#Because she hated that June is the third person

[iwasbored777]

As someone who dislikes Nathalie, I like how Evolution proved that all she had to do was simply quit her job and Gabriel would let her go but she chose terrorism and child abuse to please her crush and only when he hurt her that's when she finally woke up. She really is Serena Waterford of Miraculous Ladybug, no one can tell me otherwise.

[kjdkive]

couple questions with vogue — jjk.

summary: yn, world-famous model and jungkook world-famous artist are invited as a couple to answer some questions for vogue on a video. both known to be a chaotic couple are expected to show their competitive side.

pairing: idol! jungkook and model! yn (afab)

warnings: cursing, some dirty jokes? jungkook being the best boyfriend ever i want him so bad, third person narration

a/n: thinking about doing this for some other bts members but not really sure lol let's see how this one goes and go from there. also i used to be a wattpad writer and there we use — not " and i actually hate writing dialogues with " oh and also i mention a few things that are not true about jungkook but this is my universe and in this universe that happened yn happened

— hello, vogue! i’m yn and it’s so nice to be back here — yn says to the camera. 

— hello, i’m yn’s boyfriend, jungkook — jungkook says, smiling to the camera — i am also in a band but not that that matters. 

— i’m your fianceé, babe, remember? — yn lifts her left hand to show her engagement ring.

— she’s my soon-to-be wife, guys — jungkook giggles and stands up from his seat a little to give her a short kiss on her cheek.

— okay, my boyfriend’s humble as you can see but we’ll see if he’s a good boyfriend/fiancé because we’re gonna do the couple questions challenge! — an assistant hands her some cards with the questions on them — are you nervous, babe? 

— not at all, i actually think i’m gonna crush you — jungkook responds. 

— confident much? — yn asks. 

— dude, come on, let’s go, i’m ready. 

video cuts abruptly to the intro, showing a few pictures of the couple and jungkook’s seven playing in the back. 

question no.1 for jungkook: how did you first meet? 

— it was at a party in L.A. — jungkook replies — june 28th, 2017. she was wearing a black dress and her favorite manolo heels because she told me that the same night, also her purse from a special chanel collection because she told me it gave her luck. 

— it definitely did, baby — yn couldn’t stop smiling — it made me met you, so bless the chanel bag. so, answer’s correct! 

— ever since that night i fell in love and my band members were sick of me talking about her. 

— just want to say that it took him two months to ask me on a date — yn laughs — like i literally said no to a few guys in those two months because i was waiting for him to ask me out and when he did i just told him “finally, bro.” 

— you guys don’t understand, she was and still is too pretty for me — jungkook whined, making yn laugh — i thought she was gonna say no and also tell me that she doesn’t date ugly guys? 

— weren’t you literally like on the top 5 of the hottest guys of the world? — yn asks him and he stops. 

— i think i was? i don’t remember. 

— of course you don’t, darling. next question. 

jungkook: 1 

yn: 0

question no.2 for yn: who initiated the first kiss? 

— oh! oh! this one’s good — yn says — i did! and it was a mess.

— no, you didn’t — jungkook tells her. 

— oh, yes, i did because you were shaking when you grabbed my face and you literally froze so i was like “well, let ME do this” and then i was the one to grab your face and kiss you — yn points at him. 

— okay, fine, i did froze but you tasted like fish — jungkook starts — and although i love fish, tasting it from someone else’s mouth isn’t that delicious. 

— you had just taken me out to eat sushi! what were you expecting? — yn asks him — besides, you tasted like banana because you had to eat your banana dessert of course. 

— guys, if you ever go out on a date and you think you’re gonna kiss — jungkook looks at the camera — do not take them to eat fish or pasta because else they’ll get pesto on their teeth or their breath will smell like fish. 

— oh, right — yn laughs  — in one of our dates you got pesto on your teeth. 

— stop, i don’t wanna remember how you had to get me a tooth pick cause i couldn’t get it out — jungkook rolls his eyes and yn keeps on laughing at him — if your girl gets you a tooth pick, marry her, that’s what i’m gonna do in a few months — he winks at the camera and laughs at yn blushing. 

jungkook: 1

yn: 1

question no.3: which songs did jungkook write about yn? 

— now this is a good one because you always get confused — jungkook laughs — which songs did i write about you? 

— still with you, dimple, love maze, home, seven the explicit and clean version — yn winks at the camera. 

— babe! — jungkook blushes and giggles.

— oh, so you can be no.1 on billboard, mind you the explicit version but your girlfriend can’t talk about it? 

— don’t get off topic, finish the list — jungkook laughs again — and you’re my fiancée, not girlfriend. 

— okay, fine — yn moves on her seat — your part in my universe, dna, paradise, best of me, my you and that’s it. 

— WRONG! — jungkook yells at her and stands up from his seat to jump and laugh at her — you’re a loser! 

— jungkook, what? i got them all correct! shut up! 

— you forgot the one i have performed the most! — jungkook stands in front of the camera — vogue subscribers, my wife doesn’t love me. 

— oh my god! — yn yells — i forgot euphoria and jesus christ, jungkook, sit down now, stop being dramatic. 

— how dare you forget the amazing and unforgettable euphoria? 

— i’m sorry, my love, please forgive me for i have made an awful mistake — yn holds his hand. 

— i shall forgive you. 

— thank you, my king. 

— i love you — jungkook kisses her hand and doesn’t let go of it — but i’ll never forget this. 

jungkook: 1

yn: 1 

question no.4: what are the top 3 celeb crushes of yn? 

— this one’s so easy — jungkook says — it’s matthew mcconaughey, chris evans and bradley cooper but as his character in the hangover. 

— wrong — yn laughs. 

— yn, you know i’m not wrong, those are your top 3. 

— babe, you’re a celebrity too, you’re my no.1. 

— don’t lie, yn, i’m not your celeb crush. 

— yup, you’re right — yn gives up — he got the answer right, whatever, next question. 

jungkook: 2

yn: 1

question no.5: when jungkook first started as an artist, what did he do to calm his nerves when he performed? 

— I PRAYED — jungkook yells before yn can say her answer — I PRAYED AND I PRAYED. 

— he didn’t — yn looks at the camera with a serious expression. 

— YES, I DID — jungkook sits back on his seat — I DID. i did. 

— can you shut up now? — yn asks him — he used to- — yn gets cut off. 

— PRAY. HE USED TO PRAY. — jungkook yells again and all yn does is stand up from her seat and put her hand on jungkook’s mouth. 

— he’s licking my hand right now but i couldn’t care less — yn still had a serious expression — he used to touch his bandmates’ butts and when they would question him he’d say “nothing better than your butts, you guys!” 

— she’s wrong — jungkook says. 

— jungkook, ew, you left my hand freaking wet — yn wipes her hand on jungkook’s shirt — and yes, i’m right, you can call up jimin and he’ll tell you i’m right. 

jungkook: 2 

yn: 2 

question no.6: yn has a scar and has had a broken arm, how did both happen? 

— on her chin — jungkook replies fastly. yn nods and lifts her head to show up her chin. — that’s like the only one from an ugly accident the other ones are just her being silly cause she has some scars, blame of our cats when she tries to shower them and another one from when she was trying to make some chicken nuggets on the air fryer last month and she burned herself.

— he’s correct. 

— the broken arm… she told me she was playing outside when she was in kindergarten and she fell and broke her arm, she also told me the school didn’t call her parents right away and waited until her grandma picked her up from school but she took her to the hospital right away. sadly, they didn’t sue the school because they’re good people, the teachers weren’t. 

— that story is also correct. 

— ugh, so tiring being the best boyfriend/future husband out there — jungkook sighs. 

jungkook: 3

yn: 2 

question no.7: how many tattoos does jungkook have? which one was for yn? 

— jesus christ — yn says — i kid you not, jungkook doesn’t even know how many he has himself. 

— i don’t know the total number but i do have a close number, if she reaches it she’ll get the answer right. 

— fine, uhm, the eye he had before was my eye but i told him to cover it because it was done really bad like the eyelashes and the color were a mess but there are other ones about me, the thunderbolts and the flower on your elbow, right? 

— yes — he nods with a smile. 

— and i think, you have a total of 21? 22? with the new seven tattoo behind your ear i think so, yeah. 

— she’s not close in the number but she’s right about the tattoos about her — he smiles at her. 

jungkook: 3

yn: 3 

question no.8: what are yn’s favorite hobbies? 

— reading, learning languages and trying out new restaurants everywhere she goes. 

— that is correct. 

— she’s currently reading beach read but her favorite book is the portrait of dorian gray because my girl is into classics but they have to be a little gay; she speaks 4 languages those being english, italian, korean of course and french. the latest new restaurant she went was momofuko ko here in new york and she loved it.  

— i love you — yn couldn’t stop smiling as she got close to jungkook to give him a little kiss.

— i love you more — he said, after kissing her back. 

jungkook: 4 

yn: 3 

question no. 9: what is jungkook’s pet peeve? 

— damn, he has a lot — yn laughs — but i can name a few. 

— i don’t have a lot! 

— oh yeah? — yn asks and then turns at the camera — jungkook can’t eat if he notices people being loud while chewing but he is the loudest chew-er ever, he gets mad if whoever is driving doesn’t know how to park and oh! he despises when people walk slow but he had to be patient with me because i am a slow walker. 

— she’s really slow but since i love her i can be patient with her. 

— thank you, means a lot. 

jungkook: 4

yn: 4 

question no.10 (final question, decides the winner): if yn hadn’t been a model, what would’ve she been? 

— oh, my girl’s born to shine — jungkook holds her hand — because she wanted to be a UN ambassador when she was young because she loved learning languages. 

— oh my god, i did! — yn intertwines her fingers with jungkook’s — but i don’t even remember telling him about this. 

— you said that on an interview but you also said that to me when we were on one of our first dates — he smiles at her. 

— i did? 

— you said you saw it on tv — jungkook nods — and that you wanted to travel the world like them. but now you travel around the world as a model, either way you were gonna be successful. 

— reached full success now that i’m marrying you. — yn kisses him — i guess you won. 

the interviewer behind the camera asked them if they wanted to say anything else before finishing the video.

— my soon-to-be husband has released a song called seven, not that it needs promotion because the song's killing it but if you haven't listened to it you should, the song saves lives.

— yeah, i released a song, i wrote it and it was just for her — jungkook smiles — my girl is also releasing her own clothing line so make sure to check that out too — jungkook points at the camera — and before we finish i want to say i won, yn lost — jungkook looks at the camera with a serious expression — vogue subscribers, i am here to tell you again that yn is a loser and i will write on my wedding vows to always call her a loser until death do us apart. 

yn hits him on his arm and jungkook giggles.

— i hate you, jungkook. 

— i love you too, my sweetie cutie pie, come here.

jungkook brings her in for another kiss.

— thank you, vogue! see you next time — jungkook says while squishing yn's cheek with his own cheek.

— save me — yn mouths.

and the video finishes.

[its-time-to-write]

Omg I'm loving your response to my prompts!! thank you

I have a few ideas (You don't have to do them all) just throwing them out there to see what sparks ideas!!

I love secret admirer stories (I know its no where close to valentines day but still) maybe Reader is Rebecca's assistant and keeps getting gifts leading up to valentines day but she is pretty sure its like Sam or Isaac and tells friend Jaime (even though its really him) then the day of the grand finale and she comes to the lovely surprise of it being Jaime!

also if you could include Scarlett red roses in it for me (They are my favorite flower and the only flower I'm not allergic to)

So. I liked this one. Maybe too much? It might be the longest one I’ve written so far, so, uh, sorry about that. But I liked it a lot. It might be one of my favorite things I’ve ever written. Hope you enjoy. also the gif isn’t Jamie Tartt but it is Phil Dunster so hopefully that’s ok

honey, i’ll give you all my time

Good god, it’s February all ready. You have a love-hate relationship with the month; love, because Galentine’s Day and hate because Valentine’s Day. You and your friends would go out on February 15th to get discount chocolate from the shops, then return home for an ungodly amount of takeout and a movie. On the whole, you all preferred action movies with a good romance. 

You’re dreading Valentine’s Day because it’s when your boyfriend of two years held your hands in his, and told you he wanted to break up. 

That was a year ago. You’re mostly angry that he’s a dark stain on one of your favorite holidays. You’re absolutely determined not to let him ruin your enjoyment. 

This is also the first year you’re not with your friends. You moved away last March because you realized your ex had been holding you back in far too many ways. 

So. To recap. 

You’re alone. You love Valentine’s Day, despite it forever being the day of your breakup. Your friends aren’t here. You have new friends. There is no one to go to the shops with on the 15th. But discount chocolate is still discount chocolate. 

Your current job is as a personal assistant, something you excel at. You basically anticipate needs, meet them, and just generally make your employer’s life a whole lot easier. The application said the job required a lot of travel, but all expenses (minus some food) were covered. 

You were shocked when you got an interview, then a second, then a third, then were hired. 

Your boss is a woman named Rebecca Welton, and you’re half in love with her, but who isn’t, really?

You swear you’ve never been in such a healthy work environment. You mention it one day, early on, and she says it’s all thanks to their head coach, someone named Ted. 

You meet him for the first time later that day, and you understand. 

It’s impossible not to love him, because he has vision. He knows what he wants from his team, and he knows how to get it. 

He believes the team extends far beyond the players. 

He believes it extends to you, too. 

Ted and Coach Beard steal you from Rebecca as often as they can, claiming emergencies such as “a toxic amount of testosterone from all these boys,” “life-threatening boredom,” and last but not least, “there’s a new pun Ted absolutely needs to test right now and he won’t take no for an answer.”

(You like to give Ted honest feedback on his puns.) 

You also find yourself in their office when Rebecca is out for lunch, eating your respective sandwiches and swapping life stories. 

They remind you a lot of your parents.

It’s mid-June when you mention the Valentine’s Day story. 

It doesn’t hurt as much when it’s punctuated by Ted’s “he didn’ts” and Beard’s perfectly-timed gasps. 

You find yourself laughing halfway through, unable to stop. 

“And anyway,” you finish, cheeks painful from smiling so hard, “that’s why romantic love is a joke and I am drowning myself in platonic love forever.”

Ted and Beard share a look. “I wouldn’t be too sure about that,” Beard says. 

You shoot him a quizzical look. “What do you mean?”

“Well sweetheart,” Ted says, “between the two of us collectively,” here points between him and Beard, “we know of at least three of the boys on the team who are madly in love with you.”

“What?” you gasp, “How did you- where did you- who??”

Ted zips his lips and Beard tips a finger to him. “We know of five if we count Rebecca’s intel.”

You’re sitting cross-legged on the edge of Beard’s desk, in shock. “Rebecca knows about this??”

Ted and Beard shrug in unison. “We all have our opinions on which one should shoot their shot, but that’s neither here nor there,” Ted says. 

“Coincidentally, it’s the one thing we unanimously agree on,” Beard nods. 

You’re cut off from saying anything by the door opening. One of the players stands in the doorway. 

“Excuse me, coach,” he says, accent thick. 

Ted motions in a you have the floor type of way, and the footballer turns to address you of all people. “We’re all goin’ out tonight, and Keeley sent me to invite the new girl. None of the lads have really met you yet, just seen you ‘round. Thought it might be good for team bonding, or something. I’m Jamie, by the way.”

“Oh,” you say, taken aback. “I guess- yeah, I guess I haven’t really met them. I mean, I see you guys around and stuff and I’m at your games, but I don’t really know you. Are you sure you want me to come?”

Jamie shrugs. “Coach is always on us about bein’ a team or some shit. And, havin’ a girl around makes the lads look good.”

You think that makes sense, and then find yourself agreeing to go out that night with a group of footballers you don’t know, and (thank god) Keeley Jones. 

You’re going to figure out which five before the summer’s over. 

—

You have nice time out with the lads. They go to a bar and cram into separate booths. You’re wedged in between two who have introduced themselves as Isaac and Dani, and across from Sam, Bumbercatch, and Jan Maas. Roy, Richard, and a few others you don’t know are milling about, and you see Jamie and Keeley at a table, surrounding by giggling girls. The sight is so absurd that you catch yourself smiling and turning back to whatever conspiracy Bumbercatch is telling you about now. 

—

You put Sam at the top of your list as soon as you get home. The man wears his heart on his sleeve, or maybe in his eyes, but you’re positive that he’s one of the five Ted and Beard referred to. One down, four to go. 

— 

It’s the end of July, and you begin to become friends with the team. You know for an absolute fact who is not interested in you, Jamie being one of them. Coincidentally, he’s the one you become closest to. You think it’s because you’re not worrying about sending mixed signals or leading him on. You dropped public hints about not really looking for anything romantic, just to be sure you wouldn’t hurt anyone. 

As it is, Jan Maas and Dani have made the list. Jan Maas, because he stifled his Dutch bluntness for you and Dani, because he openly declared he was madly in love with you in front of the whole team. 

—

Isaac makes the list in December. It had been in between him and Bumbercatch, but Isaac was the one who walked you to your car every night and the first one to say hello to you every morning. 

You’re not gonna lie, it was cute. 

You shared some of this with Ted and Beard, who remained impressively stone-faced. Rebecca proved to be equally impervious.

You shared all of it with your lunch-buddy-turned-work-bestie, Jamie. 

You ate with him because Rebecca was constantly in lunch meetings these days, and Ted, Beard, and Roy were always revamping their football strategies.

Jamie would plop down at your table and say, “What’s the news, Amy Hughes?” in his perfect Mancunian accent, and then listen/add commentary to whatever you had to say. 

You explained to him that the reason you wanted to know who liked you was so that you could be extra careful with their hearts. You knew what it was like to be led on, and you did NOT want to do that to someone else. 

Jamie nodded thoughtfully at that and then said, “We’re all footballers though, ain’t we? We get the shit end of the stick all the time, hearts broke by models and whatever. Even ends up in the fucking press. Everyone here’s has their heart broken before, and we all know you aren’t doing it on purpose.”

You wrinkle your nose at him. “I’m pretty sure it’s short end of the stick, Jamie.”

And thus begins your lunch hour of bickering. 

—

No one has made a move on you yet, and you don’t have a read on number five. You still think it may be Bumbercatch, but in reality, it slips from your mind. Sam’s moved on, Jan Maas has accepted defeat, Dani swears he will love you until the day he dies, and Isaac stays, well, Isaac. Still sweet. Still walking you to your car, coming round extra early in the morning with a coffee or a water, depending on which “looked less like shit.”

Really though, you don’t think about it until February first, when you walk into your office to a small box on your desk. 

At first, you think it’s a box of Ted’s biscuits. 

Then, you notice a small, scarlet-red rose taped to the top. There’s no note, and all that’s inside is a tiny paper heart. 

It’s folded with extreme care, and you place it on your shelf, smelling the rose. It smells amazing and you make a mental note to figure out where the heck it came from. But for now, it’s time to work. 

—

You don’t mention the gifts until February third, because now there’s been one a day. Each one with a scarlet red rose, and a different gift. Yesterday was an incredibly expensive bar of chocolate (it was life-changing) and today is a tiny gold bracelet.

It’s a simple enough chain, but it is absolutely breathtaking. There is no mistaking the fact that it is not cheap, so you take it and march straight to Rebecca’s office.  

“Rebecca,” you say, hands outstretched, “look.”

She does, smiles, then says, “It appears you have a secret admirer.”

“But I don’t want that!” you cry. “I don’t even have time for that! I don’t even like anybody right now!”

She peers at you over her glasses. “Don’t you?”

The sheer weight of those words is enough to physically knock you back two steps. 

You don’t, you swear you don’t, you’re absolutely sure. 

What about Vienna? a voice in the very back of your head nags.

You reply, out loud, “We don’t talk about Vienna,” and Rebecca just shrugs. 

“Have it your way,” she replies in a tone that means this conversation is over, but you’re the one ending it.

You turn on your heel and find yourself taking the route to Ted and Beard. 

You burst into their office in such a flurry that the entire room turns to look at you. “Close the door,” you say with such urgency, that Trent hurries to comply. Beard even shuts the blinds. 

“What’s on your mind, Ollie Cline?” Ted asks. 

“Wait,” you say, holding up a hand. You point to Roy. “Do you want to be here? It involves feelings.”

“Fuck no,” says Roy, “thanks for being fucking considerate.” He follows it up with a pointed glare at Ted, then goes into his office and firmly shuts the door. 

“Can he be here?” Ted asks, tilting his head toward Trent. 

“I don’t care, he’s probably a good one to have around for this because look!” You present the three collected roses and the bracelet. 

“Someone’s started leaving me gifts, and I’m pretty sure it’s a Valentine’s thing because of the roses, and it was fine for the first two days but this is expensive, and I can’t accept this!”

Ted and Beard share a look. You hate it when they do that and leave you out. 

Ted sighs. “Listen, do you think this about Vienna?”

You fix him with a glare. “No. We are not talking about Vienna ever again.”

Trent pipes up, “What’s Vienna?” and you wheel around on him, taking your glare with you. 

“Vienna," you spit, like it’s poisonous, “is a terrible, awful place where people think terrible, awful things. I never want to talk about it again and I never will.”

Trent nods. “Noted.” 

You turn back to Ted and Beard, pleadingly. “What do I do? Tell me what to do.”

Beard gets up and puts his hand on your shoulder. “Kid, if you want my advice, take the damn roses and wear the damn bracelet. These boys make more money than they know how to spend, so just let it go. They all know how you feel about dating, so if someone’s shooting their shot, they know the stakes.”

You shake your head. “Fine. Fine. I’ll let it go.” 

—

You decide to tell Jamie on day five, because it’s a Friday and you’re dying to get his take. You tell him everything, show him the roses in your office (hanging upside down to dry), and then hand him the notebook that was in today’s box. 

“Jamie,” you say, “this is an expensive notebook. There was a typed note inside that said, ‘for your drawings.’ How did this person even know I like drawing? I never talk about it!”

Jamie looks at you and laughs a little. You’re very flustered for something most people would enjoy. “Dunno, love, but we’ve all seen the sticky notes you leave Coach. That might be it.”

You groan and flop down into your chair. 

“At least tomorrow’s the weekend,” you say.

—

Jamie’s phone dings at 9:00am on Saturday with a text from you that says, what the actual heck and a picture of a brown bag at your doorstep. Inside is a plastic box of your favorite lemon muffin from a local bakery. He emphasized the image, then waits for your response. 

It was still warm, you write. It was someone who knows where I live and knows what time I leave to get breakfast.

Jamie grins and sends you a shrugging emoji, and you respond with an eye roll and a you’re no fun.

Jamie reads that and privately disagrees. He thinks he’s lots of fun

—

You’re pretty sure it’s Isaac. After all, he’s the only likely candidate. He’s one of the few who knows where you live and knows your routine. Not in a creepy way, in a we’re-good-friends type of way. You bring this up to Jamie, after personally banning all talk of this with Ted, Beard, and Rebecca. Stupid Vienna. You should never have told them. 

Jamie shrugs for the millionth, infuriating time. He’s been noncommittal this whole time. You’re over here pouring out your heart and soul, considering whether you like Isaac romantically or not, and all he can say is, “I dunno?” 

This is not the Jamie Tartt you’ve become best friends with. 

That Jamie would be down to hunt this secret admirer with you. That Jamie would be helping you figure out if Isaac had a chance with you. That Jamie would be way more engaged than the one sitting in front of you right now. 

But, you suppose maybe that Jamie died in Vienna, so you stop bringing it up.

—

It’s day ten. Valentine’s Day is in four day, and you’re nervous. 

You’ve decided you don’t like Isaac like that, mainly because it shouldn’t take you that long to decide if you like anyone. There has to be an initial spark, and you shouldn’t try to manufacture it. 

Still, you’re not sure it is Isaac, so you’re not going to say anything about it. The scarlet red roses hang on your office wall, permeating the room with their scent. 

You feel like you’re dying. 

This is a cruel joke and you’re dying. 

The building is basically empty right now. Rebecca and Higgins have some meeting, the team is on the pitch (including Will) and various other staff are somewhere far away from you. So, you jump a little when Trent Crimm comes tripping into your office. 

“Vienna,” he says, no greeting. “If you didn’t want to talk about it, you wouldn’t have told anyone. I’m assuming you do want to talk about it, but you don’t want judgement from the people you love. I’m here to offer my services as a neutral party.”

You look at him. “Trent. You are a journalist. Your whole job is writing down people’s secrets. Why on earth would I talk to you about the worst day of my life?”

Trent shrugs. “I’m good at keeping secrets. This would be off the record. I’ve never lied to people about off the record, also. I consider it bad journalism.”

You consider this for a moment, then sigh. 

“Alright,” you concede. “At least if this gets out, I know whose head I’m shaving in retaliation.”

Trent looks at you in surprise, seeing you in a whole new, slightly threatening light.

“It happened two months ago. It was around Christmas, and I didn’t have anywhere to go…”

—

Your family all had their own separate plans that Christmas. Plans that didn’t really involve you. Same with your friends. You said something casually to Rebecca, and the next day she told you she had booked you a trip to Vienna. Call it an early Christmas present, she said. It was at the Aumaris Vienna, and it was gorgeous and ridiculously out of your budget, but she said you worked hard and gave her peace-of-mind, and you can’t really put a price on that, can you?

So you went. 

But here’s the thing. 

Someone else didn’t have Christmas plans. 

So when you brought up your trip at your daily lunch, said someone else casually asked, can I come? 

You almost choked on your sandwich. 

Because here’s the other thing.

You were, maybe, kind of, possibly just a little bit head over heels in love with this someone else.

You’re not sure when it happened, really, just that it was probably in August and that it was soul-crushing because you knew for an absolute fact that he did not, and never would, feel the same way. 

You didn’t tell anyone except Keeley, but under the condition that she just let you say it and that she never, ever give you a response to it. Just listen. 

She did, but you were pretty sure she almost combusted. 

But who are you to say no when Jamie Tartt invited himself on your luxurious Christmas vacation saying, I’ll pay extra to get a plane ticket next to you? 

You were doomed from the start. 

To make matters totally and impossibly worse, he couldn’t find another room. 

He had his tickets, but the hotels, he said, were packed. 

It was Christmas, after all. 

So that’s how you ended up in a luxury hotel with Jamie Tartt for a week and a half, one day of which was Christmas. 

You know the, “there was only one bed” trope that everyone thinks is so cute?

It was that, but only if you add deep, shattering heartbreak to it. 

Because every night, you had to listen to Jamie say, “goodnight, love,” and then get into that giant, soft bed as far away from him as you could manage. 

Every morning you woke up to the pillow barricade long gone, one of his arms thrown around you. Or one of your legs on top of his. Or a million different scenarios where you end up literally asleep together, some weird gravity pulling you to each other. 

You were falling so hard and so fast, that you felt like the air was knocked from your lungs when Jamie started talking about the girl he liked. 

“She’s just so fucking beautiful,” he’d say, staring at an Alpine mountain. Or, “Swear she’s the smartest fucking person I’ve ever met,” while traipsing through the city. Or, “Pretty sure she’s ruined me for everyone else,” while getting facials at the hotel spa. 

To be fair, you were the one who teased him into admitting he liked someone. 

You just didn’t expect it to hurt so much. 

The entire trip felt like heaven and hell had simultaneously converged on you, and you never wanted to leave but also desperately counted the days till it was over. 

You came back and broke down in Rebecca’s office. Ted and Beard were there. The whole thing came spilling out, about how you loved the trip so much it felt like your heart would explode but that Jamie loved someone else. 

They all exchanged looks amongst themselves and did their best to comfort you. 

You pulled yourself together and they promised never to say anything to anyone. 

—

“So that’s Vienna,” you finish. 

Trent is just staring at you, mouth slightly agape. 

He finally says, “My god, that’s fucked,” with such emotion that you decide right then and there that you like Trent Crimm and his rainbow mug. 

Now, you just shrug. “I did it to myself, honestly. That’s why I’m tripping out about this secret admirer thing. And god, Trent, the roses. They’re so beautiful and it’s so romantic, and whoever it is obviously knows me well so there’s a part of me that wants to like this person, but…” you trail off. 

“But there’s a part of you that’s hoping against hope that Jamie’s behind it all,” Trent finishes. 

You let out a little laugh. “Yeah, that about sums it up.”

Trent looks at the roses, then at you. “Maybe you should talk to Jamie,” he says, gently. 

You reply with a forceful, “No,” and then follow up with a small, “That’s what Ted and Rebecca say, too.” 

Trent stands up, shrugs, says with a small smile, “Just a thought,” then he’s out the way he came. 

—

It is Valentine’s Day. And it’s a Sunday, which means you are legally required to stay in bed until 10, at which point you will get out only to make yourself decent enough to go buy a good cup of coffee and maybe (definitely) something to eat. 

You’ve just finished putting on your shoes, when there’s a knock at the door. 

You take a breath, and get ready to let down your secret admirer as gently as possible. 

You swing open the door to reveal- 

“Jamie! What are you doing here?”

Jamie Tartt is on your doorstep, hands behind his back, looking shyer than the day you first met. 

He opens his mouth and says the last thing you’d ever expect:

“D’you remember Vienna?”

Your heart, which had already been going fast because his dumb floppy hair was all dumb and floppy in his stupid, cute headband, is now working double time. You manage a nod. 

Jamie takes this as permission to continue. “D’you remember how I couldn’t get another room, no matter how hard I tried? That wasn’t true. I could’ve.” He pauses, and you wait for him to continue. 

“And d’you remember when we met, when I told you Keeley told me to invite you out? That was a lie too.”

You tilt your head, confused. He keeps going. 

“Look- I fucked it. I fucked it a million times and I told Ted and I told Beard, but they kept helping me un-fuck it and giving me chances, and then Rebecca bought two tickets to Vienna and slipped me the other one, and they all told me I had a perfect shot.” 

You’re still not understanding what he’s saying. He might as well be speaking another language. Jamie sees the confusion in your eyes, takes a breath, and tries again. 

“Keeley told me to invite you out, but only because I’d seen you around and thought you were fit. Then Isaac and all the lads thought the same thing, so I didn’t even get to fuckin’ sit with you. And then you started sayin’ things about not bein’ ready for a relationship, so I tried to let it go. I really fucking tried. But I just couldn’t. Your eyes are too sparkly and your laugh is too fucking cute and I couldn’t let it go, so I started eating lunch with you and you fucking let me. I knew the moment I said anything about liking you, it was over.”

Comprehension has started to dawn, but you push down hope until Jamie’s done speaking. 

“Everyone told me to shoot my shot in Vienna. We shared a bed, for fuck’s sake.” Here, Jamie looks bewildered. “But I dunno, I didn’t want to make shit weird. So when you asked if I liked anyone I said yeah, and started fuckin describing you, but you never fucking picked up on it. That’s when I got the idea to try one more time. All by meself, no help from anyone else. So…yeah.”

Jamie Tartt is standing on your porch confessing his love for you on Valentine’s Day and it is not a dream, because if it were your teeth would be falling out and his hair would probably be neon pink. 

“I’m an idiot,” you breathe. “You like me? Like, like-like me?”

Jamie quirks a smile at that. “Not quite, darling. Pretty fucking sure I love you.” He pulls his hand from behind his back to reveal a bunch of scarlet red roses. The same from each gift. 

“Got these for you,” he says. “D’you know how hard it is to get red roses in February?”

You don’t answer him because you’re leaping into his arms, kissing him like you’ve thought about doing every day for what feels like forever. He’s kissing you back, hand with the flowers pressed against your back, other hand in your hair. 

“I love you too, Jamie,” you whisper against his mouth. He smiles and pulls you in again. 

[buckets-and-trees]

Perfectionists

Title: Perfectionists Fandom: MCU Characters/Pairings: Bucky x Female!Reader Word Count: 2.2k

Summary: SHIELD Games is behind one of the best MMORPGs on the market. SHIELD stays on top because of the super employees they have across the board from the tech innovation department, to the story writers, to their game engineers - including one Bucky Barnes. It's his perfection that has pushed him into this position at an elite place in the industry, period. But one game tester always seems to find the most frustrating things to send back to him.

Content/Concept Warnings: Gamer AU; strong language; explicit smut: oral - male receiving, mild dacryphilia, vaginal fingering, genital sex, voyerism, masturbation

Notes: TRIPLE THREAT SUBMISSION for @buckybarnesevents WEEK THREE of Hot Bucky Summer: "Where do you want me?", my fifth square of @buckybarnesbingo B5: "Playing Games," and my third square for Connect4 Alternate June-iverse: C1 "Gamer." Gamer divider graphic by @sgt-seabass!

Masterlist | Aspen's Ask Box | Field Guide to the Forest

Bucky looked up as he heard Steve’s telltale footsteps – not the normal ones – the trepidatious ones.

“No,” he said, tone stone cold.

Steve stopped a few steps away and sighed, putting his hands on his hips.

“How long is the list?”

“Buck.”

Bucky shook his head and pushed away from his desk. “You know what? No. I don’t even want to see it.”

He stormed out of the engineering and design lab, and Steve dropped his head back to look at the ceiling.

Sam chuckled. “I told you, man, you should wait until he’s out of the room to bring in new lists of purgatory for perfection.”

“He never takes a break. None of you take breaks,” Steve said.

“'Attitude reflects leadership, Captain.'"

"Don't quote Remember the Titans at me."

“Barnes just needs to fuck her.”

Steve’s head snapped over to Nat. “You know what, Romanoff?”

“She’s right,” Joaquin added without looking up from his screen, but a smirk on his face none the less. “His blood has been boiling for her for months, it’s about time he stops ignoring that.”

“Shit, Barnes!” you yelped, clutching your heart with one hand and an energy drink in the other. “Anyone ever tell you not to lurk in the dark?”

“I’m not lurking,” he groused.

“What else do you call lying in wait to confront someone? Especially in the dark? Alone? Leaning up against the wall, no less.”

You knew you were far from the only person in the building, but this late at night, you were the only tester still around and usually had this wing of the offices to yourself. This was a side gig for you, you only did it because you loved the game and loved getting to preview things before it was even sent to the beta test group of users, but that meant you usually only crossed paths with the handful of other official tester employees for SHIELD Games like ships passing in the night who basically clocked normal business hours.

“I don’t see you turning on any lights,” he said as you returned to your preferred spot on the couch.

“I prefer to play by glow of television,” you responded with a dramatic tone.

If Bucky rolled his eyes, you didn’t see it. “It’s how I’d be playing at home, keeps me focused so I can help you do your job.”

Which is why he was here confronting you, as you had so aptly noted. “I’m damn good at what I do.”

“And the only reason you hate my lists is because you’re already a god damn perfectionist so you can’t stand when I point out the flaws you missed or suggestions to make your work even better. But that’s why Maria hired me. Your community manager knew the user feedback I was giving when you launched the game was excellent.”

Bucky scoffed and shook his head, crossing his arms.

“Your game is only perfect after they put it in front of my face, Barnes.”

“Shut up.”

It was your turn to scoff. “Make me,” you said and took a swig of your energy drink.

Bucky pushed off the wall and in three swift, silent steps was in front of you. With your head tilted back as you drank, you only saw him when he leaned forward, looming over you. You spluttered a little, and he smirked.

“You won’t be able to talk with this in front of your face,” he said, opened the front of his jeans, and pushed the denim and his boxers down his thighs in one go.

You would have roasted him for saying something so cliché in any other circumstance. But your brain was short-circuiting, and you were trying to rapidly re-establish the connections.

His right hand took the can out of your grasp and set it on the side table next to the couch, and his left hand cradled your chin, his thumb pressing on your bottom lip.

You looked up at him. Your heart was racing, and your pussy was thrumming. You were not certain this was real. He’d been the quiet one, a bit surly, but you had been surprised enough he’d come to confront you about the feedback in the first place and never would have put a penny on the odds of something like this happening with the gorgeous game designer you’d harbored a bit of a crush on but decided after the first week wouldn’t come to anything.

This was an unexpected side quest.

You nodded.

He pushed the tip to the edge of your lips, your tongue slipped out to circle the head. In one swift motion he gripped the back of your head and thrust his cock into your mouth, hitting the back of your throat, and your hands flew up to hold onto his hips.

He used your mouth with abandon, and the hold of your hands on his hips was firm, encouraging. When you choked on his thick member, he slowed for a moment, then you squeezed his hip, and he speed up to his brutal pace again. This happened twice more, you having taken him deeper in your throat each time. Tears streamed down your face now, and he groaned when he looked down at you.

“You look so god damn beautiful,” he couldn’t help saying.

You whimpered, and he swept a thumb over your cheek, wiping away the tears, then brought them to his mouth.

He could feel the build of his climax at the root of him, and pulled out of your mouth abruptly, knowing he was too close to finishing and not ready for this to come to an end yet.

You fell forward, but he was instantly kneeling in front of you, ready to catch your lips with his. The kiss was hungry, and your mouth full of the taste of him made him groan again. Your hands tangled in his hair, slotting in despite being pulled back in a low bun. His hands had returned to hold your head as commandingly as they had when he was fucking your throat – one in your hair, one along your jaw.

When you were absolutely breathless, you finally pulled away.

Foreheads planted against each other, breaths still mingling, you licked your lips.

“Why don’t I show you what these hands can do?” he asked, one hand falling to your hip, rubbing his thumb down the crease of your thigh toward your core.

“Don’t tease.”

“Oh, no,” he agreed. Then with both hands, he pulled your hips to the edge of the cushion, hooked his fingers into the top of your pants, and peeled them down along with your panties. You pushed up to raise your hips so he could remove them completely, but your efforts were hardly needed as he used one hand to push you up, and the small show of unexpected strength made your insides squirm. He was built – you had seen it – but you hadn’t experienced the reality of it.

Bucky didn’t leave you a second to think about it any further as his fingers slid up and down your wet slit, he spread your outer folds and stroked your soft inner folds, and you moaned. Your eyes slipped shut, but you felt him watching your face. He was watching for how you reacted to each of his ministrations. He pinched your clit, and you yelped.

Your eyes flew open, and you saw his were filled with a mischievous glint. “Just testing all the possibilities,” he said.

You hit his shoulder. “I said no teasing!”

“You always want the experience to have more unexpected elements for the user to play with.”

“Bucky!” You did not want to hear one of your recent lines of feedback recited back to taunt you.

Except you did.

He was playing this game so well.

He slipped two fingers from that large, warm hand of his inside your cunt and began to pump. Your eyes melted closed again, and seemingly satisfied with his study, you felt Bucky claim your lips for more kisses while he pulled you closer and closer to an orgasm. It built steadily, his thumb at your clit, fingers in your channel, but when he curled those fingers and found the spongy spot against your pubic bone, it hit you instantly, and you cried out his name. He pulled your head into the crook of his neck while his other hand slowed in your cunt but helped prolong riding out the waves of your pleasure.

“Satisfactory experience?” he asked once your breathing started to return to normal.

You laughed against his shoulder, then pulled back to look at him. You pressed a kiss to his jaw, and he smiled.

“You know, I wasn’t afraid to poke the bear because you’re brilliant, I knew you could take it. You want to be the best, and I help give you that.” You reached down and took his still hard, leaking cock in your soft hands, and Bucky’s breath hitched. “Now, do you want to let me take you? I’m aching for you to fill me up.”

He groaned. “You can’t say shit like that.”

You nipped at his bottom lip and smirked. “Yes, I can. This company values my direct and honest feedback.”

He huffed a laugh.

“Where do you want me?”

Bucky quickly shoved his jeans all the way down his legs and settled down next to you on the couch, legs spreading wide. “In my lap.”

“Sounds just about right,” you said, straddling him.

His eager hands pulled your slick cunt flush against his groin, and you both moaned. You planted your hands on his broad shoulders, and rocked your hips just a little bit. Even that short back and forth of friction, his cock stroking your engorged clit, had your head falling back. Bucky pressed his lips to the column of your throat, not wasting an opportunity so inviting in the moment. You sighed and held his head to your neck where he continued to explore and mark you with slow, hot kisses, finding the places that made you shiver.

While you were lost in those sensations, Bucky reached down and lined his cock up with your slit, but that brought you back to the thrumming need to be filled by him, and you sunk down while he thrust up into you. He was thick, and he filled you more than you were used to, but not to a point of pain -far, far from it.

“Feel so good inside me,” you keened.

“No feedback?”

“Just fuck me until I can’t breathe, Buck.”

“With pleasure,” he growled.

After passing through two intense first levels of play, climbing to the final peak did not take long. One of his hands remained anchored at your hip to control the punishing but desired pace of thrusts, but his other steadily slid underneath your shirt and up your spine in a delicate way in contrast to everything else happening in the moment, including your lips returning to his in another kiss designed to devour.

Bucky felt you hit that crest of the climax, your muscles seizing in a moment of bliss, your pussy clenching hard around his cock. As you came down, he maneuvered you both to lay your back on the couch while he did just as you asked and continued to thrust into you hard, you boneless but in a blissful haze, unconcerned with trivial things like breathing, while he pursued his own pleasure. Then all at once he groaned and began to spill his hot seed inside of you, pausing for a second with the first ropes of cum, but then continued with deep, slow thrusts until he was completely spent.

It was a snug shuffling, but the two of you managed to get so you were both laying on your sides on the couch, your back up against the cushioned backboard, Bucky’s back to the glow of the giant television screen so all his muscled angles were sillhouted for you to admire in the afterglow. His legs were bunched up – possibly uncomfortably – and you tangled yours with his. You pushed some hair that had escaped from its knot at the back of his head off of his face, and he grabbed your hand and pressed a kiss to your palm.

“I think we’ll need to continue testing this,” you whispered against his lips.

You felt them curve into a smile before he said, “Thorough testing, absolutely. Need to explore all potential scenarios.”

“I’m glad you’ll be more amenable now to my feedback.”

“Oh, I never said that.”

You poked him in the ribs.

“Come on, you love the complex storylines. You don’t want me easily conquered.” And before you could protest, and claimed your lips again, this time in a long, slow kiss, no intention of leaving any time soon.

Too caught up with each other, neither of you heard the approaching footsteps, the gasp on discovering you, the moans they bit back when they gave over to touching themselves there in the dark, watching you, or their nearly silent retreat.

READ THEIR FOLLOW UP IN TEST PLAY

Masterlist | Aspen's Ask Box | Field Guide to the Forest

[tunnelsnacks]

Deacon head canons from my old blog be upon ye!

The UP Deathclaws were never real...the L&L gang is though

“He’s sharp as a whip, feisty in the field and extraordinarily cautious with his actions and even more careful with his words”

Deacon’s favorite color is green, hazel green

If he had a character theme it would be Deacon Waltz by Christian Sedelmyer and Jerry Douglas (The name’s just a coincidence)

A very very light sleeper, before Wanderer he would only sleep for around 3 hours peppered throughout the day

It always takes him an hour to fall asleep, even after he & Wanderer start ‘their you sleep and I’ll watch over you’ deal

He’s not religious, but he still prays

Before Wanderer he’d have, what my old therapist calls, micro-bursts of stage three sleep without realizing it (REM sleep) people can do this while looking and cting completely awake, which is why Carrington doesn’t take him serious in meetings... he looked like he’s not paying attention but nada, the man’s brain was just shutting down a little bit

Because of the lack of sleep he got for so long, Deacon disassociates between himself & his body constantly. At times careless with himself...cracking jokes & laughing in dangerous situations... his brain was teetering the line between being asleep and awake so often he couldn’t tell the difference. (sleep deprivation makes you feel unstoppable...cocky even)

Another thing he lost as a result of Wanderer was being able to sleep standing up, because his body doesn’t need to take over for his mind anymore

Smells faintly of cigarette smoke (mainly because of Dez) and basil and something else that can’t really be placed

He fell in love with a school teacher once, she was the one that taught him how to read

Can write/read French but oh god pronounces every letter like how they sound in English... so he sticks to writing messages to himself that most people think are ramblings of a child when/if found

October is his favorite month... June makes him ache

If he’s not at Wanderer’s side or on his own op, he’ll be at the Church... but after Tea Party? He settles on the couch in Wanderer and Shaun’s home until she convinces him to just move in, they’ve slept in the same room for so long at this point but he can’t fathom having a home again. It’s a hard adjustment

If you look of the definition of a ginger you’d find a picture of him at age 14, the freckles keep coming back no matter how many times he gets them removed

You know how you can catch him spying on you in the settlements? Yeah, he wanted you to see him... but not near 111 or a few other places

He’s the person in the Third Rail that points Wanderer to MacCready before they meet, he can’t have her traveling alone like that when she still so green to the world

In codes, D is for Desdemona and d is for Deacon

If not written, agents that are high enough to know their names say Big D and Little D (Dez hates it but he thinks it’s cute, if not clever)

He tenses ever so slightly when he hears the name John/Johnathan

Holds tension in his jaw like no one else, it’s a wonder his teeth haven’t shattered

Hates the taste of coffee but constantly drinks it

Was a hell of a swing dancer in his youth, now he likes slow dancing though that wasn’t discovered until Wanderer showed up

He’s 37 at the youngest and 45 at the oldest

When he left the gang at 19, they shattered every bone in his left hand & wrist, it aches when it rains

Hides his eyes because they were her favorite part of him, the one thing he can’t change ironically, also the sleep thing. He can’t let people know how tired he is all the time

He was born in Rivet City and his mother was a hairdresser, father a drunkard of a city security officer

His ma taught him how to French braid hair

His last name is Deacon. Baby Shaun is the only one who knows that though... Shaun said “Hey Mr. Deacon” & he said “Hey Mr. Hale” (Wanderer’s last name) & Shaun being the clever kiddo he is, cocked his head to the side connecting some dots cause if his first name was Deacon why would he respond with Shaun’s last one?)

Absolutely fascinated with the old world, collects information and fun facts about that time forgotten which Wanderer feeds into

His favorite thing Wanderer tells him about/teaches him is the proper pronunciation of some words and how to spell others

The man has always had a temper, got it from his dad, he works very hard to keep it under control (I can think of a few pieces of dialogue where he’s talking through gritted teeth, anger threatening to boil over)

At first, he was only by Wanderer’s side so nobody could pull her away from the Railroad - he knows what a game changer she is... but they work so well together and she plays along with his tall tales so often that after a while he forgot about the first part

A terrifyingly good shot, better than MacCready and he’s doing it with sunglasses on

He 100% is John D, the terminal entry where Pinky(?) says a runner was the sole survivor and then immediately tried to get people to go back for documents?? A classic Deacon move

Only smokes in HQ (I’ve actually only seen his idle animation of that in the church and at Mercer) unless he’s in a role or somewhere where Wanderer is comfortable... or is extremely stressed out

He hates Hancock, well not hate- but he’s not on the Christmas card list

Deacon knew Shaun was taken 60 years before Wanderer woke up. He knew and he didn’t tell her and it is the secret he hopes she never finds out

Dee’s gotta special soft spot for Tinker Tom, loves him like a crazy brother

His sniper rifle is named Church Bell, lovingly crafted by Tinker

Not sure how he feels about gen 1’s and 2’s, especially after knowing Nicky V but... if he’s gotta do it

Exclusively refers to Nick Valentine as Nicky V

He knows Preston Garvey has a fat ass crush on Wanderer but has neglected to tell her this little fun fact

Tries to shave his head nearly every morning, when he’s with Wanderer he does so when it’s his turn on watch and she’s asleep

The Railroad is his family, they mean so much but of course he’s always kept everyone distant after what happened with Agamemnon

Deacon has been with the railroad between 14 and 20 years

He genuinely doesn’t like Carrington but he’s not going to avoid going to him if he’s hurt of course

His hands are always warm, which is great cause Wand’s are always cold (being frozen for 210 years will do that to a gal)

Do I need to go into the heights thing??? He hates tagging along to set up MILAs but he’ll be damned if he lets his best friend fall off a roof again

He picked the name; Wanderer (don’t get me started on Project Wanderer and Dez’s “it seems fitting” I’ll rant for so long guys)

Doesn’t like sweet foods but fancy lads is a whole other topic

Open spaces stress him out, too much he can’t see

Non-binary but uses he/him pronouns

Doesn’t drink more than a beer or two, but has an unsettling high tolerance

He won’t ever instigate a relationship beyond what he and Wanderer have, as his va Ryan Alosio put it in an interview, his heart’s been absolutely shattered and he can’t stand the thought of being the cause of someone he loves getting hurt because of him again. He loves her but he can’t

Before he got surgery for the first time, he looked like Ryan (the devs actually tweaked his design to resemble him) his original face looks close to what he has now, not that he remembers what that face looked like

[girls-alias]

Hate - Sam Winchester

Title: Hate - Sam Winchester Words: 979 Relations: Sam Winchester X reader. TW: Extremely sad. [Didn't realize how sad it was until editing. good luck not crying] 

Prompt:

Sam hates himself for letting you leave.

THIRD-PERSON POV:

He didn't have a choice, he just couldn't admit that it wasn't his fault. He was the only thing holding him back. 

It was any other day in the hunting game, they'd tracked a djinn fought it and carried on about their days. Sure Sam was wondering what Y/N was doing when she seemed to run off all of a sudden but he didn't think it was anything serious.

She sat in the doctor's waiting room, bouncing her knee on the spot, staring at the floor. 

"Y/N L/N?" The doctor called into the room. Her heart instantly fell to her gut, she knew it was bad news from the expression on his face. She seemed to blackout as she walked into his office and took a seat. All she heard was white noise as he talked after he said he only had 2 months to live. She was shocked but knew it already, she had a feeling but hearing it out loud was heart-shattering. As she left only one tear fell, a tear which warned her of the rest if she didn't stop it. She was never the type to cry and now was not the time for her to start. 

She walked into the motel with a stone-cold face. Ignore Sam's greeting she instantly stormed over to her bed. 

"Y/N, what's wrong?" Sam asked in a concerned tone as he walked around the couch he was just previously sitting on. 

"I can't do this anymore," She snapped. Even seeing the sorrow in his eyes didn't stop her, she was determined. "Sam, I can't live like this! You might be fine, hunting monsters and drinking with your brother but I'm not, I have to go otherwise I'll be here for the rest of my life," She shouted. Tears in her eyes, all too scared to escape. 

"Y/N, why are you saying this?" He asked brokenhearted. She lost her breath, only to find it holding back her tears. 

"I'm leaving and there is no way you can stop me, I'm sorry but I'm not dying a hunter," She scoffed throwing the bag on her shoulder. "Goodbye, Sam," She softly spoke before turning towards the door. Sam watched after her not noticing her hesitate at the door before forcing it open and never returning. Growing more and more reckless as her time ticked on. She didn't mean what she said but it was the only way to save Sam. To save him from the heartache of losing her to a slow death.

He hated himself for weeks on end, regretting it all, and considering leaving but no matter where he looked she wasn't there, he only found her when it was on the news. A heroic death. 

"Reports show that the woman, Y/N, was a hero, she had been given 2 months to live in the early weeks of June and since had saved many. A hero to the locals and a number in the system," The TV spoke grabbing Sam's attention. He couldn't believe it, not because it was unbelievable but because he didn't want to, he simply reduced. Even with her picture on the screen, he was in disbelief. 

Even hearing she was gone he continued to search. Though it hurt, Dean was the one who had to identify the body and with Bobby's help gave her Hunter's burial. 

Sam would sit alone, thinking, crying, searching, hoping. Deep down he knew, but even deeper down he was in denial. He had felt loss and pain but not like this, not this intense. 

He couldn't sleep. Not without her, he refused to eat until he was on the brink of passing out. It hit him hard and when the night felt long he would sit outside the bunker, his back to the wall and stare off into the distance, sometimes imagining Y/N would appear and explain a crazy story that would justify it all but as the night went on nothing happened, she never came, and he never forgave himself. 

His eyes were always red from crying, his throat raw and he was heartbroken. Dean tried all he could, giving him space, and distracting him but Sam wanted revenge and the only person he could blame was himself for letting her go. He punished himself, eating next to nothing and as time went on Dean was afraid to go on hunts with him and afraid to leave him alone. 

Once again he sat outside of the bunker but this time it was different, this time he knew he couldn't imagine her there. It had been months since he saw her and he was forgetting the details. 

"Cas, I don't ask you for much, but I need this," He spoke to the world and heard no return. He waited, he waited till the sun arose. 

The flames burned in his face before Crowley appeared behind them. 

"Wondered how long it would take you," Crowley sassed taking a seat and acting like he owned the place. 

"Is she in hell?" Sam asked demandingly. Crowley's eyes softened.

"No, even when she was hunting, I had nothing bad on her," Crowley explained in a softer voice than usual. "Not everyone's a Winchester, you can't bring her back," He added. Sam only scoffed. 

"I'll give myself in for her, I'll give you my soul, I'll give you anything," Sam demanded but Crowley looked at him sadly. It only angered Sam, the eyes he had seen since the news. 

"I can't. I promised I wouldn't," Crowley sadly explained. 

"Since when did you make promises and keep them?!" Sam now screamed. 

"I'm sorry," Crowley added before disappearing. Sam shouted in the thin air. Dean heard it all and waited by the door knowing there was nothing he could do as he heard Sam scream and cry. It only hurt so Dean walked away just like she did.

[dreamofmetoday]

QUICK READING RECAP

23rd to 25th of june 2023

💐💝🌸how does twice momo feel about the misamo unit debuting?

↳ PoP, 3oW

she is happy about it, and likely feels she has waited a long time for it to finally come to fruition and thinks it’s a good idea - sees it as a good beginning.

🤍💻🎧how does twice mina feel about the misamo unit debuting?

↳ the world, 10oP

she’s really happy about it, she feels really comfortable with momo, sana and the overall concept as a whole. she thinks it came at the perfect time but also is thinking, “finally”. however, she thinks something about the styling or song itself was poorly handled in some aspects (but still mostly genuinely content).

🧁🥧🍪how does twice sana feel about the misamo unit debuting?

↳ 7oS, strength, PoS

so she didn’t hate it but she there were other things she’d rather be doing. she found it kind of burdensome, that her time and energy was being unnecessarily taken from her.

🍿🍫🍰how does aespa karina feel about her plastic surgery rumours being so talked about?

↳ the world, juniper rx

she sees it as a side effect of fame and does her best not to dwell on the topic but it can be really difficult. on bad days, it’s on her mind especially during in person interactions - she wonders what they’re thinking and if they’re judging her or not.

🏠⛰️🏰how does aespa winter feel about her plastic surgery rumours being so talked about?

↳ 8oP, AoW

she’s kind of shocked because she didn’t expect it but she thinks it will pass (people will get bored and move on). she thinks there’s nothing she can do about it now.

🥨⛲️🍊how does le sserafim sakura feel about having such a big age gap with eunchae?

↳ QoS, QoP

she sees it as just how the job works (she is used to this sort of dynamic). while sakura is protective over eunchae, she also definitely keeps eunchae at arms length.

⭐️☁️☀️how does nicki minaj see ice spice?

↳ AoP, KnoS

she feels mostly indifferent to her but thinks she is a good money opportunity (can acknowledge ice spice is successful), she wants to be on ice spice’s good side. nicki doesn’t have much of on an opinion on her personality.

🍦🍫🍯how does nicki minaj see doja cat?

↳ 5oP, the hermit

nicki thinks doja takes care of her appearance well but that she is too into herself and doesn’t really have real substance. she thinks doja is really focused on money.

🍲🥘🥙how does loona yves feel about the criticism on her new style?

↳ 6oW rx, emperor

it honestly pisses her of a lot, every time she gets comfortable with fans or with being herself she feels quickly reminded of why she hates being famous (or simply being just authentic). she’s basically thinking: may as well not try to have anything nice or expect anything positive. she thinks her look is good overall though.

🍨🍰🍫how do itzy feel about their upcoming comeback?

↳ hanged man, 7oW

they’re worried and apprehensive about it as a whole. they genuinely want to prove themselves and want to still be popular, they’re hoping they can impress people but they’re unsure (though mostly hopeful).

🍁🍂🪵what would the ideal date for stray kids felix be?

↳ 10oS, QoS, the lovers

something very relaxed and lowkey, where communication and basic chemistry if the main focus (over lots extravagance). he enjoys when conversation is witty but not TOO deep, he wants the mood to seem mainly happy. he also enjoys going to second or third base on the first date and is happy when people feel the same way, and feel the mutual chemistry.

🌺🌸🌼what does twice sana want in a partner?

↳ earth dragon, 5oP, strength

someone who’s mature, can be good guidance and manage things. someone who values the material, working hard and being proactively positive. a good problem solver who’s intelligent and practical.

🍀🪹🌿what does nct mark enjoy talking about?

↳ AoS, the sun, KnoW

he mostly enjoys witty, fast-paced and light hearted conversations. isn’t always keen to go super deep, doesn’t really enjoy long winded explanations on things. he enjoys engaging in gossip. he also doesn’t want to think before he speaks so prefers when people don’t get offended easily and conversation can be blunt and straightforward. lastly, he enjoys flirting and loves when conversations have this tone set.

🎮♟️🎳what is the ideal date for gidle minnie?

↳ 4oP, PoP

she wants someone who shows they’re not afraid to splurge on her and spend money. so she enjoys expensive dates where it’s clear the other person wants to impress her - showing up smelling good and well dressed is also a part of this. she also wants them to make it obvious they only have eyes for her. she wants to feel taken care of and appreciated she sees this as ways that can prove it, showing she is really valued.

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 2/5

Book Blurb:

Every ten years in the strange little town of Lennon, California, one person is chosen to return from the dead…

Wilson Moss entered the town’s top-secret contest in the hopes of resurrecting her ex-best friend Annie LeBlanc, but that doesn’t mean she thought she’d actually win. Now Annie’s back and Wil’s ecstatic—does it even really matter that Annie ghosted her a year before she died…?

But like any contest, there are rules, and the town’s resurrected dead can only return for thirty days. When Wil discovers a loophole that means Annie might be able to stay for good, she’s desperate to keep her alive. The potential key? Their third best friend, Ryan. Forget the fact that Ryan openly hates them both, or that she and Wilson have barely spoken since that awkward time they kissed. Wil can put it aside for one month; she just needs to stop thinking about it first.

Because Wil has one summer to permanently put an end to her loneliness—it’s that, or lose her only friends…again. But along the way, she might have to face some difficult truths about Annie’s past and their friendship that, so far, she’s left buried.

Review:

What if you had the chance to bring back someone from the dead for 30 days... and you just happen to bring back your ex best friend who ditched you? Every 10 years in the strange little town of Lennon, CA, there is a contest for one person to bring back one person of their choosing back from the dead for 30 days. Wilson entered her town's contest in hopes of resurrecting her ex-best friend Annie LeBlanc. She never thought she'd win... and when she does Wil cant wait to have her back despite Annie ditching her for a year before she died. Wil is determined to find a loophole to get Annie to stay for good and she needs their other best friend, Ryan, to help. Yet the fact is that Ryan hates them both and she and Wil have barely spoken since the kissed. Ryan and Annie hate each other and can barely stand to be in the same room in each other and the more Wil tries to force them to fix their friendship the more neither wants no part of it. Wil is determined to get both her friends back... but that means facing the difficult truths about Annie's past and their friendship. Can she save her friendship before she's left completely alone? This book had an interesting premise and I liked the idea that for 30 days you could try and fix a relationship or get more time with someone... however I did not enjoy Wil at all. Wil is so insecure and aggravating as a person and honestly I would have ditched her as a friend too and would have been pretty mad if she forced me back for 30 days. Wil grated at my nerves and the more she tried to force her friends to be her friends again was just kind of annoying. Her friends clearly had their own problems and had clearly made decisions that laid out both their reasons for why they did what they did. Like girl, you're telling me you couldn't have made new friends for yourself? While it was a cute idea and the whole lesson of learning to let go and grieve is nice, I honestly just felt so disconnected to the characters and found myself not enjoying the story. While this isn't for me if you like complicated friend dynamics and drama, give this book a go!

Release Date: June 4,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[coffebck]

You know I'm so bored that I'm going to talk about the first time I read wmmap.

You could say that I'm 'new' to the fandom because I just started reading the manhwa when it was ending, in fact, I literally started reading it because I saw a tiktok of Athy's coronation and I found it very nice and then I decided to start it in June.

(these images in particular caught my attention and it was with the Katy Perry song Unconditionally) i still have that tiktok i think.

But before starting I watched some videos on Tiktok to get an idea of what it was about. It wasn't my first manhwa, in fact it was the third (1st The remarried empress, 2nd Happily ever afterwards) but I wanted to have an idea of what it was about before starting.

And the idea I had was so wrong lmao

First of all, it never occurred to me that Claude was Athanasia's father, however, due to his type of attire, I believed that he was a God who had taken Athy as his pupil 😭

Then I saw a lot of videos of Athy with a silver-haired boy so I assumed he was the ML and since the comments kept talking about a certain Lucas I thought HE was LUCAS.

Yeah, I thought Ijekiel's name was actually Lucas.

Felix? Lily? Luke? Jennette?

I never saw them on tiktokt videos so I had no idea they existed and I was actually very surprised when they showed up.

Before starting the manhwa I told a friend what I was going to do and she told me that she had already started it years ago and there she told me that actually the ML was a boy with black hair and that his name was Lucas, no the other.

She also told me that 'God' was actually her father and that there were several people who shipped them and I was like... whatt???????

At that time I only knew webtoon but I was determined to start that manhwa so my friend told me about an app called tappytoon and that's where I went to read it.

And guys, I didn't want to believe those people who shipped the father and daughter but when I saw the banner I thought Diana was Athanasia and I was really freaked out.

(THIS ONE)

I sent a message to my friend and everything and there she told me that that woman was not the daughter but the mother.

and there I calmed down.

When I started the manhwa I found out about Jennette's existence and that she WAS HER SISTER AND I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT ANY SISTER.

And what ijekiel was actually the 2ML.

I was also very surprised by the novel 'lovely princess', as you saw before my first manhwa was The Remarried Empress which is not a regression manhwa and Happily Ever After is a regression manhwa but the protagonist is reincarnated when the story is already finished so you don't have to worry about the plot.

But in Lovely Princess Athanasia she did exist in the plot and had a horrible end, her father ignored her all her life, abandoned her, then they convicted her of something she never committed and they killed her and when it was discovered that it was false, no one cared. When I read that I was so angry I had to stop reading. Suddenly I didn't want a 'cute father-daughter story' anymore, I wanted revenge.

As I read, I fell in love with Athanasia. idk there were many reasons I really liked her personality, she was fun and cute, and she used her appearance to get more chocolate idk I just loved it so I could make a separate post about everything I liked about her.

As the story progressed I hated Claude several times but ngl i did enjoyed the cute moments between them. I'm still a little resentful honestly.

I could talk about my first thoughts as the characters appeared but that would be too long.

Anyway, I finished the manhwa just because of Athy, sometimes it got very interesting and other parts very boring. Also, when my friend told me that the manhwa was about family, I thought that we were going to see different types of families, I mean, other family situations of the characters, for example the family of Lily, Felix or Ijekiel, so when that didn't happen I I was a little disappointed.

I also know that many confused the name 'Athanasia' with 'euthanasia' but I personally confused it with 'Anastasia'.

[dumpsterpoetry]

hate

let me set the scene.

it’s june, 2021.

i am sitting on a swing.

i am fifteen.

and my uncle sits down next to me, and he immediately decides that he should make a comment about how disgusting it is that i have leg hair.

i am fifteen.

i cry.

he says it was just a joke, i shouldn’t take things so seriously.

i am fifteen.

so i look him in the eye, and i tell him that i hate cops.

my uncle is a cop.

he asks me why i said that.

i tell him that it was just a joke and he’s just being sensitive.

it’s not a joke.

i am fifteen.

and i fucking hate cops.

december, 2022.

i am backstage.

i am sixteen.

i know nothing about my role in theater, and some guy comes up to me.

he shows me an instagram post from the school confessions account.

it reads, and i quote, “that bitch nico with the bright ass purple hair needs to shut the fuck up.”

nico with a c.

i am sixteen.

niko with a k was what i went by at the time.

the post triggers my paranoia and sends me spiraling, but through all the chaos, the one thought i hold onto is:

“if you’re going to insult me, at least spell my name right.”

well.

even in my worst moments,

at least i’m sort of funny.

march, 2023.

my parents are arguing.

i am still sixteen.

my mother is saying that my body type is normal for my age.

she had the exact same metabolism when she was younger.

i am sixteen.

she had the exact same birdlike bone structure.

my dad, insistent, decides that it’s a good idea to call me “atrophied.”

i am sixteen.

i don’t know what to think except,

have you ever heard of genetics,

you fucking dunce.

i could walk properly back then, by the way.

he has no excuse.

i am sixteen.

february, 2024.

i am seventeen.

i post a song i wrote about my partner to my personal tiktok.

i fall asleep.

the next morning, there are four hidden comments. on personal posts, that usually means hate.

i am seventeen.

i open the tab.

the first two comments are skull emojis.

the third is the ever-creative “kys.”

the fourth, just as stupid: “blud, delete this.”

i am seventeen.

part of me is insulted. my voice wasn’t at its strongest, and i wrote the song in thirty minutes, but it’s still not bad, so the hate is unwarranted.

the other part of me is laughing, because for people hating on an original song and critiquing its quality, they’re not even skilled enough to write a creative hate comment.

i am seventeen.

and already i am so desensitized to hatred that my first instinct is to laugh.

[prpfs]

HOTD Roleplay (Ocx CC Doubles Welcomed)

🗡️❤️❤️🐉🐉🗡️

I’m 18+ and all participants must be 18+

Hey there, you can call me Kim! I am 21+, living in the CST time zone. I am looking to roleplay House of The Dragon! With the new season coming in June I am so excited! And omg Jace hair!!!! Yessss

Whilst I’m looking for MxF pairings, me playing female I’m happy to double up as long as you play Jacaerys Velaryon or if push comes to shove Daemon Targaryen for me. I’m willing to play either gender, and don’t have any preference on who I roleplay with.

The idea I had was that if it could be like a forbidden romance, so I was thinking my character she would be the daughter of Viserys and Alicent and obviously I would want her to have a good relationship with Aemond because I feel like he is a good guy. I just feel like he’s been bullied so much that he just he’s tired of it and he wants to take control. Now with Aegon I feel like she would have a less relationship with him. She would not want to be around him because of the way he is and I feel like he would try making moves on her and she would hate that, so I was thinking well what if we start with like when they come to Kings Landing for the petition on the succession of lord Corlys so maybe we can have like the day before they have a dinner, and that’s where Jace sees my character for the first time in several years and obviously he’s like wow because he’s always had a crush on her for years and we can start from there because I do wanna do the Throne room scene where Vaemond gets his head cut off by Daemon so maybe we can have like the day before they have a dinner, and that’s where he meets her for the first time

I am looking for someone who is happy write in depth about the world, scene and characters. As well as someone who is semi literate, and writes in third person since that’s all I do.

Due to the nature of the universe, please be 18+. I am open to only oc x canon as of right now. Doubling is always welcome.

Let me know some of your interests, a bit about yourself and your favourite character (so I know you’ve read this thoroughly) I also work 7:30-4:00 Monday through Friday but I have 17 days left of work before summer break so yayyy!! Hahah

give a like and anon will get back to you

[grelfboy]

FUCK YEAH songs i actually listen to (you made a grave mistake asking me to talk about music @maleposting i’m about to get so VERY annoying)

let’s start with her. sad reflection song. end of semester anthem, ESPECIALLY end of spring semesters holy shit (but it works year long because my uni is in fuckass fl). in seriousness, the lyricism is so pretty, the outro production is beautiful, and i am a personal slut for any song with a reverb’d guitar.

next up, HER. i could’ve chosen literally any song from this album and it would’ve worked (i wanted to do Black Mascara but ik how RAYE feels about that song and how she hates dance pop so-). lyricism on point. vocals ON POINT. PRODUCTION?? ON POINT. fucking wonderful song and a great early album track.

HEHEHEHEHEHE. gracie. good god i love her so fucking much. this album is just…it’s like if a dying bisexual wallflower was an album. and the fact that the deluxe version coming in june is gonna have Block me out on it…she did that for me and me ONLY. lyricism is sad, chorus is so…oh my god, and aaron dessner produced this so you already know the production is fucking insane.

okay for #3, he’s is a relatively newer one i found! i love anything industrial, softer rock (horrible examples but With Or Without You, 1979, anytning with a peaceful reverb guitar and a good drum) and 90s rock. i found Third Eye Blind actually through their poppiest song (Queen of Daydreams) but it was AM-recommended tracks from on Blue that got me to go back to their old music. lyricism is great, the production is so…skittish? out of control in some places? the speed shifts and the guitars oh god i just love it. and Stephan Jenkins’ vocals…god there’s something so like…idk. he’s wonderful.

and finally…

three words CAAAAN WEEEEE GOOOOOOOO-

sorry. this song. this fucking SONGGGGGG. one thing about CHVRCHES they sure know how to open a fuckin album. anyways. my most listened to song of this year. 150+ streams already. not counting instrumental versions i listened to thru YouTube. it’s perfect. in every way. it’s like a 5min song but it feels like 2. everything about it. EVERYTHING. FUCK ITS SO GOOD. like what can’t i say about it. there’s a plot, there’s build, a production that’s so scattered and overwhelming in THEEE BEST way possible…….and the vocality HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH i’m in pain. it’s all so fucking good.

okay idc just do it if u want don’t even tag me if u don’t want to actually wait no tag me i wanna see yall talk about your favorite songs i love seeing it :D

[myriad-of-things]

Retirement Home SMP or, the Book and Quill 1.19 June 2022 - Jan 2023 (6 months)

From left to right, then top to bottom if people overlap: Dice (@dontrollthedicesideblog), Squish (@squish--squash), Schleep, Alias, Faded, Myriad (me), Light (@lightns881), Ryan, Cyngus, Lumo, Pack Yak. Missing is ZodiacLight who joined a bit later.

I'm almost a year late putting this out. I drew everyone in like 2 days but hated coloring so I never finished :(

The new server name was a reference to how we were all once a bunch of mcyt writers and now we’ve “retired” and dispersed into other fandoms. The spawn area contained two villages: one in a plains biome, and the other in a mangrove swamp. The server was mostly split into two factions depending on where players resided: the Grove and the Plains. There was also a third “faction” of wanderers who belong to neither village.

This season contained the original Book and Quill members, and also some of my irl friends I invited. Yes, it was briefly a social nightmare but I survived.

Below the cut: character notes about the server members, in the order of the list above

Dice: The Warden Affiliation: Wanderer

the first thing they did on the server: stab fish and dig a hole

an End Busting god???? went on their own and didn’t die.

built a PRISON. made people very concerned about who it was supposed to hold

Squish: Guardian of the Grove Affiliation: The Grove (leader)

has a fox form. used to have wings but lost them when The Grove briefly fell into disarray

local prankster. Hid 18 skulk shriekers around the common areas after the ancient city raid, then moved them to new locations when found. Gave the entire of server war flashbacks

escalated into a prank war with Schleep

built giant gunpowder farm over an ocean

goat horns! got goat horns for everyone so that the two villages could call to each other!

Schleep: The Anarchist Affiliation: Wanderer (duh)

anarchist, has been convicted of All the Crimes

residential minecraft sweat, carried the server

made a powerpoint presentation on how to raid an ancient city

the techno to Myriad’s philza

filled the Grove with chicken bombs and bells after Squish left one too many shriekers around the Plains

Alias: Wanderer of the Wastes Affiliation: Wanderer ("leader")

skin suggests a relation to the warden glow squid

accidently jump scared a bunch of people (namely, me) during the ancient city raid because their skin looked so much like the warden

Faded Didn't make it onto the server but had a cool skin design

Myriad Affiliation: Plains

on their retirement arc

founder of the Plains village but not in any positions of power. trying to keep a low profile

the philza to Schleep’s techno

kept getting rickrolled by Light with the lyrics of Mask

god complex. Light and Schleep built a giant statue of them while they were offline

Light: The Executioner Affiliation: Plains and the Grove

local redstoner. built most of the farms on the server, such as: iron farm, melon and pumpkin farm, lava farm with rotating cauldrons????

built like, 70% of the buildings in the Plains.

built a guillotine. ended up becoming the only person to have ever been executed by it after she got too impatient and decided to try it out on herself

built a cute little cottage on the side of a hill with a secret doorway in a waterfall that could only be opened by triggering skulk sensors hidden midair in hot air balloons with an elytra.

went to extreme lengths to prank Myriad with the lyrics of Mask (and got me every time. see her post about it here)

“Ryan”: Director of PASA (Plains Aeronautics and Space Administration) Affiliation: Plains

the only normal person on this server

hasn’t played minecraft since like 1.8. tried to get out of a boat once by ramming it in hopes that it would break. has died multiple times due to new game mechanics.

player with the most deaths on the server. Responsible for 11 out of the 17 collective deaths during the ancient city raid

built a scale model of the NASA Artemis moon rocket. went to space before we went to the End

Cygnus: Pontiff of the Plains Affiliation: Plains (leader)

insane builder

built the titular Retirement Home. also serves as a city hall and their personal manor

the Honorable Judge Cygnus. serves as judge to the like 50 court cases against Schleep that we never got around to holding yet

Lumo Affiliation: Wanderer

just vibing

frOg

Packyak Affiliation: Plains (he just happens to live under it)

MINEcraft

spends all his time mining. only resurfaces occasionally to upgrade his tools. rarely seen otherwise

bomb disposal robot during the ancient city raid.

ZodiacLight (not pictured)

the other Light on the server

minecraft sweat

With summer rolling around again and 1.20 coming out soon, Retirement Home SMP Season 2 is on the horizon!

[chibitantei]

I noticed Naoto dips into long and awkward pauses frequently in her Social Link. Nothing's more comforting than seeing "......." in every rank.

Rank 7, or Naoto has a bit of a crisis at Junes.

Right off the bat, we have some lines that seem to contradict with the Shirogane estate being in Inaba.

If she lived there, I think she would have figured her grandfather was in America, but here, she seems to be out of the loop on that until now. She hasn't been able to reach their cell phones, indicating this has been the only way she's kept in contact with them (besides email). If she were living at the estate, it would mean Yakushiji is going the extra mile to pretend he is not home, which strikes me as unnecessarily convoluted and absurd, but this is the Shiroganes we're talking about here.

Moving on to more interesting things, we see more of Naoto's trademark "......", a telltale sign that she is thinking very deeply on something. Here, it's plainly obvious she's worried about their safety because she can't contact them, you know, the people she cares deeply about. And again, we see Naoto brush off her worries to focus on other things.

Whether or not the estate is in Inaba, this situation suggests that Naoto is used to being alone. If Naoto travels around for work, then she's clearly not hoofing it back to the estate everyday. On her grandfather's side, if he has a friend in America, it's safe to say that he has a good number of international connections. I wouldn't be surprised if he has been requested to go overseas.

They obviously care about each other, but there's an awkward distance between them, which I will save for Rank 9 because that's when everything happens.

Naoto brushing off her concerns and embarrassing moments where she exposes herself through changing the subject occurs frequently in her link. To her, it must seem like these moments don't have any relevance to the matter at hand, aka the phantom thief case, but I feel like this speaks bigger volumes about her.

She asks about Yu in her link, what they talk about is left to imagination, but if he ever shared concerns with her, she wouldn't judge. When it comes to her though, ain't nobody got time for that. She doesn't see much value in herself as a person, just as a detective. With what her Shadow said, she might have been internalizing this for years. Now, game!Naoto is much more well-adjusted than mine is, but it's obvious she's got some bad self-esteem.

Since this isn't her story, it's all left in implications and no one in the team will never acknowledge the other implications about her Shadow because this is about Yu, not Naoto. The woes of best girl being LAST GIRL I HATE YOU ATLUS

Anyway, we have more gibberish.

Jury to not rest, or rout for fable. Minus 40, Minus 4

I really wanna know what this looked like in the Japanese script.

Again, the choices here don't matter, but third one ("Subtract '40' and '4'?") is best. If you pick the first option ("Maybe it's a math problem."), she mentions modulo, she has a math brain. Helps with her projects, I guess. The techie arts and crafts person.

As she eloquently puts it:

Unfortunately, in this rank, Naoto is really good at dumping things I want to share into one big blob.

Anyway, we learn about something Naoto and her grandfather share: they can't stand to throw things away. A kiddie tool holds too much sentimental value for Naoto. 'Logically', she should throw it away now that she's grown up and is more professional, but she can't. So she kept it somewhere, assumed she lost it but her grandfather had it all along.

The middle portion has her say that she never cared about trying to fit into the box of being a 'man' or a 'woman'. In Atlus context, this is more about gender roles, but the point is, Naoto never cared about what society "expected" of her as a kid. All she cared about then was being a detective.

She then states that she never had friends, which isn't new information since she said as much during the Shadow sequence. The part where she says she was "quite the outsider then, too" emphasizes she's always been outside of the norm from a young age, but here, it could vaguely imply she feels like one with the team still.

She doesn't participate much in the normal teen-to-teen banter, instead offering a snarky comment before going silent and listening to the rest of the conversation. The only times she talks a lot are when she's explaining her deductions or being Smart. Arguably, this is just her being massively introverted, which is also true. She's more of a listener than a talker unless the topic switches to something she's actually knowledgeable on, otherwise she's just sitting there.

The fact that Yu needs an "opportunity" to get closer to her makes me believe that she doesn't hang out much one-on-one with the IT. Maybe she feels like the team already has every niche filled in and her presence is just dead weight. Everyone seems to have each other, so what does she have to offer besides her intellect?

Then she gets a crisis about change. She doesn't say what it is, but it'll be clear in... a couple more ranks.

No matter what option you pick next, it all points towards the same thing: Naoto is afraid of change.

She even says so here:

Naoto's dealt with a lot: dead parents, being alone, looked down on for being a kid, hearing the general comments about women, her mental disease soup, and other things. These things have become normal to her, and as wrong as it seems, she's found stability (perhaps even comfort) in these. Maybe she's accepted that things would never get better and that would be okay.

Meeting the team has changed that view of hers ever so slightly and suddenly, she can see a future where things look different from what she's used to. Moving forward under that new future is frightening.

And again, she changes the subject and asks Yu if he's ever experienced something like that before.

[the-woild-is-y-erster]

How does Eel feel about losing his leg?

KISSING YOU DIRECTLY ON THE MOUTH I HAVE BEEN WAITING TO BE ASKED THIS !!!

gird thine loins my love because youse abt to get a doozy >:)

a screaming sound...a fizz of static...

and the smell of something burning. that was all eel remembered before he passed out.

a brown eye and a pale one flew open, a gasp and a hacking noise coming with it.

a panicky feeling set into eel's mind as he realized something was down his throat, and covering his nose and mouth. his vision blurry, he scrabbled at the thing, trying to claw it off his face to breathe.

large hands grasped his shoulders gently, carefully removing his hands from his face and slowly laying him back down; he hadn't even realized he had sat up.

he gasped for air, trying to stay calm as he listened to the people--he had figured out sometime in the last minute that there was more than one pair of frantic footsteps, and voices to match. they seemed familiar, but in his haze of panic he couldn't quite place them.

abruptly the thing was removed from his face and he gagged as a connecting tube came out of his throat, managing not to vomit. he gulped in huge breaths as the same gentle hands that had laid him down before held his, and his vision started to clear.

he rubbed his better eye with the back of his hand, squinting as he panted, looking around. a pale blue wall, white tile, grey speckled ceiling tiles, and people.

there was one sitting by his bed, the one holding his hand, another pacing in the corner, and a third seemingly staring at him from the foot of his bed, holding something.

he looked closer at the person at his bed, brow furrowing as his eyes cleared.

"h-harv?" he rasped, voice hoarse.

the brunet broke into a teary grin and raised their joined hands to his lips. eel looked around, slowly growing more relieved and bewildered at the same time.

"a-and- cowboy? what in the-" the man pacing by the door stopped, and came swiftly over to the bed, that eel now realized was a hospital cot.

"e- captain cattaneo," jack started, correcting himself as he glanced again at the nurse studying eel intently from the foot of his bed.

"kelly, what- what happened? where am i, and why the hell are you here? where are the kids?" the last he said to his partner, who opened his mouth before the nurse cut in. "i hate to interrupt, may i speak to the captain here for a minute?" her voice was determined, but not unkind, a certain lilt to it that told eel she was european, maybe german.

jack cleared his throat and stepped back, but harvey stayed at the bedside, clutching eel's hand like a lifeline.

"captain, can i ask your full name and the year you were born? i just need to ask you a few questions, standard coma patient routine." eel stared at her, incredulous. "sorry ma'am- you says coma?" she nodded, looking expectantly.

he swallowed. "captain ezekiel hayes cattaneo, march seventeenth two thousand one, callsign 'eel', age twenty two as of three months ago." he recited, somewhat monotonously. "listen, i gotta know where-"

"and today's date?" she said again.

his mouth closed with a click.

"june- twelfth?" he hesitated slightly. she said he had been in a coma, right? but how much time had passed?

"today is the fourth of august, captain."

he swallowed, looking down at the railing of the bed, before trailing his gaze down to his- his feet.

"and what is your relation to-" "ma'am, i wasn't raised by my ma very well, but she did teach me it's rude to interrupt, so for that i am deeply sorry," he tried to keep his voice level.

"where the hell is my leg?"

[20kmemesunderthesea]

My Thoughts on the Russian 1975 three-Part Miniseries, “Капитан Немо” (Captain Nemo).

First Episode: “The Iron Whale”

I’m not going to lie: I found the first episode tedious. I almost changed my mind about watching this series because the first episode was so slow moving. What I hated most of all was Professor Aronnax got married at the beginning of the episode to an insipid woman named Jacqueline who proved to have as much personality as a sack of flour. He then was immediately called away on this wild adventure, leaving Mrs. Aronnax alone at home…pining. 🤢

It added absolutely nothing to the story. Just like in the book, in this film series Professor Aronnax would later be tempted to stay onboard the Nautilus. In the book his feelings were totally understandable, but here, considering he had a wife at home, he seemed more in love with science/adventure than his wife. (Although I admittedly can’t blame him considering what a dull character Mrs. Aronnax was.)

Other things which didn’t make sense were that Captain Nemo had been sending Professor Aronnax packages (some of which contained live animals) for at least a year prior to the events of the story.

And then Captain Nemo drugged Professor Aronnax, Conseil and Ned Land as soon as they arrived on the Nautilus, and it was never clear why. Conseil hallucinated vividly during that incident which made for a trippy dream sequence. 

As a matter of fact, there were several trippy dream/hallucination sequences throughout the series, which I hated. I hated them very much indeed.

If the film makers had cut out the trippy dream sequences, the whole "There's a Mrs. Aronnax and she's sad" subplot, and some long, irrelevant close-up shots of people making stern facial expressions, I think they could have made it into a two-part series.

(⬆️ Actual footage of me trying to survive the first episode.)

Despite all this, I continued watching…and I’m honestly very glad I did!

I knew I was in for an emotional rollercoaster when it came to a scene of Captain Nemo pacing back and forth in front of the portrait of his late family...

Second Episode: “Prince Dakkar”

SIGNIFICANTLY more engaging…it atoned for the sins of the first episode. Episode two backtracked to the events of India’s 1857 rebellion, and what lead to Captain Nemo’s exile. It had me on the edge of my seat the entire time! In this version, Captain Nemo told Professor Aronnax of the capture of his family, how they were held hostage and how the English tried to coerce him into being their puppet. It was a very compelling and believable story, elaborating on Captain Nemo’s (aka Prince Dakkar) tragic past disclosed in June Verne’s book, “The Mysterious Island.” 

It wasn’t super clear to me, however, what exactly happened to Captain Nemo’s wife and children. In the book, they were killed by the British. However, in this version when Captain Nemo is rescued from the hands of the British by his followers, they mention that his family was relocated. Why, then, is Captain Nemo grieving them? If they’re alive, why didn’t he go find them? (If anyone knows what was supposed to have happened in this film, please enlighten me!) That being said, I do appreciate that they didn't show such a tragic event on screen, or else I'd have been traumatized.

(⬆️ EEEMOTIONAL DAMAAAAAGE)

Also In this version, Captain Nemo willingly told Professor Aronnax about his past, which made the professor much more understanding and sympathetic towards the Captain. Ned Land remained unmoved, however, which I also didn’t understand. 

Overall, I found this episode to be really interesting and exciting: it’s my favorite out of the series. 

Third Episode: “The Nautilus Continues the Fight.”

This episode was grabbing as well. Unfortunately, there was no epic kraken battle, but a giant squid was implied to have attacked a French Nautilus crew member during an underwater expedition. When Professor Aronnax expresses grief that they couldn’t give him a proper burial, Captain Nemo says, “The most lasting memories aren’t locked away in marble or granite: they’re locked away in people’s hearts.” 😭

At the very end when Professor Aronnax and his friends escape and make it back to civilization, Professor Aronnax says about Captain Nemo,

“I’m sure he’s sailing now in the vast expanses of the underwater world…

“The brave people who were helped by the captain will always remember him with gratitude, for his generosity of soul, his humanity and kindness. And if sometimes he became violent, history will judge Nemo and his enemies.”

I found it to be a much more touching and satisfying ending than the Disney version, not to mention more true to the book.

Overall impressions:

-The way the Nautilus operates in this film adaptation was not much like the book at all.

-That being said, I definitely got the sense the writers of this series had read the books throughly. The characters were portrayed well, and a significant amount of dialogue was direct passages from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I appreciated that immensely.

-The only character I didn’t really get was Ned Land. I always imagined him to be impulsive, grumpy-yet-lovable lug. In this version, however, he woke up every day and chose violence. 

-There was no organ in the drawing room! I was hoping for dramatic scenes of Captain Nemo’s signature angsty musical revelries. I was disappointed to be deprived of that.

-The soundtrack was hauntingly beautiful. That was another aspect of this film series which captivated me.

In conclusion, “Капитан Немо” wasn’t as fast-paced or high-budget as Disney’s “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea,” nor would I say it was as aesthetically pleasing, but in my opinion it captured the overall spirit of Jules Verne’s books better and was a little more faithful to the story. It’s available on YouTube with English captions (auto-translate) if anyone else is interested in watching.