimming for a split second before reigniting. With a growl, she brought her arm back like throwing a baseball with the type of force that hurt your arm afterwards, and hurled two glowing green bolts toward the ship that hit him.

The bolts collided with the ship’s nose, blinding it with an eruption of emerald fire. It staggered midair, and Mark wasted no time. He rocketed up and delivered a punch straight into the undercarriage. Panels giving way and caving into frayed wires and empty space. He ripped into the ship’s engine core, wrenching it out like yanking the heart from a machine. It exploded in a blaze of black light, forcing Mark to throw himself clear.

What the fuck were these ships made of?

He turned to see the last ship zeroing in on her finally. She floated unsteadily now, limbs trembling, eyes glowing with that faint colour—but dimmer than before. A long burn streaked down her side, smoke rising from it. The shoddy metal alloy that plated her arms and legs had glowing spots that look like more bolt impacts. She’d taken the type of hits that Mark could feel on his skin just from seeing them— and she just watches something below, uncaring of her wounds. One hand to the burn as she simply stares at the ground, a glance at him as the other holds itself in a placating gesture. Blood oozing over her fingers and dripping down her right leg to the toe that faces straight down, droplets of blood splattering somewhere on the ground below.

He stays in his spot, seemingly suspended by wires he can’t see. He’s a hero- shouldn’t he be moving? But he isn’t.

Even the chains cuffed around her wrists dangle in the air limply. A stalemate, a standoff. He looks down and sees a crater, there’s blood. Bodies. Death. She’s looking at the destruction below them, a thought clicks in his mind- she’s looking for closure.

Another energy blast flies past her. A simple turn of her shoulder— hair blows out behind her, coming back and whipping at her cheeks. It shrouds her partially as the fighter zeroes in, no more green light or fiery hair. A high pitched whining that rattles the bones in his own body from so far away.

And still, she keeps her eyes trained on them. Even as it settles into a hover that makes the grating of metal and the roaring of the engine so much more painful on his ears.

Alien gibberish that he so badly wishes he understood is being blared from a robotic intercom. And she frowns deeply, eyes tearing up as she just gives up. Her eyes meet his and suddenly, he understands.

A surrender.

He can’t say anything that will mean something, nor anything they will understand. So he moves, he throws himself towards the last ship as it continues in its stupid alien language.

She dives forwards before he can register it, she meets him halfway in the blink of an eye and swings him by the arm. Thrown so hard and so fast he’s left spinning through the air until he’s three blocks away. He turned to look back at her just in time to see the aftermath.

The final ship tore apart midair, bursting into fragments that rained down in molten streaks of debris.

A stray piece of the destruction launched into his leg, leaving him grunting as it buries deep into the meat of his thigh. Grabbing a hold of it he squeezed, yanking the debris out as he raised his head to observe the girl once more.

He only just caught it out of the corner of his eye, her body tilting sideways. She wobbled once in the air, and then she fell. Dropping out of the sky in one swift motion that he could barely register.

“Nonononono—!” Mark shot forward, catching her in his arms just before she hit a rooftop.

She was heavier than she looked—solid muscle, entirely limp in his arms. Her body radiated residual warmth, her skin faintly shimmering with golden flecks that glimmered under the sun. Her breathing was shallow, ragged– there were bruises across her neck and shoulders, and the wound hadn’t stopped bleeding.

“Hey,” he said softly, lowering them both to solid ground, “I got you. You’re okay.”

She looked like she’d fought through a hundred battles just to get here. Tired skin that sunk into the hollows the bones created, bruises, and the chains.

Her lips moved, parting as though she were trying to speak.

“Za’reth… kory’na shal taruun…?” the girl whispered, her voice fraying like silk.

Mark blinked, leaning closer. “What?”

Her eyes opened—just for a flicker. Bright, glowing faintly beneath bruised lids. She reached weakly toward the blue of his suit, grabbing what little give it had.

“Vel kuth’zan… reth ka’ori… Nok varan.” Her voice was rough yet so fragile, shaped by sounds he’d never heard.

He didn’t need a translator to understand the desperation in her tone, the fear clawing beneath her words.

And then, just like that, she went entirely still.

Mark’s arms tightened around her.

His pulse was still racing.

What the hell was that language? Those jets?

It didn’t matter. He saw the look in her eyes. Whoever this girl was, she hadn’t just fallen through some intergalactic portal.

She’d escaped.

Mark looked up, scanning the sky for any trace of those ships. They were gone—for now.

He exhaled sharply, jaw tightening.

He activated his comm with shaky motions, his fingers fumbling for the button, “Cecil,” he said, staring down at the unconscious girl in his arms, “I need a med evac, now.”

𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭. @nightmarewasteland @xoyumiqls @isnt-itstrange @dinorawrss @luvvcharxo @adeptusxia0 @pickledsoda @jiyeons-closet @osamudizzy @yaurss @frankee4foure @zomqiez

[kjnger]

Royal Positions in Astrology

& Common Traits Found in Royal Family Members

& Moon in Libra, Taurus, or Leo.

& Moon in the 10th house or Sun in the 10th house.

& Square or opposition between the Sun and Saturn, symbolizing authority.

& Prominent Pluto (power struggles).

& Saturn may be in a significant position.

& Ascendant in Leo, Capricorn, or Libra.

& Sun at 0 degrees or 29 degrees.

& Sun and Saturn are noticeable in angular houses.

& Interestingly, Jupiter might also be in angular houses, indicating prosperity.

& Saturn in the 12th house signifies repressed emotions and the pressures of authority.

& Positions in the 5th, 11th, 10th, and 7th houses stand out.

& The 7th house is frequently seen in those who join the royal family through marriage or gain prominence after marriage.

& Interestingly, Scorpio's influence is also observed in charts.

& When it comes to asteroids:

ABUNDANITA #151

FORTUNA #19

GOLD #4955

KING #2305

KONIG #3815

MIDAS #1981

PRINZ #4595

QUEEN #5457

REGINA #285

SILVER #5325

TYCHE #258

[cosmicplexus]

Random Astrology Observations

🌻I wasn't feeling lazy today so this is a bit longer than the usual observation posts🌻

🦋And finally the pricing catalogue is here...at the end of the observations 🦋

Thank you so much my sunflowers🌻your support has been everything. I try my best to respond to your messages and requests. If you haven't received a response, I'm coming 🤍✨

And I tried my best to be reasonable with the prices. Also, I'm not yet doing full chart readings as I am a student with two majors and I'm already struggling with balancing things. In time I will do them. Free one question culture requests are still open, but please don't request for things you see on the pricing catalogue like a big three reading...

I don't want to bore you all too much so here we go🧚🏾‍♀️🦋🌻✨

Astrology Notes...

~4th house Gemini makes for someone who develops family-like bonds in friendships.

~taurus risings tend to be possessive due to the influence of their scorpio 7th house.

~pluto at angular houses 1st, 7th, 4th and 10th is a huge indicator of someone who has had intense experiences in the respective key areas of life and there's spiritual lessons to be learnt regarding that area through transformation.

~libra venus placements may find it really hard to stay single

~7° and 19° venus or moon signs may struggle with the theme of physical perfection and wanting to attain it.

~virgo moons have a tendency of creating problems if they don't have any current ones to solve

~capricorn risings really do look older in their younger days and younger when they're older.

~moon and neptune in 1st house natives may give off the perception that they need saving and may attract people with a martyrdom complex.

~sagittarius, 9th house, 9° and 21° mercuries may have an affinity to music in foreign languages while cancer, 4th house, 4°,16°,28° may enjoy music in their mother tongue

~jupiter in 2nd house and 10th house is heavy lotto winner vibes. Literally and figuratively.

~mercury in 2nd house and at Taurean degrees(2°,14° and 26°) are the born singers

~the 22nd degree is an underrated fame degree...I have a bey's🐝 fame analysis I've been sitting on for a while. That's a conversation for another day.

~pisces venus and mars are the most romantic people in the world which makes me kind of believe the astrology theory of neptune being the higher frequency of venus.

~leo moons really take their hair seriously and may feel out of loop if their hair is not well done.

~want to easily impress a cancer mars man??? Sing praises to your mom. Be dotting around kids.

~girls with 9th house, 9° and 21° Venus are so magically beautiful. Abundance of beauty.

~To a decent degree, liberation of women in society came at the expense of gemini, sagittarius and aquarius venus women being slut-shamed(This is not at all saying other women did not contribute to the liberation of women 🌻✨ That's a conversation for another day)

~neptune plays a huge role in beauty trends and that's why neptune dominant women are usually the beauty influencers which explains why beauty standards are mutable and ever changing.

~jupiter in 7th house can go two ways... extreme luck in meaningful relationships or someone who never has serious relationships and is forever on the look...

~pisces/12th house mercuries and mercury afflicted by neptune are often under fire for being the liars when the real culprit is the sagittarius/9th house mercuries and mercury-jupiter hard aspects.

~I personally view the north node as a jupiter variant. While the general consensus is that it is the purpose we're working for, I do believe that it's also an indicator of our birthrights, innate gifts and where we're lucky.

~Cosmic Plexus🌻🤍

§~PRICE CATALOGUE~§ ~PAID READINGS COMMENCE ON THE 16th of May 2024 🦋DETAILED BIG THREE READING ~ $6.00

🦋5 IN-DEPTH SYNASTRY QUESTIONS READING ~ $9.00 🦋OVERALL SYNASTRY ADVICE ~ $3.00

🦋SPIRITUALITY AND PURPOSE FOCUSED READING ~ $6.00 🦋CAREER ADVICE ~ $3.00 🦋 RELATIONSHIP REMEDY TIPs $3.00

Let me know your thoughts...

~Cosmic Plexus🤍✨🌻🦋©️

[nenoname]

How Stan+Ford+Bill refer to each other

Stan

Ford:

Childhood: Stanley (9)

Teen: Stan (2)

Pre-Portal: Stanley (15), my brother (5), S (2)

Post-Portal: Stanley (33), Stan (13), my brother (7), my hotheaded brother, idiot (2), knucklehead, [Dipper's] uncle Stan, hero, stubborn mullet-haired frostbitten vagabond, wrinkly carnival barker, irresponsible shortcut-loving overgrown child, cheater, fraud, "looks like me if I gave up on life"

Post-Weirdmageddon: Stanley (16), Stan (5), my brother (2), Stanley Pines, hero (2), the man who saved the world, "selfish jerk", the most selfless man I’ve ever met in any dimension

Lost Pages: S (5), Stanley (4), my brother (3)

(S is a pre-portal incident Journal only thing + pre-portal incident Journals only has "Stanley" mentioned in code, tends to call him Stan when talking to the kids)

Bill:

Pre-Weirdmageddon: Stan Pines, Stan (6), old man, [D+M's] uncle, you idiot, Stanley

Post-Weirdmageddon: Stanley (7), Stan (10), Stanley Pines (2), fat grandpa, fumbling idiot con man, weaker copy of Sixer, Bootleg Sixer, mouth breathing carnival barker, gambler, lifelong loser, goofus, PTSD Barnum, side character, co-dependent, stupid, tacky, smug, unworthy, resume-inflating cheap trick loving past-denying overgrown child, pathetic excuse for a 5-sensed three-dimensional one-life spanned skin puppet, carbon-copy of a better genetic duplicate, conman clown, Lucky Stan

Non-canon shorts/Reddit AMA/That cut perpetual machine nightmare: Stan, Stanley, Stan Pines, slick

Lost Pages: inferior clone, brother (when pretending to be Ford)

(Most of the post-Weirdmageddon Stan mentions are for the "fun" facts in the Wheel of Shame, Bill spends the How not to Draw short never directly acknowledging Stan which I find hilarious)

Ford

Stan:

Childhood: Sixer (5), Stanford, Ford, Poindexter, bro, buddy

Teen: Sixer, Stanford (2), nerd robot

Pre-Portal: Stanford (5), pal, you jerk

Post-Portal: Stanford (3), Ford (8), Poindexter (2), my brother (11), brother, bro, the Author of the Journals, you ungrateful-, my nerdy twin brother, my dumb brother, know-it-all, dangerous-know-it-all, world's nerdiest old man, show-off, that jerk, stuck up son of a gun

Post-Weirdmageddon: Sixer (5), Ford (3), my brother (5), Stanford, Fordsy, bro, my nerdy bro, Brainiac, Mr Goody Nerd-Shoes

(Tends to use "Stanford" when shit's serious, yes i'm including the two getting traumatised by thrist comments clip come and stop me)

Bill:

Pre-betrayal: Sixer (2), Stanford, smart guy, Stanford Pines

Post-betrayal: Sixer (5), Stanford (2), Ford (4), Stanford Filbrick Pines, Stanford Pines, ol' Six-Fingers (2), Fordsy (2), my old pal, IQ, Mr Brainiac, Brainiac (2), [Mabel's] uncle, our friend, old man, kid, tough guy, pal, Mr Serious

Post-Weirdmageddon: Sixer (20), Ford (7), Fordsy (2), drama queen, fella, sad nerd, genius, idiot, partner, Mr Tabletop Gaming, backstabber, gallant, perfect pawn, pet human

Lost Pages: Sixer (7), Fordsy, Slick, pal, my old pal, my property

Bill

Stan:

Pre-Weirdmageddon: Bill (3), all-powerful space demon, you one-eyed demon, wise-guy

Post-Weirdmageddon: Bill (3), Bill Cipher, little wise guy, Pointy, jerk of the week, narc

Non-canon shorts/That cut perpetual machine nightmare: you creepy triangle, guy (3), nacho, cop

Ford:

Pre-betrayal: My Muse (19), a strange being from a higher plane, being (3), strange whimsical creature, true friend, Bill (2, however!! this is from Dreamscaperers long before J3 was properly written)

Post-betrayal: Bill (default way of referring to him), My "muse" (3) Bill Cipher (10), Cipher (10), the demon (2), my enemy (3), you insane three sided--, The Beast with Just One Eye, the devil, liar, monster, angular psychopath, nightmare in disguise, king of nightmares, the Triangle, a has-been, a needy theater kid

Lost Pages: Bill (17), my Muse (11), Cipher (18) , Bill Cipher (2), extradimensional deity of knowledge, Cill Bipher, this Bill guy

[space-pics]

NGC 1365 captured by the James Webb Space Telescope by European Space Agency

Scientists are getting their first look with the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope’s powerful resolution at how the formation of young stars influences the evolution of nearby galaxies. NGC 1365, observed here by Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) is one of a total of 19 galaxies targeted for study by the Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby Galaxies (PHANGS) collaboration.

[jiminjamms]

sex therapy :: 32. uno reverse

chapter tags/warnings: aftercare. mentions of cum and creampies. other sexual content. nicknames. extremely strong language. corruption. family drama.

word count: 3.9k

notes: the last chapter was 97% smut. oops. plot? literally, what plot? well, here is the plot. also, happy new year's eve and new years! likes, comments, and reblogs are much appreciated. xoxo

fic masterlist | 01. 02. 03. 04. 05. 06. 07. 08. 09. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33.

With sweat stuck onto your forehead and spit plastered across your chin, you panted like an overheated dog. Such were the consequences of dealing with too many hands, cocks, and men.

After the sinful fiasco with your sex therapists, your body quivered from exhaustion.

Not to mention, you had been stuffed.

Holding in a potent cum concoction within your womb, you did your best to keep the fluids in, but the sheer volume forced a slow dribble to slide down your plush inner thighs.

You winced from the unwelcome cool against your warm skin, feeling flustered, frazzled, and disheveled.

Sukuna thumbed the dried tears that streaked your cheeks, Geto carded his hand through your hair, and Choso massaged the sore spots on your soft ass, all cooing about how you’ve been an angel for them and that maybe…you all should find time to do this again.

When the three dressed themselves and stepped out eventually for a cigarette, they left you looking at your window reflection, in which you noticed how makeup smudged across your cheeks and how fluids coated your neck and chest.

Never had you felt this...deranged.

Yet, absolutely nothing could be compared to the hot mess that was the Toji Fushiguro whom you straddled.

The man lolled his head back with a low groan and ran his thick fingers through his scalp. His dark strands had become drenched in perspiration and clung to his face's rugged planes. Blistering in his formal attire, he tossed his charcoal blazer aside, undid his knotted tie, and stripped off his button-down. His chest, dusted in a healthy pink shade, heaved. After his pleasure, he still looked like a Greek god in his shame.

Despite all your egregious encounters with him, you still flushed when seeing his bare-chested body. His formalwear might be different from his usual black T-shirt and white lab coat, but he hadn't really changed. He was still fit and subtly edgy with the designs that swirled around his chiseled upper body.

Amid the tattooed tapestry, your gaze once again became drawn by the inked phoenix that rose victoriously from ashes, a symbol that seemed like a parallel to Toji himself. Resilient. Indestructible. Enduring. Both confronting and overcoming challenges, standing stronger and more determined despite their struggles. Each feather branded across his torso held wordless stories about not only his triumphs but also his scars.

“Princess likes what she sees?”

Toji's sudden interjection surprised you. Fuck, he's caught me staring.

After you ogled at his body for too long, the man had naturally taken note, and—with you, of course—he simply had to tease.

"Your tattoos suit you," you had been forced to admit. Not that you lied.

In response, his green eyes held a gentle glister that contrasted with his animalistic actions mere moments ago. "That’s cute. Thank you."

He reached over your shoulder for a tissue and dabbed at your collarbone.

"What are you doing?"

"Cleaning you up," answered Toji promptly. With the napkin, he soaked up sins, wiping away at the unholy mixture between sweat, spit, and semen as though they never tainted your perfect body in the first place. "That's the least I can do."

He worked in silence, slightly hunched in his seat, the scattered light from the above chandelier casting sharp shadows over his angular face. Wisps of jet-black hair framed his temples as he hung his head in focus, his breathing turning steady. Toji looked so normal, like he wasn't some sex therapist or some important corporate executive or an heir to a multi-billion fortune.

In this one, singular moment, Toji was just...Toji.

"Why are you doing this?" you asked suddenly.

"Doing what?" Mistakenly, he assumed you referred to how he sought another napkin, this time to wipe at the trickle that ran like white lava down your thighs. “We made a mess."

"No, not that. Why did you become my therapist?" Of course, you did not forget your first encounter with Dr. Fushiguro, particularly how Toji ripped your new patient form to literal shreds the moment he noticed your last name. “You could've kicked me out of your office that day and left me miserable, but you didn't. Why?"

He slowed in his motions and his hot breath skimmed over your upper lip.

Then, he smiled faintly. "Can I abstain?"

This was his hint that the answer wouldn’t be something you liked.

"No." You still wanted to know. "Tell me, please."

Despite your reassurance, he seemed reluctant, his jaw working as he trapped his tongue piercing between his teeth.

"Because you were too…innocent," Toji eventually admitted. He sounded earnest, but he gave you a cautious glance like he wanted to gauge your reaction. "A pretty lady coming to see Toji Fushiguro because his little cousin Naoya Zenin couldn't please you properly? Clearly, you've never had a proper fuck. I wanted to completely ruin you, baby. I wanted to use you. And, shit, that pussy made me want to keep you for myself forever. Sure, I also had a two-timing ex, but who cares about my little cousin's mistress when I had his wife in front of me?"

Even though you braced for a brutally honest response, hearing his words firsthand stung.

Yes, you were naïve back then. However, to hear your closest confidant admit his initial, manipulative motives jabbed at your sensitive heart.

From your husband to your therapist, you were constantly a pawn on another person's chessboard. Yet, the worst part was that you didn't notice the game until much later.

"I am sorry," Toji started again. Perceptive as usual, he noticed how your mood suddenly soured. "I had all these shitty intentions because Naoya fucked me over, so I wanted to take my anger out on you. But, when I realized that you’re just an oblivious puppet in his play, I wanted him to realize that he was mistreating you, and," one long exhale, "most importantly, I truly did want to help you."

Mulling over his words carefully, you sank your face into his shoulder. "Are you just saying that to make me feel better?"

“No, I am being honest," and the dark green in his eyes reflected that. "I didn't expect to ever see you again after our first session. Thought you got scared off for good until you called me to book another appointment. Honestly, at that point, people suspected you to be Naoya’s lap-bitch and spy. Hope that explains the shitty attitudes from the other therapists and my son." Toji flicked the dirty tissue into the wastebasket. "I defended you, though, if that means anything. I thought you were nice and entertaining and, as I've pointed out numerous times, that you deserved better. What I didn't think was how I would end up bringing you into," and he motioned around with his head, "all of this.”

Breathing in slowly, you took in the man's heavy bergamot scent and allowed his warmth to anchor you.

“So, how do you plan to use me now?”

Among your incessant inquiries, this question must be the most pointed.

Toji, realizing this, gazed ahead. Momentarily, you wondered where his thoughts had wandered off to this time, his focus on the ceiling sharpening for a moment before he reverted his attention back.

"There is no plan to ‘use’ you, sweetheart. Because you mean a lot to me," he still responded with great conviction. "You are cherished."

Beneath the rough edges in his features laid a softness—a softness that you started to become familiar with—as he brought his hands to your hip.

“Live a happy life without Naoya," he added eventually. "You don't need me and the other therapists anymore. Only brokenhearted and anguished people are our clients, so forgetting about us should be easy."

Was it wrong to feel even more hurt when you heard that?

Literally one moment ago, Toji was telling you how much you meant to him. Now, he was telling you to go?

"Client or not, I thought we were friends. You even told me once that I'm somebody special."

“You are," he responded matter-of-factly. "You are very special. Which is why I am not going to force you to hang around or anything. That way you don’t think anyone is ‘using’ you. You're young and capable, and I want you to live your life as you wish.” Then, his voice became uncharacteristically soft. “Because I care about you.”

As nonchalant as he tried to come off, Toji also sounded so...broken.

Plenty of people—plenty of women—came in and out of Toji's life. Megumi had said so himself, admitting that his father used to 'sleep around a bunch' after his biological mother passed.

Since then, Toji had probably gotten used to how the women he encountered only wanted him for his name, his wallet, or—yes, to put things bluntly—his dick. Tsumiki's mom would be the best and most recent example.

But, you wanted to heal Toji as much as Toji had healed you.

"There's something Megumi told me the first time I stayed over at your apartment," you began suddenly.

Toji arched a brow, the tendons by his neck taut. "Is that so?" Knowing his angsty son, he sounded curious but moreso concerned. "Like what?"

'Are you going to marry my dad?'

No, you would die from embarrassment before you could admit that.

"Megumi told me about what happened to his mom, your first wife."

"Ah." Beneath you, Toji tensed up. His tongue darted over his scar like he wanted to continue, but no words came out.

So, he stopped and waited for you to continue.

"I...am really sorry to hear about what happened to her."

In the end, Toji tilted his head, a small but obviously sad smile playing on his lips.

"That's years ago." He tried to sound like losing his first wife in a freak accident didn't haunt him anymore, but you knew that the catastrophe still did.

"Well, Megumi also told me about what your relationships with other women were like since then," you resumed. "Particularly about your second wife."

This time, you truly stumped him. "I see."

"Unlike her, I am not going anywhere," you asserted and tightened your hold around him. "No one is forcing that decision upon me, either. Since you want me to 'live my life as I wish,' my wish is for us to be friends for a long time...and for the same reasons friends want to be friends."

"Is that genuinely what you want?"

"Yes. Truly."

Whether due to your common backgrounds in the Japanese aristocracy or the juxtaposition he offered to your ex-husband, Toji had become your haven. He grounded you after your emotional tumbles and uplifted you with compliments and praise—like an anchor, an unyielding outlet with whom you could share your pains and transform your frustrations into something lesser.

Whenever you had needed him most, Toji had been there.

Always there.

Consequently, you hoped to be the same for him.

When Toji cupped your jaw with a large hand, you slowly pressed your cheek into his palm.

“You care a lot about others but forget to think about yourself,” you went on, criticizing him in a light tone. There was also a question that you had been meaning to ask. “Like, why did you agree to take on the CEO position again after experiencing the Zenin family and your past?”

His fingers flexed slightly into your skin.

“My decision is not about the people who wronged me, but rather the people who depend on me,” he clarified after a beat, his voice lowered like he confided in himself as much as in you. “I look at Mai and Maki, who’ve been treated like garbage their entire lives. I think about Megumi and Tsumiki, who deserve a world with the best opportunities. For them and for others, I want to create a future with something better. ”

Which reminds you.

For the therapists, taking on renewed roles within the Zenin Corporation would be concerning given that they have previously faced accusations of neglecting the business in favor of their own pursuits.

“What will happen to sex therapy?”

Naoya Zenin returned to his apartment lobby tossed (yes, tossed) following a blindfolded car ride home.

To some degree, he wished he hadn’t come back at all since—after retrieving his phone and searching the Internet—he discovered a new reality where media spokespeople, online netizens, and business leaders welcomed his cousin’s return to leadership while denouncing his own.

It was like the universe had been waiting to have Naoya reckon with his misconducts all at once, for he never fully understood the consequences of his sins until his face appeared over news websites, tabloid front pages, and social media feeds.

Even when he had business to attend to the following day, he could hardly push past his apartment entrance without being swarmed by meddlers who somehow had gotten intel on his address. Naturally, many people wanted to hear directly from the businessman who had fallen from grace, especially when the company he once led was one of the largest market players in the Asia-Pacific region. First came the paparazzi, the blinding white flashes from their cameras all seeking to capture his face. Then came the other onlookers, jeering with many insults his way.

‘A scumbag is what you are. A disgusting cheater!’ ‘You don't even deserve a penny of your net worth!” ‘Your company, colleagues, and family deserved better!’ 'Someone like Toji Fushiguro!'

The moment Naoya reached the backseat of his sedan, he smashed his phone in one savage blow, startling the chauffeur as the gadget's screen shattered. Didn’t matter. He had the money to replace that by noon anyway.

Meanwhile, with white-gloved hands on the wheel, the driver tried to hide his tremor.

"A-Are you o—"

"To the corporate headquarters," Naoya ordered. "Put your fucking foot on the pedal or the next thing I'll be blowing up is you."

"Yes."

Well, that shut him up.

Thanks to that, Naoya arrived at the Zenin Corporation headquarters in record-breaking time, but he encountered yet another human barrage. People shouted over one another, some even pushing microphones toward his face, as the crowd followed him like a gaggle of geese while he walked into the lobby.

He frowned when his ID badge failed at the security turnstiles, his access removed from the building's security system already. Just two days ago, he held hours-long meetings in the offices above. Now, two days later, he had been deemed an outsider without access to even the company café on the first floor.

He kicked the turnstile (as if that would change anything), and a steely voice interrupted his anger.

"Naoya Zenin, sir," a woman in a security uniform began, "you are no longer with the corporation and are causing a disturbance. Please, leave."

The blonde snapped his badge back into his palm before tucking both hands into the front pockets of his pressed pants. He sauntered forward slowly, making sure that the woman noticed the difference in their height. "No, I won't. I have an appointment."

"Please," she barged in again, unintimidated by his taller frame. Her voice this time was more stern as she glanced over at the nearby swarm. "You're creating a commotion on private property.”

Did he look like he cared? "My family's private property."

"Sir, I—"

"He’s with me." With a third voice joining the conversation, both turned around as no one other than Toji Fushiguro himself walked over. "I invited him for a private meeting. Allow me to escort him."

The antagonism that the security woman had with Naoya vanished completely as she apologized profusely to the older man, and the blonde found her switch in character fucking deplorable and insulting.

After a brief exchange, Toji looked over. “Thank you for arriving on time. I was worried you missed my text since I sent the message very early in the morning. Let me bring you upstairs.”

Despite receiving a smile, Naoya didn’t like the belittling and patronizing tone that made him feel like a child who needed a chaperone or a beggar who needed a savior.

Nonetheless, he followed in tense silence.

When he walked into the designated conference room, Naoya tried to not look surprised to also see his father and your father in the same vicinity as well (although, given that they were the Board Director and the Chief Operating Officer, respectively, that should’ve been expected).

He had to look away from their cold gazes and instead took the seat closest to the door. “Why do you want to talk to me?”

Toji, on the other hand, settled at the head of the table and crossed one leg over his knee. “This meeting is a courtesy​​. One you don’t deserve but here we are. We’ll be brief.” He leaned across the table, sliding over a sleek black folder. “Later today, the Zenin Corporation will hold a press conference to address our organizational and management changes. In this binder are terms for your settlement. We would like you to accept the proposal, leave, and never associate yourself with the Zenin name again.”

When Naoya saw the documents inside, he wanted to laugh right then and there. “This is a shitty offer that practically gives me nothing.”

What else did you expect? Toji’s unwavering expression seemed to say.

He even opened his mouth to speak, but a much coarser voice spoke first.

"Because you did that to yourself,” Naobito explained. “As of now, your actions have stripped you of everything and you’re still scoffing at someone else’s generosity? You’re a selfish manipulator who has jeopardized our stakeholders’ trust. Our family name will not tolerate your presence moving forward!"

"Listen, Father—"

"Mr. Zenin to you!"

Naoya could not believe he was related to the much older man in front of him. Except for their common features, the duo shared absolutely nothing including warmth for each other.

Which, to the blonde, was ridiculous. Because how could his parent not view the situation from his lens? No one understood the struggles that tormented him since his childhood and the reasons his anguish turned into greed.

"This isn’t fair.” Naoya’s voice rose, trembling with barely contained anger as he shoved the folder away. “I can’t understand you, Fa—Mr. Zenin. Why? Why does everything that Toji touches turn to gold in your eyes? The world welcomes him back like he’s a prodigy, and you hand him everything on a silver platter. But then, why can’t you defend your one and only son in a situation like this? Anything…anything I do, to you, is not enough.”

With his chest heaving, Naoya had to pause and catch his breath. He didn’t want to admit that he was on the verge of another outburst, only to be met with no sympathy in return.

"You and Toji have never been in the same position. Not now, not before, and not ever.” As the Chairman made himself clear, his voice cut through his son’s rant like a blade. “While no one is perfect, Toji—in the past and present—earns respect by owning his failures and proving his worth. Due to his team’s work in the last twenty-four hours, he stabilized the company, helping us avoid an immense drop in our market value and cancellations from our business partners.” In addition to his utter disregard for his son’s feelings, Naobito even mocked him with a scoff. “Meanwhile, you don’t play by the rules, boy. You exploit them to suit your needs, and when something backfires, you blame everyone but yourself. Toji didn’t come back because I handed him anything. He came back because he knows how to make amends.”

Stop.

Naoya wanted this mental torture to come to a fucking stop.

His father’s scorn was bad enough, but the comparison to Toji—always Toji—was like salt ground into an open wound. What made the situation a hundred times more humiliating was how his older cousin sat across the table with a nearly indiscernible smirk on his face.

Yet, what could he realistically do when the Chairman went on?

“In my entire life, I only requested from you one thing,” Naobito added. ‘Power and money did not interest him when compared to his daughter, so the one promise I made is that you would love her.’ “And what did you do?”

Precisely not that.

The pointed change in topic made Daisuke L/N sit forward uncomfortably.

"Be honest with us, Naoya," he said. "Aside from marrying my daughter to legitimize your position in your family and company, what other intentions did you have?"

The man stared ahead with a solemn expression because, in that moment, he wasn’t the Zenin Corporation’s Chief Operating Officer but merely a father.

A father who had been promised a dependable and loving son-in-law, not a cruel and ruthless deceiver.

Naoya shrugged.

"My original plan was to have your daughter for as long as I deemed her useful. Maybe until my old man kicked the bucket and I became the head of the Zenin household? Or, if I liked her enough, maybe longer? I don't know, not that I really cared." Naoya didn't give a shit that he sounded like a total sociopath. As a grown man, he could make his choices in speech. "But, what I did care about is how people only noticed me when I had that…that—"

At that, Toji had to cut him off. “You’ve said enough. We’re done here.”

“I’m not finished.”

“Yes, you are. As I mentioned earlier, this meeting is only a courtesy.”

Toji rose from his seat and adjusted his blazer, the other executives doing the same but with pursed frowns. When the Chairman and the COO left quickly in silent rage, Toji followed them and gestured toward the black folder again on his way out.

"Anyway, all the legal documents are in there. Can read through them, if you care. You have the next hour to inform my secretary of your decision. My advice is to accept our offer since no legitimate company in the Asia-Pacific—or anywhere else in the world—will want you now. You ensured that for yourself."

Toji walked to the exit in precise and confident strides, but just before disappearing into the halls, he paused.

"Oh, but one last request.” Except what he said next wasn’t a request, but a demand. “Never show yourself to us or anyone we care about again. Take this as a warning."

Then, the door clicked shut.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Naoya stood up.

“God fucking damnnit!” he hollered at the top of his lungs like a mad maniac. His hand shot out, sweeping the papers off the table violently, sending them scattering across the floor.

He hissed and seethed. How he hated this feeling. His current ordeal had been his wake-up call to realize that merely being born into status didn't mean he would be invincible.

If only he hadn’t let his unchecked arrogance blind him, then his life trajectory would have played out differently!

…Or maybe nothing would’ve changed at all.

Because perhaps, all these years, Naoya Zenin had been trying to grasp onto something that was never meant to be his.

last chapter || next chapter

end notes: This is my final update for the year, and the next chapter will be the final chapter for this entire fic. I'll save my sentimental notes for later because I don't want to get sappy, but I wish everyone love, hugs, and good health forever and ever! Side note: I am very bad at updating the below taglist, sorry!

taglist: @dissociatingdiva @httpsplanetmarsdotcom @nemoyr @huangfairy @sakuraryomen01 @shadowarchon @203steph @agentdedf1sh @cloudybabes @lynn-writes-things @illicitwriter @7oji @kikuchimi @chaoticjojofan @musicisme333 @kumocchin @s-guru @mwahilovemylife @hey-gurls69 @cloudsinthecosmos @moon-mumu-moon @kazscara @skilerfrostfairy @funicidals @nico707 @proteovaldez @tsukiyohanayome @marimoares @qirbys @puffaloxx @sakanoshitaa @arizzuruu @kissditrio @lewd-bunny14 @mistyheart @szired @supsii @yvy1s @lazyassfinals @katkbc @tokyometronetwork @downtown-roponggi @the-cosmos-network

[codebriefly]

New Post has been published on https://codebriefly.com/whats-new-in-angular-20-key-features-and-more/

What's New in Angular 20: Key Features, Differences from Angular 19, and Major Benefits

​Angular 20, released in May 2025, marks a significant advancement in the Angular framework, introducing performance enhancements, developer-centric features, and architectural refinements. This post delves into the new features of Angular 20, contrasts them with Angular 19, and outlines the major benefits of upgrading.​

Table of Contents

Toggle

Key Features in Angular 20

1. Enhanced Ivy Compiler

2. Improved Developer Experience

3. Better Integration with PaaS

4. New Components and Libraries

5. Enhanced Security Features

Differences Between Angular 19 and Angular 20

Major Benefits of Angular 20

Upgrading to Angular 20

Final Thought

Key Features in Angular 20

1. Enhanced Ivy Compiler

Angular 20 continues to optimize the Ivy compiler, resulting in faster load times and reduced memory consumption. These improvements are particularly beneficial for applications deployed in Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) environments.​

2. Improved Developer Experience

The Angular CLI has been updated with new commands and options, streamlining the development process. Notably, the ng generate command now supports more templates and configurations, facilitating quicker project scaffolding.​

3. Better Integration with PaaS

Angular 20 offers improved integration with popular PaaS providers like Heroku, AWS Elastic Beanstalk, and Google App Engine. The new Angular Deploy tool simplifies the deployment process to these platforms.​

4. New Components and Libraries

The release introduces new Material Design components, enhancing UI development. Additionally, the Angular Component Dev Kit (CDK) has been expanded with new tools and utilities, aiding in the creation of custom, performant, and accessible components.​

5. Enhanced Security Features

Angular 20 includes built-in protections against common web vulnerabilities like Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) and Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF). The framework now supports Content Security Policy (CSP), allowing developers to define and enforce security policies effectively.​

6. Improved Testing and Debugging

Testing utilities have been enhanced, with improvements to Angular TestBed and new Protractor integration, making it easier to write and run tests.​

  Differences Between Angular 19 and Angular 20

Feature Angular 19 Angular 20 Standalone Components Default behavior Continued support with enhancements Reactivity Introduction of linkedSignal and resource() APIs Further optimizations in reactivity TypeScript Support Up to TypeScript 5.6 Improved TypeScript support with better type checking CLI Enhancements AI-driven suggestions and automation New commands and options for streamlined development Security AutoCSP for content security policies Built-in protections against XSS and CSRF, with CSP support Testing Utilities Introduction of new testing tools Enhanced TestBed and Protractor integration

Major Benefits of Angular 20

Performance Optimization: The refined Ivy compiler and improved reactivity lead to faster load times and efficient memory usage.​

Enhanced Developer Productivity: Updated CLI commands and better TypeScript support streamline the development workflow.​

Seamless Deployment: Improved integration with PaaS providers and the Angular Deploy tool simplify the deployment process.​

Robust Security: Built-in protections against common vulnerabilities and CSP support enhance application security.​

Improved Testing: Enhanced testing utilities facilitate easier and more reliable application testing.​

Upgrading to Angular 20

To upgrade your Angular application to version 20, follow these

Use the following npm command to update Angular CLI:

Global Update:

npm install -g @angular/cli

Angular CLI in Your Project:

ng update @angular/cli

Angular Core and Dependencies:

ng update @angular/core

Verify Application Functionality: Run your application and ensure all functionalities work as expected.

Final Thought

Angular 20 brings substantial improvements in performance, security, and developer experience. Upgrading to this version ensures your applications are built with the latest advancements, providing a robust foundation for future development.​

If you need assistance with the upgrade process or have any questions, feel free to ask!

Keep learning & stay safe 😉

You may like:

Testing and Debugging Angular 19 Apps

Performance Optimization and Best Practices in Angular 19

State Management and Data Handling in Angular 19

[sam198]

A day in the Spa

Tim walked into the luxurious spa, feeling a mix of excitement and trepidation. He had never been to a place quite like this before. Roland had invited him here, his neighbor and occasional client, who had once been his youth leader when he was just a scrawny teen with a crush on the hunky firefighter. Roland was a towering figure at 196 cm, with a body that was more "big" than "muscular," carrying an extra layer of padding around his midsection. His hairless chest was surprisingly firm, and his belly, though not flat, had a certain charm to it. Tim had always found something alluring about the way his belly folded when he sat down. Roland had a gentle face, with a pair of small glasses perched on his nose that made him seem wise beyond his years. His beard was almost non-existent, but the way his upper lip curled slightly when he talked made Tim's heart flutter. Roland's cock was the stuff of legend, at least in Tim's mind. At 19*5 cm, it was a beast, and Tim had been paid well for the graphic design work he had done for Roland's side business, which often came with the added bonus of a taste of that monster.

Roland looked down at Tim with a knowing smile, his eyes twinkling with mischief. Tim felt his cheeks warm as he took in the sight of his own body, muscular and fit from his days as a dancer. His green eyes, framed by his thick-rimmed glasses, darted around the room, taking in the opulent surroundings. His short, clean-shaven beard outlined his strong jaw, and his brown hair was styled in a way that accentuated his angular face. His cock was a respectable 19*4 cm, not as large as Roland's, but he knew how to use it to his advantage. He was versatile in the bedroom, preferring to bottom in his open relationship but enjoying taking control when it came to the random encounters outside of it. Tim felt the familiar thrill of attraction and anticipation as he thought about what this evening might hold.

"Welcome to my little sanctuary, Tim," Roland said, his deep voice resonating through the quiet space. "I think you're going to enjoy the experience." Tim nodded, trying to keep his cool. Roland's business, a thriving firefighter-themed car detailing service, had done well enough to afford him this extravagant retreat. The room was filled with the scent of burning sage and candles flickered on the shelves, casting a warm, seductive glow over the gleaming marble surfaces. The walls were lined with mirrors, reflecting every curve and bulge of their bodies as they moved. Tim felt a strange sense of vulnerability as he realized that every part of him would be on display, and that thought only served to make his cock swell slightly.

Roland stepped closer, his hand resting lightly on Tim's shoulder. "You know, I've always had a bit of a soft spot for you," he murmured, his breath hot against Tim's neck. Tim's heart skipped a beat. Was this going to be more than just a professional meeting? Roland's touch was firm but gentle, sending shivers down his spine. Tim felt his own cock begin to respond, thickening and lengthening despite his apprehension.

But as Roland began to stroke him, something strange happened. Tim's cock, felt tight.
"What's wrong, Timy?" Roland asked, his voice filled with concern. Tim looked down to find that his once proud 19 cm member had shrunken to a mere shadow of its former self. Roland's own cock, on the other hand, seemed to be growing before his eyes. It stretched out, thick and veiny, reaching out to claim what was once Tim's.

"What the fuck?" Tim managed to croak out, his eyes wide with shock and horror. Roland chuckled, a dark glint in his eye. "I told you I had a surprise for you tonight. It seems like you're going to be experiencing something new, something... enlightening." Tim felt his cock shrink even more as Roland's grew larger, filling his hand completely.

With a sudden jolt, Roland shoved Tim onto the massage table, his new, massive cock standing at full attention. "You're going to take this," Roland growled, his voice deeper, more commanding than Tim had ever heard it before. "You're going to take it all, and you're going to love it." Tim struggled, his muscular frame now feeling weak and inadequate against Roland's overwhelming size and strength.
Roland grabbed Tim's legs, pushing them apart and exposing his now tiny, wrinkled hole. "Don't worry," he said, his tone soothing despite the situation. "You're going to love being my little bottom bitch." Tim's heart raced as Roland positioned himself, the tip of his monstrous cock nudging at Tim's entrance. He felt a strange mix of fear and excitement as Roland pushed in, the sensation of being filled overwhelming him.

Tim's eyes rolled back in his head as Roland began to thrust, his fat cock stretching Tim's hole wider and wider. "You're so tight," Roland murmured, his strokes becoming more and more forceful. "But I'll loosen you up, don't you worry." Tim could only whimper in response, his body no longer his own as Roland claimed him, inch by glorious inch.

"Look at you," Roland said, his voice a low growl, "you're not even close to the man you were when you walked in here. You're just a little slut now, aren't you?" Tim's muscles, once so defined and strong, felt like they were melting away as Roland fucked him. His youthful good looks began to fade, his skin taking on a more weathered, used quality. His cock, once the center of his confidence, was now a pitiful little nub, all his vitality and virility seemingly transferred to Roland's monstrous member.

"You're mine now," Roland whispered, his breath hot and ragged. "My little bitch. And you're going to do everything I say." Tim nodded, unable to form words as Roland's cock pounded into him, stealing his very essence with every stroke.

But the transformation wasn't just in Tim; Roland was changing too. His body grew more muscular, his skin tightening and becoming more youthful. His cock, already massive, swelled even more, reaching lengths that seemed impossible. The veins stood out, pulsing with power as he claimed Tim's body, each inch of new growth a testament to his dominance.

Tim watched in the mirror, his eyes wide with a mix of fear and awe. Roland's face had lost its softness, becoming more chiseled and handsome. His hair thickened and darkened, the bald spot retreating. His beard grew into a full, lush mane that framed his face, making him look like the Greek god he had always aspired to be. His eyes, once hidden behind small glasses, now gleamed with a fiery intensity that made Tim's knees tremble.

As Roland fucked him harder, Tim felt the last of his youth being drawn into that cock, leaving him a withered, hollow shell. Yet, his body responded in ways it never had before, his prostate aching for the pounding it was receiving. He realized with a start that he was enjoying this, his body betraying him as it begged for more.

The spa room filled with the sounds of wet flesh slapping together, of grunts and moans. Roland's handsome face twisted in pleasure, his newfound vitality making him more attractive than ever. Tim couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy, his own youthful visage now replaced by the lines and sags of middle age. Yet, as Roland's cock grew even larger, filling him to the brim, Tim felt a strange sense of satisfaction, a perverse pride in serving his new master.

The power dynamics had shifted dramatically, and Tim knew he was forever changed. His body now craved this dominance, this complete surrender. He was no longer the confident top he had been, but a submissive, eager to please his new alpha.

Roland leaned in, his breath hot on Tim's neck, "You're going to be my little slut, aren't you?" Tim nodded, his voice barely above a whisper. "Yes, sir," he replied, feeling a strange comfort in the words.

Roland grinned, his teeth gleaming in the soft light of the spa. "Good boy," he murmured, his grip on Tim's legs tightening. "You're going to love this." Tim braced himself as Roland began to piston in and out of him, the pleasure building into something unbearable.

The former firefighter's cock grew even larger, filling Tim completely, stretching him to his limits. Tim's eyes rolled back in his head as he gave himself over to the feeling, his body no longer his own. Roland had taken everything from him, but in that moment, all Tim could do was revel in the sensation of being used, of being filled so completely by his neighbor's now massive cock.

The pain was exquisite, the pleasure unbearable, as Roland claimed him over and over again. Tim's once-muscular body now trembled with every thrust, his strength gone, replaced by a newfound need to be taken, to be used. The spa room spun around him, the smells of oils and candles mixing with the scent of sweat and sex.

The door to the private spa suite opened, and in walked two other men from the spa, drawn by the sounds of passion and the sight of the transformation unfolding before them. They were both in their late twenties, one with a chiseled jaw and piercing blue eyes, the other with a mop of dark hair and a smirk that spoke of his own conquests. They took in the sight of Roland, now the epitome of masculine beauty, and Tim, now a mere shadow of his former self, his cock shriveled and his ass reddened from the relentless pounding.

"Look at this pathetic excuse for a man," the blond-haired man said, pointing at Tim. "He's lost it all to that beast." The dark-haired man chuckled, stroking his own still-respectable cock as he watched Roland's thick member slide in and out of Tim's now-loose hole. "It's like he's being fucked by a horse," he commented, the humor in his voice cutting through the tension like a knife.

Tim felt his cheeks burn with humiliation as the men whispered and laughed about his new body, his once-proud cock now a mere memory. He was nothing but a vessel for Roland's pleasure, a living embodiment of what happens when one man's power is transferred to another. He wanted to scream, to protest, but all that came out was a series of high-pitched whimpers that only served to egg the two men on.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Roland taunted, pulling out of Tim and turning him over to face the mirror. Tim looked at his reflection, his eyes wide with shock and despair. The man looking back at him was unrecognizable, a hollowed-out version of the confident man he had been mere minutes ago. His body was now a caricature of age and weakness, his cock a sad, limp excuse for what it had been. Roland leaned in close, his newfound youthfulness and virility a stark contrast to Tim's decay. "You like what you see?"

Tim nodded, unable to find the words to express his disgust and arousal. The two men by the door had moved closer now, their cocks hardening as they watched Roland's power grow and Tim's fade away. They whispered to each other, their eyes never leaving the scene before them. Tim knew what they were thinking; he could see it in their lustful gazes. They wanted a piece of the action, to be the ones to dominate him, to feel the power of taking what wasn't theirs.

Roland leaned down, his beard brushing against Tim's ear. "You're going to be everyone's little fuck toy, aren't you?" Tim whimpered, feeling his body betray him once more as his shrunken cock began to harden slightly at the thought. "Yes, sir," he murmured, the words slipping out before he could stop them.

The blond man stepped forward, a wicked grin on his face. "Mind if we join?" he asked Roland, his hand already reaching out to stroke Tim's flabby belly. Tim felt a thrill of terror and excitement run through him. He was about to become the plaything of not one, but three men, all of them eager to use his new, inferior body for their own pleasure.

Roland chuckled, his cock still rock-hard despite having just fucked Tim senseless. "Be my guest," he said, gesturing to the massage table. "Just remember, he's mine." The two men stepped closer, their eyes hungry as they looked Tim over, already planning their next move. Tim could do nothing but lay there, his body a canvas for their desires, his soul forever bound to the man who had taken everything from him.

The blond-haired man, Adrian, took the lead, stroking Tim's flabby belly with a sense of disgust and excitement. "Look at this pathetic mess," he sneered, his voice echoing through the spa. "It's like someone took all the good stuff and left us with this... this... nothing!" His blue eyes sparkled with malice as he leaned in closer, his cock now fully erect.

The dark-haired man, Jared, couldn't resist chiming in. "I bet he used to think he was hot shit," he said with a snicker. "Now look at him. He's nothing but a walking cum dumpster." Tim's heart sank further into his chest as he felt their hands on his body, exploring his newfound weakness. The humiliation was almost too much to bear, but he found himself getting harder at the thought of being used by them.

The two newcomers looked over at Roland, who had moved to the side to watch the show, his cock still standing tall and proud. "How does it feel, knowing you're not even the biggest dick in the room anymore?" Jared taunted Tim, his fingers playing with the soft flesh of Tim's now tiny cock. Roland smirked, his grip on Tim's chin tightening as he forced their eyes to meet.

"It feels...right," Tim whispered, the truth of his new existence dawning on him. He was a mere shell of his former self, living to serve the men around him. And as much as he hated it, as much as he wished it wasn't true, there was a twisted part of him that craved it. Roland leaned in and kissed him, a possessive gesture that sent shivers down Tim's spine. "You're going to love this, baby," he whispered before releasing him to the eager hands of the other two men.

Adrian and Jared didn't waste any time, each taking a side of the massage table. Tim felt their cocks pressing against his thighs, their excitement palpable. He knew what they wanted, and as much as he hated himself for it, he wanted it too. The room grew hazy as they took turns fucking him, his body now a mere playground for their pleasure. The pain was unbearable, but so was the pleasure, a cruel mix of emotions that left Tim feeling more alive than he ever had.

As they used him, the men described his new body in detail, their words a knife twisting in his soul. "Look at those tits," one would say, squeezing his now-feminine breasts. "He's got the ass of a 50-year-old woman," another would add, slapping his now-flabby cheeks. Tim's mind reeled, trying to piece together what had happened to him, but it was no use. He was theirs now, a living doll to be played with and discarded when they were done.

Their words cut deeper than any knife, each insult a reminder of his new place in the world. But amidst the pain and the humiliation, Tim felt a strange thrill, a sense of belonging. He was no longer the top of the food chain, no longer the one in control. He was just a toy, a thing to be used and abused. And in that moment, as Adrian and Jared emptied themselves into him, he realized that this was where he truly belonged.

The men pulled out, their cocks glistening with cum and sweat. Tim's body was a mess, his dignity in tatters. Roland stepped forward, a proud look in his eyes. "Congratulations," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You're officially the spa's resident slut. Welcome to your new life, Tim."

Tim looked up at Roland, his eyes filled with a mix of anger and arousal. He hated this new world, this twisted reality where his body was no longer his own. But as Roland offered him a hand to help him up, he took it, knowing that this was just the beginning. He was now the inferior superior, and he had no choice but to embrace it.

[astrodescent]

astro observations pt.2 🕸️🪽🦇

aquarius mercuries are always asking people questions about themselves, but not always because they care - it’s to study them

i’m envious of sagittarius mercuries because y’all can ponder things but you’re okay with not getting a definitive answer

pisces / aquarius don’t reply not because they hate you, we just have escapist tendencies

virgo mercuries can be a little annoying when explaining something to them, because they always find a fault in any situation.

scorpio placements have parents who had suffered, either while they were pregnant or after the child was born.

sagittarius mars / 9H always have the best philosophies that they live by

say what you want about virgo venus natives but no one is gonna take care of you like them

“teen degrees” (13°-19°) in astrology, usually indicate some sort of transformation and learning experience that manifests within the placement

i’ve noticed that venus ruled or dominant placements have a pink undertone and mostly have pink / green auras

planets in angular houses (1H,4H,7H,10H) are usually important to the foundation of a person in a chart

saturn conjunct sun can indicate ocd

leo moons sidereal cancer moons cause drama and then victimize themselves when it turns back to them

aquarius / sagittarius in a chart can make someone VERY blunt especially when mad

[death3x]

[cillianmesoftlyyy]

As You Wish | Neil Lewis x fem!reader

Summary| You've had your eye on Neil for a while now and Neil's friends can tell but Neil isn't so sure until you come into Gumshoe Video with a boy on your arm with horrible taste in date-night cinema. When the date goes awry, Neil jumps to action.

Warning| Age gap, reader (19) and Neil (27), rudeness, flirting, touching, Neil being a little creepy, Neil's dubious consent, talk of virginity and inexperience, kissing, blowjob.

Mastermind- Taylor Swift (yeah, I said it) 🎵

Colorblind- Counting Crows 🎶

word count: 4933k

*sentences in italics are quotes from The Princess Bride (1987)

Please read warnings before continuing- thanks!

“That kid keeps coming around. If you’re not careful she’s gonna fall in love and you’ll be in deep shit,” Lucien fixed the thick frame of his glasses on his angular nose and returned the fake pipe to his mouth. 

“Why don’t you shut up, Lucien. It’s not like that. Just keep your weird thoughts to yourself in my store.” Neil called over his shoulder as he stocked the shelves with returned VHS tape sleeves. He ran his elbow over his forehead, wiping away the thin layer of perspiration. 

“Everyone’s thinking it…” Lucien raised his hands in defense and Neil rolled his eyes. Jonathan came in from Neil’s office holding a milkcrate full of new movies, still wrapped in plastic. Neil whistled at him. 

“Jonathan, do you think that girl likes me?” Neil shot Lucien a look as Jonathan answered. 

“Oh yeah, 100% dude.” 

“What, no! Jonathan, you were supposed to say no.” Neil spoke with his hands, slapping his hand against his face. Lucien chuckled and Jonathan looked between them, confused.

“What? Neil, did you want me to lie or something?” Jonathan put down the milkcrate and leaned against the checkout counter. 

“He’s blissfully unaware of how much that girl likes him.” Lucien sucked on the empty pipe and coughed, swallowing his spit the wrong way. 

“How? Neil, she comes by like twice a week to talk to you and shows up at all of our softball games.” 

“She’s only nineteen! For all I know, she just wants a job here one day.” Neil shrugged and went back to stocking the shelves, a blush creeping into his high cheekbones. 

“Sure she wants a job here if it means that she gets to fucking talk to you everyday, all day about classic films and shit!” Jonathan laughed. 

“She’s nice!” Neil exclaimed defeatedly and massaged his eye sockets. 

“Yeah, so’s my aunt but she doesn’t come around here every week to tell me about the latest movie she’s watched.” Lucien mumbled. 

“That wasn’t as effective as you think it was,” Jonathan sighed, then just to Lucien, “don’t use a family member next time, ok?” 

“Ok, OK!” Neil interrupted them, shaking his hands. “It’s not like that and she doesn’t like me like that. I’m like eight years older than her…” 

“That’s never stopped people before,” Lucien reminded Neil and he withheld a few choice expletives as the shop door opened and a customer came in. The bell twinkled and Neil called out the familiar greeting. 

“Welcome to Gumshoe Video!” 

“Hi, Neil.” Y/N smiled shyly. Lucien and Jonathan’s quiet snickers stopped as a second customer entered after the girl. “This is Woody. Woody, this is Neil.” 

“Hey, how’s it going?” Woody waved to Neil and his friends on the back couch. They waved back in shocked silence. 

“What happened to you?” She asked, recoiling away from the employees who stared at her as if they’d seen a ghost. Neil blushed, still embarrassed. 

“I was just not looking forward to telling you that we lost the copy of um, The Virgin Suicides that you wanted. It’ll take another few weeks and I assume that’s why you stopped by.” Neil scrambled for a reliable answer, and one that was partly true. She blushed slightly when she heard Neil use the word ‘virgin’ and laughed it off. 

“It’s ok, I just wanted to show Woody my favorite place.” 

“We’re going to get a movie,” Woody smiled and began to scan the shelves. 

“Sooo what do you like? Classic horror, westerns, Spike Lee, Hitchcock, Coppola?” Neil listed off categories of films he viewed to be superior and Woody shook his head, oblivious to Neil’s edged tone. 

“I like action movies mainly. I haven’t seen much else.” 

Neil smiled at the girl’s embarrassed reaction. He knew well that she didn’t like action movies and refused to watch them even if Neil recommended one. 

“So like war movies?”

“Sports movies.” Woody corrected and pretended to shoot a basketball. “Anything about football or basketball.” 

Neil felt a sharp pain in his chest at the boy’s words. He was a walking abomination to the film community. Lucien made a sound similar to a whimper and Neil cleared his throat to mask it. 

“Well uh i’m sure that we can find something for you though we don’t tend to carry sports movies because we have so little demand for it,” Neil explained blandly. “Have you ever seen anything by Tarentino? His movies tend to be more action-oriented. That and the old Bond movies.” Neil started to list movies he was almost completely sure Woody had not seen. Every shake of Woody’s head scratched a strange itch inside his head. What was this girl doing with someone like Woody? 

“Ah maybe,” Woody shrugged. “Do you have Rudy, Bull Durham, Remember the Titans?” 

“No, we don’t.” Neil pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled stiffly. “We do have the Air Bud movies,” Neil mumbled as a joke but Woody looked interested. 

“Where’s that?” He asked, looking around the store. 

“The kid’s section. It’s about a dog that plays sports,” Neil deadpanned and Jonathan and Lucien stifled their giggles. 

Woody was completely oblivious to Neil’s pointed comment and shrugged. 

“Sounds good to me,” he looked at the girl with a smile. Her lips were parted in a look of displeasure and shock. 

“You want to watch Air Bud?” She stressed the name of the movie like a bad word. Woody smiled, still not catching the tone of dislike in her speech. 

“Um…” She started and trailed off, totally caught off guard. Neil smiled, almost enjoying the direction that this interaction had gone. 

“I’ll get it for you,” Neil used his best customer service voice and turned around. He widened his eyes at Jonathan and Lucien, I told you so. Lucien narrowed his eyes behind his glasses, not wanting to admit defeat just yet. 

“Sooo are you two dating,” Lucien tried to sound casual but his tone was suggestive and Y/N blushed deeply from embarrassment. 

“No, we’re just friends,” she answered too quickly and Neil glowered at Lucien. Jonathan looked down at his hands, wanting to stay out of the conversation. Woody looked at her and frowned. 

“Well on that note, I think I’ll just get going. Forget about the movie, dude. Thanks anyway,” Woody snipped and left the store abruptly. The bell beside the door clanged loudly as he walked down the sidewalk, fumming. 

“Lucien!” Neil exclaimed and Jonathan swatted Lucien’s arm. 

“Sorry…geez!” Lucien deflected Jonathan’s hands and scooted away. Neil, holding a copy of Air Bud on VHS, lowered it and slid it onto the checkout counter. 

“Sooo no more Air Bud?” Neil tried to break the awkward silence. She gave him a look that quieted him immediately and left the store, going the opposite way that Woody had turned. She went around the side of the building where she knew there was a shabby basketball goal and a place to sit. She wanted to wait it out, to make sure that she wouldn’t run into Woody again that afternoon. It was safer to hide here than walk home. 

“Nice going, Lucien.” Neil sighed and returned the tape to the shelf. 

“You just fucking ruined young love,” Jonathan quipped and Lucien gasped defensively. Neil joined them on the long section couch and they sat in silence for a while. A loud bang made them all jump. 

“What the hell was that?” Jonathan turned to look where the sound had come from. The three of them stood to investigate. The second time they heard it, the shelf of tapes on the wall was josuled. They each jumped again and Neil drew his face up into a tight line. 

“Is someone throwing something against the wall?” Lucien surmised and spoke with his pipe in his palm. 

“I’ll check it out,” Neil looked at the shelf warily and backed away. He left the store and went around the side of the building. Seeing Y/N made him jump again and he clutched his chest briefly. She had a basketball and was chucking it at the hoop without much care for whether or not it went in. The ball hit the wall again. Jonathan and Lucien collected the tapes that had fallen off of the shelf only to have more tapes fall on their heads. 

“Maybe you should watch more sports movies, it might help you with your technique.” Neil crossed his arms casually across his chest and smiled. She dribbled the basketball slowly and caught it in her arms. 

“It was more of an exercise of rage,” she spoke between heavy breaths. 

“Sorry about Lucien,” Neil gestured to the store. “He’s not great with people.” 

“I could tell… but I’m not really upset about it-”

“You fooled me,” Neil interjected with a laugh. She rolled her eyes with a small smile. 

“He gave me an out but it wasn’t the right time. I shouldn’t have said it like that to Woody.” She dribbled the basketball again. 

“So were you dating?” Neil opened his hands, signaling her to throw him the ball. 

“Kind of,” she tossed him the ball and shrugged, “we’d gone out once or twice. We met at a party. Nothing was official yet.” Neil aimed and threw the ball, it fell through the hoop with a quiet whoosh before bouncing on the pavement below. She retrieved the ball and with one hand, she fixed the legs of her shorts, pulling them down over her thighs. He looked away quickly. 

“Did you know his taste in movies before you started going out?” Neil asked and watched as she aligned herself to toss the ball. It bounced off of the backboard and spun into the hoop. Neil applauded and she smiled. 

“He said he liked action movies but I didn’t know that he meant… sports movies. He’s a business major and I doubt he’s ever taken a film class or seen anything that wasn’t about sports in some way.” She nearly shivered. “And you had to suggest Air Bud?” She asked him pointedly and he pursed his lips defensively. 

“That was not an actual suggestion. I can’t believe he fell for it,” Neil dribbled the ball around his legs lazily and circled her before shooting. He missed and she giggled. “I think you dodged a bullet,” he told her honestly and when they held eye-contact, he felt his navel twitch. 

“Could you imagine if I had to watch Air Bud on a date?” She looked down at the ball and missed the hoop by a few feet. She sighed and fanned herself. This is exactly what she had been hoping would happen. She wouldn’t go as far as to say that she was a mastermind but she’d been trying to get closer to Neil for weeks. She’d liked Woody enough but taking him to Gumshoe Video was more strategic than cute. She hoped to make Neil a little jealous, and show him that she could get other guys. Nothing had actually happened between her and Neil besides long chats and lots of laughter. Maybe she could change that. 

Neil picked up the ball and bounded over to the hoop, jumping and shooting the ball. His fingers pushed the ball into the net as he landed back down on the ground. When he turned his eyes widened slightly. 

“It’s really fucking hot today,” she mumbled as she pulled off her t-shirt, having just a camisole underneath. Her cutoff denim shorts and black camisole left little to the imagination but Neil still tried. She tossed the shirt to the side and dribbled the ball, her eyes focused on the goal. Neil looked down her camisole, staring at her chest as her breasts shifted beneath the fabric in her bra. Her pink bra straps slipped on her shoulders and after shooting the ball, she had to snap them back into place. He blushed more and looked away. She crossed the small makeshift court and sat on the shallow ledge beside the store, swinging her legs up and underneath her. Neil held the ball awkwardly in his hands and approached her slowly. 

“What movie would you watch on a first date?” She asked him.

 “Uh,” his mind blanked, “definitely Air Bud,” he nodded and she laughed. He sat beside her and shoved his hands into his pockets. 

        “Neil! I’m being serious!” She pressed the toe of her foot against her chest.

“Ok, ok ummm,” he wrapped his fingers around her bare ankle with a smile and moved it back to the ledge in between them. She shifted her body so that she was facing him, both feet planted on the ledge in front of him. “Maybe The Wizard of Oz.” 

 “Why?” She asked with a soft smile. He rocked back and forth, using his hands to support himself. His large hands sat on either side of her feet, his chest directly over her knees. 

“Well it was one of the first movies to use color,” he said first, “and it would give me a chance to brag about how much I know about film.” He pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows. She laughed and shook her head. 

“I thought you hated musicals!” She protested and he looked away sheepishly. 

“I do but I can’t pass up an opportunity to impress someone, especially a girl.” He looked at her and then blushed, looking away again. “I mean,” he started and she nodded.

“No, I get it. Do you like romance movies?” She fluttered her lashes discreetly, making Neil second guess whether she had done it intentionally or not. “You don’t seem like one but we all have our secrets,” she dragged her hand up her leg, drawing his attention to the contours of muscle beneath her shin bone. 

“You could argue that every movie is a romance,” Neil sputtered slightly, collecting himself. 

“Even Air Bud?” She asked with a raised eyebrow and he scoffed, looking away. 

“I don’t know about that.”

“What’s your favorite romance movie?” She rested her forearms on her knees and leaned forward. He looked at her briefly, his eyes dipping to her cleavage before meeting her eyes again. 

“Uh w-what?” He asked and she giggled.

“What’s your favorite romance movie?” She asked again and he thought quickly. 

“The Princess Bride,” his eyes flicked to her’s for approval and that surprised him. 

“I love that movie,” her eyes widened as she recalled the plot. 

“What about you?” 

“Well The Princess Bride is the best answer but I like The Great Gatsby too,” she smiled shyly. 

“The Great Gatsby is a tragedy at heart,” Neil argued and she shrugged.

“As you wish,” she quoted from The Princess Bride and his eyes flicked open wider for one second before he cleared his throat. The sun was starting to set and the sky bled with a sated orange color. She looked up at the sky, showing the vulnerable underside of her chin and swallowed. Neil watched, letting his eyes wander over the soft expanse of flesh. 

“We should probably go inside,” Neil broke the silence, “or I-I should go back.” He jerked his thumb back to the store and she lowered her head again and let her head fall to one side. 

“As you wish,” she said again and laughed. He watched her silently and licked his lips. He felt like he was going to say something but no words came to his mind as he sat there. 

“Or do you want to come inside? Sorry, I’m not trying to get rid of you…” 

“Ok, sure.” She nodded and followed him around the store, pulling on her big shirt again. Jonathan and Lucien were arguing inside but stopped when they walked inside. 

“Basketball game?” Lucien asked over his pipe and Y/N nodded with a sigh. 

“Sorta, I had to blow off some steam.” 

“He’s sorry by the way,” Jonathan added and Lucien started to argue but she cut them off. 

“It’s ok. You saved me a night watching Air Bud.” She winked and started to browse the aisles again. Jonathan shoved Lucien. 

“What? What’s your problem?” Lucien protested and Jonathan gestured to the door, hinting that they should leave. “You have to be joking,” he muttered under his breath, irritated. 

“Hey uh, Neil?” Jonathan cleared his throat. Neil broke his obvious concentration on the girl and looked at his friends on the couch. 

“Yeah?”

“We’re gonna head out. Lucien owes me a beer and I want to beat the bar rush,” Jonathan grabbed Lucien by the shoulders and shuffled out the front door. 

“It’s not even seven yet-” Neil started but they were gone before he could finish. His heart started beating quickly and he glanced anxiously at the disappearing silhouettes of his friends. The girl walked through the aisles, biting her bottom lip slightly as she looked. He didn’t want to be alone like this with her, it felt weird. She was young enough to be his younger sister and it irked him… and yet, she looked so pretty beneath the yellowish fluorescent bulbs inside the store and her hair was sticky from the humidity. 

“We should watch something,” she said quietly behind a rack of VHS and Neil cleared his throat. 

“Together?”

“No, in separate rooms… yeah of course together.” She laughed lightly and showed him the movie she had found. He chuckled and shrugged. 

“The Princess Bride? Ok, sure.” He approached the small box tv in front of the sectional couch and inserted the tape. Y/N slipped discreetly to the front doors and turned over the ‘open’ sign to ‘closed’ and locked the door. Neil stood behind the couch and set up the box player, struggling with the buttons on the remote. She collapsed on the couch and rested her legs on the wide ottoman. Her hair spread over the back of the couch and covered Neil’s hand. He looked down at it and struggled to exhale normally. The movie started and she wiggled in excitement. Neil sat on a stool behind the couch, worried about sitting beside her. After the first ten minutes of them each reciting the lines back to the tv, she looked over her shoulder, flashing a toothy grin. 

“Neil, come on, sit with me. It’s weird to have you looking over my shoulder like that.”

“Um I- uh yeah ok,” Neil stammered and joined her hesitantly on the couch, his hands between his knees. His longer hair brushed the tops of his shoulders and she resisted the urge to sweep a strand into her hand. Slowly he relaxed and they acted to each other as well as to the tv, adapting the characters they liked best. As the movie went on, she braved looking over at him more and holding his startling eye contact. They laughed hard at one scene and bent over with laughter, shifting their bodies closer in the process. Eventually they were nearly arm-to-arm on the worn brown sectional. Neil’s breath escaped in pained bursts as he looked at her thigh, relaxed on the couch beside his leg. Her shorts had creeped up to her crotch as they sat and she’d made no move to pull them back down. He caught himself staring at the crease at her crotch and wondering if the tightness was uncomfortable for her, how warm the material would be against her like that… he shook his head to clear his thoughts and clenched his jaw when he felt his cock twitch. 

“Neil?” She turned slightly to him and his breath hitched as he turned his attention to her. She bit her lip lightly and slowly pressed herself up onto her knee. He watched her, his eyes flicking between the tv and her face, inches from his face. 

Hear this now: I will always come for you. 

She exhaled softly and her breath rippled across his face. Her hands inched closer to his stomach clothed beneath his light blue shirt. Her bright eyes intoxicated him as she brought her lips to his, offering herself. When she kissed him, her eyes squeezed closed and she sucked briefly on his bottom lip, lacking technique from her barely nonexistent experience. When she pulled away slowly Neil’s brow creased as his brows flew up. 

“Y/N… we uh we shouldn’t.”  

But how can you be sure? 

Her eyes crinkled in embarrassment and her small cheeks flushed. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she whispered and sat back against the couch, pressing her sweaty palms against her thighs. Neil looked over at her and licked his lips, fighting an internal argument against himself. 

This is true love- you think this happens everyday?

She flexed her thighs anxiously on the couch and the movement sent a shock up Neil’s body, making his crotch throb slightly, weary from the close proximity to her warm skin. 

You mock my pain.

Neil brushed a shaky finger down the side of her thigh and felt her inhale quickly. She looked at him slowly, her lips parted. His hand slid up her body to her head and cupped her cheek. He leaned over and kissed her, not harshly but not subtle either. Their lips popped wetly when he pulled away. He looked down at her, she was panting slightly, her heart fluttering in her chest. 

“I shouldn’t have done that,” Neil whispered and fell back into the couch beside her, clenching his fists. They sat in silence, their breath mingling in the space between them like a mixture of heat waves. Neil smelled faintly of mint mouthwash and musk, the sweat worked up during their “game” clung to his body. 

Life is pain, princess. Anyone who says differently is selling something. 

And quick as a flash of lightning, their bodies flew together, their mouths finding each other like opposite ends of a magnet or a cap over a pen. She climbed onto his lap, straddling his hips and held his head in her small hands. He wrapped his arms around her waist, bunching the fabric in his hands. Her tongue slipped into his mouth and he greeted it with enthusiasm, his hands tightening around her waist. She licked his lips as she closed down around them, sucking everything out of him. He moaned softly against her kiss and his arms flexed, his cock hardening. She gasped when she felt him get hard against her crotch. He broke their kiss abruptly. 

“Fuck, sorry.” He loosened his grip on her waist and went to shift out from under her. “I didn’t mean to get…” he trailed off and moved her off his lap easily. She watched him, her mind already caught in a lapse. 

“This was a mistake. You’re in college. I shouldn’t have encouraged this,” he dragged his hands through his dark hair and pulled at the roots, mumbling incoherently as she looked up at him, her eyes wide like a doe. The front of his pants tented out and he started to walk to his office. She jumped and grabbed his hand, catching him before he disappeared into the backroom. 

“Please, stay.” She whispered and bit her lip, dispelling some of her pent up energy into the action. 

“You’re too young.”

“I’m nineteen.” 

“I’m too old for you.”

“You’re 27.”

“You’re a virgin.” 

She flushed redder and looked away, embarrassed. “Not really.” She looked back at him and shrugged. “We all have our secrets, right?” She cocked her head and tried to smile, her heart beating so fast that she felt dizzy. 

“I don’t know…” Neil added half-heartedly, having run out of reasons. “The customers!” Neil remembered and glanced, panicked, at the front doors. 

“You closed early.” She smiled embarrassedly and rubbed his wrist with her thumb. “Please,” she tried again and he looked down at her. His cock throbbed uncomfortably in his pants. He allowed her to lead him back to the couch and watched as she lowered herself onto her knees. Her hands rested on his thighs as she opened his legs wide enough to sit between them. He watched dumbly as she unbuckled his belt and slowly unzipped his fly. She tugged down the crotch of his jeans, exposing the waistband of his checkered boxers. 

“Wait,” Neil blurted and she looked up at him, “come here.” He asked softly and waited as she rose to her feet, her hands moving to his chest as she leaned closer. He pulled her back onto his lap, straddling her over his lap and kissed her, lapping at her mouth with his tongue. His small biceps flexed around her, his hands finding her hair and wrapping his fingers in it hungrily. She sat up on her knees and pressed her crotch against his chest, making him sit up taller to reach her mouth. She whimpered softly as he kissed her as if he was eating her, slowly getting deeper. His kisses felt so good on their own that she almost moaned into him, licking the tip of his nose. She licked the edge of his jaw and he let her, savoring the immature way she approached tasting him. His hands supported her back as she panted, bucking her hips against his chest as she kissed him feverishly. Racks of tapes shielded them from view but Neil hoped passerbys couldn’t hear them through the storefront’s display glass.

Slowly she slid down his chest and returned to her spot between his legs. She licked the warm mound at his crotch, leaving a wide wet spot. Neil sighed as he watched her, his cock twitched again. Her hands squeezed into his thighs and she licked his erection again through his boxers. 

“Oh god,” Neil gasped and looked up at the ceiling. She hooked her hands around his waistband and pulled it down slowly, finally releasing his cock which glistened with precum. She stared at it for a moment before kissing the head. Neil’s mouth fell open in pleasure and shock. “Look at you, god… fuck.” She smiled, self-conscious and wrapped her hand around the base of his cock, squeezing him slightly. He groaned and bucked his hips. She rubbed the head against her wet lips and slowly slipped him inside her mouth. Her mouth was already watering and he whined loudly as she took him in, hallowing her cheeks on accident but soon realizing that it made Neil feel good. She went as deep as she could and pulled away, allowing a thick line of spit to connect her lips with his cock. Neil’s eyes widened and his head dropped back against the couch. His hands flew up to his face and massaged his cheeks, unsure how to handle the things he was feeling and not wanting to force her head down on top of him. 

She took him back into her mouth and swirled her tongue around him, bobbing her head up and down. She rocked her head slightly and tried to create a rhythm that elicited the most pitiful sounds from Neil. His cock shook inside her mouth and she sucked hard against it like a lollipop. Neil’s hands tightened around his face and he moaned loudly, exhaling sharply. 

“Oh god, honey. What the actual fuck.” He whined between even breaths. He looked down at her pretty little mouth sucking him off and he nearly finished then when she pulled off of him and started to jack him off, her tongue pressed flat against his head. Her fist clenched around his length and he sputtered, unable to form words. After a dozen hard and fast jerks, she took him in her mouth again and bobbed up and down quickly, drooling heavily around him as she tasted his salty precum. 

“Oh fuck- fuck- fuck! Shit, I’m gonna cum.” He panted and moaned loudly, his hands finally finding her hair, the pleasure becoming so overwhelming that it was almost painful. The friction and sensation heightened and his knuckles turned white around her long hair. He thrusted his hips gently into her mouth, not wanting to gag her. She welcomed it, opening her throat and humming to let him deeper. She breathed deeply through her nose and her exhales feathered across his crotch, adding even more to the sensations he was already feeling. With a yell Neil spilled into her mouth, bucking his hips and falling back on the couch. She proudly continued to suck him off, pulling everything out of him. He watched her, breathing heavily. She swallowed his warm cum with a smile. 

I told you I would come for you…

Neil glanced up at the movie screen and chuckled. She licked him from the base up and plopped back onto the couch, breathing heavily too. Neil tucked himself back into his pants, leaving his belt unbuckled. She arranged herself proudly beside him on the couch, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

“That was fucking incredible,” Neil slapped his forehead and laughed breathlessly. “So so good…” he shook his head and looked at her, smiling lopsidedly. She snaked a hand onto his crotch again and rubbed him before wrapping her arm around his sweaty neck. He wrapped his arms around her and supported her body weight as she laid against him, their stomach crushed against each other. She shivered as she heard his heavy breath against her ear. “Good girl,” he whispered and sighed. He rubbed her back and kissed her shoulder through her shirt. She turned over, sitting nearly on his lap. His hands clasped around her stomach and held her tightly. Her soft belly shivered beneath her slowing breaths. They both relaxed again into the movie.