#I saw this template and immediately I thought of you two

[honehonn3honey]

Shouto loves and collects all the Andypantsx3 line. How could he not! He is a big fan of yours for a long time.

Just today he got his June preorder, the limited edition of Andie January 2024, those bright eyes say it all!

Happy happy birthday @andypantsx3🎂 ♥️

I wanted to celebrate with you from the first moment. In my country it is 12 a.m, I hope you are well and that this year will be pleasant with you. I love you

[wiishopwednesday]

longing for something you can never return to

[ID: a collection of images relating to nostalgia. the first image is a genius screenshot of the lyrics to car seat headrest's "famous prophets (stars)." the screenshot reads "We gotta go back/We gotta go back/We gotta go back/We gotta go back." the second image is the "we got the torture labyrinth tomorrow" meme template, edited to instead say "We got missing what we can never return to tomorrow/What?/We got the beginning of the rest of our lives tomorrow/Ohhhh/Okay." the third image is a discord screenshot, with the user's username and icon cropped out so that only the text is visible, and reads "Duuudeee you missed out on those 7 days where god created earth you are fucked LOL." the fourth image is a screenshot of a piece of text, which reads in bolder font "You can never leave home." underneath it, in normal text, it reads "You take it with you no matter where you go. Home is between your teeth, under your fingernails, in the hair follicles, in your smile, in the ride of your hips, in the passage of your breasts." the fifth image is a screenshot of a post made by tumblr user ryebreadgf, which reads "YOU CAN NEVER GO BACK! YOU CAN NEVER GO BACK! YOU CAN BITE AND SCRATCH AND BEG BUT YOU CAN NEVER GO BACK!" the sixth image is a screenshot of a piece of text that reads, "YOU KILL YOURSELF AND IMMEDIATELY WAKE UP AS A CHILD ON YOUR PARENTS BED. YOU'VE BEEN ASLEEP FOR HALF AN HOUR. THE SUN IS SHINING." the seventh image is a picture of two uneven dark yellow boxed next to each other on a off-white background. the first box reads, in handwriting, "I'm terrified of change." the second box reads, "I'm terrified of staying this way forever." the eighth image is a screenshot of a post made by tumblr user dakotajohnsongf, which reads "women be looking at pictures of their childhood selves and trying to find a way back to them." the ninth image is a screenshot of a post made by tumblr user bestofgentleearth, containing a screenshot from a forum of some kind. a line of text reads "(16 hours ago) butterfly said:" underneath, an indented section of text reads "today, the world looked beautiful again. i'm starting to remember what kept me alive last summer." the tenth image is another tumblr post by user cursedsuggestion, which reads "the friend you miss comes home for good. you never see another mirror. it's summer forever and that terrible thought you keep having finally disappears." the eleventh image is a screenshot of a reddit post, with the original poster's username and icon cropped out so only the text is visible. it reads "I'm not sure how to word this, but I constantly go through this deep sense of loss. I feel like I terribly miss something I love from the bottom of my heart, but I don't know what it is, exactly. Nothing in life satisfies me, nothing makes me content, but l wouldn't say I'm depressed either. There's just this endless search for something, and at times I feel I can catch a glimpse of it - different sceneries pop into my head at times, like of a particular beach at night, and I'm moved to tears. Or I remember a dream and all the feelings that were stirring while I saw that dream, and feel entirely connected to them." the twelfth image is a screenshot of a tumblr post, but the original poster is cropped out so only the text is visible, which reads "wait i wasn't ready. i never finished that game of tag. i still need to learn how to do a cartwheel. my friends and i never finished making that bridge over the creek. i want to go back. can you carry me to bed one last time? and maybe i'll wake up tomorrow in my childhood room with my pink walls and we'll laugh over this dream at breakfast." the thirteenth image is another tumblr screenshot of a post by user heavensghost, which reads "uhhh yh sure u can go back but no one will be waiting for you there."

the fourteenth image is a screenshot of a reddit comment, with the user's information cropped out so that only the text is visible, which reads "HIRAETH (heer-eye-th) 'A deep homesickness; an intense form of longing or nostalgia for a place long gone, or even an unaccountable homesickness for a place you have never visited. A pull on the heart that conveys a distinct feeling of missing something irretrievably lost.'" the fifteenth image is a collection of 3 rows of black boxes, with 3 boxes in each row. the first box has a white, vague form of a human. the second box pictures the human form stretching its arms and legs out. from the third box onward, the human figure starts to dissipate into white dots until it has completely disappeared and only dots remain. the sixteenth image is a tumblr post by user n1ntendos, which reads "I AM HAUNTED BY A PAST I CANNOT GO BACK TO !!!!!!! anyways." the seventeenth image is a screenshot of text that reads "I cling to everything - CDs that skip, rings that turn my fingers green, the dead ends of my hair, old love notes that turn my stomach over and over. And I'm not proud but there are still boxes under my bed. And I'm not proud but my closet is still running out of space. And nostalgia is a fucking waste of time but my heart is full with it. Tell me I won't hold this forever. Tell me there will be a day where I let gloriously go." the eighteenth image is an image of larger text that reads "It's a summer day, and I want to be wanted more than anything else in the world." the nineteenth image is a photograph of a large white dog standing in a dark, flowing river surrounded by a dark forest and green trees. the dog is facing away from the viewer with its mouth open. the dog appears to be glowing, likely due to a lens flare of some kind. the entire picture feels very melancholy and nostalgic. the twentieth image is larger text that reads "Nostalgia is the aching realization that you can't go back again. The longing, no matter how intense, can never be met." the twenty-first image is a screenshot of an instagram dm, with the user's username and icon cropped out so that only the text is visible, and it reads "well the time passes anyway so I have to." the twenty-second image is a screenshot of the spotify lyrics for gerard way's song "action cat." the lyrics read "Hey/Do you miss me?/'Cause I miss you/Do you miss me?/'Cause I miss you/Do you miss me?/'Cause I miss you/Do you miss me?/'Cause I miss you too." the twenty-third image is a screenshot of text that reads "YOUR CHILDHOOD DOG IS ALIVE. YOUR DEAD BEST FRIEND WANTS TO GET COFFEE. YOU HAVE BEEN KIND AND GOOD. THERE IS NOTHING CHASING YOU. YOU CAN SLEEP. WHAT DO YOU DO?" the twenty-fourth image is a continuation of the lyrics from car seat headrest's "famous prophets (stars)" that were pictured in the first image. these lyrics read "We've gotta go back/We've gotta go back/We've gotta go back/(Don't spend too much time on it)." end ID.]

[drag00ni]

Have you seen this template?

It's them. It's literally them. [You know who I mean]

I was thinking of maybe doing something and like drawing them like this, but I was just thinking that if you hadn't seen it yet, you, as a provider of peak jotaro and kakyoin content may like to a) see it and b) have the ability to use it for something

It's just too good to be left out of the conversation

YES I THOUGHT ABOUT THEM TOO

i saw that template and immediately went hey i know two guys. its them - i even thought to draw them like that back then but simply.. forgot... thank you for sending this ask i really wanted to draw them like this!

[somediyprojects]

DIY Paper Coral Charm Peony

When West Elm Seattle asked me to design a paper flower workshop for February 13th — the day before Valentine’s Day — I immediately thought of Leslie Knope’s Galentine’s Day celebrations on Parks and Recreation. I loved the idea of creating a fun event to celebrate female friendship, and no flower seemed like a more fitting mascot for Galentine’s Day than the coral charm peony. It’s big, bold, bright, and stylish. It’s everything that sad grocery store roses are not.

I brought candy, gals brought pals, and we had a blast.

Project by Kate Alarcón:

In the interest of keeping the Galentine’s Day spirit alive year-round, I offer this tutorial. Order up some crepe paper from the wonderful Castle In the Air, invite some gals (and guys!) over, and whip up some peonies. (If you’d like to send one to a friend, but are more a paper flower admirer than a paper flower maker, I also have some finished flowers available in my shop.)

Finally, on the subject of wonderful gals: I’d like to give a shout-out to the very talented Natalie Lynne, who was the first flower maker I ever saw create a peony seed pod in this way. Check out her beautiful work on Instagram (@a_bloom_time)! —Kate Alarcón

A Note about the paper:

This peony is made up of layers of different weights and colors of crepe paper. The heavy crepe gives it most of its structure, while the fine and doublette crepe help it to look more delicate. If you’d like to try different weights and colors of crepe, don’t worry about layering them in exactly the same order. But some combination of heavier and lighter crepe will help to recreate the structure and texture of these. With the exception of the moss green from Papermart, I’ve used the color names from Castle in the Air to make ordering easier.

You will need:

-Fine crepe (30-60 gram) in corals and reds for the petals, and orange or yellow for the stamens. I’ve used “Raspberry,” “Red,” and “Orange” from Castle in the Air.

-Heavy crepe (160 or 180 gram) in corals, reds, and pinks. I’ve used: “Peachy Pink,” “Candy Apple,” “Pink Pansy,” and “Burgundy” from Castle in the Air, and “Moss Green” from Papermart.

-Doublette crepe in “Light/Dark Salmon”

-Aleene’s original tacky glue

-Stem wire (18 gauge, cloth covered)

-Template (download here)

A note about grain:

The grain of the crepe paper runs parallel to the roll or fold. Crepe paper stretches horizontally, but not vertically, so you will almost always cut petals with the grain, placing the template so that the tiny wrinkles in the paper run up and down the template, not across.

Creating the center:

Use template 1 to cut a small rectangle from the red fine crepe. Use your scissors to round the upper corners so they aren’t too sharp. Gently stretch the top edge of the rectangle. Dot a very small amount of glue on the lower two thirds of the rectangle, wrap it loosely around the stem wire so that the top third extends beyond the tip of the wire, and then scrunch the lower two thirds closely to the wire.

Cut a ¼” strip 10” long across the grain of your green crepe. I’ve used “Moss Green” from Paper Mart, but any medium green would be fine. Dab small dots of glue down the strip and attach it to the top of the wire, on top of the coral rectangle. You’ll wrap this piece around the wire to create an elongated ovoid shape. To achieve this, you’ll need to wrap the strip up and down the top inch of the wire, making sure that more of the layers end up in the middle.

Start wrapping from the top, holding the strip at a 45-degree angle to the wire. When you’ve covered about an inch and a half of the tip of the wire, start wrapping back toward the tip of the wire, again holding the strip at a 45-degree angle to the wire. When you reach the midpoint of the section of the wire you wrapped on the way down, hold the strip at a 90-degree angle and wrap the middle several times, creating a kind of doughnut around the mid point. Once you’ve got a nice, thick middle, continue wrapping toward the tip of the wire. Make one more pass up and down the pod to create a fairly smooth covering for your pod. This time, you don’t need to stop to thicken the middle. Snip any extra strip. Spread out the pod frill so that it’s not too compressed.

Repeat to create 2 more seedpods.

Cut a ¼” x 10” strip across the grain of the green crepe and dot with glue. Hold the three stems together using the strip to wrap them tightly from just below the pods to about three inches down the wire.

Stamens:

Using template 2, cut a rectangle from orange or yellow fine crepe. The short sides of the rectangle should run parallel to the grain of the paper, while the long side of the rectangle will go across the grain. Fold your orange rectangle in half horizontally, so that the two long ends line up. Unfold. This crease in your unfolded rectangle marks how far down to cut the fringe.

Now you’ll fold the rectangle in the opposite direction twice to create four layers, so that it takes fewer cuts to make the fringe. Fold it vertically so that the two shorter ends line up. Fold in half again, so that the two short ends line up with second fold. Your grain lines should be parallel to the folds.

Make a series of parallel cuts (about 1/8th inch apart) across the top edge of the rectangle to create a fringe. The cuts should stop at the crease you made when you first folded and unfolded your rectangle (this line is also marked on the template). Working in sections, gently twist the fringe in one direction, untwist and gently straighten with your fingers. Its fine if a few of the stamens fall off in the process.

Unfold the rectangle, and dot glue along the bottom edge beneath your fringe cuts. Wrap the fringe loosely around the stem twice so that the bottom of your cuts is just below the seedpods. Snip off any excess. Scrunch to adhere the paper tightly around the stem.

Cutting the petals:

The peony is made up of five rows or rounds of petals that radiate out from the center. The petals in each row are a different color and shape. The first and last rows are heavy crepe, which will stretch out much more than the lighter weights, so these templates are narrower.

For each row, I’ve listed which template to use, which paper to use, and how many you’ll need to cut to complete the row. Then, once you’ve made it all the way around, you’ll move to the instructions for the next row.

If you choose different paper for a variation of this peony, just be sure to match the heavy crepe templates with the heavy crepe.

Optional: I’ve found that substituting a bright bluish pink petal in heavy crepe (such as “Pink Pansy”) adds a nice highlight amongst all the coral. I use template 5 and make two of these pink petals. I like to insert one in rows 2 and 3, fairly close to each other. You’ll still want the same total number of petals for that row, so you’ll be substituting a petal, rather than adding an extra.

Row 1: template 3, 6 petals of light coral heavy crepe (“Peachy Pink”) Row 2: template 4, 6 petals of coral fine crepe (“Raspberry”) Row 3: template 4, 6 petals of doublette crepe (“Light/Dark Salmon”) Row 4: template 4, 7 petals of red fine crepe (“Red”) Row 5: template 6, 8 petals of dark pink heavy crepe (“Candy Apple”)

A petal from each layer before and after shaping.

Shaping the petals:

To create the cupped shape of the peony petals, hold the center of the upper third of the petal with two hands, between your thumbs and sides of your index fingers. The goal is to stretch the inner part of the petal, while leaving the rounded outer edge unstretched to create a little bowl. For the petals that are lobed, or heart-shaped, cup each lobe and then the area under the lobes. The fine crepe will only cup slightly, while the heavy crepe will give you the nice, dramatic cups that give the flower its structure.

Attaching the petals:

Dot glue along the bottom of the petal and apply just below the seedpod.

You’ll be able to feel the ridge where the pods end and the wire begins. Always push up into that ridge when you’re applying petals; this will counteract the tendency for the petals to gradually drift down the wire, creating a cone shape. Apply the petals evenly in rounds around the center. The precise degree of overlap is less important than having them evenly distributed around the flower.

The calyx:

Use template 7 to cut three shorter calyx pieces and template 8 to cut three longer calyx pieces from the “Burgundy” heavy crepe. Apply the shorter pieces evenly around the base of your peony, just as you did the petals. Apply the longer pieces so that they fall between the shorter pieces.

Wrapping the stem:

Cut a “Burgundy” ¼” x 12” strip across the grain and dot glue up and down the strip. Wrap the stems, covering the bottoms of the calyx, just underneath where the seedpods meet the wire, and then all the way to the bottom of the stems. This may require a few strips.

Finishing touches:

Curl back the long pieces of the calyx by scraping them between your thumb and the blade of your scissors, as though you were curling ribbon. Gently spread out any seed pod frills that have been compressed, and arrange the fringe so that it’s all standing up and evenly spaced. Straighten any petals that have been mussed, and use your thumbs to reshape any petals whose cups have been collapsed.

If you’d like a looser peony, stick your fingers between the first two layers down to where the petals meets the seedpods and gently spread, working your way all the way around the flower. Repeat for each layer.

[laxmiree]

[CN] MLQC Lucien’s Farewell date translation

⚠️ SPOILER ALERT!! ⚠️

This post contains a detailed spoiler for a date that has not been released in EN yet! Feel free to notify me if there are any mistakes in the translation~

“Why don't you let me give it a try?”

Before I could react, Lucien wrapped his arms around me and bowed his head next to my ear.

“Now, try to imagine us watching a movie at home. I remember MC would always feel so relaxed whenever she leaned on me.”

“I think this kind of pose may be more suitable for us than the so-called popular templates.”

His breath was so close, and I couldn't hide my secret little thoughts.

Translation under the cut!

The warm sunlight poured into the study through the gauze curtain, adding a bit of softness to the winter afternoon.

I walked into the study with a cup of hot tea and saw Lucien writing something, with a stack of photos sitting next to his hand, showing people in research uniforms.

MC: Lucien, what are you doing?

Lucien: I'm writing New Year's greetings.

Lucien: Many of the research projects this year have been very fruitful. The Human Resources Department has proposed a photo exhibition to summarize and review the year to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new.

MC: So these photos are this year's memento for everyone at the research center?

Lucien: Mmm, these are snapshots of the researchers' daily work, contests, and events.

He took the cup of tea in my hand, took a sip, and flipped over the photograph on the table to reveal a sprawling line of New Year's greetings.

Lucien: The Human Resources Department asked me to write some words of encouragement to the fellows who have done well this year.

Lucien: Considering that everyone has really worked hard this year, I agreed to do it.

Lucien: It's just that I didn't expect that the workload would be much bigger than I thought.

Lucien shifts his shoulders, and his calm tone carries a hint of coquetry. I restrained myself from raising the corners of my mouth and readily massaged his shoulders.

MC: Thanks for the hard work, Professor Lucien!

MC: If I were a researcher and received a handwritten message from Professor Lucien, I would definitely faint from happiness.

Lucien wrapped his fingers around my fingertips and slightly rested on me.

Lucien: This classmate is being a bit hyperbolic.

MC: I'm not exaggerating at all. I truly envy them.

As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I felt a sudden stirring in my heart.

MC: Why don't we also have a family photography exhibition for the two of us to farewell the old and usher in the new year?

MC: We always take photos whenever we go out to have fun, and I also captured many of your stunning everyday photos…

MC: Those photos can totally support a photography exhibition!

When I took out my phone with great enthusiasm, I swept my eyes to the stack of photos on the table and stopped moving.

MC: ...Of course, we don't need to write a greeting. After all, your workload is already so big.

MC: And if you can't get out of your work, I can "set up" the exhibition myself.

Lucien pursed his lips and affectionately touched my forehead.

Lucien: How can I let MC experience such an exciting thing alone?

Lucien: Not to mention that the number of photos I have should not be less than yours when it comes to snapshots of everyday life.

He opened his phone's photo album, and my figure was immediately displayed in the thumbnails of several photos.

MC: Did you actually take so many pictures?

When I put my head on Lucien's shoulder, I looked through his photo albums one by one and soon found something.

I hesitantly opened my phone album and rapidly swiped the photos while comparing them with Lucien's photos.

MC: ...Why do I feel that the photos I take look so ordinary compared to yours?

It is clear that Lucien is handsome enough in every photo, but the composition and tone look amateurish.

All of the photos taken by Lucien are not only perfectly composed but also reveal a sense of atmosphere that is hard to ignore.

As if hearing that I was a bit lost, Lucien raised his hand and rubbed my head.

Lucien: I do think that the meaning of each photo taken by MC is very special.

MC: But this family photography exhibition is a big responsibility to celebrate the old and welcome the new! I still have to be well prepared!

Lucien looked at me who was gearing up and bent his eyes.

Lucien: I am ready to cooperate with MC if she needs it.

His deep eyes shone with a delicate light as if he was sending me some kind of invitation. I was stunned for a moment and gradually caught an idea-

MC: I got it! Let's go to the selfie studio to take pictures~

MC: The studio has professional equipment and space, so I should be able to take good photographs here!

MC: And most importantly - we haven't taken a serious couple portrait yet!

Lucien didn't seem surprised at my proposal. The corners of his lips rippled with a faint smile.

Lucien: I'm also looking forward to welcoming the New Year with MC in this special way.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the morning, I sat in front of the mirror and applied makeup to my face.

Then there was a sound of slow, unhurried footsteps coming from behind me.

Lucien: If I'm not mistaken, it's not even 8:00 in the morning. Why are you already up?

His voice was husky with haze, making my heart feel soft. I tilted my head and hooked his fingertips.

MC: Since we are taking photographs today, I wanted to get up early to put on my makeup. Did I wake you up?

Lucien shook his head.

Lucien: [chuckles then sighs] The bed was a little empty without you under the covers, so I woke up.

His eyes fell on the skin care products scattered all over the dresser. He bent the corners of his lips helplessly.

Lucien: MC seems to be very enthusiastic about today's photo shoot.

MC: Hehe, it's a couple's photoshoot, after all. So, of course we have to prepare well~

Lucien: Then, if I'm not mistaken, you should have already chosen the dress to wear for the photoshoot?

MC: Of course!

I rushed to the closet and pulled out a small ironed dress, and happily compared it to my figure.

MC: Well?

Lucien: It looks beautiful. I can't wait to see how you look in it.

Lucien: In that case, I should go and take a bath early too. I can't let my other half work alone

(t/n: aww the ’ 我的另一半  (my other-half) :”)

After that, he took the towel and went into the bathroom, and it was only when I was finishing my makeup that I realized Lucien didn't seem to budge for a long time.

MC: ...Lucien?

Lucien didn't answer, and at that very moment, came a rustling sound from the closet room.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I followed the sound to go over and found the closet room door open. Lucien was holding his chin, standing in the middle of a pile of clothes.

He wrinkled his brow and looked as serious as if he was facing a difficult subject. When he saw me poke my head in, he was slightly relieved, as if he had got his way.

Lucien: Can I trouble this lady to help me find a suit that matches your dress?

Lucien: I'd love not to take up your makeup time, but I didn't realize it would be so difficult to match a couple's outfit.

Lucien's tone reveals an obvious hint of grievance, as if he had prepared this remark long ago.

MC: Pfft-

His slightly intentional pitiful look amused me, and I hurriedly took out a suit from the closet.

MC: I've already prepared it for you~

Lucien looked at the suit in my hands. The corners of his lips overflowed with a touch of satisfaction

Lucien: As expected from the producer MC, the color, the material, and the style all fit perfectly with yours.

Lucien: This way, everyone will clearly know that we are lovers when we walk down the road.

MC: Huh?

Seeing that I was a little confused, the corners of his lips curved up in a meaningful arc.

Lucien: Looks like a little lady had forgotten the little incident that happened when she "kidnapped" me to the beach?

Lucien: I wanted to take this opportunity to make up for her little discomfort at the time.

In hindsight, I recalled that a stranger girl and Lucien were mistakenly perceived as a couple by passersby because they were dressed similarly, so I was jealous as a result.

In response to the sly smile that appeared in his long, narrow eyes, I blushed and immediately shoved the clothes into his arms.

MC: Y-you. Just go and change your clothes!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Upon our arrival at the selfie studio, the owner took us into a closed and private studio.

Owner: This mobile button is connected to the shutter cable. Press it to take pictures.

Owner: The whole process is done by yourself. No one will bother you. If you need help, you can find me in the photo developing room.

After the owner left, I tried to take a few empty shots, adjusting the seat and camera again to determine the best position.

Lucien: What can I do to help this busy Great Producer?

MC: This gentleman just needs to sit here, all you have to do is to be here, and you can be my standard for everything~

The big screen in front of me showed Lucien's smiling eyes in real-time. I winked at him and quickly sat back down next to him.

MC: Then let's start now! Lucien, you put your hand over here… Yes, put it next to my face.

MC: Tilt your head a little more towards me and lean on me.

Lucien: Is that so...

Lucien: (softly) Are you sure we should use this posture?

A soft laugh fell on my ear, tickling me.

Glancing at the real-time screen from the corner of my eye, Lucien's right hand stretched out straight, rigidly holding my face…

And my head was pressed to his head in an extremely awkward posture.

MC: …

MC: Uh, this pose is not suitable for us... Let's change the position!

I quickly flipped through the homework I had done on the Internet last night, searching for couple poses that were relatively easy to learn.

Suddenly, my fingertips were gently hooked by the person beside me.

Lucien: Why don't you let me give it a try?

Before I could react, Lucien wrapped his arms around me and bowed his head next to my ear.

Lucien: Now, try to imagine us watching a movie at home. I remember MC would always feel so relaxed whenever she leaned on me.

Lucien: I think this kind of pose may be more suitable for us than the so-called popular templates.

His breath was so close, and I couldn't hide my secret little thoughts.

I sheepishly stuck out my tongue and leaned my head gently on his shoulder, then let him hold my hand.

*Click*

The moment was frozen in time.

Following Lucien's way of thinking, I quickly mastered the "essentials" and soon finished taking all the photos smoothly.

While waiting in the photo-developing room, the lively sound of gongs and drums was suddenly heard outside the photo studio, and I looked out curiously.

MC: Is there some kind of event?

Owner: Today, there is a float parade in this street to promote the traditional culture of the New year. It just takes twenty minutes for the photo to be developed. You can go around and come back.

As if aware of my strong interest, Lucien opened the palm of his hand to me like an invitation. I willingly took his hand and walked out.

As soon as the door was opened, the festive atmosphere of the New year came, and dozens of floats were parked in the middle of the street-

All kinds of festive decorations on the float decorated the whole street, reflecting the lanterns on both sides, full of New year's flavor.

Next to the float in front of us, a rabbit doll was exaggeratedly waving a brush.

The poster beside it reads, "If you write the Spring Festival couplet for the year of the Rabbit, you will get a Year of the Rabbit woolen hat."

MC: Year of the Rabbit woolen hat?

I looked around curiously and saw a delicate woolen hat behind the doll.

MC: Wow – so cute!

I paused as if I thought of something and turned my eyes.

MC: But you have to write Spring Festival couplets to get it… it sounds so difficult-

With an extended ending, I turned my head and looked eagerly at Lucien.

Lucien amusingly squeezed the palm of my hand. The corner of his mouth cracked open with an understanding smile and pulled me forward.

MC: Has Professor Lucien figured out what to write so quickly? It is required to include rabbit elements.

Lucien's expression remains unchanged as he takes the brush from the rabbit doll.

Lucien: This is not a difficult requirement for me. After all, I have a little bunny that inspires me.

With a broad stroke of his brush, a pair of couplets gradually appeared on the paper with vigorous and bold ink stains.

MC: "Bid farewell to the old year as you follow your dream, And welcome the lucky rabbit into your arms"?

My heart was touched, and when Lucien put down his pen, I gave him a big hug.

MC: Then I will take it upon myself to be your lucky rabbit~

(T/N: 自作主张 is an idiom that means to act on one's own initiative)

Lucien narrowed his eyes, and the flowing light reflected the softness at the bottom of his eyes.

Lucien: With this little lucky rabbit's initiative, it seems that my new year will be a happy one too.

The doll beside the float gave a thumbs up to Lucien and handed us a rabbit woolen hat.

I happily put the bunny hat and Lucien's Spring Festival couplets on the table, trying to record it with the camera when there seemed to be an almost inaudible "click" sound.

I was about to follow the sound, but I saw the owner come out of the store, waving at us.

Owner: Your photos are ready, guests!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The night is getting darker, and our exhibition preparations at home are also coming to an end.

Looking left and right, I held up exquisite couple portraits with satisfaction and playfully approached Lucien's ear.

MC: Lucien, it's not good.

MC: Looks like your adversary, the photographer MC, is going to win the award for the winning artist in this year's photo exhibition with this work!

MC: Your position is under threat~

Lucien dotingly stroked my hair and sighed intentionally.

Lucien: [sigh] It's a bit of a shame that I lost out on such a prestigious award. But-

Lucien: I'm delighted to be able to compete with such a great artist as MC.

I couldn't help laughing at his exaggerated remarks and winked at him.

MC: Then I hereby declare - that Lucien and MC's new year family photography exhibition is officially open!

I put my fist like a microphone to my mouth in a serious manner.

MC: This year's photo exhibition focuses on the memories of Lucien and MC in the past year, cherishing the unique love that only belongs to them.

MC: At the opening of the New Year, they will bring the happiness of the past year to greet the embrace of the New Year.

MC: Now, let's give a round of applause to the Great Photographer Lucien for his work!

Lucien clapped his hands in cooperation, then turned to the coffee table and picked up a kraft paper bag.

Lucien: Before the presentation, I would like to request to add an additional photo to the exhibition.

Lucien: This photo was taken at 15:32 this afternoon, and I asked the store owner to develop it when you were binding the photos.

He took a picture out of the paper bag, and I looked over curiously. My eyes widened in amazement.

-It was the scene of me fiddling with the bunny hat and Spring Festival couplets on the float parade, the flowing light of the lanterns reflected in my eyes, making my smile even more vivid and bright.

MC: So that was when I heard the sound of the shutter!

Lucien: In the face of such a lovely MC, it was hard for me not to take out my camera and record it.

I couldn't help raising the corners of my lips as I listened to his words, but the corner of my eyes suddenly caught a glimpse of the couple potraits taken by the selfie studio next to me.

Whether it is the color, composition, style of clothing, and even our pose, there is no room for flaws.

But compared with the one Lucien just took out… It is too exquisite to be natural.

MC: Sure enough, the casual capture by the Great Photographer Lucien would look better than my carefully designed one.

MC: I always feel that your photos are more unique, but I can't tell what is so special about them.

MC: Lucien, you don't have some secret shooting techniques, do you?

Lucien narrowed his eyes and deliberately turned his head to think.

Lucien: Well, I got found out. [chuckle] In that case, shall I share the secret with this clever little girl?

Lucien's cryptic tone made me curious, and I looked intently at him.

Lucien walked to a photo - In which I was holding the phone, happily looking at the screen.

Lucien: This photo was taken not long ago, and the producer enjoyed an interview about me, which came from the pre-recording of the dating reality show we participated in together.

Lucien: Judging from the expression on the photo, she seemed satisfied with my answer.

MC: Of course I'm satisfied-

I replied without thinking, and when I saw the smile in Lucien's eyes deepen, I suddenly remembered the scene when he wiped my fingers, and my face suddenly flushed.

MC: You said you would share your secrets! How did it become Professor Lucien's confession about his "secret shooting" behavior?

In the face of my extremely stiff change of topic, Lucien smiled shallowly and did not expose me.

Lucien: It seems that this student is in a bit of a hurry. But I think that maybe after looking at these photos, she will find the answer.

As he said that, he walked to the next photo, in which I was in front of the fountain with my eyes closed and my hands outstretched, and in the foreground was a butterfly fossil held up by Lucien.

Lucien: This was taken at the moment before I was going to give the fossilized butterfly wood to MC.

MC: So you also took pictures secretly on that day?

MC: Haha, my face looks so skeptical. I didn't know I would receive such a big surprise then!

MC: When I think back to that day, I still feel so happy.

Lucien: I am happy to get such feedback from you.

Lucien: So let's look at the next one, shall we?

With Lucien's gentle explanations, my thoughts also drifted slowly to each moment filled with our happy memories.

MC: It turns out that we had a very happy year…

I murmured as if realizing something and looked again at the photos - every single moment of happiness framed without any elaborate forethought.

It all looks so natural.

Perhaps the happiness that flows naturally is the one that can transcend time, penetrate through the photo paper, arrive at this moment, and finally hit the heart gently.

My heart suddenly stirred, so this was Lucien's secret.

MC: Lucien, I think I have the answer.

I looked up boldly and crashed into those smiling eyes.

Lucien: So, this clever student, can you tell me what you have learned?

I winked mysteriously at him, turned on my cell phone camera, and held it aloft toward us.

Taking advantage of Lucien's slight confusion, I reached out and gently pulled down his collar, quietly narrowing our distance.

The heat of his breath scorched my face, making my heart skip a beat.

I closed my eyes, stood on my tiptoes, and kissed him on the cheek-

Outside the window, a cluster of glorious New Year's Eve fireworks soared into the night sky the moment I pressed the shutter, brilliantly lighting up the entire sky.

-A cluster of fireworks called happiness also blooms in my heart.

*Click*

[auxiliarydetective]

Felicity: Small, Emotional, Electric

This could've been out two to three days ago if only my WiFi wasn't being so mean - I currently have about a minute of WiFi every few minutes, so I'm using that and uploading while I can

WANTED

"Desert Fox" Felicity

Bounty to be determined

Once again, huge thanks to Alvita for the template for the poster!

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄✼▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

They call you Cry Baby, Cry Baby But you don't even care Tears fall to the ground You'll just let them drown

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄✼▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

Normally, I'd put two small fics in an intro post, but the "small intro fic" accidentally turned into 4.5K words, so you can find the full fic on AO3 here!

-

Whereas Zoro was seemingly unbothered by the clowns manhandling him and dragging him to whatever the “green room” may be, Nami was actively struggling like a feral cat, trying to break free. If only she had claws, she would tear them to shreds. Buggy’s lair was bigger than she had thought, probably built into whatever remained of the town he had destroyed. The big top was only a small part of it. Finally, they entered a room, or rather a dark green tent, filled with equipment, crates and costumes. Fairy lights hung from the ceiling, along with various crinolines and ropes. A couple of vanity mirrors lined by lightbulbs were the only useable pieces of furniture in it. Nami saw Zoro jolt forwards in front of her, but four clowns worked together to pin him back down. They finally succeeded in pressing him against a large wooden disk with straps, one usually used in knife throwing acts. Leaning against a supporting beam were their belongings: Zoro’s swords, Nami’s staff and navigation gear. Nami, too, gave another struggle, but when she saw what was hiding in the corner of the room, she froze in terror.

Behind a wooden machine of which she didn’t even want to know what it was for stood a cage with metal bars and elaborate wooden décor. Inside the cage, however – that was what terrified Nami the most. Inside the cage sat a little girl, maybe five or six years old, with a canine nose, incredibly large furry ears atop her head and a fluffy tail emerging from her lower back. She was wearing a glittering leotard lined with fur that managed to miss all three shades of sandy blonde present in her hair, tail, and ears in an almost infuriating way, and was watching the happenings in the room through large brown eyes.

Nami didn’t even pay attention to how she was being handled as her gaze was locked on the little girl. It was only when she was lifted off the ground and forced into an oversized birdcage that she tried to fight back again. She almost succeeded, too, but the woman gripping her was incredibly strong.

“Look, kitty, now you’ve got company!” she announced without looking at the little girl. “Don’t we take good care of you, making sure you’re not alone even if you got stage fright?”

As two clowns were busy tying Zoro to his dartboard and the woman wrestled Nami into her cage, another man stayed behind, with messy scarlet hair and two-toned makeup, wearing a striped leotard and a belt with a battle-axe.

“You still aren’t eating,” he remarked in a voice as sweet as acid. “You know you’ve gotta eat. Uncle Buggy was already mad you refused to perform, so what’s he gonna say if he finds out you’re not eating either? You gotta get your strength up if you wanna put on a pretty show, tiny dancer.”

The man picked up a bowl of presumably oatmeal with a spoon in it from the floor in front of the cage. Immediately, the little girl crawled further to the back of her tiny prison, pouting.

“Afraid it’s poisoned?” the woman asked without turning away from Nami’s birdcage.

She was now busy securing a padlock to it, whereas her fellow freaks were done with their work and left. Zoro was bound tightly by the wrists with thick ropes that almost cut into his skin, and whereas he had looked fully unbothered before, he was now visibly annoyed.

The man in the striped leotard stuck a finger into the oatmeal and scooped some of it into his mouth, humming in exaggerated delight.

“Delicious! Come on, have some!”

He almost shoved the spoon into the girl’s face, causing her to retract it as far as possible. She pressed her lips shut in protest and panic, only getting worse the longer the spoon whirled around beneath the dark tip of her nose. Slowly but surely, the lights in the room started flickering, lightbulbs and fairy lights tremoring just like the girl was.

“Aw, don’t be like that,” the man cooed. “Come on, who’s a good kitty?!”

“It’s clearly a fox,” Zoro growled, causing the man to pause with the spoon less than an inch from the girl’s mouth as he looked back at him in annoyance. “And if you don’t leave her alone, I’m gonna-“

He didn’t get to finish his sentence before the little girl grabbed the man’s arm and yanked it aside, at the same time lunging forwards. A loud crackling sound cut through the air and one of the lights blew out as her hand made contact and the man collapsed. The bowl, however, landed safely in the girl’s clawed hand and she placed it back down, keeping the spoon in her lap.

The muscular woman gave an exasperated sigh and shoved the keys to the padlock into her pocket before turning around to the girl.

“Now, now, don’t act out like that,” she said in a low, manipulative tone. “You don’t do that to your family. You belong here, with us! We’re freaks, just like you!”

“She’s not a freak!” Nami blurted out. “She’s just a little girl! Why are you doing this to her?! Let her go!”

The woman scoffed. “Oh, she’s much more than that. She’s a monster and she’s not as little as you think. Let’s see how long it takes for your captain to break, maybe you’ll get to spend a lot of time with her.”

She grabbed her crewmate and threw him over her shoulder to carry him outside. Right before she was through the doorway, she turned around again.

“Besides, it was her choice to run away and go to sea. Wasn’t it, kitty?”

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄✼▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

Taglist: @starcrossedjedis @oneirataxia-girl @daughter-of-melpomene - let me know if you'd like to be added!

[murfpersonalblog]

My Ranking of Anne Rice's Books

Full disclosure: My ranking is totally not based on the quality of AR's writing (which I absolutely love); it's just reflecting my own personal preferences for certain characters, plots, and themes. Some of her books I deliberately chose not to read; while some I only read once and didn't care for them, hence their low rank on my list. (I saw the Feast of All Saints movie but never read the book.)

S Tier: The Witching Hour, The Vampire Armand, Taltos, The Wolf Gift, The Wolves of Midwinter, Blood Communion

A Tier: Cry to Heaven, Servant of the Bones, Blackwood Farm, Prince Lestat, Queen of the Damned, Memnoch the Devil

B Tier: Realms of Atlantis, The Vampire Lestat, Lasher

C Tier: Blood & Gold, Interview with the Vampire, The Mummy

D Tier: Blood Canticle, Tale of the Body Thief, Merrick, Angel Time, Of Love and Evil, Pandora, Vittorio, Violin

(I used the tier template here as my base.)

MY THOUGHTS (I tried not to spoil anything):

S Tier: Spectacular!

13/10 The Witching Hour

My favorite Anne Rice book. The plot was utterly insane. The buildup surrounding the mystery of The 13, and the Door, and what exactly Lasher was and what he wanted was SO good. I thought Rowan was a effing idiot, but I LOVED seeing Michael slowly realize what his purpose was, in the face of this loooong tragic history about the "eunuch" Mayfair husbands. Julien Mayfair is really the GOAT! I was on the edge of my seat; it's a legitimately scary ghost story! IMO Lasher is AR's best villain, cuz he's so awful. (I'm waiting for Season 1 of AMC's Mayfair Witches to finish before I watch it--I'm already bummed from the changes I heard about. [EDIT] I watched it, and it's trash. 🤦)

10/10 The Vampire Armand

I am HELLA biased. TVA was one of the very first AR books I read in full, and I was hooked. Marius/Armand are my favorite vampire ship, leave me alone--the Renaissance was a different time; read a book. Armand and Lestat are my fave vamps, cuz they're both fabulous and crazy. But I empathized with Armand more, because he was so YOUNG. I saw the IWTV movie before I read TVA, and was so shocked that he was just a kid! (Antonio Banderas was fiiiiine AF though!) I was fascinated by Marius since TVL, and getting to see him in his natural habitat was such a treat, as he tried to deal with his feelings for his beloved black-winged angel/demon Amadeo. Plus we got to learn A LOT about the Children of Satan/Darkness, and it was SO effed up what happened with M/A & Santino.

10/10 Taltos

This is the payoff I was waiting for after The Witching Hour. I could care less about Lasher--ASHLAR was precisely the type of Taltos I wanted to know more about. I loved getting his perspective on all the Celtic lore about the Picts and Stonehenge, and the dwarves, etc--it was so mythological; I love it. And the whole icky background about the Talamasca, and the lengths they went through to get the Taltos together...dang. SUCH a good story. 10/10.

10/10 The Wolf Gift & The Wolves of Midwinter

These two are tied--the WoMW sequel flows perfectly from TWG, and I never read one without reading the other immediately after. AR is famous for her vampires, but IMO her werewolves are her very best immortals. They're just really well-adjusted to immortality, and are a big happy wholesome family, the way the rest of her immortal species are NOT. Like, there are very few setbacks to being an AR werewolf, compared to other types of supernatural--especially if you have Margon and the Goldings looking after you (Stuart, you lucky bum!). I want to live at Nideck Point, throwing holiday festivals and carousing with the woodland creatures. I guess kinda like WoMW slightly more, because it continues following the pack as they settle in together, but TWG sets up AR's werewolf universe so perfectly that it gives it that slight edge.

10/10 Blood Communion

I hate that AR was so nasty to fanfic authors and scared a lot of the fandom away, cuz all I want is 500k+ on The Chateau Era, as the vampires live together being fancy and lavish and finally getting their ish together. Blood Communion only gave me a taste of that, cuz it was so dang short (the illustrations were such a cute touch!). But my favorite part was definitely when Armand flipped the eff out over Marius--I was like YES! FINALLY!!!! ^0^ I was so tired of this will they/won't they thing that had stretched out between M/A ever since QoTD, and I just wanted them to come clean about how they REALLY felt. Plus, I was glad/relieved that Louis & Lestat finally ironed everything out; I felt really bad for them, for once! I just wanted more, but I kinda felt Blood Communion was likely where AR was gonna end everything, and TBF it was a really good stopping point.

A Tier: Awesome!

9.5/10 Cry to Heaven

Who knew reading about castrati could be HOT!? This book made me cry--the title was apt! Guido is one of my favorite AR characters; I felt so bad for him!!! Tonio reminds me a lot of Armand, but...I felt worse for Armand? Like, yeah, being castrated sucks, but Tonio got to have this amazing career, and the book ends on a high note--LOL! But Armand was literally psychologically tortured for 300+ years and never really recovers--he gets Trinity Gate & Night Island & his coven, but he's clearly unhinged and maladjusted. I just felt that Tonio was lucky to have a support system in Guido & his patrons, and Armand was decidedly more unlucky, and hence more tragic? Whatever--this was a really good book, even without any supernatural elements.

9.5 Servant of the Bones

I looooooove this book~! I'm a sucker for mythology and world religions and immortality and all of it--this was SO GOOD. If supernatural creatures were real, I legit think AR might be on to something--you can't tell me SOMEONE didn't do human sacrifices like that, trying to make their own "genie" or whatever. VERY Solomon's Ring. And I love how AR threw in all these historical events & characters--making deals with the "devil." It was so creepy; yet thoroughly tragic, as usual with this woman. I just wish we got a bit more clarification on what exactly Azriel was--cuz there's NO WAY he's an angel/djinn/demon, if everything that happened in Memnoch & Angel Time was legit. Is he just an incredibly powerful GHOST, like Lasher??? 🤷 (Azriel would beat the dog snot out of Lasher in a fight, IMO. He's just way more experienced.)

9.5 Blackwood Farm

I LOVE AR's ghost stories. Between Amel, Lasher, Azriel, and Goblin, I pitied Goblin the most. He's VERY similar to Amel, but because of the way he was created, and how he had to exist, I just really felt for him and just wanted to give him a HUG--my poor baby! :( I enjoyed seeing Lestat in a domestic sphere, with the grandma tryna adopt this whole vampire living under her roof, cuz the Blackwoods are like: meh, what's another spook; we're used to weird shenanigans in this family. XD And Mona Mayfair--she won me over here, cuz I did NOT like her around Michael & Rowan; get friends your own age, brat. I'm mad at what AR did with Merrick Mayfair though, like really???

9.5 Prince Lestat

AMEL. O_O I was already fascinated by whatever Amel was when Maharet gave her backstory in QoTD, but once AR started fleshing (LOL!) him out in the Prince Lestat trilogy I was like yaaaaaaaas~! I need DETAILS! As much as I like the other VC books, I really enjoy reading QoTD and PL back to back, cuz it's just a natural continuation of what happened to ALL the vampires afterwards. And it's effed up. Lestat's one bold soul, cuz I would NEVER.

9/10 Queen of the Damned

The hype was real! Maharet's lovely, but Mekare's the GOAT. I was TOTALLY on board with Akasha's plan though, NGL. But you could tell that she was crazy, too. However, getting Amel's perspective in the later books, and seeing what happened with Rhoshamandes, I sympathize with Akasha even more, cuz how much of that was REALLY her???? But yeah, she had to go. (I cannot wait to see who AMC casts--no one can beat Aaliyah's performance, but I want to see them at least try to prove me wrong.) However, the build up to the concert and facing Akasha was a bit too drawn out for my liking (I could care less about Tough Cookie and Killer and all the random AF auxiliary vampires that showed up at Armand's, or the compound. And I DO NOT like Devil's Minion--I love Armand to pieces, but Daniel was INSANE, and vampirism ALMOST turned him into another Nicky, which I was NOT feeling).

8.5/10 Memnoch the Devil

Dante's Inferno meets Dracula. I like this book. But it was confusing, because I was like what was the point? I would've tried WAY harder to keep Lestat in Hell, if I was serious about making THE Devil's Minion. I felt like MtD was an elaborate excuse for AR to bench Lestat, so she could focus on Armand & Marius & Louis for a few books. Like, we know Lestat's trash, but dang--just leaving him on the floor like that? XD And Memnoch's even more mysterious than Azriel in SotB, cuz what is he really? He was able to psychologically torture Lestat in that church from...another dimension?? WHERE was Lestat's eyeball REALLY? Were they LEGIT demons? Like...? Cuz I had the same questions about Louis in Merrick, like, was what he was seeing REAL? We know powerful vampires like Armand can use the Mind Gift to create whole worlds in people's heads. So who knows what actually happened to Lestat.

B Tier: Bravo!

8/10 Realms of Atlantis

I like the alien plot--SUE ME. It's weird AF, and I don't really like what happened to Amel (I'm undecided about trusting that he's redeemable and if he can be excused for being a literal MENACE), but I enjoyed getting those final answers. In TVA Armand said he saw a city of glass when he turned, and I nearly jumped out of my seat when I read RoA, cuz it tracks! And the alien parasites made sense. Look at what happens when regular HUMAN ghosts gained autonomy in AR's books. Look at GOBLIN in BwF. Look at Memnoch even--whatever he is [EDIT: I'm not buying AR's weak AF retcon that he's a ghost Replimoid, cuz then what was Angel Time for?]. Of course a whole extraterrestrial species would have drastic consequences on humans.

8/10 The Vampire Lestat

A must-read for context and mining information, but TVL's never been a book I ever go back to just cuz I want to reread it for funsies. But I enjoyed it WAY more than IWTV, mostly cuz the tone was drastically different.

8/10 Lasher

Anne Boleyn. Really? XD And folks wanna complain about aliens? XD I was not here for Lasher--let the devil speak and tell his story blah blah blah. I was with Michael the whole time, just counting down to when Lasher would stfu already so we could get back to business. There was NOTHING Lasher could say to make me care. Regardless of what he was when he was alive, in death he was thoroughly EVIL. Lasher's a very interesting parallel with Lestat, who was also very religious and wanted to be a priest and was physically & prematurely ripped from his home and from his life. And yes, vampires are mass murderers, and Lestat likely killed way more people than Lasher. And they're both totally selfish; parasites feeding off the living. But it's the METHOD that bothers me with Lasher. Vampires killing just to drink blood is one thing. But Lasher RUINED that family--it was SICK, the things he did to the Mayfairs--both in the past, and present. He DELIBERATELY drove people crazy and abused people for sport and strategically hunted the "eunuch" husbands and turned women into his sex toys, and god knows what he was up to with Julien--and for WHAT??? Lasher was NOTHING like St. Ashlar, and it shows. Bye, Felicia.

C Tier: Can't Love It

7/10 Blood & Gold

I was so hyped for Blood and Gold, cuz Santino was just a PLAGUE upon these poor vampires! I got a lot of answers that I really wanted after TVA, but I understand why some people hate Marius, cuz really my guy?????? It really is his way or the highway. I still love Marius, but my opinion of him definitely dropped quite a few notches--I was PISSED at him just like Armand was, all the way up to Blood Communion.

7/10 Interview with the Vampire

Groundbreaking, iconic, never done before, etc etc. But IWTV is one of my least favorite AR books. I honestly think she just got better as she kept writing. But also the tone of IWTV, and especially Louis as a character just never appealed to me. Louis never had a personality other than bitterness, like…. I just couldn't relate to him at all, like what are you complaining about???? If you hate being a vampire so dang much, END IT. Lestat honestly impressed me (Armand's patience was impressive too!), cuz I'd've been GONE, and left Louis to his own devices; eff how pretty he is. The movie--as fun and awesome as it is--definitely didn't improve my opinion of Louis; he was even more mopey, wtf! (AMC's IWTV handled Louis BRILLIANTLY, and went a LONG way endearing me to Louis, where I absolutely LOVE him now--protect Louis at all costs!)

6/10 The Mummy

This was REALLY good, until it wasn't. I got similar vibes with SotB, as ancient civilizations grappled with magic and immortality and the divine and the dead/undead--my bread and butter. But Ramses just reads as way more naive and clumsy than Azriel. It got tiresome, seeing Ramses scramble to fix all the mistakes he kept making, like omg dude--LEARN. And what was the purpose of that girl? Whatever her name was. Like...yawn. And then Cleopatra.... 🤦 Why is she so evil? Is it just the brain damage? What a walking disaster--and Ramses was AGAIN at fault! I couldn't take anymore, it got frustrating.

D Tier: Didn't Care

4/10 Blood Canticle

This book was DEPRESSING. First of all, I honestly don't understand why Lestat was even there? Just let Quinn & Mona & Rowan & Michael deal with it--a drug/gun cartel? REALLY? Morrigan! Ashlar was one thing, but come on, REALLY?? I was so bummed! Then Rowan had the NERVE--! I was disgusted. I never liked her, but even the scraps of empathy I felt for her EVAPORATED. Poor Michael! :(

4/10 Tale of the Body Thief

I was squicked out. There was nothing appealing about this situation. If he was in his OWN body, like if Dr. Fareed could "cure" vampirism, that would be one thing, but this was just...no. And poor David! I liked Mojo though?

4/10 Merrick

God, spare me. I never liked Louis in the books, so this was just one long psychological torture experience I wasn't feeling. Especially since I couldn't really be sure if the ghost was legit when I first read it. But having read so much more of AR's ghost stories, I'm more convinced now that it was the genuine ghost that had it out for Louis, which is awful, cuz that really puts into perspective what was going on in NOLA vs Europe/Paris. So, I feel bad for him--but the most interesting part was getting Lestat's reaction.

3/10 Angel Time

I barely remember what this book was about. It was a murder mystery in a hotel near a church in Cali somewhere and an angel selects some assassin because....? IIRC he went back in time and infiltrated a pogrom or something disguised as a monk? And.... I...don't remember.

-/10 Of Love and Evil

I own it, but literally don't even remember what this was about.

3/10 Pandora

I could care less about Pandora/Lydia/whatever her name was. I do not like this woman. I get that she's bitter about Marius ditching her, but omg. Stop. You don't see Bianca complaining; get over it already. There was something about bees and the Talamasca and Pandora being worshipped and....something.

-/10 Vittorio

I own it, but I literally don't even remember what this was about.

-/10 Violin

This was an impulse buy. I was so hyped at first, cuz I thought this was gonna be about Nicky and Lestat. Then I actually read the summary, and was immediately like wtf. But I gave it a go cuz there's wibbly wobbly timey wimey ghost stuff going on, but.... Nah.

Thanks for reading!

[twdmusicboxmystery]

just saw the dead city trailer and ran here. What do you think about the time jump there with older Hershel playing into everyone reuniting with the CRM? Ready for your FTWD analysis too. also just realized FTWD will probably coincide with dead city. Going into the new phase with low expectations and hopefully a good outcome🤞🏻

Yeah, I saw them. Super exciting! The thing is, I don't think Hershel will actually be significantly older. I seem to remember them talking about a very small time jump, like maybe a few months, but I don't think it will be more than that. The actor who plays Hershel does look older, but that's just because kids age so quickly on film. It's been 2 years since this young man first portrayed Hershel, so of course he'll look older. That doesn't mean he is in the show.

Cailey Fleming, who plays Judith on the show, is kind of an exception here. She's a 14-year-old who still looks like she's ten, lol. But that's not true of most kids. So, I wouldn't worry overly much about there being a time jump.

As for other observations about the two new trailers, here is what I sent my fellow theorists:

@twdmusicboxmystery:

A few things that immediately jumped out at me.

Maggie says someone is “the key” to getting Hershel back. We’re meant to believe she’s talking to Negan, and she may be. But we know they can sometimes splice together trailers in a way that can be misleading. But this is a theme we saw heavily in S4 and S5, including around Grady.

The storyline they lay out for Fear, brief tho it may be, feels like a template for the CRM. People raising an army to challenge a larger organization.

June looks exactly like Leah in this picture:

Any insight into who the guy in the wanted poster is? It COULD be Rick. Doesn’t look like him in particular, but closer to him than to Beth, lol.

I got IMDb to try and confirm weather or not they’re using the same actor for Hershel. I think they are, but none of the spin-offs are listed anywhere on IMDb yet. Not Dead City and not Daryl Dixon. Which is a little strange since fans can edit the pages. It’s odd that no one has added them.

I almost feel like maybe they’re purposefully being kept off the pages for now. Though I don’t know why they would do that.

@galadrieljones:

That is weird about IMDb. I agree it makes it seem like they don’t want the info out there. It’s strange like the spin offs still don’t seem real? Esp the Daryl one.

@wdway:

You asked who we thought was in the wanted poster. I think it is Negan.

I've been thinking about some of the scenes that we've seen in the past seasons that implied that Negan might know something about the CRM but maybe not realize that's who it is and I think that Negan might be smart enough not to question certain things to closely.

When Jadis held him at the junkyard she called the CRM helicopter which he saw. Nothing was ever explained about how he just totally ignored that. At the satellite station they had a room where they were growing pot I wonder if he was growing pot to sell to some group connected to the CMR in exchange for other medical supplies like insulin that we saw with Tina, Sherry and Dwight had stolen when they left the sanctuary.

In Here's Negan there was a lot of open questions about the cancer medicine he got from the doctor in the RV. It just seem to me there are a lot of questions that were put out and then skipped over.

@twdmusicboxmystery:

Great points! I hadn't thought of that. 👍

So, these are our initial thoughts about the two trailers. What does everyone else think?

[flowerish-cherry-blue]

book review: five feet apart by rachael lippincott | 2018

summary:

can you love someone you can never touch?

stella grant likes to be in control—even though her totally out of control lungs have sent her in and out of the hospital most of her life. at this point, what stella needs to control most is keeping herself away from anyone or anything that might pass along an infection and jeopardize the possibility of a lung transplant. six feet apart. no exceptions.

the only thing will newman wants to be in control of is getting out of this hospital. he couldn’t care less about his treatments, or a fancy new clinical drug trial. soon, he’ll turn eighteen and then he’ll be able to unplug all these machines and actually go see the world, not just its hospitals.

will’s exactly what stella needs to stay away from. if he so much as breathes on stella she could lose her spot on the transplant list. either one of them could die. the only way to stay alive is to stay apart. but suddenly six feet doesn’t feel like safety. it feels like punishment.

what if they could steal back just a little bit of the space their broken lungs have stolen from them? would five feet apart really be so dangerous if it stops their hearts from breaking too?

my opinion:

to begin with, i have a history of getting to know this book. of course, i heard about its existence only after watching the movie. but my hands came to her almost 5 years later, and how many times i stopped by its shelf in stores… it's hard to count.

so here it is! as for the book itself, i was satisfied, i will immediately note a kind of happy ending, which i lacked in the movie and the emotions that i felt myself.

although i won't gloss over the mediocrity of the plot, in terms of the exhaustion of such a theme, the love between ill people, i saw such a thing and later i will tell you. at the same time, none of the characters did not cause me irritation, i empathized with all of them and honestly, with pleasure, watched the development of the book from both sides of will and stella.

the language is lame in places from time to time, and i'm not sure if this was the author's first work, but practice makes perfect, ya know?

now, let's have a look at the next few points:

• as i mentioned above, the book reminds me of something and that is the fault in our stars by john green, and no, i'm not trying to compare them, but these books have a similar underlying theme of doomed love. that why i think i liked five feet apart more, again due to the fact that the beloved characters are alive by the end.

• the book made me cry and that's fine, i understood very well the situation described in the book because i have experienced somethimg like in my live and those feelings and things still terrefy me.

• i think the author went a little overboard when she made stella such a control freak, yes i understand what it was about, but still. control yourself, but not everyone around you, sweetheart.

• i also want to say a word about the parents in this book, i mean we are shown two models of family and they are not the happiest - a single mom and a divorced couple that broke up because of tragedy. honestly, i am very happy with the attitude of the parents towards their children, even though they were the very templates of their types.

• poe's death shocked me, it was not so easy to bear, as stella herself thought that death just follows her around and takes away her beloved ones. in some ways it was comparable to augustus' death in the fault in our stars.

• as i noted earlier, in some places the writing was a bit tempestuous in terms of descriptions, but i haven't encountered this very often and i'm glad i didn't.

so, i want to say that I really enjoyed this book, i think that all the time i waited to read it was worth it. and it brought me some relief because i cried and was able to let my emotions out

my rating:

4/5

«If i’m going to die, i'd like to actually live first.»

«don’t think about what you’ve lost. think of how much you have to gain. live, stella.»

[sweet-little-dude]

I'm at work but I gotta say my piece Abt hanma and sanzu and kids coming out.

They're not parent faves. Clearly.

But they will do almost anything asked in them if it gives them a giggle.

So the first time a teenager in the crowd held up a sign asking sanzu to tell his mother he was bi, sanzu wore the sign on his back on national television and played nearly the whole show back to the camera. Hanma was confused but after seeing the sign was fully on board and we'll fancams if the two boys making out with the sign visible as the rest of the band handles the press went viral.

Since then hanma and sanzu have pulled increasingly dramatic coming out stunts once in a while

STOP IT VIRTUE THIS IS SO SWEEEEETTT

silly hanma trying to concentrate on his drumming but there's sanzu just staring at him for half the gig until hanma starts making faces and mouthing "what the fuck are you doing???" until sanzu finally gets it and does a little spinny spin to show him. and fr straight after they finish the last song for that gig hanma immediately drops his sticks, struts up to sanzu, pulls him over to mikey's mic and announces into the said mic "to all the parents who don't vibe with their kid's identity, this one's for you" before full on passionately kissing sanzu. the moment was so iconic not just for how important it was for the queer community but as well as for how stunned sanzu looked when hanma kissed him at first. so iconic to the point that the fan base uses it as a meme template lol.

at first it was really hard for kisaki and the other members to deal with all the sudden questions in interviews and paparazzi abt hanma and sanzu's stunt and their thoughts on lgbt+ topics. ofc all of them are queer but unlike those two they're not as out going and loud so it was harder for them to deal with the situation (tho mucho wasn't really asked anything on it, when he saw the stunt happen for the first time he just smiled and continued his work).

but yes they definitely worked with other teens who were wanting to come out, never the same thing twice but always ending with them kissing. and they (as in kantou manji) even did some photoshoots and interviews with respectful companies to help boost this fundraiser to help support queer teens struggling in any department :)))

the other two bands didn't do this kind of stuff since they weren't as out going and experimental but senju did a lot of this kind of stuff after she came out as non-binary lesbian <3 (non-binary senju is back baby)

and here's a quick diagram of their dynamic/reactions of sanzu and hanma's little moment lol

[everygame]

Balatro

Developed/Published by: LocalThunk / PlayStack Released: 20/02/2024 Completed: 22/02/2024 Completion: Finished it with the blue deck, then with the red deck… then with the yellow deck…

Balatro is the first game in a long time that I’ve picked up on a whim. I saw a screenshot (Wario64 posting a deal on it, actually) and it just… chimed. It looked like a screenshot of an Amiga poker game in a magazine, and on discovering it was a Roguelike-like deckbuilder, I thought, “well, I’m always game for one of those.”

As usual, I fell into this completely, playing it to the exclusion of all else, until I felt like I’d “solved” it in as much as I worked out a strategy that worked well enough for me that I doubted I’d spend time looking for others.

After which I still played it to completion one more time. But I’ve definitely gone cold turkey now!!!

Balatro is very, very good. To explain it: It is a Roguelike-like deckbuilder that unlike Cobalt Core, doesn’t slavishly follow the template of Slay The Spire. It’s more like Luck Be A Landlord, really, in that it takes something that previously existed (in this case, poker) and bends it into something largely unrecognisable.

The idea here is really quite unlike poker, to be honest, outside of the fact that you are trying to make up to five card poker hands. For one, you have your own deck, you draw eight cards at a time, and then have a limited number of hands to make scoring poker hands to beat a set amount of chips, with the twist that cards grant differing numbers of chips based on their rank, with poker hands conferring more chips and a multiplier. You also have a limited number of discards in which you can discard up to five cards at a time. 

So the idea is, basically, play the poker hand that gets you the most chips and multiplier each time, using discards to savvily maximise your chances of that. But more interestingly, you can also have up to 5 jokers on the table, who provide you wildly differing bonuses. As simple as “gain multiplier for playing a pair” but also more esoteric possibilities, like gaining a bonus for keeping kings in your hand, or even allowing straights to use non-consecutive numbers!

And then there’s also the fact that after every win, you get some money (disconnected from chips, sensibly for the design, weird for the metaphor) to visit a shop and buy cards. These can either add cards to your deck, or change the benefits of particular poker hands, or change the cards in your deck. You can turn a 3 of spades into another king of hearts, let’s say. Or make a card give you a multiplier, or even just turn it into a bit of stone that gives you 50 chips every time you play it (but won’t ever be able to help you score higher on flushes or straights… well unless you get that joker that lets you score flushes or straights with four cards instead of five?)

It’s complicated, and it’s going to take a while to get comfortable with, but once you do, it’s utterly captivating. It’s genius because it breaks the first thing you learn playing a Slay The Spire-like: you start with a 52 card deck, so trying to get your deck small and efficient by destroying cards isn’t going to be possible (I’ve never managed to kill more than 10 cards on a run) and not only that removing cards at random can seriously damage your chance of scoring straights! It instead becomes a matter of working out how to make the deck you have efficient by changing cards and shaping your success via joker modifiers.

There’s also a beautiful spot of risk reward in the design in that there’s no dungeon map or anything, so no chance for bonus granting events. Balatro boils those events down to “oh, you’re just skipping a battle for a bonus” and each “ante” (three games with progressively high scores to beat) you can skip one or both of the first two games to get a bonus. Maybe it’s to immediately add some cards to your deck, or to add a special joker to the next store. In some cases, it’s “ah, I’ll skip this, because I need these cards anyway and don’t have money.” In other cases it’s “oh, if I skip this, it’s a gamble, because my deck might not be good enough to beat the next game, but the reward is so high…”

It’s a bit of genius that adds another layer to the player’s decision making without being overwhelming, and it might be my favourite bit of the design to be honest.

The issue with Balatro, is, ultimately like the issue with most of these kinds of games. After you play it for a while, you find the way to play it that, as far as you can tell, is the optimum way to play it. When I think of Slay The Spire or Cobalt Core, it’s “defense!” with Balatro, for me at least, it seems to be “Flushes!” 

(In a 52 card deck, you only have 4 of any one card, but you also only have 4 suits. So it’s far easier to try and reduce the number of cards of a different suit you draw by changing cards suits/destroying “wrong” suit cards than to try and make more aces or anything.)

In addition, while the game does have different classes of decks, they don’t change the deck pool at all, and the more you play the more jokers and card you unlock, which may open up new combos, but it also makes combo you know seem harder to manufacture, and there’s a sense that you could end up with the same issue that I found with Luck Be A Landlord–that it becomes hard to hit a combo early and get to that point where you have an engine whirring away often enough that you’re having fun.

These issues, however, don’t really diminish what a triumph Balatro was for the time I spent playing it. It looks great (although the constantly moving pixels did make my eyes sort of hurt? I wish you could turn that off) and it does do something unique in a space that’s arguably got a bit samey, so it comes highly recommended.

Will I ever play it again? God I really want to actually. But I won’t. Probably.

Final Thought: Something I haven’t mentioned though is that even without unlocking all the jokers, the RNG in Balatro can be absolutely brutal. There’s another unique touch here that every ante’s “boss” gives a unique modifier to the game, and some are a nightmare–for example the one that makes every single card draw face down! (There’s a trick in that the game still presents hands in suit or rank order, though…) And this means that sometimes you’re just going to hit something that is unwinnable unless you made very different decisions significantly earlier (oh you built a deck full of clubs? Too bad, this boss debuffs your entire deck. And don’t get me started on the one that permanently levels your hands down, basically that fucking poison swamp from Shiren…) With huge decks, there’s a bit more frustration here I’d say when you feel like you didn’t manage to get anywhere (or did, and just got screwed) and I suspect it only gets worse on higher difficulties. So like the rest of these kinds of things I’d say: play it as long as you enjoy it, and not a second more.

Support Every Game I’ve Finished on ko-fi! You can pick up a digital copy of exp. 2600, a zine featuring all-exclusive writing at my shop, or join as a supporter at just $1 a month and get articles like this a week early.

[genshin-obsessed]

I read your future child writing?? idk what to cal it to be honest-- but can I request the same with Zhongli and Kaeya? If not its ok! thanks anyway

this is so freaking long lmao but I hope you enjoy it <333 I had to use the previous one as a template so don't mind any mistakes!!!

Reader's basically female if you squint but you can pretend like it's gender-neutral

Part 1

Meant to Be p2

◈ Kaeya

Kaeya had been heading back to the KoF headquarters when he heard crying. He followed it, only to find a small child on the ground with a small pendant beside them. He quickly ran to them, asking if they were ok. Their eyes widened and they quickly hugged him, still crying. Kaeya took the pendant and the crying kid back with him. Throughout the entire day, the child wouldn’t stop calling Kaeya “daddy”. Yes, his friends definitely teased him about it. Though, there were similarities between Kaeya and the child. Mainly the child’s bright blue eyes.

Jean, Amber, and Lisa were a great help, but (c/n) refused to stay away from Kaeya. They kept saying “no, I want to stay with daddy!” It was hard. Kaeya was a busy guy and now he had a child to look after, one who wouldn’t leave him alone. Then, the heavens smiled down upon him and sent you to him… by accident. It didn’t matter, he took his chance and asked you for help. Thankfully you agreed.

You two desperately tried to find (c/n)’s real parents even though they kept saying you two were the parents. You two asked around, distributed flyers, even put up posters, but no one recognized (c/n). This led to both you and Kaeya becoming the “parents” for the time being. Kaeya was still annoyed at being called “dad” but you thought it was cute.

You pointed out that (c/n) looked a lot like Kaeya and that maybe they were related somehow? Kaeya insisted they weren’t, but (c/n)’s eyes really reminded you of Kaeya’s.

Not only that but (c/n) had streaks of blue in their hair as well as similar skin tone. Actually, they had a mix of yours as well. You were sure. This led you to ask him, regardless of being told already.

“NO, I’M NOT A DEADBEAT FATHER-” “I WAS JUST THINKING OUT LOUD!”

Eventually, you two were just forced to ask (c/n)... who had the response you two didn’t want.

“What’s your father’s name?”

“Kaeya Al-Albe-Alberich!”

“A-and your mother?”

“(y/n) Alb-Alberich.” It took some time, but after revealing that pendant Kaeya had found when he first met (c/n), you two were convinced you were the parents. You had to be. When you asked (c/n) more about their world, you got the idea that maybe (c/n) was from the future and was always your child.

Your time spent with (c/n) was great, actually. You and Kaeya had really become like parents. You two would go shopping together, walk around with (c/n) in the middle holding both your hands, and it helped you realize that you did, indeed, love Kaeya and wanted to be with him. One day, you two had left (c/n) alone for about ten minutes. When you returned, they were gone. You two flew into a panic, trying to look for them anywhere but you weren’t able to find them. Your only conclusion was that (c/n) returned to their original time.

◈ Zhongli

Zhongli actually had someone come to tell him about (c/n). Why? Because (c/n) had found them saying “can you help me find my father? His name is Zhongli.” Of course, he was concerned. He didn’t have a child!! When he did meet up with the kid, Zhongli noticed something that freaked him out even more. The child really resembled you.

The child was VERY well behaved but they were still a child. They were constantly clinging to Zhongli and calling him “dad”. Zhongli tried to stop them- but eventually gave up. His saving grace was when he saw you walking by his place. He immediately stopped you- rather ungracefully- and asked if you could help him. It didn’t take long for you to say “woah, I didn’t know you had a kid,” “I-I don’t!” Yeah, they looked SO much like Zhongli it was scary.

You two set out to find their parents but no one- and I mean NO ONE had ever seen the child before. The flyers didn’t help either. Eventually, you two resorted to asking who (c/n) believed their parents were and they immediately pointed at you two. However, instead of brushing it off, Zhongli asked what they meant. They went on to explain that you and Zhongli were their parents- and had always been so. They were so adamant and how could such a small child lie about this?

That’s when Zhongli realized (c/n) did look like you, with similar facial structures- mainly around the nose and jawline and though it didn’t seem too prominent, when he looked at (c/n) he saw you. Like a small, baby version of you.

On the other hand, you also noticed similar features, especially with the hair and those red-orange eyes. You knew Zhongli said he wasn’t the parent but the similarities were very scary.

After all the explanations you’d received from (c/n), you two were convinced this really was your child. Zhongli hypothesized (c/n) was from the future and had someone managed to go back in time. You had no other choice but to accept- given all the evidence.

Spending time with (c/n) and Zhongli made you happier than you’d imagined. You two were an actual family because you stayed at Zhongli’s place while (c/n) slept in another room. Days turned into weeks and before you knew it, you’d both fallen into this routine that it was odd when you woke up to find (c/n) missing.

The two of you did turn into parents. You were thrown into a panic as you desperately searched for the child. You two went everywhere- asked everyone but no one had seen (c/n). The day did end with you crying in Zhongli’s arms, wondering where your child was.

Eventually, you two only had one theory: (c/n) returned to their original time. You wondered if your future selves were as scared as you two were now. You could only hope that when you meant (c/n) in the future, you wouldn’t lose them and that even if they did actually go back in time- they’d returned to you, safe and sound.

[beautifultypewriter]

Eddard Stark Fluff Alphabet

Requested: Yes / by my new favorite anon

Warnings: None

Full credit to whoever created this template (I still don’t actually know who that is). Gif credit to the owner. Also, I changed the prompt for letter Q from quaint to quickstep.

A = Attractive (What do they find attractive about the other?)

Your strength is something that Ned really admires. He knew it wasn’t easy for you to come up to Winterfell and change your entire lifestyle to fit the ways of the North, but you did it and you did it really well. Ned sees your strength in the way you carry yourself, so it’s definitely something he noticed immediately upon meeting you and it was definitely something that attracted to him to you. As the two of you spend more time with each other and build your lives together, Ned feels lucky to have someone as strong as you by his side.

B = Baby (Do they want a family? Why/Why not?)

Ned is definitely a family man, so he would really look forward to having children with you, especially after the two of you spend more time together and start to fall in love. He would be really excited to have sons that he’d be able to teach all his skills to and to have daughters that he can dote on, in his own Ned way.

C = Cuddle (How do they cuddle?)

Cuddles are not a super common thing in your relationship, especially not in the beginning. As time goes on though, and the two of you become more comfortable with each other and you start to fall in love, Ned will pull you close to his chest when the two of you lay down for bed at night. His arms will stay wrapped around you, his hands resting on your stomach with your back pressed to his chest, and the two of you will stay like that all night. When you wake the next morning, you’ll feel his arms tighten and you’ll know that he’s up though he’s not entirely ready to let you go just yet.

D = Dates (What are dates with them like?)

You and Ned don’t really go on dates. Both of you have a lot of responsibilities to attend to in order to keep Winterfell running smoothly and so you don’t have a lot of extra time to be doing frivolous activities. However, Ned will make time every so often for the two of you to spend some time together. He doesn’t want to neglect you and make you feel like you aren’t loved, so he’ll plan short rides for the two of you to go on without interference. Also, he makes sure to always break fast with you in the morning. He doesn’t care about what needs to be done in the day, the two of you share your morning meal together.

E = Everything (You are my ____ (e.g. my life, my world…))

Other half.

Now that you’re there, Ned isn’t sure he’d be able to get along without you. The two of you compliment each other so well and you fit so perfectly into the other’s life that he was sure the gods made you two to be together.

F = Feelings (When did they know they were in love?)

Ned had started to fall in love with you on the day that the two of you got married. You had been in Winterfell for a week, watching everyone plan and prepare for the wedding and the two of you hadn’t really had much time alone together, but you had started to get to know each other. Ned also took any chance he got to just observe you. He liked watching you interact with the people around you and he knew that the two of you could make this work. Then when you consented to a Northern style wedding (he was completely ready to have a ceremony of the Seven for you), he could feel a fluttering in his chest. He ignored it though, continuing on, not giving it any more thought. Then the day of the wedding came around and when you were standing next to him in the godswood, the light from the lanterns reflecting in your eyes, he was overcome with so many feelings for you. He may not have realized it then, but that was the moment where he started to fall for you.

G = Gentle (Are they gentle? If so, how?)

A very gentle man, despite his reputation and the things he has had to do. Ned always takes care to be gentle with you. He’d never want to hurt you or make you uncomfortable, so he always makes calculated movements when the two of you are together. He treats you with a kindness that he doesn’t often display to others.

H = Hands (How do they like to hold hands?)

The two of you very rarely, if ever, hold hands. When you’re in public, Ned does the proper thing and loops his arm with yours when the two of you walk around. When the two of you are in private, he may take your hand and place a kiss on your knuckles, but he doesn’t hold your hand.

I = Impression (What was their first impression?)

When the two of you first met, you were stepping out of a carriage in the courtyard of Winterfell while Ned stood with his brothers on either side of him. It had started to snow and as you stepped towards him, your hand resting on your father’s arm, Ned swore that you were the most beautiful person he had ever seen. You walked with confidence and you held your head high. It was clear to him that you took your duty seriously and that the two of you were similar in this sense. He saw your strength and he was beyond impressed.

J = Jealousy (Do they get jealous?)

An interesting question. He will say that he doesn’t get jealous and that he always keeps a level head in situations when you’re around other men, but that’s a lie. Or at least it’s mostly a lie… Ned’s not so much jealous than he is protective. He has no problem with you interacting with other men, but if said man is being too forward or inappropriate with you then Ned is not about to let that slide. He’ll step in to teach the man about respect and then he’ll take you somewhere private to assess if you’re alright.

K = Kiss (How do they kiss? Who initiated the first kiss?)

Ned’s kisses are strong and reassuring. He always makes a point of pulling you close before he kisses you, wanting to show you that he’ll always be a steady presence in your life.

He initiated the first kiss. It was the night of your wedding, when the two of you met in his room, as naked as the day you were born. Ned was staring at you, but he his eyes were on your face, watching you look around the room, making a point to not look at him. He could see the nervousness on your face, your body shaking slightly, probably also from nerves as there was a fire going and the room was fairly warm. So, the two of you stood about ten feet apart, you with your arms wrapped tightly around your chest, not saying a single word to the other. Then he started to take slow steps towards you. You saw him from the corner of your eye and your body stiffened as he stood in front of you, his hand moving to gently cup your cheek. Your eyes met, you let out the breath you had been holding, and he leaned down to press his lips to yours. You were tense for a minute, but Ned was patient and gentle and soon your arms were falling to your sides and you were kissing him back.

L = Love (Who says ‘I love you’ first?)

You did. Ned was definitely feeling it before you said it, but he was keeping it to himself. He didn’t want to come on too strong if you weren’t feeling the same way he was, so he stayed quiet about his growing feelings for you. Then one night, the two of you were laying side by side in bed and Ned had thought that you had fallen asleep, but then you shifted, and he looked over at you. Through the darkness of the night, he could see your eyes staring at him. You whispered, “Ned?” And he hummed in response. There was a sigh and then an, “I love you,” spilling from your lips and he was sure that his heart was about to burst, but he kept his composure, instead just staring at you. A smile grew on his lips and he leaned forward, kissing you gently. When he pulled back again, he whispered, “I love you too.”

M = Memory (What’s their favourite memory together?)

When Ned thinks over the life you two share, there are many fond memories that come to mind, but his absolute favorite is of the day when you brought your first child into the world. He had rushed to be by your side, but the maester had pushed him from the room, telling him that it would be a long time before you were ready to actually give birth and that he better attend to his duties for the day. Only Ned could barely concentrate, his mind was stuck on you. He checked on you every half hour until finally it was time for you to push. He had stayed in the hallway, pacing in front of your door for what felt like hours. Then he was called into the room and his limbs felt heavy as he stepped over to the bed where you lay with your son on your chest. You were exhausted and covered in sweat, but Ned thought you looked beautiful. He sat next to you and placed his hand on the baby’s head, smiling down at him. Then his attention turned to you and he was quick to press his lips against yours.

N = Nickel (Do they spoil? Do they buy the person they love everything?)

Uh, no. It’s not in his nature to spoil anyone really. That’s not to say that Ned doesn’t like to give gifts, he does, he just doesn’t ever overdo it. He likes to give you things that are practical and that you’ll use, like a new cloak. He provides for you and your family, but he never does anything over the top.

O = Orange (What colour reminds them of their other half?)

Gray.

You remind Ned of home, of Winterfell, so whenever he sees that cool gray color, he thinks of you, of the life the two of you built together. Gray is timeless and sophisticated, just like you. Despite gray seeming a dreary color to others, it always fills Ned with happiness.

P = Pet names (What pet names do they use?)

No pet names for Ned. Terms of endearment do not easily fall off his tongue and he doesn’t want to force them and have them sound unnatural, so he just avoids them altogether. Plus, Ned just really likes to say your name. He may call you by a nickname, just a shortened version of your given name, on occasion, but that’s the only variation you’ll ever see with Ned.

Q = Quickstep (How do they feel about dancing?)

Ned is not a dancer. He doesn’t feel entirely comfortable on a dance floor, so he tries very hard not to ever find himself in that situation. If there’s a special occasion though, you can usually convince him to dance with you one time. You’re the only one with this power though and it only works for one dance. When this dance occurs, Ned’s holds you tightly as the two of you move around the floor, you guiding him most of the way.

R = Rainy Day (What do they like to do on a rainy day?)

He never lets a rainy day get in the way of his plans for the day and neither do you. Some rain is not going to stop the running of Winterfell, so the two of you go about your days as usual, reviewing plans and food stores, writing letters, and tending to any issues that arise during the day. You will, however, use the rainy day as an excuse to be in bed earlier than usual and cuddle with your husband.

S = Sad (How do they cheer themselves/others up?)

The godswood is a place where Ned can always find peace. If he’s feeling down or conflicted about something, it’s a sure bet that he has retreated to the godswood to be alone with his thoughts. You always give him time and space to work things out for himself, but in the end, you find yourself standing in front of the spot where he’s sitting in front of the heart tree. He glances up at you and you feel as if you are intruding, but then he holds his hand out to you and you step closer to him and take his hand. He kisses your knuckles and the two of you walk back inside to talk. When you’re sad, Ned always makes sure to let you know that he’s there for you if you want to talk and he always places a gentle kiss on your forehead.

T = Talking (What do they like to talk about?)

Ned is a pretty quiet dude, but the two of you find that conversation comes easily to you. Ned really enjoys listening to you talk about your childhood in the South and you love to hear about how he grew up in the North. You two come from very different places, so you share your customs with the other, telling stories that you had grown up with. There’s never an end to possible conversations the two of you can have; there’s so much to share. Ned also feels like you’ve come into your role in Winterfell really well and he has no problem with confiding in you or asking for your advice. He trusts everything you say and always takes your advice into consideration.

U = Unencumbered (What helps them relax?)

Your touch. Ned has a lot of responsibility and with all of that comes a lot of stress. After spending so many years together, it’s easy for you to tell when he’s stressed and needs a break. You’ll shoo everyone from the room and walk over to your husband, your hands landing on his shoulders. Immediately he melts into your touch, some of the tension leaving his body. Then you’ll rub his shoulders and place a kiss on the top of his head, whispering about how he needs to relax. He ‘ll mumble back to you, his words getting lost in a sigh as you continue your ministrations.

V = Vaunt (What do they like to show off? What are they proud of?)

Ned absolutely does not show off… on purpose… but he’s very skilled in what he does, so you enjoy watching him and while it took him some time to figure it out, he eventually did realize that you enjoyed watching him train with his brothers. And if he was being honest, it made him feel good to know that you were impressed by him. He doesn’t go out of his way to try to be impressive, he continues on as he always does, that’s just how he is, but he’s proud of the fact that you’re impressed by him.

W = Wedding (When, how, where do they propose?)

Ned didn’t really propose. The marriage between the two of you was arranged by his brother and your father, so you were kind of just brought to Winterfell and presented to him. The two of you had a week before the actual ceremony to get to know each other and become comfortable with one another and Ned took full advantage of the time, being as courteous to you as was possible and showing you around what would now be your home.

X = Xylophone (What’s their song?)

My Romance – Ella Fitzgerald

You are so very special to Ned and he really fell for you despite the circumstances of your marriage. Over the years, he’s realized that all he needs is you. Your romance doesn’t need any extra frills, the two of you just need each other to be completely happy in your relationship.

Y = Yes (Do they ever think of getting married/proposing?)

Ned comes from a very important family, so there really is no way he’s not getting married. He is very much aware of this and he’s made his peace with it. The marriage may be arranged, but Ned is 100% committed to making it work and making sure that you are happy in your new life with him.

Z = Zebra (If they wanted a pet, what would they get?)

Dire wolves, anyone? In all seriousness though, Ned definitely gets you a horse as a way of transport and also as a gift. He wants to do nice things for you. Any other animal that you’re interested in, he’ll get for you. He knows that coming to Winterfell was a lot for you, so he wants you to be as happy and comfortable as possible, so he’s willing to have any kind of pet that you want.

[crazy-loca-blog]

The Newlyweds Game: The Exes Edition

A/N 1: Thank you, thank you, thank you @jamespotterthefirst for this template. It was exactly what I needed to disconnect from the insane amount of work I've had in the last few days.

A/N 2: I really took my time to do this because I had a lot of random notes with many ideas, but I had never approached the exes in detail or organized the information. So I used this to put everything together in one place. Expect this to be a long post!

Casey x Luke

Despite Casey and Luke being classmates, they barely talked to each other during their freshman year. However, when they were paired to work together on a science project in their sophomore year, they just clicked. Two weeks later, they were officially dating.

No one saw this relationship coming because of how different they were. Luke was the typical troublemaker, while Casey wasn’t invisible, but she was a very low profile student.

People were afraid that he could have been a bad influence for Casey, but they both proved them wrong. He improved his behavior and his grades thanks to her. And Casey blossomed as a teen. The relationship just worked.

He was her first kiss, but she never felt ready to have sex with him. And this might have meant the beginning of the end.

Shortly after their second anniversary, the rumors started. And right before prom, the truth came up. Luke had been cheating on Casey for a few months… and the girl was pregnant.

Since that moment, they never talked to each other again… until Luke took the first step. After the attack, he visited her and they had a very emotional heart to heart where they both said everything they had been holding on for the past 11 years. They currently have a very good relationship.

Was she in love? She thought she was, but then she realized it wasn't real love. Was he in love? Yes. And even though now he loves his wife, he still gets goosebumps when he sees Casey.

Casey x Mark

Casey met Mark, a junior literature student, during her freshman year at Duke, when they both happened to be looking for the same book at the library, and there was only one copy left. The situation worked as an incredible ice breaker, as they couldn’t stop laughing about how everything seemed like taken straight from a movie.

The relationship moved fast… too fast, maybe. They were officially dating a week after that first encounter. And six months later, Mark was already living with Casey and Oliver (who hated everything about him… Casey claimed he was jealous, but brothers know best).

After a year together, they were already talking about marriage. After all, Mark was in his senior year and he was beginning to plan his future. And Casey was so blinded by the idea of having her happily ever after, that she was even willing to give up on her dream of applying for her residency in Boston to work with Ethan.

All the wedding plans (and the relationship) were crushed after Casey overheard a conversation on the phone. The situation was, again, like taken from a movie: for him, the relationship with Casey was only the perfect façade to please his very conventional family. Mark had been dating a guy for the past 5 years. Of course, they broke up on the spot and never talked to each other again. Last thing she knew, he had moved to California.

Was she in love? No. She was obsessed with him and his brains. It was her first relationship as an adult, so it meant a lot to her, but it wasn’t love. Was he in love? Absolutely no.

Casey x Alex

Was this ever a relationship? Not really. Casey always says she had two and a half exes before Ethan. Alex is her “a half”. They were never officially together, but everything about their relationship felt so intense and different to what she had experienced, that she can’t ignore it happened.

Alex had just transferred from another university when Oliver introduced them at a party. The attraction between them was immediate. That night, they talked for hours… and then they left the party together.

It could have been a one night stand, but as he had become his brother’s new friend, she got to see him pretty often. And most of the time they ended up in bed. It wasn’t long until they became “friends with benefits”, with everything the term conveys.

Alex was a great partner. Not only he was very attractive and he was very, very good in bed (he made her confidence skyrocket!), but he was genuinely an awesome, supportive and caring friend.

She just couldn’t help it. Casey began developing feelings for him. And she was convinced that he felt the same way about her. However, three months after they first met, Alex introduced her to his new girlfriend. She just couldn’t believe it. Since that moment, they just began to grow apart.

Was she in love? No; however, her feelings towards him were definitely stronger, deeper and more mature. She was very close to fall for him. Was he in love? No, but he deeply cared about her as a very good friend (and he still asks Oliver about her whenever they talk).

Ethan x Lauren

Ethan owes Lauren a lot. They had been friends since they were kids, and she was the friend who was there for him after Louise left. So dating after so long just felt like the right thing to do.

They both were each other’s first... and it was awful! They most certainly didn’t have a clue on what they were doing and Lauren still teases him “for the trauma he caused to her sex life” (nope, she has no idea what she missed).

They only broke up because Lauren’s parents got divorced and she left town. But they’ve always been in touch (Ethan supported her as much as she supported him when Louise left) and they even tried to rekindle their relationship one summer; however they realized they were meant to be friends.

Ethan has always felt terrible because he could never love her the way she did, but Lauren knew exactly what Louise had done to him, so she never blamed him for not loving her. She knew he adored her in his own way.

Ethan x Susan

Ethan is convinced he wasn’t thinking with his brain when he decided to date Susan. Sure, the girl was beautiful, incredibly smart and he liked her since the moment he saw her. But she was also a nightmare.

They were competing against each other at a science fair. After the event was over, she came to congratulate him for winning. And Ethan showed himself very interested “in her project”, so they exchanged numbers with the excuse to talk about it.

Besides the fact that she was pretty and had brains, he can’t say anything good about her. The jealousy scenes were frequent, she was like a princess who got mad when she wasn’t given what she wanted, she wouldn’t leave him breathe because she had serious trust issues... she was just too immature and absorbing for him (again... what was he thinking?).

Of course, after they broke up, they never saw each other again. Those 6 months of his life just don't exist for him.

Ethan x Sarah

When Ethan said he and Tobias had fallen for the same woman, he really meant it. For a boy in his 20s, Sarah was a woman. And nope, Ethan and Tobias weren’t the only students in their class who fantasized about her... but they were the only ones who got to do more than just letting their imagination fly.

It was short-lived, but Ethan learned a lot more than medicine from her 👀🔥. For her, it was all about sex. She wanted a no strings attached casual relationship, and while Ethan began to develop stronger feelings for her, Tobias gave her exactly what she wanted. She left Ethan heatbroken.

They’re both doctors, so it’s inevitable for them to see each other at conferences or when Ethan has to return to Johns Hopkins. They keep a cordial professional relationship for the sake of medicine.

Ethan x Kristin

You can blame Tobias for working his matchmaking magic here. Kristin had liked Ethan for a while, but he had never noticed her until Tobias convinced him to give her a chance.

Ethan didn’t keep high expectations, but Tobias was right. She was pretty, fun to be around, intelligent, she gave a lot of light to his life, but above all, she knew what being a medical student was like. That’s why their relationship worked.

She was the only girlfriend he lived with besides Casey, but it wasn’t something they planned. He moved in with her after Tobias betrayed him.

They were never in love, but they deeply cared about each other and they’d both say they were perfect for each other at that moment of their lives, but they weren't meant to be together forever. So breaking up wasn’t hard for them.

Ethan x Harper

Harper was his ride or die since the beginning of their residency, but their story was far from being a fairy tale. In fact, things may have even been a little toxic between them more often than they’d like to admit.

The lack of stability on their relationship was enough reason for Harper not wanting to move in with Ethan when they had a chance to do it. Yes, she was in love, but she wasn’t a fool.

They used to be the power couple at Edenbrook. And Ethan thinks this is why Harper gave the relationship too many chances. Sure, he admired her and he deeply cared about her (he still does), but after a while they were more like two friends keeping each other company than a real couple. Especially after she realized he didn't love her back the way she did.

The only reason they stayed together for so long was that he didn’t have a real reason to break up with her. They didn’t hate each other, they weren't seeing other people, and they got each other’s back. But then she was named Chief of Medicine. And that was the perfect excuse. After all, after Sarah, he knew best.

Casey feels ashamed of her past relationships, she thinks she was too naive, stupid and immature, and she’s definitely not proud of them, that’s why she never wanted to talk to Ethan about them (until now).

Of course, Ethan had a lot of questions, but he respected her decision of not wanting to talk. And if he hated them before, now that he knows the truth, he's searching for a word that could be stronger than "hate" ("despise" is taking the lead so far).

Ethan doesn’t know Luke, but Luke has definitely seen Ethan with Casey when they were together at Casey’s place, after the attack. And he might have confessed Casey that he felt jealous when he saw them together.

Casey didn’t consider herself a jealous person... until they met Sarah at a conference and she started flirting with Ethan right in front of her despite of them being already engaged. The nerves!

Ethan regrets introducing Lauren and Casey. The girls got along so well, that now he claims Casey is stealing one of his best friends.

You can blame Mark for Casey's attitude regarding marriage, kids, and having a family. She never fully closed to the idea of having it, but she stopped wishing it. So when Ethan proposed, he definitely turned her world upside down.

Over time, Casey realized she had been too impulsive in her relationships. She used to go from 0 to 100 way too fast. That’s why it took her a while to admit her feelings for Ethan were stronger than she thought. And that’s why she had the patience to respect Ethan’s timing. She was decided to do things right with him.

Ethan can tell he leaned a lot from every one of his exes. From Lauren, he learned how important is to be friends with your partner. Susan taught him that beauty and brains aren’t the only things that matter. After Sarah, he promised himself to never date someone in a subordination relationship (yeah, Casey laughs at this every time he mentions it). Kristen made him realize how important is to have someone who understands what you do. And from Harper, he learned that no matter how hard you try. When a relationship is dead, keep dragging things only causes damage.

Tagging: @adiehardfan @lawyerlies @takemyopenheart @openheartheadcanons @openheartfanfics

[trentaafcsblog]

February 14th

Anyone You Like

Warning - this is really shit, I’m so sorry! 

“Happy Valentine’s Day, my love” he whispers as he snuggles up next to you, pressing a kiss onto the tip of your nose and smiling when you start to stir from your sleep. His heart going all fuzzy as your face scrunches up and you lift your arms above your head to do your classic morning stretch - something so simple but he was literally obsessed with it, having seen you do it pretty much every single morning for the past six years. 

“Hi” you’re saying when you finally open your eyes, burying your head into his chest as he brushes your hair away from your face and wipes the sleep from your eyes, mumbling an ‘I love you’ when you lean up to kiss his lips before stopping yourself from going any further.

“What’s that?” you’re asking as you shuffle out of his arms and pull the duvet away from your face, looking up at the ceiling and realising that it’s completely covered in red and white balloons with pieces of gold ribbon dangling off them. Your lips going all pouty as you sit up to get a better look at everything, noticing the rose petals that are sprinkled on the floor and the huge bouquet of red roses that are waiting for you on your bedside table, a little card in the top that reads ‘I love you forever and always’ - a saying that you’d picked up along the course of your relationship and something that had a much deeper meaning than people probably realised. 

“Babyyy” you’re cooing as he goes all shy and giggly, hiding his face under the covers because neither of you were ones to make a massive fuss like this, particularly on Valentine’s Day because you don’t see the point in celebrating each other on one specific date when your love for one another grows more and more with each passing day. “I love you so much” you’re saying as you try to pull the duvet away from his face, fighting a losing battle when he rolls over and prevents you from seeing his blushing cheeks, leaving you with no option other than to lean across him and attack him with kisses until he’s forced to look at you. 

“Stop” he giggles when he gives in and reappears from under the pillow, looking up at you hanging over him with the same look in his eyes that he had when he first realised that he loved you, one that let you know that he was yours until the end and that he’d go to the ends of the earth to see the little smile that’s now on your face. Just staring at one another for a few seconds, still in shock that you get to call the other person yours after all this time. Wondering what the hell you did to deserve one another and be lucky enough to experience all of life’s journeys with them, and all of the challenges that you thought would break you both - yet here you are now, probably the most content you’ve ever been, with a future ahead of you that you could only have ever dreamed of. But your little romantic moment quickly comes to an end when his tummy starts rumbling, just like it always does when it gets past about 7am, knowing that food probably occupies his mind more than you do as you lay there and roll your eyes at him. 

“Just you wait until you see what I’ve done” he winks before springing out of bed, heading downstairs and reappearing a few minutes later with a huge tray piled up with all kinds of plates and bowls. Orange juice sloshing over the side of one of the glasses and making you cringe when it leaves a trail of little splashes all over your white carpet. “It’ll come out, don’t worry” he’s telling you before putting the tray on your lap, clearly not as bothered about the mess that he’s made as you are, dreading to think about the state of the kitchen going by the array of different breakfast items he’s brought you. Waffles, croissants, mini pancakes that he’s cut into the shape of hearts with a cookie cutter that he found at the back of one of the kitchen drawers, a fruit salad, vanilla yoghurt, a random bowl of baked beans and some nutella and syrup to dip things into. “Looks delicious” you grin before scooping some of the chocolate up on a strawberry, getting him to open his mouth before you’re popping it in and he’s teasing that that’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever done for him, which of course earns him a gentle smack on the chest and a threat to flip all of his hard work on the floor, knowing that it’ll make a lovely contribution to the orange splatters that now decorate your lovely white flooring.

“I got you a card as well” he’s telling you with a mouthful of croissant, the flaky bits of pastry flying all over the duvet from where he’s trying to talk. “Just as well I got you one too” you wink before handing him the red envelope with his initial and a little kiss on the front. “Nice to know you’ve made it all cute” you joke as you look down at his to see ‘the missus’ scrawled across the front in a pen that looks like it ran about about five years ago. “Excuse me, I was busy doing all of this” he’s telling you as he points at the ceiling and the tray of half-eaten breakfast, most of which he’s consumed himself despite claiming that it’s for ‘the pretty lady’, replying with ‘I know, I know, I’m just kidding’ as he hums and slides his finger under the flap of the envelope to open it up.

“That’s cute, innit” he’s saying as he nods towards the card that he’s got you. A teddy bear couple on the front, one of them holding a bouquet of flowers and the other one going all shy and blushy in response. “Yeah, I take it you’re this one though” you tease as you point towards the blushing bear, not even bothering to fight back because he can’t argue with that, not after the state he got himself into this morning when you saw what he’d stayed up doing all night. 

“Thank you so much” he’s whispering once he’s finished reading your card, leaning across to kiss you whilst trying to disguise the fact that he’s crying at what you’ve written inside. “Thank you so much for mine, who knew you had such a way with words?” you smile as he rolls his eyes at you, propping your card up on his bedside table so that it acts as a little reminder to read it again before he goes to bed. Pulling you into his side and pressing a series of kisses onto your forehead as the two of you lay there in each other’s arms, tracing patterns along each other’s bare skin with your hearts going all fluttery each time the other person looks at you, never wanting this moment to end.

***

“Wow, what’s going on in here, mister?” you’re asking when you come walking into the kitchen to see him leaping around and trying to juggle about six different frying pans. Completely ignoring your question when he sees what you’ve come down to dinner dressed in. The most beautiful red silk dress that hugs your figure perfectly, paired with the pair of Louboutins that he bought you for your birthday a couple of years ago and a little black clutch bag to match - not that you particularly needed it when you were spending the night at home, but he loves how you still go to so much effort to look all pretty for him, even though he’d love you just as much if you turned up to the kitchen in your Minnie Mouse pyjamas that are littered with about twenty different holes. 

“I would come and give you a kiss but I’m quite busy if you can’t tell” he’s saying as you giggle at him. “Come and sit here to keep me company though, I poured a glass of your favourite drink so don’t say I don’t look after ya” he winks as you coo and make your way over to the kitchen island, clinging onto the worktop to steady yourself because it’s been ages since you last wore heels and you don’t want a repeat of five minutes ago when you nearly went arse over tit halfway down the stairs. 

“Is that my favourite pasta?” you’re asking as he nods his head nervously, now realising why he spent most of today’s movie marathon on fancy restaurant websites trying to find a recipe for something that you couldn’t quite get a glimpse of thanks to the angle of his phone, but it turns out that it was your favourite dish. Immediately feeling guilty for scowling at him and telling him off for being rude when you were meant to be relaxing and watching all of the soppy love films on Netflix, completely oblivious to the fact that he was actually busy trying to memorise about twelve different recipes so that he could pretend that he knew it off by heart, particularly as it’s your favourite. 

“I made my own garlic bread too, look” he’s saying proudly as he points towards the oven. “And a salad, and some of that fancy bread that you dip in the oil and vinegar, well actually that’s a lie, I bought the bread but I mixed the oil and vinegar together and cut the bread into little stars” he’s telling you as your heart almost bursts at the seams. Looking over at the plate of little bread stars across the other side of the kitchen and just dying to squish him for being so cute, especially since he’d cut them all freehand without using any sort of template - something that he was incredibly proud of himself for, even if a couple of them had very wonky edges and a few missing points.

“Aaand I made a chocolate cheesecake as well” he says smugly as you raise your eyebrows in slight disbelief. “All whilst I was getting ready?” you’re questioning as he nods his head. “Don't look so shocked! You were getting ready for about three hours so I had plenty of time to do everything, even if I did spend about an hour trying to work out how to use a garlic crusher” he’s smiling as you laugh at him, loving how he was still pretty inept in the kitchen despite managing to conjure up a romantic meal for you. 

“Let me take the pretty lady to her table” he’s saying with a posh voice as you slide off the bar stood and link your arm through his, letting him lead you over to the dining table that you didn’t even notice when you came in. “Oh my god” you’re cooing as your eyes scan over the little tea lights that he’s shaped to look like a heart, rose petals scattered across the table and a collection of Polaroids that the two of you have taken across the years dotted around too. Trying to swallow down the lump in your throat as he pulls the chair back and helps you get comfy before disappearing off and coming back to bring you all of the food that he’s prepared.

“This looks amazing” you whisper as you reach across the table to hold his hand, mouthing a little ‘thank you’ at him as he lifts your hand up and presses a kiss onto your skin. “Don’t go all shy and emotional on me now, missy, it’s not our first date” he teases as you giggle at him and wipe away a stray tear. Being cut out of your emotional moment when he forces a little star of bread into your mouth, the oil and vinegar dribbling down your chin as you give him the evils and try to pat it away with one of the paper napkins that’s he’s folded into a square - covered in little Christmas puddings because ‘what’s the point in buying ones for Valentine’s Day when we can use what we’ve already got?’ Tempted to do the same thing back to him but you’re managing to resist the urge to start a food fight on the most romantic day of the year, instead dipping your fork into your bowl of pasta and twiddling several strands of linguine around it before putting it into your mouth. Clinging onto the table when you start to chew, your eyes blowing wide as you stare straight back at him and wag your finger in his direction. Waving your hands above your head and clapping before swallowing and letting out a little cheer. “Is it that good?” he laughs as you start shovelling more of the pasta into your mouth, giving him the all important answer he needs as he breathes a sigh of relief, knowing that all of his not-so-sly google searches and telling offs during your movie day have paid off.

“Thank you so much for all of this” you’re saying as you tuck into your slice of cheesecake, admiring the little hearts that he’d swirled into the top of the chocolate mixture before doing the all important taste test. Nodding your head and smiling at him to reassure him that it tastes incredible before he’s reaching across the table to hold your hand again. “Thank you so much for making me realise what love is” he’s saying as you try your best to fight back the tears. Never really hearing him come out with things like that unless he’s drunk, probably because he gets too shy and embarrassed and worries that you won’t feel the same way, despite spending the past six years of your life with him and reassuring him every single day that he’s the one for you, so hearing him have the confidence to tell you how much you mean to him means the absolute world. 

“Thank you for making my life a million times better and holding my hand through all of what life’s thrown at us” he’s telling you as you tilt your head to the side and just admire the man you love with your whole heart going all soppy, clearly having added something to his pasta that evoked this kind of emotion. “And for keeping my feet on the ground and being there when things haven’t gone quite as I’d planned” he’s saying as you sniff away opposite him, your thumb rubbing circles on the back of his hand as he carries on. “There’s genuinely nobody else in the entire world that I love as much as you” he’s adding, his voice breaking half way through, making the rest of the sentence all shaky, as he does his best to try and hold himself together, despite just wanting to burst into tears at how much he means each and every one of those words. 

“I love you so much” you blub before getting up and making your way around the table to him, sitting down on his lap and burying your head in the crook of his neck as his arms snake around your waist and pull you close to him. His fingers tracing gentle patterns on the sides of your hips as you play with his hair, occasionally pressing the odd kiss to his skin which makes his grip around your body become even tighter. A comfortable silence washing over the two of you as you sit there in a completely love-filled state, neither person knowing quite what to say, but going by each other’s reactions a few minutes ago, it’s clear that this is what love feels like.

“I got you a present” you’re saying as you pull away from him, breaking the silence and climbing off his lap before disappearing off into the hallway. Picking up the little white gift bag that you’d left at the bottom of the stairs when you came down for dinner, your fingers looping through the silk handles as you make your way back to him. “I thought we said no presents?” he’s questioning as you scoff at him. “Says the man who decided to decorate the bedroom and cook me dinner” you’re replying as he gives you a shy smile at the thought. “It’s just a little something but it shows how much I love you and I know you’ve wanted it for ages” you tell him as he pulls one end of the bow, watching it unravel before he’s dipping his hand into the bag and fumbling around amongst the tissue paper. Pulling out several sheets of white tissue paper littered with tiny scarlet red hearts before he’s eventually reaching the box inside. Looking at you with a confused expression as he lifts the rectangular black box out and gives it a little shake, something rattling inside as he pauses for a second to think about what it could be, ruling out the possibility of it being a bracelet or a fancy watch, not that he’d ever want you spending that much money on him, of course.

“Just open it!” you’re giggling as you push him to open the gift, the anticipation getting to you more than it is him as. “I’m scared” he laughs nervously, waiting a few seconds before he’s beginning to lift the lid off. “Don’t be” you’re whispering as he looks at you one final time before fully taking it off. 

His jaw dropping as he admires what’s inside, his gaze flicking between you and the inside of the box as he tries to process what you’ve given him. 

“We’re having a baby?” he asks as you nod your head, your reaction taking a while to process in his mind, but after what feels like forever he’s letting out a breathy laugh, one that combines happiness and slight disbelief. And then the tears are coming too, his hand covering his face as he sobs into his palm. Making your way back over to him and wrapping your arms around his neck as you rest your head on top of his, letting him come to terms with the fact that you’ve blessed him with the best gift of all.

“Thank you so much” he’s crying as he takes the pregnancy test back out of the box, admiring the two little lines that are showing on the screen - confirming that there’s another life inside of you, made up of both you and him. “No, thank you so much” you’re sniffling as you cup his face and press a little kiss onto his lips. Staring into his teary eyes before they’re fluttering shut when your foreheads touch and the tips of your noses brush over one another. Neither of you knowing quite what to say as you settle back down on his knee again, just holding him close to you until he pulls away every few seconds to look at the pregnancy test again, feeling as though this is all one big dream and someone’s going to wake him up and take it away from him at any given moment. But it’s not. You’re living the dream, and it’s about to become a reality in just a matter of months, a reality that you’ve been craving for the past six years and one that you wouldn’t want to experience with anyone else, and now, it’s one step closer to becoming yours. 

 February the 14th. The day your lives changed forever.

——————————————————————————

I hope you enjoyed this little imagine 🥰 please let me know who you imagined it with because I’m nosy and I’d love to know hehe, I hope you’ve all had the best Valentine’s Day (regardless of whether you’re in a relationship or not) and remember that I love you all to bits x

[msmarvelouswinchester]

Invisible String

Summary - Dean Winchester was never a man who would freely speak about his feelings and emotions. The reader, is his best friend of many years but some wrong choices and words of Dean's pushes a the reader away.

Pairing - AU Dean Winchester x Reader

Warnings - Fluff (lots of fluff), angst-ish, swearing, mentions of abusive relationship, mentions of bad parenting, cheating

Square filled - Bestfriend AU ( @spndeanbingo )

Word count - 6150

A/N - This is written for @supernatural-jackles' Bi-weekly challenge. The prompts are in bold. Spn dividers by the amazingly talented @talesmaniac89 (go check her blog out) Beta'd by @mariekoukie6661 (she is a sweetheart for agreeing to take a look at this long fic. Thank you💕)

“So what are we watching?” You asked as you slumped down on the yellow couch. You were dead on your feet after a long week of work but you just couldn't break tradition and not hang out with your best friend like every friday. Pulling the comforter close to your body, you let out a sigh of contentment. Truth be told, no matter how exhausted you were, you always looked forward to movie night.

“I picked the movie last friday, now it's your turn,” Dean handed you a bottle of beer and took a seat beside you. Your eyes sparkled with a glint of mischief, a knowing smile appeared on your face as Dean's lips curled up in disgust. “No chick flicks,” he warned.

“I get to call dibs on the movie tonight so I picked,” you paused for a second to create a dramatic effect, “The Proposal.”

“No!” Dean cried out in horror.

“Oh come on, it is not going to be that bad. Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock are in that movie.” you winked at him, making him groan and he picked up a cushion to cover his face, “Now, now don't be so dramatic.” He removed the cushion from his face and glared at you. He opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by the sound of the doorbell. “Pizza's here!” He exclaimed as he got up to open the door. You turned on the tv, opened Netflix and put on the movie.

“I don't understand how we can be best friends,” Dean grumbled as he came back to the room, “you eat your pizza with pineapple on it.” “It tastes good. You should try it one day.” you said and took the two boxes of food from his hand, setting them down on the table in front.

“Are you kidding me? Even if that becomes the only food available on earth, I still won't eat it. You can't put fruits on pizza,” he said, and took a slice from his own pizza and nestled into the comforter beside you.

“Tomato is a fruit, De,” you said, biting into the slice in your hand. You heard him mutter something under his breath which you ignored and shifted your focus to the movie playing on the screen. Halfway through the movie, you yawned and snuggled into your best friend. He wrapped his warm hands around you, pulling you closer to him. “You want to head back now?” He asked softly, leaning in to kiss your forehead.

“Nuh-uh,” you said, “I want to finish the movie. I need to see if Andrew got Margaret back .” That elicited a chuckle from Dean, the vibrations of his laugh shaking your body a little.

“You're so stubborn and they are gonna find each other, it's a chick flick for God's sake,” he said, “they love each other, clearly.”

“Speaking of love, Cas asked me out,” you said, making Dean sit up straight. “What'd you say?” He asked

“Yes obviously. I need to dive back into the dating life,” you shrugged, “and Cas seems like a good guy.”

“He is but I thought you wanted to wait because of what happened with you know ‘ he who must not be named’,” he said, and you picked up the remote to pause the movie.

“I can't live in the past. I need to move on. It has been two years since I've gone on a date and it's not like I'm getting engaged tomorrow. It's just a date,” you said, messing with the loose end of the comforter.

“As you wish. I'm just looking out for you.”

“I know. You always do,” you said, giving Dean a tight hug, “and I kinda miss doing it.”

“Doing what?” “Sex,” Dean's eyebrows shot up, “oh come on, it's not like I didn't use to have sex with….him.”

“So,” he gulped, “so you m-miss doing….it?”

“Kind of. My fingers are not enough, you know what I mean right?”

“Of course, of course,” Dean cleared his throat, blush crept up his neck.

“And it's not just sex, I miss the physical touch, I miss those things that are part of a relationship,” you said, “I need this and I think I'm ready.”

“If you think you're ready, then it's fine. I just don't want to see my best friend with a broken heart again.” he said, his fingers getting entangled in your hair, as he slowly massaged your scalp.

“That feels good,” you moaned, “after that hell of a meeting with Azazel, I needed this night De. Thank you for always being there.”

“You're my best friend. I'll always be there when you need me even if you make me watch stupid romcoms.” he grinned, “Azazel creating problems again?”

“He never seems to approve of the templates and designs I make no matter how hard I try to make them loveable and on the other hand, the shitty designs made by Abaddon always gets approved.” you groan.

“Why don't you change jobs?”

“I can't. It's not that simple. Life's going good. I don't want to disrupt it by going on a job hunt.” you sighed.

“What if you start working for my company?” You immediately turned your head towards Dean and looked at him with surprise clear in your eyes.

“No.” “Why not?

“I'm a graphic designer, De. I'm not built to work in your company,” you said.

“Be my PA. I really need a personal assistant to help me keep upto date with my schedule and I'm a mess after Charlie left.” Dean said.

“But what is my job criteria? That I'm your best friend? It's like taking advantage of you. I can't do that.”

“What if you work as my PA after being interviewed for the job?” He asked. “Fine, maybe I can give it a shot,” you said.

“Awesome! Meet me in my office on Monday, ten in the morning, sharp. I don't tolerate tardiness.” he said, slipping quickly in the work mode.

“Aye, aye captain.” You giggled, but a deep frown soon appeared on your face.

“What?” “What if it messes up our relationship?”

“It won't. I know how to separate my work life from my personal one,” Dean assured.

“I guess, then it's okay,” you smiled.

“So about your date with Cas. Where's he taking you?”

“I have no idea,” you chuckled, “he said it will be a surprise.”

“That's-that's great but he should know that you hate surprises,” Dean raised an eyebrow.

“He doesn't know me very well. I'll let that pass this one time,” you told Dean.

“Fair enough,” he laughed. You yawned once more, as you tried to fight the drowsiness that was threatening to take over you.

“You want to head back home now or you want to crash here tonight, sleepyhead?” Dean smiled.

“I don't think I can drive all the way in such a state. Do you mind if I crash here?” You grinned, knowing very well he didn't mind because you crashed in his guest rooms on most of the Friday nights. He rolled his eyes as he got up from the couch.

“I'll prepare the guest room.” You sleepily nodded at him. You didn't realise you had fallen asleep but you were soon woken up when you felt your body move.

“Sorry, didn't mean to wake you up. I'm taking you to bed,” you found yourself in Dean's arms as he headed towards the guest room with you, “you looked too peaceful sleeping. Go back to sleep.” He softly murmured. Dean gently placed you in the bed, pulling the cover upto your chest as you snuggled into the warmth of the covers. Within a few minutes, you had dozed off.

“Morning, sunshine. Pancakes for you,” Dean's loud voice woke you up from your deep slumber the next morning. You sat up in your bed, as you rubbed the sleep from your eyes, the smell of pancakes hitting your nose.

“Breakfast in bed for my girl. Listen I gotta run to the office now,” he said as he handed you the plate of freshly cooked pancakes to you.

“It's Saturday!” You exclaimed.

“I know but Benny wanted to sign the deal with our company today. It's an important one, we can't let that go out of our hands,” he made you understand, “I'll be back within a few hours.”

“Sufe fing. I wif ve here,” you spoke with your mouth full, “Sure thing. I will be here.” You repeated your words after swallowing your food.

“Maggie will drop by. If you want to leave the house before I return, give the keys to her.” He said as he went back into his room to put his suit on.

“Hot damn,” you let out a low whistle as Dean stepped out of the room in his black suit, “Go get the deal, cowboy!” Dean did a full body laugh at your words, throwing his head backwards before he bid you goodbye and walked out of the door leaving you alone in his penthouse. Finishing your breakfast, you got up and got freshened up for the day. You picked up your phone and saw three texts from Cas.

“Meet me at 7.” “At the Season's 52.” “I'm looking forward to this.”

A smile crept onto your face, as you read the texts from him. “I need your help,” you shot a text to Ruby, “I've a date tonight. I don't know what to wear.” You waited for her to text back but instead of getting a text, you got a call from her.

“He finally asked you out?” She screamed from the other side of the phone.

“What do you mean “finally”?” You wondered.

“Oh come on, Y/N. How long have you two known each other?” “Uh-two months.”

“Two-wait, two months? You don't have a date with Dean?” She asked.

“No! Why would you think that?” You exclaimed, “Cas asked me out.”

“Cas? As in Castiel Novak? Dean's friend? And Dean's okay with it?”

“What's with the twenty questions, Ruby?” You said, annoyed at her questions, “And yes. Dean's fine with it. Why wouldn't he be? He is dating Lisa, in case you didn't remember. Now will you help me? I need a dress for tonight.”

Ruby agreed to go on a little shopping spree with you to find the perfect dress. Handing over the keys to Maggie, the housekeeper, you shot a text to Dean letting him know you were leaving his house. You waited for some time but he didn't text you back. You shrugged it off thinking he was probably busy with the meeting. Your whole afternoon was spent with Ruby as you tried to find a good dress for the date. She made you try on what seemed like a hundred dresses of different colours and style until a green bottleneck dress finally caught your eyes.

“This is a beautiful dress! You gotta try it on,” Your friend insisted.

“You sure? Look at the price - it's too expensive,” you pouted.

“Do you want to get laid tonight?” Ruby quirked her eyebrow.

“Yeah-I mean no….maybe,” you stutter.

“That dress - Cas won't be able to take his eyes off you tonight,” she smiled.

“Fine, if you insist.” Needless to say, the dress was a perfect fit but it was all for nothing.

Tapping on the hardwood of the table, you let out a frustrating sigh. Tears pricked at your eyes as you took a sip of the drink.

“Ma'am do you-are you going to-”

“Please bring the check. I'm done here,” you said, barely managing to keep your tears at bay. The waitress nodded and walked away from your table. You dialed up your best friend’s number and waited for him to pick up.

“Dean,” you said, sniffling a little as he picked up his phone after the third ring. “Y/N, you okay?” Dean asked.

“Yeah, yeah. Can you,” you cleared your throat, “Can you pick me up? I'm at Season’s 52.”

“Sure,” you heard shuffling on the other side, “I'll be there as soon as possible.”

“Okay,” you replied.

“He just didn't show up,” you sniffled as Dean drove yourselves back to his house.

“Maybe-maybe he had his reasons,” Dean said, throwing a worried glance at your way.

“Reasons?” You scoffed.

“Cas is a good man. This is very unlike him,” Dean said.

“Am I-am I not good enough, Dean?” “Y/N, you know that's not true. You're pretty, smart, a little badass - you are a good person with a kind heart,” Dean smiled.

“Then why? Why didn't he show up? He could have left a message. I'm telling you Dean, I'm so over men now. All men are the same,” you looked at him, “except you.”

“Thanks, sweetheart. That is good to hear.”

“I sure do know how to choose,” you grumbled.

“Y/N, it's just one bad date. So what? Cas is not the only man in the whole world. You'll find someone,” Dean said, pulling into his driveway.

“I don't think so. Maybe he was right,” you opened the door of the car to step out.

“Who?”

“Alistair. Maybe he is right. Maybe the problem is me,” you said, tears pooling in your eyes. Dean grabbed your hands and pulled you back into the car.

“No. He is not right. Alistair will never be right. He was an abusive and manipulative son of a bitch. Listen to me, you are not the problem, sweetheart,” he said, “those men just don't understand you.”

“Is that why no one sticks around?” You turned around to face him with wet eyes.

“I did and I will always be there for you,” he said, his hands cupping your face.

“I know, De,” you leaned into his touch as his thumb gently caressed your cheeks. You opened your mouth to speak but were cut off by three harsh taps on the car window. Dean immediately opened the door and stepped out.

“Lisa.” He said.

“Unbelievable, Dean!” Lisa exclaimed. You couldn't see her face but you knew she was furious.

“It's not what it looks like,” Dean whispered.

“You just up and left me in the morning and now when I get back to talk things out, I find you cozying up to her. I'm done with you!” She yelled back. You shrunk back into your seat when you heard her scream. Dean didn't even tell you that he had broken up with her. You wondered why he hid it from you.

“I already said we were over Lisa, just go back home,” Dean said and brought his hand down his face.

“Three years of relationship meant nothing to you! Why?” Lisa shoved Dean, making him stumble back a little.

“I don't owe you an explanation, okay?”

“You cheating asshole-” “I didn't cheat on you, Lisa. I-I'm just not in love with you anymore,” Dean said, making her scoff.

“Have a nice life, asshole!” Lisa said and you heard her retreating footsteps. You stepped out of the car and saw Dean standing against the car, with his face buried in his hands.

“Hey, you okay?” You rubbed his arm gently.

“Yeah. I'm sorry you had to hear that,” he sighed.

“Why didn't you tell me you broke up with her?” You asked.

“It wasn’t important.” “Not important? You let me ramble all the way from the restaurant to your house but not once did you tell me you broke up with her,” you said.

“Y/N, I'm fine. Can we drop this now?” He snapped at you, “I'm sorry.”

“S’okay,” you gave him a sad smile, “I've an idea.”

“Does this idea include booze?” “What do ya think?” “I'm in.”

“What time is it?” You groaned as bright light hit your eyes. The throbbing pain in your head increased as you opened your eyes, trying to focus on the human figure standing in your doorway.

“You got wasted last night, sweetheart,” Dean grinned.

“Stop talking. Just stop talking,” you groaned and nestled deep into your covers.

“Aspirin. You will need these,” he kept the medicine on the nightstand, and walked away, “Breakfast is ready.”

“Morning, how's the hangover?” He gave you a cheeky smile as you walked into the dining room a few minutes later. Dean had his laptop opened in front of him, a cup of coffee beside the electronic device. “You're enjoying this too much, aren't ya? How come you're not hung-over?” You grumbled, “I'm hungry.”

“Here. I made waffles because my heartbroken, hung-over best friend needs her comfort food. Dig in,” he said and pushed a plate of waffles towards you, “I didn't drink much.”

“I thought we were drinking because you had a breakup.” “I told you already I'm not feeling miserable. See there's this girl I like who is not Lisa. I'm thinkin’ of asking her out so I did what I had to do. I ended things with Lisa,” Dean said.

“How come you never told me about this girl?” You narrowed your eyes at him. “‘Cause I wasn't sure how I felt but two days ago I saw her and I just knew that she is the one I want to be with,” he smiled.

“You're such a sap.” You giggled, “she must be very special.”

“She is very special. I have never met a girl like her,” he said, staring at you, “now, eat up.”

“Mhm,” you moaned, taking a bite of the waffles on your plate, “you know, you should give up your business and open up a coffee shop. You make excellent waffles.”

“Sorry sweetheart, no can do. People at work will miss me too much,” he chuckled, “you do remember you are interviewing for the position of PA tomorrow?”

“Yep but I don't know if I will get it or not. I have heard the CEO of the company is kind of a shithead,” you grinned.

“Oh really?” Dean looked at you with amused eyes, “You're terrible.”

“Yeah, so I've heard.” You laughed.

He shook his head at you, “Listen, I have a favour to ask.” “Shoot.”

“I would like it if you could accompany me to Sam and Jess’ anniversary party tonight,” he said.

“Tonight?” “Yeah. I know it's very sudden but it completely sli-”

“I'll go with you but I thought you told me that after what happened with your Dad last time, you wouldn't be attending another family gathering,” you said.

“Uh-huh. Sam insisted that I attend this party,” he replied.

“Fine I'll be there with you at the party to save you from John Winchester,” you giggled.

“You'll be my knight in shining armour tonight.” He chuckled.

You went back to your apartment to get ready for the party. Dean had told you that he would be picking you up at six that evening. As you touched up on your makeup, you heard three knocks on your door.

“Good evening, Y/N,” Dean smirked, looking dapper in a black two-piece suit.

“Good evening, Dean. I'll be out in a minute,” you blushed when you saw his eyes travel all over your body.

“You look beautiful, sweetheart,” he said.

“Thanks.”

“De-” you snaked placed your hand over his, as you both sat inside the Impala with her engine turned off.

“I can't do this Y/N. I can't face John Winchester again, not after the crap he pulled last time,” he gritted out the words, his knuckles turning white as he held the steering wheel tightly, staring off at the direction of his house.

“Why are you here?” He looked at you in surprise. “I-Sam asked me to be here,” he said.

“Exactly. Your little brother asked you to be here so you will go into that house and attend your brother's party. It's up to you if you want to make any small talk, I'll be there with you but Dean you can't avoid your father forever-”

“I'm not avoiding him,” Dean said.

“Yes, you are. Now go in there, ask him why he did that, demand answers from him,” you said.

“I-okay, let's go. Just don't leave my side tonight or someone might get hurt,” he said.

“You're not going to punch your Dad,” you mumbled, “even though he deserves it.” He chuckled at your words as you two stepped out of the car.

“I'll never get used to the fact that you grew up in a mansion,” you smirked.

“It's not a mansion. It's a….big house,” he smiled.

“Yep, whatever you say.” As soon as you stepped through the door of the mansion, Dean was immediately pulled into a hug. “I thought you wouldn't show up,” Sam said, letting go of his brother, “Hey Y/N.”

“Almost didn't,” the older Winchester replied as you gave the younger one a small wave. “He showed up, didn't he? What about Mom?”

“Mom and Dad are in the living room. Last thing I saw they are not speaking to each other even when they are in the same room. I just want everyone to act civil till the party's over,” Sam said, “Drinks are in the kitchen.”

“So kitchen first, living room later. Keep John out of my sight and everything will be perfect,” Dean patted his brother's shoulder and made his way towards the kitchen, taking you with him. Pouring himself a glass, he handed you one.

“Dean,” a deep voice came from the doorway, making Dean stand up straight. “Sam had one job. Dad.” He looked at John and gave him a curt reply.

There was a moment of awkward silence as no words were exchanged between the father and the son. You could feel Dean trying his level best to keep himself from screaming at his Dad. You put a hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down.

“I know you don't want to see me right now-” “You're right and you may leave now,” Dean said and turned his back towards his father.

“Son. You have to understand, it was a long time back and I didn't know what was going through my head. I-” John sighed.

“You what? You had a perfect family here. A wife, two sons. And all this time, you knew about Adam but you said nothing. You kept up with the charade of the perfect husband and father when in reality you were neither of them,” Dean gritted out.

“Dean. Maybe I was not the perfect husband but I did everything for you and Sam,” the older man said in a harsh tone.

“Really? You did everything? You were nothing but an absent father. I was there to take care of Mom and Sammy while you were away on your so-called business trips when actually you were plowing another woman's field,” Dean growled at his father.

“Dean!” His father snapped back.

“Mr. Winchester you should leave now,” you said, trying to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand, “John, please.”

“This is family matter Y/N. You have no right to get involved in this,” John retorted.

“Don't speak to her like that. She is more family to me than you ever were,” Dean said and stalked towards his Dad, “so you can leave now. I'm sure as hell Mom is not talking to you so you can get the hell out of this house now, John.”

“Dean-” “Now,” Dean growled.

“I would do what he says, John,” you said. John scoffed, turning around and got out of the house. Dean plopped down on one of the chairs in the kitchen, gently rubbing his temples.

“You sure you're okay?” “I need a stronger drink,” he murmured.

“I saw Dad leave. What happened?” Sam came into the kitchen and asked as he looked at his brother.

“I told you to keep John away from me. You had one job,” Dean snapped and stormed out of the room, grabbing a glass of drink with him.

“He just needs some time to cool down. John came to talk to Dean and-”

“Yeah I understood. I'm gonna check on Mom. This party was a mistake,” Sam said and left the kitchen leaving you standing there alone.

You squeezed your eyes shut as you finished up your drink. You were angry at John too. He had hurt Dean, your best friend. He was a liar and you hated liars. You needed to go find Dean. You placed the empty glass on the counter and made your towards the door but you stopped dead in your tracks when you saw him.

“Cas,” you said, “I didn't expect you to be here.”

“Yeah well, Sam is a good friend so he invited me over.” Cas gave you a smile.

“Oh.” You nodded.

“We should probably address the elephant in the room,” he gave an awkward laugh.

“Huh? Oh you mean how you stood me up last night?” You glared at him.

“Well you didn't tell me that you were looking for only a one night stand? I would have backed out sooner. I like you Y/N but I don't do one night-”

“Wait, hold on. Who told you I was looking for a one time, no strings attached thing?”

“Dean told me,” your jaw dropped onto the floor at his confession, “I'm sorry Y-”

“S’okay.” You brushed him off, “I need to have a word with Dean, have you seen him?”

“I think he was talking to Kevin over there,” Cas pointed you towards another room.

“Thanks and it's okay, Cas. We're cool.” You said and almost ran your way into the other room.

“I'm telling you man, you deserve someone better than Y/N. She is clingy and she doesn't take no for an answer. I can give you her number but-” Dean turned around and his eyes locked with your wet ones. You shook your head at him, a look of betrayal evident on your face. You heard him call out to you as you turned on your heels and ran towards the door. “Excuse me, Kevin,” Dean said and went after you but by that time you were already out of the house. “Y/N!” He called, as you pulled out your phone to call for an uber.

“Fuck you!” You exclaimed, “I'm clingy, I don't take no for an answer. Is that what you think of me? All this time while you pretended to be my best friend, is this what went through your head?” Tears were running down your face now, “how many times was I there for you when you needed me and this is how you repay me?”

“I didn't mean to say it like that. You are my best friend Y/N-”

“You are a fuckin’ liar! You told Cas that I was looking for a person to keep my bed warm for only one night. Why? You know what, I don't want to talk to you right now. Leave me alone,” you said.

“No, please,” he took a step towards you. “Don't you dare make a move!” You screamed, “You lied to me and I hate liars more than anything. You are no better than your Dad. I hate you! I regret that I ever thought of you as my best friend.” You heard shuffling behind you and turned around to see him leaving. A sob tore from your throat. Standing there alone on the porch of the Winchester mansion, with your smudged makeup, you waited for the uber to show up.

It took you one hour to finally reach your house. Your phone was getting blown up by messages from the Winchester brothers and Ruby. You broke down in tears as soon as you reached your house. You crawled underneath the covers without bothering to get out of your dress or to remove your makeup. Your body shook as you continued to sob loudly into the pillow. The same man, who acted as your rock when you had left Alistair, gave you shelter in his house when you showed up in the middle of the night because your ex-boyfriend was drunk and was on a rampage, was the one who continued to spew lies about you behind your back. Your trust was shattered just like your heart and you didn't know how to piece them back together. The crying had tired you out and in no time you slipped into a deep slumber with Dean's words haunting your dream.

Morning came way too quickly. You woke up to Ruby knocking on your door along with Dean calling your phone. Your eyes were red and swollen as a result of crying all night long.

“What happened? Who's ass do I need to kick?” Ruby barged into your house as soon as you opened the door as saw you had been crying.

“....Dean.” “Dean? Dean Winchester?” Her eyes widened in surprise which later turned to anger when you told her everything that had happened the day before. Ruby was furious and if Dean was there in the room, he would have been a dead man.

“Oh Y/N,” Ruby cooed as she pulled you into a hug, “I didn't know it was this bad. Sam called me to check on you because you left his house in a hurry. I'm gonna kill Dean Winchester.” You held onto her tightly as sobs racked through your body. She gently caressed your head while cursing the green-eyed Winchester.

You were miserable but what you didn't know is that your ex-best friend was also losing his mind over the incident. The guilt was eating him up alive and he didn't know how to fix it. Sam had punched him in the face and kicked him out of his house when he had told him what happened.

“Tell her the truth or don't ever talk to me again,” Sam had threatened his brother. With red eyes and a swollen cheek, Dean went into his office the next morning. He hoped that after the interview he would get a chance to apologise but you never showed up.

“Okay, Mr. Winchester, that was the last interviewee,” Jody poked in her head into the room. “That was the last? What about uh-Y/N L/N?” Dean asked.

“Uh-she dropped out - called us early in the morning to let us know she won't make it to the interview,” Jody smiled, “I need your decision fast.”

“Decision?” “Who we are hiring for the position of the PA,” she said.

“Sure. I'll let you know. You can go now Jody. Close the door on your way out,” Dean said.

He sighed as he dialed your number, “It's Y/N L/N. She can't get to her phone now. Please leave a message.”

“Y/N, sweetheart I'm sorry. You shouldn't have dropped out of the interview. I know you won't ever forgive me but I'm sorry.” You sniffled as you heard his voice message. He had left you exactly fifty-three texts, twenty three missed calls and seventeen voice messages - all had the same words, ‘I'm sorry’ but you couldn't forgive him.

“Stop listening to that asshat,” Ruby grumbled and snatched your phone from you. “I-I just can't understand why he did that? I thought he was my friend,” you sniffled.

“I'm sorry Y/N,” Ruby took a seat beside you and wrapped you in a comforter, “I brought ice cream with me. I heard they work wonders on a broken heart.”

“And you brought my favourite flavour. Thanks!” You hugged but were interrupted by the sound of your doorbell.

“Stay here. Let me check,” Ruby said and went towards the door. Opening it, she stared at a disheveled, sad Dean Winchester.

“Give me one good reason to not kick you out right now,” Ruby glared at Dean.

“I need to talk to her. Please,” Dean’s voice cracked at the end.

“No you won't. She is miserable and I won't let you break her even more,” Ruby challenged, “Now get out.”

“I don't care if I have to fight you but please let me see her,” he pleaded.

“You are one stubborn, lying piece of shit,” Ruby grumbled.

“Why are you here?” the two heads turned immediately towards you.

“I wasn't sure you wanted to see me but I had to see you,” Dean said.

“And why exactly?” Ruby snapped.

“Ruby. It's okay. Let him in. I need to hear him out.” Dean gave Ruby a side eye and let himself in.

“Y/N,” She started. “I'll be fine," you assured her.

“If you need me to kick him out or kick his ass, just call me,” she glared at Dean once more and left your apartment.

“She's scary,” the green-eyed man said. “Well she has to. She just saw her friend with a broken heart,” you threw him his words back.

“I can't tell you how sorry I am,” Dean said, his head hung in shame.

“Why?” He looked up at you, “I don't know,” he replied, making you scoff.

“You don't know? Well maybe because you actually thought of me to be clingy and the girl who doesn't take no for an answer,” you seethed, “and you even lied to Cas about me. You framed me as some whore who doesn't do relationships. Fuck you, Dean! You knew better than anyone how long it took me to get over Alistair. How could you do this to me?”

“I don't know,” he whispered, “It's just I lied to them because I didn't want them to be with you.”

“It's my life! I get to decide who I want to have sex with and who I want to date,” you hissed.

“Well I couldn't let you make those decisions because I didn't want you to choose them. I wanted you to choose me.” he blurted out. You sat there dumbfounded as you heard his confession, "What? Why?"

“Because...I love you,” Dean muttered.

“You love me?” “Yeah.”

“What are you, a kindergartener? Next thing I know you will be pulling my pigtails,” you sassed.

“I'm sorry. You know I'm bad with feelings-” “So you decided to lie?”

“Yeah.” “You're terrible, you know that,” you said.

“So I have heard,” he shrugged. “Come here you idiot,” you beckoned at him. He went towards you and sat down beside you.

“I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I was just-” “What? You were just fending off the boys?”

“Yeah. At first I was scared that I was falling for my best friend and you knew me, you knew all my horrible secrets, the thoughts that are inside my head which keep me up at night and I was scared that you wouldn't feel the same. I broke up with Lisa for you because whenever I closed my eyes at night I wanted it to be you with me, not Lisa.” You were stunned at his confession. Dean never talked about his feelings, he was extremely good at hiding his feelings so hearing him blurt out about how he felt, surprised you.

“Dean,” you said. “No. I need to say this,” he said, stopping you, “I don't know if you feel the same. Even if you did, I don't think I have a chance after the stunt I pulled yesterday. But sweetheart, you mean everything to me, I swear to never hurt you again. I was planning on asking you out after the party but Kevin had asked for your number so I told him all those lies about you but sweetheart I know what I did….said is unforgivable but please I need you. I need my best friend back.” He looked at you, locking his teary eyes with yours.

“I don't know whether to kiss you or hit you,” you said, wiping away the single tear that rolled down your cheek. “K-kiss me?” Dean’s eyes went wide.

“You are the most horrible person I have ever met. I hate you, Dean but I hate me more that I decided to fall for this horrible person that I call my best friend. Kiss me, before I change my mind,” you said and that's all Dean needed before he crashed his lips into yours. It was a harsh kiss but one filled with longing and love. His hands sneaked to the back of your head, his fingers entangled with your hair as your hands held on to his biceps.

“I'm sorry for hurting you,” he said after he let go of your lips. You sat there with his hands cupping your face, your foreheads touching. “Next time, talk to me,” you whispered.

“I will,” he kissed your forehead, “So Y/N L/N, can I take you out for dinner tomorrow night?” “Definitely Dean Winchester, but mind you I'm tough to impress,” you smirked.

“I have plans, special plans for a special girl. I will make you mine,” he said before he leaned in to capture your lips with his once again.