#I’m going to be more proactive on here from now on

[awheelywheelygoodtime]

I spent two days writing this and I would like some recognition because I have no one else to share it with.

I would like to preface this by saying that the original film is my absolute favourite of all time. Surprisingly, I actually really liked the remake! It is not without it’s flaws, and I hope to rectify them because no one can fucking stop me and I have to do something to relax after my exam.

I always considered the franchise to be the closest thing that Disney has to true epic fantasy and the genre will serve as a source of inspiration for my amendments.

1. The Animation and Character Design:

I actually thought that the animation and character designs were brilliant. Lions are my favourite animal and I have been watching nature documentaries religiously since I was a child. The remake hit a perfect spot between realism and the aesthetics of the original characters. The landscape and such is a different matter, but I will get into that eventually.

My biggest gripe is one that is commonly shared by pretty much everyone that saw the film, the expressions or lack thereof. Real lions can squint, curl their lips, crease their brow and basically move their faces. You would be surprised by how expressive they can be.

Some people may say that it would anthropomorphise them too much and be unrealistic but we have a monarchy of talking lions, so who gives a fuck?

This is also a minor thing that only nature nuts would notice but the lions move wrong. They have this weird loping gait when they should run in what’s called a “rotary gallop” like real lions. The original film literally showed this in slow motion when Simba runs through the desert.

2. The Pridelands and Beyond:

The Pridelands need a lot of work. Everything is too beige and boring. It was as if they couldn’t decide between a golden arid savannah or a lush green one and just meshed the two into one boring mess.

Minas Tirith, Mordor and The Shire are all incredibly iconic and instantly recognisable. The same should be true for the Pridelands and the rest of the world.

Pride Rock should be an absolute monolith. A giant that looms in the background of every scene in the Pridelands and a believable capital for a kingdom (I’ll get more into this later). Not just tall but broad, a sprawling wild metropolis.

The Graveyard is an inhospitable hellhole. Always shrouded in shadow born from the ashes and noxious clouds spewed from geothermal activity. Thick clouds of mist and fog blanket the landscape, leaving bones and carcasses to loom out of the smog like giant teeth and claws.

The Gorge is a massive scar in the landscape. A Grand Canyon-esque pit that swallows light and just screams doom. The jungle that Simba winds up in needs to be more colourful and lively, a real paradise in the desert.

I think that a lot of the issues with the setting comes down to the fact that they acted as if they were on an actual set and not an animated world.

3. Ecology and Society

We need more wildlife.

More animals should have been at the presentation of Simba. Leopards and African Wild Dogs, Hippos and Crocodiles, even Gorillas and other jungle creatures should have been part of the montage of animals at the beginning. Migratory birds should have been present to bring the news back to their respective homelands (if Buckingham Palace can make international news then so can Pride Rock). Hyenas would also be part of the procession (this ties into something later).

Mufasa explaining the circle of life would include some scenes of various animals asking their king for counsel.

I would expand on the pride itself. It’s rare but some exceptionally large prides have subordinate males that can mate with the lionesses. This would avoid a lot of incestous connotations and make the pride more like a royal court (I have plans for Nala).

I would also change the wildebeest herd to a Cape buffalo herd. Cape buffalo are notorious lion killers and can live in herds up to a thousand strong. Shenzi and the gang send the calves first into the gorge and the rest of the herd would follow.

I would also pepper in references that Shenzi and her clan are mostly comprised of vagabonds, outcasts and exiles from other clans. The hyenas from the opening sequence would be some more positive examples. This may seem like “not all hyenas (tm)” but it’s better than them just being the Orcs of the savannah.

4. Characters and Characterisation

I’m not going to do everyone, just the characters that I have a firm grasp on what I would have done.

Scar: a vicious aristocrat. Really play up the gentlemanly aspects of his personality to contrast with an absolutely black heart. Like Palpatine his sole reason to live is the pursuit of power. All the brutality of Tywin Lannister with the underhanded slyness of Petyr Baelish. This makes him ambitious as hell but doesn’t translate to being a good ruler.

Shenzi: a calculated ruler that cares only for the betterment of her subjects. Queen of the Graveyard and willing to do anything to feed her clan of the lost and exiled. She and Scar were once genuine friends but now they are only using each other for their own gain.

Rafiki: kooky and mystic. They are basically Gandalf on mushrooms. Wielding a very subtle and ambiguous form of magic. I use gender neutral pronouns because I wouldn’t be opposed to making them female like in the broadway show.

Nala: a fierce huntress and the only hope for the pride during the reign of Scar. I would also make her a princess from another pride that has been betrothed to Simba. This gets rid of the incest questions and helps lay the groundwork for a sequel.

The Pride and the Subjects: I would place greater emphasis on the pride itself and the citizens of the Pridelands. Show the growing discord between the pride and the clan. The other animals are getting sick of Scar’s misrule and are either leaving or are in quiet revolt.

Mtumishi: a cape cobra and a new character. Zazu was major-domo for Mufasa, Shenzi serves the same role for Scar and Mtumishi serves his own royal. Mtumishi repeatedly visits the Pridelands under the orders of his queen, Zira. Zira rules Nala’s original pride and is a great figure of fear and conquest. She’s basically a family friendly lioness version of Vlad the Impaler.

I don’t really have anything of significance to say about everyone else. I would like to see more Sarabi but I’m happy with the other characters.

5. Plot and Story

I have already mentioned some additions that I would make in the previous sections but I’ll list a few more here. I would keep the same overall plot but with just some stuff added in.

We need to include the Hunt of the Lionesses from the broadway show. We don’t need to be too gory but I still think that it would be a brilliant addition to the film. It would give a greater emphasis to the lionesses and a short prayer after the hunt would reiterate the message of the Circle of Life.

I would expand on the meeting between Scar and the hyenas. Shenzi and her clan have just been humiliated by Mufasa. They have pushed their luck and now fear retaliation from the entire kingdom. Enter Scar with promises of food and security. He plays most of the clan like fiddles. Shenzi is wise to his schemes but doesn’t really have a choice. They have no idea no other allies and she is out options.

Scar would stop Zazu and the pride just before they got to the gorge. He would spin a few lies about no one needing to see the state of Mufasa and Simba. He would take care of everything and strongly encourage a heartbroken Sarabi to abdicate.

I would contrast Simba growing up in the jungle with Nala growing up in the Pridelands. Simba having fun with Timon and Pumbaa vs Nala cowering from a passing battalion of hyenas, Simba being desperately lonely as the only lion in the jungle vs Nala growing up in a tight knit community of older lionesses and other cubs, Simba battling leopards and other jungle hunters to protect Timon and Pumbaa vs Nala becoming a great huntress and protecting the smaller carnivores from competitive hyenas. Eventually, Sarabi and the rest of the pride scheme to send Nala to find help. The nearest pride belongs to Zira and that is a no-go. She must go further afield and eventually winds up in the jungle.

The conversation between Simba and Mufasa’s spirit is much more mystical. Rafiki leads Simba to the puddle in the thorns and his staring into the ripples of his reflection sucks him into an endless clearing beneath the night sky. He Lives in You starts crying as the stars come to land and form different animals. Not just African animals, but pretty much all of them. Bears, whales, jaguars, kangaroos, komodo Dragons, penguins and many more. This riot of life and light eventually leads to Mufasa himself. The vision ends with Simba back with Rafiki.

Mtumishi would be a reoccurring character relaying between the Pridelands and Zira. Scar’s growing madness and the disappearance of Nala bring his role to a climax when Scar sends him packing just before Simba returns. This is to help set up a possible sequel.

Everything else I would leave as-is or I need more time to figure it out.

What do you guys think?

[erwinsvow]

knocked up too young and wearing a glittery diamond ring on your left hand, you had settled nicely into the role of mrs. cameron. it wasn’t tough, not a hard position to play in the slightest—rafe, or rather your husband—made everything nice and easy for you.

it seemed like it was his biggest desire come true, making sure you and his little girl were taken care of. he liked it actually, more than he admitted, knowing the two of you were fast asleep in bed when he left for work in the morning, doing nothing but relaxing throughout the day.

in fact, he had decided the second you had tearfully confessed that you were pregnant that this was the sort of life you were meant for, the kind of life he was going to give you. you were so scared, he can remember it like it was yesterday—your watery eyes and wet cheeks, the way your hands shook when you pulled out the test to show him.

“i-i-i’m so sorry, i, i thought the pills were enough, everyone says it’s enough-” you were stammering and crying your way into exhausation, something he definitely didn’t like. 

“s’okay, kid. nothin’ to cry about.” he was formulating his plan already, being proactive in all matters, thinking ahead to marriage licenses and car seats while you stared down at the positive stick in your palm.

“you’re.. you’re not mad, rafe?” the way you look at him, the world stops spinning. why would he be mad?

“hey, s’done,” he says, hands on your shoulders to steady you, bringing you to the edge of the bed to take a seat. he takes the pregnancy test from your hands, looking down at it himself. “it already happened. can’t take it back. no point in cryin’ over it.” 

when you look up with even more tears in your eyes, he’s half convinced he’s said the wrong thing—but it doesn’t faze him, he keeps going.

“hey, hey. what, you thought i wouldn’t take care of you? this is my kid too.”

“i know, i just, i thought you wouldn’t be okay.. with it. having it.” that’s the first and only time he got stern with you through this whole pregnancy.

“hey, don’t talk like that. this is our baby. there’s no question ‘bout havin’ it.” you nod up at him, tears drying as you steady yourself, regain a little composure knowing rafe’s not mad about this little accident. “y’okay now?” you nod again. “good, call your parents. tell ‘em we’re getting married soon.” 

“wh-rafe!” 

but, like how most things were with rafe, he called the shots and you listened. the two of you got married shortly after, before you were even showing. anyone who even attempted to comment on the hastiness of everything shut up the second rafe stared at them.

you’d be a liar to say you didn’t like it, a fool if you didn’t appreciate how rafe was to you.

he stepped up in every way, better than you could have even tried to put together in your imagination. a place was purchased and had slowly started to become home, with a crib that rafe assembled by himself—though it had taken hours and ended up with the instruction papers all crumbled up in a corner—and baby proofed cabinets and sockets. you laugh watching rafe try to install the baby gate on the staircase.

“you know that’s for when they start crawling, right?” you giggle, a hand on your very pregnant belly.

“shut up. m’being proactive. gonna have no time once she actually gets here and we’re runnin’ around changing diapers and makin’ formula and shit.” 

you’re only a touch surprised with how well-versed he is with all the baby stuff, though you appreciate it more and more since you’re still a little confused and overwhelmed. he makes it all easy, from the pregnancy cravings he runs around to find for you to the pretty pink walls in the nursery. he even satisfies all your other cravings, like around month six when there was nothing you wanted more than rafe's dick in every position you could think of.

when his daughter actually comes into the world, the two of you are a mess of emotions and thoughts, but there’s only one rafe really cares about. when can he give you another one?

it doesn’t take long for him to start trying again—trying to convince you that the two of you can handle two, that little kids need siblings their age. the baby’s only six months old but he’s convinced it’ll be better to have them all young at the same time rather than waiting—at least that’s the line he feeds you.

“no, rafe, they’re gonna be like irish twins. it’s so embarassing,” you say next to him in bed, staring up at your husband. 

“what’s that?”

“when you have two babies that aren’t even a year apart.”

“oh. that’s a thing? good, at least there’s a name for it. i’ll get you a book on it, since that’s what we’re doin’.”

and try as you might, even you can’t resist rafe for long, not when he’s taking such good care of you and just wants to give you another baby with his blue eyes and your pretty hair. you end up in the same position that got you into this whole situation—your knees folded to your chest and eyes rolling back while rafe slams into you. 

“don’t worry, baby,” he breathes into your ear, low and quiet since the baby’s sleeping in the other room. “i’ll get y’knocked up again. won’t have to think about a thing in this world except my kids.”

it’s a shame you get pregnant so quickly—rafe was so fun when his only thought revolved around fucking you full of his cum. 

“well, s’not gonna be irish twins. too far apart,” rafe says, looking at the photos from the doctor’s appointment.

“no, it’s just regular twins.” you don’t think you’ve ever seen rafe so happy.

[princessbrunette]

imagine rafe trying to teach you a little bit of self defense but you just get turned on by him manhandling you and he’s just tsking at you underneath him with your hands pinned above your head lowly whispering “you gotta pay attention kid, there’s bad men out there… gotta know how’t stop em from from thinking they can do whatever they want” and she’d get all blushy and squirming just looking at him all doe eyed like “You can do what ever you want 🥺🥺🩷” He loves how submissive you are !!!!

i love this idea sm but when i started writing it kinda turned into something else ??? kinda dubcon but that’s just how he plays sometimes. reader is clearly wanting it !

ೀ 🍨 ‧ ˚ 🎀 ⊹˚. ♡

rafe was in one of his moods. the odd moods he gets in where he’s suddenly motivated to fix things, handle business, be ‘proactive’ as he puts it. there was no business to handle that day, so he turned his attention to you — deciding now of all times was the time to teach you how to defend yourself.

the idea had sprung to him when he walked into the room and stared you down, coming to the harrowing realisation that you hadn’t even noticed his presence, too engrossed in the book in your grasp. he creeps closer, and you don’t even blink. he edges behind you, and notes the way he could grab you into a headlock if he wanted, or cover your mouth, hell — he could snap your neck. you’d never see it coming.

of course, he didn’t want to ever hurt you — which is why he decided to stage an impromptu lesson. that gets you to where you end up, pinned to the ground beneath him.

“ow, rafe.” you frown wiggling your wrist from his grip until he lets it free with a shake of his head. you weren’t too happy about him stealing you away from your time of relaxation with your book — but you would never give up the opportunity to have your boyfriends hands on you. you thought things would have played out a little more… fun.

“see, you — you did it again. if i put my hand here, what are you gonna do, huh? what’d i tell you?” he raises his eyebrows, prompting a response.

“uhh, bite it?” you giggle, making him sit up on his knees, jaw ticking in frustration.

“you know i’m tryna save your life here, kid. someone comes up to you and grabs you, you’re screwed, ‘cos you don’t know how to protect yourself. i’m not always gonna be around to fight people off okay?”

“why not?” you whine, pressing a socked foot against his chest from where you lay. he wraps a hand gently around your ankle and brings it down, expression displaying his frustration.

“because i am not with you 24 hours a day, alright? m’not playing around here. you gonna listen?” he nudges your thigh with his own and you huff, head moving with a noncommittal nod. “okay.” he brings his body down onto yours, pinning you down with it. he had to be doing this on purpose. “alright, flip me on my back. go.”

you can’t help yourself, you wrap your legs around his waist and bring his crotch flush against yours with a little giggle, wrapping your arms around his neck. he presses his lips together, staring at you blankly from his incredibly close proximity and stays silent until your childish laughs die down. you think he’s going to remove himself, lecture you and walk off for a little while— but he continues to stare, even when you wriggle beneath him, legs split around his body — mound of your cunt pressing up against his bulge.

“you think this is some kinda joke huh?” he asks quietly, and the smile starts to melt off your face. “like — like i’m just doin’ this shit for fun.” he glares, and now your hearts pounding because you only wanted to be close to him!

“no…” you mewl, brows knitted but it’s too late. he pushes himself up on his knees again, looking down on you.

“you know i’m real nice to you. there’s bad men out there that’ll really rough you up. maybe… maybe i should give you a taste of that, huh? show you what i’m protecting you from.”

you go to argue, tell him you’ll listen — but he slides a leg under yours and in one movement flips you so you’re suddenly laying on your front, ass a little raised. he leans over you, collecting your wrists with one hand and pins them down. “nah, go ahead. try and fight me off baby. see if you can.” he speaks eerily calmly and you wriggle, realising you’re totally pinned beneath his weight with no escape. “yeah, that shits scary huh? can’t get out.” he nods and you let out a little cry.

“okay, rafe c’mon!”

“nah, you think this is a game so i’m gonna show you just how fuckin’ real this is a’ight?” he tucks his free hand into your pyjama shorts and begins to yank them down. you hate how your heart feels like it’s in your throat and yet your cunt throbs and your back arches from muscle memory. “better wise up, sweetheart— ‘cos i don’t think you’re getting out of this.” he gives your ass cheek a firm smack, watching the fat of it recoil beneath the touch and you whine.

“teach me! rafe you can teach me, please!” you pout, craning round to look at him. his lip is curled into a malicious smirk, head shaking in disapproval.

“yeah, you know you’re just too late. gonna have to learn your lesson now, alright? remember this shit.”

ೀ 🍨 ‧ ˚ 🎀 ⊹˚. ♡

[fantasylandloser]

Cuddle Buddies pt.2

Pairing: rafe x reader

part 1 to cuddle buddies is here

a/n: there will be three parts to this and I'm working on the third as we speak but for now enjoy pt.2 and leave your thoughts

warnings: making out, a little bit controlling rafe, lmk if there is more

******

You were embarrassed with yourself, knowing you were about to break the unspoken agreement between you and Rafe. Though neither of you had said it out loud, the rule was only storm nights. Well that was your rule anyway, but you needed to see him. When you knocked on his door, you weren’t even sure if he would open it, but it swung open in seconds. Confusion adorned Rafe’s face at the sight of you.

“What’s wrong?” He asks, looking around the hallway like he was expecting something to come out and attack.

“I… had a bad dream.” You whisper, embarrassed you even came to him about this. “Can I sleep in your room?” You ask, wringing your hands together. You’re not sure why you think he’s gonna say no, he lets you sleep in his room all the time. But these are new waters for the two of you.

Rafe’s eyes soften as he opens the door the rest of the way, his eyes taking in your nervous figure.. “Yeah..yeah.” He repeats, nodding his head. You let out a breath of relief, happy he didn’t make it a big deal.

You push yourself into his room, like you’d done many times before, making your way to your side of his bed. 

“You know you don’t have to ask, right?” Rafe says once you’ve gotten settled. You’re facing him and you see the sincerity in his eyes. “You can sleep in here whenever you want.” Rafe says his face turns red when you grin at him. “I like having you here I guess..” He finishes, avoiding your stare. 

“Your dad would have a conniption.” You tell him, making him roll his eyes.

“You don’t always have to be perfect for him, you know.” He says.

“No you don’t have to be perfect for him, because you’re his son and he loves you unconditionally.” You sigh, at the look on his face like he’s ready to protest. “But I’m from the cut, and I have nothing, and Ward gave me everything.” You reach up soothing the wrinkle in his brow. He looked deep in thought.

“You should be loved unconditionally.” You smile at his words. I could love you unconditionally. Rafe thought intrusively. He didn’t say it though. He was proactive, he would just show you.

*******

Since that night you started going to Rafe for every small inconvenience. It started with JJ being mad at you, about being ‘with’ Rafe, after John B spilled the beans. He gave you a hug, told you he’d come around if he was really your best friend, but Rafe didn’t like JJ so he hoped he didn’t. Then it was everything suddenly being too heavy even though Rafe knew you were bullshitting because he’d seen you lift heavier stuff. Once you even asked him to open a jar. Rafe couldn’t lie though, he loved it. Being needed by you gave him a purpose.

He knew you were plenty self-sufficient, but he liked that you wanted him to do things for you. Especially things he knew you could do on your own because that meant you asked him to do it, just because you liked the way he did it. Rafe couldn’t explain it. 

The two of you were growing close. Everyone could tell. The way you two would constantly hang around each other, the decrease in bickering, the lingering touches, and all the flirting. The flirting was constant too, and almost on autopilot. At first it was subtle, you poking Rafe’s cheeks to mess with him, him smiling and laughing while you did. Then it became bolder, Rafe would pull you towards him by your waist. He’d stare at you while he was talking to someone else. He would even play in your hair sometimes, and you’d let him. 

Neither of you were oblivious of your feelings for each other, but it seemed like everything was much easier if it wasn’t spoken on. Well that’s how it felt for a little while. Rafe had started including you when he brought his friends over to hang out, or even when he was working out. What he didn’t like was that Topper had taken a liking to you, and since the two of you kept telling everyone that things weren’t like that, he thought you were up for grabs. 

Rafe kept telling Topper things like “she’s not dating right now” or “you’re not her type, bro” but Topper was persistent. 

“Did you know Top was gonna ask me out?” You ask, as soon as Rafe walks through the door, sweaty from his run. Rafe tries his best to control his reaction, not wanting to get overly angry and upset you. 

“He said something about it.” He tells you, going to the sink to get water. You squint your eyes at him for millisecond before quickly going back to neutral, but he caught it.

“And you’re okay with that?” The way you phrased the question made it seem like you were asking for permission, but your tone gave him the vibe that that wasn’t what you meant.

He started to gulp down water before he answered, making you slightly impatient. “Do you want me to be okay with that?” He asks you, throwing the ball back in your court. Rafe didn’t want to make himself vulnerable to you, not if you didn’t reciprocate. 

“Rafe.” You deadpan displeased with him for answering a question with a question. 

“Okay fine. No, I'm not okay with that.” He tells you. “We… we have something here. And I don’t want you dating other guys. Especially not Topper.” It’s a bit controlling the way he says it, but it settles every nerve in the pit of your stomach.

“Okay.” You say simply, confusing Rafe because you usually wanted to argue about every topic.

“Okay? That’s it?” Rafe asks, his brows lifting in surprise.

“Yeah that’s it.”

That was the first time Rafe expressed his feelings for you. It was controlling but it was perfect for you, for him. The second time he expressed feelings for you was on his birthday.

Ward had you running errands for him all day and it was driving Rafe insane. He didn’t want the insane party his friends were going to throw for him, or all the gifts he was gonna get. He just wanted to see you. You’d been gone since before he woke up and he’d only received a text from you telling him happy birthday and that you’d give him his gift later. 

He didn’t want to admit it but he spent the whole day, waiting for you to come home. It wasn’t until the sunset and family dinner had already started that you came back. Rafe was on his feet as soon as he heard your keys jingle. A wide grin on his face when he watched you walk through the door with a birthday hat on, a large cake and many balloons.

“Happy Birthday!” You say loudly, a large grin on your face. 

“Finally you made it back. I was thinking that list was too long.” Rafe had to refrain from rolling his eyes at his dad’s voice, for taking you away from him on his birthday.

“It was a little lengthy, but I got through it. I also had time to stop and get you a surprise.” Rafe is confused until you pull out the large, atrocious, hat. It had Birthday Boy written on it in large red letters and a huge bow at the top.

Rafe groaned at the sight of it. “Babe, I’m not wearing that.” He didn’t really know where the nickname came from but it fit and he’d say it over and over again to see your little embarrassed grin.

“Shut up, yes you are.” You say, grin unable to make its way off your face as he lets you pull the strap under his chin, smiling at you despite his protest.

“I think I’m gonna throw up.” Sarah says, fake gagging at the display. “Please stop.”

“Ah Sarah, leave your brother alone, it’s his birthday, you can save the teasing for tomorrow.” Ward tells her, only for her to roll his eyes.

Throughout his entire birthday dinner Rafe keeps thinking to himself that he just wants it to be over. So he can be near you, or at least closer, which is easier to find excuses for when it was just the two of you. He didn’t know that you were thinking the same thing, just for a different reason. You were excited to give him his birthday present.

When you finally made it up to his room under the guise that you were going to watch a movie. You were practically jumping with excitement. 

“What is it?” Rafe asks you, when you hand him the wrapped present.

“The whole point of the wrapping paper is that you unwrap the gift to find out.” You tell him in an obvious tone, to which he rolled his eyes.

“Hey it’s my birthday, you can’t be mean to me.” He guilts you, his little smirk giving him away. 

“Fine, you’re right, I’m sorry.” You concede. “Now open it please, before I do it for you.” He laughed at your anticipation and began to open his gift. 

His surprised laugh when he realizes what it is throws you into a fit of giggles. “Isn’t it cute?” You ask as he holds up his half of the matching onesies. The pink letters reading ‘cuddle buddies’, his, having his name on the back and a picture of your face and yours designed with the same idea as well. 

“Yeah baby, I like it.” You’re blushing at his second use of a nickname. “Might just wear it to my party tonight.” He jokes, looking back at you. “You can wear yours too.” 

“God, no!” You laugh, happy that the gift made him smile. 

“Why not?” He asks, little grin smirk on his face widening, as he pulls you closer to him, in between his legs. The position had your brain short circuiting, as you wrapped your arms around the tops of his broad shoulders.. You were used to him being touchy, but this was on the handsier side and you definitely didn’t mind it.

“Cause’ all your kook hook ups will be upset.” You tell him. It was an immature tactic to get information, and you knew it as soon as you said it, but still you were curious. Rafe smirks knowingly, pushing his face into your arm. 

“What hookups baby?” He asks you, pulling you down so that you’re straddling him. That’s when all the wires in your brain disconnect and you’re nothing but putty in his hands. 

“You tell me.” You say, your face now level with his, and your lips only inches apart.

“There aren’t any.” Rafe inhales deeply, placing his face in your neck. “I just want you.” He adds. You feel a tingle go down your spine as his nose brushes down the side of his neck, a whimper leaving you at his words. 

“You smell so fucking good.” It’s almost a growl and it has you trying to clench your thighs together, only for your inner thighs to be met by his torso.

“Rafe.” You whisper, knowing that his family was downstairs and his friends would be here at any moment.

“You always smell good.” He continues. “I think you do it on purpose, just to drive me crazy.” His hands make their way to your smooth thighs. “I smell you all over my bed too. “ He groans to himself, the sound sending a flash of heat through your body. 

“Raaafe.” You mewl, sending his hips bucking up into yours, making you gasp at the feeling. 

“Fuck. Don’t say my name like that okay?” It takes a few seconds for you to realize that he’s restraining himself, pushing you further back  on his thighs so he doesn’t do it again. You don’t like it and can’t help but feel like you’re missing out on an unrestrained Rafe.

When you push yourself closer to him, almost sitting right on him. Rafe moans, and the noise tears down any lasting thoughts of doubt and worry.

“Rafe please kiss me.” You beg. It almost makes Rafe mad at himself for making you wait this long, even though the sentence is music to his ears, knowing you were almost as desperate for him as he was for you.

He doesn’t say anything as captures your lips. The first taste of you makes him absolutely feral.His hands are everywhere and he’s kissing you like he just got out of prison and you’re the first woman he’s touched in years. He’s chasing your lips when you come up for air even though he’s panting. 

“You don’t know what you’re doing to me.”  Rafe tells you, he’s breathless and it’s almost a whine. He’s leaving sloppy open mouth kisses down your throat and that action has you reeling, you start rocking your hips into his, hoping for some relief from the friction but it isn’t enough and he feels it too.

“Rafe,” You gasp , when his hips rock to meet yours roughly. 

Three loud knocks at the door make both of you freeze up. “Rafe open up!” It’s Kelce, you’re both relieved. “The party of the century is going down three blocks from here and it’s your party man!” You hear Topper add.  You can’t help your grin at Topper, because to him every party is the party of the century. Rafe groans dramatically, pouting like a child. 

“It’s your party man.” You tease him, whispering. 

“What about our party?” He asks, making you avert your eyes from his intense stare, at your swollen lips.

“We can continue it later.” You tell him, and he’s pleased to hear it, but not happy when you raise yourself off his lap to go open the door. 

[mrworldwideshoulders]

all the wrong places || reader x myg

After getting separated from your friends during a night out, you get stuck with a hefty bill – one that you can’t pay. So when a handsome, emotionless stranger covers your tab in a random act of kindness, you’re determined to track him down and pay him back. inspired by 24K Magic by Bruno Mars.

‣ Pairing: reader x yoongi (dual pov; feat. JK and Jimin) ‣ WC: 6.1k ‣ Genre: slight angst, fluff, strangers to lovers ‣ Warnings: alcohol consumption, reader and jimin joke about her being an alcoholic 🤪 (psa fr tho, please drink responsibly), credit card debt, yoongi (gently) manhandles the reader, bouncer!jungkook and his tattoos, jeon jungkook being freaking annoying, unrealistic scenarios that could only happen in a fic (is it fate, or is it just fanfiction?), reader in her dumb bitch era (said lovingly) ‣ a/n: same yoongi from my fics bang bang and give me novacaine; different y/n tho. i’d def recommend checking those two out first (though for this one i don’t think you really have to unless you’d like more backstory). i like this fic a lot and i think it’s cute so i hope you enjoy it too! as always, bannered and beta’d by the amazing april aka @onmypillow-onmytable​, plus credit for the general idea of this story! 😘 thx! ly – robyn ‣ P.S. I do not own BTS, their likenesses, or the music of Bruno Mars, they just inspire me.

part of the 24k magic collection (masterlist)

This might actually be the worst night of your life. Or at the very least, one of the most embarrassing ones. 

Your friends, who were supposed to be splitting the bar tab with you, have all but evaporated into thin air, and you’re so far gone you can’t even remember when you saw them last. And it’s starting to dawn on you, as your credit card declines for the third time, that you may have overdone it – in more ways than one. Declining once, that’s normal. Two times, that’s just bad luck. Three times declined, however, that’s just embarrassing. If there were ever a time you wished you were more proactive about budgeting and keeping your credit card paid off, it would be now. It’s not the end of the world, of course. You just won’t get your credit card back tonight, and you’ll have to come all the way back over here to retrieve it at some point – after you go home and recover enough of your senses to pay off some of the balance on your card. But going without your credit card for any length of time makes you anxious for some reason, and having to come back over here just for that doesn’t particularly fit into your already busy schedule. 

“Are you sure you don’t have another card?” The bartender that’s trying to close out your tab looks at you pointedly as you’re rummaging through your bag. You can feel the weight of his judgmental gaze all over you.

“No, but, listen,” you ramble, face hot with a mixture of shame and too much alcohol. “I wasn’t supposed to be the one paying for everything. My friends, they stuck me with the bill, and I really need—”

“Sounds like you don’t have very good friends.” He stares you down unsympathetically. “Either cough up or get out.”

“Can’t you just…give me my card back?” you manage helplessly. You feel tears of frustration starting to form behind your eyes. “I’ll come back and pay you tomorrow. I’m good for it. Really. I just have to—” Rearrange my entire bank account, pay off my credit card, reevaluate my whole life, and promise to stick to a budget from here on out, no matter how much Jimin and Nayeon want to go out drinking. Yeah. That’ll last about a week.  

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” grumbles a low, irritated voice from behind you. You turn to find a man dressed completely in black, with dark eyes and an expressionless face shrouded under a heavy curtain of black hair. He hands the bartender a sleek black card. “Here. Will you leave her alone now? Go back to pretending to do your job or something.” Your eyes widen. Who is this guy? And what is he doing? 

The bartender eyes you sullenly and hands you back your card. You turn to the man to thank him, but he’s already walking away, being swallowed up by the crowd. “Hey!” you call. “Wait up!” You push clumsily after him, jostling people left and right as you try to catch up with him. He’s at the front door before you’re finally able to tap him on the shoulder. 

“Now what?” he snaps.

“I just wanted to thank you,” you say breathlessly, taken aback by his brusque reply. “For what you did back there. I can’t even tell you how much I appreciate it. I was about to cry because of that guy, and then you just appeared out of nowhere to save the day. You must be my guardian angel or something.” 

He lets out a bitter chuckle. “Trust me, I’m no angel.”

Your cheeks seem to flush all over again and you almost forget the other reason you chased after him in the first place. “Oh! Money! I can repay you.”

His face doesn’t change. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not a big deal.” 

“But…it’s money.” Your face falls in disbelief. “Of course it’s a big deal. And I don’t like owing people anything. Especially money.” 

“Well, I’m not big on people feeling like they owe me anything either.” He shrugs. “So consider it forgotten. And stop following me.” He pushes through the front doors and out onto the street. 

You start after him again, but you stumble on your way out the door, falling almost directly into the bouncer’s well-muscled arms, one of which is adorned in a full sleeve of tattoos that recedes under the sleeve of his black t-shirt. “Careful,” he says, steadying you on your feet. 

“Um – thank you,” you manage. “That guy I was following. Did you see where he went?”

“Down there.” He points you toward the taxi stand. “He’s not bothering you, is he?”

“No, it’s just – I need to talk to him, but he keeps running away from me.” You march wobbily toward the man from before. “Hey! You!”

He sighs resignedly and turns around. “Do you make a habit of following random men out of nightclubs?”

“Only when they do me favors and won’t let me pay them back.” You plant yourself in front of him, arms crossed. 

“Look, I told you not to worry about it.” He scowls. “Do you really want to do something for me? Go home, pay your credit card bill, and forget you ever met me. You’ll only hurt yourself if you don’t.” 

“Suppose I don’t want to.” You gaze defiantly into his eyes. “Is that a threat?” 

“No. It’s a warning. I’d listen if I were you.” A taxi pulls up, and he grabs you by the arm, firmly, but loose enough that you could break away if you needed to, and pushes you inside. “Go home.” The door slams, leaving him standing there on the sidewalk. 

“Well?” says the driver impatiently. “Where to?”

You stammer out your address, still too stunned to think about anything else. Who was that guy? And what was that about a warning? He doesn’t seem like a bad person – why else would he have paid a stranger’s bar tab? 

Forget you ever met me. You’ll get hurt if you don’t. 

Why did he say that? You don��t know why, and you’re still far too drunk to figure it out tonight, but one thing is for certain. 

You’re going to track him down. And you’re going to pay him back.

Jungkook whistles as Yoongi heads back toward him. “That was a close one.” 

“Too close,” mutters Yoongi. “She could have blown the whole thing.” 

“What did you do, anyway? Weren’t you supposed to be blending in?” 

Yoongi shrugs. “The bartender was harassing her about her tab and her card wouldn’t go through, so I paid it for her. She wanted to repay me.” He thinks back to the look on your face, like you were about to burst into tears at any moment. A strange, unfamiliar surge of protectiveness in his chest, one that he hadn’t felt since he’d recruited Jungkook all those years ago. ”I told her she didn’t have to, but.”

“Aww.” Jungkook slaps Yoongi good-naturedly on the shoulder. “See, hyung? You’re a good guy after all.” 

“Hah,” he scoffs under his breath. “No. I’ve just gotten soft, that’s all. I’ll probably regret it in a day or two. No good deed goes unpunished and all that.”

“You say ‘soft’ like it’s a bad thing.” 

“Maybe not, maybe so.” Yoongi sighs, running a hand through his hair. “We should get back to work. We’ll stick around here until closing, then debrief in the morning.” 

“All right.” Jungkook nods, resuming his post near the front doors, despite the sidewalk in front of the club now empty at one o’clock, an hour before closing. “I’ll be here.” 

Yoongi heads back inside, his head still filled with thoughts of you, that defiant expression on your face when you’d asked him what would happen if you refused to forget him. Anyone else would have just accepted this good deed and carried on as if nothing had even happened, or worse, they would have screamed at him, told him he was overstepping and a creep, to fuck off and leave them alone. Why hadn’t you screamed at him? He’d even grabbed you, a stranger – and a woman – by the arm to push you into the cab. Yoongi knew for sure he’d overstepped there. You just didn’t do that when you were a man, not in this day and age – especially not when you were a man with a past like his. Even someone as supposedly stupid as he was knew that much. Why, he wondered, were you so intent on repaying him? Had no one ever done anything nice for you before? Purely for the hell of it, never expecting anything in return? The two of you must have something in common, then. No one had ever done anything like this for him – with the exception of Hoseok – but that was different. Hoseok was his friend, for one thing, and didn't understand the concept of taking no for an answer. At least Yoongi knew to just say thank you and get on with his life, instead of trying to push it. A chuckle rises in the back of his throat before he can stop it, and he swallows it down almost as quickly as it came, shoving aside the thoughts of you along with it. 

He tucks his hands into the pockets of his jacket as he forges back into the depths of the club. There was something about you, something that made you want to insist upon repaying a random man that had just done you a favor, something innocent, idealistic, even, that made him want to protect you. Something that made him want to know you, even if it was only as friends, to explore your thoughts, to live inside your head for just a day, to find out just what, exactly, was going on in there. But he would never allow himself to get close enough to discover what that was – or risk you doing the same. Someone like him and someone like you – that could be dangerous. 

Especially someone like you. 

As it’s beginning to turn out, tracking down your angel in black – that’s what you’ve been calling him – is far easier said than done. Somehow you’d stumbled up to your apartment after the cab dropped you off, and from there you’d somehow managed to let yourself inside and fall face-first into your bed, where you’d slept soundly until late the next morning, awakening with a pounding head and a foggy recollection of the man from last night, convinced the whole thing had to have been a dream and that your credit card, at this very moment, was probably stashed behind the counter of that bar. Or so you thought, because it’s definitely there when you go to check your wallet. That man, the angel in black – he was definitely real – and that means his warning was real too. The only problem is…you don’t have his name, and the only thing you can remember was that he was dark-haired and wearing all black – which could be literally any man in Seoul. Now it’s Wednesday, a week later, and you’re staring at your screen, open to a browser window that’s now littered with the failed remnants of your search, and rest your chin on your hand with a sigh. Ugh, what was I even thinking? How am I going to find some guy on the internet when I don’t even know his name and I can barely remember what he looks like? Talk about a needle in a haystack. You’re supposed to be working, as in, doing your actual job, but you haven’t been able to focus all week, and you've been off your game since that night. 

“What are you so laser-focused on over here?” comes Jimin’s lightly chiding voice from over your shoulder. His sudden appearance makes you jump and knock your hand into your half empty mug, causing a small wave of tepid coffee to slosh onto your desk. 

“Damn it, Jimin, you scared me!” You hurriedly reach for the wad of napkins you keep in the top drawer of your desk. “Don’t sneak up on me like that. You know I startle easily.”

“Sorry.” Jimin grins mischievously and leans in to take a closer look at your screen. “Y/n, are you seriously still looking for your mystery man? It’s been a week. You know, if he wanted you to find him he would have at least told you his name. Or slipped you his number. He was probably just being nice. People do that sometimes. Like on those hidden camera shows where little kids will ask you to help them cross the street or tie their shoes. Just accept it and move on already. He’s clearly not that worried about it. You said he had a black card, right? That kind of money is probably nothing to him.”

You finish mopping up the coffee and heave another sigh, sitting back in your chair. “I know It’s stupid. And I’m definitely wasting my time. But he saved my ass in a really big way. I can’t just move on like nothing happened. There has to be some way for me to pay him back. And besides…” You debate whether you should tell Jimin what he told you before he shoved you into a taxi. “He told me to just forget I ever met him, that I’d get hurt if I didn’t. I know it’s a bad idea to keep looking at this point, but you can’t just say something like that and expect me to forget about it. It only makes me want to find him even more.”

"That’s a weird thing for anyone to say," says Jimin, leaning against your desk, "but I suppose that's your choice, even if I do think you’re only setting yourself up for disappointment." 

"Thank you for the vote of support." You run your hands backwards through your hair and hum thoughtfully. "I guess I could always not pay my credit card bill and hope that it summons him out of the abyss to save my ass again." 

"Then he'll think you're trying to scam him instead of repaying him.” Jimin pats your shoulder. "Cheer up, y/n. Maybe you'll find him. Maybe you won't. But we've got a meeting about the new skincare line in about…" He checks his watch. "...two minutes? And they'll kill us if we're both late so maybe put a pin in that for now?" 

Of course, your actual job, the main reason you're able to have a credit card in the first place. "Shit, you're right. I completely forgot about that." You stand and gather your meeting materials into your arms. "What would I do without you, Park Jimin?"

"Mm, probably lose your job?" He straightens up and smirks. 

"Mean." You slap him lightly on the arm. "I wouldn't even be looking for this guy if you and Nayeon hadn't ditched and left me with your billion dollar bar tab." 

Jimin chuckles. "Okay, true, but need I remind you that you were responsible for most of it anyway?" He makes a tutting noise as you're walking down the hall. "Honestly, it's unnatural how much alcohol you can put away.”

"Please," you scoff, pushing open the door to the conference room. "I just have a high tolerance. It takes practice. You’ll get there one day."

“God, I hope not.” Jimin looks horrified at the prospect. “No offense.”

The meeting drags on, well into the afternoon, and your mind continues to wander in the direction of your angel in black, no matter how hard you try to pay attention to the subject at hand. Normally you’d be rapt with attention – skincare is your area of expertise, after all, and it’s been your dream to work at a cosmetics company ever since high school – but for the life of you, you just can’t seem to shake him from your memory and focus on your work. 

Wait. The bouncer. He was standing there the whole time you were arguing with the guy. That sleeve of tattoos was pretty distinctive-looking; you’d definitely remember it if you saw it again. It would be way easier to find him than the guy in black. And he works there. He’s more likely to be there than the other guy. Maybe he remembers something you don’t. 

As soon as the meeting ends, you hurry back to your desk, intent on getting all of today’s work finished by the time it hits six o’clock so you won’t have to work late, and spend the rest of the afternoon in a state of hyperfocus, only noticing that time has passed when you see that most of your coworkers are getting ready to leave. “Jimin.” You sidle up to him as he’s shrugging into his coat. “What are you doing tonight?” 

“Probably just going to head home and—” He stops and narrows his eyes. “You’re up to something, aren’t you? Is this still about that guy?” 

“I was thinking we could go back to that club,” you say earnestly. “There was this bouncer outside, and – well, I don’t really remember what he looked like either, but I’d know him if I saw him. I’m sure of it. I want to ask him if he remembers anything from last week. Maybe he knows something about this guy.”

“Y/n, it's Wednesday." Jimin says. “That place is going to be dead. I doubt anyone will be there, let alone your mystery man.” 

You make your best pouting expression. “You’ll come with me, right? For moral support?” 

“Fine.” Jimin sighs. “If it'll get you to stop fixating on this guy, I'm all for it. But you're buying me dinner.” 

You throw your arms around him. "Jimin-ssi, have I ever told you you're my favorite person in the whole wide world?"

"On multiple occasions.” He smirks. “This is the first time you've ever been sober, though." 

“Wow. See if I ever buy you dinner again.”

The club, as Jimin predicted, was nearly empty, with only a few clumps of people dancing here and there, a handful of people at the bar, and a completely different, tattoo-less bouncer working the front door, who seemed to think the man with the tattoos was a temp. 

“There’s nobody like that working here!” he bellowed back to you, over the thumping music. “Your guy’s probably a temp!”

“No, I’m positive!” you shouted. “It was here. I tripped going out the door and he caught me. I’d know him if I saw him. Are you sure?”

“I’m sure!” he said. “Would you mind stepping away from the door? People are trying to come inside.” You didn’t hang around much longer after that, figuring that if neither the bouncer nor your mystery man were there now they probably wouldn’t be there later either.  

“Well, that was a bust,” comments Jimin, once you’re back in a cab on the way home. 

You blow out a frustrated breath. “Yeah. Sorry to drag you all the way over here for nothing.” 

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” he says. “That’s what friends are for, right? At least I got dinner out of it.” 

“Ha, ha, ha.” You roll your eyes. “I knew I should have just waited ‘til the weekend. I was just so excited to test my theory that I jumped the gun a little.”

Jimin frowns. “Don’t tell me you’re planning on making another special trip back over here to look for this guy.” 

“Well…I was.” You turn to look at him, taken aback. “Why shouldn’t I?” 

“Y/n…” Jimin sighs. “I'm your best friend and I love you, but…don’t you think you’re going too far with this? You don’t think maybe it’s time to move on? I mean, what if this guy really is dangerous, like he said? What if you get hurt?”

You scoff a little. “Would a dangerous person really come right out and say they’re dangerous?”

“Yes. That’s absolutely what a dangerous person would say. Please let this go, y/n. I’m begging you. For your own good. The universe will forgive you this one time for not paying that guy back.” 

"I know, but…" I won't. You sigh. "One more time, Jimin. I have to try one more time before I can tell myself I did everything I could."

"Okay. One more time." Jimin's face softens. "But I'm going to hold you to that. No more midweek club nights, internet searches, whatever. You have to let this go because it’s weird that you’re still hung up on this."

"I promise. One more time, and then no more. If I don't find him this time, I'm done."

"Good. Be careful, okay?"

"When am I not careful?" Your best friend raises an eyebrow and squints at you with the most skeptical of sideways glances, probably armed and ready with at least a dozen examples of how you’ve most decidedly not been careful in the past few years you’ve known each other. "That was rhetorical, Jimin. Drop the judgy look, please."

“What judgy look?” he demands. “This is just my face.” 

“Uh-huh. Sure.” 

If Wednesday night’s visit was bad, then Saturday’s is even worse. It’s crowded, almost as crowded as it was the very first night the man in black saved your ass, with barely any good vantage points to park yourself and people-watch in hopes of catching a glance of your mystery man. You should have taken the other bouncer’s inability – or reluctance – to tell you anything about his tattooed coworker the other night as a warning – because it’s obvious that no one else is going to tell you anything about him either, for one reason or another. You’ve asked bartenders, waitresses, anyone who looks like they work there, and all that’s gotten you is in trouble with management. 

“We’re not allowed to give out that kind of information about our employees.” The manager’s eyes narrow. “Stop nosing around before you get yourself banned. Permanently.” With one final scowl he stalks off.

I guess that’s it, then, you think. You let out a sigh as you sit back down at the bar. God, what was I thinking? I never had any chance of finding this guy, not in a million years. Jimin was right. Why did I drag this out so long? It's time for me to move on. As soon as I finish this drink, I’ll walk out of this club and I’ll never think about him again. I’ll go home, and I’ll catch up on all that work I’m behind on because of him. No, I’ll get ahead. Yeah. That’ll show them. Part of you wants to feel relieved, but the realization only makes you feel dejected. Damn. I really wanted to meet him. You get to your feet, and collect your things, taking one last glance around the room. 

That’s when you see him. 

Your angel in black, drinking whiskey in the corner. Same black suit, same heavy bangs, same blank expression. Right as you’re about to leave and never look back, you just happen to see him? It’s too coincidental to be anything other than fate.  

You draw a deep breath, steel your nerves, and march up to his table. “And to think I was just going to walk right past you and out of this place forever. It's almost like the universe wanted us to meet again." You pull out the chair across from him and sit down. “You know, I never did catch your name.”

“That’s because I never dropped it,” he says dryly. “What are you doing here again? Didn’t I tell you to mind your own business?” 

“What, can’t a girl drink where she likes anymore?” You lean in. “Who says I’m here to mind your business? I’m busy minding my own. Which, as it turns out, happens to involve you – and making sure you get something in return for covering my ass that night. Thank you, by the way. You barely let me get it out last time.” 

He scoffs, sitting back. “I told you to forget about it. I didn’t spot you because I expected you to pay me back.” 

“Why did you do it, then?” You cock your head to one side. “There must have been some reason you felt like rescuing a damsel in distress. Nobody does anything without a reason.” 

The question seems to catch him off-guard for a moment, before he quickly regains his composure. “Why does it matter?” He stares down into his glass. “You don’t know anything about me. I could be dangerous for all you know. Like I've been trying to tell you this whole time.” Dangerous. There’s that word again.

“Well, you can’t be all that bad, or you wouldn’t have helped me out. And besides,” you muse, “if you were going to do anything to me you probably would have done it already.” 

“Suppose that’s true.” One side of his mouth twitches, almost imperceptibly. 

“Then again, maybe it is like you said. Maybe you aren’t a good person. But I don’t think that necessarily makes you a bad person. And I don’t think you would have done anything to me, even if you did have the chance. Which you did, the other night.”

A hard laugh escapes from his lips. "Clearly you haven't been listening to anything I've been saying. Because you definitely wouldn't be saying that if you really knew me.” 

You purse your lips thoughtfully. “Well, you know, I have this theory. Everyone has a color, right? Some people you can just tell whether they’re one way or another, black, white, whatever. But you…well, I’ve never met anyone like you before.”

“Hah. I’ve heard that one before.” The man avoids looking at you and stares down at the table, features set in an unreadable expression. “So, what color am I, then?” 

“Mm.” You grin. “First impression? Silver.” 

“Silver, huh?” He smirks. “Why silver?” 

“On the surface you’re a very gray person. Kind of an enigma. You’re not black and you’re not white, you’re somewhere in between, which makes you gray. But on closer inspection, anyone can see there’s something different about you that sparkles a little bit. Something that shines.” His face doesn’t move. “It’s just a theory, anyway,” you say hastily. “I’d have to get to know you a little better before I could really say for sure.” 

“What makes you think that’s going to happen?” An eyebrow quirks just slightly.

“Hm. You seem like the type who would have gotten up and left already if you weren’t at least a little bit interested in me, even if you came off as rude. And you’re still here, so you must be somewhat intrigued, right?” 

“That’s a compelling theory – but you're wrong. I might be an asshole but I'm not that kind of asshole.” He leans back, an arm draped over the back of the booth. “Anyways, before I answer your question, let me ask you one of my own: why are you so hellbent on paying me back to the point where you thought you had to track me down?” 

“You know, I’m not sure myself.” You rest your chin in your palm. “It just feels like the thing to do, that’s all. Most of the time strangers tend to either ignore me or glare at me when this kind of thing happens. You probably think I’m a mess. I know I do. I also know from experience that I can only ever count on my friends to have my back, so imagine my surprise when you, a random stranger, had my back the other night. You did something only my friends ever do for me.” You shrug nonchalantly. “And I always repay my friends.” 

“All right,” he says after a moment. “I won’t say I’m not at least a little impressed that you even found me. And now that you have…I’m guessing you’re not going to leave me alone until I give you what you want.” The whiskey swirls in his glass, resting in one long, slender hand. “Which is?”

“Dinner,” you say, boldly, without hesitating. “Or drinks, at least. I know I probably can’t afford what you’re used to. Obviously, considering the other night…but let me treat you sometime. Just to say thank you. Honestly, I’m a great date. Really. Or I should be." You sigh. "I've been on a lot, so I've had plenty of practice. But I promise I’ll make it worth your while. I even paid off my credit card. Just for you.”

He releases a resigned sigh and sets his glass down. “Okay. Say I agree, even though you have no idea what you’re getting yourself into and I definitely shouldn’t indulge you any further than I already have. Will you stop following me around if I do?”

“That depends. Are you going to ghost me as soon as it’s over?” 

“Now that,” he says, “depends on whether or not you’re as good of a date as you say you are.” 

“Oh, I’m positively delightful. Excellent conversationalist. Top-notch table manners. I won’t even stick you with the check this time. Best night of your life, guaranteed. Or top-ten, at least.” 

He pauses, looking like he might regret what he’s about to say. “Fine. We can have dinner. On one condition.” 

“Oh? What’s that?”

“You really have to stop following me around.” His expression turns dark. “It’s not a good idea for you to get involved with me. You could get hurt.”

“This again?” You sigh. “Let’s just see how dinner goes, and then I’ll decide if you’re worth any more of my time.” 

“You’ll decide, huh?” He eyes you. “You don’t even know my name.”

“I don’t know your name yet,” you correct him, “and that’s only because you haven’t told me what it is.” 

“Yoongi,” he says finally, after a moment of hesitation. A tinge of amusement plays across his features. “Min Yoongi.” 

“Yoongi,” you repeat. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Yoongi. I’m Y/n. Y/n L/n.” You extend a hand across the table. 

“Y/n,” he says, giving your hand a firm shake. It’s cool and dry, and you spot the barest remains of a scar on his palm as he pulls his hand away. “Only time will tell whether I’m going to be able to say the same for you.”

“Mm.” You shrug. “I think you’ll be surprised.”

“Like I said.” Yoongi gets to his feet, taking his glass with him. “Anyway. I have some business to take care of. Can you get out of here on your own, or are you going to be needing my help again?”

“I’ll be fine, but – wait, I didn’t give you my number. How are we going to get in touch?”

“Don’t worry about it.” He looks down at you and smirks, the unmistakable hint of a sparkle somewhere in those soft, dark eyes. “You seem to think we’re fated, so I’m sure we’ll run into each other again if we’re really meant to. We’ve exchanged names now.” Yoongi raises his glass slightly. “You can find out a lot about a person from just a name.” 

“Hey, wait a—” Yoongi is gone before you can finish your sentence, swallowed up by the dense crowds of the club. “He still didn’t answer my question,” you mutter. 

But despite all that – you have a hopeful feeling about the whole situation. 

"Yoongi," you repeat. "Who are you, Min Yoongi?"

The silence in Yoongi’s office the next morning is nearly palpable, the air between him and Jungkook filled with the sounds of clicking keys as they’re finishing up their paperwork on the case at the club. Even without looking he can sense the younger man eyeing him over the top of his laptop screen. Yoongi heaves a resigned sigh. “Spit it out, Jungkook. I can practically hear the gears grinding inside that giant head of yours.” 

Jungkook stops typing and leans forward, grinning in a suspiciously sunny manner. “I was just noticing how good of a mood you’re in today, boss,” he says. “Better than you’ve been in months.” 

"Bullshit I am." Yoongi’s eyes don’t move. “You're imagining things." 

“You are too!” Jungkook insists. “I told you good morning on my way in and you didn’t even tell me to stop bothering you and get to work.” He squints at Yoongi. “You said it back to me. And you weren’t even being sarcastic about it.”

“So I said good morning to you. Once. Big deal. I’ve been known to be cordial every once in a while, haven’t I?” 

“But you’re never cordial with me,” insists Jungkook. “You're cordial with clients. And people who are gonna give you money. Normally it’s all grunts and scowling when you talk to me. Something good happened last night, didn’t it? I saw you chatting with that girl, the one you paid the bar tab for last week. She managed to track you down, huh?” He’s not going to let this go easily. He’s like a dog with a chew toy whenever he finds an interesting enough tidbit to hang onto. 

Yoongi suppresses a sigh and presses his fingers to the sides of his temples. “Yeah, and? What are you getting at?”

“Oh, nothing.” He plasters an innocent-looking expression on his face. “She went through all of that trouble to track you down when most people would have just let it go. She must like you. Seems like you like her too.” 

Yoongi snorts. “Y/n? Flighty, irresponsible, doesn’t even know her own limits, so impulsive that the first thing she thinks of when a man does something nice for her is to follow him out into the street y/n? No way in hell.”

“And you, a guy who’s so cautious, practical, and down to earth that he never does anything without thinking about it for weeks?” notes Jungkook. “All I’m hearing is that you’d be perfect for each other. Opposites attract, you know?”

“The worst thing she could do would be to get involved with me,” Yoongi scoffs. “Trust me. It’s not happening.” He rolls a pen back and forth in his hand. “It’s not like that, anyway. She said she’d leave me alone if I let her do this. She doesn’t like me, she just feels like she owes me. That’s all. I’m just humoring her so she’ll leave me alone.”

“Uh-huh.” Jungkook smirks. “You do like her, don’t you?” 

“I didn’t say that,” grumbles Yoongi. “Why don’t you mind your own business for once?” 

“In case you’ve forgotten, hyung,” says Jungkook, still grinning, “you left me in charge of minding your business for the past six months. You know, while you were off the grid camping in the middle of nowhere?” 

“Yeah, and I’m starting to regret it,” he mutters. “Humor me and let it go. It’s too early for this shit.” 

“All right, fine.” Jungkook turns his eyes back to his screen, but it doesn’t last for long. “So when are you going to see her again?” 

“We didn’t set a firm—” Yoongi’s eyes narrow, pinning Jungkook with a searing glare. “Hey. I’ll fire you if you don’t watch yourself.” 

“Ah, go ahead and fire me, then,” Jungkook says cheerfully. “I’d like to see how well you manage without me covering your ass.”

Yoongi flings the pen in his hand across the table, aiming for Jungkook’s head, who easily dodges it. “Aish, you’ve gotten cocky since I left. I managed just fine on my own before you got here, thank you. You were the one who came bitching to me about how much you needed me to come back, weren’t you? This case that you just couldn't handle by yourself, even though you've probably handled about a dozen of the exact same type of cases all by yourself?”

“Come on!” snorts Jungkook. “We both know you were ready to come back. I just needed to make you feel good about yourself so you’d actually get off your ass and do it. You should be thanking me, hyung.”  

“Thanking you?” demands Yoongi. “What the hell should I be thanking you for?”

“I think you know.” Jungkook’s eyebrows dance suggestively, eyes twinkling. “Y/n – she’s pretty, isn't she?”

“That’s it. You’re getting demoted.”

“Okay, okay.” Jungkook falls silent suddenly before he speaks again. “I missed you, boss. Good to have you back.” 

“Ah, shut up,” Yoongi snaps. “And get back to work. These reports aren’t going to write themselves, you know.” 

Jungkook turns his attention back to his computer screen again, eyeing Yoongi’s scowl with a knowing smirk. Yeah. He totally likes her. 

©2023 by mrworldwideshoulders || series masterlist || collection masterlist || my masterlist ||

[sushiwriterhere]

in a heartbeat

summary: "Maybe he just didn’t need the fanfare, maybe he needed to ditch the plans and just hand the rock to you over Chinese takeout and let that be it."  rating: explicit (no minors!) pairing: bradley 'rooster' bradshaw x f!reader word count: 3.9k warnings: very fluffy, PiV (unprotected), no use of y/n.  notes: this is my first fic in a while and im fighting writers block something awful. this is not proofread :( pls lmk what you think <3! my other works are here part of the coming home to you universe

four days before.

“I’m gonna go out for drinks with the girls Saturday.”

“Uhhh, you can’t.”

Did he need to loop your coworkers into the proposal plan too? Phoenix having dragged it out of him so they could all help was bad enough. Bradley could feel his headache building behind his eyes. He tried to avert eye contact to make the conversation feel natural, instead focusing his gaze on the onion he was trying to caramelize. 

“I can’t?”

Bradley’s never been controlling, never tried to tell you who you can and can’t hang out with, and certainly never with that particular tone in his voice. He heard the mail you were inspecting drop onto the granite countertop as you turned your full attention on him.

“Why?”

Fuck.

He could hear the way your eyes were narrowed from the uncharacteristically steady tone of your voice, the way one eyebrow was raised expectantly. 

In the back of his mind, Bradley also saw the picnic blanket, candles, and bottle of your favorite wine stashed at Mav’s. There were the flowers he had to pick up and arrange on Friday while you were working, the homemade meal Javy promised him that he needed to grab on Saturday around midday. 

“I made dinner reservations at this new place down by the beach, and the only time they had was Saturday evening.”

“And you forgot to tell me until now?”

Bradley didn’t forget. Not about these types of things. Ever since your first date, Bradley had been nothing but proactive. He planned dates, cooked meals, doted on you. Forgetting just wasn’t like him. 

“Made the reservation this morning and you seemed busy.” He finally met your eyes and he watched as your gaze softened and you turned back to the stack of mail.

“Bradley Bradshaw you are a sap.”

And the moment passed. 

You and Bradley had talked about marriage, you have. You’d talked about it enough for him to know what kind of ring you wanted, that you wanted a small, intimate ceremony, and that you’d lost more than enough sleep over whether to invite your parents. You’d talked enough to know Bradley would probably have the Dagger Squad as best men (people?) and that he’d let Phoenix be part of your bridal party if you wanted, that he wanted Mav right there next to him, and that there would be an empty chair for Goose and Carole. That was one thing. 

Getting down on one knee and actually going over that line? That was another. 

The rational part of his brain had always insisted that you would say yes, that you also knew from very early on, if not the beginning. The unhelpful part of his brain kept telling him the ring was the wrong size or that a seagull would swoop down and steal the shiny thing right from his fingertips before you could even say no.

three days before.

Bradley’s checked the ring at least six times since he, Javy, and the other guys came into the shop. The sound of the velvet clicking back against itself then sliding open again was starting to grate on his nerves, but he wanted to give Bradley the benefit of the doubt. He remembered what it was like, that lump in your throat, the way his brain tended to keep him up about every disagreement, every time he should’ve apologized instead of stewing on his anger. 

Javy, instead, choose peace. He watched calmly as Bradley opened the box again, and brought a finger up to trace the gems before deciding against it.

Doesn’t want to smudge it.

There was clearly something on his mind, because the ring had been paid for months ago and the re-sizing and adjustments were included in the price. But there Bradley was, stuck to the shop floor, looking like he was trying to decide between getting sick right there and maybe saving it for the trees outside the shop’s doors.

“What’cha thinkin’ about there, Rooster?” Jake sidled up to Bradley’s side, voice a low murmur, as if trying not to startle the man. 

Regardless, Bradley jumped slightly, jostling the open box and the sound of the box snapping shut echoed harshly around the showroom. Bradley looked like he might’ve decided on getting sick inside. 

“Should I get a second one? What if she doesn’t like this one?” 

Across the room, a sales associate perked up just slightly, clearly looking to score on another guy so nervous he looked like a ghost. Vultures.

“Bradley, my man, we’ve been over this a thousand times. Phoenix got her Pinterest, it’s all a certain style, and it’s definitely the perfect ring.” 

Jake and Bradley had begun to get along, rather begrudgingly at first, then very amicably, after the mission and Jake saved Bradley’s life. Seeing him comfort Bradley was something else though, Javy acknowledged. It was kind of nice to have that tension dissipate from within their team.

“But what if I need another perfect one?” 

“Are you gonna propose to her twice?” Bob had popped up on Bradley’s other side, silent as ever. “Usually there’s a second one for the wedding, but I’m here for a bit of a new tradition.”

At that, Bradley deflated a bit. The box in his hands clicked open, then shut again.

“No, no new tradition.” He murmured, before slipping the box into his pocket.

two days before.

Bradley knew Mav loved him, but he wasn’t sure how much he would after this whole ordeal. They must’ve run over the schedule at least a thousand times, forward and backward, even while flying over their comms. At this point, Bradley was sure he had the entire Dagger Squad reciting the plan in their sleep. He hoped he at least wasn’t, he didn’t need you to be clued into anything. 

“Nothing has moved since the last time you were here. Go home, Bradley.” Mav’s voice carried through the house as Bradley unceremoniously burst through the door. 

He’d started leaving work fifteen minutes early last week, just to double check that everything was in its place, that nothing had broken or spontaneously combusted. It was just enough time for him to stop at Mav’s place on the way home, do his round, and make it home around the same time as usual so as not to rouse suspicion. 

“I’m just–”

“Just checking yeah, get outta my house Bradley and go be with your fiance.” Mav had rounded the corner into his back room, all bathed in sunlight and a picture-perfect reminder of why people loved living in California. 

He was the picture of relaxed domesticity, dish towel over his shoulder, spatula in one hand that he was clearly thinking about hitting Bradley with as he paced the room and ticked things off on his fingers as he murmured to himself. 

“You’re gonna wear a hole in my carpet, and I happen to really like that rug.” Bradley stopped walking but the way his fingers twitched at his sides clued Mav into the way he was clearly still running through the run of show in his mind. 

“She’s not my fiance yet.”

“And she never will be if I murder you for breaking into my house and giving my wife a heart attack.”

“Penny’s not even home at this hour.” 

Mav had never seen Bradley like this. He’d missed graduations and recitals and all the shit you don’t get to see as an estranged god-father, but he’d done enough wondering about what he was like in those moments to have come up with this scenario. Bradley truly was the perfect mix of Goose and Carole–all Goose’s easy romantic energy, ever creative, ever attentive, and just as much of Carole’s eye for detail and desire for things to go right. 

“Bradley.”

Mav watched as the fight eased out of Bradley’s shoulders and his hands relaxed at his sides, “Right. Sorry.”

“Look son, you don’t have to be sorry for wanting this to go right. And you’ve only got a little of sorry to be about starting to drive me insane.” At that, Bradley cracked half a smile and Mav considered that a small success. “You like this at home?”

A sharp laugh echoed around the wood-paneled room, “Oh absolutely not. She’d know in a heartbeat.”

“Well, then you have your answer.” The gears were turning at a million miles an hour as Bradley tried to decipher what he meant. “She knows you in a heartbeat, which means she knows how she feels about you. And we both know what that means for Saturday.”

Bradley nodded, the picture of relaxation and ease all at once. “I’ll see you Saturday.”

one day before.

Bradley was starting to think the gash on his finger was some sort of awful omen, something terrible that had been awaiting to reveal itself until the last moment. He’d arranged flowers for you probably a million times at this point, had even done it blindfolded (only cheating a bit so he didn’t lose a finger) just to amuse you. Now, as he stared at the blood bubbing up from his middle left finger where he’d just stabbed himself with the scissors, the entire thing felt like some sort of cosmic joke.

He’d never doubted that he wanted to marry you, not even when you’d argued or insisted on shoving your ice cold fingers and toes up against him in the dead of night. Not once had he wavered since that initial thought in his brain, and he was even more sure when he went to open that fucking bank account that he’d been diligently adding a sizeable portion of his paycheck to. (What? He wanted to be sure he could afford exactly what you wanted, DeBeers advertising campaign be damned.)

Maybe he just didn’t need the fanfare, maybe he needed to ditch the plans and just hand the rock to you over Chinese takeout and let that be it. 

The only thing keeping him going despite all his nerves, aside from his deep love for you, was the way you’d once leaned against him when the two of you were spending a week away in the mountains. Overlooking something that felt like it was right from a postcard, you’d told him exactly how all the little romantic things he did made you feel. 

“Every time you buy me flowers, I get this little feeling in my chest, like something curling around my heart.” Bradley remembered keeping himself from making a joke, something about heart attacks, trying not to break the moment as the fog hung low over the trees. 

“From the moment you picked me up for our first date and insisted on opening the car door, bringing me flowers, they all make me get that little squirmy feeling that no one’s ever given me before.” You had pressed yourself to his side but not met his eyes, as if your confession was too powerful, too heavy to make when looking at him, “And some of it’s because I’m a sap at heart and you somehow know what I want before I do, but some of it’s just because it’s you Bradley. Always has been, always will be.”

The words said next would keep him going in his darkest moments, kept him together on long deployments, kept him pushing through every moment of doubt in the planning process.

“So if you ever decide to propose to me, even if it’s just you asking me over coffee, just know I’ll get that feeling, just because it’s you.” 

At that, you’d turned to face him, shifting so you could hook your chin over his shoulder where he turned his face to yours. He could see every lash, every spot on your face that he loved to press his lips to when you were too sleepy to protest. You’d graced him with a tiny smile, somehow just a bit melancholy, but all too loving. 

Bradley shook his head, clearing the memory as he scrambled to keep his blood from spattering on the countertop. He was going to have to grit his teeth through the pain of using a liquid bandaid so the pictures weren’t ruined by a regular bandaid. 

You’d compromised on drinks being Friday, so he had the evening to himself. All the time in the world for flowers, for a barbecue at Javy’s (home cooked meal to be picked up that night instead of Saturday morning), and for waiting up for you to text that you were ready to go home. 

the day of.

Bradley thought he’d be blinded by panic, or doubt, now that he was counting down hours and minutes in place of days or weeks. Instead, all he felt was a sense of serenity, almost like he was floating through the motions. 

The day started like every Saturday he’d had since you moved in and he’d been granted a relatively permanent station at Top Gun with Mav and the rest–you pressed up against him, your hair tickling some part of his bare skin, and the type of bone deep satisfaction with life that came with going to bed with a full belly and the love of his life at his side. He stared up at the ceiling fan as it made its lazy rotations and thought about how today was marking the difference between two parts of his life. 

After today, there would always be a time before the proposal, and after. 

The morning was lazy as you insisted you didn’t have a hangover but let Bradley cook you a plate full of turkey bacon, gently scrambled eggs, and a few hashbrowns. He knew you would be fine by afternoon, and after that excited to hang out at the beach before dinner. 

He was sort of counting on it. 

Apparently he’d underestimated your ability to bounce back because the way you draped yourself across his bare back was a little less than innocent as your hands smoothed over his shoulders and down his stomach. He slowed the way he was chewing the last of his hashbrown as you pressed a kiss to the sensitive spot under his ear. 

“Good morning, Bradley,” You crooned lowly.

“Mornin’.” 

His stomach jumped as you ran a nail over one of his nipples, and kissed at his shoulder. Tilting his head to the side to give you more room to work with, he took a slow drink of his water. 

Maybe he wanted you to work for it just a little, what with how badly he’d been stressing these last few weeks. 

And work for it you did. The light drag of your nails just barely there on his stomach and arms had him getting hard faster than he thought was humanly possible. But there was just something about the warmth of your chest at his back, the thinness of some shirt you’d stolen from him doing little to hide the swell of your breasts, that did it for him. Hell, it was really just that it was you that got him going. 

“I missed you last night.” You whined, just a bit, as he finally turned around on the barstool and gathered you into his lap. 

You could definitely feel the way he was hard against the soft give of your thighs, but somehow in that moment, all he wanted was you near. Sensing that somehow the moment had maybe passed, you curled in his lap and stretched your arms around his shoulders, apparently just content to be touching him.

“I missed you too.”

The way your lips met his was almost as natural as breathing, and then the moment wasn’t so innocent anymore. Your lips slotted against his as you kneaded at his arm muscles and part of Bradley was incredibly satisfied that you were enjoying just how much effort he put in at the gym. Sure, he had to be fit for his physical, but how hard he went on his biceps and shoulders was purely for your benefit. 

When the two of you finally stumbled back into the bedroom, Bradley thought he might pass out from how hard he was. Everything about you was amplified somehow. Your skin was softer and the gentle scent of whatever perfume you’d worn last night filled his nose. The give of your hips and thighs was easier and all he wanted was to sink his teeth into you and never let go. You might even let him.

Sprawled underneath him you looked like a goddess, bathed in the rising morning sun, nipples gently peaked as your chest rose and fell. 

“I love you.” 

It was so tender in comparison to the way you sat up and worked a hand inside Bradley’s boxers to grab firmly at his cock. He groaned as you shoved at the little clothing the two of you were wearing and in a moment, your skin was a beautiful contrast to the crisp white of the sheets. 

Bradley made to go down on you but you kept his face in your hands, “Been ready to go since I watched you scramble those eggs.”

He couldn’t hold back the way he barked out a laugh, that one was new. “The way the white and yolk were combined really do it for you?”

You smacked at his chest indignantly as he propped one of your thighs over the crook of his elbow, “Your back and arms look nice when you whisk, you asshole.”

You weren’t so huffy as he slid into you, gentle as ever. Bradley knew he wasn’t the biggest ever, but he also knew he wasn’t anything to scoff at either. He kissed away any discomfort he could see on your features til you rocked your hips up against his insistently.

“Give it to me like you mean it, babe,” Grinning all cheerfully, Bradley cursed under his breath as he felt you bear down on him.

After that, there was little to be said beyond whispers of I love you and the occasional swear word. Sometimes sex between the two of you was raunchy and heated, and other times it rounded out his Saturday mornings in a way that left him sated like nothing else. Sometimes he thought it might be better than flying. 

You came first, digging your nails into his shoulders and breathing his name in repeat. The feeling of you squeezing around him did little to keep him from coming and besides, the way you scraped your nails down his chest and begged him to let go definitely did him in. 

Clean up was quiet kisses and gentle shoves in the direction of the en-suite bathroom, Bradley making sure the water wasn’t too cold for you as you peed. (It was the little things.)

-

Fuck what Bradley had thought earlier about being serene, he thought he was going to crawl out of his skin. Holding your hand as the two of you made your way down the beachfront towards the space behind the Hard Deck, you were chattering on about some coworker’s baby shower and Bradley was focusing way too hard on not absolutely eating shit with the way the sand was shifting under his feet. 

In the distance, he could see the candles and the picnic blanket like a homing beacon. He couldn’t see Mav or Javy or anyone else, but he knew they were all hiding somewhere, ready to burst from the shadows in excitement. Harvard was also brandishing a camera even though Bradley couldn’t see any hint that he was around–turns out he was a more-than-amatuer photographer and had volunteered to capture the moment. 

“Bradley, what’s all this?” Your voice reached a winded sort of pitch as the two of you finally reached the set up.

It was perfect, and part of Bradley finally exhaled. The picnic blanket from your fourth date, the little tea candles doting the beach, and the bouquet of flowers resting at the corner of the blanket, right within Bradley’s reach.

Gently dropping your hand, Bradley picked up the flowers and pressed them into your hands. By now, you’d clearly caught on that something was happening because your eyes were wide and slightly teary, and there was a ghost of a wobble in your lower lip. 

Tan suit be damned, Bradley dropped to one knee and pulled out the velvet box that had been burning a hole in his pocket since before the two of you had gone out to dinner. (The dinner reservation had actually been real, to his credit.)

“Oh my god,” you whispered, bringing a hand to your mouth in a way that betrayed the way your hands were shaking. 

Bradley inhaled deeply, before popping open the lid of the box and letting his eyes flick down to where the ring was sitting, nestled right where it was supposed to be.

As if unable to stop yourself, you opened your mouth and blurted, “If you’re about to ask me what I think you are, the answer is yes. A thousand times yes.” 

Blinking up at you, Bradley didn’t move a muscle as you kept going, “Oh my god wait you probably have a whole speech, I’m so sorry, I’ll shut up now.”

Distantly, Bradley heard a shutter clicking but neither of you broke eye contact as his face broke into a huge smile. He kept going according to his plan, the unspoken understanding passing between the two of you that you’d never live that down.

He said your first name like a prayer, before launching into the speech he’d rehearsed for months now, “I have loved you since I met you. I love every part of you–your laugh, the way you’re passionate about your work, the way you love everyone around you with such intensity. I love you when we argue, I love you when we’re together and apart. You consume my every waking thought, and grace me with your presence when I dream. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“I want to wake up next to you for the rest of my life. I want to bicker about how we go through junk mail, the right way to parallel park, and what show we’re going to watch on Thursdays for however long you’ll let me. I want you by my side for the good, the bad, in sickness, and in health.” He said your name again, before asking the question he already knew the answer to, “Will you marry me?”

“Yes, oh my god yes.” 

Miraculously, Bradley slipped the ring on your finger without incident, then gathered you up into his arms and pressed your lips together. His cheeks were wet with your tears. 

“I love you so much, Bradley Bradshaw, you are my everything,” You choked out when he set you down unable to stop yourself from sticking your hand out in front of you and crying harder when you saw the ring of your dreams adorning your hand. 

“I can’t believe you said yes before I asked,” He breathed before pulling you into him to kiss you fiercely one more time.

-

“She said yes before I even opened my mouth,” Bradley chuckled as you giggled by his side, hands never leaving the new ring on your finger.

“That’s not nearly as bad as you were for the last three months,” Javy crowed, and the crowd was in uproar as Bradley attempted to defend himself. 

Above all the noise and the lighthearted teasing, Bradley knew one thing–he was happy. And you had said yes.

----

tagging: @sebsxphia @roosterbruiser @bradshawburner @gretagerwigsmuse @sometimesanalice @joaquinwhorres @roosterbruiser @roosterforme @bradshawsbitch @seresinsweetie @notroosterbradshaw @kmc1989 @peachystenbrough @rhettabbotts @theharddeck @wkndwlff @waklman @blue-aconite @thedroneranger @bibitches-r-us @sunlightmurdock @laracrofted @jupitercomet - tagging ppl either by request or whom i feel like are luv <r bradley. pls lmk if you'd like to be added/removed

[annymation]

Reimagining the Characters in Wish

(Part 4- The 7 teens)

Yup, you read that right, I’m rewriting AAAAALL these fellas, or rather, just giving more substance to them because as they were in the movie we barely got CHARACTERS, just a 7 dwarfs reference, heck, I doubt y’all remember their names.

If you’re new here, hi, I’m rewriting all the characters in Wish before I start sharing my rewrite, here’s part 1, part 2 and part 3.

Now you may wonder, why am I even keeping the concept of the 7 teens in my rewrite, when just scrapping them all together would make my life so much easier instead of writing lines of dialogue and character motives to all of them?

Well the answer is that I like to make myself suffer I think they actually have a lot of potential, and I really like their designs.

Sooo lets meet the gang.

Who are the 7 teens?

So in my rewrite, the 7 teens will be a little bit more than just Asha’s best friends. Because each one of them will be the sons and daughters of some members of the royal staff.

I’ll be specifying in this blog the following things about each one of them:

- Their personality.

- Who their parents are.

- How they met Asha.

- What purpose will they serve in the story.

So buckle up because this blog might get a lil bit long hahaha I regret this already.

Dahlia 🍪

- Dahlia is a 17 year old girl, she has mobility issues, so she has to use a crutch to walk.

- She’s very organized and proactive, always doing her best to get things done. She’s often the one who takes the lead when planning things for her friends such as surprise birthday parties or deciding where to hang out (or whatever teenagers did back then aside from dying from the plague).

- She has an habit of making lists with the step by step of everything she has planned, which her friends find pretty amusing. Her ideas always turn out to be a lot of fun, although she really needs to learn how to let go of this need of control and just let things play out naturally.

(She’s kinda like Twilight Sparkle… this will not be the last time I’ll mention a My Little Pony character in this blog)

- Sometimes when things don’t go according to plan or she gets anxious she starts stuttering and replacing words

(much like how Doc from Snow White did constantly, I’m shocked they didn’t reference that once in the movie, it’s such an awkward teenager thing to do)

“Asha! We shook— I mean LOOKED everywhere for you la-last night! Why would you fun- I MEAN RUN away from the hackle like that??”

“… I think you mean castle-“

“YOU KNOW WHAT I MEANT”

- But overall she’s a very kind and supportive friend to Asha, something they both have in common is that they enjoy working hard to achieve their goals, even though Dahlia still wants to give her wish for the king.

- I might’ve made her come off as a bit of a control freak but really she’s very easygoing and kind. Even when things don’t go according to plan she knows anything with her friends will be fun and work out in the end.

Even if what doesn’t go according to plan is a heist mission to infiltrate the castle?

She’s the daughter of the royal cooks

- Her mother is the royal baker and her father is the royal lead chef.

- They both work in the castle, and Dahlia sometimes goes with them to lend a hand when they’re short staffed or to learn the family business.

- Dahlia has witnessed first hand how the royal couple can be not so sweet when they’re away from the public eyes:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

King Magnifico: Diner yesterday was absolutely dreadful, what happened? Have I granted your wish to be the greatest chef in the land for nothing?

Dahlia’s father: m-my deepest apologies sire, you see, the queen took all the salt from our storage yesterday to make her potions so-

King Magnifico: Blaming my wife for your incompetence now, I see

Dahlia’s father: n-no! I’d neve-

King Magnifico: If you got no salt, find a work around, I’ll not be accepting any less than the finest meals from you, was I clear? Dismissed.

Dahlia: … Dad, that wasn’t your fault, you can’t let him talk to you like that.

Dahlia’s father: He’s the king, Dahlia, he’s always right. Besides, it’s thanks to him granting my wish that I know how to cook at all, the least I can do is not disappoint him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- Because she got to see this behavior, it’s easier for her to believe when Asha tells her the king and queen’s true colors.

- She’s expected to follow her parent’s foot steps, and become a great cook, but all she really knows how to bake is cookies.

- She sees cooking a lot more as a past time than something she’ll be doing for the rest of her life, but she doesn’t want to let her parents down, she keeps trying to develop some interest in cooking, so she can wish to be a great cook once she turns 18

(Just wishing for it without having truly the interest in cooking wouldn’t work, because a wish has to be something that you really want and comes from the bottom of your heart)

She was the first one that met Asha

- Dahlia was helping her mom sell her baking goods to the neighborhood, so she went all by herself with a little cart carrying a bunch of sweets (like a Girl Scout)

- She knocked on Asha’s house and was greeted by lil 6 year old Asha with her grandpa, they bought some sweets, but as she was walking away Asha noticed she was having some trouble carrying the cart while walking with her crutch.

- Asha looked at her grandfather who gave her a reassuring nod.

- Asha offered to help Dahlia carry the cart.

- They talked while they walked door to door for a while, and after there were no more sweets in the cart they went to play together, and that’s how they became best friends.

She will be the leader

- I mentioned briefly in my blog about reimagining Asha that after her grandfather passed away she started living with Dahlia, so they’re basically sisters, and as such, Dahlia is very protective of Asha and becomes increasingly worried when Asha starts acting weird after her meeting with the king and queen, like she’s hiding something… and why the heck she has a friend that dresses up like a prince now?

- There will be a point in the middle of the story where Asha and Aster run away from the kingdom

(for reasons that I really should explain soon because the whole middle chunk of this rewrite is yet to be shared on Tumblr, I’m so sorry, I’ll get to writing it here soon)

- And Asha is seen now as a traitor, so, the 7 teens are conflicted.

- Should they believe their king, who says that Star guy is dangerous and Asha was plotting to betray them? Or should they trust their best friend?

- Dahlia is the first one who rises up saying they should go after Asha and help her, pack their stuff, tell their parents they’re going to make a sleepover or something, and just go to the middle of the woods.

- Everyone is a little unsure at first (specially Gabo and Simon) but after she gives them a little speech and reminds everyone of all the things Asha did for them, they’re convinced to go.

- Once they do find Asha and Aster, she helps a lot when they have to make a plan on how to defeat the royal couple.

Simon 💤

- Simon is a 21 year old young man, the oldest of the group, and since the day he gave way his wish he hasn’t been the same.

- Simon used to be very energetic and hard working, now, he’s in a constant feel of exhaustion that doesn’t go away, no matter how much he sleeps, he doesn’t feel motivated to do anything.

- His friends are very understanding tho and every time they hang out they always bring a pillow in case he needs a nap (which he always does need).

- They assume Simon has been so exhausted since he turned 18 because after that his father has been more demanding of him and his training, we’ll talk more about that later.

- Even tho he’s overwhelmed with sleepiness, Simon is still very protective and caring with his friends, he always tries his best to stay awake when they’re having fun together, he doesn’t want to miss a moment with them.

- He was even more protective before he turned 18 of course, he was like the older brother of the group, but since now he’s way too sleepy to be the voice of reason, that role is now Asha’s, the second oldest.

He’s the son of the captain of the royal guard

- The training I mentioned before was sword fighting, horse walking, navigation, tactics and a bunch of other exhausting things.

- But for whaaaateveeer reason Simon has lost all interest in learning about them since the day he gave away his wish, gosh I wonder what that wish wa— It’s the same that it was in the movie.

- Simon wished to become the next captain of the royal guard, just like his dad, so he can make him proud and protect his friends.

(Omg Simon is Papyrus Undertale confirmed)

- Magnifico is waiting for Simon’s dad to pass away so he can grant Simon’s wish, can’t have 2 captains of the royal guard at the same time, now can he?

- The tragic irony of it all is that a wish that Simon made to make his family proud just made him become an embarrassment to his father, who now doesn’t even try to teach him anything, knowing his son is just gonna fall asleep during his lessons.

- Simon is very distressed by all this, deep down he knows that he might feel this way because, for whatever reason, the king hasn’t granted his wish yet

- Whenever he tries to explain that to his father tho, he just angrily cuts him off for even daring to question or blame the king for his own failures, saying he must always be loyal and thankful to the king… Always.

(His father is mean like that because he wished to be the king’s most trusted and loyal knight so he literally is incapable of questioning Magnifico, even if that means he hurts his son in the process)

- After getting these speeches from his father so many times Simon just accepted that the problem was him, and it definitely wasn’t the king’s fault

- However, Asha did suspect that Simon’s wish wasn’t granted, just like how her grandfather’s wish wasn’t either, she recognized how Simon shared a lot of behavior patterns with her grandfather.

“You know Simon… Maybe you should ask the king if your wish was granted at all, don’t you think? You haven't been acting like yourself for 3 years now”

“What? Oh no no no I… I shouldn’t bother him with something so silly, I mean, of course he granted my wish… And if he didn’t then he must have his reasons and I just gotta wait haha but it doesn’t matter either way, after all I’m totally fine… I’m fine…”

Simon is the only one in the group who has absolutely no criticism about the king.

He was the second one that met Asha

- Simon was 10 when he started training sword fighting on his backyard, he’d use some scare crows as his opponents, and he made some wood swords by himself.

- Asha and Dahlia were hanging out when they saw Simon training, Asha thought it seemed fun so she asked if she could play too.

- Simon really could use some more lively opponents so yeah, why not?

- They played sword fighting the whole afternoon while Dahlia cheered for Asha and joined in the fun too.

- Since then they were very close friends and Simon taught Asha how to properly sword fight during their preteen years… they haven’t done that in a while now.

He’ll be the traitor

- Yup, oh sweet sleepy lil Simon betrays them in my version too, but don’t worry, it’s not just because he wants to get his wish granted like it was in the movie

(because that was a jerk move that made Simon feel very unlikable, like I get it he’s constantly exhausted and depressed and wants it to go away but bruh couldn’t even look guilty when doing it)

- So, like I mentioned, they all go after Asha and Aster in the forest. Simon at first is very resistant and the others even say it’s okay if wants to stay.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dahlia: It’s okay Simon, you don’t have to go if you don’t want to.

Gabo: OH SURE! I’m a jerk for calling this a suicide mission, but the strongest and oldest of the group not wanting to go is completely understandable, I see how it is.

Simon: …hmm

Dahlia: Simon’s case is different Gabo, if his dad realizes he’s missing then we might have even more guards on our tail.

Safi: Besides, Simon might be a liability.

Simon:… what’s that supposed to mean?

Safi: Ah… shoot- eh you know like… it’s getting pretty late and you didn’t get a nap this afternoon so—

Gabo: He means we can’t carry you through the woods like a sleeping beauty waiting for a kiss, Simon.

Simon:…

Hal: Wow Gabo, very classy (sarcastic)

Gabo: Hey, just saying what we’re all thinking-

Simon: I’m going.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- Simon decides he has to go because someone has to be there to protect his friends, not just from the woods, but most importantly from that star guy the king warned everyone about

- May seem contradictory that Simon believes both in the king and Asha, but truth is that he’s holding up hope that this is all some big misunderstanding and Asha just misunderstood something the king said, or she’s being brainwashed by that star, or anything else.

- He just can’t accept that the king is truly evil.

- So, when they’re packing up their things to go, Simon grabs a little something from his father’s room.

- A magic mirror, used only by the king’s most trusted knights, that gives direct contact to the king's study.

- He planed to just use it in case that they needed help if they found out the star was really harming Asha.

- However, once they did find Asha and Aster, it became undeniably clear that the star wasn’t harmful at all, which left Simon very confused.

“Maybe the book the king read about wishing stars was wrong, I should just explain to him that he made a mistake!”

(Oh poor naive boy)

- After planning how they’d defeat the king and save the wishes, Simon just lied saying he was gonna take a nap behind a tree, and thus, he entered in contact with the king and queen

- Magnifico at first dismisses Simon like he’s just messing with his father’s stuff until Simon mentions he knows where Asha and the star are, that peaks his interest, but he and Amaya disguise their enthusiasm perfectly by pretending to be worried for his safety.

“Oh my, are you alright? Has it done anything to you? Where are you? We can send help immediately”

- He says they’re fine, and tries to explain that maybe the king was wrong about star, and there has been some misunderstanding that lead to Asha thinking they were bad people, if they just talked things out everything would go back to normal.

- Like I mentioned in part 2, one of Magnifico’s abilities is hypnosis through eye contact, so he’s able to make Simon see things his way.

- He manipulates Simon into thinking that the star is tricking all of them to get to the wishes, and the only way for Simon to save them is doing EXACTLY what Magnifico says.

- He asks Simon to tell him what their plans are, so he can stop them from… doing anything they might regret.

- Simon, even under the influence of Magnifico’s power, is still conflicted and asks if his friends will be in trouble after this is all over.

“Trouble? Oh heaves no, dear boy, I wouldn’t dream on letting any harm come to them, trust me, your friends will be perfectly safe… If you do as I say.”

“… “if”?…”

“Enough chit chat, now, what are they plotting exactly? Don’t leave any details”

- Of course, Magnifico also offers to grant Simon's wish if everything goes according to plan, Simon is fully convinced.

- Simon agrees to lock his friends in a room during their invasion to the castle, the king convinced him that's the best way to keep them “safe” (Asha will be locked in a different room tho, for… reasons)

- But once he does lock them up, he hears his friends screaming and arguing with him through the door, eventually he has a change of heart and lets them go, so they can stop the king and queen together.

- Simon first betrayed his friends, but then he betrayed the king, and as he’ll find out in a very painful way… Magnifico really doesn’t like being betrayed.

(See what I did there? That’s a line Magnifico says in the Wish movie hehe… okay moving on)

Gabo 😡

- Gabo is a 17 year old teen, he’s also a little person.

- He’s a menace to society the brutally honest of the group, always with a sarcastic remark on the tip of his tongue, sometimes they’re funny, sometimes they’re way too harsh, but he often apologizes if he goes too far, he doesn’t mean to hurt people, being blunt is just how he expresses himself.

- You may wonder why his friends even hang out with him if he’s so… grumpy all the time, well, his friends understand that he has a lot of pent-up anger inside because of personal stuff, so they try to help him through it.

- He also has a more soft side to him, he can be very wise for his age when his friends need some advice, and he’s always loyal, even when they disagree, he’d go anywhere they go.

- He’s specially loyal and supportive to Asha and most of the time refrains from throwing shade at her, actually he’s mostly just blunt when talking to the guys, he’s a lot more respectful to the girls.

(Ironic considering Grumpy hated Snow White at first just because she was a girl lmao)

He’s the son of a soldier

- His father is just a random soldier, nothing special really.

- However, once when Gabo was a kid, he was visiting the castle with his father and he wanted to explore, so he sneakily grabbed his father’s keys to the dungeons and went to see how was it like, ya know, boys will be boys.

- He got in, and at first there wasn’t nothing out of the ordinary, just your average scary dark and gloomy dungeon… except that by the end of a hall, full of empty jail cells, there was a door.

- And he could hear someone screaming from behind that door, like they were pleading, and he saw light coming from the key hole… It looked like the king’s magic, except it was green instead of blue.

- He tried to use the keys to open it, but none of them worked.

“Ugh why don’t any of these keys work??”

“Because this area is forbidden, little one”

- He turned around quickly to see who was behind him, and there she was, the queen was smiling down at him, a sweet and tender smile, like she wasn’t hearing the sounds of desperate cries coming from behind the door.

“I- sorry your majesty but umm… it sounds like someone is in trouble in there, shouldn't we help?”

- Then he heard the distinct sound of something made of glass breaking, and suddenly… silence, no more crying, no more screaming, and no more light coming from the door.

“I don’t hear anything my sapling, poor thing, you must be imagining things. Now, why don’t you just hurry along back to your father? He’s looking for you… And remember, this is our little secret~”

- And Gabo never told this to anyone, he knows no one would believe him.

(If you’re wondering what was going on behind that door… let’s just say there’s STILL more evil stuff Magnifico does that I couldn’t fit in my blog about the villains, what’s that you ask? *maniacal laugh* I’ll let you guess)

- Gabo always had the feeling that there was something WRONG with Rosas, but he couldn't quite pin point what, and that experience in the dungeon made him start questioning if the smiles he saw plastered on the king and queen's faces everyday were real or fake.

- This feeling that there was something wrong but there was nothing he could do about it made him, for a lack of a better word, grumpy a lot of the time.

- Needles to say, when Asha explained that the king and queen were actually evil, Gabo believed in a heartbeat.

- Because he’s a little person, Gabo is not expected to follow his father’s foot steps, and that makes him furious, because he wishes he could be seen as strong like he sees himself, but he’s constantly underestimated and treated like a kid.

He was the third one to met Asha

- During a kite festival in the kingdom, Dahlia, Simon and Asha were flying their kite when they noticed a boy sitting down on the grass, next to a broken kite.

- The boy looked very grumpy, so Asha tried offering him a hug, Gabo quickly pushed her away, saying he wanted to be left alone.

- Simon and Dahlia suggested they should just leave him be, but Asha insisted they should just give him some time to calm down.

- They sat a little bit far away from Gabo and started to just talk. Gabo appreciated that even though Asha didn’t even know him she was willing to wait for him to get some alone time and try to reach out for him later, most people just walked away when he had his anger episodes.

- After a few minutes, he got up and asked if he could play with them.

He will be the comedy relief, and the straightforward voice of reason

- Comedy relief is also an important role in a story, to alleviate the the tension and just be that one character that gives more contradictory remarks, otherwise everyone just agrees with each other and really where’s the fun in that?

- Also, after they figure out Simon betrayed them, he’d be the one who snaps Simon out of the idea that the king is a good person, throwing some facts to his face and like, not sugarcoating it, just straight up calling Simon out for being a dirty traitor, an awful friend and an absolute idiot, which may seem harsh but was exactly what Simon needed to hear to realize he was making a mistake.

- Like, Simon just opens the door apologizing in the verge of tears while Gabo keeps kicking his leg to let out his anger while everyone else is staring at Simon very disappointedly, comedy gold.

Bazeema 🥰

- Bazeema is 17 years old, who’s very shy.

-In this rewrite she is pretty much the same except for a little design and background change, you see, I found this piece of concept art

- Do you see it? Bazeema seems to be wearing a hijab, I like that, we don’t get enough Muslim representation, so there, Bazeema is Muslim and she wears a hijab now, her religion won’t affect anything in the narrative tho but I just wish they kept this detail in her design.

- Also I’m keeping that gimmick that sometimes she appears out of no where and scared the hell out of Gabo, because yeah I think it has comedic potential.

- She’s a very sweet and gentle girl, very soft spoken and likes to have some alone time once in a while “us introverts need sanctuary” as she said.

(She’s kinda like Fluttershy, see? I told you I’d mention more my little pony characters)

She’s the daughter of the royal gardeners

- Nothing much to it, Bazeema just saw the queen being rude to her mother once because the flowers were red instead of white. So again, when Asha sas the royal couple is evil she believes her just fine.

- Also she knows about a secret passage inside the palace’s garden, in the center of a hedge maze, that leads to inside the castle.

- Specifically to an underground storage room where her parents keep some gardening tools, but, if they can get in there, they might find a way to get inside the castle through the underground.

- She doesn’t mind following her parents footsteps at all, in fact, she loves the idea of just talking to flowers all day.

She’s the fourth one who Asha meets

- When Asha was 10, she and her friends went to watch a kids play telling the story of Rosas, Bazeema was playing the queen.

- But Bazeema got stage fright, and ran to the back of the stage, embarrassed that she forgot her lines

- Asha followed the sound of her crying and reassured her that it was alright and she could take as long as she needed to feel ready, and complemented that she looked beautiful in her Queen’s dress.

- Bazeema really appreciated that, and she went back on stage, although, she tried keeping her eyes closed to not see the crowd.

She’ll give important info on how to get inside the castle

- Like I mentioned before, Bazeema has info on how to get inside the castle through the garden, so she’ll just assist on that part of their plan.

- Also comedic relief, with her gimmick of disappearing then showing up out of nowhere.

Dario 💎

- Dario is 17 years old, and in this rewrite, he’s mute, not deaf tho, just mute, so he communicates through sign language. That’s to reference how Dopey, the dwarf he pays homage to, was also mute.

- I wouldn’t say Dario is dumb in my rewrite, he’s just really easily distracted, sometimes when his friends are talking he’ll just doze off and look at some flowers he finds along the way or collect rocks, and they don’t really mind.

- Dario is very emotionally intelligent tho, and among all the 7 teens, he’s one of the quickest to believe that Asha is innocent (Right after Dahlia)

He’s the son of the royal announcers

- Ya know those people with the big trumpets that give announcements to the kingdom? Yeah that’s what his parents do.

- Due to his disability Dario can’t really become an announcer, at least not a verbal one, he doesn’t really mind tho.

He’s the fifth one that Asha meets

- Asha was 11 when she and her friends met Dario, he was new in their class because he and his parents just moved to Rosas.

- Since he was mute, he had a really hard time making friends, so, Asha and her friends went to the library and found a book teaching about sign language

(I’m not gonna pretend you can actually learn ALL about sign language with just a book, I should know, I had ASL class in college, with a deaf teacher, and even then I don’t know even half of what there is to know, but this is a fantasy, so let’s pretend these kids learned the whole language, because it’s wholesome)

- So they make this effort to communicate with him and that makes Dario really happy, and he quickly joins the group.

He’ll be the silent comedic relief and also help creating a distraction for the king

- Most scenes when everyone is talking and focusing on more serious things, Dario is easily distracted and can be on the background doing the most random things, it’s not that he doesn’t care tho, he’s listening, and sometimes he comes up with creative ideas of his own.

- Also, as the son of the royal announcers, he goes tell them he has seen the star on the north side of the forest, his parents obviously believe him, and announce to the guards and the king, thus they can get inside while Aster distracts Magnifico.

Safi 🤧

- Safi is the youngest in the group, he’s 16 years old, and he has a tendency to sometimes not thinking before he speaks, so he kinda blurts out things that might come off as indelicate, but he never means to be rude. Also he’s allergic to EVERYTHING under the sun, so, of course, he sneezes a lot.

- I gave him this characteristic of blurting out things that he’s not supposed to say because it kinda reminds me of a sneeze, uncontrollable and sometimes inconvenient, but this way it gives him more character.

- Also if it was only Gabo saying inconvenient stuff and everyone else were saints this would be no realistic group of teenagers, teens are relentless when it comes to saying dumb stuff with each other y’all, they just don’t care.

- Safi is also a germophobic, always avoiding situations that might get him sick, like flowers, animals, dust, humidity, flour, the rain-

- And even though he’s terrified of everything that might give him a sneezing fit, his friends are always there to help him get through it.

He’s the son of two members of the cleaning staff

- So, as you can imagine, Safi really doesn’t want to follow his parents career path, with a job that is all about cleaning dust.

- One day, he was asked to help them clean the castle so he could at least try to learn something.

- While he was helping, the king showed up and started complaining with his parents that his study wasn’t clean enough

- While he was busy talking with them, he left something very important lying around.

- Safi saw the king’s magic staff leaning on the wall.

- Safi wanted to get a closer look, so while the king was distracted he approached the staff, but then, he felt it, a sneeze was coming up.

- He tried to hold it in but it was too late, Safi sneeze was so strong the staff got out of balance, and when it was about to hit the ground Magnifico managed to grab it just in time.

- Safi looked relieved and even chuckled to himself thinking the king would do the same. But the expression the king had was something he never seen from him before… Safi saw pure rage.

“DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU ALMOST DID? YOU WRETCHED BRAT! YOU COULD’VE ENDED ALL THE MAGIC IN ROSAS! I COULD’VE BEEN RUINED”

- Safi was pressed against a wall apologizing frantically and so were his parents.

- The king took a few deep breaths, and as if nothing happened his expression went back to his usual charismatic smile

“Maybe cleaning duty just isn’t your calling, lad. You’re dismissed from assisting for today, or any other day for that matter.”

- So Safi is not allowed inside the castle anymore.

He was the sixth that Asha met

- Safi was terrified during the festivals celebrating the foundation of Rosas, because the kingdom was decorated completely with, well, roses.

- There were roses everywhere, and he couldn’t stop sneezing with all the pollen in the air.

- Asha and her friends noticed him distressed, and decided to help him by taking Safi away from the kingdom.

- Safi was sad he couldn’t join in the party, but Asha and her friends said they could bring the party to him, so they danced and played instruments all day long.

This boy whose only personality trait was SNEEZING is literally the one who provides the info they need to defeat the villains, no, I’m not joking

- Like I mentioned before, Safi had a interaction with the king where he heard the king say “You could’ve ended all magic in Rosas” but he never understood what Magnifico meant by that.

- It’s not like all the king’s magic is stored in that one staff right?… but what if it is.

- When they’re coming up with a plan to defeat the king, Safi brings up this information, and there you have it, now they know what’s his weakness.

Hal 😄

- Hal is 17 year old, and judging by her earrings that resemble the “Jaaro dibbei” earrings from the Fulani tribe, so with that in mind, in this rewrite she came from Africa but moved to Rosas with her family as a kid.

- Hal is a very extroverted and joyful person, it’s rare to not see her smile, unless the situation really gets serious.

- Shes contagiously optimistic.

- Is often practicing her jokes with her friends, or just throwing some quick witted quips to lighten the mood.

(She’s a lot like Pinkie Pie… All the girls are My Little Pony references)

She’s the daughter of the royal entertainers

- Hal used to practice a lot of juggling and try acrobatics when she was little, but she quickly realized that kind of act wasn’t her calling

- She much prefers telling jokes and funny stories to the king and queen wherever her parents bring her with them to perform

- Hal noticed how the laughs and smiles the king and queen made during her acts always felt kinda forced, like they didn’t mean it.

- However the king would often burst with laughter whenever a performance from her parents went wrong, that always rubbed her the wrong way.

She was the last to met Asha

- When Asha was 13, she and her friends saw Hal practicing juggling near the forest, and she was really struggling with it.

- She told them she was really nervous because she had to be ready to perform for the royal couple in a few days.

- Asha suggested she should try a different kind of act, so she and her friends helped Hal come up with stories to narrate to the king.

- Hal discovered a new passion for story telling, and that became her new act.

She's the one who encourages Aster to confess his feelings

- Our Star Boy wasn’t actually that confident with confessing how he really felt about Asha, after all Aster knew that after granting her wish they would never see each other again, so what was the point in confessing?

- Hal encourages him with her optimism and explains that if he doesn’t tell her he’ll just regret it forever.

- That leads to the “At All Cost” scene

- So thank Hal for playing cupid

- Oh and Bazeema will help encourage Aster too

Final Thoughts

Welp this was a doozy one, but I’m pretty satisfied with how they turned out, everyone now feels like they got something to do and some actual backstories.

The way I’m planning to actually introduce in the story how they all met Asha is through a musical flashback that we see Asha going from a little kid to a teenager, think of it like the UP intro or “Do You Want To Build a Snowman”.

Like the movie would have in the beginning Asha’s grandpa reading to her the story of Rosas and we get a sweet scene of them interacting, then it cuts to this musical sequence (probably with no lyrics like in UP) where we see how Asha met each one of her friends, and also show how as time went on her grandfather grew more and more senile and dependent on her.

The sequence would end with Asha’s grandfather’s passing, and her friends being there to support her. Just like that in a flashback sequence with no dialogue we understand who are Asha’s friends, who was her grandfather, how Asha cares about all of them dearly, and with all that established the story begins.

Like can you imagine that? Introducing why we should care about Asha’s friends by showing to us who they are instead of just telling us and throwing them in the story with no explanation? What a concept, I’m sure glad a certain multibillion company didn’t just waste them…

Anyway, I’ll start actually sharing the chapters of my rewrite here pretty soon, I’m already confident enough to do it!

I was gonna first share a blog about how I’d reimagine Valentino buuuuuut I think it’s gonna be a pretty short blog that I can write later, and I can tell some people really want me to just tell the story already, and I want to start doing it too so let’s gooo!

Thank you so much for reading!

[lilyginnyblackv2]

Buddy Daddies - Episode 6 - Thought Post - SPOILERS!

First, we now know that it is May 27th, so Miri has been with Kazuki and Rei for about 5 months now. We are very squarely in the "several months later" time frame when the opening from Episode 1 would likely have occurred. (Since several is usually viewed as being between 4 - 7). I'm personally thinking that the opening bit from Episode 1 has likely already happened/passed, since Rei seems slightly (only slightly) more attentive, lol.

It's also interesting that the bulletin about the school trip used 父兄 (fukei) instead of 保護者 (hogosha). Both can mean guardians, but 父兄 (fukei) is seen as a bit more outdated and not as all encompassing as 保護者 (hogosha), since fukei is made up of the kanji for "father" and "older brother." It makes me wonder if that little reminder was aimed specifically at Kazuki and Rei, lol.

Also interesting that Kazuki used ママとも (mama-tomo) instead of ママたち (mama-tachi) or something similar when pluralizing and talking about "the other mothers" when saying "Of course, the other mothers all say the same about their kids." It implies that he sees himself in that group rather than outside of it.

I really liked how the focus of this episode was in having a bit more faith in your children (and in how you've gone about raising them) and also how children can behave differently in a school setting than at home. Since I have definitely seen that before with kids when I worked as a teacher. I would mention how well behaved they were or mention something behavior-wise during Parent-Teacher Conferences, and the parents would be surprised, since it was different from their at home behavior.

Taiga was interesting to me, especially because earlier in the episode Kazuki was mentions to Miri that she doesn't understand the difference between right and wrong yet, and many children her age are still learning that and really don't know (also, just realizing that this was said over an image of Rei, highlighting the fact that he is still kind of learning this as well). 

I feel like that was Taiga. We learn later that he is a big Morio Kart fan, but he must have had the impression that the others weren't, so he might have acted out a bit in order to get their attention (the other girls). I had a boy, also named Taiga, who used to behave a bit similarly. He was a big fan of zombies, but none of the other kids were, so he acted out in order to get attention and fit in.

The miscommunication between what actually happened (Miri accidentally hit his hand) vs. one of the caretakers thought a fight had occurred, is a very true and accurate thing as well. Young kids Miri's age can communicate their thoughts and feelings, but they may have a tough time communicating it properly still. 

Like, Miri knew she didn't hit Taiga and that there hadn't been a fight, but she didn't know how to fully explain it to Kazuki, and likely a similar thing happened with the caretaker at the daycare. They eventually got it all straightened out though.

I love, love, love that Rei was the one who read through the notebook at the end. And how he took Miri to school with little complaint. He really is wrapped right around Miri and Kazuki's fingers and will go at their pace, huh (like the lyrics of the OP). But, I also think it highlights the ways in which Rei is becoming more proactive too. He seems more engaged with being an actual parent.

I can't really explain it well here either, but there is something subtle about the writing that really captures and shows how, with each passing episode, they are becoming more and more like a family. Rei and Kazuki's conversation in the car at the end of the episode felt like a very real conversation that parents would have at the end of the day. I felt they did a good job of making Miri and Taiga's friendship feel like a friendship too, and not any kind of 4 year old crush situation (regardless of what Kazuki's overactive imagination might think!)

Last week's episode introduced us to Kazuki's overactive imagination and his flaw of jumping to conclusions, but this week's episode showed how that could negatively impact Miri. I'm glad he has Rei to reel him in, though him imagining Miri as a delinquent girl made me laugh. Though, I am sincerely hoping that Miri turns out to be a lesbian otherwise Kazuki being so overprotective will turn into an issue in the future. Hopefully, Rei will be able to work on that with him over the years.

The above image, of a teen Miri with a teen Taiga also reminds me of an incident when I was working at as a shadow trainer for an ALT at a junior high school in Kawasaki City in Kanagawa Prefecture. The school’s in that area don’t have a great reputation, so while the ALT I was training was teaching a class, I was outside the halls, just going for a little walk. Then I saw two of the students (a boy and a girl) go into the bathrooms together. They had made it clear previously that they were dating, so I just ended up turning around and going in the other direction, because I had zero desire to get involved in any of that - as ALTs you can’t discipline students). 

Rei had some absolutely stellar comedic moments this episode from him asking Miri how the fight went and not caring about the violence (which makes sense given his upbringing). To Kazuki mentioning that Miri got their genes and Rei's reply of "Our what?" (Dude was 100% questioning his understanding of biology and genetics right then), to him adding the "paca" verbal tic at the end of one of his sentences, even after they were out of the mascot outfits, seems he got too in-character, lol. 

His smug expression whenever Miri preferred him was also unexpected but great! 

Oh, also! Before I forget, Miss Anna is a gem and she must have been so worried when she couldn’t find Miri and the others! Anyway, I hope the rest of the field trip was a breeze for her. <3

[cross-my-heartt]

Alright, I’m saying it

I hate what they did with Crosshair in season three

Yes, the entirety of season three, barring maybe only the first three episodes. Let me elaborate.

I’ve been seeing people be more open about criticizing the finale and it’s given me the push to be more open about my own thoughts. And since I still advertise myself as a Crosshair girlie, I think this is a good place to start.

I really honestly don’t like the majority of what they did with Crosshair’s character this season. And yes, that includes the hand tremors. From the myriad things that felt out of character for him to making him a walking exposition dump, to completely stripping him of his more interesting qualities I honestly struggle to see him as the same character I loved right up until the end of season two.

I almost understand why so many people have come around on him – it’s because he’s a completely different character. We’re meant to believe that his time on Tantiss and Hemlock’s attempted reconditioning has changed him as a person. Which is all fine and dandy until you realize that this new character we get feels more like he’s gone through therapy rather than trauma.

New Crosshair is much more agreeable. He’s mild, he rolls over at the first sign of conflict, he talks about his emotions at the drop of a hat and there’s barely any meaningful tension between him and the other characters (not one that’s not forced anyways).

And my question is, why? If we’re just going to use off screen trauma (off. screen. trauma???) to change characters willy nilly then what even is the point of watching a show?

Say I suddenly wanted to make Wrecker this very angry character with a short fuse and I decide that he got an injury off screen that’s causing him chronic pain. It makes sense logically while at the same time making zero sense for him, even less so if you don’t see it play out, because it erases core parts of the character that we already know.

One of the first things Crosshair does in tcw is start a fight. Crosshair has always been a belligerent guy. He literally responds to being hurt by attacking. Where is that combativeness now? I would even go as far as to say that he’s been the primary source of conflict for the group since season one and I don’t even mean that in a bad way. Crosshair bites back. He hides pain by trying to inflict it, he talks back, he challenges, he digs his heels in to the point of proactively making bad life choices.

And the reason why he’s worked so well in this team so far is because his tendencies were counteracted by those around him, right up until the inevitable rift caused by the chip. I could go on about Wrecker and Tech but we all know that the main counterbalance, Crosshair’s foil here, is Hunter. Hunter is supposed to be the one that deescalates, they’ve gotten along so far because he’s the one that handled rising tensions (it’s the reason he’s the leader of their group to begin with. Remember who deescalated that fight in tcw? Remember who started it?) Where Crosshair pushes, Hunter puts a stop to it. Where Crosshair attacks, Hunter deflects, maybe sometimes too much.

And these first two season have felt like they were steadily building towards a confrontation between these two. We wanted Hunter to snap at Crosshair on Pabu because we’ve been craving it. This whole time Crosshair’s been saddled with more and more trauma, unresolved tensions from as far back as season one (which we all seem to have forgotten about as if that story never happened, tldr I’m still bitter no one addressed the Crosshair being abandoned subplot, hello remember that) while the narrative has simultaneously been stripping Hunter of his patience; months of anxiety and frustration and stress chipping away at him and wearing him down so that we can finally get to see these characters clash. The perfect recipe for all of that tension exploding and being set loose.

And what did we get instead?

A tiny little spat. An argument that gets interrupted before fizzling out (because Crosshair can talk about feelings all of a sudden). We got Hunter in the exact right position only for the show to purposefully strip Crosshair of his characteristic belligerence because apparently we don’t want to see any conflict. It’s like they’re teasing us – look Hunter’s on the verge of snapping but Crosshair’s the bigger man now so we don’t get to see that! Why??? What part of that was satisfying?? We got Crosshair pushing back for the tiniest of seconds and resolved two seasons of tension in half an episode. Where they had to fight a giant worm. In what universe is that a satisfying conclusion.

The only reason I can think of is that this mirror development is supposed to be some kind of irony or subversion but honestly that explanation falls so flat in the face of our expectations as an audience.

And the thing is, I think even the authors realized that they had nuked their most intriguing character. Because once they removed his established response to trauma, which was all of those wonderfully complex emotional reactions, they realized they needed to manifest it in some other way. So we got the hand tremors.

Now Crosshair doesn’t get angry or stubborn he just gets jittery. And I know this sounds dismissive but the only reason that is is because the show itself deals with it in a completely ham-fisted and surface-level way.

I hated the hand tremor subplot. Me. Someone who spent two years being disabled because of neural damage to my hands that prevented me from doing the hobbies I used to define myself as a person. Someone who spent two years depressed and dysfunctional because of the loss of identity and purpose I suffered because of that disability.

So no I’m not fucking happy that they used something as serious as ptsd to spice up a character they themselves made bland in the first place. For no reason other than a subplot that went literally nowhere. A subplot that was shish kebabed after an underwhelming fight scene.

Don’t even get me started on the pun level writing of chopping said hand off.

But back to Crosshair… or what’s left of him after this season (see I can make a pun too). Crosshair was already interesting enough as a character without the added hand tremor subplot and I'm dying on that hill.

The thing is, they were so intent on pushing this new, watered down version of Crosshair that even more reasonable, level-headed characters had to be thrown under the bus, made irrationally aggressive next to him to try and make us believe it. I have a lot to say about Howzer this season but the only thing I’ll say for now is that he’s the most prominent victim of this, along with his entire retconned season one plotline.

And speaking of victims, I can’t help but feel like I need to apologize to all the Tech fans out there once again. Because what I think actually happened is that Tech was never the writers’ favorite and was never meant to get any sort of satisfying conclusion.

That was always Crosshair.

The focal point of season one. The most prominent source or drama and conflict. The character who drove the plot forward even when he appeared in a fraction of episodes. The character who got the most development (even if that development spiraled wildly out of control at the end). Nearly every major subplot in this show happened in relation to or in favor of Crosshair’s arc. Tech’s death. Omega’s capture. The CX clones. The hand tremors. All of the meaningful developments and events reserved for two characters in this show, Omega and Crosshair. (Some would argue Hunter as well but really, did Hunter get any development as a character? Spoiler alert, a happy ending is not the same as a character arc.)

My guess is that this was always meant to be the case. The writers just weren’t prepared for the fans’ response to Tech’s death, it caught them off guard, and here’s one more reason why I think creators should stay away from social media or any kind of prolonged fan interaction. Because all it got us in the end was some form of cruel teasing, them trying to ride the wave of attention and thinking their original plans would make up for it when that wave inevitably crashed.

But anyway.

What happens when you dump a bunch of pain and suffering onto a character with a problematic response to adversity? Apparently it makes them emotionally intelligent, at least according to this show. Crosshair in season three feels like a shadow of his former self – the combativeness and complex emotional responses that made him so interesting to begin with are gone, replaced with a ham-fisted manifestation of trauma that gets resolved in an equally ham-fisted way.

And I’m just not on board with that. Nor will I ever be. Even if you give me all the supposed emotional payoffs, hugs or whatever.

[supercap2319]

Too Hot to Handle

Archie Andrews x Male Reader

A/N: Smut. Just smut. Porn with plot.

Y/N was hot. It seemed the weather in Riverdale was trying to suffocate him in its intense heat. He was sweating all over his body and his underwear was probably now stuck to his ass. How gross. He threw the blankets and comforters off him as he got up and walked towards his window to let in the cool night air. Hopefully, it will cool up in here after that.

Y/N went to open up his window and saw that Archie had his own window opened up already. He must have been trying to beat the heat, too. It was funny. He had been window mates with Archie since they were kids. Archie was a year older than him, the same age as his older sister Betty. So, it wasn’t all that surprising to see Archie at his window, playing his guitar or walking around shirtless. Y/N wonders if Archie knows about the free peep shows he gives Y/N. How he walks around his room with clothes, and sometimes without them.

Kevin once made a comment: ‘Game-changer! Archie got hot! He's got abs now! Six more reasons for you to take that ginger bull by the horns tonight, Y/N.’ The young Cooper boy blushed and turned away from Archie, pulling his shirt down and looking at his phone.

Now here he was, the same window. Same position. Only no Archie Andrews.

Or maybe there could be….

He opens his window and goes to his nightstand as he unlocks his phone as he opens a new message and texts Archie. Hey, Arch? Are you awake?

He waits for a few minutes before three dots show up before Archie texts him back. Yeah. Shouldn’t you be, I don’t know, sleeping? 🤨

Y/N chuckles as he texts back. I should be. But it’s fucking hot. I couldn’t sleep.

Me too. I’m sleeping in a shirt and underwear.

Bet you’d look better with no shirt or underwear on. 😉

Oh, really? Maybe I’ll give you a private show right now. Go to your window.

Y/N frowns as he puts his phone down and walks towards his window as he waits before he sees activity in Archie’s room as he spies the ginger haired boy coming to his window and even though it’s dark outside; he can still see Archie’s smile as he winks. Y/N watches as Archie begins to slow sway his body back and forth like a male dancer and it’s obvious that he’s seen Magic Mike one too many times, as he rolls his body and his hands travel down to the hem of his shirt as he slowly pulled it up and Y/N got a view of those gorgeous abs of his as Archie pulls it all the way off his head and runs as hand through his hair with a smile.

If he wasn’t hard before, he certainly was now, as he couldn’t believe that Archie Andrews, the boy next door, would do something so proactive. The way Archie ran a hand down smooth skin and muscle and pinched his lips as he moans softly as Y/N palms himself through his underwear as he moans. Their relationship was about being best friends who flirted, but Y/N definitely had a crush on Archie even before was old enough to know what a crush was. Y/N assumed that he had no chance with him because he was straight, but now he wasn’t so sure. Archie then begins to pull his underwear down slowly as he teased Y/N until they’re all the way now and he’s as bare as the day he was born.

Y/N probably would have cum right then and there at the hot sight, and it only got better as Archie took his flaccid cock in his hands and began to stroke it off to Y/N, watching him and man that was hot. Seeing Archie pump his cock at his window was something out of a bad pornographic film. It was completely phallic.

He watched as the ginger boy ran a thumb over the head and assumed it was starting to leak precum, and Y/N wished nothing more than to be in Archie’s room right now. Y/N grabs his phone and shoots him a text. Can I come over?

Almost immediately, he got a response. Yes!!! My dick wants your pretty boy mouth.

Y/N’s dick hardens in his underwear as he puts on shorts and shoes, not bothering with a shirt as he sneaks out of his room and walks downstairs and out the door to the Andrew residence and finds the front door unlocked as he quietly entered the house and walks the stairs towards Archie’s room. Making sure not to wake up, Mr. Andrews as walks inside his son’s room.

Archie is bathed in the light of the moon and he looks so beautiful like that. Naked in the moonlight. Definitely hot werewolf material. He walks closer as the older boy smirks at him. “You showed up here pretty quickly.”

“Well, I had to come over and pay for my hot strip show, didn't I?” Y/N got closer to Archie and stroked his chest. “Though I don’t have any twenties with me. Or fifties.” Archie smiles. “That’s okay. I’m sure there are other ways for you to repay me.” He traced a finger over Y/N’s lips as the other boy opened his mouth and sucked on it seductively as Archie moaned softly.

Y/N pulled off as Archie’s eyes darken with lust. “How about you get on your knees for me?” Y/N slowly sank to his knees in front of his best friend, not taking his eyes off him as he did. He was at the same level as Archie’s cock, and it certainly had grown up as well. Much different from all the time, Y/N saw Archie’s cock when they were kids changing their wet swimming trunks or taking baths together.

Reaching out a hand, Y/N wrapped his fingers around Archie’s dick and began to pump the hot ginger boy. He felt it begin to grow in his hand as the Andrews male moaned in pleasure. Y/N stroked Archie like he would his own manhood, but rougher, and twisted his hand at the head as it began to wet his palm with precum. All wet and slick as he went faster as Archie groaned.

He placed his lips on the mushroom head and gave it a kiss as the cock jumped underneath his touch. “Stop teasing me, Y/N,” Archie warns as the younger male opens his mouth and wraps his lips around Archie’s hard prick. Archie whines as he feels Y/N’s hot mouth on his cock. Y/N licks all around the member underneath the shaft and swirls his tongue on the head as he begins to bob his head back and forth. The only sounds that can be heard are Archie’s cries and the slurping noises of Y/N on his dick.

Y/N puts a hand down his own shorts and stroking his own hard on as he continues to suck Archie off. This was so hot. This was like all the wet dreams that he had, except he was blowing Archie in his room, and not in the showers after practice at school. Archie runs a hand through his hair and raked his nails over his scalp. “Ooh, nice pretty boy sucks really good cock. Can I fuck your mouth, Y/N?”

Y/N pulls off for a second and nods. “Yeah, Arch. Please?” His voice is hoarse as Archie reinserted his cock inside his mouth as he began to thrust his hips. Y/N feels Archie slide in and out of his mouth as the older boy grabs a fist full of his hair and begins to pick up speed as he fucks his mouth. While he was doing this, Y/N was snaking his fingers over Archie’s smooth and muscled ass as he gave it a firm squeeze before he snuck a finger between his ass. He teased his cheeks, Archie spread his legs allowing Y/N more access to tease his hole as Archie got even hornier and began to go faster and hard as he face fucked him.

Pretty soon, Archie was close. “I’m going to cum, Y/N. Gonna shoot inside your mouth.” Y/N hummed as Archie cried out as he spilled inside Y/N, flooding his mouth with hot cum. The young Cooper boy swallowed most of it, but some of it dropped from his mouth and that was a hot sight to Archie. Y/N wiped his mouth as Archie helped him to his feet and smiled. “Was that a good enough payment?”

Archie mirrored his smile. “It was. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I should probably go unless you want to continue further?” Y/N asked as Archie looked at him. “You really want to?”

Y/N nods. “I do. I've always wanted to know what it would be like to be fucked by you.”

Archie was shocked, but turned on as well as he turned Y/N around and pushed him down towards the window. He pulled Y/N’s shorts and underwear down as he kicked off his shoes. as he felt Archie’s hands on his ass cheeks. Y/N bit his lips as he felt Archie’s hot breath on his hole. It clenched underneath the warm air as Archie chuckled. “You’ve thought about this, huh? Did you also fantasize about me rimming you, too?”

Y/N nods. “Yeah. In my bed. In the shower.”

“Well, let’s make that fantasy a reality.” Y/N sucked in a harsh breath as he felt Archie’s tongue inside his hole. He groaned and laid his head on the panel of the open window. If only his family could see this. Getting his ass eaten out by Archie Andrews as the hot ginger wiggled his tongue inside his walls and slowly opened him up as his hand traveled down to stroke his cock, but Archie slapped it away. “Unh-uh-uh-uh. No pleasuring yourself. That's my job, baby.” Y/N shivers at the nickname as Archie stops rimming him and stroking his cock from behind before putting it in his mouth and sucking on it.

Y/N moans as Archie alternates between his cock and hole. He’s getting a rim and blowjob at the same time, and his senses are getting overwhelmed. Y/N closes his eyes as he feels fingers enter him. Y/N throws his head back and grips the side of the windowsill tightly. “Oh god, Archie!” Y/N whined. “Feels good?” Y/N nods.

“Yeah. How are you so good at gay sex?”

“Lots of porn. Advice from Kevin. I really wanted to do this with you and I studied up,” Archie said as he began to thrust his fingers into his hole. After a few minutes of fingering, he pulled his fingers out. Y/N is all hard and horny as he licks his lips. “Hey, Arch?”

“Yeah, Y/N?”

“Can you fuck me against your bedroom wall?” Y/N blushed as Archie smirks. “Oh, you have a wall sex kink, hmm?” He stands Y/N up and kisses him on the lips. “Anything you want you, baby.” He pushed him towards the wall and lifted him up as Y/N wraps his legs securely around his waist as Archie positions his cock towards Y/N’s hole as he slowly enters him. Y/N shuttered as put his head on Archie’s shoulder. “You’re so big, Andrews.”

“Who knew a pretty boy like you could talk so dirty?” Archie continued until he was all the way in before pulling out and slamming back in as Y/N yelped. Archie starts at a slow pace as he feels his cock push Y/N’s tight barriers away. He’s really tight. Y/N moves his head to look at Archie as they share another kiss as the older male begins to go faster and harder. Y/N moans against Archie’s lips as he thrusts in and out of him. He’s like a beast in heat as he slammed his cock into him as Y/N holds onto him for dear life as he feels the cocktip hit his tight ring of muscle and that special spot that has Y/N seeing stars.

The wall makes noises as Archie fucks Y/N over and over again as he moans. Y/N feels Archie hit his prostate, and he’s in pure ecstasy. The ginger then carried him off the wall and onto his bed as he lays Y/N down and puts his legs over his shoulders as he begins to fuck him once again. The way he rolls his hips into him, snapping them forward as he hits Y/N’s special shot as Y/N moans out his name. Archie is sweating as his thrusts get sloppier and harder. “I’m close. I’m so close, Y/N.”

“Cum Arch. Cum inside me. Pump me with your load.” Y/N said. Archie closes his eyes. "Ah, shit!” He shoots his load inside Y/N, flooding his wall with sticky semen. Archie rides his high as he groans. “Wow, Archie. That was hot.”

“It was. But you still need release.” Archie wasted no time and engulfed Y/N’s length down to the root, sucking his cock good and fast as Y/N arched his back and tugged on his hair. “Oh, Archie, I’m gonna… cum!” Archie sucks harder and bobs his head as Y/N closes his eyes and cums in Archie’s mouth, spilling his pearly white load as some of it hits Archie’s face. Y/N comes down from his high as he looks at Archie with cum on his face, bathed in moonlight. “Damn, Archie. You look good with cum on your face.”

“And your tight ass looks good, filled to the brim with cum.” Archie lays down on top of him as Y/N rubs his back. “Can I sleep over? I’m too tired and too sore to move.” Archie chuckles and kisses him as he holds him close. “Of course. Don’t want my boyfriend to walk home with an ass full of cum.”

Y/N chuckles.

[serial-serializednovelreader]

Nova’s Notes - DD - May 8th

That’s right, I’m deciding to give my thoughts a cheesy name because why not (also it’s late oops).

So this may be one of my favorite entires of the entire book. My first go-around it was for the mirror-yeet scene (because that’s iconic) and Dracula being The Housekeeper of all timeTM, but now it’s also one of my favorites because of how much we learn about Jonathan.

They say you learn the most about a person when they’re in crisis mode, and while I don’t always think that’s true, Stoker definitely wanted to let Jonathan’s personality shine through here.

From the first passage, he’s literally guessed that Dracula is undead. “I fear I am the only living soul here.” Sure, he might mean that he’s the only present soul, if Dracula’s left the building, but since he describes the mirror yeeting scene right after…idk, I’d like to think he knows way more than we ever gave him credit for. “Clueless Jonathan” who? Is the clueless in the room with us?

Also going back to the first sentence where he describes worrying he was getting too wordy, but now being glad he did…oof. I feel for him here. If my theory is correct that he was initially writing in a more detailed way for Mina so he could remember his travels for later…I’m sure it’s hitting him now that while it may be saving his life that he’s more detailed, it’s so twisted that something he did as a note of affection has soured. I wonder if he’s thinking about how he may never get out of this, or if that hasn’t fully hit him yet.

Moving on to everyone’s favorite mirror-yeet scene, think about how Jonathan reacts when he’s caught off guard by Dracula because he didn’t see his reflection. How would most protagonists react? Probably laugh nervously and brush it off. Attribute it to some mistake on his part, which is exactly what Jonathan does *at first*. But after, he looks at Dracula and then looks back at the mirror to confirm his suspicions are correct, which they are. It’s an interesting moment and not one I think we see often at the beginning of a horror story (I don’t consume much horror though, so correct me if I’m wrong!). Usually, a character won’t get to this level of observation until towards the middle/end, when more supernatural elements have occurred. Jonathan may have second guessed his instincts, but checking them again is what makes him more likely to survive Castle Dracula.

Plus, when Dracula makes a move to attack him, his first instinct is to dodge the attack, showing that he’s not just going to freeze up at the first sign of trouble (which I want to emphasize isn’t a problem normally, but he is dealing with a thousands-of-years-old vampire…so, he has to be quick on his feet to survive).

Afterwards, he says he is annoyed at losing his mirror rather than disturbed, but I saw another post saying he’s repressing his panic as annoying (I’ll link it if I find it again) and I definitely think that’s true!! I can totally see that as his coping mechanism. Plus, compared to the rest of what happens for him today, it really is more of an annoyance than anything else. Would you rather your host throw away your mirror or lock you in a castle?

So after that horrific scene of terror, Jonathan is proactive in searching the castle. After finding a beautiful — but slightly horrifying landscape (you know it’s bad when he doesn’t stop to describe the view) — he decides to explore further, which leads him to figure out almost every other door is locked, including the front one to find, yep you guessed it…he’s a prisoner in the castle.

As I imagine most people would, at first he reacts by frantically running around trying to open locked doors like “a rat does in a trap.” The fact that he admits this in his diary (and, by extension to Mina/us) is admirable because it already shows he’s not afraid to be open about his emotions, even if it makes him look weak (which — unfortunately, he would, considering the time period). Most heroes of this period were expected to accept their fates with stoic determination, but that’s not human and that’s not how Jonathan is, either. We’ve already seen that he’s more open-minded than most English men by accepting the crucifix even if he doesn’t understand it and of course the way he shows his love for Mina is atypical for Victorian men as well. Most men wouldn’t go to the trouble of writing down descriptive notes just to recount it for the benefit of his fiancée later. It’s sad, but true.

Once he’s able to regulate himself a bit, it’s time for thinking and strategy, determining that he needs all of his wits to get through this! Once he sees that the Count does the cooking AND the cleaning, though, is when my love for Jonathan reaches an all-time high. He comes to a series of conclusions most protagonists don’t figure out until the end of a novel after way more obvious clues have been laid out for him and it’s only his 3rd day of being in the castle!! They go as follows:

A) Dracula = servants

B) Dracula = driver

C) Dracula = control wolves

D) Villager’s concern/gifts = this is worse than I thought

E) Crucifix = actual help?

F) Get Dracula to talk about himself (not hard) = find more information, but not in an obvious way

I also love that he questions his own biases about the crucifix he was given!!!! When else do you see an Englishman do that in the 1890s of his own volition (aka without someone snarkily telling him to - see BBC’s Dracula if you want an example). I certainly haven’t!

He also noticed that Drac talked about his “ancestors” as if he had been present for their battles (hmm wonder why that is). Hasn’t quite figured it out yet, but there’s evidence that he doesn’t write something down as a fact until he knows it is a fact, so perhaps we’ll see him write more on this later.

Final thought - his reference to Arabian Nights and Hamlet is significant and tragic, but also relatable. I too like to relate my life to my favorite blorbos, Jonathan!

All in all, we learned that Jonathan is very good in a crisis. He’s not stoic like most protagonists of his time period, but he is instead strategic and observant, willing to play the part of oblivious to keep himself alive another day and keep Dracula’s trust. This is likely what’s keeping him alive right now, as an aggressive approach would get him killed. Dracula is all about playing with his prey and keeping the illusion of benevolent host and willing guest — it’s a game of control for him. Breaking this game would mean it’s no fun and no fun would mean Jonathan is no longer needed….

While I know how this story goes, I’m as excited as first time readers to see how Jonathan plays what is, essentially, 4D chess with Dracula!

[thecameronchronicles]

Protective, Proactive

TW: Smut. Language. Bitchy Kook Reader. Choking kink. Spit kink. 

SUMMARY: Rafe shows his approval for your rejection of a specific pogue…

WORD COUNT: 2900

REQUESTED

How about a smut request where Rafe sees JJ flirting with Kook!Reader, but the reader is all about Rafe and turns JJ down, but he won’t give up and then Rafe eventually has to step in and is all protective 🤭 you know I’m a whore for some protective!Rafe hehe

PROTECTIVE, PROACTIVE

Some people just don't know when to stop. 

This was the thought that Rafe had as he watched the oblivious and desperate Maybank shoot his shot with you. In the belief his dimples and overused one-liners would be enough to sway your focus, your boyfriend's eyes only sharpened. But not because you had entertained JJ for even a moment, but because he was relentless. You had begun your objections kindly, him having misinterpreted your acceptance of a drink as having been one for an illicit invitation as well. It was this that kept him veiling vulgar comments as jokes of how you appeared in your chosen ensemble showing off your curves. It was a detail Rafe knew well. Those curves. Your curves. Not an inch of your body left untouched by him. 

Such thoughts being the only thing to keep him from charging across the scene and against the pogue who he already had reason to loathe as a birthright. But your initial kind rejections were ignored or overlooked as he became more brazen. Fingers in an excuse to touch you as he made an excuse to be near you, all while you flashed a look of validation to Rafe. 

It left you both in consideration to moments before the party had begun…

"Can't we just stay here?" Rafe groaned on the edge of his bed as you hesitated before the mirror to finalize your appearance. A Kook through and through, you were trained to know your presentation was the billboard of your family name and legacy. One wrong word or glance and you would be responsible for rumors being conceptualized for the sake of entertainment. But they held enough damage throughout the entirety of the Outer Banks. Which was why you ensured the lines of your makeup were precise and your hair was effortlessly soft yet styled, before you made your way to your impatient boyfriend. 

Every single second spent perfecting your appearance having been done in vain for two reasons. The first having been because he always saw you as beautiful. And the second for the way he planned to be the reason for ruin behind your makeup and tousled hair. The imagery of your locks pulled into a makeshift ponytail through a white knuckled grip made his jaw clench as you stood between his legs.

"It's your party Rafe.. "

"It's Sarah's party. Which means all those fucking pogues are going to be here too…" You set your hands on his cheeks, either side met with a soft but firm means to summon his focus to you. 

"Then just focus on me, baby…" You kissed him sweetly, more a peck than a buss he expected. For that, he pulled you back into him. 

"Rafe-"

"If you want me to focus on you, I'm going to have a fucking hard-on all night. So you're going to give me a little something until you can take care of me properly, yeah?" You didn't fight the way he pulled you over his lap into that familiar straddle. Fingers slow to climb your naked thighs and below your dress as he rounded your ass and panties set over his fingertips. A snap of the fabric made you gasp. 

"If it was up to me, you'd never wear panties ever again…"

"Rafe-"

He lifted you with a strong grip setting you just high enough to descend into his fingers. The thick digit slow as your face pulled apart in a slacked expression of pleasure. 

"Don't worry, I'll still let you. Don't want everyone knowing how beautiful you look dripping for me…" He set a second finger beside the first, the cold ring set just beyond his knuckle now a barrier to his slow penetrations. 

"And there's no way in hell they get to see how fucking sexy you look when you come. All those dirty little things you call me…all those positions you let me put you in…" He smirked at the memories flooding him at once. Not a position or angle he didn't make pleasurable somewhere, somehow. 

"I thought…I was supposed to…give you a little…something…" You strained to speak as he basked in how quickly he had an effect over you. You were willing to ride him to an orgasm this way. Synonymous to his greed this way. 

"Believe me, baby…this IS giving me a little something-"

"Definitely not little…" You moaned, the thought of his cock offering you pleasure having been enough to make you tremble in the companionship of his quickening fingers. 

"You don't have to flatter me baby…I know how much you love riding me…can't get enough…can you?" You shook your head. 

"And I love giving my baby what she wants…so tell me…what do you want?"

"You!" You groaned, pleasure approaching quickly. The wave cresting your shore rapidly as he withdrew. 

"If I let you come now, will you still take me with the enthusiasm as if I make you wait?"

"I promise! Rafe-"

"Save your begging for tonight baby…You'll need it…"

He continued to guide you over him. The way your inner walls consumed his fingers had been reason enough for him to continue. The way he knew the exact speed and precise depth was nearly an art he took to heart, all for the face you made now. But he wanted to relish in every detail of your orgasmic release. The perfect construction of need and relinquishment ij your wide eyes heavy with silent beckoning. The parting of your lips incapable of taking a steady breath and muttering his name alongside pleas he simply ignored. And finally, the tightness of your body loosening when knowing he planned to grant that release. 

But not quite yet. 

"Rafe-" 

"Give me something to picture while I pretend to give a shit about anything but how you're going to repay me…" 

"RAFE!" His expression illuminated with approval at how deep you had dove into despair. If he hadn't held you against him with that steady arm, you'd have been thrashing mercilessly in the ride made from his fingers. His hand came across your cheek for stabilization. A soft kiss turning sultry with the tourism of his tongue in a mission to endorse your own to glide against his. Once you had, he deepened the kiss further. 

"That's it, baby, let me take care of you…" He was tender to you, focusing on only your pleasure as you shook over his lap. 

"I want you-" 

"And you'll have me. All of me. Until you cry for me like you always do so perfectly…so sweetly.. ' He clenched his jaw. "but I can wait. I know it'll be well worth it…" He explained once you came down from your tremors, eyes sparking with mischief as your mind came to wonder just how could reward him with yet another toe curling orgasm. 

He had come to regret these words now as he ached at the memory as well as his JJ believed he would have you in that way as well. Even as your eyes remained to him, JJ seemed careless or ignorant to this. It was clear your interest remained solely to your boyfriend as you were devoted and loyal as he had been to you. And even if he knew you could handle yourself, Rafe wanted to remind you all you needed was him. Just as all he'd ever needed was you. 

"Aren't you tired of being rejected, JJ?" He couldn't help but insult as you set your palms to his chest to keep Rafe at bay. He didn't need a reason to make a fist against JJ, but you wouldn't even have to ask. The fact you were uncomfortable has been reason enough. 

"Just showing her the better option-"

"Really, Rafe, it's fine…"

"For sure…" JJ winked as Rafe chucked his jaw to the side. 

"You can look all you want Maybank, but you won't ever get to lay a finger on her."

"I don't need to to make her scream for me." Your eyes rolled at the graphic detail as you turned to face JJ. You were able to keep most of your comments against the pogues in reserve. But this specific annoyance had played on your last nerve. 

"The only sound you will ever make me make is a groan of annoyance. I doubt you could make me moan, let alone come…besides," You pressed yourself into Rafe's side, a hand proudly in possession in a flat palm over his heart. 

"I have more than enough. And I do mean more than…" Rafe beamed. 

"How would you even know if you don't give me a chance, sweetheart?" You chuckled, taking a step closer to him, all while Rafe watched on in pride. 

"The way you kept pushing up on me left little to be desired JJ…VERY little." He blushed. Even if it hadn't been true, he was still smaller than Rafe. And it was enough to finally wear down his continual tries. 

But only for a moment. 

"Bitch…" This single word was enough to send Rafe turning back in his direction.  You were quick to pull at Rafe's bicep before he could rage against JJ. You didn't want to have to clean up his knuckles or make excuses for his hotheaded behavior. Instead, you wanted to act on just how aroused his possessive protectiveness made you. Just as it has always done. 

"I know you don't like it when I-" You silenced Rafe with a kiss while leading him through the steps of Tannyhill and towards his bedroom. You made only a few steps of an incline before being ascended around him. 

"You like when I defend you?" You nodded. 

"You don't have to…"

"I know this pussy belongs to me, baby…" He explained while tossing you to the end of the bed and leading you to it's edge. 

"It cries so pretty for me. Almost as pretty as you do…" His eyes set to you as he pulled either of your legs over his shoulders. 

"Almost." His tongue was making stripes of a slow savor. He managed to make your eyes flutter closed at the immediate devouring made at your sex. He managed to savor you with care while making a mess with pride. He favored you this way for him. Eager. Vulnerable. Desperate. But quivering. And he knew just how long it took to make you that way. Twelve rushed whisps over your clit, twenty one thrusts, only because he took his time in teasing, and eight penetrations of his fingers if they were bent. He could make you come quickly but efficiently. But this was when he wasn't making a point. He wanted to enjoy you in every context. Every motion. 

"Rafe, please, I'm gonna come!"

"Mmmhmm…" His eyes narrowed over your stomach as it rose and fell in sporadic spasms to your release. As he lifted from you, licking you from his fingers, you brought him closer to you. He hovered over you, leading you to sit upright once again by only a hand wrapped around your throat. Yet this was only done as a means of guidance as you both favored the dominance made of such an exercise. 

"Open." You obliged, well aware this has been an instruction to quell a mutual kink. 

"Swallow." You obeyed, his eyes blown wide with approval yet low with lust. The hand around your throat wrapped in your hair, pulling it into a grip you both knew well. 

"You always listen so well for me-"

"I want to please you…to make you happy." 

"You really do, don't you?" You nodded. "Telling off JJ-"

"I only want you, Rafe." He nodded, allowing you the close of distance before taking his lips to a tease across your own. 

"And I want you to taste yourself." You moved to kiss him, but he pulled you back by your hair. 

"From earlier." He motioned to the bulge made against his shorts. 

"I already know how sweet you are. Sweeter that you're mine…and even more that you know it…" You nodded. "But I want you to know what I find so damn addictive-"

"I want to make you come-" You whined. 

"You know how I feel about your whining…But fuck, you make everything sound so good…shit…" He groaned. "Just a minute on your knees for me…just to taste ..and then you're gonna ride me baby….just like I know he thought about." He scoffed. "like he'll never get because…"

"Because I'm yours " He beamed with pride. 

"And now he knows it. I know it. But show me you understand." You nodded as you opened your throat to him. The natural rejection of your body was ignored as you breathed deeply, taking him proudly as he growled for your motions. 

"You're so fucking proud to be mine, aren't you? Crying over me ..choking for me…fuck baby ..I want you in every way…" 

You nodded as he pulled you upwards but onto your feet. Kissing away a tear on either cheek, he wrapped his hand back to your neck and set you to the wall beside the door. 

"Take it." He instructed as you rounded a grip at his shaft. As you began in slow motions, be battered into your sex with two fingers. 

"You have ten seconds to squirt for me baby. I am going to make you come every way he thought he could. All the ways you'll never let him because-"

"I'm yours-"

"Tell him!"

"I'm Rafe Cameron's!"

"And who is gonna make you squirt? Hmm? Baby I know it feels good but you gotta tell him…or I'll have no choice but to drag you down those steps and fuck you in front of him " You clenched around his fingers as he withdrew. Suddenly those digits were replaced by his cock as he lifted you down onto him. 

"Oh, you want him to see us, don't you?" You nodded. 

"Maybe next time, baby. But you've been so fucking good all damn night, so this is all for me. And I'm taking all of you."

"Please…" You whimpered as he pounded into you. 

"I want to be sweet for you…take care of my girl…" His kind grip altered to a painful pull of necessity. 

"But I also want to fuck you all night. Every position. Every angle. Until you're too raw. Too sore. I want to make you hurt wrong in all the right places….let you rest in my arms and then do it again…" You swallowed hard at the thought, well aware he meant every word he intended to execute. 

"I'm yours to fuck however you want, Rafe…" You explained as he smirked, setting your soles flat to the floor. 

"Then turn around. I'm going to ruin you baby, for anyone else who even tries…" You obeyed, hands flat against the wall as he penetrated you once again. But before he paced, you faced him. 

"There will never be anyone else."

"Fucking right baby." You were thrust against the wall in continued patterns of lust and desire. His body, a vessel of his passion for you, as sweat accumulated quickly between you. There would not be a moment in which your skin did not writhe to him, even as he pulled you from one position to another. His body remained against yours as closely as possible as he built you to one high after another. Even as your fatigue was evident between you, he continued slower, only to build to that murderous pace once again. All while denying himself a release in repetition, to see you come. But eventually, it became too much. After hours of thrusting this way. He needed that release he'd more than earned. The same one you pleased and gave permission for. Not that he needed it. 

"Come here…" He groaned, a final grip around your neck as he pinned you beneath him after the straddle made from your latest orgasm. 

"More…please…"

"How much more can you take, baby?" 

"All of you." You reminded him of his own words. 

"You want all of me? Every broken part? Not just what my cock's doing for you baby?"

You nodded. 

"I love you, Rafe…" Your nails embedded into his flexed arms as his own grip sharpened into the sheets beneath you. The same sheets soaked in sweat and your cum as he has yet to find that release. 

"Come for me. Please."

"If I do it means we're done for tonight…but," His eyes rose to the clock set beside the bed. "That means 12:01 and you're fair game."

"A game you've already won."

"Then give me my prize." He grunted into your shoulder, your body adorned by him in contrast to his cruel and selfish thrusts. Even if he was animalistic in this endeavor,he reminded you of his care and compassion with the way he seduced your areolas and either nipples. Lips and teeth vibrating with a tongue rubbing over them in a smirked approval as you felt him build to his own high. 

"Take it. I'm yours." You managed through your exhaustion and pain if overstimulation as he nodded. 

"Always."

"And forever."

"And a day." He added as you bobbed your head in agreement. The rush of his release would spill in spurts inside of you as you groaned. Your body ached and sfunf in every motion as he pulled you into him. 

"Get some sleep baby…I'm going to take good care of you in the morning…but I'm not done with you. I'll never be ." 

"Good."

TAGLIST: @hopebaker @iovdrew @penny4yourthoughts @magnificantmermaid @pickingviolets @lovedetlost @trikigirl271 @maybankslover @slut4starkey @slvtherinseeker @obxiskewl @bluesongbird @slut-era @ailee-celeste @camilynn @sweetestdesire @onmykneesforrafe @drews1love @phildunphyisadilf @belcalis9503

MASTERLIST

RAFE CAMERON MASTERLIST

2ND RAFE CAMERON MASTERLIST

[lemmetreatya]

baker!reader who sees jotaro a few times a weeks when he comes to the little shop to get a simple treat to go with his afternoon coffee, engaging in small talk that gradually becomes more friendly and comforting making the guy look forward to his *now* daily treat

this didnt go the way i wanted but ykw? im equally as okay with that 🥹

When Life Gives You Pastries — Single dad!Jotaro x baker!reader

“Hello, hello! Daily bakeries, happy to serve!”

Jotaro is impoverished with the sickeningly sweet greeting as soon as he enters the small bakery.

He doesn’t say anything back because he’s here for one thing, and one thing only, and that’s his breakfast.

It was already a hassle getting Jolyne ready for school and in the rush of trying to cook his breakfast, he burnt hers and so in the orderly sacrifice of a parent, he gave her his and went without.

Jotaro scours the small selection for a gathering max of three minutes before slapping a plain croissant and a takeaway coffee cup onto the cashier table.

“Will this be to go, sir?” You ask, your smile wide and attentive despite the broody man’s disposition.

He hadn’t even registered that you’d spoken to him at first, his eyes emptily boring into your apron as he mentally flicked through today’s to-do list like a flip book.

It’s only once he realised you were giving him an expectant look that his ears caught up to his brain and his brain to his mouth.

“Yes, to go. Sorry.” He fumbles.

“No worries!” You chirp, as understanding as ever.

Jotaro pays for his purchase and patiently waits as you make his coffee of choice — a Long Black.

(“So an Americano?” You clarify.

“No. A Long Black; Hot water first and then the espresso, not the other way round.”

Jotaro notices how you smile knowingly at his correction and without taking any offence.)

When it’s done, he then leaves a mandatory tip before leaving without any further thought.

“Hello, hello! Daily bakeries, happy to serve!”

The next time Jotaro finds himself in this same bakery is when he’s on his afternoon break just a week and a day later.

He vaguely remembers your first encounter but hadn’t thought much of it until now. He does however vividly remember your diabetic customer service greeting and it stimulates him to reply back.

“Hey…” He aimlessly mumbles.

“Already got your coffee today?”

When Jotaro places the wrapped plain croissant by the counter, he’s shortly thrown off guard by your question.

Looking down at his styrofoam cup which donned his work company’s logo, Jotaro is confused why you ask him this.

“Y-yes?” He thinks hard before looking back up at you.

You ring up his item on the till, your smile still cloy.

“Then I’m guessing no Long Black today.”

Realisation finally licks Jotaro’s brain and his face slightly widens in clarity of that.

He remembers now; how he ordered coffee from here last time, and how it kept him proactive through the day. Not like the cheap instant stuff his office gives for free. What you gave him was a true espresso infused coffee and for that he’s grateful.

“No, not today.” He finally answers as you hand him a small bag that contained his croissant. “Maybe next time.”

You give the man another warm smile. Jotaro leaves a cash tip this time despite only buying a croissant.

“Hello, hello! Daily bakeries, happy to serve!”

“Afternoon.”

The gap between when Jotaro last visited the bakery was shorter this time, he was back three days later.

Jotaro had thought to himself that he should buy Jolyne a treat for when she gets home from school. He’d gotten a call not too long ago from a teacher who was rather pleased with her progress and thought to let him know.

It was small encouragements like that which spurred Jotaro on. Being a full-time working single father was hard and a lot of the time he was unsure whether he was doing a good job or not. Yet, noticed achievements like that, regardless of how big, he was determined to celebrate.

When Jolyne won, so did he.

“A croissant and a cherry bakewell. Unlike you.” You jokingly spar when Jotaro places the items on top of the counter.

He’s already getting out his wallet as you package the food up.

“It’s for my daughter, thought I should treat her today.”

At the mention of his kin, you looked up in warm aptitude.

“Oh, that’s so sweet of you. Hopefully she enjoys it.”

Jotaro internally gleamed at the prospects that you thought him sweet for treating Jolyne. Not that it meant much (he tells himself) but to hear a compliment on behalf of his parenting skills always made him keen.

You didn’t share anymore conversation after that. The both of you were quiet as you made his Long Black.

Once you passed over the package, you smiled once again.

“Thank you.” Jotaro says, as he leaves his tip and a very minute smile.

“Hello, hello! Daily bakeries, happy to serve!”

“Are you really?” Jotaro asks almost immediately after you say the phrase.

Taken aback, you blink over at the man rapidly.

“Huh?”

He realises, now that he’s said that out loud, how intruding that must have sounded. Figures, since the phrase had absolutely been rattling like a ligma bean throughout his mind all week and that was his verbal fruition of that torment.

But he doesn’t mean any harm. If anything it’s just bridled curiosity and so Jotaro pauses within the middle of shop to clarify what he meant.

“No, it’s just…your small greeting thing you say. That you’re happy to serve.”

The explanation offers little context to his verbalised brain funk but still yet, you try to piece together as much as you could.

“Oh. Well, I guess I am. I enjoy what I do.”

“That’s good.” Jotaro hesitates before he moves towards the designated area where the croissants usually are. “It’s good to enjoy what you do. What keeps you getting out of bed, I suppose.”

There was an easy lulled silence as Jotaro hovered by the croissants.

Even though he got the same thing every time, he still liked to make sure there wasn’t anything else he fancied.

“Do you enjoy what you do?”

You ask once Jotaro places the croissant on the counter.

Already shuffling through his wallet for his card, he answers your question with his head down.

“Not really. But it pays the bills and it helps me keep Jolyne happy, so I guess it figures out.”

“Jolyne — your daughter?”

At the mention of her name, Jotaro looks up at you, a pause in his thinking at how you could have possibly known her name, but he then realises that it was from his own Freudian slip.

Jotaro slowly unveiled the card he planned to used and placed it on the counter.

“Yes. Yes, that’s her name. Jolyne.”

Your smile was light as you kept the conversation going as you rung up the items.

“Who named her?”

“Uh, I did. After her late mother’s favourite song.”

You halted in your actions, your fingers hovering over the till screen. The look of regret washed over your face at the prospect that you’d gotten too comfortable with the man and opened a messy can of worms.

“Oh, I’m so sorry.”

Jotaro shook his head as he gingerly tapped his amex over the card reader.

“No, it’s fine.”

As you sheepishly handed him his package, Jotaro backtracked his words.

“Well, I mean it’s not fine but you just gotta keep moving.”

“Of course.” You say with a nod.

Jotaro offers you a weary smile.

“Thanks.” He lifts his bag in solidarity to as he beckons his way out the shop.

“Hello, hello! Daily bakeries, happy to serve!”

The chiming and opening of the door alerted you of a new customer but from behind the counter, you didn’t see anyone come in.

With a face of confusion you looked over the counter to be none other than met with a rather small face looking up at you.

“Hey, there.” You greeted the individual.

The smile on your face was wide as the little girl looked up at you with massive curious eyes.

She didn’t say anything in reply, just stared right back up at you as you questioned her presence in your bakery.

Leaning your arms over the counter top, you pouted down at her.

“Are you lost?”

Before anymore exchanges could happen, the door to the bakery chimed once again.

“Hello, Hello! Daily bake— Oh! Hey!”

Your smile widened once you recognised who had walked into the store.

For a second, you hadn’t recognised him without his usual suit and tie, but you guess seeing him within his casual attire was even more of a nice surprise. You then connected the dots once the small girl had run up to the man’s leg and stretched her arm upwards so that she could hold his hand.

So this must be the infamous Jolyne.

“Hey, sorry for that. She unexpectedly ran ahead of me once we turned the corner.” Jotaro said whilst taking his daughter’s hand in his.

With an easy smile, you shook your head.

“No worries.”

In the duration that the two of them weren’t at the counter, neither you or Jotaro spoke to each other. Which was understandable considering he now had to entertain Jolyne.

“Dad, I want the one you got me last time.” She said.

“Yeah? Have a look and see if you can find it.”

Jotaro took one glance back at his daughter before approaching the counter. Rather than his usual croissant, he placed down a pain au chocolat.

“Good choice.” You muse

“Thought I ought to shake things up on a weekend.”

The both of you shared a polite bought of laughter between each other. Upon hearing the exchange, Jolyne skipped up to the counter before holding her bakewell tart in the air.

“Found it!”

She was too small to reach the counter top so you didn’t require that she place her treat there.

“Well done, Jojo.” Jotaro plainly laid his hand on top of his daughter’s head before removing it again. The touch wasn’t much but it secured a triumphant smile on Jolyne’s face.

Placing Jotaro’s treats into a bag, you directed your question towards the smaller girl.

“Jojo! That’s a very cute name.” You muse.

Hearing you engage with her, Jolyne’s eyes lit up as they flitted towards her dad before dancing back to you.

“Thanks. It’s dad’s name too, we share it!”

“Dad is also called Jojo?” You smile as you now look towards the larger man.

The man was quick to correct you as he took his bakery goods, his demeanour seemingly bashful at the prospects that his in-house nickname was being used anywhere but.

“I—As a nickname, For Jotaro.” He feigns.

“Jotaro.” You repeat.

For some reason your cheeks start feeling hot at the prospects that the man had just shared his name with you.

“Nice name.”

“Thanks.” He eyed you back,

And you weren’t lying, the name genuinely did suit him. A large stoic man who shared names with the daughter he begrudgingly, yet gladly, went to work for and brought to his favourite bakery shop on weekends — The name complimented him very much and in a very odd way, you found yourself smiling at the prospects of that.

Jotaro easily used his electronic watch to pay for the items as he hovers it over the machine. The cute ding signalled that the payment went through.

“Well, Jolyne, Jotaro. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.”

Collecting his daughter by her small hand, Jotaro widely smiled as he nodded his head in a bid goodbye.

“And you.” He firmly said back.

The jingled ‘Byeeee!’ from Jolyne along with the opening bell of the door rung together as the two left the store.

[duplicityvn]

Welcome to Duplicity!

Below you’ll find links to tags and the new itch page (once part 1 releases; tags will be added as they’re posted). You’ll also find some general information about the game and what to expect from here on.

As per usual, this game is a horror romance. It will feature and optional NSFW toggle, and it is not safe for minors. Minors DNI with this blog or the game.

Game development, art, & writing: me, @indycinders

Draft editing and Ideas Chief: @winndycakes

Game Summary:

It’s been several years since you’ve been home, and a lot has changed. After failing to meet the strict deadlines of your former publishing house, your contract was terminated and you were left to fend for yourself. Once a prolific and popular author of romance and adventure stories, you’re now forced to move back home to live in your best friend’s apartment as their roommate. Struggling to figure out the next book in your series, you’re faced with many life-changing events, such as having to go back to work a customer service job you thought you’d left behind.

As you navigate this new chapter in your life, you’ll meet friends, old and new, and perhaps finally experience your own romantic tale… Just don’t trust everyone you meet.

(potential) Tag List:

#duplicityvn - general tag to encompass everything

#duplicitydevlogs - tag for dev-specific posts like progress and updates

#duplicity asks - tag for asks submitted to the blog

#duplicity griffin - Griffin specific tag

#duplicity tris - Tris specific tag

#duplicity taipan - Taipan specific tag

#duplicity dell - Dell specific tag

#duplicity nina - Nina specific tag

#duplicity savoy - Savoy specific tag

#duplicity riley - Riley specific tag

#duplicity melon - Melon specific tag

#duplicity mags - Mags specific tag

#duplicity all - general tag when everyone is involved in one post

#duplicity lore - tag for lore related to characters or settings

Here’s some potential questions I might get that I’m proactively answering now:

Why was the old blog deleted?

-I had a bad experience in the community and wanted to remove myself from it completely. I also had no idea where the game direction was going. Honestly, it started out with me wanting to make a yandere game with no understanding of what was going to happen really.

Why are you continuing with Duplicity?

-Duplicity originally stemmed from vague ideas about a horror romance I had started writing three years ago. Really, only some of the character names were similar. Once I started to feel like I wanted to come back and resume with development, I knew it needed a complete overhaul. So I went back to that old story and started piecing it together so it would work for a visual novel!

What changed and what can we expect?

-In the original demo, the game’s MC was around 20 years old. This has changed to player preference of anywhere between 25-30. Why? Because I’ve been wanting to see older characters in yandere visual novels, and just in VNs in general. I also don’t feel comfortable writing younger characters anymore. The characters’ ages will change depending on yours as well, which will be explained later. The only characters who have set ages are Mags and Melon.

-Speaking of characters, Sophie is no longer part of the story. I didn’t think about it at the time but I don’t want a minor to be included in this story when she’s not directly related to anyone, like a sister or a niece or something. In her place are several new characters: Nina, Savoy, and Melon.

-The game will be released in 3 parts instead of on a day-to-day basis. Part one will be mostly introductory but lengthy, part two will probably be the longest, and part three will mostly be focused on the endings of each route.

-The game will have more than just Griffin’s route. There are currently 9 endings I’m in the process of planning.

-As of the publishing of this post, everything previously known to the game is no longer canon, except for a few things.

What kind of asks can we send?

-Asks pertaining to the game and its characters and settings are all completely fine. In fact, it’ll probably help me develop the characters even better.

-NSFW asks are allowed! While there might not be NSFW in the base game (still juggling around the idea of a paid NSFW version), I am happy to write little fics if people are wanting them. I love writing, give me prompts!

-Hateful, derogatory, or other such topics that are sent to this blog will not be tolerated nor published. I wish to promote a safe space for everyone, and I won’t pay attention to any negativity.

-Silly and nonsensical asks are also allowed if they aren’t negative in context.

Alright this was long lmao but I hope it encompasses the general idea of what to expect from here on out! I’m not putting myself on a publishing schedule and I will update as frequently or as little as I do. I’m an anxious bean and can only do so much.

[skeletonpunching]

Buddy Daddies interview with Toyonaga Toshiyuki and Uchiyama Koki

Interview with Toyonaga Toshiyuki and Uchiyama Koki (voice actors for Kurusu Kazuki and Suwa Rei) Interviewer: As we look back on "Buddy Daddies" up to this point - first of all, how do you feel about the early plot developments?

Toyonaga: The very beginning of episode 1 was an incredibly hard-boiled action scene, and then episode 2 was a total about-face - from that point on, it became more of a sitcom. I think that tonal shift was very intriguing, and everyone in the audience might have wondered, "Just where will things go from here?"

Uchiyama: It all started with a scene of assassins carrying out a mission, and the "assassins" premise itself was a very anime-typical hook in the first place. It seemed likely that there would be all sorts of drama, and so I expected a large proportion of the anime to be dedicated to that. But just like Toyonaga-san said, as the story progressed, the sitcom elements were unexpectedly pronounced; that left a strong impression on me as well.

Interviewer: Since then, Kurusu Kazuki, Suwa Rei, and Unasaka Miri have fully become a "family" - in review, are there any episodes that left a particular impression on you?

Toyonaga: Well, it's a fact that Kazuki and Rei are assassins, and they really did kill Miri's father...

Uchiyama: That was quite a grim start to the story, wasn't it.

Toyonaga: It sure was. And so the two of them find themselves obligated to look after this child, and they grapple with the conflicted feelings of "surely we can't actually bring her up, can we?" That's the first half of the series. Kazuki gets proactive about the parenting thing from pretty early on, but Rei's values and mindset change bit by bit over time... The part around episodes 8 and 9, when he reaches the point of thinking "it would be nice if life could go on like this", was very memorable. 

Uchiyama: Episodes 8 and 9 left a real impression on me too. Episode 8 focuses on Rei's biological family, and it depicts a tragic battle with a character who seemed closely connected with Rei in the past. So going from that to the events of sports day in episode 9 is a major shift for him. At first, Rei wasn't especially keen on parenting or living together with a child, but now he's shouting at the top of his lungs in order to cheer for Miri. I found that scene incredibly dramatic. In the recording sessions for the early episodes, I was often directed to perform Rei with more "restraint", so it came as a real shock to raise my voice during sports day and shout "Go for it!" But looking back upon the story as a whole, I've tried to portray his gradual transformation over time; that was the moment it really hit me.

Interviewer: What do you think of Kazuki and Rei's buddy relationship?

Uchiyama: The "buddy concept" is fundamental to the series, but since Miri has been part of the mix right from the start, I have a stronger impression of them as a "trio", when it comes down to it. In a manner of speaking, I think this is a story about the buddies being wrapped around Miri's finger.

Toyonaga: Kazuki and Rei each have their own dark pasts and traumatic burdens, but they've never experienced what regular children go through while growing up and as teens. Of course, the setup of these two falling under the sway of the innocent Miri might be kind of disorienting, but it sure is ripe for drama. There were just so many points where I thought, "Right, of course that's how it'd go!" In that sense, I think the balance of the three-person dynamic is absolutely perfect. And as for my approach as an actor - I give a pretty aggressive performance, so sometimes I'm really riding roughshod over Ucchi (Uchiyama)... Rei is a character who has to be defined in direct opposition to Kazuki, so I'm always like, "Ucchi, I'm so sorry." (laughs)

Uchiyama: No, no, not at all! (laughs) If anything, I really enjoy those plot developments of Rei getting pushed around. The story is richly varied, and every episode has a major shift in tone, so even we actors have a lot of fun during the recording sessions. Speaking from the audience perspective, I think this series was designed to keep the viewers hooked to the very end.

Interviewer: The ins and outs of parenting are very realistically depicted. Which of those scenes left the strongest impression on you?

Toyonaga: Out of everything till now? It's got to be the episode where they send her to daycare.  

Uchiyama: The rules and minutiae of what you have to bring to daycare really are so detailed.

Toyonaga: There's a whole list.

Uchiyama: And you need to put the name on every single thing. It was fun seeing Kazuki getting so worked up over that.

Toyonaga: I bet all the fathers and mothers of the world who've been through the same thing looked at Kazuki and Rei and went, "Right, right! It's tough, isn't it!" It's like Kazuki and Rei are receiving messages from all these viewers, and that leads to a reversal of the original setup. That's the point where I really sensed how far we'd come from episode 1's plot, and how unexpected this gap was. And this is a minor thing, but: Rei sleeping in the bathroom. It felt like a fantasy element in the middle of all this realism - that's the kind of deft balance only an anime can pull off.

Interviewer: Throughout all these interviews, we've heard from members of the staff that Toyonaga-san's performance of Kazuki and Uchiyama-san's performance of Rei "feel like the script was written for them". How do you feel about these comments?

Toyonaga: We were selected through auditions, but if that's how they feel after taking a chance on us, then I'm truly honoured as an actor. Everyone on the production team, starting with Director Asai, has given us a lot of leeway with the performances, and I think that's a huge part of it as well. Even if we take an odd or unexpected approach to the material, they allow it, and they have the capacity to chew it over and examine it closely. That's part of what brings all this together.

Uchiyama: When it comes to an original series, the cast is always wondering how the series will turn out. I suppose those on the staff side don't wonder quite as much as us, but I'm sure there are also things they don't know until they actually get going. For adaptations, the creators often turn to the source material for answers, but in an original series, the image of the characters is truly solidified by listening to the actual voices during the recording sessions. I think that's the true charm of an original series.

Toyonaga: When I think about it, it's a real privilege as an actor - receiving the outline of a character and getting to flesh that out through trial and error. By adding my personal touches to a character, I can put my own spin on things, and that's a lot of fun - but at the same time, it gives me a responsibility. There are things I have to be careful with. I need to present my own take on a character, while making sure that the emotional development and payoff fit perfectly.

Uchiyama: I've worked with Director Asai multiple times, and I know that I can safely leave the directorial decisions to him. I have faith that as long as we do our best during recording, he'll elevate our work to a whole new level with his wonderful images. I feel no misgivings at all. And so, as a viewer, I myself look forward eagerly to every completed episode.

Interviewer: "Buddy Daddies" is entering the final stages of the plot at last. What highlights does it hold?

Toyonaga: In episode 7, we see Karin - the younger sister of Kazuki's late wife. And Rei's father shows up in episode 8...

Uchiyama: You get to see their respective pasts.

Toyonaga: And after that, in episode 9, their feelings towards Miri gradually merge into one. But it's not just those "emotions" - there are also certain things which mustn't be forgotten... And from episode 10 onwards, those things truly take shape. What will they actually do with Miri? Can the trio's relationship really go on like this? And Ogino Ryo - an assassin who frequents Kyu-chan's (Kugi Kyutaro's) shop - gets involved. In this world of assassins, what will become of a girl like Miri, who lives a cheerful and hearty life despite her forlorn circumstances? That's what the story will address at last.

Interviewer: Just how will all the pieces that have been laid out so far be brought together...

Toyonaga: When you're wondering what will really happen with Miri, you should remember there's still someone who's related to her by blood... I think that relationship is going to play a key role.

Uchiyama: In a sense, there are some rather serious plot developments towards the end. I'm very curious how audiences will react at that point. I think those hard-boiled story elements are depicted in a style that's very characteristically "Buddy Daddies". I feel like those same plot points might be approached quite differently, in another series with a different atmosphere.

Interviewer: I hear the last episode has a plot point that was somewhat unexpected for both of you...?

Uchiyama: I was wondering how this story would be concluded, but I truly didn't have the slightest clue until I read the script for the finale.

Toyonaga: But the fact that Director Asai chose to end the story this way - naturally, it makes you reflect upon what he was trying to convey through this series.

Uchiyama: Personally, it came as quite a surprise.

Toyonaga: As far as the ending is concerned, I'm curious what all the viewers will make of it. For example, there are bound to be the realist types who make comments like "here's how things would go in real life", even for an anime. When it comes to those people, what I want to say isn't "fact is stranger than fiction", but rather, "Actually, isn't this surprisingly realistic?" That's the question I'll put to them. I think the ending makes you consider whether you can accept something like this.

Uchiyama: Considering the story as a whole, if you take out Kazuki, Rei, and Miri's backstories and relationship as a "pseudo-family", I think you'd be left with a very dark atmosphere. It was a new experience for me to witness how this could be depicted in an original series, through the lens of anime, and how it could be shown from this particular angle.

Toyonaga: I think you'll find yourself surprised, in some form or other. Last of all, I hope you'll enjoy each and every episode till the very end.

[edenfenixblogs]

Spent the day with a friend and it was so fun. If every day could be like today, I’d stay where I currently live.

But even we very carefully avoided discussing המצב so it was still like we were living in different worlds.

The closest I got to bringing it up was when she complimented the Drawfee posters on my wall and I was like, “Thanks, I’m looking to replace them though.” It was a belated bday celebration for her from when I was out of town and had to miss her initial celebration. I didn’t want to be a downer, so I avoided bringing it up as much as possible and I def didn’t tell her I’m moving within the year.

She will easily be the person I’ll miss most here. She’s been the only person I can text about antisemitism any time, but I think even she may have muted me on here. Which I understand. But the people back home haven’t muted me. And I don’t have to pretend to be ok around them.

And ultimately, I’m living half a life here because I don’t want to beg people to care about me. And if my suffering is so great that they have to look away, then it should also be enough for them to check on me about proactively.

Hanging out with a friend and not talking about everything was so nice it was like breathing fresh air after being stuck in a musty cave. But she went home and I feel like I’m suffocating again.

It’s so overwhelming. The isolation is so impossibly overwhelming I cannot even begin to explain it to people who aren’t going thru it.

It’s the kind of thing that would make me ask myself, “Is it me?! Is it just that I’m bad to be around and that nobody likes me?” Except I know it’s not, because a whole group of people back home—both related to me and not related to me—do actually get it and check in on me. When the chips are down, I know they have my back more than anyone else. And so for me and for the future I’m building, I have to go back.

It’s such a brutal blow. But this friend? I will miss her more than anyone else in this whole state and I hope she doesn’t fall out of touch with me. So many emotions, dudes. It’s all so much. I keep wanting to actively unpack the trauma of it all but I can’t because it’s still happening.

One positive thing that comes from all this is that can move up my timeline of when I start trying to get pregnant, which is awesome. I’m ready for that part of my life. Even though I’m sure maternity leave in my new state will suck worse than it would here, financially and time wise. But at least I’ll have a lot of familial support when I’m back home, which I wouldn’t have here.

Now I just gotta pray I’m actually able to get home and that I’m actually able to get pregnant. 😬😬😬😬