#I'd like to hear the reasoning behind this conspiracy

[ingravinoveritas]

cloud-based-and-rainpilled replied to your post "So...I'm a little bit behind, with this being…"

@ingravinoveritas Not to go full conspiracy mode (as she goes full conspiracy mode,) but methinks Anna & Georgia’s recent underhanded critiques are directly related to resentment from David & Michael hanging out for the past 4-5 months

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled I don't think it's a conspiracy when it's now visibly, demonstrably noticeable to multiple people. It's been amazing to me to see people talk about how much things have changed recently in terms of the fandom and the discussions that are happening, but somehow not make the connection to what else has been going on the last six months (because I think it was November when Michael first relocated to London, for Nye rehearsals).

None of this was happening when Michael was still in Wales. Georgia and AL's social media posts were completely different and nothing like what we've seen since Michael and David have been together in person. Not just together in person, either...but neighbors. Who could now see each other at their leisure. And all I have thought is that not one of the four of them were prepared for what it would be like when Michael and David would be in close physical proximity.

I'm just hard-pressed to think of any other reason why the passive-aggressiveness from both Georgia and Anna has ramped up so much, especially over the last months (and which is reflected in the change in tenor of their Insta stories/posts and the seeming abandonment of the whole "wife" thing). It does raise the question as well of why either Georgia or AL would feel such resentment. Michael and David are best friends, as we know, and the supposed narrative is that Georgia and AL are also "besties" and that they're all one big happy polycule...so if that is the case, why would Georgia and AL be making these comments, especially if said comments are related to Michael and David spending so much time together?

It just seems like there is something that doesn't add up, or that there is a piece of this that is missing. And I'm fascinated to see that a lot of people seem to be noticing it now, in and outside of the fandom. I'd love to hear from folks with your thoughts as well...

[butchfortress]

realized i havent posted here much so, umm,

who wants to hear about my blu team headcanons ^__^ this is just my rundown of how they work, what they're like, and even weapon loadouts

ok so im going to roll with the teams being clones, but i dont want to make any sort of drama to be just about that, like that whole existential dread of being a clone thing. its been done to death and i have nothing new to say for it (besides, i'd assume the inital cloning process was years ago when they just got hired, by now the novelty would of worn off and weirder stuff would of happened for them to even care or worry about that.) so what i'm thinking is that there's no way everyone would have the exact same experiences after they get cloned, so everyone just splits off into their own paths and they become their own individuals almost. and interacting with themselves from the other teams isnt "oh thats literally me :(" but more so "oh thats literally me and i need to be better than him >:(" so theres always this bit of competition between everyone; an infinite loop of anything you can do i can do better.

as for everyone individually...... (i'll also throw in a ⭐ for whoever is the "master copy" of themselves)

blu scout: short stop / mad milk / stock bat

accidental honorary delivery boy. when miss pauling is busy with the actually important work, admin sends this scout around the teufort area to send out weapons and other mann co. products. red scout sees him as a bit of a poser poster child and they butt heads often, especially when red scout is off-shift while blu is making deliveries.

blu soldier: rocket jumper / b.a.s.e. jumper / market gardener

if not maybe a bit more of a conspiracy nut and more compliant to the company, i guess the most similar to his original version? can't beat perfection i guess, not a lot of notes here but they probably bite each other for fun.

blu pyro: decreaser / shotgun / neon annihilator

not visually different or note worthy either, but whatever she and red pyro have is unspoken, vicious, and brutal. they will tear each other limb by limb anytime they're in proximity. definitely another reason that fuels most of the team's fear towards them.

blu demo ⭐: iron bomber / scottish resistance/ nessie's nine iron

strategic, cool, and a bit of a schemer. a real master at his craft with sticky bombs and planning traps. red demo actually likes him but blu HATES him since he (red) got the eyelander and he (himself) didn't, so he's very bitter towards him (wow this is confusing.)

blu heavy: tomslav / family business / eviction notice

goes missing from base a lot, no one knows why. he seems to be doing illegal assassin work both inside and out of company payroll. both heavies actually are in contact often and blu gives a good chunk, if not all, of what he makes to him. i'd assume any of the clones visiting anywhere outside of the immediate tuefort area would be problematic and would have restrictions to prevent two of the exact same person from walking around in the world at once, so blu heavy lets his other self take it so long as it goes directly to his mom and sisters. if he can't visit them personally, at least him knowing they're stable financially and doing well is more than enough for him.

blu engineer ⭐: rescue ranger / wrangler / wrench

the dell conagher, enough said. he's the most in contact with admin behind miss pauling for her own purposes. he'd rather not think about his red counterpart, but i will say that this version does not have the gunslinger. that was all red engineer post-cloning. but he does have the only australiam tool between both teams so it balances out maybe.

blu medic ⭐: overdose / vaccinator / solemn vow

he thinks hes dr fritz ludwig from emesis blue 🤣🤣🤣 tries VERY hard to be a cold collected scientist but ends up being more neurotic and jumpy. screams a lot. actually maybe dislikes his team? and loathes his own red copy for actually trying (who btw (red) is having a great time knowing his existence is an abomination to god, its even an affirmation he tells himself in a mirror.)

blu sniper: huntsman / razorback / kukri

ironically one of the few blu team members that actually stay put in the base. he doesnt call his folks as per aforementioned restrictions, but he has no beef with his red counterpart for that. the worst they do is get extremely competitive; theyre at the top of their game and even have stand offs of just aiming for hours until someone flinches.

blu spy ⭐: revolver / black rose / dead ringer / red-tape recorder

the man, the myth, the legend. more carefree and unserious than red spy, thats partially because he doesn't know about scout's relation to him. red spy found that out post-cloning, he's missing that one bit or character development that makes him a more mature and cold mercenary, but at this moment he's none the wiser. so aside from expected spy vs. spy shenanigans, their conflict is a bit more deeply rooted. he actually visits the red base a LOT, to only a few people's knowledge. makes a lot of long tangents.

[itchyeye]

(Same anon asking for Podcast Recs)

I'm okay with non-fiction/non-fantasy stuff as well! I'm into a lot of things personally, and I also don't like true crime stuff for the same reasons as you do. I'd still be open to hearing any recs of casts you liked! ^^

Thanks for taking the time to answer!

yaaaaay ok here are some of my favorites. i listen to everything on spotify just for convenience but i do know that this sort of limits my options since plenty of podcasts aren't available on the platform

no such thing as a fish

[infomercial voice] if you're a fan of QI (which i am) you'll absolutely love this spin-off show run and written by the research elves

really great banter and really excellent mini deep-dives on a very wide variety of topics

super engaging and fun, funny and entertaining, excellent for long car rides

stuff you should know (sysky)

i don't normally like shows that are just banter-based, because it's really rare that i find the hosts interesting enough that their private/personal conversations matter to me, but i got used to josh and chuck and became really fond of them

my major qualm is that they sell themselves as a deep-dive podcast but they very barely scratch the surface of their topics, so if it's a topic i already know a lot about i get really annoyed at how surface-level they are

HOWEVER, this is one of my go-to podcasts for long drives because the sound mixing is great, the hosts are charming, and the topics are super varied!

heaven's gate

this is one of my favorite podcast projects ever. beautifully narrated, extensively and intensively researched. i had to pull over a few times because i was crying and couldn't drive safely.

the narrator/author is someone who himself grew up in a cult that his parents eventually left. he speaks with such deep compassion and understanding.

this is SO incredibly and thoroughly well researched.

the HBO docu series that was inspired by this podcast PALES in comparison. it sucks. it totally wastes the incredible access to survivors and archival footage to say like... nothing of value. but this podcast is absolutely incredible. a real journalistic feat.

bundyville part i & part ii

another of my all-time favorites, a meticulously researched deep-dive into the rise of a specific alt right movement in the american west. really gripping, with excellent research, fantastic writing, and great sound mixing.

winds of change

this series examines a conspiracy theory that the scoprions song winds of change was written by the cia as a psyop to encourage anti-communist pro-western movements behind the iron curtain

this one is fun, but if you have ties to russia, or even more broadly to eastern europe, the extremely american host's shallow perspective on the ussr and more broadly the post-cold war era is.... extremely irritating. to say the least.

9/12

a series about the immediate aftermath of 9/11 that i really enjoyed! includes an interesting mix of perspectives.

queer as fact

an episodic series created by a group of australian grad students about queer historic figures!!

really well researched and very informative! plus the hosts don't interrupt one another all the time trying to get the best joke in, they're really interested and engaged and want to learn about the things the others are saying

not the best sound engineering, something it's hard to hear, especially when driving

i genuinely want so badly for them to do an episode on sade and they never will, which pains me personally

the feminine art of radicalisation

really excellent series that talks about the alt right pipeline specifically for white women and what attracts them to the movement

[dragonlover158429]

A Step Into The Forest- Chapter 4

Chapter 4 Everything had changed- or had it? It didn't seem so the next morning. The crows still made me queasy but, except that, I didn't see what had startled me so much the day before. I had walked up to an old house and seen some crows take off- what a big deal. Sure, I had felt that…strange energy, which I still couldn't explain, coursing through my body. But there had to be an explanation. "sudden light pain in your whole body like an electrical shock" When I would type that in the internet explorer, I would be hit by an avalanche of answers. Ranging from the scientific explanation of random chest pain to cancer and passing through the weirdest of conspiracy theories. Ah…Internet, my good ol' buddy. And somewhere, somewhere in that jumbled mess, there would be the reason for my weird experience of yesterday.

And anyway, I didn't recall it being particularly painful, so I probably shouldn't worry for now.

The other thing I recalled was thinking it abnormal because- well, I remembered thinking the shock was felt more in my mind than my body. No, not in my mind- somewhere else I had no name for. Was that what they called our 6th sense?

Oh, believe me, I know how weird I sounded. Hated it too. Earlier, what I had felt seemed as clear and true as a mountain lake. But now, a part of my brain seemed distant and I couldn't remember what the shock felt like- much less how I had felt it. I could remember the pain of a burn from when I had burned myself with the clothing iron last week and I always remembered how the texture of tree bark felt under my finger (even though in my oh so great city, it could be a month until I felt it again), but I couldn't remember what I felt yesterday afternoon?

But there wasn't anything I could do about it right now, better to just forget it.

I had finished washing my bowl, so I put it back in the cupboard and left the kitchen. Behind me, I could still hear the crows yelling loudly and fighting playfully for what appeared to be a plastic, gold-painted Christmas decoration. See? Crows are weird. One day you think they are some wise, mythical messenger messing with your brain and the next you see them acting like brainless toddlers.

……….Not so much different than humans actually, but that's not the point.

I started walking up the stairs; feeling more like a human being now that I had eaten. Too bad my parents hadn't bought coffee… Another result of their great "health trip". I should bring the conversation again when I'd see them again this afternoon. For now, since the crows had waken me up early, I had the whole morning to myself. Normally, I would enjoy that. But it was a little too much time to kill when your only weapon was an overfilling suitcase.

So, what should I do? I considered lazing out in my bed or on my phone. But, I didn't feel like I could completely relax when some of the crows could come perch on the roof so close to me. Actually, it wasn't just the crows; the whole house had a way to keep me alert and light-footed.

And bedsides I was currently avoiding social medias. For good reasons.

I could go outside… Visit the town and that forest I had seen on the way here. Could. But I already felt tired jut thinking about it. I didn't want to go out there and play the interested tourist. Didn't want to get stared at- or even looked at. Didn't want to walk for half an hour, trying not to get lost in the numerous, narrow, cobbled alleyways (I knew how old towns were!). Didn't want to have to ask my way back when I'd get lost. Didn't want to see my parents' disgustingly delighted faces when they'll learn I went out. "Oh honey, we knew you'd come around." "We knew you would get over yourself". Knew it was all in your head.

Didn't want to act neutral and reasonable when every glance and every word and every touch felt like a scalding branding-iron on naked skin.

And anyway, I don't think my parents would be ok with me wandering in the forest without their knowledge.

I was walking on the first floor of the house, the one the bathroom was on, still lost in thoughts. And I remember distantly thinking about that little patch of pale, golden sunlight that formed an almost perfect circle on the wooden floorboard. Little dust particles danced sleepily in the light in an almost hypnotic movement.

I don't know why I remember that especially. Maybe it's because if I hadn't been so distracted by that light, I would have wondered where it was coming from. Especially as there was no window in this corridor.

But I didn't. Instead, I stepped right into the sunlight the same way a drunken man steps out of the ledge of a cliff.

And then everything went blindingly white.

Again.

[300iqprower]

I'd like to know if you're angry about how Durga/Kali are both Sakurafaces, and about the possibilities of Shiva being a Shirouface. You always give such nice dissertations about disliking (x)face servants, so like a king commissioning an artist in a dank room with a tense atmosphere, I'd like to hear your thoughts.

That is....weirdly so incredibly flattering lol.

Sadly I don't...really have much to say at this point? Like it's the same reason I still haven't done that Imaginary Scramble writeup (to that other anon I am sorry...) in that there's basically just one key issue to restate over and over, rather than a whole mess to dive into, and everyone has already talked about that one key issue. Everyone knows why FGogh is a pretty damn tasteless depiction of mental illness, and how it's basically this one glaring thing on pasted over what could have been an otherwise fine character.

And while I could/will eventually still probably talk about FGogh, since there's an actual creative discussion to be had, that's not here for Sakura. The reason is plain and simple. It's because they wanted money, nothing more. Everything my NA-only view has allowed so far just makes it seem like a picture of sakura hastily duct-taped over an original idea. It's the same reason i don't really have much to say about Not-Sitonai beyond "this is bad".

There's no false history like with Not-Skadi (and according to another anon in my inbox, Saber-Medusa?), or intentional revisionist woobification like with Eresh, nor the whole mess that is the Roman and British servants being lionized, or the systematic bigotry of characters like Schez and Edgya, or ruins something that's been built up for ages like Beast Nero or Ruler Moriarty, or even some conspiracy i could weave like "Lalter keeps getting ignored because acknowledging her would mean acknowledging welsh myth".

It's shit, but in like, the most boring possible way because what is there to even say about it besides "fuck off." ya know? When it's this cynical, this creatively bankrupt, there's nothing to discuss about the potential creative process behind it.

[welcome-to-clouds-cuckooland]

about my story, "the creations' reckoning"!

in the creations' reckoning, four strangers across the world each meet one of four animatronics, who house the souls of children from another world. these four children are friends, who grant the strangers powers to help find each other. they uncover a conspiracy, a cult that plans to plunge the world into chaos in the name of order, and slowly find each other, as well. in order to stop the cult, the four strangers must first free themselves from their own binds.

meet belladonna macedo, the 24 year old tailor living in colombia!! it loves love and romance, and giving everyone the gift of fashion! but perhaps there is more to this sweet and unassuming tailor than there seems to be? it will have sage advice for valentine's romantic endeavors, thanks to her wisdom. find her on toyhouse!!

this is kinta holmes, the 17 year old animal-lover living in australia! kinta lives alone in solitary, cautious and distrustful due to a tragic event in their past, they truthfully are fearful and believe that they can only put their trust in animals. they will find a friend in lime. they have a toyhouse!!

here we have logan jardine, the 19 year old puppeteer living in scotland!! he's always a bit wary of trusting others, but he'll be a great friend if you get to know him, if a bit sarcastic. he's the sort of friend that prince needs. if you'd like to know more, here's his toyhouse!

it's none other than mitsuki ayane, the 22 year old documentarian living in canada! she sounds quite confident in her heavily-researched and incredibly passionate documentaries and video-essays, but behind the screen she's quite shy and sheepish. that's if one even manages to find her at all. melody is determined to be her protector. check out her toyhouse!!

these are the four furry friends' regular forms!! in order: lime (he/she), melody (she/her), prince (he/they), and valentine (they/them)! they each have a toyhouse!!

these are the four furry friends' respective animatronic forms!! inaccuracies between their forms have a lore reason, teehee. lime's body was built in the 80s, prince's in the 2000s, valentine's in the 2010s, and melody's was the last in the 2020s.

this was my latest developed story, so i'm not as sure about it yet, but it's slowly growing on me!! i hope it'll grow on you guys, too! ^^ as always, i'd love to hear any questions or feedback!!

[groovesnjams]

15 / 50

"Hellokittybalahcurri³hellokitty美味しい" by babyMINT (薄荷水晶)

DV:

There was no more gleefully unhinged song this year than "Hellokittybalahcurri³hellokitty美味しい", or if there was I haven't heard it. And I'd like to: the experience of hearing this for the first time after seeing recommendations from a bunch of mutuals was unforgettable, nearly as unforgettable as the reactions of everyone that I in turn recommended or played it for. babyMINT make a mockery of sense and reason in "Hellokittybalahcurry" and the result is glorious. At one point, looking for some background on the group and an explanation for what the song was about, I wound up reading an AI-generated "interpretation" that actually made less sense than the song itself. This might be expected from AI, but "Hellokittybalahcurry" is the rare song that wouldn't make more sense if there was actual thought behind it: this song has no logic, has no meaning. Large Language Models, like the one that generated the "explanation" I found, work on probability and history, and "Hellokittybalahcurry" resists that just as much as it resists logical interpretation. This is a song that forces us to experience it viscerally and in the moment, abandoning everything we learned in one line the moment the next lyric or section begins. Which in some ways is like machine learning: the context does not exist. But in other ways is not: "the result"Hellokittybalahcurry" is unpredictable and ostentatiously nonsensical. It's a hand made out of 43 eyes and released onto an unsuspecting public.

MG:

Acting as an antidote to large swathes of our best of, “Hellokittybalahcurri³hellokitty美味しい” starts off sounding like a curse but ends up more of a blessing. babyMINT’s auspicious greeting “today we’re here to teach you a secret…magic…word” teeters somewhere between Illuminati conspiracy and The Ring but the group are disinterested in formal commitments and the ensuing chaotic three and a half minutes err on the side of jubilance and partified nonsense. There’s a little bit of everything happening inside of “Hellokittybalahcurri³hellokitty美味しい,” from harsh gabber beats to the sound Megan Thee Stalliion makes when she sticks out her tongue and it’s not so much artistic juxtaposition as it is a sonic representation of cell division. You certainly can find yourself caught inside the möebius strip of babyMINT’s imagination, but only if you’re so inclined.

[iturbide]

Lemme return the favor: 🥺, 🛒, 💖, 💌 , 👀, 🥰 and of course ✨!

so many goodness

🥺 - Is there a certain type of moment or common interaction between your characters that never fails to put you in your feels?

I get emotional over small, unspoken gestures of affection. Silently taking someone's hand, touching their shoulder when they seem about to break, sitting together and leaning into one another for support...it's those little intimate gestures that always get to me, the profound depth of affection that comes from knowing what someone's going through and wanting to provide some kind of comfort. Makes my heart warm every time.

🛒 - What are some common things you incorporate in your fics? Themes, feels, scenes, imagery, etc.

'Dark is Not Evil' is one of my biggest themes that shows up in my work, sometimes combined with 'Mirroring Factions.' I've had a fascination with the philosophy of The Other for longer than I can honestly remember -- and the core of that interest has always been in humanizing those who would otherwise be maligned. It's a huge aspect of my Awakening fics, underpinning the extensive worldbuilding I've put together for Plegia!

💖 - What made you start writing?

are we talking about in the beginning or after the extended break?

Because in the beginning I started writing because I wanted to make shameless Pokemon Special fic inserting my OCs (and let's be real, I haven't exactly stopped doing that, it's just evolved like a pokemon). I picked up writing after the extended break because I'd gotten myself obsessed with Awakening and my conspiracy theory about Grima wouldn't leave me alone and so began Future Built, which I posted on AO3 as a challenge to myself to put my writing out there for the first time in years.

💌 - How do you feel about comments and feedback?

I always love getting comments and hearing feedback! I'm technically very behind in my AO3 comment replies (the past year has been rough) but I try my best to reply to every comment that comes in because I really do appreciate hearing what people think! Writing is my passion, and I love getting to talk about the stories that I work so hard to craft, so seeing a new comment always brightens up my day!

👀 - Tell me about an up and coming wip please!

also on the list of plans that haven't made it onto the Masterlist, there's another Awakening war story. Chrom's father is still alive and well and continuing his war against Plegia; intending to bypass Emmeryn in the line of succession since she can't wield Falchion, he brings Chrom with him as he makes his latest push past the mountains and into the Grimleal nation. Their progress is repeatedly stymied by the appearance of Plegian forces, led by a powerful sorcerer in a skull helm wielding a Levin Sword and a Thoron Tome, who repeatedly break up the Ylissean supply lines to thwart their progress. With each successive bout the Ylissean prince and the apparent Plegian general learn more about one another, and when circumstances leave them stranded far from their armies they're forced to rely on one another to survive.

(A not insignificant reason this story exists is because I wanted to have a joke where Robin calls Chrom 'Prince Chrom' and Chrom counters with "it's just 'Chrom,'" leading Robin to literally call him 'Just Chrom' for ages because he thinks that 'Just' is a title for princes in Ylisse the way that 'Exalt' is how they address their ruler.)

🥰 - How do you feel about reader interaction? Are you open to receiving questions about your fics?

Oh, I'm always up for questions about my fics, both finished or otherwise! If there's a question, I'd love to answer it (or at least make hints if it otherwise gets too deep into spoiler territory). I love reader interaction, it's always a highlight when I get a story or writing question in my inbox!

✨ - Give you and your writing a compliment. Go on now. You know you deserve it. 😉

I think I do a good job with dialogue! It's fun to write, and I feel like I do a good job of giving each individual character a unique voice, so it's easier to tell who's speaking at any time even if there's no identifier to tag them.

(I also like to think that I'm pretty good at constructing narratives to fulfill their unique, specific purposes -- like Cursed Fate with its repetitive fairytale structure, gradually revealing the events of the past until we learn how Robin died. I thought that turned out very nicely.)

✨Fic Writer Emoji Asks✨

[peachhyychenle]

bloom bloom, heart | h.rj

'bloom bloom pow! the moment i met you, i felt like i'd explode. my heart fluttered. i hope it's not a dream' - bloom bloom, the boyz

pairing: florist!renjun x reader

genre: fluff

word count: 1.6k

for the nostalgic melodies event hosted by @knet-bakery

playlist: bloom bloom the boyz, life still goes on nct dream, dive into you nct dream, cherry kisses chungha

a/n: my first fic for an event!! i hope you all enjoy this as much as i enjoyed writing it. also,, go check out everyone else that participated in the event!! oh, i also haven't had the time to proof-read this so, sorry lmao.

summary: flowers held many different meanings, and renjun loved that. from giving someone a baby's breath to giving them peonies, he loved how up front the message was, yet how hidden it was to someone that didn't understand their true meanings. You had always adored flowers, the colours, the scents, the meanings. And so, every week, you would go into Floral Dreams, to buy new flowers to draw, however Renjun would always throw in additional flowers to express his ever-growing crush on you, unbeknownst to him you understood every word.

If you had told Renjun this time last year he would be working part time as a florist, he would've simply laughed. But yet here he is, adorning a black apron, rearranging the plants in the display cabinet.

Floral Dreams was a great place for Renjun. It was never too busy, it was a five minute walk to his apartment and, thanks to Donghyuck, he has learned far more about flowers in the past month than he has learned about art history at his uni classes. He would never admit it to him, but Renjun was intrigued by the meanings each flower held.

From the bluebell to the yellow carnation, every flower held a different meaning. At first, Renjun couldn't care less. They were just flowers after all, their only job to him was to sit and look pretty. However the longer he spent in the floristry, the more his curiosity and his passion grew.

And now here he was, currently wiping down the counter he had just used to arrange a bouquet for somebody's birthday.

As he returned behind the till, the soft chime of the shop door bell rang. He glanced over and locked eyes with you. You seemed to be a regular. always popping in on a Wednesday afternoon, no matter the weather, to buy different pre-made bouquets. At first, Renjun found it odd how you would only buy one particular colour palette of flowers or even just a singular flower, however as you came in more often than not with a camera bag over your shoulder along with a sketchbook poking out the top of the tote bag you carried, it started becoming clear why you would buy them.

His current theories are that you are an artist that just really liked to paint flowers (specifically pink and yellow varieties) or you're a plant mum that just has an apartment filled to the brim with colourful flowers and plants.

His first hunch was correct.

A few months ago, you had moved into Neo City in order to attend the local university and study fine art. It was an interesting place for sure. It was a quaint town yet there was always something going on, whether it be different celebrations for certain holidays or events, to small annual carnivals and parades that would happen.

During your first week of moving in, you had explored the town centre, natural curiosity getting the better of you. That was when you stumbled upon Floral Dreams. The forest green painting on the window frames along with several broad leafed plants sat outside the shop, charmed you.

You remember when you first met Renjun. It was a rainy Wednesday about a month after you had moved. Your classes had just finished and you decided to buy a small bouquet. Something to brighten your dreary dorm room. And so you headed to Floral Dreams. When you stepped into the shop, instead of the cheery greeting you would usually get from Donghyuck, you found that he was busy talking to another guy, Renjun.

Both boys had briefly glanced towards the door, with Donghyuck giving a small wave, whilst the other boy shot you a smile. He was cute.

Returning the wave with your own, you continued into the shop, looking at all the flowers, taking in their colours and scents. Five minutes had gone by and you had chosen all the flowers you had wanted and walked up to the counter to place your order.

You rang the small bell placed on the countertop and after a few seconds, the new guy from earlier emerged from the back room and properly greeted and introduced himself, Renjun.

To say he was pretty was an understatement. He had a soft smile, kind eyes and long hair which made him look ethereal. His voice was melodic. So melodic that you only snapped back to reality halfway through his sentence.

You purchased the flowers and had another look around the empty shop, this time to admire the blossoming flowers. Back at the counter, Renjun would glance at you, whilst he wrapped the bouquet, his mind thinking about your smile and vibe whilst his hands carefully wrapped the bouquet up.

When he was finished, he rang the desk bell to catch your attention. He handed you the flowers and you were on your way. Not before turning back to Renjun and shooting him one last smile with a cheerful goodbye.

From the moment you walked in, Renjun knew his heart had exploded and his slightly dull world would never be the same again.

Week after week you would come back to the shop. It was always at 4pm and it was always an hour into Renjun's shift. You guys had managed to acquaint yourselves and make small talk, with the weather and how both of you had been, being the usual topic of choice.

Today Renjun was determined to make a move. Whether it was changing the topic to be something more in depth, or giving his number to you, he was definitely going to do something. And so when you walked up to the counter to place your order, Renjun made his move. He asked the question that had been on his mind. Why in the heavens did you buy so many flowers? The laughter that followed made Renjun's heart flutter, it was beautiful.

You then proceeded to explain the reason you moved and why almost all the store's sales were from you. Upon hearing that you went to the same university he did, Renjun was enthralled and began talking about his passion for art and the history behind famous pieces.

Much to his dismay, his hands had a mind of their own, and had wrapped up your selected bouquet far too quickly for his liking. Just as you were about to grab the bouquet, Renjun let out a 'wait!' which made you pause.

He ran into the back room and came out a moment later with some ribbon along with a couple of gardenias and blue salvias. 'It'll make the bouquet look amazing, trust me' he said with that smile you had fallen for.

Once he was done, you took the flowers, bid him adieu and left, ready to take photographs of this masterpiece.

As soon as you left, Renjun let out a sigh of content and his heart started to calm down. He had a crazy idea to use what he had learned from Donghyuck, and to confess to you in the form of flowers.

It was a bold move, one that made him feel happy with himself.

Over the next couple of months the same routine would occur. You arrived, picked out flowers, ordered the bouquet, Renjun would wrap them up, you would take them, then leave.

However, as time went on, you began noticing flowers that you hadn't picked out.

For example, you had ordered a bouquet with mainly red flowers, with a couple of white ones to make it more visually appealing, however you don't really remember picking up the white camellia. Or that time you noticed a couple of yellow jasmines mixed with your sunflowers.

You eventually thought of looking up what these flowers meant. You knew one of your old high school flowers loved gardening and would often talk about flower meanings, but you had never paid any mind to them. Oh how you wish you had.

And so that's how you spent the evening on different websites looking at different meanings for all the flowers you could remember buying, and the definitions.

The morning after, you had a brilliant idea.

That next week, you came in at the usual time with a list on your phone of all the flowers you had never actually bought. You suspected that a certain someone kept slipping different flowers into your bouquet, which was actually quite sweet to you, however you were going to surprise him.

You picked out various flowers that were composed for a yellow, blue and white theme. You included the yellow jasmines and gardenias, along with the white camellias and blue salvias. Additional flowers were added and made a stunning bouquet, the best you had imagined yet.

For how quiet the shop was, your heart was thumping a lot louder than usual, despite this you walked to the till with a small smile. The normal routine went on, Renjun making conversation with you. The topic for today was conspiracies and aliens, which would usually be quite interesting to you, but your mind was in a different place.

Just as Renjun was tying the last ribbon up, a 'wait!' escaped your lips. A slightly startled Renjun paused to look at you. Dashing away to the front of the store, you picked out a red rose and walked back to where he was waiting.

Much to his surprise, you added the rose to the centre of the bouquet, pushed the bouquet towards him and then pulled out a letter that had been in your coat pocket and pushed it across the counter in his direction.

He froze. Almost everyone knew what a red rose meant.

He opened the letter. All the flowers he had given you with their meanings were listed, along with the red rose.

I love you.

Underneath was a small paragraph. His already racing heart began to explode as he read the words 'let's go on a date tomorrow' followed with your number underneath.

He looked back up to you. You were currently looking everywhere and anywhere that wasn’t Renjun.

Placing the letter down, he came around from behind the desk and hugged you. He could feel you tense up under him, however in a matter of seconds, your arms were around him, and a sigh of relief escaped your lips.

From the moment he met you, his heart had exploded, the colours in his world seemed to be brighter whenever you were there.

He loved hearing your laugh, seeing your smile, being in your presence.

Time felt non-existent with you.

He loved you, as much as you loved him.

And that was all he needed.

[checkers-dance]

i honestly dont understand nctzens. like im so familiar with nct's music and the general tropes you hear on their music so i think i have a good idea of the things they do well and what they dont. but then i see nctzens talk about it and im like. are we listening to the same group?

like i was watching this review some girl made abt 2 baddies and she said a couple of things that made no sense to me. she said she didnt like the song, which is fine and understandable, but her reasoning was so strange to me and it just made me realize nctzens live in another reality. she talked abt how the rap felt really weak for her and i'd agree if not for the fact that nct dont have particularly strong raps to begin with? ive never been the biggest fan of their delivery, although i dont hate it, i just think the rappers are way more likely to sound weird than the vocalists. so to me it was weird to hear her complain abt how the song was practically carried by the singers when like... i feel like thats a lot of nct songs kwjwbdbdbd

and then she pointed out some of the silly lyrics and im like???? THIS IS NCT??? BLESS ME ACHOO? IF YOU'RE HAPPY AND YOU KNOW IT CLAP YOUR HANDS??? I BE WALKING WITH THE CHEESE THATS THE QUESO?? IM THE STICKER FOR YOUR LOVE???

and when nctzens talk about how unique nct is i always roll my eyes a bit bc like. nct does sound distinct, but heres my conspiracy theory. the reason nct sounds so unique is because they take styles and concepts that other groups also do but they refuse to polish them. like thats what a lot of nct's music sounds to me, electronic music that just isnt very well put together. their stuff often sounds like it needed some more reworks.

and mind you, i think sometimes they pull this off. by making songs that sounds so messy you can end up with things that are actually really cool to listen to. i think wayv is the subunit that executes it the best. like how in turn back time they use a clock noise throughout the song. thats a way to use ear catching electronic noises in a cool and creative way. but a lot of the time it feels to me like sounds put together without thought behind it and its like. alright.

i guess my point is that nct's distinct qualites are often a result of what feels like not much effort. you can make stuff that is distinct and harsh sounding without hurting my ears with a fucking flute. so thats why nct doesnt feel that interesting to me because it just feels like its a step behind the groups making genuinely fun music. like sure i guess its unique but at what cost?

HGKSKFKSKGKSJ it's unique but at what cost. There are some silly lyrics in other groups too (I'm looking at changkyun and his many iconic self-written lines), but nct truly has such consistently wacky lyrics it's a group staple at this point (Idk abt wayv tho, they seem like the one subunit w regular lyrics). I like some of their raps (and also the jopping rap sounds fine, and iirc lucas from nct has those lines), but yeah generally the rap parts are the most eh in nct songs (I think it also has to do w the instrumental attached to them. Like those parts just tend to have the most likelihood of being bad)

I love how u've become an nct analyst, thank u for the meta

[hwrryscherry]

The one with the New Year’s Eve

characters: HARRYxMODEL Y/N

blurb: It’s Dec 31st, 2020 and this is the first time since they started dating that Harry and Model Y/n won’t be traveling for New Year’s Eve but an outing to the Rockfeller Center may be all they needed.

word count: 4.6K

author’s note: HI GUYS!!!! So first of all I wanna say MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone🥳🥳 I know I've been MIA BUT I had a major writer's block and it felt so bad and I couldn't finish this blurb even though I was trying so hard. Anyway, here it is and I hope you like it as much as I do. I also want to say that the reason why I closed my requests it's because we're starting a new year and I want to release all of my requests before receiving new ones. I'm excited for 2021 and I hope it brings all the peace that 2020 didn't. And I'm also very excited to see where 2021 will take Harry and Model Y/N's relationship🥰 Anyway, Happy New Year everyone, I'm so grateful for the support I've been receiving about my writing. I see all of you and I appreciate all of you. THANK YOU!!!♥️♥️♥️♥️

— Can I wear this? — You’d ask looking at Harry while holding one of his dress shirts that was light bluely, with some navy blue strands in it up in the air showing it to him. It's an old shirt, though. You remember buying it for Harry in your first year of dating and you also remember probably wearing it more than Harry himself.

   Harry was sitting by the couch on the living room of your NYC apartment. After spending such a magical time with your families in the French Alps, you both decided that spending christmas with your family was more of a priority than going on your annual new year's trip and that's the reason why you and Harry decided to come back to the USA and after being in LA for so long, New York just felt like the perfect choice. You like Los Angeles, but New York hit different. You loved everything about NY, and you loved the memories and story you created to yourself in NY and that's why you'd choose NY over LA without thinking twice.

   Anyway, Harry was in the couch using his personal phone what made you assume that he's probably talking to his mom or Gemma because it's already 2021 in London and Cheshire, and unlike him, you had already sent Gemma and Anne a text earlier today because they knew that you took hours to get ready even though you're not even preparing to be "glamurous".

   Harry had his pink velvet pants on and a white shirt over it, and only complementing with his vans. Not the old "white" one with the pink shoelaces that he wore everywhere, including in the Vogue cover. Tonight he was wearing the good traditional vans. That one, that is black and have the Vans icon in white. And you couldn't smell from the spot you were but you could assure yourself that he was smelling like heaven, as he always does with his perfect hair that has just been washed, his freshly shaved beard and his nails, that even though wasn't painted by a professional, you can be proud of your job and honestly, so could Harry, because he really loved that you did his nails for him and even matched with yours. Otherwise, you were using a black baggy jeans and a bra because as always, you were procrastinating for too much time and had to get ready when Harry was already ready. A typical night out for both of you.

   Harry lifted his head to analyze your figure in front of him and the cloth piece you had in your hands as he listened to your voice and question directed at him.

— Sure! — He answered your question getting his attention back to his phone right after speaking. You sighed and calmly walked towards the man on the couch and sit besides him what brought his attention to you. You rested your right hand upon his thigh and then rested your chin on his right shoulder and stared at the boys captivating green eyes.

— You're alright? — You asked with a low voice tone giving the boy a tender smile. Harry looked kinda sad, not sad, he seemed a bit down and whenever you noticed he looked like this you would usually get worried about him because you just care and love him so much that you never want to see him in anyway but happy.

— Yeah, I am! — Harry said, but it sounded more like a whisper or a murmur and you kept your gaze at him waiting for him to tell the truth and he sighed letting out a chuckle. Sometimes he'd just forget about how great you knew him. He'd look to his feet upon the grey carpet of your living room and then back at your face on his shoulder — Just feel bad, ye' know? If we were in other circumstances we'd be with our friends or family having the most fun in some place around the world — He'd tell you as he widens his eyes a little and you felt his muscles tense under your hands — It's not that I won't have fun just with you, love —  He'd now complement making you let out a small chuckle at his words because of course you understood exactly what he was saying even though you didn't say anything yet — It's just different, like, there won't be having any shows by the Times Square and all that stuff and I wanted it to be fun for you.

— So...you're worried about me not having fun tonight? — You'd ask him with an ironic tone and raised eyebrows lifting your chin from his shoulder and staring at his face. Your mocking expression and tone was based on the irony f the situation because earlier today you were talking to him about how most of the times that you were together you just felt like you could be stuck in a room with him forever and it would be the funniest thing you've ever done.

— Kinda! — He'd murmur deflecting his gaze from yours until he listened to you let out a giggle which made him look immediately at you as he tried to understand why you were laughing and if you were mocking at him for being that worried about something very silly.

— Harry...how could you even think that? I’ll always have fun with you! — You'd say lively with a smile on your lips and then take a deep breath while you finished forming the words you were about to say in your mind — It's been such a long and hard year and we had some amazing moments and some really bad moments but we're here. We're alive, we're healthy and most of all, we're here together and believe me, even if the world ends by the time that clock turns midnight, there's no other person I'd rather spend the end of the world with — You'd say making a little fun of the "end of the world" conspiracy that you've read previously on that same day and couldn't help giggling with Harry as you'd hear that same angelic sound coming from his mouth. You'd take your hand that was upon his thigh and grab his hand taking it to your lips giving a slight kiss to it feeling the cold metals of his rings against your cheeks and then you gave him a tender smile — Don't worry about it, it'll be great! It will be more than great, it'll be exquisite!

— Alright, alright! — Harry'd say with the cutest smile on his face. That type of smile that you could feel his happiness through it. Now he took your hand to his lips and gave a peck in it — You should finish getting ready though, weren't you the one that was dying for pizza and burgers? — Harry’d tell you mocking at the fact that you've been talking about wanting to eat pizza and burgers from NYC for the past three days in a row and how annoying you were being about it. And with his comment you'd fastly stand up with the shirt in your hands and look at him with a cheeky smile in your face.

— I'll go, I'm sorry for being the best girlfriend in the world and use my time to comfort you! — You'd say ironically as you walked back to the bedroom listening Harry's laugh and a "You're forgiven" being loudly said by your boyfriend.

— By the way, I don't think you should go out only with that shirt because it’s freezing outside! — Harry said on a loud tone from the living room and you'd look up to the big glass window in your bedroom and realizes that he was right. It was probably 32 °F outside and only this shirt wouldn't make you warm enough, so you'd walk to the closet placed in your bedroom and take a dark grey long sleeve blouse and dress up before complementing with Harry's dress shirt and taking out of the closet your brand new leather jacket that you gained from Gemma on christmas day, remembering how perfect it was becase Gemma knows you well enough to know that you'd love it when she bought it. And lastly, you put on shoes that looks more like boots. And finally, with your jacket and your bag in your hand you walked into the living room after turning off the bedroom light.

   You were completely ready when you'd step in the living room with your phone in your hand getting all the attention from Harry that immidietely stoped using his phone to admire you. One of the things that Harry most loved in you is that you don't need to put on the most glamurous outfit or makeup to look stunning and you knew that. You knew that you were beautiful in your own way and if you felt like glamming up, you'd be gorgeous and if you didn't feel like it, you'd still be gorgeous. Harry admired your tomboy styled outfit. He'd admire how your hair fell upon your face as you finished typing on your phone and how you'd use your hand to put a strand of hair behind your ear, giving to him the vision of your gold earrings that was also a previous birthday gift from him. He'd admire the fact that both of your nails were painted the same color because you only had one good nail polish to use so you'd go out matching nails color. He'd admire how the delicate golden rings on your fingers would sparkle because of the light in the room and he'd notice too how your face looked pretty with the small amount of makeup you had putten on your face for the night and he could only imagine how great you smelled now with the one perfume you use since the day he met you and he'd remember how much he loves that scent. He loved everything about you. He loved even the small things about you that stressed the shit out of him. He learned to love your annoying habits just as much as he loved the precious little things about you.

   Harry would stand up from the couch putting his phone on the inner pocket of his black coat as he walked towards your distracted self on the phone. You'd only notice him when he'd stop right beside you looking at your figure. You'd stop looking at the screen of your phone and lift your head up a bit to see the man's smiley face beside you. He was silent and it seemed awkward so you'd let out a chuckle and frown a little at him.

— What are you doing? — You'd ask him holding a mistrusting look on your face as you waited for him to pronouce anything as a response.

— I just think that you look really pretty and I love you! And your hair looks really pretty, though — Harry would say quietly with a tender smile on his face as he listened you murmur a "aw, thank you, love!" with the biggest smile on your lips. He knew how much you loved when he compliments your hair so he'd do it often just to make you smile this big. He'd use his hands to cup your face and lean in a little to give you a peck in the lips — Let's get going! Where do you want to go first?

— Honestly, I wish we went to The Greens at Pier 17 because it looked really cute this year in the pics I saw — You'd tell him as both of you walked towards the door and left the apartment walking to the elevator as you both put on your masks. Your apartment was situated in East Village so depending on the place you'd choose to go, it would take you a while to get there and that's the reason why neither of you had enough patience to drive in NYC, specially on a night like this one because the traffic in New York can be considerated out of this world.

— Isn't it open? — Harry would ask pressing the elevator button to take you to the lobby of the building and feel as the elevator started to go down with both of you in it.

— No, it was between 6 and 10pm, I guess! — You said pressing your back agaisnt the elevator wall as you felt it going down. It's crazy, but whenever you enter a elevator you think about what would happen if it starts collapsing, yes, it's weird — But all I want is to eat a pizza from East Village Pizza because I haven't eaten it in ages — You'd complement letting out a chuckle feeling the elevator stops at the lobby floor.

— Alright, we can go eat pizza and just hang out! Will you be meeting Bella? — Harry said as the elevator door opened giving both of you the iluminated vision of the streets lights coming through the big glasses in the front of the building. You and Harry walked past the porter and both of you smile at him and waved before leaving. You both are very familiar to Toby, the porter of your building and that's the reason why you'd wish him a Happy New Year before leaving, and you also have lived in this building in the past 5 years probably.

— No, she’ll spend it with her family. They’ll all spend it together because of the baby, I guess — You'd answer him feeling the freezing air run through the skin of your face at the moment you'd step in the street. You'd notice the wet floor underneath you because it rained the entire morning and the beginning of the afternoon, there was no resting sign of the snow that happened some days ago but you could definetly still notice the past rain, specially because of all the christmas lights that iluminated the streets now.

   You and Harry walked your way to the East Village Pizza because it was really close to your house which at this moment seems amazing but it's not. It takes you a lot of control to not dine their pizza everyday though. Pizza it's pizza, if you don't like pizza you can't even be consideraded a human being, just saying.

   You and Harry could notice the few people leaving their houses as you walked, and some of them were already by the streets though. The thing is that the big New Year's Eve attraction in New York is the Ball Drop in Times Square and this year is not allowed to have a crowd in there so the streets wasn't completely crowed and honestly that made you feel a little better. It's just that paranoic feeling that when you're around a lot of people you start thinking that one of them is infected, probably everyone during this pandemic had felt like this at some point.

By the moment you and Harry arrived at the pizzeria and ordered your slices of pizza Harry couldn't hold back his laughs at your liveliness that you also couldn't hold back for finally eating your pizza. The place wasn't as crowed as it used to be at this time of the night and that's why you and Harry could take a sit in one of their empty tables. You and him would talk about silly things. You both would talk about the ending of Gossip Girl that you had just watched this afternoon because it was shocking to both of you. You'd talk about the songs you just added at your playlist and you'd talk about what you wanted to do tomorrow on the first day of the year.

— I don't accept any other plan that you can make but if it's to stay cuddling in bed with me all day, love — Harry would say and you'd giggle at his words. He had a point though, because you couldn't imagine anything better to do tomorrow than stay cuddled up in bed under the heavy blankets with him all day long; maybe watching a movie or starting a new tv show together as you just finished gossip girl, you'd probably starts Bridgerton because you have already read the books and you loved it. And then take as many naps as you wanted. It sounded perfect and he knew you just couldn't resist to it.

   It didn't take too much for both of you to eat your pizza slices and as you ate it, Harry would take tons of photos from you all smiley eating your pizza while dancing to a random song that was playing in the background of the pizzeria. Harry loved to take random pics of you and he'd do it everytime he had a chance, which was quite often. But he did it because this way, whenever he was away and his heart ached missing you, he could go on his gallery and see all the random pics he has from you and in some way feel closer to his girl and god, so did you. Even though none of you shared the millions of photos you'd have of each other's in your phones, it felt so good to have them with you whenever you needed it to make your hearts warmer.

                                        ...

— Alright but, do you think that Brad and Angelina slept together before or after he and Jen "broke up"? — You'd randomly ask Harry as you both left the cab that was taking both of you to the Rockefeller Center because a walk from East Village to Rockefeller Center would be a hell of a walk. You both felt the christmas lights on your faces and your eyes were glowing because of them and you couldn't think of a prettier thing in this moment. It wasn't your plan to celebrate the New Year's Eve in New York and actually, the last time you've celebrated it in this city was about four years about before you even met Harry. And honestly, it just feel really cool to go ice skating in Rockfeller Center and then later go dinner somewhere and starts 2021 with a person that you really loved and appreciate on a city that you really loved, and maybe this wasn't what you planned but it was what you needed.

— They definetely were! — Harry said almost immidietely making you let out a loud laugh over his comment. You love when Harry gets into his gossiping mode, it's probably the best thing ever. He doesn't do it much when he's sober, but when he's drunk he'd just say everything you ask him and that's usually really funny, expect for sometimes when he'd tell things that are supposed to be a secret — Just look at their movie together. You could see the sexual tension and no one will convice me otherwise!

— I know but he had a sexual tension with all his co-stars! Don't you remember Legends of the fall? He had a sexual tension with his brother's fiancé that later marries his other brother — You'd argue back to him as making your point. You and Harry are definetely the "Netflix & Chill" type of couple, and as in quarantine you stayed home, you and Harry watched tons of movies on netflix and you'd always take your time to discuss them pretty often. Movies, music and books are the things that fullfill both of your souls the most and that's the reason why you'd often get caught up on discussing the things you've saw.

— It wasn't sexual tension, it was chemistry. It's different, love! — Harry'd argue back throwing his arm upon your shoulders as you both walked closer to the small line of people that were waiting to go ice skating. And you'd stop walking as realizing that you and him just arrived at the right spot and as you waited on the line of the ice skating, you had your back pressed on Harry's chest as he hugged you from behind to take the cold away as you talked. It was a nice time where you could just catch up about your thoughts while admiring the christmas lights and the people on the rink, and if you must confess, laugh a little about the people that couldn't ice skate. Harry told you about his plans to release the Treat People with Kindness music video tomorrow and talked about working with Phoebe Waller-Bridge and had to deal with your drama about not meeting her for what it seems like the millionth time, but you did make it pretty clear to him that you were so excited about the video because you haven't watched it yet because you wanted it to be a new year's surprise to you. You told him about how you missed walking the runaway and everything you want to do in 2021 in your professional career and also personal life, like the books and movies you wanted to read and watch and the places you wanted to visit.

   Anyway, it didn't take you long to get on the ice skating rink, and it also didn't take you more than two minutes to start regretting it. You were clearly not the best skater in the world. You weren't even 50% good; reasonable, would be the right term. And so, when you didn’t have the ability to move gracefully and lightly across the ice, and instead had to skate by holding on to the bars or Harry's arm and then after, having Harry insisting on trying to let you skate alone and then having you to crash into on the floor, Harry couldn't help but laugh. The boy laughed so hard, in a way where he couldn't even breathe properly from laughing so much, and you couldn't contain your own laughs either. Of course, Harry helped you up and then asked you a thousand times if you were okay and you hadn't been hurt, but the scene was just too fun at the moment not to laugh and you'd admit it.

   At around 11:20 pm, you both retired from the skating rink as your time was up and then, you walked away from the short line to the ice skating rink getting a little far away from the line. You used your right hand to move some strands of hair from your face as Harry carefully looked at you.

— You're sure you're alright? — Harry asked one last time making you glare at him with an annoyed look at your face becase he had already asked this about forty times now. He'd shrug his shoulders and put his hands inside the pockets of his black coat — Alright, you're fine.

— I am, love! — You said wrapping your arms around yourself while moving your head to look around you before getting your gaze to focus on Harry's face again — Should we go to a restaurant? Because it's almost midnight! — You asked Harry that looked the time as he took his phone off his pocket to see that the clock indicated the time to be 11:25 pm.

— Yeah let's go! And it's cold here! — He'd say wrapping his arm around your shoulders as you both started to walk again. The things is that near Rockefeller Center, there was plenty of cool and great restaurants that of course you had no idea if they were or not open but it didn't cost you to go check and that's why you'd walk around it to see — Oh, let's go to Bill's Bar and Burger. I want nachos and fries so bad — Harry would say as he stopped walking abruptly in front of the restaurant making you to gaze at the place and then at him.

— Oh my god, yes! — You'd nod at him as you both walked inside the place. You've been in it before and the menu was spectacular, the burgers were so amazing and the place was really cool, though. It had a dark wooden floor and tables and big glass windows that gave you the perfect vision from outside and at the moment you both entered the space you noticed that it wasn't extremely crowed but it had a few people. The televisions in the walls transmitted the Times Square New Year's Eve performances and you sat at the table in the corner of the wall with a padded accent.

You'd take a look at the menu and order. Harry'd order a alcoholic beverage, unlike you that'd go with a coke because if your boyfriend went wasted you needed to take him home and take a 6'0 foot taller man home after few drinks can be quite hard. You'd order fries and nachos for Harry because he just eats fish now and then orders a chicken burger for you and then some milkshakes because you were going to eat all that you wanted as it was the last day of the year.

While your orders were being prepared, you and Harry talked about the christmas trip with your families and how funny it was. You'd talk about how the hell could you both forget about the christmas presents and how thank god you could find good new presents in the last minute. Harry would probably tell you about a life story of his starting by "in my epoch" sounding like he was forty years older than you because he knows that this pissed you off. He's three years older. It's not like it's a lifetime. But you'd find fun on his stories, just like he does to yours because even though you're younger than him, you both came from different sides of the world. From completely different families and cultures and it's so cool to share your experiences with each other. With the time, you and Harry learned that everyone had something to add in your life. Something about art, or about bad feelings or good feelings. Something about love, about friendship and jobs and opportunities. You both would reflect about how you just find things and people in life that makes you whole. You grow older and start noticing what really matters. You and Harry always travel on New Year and this year you didn't and being there, on a bar in New York just with each other having the most fun as you shared your stories, made you realize that it's not about the trip or the journey. It's about the person you have on your side as you doing those things. It's about having someone that you love at your side to share the good and the bad and after a hard year, you're lucky for having each other and getting out of it stronger than ever.

When the countdown started, everyone in the bar starting to count as well. You used your phone to record both you and Harry as you both counted. The camera caught the big smile perfectly that you and Harry had on your faces, and it actually caught the cheese from the french fries that Harry was previously eating right in the corner of his mouth but we don't have to focus on this part just yet. When the clock turned midnight, the entire bar screamed happily and you and Harry turned to each other with the happiest smiles ever, hugging each other sharing the "Happy New Year" and then sharing your first kiss of 2021, just as you both did three years ago when the clock turned midnight entering 2018 and you both shared the first kiss of your life. You've been kissing since then.

[deniigi]

I had a really bad day (I wont say why because I wouldnt want you to feel like I'm guilting you into anything) and I was wondering if maybe you had a dfv/lfv or inimitable verse drabble you havent put up or one on here you really like you could point me to (navigation is hard on mobile) or even just some like hcs. If not its totally ok! You dont owe me anything. But I thought I'd ask and see if that's ok.

Oh no!

Sorry that you had a rough day my dear. I don’t have much in the works for those verses right now (I’ve been hammering my head against a wall, trying to write out a piece exploring Gwen and Murderdock’s relationship–it’s not working tho, so I’m stopping). Of course any of the Clint-based pieces are fun in those verses if you need a pick me up, but I am equally fond of Chapter 13 of Sidebars.

But! If you don’t mind a little piece from Lying by Omission/The Sprawl I’ve got cute little bit of Jack and Ben going out to dinner with Matt and Peter?

I’ll put it under the cut if you’re down

—-

“Dad, let’s go out to eat.”

Jack didn’t trust that. Jack had been scarred by the durian. Permanently scarred. He was never coming back from the durian. He was etching a durian with a big ‘X’ through it into the top of his next coffin for future archaeologists to find and have absolutely no questions about.

Matt, sensing that he was presently not receiving the amount of attention that he could be receiving, oozed out of the kitchen and draped himself over the back of the couch, right behind Jack’s shoulders. Jack glanced to the side and noted that he was wearing shoes.

He wasn’t chancing it.

“No shoes on the couch,” he said.

“It’s my couch,” Matt hummed, already migrating over to the couch’s arm, no doubt to burrow his way under Jack’s own arm.

“It’s a couch.”

“My couch,” Matt hummed, plucking Jack’s phone out of his hand and tossing it callously to the other side of said couch. He then executed the burrow and wriggled himself over so that he was the sole occupant of Jack’s lap. He waited, as sweet as could be, until he had Jack’s more or less undivided attention.

The kid was heavy. Jack couldn’t tell if he knew just how heavy he was.

He suspected that he was more than aware of it.

Matt beamed at him. He did not pull his shoed feet over the couch’s arm.

A sign of obedience. Or perhaps a buttering-up technique.

Tricky, tricky.

“Why do we need to go out to eat? What’s wrong with what’s in the fridge?” Jack asked Matt’s untrustworthy grin.

It faded a little because there was a pout which needed doing.

“I’m tired of eating potatoes,” Matt huffed.

“Take it back,” Jack scolded him. “I won’t hear any raggin’ on tatties in this household.”

“I want rice.”

“I’ll make you rice, Matty.”

“I don’t want your rice.”

Picky little shit. Just like his mother. She’d been the type to refuse a peanut butter and jelly sandwich if the slop wasn’t equally distributed.

Jack’s rice was perfectly fine. It even had bits of onion in it. If he was feeling real fancy, he might even cook it in broth or something.

“Fine, so make rice yourself,” he said. Matt squirmed up and wrapped arms around Jack’s neck. He put his cheek against it and immediately made the skin there it itch.

“You need a shave,” Jack huffed, reaching back for his phone. Vanessa was doing battle with her replacement: Bella the cat. She was giving their zombie group the play by play of the her and the cat’s opposing campaigns to win Wade’s favor. Thus far, Bella had broken a plate and gotten scratchies and kisses for it. Vanessa was outraged.

It was an outrage to behold.

“Daddy.”

Not this again. This was no reason to bring out the big guns.

“Get your shoes,” Matt whined.

“Baby, you can go out. I’m not stopping you from going out. No one is stopping you from going out, god help us,” Jack told him.

Matt abandoned his neck, stretched out, quick as a whip, and snatched the phone on the other cushion. He crammed it into his shirt and then replaced himself and his face-broom against Jack’s pulse point.

Yeah.

Yeah, Jack didn’t know what he’d expected to happen here.

“Matt,” he warned.

“Dinner.”

“The last time we went to dinner, you broke my heart, soul, and trust.”

“I won’t do it again.”

“Uh-huh. Yeah, right. ”

“I won’t,” Matt promised, pulling back to add puppy eyes to the mix.

That was unfair. Uncalled for. Totally underhanded.

“Why don’t you go out with Foggy?” Jack tried as a last-ditch effort.

“Because I want to go out with you,” Matt emphasized. “My pops. My old man. We gotta bond. It’ll make me more well-adjusted. The internet says so.”

Jack was confiscating the internet. The internet was a know-it-all snitch.

“DAD.”

“Fine, for fuck’s sake, boy. Get off, you’re drowning me here.”

  Jack would go out to dinner on one condition.

Two conditions actually.

1)      There was to be no durian. Anywhere. At all.

2)      He got to bring moral support.

Matt was more than cool with that because it meant that he could replace the durian with another creative element which would equally torture Jack.

So Jack asked Ben Parker to come along. Parker was sharp as a tack. Compared to Jack, he was a man of the world. A reasonable and sensitive body with respect for his fellow humans. He promised to help Jack identify potential threats to his person flung his way by his uncaring and mischievous son.

Unfortunately, to that end, Matt insisted that they take Ben’s nephew, Peter, out with them too.

Jack knew from the start that this was Matt inserting his chaos element into what might otherwise be a perfectly tolerable and uneventful night out. But he also held out hope that Peter would be the sweet, kind-hearted boy he appeared to be.

It really was too much to ask for.

Peter latched his whole body onto Matt within seconds of their two parties meeting up and the two of them immediately set to whispering which bode poorly for everyone else involved.

“I believe we may have made a mistake,” Ben observed, rubbing thoughtfully at his chin.

  Matt wanted rice and Peter wanted something sour enough to leave ulcers in his mouth, so the two of them decided that Thai food would achieve both of these effects. Jack was suspicious. Ben told him that Thai food was very tasty and he had little reason to fear, except.

Except.

“Peter hates durian, it’s fine, he won’t be setting up any conspiracies around it,” Ben promised him.

Mm.

They’d see about that.

Foggy had said something similar when he and Matt had dragged Jack out for Filipino food.

  Jack was pretty sure that Peter just wanted a lime. He was 90% sure that all Peter’s cravings could be satisfied with a lime right now.

Matt, however, in an unlikely turn of events, convinced him that he should get food-substances to accompany his burning desire for limes. Peter grumbled at this and deferred to his uncle for support in the face of this logic.

Chaos element, located.

“Pick a carb,” Ben directed.

“Sugar is a carb,” Peter argued.

“Pick a carb in a less refined form,” Ben countered easily.

“If it’s raw sugar, it—”

“Veg, noodles, or rice,” Ben offered him.

Peter scowled.

“You said a carb,” he pouted. “I want sugar.”

“I have good news for you, sweet child of mine,” Ben said fondly. “There is sugar in everything served in the United States of America. You will have your sugar. Pick its structure: veg, noodles, or rice.”

Ben made Jack feel like a shit dad sometimes. Although, to be fair, Jack hadn’t been a dad as long as Ben had.

Peter, outwitted and bitter about it, agitated Matt to help him.

Matt saw no need for that.

“You’re gonna be hungry in an hour and then you’re gonna whine about it,” he declared.

Peter scowled at him and then turned his lethal puppy eyes onto Jack. Jack set up a menu between the two of them because he was not strong enough to cope with that.

Peter whined behind it.

  Things were going too smoothly for too long. Jack did not trust the decent behavior happening at this table. Ben got a kick out of his paranoia, which was great because someone needed to.

“What are you hiding?” Jack asked Matt. Matt scoffed.

“Chill, old man,” he said. “We’re literally just having dinner. Maybe try to have a good time, huh?”

No.

Something evil was afoot.

Peter snickered. Matt swatted at him; he easily dodged the hand.

Trouble.

  Dinner was eaten and paid for and Jack eventually gave up and settled down. Begrudgingly, he had to admit that Matt was right. Thai food was nice. No incidents had occurred. There was no durian. Ben and Peter made for good conversation, even if everything led back to Peter’s obsession with sci-fi films.

Ben told him that if he kept mentioning them, the aliens would hear him and his name would start to move up higher up on their list of potential captures.

The kid was horrified.

Matt helpfully started counting off the number of times Peter had mentioned aliens in the last week and Peter had briefly looked like he was going to cry.

“Is your wife not going to hear of this?” Jack asked Ben as they walked after the trouble duo who had determined that they were finding dessert at a different location. They seemed to know what they were after, so Jack and Ben left them to it.

“Oh, she will,” Ben said.

“And you don’t mind?”

“She encourages it. She’s convinced him that if you leave a tv on static, aliens can pick up on your watch history.”

Interesting parenting techniques going on here.

Ben laughed.

“Well, I guess we just figure that if you’ve got a weird kid, it’s easier on everyone if you just lean into it. My brother probably wouldn’t be so down with it, but he’s not here, so whatever.”

Ah, right.

“Peter’s your brother’s son, then,” Jack noted.

Ben hummed.

“I…guess,” he said uneasily. “I—it’s hard to explain. I mean, biologically, yeah he’s Rich’s son. But, you know, me and May’ve raised him for longer than Rich and Mary were ever in his life, so, I dunno. Is it fucked up that I kind of think of him as my son?”

No. Not at all.

“My eldest brother pretty much raised me,” Jack told him. “My mama couldn’t be assed to do anything more than scream at the drop of a hat and my daddy was busy drinking himself to death, so Bill was the one who got me up and dressed and off to school in the morning. I always thought of him as a mix between a brother and a mom.”

“No shit?” Ben said. “Where is he? He still around?”

Uuuuuuuh.

“We haven’t talked for a long time,” Jack said.

“Oh? Well, now’s your chance you know.”

Jack tried not to wince too sharply. Ben caught it anyways.

“Or not,” he said. “You don’t have to if its painful or something.”

Oh, buddy.

“We’ll see,” Jack decided. “I’ll need to think about it.”

He didn’t know how Matt would react. Hell, he didn’t know how he would react to seeing Bill again.

  Matt and Peter presented Jack with a drink that had evil hiding in the bottom of it.

He should have known better to think he’d escape that night uninjured.

–

I hope this cheers you up my dear and that things get easier for you soon!

[baalzebufo]

Can I ask what you love about Ronaldo? :o sorry if I'm bothering you, I just haven't seen any love for him in the fandom, I'd love to hear you ramble about it!!

do NOT worry i will take any opportunity to ramble about him!! this got really long and is basically a small essay sorry about this, ill put it behind a readmore but. i have a lot of feelings to unleash

so like, ive always loved the human characters in SU, just tossing that out there to start. they have some of the most relatable aspects of the show for me and i think work really well to ground the show and have that human aspect and provide the Other Half of stevens life. and i relate really strongly to all of them- lars is a huge example, bc of the way his anxiety and depression is portrayed and how it Can cause you to lash out sometimes when you hate yourself- like, ive been there during my less healthy periods and tbh. i had the same feelings with ronaldo

heres this late-teen-early-twenties dude who hasnt done much with his life and hasnt got a lot of friends and is widely considered to be the weird outcast. he doesnt have the best grasp of social cues, he is kind of inappropriate sometimes without meaning to be and occasionally insensitive, and more than anything hes searching for purpose and importance in life. one thing i feel people tend to overlook about him is that inferiority complex- its made very clear in keep beach city weird (the ep) that he basically has a full depressive breakdown when he learns he isnt actually at the center of any big conspiracy. and like, as someone who has struggled with the feeling of being tiny and unimportant in the universe, lemme tell you i FELT that. especially when other people seem to be so much better than you? people need to feel at least some kind of validation and self-importance to feel alive tbh

i think it gets overlooked bc it isnt focused on nearly as much as it is w some other characters and i could be overanalyzing i know, but i feel like its pretty much subtext he has some form of depression- his mood swings pretty strongly and hes clearly very emotional and has outbursts. in my neurodivergent eyes he is absolutely coded with Some kind of mental health issue or neurodivergency, with his hyper-obsessing over his interests and ignoring everything else for the sake of them, and ofc his tendency to have a full on meltdown when hes Wrong and Not Special. i just feel like theres so much more THERE that people could explore but goes unappreciated? like- during future boy zoltron, he asks a question to steven (offscreen) but considering stevens response is ‘deep down, your father really loves you’ its pretty strongly implied there ronaldo is... perhaps more aware of his impact on his family and loved ones than he shows outwardly. its never hugely focused on but theres snippets that just make me super fascinated to know about him

and ofc i have to bring up my favourite piece of Ronaldo Lore, the comic Anti-Gravity. please PLEASE read it if you are interested in him because imo it does the best job of showing what hes like- hes eccentric and weird and lets his imagination run wild sometimes but deep down he wants to help people and be appreciated. sometimes those desires lead to him being selfish or hurtful, and i dont think he even realizes hes doing it sometimes, because whenever hes called out about it he tends to rethink his actions. but in that comic he helps steven save the day and has. this rly good quote: 

‘for once, i know i can help! you were right- i didn’t understand how dangerous these anomalies could be, but the whole reason im even talking to you now is because i care.’

hes a dreamer and he lives in his own little world a lot of the time and likes to reject the reality he considers Boring where he is just another normal person among billions but he does earnestly want to help people. he just enjoys the weird and unusual and wants to be proud of that, which sometimes leads to him ignoring social norms because he doesnt care what people think.

this post got into the like ‘deeper’ stuff, but dont get me wrong i also just think he is VERY funny and cute. hes extremely silly and whenever i see him being a Huge Fucking Dork it warms my heart bc. idk, im also a dork. im a twenty-something dude who tries to be proud of being weird and loving my strange interests and seeing another character like that in a show i love just... we Connectin. but in general i feel like he could have so much more!! and is widely ignored by the fanbase bc they find him annoying (or creepy). which is fair, aint nobody have to like a character if they dont want, but i certainly will love him and put together The Pieces. is it probably just headcanon and speculation?? yeah, maybe. but rly, would ronaldo have it any other way

[golbrocklovely]

I always forget about Colourpop! Everybody was all about them one day and now I never hear about them, same with Makeup Geek. I've always wanted to try them. Those books sound cool, especially "There's Someone Inside Your House" I'll have to look into that one.

The only song I think I have saved from Colby's playlist is @ my worst by blackbear, which I don't know if he actually added that song or if heardwell did but it really sounds like his tweets put into a song lmaooo

Favorite Disney Channel original movie is tied between Princess Protection Program and High School Musical. Both because I have vivid memories of when they premiered. For HSM I can literally see myself sitting in the middle of the livingroon floor watching it and for Princess Protection Program I remember I was sleeping over my aunts house when it came out, my cousins and I were sleeping on an air mattress trying to count how many times they said Princess because they had that contest 😂😂😂

And Halloween original is without a doubt Halloweentown. I mean it is a cult classic for any late 90s early 2000s kid.

I'd rather have Colby's closet, he's got the more edgier style that I'm into. I really want those nike sneakers he has with the bandanas! I'm not gonna lie though I've really been feeling Sam's style lately. He's really stepped up his game.

Conspiracy theories give me anxiety 🤣🤣🤣 I think the extent of conspiracies that I can handle is the Mandela effect (if that even is a conspiracy theory lol) also do aliens count as a conspiracy??

What season best fits your personality and why? If SNC were in front of you right now, what is one question you've been dying to ask them? What's one thing that takes up too much if your time?

i still hear about colourpop all the time. makeup geek, different story lol

i recommended there's someone inside your house ! it was such a good read. i had to read it all in one sitting bc i just couldn't put it down.

you know what's funny, one time i thought about putting some of colby's tweets into a poem or a song bc of how they read lol but yeah there are couple songs i've heard that sound like something he would tweet.

omg hsm was my shit at one point. even my choir back in 5th grade sang songs from it and i had troy's part in breaking free lmao i will say tho hsm 2 is superior in my eyes.

my favorite dcom growing up was the thirteenth year and camp rock lol and then halloween themed, i mean, halloweentown is great and i do love that movie, but my favorite has to go to phantom of the megaplex. no one talks about that movie enough.

colby's closet is really nice. but i'm starting to think that colby is rubbing off on sam bc sam's style is like a mix of edger clothes mixed with preppy. and i'm all about it highkey.

omg same. i don't really like conspiracy theories, but i think some of them can be really interesting. mandela effects i think fall into conspiracies so yeah. those are weird to me, bc i feel like maybe our memories aren't as strong as we think and in reality instead of admitting that you're not remembering correctly, you're just double down for prideful reasons lol

i would say fall matches my personality more. i'm into spooky stuff, and the general color scheme of fall is kinda my aesthetic to some extent.

oh my god i have so many questions for them. but if i had to ask one where they had to be 100% honest with me, i would love to know what happened with metalife. why did they shut it down? what happened behind the scenes that caused it to be shut down? i just need to know honestly.

highkey, i hate how long showering takes for me. it usually takes me 20-30 mins to shower. even when i go fast, i'm still 15-20. like, if i could constantly just be clean... that would be great.

questions: what's your favorite drink (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), last tv show/movie you watched (and was it good), where do you buy most of your clothes from?