#Anyways DRAMA'S COMING SOON

[viky2318]

Chapter 5: family.

Alphys seemed concerningly nervous. She kept looking around for the Lab to see if everything was alright and fixing things that were already good, her small clawed feet rapidly tiptapping up and down. the moment she stopped anywhere she just quickly checked her cellphone, stood still a moment glancing around and then went back walking around. Duo tried to tell her a few times that everything was fine, but she almost ignored him every time. After a while the skeleton gave up and started reading a book. He didn’t have many other things he could do, so in those few days he just read books. They were interesting, and the skeleton could spend whole afternoons just reading. The only thing that he didn’t like about it was the fact that he knew that the books on the shelves weren’t infinite, and so one day he would need to find something else to do. Sure, Undyne started coming over from time to time, but he couldn’t count on her presence forever… 

Alphys was still walking up and down nervously.

Maybe she needed a break? Sure, the King was going to be there that day but- geez, she sure was exaggeratingly nervous! The days before she seemed overly joyful about this meeting and now she seemed about to explode in anxiety. The skeleton had no idea why she was like that, but he didn’t like that. Before he could try again to talk to her though, someone knocked on the door. “Oh- I- uhm- I’m coming!!” the lizard nervously exclaimed as she almost ran down the escalator and went to the door. It wasn’t closed, but for some reason the person on the other side didn’t open. Duo decided to get up and reach her, just to make sure everything was fine. The door opened, and a tall goat came in. He wore a long purple cape that partially hid a metal armor, and had a fluffy yellow beard that seemed made of cotton. A small crown, symbol of his status as the King of the underground, was placed on top of his head between a pair of well-kept horns. The old man had a quiet and warm smile, and his eyes, one orange and one light blue, seemed the ones of someone who saw everything in his long life. His face didn't hide the concerns of someone with an important role as his own, but there was also the satisfaction of knowing his people were well and safe. He looked exactly like last time…

Wh- again?! What was that continuous feeling of knowing this and that despite never having seen any of it? Geez, it felt so bothering…

“Good afternoon, doctor. May I come in?” The goat asked despite it not being necessary, his voice low and gentle. Alphys nervously stuttered a quiet “of course” and moved aside to let him in. The King walked inside, and the door slid closed behind himself. The old man's eyes moved to the skeleton, that seemed almost short compared to him, and smiled warmly. “Howdy young one. You're Duo, right? Doctor Alphys told me many things about you”, he greeted, offering a handshake. Duo took the goat’s hand and shook it lightly, his thin skeletal fingers almost disappearing in the soft fur. “Yes, that is me. It is a pleasure to meet you, Asgore”, he replied, not remembering Alphys ever mentioning the King’s name. “The pleasure is mine, young one” the goat commented, releasing the skeleton's hand. “Now, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?”.

The three monsters sat at Alphys’ table, ironically the only thing that actually remained quite messy, and Asgore started making him questions. He asked about general things: how he was doing, what he usually did during the day, if he liked staying at the lab. He never forced Duo to reply right away, and his tone was always warm and friendly. The skeleton most of the time, surprisingly, had a reply that was clear and defined. Even about preferences, he had clear tastes and opinions. This surprised mostly Duo himself, since he tried almost nothing of the things he said he liked or preferred. He felt as if those preferences got defined before he could experience them, or as if he did but then permanently forgot about it. It was such a weird feeling, Duo simply couldn't help wondering what that was from. Maybe those were caused by the “mistakes” Alphys made as he created him? But then what about all the things he felt he knew about people? So weird…

After a while, the King had to go back to the capital. He asked for Duo to accompany him outside for a moment, as he wished to talk to him in private. The skeleton never stepped out of the Lab, but he didn't get too surprised as he saw the astounding lava falls of Hotland and felt the immense heat of the place.

“You know”, Asgore started as the door slid close, glancing at Duo with a quiet smile and a thoughtful look. “Alphys is a brilliant mind, but her self confidence isn't really the highest. She once had an assistant that helped her with that, but after he passed away she almost completely closed herself. Not even Undyne, the Captain of the Royal guard, had been able to help her much…”. The skeleton frowned a little. She had an assistant? What happened to him? And most importantly- what happened to Alphys? Was she alright?

“she may not clearly show it, but from the way she spoke to me about you she seems to care for you dearly. I'd like you to understand it and to help her when you can. I know it may be a lot to ask from someone you barely know, but…”. Duo remained silent for a moment, but then smiled at the old goat. “Of course, I'd love to help her with what I can. It's not a problem”, he replied. The King smiled wider, taking one of the skeleton's hands in his paws and giving it a gentle squeeze. “Thank you, young one. This means a lot to me”.

That evening, as usual, the flower popped out from the floor of Duo’s room. “Howdy there, friend! How was your day? I heard the King himself came by! Is that true?” he joyfully asked, climbing up a leg of the bed and placing himself in a sitting-like position next to the skeleton. “Yeah, he did. He's a really nice guy. Hey, uhm- you said you have known Alphys for a long while, right?” Duo quietly asked back. Flowey tilted his head, giving him a curious look. “Yes, I do. We have known each other since ages by now! Why do you ask?”. “You know, Asgore said something about an assistant she used to have. Do you know anything about this person?”. The flower frowned a little in a thoughtful expression, but then his face lit up. “Oh, I knew the guy! He was truly a nice person, you know? Smart, creative, supportive, patient… he was the best! Such a terrible loss… His name was-

Duo opened his eyes, quickly getting used to the dark of the room. Kate was still asleep, and the house was silent. Papyrus floated next to him, quietly murmuring a “good morning”. The skeleton silently got up and walked downstairs, the floating skull following him close. The clock in the kitchen read 6:15. Finally, a decent hour to wake up at. After a half hour he prepared breakfast for himself, Kate and Napstablook, making order in his papers (which remained scattered on the table until then) and placing the cups on the table. He almost automatically sat down with a cup of tea in his hand, taking with the other one of the papers and reading what was there all over again.

Why was the Barrier made like that? The human mages must have done it on purpose. He heard they were able to do anything, so why not make the Barrier with a regular thickness? Why make a space thin enough to let humans through?

...

Did they…

Nevermind. What mages from hundreds of decades ago wanted to do wasn't something he should care about.

With the new information he had, it was all different.

He lost so much time at New home when he could have just gone to the Ruins… 

A whole year wasted…

No, dammit- focus!

He had the data he got from New Home. He just needed to analyze them from another perspective. So maybe in a few months-

No. 

No no no. 

Not “a few months”. 

He had to go back to the Ruins and make a new analysis.

If it was as Paps said, Kate could go back home in less than a week.

In no time she could be again with her family.

“Paps, do you think I can reach the ceiling of the room with the flowers and take a look at the Barrier myself?” the skeleton asked the floating skull. Papyrus thought about it a moment. “Hmmm… I suppose you might be able, if you use a few bones as ladders or something like that”. Duo smiled, content with the answer. “Very well then. I know what we'll do today”.

The skeleton placed the paper back in the small pile as Kate sleepily walked downstairs. "Good morning buttercup”, he quietly said as he raised his gaze to hers. The small human walked to him with a small smile, sitting on a chair next to him and Papyrus. “ ‘Morning Duo… ‘morning Paps…”, she replied, taking a few cookies to eat with her cup of milk. “Hey, would you like to go to the Ruins again? Paps and I want to check a few things, and I thought you might want to come over”, the skeleton asked the little human as he stood up and went to the TV, opening the drawer under it. “Oh, of course! I'd love to!” Kate joyfully replied, completely waking up all of the sudden. The skeleton smiled a little more at her reply, taking out from the drawer some instruments and putting them in a backpack before closing the drawer again and looking at the human. “Very well then. This week we'll skip the visit to New Home”.

Soon enough, Blooky came by. This time he politely declined the offer, saying he had to keep an eye on his farm, but this didn't bother any of them.

Around 8:30 they started walking, and by 11:15 they were in the room again. Kate sat down in the middle of the flowers, curiously looking at the skeleton. Duo took a deep breath, then with a swift gesture he summoned a bone attack. It was long and thin, like a tibia, but as big as a human sword. It had been quite a while since he summoned one of those… he tightly held it with both hands, then made it move towards the top of the room. The attack lifted him without a problem, quickly bringing him higher and higher as Paps followed him close.

Duo lifted himself on the bone as soon as it reached the Barrier, sitting on it as he took a careful look at the magic shield. The Barrier here surely looked different from the area he used to see at New Home… it was completely transparent, and the skeleton could see a small cavern over the barrier. On one side, a hole showed the outside. He could see a glimpse of what seemed like a light blue ceiling (the sky, if he remembered correctly) and a bunch of… trees? Bushes? Something like that. And from that hole a pure, bright light illuminated the whole little cavern, resembling the light of New Home but with something that made it completely different. There were some noises from outside, partially muffled by the Barrier. He could hear the rustling of leaves in the wind, a sound he knew well from the forest that surrounded all Snowdin Town, and multiple curious sounds, composing what could be considered some sort of melody, but not made by instruments. Was it birds? He couldn't be sure. After all, all he knew about them was from old books.

The skeleton took out an electronic tool from his backpack, a small device  that resembled a voltmeter but with only one cable that ended with a small needle. He stuck a metallic ring on the needle and laid it flat on the Barrier, then turned on the device and changed the settings to “flow”. The device was made to detect the magic power of things and measure it, either by sensing the radiation of the thing or by measuring the flow of magic at the contact. The two methods were both valid, but depending on the situation one was better than the other. For example, detecting the magic radiation of a thing may be better than checking the flow itself if the object you're analyzing is rather small or if their magic quantitative is low, while the flow is easier to detect in big objects or things with a high amount of magic.

The device started beeping, a number on the small screen of it getting higher. After a while it made a loud noise, and the number ceased to grow. The magic power of the barrier, obviously, was higher than anything else in the whole Underground, but in that specific area it was lower than in New Home. He quickly put the device back in the bag and took a small notebook, then wrote down the numbers and confronted it to the others he had: a human soul (Kate lend her own to take the measurements), a monster soul (Napstablook and Papyrus' ones) and a theoretical being with both souls (estimated through the others’ souls and the magic of the Barrier at New home).

He remembered seeing Alphys working on the Barrier from time to time. She said that a soul could go through the Barrier if it had around 50% of its magic (see how a single human soul, which is around 14.3% of its magic, can't go through and how 7 human souls, the equivalent of 100% of its magic, can break it). Comparing the data he had with what Papyrus said, that theory could be confirmed, and this meant that he could actually find a way to go through himself… if he found a way to collect the equivalent of a whole human soul in there.

Now though, he had to actually try making a human soul go through.

Sadly, he knew Kate wasn't the kind of person to take such an important decision all of the sudden. The human was smart and brave, but to make choices she always needed a little while. Not only that, but Duo was pretty sure she wouldn't leave the Underground all of the sudden.

“What now?” Papyrus asked all of the sudden, taking the skeleton by surprise. “Now… Now we gotta hope Kate won't do anything dumb when we'll tell her we might have a way to send her home”.

With a quiet sigh, the skeleton went back down to the floor of the room. The young human was drawing things on her little notebook, a focused frown on her face. As soon as he stepped down the attack, Kate stood up and went to him with a big smile. “What have you found? Anything new?” she asked with a curious look. Before Duo could reply, the floating skull turned himself into letters that said “we found a way out for you”. The skeleton didn't want to be so direct… the little human, as Duo expected, made a little confused frown. “... For me? Like- only for me? Why can't you and Blooky come?” she asked, a hint of concern in her voice. “Because of the Barrier, buttercup”, Duo started to explain. “If monsters could go through it, we would have got out long ago. Apparently humans are able to pass through it in this area, but only humans”. “But why is the Barrier there? Monsters are nice, why did they close you down here? You did nothing wrong!” The young human exclaimed, starting to get bothered. The skeleton sighed quietly, feeling that the discussion would end up getting pretty long. He crouched in front of her, directly looking at her big orange eyes. “I thought I already explained this to you… more than once… Long ago, Monsters and Humans fought against each other, and after a terrible war the Humans won and banished the Monsters because they didn't like what was different from them. They put the Barrier all around the Underground so that Monsters couldn't escape. Dozens, maybe hundreds of expert  Monster magicians and scientists worked on it, trust me, but they simply didn't find a way to take it down or to escape from it”.  “But then how did all the other monsters go away? You said they went away but we've seen all the Underground and didn't find anyone else! A-and then! I never saw a monster on the surface? Where did they actually go?” The girl stubbornly continued.

Well shit.

“... I…”

That wasn't a subject the skeleton wanted to deal with.

She was so small, so young, so innocent…

“I don't know. I really don't know”, the skeleton quietly lied. He simply couldn't bring himself to explain to her what actually happened.

“Then there MUST be a way out! A secret passage or something like that for a place with all the other monsters! And I'm not gonna leave any of you until we find it!” Kate declared, an almost stern look on her face.

…

“... Sure thing kid. We just gotta find it”.

START PREVIOUS NEXT

[fight-for-what-you-love]

I Do

Colbie Caillat

╾━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━╼

◃◃ II ▹▹

Jeeeezzz guys. It's only been a day and everyone's already sick of your antics. Again. You'd think they'd be more reserved considering what they went through to get here.

But forget everyone else- they just got MARRIED!!! Who can think of anyone else when they're this happy??

[hazarts]

the people have spoken

[robynostornwyn]

Roevember 18: Comrades

To say Robyn was initially intimidated by the Scions is a bit of an understatement. Dealing with a group of highly intelligent and well educated scholars was not normally in her wheelhouse, and she often felt a bit embarrassed at her own humble upbringing.

But she quickly found refuge with their approachable receptionist, and a fast friendship was born. The trials they faced in Ishgard and Kugane only strengthened their bond. As much as Robyn has protected Tataru over the years, Tataru has also protected her from those who would try to take advantage of the hero.

And one day, Tataru helped Robyn take on perhaps her greatest challenge yet - learning how to read. (Look, she may have been motivated to do more than have Tataru read her letters to her and secretly pen her responses, especially to a certain miqo'te woman back in Eorzea)

[buttercupdraws06]

wet damaged babygirl plagued by trauma and voices with a criminal record but she's not just some white guy this once

[osamusriceballs]

The Accident Part VIII

Atsumu x fem reader

Warnings: None

Words: ~ 2k

About: You finally meet your good friend <3

Part I II -> Next part

"You know each other?!"

You stare at Atsumu with wide eyes, who just stares at the short blonde next to you and raises his eyebrows as if he just had an epiphany.

"Where have I—wait. Karasuno. Karasuno's manager! You're a friend of Shoyo-kun!" Atsumu's eyes shine when he talks about Karasuno, and you furrow your brows when you remember that it's the name of Yachi's old school. "Shoyo-kun? Like—Hinata Shoyo?" You ask, recalling a bright orange-haired man you've met a few times already when Yachi had invited you to drink with her and her friends. They had always been a lively bunch, definitely growing on you the more often you saw them.

"Hmm, we work together," Atsumu nods, and you blankly stare at him while you try to digest that piece of information. You know that Hinata is a professional volleyball player. Very professional. Olympics level professional. He offered you cards to his games quite a few times, and you had politely declined, not wanting to cause him trouble, but he had sent you tickets anyway for a game in a few weeks.

That probably means that Atsumu is a professional player too—or he might be some kind of manager, according to the vague statement that they are working together. His physique and his posture tell you that he potentially could be an athlete- you would believe that in a second.

"Working together like... playing volleyball too?" You ask for clarification, tilting your head curiously while you watch his reaction. His lips curl into a smug smile, and the confidence he's radiating now makes your legs turn into jelly.

"Yeah. I'm a professional, just like Shoyo-kun. He loves my sets, by the way. Always aces them with no problem."

His eyes capture yours and you hang on his every word, definitely surprised by the development. You're married to a probably very famous professional Olympia volleyball player. You're not even sure what to think about this; the new details just made the whole situation more absurd and unrealistic. The only good thing is that Yachi apparently knows him. You could maybe get more information out of Yachi about him later.

"I—wait. The marriage—you married ATSUMU MIYA?" Your attention shifts to Yachi, who turns almost worryingly red, and you quickly step closer to her and reach for her arm, trying to calm her down. "Yes, but it's okay. He's a good guy, okay?" You smile encouragingly, and Yachi takes a few hasty loud breaths before she nods.

Atsumu watches you both and awkwardly clears his throat, a faint blush covering his cheeks at your words, and rubs the back of his head. "I'll leave ya two alone then. I'll call ya, y/n."

The last thing you see is his smile before he turns around and walks away with his hands in his pockets now. His broad back is evident, especially when he's wearing the white dress shirt, and you can't help but admire the man for a second before Yachi enters your sight once again.

"Y/n! - what happened?!"

xxx

"I can't believe you're married to Atsumu Miya!" she exclaims, still sounding shocked as she repeats the same sentence for the third time after you managed to tell her the fully story during the car ride. Both of you sit on her comfortable plush couch, adorned with a few of her stylish designer blankets. You're glad to be in a familiar place finally, but you can't help but to think about Atsumu. Will he call or leave a message soon? You wouldn't mind him calling today already- just to make sure you have his number. Nothing else. Just to clear that whole marriage thing. And nothing else.

You nod with a mild smile an attempt to calm her slight panic. Atsumu has assured you that everything will be taken care of, and you find yourself actually trusting him. "It'll be okay. You mentioned he's a good guy, right? I mean, he's friends with Hinata."

Yachi deeply inhales and takes a sip of her tea and nods. "He's close to Hinata. They get along really well. But let me tell you, Atsumu Miya in high school is something else. His serves were powerful and terrifying- not as much as today, but still enough to keep us all on the edge. Even Nishinoya had a hard time receiving them. Atsumu-san and Osamu-san managed to copy Hinata's and Kageyama's special attack effortlessly. It was insane. Maybe we can find a recording of it."

She grabs the remote to turn on the TV, and you lean forward eagerly at the thought of seeing more of Atsumu. "I wonder what Atsumu looked like in high school," you muse, taking a sip of your tea, its slight bitterness complementing the rich flavor. "He basically still looks the same. His hair got a bit brighter, and I think he grew a bit. And gained mass," Yachi responds, finding what she's looking for with an excited squeal. "Here!"

You both watch how a much younger Atsumu raises his arm and much to your surprise the whole crowd falls silent. "What- that's not normal, is it?" You turn to Yachi who seems slightly pale, probably because she remembers the moment vividly. "That's normal for Atsumu Miya. He was so good and popular that he got that special treatment. It helps him to focus. Oh, and watch his steps! You can tell what kind of serve he's going to make by the number of his steps."

You diligently nod and watch him serve again, taking six steps this time. The camera angle is a tad bit closer this time, and you don't fail to see his yellow-ish hair that definitely looks different compared to his looks today. He was very fit, even back then, but he is definitely more buff today.

You watch some more of Atsumu's powerful serves, his form screaming utmost perfection, and memories of the very same strong, muscular arms wrapped around you make heat rush to your cheeks. Yachi continues to share insights about his playing style, and you quickly try to focus on her words.

"...their combined attacks are difficult to anticipate. But look at how Kei blocks it!" You nod enthusiastically while you observe Tsukishima's impressive block. The video then shifts to another game, showcasing Atsumu in a black uniform adorned with yellow claw prints on his sleeves.

"Oh, that's from the MSBY game! You should have seen him; there's this amazing set—" Yachi's words trail off as the camera cuts to an unusual angle, revealing Atsumu's impressive thighs in full glory as he sets the ball with a ridiculously seductive smile. Your jaw drops at the unexpected sight- you know for sure you would have fainted if you saw that scene in live. How dare he look so good while setting the ball?? "Look, Hinata easily managed to hit that! And there's Bokuto-san!" You recognize the orange-haired spiker, sharing a smile and high-five with Bokuto. "I can't believe that they all actually know each other."

"Yeah," Yachi smiles and nods. "Hinata always talks about Atsumu-san. And Bokuto-san is close with Osamu-san, I think. I've seen him post a few pictures with Akaashi-san at Onigiri-Miya."

"Is that the name of his restaurant? Atsumu said he would take me there someday." Yachi gives you a side-eye, and reaches for her phone. "You've gotten pretty close, haven't you? You seemed really flustered when-" You quickly interrupt her, "No! I—I don't even know him. I don't even have his number. He was just being nice, we're not really close."

Yachi nods with a small grin, and hands you her phone. "Here. That's his Instagram. He's also often at Onigiri Miya. It seems like he's very proud of his brother's success. I though you might want to have a look at his life."

"Thank you." Yachi is truly a great friend, and you feel once again fond of being close to her. As you scroll through Atsumu's Instagram, you find a mix of game snapshots, some pictures with Osamu, in which he always has a plate full of food in front of him, and you can't help but zoom into the plates, impressed by the neatly arranged dishes. As you keep on scrolling, you almost gasp loudly when you find a very surprising collaboration with Calvin Klein, featuring a shirtless Atsumu from a very close perspective. At first, you keep on scrolling, too flustered at the sudden revealing picture, but curiosity makes you go back after a few moments, and you look at the picture again.

He looks good. His muscles are well-defined and he grins seductively for the camera while he poses, clad in only a ripped pair of jeans. It's almost unfair how ridiculously attractive he looks, but you still think that he looks even better when he's just woken up, just like he did this morning. You exhale loudly and curiously click on the comments.

"I would pay real money to have him like this in my bed." "Christmas came early this year- and so did I." "Bless the Miya genes. I'd gladly help to spread them." "Thank you Calvin Klein. I'll make sure to get a pair of these pants." "*FAINTS* HE'S SO HOT, I CAN'T-"

You're startled when you notice how the comments get even more unhinged and shameless as you keep on scrolling. "He... has a lot of fans," you remark, scrolling back to the top and handing Yachi her phone back, to which she nods heavily. "He had his own fan club in high school, and ever since the Japanese team won the Olympics, the whole team has been very popular. Especially Atsumu-san and Sakusa-san."

You hesitate before asking the next question, uncertain of what the answer might bring. "Is there a reason why he's single? He seems like a decent guy, looks good, and he's probably rich. Isn't he the perfect catch?"

Yachi furrows her brows, thinking. "I don't know, actually. It's probably the same as with Hinata and Kageyama. They focus a lot on their careers; they simply don't have time for dating. I also found out that most volleyball boys can be a bit... intense. It's probably hard to find a partner that understands their passion. They prioritize training over anything else. I've never seen Hinata skip a day of training, no matter what happens. Their partners must accept that they put a lot of their energy and time into their jobs."

"Ah," you simply nod, slightly surprised by the revelation. You would have assumed that they have a very lively dating life, but it seems like they just live for work. Sounds a bit lonely.

"I also think that some fans are a bit obsessed with their private lives. There was an incident before with Atsumu-san and one of their fans- but things have calmed down lately, so you should be fine." Yachi reassures you, reaching for a cookie on the couch table.

"I think that—" she is interrupted by the sudden sound of a ringing phone, and both of you exchange confused glances before realizing it's your phone. Yachi's eyes light up, and she squeals, "Maybe it's him—I mean, I could have gotten his number through Hinata, but maybe he's got some news—"

You fumble with the phone, the unknown number undoubtedly belonging to Atsumu. Taking a deep breath, you nod at her and hold the phone to your ear, answering the call with a simple,

"Hello?"

[vodkacheesefries]

Listen I know I'm biased and I have already mentioned it, but there is a specific brand of gen x white woman you find in Utah that is just like Angela and I. Can't. Stand. Her.

I didn't like Matt. But I don't like Angela more.

[xxplastic-cubexx]

Oughh I hope SO bad u do more evo wanda and pietro, I'm!!! OBESSED

Thank you so much !!!!!!!!!! Theyre my kids i love them sm … i hope to draw them more soon too !!!!!

[saltcxrcle]

i eventually do want to make a sam winchester x angel! reader but i have no idea what the plot of that fic would be LOL

[linoguy]

my weekly post of "i miss dramacool" but we can't be both in a recession AND without reliable pirating websites

[maxgicalgirl]

Archive 81 tv show made Melody Pendras straight we cannot trust podcasts in the hands of mainstream media !!!!!!!

[weskerfied]

Ada and Annette’s interaction is so underrated. I love them. They sound like two high school mean girls from rival friendship groups, or whatever the equivalent is in the resident evil universe.

[thedreamerstoryteller]

🎶 I know you

I walked with you once upon a dream

I know you

That look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam.

And I know it's true, that visions are seldom what they seem

But if I know you

I know what you'll do

You'll love me at once

The way you did once upon a dream. 🎶

[parktheghost]

losing friends left right and centre when does the misery end

[infiniteorangethethird]

I really don't want to be stirring up discourse or anything here but I can't not make a note here because this is exactly the kind of mindset the post is talking about. There exists this belief in far too many people that the default way of existing as an alloromantic (and allosexual) person is that you want a relationship and if you don't then there's something wrong with you - you're traumatized, you have a hormone imbalance, you're mentally ill etc - and it's genuinely damaging. People (sometimes even regardless of sexual or romantic orientation) would rather be in a relationship that is downright toxic and abusive than be single, because being single is Bad and Wrong and if they don't want to be in a relationship there's Something Wrong With Them.

But that's not how people work. People have preferences and personal likes and dislikes, and sometimes that includes not liking or wanting to be in a relationship. Yeah, sometimes trauma causes that, but people can also just not like it for whatever reason they have, including no reason at all, and that's perfectly fine and normal too. In fact, I'm fairly convinced more people would be willing to admit their aversion to dating and romance if they knew this was an acceptable option too - hence the post.

Like prev said in their tags, don't assume random internet strangers' traumas. If you (general you) hear someone admit they don't like romance and your gut reaction is that there's something wrong with them, then perhaps you are the person who could benefit from hearing "alloros can still stay single!!" more.

"aros can still date!!": boring. tired. overused. frequently used to make aros look more palatable and acceptable to amatonormative society.

"alloros can still stay single!!": fresh. new. exciting. hearing it could change many people's lives for the better regardless of romantic orientation

[wonhostiddymilk]

the second lead couple got 2 kiss scenes already n im still waiting on ziqi and miaomiao this is insane