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sneakyparsnipslicer · 2 years ago

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Real Recognises Real II

[A continuation to my story 'Real Recognises Real' https://www.tumblr.com/sneakyparsnipslicer/726911756921978881/real-recognises-real?source=share

Set a few months after, really wanted to revisit Tom and Eric, enjoy!]

Preston had been working at an envelope factory for a while now. Granted it wasn't his preferred line of work, it was a job that paid the rent, it was easy enough money, good working environment too. He kept himself to himself mostly, but in time he reached the position of Machine Assistant and he couldn't be happier about that. He was assisting a man he'd long had a crush on, a guy named Tom.

When Preston had first joined, he didn't know anyone and was nervous about making mistakes. Other Operators would snap and become frustrated but Tom was calm and kind, his voice reassuring and saw no trouble in teaching the same lesson several times over until Preston finally got the hang of it. He didn't really know Tom outside of work, but he was shocked when he learned the guy was single.

Whilst Preston could easily focus on the job just fine, he often found his attention ventured towards Tom. He was blonde, tall, and over the recent months had begun to bulk up and become a bit more muscular and self-confident. Someone must have left an impression on him, but it was only making Preston want him more. He'd taken to spying on Tom in the locker room, started as just subtle glances as Tom took off his work kit and changed into regular clothes, the more of Tom's skin he got to see, the more material he had to 'work with' in his own time. He even found Tom's social media pages, granted his content was tame, he soon got a decent view on the guy's lifestyle. He'd ask Tom from time to time if he was free, but he always seemed to have plans with other workmates.

One Friday as work was finishing Preston went to the locker room to sign out for the day when he saw Tom mid-change, his whole upper body exposed.

'Oh, hi Tom!' said Preston, acting surprised. Tom nearly jumped out of his skin, but breathed a sigh of relief when he saw who it was.

'Oh, hi Preston. Didn't hear you come in!' laughed Tom, turning his attention back to his locker.

'Say, what gym are you going to?' asked Preston, looking at Tom's back. Tom turned and looked at him confused.

'I don't really go to the gym, why do you ask?' asked Tom.

'Oh, it's just I noticed you've been bulking up lately. Wouldn't mind getting some workouts done myself' said Preston. Tom put on a polo shirt and thought.

'Well I hear Energy Fitness is a good gym, decent membership prices from what I'm told. I'm not really about that life' chuckled Tom, pulling some jeans out from his locker.

'Ah of course, I heard you were more into cosplay' said Preston. Tom looked over cautiously.

'Really, who told you that?' asked Tom.

'Oh some of the others were saying about it, you go Comic Con a lot from what I hear' said Preston. Tom looked at his jeans wondering if he should skip changing out of his work trousers.

'Yeah I do, wish people wouldn't talk about my private life' said Tom.

'I'll bet you do a great job on it, love a guy who can pull off Spider-Man with the right muscle definition' replied Preston. Tom fell silent, busying himself stuffing the rest of his belongings into his backpack.

'You good there Tom?' asked Preston, looking over to him.

'Yeah, I just remembered I need to hurry off' said Tom hurriedly shutting and locking his locker.

'Hold on a sec Tom' said Preston. Tom sighed and looked to him.

'I was wondering if you're free tonight, but I guess you're gonna make up a bullshit excuse' said Preston. Tom was beginning to feel uncomfortable.

'You've been turning me down way too often and I'm starting to get sick of it' started Preston.

'Well yeah I just have other plans' replied Tom. Preston shook his head.

'Damn it, why do you insist on playing hard to get?' demanded Preston slamming his locker and glaring at him. Tom was taken aback by this sudden display of aggression.

'I really want to get to know you better, but you never give me a chance. If you do have any free time tonight, I'd love to meet you at The Fox and Peony for some drinks' said Preston dismissively.

'Alright Preston, calm down. I'll join you for one drink only!' said Tom assertively. Preston looked at Tom and shook his head.

'Sure, just be there or don't' mumbled Preston, pushing past Tom to clock out, nearly bumping into their other work colleague Eric.

Later that night Preston made his way to the pub in town. It didn't seem all that busy, but he headed to the bar and bought a beer. He looked around the place for any signs of Tom. Doing a double take he noticed a man sitting in the corner that he was pretty sure was Tom. No, there was no mistaking that face, it was Tom. Preston called his name and Tom looked up from his phone, smiled and waved.

'Hey, good to see you!' said Preston, smiling.

'Well I said I'd be here. One drink only though, right?' replied Tom. Preston chuckled and they clinked their glasses. Upon looking at Tom closer he seemed different, maybe the room's lighting was bad but his hair seemed a bit darker than usual, and his shoulders seemed a bit broader.

'You all good there Squire?' Tom asked. Preston snapped out of his trance and shook his head.

'Oh yeah sorry, um, look I just wanted to apologise for snapping at you earlier' said Preston. Tom sipped his beer and shook his head.

'Nah it's all good mate, it's not like I've made much of an effort to get to know you, work's been busy lately and management are very keen on getting their numbers' said Tom. Preston nodded his head.

'So, what do you do out of work then?' asked Preston.

'Oh a bit of this and that, skateboarding, guitar, going to conventions, playing games' listed off Tom on his fingers. Preston was taken aback. He didn't know Tom was a skateboarder, or a guitarist for that matter.

'Wow, sounds like a busy life!' chuckled Preston.

'Kinda yeah, kinda no, it depends on the day Squire' said Tom. Preston just couldn't work it out, Tom seemed so different here compared to work, a lot more laidback.

'So how come you keep calling me Squire?' asked Preston. Tom looked at him surprised.

'I call everyone Squire!' laughed Tom.

'Actually yeah thinking about it, you and Eric do that a lot' chuckled Preston. Tom finished his beer and sighed.

'Well I'm just gonna go to the toilet, I'll be back in a moment' said Tom, getting up out of his seat and leaving Preston alone. Preston glanced as Tom walked away, his back definitely seemed a lot more broader tonight, and the shorts he was wearing definitely hugged his ass really tightly. He couldn't think if he'd ever seen Tom wearing shorts before.

A few minutes passed and Tom still hadn't returned, Preston decided to down his drink and go look for him. It didn't take long as he found him in the men's toilets near the sinks.

'Hey Tom, thought you got lost' said Preston. Tom turned to look at him, smiled and turned his attention back to the sink, where he had a pouch of tobacco.

'Just rolling myself a ciggie mate, you want one?' asked Tom.

'No thanks, I didn't know you smoked' replied Preston, approaching him cautiously.

'Ah well, there's a lot you don't know about me' said Tom. Preston cleared his throat.

'How do you mean Tom?' asked Preston, inches from Tom.

'Like this' said Tom, and he grabbed Preston's shoulders and pinned him against the wall, his face an inch from Preston's.

'Well this is what you've wanted isn't it? Me and you, a little Tom Time?' asked Tom, looking him up and down, grinning. Preston felt strangely turned on by this sudden commanding presence Tom had.

'I-I mean, I m-might have' stammered Preston, his breathing elevating.

'Well then' whispered Tom, and he pulled Preston into a kiss, to which Preston put up no resistance, he had wanted this. He felt Tom's hands and arms wrap around him into an embrace as the kiss kept going and his tongue began to invade his mouth. Preston could feel himself harden as he moved his own arms to hold onto Tom's back.

'Give me everything' moaned Preston as Tom kissed his neck.

'You asked for it!' replied Tom, locking lips with him again and inhaling. Though at first Preston could only taste beer and tobacco from Tom, it soon started to get better, perhaps he was losing his mind but he began to taste sweeter, creamier. Preston opened his eyes and could see that Tom seemed to be deflating slowly and he himself was beginning to inflate, his muscles expanding. The thick creamy fluid in his mouth began to fill him, warm him, it was heavenly. Tasting of peaches, cream, honey, it was amazing. Tom squeezed Preston more into his body as the fluid he was secreting into Preston began to lessen. Tom shuddered and pulled back, shaking his head and looking at Preston, who was dazed but smiling.

'Holy shit! How did you do that?' asked Preston, licking his lips and looking to his newly gained muscles. Tom shook his head and blinked his eyes.

'Fuck me that was different!' said Tom, as if he had no clue of what he just did. Preston noticed Tom's clothes were more loosely fitting on his body now.

'Just what the hell are you Tom?' asked Preston, but as he said that he began to feel drowsy.

'It's alright Preston, just let him work his magic' said Tom reassuringly, placing his hands on Preston's shoulders. Preston began to sway and fell onto Tom.

'Him? Magic? What are you talking about?' Preston asked, his head resting on Tom's shoulder beginning to doze off.

'That's right, just rest now Preston, it's alright' whispered Tom, patting his back. Preston smiled, he liked Tom being like this, before he knew it he had lost consciousness.

Tom carried Preston onto the sink and placed him carefully against the wall.

'Alright, you can come out now Squire!' said Tom, folding his arms. Preston's eyes opened and he stretched, yawning.

'Well that went nicely I think' he said, massaging his chest and smacking his lips. He caught sight of himself in the mirror, granted it wasn't the face he was used to, but he winked at Tom's reflection all the same.

'Yeah well, you nearly gave yourself away on a few occasions Eric, but thanks for helping me out all the same' smiled Tom to which Preston, or rather Eric nodded his head.

It had been a few months since the first time Tom and Eric had merged in Eric's garage, since then they'd made a semi-frequent habit of it, and by now Tom was willing to let Eric wear his body sometimes, though as a result, Eric had stretched Tom's skinny body out a bit, leading to some unwanted attention it seemed.

'Gotta say, that transferral was a bit different, is that new?' asked Tom, licking the inside of his mouth, tasting the sweet residue.

'Indeed it is, I can transfer in several ways, gotta keep it exciting for my most favourite Squire!' Eric chuckled.

'So you literally became muscle milk?' asked Tom. Eric's eyes widened and he nodded with the most unhinged smile on his face.

'That's fucking crazy!' laughed Tom.

'Crazy? I was crazy once' said Eric ominously.

'They locked me in a room, a rubber room, a rubber room with rats' said Tom.

'And the rats made me crazy!' they both said, bursting out into laughter.

'But anyway, what are we gonna do about this guy?' asked Eric, patting his stomach and pocketing his tobacco pouch on the sink. Tom thought for a moment.

'You can access his memories right? I need a few concerns putting to rest' Tom requested. Eric nodded and closed his eyes, searching.

'Let's see, oh he's been checking you out alright, nearly every time your back's turned' began Eric.

'Yikes!' said Tom, creasing his eyes a bit.

'He's been checking out your social medias' continued Eric.

'Fucking knew it! That mention of me cosplaying Spider-Man was way too good to have been a guess' scowled Tom.

'Oh shit! He's built a shrine to you in his bedroom!' laughed Eric.

'What the actual fuck?!' Tom hissed wide-eyed.

'Nah, I'm just messing with you Squire, but he is big into you, obsessed even, very unhealthy' said Eric, opening his eyes. Tom paced back and forth.

'Well we can't just get rid of him, maybe we can take those feelings and get rid of them?' asked Tom.

'Well it's possible yes, but it's gonna suck, at least for you' sighed Eric jumping off the sink.

'How do you mean?' asked Tom looking to his friend.

'Well I can concentrate his memories of you, feelings and all that into one place, you're just gonna have to suck them out' said Eric, giving his body's junk a shake. Tom looked in disgust.

'Oh come on Eric, I'm not about to give you a blowjob in a public toilet! What are we? Teenagers?' asked Tom. Eric raised his eyebrows and gave a flirtatious look and walked into the nearest cubicle.

'You know you'll like it!' called Eric in a sing-song manner, giving an evil laugh. Tom looked to the bathroom door and shook his head.

'You're just lucky it's you Eric, anyone else I'd tear their fucking dick off!' replied Tom, marching over to the cubicle, thrusting the door shut behind him and locking it.

Tom sighed and turned to Eric, who had already taken Preston's jeans and boxers off, revealing a greasy-looking penis standing at full attention.

'He could stand to clean that thing once in a while. How much of it's you?' asked Tom.

'Hmm, easily over half I'd say' said Eric, looking to it. Tom shrugged his shoulders and got down on his knees, ready to get to work on it. He grasped it and Eric shuddered in anticipation. Tom looked to him.

'Tell me that wasn't you' said Tom, glaring.

'Oh no, he's been wanting this for so long, he's a bit touch sensitive' said Eric, winking at Tom. Tom sighed.

'Well, at least it won't last long then' mumbled Tom, beginning to take the cock in his mouth. He let the shaft down the back of his mouth and began moving his head in a slow rhythm. Eric put his head against the wall, looking to the ceiling, concentrating on Preston's every thought and feeling regarding Tom and guiding them South.

'Alright, on their way to you now Squire!' panted Eric, biting his lip. His body started to wriggle and Tom firmly grasped the thighs, picking up the rhythm. Eric's breath became more laboured.

'Wow, you're angry tonight!' chuckled Eric. Tom looked him dead in the eyes, the dick slipping out of his mouth.

'Well I hadn't planned to be in a public toilet on a Friday night giving head to a greasy cunt like Preston!' growled Tom furiously, jerking the dick harder. Eric placed his right hand on Tom's right cheek.

'Hey, later we can have another session, just me and you if you'd like' smiled Eric. Tom did smile at the idea, if anyone could get him fully going it was Eric.

'Alright then, let's get this over with and get Preston home' said Tom, returning to sucking. Eric nodded and placed his hands behind his head. Shortly after Eric's body began to twitch more.

'Oh! Here he comes! Here he comes!' moaned Eric. Tom quickly took the dick out of his mouth and Eric groaned as he nutted a few thick splurges all over the door behind Tom. Eric sighed and laughed.

'There we go, he could not give a fuck about you now!' Eric announced proudly, wiping his forehead with his hand, catching his breath.

'Good' replied Tom, wiping his own mouth and grabbing some toilet paper and proceeding to wipe the mess off the door.

'Why bother with that? It'll dry' asked Eric, busy pulling the boxers and jeans back up.

'All the same I am not a messy house guest. Yes it's a public toilet, but the less evidence of this, the better' said Tom, folding the gunge-housing tissue and throwing it into the toilet, flushing it.

'Right, since you're in his mind, delete my socials from his browsing history. Check his photo gallery too just in case. We'll dump him back at his place and then we'll get some beers in and you can come over mine tonight, sound good?' asked Tom, unlocking the cubicle door and making his way to the bathroom door to hold it open for Eric, who nodded and pulled out Preston's phone, inputting the password and checking for anything Tom-related and deleting or erasing it. Tom knew the address once Eric had told him it and they began to make their way there. Upon arriving, Eric unlocked Preston's door and they both went in to his bedroom. Tom sighed a breath of relief to find there indeed wasn't a shrine for him there. Eric laid himself down on Preston's bed and began to unmerge himself from Preston whilst Tom checked Preston's cupboards and drawers for anything like diaries or photos of him, surprisingly he couldn't find any.

'Squire, we have a problem!' called Eric. Tom hurried into the bedroom to find Eric standing naked over Preston.

'You're wearing my clothes' said Eric, looking at his t-shirt and shorts on Tom. Tom sighed and pulled the t-shirt off, turning around.

'Very well, get in then!' sighed Tom, presenting his back. Eric rubbed his hands and grinned.

'Nice!' he said, beginning to stroke Tom's shoulders. Tom positioned himself against the nearby wall to support himself whilst Eric wrapped his arms around him and began to sink in. Eventually the two friends were one again, and Tom put the t-shirt back on.

'Right, I think we're done here!' said Tom happily, clapping his hands together. Preston stirred in his sleep and he thought it best to get out as soon as possible. He locked Preston's front door, posting the keys back through his letter box and headed off for some beers and quality time with Eric.

The following Monday Preston arrived at work same as usual. Heading to the shop floor he was greeted by Tom.

'Morning Preston, did you have a good weekend?' asked Tom, looking up from the work computer and smiling. Preston rubbed his head.

'Hey man, don't remember much of it if I'm honest' yawned Preston.

'Well we've got a busy day ahead so you'll need to wake up soon. We're moving from Size 10 to Size 6, so would you be alright to change the bubble wrap?' asked Tom, to which Preston nodded, not really looking at Tom. He headed off up the machine and Tom looked across the factory, on the other machine was Eric checking an envelope for misprints. He looked up at Tom and smiled, giving a thumbs up. Tom winked and gave him a thumbs up too, he sighed happily and proceeded to focus on changing the ink rollers.

#male tf #gay #transformation #bodysuit #workmate #possession

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dixonsdarkelf · 8 months ago

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Finding Myself, Finding You: Chapter Sixteen

Main masterlist Series masterlist AO3 link Wattpad link

Let me know if you want to be added to the taglist <3 (18+ only, MDNI)

Story is 18+ for mature content/themes, minors do not interact please

TW/CWs for this story--implied/referenced past rape, canonical violence, non-canonical violence, blood, gore, referenced past suicide, swearing, surgery, excessive drinking, nightmares, panic attacks, mention of scars, vomiting, amputation, medical procedures, non-con medical procedures, referenced past medical torture, referenced past drugging, attempted sexual assault, panic attacks, mental health struggles, referenced sibling death, referenced parent death, PTSD

Each chapter will have its own TW/CWs listed

This story, Lydia Vector, her family & bestie (c) me, dixonsdarkelf

TWD & its characters (c) AMC & Robert Kirkman, the writer of the comic series

TW/CWs for this chapter--swearing, discussion of past suicide, discussion of sibling death, discussion of parent death, mention of depression, mention of medical procedures, men being creepy, description of nightmares (being tied up, being held at gunpoint, allusion to rape), PTSD, panic attacks

Word count: 2.8k

Though it was already getting late when he came in, Daryl and I sat on that infirmary table and talked for a long time. I talked more about my mom, and he started slowly opening up about the things he and Merle got into before the world fell. There were a lot of drugs and drinking from what I was able to gather, but he was a bit conservative with the details. I didn’t mind that at all. Just the fact that he was willing to even lightly approach the more vulnerable subjects meant a lot to me. It made me feel like he felt I was a safe person to talk to, to be open with, and it made me happy that I could do that for him.

“My mom, she always saw the good in everyone. Both of my parents really, but her in particular. She was so caring, giving, always wanting to do the absolute most she could for the people she cared about,” I explained.

“Guess that’s where ya get it from,” Daryl replied, eliciting a small, flattered smile from me.

“That’s why watching her spiral after Preston died was even harder to watch. For two months, she sank deeper and deeper into this bottomless pit of depression. My dad, Jay, Eli, and I did everything we could to try to help her. Mind you, Jay and Eli had been deployed in the middle of all of this, and I was still in med school, so we tried our hardest with everything else we had going on. And then she just…couldn’t take it anymore.”

I could feel myself getting emotional, and I tried my best to turn it off. I blinked back some tears, and tiny droplets flew off my lashes onto the lenses of my glasses. “She tried her best to be the best example she could for my brothers and I. She told me that when she was growing up, she’d always say that if she ever had kids, she would do everything she could to make sure we made the world a better place. I didn’t learn that until I was older and had already decided I wanted to be a doctor, but it helped reaffirm for me that going to med school was the right decision.”

“She’d be proud of ya,” he said, his tone a little softer now. I had to do everything in my power to stop myself from turning into a blubbering, sobbing mess right then and there. He reached out and stroked the back of my arm with his fingers, just like he had done earlier during target practice. “Speakin’ of med school, don’t think I ever asked ya what your favorite part ‘bout bein’ a doctor is.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite, but what I find most fulfilling is when people come in, alive but unconscious or barely conscious, and they don’t think they’re going to make it. They may have already started making peace with the fact that they were likely going to die. And then hours or days later, they awaken & I get to be there to greet them and tell them that they made it. They almost always start crying, and their family might come in, and pretty soon it’s just a room full of people sobbing. They thank me over and over, sometimes followed by a story about how now they’ll be around to see their child get married or their grandchild graduate.” I took my glasses off and set them beside me on the table, using the back of my hands to wipe the tears off my cheeks. “I do what I need to do quickly so that I can give them their time together and also try not to start crying myself. I also find doing skin grafts really fulfilling because it can help people who’ve had really bad injuries or burns feel semi-normal again. The world is cruel towards people who don’t look “perfect,” so if I can help someone feel a bit more confident in themselves after an accident, that makes me happy.”

Daryl leaned over and grabbed a tissue box off of the counter, handing it to me. “Could ya show me some stuff ‘bout skin grafts?”

I pulled a few of the tissues out and dabbed at my eyes with them. “Umm, sure. Yeah, I can teach you about them. Why?"

"I like learnin’ ‘bout the things ya interested in. I may not understand it, but if it's important to ya, it's important to me." That warming sensation returned to my chest, this time so intense that I thought it might burst through my ribcage. Thankfully I was sitting because I felt my knees weaken, and a big, stupid grin spread across my face as I stared down at my feet swinging back and forth. That was exactly what I had said to him when I asked him to teach me things about his bike.

“Yeah, I can teach you some stuff,” I said, “whenever you want works for me.”

“Later ‘cause ya lookin’ real tired,” Daryl said, hopping off of the exam table and gathering his bow off the floor.

“Hey Daryl?” I said, and he turned his body to face me. I slid myself off the exam table as well. “There’s been a lot of…heavy emotions in here tonight. I just wanna make sure you’re ok.”

“‘ll be alright,” he replied. I took my tissues off the table and tossed them into the nearby trash can. “What about you?”

“Me too. I’ll be ok,” I said as we walked towards the door together, “and thank you for being vulnerable with me. I appreciate it. I hope…I hope you don’t regret it.”

“Nah, don’t got regrets with tellin’ ya things,” Daryl said. He opened the door and held it for me. I flipped the light switch off, and I was grateful for the darkness of night that now concealed my blushing face. He let the door swing shut behind him.

As we reached the path, the guys that were on gate duty with Daryl were walking by, heading home after their shift change. One of them walked by without so much as a glance in our direction. The other two walked by slowly, the looks on their faces ones I knew all too well. Every woman under the sun knew that look—being ogled, them undressing you with their eyes, thinking about the things they wanted to do to you. It made me nauseous. I took a step back, and Daryl held an arm out in front of me as if to let them know that if they wanted to approach me, they’d have to go through him.

I wondered which one of them was responsible for Daryl’s injury. If I ever found out, there would be hell to pay.

We watched them in silence until they were down the path and approaching their homes. Only then did Daryl move his arm out from in front of me.

“I don’t like the way they were looking at me,” I said as we continued home.

“Me neither,” Daryl agreed, “don’t worry though. They know not to say nothin’ to ya. Let me know if they do. Rough ‘em more if I gotta.”

“Thanks Daryl,” I replied as we went inside.

I kicked my boots off and yawned, stretching my arms out over my head. “I think I’m gonna go to sleep. I’m sure it’s late.” I hadn’t eaten since lunch, but the exhaustion I was feeling from my busy day was overshadowing my grumbling stomach.

Daryl sauntered into the kitchen and pulled a pot out from one of the cabinets. “I’ll save some food for ya.”

“Thank you,” I replied. I turned and started to make my way towards the stairs to go to my room, but stopped and turned back around. “Goodnight my little Georgia peach.” I’d started calling him that a couple of weeks ago, only in private, and even though he almost always scoffed at me when I did, I knew he didn’t hate it. He might’ve even liked it a little.

“‘Night short stuff,” he said. He’d taken to calling me “short stuff” because of my reactions to being called “tiny.” I knew he was only teasing when he called me “short stuff” or “tiny,” but I would be lying if I said I didn’t absolutely love it when he called me by one of his nicknames for me.

What Daryl and I had had definitely evolved beyond just a friendship. It was more of a…flirtationship, if you will.

At this point, I’d been at Alexandria for a month and a half or so. And the night that I’d been dreading for weeks finally came—the night that the horrible nightmare I’d been having became crystal clear.

Every sound, every touch, every sight was as clear as could be. It was like I’d been sucked back in time and was right back in that moment again.

I felt the cold barn floor underneath me and his crushing weight on top of me. I felt my hands tied above my head and the rope digging into my skin as I writhed around. I could hear his heavy breathing and the gun scrape against my teeth as it was forced into my mouth. I felt hot tears stream down my cheeks as I realized what was happening. And I could see his face—his evil, smug fucking face no less than two inches from mine.

In my head, the scream I let out could’ve shattered glass.

I awoke on the floor, running my hands all over my body in a panicked state. It took several moments for me to realize I was awake, back on my bedroom floor in Alexandria, like I always was. I hadn’t felt fear like that since the incident itself. The adrenaline that was coursing through my veins was the only thing that kept me upright.

I curled up into a ball against the bed, sobbing hysterically into my knees. My tears felt scalding, burning my skin as they slid down off of my cheeks. I was so wrapped up in my fear that I didn’t think about how Daryl would be coming in at any moment, just like he always did. Nor did I hear the door open when he finally did.

I heard his familiar footsteps move from the door around the bed over to me. He knelt, then sat down next to me. I didn’t look up at him, I couldn’t. I felt so ashamed, both for how my nightmare made me feel and for Daryl having to see me like this. Sure, he’d seen me cry on a few occasions, but none of those times were like this. None were this intense, this visceral, this raw.

“Hey, are ya ok? Ya get hurt?” Daryl asked, his tone velvety soft and a level of concern in his voice I’d never heard before. I didn’t know what to say or do. I wanted nothing more in that moment than to curl up into the tiniest ball possible and disappear. Even if I had anything to say, I couldn’t find my voice.

When I didn’t say a word or move an inch, he scooted himself a little closer to me until his knee was against my leg. He placed a hand on my back, rubbing it up and down between my waist and my shoulders.

“Vec, what happened?” he asked, more worry in his voice than before, “talk to me.”

I practically lunged at him as I fell forward and wrapped my arms around him. It was like I didn’t have control over my body. I needed something familiar, something safe. More so someone familiar, someone safe. And he was right there. My body was reaching for him whether I wanted it to or not.

“It was so real,” I choked out between sobs, “it was so clear.” His strong arms wrapped around me and pulled me even closer to him until my head was resting in the crook of his neck, my heaving chest pressed to his. And he held me there as I continued to sob.

He was warm, like a heater, and his embrace around me was strong, but there was so much care and tenderness behind it. Even though the intense fear was still plaguing my nervous system, I felt safe wrapped up in his arms. He rubbed one hand up and down my back again.

“You’re ok. You’re safe. It can’t hurt ya,” he reassured.

It was a long time before either of us said anything. After a time, he moved his hand that was rubbing up and down my back to the back of my head and stroked my hair. He held me while I cried, and at one point, he started gently rocking me back and forth. I only continued to feel more ashamed, my face getting hot from embarrassment. I felt like such a baby.

“It was like I was right back in that moment.”

I immediately regretted what I had said. If someone said that to me when referencing a nightmare they had, I would assume that this nightmare was them reliving a horrific experience. And knowing that Daryl listened to every single word that came out of my mouth, he now knew that this, in fact, was real. That I dreamt of a real-life horror story night after night.

“You’re not there. You’re here,” Daryl said as he continued to stroke my hair. He handled me like glass, like he thought I might break if he was even just a little too heavy-handed.

“I could see, hear, feel everything.” I sobbed harder. I felt disgusting, vile, like a thousand showers in bleach couldn’t even scrub away the feeling of disgust I experienced.

Daryl stopped rocking me and moved his hand back to my back. “I know that’s scary. But you’re here now, and I got ya.” He somehow pulled me even closer to him, which I didn’t think was possible.

“I just want the pain to stop.”

“I know.” He didn’t know. He had no idea what I was talking about. But I know he knew how it felt to carry the pain of a traumatic incident and wanting that pain to go away.

My sobbing didn’t let up for a long time. When it started to, it was very gradual. Daryl held onto me the whole time, giving me reminders now and then that I was ok, he was there, and I was safe. After a long, long time, my crying had almost stopped, and I picked my head up off of Daryl’s shoulder. The crook of his neck and the shoulder of his shirt were soaked.

“I’m sorry I got your shirt wet,” I said. It felt like a silly thing to say, but I felt terrible.

“Nah, ’s not important.” He pressed tenderly on my shoulders, ushering me to lift my head out in front of him. For the first time in what felt like the hours we’d been sitting here, I met his gaze. My eyes were puffy, I didn’t need to see them to know that. I’m sure they were red too. I hated that he had to see me like this. “How ya feelin’?”

“Like shit,” I said, “I’m too scared to go back to sleep.” When I would fall out of bed after my initial nightmare, the nightmare never continued once I fell back asleep. That wasn’t what I was worried about.

What I was worried about was seeing that stupid, smug face every time I closed my eyes.

“You can go back to bed,” I said, resting my head back in the crook of his neck, “I’m sorry I kept you up for so long.”

“’s no trouble. C’mon, I’ll stay with ya ’til ya fall asleep,” Daryl said. He got up and stood over me, reaching his arms out for me to grab his hands. He pulled me up, and I was barely on my feet for a second before I fell back into the bed. My whole body felt weak, like my muscles were made of jello.

“Are you sure? I’ve already kept you up for long enough.” Daryl came around to the other side of the bed and sat down, scooting back until he was resting against the headboard. I used what small amount of energy I had left to move until I was laid down, rolling onto my side to face him and pulling my blanket up to my chin.

“I’m sure.” He extended his hand out, resting it next to me, palm up. I reached out and placed my hand in his, and he gently stroked my fingers with his thumb. I’m sure the moment would’ve felt more magical if I didn’t feel like such garbage.

“I’m so sorry, Daryl. I feel like such a burden.”

“Ya ain’t a burden, sunshine. Ya never are.”

Taglist: @raddydaddydude

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conspiradoresdelplacer · 3 months ago

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Mickey 17, Bong Joon-ho, 2025.

Los géneros existen aunque no los veamos. El director surcoreano Bong Joon-ho (1969), dirigió, produjo y guionó su última película, Mickey 17, lanzada este año. La película se basa en la novela de ciencia ficción Mickey7 de Edward Ashton.

Esta nueva película de Bong Joon-ho es la siguiente realizada a su gran película Parásitos con la cual ganó el Oscar.

Mickey 17 es una película aceptable dentro del mercado actual, pero no se acerca a sus producciones anteriores. Como por ejemplo los extraordinarios films: Perro ladrador, poco mordedor (2000), Madre (2009), Memoria de un asesino (2003) y El expreso del miedo (2013). Tal vez esta nueva película se acerque más a sus dos obras menos logradas: El huésped (2006) y Okja (2017).

Bong Joon-ho es fanático de los comics y de la ciencia ficción. Construye personajes oscuros, desencantados, afectados sin lugar, que buscan sobrevivir en un mundo cada vez con menos proyección y deseo.

El eje narrativo de la obra de Bong Joon-ho es la cancelación de futuro. Desde climas cotidianos con tensiones banales a relatos complejos espectacularizados el coreano construye narraciones donde preocupaciones como: alimentación, contaminación, trabajo, reproducción de la vida, cuidados y biopolítica son abordados desde distintas géneros y tonos narrativos.

Sus películas tienen en ocasiones toques de estética gore, otras son algo infantiles, y ellas van desde thrillers psicológicos a películas de acción. El terror también se hace presente en varios formas. Ocupa sin lugares a dudas un lugar dentro de los mejores cineastas surcoreanos vivos.

Mickey 17 cuenta la historia de Mickey Barnes. En el año 2054, perseguido por prestamistas -Mickey y su amigo Timo- se inscriben en una empresa para trabajar en una futura colonización en el planeta Niflheim. Con poca autoestima, sin tener ninguna habilidad, desencantado y preocupado por no poder quedar dentro de la nómina de la nueva colonia, Mickey se anota en el cargo de prescindibles, el cual proporciona más oportunidades para ser elegido. Mickey es elegido y su función es morir. Hecho un respaldo de sus recuerdos y memoria una máquina regenerará el cuerpo de Mickey todas las veces que sea necesario después de muerto. Después de realizar el backup de su memoria, le piden que se mate para demostrar su adhesión al proyecto. No lo hace y lo matan. Esta tecnología es prohibida en la tierra, pero utilizada en la empresa que lleva adelante la colonización.

De ahí en más, todas las tareas arriesgadas o que sean peligrosas para la vida serán hechas por Mickey. Probar vacunas, testear el aire del nuevo planeta, probar comida sintética, etc. Mickey será expuesto al dolor, sufrimiento, violencia y miedo, para lograr la sobrevivencia de la colonia. Muere y es regenerado 17 veces.

La empresa Marshall que lleva adelante la colonización es dirigida por un político que perdió las elecciones en la tierra y su mujer. Los dos personajes que dirigen la empresa Preston y Ylfa son realizados por Toni Collete y Mark Ruffalo respectivamente. Ellos son extravagantes, falsos, su gestión del proyecto es filmado continuamente como en un Reality Show , son demagógicos y cínicos. Por eso existen muchas similitudes con personajes políticos actuales, en particular con la denominada nueva derecha. Una empresa que funciona como un gran show en pos de la vida pero con engranajes de muchas formas de aniquilar, devastar y matar.

La película plantea cuestiones actuales como: la devastación de la naturaleza, la manipulación, la distorsión de los relatos a través de los medios. Pero incurre en un error de género. Se plantea como sátira/comedia cuando creo que hubiera funcionado mejor como género de terror dramático. Tiene dos actuaciones brillantes como la Preston e Ylfa, después hay un elenco que acompaña (Robert Pattinson aceptable) y un guion correcto. Pero si bien comienza de forma interesante el film, más tarde se va desplomando con altibajos y recursos poco novedosos en sus desarrollos. Una buena idea mal ejecutada. Un final plano lleno de lugares comunes. Algo parecido le pasó al director con Okja. Cuando Bong Joon-ho se pone a comunicar algo en vez de narrar una historia se vuelve muy predecible. Esta película cae en comparación con la anterior, pero sin llegar al piso completamente.

#Bong Joon-ho #cine #reseña #Mickey 17 #Surcoerano #cine de autor

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dalt20 · 6 months ago

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Tooning In 19. Ken Mitcherony part 1 of 4 (maybe, or alternatively about a half of Ken)

DL:So I ask you, who are you,what do you do, and what you're best known for?

KM:Ken Mitchroney, Carbon based unit. I do a lot of things but let's boil it down too, animation studio swiss army knife and comic book artist. Best known for Teenage Mutant ninja Turtles Adventures comic books and numerous animated features and TV shows. None of my skills include proof reading as we will see here.😄

DL:Lol! So growing up, how was your childhood?

KM: Middle class, Florida upbringing. No complaints.

DL:So, what were your favorite cartoons growing up?

KM:Warner Brothers and Tom and Jerry cartoons mostly. Some of the Hanna Barbera tv cartoons as well.

DL:So when did you decide you wanted to become an animator?

KM:Once I found out what they were.I think I was like, ten?

DL:So did you practice drawing? Like trying to draw the characters you see on Tv? Like how do they work?

KM:Constantly. And comic books and comic strips. Just trying to crack the code back then. It's how you learn.

DL:Yeah, kinda me too! It's just so hard. Until I found a book called How to Draw Animated Cartoons. That book taught me how to draw cartoons and design them.

KM:Yeah. Preston Blair's book on animation was the turning point. Found it in an art supply store in Lake Worth and it changed everything.That and getting a 16mm camera and learning how film works and is put together.

DL:I know, he just made everything look so easy! Especially character construction!

KM:The building blocks.

DL:Yeah! So,how was high school?

KM: had a different kind of high school experience than most. A friend of my fathers, Archie Di Bacco started a private school that had its own way of teaching and also focusing heavily on the arts. Being that I'm highly dyslexic, I was struggling in regular school because no one catered to this back then, so my folks sent me to Di Bacco School.I flourished there being a visual thinker.I learned film making, animation ,photography, broadcasting art and art theory and a ton of other skills. What a great place.Saved my life and loaded my gun for the careers I had coming.I was also in communication with Bob Clampett, Tex Avery, Mel Blanc and Friz Freling by this time. Great mentors 3000 miles away.And they were very kind with their time on the rare times I would come out.

DL:So how did you enter the industry after school? Was it hard? Because you didnt work in animation until 1988.

KM:Yeah, It was frustrating. Friz offered me a job at DFE but, I told him I wanted to finish my last year of high school and I would be back. The industry changed from cartoons to more realistic superhero shows and my portfolio didn't reflect the change so, even though I knew people, I could not get hired so I went back home, Licked my wounds and started to work in Comics and film until something broke.And it did. I was at comic con in San Diego promoting my book, Space Ark and Jerry Beck came by my table. " Sody Clampett has been trying to get a hold of you. They are doing a new Beany and Cecil television show and the family wants you to come in and Interview." My wife flew back to Florida. I took the train to Burbank and got the job. God bless Bob Clampett and the family.From then on it was animation, comic books and live action film.

DL:So,I want to ask you something.

KM:Why I'm here😄

DL:So are you a furry? According to your WikiFur page?

KM:Actually no. Space Ark was the first real funny animal comic book out there in the early 80's. I was not aware of the furry movement then but it was embraced by them and I think that's where all this came from. I have some friends who were into all that and I was happy to drop a few Space Ark drawings in fanzines as favors but that was about it. Guilt by association.

DL:Like Mike Kazaleh and Marc Schrimster?They were your colleagues right?'

KM:And friends, yeah. Good guys and very talented artists.

DL:I know! I have one of Mike's Captain Jack books!

KM:Yeah. Mike's books came after Cutie Bunny and Space Ark hit the stands. I wish more people remembered what we did back then. That self publishing time back in the early 80's was something else. A lot of talented guys and gals followed us and they and their books are sadly forgotten now.

DL:Yeah, I mean the most known funny animal comic now is Cerbus the Aardvark!

KM:I got a very nice write up in one of the Cerbus editorials back then when we all met up for the Comic Book Creator Rights Conference in North Hampton that my old pals Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird put on.Talking about how funny animal comic book artist are the Rodney Dangerfield of the industry.😄 But I digress.

DL:Haha! So back on track, Beany and Cecil for DiC, Bob Clampett Productions and ABC.

KM:Yup!

DL:How was working on it as a layout artist?

KM:It was fine. John.K was very demanding about what he needed and kept us all on our toes. I learned a lot about TV production, schedules and studio politics and made friends with guys who would ask me to go on to be life long trench buddies in the business. It was a shame it ended so quickly.

DL:From an interview from DiC vice president Robby London, said it was a nightmare in production. especially John K, as he would draw stuff in the episode nobody would see.

KM:Being a mindless production drone at the time, we didn't really hear about that until the day we all got cut.So I went back to Florida again and then got the call to come back out and work on Tiny Toons so, it all worked out.

DL:So who called you? Tom Ruegger?

KM:Eddie Fitzgerald. He wanted to get the old Beany band back together again.So we all just migrated back there. And Mike Kazaleh graciously let me sleep on the couch in his living room.

DL:What a nice guy!

KM:Indeed.

DL:So what is a layout artist? Is he the guy who draws the poses for the in-betweener to draw, creating motion?

KM:You do key pose drawings for the overseas animators based on the storyboard. A lot like what an animation director would do back in the old days. This also included background keys from time to time. I was also doing storyboard revision and clean up by this time.

DL:Ah, so what did you think of doing a Muppet Babies version of the Looney Tunes?

KM:They were their own thing so I didn't have a problem with it at all. The fact we got to draw the real Loony Tunes guys from time to time was a real treat.And we got to work with some of the old WB mid timers. What an education. For me anyway.

DL:cool! Were you a caricature in Tiny Toons?

This is a splash page of all of the crew who worked on tiny toons circa 1990. Notice the guy with the derp stare and big forehead on the right, yeah that’s Bruce Timm, creator of Batman: the Animated Series.

This was all the crew on the show.

KM:Bruce Time taught himself how to do caricatures and he went nuts during production. Funny stuff. I'm right in front of Jeff Pidgeon in this one.

DL:Yeah, you were so tiny in that one!Did Bruce Timm really have a big forehead?

KM:Yeah. Both of us did in his drawings.😄

DL:Ah ok.

KM:Some amazingly talented folks in that one.

DL:I thought he wore glasses?This was a caricature of himself in Batman.

This is the character Ted Dymer, the main antagonist of the Batman:TAS episode, Beware the Grey Ghost. Who is also modeled after and voiced by Bruce Timm. notice the glasses and blonde hair?

Did he wear glasses later?

KM:We all did. Thanks animation.

DL:Yeah. So Taz Mania for FOX as a layout artist?

KM:I was a story artist by that time and was doing development with Jeff Pidgeon on Taz Mania. Jeff left to work on the Simpsons and then a little commercial house up north called Pixar. I went back home to Florida and got called back to do story on Taz once it got greenlit.

DL:So how was working there? with Bill Kopp and Mike Milo and some guy who's first name is Art

KM:Same old same old.Bill and I are certifiable and should not be left unsupervised. Hahaha!!!

DL:Lol!So you left WB in 1991, why did you?

KM:They would not let me move up to director so I followed Art Leonardi over to Universal to get their animation studio up and running. Being that I was a live action guy and understood his film language, Steven had me come back and re-board the mine chase in the Tiny Toons summer vacation special. I never received credit for that one but hey, it was for Steven and I love that guy's work. But yeah. I did a lot of development pitch art and storyboards for things like The Munsters and Oswald the Magical Rabbit. We also did work for Shelly Duvall's Bedtime Stories and whatever needed bandaids over there.

DL:Can you tell me what was the Oswald reboot?This was pre Disney/Walter Lantz ownership of the character.

KM:They found out they owned it and wanted to see if there was anything to it. Five boards of concept art and an outline was all it got.

DL:Oh ok. So that's what it was.

KM:Yeah. It just died.

DL:Sadly nobody uses Oswald after 1952, he wasn't brung back until 2006 with Epic Mickey, the video game.What was the Munsters cartoon?

KM:The Munsters was great fun and all mine to develop. I was in heaven because I loved the show so much. The studio shut down just before our pitch. It would have been great fun.The only thing that came of the whole Universal Animation studio effort was Stunt Dawgs for Hal Needham. Once Universal pulled the plug on its animation effort, that was sent over to DIC. I did all the character designs but didn't get the gig working on the show. That's Hollywood.

DL:Who is Hal Needham?

KM:Hal Needhan was king of the stuntmen and a very popular movie director at the time.

DL:Ah. You also worked on Back to the Future:the Animated Series?

KM:One of the great take aways from working at Universal. It's also the show where I met John Stevenson who went on to direct Kung Fu Panda when I was at Dreamworks and years later, he and I were working on and just finished Max and the Midknights at Nickelodeon.

DL:Wow! Friends to the end,eh?

KM:Yes sir!

DL:So you opened an independent studio with Mike Kazaleh in 1992 right in orlando?

KM:In Deland Florida, yeah. I was not getting what I wanted out of Hollywood and was sick of being away from your wife eight months of the year, sleeping on floors and couches all over the valley so I left. My last interview was with John K to come work with the old gang on Ren and Stimpy. I had a feeling it was going to be a train wreck so I thanked John, waved bye to all my pals over at Spumco and went home to start my own studio. Everyone said I was nuts but I was able to keep it going for seven years. We did a lot of productions for Hollywood, local commercials, comic books and anything that came through our doors. Bob Ross came by and had us develop a show for him before he died. Happy trees. Happy animated trees. Hahaha!!!

DL:Wow! So do you remember any projects you did back then at your studio?

KM:We did more Back to the Future and boarded a lot of stuff. The Ninja Turtle thing was hitting then so I did a lot of art and comics for Mirage and Archie. I'm so glad I did because all that is hot again and it's saving my neck between productions nowadays. Cowabunga!Then Jeff Pidgeon contacted me about a story gig at Pixar and the world changed again.

DL:What was Santa's Magic Book?

KM:Our last production. Yeah.

DL:I was baffled by that, and I had to ask.

KM:Yeah. Some local businessmen wanted to do a show.

DL:Go on?

KM:And that was it. Just another thing to keep the studio lights on- barely.

DL:And did it air on local TV?

KM:I guess? We delivered it, I shut down the studio and moved to the bay area by then.

DL:Ok. And you said goodbye to Orlando?

KM:Deland, Florida actuality. We still have our property there but yeah, I love the bay area. And always have.

#animation #animation interview #tooning in.#warner bros animation #tiny toon adventures #fox kids #tom ruegger #90s cartoons #taz mania #back to the future #universal studios #Ken Mitcherony #beany and Cecil #john kricfalusi #space ark #furry

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adobsoncomics · 2 years ago

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COMICS THAT I NEVER MADE AN "EVIL TOM PRESTON" COMIC VERSION OF: Maybe I'll consider making this into a comic to celebrate the tenth anniversary of "Evil Tom Preston". However, what bothers me about this comic in particular is the idea that "[pissing] tons of people off" with a "controversial view" ultimately means you're either in the wrong place to share it, or the view isn't significant enough to genuinely upset people.

If I were to share controversial views in the wrong context, like being a flat earther or—even worse—a Trump supporter in San Francisco... it could easily and rightfully provoke anger. But for me to then strawman those who would be rightfully upset, it brings up questions of what it says about me as the creator for depicting them as such.

Alternatively, if I express safe """controversial views""", like say "Super Mario 64 isn't that good of a game", the lack of a legitmately strong backlash renders the comic pointless. And if anyone does get overly upset about a harmless position, their disproportionate anger suggests deeper issues. In both cases, "owning" them is a waste of my time.

Ultimately, I found it futile to turn this into an "Evil Tom Preston" comic. I just couldn't find a way to remake the original comic in my brand of anti-humor, and any attempt to make it entertaining would undermining the essence of Regular Tom Preston's message (however shallow it was). ... That said, if I could take a stab at it today... GUY 1: People really got mad at you for this comic? EVIL TOM: ...yeah... I piss tons of people off because of my very controversial views! GUY 1: Such as? EVIL TOM: Oh, stupid things... Like how I don't think Super Mario 64 is the greatest Mario game ever made... GUY 2: WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU? MARIO 64 IS THE--- EVIL TOM: Hey hey, no need to shout. I know I'm in the minority here, although honestly it's not that big of a deal. But that's just how I feel. Let's just agree to disagree. GUY 2: ...Oh, ok, sorry for yelling. EVIL TOM: No worries! Enjoy the rest of the con! I mean... maybe that could work? But that would still require me to imply that Evil Tom had """controversial views""" that had incited serious anger from people, and that just doesn't make any sense to me. It's even harder to make it today because I'd like to think that Regular Tom Preston has since realized that strawmanning his opponents is a stupid trope and not worthy of a cartoonist like him. Afterall, his original comics were made well over 10 years ago, people can change... right??

#tom preston #andrew dobson #adobsonartwork #eviltompreston #syac #so you're a cartoonist?

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the-firebird69 · 19 days ago

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This is what the earth looks like it is odd when it's in space sometimes and you can see Florida and South America and the Gulf of Mexico on the one in the middle and he's saying that you would be Galactus and it would be like 8 in in diameter and you could take a bite out of it in front of people and she'll have to plan it it's really pertinent and he wants Hebert Candy Mansion to try and make it and they can send it with some dry ice and they have done that and all of the world people will be going to comic Con and eating planets it's not really solid chocolate.

Thor Freya

I know how to make it and want to make it out of and he's saying it it'll be like that Cocoa Puff stuff and I know what it's called it's going to be in the interior so it wouldn't fall apart or shrink or collapse if it started to melt a little and you use a special chocolate and we can color the chocolate and it'll be fun this would be a lot of fun it would last for quite a while it wouldn't really melt it's not really the chocolate that melts if you notice a lot of candy bars these days don't really melt that quick and can walk around for a while some of them you can't but okay we miss Big Joe we need to know what happened to him where he is if he's around and Preston that was horrible and Dolores and Arnie of course arnie this is terrible. Yeah Chris on his own what a nightmare who the hell thought of that

Jason

Shut up Chris David I can't do anything I have half a brain this guy has his uses but Jesus Christ is blows he's going to find his own place

Kenneth

Olympus

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cleverhottubmiracle · 4 months ago

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If you can believe it, there are even fewer good movies genuinely set on Valentine’s Day than there are on not-exactly-movie-genic holidays Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Maybe it’s because of the ways courtship (and therefore romantic movies, and the holiday itself) changed over the course of the 20th Century, or maybe because—unlike setting a romantic movie over Christmas—placing your romantic comedy or drama specifically on Valentine’s Day feels too much like a hat on a hat. In contemporary times, maybe the vicious one-two punch of I Hate Valentine’s Day (2009, Nia Vardalos) and Valentine’s Day (2010, Garry Marshall) scared filmmakers off the date for good. Of course, there are plenty of romance movies that will do the trick as Valentine’s Day movies —so many, in fact, that sifting through all of them can become overwhelming even before you take into account the flood of options available at the click of a button across so many streaming channels.The upside is that within that flood, you may be able to find a romantic movie for whatever sub-mood you’re in—and that movie could even be a great one, if you follow this handy guide. Because the aim here is not just to find you a good-enough rom-com to inspire a halfhearted press of “play” once you and your date/partner/hookup are too tired to keep searching. No, let’s get you a couch-date movie (or, if you’re lucky enough to have a varied and semi-adventurous rep scene, outside-world-date movie) that’s truly, cinematically excellent.The following thirteen romances attempt to avoid the blatantly lopsided, the overtly problematic, and the movies where you have to just go with it to get to the kissing. Not because it’s wrong to enjoy a lopsided, problematic, age-gapped, power-imbalanced, potentially unhealthy just-get-to-the-kissing romance, of course—some of the best romantic movies ever made fit that description. But you also deserve a romantic night at the movies—whether wholly delightful or bittersweet—without an asterisk like “it’s great if you half-ignore Andie MacDowell.” Plus, I’m assuming you’ve seen, or at least understand that you should see, bona fide all-time classics like It Happened One Night or The Philadelphia Story. As such, nothing from the AFI Top 100 will be included here. (Some of them are on the more specialized AFI 100 Passions list, because otherwise that’s a lot of passions to dismiss.)Some of these are wholly comic, some of them are deeply sad, and some of them (well, one of them) involves potential murder via giant cat—which is to say, there’s something for almost any film fan. A few of them even take place on or around Valentine’s Day.In the mood for screwball love: My Man Godfrey (1936)The influence of screwball comedies on modern rom-coms is so pervasive that it’s also become watered-down over the years, so a straight shot of the real thing can be bracing. My Man Godfrey has a romance between a down-on-his-luck “forgotten man” (William Powell) and the well-meaning younger daughter (Carole Lombard) of a rich family, but it’s less of a romance than the likes of His Girl Friday or The Philadelphia Story (and, not to be unkind, a bit more sophisticated than the animal antics of Bringing Up Baby), while still serving up a delightful romantic give-and-take en route to a happy ending. My Man Godfrey has everything you want out of a Depression-era screwball rom-com: Hoovervilles, flighty rich people, short-suffering butlers, dizzy infatuation, and escape from economic despair. In a perfectly screwy touch, Powell and Lombard were married—but split up years before making the movie together.In the mood for larcenous love: The Lady Eve (1941)Aren’t a lot of relationships built on some sort of con or another? The Lady Eve, a gem from Preston Sturges, simply makes that explicit, as con woman Jean Harrington (Barbara Stanwyck) targets Charles Pike (Henry Fonda), only to fall in love with him—and then, when he gets wise to her initial scheme, attempts revenge via an even more outlandish plot. Stanwyck often played tougher and/or sultrier roles than more frequent rom-com performers, which makes her commitment to her character’s criminal lifestyle in The Lady Eve both more believable and even funnier. For that matter, the star of The Ox-Bow Incident and Young Mr. Lincoln doesn’t exactly scream “zany,” either, yet Fonda pairs perfectly with Stanwyck in this fast-paced and ultimately pretty sexy material. This, too, makes sense: Acting can also be a beautiful con. (Sturges was on a roll here; his screwball rom-com from the following year, The Palm Beach Story, is also terrific.)In the mood for scary love: Cat People (1942)You could make a whole list of gothic and monster-related love stories, but Cat People deserves a nod for the degree to which it allows love, lust, and animal instinct to intertwine—all in a story that centers a shapeshifting woman (Simone Simon) who lives in fear of being overtaken by her fearsome desire. Now that the idea of a “cat lady” has been introduced, popularized, and in some cases reclaimed by the culture at large, the idea of a woman who becomes a cat—untamed by mere marriage, stalking and attempting to destroy her perceived romantic rivals—has only gotten kickier and more subversive. 40 years later, in 1982, the demise of the production code and the existence of Paul Schrader would make possible an even-lustier remake, complete with a killer David Bowie theme song. And for that matter, Michelle Pfeiffer’s definitive big-screen Catwoman in Batman Returns probably owes more than a little to this Val Lewton classic as well.In the mood for adventurous love: Charade (1963)OK, I lied about the age-gap thing: This is one. Look, it’s damn hard to find a charming Audrey Hepburn romance that doesn’t pair her with a significantly older leading-man star of slightly before her time, whether it’s Fred Astaire in Funny Face, Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady, or Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday. (She’s perfectly age-matched in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, but that one is really more of a solo showcase for her than it is a transporting romance.) At the same time, it’s damn harder to not include one of Hepburn’s sparkling old-guy chemistry experiments, so let’s make do with a gracefully aged Cary Grant, in a movie that makes the most of their generational gap, as Grant plays a charming man who’s hard to pin down; his identity keeps shifting as he helps her through a money-chasing caper caused by the murdered husband she was planning to divorce. There are a lot of fantasies, on screen and in life, about people getting swept off their feet; even as a Hitchcock-lite-style entertainment (the actual director is regular Hepburn collaborator Stanley Donen), Charade understands how the potential disorientation can and should be part of the fun.In the mood for decades-spanning love: The Way We Were (1973)Many of the most famous big-screen love stories of the 1970s tend to be sadder and more self-consciously weightier than their more effervescent counterparts from the 1950s and 1960s. The Way We Were is straight melodrama, but its long-range romance, following the ups and downs of a try-hard (Barbra Streisand) and a golden boy (Robert Redford), has surprising weight—maybe because it’s only in retrospect that their relationship looks like one long breakup that neither of them are fully committed to executing. Hollywood romances love to show people overcoming their differences in personality, background, and/or life goals to simply make it work by sheer force of narrative will. So it’s a little jarring, yet maybe also weirdly comforting, to watch a pair of megawatt stars ultimately unable to do.In the mood for young love: Say Anything (1989)Here’s a little secret about John Hughes: A lot of his celebrated teen movies are romantic comedies, and a lot of them, to use some probably-outdated teenage parlance, suck ass. Obviously that’s an oversimplification, but as romantic comedies, it’s hard to compare a movie like Pretty in Pink to one like Cameron Crowe’s Say Anything, an unusually perceptive and well-balanced love story between the class brain “Diane Court, whoa” (Ione Skye) and the earnest, persistent eccentric Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack), a good-hearted teenager who doesn’t want to buy anything sold or processed (and so forth) as a career. It’s hard to make a good love story about teenagers on the verge of graduating high school, because does anyone ever really believe that they’re going to stay together longer than a few more months? Say Anything is about those very doubts, which it exacerbates by playing up Lloyd and Diane’s differences, before chasing them away with a final shot that’s like an optimist’s flip of The Graduate—a romantic gesture no one ever knew they needed until Crowe cooked it up.In the mood for cross-cultural love: Mississippi Masala (1991)Mira Nair’s tender, sexy romance is about Mina (Sarita Choudhury), an Indian-American who feels at home in her Mississippi community, falling in love with Demeterius (Denzel Washington), a local charmer whose Blackness bothers Mina’s parents (just as his family resists his interest in an Indian-American girl). But it’s also about forging a complicated relationship between your heritage and your day-to-day life as it’s actually lived, and whether those aspects of yourself can be reconciled. If it sounds heady, keep in mind how absolutely smoking hot Choudhury and Washington are—and how Nair has a talent for teasing these conflicts out from a sense of place that’s too rare in glossy movie romances.In the mood for costumed, bittersweet love: Shakespeare in Love (1998)For years it took undeserved flak for beating out Saving Private Ryan in the Best Picture category at that year’s Academy Awards, a kind of manufactured boys-like-this/girls-like-that conflict entirely unfair to a movie that deserved more love for bringing the oft-disreputable rom-com genre to the top Oscar for the first time since Annie Hall. Granted, Shakespeare in Love has the costume-heavy biopic angle, but, gloriously, the biography is entirely made up, with Joseph Fiennes playing a tortured artist who lights up at the sight of his temporary muse (Gwyneth Paltrow). Their final scene together is one for the ages.In the mood for musical love: Moulin Rouge! (2001)It’s genuinely sort of difficult to find a musical without some sort of accompanying love story, but Moulin Rouge! has perhaps the least perfunctory musical love story of all time, because its entire reason for being is wrapped up in trying to communicate passionate, heedless, ridiculous love through song—in making the act of bursting into song seem revolutionary in its boldness and noble in its honesty. Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman, perfectly matched as performers whose acting-first ability to emote openly informs their nonprofessional but deeply charming singing, lead an uncynical hit parade, frequently turning dross into gold. They capture what it feels like for a pop song (even or especially one that’s kind of stupid) to leap into your (stupid) soul. Baz Luhrmann stages every musical number with a phantasmagorical understanding of the overlapping language of film, theater, pop music, and music video—a reminder that you can fall in love with forms as well as people.In the mood for science-fiction love: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)“Today is a holiday invented by greeting card companies to make people feel like crap.” It wasn’t an original sentiment 20 years ago, yet it opens probably the best Valentine’s Day movie ever made, as Joel (Jim Carrey) boards a train to Montauk on February 14th. There he meets Clementine (Kate Winslet) for the first time—or does he? Michel Gondry and Charlie Kaufman’s tricky sci-fi classic about a firm that offers to erase people from each other’s memories recontextualizes the stormy Joel/Clementine relationship throughout the movie. By the end, the film’s Valentine’s Day opening will strike you as deeply romantic, frighteningly doomed, or gently hopeful, depending on where you’re coming from. It’s the perfect sci-fi romance, where big what-if questions about humanity are inseparable from intimate questions about our relationships—and equally unanswerable.In the mood for honest love: Obvious Child (2014)When Donna (Jenny Slate), a stand-up comic reeling from a break-up, gets pregnant from a one-night rebound, she seeks out an abortion. The clinic has two available dates: her mom’s birthday, and Valentine’s Day. She chooses Valentine’s Day, which instantly throws Gillian Robespierre’s comedy into the top tier of movies set at least in part on the actual holiday. But Obvious Child doesn’t register as a performatively anti-Valentine’s provocation; it’s just a movie where a woman gets an abortion, and the real obstacles between her and a potential love interest come from herself, not her procedure. As a rom-com with a shot of genuine strife, Obvious Child has a terrific command of its small scope, paying particular attention to the rocky, fumbling early days of a relationship, and preserving whatever comes next for the characters to discover themselves.In the mood for questioning love: Straight Up (2020)Circling back to screwball for a more contemporary sensibility: This precisely staged and rapid-fire indie concerns a slightly squeamish young man (writer-director James Sweeney) who has always assumed he was gay embarking upon a not-quite-platonic relationship with a sardonic young woman (Katie Findlay) who’s fine with a chaste, experimental form of romance. Rather than constructing an uncomfortable conversion narrative or a dorm-room thought experiment, Sweeney comes up with a gently pressing, and at times achingly funny, investigation into sexuality, identity, and flexibility, all orchestrated with a dazzling eye for blocking, a keen ear for banter, and enormous sensitivity from the two leads, who carry multiple long two-hander scenes so deftly that they feel romantic—whether or not sex enters the picture.Bonus selection for those not remotely in the mood: Valentine (2001)There are a lot of holiday-themed horror movies, many of them winkingly cynical, but it’s rare to find one so thoroughly poisonous without a particular satirical target in mind. Valentine was the last gasp of first-wave Scream imitators, and as a slasher-centric murder mystery, it’s slickly unscary and nonsensical. As a demented piece of turn-of-the-century sociology, however, it is invaluable. It follows the ramifications of sixth-grade bullying into purported adulthood, as a spurned geek appears to be picking off a group of middle-school besties one by one. All of these supposed twentysomethings (including Denise Richards and future rom-com queen Katherine Heigl) are written as if by sixth-graders imagining grown-up life, where people with full-time jobs and apartments still attend Valentine’s Day parties at the rich girl’s house. Coexisting with this bizarre playacting is a more adult (if still inarticulate) sense of romantic dissatisfaction, placing the characters in an endless and grotesque meat-market hell of misplaced male intensity – and that’s before they start getting stabbed to death. Nia Vardalos may cutely claim to hate Valentine’s Day, but this is the V-Day picture with true loathing in its heart. Source link

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norajworld · 4 months ago

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chilimili212 · 4 months ago

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dixonsdarkelf · 9 months ago

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Finding Myself, Finding You: Chapter Ten

Main masterlist Series masterlist AO3 link Wattpad link

Story is 18+ for mature content/themes, minors do not interact please

Each chapter will have its own TW/CWs listed

This story, Lydia Vector, her family & bestie (c) me, dixonsdarkelf

TWD & its characters (c) AMC & Robert Kirkman, the writer of the comic series

Sleeping Beauty (c) Disney, Wednesday Addams (c) Charles Addams

TW/CWs for this chapter--swearing, allusion to past trauma, medical stuff (kinda?), smoking (Daryl)

Word count: 3.1k

We spent the next couple of hours in the living room talking. It was mostly Daryl asking me about myself and my life prior to coming to Alexandria, but I enjoyed it nonetheless, and I was flattered that he seemed to take such an interest. I told him about all the things I’d seen in the ER and goofy stories from medical school. I did get a few stories out of him after some prodding and saying that I was getting tired of hearing myself talk.

"What made ya wanna be a doctor?" he asked. I covered my mouth and yawned. As much as I loved talking with him, I was starting to get very tired.

“It’s kind of a silly story, to be honest,” I explained, looking down at my thumbs and twirling them back and forth over each other, “when I was a little girl, I wanted to be a princess when I grew up, because what little girl doesn’t want that? I thought they were so cool, so pretty. And they helped their people. That's what I wanted to do. I knew from a young age that I wanted to help people. When my oldest brother Preston was eight, he was in a really bad accident. Got hit by a car on his bike.”

I bit the inside of my bottom lip again, suppressing the memories of my frightened mother throwing her three small children in the car, not knowing if her oldest was still going to be alive by the time we caught up to him. “When we got to the hospital, my mom talked to one of the surgeons, and three-year-old me thought she was the most beautiful lady I'd ever seen. I remember she was wearing a floral dress under her white coat. I didn't understand at the time what exactly she was doing. All I knew was she was the lady who was making my brother feel better. I asked if she was a princess, and being that I was only three, she entertained me and told me yes."

A felt a small smile start to tug at the corners of my mouth. “So I told my mom that that's the kind of princess I wanted to be when I grew up. As I got older, of course, I learned what a doctor was, but I still had what I wanted to be set in stone. I wanted to help people the way that she helped my brother." I looked up at Daryl. He had uncrossed his legs and had them apart, leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, hands clasped, looking at me like with that same stoic look on his face. But there was something else there, a subtle glimmer in his eye, like I’d been telling him the most interesting story in the world and he was listening as intently as he could. My small smile turned into a little bit of a bigger one. “I told you it was silly.”

He shook his head. “Nah, not silly. S’cute.” He blinked a few times and shook his head a little, like he didn’t know what had gotten into him when he said that and was coming back to reality. "Ya best get to sleep. Look tired as all hell.” I yawned in response. Just hearing the word “tired” was enough to remind my body of how exhausted I was.

“I guess you’re right,” I said. I swung my legs off the couch and wrapped the blanket around myself again, rising to my feet. “What about you? I’m sure you’re exhausted. And you get to finally sleep on a mattress again.” He got up out of the chair to grab the whiskey he left in the kitchen hours ago.

“Late to sleep, early to rise, that’s how I roll,” he said, grabbing his drink off the counter and swirling it lightly. I followed him over to where he was standing.

“This was nice, Daryl. We should do it again sometime. If you’re down to, I mean,” I told him, beginning to step over towards the stairs before stopping again and turning to him.

I don’t know what came over me. Maybe it was the desire for human touch, or the desire to hold him and be held by him, but whatever it was was powerful. I reached my arms around his torso to give him a hug. I was only there for a second, barely touching him before I pulled back. He hardly had any time to react. “Oh God, I’m sorry. I should’ve asked first. Oh I’m so tired. That’s no excuse. I’m so sorry.” I thought I heard a soft, almost inaudible chuckle come from him.

“’S’alright.”

“I won’t do it again without asking, I promise,” I said, looking up to meet his beautiful blue irises, “and thank you again for the dress. I can’t wait to wear it.” I turned and started making my way up the stairs. “Goodnight Daryl. See you in the morning.”

“See ya when ya fall outta bed,” he called up after me. I rolled my eyes.

“Goodnight Daryl,” I repeated, more stern this time.

I collapsed back on my bed, staring up at the ceiling. My head was spinning. I expected Daryl to hardly say a word to me when he got back, and not only did we have a conversation, but it lasted for hours. Did he pity me, as the new kid? He had to have been enjoying himself, right? If he didn’t, he probably wouldn’t have stayed for as long as he did. He didn’t seem like the type to continue doing something he wasn’t interested in to be “respectful” or whatever. Maggie had said that Daryl doesn’t ask “get to know you” questions to anyone. I guess that made me special.

What kind of special exactly, I wasn’t sure.

I decided to check on Aaron before I got on with the rest of my tasks for the day. I hadn’t gone to see him in about a week, and I needed to make sure he didn’t still need painkillers or antibiotics and had run out. Since Eric hadn’t come looking for me for more, I figured he was probably set on both. I felt bad that he was stuck up in that room all day. I could only hope that he had plenty of things to keep him occupied. And in the next few weeks, I was going to have to figure out how to get him a prosthetic.

“How’s he doing?” I asked as Eric let me in the front door, “I’m sorry I didn’t come by more. I figured since I left everything he’d need, he’d be good for a while. And of course that you’d come get me if you needed anything.”

“He’s been doing well. He’s been needing the pain meds less and less, and we’ve been changing the dressing once a day like you said. Sometimes twice because I’m paranoid,” Eric said, “and I’ve been helping him move around a bit upstairs like you said, to help get at least some movement in.” I nodded in approval.

“Sorry to come by so early. Is he asleep? I can come back later. It’s just been a while, so I wanted to make checking on him my first priority.” Eric shook his head as he walked me to the stairs.

“He might still be asleep, but it’s ok. He won’t mind. I try to spend as much time up there as I can so he doesn’t get lonely, but I think he’d enjoy having another person to socialize with too,” he explained, “I’ll leave you to it. Let me know if there’s anything you need. And thank you again Vector. For everything you’ve done for Aaron. I hate what happened to him, but I’m glad you were there.”

“You’re sweet, Eric. I appreciate that. I’m glad I was there too,” I replied, giving him the biggest, no-teeth smile I could before going upstairs.

I knocked gently on their bedroom door before letting myself in. Aaron looked like he was still asleep, so I stepped quietly over to the side of the bed and set my bag down.

“Aaron,” I whispered, lowering myself to the ground slowly so as not to startle him, “it’s Vector. I’m here for a check-in.” He stirred a little before opening his eyes and meeting my gaze.

“Mornin’ Doc,” he yawned.

“Hey, sorry to wake you. I hadn’t been by in a while, so I wanted to make sure I came here first thing today. How are you feeling?”

He pushed himself back with his hands until he was sat up against the headboard. “About as good as I can given the circumstances.”

“I’m gonna take a look at it, make sure it’s healing properly.” I slipped a pair of gloves on while he pulled the leg of his pants up to expose his leg.

“I think it looks ok. I’m sure it’s healing just fine. I’ve got the best surgeon east of the Mississippi,” Aaron said, cheerfully despite the sleep lingering in his voice.

“So what I’m hearing is there’s one to the west that’s better?” I teased, getting a laugh out of him. I peeled off the gauze and padding and set them down on the floor beside me.

“How are things with you and Daryl?” he asked, an enthusiastic smile spread across his face. Of course, when I decided that I would be stopping by this morning, I knew Aaron would have questions. I could feel myself starting to blush.

“Ok, I’m only giving you details because you seem to be one of the few people around here who can keep their mouth shut. I went to Michonne and Rick’s the other night and drank with her, Rosita, and Maggie, and when Rick and Glenn came back later, Maggie all but outright told them that I like Daryl. This is a HIPAA compliant conversation, you got it?”

“Understood.”

I told Aaron all about what I told the others, even told him about what Carol said regarding Daryl having talked to her about me, and our hours-long conversation the night before. Being the good friend and confidant that he was, he was happy for me and promised to keep everything I said under lock and key. I allowed myself to get a little giddy when talking about Daryl, like when I would be telling stories and he would look at me like it was the most interesting thing he’d ever heard, even if it was something I deemed as boring. Or how beautiful his eyes were and how I wanted to get lost in them and never find my way out. Glenn was right—it was a little schoolgirl crush.

My other duties for the day included seeing some patients and helping Maggie catch up on a literal metric ton of laundry. Daryl had daytime watch that day, so he was up and out before I was awake. He did, however, leave a mug of coffee out for me on the kitchen counter. It was such a tiny thing, but it was sweet and made my morning nonetheless.

As I loaded some clothes into one of the washing machines, Carol’s words echoed inside my head. Daryl’s…a bit skittish with…this kind of thing. Nervous, uncertain. I’ll leave it at that. Just be patient with him. Was that her subtle way of letting me know that Daryl was interested in me? What was “this kind of thing?” She very well could’ve been talking about friendship, but given how surprised everyone is when I tell them about something nice Daryl did for me and how “he never does things like that,” I figured she had to be talking about romance. But there was still so much he didn’t know about me. Things that I knew he wouldn’t like if he were to find out about them. Things that would change his view of me, I was sure.

Even if he was interested in Vector, he certainly wouldn't be interested in Lydia.

I brushed some hair out of my face as I flipped open my notebook. Maggie and I finished laundry a little while ago, and being that I was done seeing patients as well, I wanted to take some time to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. I had hardly taken a moment to just sit and take in everything around me since I arrived in Alexandria. I was so excited to have found the place I’d been searching months for, to be around such good people and have some semblance of normalcy again, that I didn’t take time to sit and just be. I think I was afraid to, as sitting and just letting myself feel whatever I needed would certainly bring up some uncomfortable emotions. But I suppose that’s what my notebook was for. It carried the pain that was too much for me to handle.

As I leaned over my notebook, my hair cascaded around me like a set of dark curtains, blocking out my peripheral vision, and my bangs blocked part of my front view. I heard a familiar set of heavy footsteps making their way across the dirt path that lined the row of houses. Before I could lift my head to say hi, those footsteps were walking in front of me across the porch and stopping to my left.

“‘Sup Vec?” Daryl said as he slid down the front of the house and took a seat a few feet from me. Vec? That was the first time he’d called me that. I wasn’t opposed to him having a nickname for me, though. I thought it was cute. I lifted my head and swept my hair out of the way. He was sat back against the house, his legs propped up in front of him, resting his arms on his knees. It took everything in me to not scoot over to him, grab his arm, and rest my head on his shoulder.

“Hi Daryl,” I replied, closing my notebook in my lap and smiling at him, “how was your day?” I was disappointed to see him reach into his pocket and pull out a box of cigarettes and a lighter. I hadn’t seen him smoke before, so I imagine it wasn’t something he did too often. Cigarettes were probably not that easy to come by in the apocalypse. It was a gross habit regardless, and I did my best not to make a disgusted face as he put one in his mouth and lit it. But that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to say anything. “Lighting up in front of the doctor. That’s brave. Careful with that, you’ll start a fire.”

“Day was borin’ as hell. Didn’t see a damn thing up there. Guess that’s good though.” He took a puff of his cigarette and turned his head to blow the smoke in the opposite direction of me. When he turned back, he gestured to my notebook. “What’s that?”

“Oh, umm, it’s not important.”

“Seems important since ya always got it on ya,” he said, taking another puff of his cigarette. I twirled my pen in my fingers, trying to figure out how to explain what this little bound stack of papers meant to me.

“I, uh, started writing back in med school, when Preston and then my mom passed away, as a way to cope. It was something my therapist at the time suggested. I’ve filled probably a dozen notebooks over the years. This is the only one I brought with me when I went on the road.” I took a deep breath. “Sorry, I know that’s heavy.”

“Nah, don’t worry ‘bout it. Sorry ‘bout your family.” I gave him a small smile.

“Thanks. Preston was killed in combat. At least he died doing what he loved. I suppose that’s one of the better ways to go out, right?”

He took another puff of his smoke. “’S’pose so.” There was a few beats of silence before he spoke again. “How was your day?”

I was surprised but flattered at the reciprocation of my earlier question. I brushed my side bangs out of my face and twirled a chunk of hair around my index finger, another anxious habit I had. “It was good. I went and checked on Aaron this morning, tended to some injuries, and helped with laundry. Hadn’t done laundry in so long, I forgot how much of a bitch it was.”

“How’s Aaron?” Daryl asked.

“Given the circumstances, he’s as good as he can be. I’m going to have to start thinking about how to get him a prosthetic for when his leg heals.”

“We can go tomorrow. Rick wanted us to go on a run since it’s been a while. There’s a medical center nearby. They’d have some, right?” I cocked my eyebrow at him.

“Us? Again? I thought he didn’t want me going out much. And they might, depending on the kind of medical center.” I certainly wasn’t opposed to going out on a long run with Daryl. The idea was exciting, rather pleasing to be honest.

“Like ya said, good luck charm or somethin’.” I felt the butterflies in my stomach awakening. Him remembering a little joke I made back during our first run…I was swooning hard.

“Are you sure? He won’t need it for a few weeks still. We’ve got time,” I said. He flicked the ashes off the end of his cigarette and stomped them out with his boot. Somehow, he made something as gross as smoking look so attractive. I was kicking myself. You’re a doctor, Vector, what’s wrong with you?

“Might as well have it when the time comes.”

“I guess that’s true. Better than trying to scramble to find one when he needs it.” I looked down at my feet and wiggled my toes in my boots. While I loved being around and talking with him, he also made me nervous. I tried to focus on wiggling my toes to keep myself from turning red.

“Have ya eaten today?” Daryl asked me, dropping the butt of his cigarette on the ground and stomping it out. I turned my head and gave him an “oh really” face, giggling a little in amusement.

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that? You’ve been up in that watchtower literally all day,” I said, scooting myself backward a little to give myself leverage to stand up, “come on, I’ll make food.”

“Nah, I can, ya always do it,” he insisted, also bringing himself to his feet.

“I really don’t mind, honestly. I like doing it.” I decided to use this as an opportunity to be a little bit flirtatious. “Plus, your compliments of my cooking do feed my ego a little bit. You’ll have to be careful with that, I might start to get cocky.”

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tommyprestontm · 11 months ago

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this is tommy preston ~

face claim: andrew garfield

full name: thomas james preston

stage name: tommy preston

gender & pronouns: cismale, he/him

sexuality: heterosexual

birthday & age: june 14th, 32

birth place: london, england

location: miami, florida

occupation: actor

positive traits: kind, passionate

negative traits: awkward, quiet, shy

aesthetics: nerdy pop culture, stopping to talk to every dog he sees, warming hugs

biography

tommy's career hit off when at the age of 19 he was cast in a movie about a teenage boy who developed superpowers. the movie was a huge hit as the era of superhero movies was just starting and tommy became a household name

the movie became a trilogy and tommy was also a part of the various spin offs and ensemble movies that came after. he has done other movies mainly action and sci-fi

but after tommy injured himself during a stunt for one of the superhero movies he had to take a break from acting

he has done minimal projects since and his last movie, a hallmark christmas rom-con, flopped and he is desperate for some more work

tommy is very shy and awkward. usually spends parties and events in the corner but if you get him talking her does come out of his shell. he does very easily feel the pressure of fame and can get easily overwhelmed

an avid photographer, animal lover and basketball fan is some of tommy's interests. but overall he is a huge nerd. into all pop culture and nerdy stuff and he totally embraces it. his house is full of comic books, memorabilia and things he thinks are just cool... no wonder he doesn't have a real girlfriend

he's been linked to a lot of ladies over the years but only dated a few. he briefly dated his superhero movie love interest but they broke up after a year. and his last girlfriend cheated on him so he's struggling with the after effects of that

#tommy: bio #tommy: all #original content

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fuckyeahgoodomens · 3 years ago

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Good Omens NYCC panel recap

- Guests: Neil Gaiman, Douglas Mackinnon, Rob Wilkins, Maggie Service, Nina Sosanya and Guelin Sepulveda, it is said that Michael Sheen will join at the end over Zoom.

About Season 1

- What do they miss most when S1 wrapped and before S2:

Douglas: All the cast and all the crew. We were very big and cuddly family.

Neil: Yeah.

Rob: David Tennant and Michael Sheen.

Nina: Missing the mentioned family and being part of the nuns sisterhood.

- At the beginning they shared several bts stories from season 1 and the book:

First day of shooting in the bookshop was cancelled because of the blizzard and the second day they were foreced to shoot interiors because outside there were people with flamethrowers trying to melt what was there. So they build the set of Soho 2 inside.

Rob kept a lot of the vehicles from S1 and S2, all the motorbikes, the cars, and now I have topped it with Crowley’s Bentley.

A lot of nuns including Maggie had warts, but Nina didn’t want one.

Neil about Nina’s audition (read more here).

That both Michael and David both independently suggested that he might like to write a Good Omens stage play so they may swap roles each night.

About Michael originally being Crowley (more here and here).

About Terry and Neil being Aziraphale and Crowley - Neil: In the creation of Crowley Terry took the things that I did that he thought were hilarious, like wearing sunglasses indoors when I didn’t need to. He put a lot of me into Crowley but then we both put a lot of ourselves into both of them. (here, also this).

Michael Sheen is amazing mimic, Neil recalls that during one of the final scenes he had producer headphones on, the guys were acting and sitting on the bench and all of the sudden David Tennant started saying awful things about Michael Sheen, just, you know, there’s Crowley and Aziraphale talking and Crowley is saying all this stuff about how Aziraphale is fat Michael can’t act and all the stuff and I’m like ‘Whaat?! David is the nicest man in the world...’ and then the penny drops and it’s Michael sitting there doing pitch perfect as Crowley.

About Season 2

- What was like for Quelin to join the show:

She was a fan. The very first day was a bit like out of body experience, there was a scene where she interacted with David and Michael. So it was like, ‘Concentrate, Quelin, concentrate! It’s okay, it’s okay!’ And it was just overwhelming in the best of ways, honestly.

She plays angel Muriel. When Neil and John Finnemore talked about season 2, they realized that they didn't have another nice, well-meaning angels except for Aziraphale in Heaven, all they had were bastards, all awfull, so they thought ‘Let’s have a nice one’ and so they created angel Muriel, curious, gullible, well-meaning and chatty angel that spent 6000 filing in the same office in Heaven hoping that somebody would come in and the day would get more interesting and it doesn’t.

She’s a 37th order scrivener, bottom of the pily, it’s her first time to Earth.

- They felt Terry’s presence also during filming S2.

- Douglas said that they started doing the ADR post production and that the difference between David and Michael is that David looks at the monitor and whatches what he’s done and Michael never watch, so now Michael saw himself for the first time and he was like a fan doing, ‘Oh look we’re back! And there’s Aziraphale!’.

- Neil about Maggie and Nina returning:

It was a thing where one of the things I was very very certain before I started writing season 2 that there were two characters in it and I wanted them to be played by Maggie and Nina, so in order to make it clear to everybody reading the script, that they were going to be played by Maggie and Nina, I called the characters Maggie and Nina. Maggie and Nina liked being Maggie and Nina so the names stayed.

Douglas joked that he thought that a bit lazy not to think up new names and it was hell on set. Later he jokes that since Muriel is an actual angel name, that Neil didn’t make that one either.

Maggie runs a record shop which is beside Aziraphale’s bookshop in Soho, Mr. Fell is her landlord, shop passed through the generations. Her shop looks across shop where Nina works.

Nina works in the independent coffeeshop Give Me Coffe or Give Me Death, she is good with dealing with people in Soho who come in, not afraid of dealing with them. Wears great cardigans. Her character is quite grumpy. There is a scene where at the start her love life is doomed and she is getting passive-agressive texts for Lindsay - Neil says writing the texts was some of the most fun they had - maybe there will be a hope for her love life.

- About more characters:

Neil didn’t want to lose people because they are such a family and wanted Miranda Richardson back but Madame Tracy’s story had really finished and couldn’t think of more for here and her story had ended so beautifully so he wrote a new part for Miranda - she plays Shax, demon that was sent on Earth as the replacement of sacked Crowley.

Anna Maxwell Martin couldn’t make the filming (was in two shows and a stage play when they needed her), so Beelzebub is played by Shelley Conn. She demanded a lot more flies.

Donna Preston plays Mrs. Sandwich, and We’we never quite sure about Mrs. Sandwich’s profession but she’s definitely in Soho.

-When Neil started writing S2:

In August 2019 he told Amazon and BBC at fancy breakfast, ‘This is the plot.’, and they said, ‘Oh, we like that plot.’

In December he and John Finnemore got together and Neil told him the plot and he said, ‘That is a good plot, but how does it end’ Neil said that he doesn’t have ends until he gets there but John needed one so Neil said, ‘How about this?’ and told him the end and John said, ‘That’s a good end.’ And that is the end we’ve got.

He started writing it in the middle of the pandemic Summer 2020, writing with pencil to his notebook the first scene which is the first scene.

- Neil what will S2 be about:

Six episodes, each about 45 minutes.

There are some love stories in it.

We will learn a lot about Jane Austen we didn’t know before.

There is a lot more Heaven, a lot more Hell.

- What could be more eras for Aziraphale and Crowley

Douglas: 19th century Scotland, Neil: Edinburgh perhaps around 1827?, Douglas: That would be good, can you write that?, Neil: Oddly enough, episode 3 will take us to a little stint of body snatching in the era. For me it would be like 1941 and we’d go back to those Nazis. Douglas: That would be good and what about something biblical as well, could we do something? Neil: Bible’s good. Yeah back to biblical times, that would be really fun, we could do one of those in episode 2. (they are obviously talking about minisodes :))

- There was a clip from the show but only sound for those watching the stream.

Listen here.

Description from twitter ‘Crowley rushes into the bookshop holding plants and it’s so cute’.

This pic should be from it :)

- Season 2 Release Date: Summer 2023

- At the end on the zoom dropped not on Michael but also David and Jon Hamm! :)

Watch here :), their banter was written by Neil, Staged-style.

Michael and David found out that there’s going to be S2 probably at the same time from Neil. There was always sort of hope after the end of S1 that there might be more story to tell. Jon found out about it from Neil during press for S1 as potentiality and then during covid Neil said an idea to Jon that we would start by walking down the street in Soho completely nude and he send me the beggining of the scene where Gabriel does not recogni- and the rest is deliberately cut with ‘Lost connection’, to the nude part Neil said, I knew that if he said yes to that he’d say yes to anything and then he says it is not actually there.

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the-firebird69 · 4 months ago

Text

The Hulk shown here in the background is about 7 ft Lou ferrigno is f****** down and he's about 5 ft 9 it's not that tall and he's not big and usually is big but he's older than they say they are saying and so it almost 6 foot this is a 7 ft Hulk. His ankle is as wide as his thigh and his wrist is as wide as his bicep plus like an inch and a half or something he's gigantic her son wrists and ankles will be big yeah and her son's wrist at this size will be about 3/4 inch wider than Lou ferrigno spice up here yeah and his ankles about 2 in wider massive. Our son's physique is almost the same as this whole and he would be pretty much the same size and he at this point is 7 ft or 7 ft 2 really roughly and Big Joe was usually about 7 ft 4 to 7 ft 6 it's not that tall but comparison to Preston and her son and even Justin who's a little taller than her son is now is massive. Now Lou ferrigno he was about 6 ft 9 and he would be pretty damn big but next to that Hulk he would look like nothing and when he was in competition our son was saying he's extremely big and he was one of the biggest these guys are now getting to be the size of the Hulk but only for an hour or half hour or less they get up there and then they start shrinking it's no good to get sick it's a lot of effort but they like doing it and they see what our son is saying they get stronger and with that mass they could crush anyone if they had real you know time to work out like a week maybe unstoppable and it's true they need some time at a week they'd be like full strength so they're interested in this and interested in when our son will look like and he's going to be Giant. So they have seen it in this photo he hasn't really done that for a while but he says I heard that we start doing it again this is an hour but you're that size and nine times out of 10 the muscles are bigger the bones are not as large they're usually about 60% the size and the muscle is of course hyperinflated at that size you'd only be bench pressing love you 400 pounds maximum. B and he says wow we're getting it up there but really he's done that before a lot he says it's much much harder that's what people are saying it's cuz you guys are poisoned like I am with privacy I can risper it all and say practice Prilosec and you guys just didn't check this to what it does and nobody can get free of it I'm wondering why the hell it sounds like you guys did it on purpose when none of you can get well and none of you can get free of it and you all look like 18 year old high school dropouts and he started chuckling and said wow this is awful so our son is going to get this big and he won't be able to go back when she's big and this is only 7 foot and not bulked up as much as he. Can.

So yeah he's going to Comic-Con as the juggernaut several of the characters then he likes and some that he doesn't know about there's some real big guys and he wants to play them it's going to be interesting

Thor Freya

Wow that's massive and we've done it recently and we know it feels like it looks like the other people we look like giants some of those are nasty looking but some of us look normal and he would look normal this guy looks kind of nasty and yeah Jason looks nasty that's a good deal we're going to be pretty huge and work out and try and get big so yeah it's Terry cheesman he's standing where the target goes and now he's standing with the line gets disconnected good God get out of there and so anyways it's all a lot of fun but it's not really that tall 7 ft is 9 in less or 6 in less than Joe and he was not looking too big but he did get up there he was he thinks he was above seven foot six and he was but it's 7 ft it's like almost a foot shorter think about it but you look massive just the the legs and the arms and the width of the midsection the chest is gigantic second 55 gallon drum but you know not round I mean Jesus is it's huge and my arms were massive 24 in he says they're only 4 in less but when you talk about circumference it's different when you measure across a 24 in arm is like 8 in a 28 inch arm is like 12 in it's humongous the difference is gigantic when you get in that proportion you're talking about massive ships versus small ones the small ones look all kind of the same like a half mile and under but once you get up to a couple miles it's a different world and that's what he's talking about no he's going to grow and he's already getting a little different not bigger but he did it before and he says these doses of radiation are big and he can feel it sometimes and he says it but then again it is the artichoke at times and I've taken it but this is going to actually make him feel it a little but the asteroid we measured at about seven RADS pretty steady the whole time and he was in it for about an hour and a half and he grew a lot yeah and his bones got bigger now it's just one dose now we've been in about three RADS for 2 or 3 days and then four RADS for a day and he says that's probably enough but really it really bounced way up there and then it did it so it's going to be when they three are going at the same time yeah there's some crap in the air

This is not a day imlooking forward to us tomorrow

I don't want to see him using a steroidal eye drop no he's going to say he's allergic to steroids that might work if it's the dildo it won't

Brad

We don't want to go through it either it says he wants a saline wash or something like that and we can do that but he's worried about how to store it and once you open it usually can store it doesn't get bad but he's right about that these stores in the fridge has to be airtight so antibiotics you just know how that would work with the fungus but he could use a little he says and his people said it too but if he doesn't need to he doesn't need to so we're not going to sweat it

Trump

Yeah we don't want steroid eye drops saline is okay and sometimes they sell it in a little bottles that you use once at a time he knows why so he might do that you can buy them over the counter no so that's that's another thing and yeah we see Terry C is causing problem and he's got his apartment loaded up with propane it might get ugly around here. No we know it's going to and Stan knew about it and our son didn't send pictures or make a big deal he just said he's over there and he's got propane four big things and four big tanks and they're not supposed to store any they're giving them s*** about his bike battery and he still did he said it's enclosed inside the bike and it starts melting it's inside a metal enclosure just like required yeah it has an opening for it to come out but okay so there's a hole but really the guys doing it right now harping on it and he's got four tanks of liquid propane in his apartment they wouldn't tolerate that in any City at all

Thor Freya

Olympus

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