#I’ve met a lot of famous people in my line of work

[scruffylookingpiratecaptain]

Ok, so I don’t ever go out of my way to say I don’t really like Taylor Swift. I’m mostly apathetic. But sometimes she comes up in conversation and people ask if I like her and I say no. And generally people get fairly upset and want to know why, and I say I just don’t really like her music or her as a person.

And maybe it’s bad of me, but when her fans get all defensive, I get a little bit of sick pleasure when I get to say, ‘well, I’ve met her and spent like, half the day with her.’ Because no one has a counter to that.

[stxuxrniolochris]

safari guide - Chris Sturniolo

Summary~~ You work at a safari and famous youtubers rent out the whole place and one catches your eye. Will it lead to anything?~~

P2

~~

It was early in the morning and I was tired. I normally took the night shift for the over night but there were some famous people who rented the whole thing out and I’m the only one who is experienced enough to give the full guide and was willing to be here for over 24 hours. I didn’t do any research on these guys but I know there triplets and that there youtubers.

I was at the front desk waiting, which felt like forever when I saw two people who looked very similar. And a guy with a camera behind them. I guess this was them. “Hey! We’re fore the safari overnight thing.” The first one smiled brightly. I smiled right back, I love people who are just happy and kind. “Hi! I assume your the Sturn-ni-olo triplets?” I said struggling to say there seconds name. “Yess haha I’m Nick Sturniolo and this is Matt.” He gestured to the other boy who was quiet. I smiled at Matt while taking a mental note on how to say there name. “The other one, Chris will be here in just a second, he’s getting the spare camera.” He continued still smiling. “Well it’s nice to meet you I’m y/n.” I said while handing them maps of the safari when a third boy walked up. They all look similar but you could tell differences about them. I got butterflies when I saw the last one, which I figured was Chris. He was cute, no he was hot. “Chris! This is y/n, y/n this is Chris.” I smiled at him and he smiled back. I could’ve sworn I saw him look me up and down quick, but I just brushed it off. “Do you mind be on camera?” Nick asked. “No not at all.” I smiled.

“So are you guys celebrating your birthday or..” I asked while we walked to the zip line. “No, 6 million subscribers.” Nick said smiling. My eyes widened, i mean I heard they were famous but not that famous. They chuckled at my reaction. “Well congratulations, that’s a lot of people.” “Thank you.” They all said collectively, which made me laugh. Chris kept looking and smiling at me, which I thought was cute.

I was walking a couple steps ahead of the boys, giving them space while they talked to the camera when I heard footsteps get closer to me, faster. I turned slightly to be met with Chris smiling widely at me. “Hey.” He beamed. “Hi.” I smiled back. “Soooo how long have you worked here for, you seem to know your stuff.” I smiled at him asking this, I was passionate about my job here. “Hmm 4 years I think, yea since I was 16.” “No way we’re the same age, 20?” He said playfully hitting my arm. “Yup, when’s your birthday?” I said while laughing. “August 1st, you?” “No way I’m august 2.” I smiled. “Well I guess we’re just meant for each other then.” He shrugged while smirking. I rolled my eyes while smiling, I could feel my face go red. “Ok buddy.” I replied making him laugh.

Whenever he wasn’t talking to the camera he was beside me trying to make conversation. I was glad because I was scared that they would be some like fake- rude out of touch influencers, but they were really genuine and kind.

We got to the end of the tour at the dinner tent. “Well this is the end of the tour, they have dinner made so I’ll be back when you guys are done.” I smiled. “Thank you so much.” Nick said at the same time Matt said thank you. “Thank you.” Chris said while waving. “Cant wait to see you later, miss you already.” He whispered, so only I could hear, while smirking. My face for sure went bright red so I just smiled, shook my head and walked out.

Chris pov

I just finished dinner and decided to go find y/n. I don’t know why I was attracted to her. I’ve never felt this interested in a girl since high school. After a bout 5 minutes of looking around I spot hee on the edge of a rock with her feet dangling off. She was smoking somthing, normally would be a turn off for me but the way her lips wrapped around the end just made me more attracted.

“Hey” I breathe while walking up to her. “Hi.” She smiled brightly while putting out her joint. I sat down and looked between us at her phone. Breathe by Lil Skies was playing. “No way you listen to Skies.” I smile happily. “Yes way, what’s so unbelievable.” She laughs. God I love her laugh. “No I just love him, favourite artist.” I nudge her arm playfully. “Really? Same.” I nodded as she hands me an airpod, I smile while taking it. After a few moments of us listening to the music she speaks up again. “I went to see at summer smash last summer.” My jaw drops “No way you were there.” “Yea front row and everything.” She smiles smugly. “Well I do you one up, I was back stage.” I smirk. “No shot i don’t believe you.” “Do you remember that one guy going on stage with him during ‘rage’.” I said while still smirking. She looks at me confused, then realisation hits her. “No fucking way that was you.” Her jaw slacks. I laugh “yup”

Y/n pov

I can’t believe this. So he was famous-famous. I suddenly felt confident. “Always thought you were my type.” I smirk while shrugging. “Oh yea?” He questioned. “Yea.” I replied while smiling. I couldn’t sworn he had gotten a lot closer over the last few minutes. It’s silent, but not uncomfortable. We’re just staring at each other. He’s slowly leaning in and so do I. What was just doing omg. It was unexpected but I liked it.

Next thing I knew his lips were on mine. It was a slow and passionate kiss but it got quicker as it went on. My hands found there way up to his hair, while one of his was supporting him up and the other on my waist which sent shivers through me. After a bit I pulled back for air and he rested his forehead on mine. I smiled and he smiled back. “You know your really really pretty.” He whispered making me smile even bigger. “So can I get your number.” He asks. “Of course you can.” I laugh making him smile. “Alright we better get back you have your night tour.” I say but not moving. He sighs and drops his head a bit then gives me a peck on the lips. “Alright pretty girl.” He said making me get butterflies. We exchanged numbers then walked back to the others. I couldn’t stop smiling and by the looks of it neither could he, causing to get a few suspicious looks from Nick and Matt. I didn’t mind though I was just happy.

[razorblade180]

Catching a Vibe

At the home of The People of the Springs, Aether finds himself calmly on a surfboard. Dawn has barely broken and the waves are calmer than his thoughts; although that wasn’t exactly a hard task. His mind flowed like the currents underneath him and his eyes stared off into the horizon so much he didn’t notice the tribe’s most famous guide paddle up to him.

Mualani:Ah, so you’re the brooding type. You and Kinich are going to hit it off.

Aether:Huh?! Oh, h-hey. What brings you out here.

Mualani:Shouldn’t that be my line. This entire place is practically my backyard. Where’s Paimon?

Aether:Asleep. I wanted to practice my surfing. She’s not exactly a swimmer and gets anxious when we’re separated.

Mualani:Ah, how kind of you. No worries can happen when her head is full of dreams. Also to answer your question, I’m out here because someone was wading in the water at the crack of dawn all alone.

Aether:That’s not normal here?

She gestured to the entire area. Aside from a few fishing boats in the distance, there was a definite lack of people in the water.

Aether:Hehe, I guess not.

Mualani:It’s one thing if you were in a hot spring, but open water is another thing entirely. Not that I’m particularly worried for ya. I imagine Fontaine has made you quite the strong swimmer.

Aether:*shudders* Honestly I think it’s the only reason I find it normal to be out here right now. Anyways, I’m fine. I’ll head back in a little while so if you have anything you need to do…

Mualani:I got nothing that can’t wait for actual sunlight. Staying out here isn’t a problem. Also…*leans closer* between you and me, a certain floating companion asked me to keep an eye on you a couple days ago.

Aether:…Haha, man, I guess I can’t get past her.

Mualani:I won’t disclose details but I will say I pretty confused at first. From what I could tell you seemed to be managing. But…after everything we’ve been through recently I think I understand a bit better. Things sure got complicated fast.

The surfer let out a chuckle and a wary sigh before shaking off the feeling.

Aether:Things really got crazy for you. Need to vent?

Mualani:Nah I’m good. At first it was… a lot. Still is, but I’ve processed the situation more or less. No need to sweat it. I’m actually grateful. From the moment we met your vibe felt a little out of wack in a way I couldn’t explain. Now I’m sure it’s because you’ve been dealing with crisis like this often, right?

Aether:Did you just call my vibes horrendous?

Mualani:You get what I mean! Paimon sure would.

Aether:I…can’t argue that.

Mualani:Don’t worry. You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to and I won’t pry.

Aether:So what exactly are you hoping to accomplish.

Mualani:Hmmmm…

She takes her pointer fingers and places them on the corners of Aether’s mouth, raising them up to make a smile to…well…smile at. She removes her fingers to pleasantly see her work stay as Aether looked at her with mild confusion.

Mualani:Uh huh. Just as I suspected. Your smile used to be way bigger I bet. That’s probably what Paimon is worried about. It’s gone into hiding, hasn’t it?

Aether:I-I wouldn’t know. I’m pretty sure my smile has been the same so… sighs

Mualani:See? Can’t even convince yourself. Never a good sign. I don’t know when you lost it; only you can really answer that. Your friend misses it, and I honestly would love to see it. Not to say your smiles so far haven’t been wonderful, but now I’m invested. Kind people always have the best smiles. They really light up a room!

Aether:Haha, you’re right about that. Kachina really knows how to make a person want to do their best.

Mualani:I know right! She’s so adorable. That smile means so much to me. I can also tell yours brought her a lot of comfort. Seriously, thanks for sticking your neck out for her. It means a lot. Kinich typically reins me in whatever someone is bothering her. It was quite the interesting change to have someone also want throw down against those jerks slandering her.

Aether:I don’t know if we should call that solitary or enabling.

Mualani:Hahaha! Either way, I’d say we’re thick as thieves now. More importantly, war buddies. I couldn’t ask for anything better.

Aether:Heh, funnily enough, I seem to make war buddies left and right. Never thought it would be as common as it is. Although…this time is a little different. You’re different.

Mualani:Oh?

Aether:Natlan is pretty amazing, and the way of your people, the way you act is refreshing. I know I said something about solidarity earlier, but honestly it’s more like I’m catching your vibe. Instead of worrying about my journey and the things ahead I’m just…taking things as they come. No use worrying about it all, right? Thanks Mualani. *smiles* You’re pretty cool.

Mualani:*smiles* Oh hehe, thank you. *holds fist out* “No one fights alone.” From here on out, we have each other’s back. How about tomorrow I can teach you some really epic surfing tricks. If you can keep up that is.

Aether:You’re on.

He bumps fists her proudly as the horizon makes the water shimme. For the first time in what felt like awhile, the Sun emerged in full force.

[simstoyourdismay]

“belle of the ball” met gala hosted by @havenroyals ❤️‍🔥

this post is so ass i’m so sorry i’ll fix it after i take a nap.. anyways YAY met gala!! i’ve always seen these on simstagram and wanted to participate in one so bad. small issue tho i forgot that i keep refusing to update my game so i had to build a makeshift lot really quick. that’s why you can barely see any of it lol

now i have celebrity ocs (the ngo family) so i can send them here 😛 i considered sending the arias family here as well but they’re not really celebrities, they’re just really rich? like sure, owning a huge conglomerate will make you known but it won’t have you trending on social media constantly. i was gonna go in about how they actually don’t care about that but this post isn’t even about them ahrhrhghghf.. uhhh quick rundown. shōichi is a big actor and he’s currently working for a highly anticipated film. it’s the rumored last film from a really talented director yada yada. he’s the type to lay reallyyy low when he’s filming so this appearance had people stirring. dawn is his wife and she’s a critically acclaimed pianist. was really big in vietnam when she was first starting out and garnered global attention fairly quickly. injured her hand a few years down the line and had to give up playing professionally, but her talent is still recognized today. she’s less popular in the states in comparison to shōichi but she’s known amongst the younger crowd online. you know celebrity crushes everyone can agree on? she’s one of those. uhhh what else oh they have two kids (they’re the twins) and they kept them out of the public eye for years. didn’t want to expose them to all that so early. the twins first appeared in the media when they were preteens, their choice. people were surprised to learn ezra was talented in his own regard (he paints) and the general public agreed that he’d be successful even without famous parents. talia didn’t really have a specific talent so she got dragged pretty often for being so lackluster in comparison to her family. this whole thing made talia fearful of the media so she took a step back from it all and ezra was scared of falling from their good graces. oh i just realized i’m rambling sorry i do that when talking about any of my ocs uhh if i delete this later when i’m fixing it you know why 💔 would also like to clarify that this makes them seem so cookie cutter but i promise they’re complex characters that i’ve fleshed out..

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for name dropping some of my friends’ connections?

i (20X) have multiple friends that have connections to pretty famous internet celebrities, creators, etc. i wouldn’t call them household names, because a lot of them are pretty contained to solely online presences, but definitely names most twitter/tumblr users would recognize. i won’t go into too much detail for privacy reasons, but essentially, i’m two degrees of separation from a LOT of popular internet creators.

this isn’t something i talk about often, if really at all. i’ll mention these people to my irl friends all the time, because they’re also my friends, but never about their connections (unless it’s relevant at the time). i met almost all of them naturally, some without even knowing about their connections, either having common interests, or being in the same discord, fanproject, etc. i didn’t befriend them in an attempt to get closer to whatever celebrity they know is what i’m trying to say. at least two of them even made said connection after we’d become acquaintances.

college recently started again, and me and my roommates were invited to a party hosted by some of the girls that live on our floor to get to know everyone better. we ended up playing two truths, one lie to break the ice and get more comfortable with each other. me and my roommates all have a bit of a flair for the dramatic, and stories to back it up, so when it got to their turns (all of them went before me), they went all out. for example, one of them brought up how her moms met david bowie or something because they happened to be bowling in the same alley and ended up talking and getting drinks together. i forget who it actually was, but still. very out there, absurd stories that sound unbelievable/fake, but very much happened.

this is where i may be the asshole. when it got to my turn, i ended up name-dropping some of my connections. i said something along the lines of “i have fairly close connections to x, y, and z.” writing it like that doesn’t have the same impact, but you get my point. everyone in the room knew who they were is the important part. the room guessed what the lie was wrong, and promptly began to ask how i knew the people i’d named. i explained i had a few internet friends that had/have worked closely with them, and that i either knew certain things the general public doesn’t, or that i’ve had the privilege of contributing to projects/suggesting ideas because of it. it’s important to mention that i didn’t lead with having insider knowledge/positions, because i know i’d be the asshole if i had. they asked, i answered as much as i could, which wasn’t much more than i stayed here. i didn’t say any specific projects or ideas for what i think are fairly obvious reasons. they hadn’t reacted very much to any of my roommates’ insane bullshit, so i hadn’t expected such a response and thought my truth was fairly tame in comparison, honestly. (another example: one of them has nearly drowned 7 times, with 5 of those times all happening on a tuesday. they’ve told me all 7 of those stories and i think they’re super interesting, a lot more than me just having connections to people i don’t even personally know.)

anyways. the conversation moved on, the same continued, all seems good. that was a week ago, for reference. i find out a few of the people there are in my classes, which is great! i get to talking to most of them, and they’re all as friendly as they were when we met, except for one, who i’ll call holly (not her real name). holly acts cordial when she has to (group discussion, that sort of stuff) but whenever i try to talk or interact with her outside of that, she outright ignores me. she fully walked past me once despite us not only making eye contact, but me waving and calling her name. i didn’t get why she was acting like that all of a sudden, because she didn’t have any problems with me during the party. i didn’t think i’d done anything to wrong her, but just in case, i reached out to one of her roommates to ask if holly had told them anything about it, or if they remembered me doing something to make her react that way that i just forgot or didn’t realize i’d done.

one of them got back to me today that holly had apparently gone on a tirade about how disgusting i was, how i was clearly just “using” my friends because of their connections, that i only used them for clout and popularity, etc. which, as i said, is FULLY not true. what bothers me most is that she reached that conclusion with absolutely no evidence other than one conversation, one that me and all my roommates were clearly using to highlight the more silly/out-there aspects of our lives. most of the time i spent explaining things consisted of me gushing over how cool and hard-working my friends are for having those opportunities and how much i look up to them. i don’t know if she wasn’t paying attention or thought i was lying or what, but now i’m worried i may have actually come off that way. like that maybe i actually WAS just using them in that instance, whether i intended to or not, and that i came off as super assholeish and manipulative. so, AITA?

What are these acronyms?

[ghostdrinksmoonshine]

astro observations: I

hello! this is my first post on this blog! I’m kinda new to this but I wanted a place to dump my observations so I’m starting here. thank you and I hope you enjoy :)

also quick disclaimer! this post contains my personal opinions and observations and as such is not meant to be taken very seriously or as fact. these posts are written purely for entertainment purposes so only take what resonates 💕

𖤓 pisces rising or people with pisces placements are SO easy to pick out, either through their appearance or their mannerisms. I’ve never met a pisces (or someone with prominent pisces placements) who didn’t look somewhat ethereal, either with big round eyes or a sweet voice. they’ve got those siren eyes, you know? and incredibly soft skin. they move like they belong in water. the more neptunian the person, the more prominent these qualities are. although having pisces rising and/or planets in the 12th house will do the trick too

𖤓 speaking of rising signs, aries rising people are also easy to pick out. they tend to have very prominent eyebrows (arched, like the horns of the ram) and a real presence about them. unless the native has other aspects which suggest a meeker personality, aries rising is not typically a wallflower placement. they either walk with purpose (power walk with a spark in their eyes, a real “don’t fuck with me” vibe) or like a little kid, all cheery and skipping around. the earlier the degree, the more childlike the aries rising will appear upon first meeting

𖤓 ^^ I have aries rising and have found that people tend to underestimate me upon first meeting because I have a very childlike and “happy-go-lucky” disposition. I’m a capricorn sun though, and every time someone gets to know me they always say I’m more serious and pragmatic than they thought I would be. like it’s a real shock </3

𖤓 sagittarius suns (or people with prominent sag placements) usually have a gap between the teeth! look out for it, if you know someone with it they probably have planets in sagittarius and/or the ninth house

𖤓 I see a lot of people say that libra mars is a “submissive” or “docile” mars placement but honestly I think people forget that libra is a cardinal sign, not a mutable sign. every libra mars person I’ve met has been fond of debating (and they are excellent debaters) and tend to play devil’s advocate. that, or they like to investigate every aspect of an argument to reach the most “fair” conclusion

𖤓 ^^ I think the “docile” stereotype comes from the fact that they’re not necessarily aggressive either, and don’t tend to anger easily. in fact, since libra is ruled by venus these people tend to be very socially charming (to the point of people pleasing). still, this doesn’t mean they won’t argue because they very much will. like I said, they’re big on fairness, as well as making sure all the “facts” line up. many of my friends with this placement ended up studying political science and/or law, or at least have an interest in politics. if you miss an essential detail they’ll pick up on it. they’re similar to virgo mars in a way, except libra mars focuses on fairness/balance, whereas virgo mars are nitpicky about details for precision/perfectionist reasons. they work hard to get the best results

𖤓 however, I’ve noticed that if the mars is on the cusp of virgo/libra, then the native will also use this ability to focus on beauty and aesthetics, regardless of whether their actual mars is virgo or libra. check your degrees, it’s important

𖤓 and on that note, I’ve also noticed that a majority of famous writers have prominent virgo placements! it’s usually a mix between virgo, sagittarius and some water sign/house, but virgo appears most consistently. since writing is an incredibly mercurial practice (editing/prose writing demands that eye for detail that virgos are famous for) this isn’t surprising at all

𖤓 gemini suns are so fucking cheeky, they really are the “little devil” of the zodiac. seriously, these people love taking the piss and trolling others. I grew up in a house of gemini boys can you imagine my pain. my boss is a gemini sun and he literally teases my coworkers all the time, calling them nicknames and messing with them. these people like to poke the bear and see how far they can go 😭 this also goes for people with strong gemini influences, for example my best friend isn’t a gemini sun but her mercury conjuncts her ascendent exactly and has the same humour I just described (this is because gemini is ruled by mercury)

𖤓 and continuing with this placement, mercury conjunct the ascendent makes the native a very good speaker, especially if it’s positively aspected. my friend is the only person who can persuade me to do anything, and she’s incredibly well spoken. the same applies to mercury in the first house, although it’s stronger when it’s conjunct the ascendent

𖤓 people with pluto in the first house have the most chilling stares, it’s like having scorpio rising even if you have no other scorpio placements in your chart. another friend of mine has pluto conjunct the ascendent (again, exactly) and we always joke that he has “fuck me” eyes 😂 that scorpio influence darkens any ascendent you have, it’s a very powerful placement. my brother also has pluto in the first house and my family used to say he had “evil eyes” whenever he got angry (his glare could kill you). my girlfriend says people say the same thing about her and she also has pluto in the first house! this is intensified if you also have scorpio rising (true for both my brother and my girlfriend, god bless)

𖤓 ^^ another thing to note about pluto in the first house: this placement usually indicates that the native will go through a major transformation regarding their identity in their lifetime, especially if it has to do with their physical appearance and/or presentation. what this means specifically depends on the rest of the chart and whether or not pluto is positively aspected, but it’s definitely a significant aspect of this placement!

okay that’s all for now! I have a lot of thoughts about astrology (I’m currently reading a lot about synastry and composite charts too) so let me know if you liked this! ✨✨✨

[all-the-things-2020]

Late Night Talking - Chapter Three

Summary: Dieter and Emily go on date number two at Venice Beach.

Rating: PG

Notes: I’m writing exclusively from Emily’s POV but will include little transcripts here and there to show Dieter’s perspective. I gave Dieter a brother named Friedrich. They call each other Freddy and Deet.

[Telephone call between Dieter Bravo and his brother Friedrich]

Friedrich: What happened now?

Dieter: Why do you assume something happened? Maybe I’m just calling to hear your amazing voice.

F: Because it’s one o’clock in the fucking morning, Deet.

D: Shit, sorry. It’s only ten here. But Freddy, I have to talk to you. This is big, bro.

F: Work big or personal big?

D: Personal. I think I just met the woman I’m going to spend the rest of my life with.

F: [sighs] Is this going to be like Jonathan?

D: No. Nothing like Jonathan. That was just … I was stupid then. And horny. But Emily — her name is Emily — she’s amazing, Freddy.

F: I’m sure she is, but don’t get ahead of yourself. You always leap without looking.

D: I know but there’s something … we just clicked, you know? Met her in a bookstore and we went to another one for our first date. Couple of drinks, dinner at a tapas place. Nothing fancy but … I haven’t felt this alive since I stopped using.

F: I’m happy for you, Deet, but be careful. Don’t jump into anything. Promise me.

D: I’m gonna marry her.

F: Give it a year. If you still feel the same way, then go for it.

D: A whole year?

F: A whole year. Promise me, Deet.

D: [sighs] I promise. But mark your calendar. I’ll be calling you a year from now to tell you we’re engaged.

F: If you say so. Look, man, I need to get some sleep.

D: Okay, sorry. I just … I had to tell you.

F: I know. Make good choices. Night.

[Call ends]

****************************************************************************

I texted Dieter as soon as I got home and he replied instantly.

Me: Home safe

Dieter: Same here. Had a great time tonight.

Me: So did I

The typing indicator showed up, then disappeared, then showed up again. When it disappeared for a second time, it stayed off. I was puzzled until my phone rang.

”Hello.”

”Hey, I hope you don’t mind but I figured it’s easier to do this talking than texting. I hate texting, anyway.” He chuckled softly.

”It’s fine,” I said. “So, you had a good time?”

”A great time,” he corrected me. “I … look I’m not really that good at this kind of thing. In my line of business you get people fawning all over you and they always want something … it’s hard to trust, you know? But I didn’t get that from you.”

”I know you’re famous and all that, but you’re still just a guy,” I said. “I had that bubble burst a long time ago when one of my friends introduced me to one of the members of a band their Dad knew. I thought it was going to be magical and he turned out to be boring. Literally spent most of the time talking to her Dad about some kind of woodworking tool he’d bought and how he was trying get his son to make a bird house.”

Dieter laughed. “I’m not that boring, I hope.”

”Not at all. But you’re still just a guy. Who happens to make his living pretending to be other people and gets paid obscene amounts of money to do it.”

”Not that obscene,” he said. “At least, not for a while.” He cleared his throat. “Look, before we go any further, I’ve got to be honest with you. I’m kind of fucked up. I mean, more than the usual ‘everybody’s messed up one way or the other’.

“I’ve been in rehab. I was using a lot of shit to escape reality and … I almost died on the set of Cliff Beasts 6. Like literally OD’d and they had to restart my heart. I swore off the hard stuff after that and checked myself in. No more coke, no more acid, no more mystery pills.

”And I connected with my therapist there. She’s amazing and she gets me. So I have rules now. Alcohol if I’m with other people, never when I’m alone. Nothing stronger except this one brand of edibles that mellow me out when I’m super anxious. And I’m on meds to straighten out my brain chemistry. And I have a session with her every week. So, that’s me …”

“I knew about rehab,” I said carefully. “It was on the Internet and gossip magazines. But I didn’t know you almost died. That must have been really scary.”

“Scared the shit out of me,” he said. “There was this girl who worked at the hotel. She’s the one who found me and helped revive me. She professed her love for me in the ambulance and … it lasted about three weeks. I woke up one day and realized ‘Shit, I’m in my forties, and this girl’s in her twenties. What am I doing with my life?’ And I checked into rehab the next day.

“I had to drop out of a couple of projects, and my career was already heading down the crapper anyway — I mean, Cliff Beasts? — so I’m kind of starting over.”

”That’s okay,” I said. “Like I said, you’re just a guy who happens to be an actor. Your job doesn’t have anything to do with why I enjoyed the evening with you. We would have had fun if you were a CPA or a garbage man or whatever.”

“Yeah, and that’s why … I’d really, really like to see you again. Soon.”

”So would I,” I said. “I’m off work for the summer so my schedule is wide open.”

“How about Sunday? I have some shit to take care of tomorrow for a charity. Wait, that didn’t come out right, it’s a charity, it’s not shit …” He sounded a bit flustered. “Sunday. We can go to the beach. Unless that’s too long a drive for you?”

”Traffic shouldn’t be too bad on a weekend. And I haven’t been to the beach for a while. I’d love to.”

”It’s a date then. I’ll … I’ll text you tomorrow what time to meet and where, if that’s okay?”

”That’s perfect,” I said.

”Well, I should let you get to bed. I’m sure you’re tired after listening to me all night and driving and everything.”

”Yeah, you should get some sleep, too. Got to be fresh for the charity shit, right?”

He laughed. “Yeah. Good night.”

”Good night.”

The call ended and I sat on the couch staring at my phone for a few minutes. Then I texted Sam.

*****************************************

We were on the boardwalk at Venice Beach. It was a hot day, so the place was crowded, perfect for people watching.

“Oh, my God, your dog is so cute!” Dieter fairly ran across the boardwalk to a young couple with a Corgi on a leash. It was wearing a bow tie. “Can I take a picture?”

I followed more slowly, ready to apologize to them for my date’s ridiculous behavior, but they were already making the dog pose and look even more adorable, if that was even possible. Dieter snapped a picture of the dog, then shoved his phone at me before getting down on the ground. “Get a picture of me with the dog,” he said. His goofy grin was irresistible. I snapped a couple of pictures of him and the dog, then we chatted a bit with the couple. The dog was a boy, named Kirby, and while he seemed to enjoy the attention, he was a bit aloof, as Corgis often are, until he very solemnly and daintily licked my hand. His owners gushed over how he doesn’t normally like strangers and I should feel special.

“She is special,” Dieter said, giving me a squeeze.

They awkwardly asked for an autograph and a selfie. Dieter obliged, with me taking the photo for them. We said goodbye, and Dieter wistfully watched them walk away. “Now that made my day,” he said.

I arched an eyebrow at him. “You’re on a date with me and meeting a dog is the highlight of your day?” I teased.

“No, no, I didn’t mean it like that,” he blustered.”Like, the dog is the icing on the cake. You’re the cake.”

“Come again?”

He scrunched up his face. “It’s like … okay, icing is nice, icing is great, but by itself it’s kind of gross. Too sweet. You need the cake to give it meaning. The cake is the foundation. The icing is optional but the cake is essential.” He shook his head. “I’m not explaining this right.”

I grabbed his hand. “I think I can see the sentiment behind this rather tortured metaphor,” I said. “Cake is good even by itself; icing enhances it but you don’t really need it.”

“Exactly,” he said, raising our joined hands to his mouth. He kissed the back of my hand. “This would have been a great day even without the dog, but the dog made it even better.”

“I’m only letting this go because it was a Corgi,” I told him. “Any other breed and I’d be insulted, but damn, Corgis are adorable.”

He laughed and put his arms around me, pulling me in for a kiss. A skateboarder zipped past. “Get a room, boomers,” he yelled.

“Hey, we’re Gen X,” Dieter yelled back. “We don’t give a shit!”

“You are such a dork,” I said, laughing into his chest as he flipped the kid off.

“Ah, you love it,” he said.

“I do,” I admitted. “You’re ... adorkable.”

“Now who’s making shit up?”

“Shut up and kiss me again.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

****************************

“Let’s go in the water,” Dieter said, tugging at my hand and leading me off the boardwalk and into the sand.

“We don’t have bathing suits,” I protested. I stopped to take off my flip-flops; it was nearly impossible to walk in sand with them on without tripping over my own feet. Dieter pulled his own shoes off as well, and we continued across the beach, shoes in one hand, holding hands with the other.

“We’ll just get our feet wet,” he promised. “Come on.” He whined like a little kid who wanted candy. “Pleeeease.”

I laughed. How could I resist him when he was such a goofball? “Okay, but not too deep,” I said, realizing I sounded like a mom. “I’m not getting all wet and then having to sit around in soggy shorts the rest of the day.”

“I’ll be careful, I promise,” he said, but there was a wicked gleam in his eye that I didn’t quite trust.

We waded out into the water, letting it lap against our ankles, the occasional wave breaking harder and splashing us up to our knees. “Next time, we’ll wear our swimsuits,” he said. “Bring a boogie board or something.”

“I can’t swim,” I admitted. He stopped dead, staring at me.

“What?!,” he said incredulously. “You grew up in SoCal and never learned to swim? How is this possible?”

I was embarrassed, but decided to tell him the truth. “I have a phobia about water,” I said. “If my face gets in the water, I panic. I failed swimming in high school, the only F I ever got on my report card.”

“Well,” he said, “we’ll have to fix that. Lucky for you, I have a pool at my place, and I’m a very good teacher.” He slid his arms around my waist. “Do you need to get out of the water right now?”

“No,” I said. “This is fine. This is fun. It’s just when the water gets on or around my face.”

“Okay, then,” he grinned. “Let’s play some more.” He darted off down the beach, splashing water behind him as he ran through the surf. I gave chase, laughing as I tried to catch up. He was a total goofball, but he was my goofball.

*****************************

I was pretty sure I had a sunburn. We’d been good and applied sunblock before we got out of the cars, and reapplied later, but I could still feel the heat on my skin. “Ooh, shave ice!” I cried as we came around a corner. It was a very hot day and nothing is better on a hot day than a shave ice.

We bought two large shave ices, cherry for me, and a multi-hued mixture of flavors for Dieter. “You’re boring,” he said, pointing at my solid red treat with his plastic spoon.

“Not boring,” I said. “Classic.” I took a big bite and savored the sweet, cold ice as it melted on my tongue.

He shook his head and dug into his own ice, as we sat on a bench facing the ocean. The on shore breeze kept the heat from being overwhelming and the shave ice cooled me off quickly.

“Ah, shit, brain freeze!” Dieter said, holding a hand against his forehead.

“Don’t eat it so fast, doofus,” I said, poking him in the side with my elbow.

He stuck his tongue out at me. It was dyed a dark purplish color from the combination of flavors. “Gross,” I said. “See, that’s why I go with the cherry.” I stuck my own tongue out, knowing it would be a bright red.

“Well, you certainly don’t need lipstick,” he said, pulling out his phone and taking a quick photo, which he showed me. My lips were cherry red.

“Ah, you’ve discovered my cunning plot to replace makeup with shave ice syrup,” I said. He leaned in for a kiss.

“Mmm,” he said. “It tastes better than lipstick, I’ll give you that.”

I shoved him away. “You’re so weird,” I said. “Eat your shave ice before it melts.”

“You’re so bossy,” he grumbled, as he shoveled another spoonful of ice into his mouth.

“I work with teenagers,” I reminded him. “I think I can handle your sorry ass.” I took a big bite of my own shave ice, but instantly regretted it. “Ow, ow, brain freeze!”

Dieter nearly fell off the bench laughing, and I joined him, as soon as my head stopped pounding.

***********************************

The sun was low in the sky as we made our way toward the parking lot. “Next time we’ll get here later, rent bikes, and stay to watch the sunset,” Dieter said. His arm was around my waist, his sunglasses sliding down his nose as he gazed down at me.

“That sounds wonderful,” I replied. “But how about our next date, you drive out my way?”

He scratched his chin with his free hand. “I guess I could,” he said. “Is there anything out there to do?”

”I hope you’re being facetious,” I told him. “Because only I can diss where I live.”

He chuckled. “Totally facetious. Besides, as long as I’m with you, who cares where we go?”

”Smooth, Bravo, real smooth.” I tugged his arm, pulling him to a stop. I went on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek, in one of those delectable little bare patches in his beard.

”It worked,didn’t it?” he said smugly.

[brian-in-finance]

Photo: Patch Bell

Outlander and Karen Pirie star Lauren Lyle on her self-belief and taking the leap to pursue her dream

Nominated for two awards at the Scottish Baftas this evening, Lauren Lyle promises it will be a celebration no matter the outcome.

The Glasgow actress has grafted hard to enjoy a remarkable rise over recent years, headlined by her first leading role in Karen Pirie, the acclaimed St Andrews-set crime drama based on Val McDermid’s novels.

Next year is set to be the 30-year-old star’s biggest yet, with several leading roles in film and TV, including a second series of Karen Pirie, so now seems like a good time to pause and look back on her career so far.

“I moved to London at 19 and if I’d told myself then that I’d have my own TV show, had done one of the biggest shows in America (Outlander) and would be working all the time, I don’t think I would have believed it,” she smiled.

“I would have thought I’d needed to have done something terrible to have got here, but I just worked really hard. I’m working on a show called Toxic Town for Netflix, which has Rory Kinnear and Jodie Whittaker in it, and I asked both what their secret is. They said they didn’t know, they just keep working, and they’re testament to doing great work and not trying to be famous.

“Rory told me he always wanted to be known for being good, and I’m the same. I’m trying to pick good things and be in quality stuff, things that excite me and getting to work with good people.

“I came to London to audition for drama schools and came close but didn’t get in. I think I’d only been to London once before as a kid but didn’t remember it. I was so hungry for it, and being around other actors in this world was so thrilling and I knew this was what I wanted to do and the place to do it.”

Taking the plunge

Lauren moved into a shared house with four people she hadn’t previously met. She took on several jobs to pay the bills while trying to engineer a break, joining a theatre company and eager to learn.

Photo: Patch Bell

“It was a risk but I put my head down and grafted hard,” she said. “I think I’ve always had deluded confidence that I can do something. My mum is a school PE teacher and I was a gymnast and runner and I’ve always been competitive to win the race, but that’s not helpful at times because there isn’t a finishing line or right answer here; there’s lots of different ways to do this, so I’ve had to put those feelings aside at times.

“I had a big agent for about a year before I got a job, and then two came within two or three weeks of each other – Outlander and Broke, with Sean Bean – and my life changed. I did my tax return for that year and realised I’d done about six jobs – dog walker, flyering, receptionist, in Zara’s stock room for 18 months. Random stuff that I did for ages.

“It was bleak at times but I loved going to the theatre and seeing this life dangled in front of me. It was quite inspiring.”

Karen Pirie

Lauren’s recurring role as Marsali in Outlander was her break, while BBC thriller Vigil, where she played activist Jade, introduced her to a different audience. When Karen Pirie came along last year, she felt ready.

“I’m so proud to be part of the show. It was so well made, beautifully shot, and with a crew who were hungry to be there. It was my first lead and I had creative control around what she looked like and who she was,” Lauren explained.

“The director, Gareth Bryn, writer Emer Kenny – who also executive produced – and myself were constantly in conversation. We all had such a brilliant time, and it was a story that meant something and said something of young women.

“It was about a young woman trying to solve a crime about another young woman, so Karen knew what it’s like to be afraid to walk home alone at night, and how a young person can be underestimated in the workplace and how difficult it can be to prove themselves.”

Photo: ITV

Based on Val McDermid’s novel The Distant Echo – about the cold case investigation of a 19-year-old woman’s death which is reopened and given to DS Karen Pirie after a podcast cast doubt on the original investigation – it was a Sunday night hit for ITV last year.

“Val has been complimentary and incredibly supportive of me,” Lauren continued. “She had to sign off on me playing the character. I was worried if she would be happy with the Methil accent. She visited the set and I prepared myself, but she said I was very good.

“She messaged me on Twitter when the awards nominations were announced and congratulated me and said we would need to go for a drink. I’d love to have a drink with her – I’m sure she would have some great stories!”

Scottish Baftas

The drink will be flowing this evening at the Scottish Baftas in Glasgow where, in addition to Lauren’s two nominations, Karen Pirie is also in the fiction director and scripted television categories.

“The show came out too late for the 2022 awards, but it’s nice that we’ve since announced a second series. We have a big Karen Pirie table. My parents are coming – my dad has a new velvet jacket to go with his tartan troos – as is my boyfriend, who is South-African-Australian, but we’ve recently discovered he has lots of Scottish heritage, so he might wear a kilt, and my agent will be there, too.

“Everyone is dead excited and the whole team is there to celebrate.”

Lauren’s nomination in the Audience Award category sees her vying with Brian Cox, Lewis Capaldi, Tony Curran, Hamza Yassin and Meryl Williams.

“To be in a category with Brian, Lewis and the legend that is Meryl from The Traitors, I feel that’s the only time in my life this will happen. I’m tempted to say to Brian that if he ever needs me to play his granddaughter or daughter, I’m here. Someone should cast us all as a family.”

New projects

With a second series of Karen Pirie expected to start shooting early next year and a rumoured return for the final series of Outlander – “we may be talking, who knows” is all Lauren will say – 2024 will be another busy one for her.

She will follow up her first starring role in a movie, Mercy Falls, which was released earlier this month, with another two movies to be released next year – thriller Something In The Water and The Outrun, with Saoirse Ronan and Jack Lowden.

Photo: Robert Wilson / Starz

“We filmed Something In The Water in the Dominican Republic. It’s like Bridesmaids but a thriller. The Outrun was filmed on Orkney. Saoirse and Jack saw me in Vigil and asked if I’d be part of this film, which is the first from their production company.

“I had to get the Orkney accent just right. At the first read-through, Amy Liptrot, the writer of the book it’s based on, said it needed to be a bit less Shetland and a bit more Orkney, so I went away and made sure it was right.

“Everyone was so welcoming on Orkney. The beaches were ridiculous. I was stung by a weever fish, which apparently is an unusual thing to happen. My foot was on fire for a day.

“I’ve also been making Toxic Town, a new series for Netflix which is about the Corby poisonings, one of the UK’s biggest environmental scandals, which no-one really knows about. It’s about mothers in a David vs Goliath battle for justice, and I’m wearing lots of ‘90s and ‘00s power suits.

“As well as Jodie and Rory, it has people like Aimee Lou Wood from Sex Education, Joe Dempsie from Skins, Claudia Jessie from Bridgerton, Michael Socha from This Is England, and Robert Carlyle, who is the nicest man in the world.”

Shooting in Scotland

Despite living in London, Lauren finds many of her jobs are being shot in Scotland, which she’s happy to see.

“Nowhere looks like Scotland and a lot of productions are coming here for that reason,” she added. “It’s really cool to see it happening and it’s a testament to the quality of workers you get here.

“Plus, it gives me a free trip home to see my family.”

Photo: Stuart Wallace / Shutterstock

At last year’s Scottish Baftas, Dunkirk and The Gold actor Jack Lowden spoke glowingly about Lauren Lyle.

The pair have since become friends and colleagues, and Lauren is keen to support new talent coming through in Scotland just as Jack did with her.

Speaking about this evening’s Scottish Baftas, Lauren said: “Me and Jack were talking about how great it is to get a lot of Scots in a room to congratulate each other, all these people doing well from this proud place, on international stages representing our country, heritage and culture, which we’re so proud of.

“It’s a great opportunity to shake everyone’s hands and say ‘aren’t we an amazing team?’

“I want to know who the other young people are. We’d like to be able to speak to the younger Scottish actors and welcome them in. Jack did that with me – talking about me, being supportive and asking me to be part of his film. I don’t know if we’d met at the point he spoke about me at the Scottish Baftas. I was very flattered.

“He and Saoirse have been really cool and supportive, and I hope to do the same at some point. With season two of Karen Pirie coming, I message its writer, Emer Kenny, and tell her to keep an eye out for this guy and this girl.”

Remember… she will follow up her first starring role in a movie, Mercy Falls, which was released earlier this month, with another two movies to be released next year – thriller Something In The Water and The Outrun, with Saoirse Ronan and Jack Lowden. — The Sunday Post

[acrosstobear]

Mick’s Diary: Life as an F1 Reserve Driver

Hi everyone and welcome to my diary!

Over the season, I’ll be keeping you up to date with how we’re progressing trackside and at the factory, and some insight into what I get up to away from racing. So, here’s my first entry.

Since I joined Mercedes, I’ve been settling in great. Everybody is just so open-minded towards me, and that made me feel welcome from the first moment I stepped into the factory in Brackley. I’ve spent a lot of time there in these first months. It’s a very impressive facility.

I visited it back in 2014 as a young driver and was even sneaking in the simulator then, but everything is a lot bigger now than it was then! It is a state-of-the-art facility, very impressive in how things are structured and how every detail is thoughtfully taken care of. I’m still getting used to the level of preparation that you see here, and I am trying to soak up as much information as I can. Also, there’s still a lot of people I haven’t met but it’s been fun getting to know as many colleagues as I can.

My main focus up to now has been working in the simulator. Because I have raced a car under this new set of regulations, I have a good understanding of how to drive them. That has helped me in my role so far and hopefully added value for the Team. I will look to be an extra pair of eyes and resource to help with the development programme across the year.

The simulator team have been super kind to me and great to work with. It’s impressive to drive the sim because it’s just so advanced, and I have been pushing to do more. It’s not enough for me to just sit on the side-lines, I want to be helpful wherever I can. Of course, it’s not the real thing and I would love to be driving the W14!

It's also been fascinating working with Lewis and George. It’s an interesting period for me as I get to look over and work with two fantastic drivers, which you don’t always get to do. I’ve learned a lot about what’s important in terms of approaching race weekends; I feel like I’ve already gained so much knowledge to add to my skillset. I didn’t think I would have learned and gained so much so early into my role.

As a driver, you usually do not get to hear what is going on between all the engineers while you are out on the track, so listening in during the sessions has been extremely interesting. I was quite shocked at the season opener in Bahrain, I did not expect the sheer amount of exchange that happens.

You don’t know what you’re missing until you are actually part of it. What I really appreciate in working with those engineers is that they are genuinely listening to you and your opinion matters, and what is special from an emotional side is that many people who are working for the Team now were working here when my dad was driving.

Whilst we’ve all been working hard, it’s important to keep a balance and get some downtime. I went out early to Australia and went surfing. I wouldn’t say that I’m a great surfer, but I have to say that I have come to love it and I feel it is not just for fun but also very helpful for training. Even at home in Switzerland I do a lot of surfing. Yes, this may sound strange when speaking of a country that’s not famous for its beaches, but we have a surf spot close to where I live.

It can’t beat the adrenaline rush of motorsport though and I’m excited to get back to Brackley and continue our work. We’re working through quite a lot of simulator sessions before the next race in Baku so we will do some virtual mileage and be pushing hard to bring performance to the car.

To finish my first diary entry, I wanted to speak directly to you, the fans. Thank you to everyone for the warm welcome to the Team, and for the support you’ve shown me. It’s no secret that I would, like any driver, love to be out there racing. My current role though is helping me grow and develop, which is great.

[percydoesart-sometimes]

Hey! It’s been a while,, I’ve been drawing like 100 things,, but nothings finished Lmao,, so instead I’m gonna introduce you to my helluvaverse oc’s

The story mostly follows along Snowball, a famous fashion designer sinner, who works with a succubus, he’s mostly a photographer and a bother,,, Snow is the smallest of his Freind’s, but that doesn’t make him the weakest,, he’s been running his business in the pride ring sense the late 80s, let’s just say he’s got a lot of skeletons in his many velvet lines closets.

Paris (said bother) is your party animal best friend, and is all over just a hot mess,, and he’s hopelessly in love with the non committal Duke of love..

Duke Dantalion, a member of the Goetia family, represented by a crow. He’s in charge of people’s fates of loves, and the strings that attach your romantic relations together, due to his job, he is fated to No one, and is not aloud to partake in relations himself.

Jax is Snowballs body guard, Snow found him on the street after watching Jax beat up another group of sinners (Snow doesn’t have the best history with his bodyguards Lmao) Jax didn’t know who Snow was when they first met, he only accepted the job because he needed somewhere to live.

Trixi! She’s out girl boss assistant who has definitely seen to much, but she’s got a good work ethic,, she’s also secretly in love with Smowballs best Freind’s (seen in the last photo , bottom. (Shoutout to my bestys character Darby)) assistant. (The other assistant is not shown lmao)

Anyway I might post more about these guys later, I don’t often make ocs for other universes,, but I do love it sometimes,, feel free to ask questions!

[foxes-that-run]

https://genius.com/Michael-buble-someday-lyrics

Do you think this is about TS? I feel it might be because of this part:

I remember that love song I sang every word wrong But you didn't mind, no no

Hi Anon, thanks for asking!

The TLDNR is yes, this song references Taylor, with that line about his temper trap tattoo.

Someday

When was it written

It is one of a few songs he wrote in mid-2014, including I Love You and Just a Little Piece of Your Heart. He had been hanging out with his friend and now manager Jeff Azoff and he was either stretching a creative muscle and/or considering a solo career. He later told Rolling Stone he first suggested a break from 1D late in 2014, about 4 months after writing this.

Harry wrote it with Johan Carlsson (if I could fly) and Meghan Trainor. Meghan said they worked together after "all the base" (June). Harry was in LA on 21-24 July 2014 - when this was likely written. The press mentioned it August 2014. Harry was on tour, he and Taylor seemed more on/ than off Feb 2014 - Feb 2015 (Timeline)

In 2015, when asked if it was for 1D Meghan said it was "a duet between a boy and a girl, so we're not sure yet." She's also said:

"He heard the song and was apparently a fan and a mutual friend told me he wanted to write with me [...] So I walked in with a prepared verse and chorus. But he gave me very poetic, mature lyrics. I was like, 'Well, damn, Harry, you know what love is.'" not like the Harry Styles who everyone is in love with. We finished the song in an hour or two and I love it. I was nervous 'cause I thought he'd be like a Justin Bieber, like 'he's so famous' and love himself, but he was just so normal... I immediately wasn't nervous any more." When asked about dating Harry she responded ‘Everyone I meet is taken. They’re all dating people.

It was released more than 2 years later in October 2016 by Michael Buble with Meghan singing. (How I would love to hear the demo with 2014 Harry's vocals and a Ukulele.)

Lyrics

I love seeing you happy I miss seeing that smile It's been such a long time And although I don't have you I know now that I need to Somehow make you mine And I won't lie, it's hard seeing you with him 'Cause I know he can't hold you like I can

Trouble "When I see that smile therе’s trouble"

It's unclear if either was dating someone else in this period. I see this as related to Is it Over Now? "At least I had the decency / To keep my nights out of sight" where they were dating others. To me, these are an indication that they agreed to be together in the future due to the difficulty of dating with their careers. In October, Harry reportedly wrote another song called 'not our fault' that sometimes external things cause a relationship to not work. Harry has mentioned not wanting others to hold her in:

Woman "I hope you can see the shape that I’m in While he’s touching your skin He’s right where I should, where I should be"

Happily "You know I wanna be the one to hold you when you sleep."

Perfect "Or the arms that hold you any time you want them"

TBSL "Do you think it's easy being of the jealous kind?"

Him "'Cause I don't wanna hear about him / How he is holding you better at night"

[Chorus} Someday maybe when we're old and gray We could be in love once more Till then I won't give my love away Darling, I'm forever only yours

Meghan Trainor said she had written a chorus before she met Harry and he loved it. Harry has also sung about waiting for love a lot:

Satellite "Spinning out, waiting for ya to pull me in"

Without You "Waiting everyday I don’t wanna wait for you"

Already home "I’ve been waiting, every day since"

Talk "Don't you, don't you wait"

Golden "So you wait for me in the sky"

Oh, I remember that love song I sang every word wrong But you didn't mind, no no And I'll admit that I miss you But only if you do 'Cause you know that I'm shy And I can't lie, it's hard seeing you with her 'Cause I know she can't love you like I can

Mis-remembered lyrics are a reference to Harry's Temper Trap Tattoo, Taylors arm lyrics and the birthday gift of the hand written lyrics. Harry has also referenced this in Canyon Moon: "She plays songs I've never heard / an old lover's hippie music/ Pretends not to know the words"

Lots of missing, and in FTDT also never being the first to break:

FTDT "Why won't you ever be the first one to break? / Even my phone misses your call, by the way"

Late Night Talking "It's only been a couple of days / And I miss you"

Falling "You said you cared / And you missed me, too"

If I could fly "I'm missing half of me when we're apart"

Without you "Now you’re with him i must admit I’m missing / The part of your skin"

Ophelia "I miss you so, miss you so"

And my lovin' works for you then (it works for you) We've got nothing to lose 'Cause I'm forever only yours (in love once more, once more, once more) No need to complicate it That smile is worth the wait, yeah I'm forever only yours (hey, yeah) Someday maybe, Someday maybe Someday maybe I'll be yours (woah, baby)x2

Similar to not complicating it:

I just wanna love you "I just wanna love you, that's all I gotta say"

Olivia "I love you, it's all I do / I love you"

Similar to forever only yours:

Ophelia "The definition of devotion, baby"

Fine Line "You've got my devotion"

Happily "I just want it to be you and I forever."

End of the Day "She said the night was over, I said it's forever"

[mysteriawrites]

hello it is me hi hello

anyway…you already know from the server…

hi, im hannah!, im obviously swedish! my oshis are shu, luca, koto, and kyo…some wosemi too.

I’ve been doing dance for a super long time and i LOVE LOVE LOVE physical touch! (giving and receiving)

uhhh im bad at this

i tend to be a super fast typer so my messages always come out looking like gibberish

uhhh i hate calling but if im calling my bff or my s/o i will never hang up i love it sm!!

uhh, i tend to be pretty extroverted (due to my meds LMAOO) and im described as more of a golden retriever (however, i look like a black cat aporently)

SORRY IF THATS NOT ENOUGH ITS ALL I CAN THINK OF 😭💔💔

Luca Kaneshiro!!!

Congratulations Hannah Chan you got ur oshi! In all seriousness I think you guys would make a good pair.

You’re both sweet and energetic. You care a lot about the people around you and love to make friends. You also both try to hide your own problems and worries from others, but i think since you’re so similar it’ll be easier to notice and break each other out of these habits.

You and Luca met on somewhat unconventional means. It was the boss’s birthday and so he was having a big birthday bash with lots of people invited family, friends, and famous people alike.

You were hired as some of the entertainment. You were a well known and highly respected dancer and only the best of the best was expected at this party.

You had meticulously planned and practiced your performance for weeks until it was flawless. You had been told that this show could be a huge stepping stone in your career.

You arrived at the party in your finest outfit and set the stage for your performance. You were a bit nervous since it was such a large crowd of important people, but as every good performer knows: the show must go on.

Your show enraptured Luca to his very core. He couldn’t take his eyes off you. Your moves were so graceful and delicate yet bold and dynamic. He had to know who you were!

Sadly it was hard for him to get the time to see you given all the guests wanting to talk to you. By the time he got away from them your group had already packed up and left.

After the party Luca was on a mission to see you again and tracked down where and when your next show would be. He canceled all his plans and meetings to book a flight to your next location.

Was it an impulsive decision for someone he barely met? Yes. But something inside him was telling him he had to see you again.

You were in your dressing room one night after you last show when suddenly there was a knock at the door. You opened it to receive a delivery of chocolates and flowers with a note that said “Meet me at (insert restaurant here im too lazy)”

Sure you’ve had messages and gifts from creepy stalker fans before and you knew going was a safety risk. However something in your gut told you it was worth checking out.

And so you went. When you got there you were met with a familiar man with golden hair and amethyst hair.

Luca Kaneshiro finally found you.

Fast forward to you guys becoming fast friends and even faster lovers, you and Luca are a very active and energetic couple.

You both like moving and be being active. Him with working out and you with your dancing (which arguably is a workout in an of itself he has mad respect for you he couldn’t imagine moving like that). You guys stretch and go on runs together laughing and having so much fun it doesn’t even feel like working out.

~~and when you’re both sore afterwards you take a warm bath or shower together and give each other massages. Both activities may lead to a lot of touching 👀~~

Despite being busy with his work he always makes time for you as quality time is one of his love languages. He will always clear his schedule to go see your performances and spoil you afterwards because you deserve the fucking world.

He also uses dumb puns and pick up lines on you when you guys go on dates. Dates with you guys are usually a day out having fun and unwinding from your hectic lives. Like going to the amusement park (that he rented out for your whole trip) or going for a walk.

A couple with a lot of puppy energy that only has love to give. (I was gonna put more but this is getting too long)

Runners up: Vantacrow Bringer, Doppio Dropscythe, Yu Q Wilson

[n0vadroid]

From Strangers to Soulmates

Robaire had just finished washing his dishes when he heard his phone ring. He went to the front room and saw that it was Gogo. “Hey, Gogo.”

“Hi, Robaire. How was your day?” Gogo asked from over the phone.

“Good so far. What about you?” Robaire asked.

“Mine’s good, too. My friend got back from Paris with her fiancé, so that’s good,” Gogo mentioned. “Um…about yesterday, though.”

“What about it?” Robaire asked as he sat down.

“Was that…a date?” Gogo asked.

Robaire thought about it for a second. “I’m…not sure. I just got out of a relationship, so I’m not trying to move on too fast. But I had a great time, nonetheless.”

“R-right, me too. I just…wanted to make sure,” Gogo told him.

Robaire chuckled. “I get it.”

There was a moment of silence. 

“So…do you have any plans for today?” Robaire asked.

“I do. I’ve got paperwork to finish and errands to run,” Gogo replied. “What are your plans? Do you have to work?”

“Oh, I don’t work on Sundays. But I’m planning on meeting my friends later,” Robaire replied.

“Oh, that sounds fun,” Gogo said.

“Yeah, it will be. Also, is it okay if I tell people about us?” Robaire asked. “Only people who're close to me, I’m famous after all.”

“Well, you can. I did tell my sister, my best friend, and her fiancé about you.” Gogo giggled. “I told them that your name is Robert.”

“Really?” Robaire laughed.

“I didn't want them to know that you’re famous, my sister already thinks that you’re a celebrity. I won't tell anyone who you are, though,” Gogo told him.

“Thanks, I appreciate it. It’s hard to trust people in my line of work.” Robaire sighed. “But I’m not sure about my manager. She lectured me on Monday after...you know.”

“Aw, really? That sucks. But I promise not to do anything to hurt you, Robaire,” Gogo said.

Robaire smiled. “You’re really nice, you know that?”

“Well, so are you. Thanks again for yesterday, I had a lot of fun,” Gogo mentioned.

“Anytime. I was only paying you back,” Robaire replied. “Maybe we’ll…go out again sometime? Maybe you’ll help me out again.”

“Maybe. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” Gogo replied. “I have to get ready to go run errands. I’ll see you later.”

“Same to you. See you later.” Robaire hung up the phone and looked at the wall. “So that’s what it feels like...”

…

“Woah, a date?” Aaron T asked. “I mean, I know that I told you to forget about Aaliyah, but I never thought you would go straight to dating again.”

“It wasn’t a date, really. It was a…thank you.” Robaire took a sip of his beer. “She helped me out a few times. And I’m still upset about Aaliyah, by the way.”

“Well, if you say so.” Aaron T shrugged. 

“Actually, I met her once before. I think her name was Gogo?” Tae Young recalled. “She was really nice.”

“If Tae says she’s nice, then I trust her,” Aaron Z said while putting his arm on top of the couch behind Aaron T.

Aaron T blushed a bit. “Y-yeah, me too.”

“Well, if you want my opinion, try not to focus on dating too soon. You might wanna wait until you’re completely over Aaliyah to get a new girlfriend,” Jesse suggested.

“That’s what I’m doing and that’s what I told Gogo.” Robaire reminisced with a smile. “She was really nice about it...”

The other members all gave each other a knowing look.

“Right…”

Part 10

[firethekitty]

okay you reblog a lot of albums ive never heard of and am curious about but it’s hard to get myself to sit down and listen to a whole album so please please, Top Ten-ish Songs To Get To Know You kind of list? pretty please?

i literally daydream about people asking me stuff like this LOL. so this is hardly a comprehensive list of all my favorite songs ever but here are some songs that are really important to me!!! this got REALLY long so i put it under a read more

1. meet me in the woods by lord huron

my absolute favorite song Ever like of all time. means everything to me. i could listen to this every single day and never get tired of it. INSANELY fun, incredible vibes, makes me want to go outside and shoot a beam into somebody. lord huron is an Experience. all their albums are concept albums and there’s actually a fair amount of lore going on. on the physical CD for strange trails it actually has the characters’ names next to their respective songs

for meet me in the woods, it sounds very upbeat and happy, but listen closely and you’ll realize it’s not quite as it seems… in-universe, it’s narrated by a woman named francine lu, and the song has the same chords as the first track of the album (and another of her songs) “love like ghosts”. she also narrates “the night we met”, easily LH’s most famous song. francine lu is not having a normal one. what’s her problem? listen to find out…..

2. crystals by of monsters and men

this was my favorite song ever for about 6 years until meet me in the woods ranked just a tiny bit higher. sooo fucking fun, itches a part of my brain that’s only accessible via icelandic stomp & holler. makes me very happy and always cheers me up! of monsters and men was the first new (at the time) band i ever really discovered on my own without hearing about from my parents or other people, and i’ve been listening to them ever since (almost 13 years!!) they are incredibly important to me and i highly recommend all of their albums

3. sunblind by fleet foxes

relatively new but became a favorite as soon as i heard it. this is also one of the most Me songs i can think of on top of just being so fucking gorgeous and raw and heartfelt. this song is a tribute to deceased musicians who influenced robin pecknold (the lead singer and songwriter for fleet foxes) and how their music is pretty much the reason he’s even alive today. my favorite lines are “only way that i made it for a long time / but i’m loud and alive, singing you all night”. this entire album is sincerely a masterpiece and i highly recommend listening to it all. fleet foxes have really beautiful and unique lyrics, they remind me of mitski’s lyrics in that they’re very poetic and personal and emotional but still subjective enough that you can connect them to your own life

4. this must be the place by talking heads

specifically the stop making sense live recording, which i still half-refuse to believe is a live recording because it’s just THAT fucking good. whenever someone says david byrne can’t sing i direct them here, because he does sincerely have an incredible voice and he simply Chooses to sing weirdly bc he’s a quirked up white boy with autistic swag.

this is just a really sweet and romantic song from a band that otherwise stays far away from love songs and it works extremely well. this entire album is fucking incredible and easily the best live album of all time. half of them are BETTER than the studio recordings, and you can also watch david byrne leap straight up backwards like a full 4 feet

highly recommend watching stop making sense just the entire film

5. vein of stars by the flaming lips

back in 2014, i watched a very beloved streamer play a game called “space engine”, in which you explore as much of the universe as we’ve theorized to exist. this was a little before copyright laws got so fucking strict on youtube and twitch, so mr. vinny vinesauce could play any music he wanted while planet-hopping. one of those songs was vein of stars, and it’s been one of my absolute favorites ever since.

the flaming lips are definitely an acquired taste. wayne coyne does Not have a very good voice and it can get extremely grating, especially to someone who hasn't heard them before. but when it works, god it works. this song is so pretty and nostalgic to me, always calms me down whenever i’m In A Mood. it’s nihilistic but not in a depressing way, more like “yeah maybe we aren’t here for any particular reason, maybe there’s nothing after this life. there’s nothing we can do about that, so why worry?”. very peaceful. REQUIRED listening when stargazing

6. good old-fashioned lover boy by queen

one of the first songs i ever truly hyperfixated on. unfortunately i listened to it SO fucking much it kind of ruined it for me, but i still do really love it. i may not listen to it that often anymore but i felt obligated to put it here bc it had a Profound Effect on my developing brain

7. too much time by john vanderslice

the year is 2012 and you're halfway through the newest episode of the hit podcast welcome to nightvale. cecil announces the weather. little do you know that you will carry the next 3 and a half minutes with you for the rest of your life. this one is just absurdly nostalgic to me (and not to mention incredibly vash the stampede coded). beloved song!!!

8. waltz for zizi & the real folk blues by the seatbelts & mai yamane

well it’s no secret that i think cowboy bebop has the greatest anime soundtrack of all time and one of THE greatest soundtracks of all time Ever. this is just an objective fact actually.

i believe this is because the seatbelts and specifically the composer yoko kanno studied real jazz, blues, and bebop to make the ost. like it's not just "jazz-flavored", there is genuine, deep respect and you can hear it in every single track. waltz for zizi gives me physical goosebumps every single time i listen to it, it's absolutely perfect. i've made it a ritual to listen to every time i visit the shore at night and go stargazing. sincerely transcendent experience

9. cuckoo song by cosmo sheldrake

hhhhhrrr this entire fucking albummmm hhhhhhhrhhhhrhhhaauuuuUUUUOOOGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!! AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

back during my final semesters of college, i had to take a course for art degree seniors. we’d pick something we were passionate about, make art for it, and it would be hung up for a week in the exhibition room. i chose birds of course, but wake-up calls inspired me to shift that choice to something more important than just random funny bird drawings. i focused on bird species that have gone extinct within the last 60 years because wake-up calls is made almost entirely out of endangered bird songs.

i’ll be honest i can barely listen to this song or anything on the album because i WILL literally start sobbing like in real life. cuckoo song in particular just makes me start crying every single time i listen to it, it’s like a magic spell. it’s not even necessarily sad but just viscerally bittersweet. the art for the album is made by flora wallace. here’s the spotify canvas i made a gif just for you 👍

10. take you back by orville peck

and finally………….. the song that made me realize that i actually DO love real country music a lot, and that the derivative “bro country” sub-genre that developed in the early 2000s has absolutely destroyed any positive opinion of country music in society. we NEED to go back, and orville peck is more than doing his part. this is the first song i ever heard by him and it's just so goddamn fun. i am completely unable to not sing along to this when it comes on

not only do i highly recommend orville peck but also any country music from the 50s and 60s, especially marty robbins, charley pride, conway twitty, and of course mrs. dolly parton. and later country rock/folk rock bands like america and creedence clearwater revival. it’s SO good i’m so serious

orville peck is the only modern country singer i can think of who's not afraid to bring back the harmonicas and whistling and steel guitars and whip cracks and yeehaws. it's fantastic. he's also gay and an outspoken trans ally. i believe this gives him the power to revive country music from the dead 🙏

[syngigeim]

Day 10 - Stable

Ah, there is my next stop, Melya thought, spying the big hot-air balloon over some structures in the distance. Brentbranch Meadows, home of the region’s aetheryte and well, a stable for the mounts of choice around Eorzea, chocobos. She would attune to the aetheryte here and see if there were any calls for aid around.

She nodded to the Miqote guard standing nearby the aetheryte, who in return curtly replied, “Wander where you will, adventurer. But know that the forest will not suffer those who do not belong beneath its boughs to remain forever.”

She softly sighed. Duly noted, she thought. Melya came up from the South Shroud on her journey around Eorzea, she had seen first hand the struggles of those who could not fit in within the Twelveswood. Such a shame, it’s such a peaceful place. She sighed again. It would be the most peaceful place that would have such measures. Still, she resolved to learn all she could. An open mind, Syngigeim advised.

She decided to head towards the biggest building right behind the aetheryte. The famous stables themselves. The whole long building looked huge enough that it could house a good number of people, but she had to figure it was just housing some hells of a lot of chocobos.

To her left was an Ul’dhan merchant angrily arguing about something or other. Typical. She’d probably have much better luck talking to the woman off to the side.

“Well aren’t you a new face around here!” The woman exclaimed and then gave a little chuckle. “Forgive me, I’ve seen fresh-faced Hrothgar making their way in Gridania, but this is the first time I’ve seen a lady of your kind.”

Melya gave a small smile. At least this woman seemed mostly excited to see someone like her. “You and many others I’ve met. Is there any work for me to do?”

“Hmm...we do have some levequests and some small odds and ends,” the woman said, putting a finger to her chin and tilting her face as she thought. “Hmm. I’d recommend talking with Luquelot over there,” she said, pointing to the Elezen off within a stable nearby. “He usually has something or other and is happy to share his story with adventurers.”

“Of course!” Melya said, giving a big nod before she strode off. As she approached him, a few of the chocobos kweh’d at her approach. Well she wasn’t making any strides to mask her approach this time. “Hello there,” she said to the Elezen.

“Welcome madam,” He said, nodding back. “I see Keitha sent you my way. As so it happens, I do have a simple job for an adventurer such as yourself. Could you fetch me some Gysahl Greens from the field over yonder?”

“Of course!” She said with a slight nod. He looked a little glum about something. Still, it would be a simple matter to pick some food for- holy gods, those greens were bigger than her head. Still, she figured she could manage to hold a few in her arms to help this poor fellow.

With only a minor bit of struggle, she brought back three Gysahl Greens for Luquelot. “Here you go sir!” She cheerfully said as she handed the greens over.

“Ah, thank you. We’ve been having trouble feeding one of our ‘bos, lately. She’s been heartsore ever since her chick died and has been refusing to let us into our stable to feed her.”

“Oh no!” Melya exclaimed. She quickly offered, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Luquelot looked contemplative. “Well, depends on how you can treat the chocobos. We typically don’t send adventurers in for this sort of business but if you can get in her stall without startling her…”

“I can do the first bit easily! If you could teach me how to be gentle with a chocobo…”

Deep breaths, Melya. Deep breaths. Her steps were silent as the grave as she walked across beams lining above the chocobos. It was always a matter of concentration with these sorts of moves, even if she had done similar stuff before. Carrying a bowl of food across beams would be one of them. She quietly crept, feeling the wood underneath her bare feet, counting the number of stalls until – there! Her target! The chocobo was curled up against the wall, looking so sad and forlorn. She took a deep breath and-

A soft pat sounded as she hit the straw covered ground below. The chocobo was alert but could see nothing. But surely, she could smell Melya, and sense something was amiss. She quickly put down the bowl of greens and other veggies, becoming visible as soon as it left her hands and swiftly back-flipped over and across the stable door. Melya pressed herself against a thick beam between her target’s stall and the one right next to it. Still needed to take shallow breaths. Need to hear how her attempt at giving food went.

After a few moments, she heard her target chocobo seemingly rustle the food. She heard her take a few bites, give a sad kweh and then some rustling again. Melya dared to take a look. The chocobo decided to curl up again, this time, at least closer to the food, enough so that she could stretch and take a bite if she wanted.

In theory, Melya’s job was done. She had gotten the food in and the chocobo did take some bites of it. But her heart knew that it wasn’t done. Not yet. Ducking back behind the pillar, she took a large exhale, and dropped her invisibility. Making her steps louder once more, she poked her head out from the pillar and made herself visible to the chocobo.

“Kweh!” The bird startled and raised it’s head. But she was slow into getting her feet. There wasn’t any aggression. Just wary curiosity. Melya raised her hand and slowly extended it towards the chocobo for her to smell. The chocobo stepped forward, cautiously, carefully. And then, so slowly she raised her beak up to Melya’s fingers. Melya held her breath, expecting a bite, but forced herself to be calm. Calm. The beak rubbed up against her hand, finding it a lot softer than it was likely expecting.

The chocobo gave a little coo of delight and then quickly rammed her forehead into Melya’s hand. Well now! Melya thought, giving it some gentle pets. She couldn’t help but smile as the chocobo came forward now to the edge of the stall, wanting even more attention. Giggling, Melya obliged with even more petting along the chocobo’s neck and back. She liked this one, and resolved to find out her name before she left the stables. For now, the two bonded, with pets galore and maybe a little preening on the chocobo’s end.

[walkman-cat]

i’ve gotta know abt ur little guy orpheus alabaster whats his deal,,, i keep seeing ur little doodles and tags and feeling curriiooooosiityyyyyyyy

HI PIP!!

orpheus alabaster my BOY !! he's so silly <3 (also this is going to be a LONGGG post so it's under a cut) (he's my little guy i've got a lot to say about him)

He's like the city equivalent of a world-famous detective (one half of a detective agency working out of the attic of a curiosity/antique shop in the oldest part of the city)– he's a household name, and is known for taking on pretty much every case that he comes across (except, curiously, the biggest unsolved mystery the city has ever seen). Basically, Orph is the detective of the gentleman thief-detective dynamic and the watsonian narrator-detective dynamic (i love detectives <3)

He's observant, and will not rest until he's solved the case (to his detriment), and would risk his life if it meant saving the lives of others (to his detriment). He's got a terrible memory (so he writes everything down in one of his numerous notebooks) and he's not great with people (he's trying, somewhat. Cecil's usually the one who talks to clients). He's always down to work around the law/the watch (the city's law enforcement). He's very nosy (Cecil also is, they're perfect for each other).

He's also basically all those memes that are like "kinda gay to be a detective [etc etc]". While his partner (Cecil– they started the detective agency together!) has been pining over him since pretty much when they met (6 years before the story starts), Orpheus fell much harder and discovered this in the past year (he's having a Great Time. demiromantic king !!). They're so silly and devoted to each other (they call each other "Mr. Alabaster" and "Mr. Meyers" theyre sickening) and it's a whole Thing.

Also! Orph's the new incarnation of the forgotten/illegal/dead god of deceit and dreams (he's a detective and also the patron god of thieves and liars wbwbwb– this amuses me greatly). He's got a complicated relationship with his identity and personhood (which may have something to do with him taking on faces and personas at the drop of a hat) and isn't quite sure if he counts as something alive anymore.

Also to do with the fact that he's a kinda-not-really dead god, Orpheus isn't quite alive; he's a believable fascimile of something living, but he doesn't bleed when cut, he's cold to the touch, and sometimes Cecil can swear that he isn't breathing. He died not too long before he arrived in the city (and has the ligature marks on his neck to prove it) and came back, but even though he'd love to have come back wrong he came back exactly the same as he was before.

Here are some extra/funky facts about Orph:

he plays the piano!! he doesn't do it often for reasons he's never told Cecil but he's very good at it and has played for him in the past

he wanted to be a poet when he was younger, and still sometimes jots lines down in between all his other notes

his hands are perpetually inkstained, his fingertips are nearly all blackened from ink

the only times he's been truly excited for his clientele to be some of the city's richest are for hermes vetch heists. they're also the only times he's happy to have not solved the case (he's got a soft spot for the thief and misses him greatly)(he keeps reminiscing about heists to kit's face without knowing kit is hermes vetch and it's so funny to me)

he's mixed race (this isnt very important story wise, but it's important to me (also mixed race)) (so's kit)

he's non-binary!! (he/him enby times!!)

he's also a trans allegory for reasons i will not go into (they contain secretsssss)

he wouldn't like to say he has a favourite method of murder, but it's poisons. he likes to have an excuse to infodump and show off his knowledge of poisons

he probably would look real nice if he put any effort in to how he looks. he doesn't, so he looks like if a cat got drenched then blow-dried and rolled in ink

he hates having anything touching his neck, especially if they're wrapped around his neck. he will suffer and be cold if he has to be

the only times he'd overcome his need to put others before himself is when cecil (and to an extent kit/hermes vetch) is in danger (they're his best friends !!)

he often stares unblinkingly when thinking. it's a wee bit intimidating

his family is basically just matchsticks kelly (the guy who owns the antique shop who took him in), and cecil (later it'll also include kit), he doesn't talk about his family

he's known about cecil's sleeping habits and tendency to clamber over the rooftops for 6 years and still gets jumpscared by him clambering into his window in the dead of night