#Which courses are best for cloud computing?

[cloudcomputingcoursetip]

The Best Cloud Computing Courses in 2025 to Launch or Level Up Your IT Career

Cloud computing has become the backbone of the digital world. From small businesses to large enterprises, everyone is moving their operations to the cloud to improve efficiency, security, and scalability. As this demand grows, so does the need for skilled professionals who understand how to manage and optimize cloud infrastructure.

Whether you're a beginner exploring tech careers or an experienced IT professional aiming to specialize, choosing the right cloud computing course can significantly boost your job prospects.

In 2025, certifications from major cloud providers like AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform are not just preferred—they’re often required. This blog will guide you through the best cloud computing courses currently available, why they matter, and how to pick the one that fits your goals.

Understanding Cloud Computing Certifications and Their Importance

Cloud certifications validate your skills and knowledge in working with specific cloud platforms. Employers use these certifications to ensure you can handle tasks like system deployment, automation, data management, and security in a cloud environment. Certifications are often role-specific—some target architects, others are made for administrators or DevOps professionals.

Aside from boosting your resume, these certifications help you stay current with evolving cloud technologies. They also open doors to higher salaries and new job roles such as Cloud Architect, Cloud Engineer, DevOps Engineer, or Security Specialist.

Top AWS Cloud Certifications in 2025

Amazon Web Services (AWS) remains one of the most widely used cloud platforms worldwide. It offers certifications for both beginners and experienced professionals.

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate is perfect for those who want to design scalable, secure, and reliable applications on AWS. It's one of the most sought-after certifications in cloud computing today.

If you're already working with AWS and want to focus on automation and CI/CD, the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional is a strong next step. It emphasizes continuous integration, deployment, and monitoring.

The AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate is another solid option for professionals interested in managing and deploying applications in cloud environments, with a focus on system operations and infrastructure.

Best Microsoft Azure Certifications for Career Growth

Microsoft Azure continues to grow rapidly, especially in enterprise settings. It offers a variety of certifications based on job roles.

The Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate is great for those managing Azure services like storage, networking, and security. This certification proves your ability to implement and manage Azure-based solutions.

If your goal is to become a cloud architect, the Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert is a more advanced credential. It’s designed for professionals responsible for designing cloud infrastructure and solutions.

For those interested in combining development and operations, the Microsoft Certified: Azure DevOps Engineer Expert focuses on CI/CD pipelines, agile practices, and automation.

Top Google Cloud Certifications to Watch in 2025

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) has carved a niche in data analytics, machine learning, and modern cloud-native development. If you're working in data or want to dive into cutting-edge technology, GCP might be the right choice.

The Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect certification is ideal for designing and managing scalable, secure solutions on GCP. It’s well-suited for professionals responsible for cloud infrastructure strategy.

For those interested in big data, the Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer course focuses on designing data processing systems and optimizing data pipelines for analytics and AI.

The Google Cloud Professional DevOps Engineer is another valuable option, especially if you work with Kubernetes, automation tools, and CI/CD processes in cloud environments.

Vendor-Neutral and Specialized Cloud Certifications

While certifications from AWS, Azure, and GCP dominate the market, vendor-neutral and specialty certifications are also worth considering. These options offer a broader understanding of cloud principles and are often ideal for multi-cloud environments.

After understanding the major platform certifications, here are some standout options in this category:

CompTIA Cloud+: A vendor-neutral certification that covers cloud architecture, deployment, operations, and troubleshooting. It’s perfect for IT professionals looking to gain a well-rounded cloud foundation.

Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP): Offered by (ISC)², this certification focuses on cloud security architecture, compliance, and governance—crucial for those working in regulated industries or security roles.

AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner: This is an entry-level certification ideal for beginners. It introduces foundational cloud concepts and terminology without requiring a technical background.

How to Choose the Right Cloud Computing Course for You

Picking the best cloud computing course depends on your current skills, learning style, and career goals. Here are three key questions to ask yourself:

Are you a beginner or already experienced? If you're new, start with foundational courses like AWS Cloud Practitioner or CompTIA Cloud+. If you have hands-on experience, consider architect or DevOps-level certifications.

Do you have a preferred cloud platform? If your company or target job uses AWS, Azure, or GCP, focus your training on that platform. Multi-cloud skills are valuable, but most companies start with one.

What’s your career goal? For technical roles, go for architecture or operations certifications. For those leaning toward automation or development, DevOps or Data Engineer certifications might be better.

Tips to Prepare for Your Cloud Certification Exam

Once you've selected the right course, success depends on how well you prepare. Many learners ask: How long will it take to prepare for a cloud exam? The answer varies based on the certification and your background. Here are some tips to help:

Create a study plan with clear weekly goals and a realistic timeline.

Use official study materials from cloud providers and trusted platforms like Coursera, A Cloud Guru, or Pluralsight.

Practice with hands-on labs. Real-world scenarios help reinforce your learning better than reading alone.

Take mock exams to evaluate your readiness and identify weak areas.

Join online forums or study groups to share insights, ask questions, and stay motivated.

Conclusion

The demand for cloud computing skills is only going to grow in the coming years. Whether you’re switching careers, aiming for a promotion, or simply expanding your skill set, earning a cloud certification is a smart investment. From AWS to Azure and Google Cloud, there's a course for every experience level and career path.

Choosing the right cloud computing course isn’t just about getting certified—it’s about preparing for real-world challenges in a cloud-first world. Focus on practical learning, keep up with industry trends, and take the first step toward a rewarding career in cloud technology.

[neopuppy]

Jaemin would love a good gloryhole, he gives me crazy psychotic vibes

warning. ntm yet.. a smidge of fondling

“You’re going to work? This late?” Jaemin mumbles, pinching between his eyebrows where he’s sat with his face buried in a pile of books. “Who clocks in at midnight?”

“It’s an overnight job..” you shrug, tightening your coat. “That job fair I went to last week.. it was the only position that wouldn’t interfere with my class schedule.”

Jaemin sighs, leaning back against his computer chair until it creaks beneath his weight. “How are you going to keep up with your assignments?”

“That’s the thing,” clearing your throat nervously, you reply quickly, eager to end this conversation as you appear distracted patting your pockets for the house keys. “Factory prefers college students, don’t want to provide benefits or full-time positions, so the shifts are short, no more than 4 or 6 hours.”

“Oh..” Jaemin stands, stretching out his arms above his head as he approaches you. “I could drive you.”

“No!” You say abruptly, breaking into a smile at the sight of his face falling. “You already do enough for me, and I know you’re cramming for that big test.”

Jaemin waves it off, leaning near the door frame. “It’s not a big deal, I know the couch isn’t comfortable.”

On command at the mere mention of your makeshift bed your back aches, stretching to the side to relieve the pain and releasing a loud crack as you sport half a smile. “It’s not exactly a cloud but..”

“Better than the backseat of your best friend's car.” Jaemin adds, scratching his nape. “I hope at least..”

“Definitely,” you chime, setting your hand on the door handle. “Besides, this is only temporary.”

That’s what you have to remind yourself of daily, that this is just for now. A transition time you’ll forget about as soon as you’ve collected a month's pay. A draining and exhausting effort on your part, but the money..

“Seriously though, if you’re too tired for the walk back, I’ll leave my ringer on.” Jaemin’s hand lays over yours, gently squeezing. “Don’t hesitate to call me.”

“Of course, thanks Jaem.”

“Let’s not sit where she sleeps.”

“I mean..” Jeno scoffs, folding his knees to sit on the floor with his back against the couch. “It is a place to sit, you know.”

“Don’t be a dick.”

“I’m not.” Unlocking his phone, Jeno settles comfortably, head resting against the couch cushion you rest your head on every night. “You say that like I don’t offer her my bed all the time.”

“Which I’m sure she’d take you up on if you know—“ plopping down by his friend's side shoulder to shoulder, he raises an eyebrow. “You were not also in said bed naked from the waist down.”

Jeno shrugs, passing his phone to Jaemin. “Still beats a couch.”

“What’s this?”

“Something new and exciting that we should try.” Jeno explains, leaning in to scroll down the message board. “Know anything about gloryholes?”

Jaemin nearly chokes on his spit, eyes widening as he reads through the various comments describing the experience. “The fuck are you talking about..”

“You know what I’m talking about.” Jeno grins, reaching to jingle the keys in his pocket. “You down or what?”

“I dunno man..”

“I won’t tell anyone.” Sharing a curious look, Jeno raises his eyebrows up and down, pushing up from the floor to stand and extend his hand. “Just between us.”

“I don’t understand the point in paying for a quick fuck..” Jaemin says, disgruntled by the lists of prices before him. The trek to find this place was bad enough to begin with, and on tip of that $500 to get his dick wet? By a stranger no less?

“Two for one deal though.” Jeno notes, tapping the larger font with the price of $800 blown out beneath. “Hear me out, send me $250 and I’ll cover the rest.”

“W-what?” Jaemin stutters, surprised at how nonchalant his friend is about this whole situation. “Are you seriously down this bad?”

Jeno scoffs, rolling his eyes. “It’s not like that.” Counting out a wad of bills, he slides them beneath the black tinted window, specifying the two for one deal for them. “Don’t knock it until you try it alright?”

Bending lower near the opening he slid the money through, Jeno whispers. “Number 7 available?”

“You’ve..” Jaemin follows after him, pieces falling together as his friends leads the way through a long hall without question. “You do this a lot or something?”

“Define a lot.” He says, peering over his shoulder with a sleek smirk. “A couple of times.. nothing crazy yet. At least you have me here to make sure your first time is memorable.”

Jeno comes to a stop, dangling a key that’d been tucked between his palm. “Lucky number 7.” He nods to the rooms door, an ominous carved out text painted black glares back at him.

The door lock clicks, pushed open slowly as his friend steps aside for him to head in first. It’s empty for the most part. A few items stacked along a shelf, condoms, lube, sex toys. “Behind that.”

Jeno locks the door shut behind them, motioning toward a hung up drape obscuring the rest of the room. “Would you prefer to go alone? I’ll even let you have dibs since it’s your first visit.”

Jaemin dry swallows, swiping his tongue across his suddenly dry lips. “And do what?”

Jeno’s lips draw back in a cocky smile, shushing his friend as he nudges him forward. “One way to find out.”

Jaemin’s chest thumps, gulping down the invisible weight pressed against the back of his tongue. Slowly he steps forward, barely grazing the drape with his fingertips, the sight of his trembling hand solidifies the nerves shooting throughout his chest, nudged forward softly again as he steps a foot inside past the drape.

“Shit..” he mutters, biting down on his lip to hold back a groan. Three different holes line up the walls leaving his mind to race with nothing but depraved thoughts.

“Pick one.” You say quietly, barely echoed from behind the wall that hides you.

Jaemin’s neck stiffens, toeing his way closer past the smallest of the holes that meets him at hip level. The arrows above directing him where to insert himself.

“Seven.” Jeno speaks up from the drapes opening, closing it shut to lean against the wall. “This is my best friend, he’s a first timer.”

Jaemin’s eyes enlarge, tracing around the top of the largest entrance that can only be for one thing..

“Let him get a taste of what we paid for.”

Jeno moves to stand behind him, chest pressed to his friend's back. “Jesus man, don’t be nervous.” He grins, cupping under Jaemin’s elbow to direct his hand inside past the opening.

“Nothing to be scared of, especially not you.” He whispers, chin hooked on the largers shoulder, breathily laughing when his friend lets out a shocked gasp.

“Fuck.” Jaemin sucks in a breath, digits sliding between a soft warmth. The heat building in his chest erupts upon contact, lodging himself forward with his chest pressed to the wall as his fingers spread and he glides deeper between the familiar wrap of velvety inner thighs around his wrist. “Holy shit.”

“You wanna fuck that slut, right?” Jeno eggs on, patting his hip. “Get her nice and wet for us.”

[madschiavelique]

Because I live for soft Dom! Miguel, Miguel (as a soft! Dom, ofc) x fem!reader where it's her first time? Just fluff & smut? If you're okay with that, of course.

anything to satisfy a soft dom <33 (i once again got carried away and wrote a bit too much fvhsdfeefg)

pairing : fem!reader x soft!dom miguel o'hara summary : your first time with softdom!miguel content warnings : SMUT (18+) minors dni, masturbation, fingering, pnv sex - unprotected (be safe kids), praise kink, softdom!miguel, fem!reader, no use of Y/N, miguel is so reassuring in this word count : 3,9k tag list : @fandom-ash

You and Miguel had been together for a while now, and everything was going swimmingly. You'd moved into his quarters, which you'd been squatting in long before you officially moved in, and everything was superb.

Romantically speaking? Perfect, the two of you even managed to surprise each other with your shared affections and thoughts.

Mentally? You pushed each other up, faced the bad times with each other and got through the good ones together too.

Sexually?

Sexually...

That was a step you hadn't taken yet. You'd never had the chance to taste the desires of the flesh, not necessarily because you didn't want to, but let's just say you'd never found the opportunity.

And although Miguel's initiative swayed from time to time, he didn't seem to want to trespass on this subject. You'd already discussed the theme a little, mostly in relation to Miguel's experiences, which he at least possessed. But it seemed that, as long as you didn't make the first move on it, he wouldn't.

You thought about it, about how it would be like to feel his hands roaming over your body as his lips kissed yours. You were picturing his hands moving slowly down your hips, one of them gripping your thigh...

The apartment was empty, there was nobody but you, Miguel was at work, and your frustration had to be satisfied. You settled more comfortably into your bed, inhaling softly as you slipped your hand under the elastic of your panties.

You brushed against your clit, its sensitivity heightened as your thoughts drifted back to Miguel. You breathed softly, your fingers going a little lower and feeling your wetness between your lips.

You let out a hum between as you closed your eyes, imagining that it wasn't your hand, but Miguel's. You slid one of your fingers up and down until it reached your the ball of nerves again, the sensation giving you a little jolt of electricity.

You brought the collar of the T-shirt you'd been wearing closer to your nose. You were wearing one of Miguel's shirts with your panties, and his scent was impregnated into the fabric.

You imagined him, kissing your neck and lips as he inserted a finger. You let out a small sigh of frustration as your fingers were undoubtedly half as small as his. They could probably touch parts of you you couldn't reach with just your fingers.

"Miguel..." you murmured as you inserted a second finger, the cloud of heat in your lower belly spreading.

You felt hot, curving your fingers into you as best you could. How would he do it? What movements would he make? What words would he say to you?

"Nena?"

The front door had just closed, you'd heard it, and you still had a few seconds before Miguel reached your bedroom.

Quickly you pulled your hand out of your panties almost in panic, wiping your fingers on your thigh before raising yourself up and pretending that... you took a look around the room, searching for a good distraction. The computer? No, it was turned off; turning it on would take too long for a good alibi. A book? No, he'd probably ask you how you'd got on with your reading and you'd have to invent a scenario on the spot. Your phone?

You grabbed it, pretending to scroll through one of your social medias as Miguel entered the room. He offered you a gentle smile, walking over to your bed and sitting down next to you before dropping onto you.

"How was work?" you asked, trying to relax, putting your phone down on the bedside table to stroke his hair, your sinner hand hidden under the comforter.

You knew Miguel had a particularly keen sense of smell, and you dreaded that he might notice something different. He'd managed to smell when you were menstruating the other time, and had been very helpful then, and you suspected he must smell when you were ovulating... but could he smell sexual desire?

"Boring," he sighed as he rolled his head until his cheek rested on your breast.

How would he touch it if it was naked? How would he caress your skin? Would he kiss it?

"How was your day?" he asked, his eyes locked in yours.

You looked at his lips, where would they kiss? What would his tongue do? Where would he bite?

"Boring," you whispered, half present in the conversation, all your thoughts turned to him.

Did he too have moments like the one you'd just had while you were away? Did he touch himself while thinking of you? Did he whisper your name when this happened?

"Is everything okay? You seem... distracted?" he questioned, straightening his head until his chin was between your breasts, one of his eyebrows raised.

You bit the inside of your cheek, tucking your hand under the comforter on your thigh as you tried to think of an answer.

"Yeah!" you said first a little too eagerly and hastily, "yeah, everything's fine."

He frowned, and made a simple movement that made you shiver: he sniffed.

His eyes changed suddenly from tenderness to surprise, his lips parted as he sniffed again. He sat up straighter, turning his head to where your hand was under the comforter, and you swallowed silently. His eyes returned to yours, interested.

"Show me your hand."

He would know, or he already did. You looked at him, feeling your cheeks heat up. The color of your shame reflected in the darkness of his eyes.

"I won't repeat myself," he warned.

There was no point in opposing Miguel, because no matter whether you showed him or not, he wouldn't hesitate to grab your wrist. He had the strength, he could handle you.

You lowered your eyes, unable to meet his gaze as you pulled your hand from the comforter. You could only see the mark the elastic of your panties had left on your wrist: of course he'd know.

He took your wrist, his thumb tracing over the trace that had been left, his eyes returning to yours. You didn't dare look at him.

"Look at me."

You weren't going to keep him waiting, you knew his patience had limits. Your eyes met his, intrigued, oscillating between teasing and serious.

"Did you touch yourself while I was gone?"

You breathed out, chewing your cheek as you nodded shyly. He chuckled, his lip stretching.

"What were you touching yourself to?"

You bit your lip, lowering your chin and inhaling before letting out in a whisper:

"You..."

He moved his head closer to yours until you were so close your noses were about to brush.

"What did you say?"

You pressed your lips into a thin line before letting out a sigh, the warmth of his breath on your skin sending tingles through your skull.

"I was touching myself... while thinking of you," you managed to say.

A sincere proud smile appeared on his lips, his tongue running over his teeth.

"What was I doing, in your thoughts?" he questioned as the hand holding yours unclenched, his fingers moving up your arm, brushing against your skin.

"You were," a small breath choked in your throat, "you were touching me."

"Where?" he questioned as his hand moved from your arm to your hip.

"Down there..." you murmured as your noses now touched.

"How did it feel?" he asked as his hand moved down your hip to your thigh.

Your lips were so close, and the sensations his hand gave you running over your skin delicious.

"Like I needed more," you admitted.

"More?" he hummed as his hand moved down your inner thigh.

"Yes, more than my fingers... I needed you, need you."

You felt his fingers moving up your skin, awakening small currents of electricity in your veins that seemed to light up as he passed.

"Tell me what you need now." he demanded as his lips kissed the corner of yours.

You felt yourself heating up, the cloud of desire spreading again in your lower belly like a summer fog.

"I need you, now."

He let out a breath of relief against your skin, brushing temptingly against your lips again before only pulling away to face you, looking into your eyes.

"Do you want it?" he asked seriously. "You want to have sex with me?"

You looked up at him, nodding, the urge climbing by the second.

"I don't take silences as an answer for this, nena." he warned.

"Yes," you replied, "I want to."

"Are you sure?" he assured, his hand now making circular movements against your inner thigh, "once I start I don't think i'm gonna be able to stop."

"Yes, I'm sure." you confirmed.

He looked at you for a moment, contemplating the truth in your eyes, then came to kiss your lips softly, a shared moan of relief escaping from both your mouths.

You let your hand trail up the back of his neck, your fingers threading through his hair as his hand moved slowly up to your panties.

His thumb reached your covered cunt, grazing it through the fabric as your lips let out a whimper of ease. He made slow, circular movements against it, your breath trembling slightly against his wet lips.

"Can I?" he asked as his fingers worked their way up to the elastic of your underwear.

"I'll let you do anything if you just touch me now," you let out in a breath as you came back to kiss him.

He smiled against your lips, responding to the kiss with more intensity as his fingers reached under the elastic and pulled down. You raised your hips to help him, and retracted your knees against you so he could remove them completely.

"You're already so wet," he remarked as your panties were completely soaked.

You bit your lip as he got rid of your underwear and came to kiss you again.

His hand resumed its journey, moving up between your thighs again until finally reaching your crotch. The feel of his fingers against your bare skin made you open your lips even wider with a moan, giving Miguel the chance to slip his tongue in.

You felt one of his fingers press between your lips, gently moving up and coating them as his thumb circled your clit. He swallowed every whimper you made.

"May I?" he asked between pecks.

"Yes, please," you breathed, as if bewildered by his kisses and touch.

"Mira que buena," he smiled.

And you felt him sink his first finger in, and you drew in a shaky breath. His finger alone already filled you as if you'd used two of your own. He kissed your cheek tenderly, sinking it a little deeper into you.

His thumb resumed its circular movements over your clit as his finger gently took on a little back-and-forth rhythm, curving slightly upwards.

He came to kiss your chin, your jaw, gradually moving down to the nape of your neck to kiss its crook as he inserted a second finger, your breath becoming jerky for a few seconds.

He undulated his fingers like a wave inside you, his lips kissing the warm skin of your neck as your hand moved down from his neck to his shoulder, pressing your fingers into it and clinging to his still-covered skin.

Miguel was beginning to feel more uncomfortable in his clothes, specifically in the crotch part. The sounds you made, the smell you had, the feel of his fingers inside you, everything was intoxicating to the point where he was tight in his costume.

The movements around your clit accelerated, and you felt the cloud tighten in your belly. Your heart was pounding, and you felt the heat prickle in your cheeks as you sensed yourself getting close to your climax.

"Miguel," you articulated between your lips, the latter returning to kiss you, "I'm close."

He bit your bottom lip, accelerating the circular movements.

"Come for me nena," he said softly, kissing your lips.

The cloud tightened further, and then everything exploded at once, your hips straightening as a second heart was born between your thighs and beating throughout your body. All vibrating with desire, your hand tightened on Miguel's arm as the other gripped the sheets.

He kissed your temple gently, letting you come down from your high, patiently. But you had almost no patience left, you'd been unable to feel this way since you'd gotten together, and you couldn't tolerate any more waiting.

"I want you inside me," you breathed against the skin of his cheek.

He pulled back slightly, looking into your eyes. A dark gleam burned deep in them, and you realized soon enough that he'd been dreaming for far too long now that you'd utter that phrase.

"Before we go any further," he began, however, "I want you to breathe with me, okay?"

He inhaled, and you followed his lead.

"Match my inhale, and exhale... look me in the eyes."

Your two breaths were synchronized, your eyes plunged into his. You didn't necessarily expect him to tell you to make this kind of movement, but it's true that you felt a little more relaxed that way. Every first time could sometimes be accompanied by a slight nervousness, but this simple gesture immediately helped to calm you down.

"That's it, good," he nodded. "It'll come in handy in no time."

He bit his lip, then positioned himself correctly above you and the depixelation of his suit began.

You followed each colored cube as it deformed to reveal a little more of his torso every second. You'd obviously seen Miguel with his shirt off before, but seeing him in this context was much more different.

Pixels vanished one by one, down to his crotch, finally revealing him whole. You swallowed... There's no way that's going to fit.

You'd seen pornography before, and you were quite used to seeing the normal size in these latest videos. But this was way beyond the norm.

"Like what you see?" he asked, laughing lightly.

Worried would be a more fitting term, you thought.

"Miguel that's..." the words almost failed you, "that's not going to fit."

He bent down to kiss you gently, caressing your cheek to reassure you.

"It will, because we’re made for each other. All you have to do is relax for me."

He came to kiss you again, tenderly, his hands grasping the edges of your shirt and lifting it up. You didn't have to worry about anything, Miguel would be there to make sure everything went smoothly. He'd never hurt you, and you knew that perfectly.

You settled back properly underneath him, spreading your legs a little wider as he gripped your hip to stabilize you neatly. He continued to kiss you gently, then your hand, hitherto clinging to the sheets, relaxed to rest on his chest.

It travelled down his side, settling on his hip, and Miguel let out a low groan. He pulled away from your lips, and you felt a twinge of nervousness: had you done something wrong? But he immediately reassured you:

"It's okay, you can touch me." he said, kissing your cheek, a little laugh bubbling in his throat. "I think I just liked that a little too much."

You exhaled softly, relaxed. And it was in the seconds that followed that you felt his cock against you. You felt his hard, warm skin brushing against your body.

You undulated your pelvis upwards, finally feeling his full length pressing against your lower abdomen. Miguel let out another grunt as he kissed your jaw and moved down to your neck again.

You then moved your hand down to your belly, and your fingers met it. You traced his length, his breath colliding against the skin of your neck. His pelvis undulated against you, seeking more friction.

You shaped your hand into a kind of bridge over him, starting to move back and forth slowly feeling the hardness under your fingers. His sighs melted into moans against your skin.

How long had he wanted you to touch him like this?

His hips kept undulating against you, and soon you were both feeling the same thing, thinking the same thought : You needed more.

Then, returning to kiss you, Miguel caressed your hand before taking his cock in his and rubbing against your glistening cunt. He let his tip slide between your lips, raising and lowering it to coat it with you.

He kissed your lips again, his hand from his arm braced near your head coming to caress your cheek.

"Remember to breathe, okay?" he said softly, "if at any moment you feel uncomfortable, or simply don't want to continue, let me know."

You nodded gently.

"Okay." you answered.

He smiled softly, then lightly thrust his head into you.

You inhaled, your breath trembling as both your hands came to rest on his back, holding Miguel tightly against you. His free hand came to stroke your hair, murmuring soft "Shh, shh..." against your ear.

"Breath," he encouraged, kissing your cheek as he sank a little deeper into you.

Salty drops tore at the strange pallor of a secret. Those words, so strong, so warm, that he whispered against your skin, felt like a caress.

You were gradually loosening up again, the previous orgasm Miguel had made you experience having probably helped you relax properly. Otherwise, even with good lub, you could've never done this.

"That's it, you're doing good mami," he murmured as he managed to thrust deeper, "just a little more."

And seconds later, he was fully inside you. You could feel him stretching you out, filling you in every corner of yourself.

"So warm nena... te sientes increíble" sighed Miguel as he came back to face you.

You could feel yourself blushing, all those sensations making you feel like you didn't know where to put yourself.

"What a pretty blush," he smiled.

The single remark made you go as red as a tomato, so much that you brought one of your hands up to your face, hiding your eyes.

"Hey," Miguel whispered, kissing your lips and then pushing his nose against your hand to move it away, "no." Then, gently grabbing your wrist to move your hand to the side of your head, he said "Don't hide it. Why so shy?"

You bite your lip.

"I've never done this before," you whispered.

He came over and caressed your cheek, his thumb tracing your skin with love.

"No need to be shy," he assured you, "it's just you and me."

And he was right, it was just the two of you in that moment, one in the other, the other in one, united: one was the other, and both were one.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, kissing your eyelid, the simple movement making him move against you and wringing a small moan from you.

"It's okay," you affirmed, sighing softly against him.

"Let me know as soon as you feel ready," he murmured against your skin, still stroking your hair.

By the time you were used to it properly, you let your hand placed on his back caress his skin, moving up his spine, making him arch his back and breathe out an open-mouthed sigh.

The thumb of his hand still around your wrist caressed the plump part of your skin, the one just before it advanced to the hollow of your palm.

This moment of sensitivity in all that heat was sweet, and soon enough you felt comfortable enough to rock your hips, biting your lip.

Miguel exchanged a glance with you. His fingers brushed your hand, sliding a little further down your palm until they settled between the slits of yours and he pulled back slightly before thrusting into you.

Your fingers tightened around his, each breath you let out mingling with a soft moan.

His rhythm was slow at first, letting you get used to the feel of his movements. He filled you completely, filling every inch of your being without exception and awakening all kinds of sensations inside you.

It was like you were warm all over, every thrust forward and back touching delicious points.

"Do you like the way that feels, nena?"

"Mhm, yes," you stammered as your mind failed to focus on anything other than all the sensations your body was beginning to experience.

He picked up the pace slightly, his hand settling on your belly, feeling under his fingers the sensation of his own dick sinking into you.

"Gosh, you feel so good."

And your eyes plunged into his, and it was as if the world around you no longer existed, that there was only this moment you were the only ones to share.

Your hands in each other, your eyes in each other, your two bodies and hearts connected: nothing could take you from this.

He came to kiss you as if you held the air that belonged to him, his hand coming further down between your two bodies, coming to caress your clit.

You sighed a groan, your walls tightening around him and in turn drawing a grunt from him. The mingled sensation of his coming and going and the friction he was giving you would undoubtedly make you come soon enough.

Everything was hot. Your fingers scratched his back, your nails leaving pink lines in their wake.

Everything had this tingly warmth, and it felt like you had a rubber band in your belly that was stretching dangerously.

"Tell me when you're going to come nena," Miguel asked breathlessly, slightly picking up his pace again.

The sound of your skins slapping against each other started to repeatedly fill the room, along with the moans you let out.

The cloud of heat in your lower belly rose up to your back. Miguel came over and kissed your neck, nibbling lightly and licking between pecks and sucking.

You were drowning in sensations, your hand tightening around Miguel's as the other went from his back to his hair and tightened.

He let out grunts against your skin, accelerating his thrusts and circular movements around your clit.

You felt the elastic stretch even further, sensing the orgasm coming.

"Miguel, I'm gonna," but you didn't finish your sentence, too disoriented by all the sensations you were feeling.

He came back to face you, kissing you hungrily before pulling away and looking at you.

"Eyes on me," he asked before sighing at ease. "I want to see you."

Your eyes fell on his again, and you felt your heart racing and cheeks tingling once more before the rubber band snapped.

It was as if lightning had struck metal, spreading from your core to your entire body in a completely electrifying way. Waves of heat were bringing sparkling stars to the shores of your body.

Until now, Miguel had managed to contain himself, not to come simply by penetrating you, even though this had been a real torment. But the sensation of your walls closing in so tightly around him disempowered him, and made him come at the same time as you.

You were completely out of breath, Miguel gently decelerating his pace as he came to tenderly kiss your lips.

"I'm so proud of you," he whispered against your skin, "you're my angel."

He placed sweet words on your still-warm body, kissing the back of your hand still in his.

"Next time you want to touch yourself, I want you to call me."

You laugh softly, kissing him lovingly.

This was only the beginning.

[porterdavis]

From the essential Letters from an American by Heather Richardson: 

"Shortly after 1:00 this morning...“[a] 25-year-old engineer named Marko Elez, who previously worked for two Elon Musk companies [SpaceX and X], has direct access to Treasury Department systems responsible for nearly all payments made by the US government.”

What follows is a journey into the unthinkable. A half-dozen downy-cheeked codebros in the employ of a South African billionaire have seized control of the beating heart of the entire US financial system -- the computers that write 90% of the checks issued by the government as well as those that receive payments to the government.

Included in that, of course, is the complete financial data of every taxpayer and every corporation in the country. The leverage there for coercion, extortion, outright blackmail as well as general malicious mischief in delaying or cancelling payments is almost incalculable. And this is on a national level.

It's probably already too late. Those codebros, sucking down Red Bulls and sleeping on mattresses carted into the server rooms by their boss, have doubtless loaded all the data up into the cloud. There will be no Keifer Sutherland beating a ticking 24 clock arriving in the nick of time to press the cancel button. The horses are out of the barn.

The response so far has been laughable. The general public bears the bulk of the responsibility of this for petulantly choosing against voting for a Black woman, instead supporting a felonious conman. The Democrats in Congress know what's happening yet can only muster a few megaphones to stand in front of the Treasury building (the scene of the crime) and bark slogans to the believers.

The kids in the server rooms are there illegally, no matter what pretext Donnie or Elon attempt to sell. They need to be dragged out by force. I'm not talking about the Brooks Brothers republicans who swarmed the counting rooms in Florida in 2000 and swayed the election. I'm talking the SDS students who seized the administration buildings at Brown and Columbia in the 60's. Yes, it is illegal and yes, there could be physical confrontations with militia and/or police, but as the GOP itself used to say -- freedom isn't free.

Now for those of you who might call me out for calling for 'good trouble' from the relative comfort and safety of Canada, please be aware that I actually did walk the walk, paid in blood. Chicago Convention 1968. Campus shutdown and interrogation by the FBI in 1969. Other actions for which the statute of limitations has hopefully expired but will remain private. But do the math. I'm old. Nonetheless if circumstances seem to me to dictate it, I will break my boycott of the US and head to DC to at least provide cannon fodder.

But I really want to call on every concerned citizen to DO SOMETHING. Call your congressman (don't write or email, they view that as too easy to be meaningful). Show up at the field offices.

The American Democracy experiment is 250 years old and has suffered a grievous wound in the last three weeks. It's survival hangs in the balance. The best options if it fails is the US becomes Hungary, an 'illiberal democracy'. Next on the scale would be becoming like Russia, a totalitarian state run by a dictator and the oligarchs.

Last, of course, is Gilead.

DO SOMETHING.

[fluentmoviequoter]

waves of feelings

Adam Karadec x fem!detective!reader request, brief angst to fluff, emotional vulnerability, 3.2k+ words

You don't realize that you like Karadec and he feels the same until Morgan points it out.

High Potential Masterlist | Directory | Request Rules

Karadec is pretty like the ocean during a thunderstorm. At first glance, it seems dark, dangerous, all choppy waves waiting to pull you under and sharp rocks. But, if you wait a moment, linger in the cool sand beneath the clouds, you can find peace in it. The grey clouds reflect off the dark blue water, painting the horizon in a mysterious yet mystifying collision of danger and growth, spouting from the same precipice.

“No, she’s gone,” someone says, drawing you from your daydream.

You blink, and the Major Crimes bullpen comes into focus as the image of sitting on a beach with Karadec fades to the back of your mind. Daphne and Oz are watching you, smiling as you try to catch up with the conversation.

“What?” you ask.

“Oz wanted to know if you had the security footage from the 7/11 across the street from our stabbing scene,” Daphne answers.

“Oh,” you murmur, shaking your mouse to wake your computer. “Yeah, I’ll forward it.”

“Thank you,” Oz says. “Care to share what you were thinking about?”

You shake your head as you focus on finding the video. “Just zoned out.”

“Is that what we’re calling it now?” Daphne jokes. “Here I thought it was daydreaming.”

“Fine,” you sigh, smiling over your shoulder at her. “I was on a pretty beach, far from murder and mayhem, with nothing on my mind but the beauty in front of me.”

Daphne nods as she pulls herself back to her desk, reaching for a lollipop. “Better answer. Which beach? Bahamas?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

Daphne sighs, then begins typing, drawn back into the real world. You’re lucky to have this team, you think. You can joke with each other and have fun, but you’re also there for each other when things turn serious. This job is hard enough as it is, and you can’t imagine doing it with anyone else.

“Shouldn’t Karadec be back by now?” Oz wonders.

“He’s with Morgan,” Daphne reminds him.

“Yeah, so however long it would take Karadec, double it and add half an hour,” you add.

“What’s the half hour for?” Morgan asks as she enters the bullpen.

“Fun facts, sightseeing, replacing the lollipop you stole,” Daphne lists.

“Hey, I apologized.”

“Doesn’t replace it,” you muse.

You spare a glance at Karadec, then turn back to your computer. He’s been different lately, and not just because of Morgan. Or maybe it is because of Morgan. Either way, you think he’s found something or someone that has made his life different. You’re happy for him, of course, but you can’t help but wonder why you don’t have that. Flexing your fingers over your keyboard, you remind yourself to focus, then open the video feed from a traffic camera less than a mile from the crime scene.

“Find anything?” Karadec asks, stopping beside your desk.

“The 7/11 had Monster energy drinks on sale,” you answer, leaning back to see him. “Four cans for $5.”

“Ooh,” Oz murmurs. “I might need to find a 7/11.”

“There are approximately 1,900 7/11 stores in California,” Morgan informs, perching on the corner of Karadec’s desk. “Or one store for every 21,000 people.”

“That’s a lot of stores that don’t even sell the best sour candy,” Daphne says.

“TOD was around 11, right?” you check. Karadec nods, so you continue, “Two cars drove by at a high rate of speed at 10:23 p.m., heading toward the scene. I’m trying to find them on other cameras to see if maybe they stopped around there.”

“Good work,” he applauds, nodding. “Let me know.”

“Sure,” you agree, releasing a breath when he steps away.

“Morgan and I found the store where he bought the knife,” Karadec says. "A hunting and fishing store in Rancho Cucamonga confirmed that the knife was purchased there. Apparently, they’re the only seller in the contiguous U.S., and it isn’t sold online in the states. Their legal team is prepping a list of buyers to send over.”

“Doesn’t narrow it down much,” Oz responds.

Karadec shakes his head, his gaze wandering to you. You’ve been distant lately, distracted. He'd ensure you were okay if he could find the right time or place. At the end of the day, when you all go home and the cases are supposed to be pushed out of your mind until you return to work or catch a break, he realizes that it isn’t his business. Karadec has enough going on in his life that it’s easy to forget to wonder about you when he actually has time to slow down and think. Like now, this stabbing case is familiar, almost too familiar, so when he looks away from you, that worry disappears, and he begins analyzing his own past for an idea of why he can’t seem to move past this stall point in the investigation.

“Still a John Doe?” Morgan inquires.

“Oh!” you exclaim, glancing at the clock above Karadec’s head. “I have to go. Meeting with the ME.”

“Need a second set of eyes?” Morgan offers.

“I’m okay,” you answer, gathering your things. “Thanks.”

After you leave, it’s as if a scale has been removed from Karadec’s eyes. Everything is a little clearer, the pieces of the puzzle fit together, as he opens the case file and turns his back to your desk.

While you’re gone, Karadec remembers why the case seems so familiar, why it’s bringing up memories of his field training days. He realizes that the sudden influx of nightmares must be related. Turning toward Oz and Daphne, Karadec prepares to tell them what he knows.

“My first year on the job, there was a series of stabbings,” Karadec begins. “Every victim was left on the side of the road with no wallet, no keys, and no clues as to how they got there.”

“A serial killer?” Daphne asks.

“The Rager,” Morgan says, snapping as she remembers. “They discovered the victims were run off the road and attacked by a man with intense road rage.”

“Right,” Karadec replies. “The speeding cars in the 7/11 video could indicate a similar situation.”

“Is the original killer still in prison?” Oz wonders. “If he got out, started driving again… could be the same guy.”

“He died,” Morgan answers. “Prison riot a few years ago, he was stabbed, passed away the next day. Right?”

Karadec nods, tapping his fingers on his thighs. In his nightmares, people he cares about turn up dead, killed in different ways by the criminals he’s locked up over the years. The vengefulness of wrongdoers has permanently marred his mind. If he had a chance to work some of his past cases again, he’d approach them differently. Maybe this is that chance.

Looking toward your desk, he asks, “Did the traffic cams show anything close to the scene?”

“Closest one was a half mile away, between the scene and the 24-hour grocery store east of it,” Oz replies.

“So, the other side of the 7/11. If the same car or cars passed it, we could get some more information.”

“How did the Rager get rid of the other cars?” Daphne asks.

“He came back for them,” Karadec answers. “Had a friend bring him back, claiming he was picking it up for a friend with a car repo business or something. It was a different time.”

“Exactly,” she agrees. “Today, you can’t just leave a car on the side of the road without someone taking notice.”

“Two killers,” you announce, returning from the ME’s office. You drop your bag in your chair and lean over your desk to pull up the video from the traffic camera. “I’d be willing to bet that we’ll see both cars driving by, going the speed limit, not riding each other’s tails, just going.”

The team gathers around your monitor as you press play, and it’s just as you suspected. You replay the clip, then pause it as the second car enters the frame.

“The bumper is damaged,” Morgan realizes. “They ran him off the road, killed him, then took his car.”

“Run the plates, Oz,” Karadec instructs. “Find our victim’s name and who own the killer’s car.”

“ME confirmed that the stab wounds were inflicted by two different people,” you say. “Likely one man and one female.”

“Nice work,” Karadec applauds.

“You’re not going to believe this,” Oz calls. “Killer’s car is registered to Rager’s nephew.”

Lying sideways across your bed, you let your head hang partially off the side, your hair loose and cascading toward the floor. You move your feet to the rhythm of your favorite song, playing on repeat as you try to clear your mind.

Across town, Karadec looks out of his window, spinning a glass between his hands as he pretends he can see the stars past the smog and city lights. The case is closed, so he could probably sleep without nightmares tonight, but his mind won’t quiet. It’s been years since he worked the Rager case, but he feels like he’s in the same place, back at the beginning, stuck in a continuous cycle.

He looks at the clock as your song ends, and you both sigh before you stand. Sleepless Los Angeles nights call for one of two things: finding someone to spend it with, or a midnight walk on the beach with a prayer you don’t get caught while it’s closed to the public.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” you exclaim, pulled from your wonderings about why your life looks so much different than you imagined it would.

Karadec turns away from the ocean, facing you as your mind reminds you of what you’d thought about this morning.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he guesses, walking toward you.

“I’m surprised any of us can these days,” you muse, forcing yourself to look at the dark waves rather than Karadec.

“What’s your excuse? You closed the case, you should be taking a victory nap,” he teases.

You scoff, walking slowly beside him, dragging your feet through the loose sand. “Right, because solving a case is the key to turning your mind off. If that were true, you would never complain about sleep deprivation.”

“Those complaints are our right as detectives,” he argues.

“You… you might have a point there.”

Karadec shakes his head, a close-lipped smile gracing his features as the lights of a pier come into view.

“Come out here often?” he asks.

“Not as much as I used to,” you admit. “I’ve been thinking a lot lately – too much, maybe. The waves drown out some of those thoughts.”

Karadec nods. “Yeah, I’m sure you have a lot to think about.”

“What does that mean?” you inquire, laughing.

“I mean, look at you,” he says, gesturing toward you as if he answered your question.

“I’d prefer not to,” you reply.

“Seriously,” he continues. “You’re a good detective, got a stable job, a nice place to live, you’re pretty. Other than the hazards of our job, you’ve got it pretty good.”

“Yeah,” you agree facetiously. “If that were true, I’d be in a committed relationship, not considering adopting a cat just so I’m not completely alone between shifts.”

“Better to be alone that haunted by past arrests in your dreams,” Karadec murmurs.

You quiet, letting your smile fall as you nod. He’s right, of course, but there has to be a halfway point, where the good and the bad outweigh each other and everything is at the very least okay.

“What do you normally do on beach nights?” you inquire.

“Besides avoiding the patrol trucks?” Karadec counters.

“Obviously.”

“Usually go get coffee or something, stroll through a neighborhood.”

“Okay, midnight coffee is terrible for you, and I’m going to assume that you stroll through a moderately safe neighborhood.”

Karadec shakes his head. “Then what do you do? If my routine is so bad.”

You smile, pointing towards a break between beachfront buildings. “I’ll show you.”

Sitting across from Karadec, you lean back against the cracked red vinyl. The table between you is inlaid with newspapers and magazines from the 1900s, and Rhythm of the Rain by The Cascades plays on the jukebox by the door.

“I thought coffee was a no go,” Karadec says, opening the menu.

“We’re not here for coffee,” you argue.

“Hey, sweetie,” the singular waitress working at midnight greets. “The usual?”

“Yes, please,” you reply, smiling kindly. “And the same for my friend.”

“You got it.”

“The usual,” Karadec repeats. “My midnight go-to is unhealthy, but you can go to a diner every night.”

“You’re very judgy for someone getting a free treat,” you muse.

“I can pay for it.”

You wave, glancing out the window as you fold a napkin on the table.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Karadec invites.

“Not at all. Do you?”

He shakes his head, and you sit in comfortable silence until two bowls piled high with vanilla ice cream are delivered to your table. A long plate with various toppings accompanies them, and you smile as you say, “Thank you.”

“Midnight sundaes,” Karadec says, his brows lifted. “Much healthier than coffee.”

“You’re just jealous I thought of it first.”

It’s nearing two a.m. when you exit the diner and stop out into the parking lot.

“I’m a mile that way,” Karadec says, pointing straight ahead.

“I’m a mile that way,” you reply, pointing over your shoulder.

“Come on,” he invites as he begins walking.

“I just said I’m the other way,” you argue, following him anyway.

“It’s a mile regardless. This way, you don’t have to walk alone at this hour, and I’ll drive you back.”

“But I was walking alone before I found you,” you point out.

“Which is terrible for you,” Karadec deadpans, drawing a chuckle from you as you jog to catch up with him.

The following morning at work, which is only a few hours after you left Karadec, you feel oddly rested. You’ve still got a lot on your mind, but it doesn’t seem as pressing anymore, and you can see where you’ve succeeded in life. Like midnight sundaes, a brilliant advancement from your college years. Karadec comes into the bullpen while you’re scrolling on your phone, and he’s clearly thinking too, not greeting his team as he usually does.

“Are we case-free right now?” Morgan asks. “This is weird, right?”

“It’s never long,” Oz assures her. “We’ll get a call soon.”

“While we’re waiting,” Daphne begins, smiling at you.

You lock your phone and pinch your brows as you say, “I don’t like your tone, Daph.”

Karadec unlocks his computer, then turns his chair, looking between you and Daphne.

“I want to set you up with this guy I know,” she explains. “You’re single, right?”

“Yeah,” you answer slowly. “But I don’t think I want to date anyone right now. I… It’s not the right time.”

“Unless it’s Karadec, of course,” Morgan interjects.

Your eyes widen as you look at her, and Karadec clenches his jaw so hard you can see the muscle in it tighten.

“What?” you whisper.

“You like Karadec,” Morgan says, lifting her hands. “He likes you. You like each other.”

You look away from Morgan, your eyes bouncing left to right as you think. You’ve been evaluating every area of your life over the last few weeks, picking apart your feelings to find what was missing. It makes sense now that you somehow brought Karadec into every musing. When you thought about needing a break, Karadec was on the beach with you, a lighthouse in your storm. When you considered your career success, Karadec was solving cases beside you. It’s so obvious now that Morgan has said it. You like Karadec.

Karadec watches you as you think. He’s more composed following Morgan’s intrusion into your private life, thinking about all the instances in which you invaded his thoughts. After a nightmare, he’d open your text thread, type a message, then delete it, opting to sit with himself and feel hopeless until the sun rose on a new day. Even last night, you’d been on his mind as he stared out at the ocean and asked himself if he was doing a good enough job as head detective.

“I’m going to take this as a no,” Daphne drawls, sitting back in her seat.

“Morgan, I think you broke them,” Oz chides, looking between you and Karadec.

“Gillory,” Karadec begins. “We’re at work. There is never a time or a place for you to interject yourself into your personal lives.”

“Got it,” she replies, nodding. “I won’t be so blunt next time.”

“I just said-" Karadec cuts himself off with a sigh, closing his eyes as he shakes his head.

“I- I’ll be right back,” you murmur before you stand. In the privacy of the bathroom, you look at yourself in the mirror. You’d convinced yourself that Karadec would never like you, and it didn’t take much. Then, you let yourself believe that your entire life was running off the rails. Maybe if you’d just admitted that you had feelings for Karadec, you could have solved cases faster because you wouldn’t have been so easily distracted.

Rushing back into the bullpen, you don’t notice how Oz, Daphne, and Morgan look up, wide-eyed and ready to eavesdrop on whatever moment you and Karadec are about to have.

“We need another case,” you declare. “I think we can crack a cold case.”

Karadec watches you for several breaths, then asks, “Did you have coffee while you were gone?”

“No, that’s your thing,” you reply, smiling. “Tell me I’m wrong. This team can do it, and we don’t have anything else to do today.”

Karadec can’t interrupt you to say that Morgan was right, not with the others watching, so he smiles and agrees. Morgan already has a cold case in mind, and the board is filled with details as you talk everything over, sparing glances at Karadec every chance you get.

You knock on Karadec’s door long after the sun goes down and a cold case has been reopened, solved, and closed. In your cooler, you’ve brought ice cream, your favorite sundae toppings, and everything you saw Karadec use last night. You need to talk, need to clear the air, and address what Morgan pointed out today, but there’s no movement inside, no answer to your knocks. Letting your smile fall, you wonder if Morgan was wrong. The thought doesn’t linger long before the elevator opens and someone clears their throat behind you.

Turning, your smile returns when you see Karadec lift a grocery store bag.

“You weren’t at home,” he says.

“You weren’t either,” you reply softly. “I, uh, I brought sundaes.”

“I brought coffee.”

You scrunch your nose, and he steps past you to unlock the door. “Don’t knock it ‘til you try it.”

He pushes the door open, and you step inside, looking around as he sets his bag on the counter. Karadec takes the cooler from your hand, pulls the ice cream out, and sets it in the freezer.

“Morgan was right,” you blurt out. “About me liking you. I guess I didn't realize because I was caught up in the waves of my own feelings - trying to keep them from pulling me under.”

Karadec pushes the freezer closed before he returns to your side. Standing in front of you with only inches separating you, he raises his hand to your face. His touch is warm and gentle, his hand strong and calloused.

“I get it. Don’t tell her, but Morgan was right about more than you liking me,” he murmurs, leaning in to kiss you as he kicks the front door closed.

[astarioffsimpmain]

Share With Me

Pairing: Gale x F!OC (Lyra)

Word Count: 1.6k

Author's Note: I took @senualothbrok 's advice and wrote some Gale on my birthday, and this fic was born! So, this is my birthday fic (technically for yesterday), but also, kind of an announcement fic!

Lyra is a new OC for me, and she is part of a much bigger project I have been working on in semi-secret for a little while now. I am writing a reverse-isekai chapter fic with Gale x Lyra! My story takes a lot of inspiration from my friend Senua's piece, "The Difference," but I'm getting to tell my own story, which I have never done so intimately in published work before. I'm excited and scared and I hope you all will take this journey with me. ❤️ This piece is in the same universe as that project, but is a separate one-shot. Now, on to the fic!

You stretched, allowing blood flow to your legs as you turned over. Quietly, you gazed out the open window next to your bed, closing your eyes when you felt the cool breeze blow in against your face. “It's not so bad,” you muttered under your breath as you watched the multicolored leaves flutter and spin in their journey from the trees to the ground. 

It wasn't as though you were much of a social butterfly to begin with. But, not being physically capable of even sitting in your living room on your birthday because of the pain left a sour taste in your mouth. Even so, you did your best to brush all of that aside and enjoy the autumn air, and before long, you were drifting back into a comfortable slumber. 

Your peace did not last long, however. A knock on your door startled you, as Leda wasn't home, until you remembered — Gale. Becoming used to the presence of this man, who, until a month prior was a mere story of fantasy to you, now living in your home with you, seemed impossible still. 

“Gale?” You called out, the scratch of your voice betraying how close to sleep you had been. 

“Guilty,” His sheepish voice answered from the other side of the door, and you smiled.

“Come in.” 

The doorknob turned, and Gale's handsome face peeked through the crack. “Good morning,” he said gently, and your heart leapt in your chest. ‘If the sun ever burned out, that smile could save us all,’ you thought wistfully as he pushed the door all the way open and came inside. You propped up on your elbow and smiled at him, nearly missing the tray he pushed into the room with him — nearly. 

“Gale,” you gasped, your eyes tearing away from him at last in order to take in the spread before you. “What is all of this?” 

“Uhm…well, heh.” His hand traveled to the back of his neck and he chuckled. “I couldn't possibly allow you to celebrate your birthday in bed, in pain; alone, without a single breath of fanfare. You deserve a considerable amount more than that. So!” He clapped his hands together suddenly. “We have eggs, toast with apple butter spread, sausage, some fruits, and a pumpkin flavored coffee - iced, of course. I also have a menu for lunch and dinner, if you'd like.”

Your heart swelled in your chest and the sight of Gale before you blurred as tears clouded your vision. He continued. 

“I brought your… what did you call it? Computer? In here with me, so that we might watch one of those plays you enjoy.” He paused, seemingly returning to himself, and withdrew ever so slightly. “Of course, none of this is required by any means! All merely suggestions. If you'd rather be left in peace and quiet, I will leave this here and be-”

“Gale,” you interjected, but it's as though he didn't hear you at all. 

“I would be happy to leave this here or take it away-”

“Gale-”

“The last thing I would wish is for you to feel pressured in any way-”

“Gale!” 

He fell silent immediately, and you couldn't help but feel guilty. 

"Come here,” you choked out and reached for him. There was no hesitation. His hands encompassed yours and you nearly sighed aloud in relief. The pain he eased was not in your body, but within your soul. You had been dancing around these feelings you held for a man from worlds away, desperate to keep yourself safe from rejection's cold sting, but when he was here; when he was by your side, your hands safe in his, your fears fell silent. They didn't matter. For even if he rejected you today and disappeared tomorrow, you will have known him; you will have touched him, and you will have loved him with every aching beat of your battered heart. 

You smiled at him, your eyes misted with tears, and took in the worry etched into his beautiful features. ‘Did I do too much? Does she not like it? Have I upset her?’ In that moment, he was as easy to read as a book cover and you squeezed his hand in assurance. 

"Thank you, Gale," you murmured, and a smile crept across his pink lips, but his eyes were still uncertain. You couldn't bear to let him think that he had done anything but send your heart soaring in your chest, so you took a deep breath and made a brave decision. 

Leaning up, you took one of your hands out of his and brushed your fingertips gently upwards through the coarse hairs of his beard, and his lips parted in surprise as your palm came to rest on his cheek. Simultaneously, you pulled yourself up and Gale down, your lips grazing his beard before finding the hollow of his cheek and pressing a tender kiss there. 

"This means so much to me. You mean so much to me. I haven't known how to tell you,  but…" you whispered in his ear and felt him shudder. You pulled away to ask him what was wrong, but your words were swallowed before their inception by his lips on yours, hot and insistent as his fingers came up to cradle the back of your head, and his digits curled into the hair at the base of your neck to keep you locked in place. 

The shocked yelp leaving you melted into a throaty moan as his taste consumed you. You were aflame. His tongue sought entrance into your mouth and you whimpered, allowing him in with no hesitation. 

He pulled away suddenly, his chest heaving as he rested his forehead against your own. “Is this-?”

“Yes,” you gasped. “Gale, fuck- yes.” And your breath was stolen once more. 

"Gods, Lyra," he groaned against your lips. "You cannot possibly fathom how delectable you taste."

“I- mmf!” Your words were once again lost on your tongue as his delved deeper, exploring you with as much fervor as he did his favorite tomes. He stroked the length of his tongue against yours and a soft, breathy sound emanated from the back of his throat. You came apart in his arms, pulling him closer than you thought possible in this awkward position, and grasped onto his shoulders like the lifeline they were. 

A month of hesitation, fear, and uncertainty were swept away in the crashing tide of Gale’s teeth colliding with yours as he used the grip he had on your hair to gently, but firmly, tilt your head to the side, giving him unparalleled access to your depths. You felt fingertips glide up the curve of your neck and you shuddered violently, a whimper ripping from your throat and falling onto his tongue like a prayer. The stiff hairs of his beard scratched the sensitive skin around your mouth as you moved in tandem with him, your mind barely remaining tethered to your body. 

Your hands wandered, exploring the dips and planes of Gale’s body as he leaned further over you, conscious of your pain even in the haze of passion. You learned him by touch alone, pressing your fingertips into the muscles and grasping at soft rolls and curves. He felt so foreign and yet so familiar; he felt like coming home. 

When you broke apart, it felt like eons had passed. Blue eyes connected with brown ones and you paused there, drinking in the feeling of closeness you had craved for so long. He was searching you; you felt it. “Stay with me,” you whispered, and watched his Adam's apple bounce with the force of his gulp. 

“Is that what you want?” He whispered in response. 

“Don't you?”

“By all the gods, I want it more than anything. But that's not what I'm asking.” 

You canvassed his beautiful face, reveling in how close each of your favorite features were to you now. You could reach up and trace each crease, line, and scar; run your fingernail along each pore, pocket, and imperfection that made Gale who he was. “I want it too. I want you here with me. Please.” 

He closed his eyes and a smile pulled up at the creases of his mouth, a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sigh falling from his lips as his warm hands fell to each of your cheeks. “Then you'll need to scoot over. I'm quite a bit larger than the space between us now.” 

“Oh Gale, I'm certain you are,” you tittered and he blushed furiously, a hand over his eyes. 

“Gods, you will be the end of me.” 

“I'm not so sure, you might get me first.” 

His hand fell and he looked at you pointedly. “If you continue to tease me, then perhaps I shall.” 

Warmth flooded your entire body and you moved back immediately, allowing him room in the bed beside you. His laugh pulled your mind from the heat pooling in your belly and you smiled up at him as he removed his shoes and laid down on his back beside you. His arm opened to you and you were there in seconds, curling under it and pressing close to his side. 

“Do you wish to eat? Your breakfast has, more than likely, gotten rather tepid by now.” 

“Of course! We can't waste all of your hard work!”

“We?” He questioned you, his eyebrow raising. 

“Mmm,” you nodded, reaching across him to grab a strawberry and press it gently to his lips. “I can't eat all of this by myself.” 

Gale grinned around the strawberry and opened his mouth to you, taking a slow bite of the juicy fruit, his eyes never leaving yours. You felt his hand come to rest on your lower back and pull you closer to him. 

“Come,” he murmured after swallowing, and took the strawberry from you, holding it to your lips now. “Let's share.” 

~

fin

Tagging, Darlings: @micropoe10 @knightofmight01 @just-a-refrigerator @fanon-and-canon @senualothbrok @charlenestrawart

[teastainedprose]

Homelander x fem!reader

Sugar Daddy Homelander

At first, Homelander kept you surrounded in flowers. These felt more like a learned gesture the man orchestrated automatically over any personal gift. You soon learn that he's a diehard romantic, insisting on going by the book. A lady should have flowers. His girlfriend would have flowers.

Like clockwork, every week roses would show up on your doorstep. Always lovely, of course but even you can grow tired of a rose scented apartment. It came to the point of you casually gaining an obsession with the language of flowers, which Homelander eagerly latched onto as well. Except now you have to decode the messages every time and correctly or he's prone to get all huffy and pouts the rest of the day.

You now keep a cheat sheet in your phone's note app.

Now the first true gift? That was unexpected but not much of a surprise. Homelander had invited you out to some upper crust Vought party to show you off and of course none of your chain-store items were up to snuff. The color of the dress he'd picked? Blue, of course. A midnight shimmer that made you feel like the night sky for how the light danced across the sequins. How Homelander managed to get your exact dress size, you never figured out but it still feels like a question best left unanswered.

The second gift was less of a surprise, but more of an apology. Homelander had taken to many a nightly visit to your apartment and to say you broke the bed would have been an understatement. In truth, he broke the bed but Homelander still blames you. Cracked the headboard because your mouth had been too clever.

Now the third gift? That had felt like one where you'd wish you had kept your mouth shut. Your old, reliable laptop had been showing its age. You complained, in an affectionate manor as the device is an old friend from your Uni days but Homelander had taken it to heart. The next day, something sleek and red had been sitting on the spot where your old, banged up laptop use to reside. Then came the conversation of how computers worked and yes, you actually do need all of the files from your old one. That was the only day you'd been thankful for cloud storage.

By now, you know to hold your tongue when bemoaning any beloved items in your apartment but that doesn't mean you don't enjoy not so discreetly digitally window shopping and letting out some pitiful sighs as you longingly look at a purse out of your price range. You always act surprised and delighted when Homelander presents it to you a few days later, crooning your praise while making certain to shower him in kisses. The man melts every time without fail.

There are certain perks to dating the most powerful man in the world and you're allowed to enjoy them.

[tiredslepz]

HATE IS A STRONG WORD ! – dumpster divers

scaramouche x f!reader

✦ introductions

– scaramouche

third year business major. he took business so eventually, sometime in the future, he'd take over his mother's company as ceo. he's one of the most popular campus crushes there are to be—having garnered many fangirls and fanboys in his time at teyvat university. he's often confessed to because of his good looks (although he rejects each and every one of them), but is surprisingly single. he's also infuriatingly good at academics and pretty rich (coming from his mom's company)—despite being in a group chat called "dumpster divers". he was forced by childe to create a social media account and put a decent picture on the profile! (jokingly) regrets sharing a dorm with childe.

– childe

third year business major. he took business to have the same major as scara, but also because he's actually passionate—well, somewhat. total family dude. he's the type to unironically show something random and say "this reminds me of my family". scaramouche and childe have been friends since diapers—they're besties (scaramouche would detest that statement)! pursued lumine after realizing she wasn't just an annoying, pretty, smart friend and that he wanted her to be more than just his friend. childe's the one who dragged each person in that group chat to be friends.

– kazuha

third year literature major. he and scara met in highschool after getting to know childe. probably the most sappy person yet to be in love since his partner becomes his muse for every piece he writes. speaking of... his and aether's twt banners kind of match since they're both looking at liyue (his idea, of course)! he smokes along with aether (who also just so happens to be his roommate, winkwink) which probably is what heightens the sap level on his pieces. he's well acquainted with hu tao's friends and often asks the group to tag along with them. the most responsible of them all when he's not high as a cloud.

– aether

third year cartography major. when he and lumine were little kids, he LOVED playing pranks on her (which didn't end up in his favor—but, still fun). he got into 🍃 after spending lots of late nights with kazuha before they started dating. met scaramouche in high school around the time kazuha met him. bro got a little jealous that his best friend was spending time with other male friends and decided to meet the guy (and realized scaramouche couldn't care less).

– xiao

third year computer science major. as you can see, xiao put him and venti as his twt banner. childe and him were actually already friends way before he met scaramouche, and only became friends with him when childe decided to introduce the two of them to each other. he unironically listen to those "sadboy emo playlists" because he thinks the songs are actually good. a bit anti-social since his only friends are literally just them. he's naturally smart and doesn't take too much time to study (but always tries to help venti with his academics).

HATE IS A STRONG WORD !

masterlist ✧ prev ✧ next

synopsis: your friends have had enough of you being the only single person in the group chat. on top of that, they're also fed up of being caught in the crossfire of you and scaramouche's constant bickering. so, of course, being the great friends they are—they devise a plan to fix both problems! fortunately for them, the other side shares the same sentiment. seeing this in foresight, scaramouche counters with another plan.

or: you unfortunately get set up with your greatest, most annoying enemy who goes by the name of scaramouche—who offers you a deal.

a/n: hehehe... let the games begin 😈

[skull-faced-fruit-cake]

maybe im just too buddie-pilled or maybe i just have low expectations for 911 at this point or maybe the fact that i just got emotionally obliterated by the orange fic is clouding my judgment but no matter how much i wish eddie would have this big emotional breakdown over the fact that he's gay and in love with buck because he's catholic and repressed and he's spent his entire life thinking he's straight or whatever but i don't think 1) that's what they'll do in the show (they won't even have eddie say he's gay let's be real) 2) that's nearly as impactful as eddie quietly realizing he's in love with buck and it being so. natural and expected he just. accepts it

honestly eddie has been through so so much there's not a single decision he has taken in his life that doesn't make him feel he's fucking up so i almost don't want any more emotional turmoil for him. and the latest ep solidified this for me; the realization should come with no big shock to eddie. he's in love with buck. okay then. of course he is, he always has been. so what if that means he isn't straight. loving buck is easier than breathing at this point and he stopped trying to explain it long ago.

with this being said they'll need to balance out the quiet eddie realization with a chaotic buck realization which honestly might come too late (ie eddie has already kissed him and his brain has windows blue screened trying to compute the thought of his Straight Best Friend?????? kissing him???????? for some reason?????? hey siri do best friends kiss sloppy on the mouth) and that just makes their dynamic so much more fun hehe

[melissa-kenobi]

Nerds

[PS5 Peter Parker x Reader/PS5 Harry Osborn x Reader]

A/N: just a lil blurb, super cute 🥺. FYI, Peter, Harry and Reader are in a relationship. MJ is best friends with them all. Also I'm not a science nerd, idk shit about science so this may be scientifically incorrect lol

Summary: You try to figure out the missing element.

***

"So if I multiply the radius by- " The sound of your voice echoes through the labs at the Foundation, as you experiment with the different formulas.

"Why is it still yellow?" You mutter slightly annoyed and to no-one in particular, throwing away your attempt.

"No, maybe I should try etat- no, or maybe tri- " There was a pattern to it but you couldn't see it at all, maybe you had missed something. You continued talking to yourself, jotting away your idea. Then you went back to the computer and typed away at it before putting in another trial run.

You were so into your little experiment, you hadn't realised Peter had walked in, eyes curious as he placed a hand on your lower back, "Hey, why don't you try the- "

"Ah- you scared me, Pete! But yes, that's a good idea. Maybe it'll balance the acidity of it out." You jump at his touch but suddenly jump back into scientist mode as he gives you a brilliant suggestion. "You're a genius, Pete!"

"Wait!" Peter says, but it's too late. The compounds reject and cause a small reaction. A small cloud of black fluff poofed into your face, making you blink as stared at Pete, who was trying not to laugh at you.

"Okay, maybe not." You freeze before jotting down some notes on your failed attempt. There was a little bit of smoke on your face, which Peter came over and rubbed off before kissing your cheek. "You're too cute."

"No time for cuteness, Mr Parker, onto Trial No.2." You wink at him.

***

Harry had been watching your little nerdy moment with heart eyes, and mushy feeling in his chest, and when Peter had turned up, he wasn't sure he could be even more in love with the both of you than he already was. Harry felt his heart burst with adoration, and he couldn't help but let out a little chuckle when Peter accidentally bumped into you but apologised with a little kiss on your lips.

"Hey, what you doing up here all alone?" MJ walked up as she hip bumped Harry. He let out a little laugh and gave her a hug before turning her around to see the two of you.

"Ah. Creeping on your girlfriend and boyfriend I see..." MJ teases him.

He rolls his eyes good-naturedly, "Don't they look so cute, being all nerdy and shit? I mean, look at y/n. She was so focused that she didn't even notice Peter come in.."

MJ guffaws loudly, cutting Harry off, "You are so whipped for them!"

Harry shoves her lightly, then gives her the middle finger- making MJ laugh even louder, but he continues to watch you and Pete happily.

***

Harry finally walked over to the two of you, cuddling you from being as he placed a kiss on Peter's cheek, making Peter blush deep red. You glanced at Peter, ready to tease him, but Harry placed a kiss on your lips, making you blush too.

Peter looked at you with a grin, before a look of realisation passed over him as he looked at your face, making it click for you too.

Red. It was a deep red.

"Rubidium!" The two of you chimed in response, all of it clicking together. You both pull away from Harry as he looks at you two dumbfounded.

"Of course!" You say as you looked at Peter, who made a 'doh' face and gestured that you two were idiots for not realising it sooner. You ran quickly to grab some and added it to the container. The rubidium instantly neutralised the colour of it, making both you and Peter 'woah' in sync. "It actually worked!"

"Harry Osborn, you are a genius!" Peter grinned.

"We needed our third element, didn't we Pete?" You giggled as Harry pulled the two of you into a hug, the three of you all cuddling.

"I love you, my two nerds..." Harry laughs, his smile warm and content.

***

[a-dotrivenitupontop]

i really think the main problem with s3 and 4 of mq is how scrambled the jobs have become. like in s1 and 2 it starts out pretty simple.

ian: the head-in-the-clouds creative director with your typical weirdly spiritual man who wields power over others moments

poppy: the shut in coding genius lead engineer who longs for power and then lets it get to her head when she becomes co-creative director

david: the awkward and pathetic boss who really does not have a grip on his company

brad: the money-hungry head of monetisation

jo: the helpful yet slightly deranged assistant

rachel and dana: the overlooked testers who know they’re worth more

cw: the kooky and more than vaguely racist writer

other characters are the overworked art department head, phil. the hr head carol, who’s treated like a therapist. the mansplaining other tester who appeared for a bit, lou. and of course, autistic latina icon, maria.

it’s a typical sitcom setup. each character has a job in the Setting and that job allows the writers to explore that personality. brad works with money so his ultimate goal is a scrooge mcduck money bin. cw wrote sci fi books in the seventies so of course he’s gonna say odd things about women. poppy’s job is to sit at a computer all day, there’s no way she’s developed appropriate social skills. but then in s3 and 4 the jobs get so much weirder and jumbled?? like??

ian: co-creative director and grimpop studios. then goes back to mythic quest, then quits but finds he can’t when poppy tries to leave.

poppy: co-creative director at grimpop studios. then goes back to mythic quest, gets a boyfriend, gets pregnant, debates leaving for the netherlands.

david: still the executive producer. becomes evil for a bit then pathetic again. becomes evil again. becomes pathetic again. becomes evil again. becomes pathetic again.

brad: the janitor. then he’s invited back to be the homie. then joins dana. then fucks over dana playing poker. then he has to choose between his girlfriend who works for danas rival (who never gets mentioned again) or mythic quest. chooses mythic quest.

jo: still assistant. that’s solid. kinda. idk who she assisted in particular in s4 but she assisted. now she’s head of playpen??

rachel: decides she wants to be a writer. fails at berkeley or wherever. joins monetisation. then she becomes evil?? and defends child labor in playpen?? then mopes about it for a few days before david needs her back??

dana: randomly decides she’s the best coder of her generation because she can make a roblox game. works for ian and poppy but then makes her own studio which is owned by mythic quest. brad gambles her new game away after she’s bested by a 17yo. makes a new game.

carol: montreal gives her a job as head of diversity and inclusion (hodi). does mq have an hr department anymore?? who knows. who cares. hodi isn’t really a job that involves anything so carol spends her time fucking the old gay testers.

the old gay testers: old and gay and testers. for some reason they’re at davids meeting in telephone even though s1 rachel complained about how testers are never invited to meetings. btw what happened to the other gay testers from s3??

other characters include like 2 mins of screen time from porn addicted anthony who i think is a coder and an episode about pootie shoe. why so few side characters? because brad got as much screen time in s4 and michelle got in s1. does anyone miss michelle btw?? does anyone miss when this show had people actually working in each department??? does mythic quest have a writing department anymore???? can this show do plot line that doesn’t involve a character getting fired then coming back then quitting then joining another thing then quitting then going back to mq???? while getting completely flanderised in the process????

[respocked]

I'm thinking about work anyway so fuck it

Star Trek Public Primary School AU 🛸 !

Kirk

-the headmaster!

-went into education because of his own unfortunate childhood

-has an uncanny ability to tell which student has a bad home life

-remembers everyone's name, even if you went to his school 5 years ago for 2 months

-misbehaving teenagers send to his office get some candy and a motivational speech that changes the course of their lifetime

-most days can be found hovering suspiciously outside of spock's classroom

-way better with older students, 12-13 - has absolutely 0 idea what to do with young children

-which is awkward when while waiting for spock outside his classroom he tries to make small talk with them (-so... son... read any good books lately? -i can't read!)

Spock

- teaches early education, 6 to 9 year olds

-greatly overqualified for the position, had a human psychology degree, interspecies child development degree, highly regarded in scientific community

-could be teaching university but prefers to spend his time sitting on carpets with children drawing clouds

-his class is extremely nontraditional - no desks, sitting on the floor, tons of meditation, classes in nature

-does not adhere to the program at all but somehow his classes always score the best on all exams

-turned down a position in a trendy montessori school for a public one

-parents either go out his way for their child to attend his class or request someone else - either from homophobic or xeniphobic reasons

Uhura

-the school's cultural assistant!

-also runs student exchanges with other countries and planets

-speaks every minority language that has representation in the student body

-also a substitute teacher

-she can give a super interesting lessons

-but takes 0 shit from students who won't respect her

-runs an extracurricular activity with spock when she teaches immigrant and refugee students to express their emotions with music

-is the best at pitching a project idea for funding, which is why her office and spock's classrom are the best equipped ones in the school

-spock's bestie, they hang out after work (gay/lesbian solidatity)

-still lives with her parents, they're super close

-wants to date but it's too boring compared to writing another lesson plan

Bones

-the school nurse! & in charge of nutrition

-teenagers are afraid of him

-small children absolutely love him

-takes his daughter to work and lets her draw with crayons on his important papers

-also constantly in spock's classroom, but to complain

-"damnit, spock! give them all the vulcan cuisine you want, but don't send them crying to me after they get an allergic reaction!"

-"meditation? maybe have them meditate on doing some real work for once"

-but when parents with pitchforks come to complain abt spock's methods he defends him like a lion

-he sends them piles after piles of scientific proof of why spock's method are actually the bestest and most efficient

-when kirk thanks him for stepping in he pretends like he doesn't know what he's talking about

Chapel

-teaches sex ed!

-the sweetest teacher ever

-one of those teachers that noone is intimidated by but noone disobeys because noone wants to makes her upset

-uses her Blonde White Straight Pretty Woman priviledge to convince reluctant parents to sign up their kids for sex ed

-goes All Out on halloween tho

-you know she is there, dressed like a witch, running an educational halloween themed activity! paper bats hanging from the ceiling!

-has gluten free and vegan candy in case the winners have a food sensivity!

-has a secret crush on Uhura and Spock both

Chekov

-teaches IT

-burned out miracle kid

-graduated university when he was younger than his current students

-lets students play roblox on the computers

-and teaches them how to torrent

-somehow noone from the faculty knows where he lives

-background check turns up nothing

-"did you know computers were invented in russia?"

-puts 0 effort in but somehow his students love him

-little girls take sneak photos of him to edit in a flower crowns

Scotty

-teaches a woodworking & engineering class and does janitor duties on the side!

-like kirk, absolutely 0 idea on how to treat younger kids

-strict

-has to be, no joking around power tools!

-but you know praise from him hits different

-will tell students he's proud of them when they make theit first little table

-can fix everything

-say "this interactive blackboard is broken!" three times to summon him

-marries to his career, teaching fulfills his paternal calling

Sulu

-teaches biology!

-rule follower

-stressed out about exams 3 years before his students

-not very inventive but everyone wants his class because there is a hamster in the classroom

-classroom full of houseplants

-if you agree to water them when he's away you will receive a 50 page manual on proper misting techniques

-not strict at all but will give a dressing down to a student who is seen treating a living thing badly

-can be bribed with plants

[adventuresinpaldea]

August slipped away

Nemona x Juliana fanfic

Includes post-game spoilers.

During the painfully long plane trip from Unova to Paldea, Juliana sat restless by the window, nipping at her fingers, and watching the clouds pass by. It had been 3 months since she had last been in Paldea, well, actually less, if you consider her venture to Area Zero, but that hardly counts as a visit since she didn't even get to set foot in Naranja Academy or see any of her friends. 

Just three months prior, when returning from summer break to Naranja Academy, Juliana was met with a very rushed invitation to take part of a foreign studies program at Blueberry Academy in Unova, the same academy Carmine and Kieran attend. 

Turns out Director Cyrano had forgotten to send the invitation and transfer papers on time, which, according to Director Clavell, was not surprising in the slightest, so the school year had already started, Juliana had to make a decision right there and then to avoid missing any more classes.

Being this the opportunity of a lifetime, of course Juliana accepted, but she had to leave the very same day, in fact, she had only a couple of hours to say goodbye to her mom and friends. She hopped on Koraidon's back and dashed all the way to Cabo Poco, her mom was elated with the opportunity her daughter had been given, and, after helping her pack some clothes and personal items, kissed Juliana on the forehead and wished her the best of luck, and reminded her, of course, to call often and keep her up to date with her adventures. 

Juliana bolted right back to Naranja Academy, now she needed to find her friends, granted the easiest to find was Penny, she was chilling in her computer screen lit dorm watching some anime with her veevees while slurping a cup of noodles. Juliana just stormed in uninvited, startling Penny in the process.

"For Arceus sake Juliana, yeah you can visit me anytime but at least knock!!!" - Said Penny still grabbing at her own chest from the jumpscare.

"I'm so sorry, it's just I'm in a really big rush, I have to go in like an hour and a half and I couldn't go without talking to you guys" - Juliana blurted still half out of breath from running around.

Penny looked up at her with a confused look. - "go where? you're not going on another field trip to find strange ogers are you?" 

"AHAHAAHAHAHA don't talk about Ogerpon like that, and no, I'm actually going to Unova for a semester, the friends I made during the field trip to Kitakami study there and they got the director to invite me to go."

A slight sadness washed over Penny's face, afterall, Juliana was the main reason she managed to get her friends and herself back to school, but she understood, and it would be only for a few months, she wasn't about to hold her friend back from such an opportunity. 

The two girls said their goodbyes, Juliana promised to keep in touch and rushed out to look for Arven and Nemona.

She had only one hour left now. After checking their dorms and finding neither of her friends in their respective rooms, Juliana started to panic. She ran across school halls almost as fast as her Arcanine's extremespeed, eventually running into Arven who was on his way to the school's cafeteria.

Time was running shorter and shorter, she quickly explained where she was going and gave her friend a big hug, barely even hearing his words of encouragement before interrupting:

"Do you know where Nemona is???" - Juliana asked desperate. 

"I don't know, have you checked the schoolyard?"

Of course, the schoolyard, how didn't she think of that. Juliana thanked Arven, said her goodbyes and off she was again, running all the way up the seemingly infinite stairs at Naranja Academy. 

When she finally reached the schoolyard, Juliana took a second to catch her breath, she had never run this much in her life, not even when fleeing from way too strong titans with Arven. As soon as she felt like she was capable of breathing again, she started to look around, but to her dismay, Nemona was nowhere to be found, in reality, she even looked harder than she needed to since she could recognize her rival at a glance from miles away. 

Desperate, and having time running out on her, Juliana decided to call Nemona, she wasn't going to say goodbye over the phone of course, but she needed to know where she was. 

"RO-TO-TO-TO-TO-TO-TO..... RO-TO-TO-TO-TO-TO-TO..." - Nemona wasn't answering...

But Juliana kept insisting...

Until suddenly...

*ding-dong*

"Miss Juliana, your presence is requested at the entrance hall, again, Miss Juliana, your presence is requested at the entrance hall."

*ding-dong*

Juliana's stomach sank as she realized she was out of time. She tried calling one last time, but Nemona never picked up.

As she dragged her feet down the halls, in a sharp contrast to her previous electrifying speed, Juliana just hoped and prayed to Arceus Nemona would call back before she had to get on the plane, or, who knows, show up at the entrance hall, so she could hug her goodbye. 

Another wave of disappointment pulled her under into what seemed like a sea of sadness when she reached the entrance and Nemona was nowhere to be seen. 

Director Cyrano looked at the girl, with a kind but slightly impatient smile, before reiterating they really had to hurry. 

Juliana's head was a mess, so much in fact she even considered not going, but she couldn't just do that after Director Cyrano had gone to all that trouble to pick her up, so she hopped on a flying taxi with him to the airport, teary-eyed, staring down at the phone she had to turn off before getting on that plane. 

She even tried calling a few more times but to no avail.

As they arrived at the airport Juliana started typing, it was the most impersonal goodbye to the most important person, but she HAD to say something to Nemona.

"I tried finding you and then calling but I couldn't reach you, I needed to tell you, I got an invitation to go to Unova, sorry I don't have more time to explain, I have to get on the plane now, I'll call you when I get there tesoro" - The text read. Juliana quickly hit send as she climbed up the plane and sent her rotom phone to sleep.

The trip was treacherous and long. When she finally arrived in Unova, there was still somewhat of a journey to get to Blueberry Academy, but she couldn't wait. Juliana fired up her rotom phone back on and checked the notifications:

- 1 missed call from Nemona.

- "¡¿QUÉ!? UNOVA? WHY? WHEN?" 

3 missed calls from Nemona.

- "JULIANA YOU BETTER BE JOKING!!!"

2 missed calls from Nemona.

- "you shouldn't have promised to be rivals for life if you were just going to hop on the next best thing. I know the Unova league is awesome and all but for real?"

"The Unova league?!" - Juliana realized the fatality of her mistake, she shouldn't have been so vague and just told Nemona she was going as a transfer student for a semester, Nemona read the situation completely wrong. She tried calling to explain but Nemona wasn't picking up, to be fair, Juliana didn't really know what time it was back in Paldea, Nemona could very well be sleeping. The girl decided to call again another time.

After settling at Blueberry Academy and seeing her old friends, Juliana tried again, still no answer. Juliana got accepted to the BB League club and felt the urgent need to share the news with her best friend/rival so she tried calling again, Nemona still didn't answer. 

After beating each member of the BB elite 4 there was always one person she wanted to share the news with, after each victory she would dial up Nemona's number, each time she would feel defeated by the lack of response on Nemona's part. Then Juliana became the BB League champion. It was an awkward moment, impregnated with the uncertainty of what the league club would do when Juliana returned to Paldea, mixed with the uneasy feeling that came with seeing the state Kieran was left in. 

Juliana spaced out momentarily, longing for the simpler times that were becoming a champion-ranked trainer in Paldea, having her rival waiting impatiently outside the Pokémon League’s building, to greet her new champion friend with open arms and fiery eyes. Even after losing the battle in Mesagoza Square, Nemona was overjoyed, bursting at the seems with excitement for her friend, knowing they could continuously challenge each other to reach greater heights. And that's when it hit Juliana, the happiness she felt that week when she became champion, didn't come from the champion title, it came from the moments spent with her friend. 

Battling Nemona was different, sure battles in general were exciting, but, when she was battling Nemona, her hands would shake and she would feel this weird turning in her stomach, something she couldn't really pinpoint the reason for. She then took a moment to reflect on her treasure-hunt, how, out of all the challenges she faced, what she was always most excited for, was reaching a gym and seeing Nemona, always so conveniently one step ahead, always there ready to cheer her on, often from the very sideline of the gym's battle court, seemingly just as nervous as her.

Then she remembered the conversation in Nemona's room by the end of the school year when they promised to stay true equals and Nemona got all flustered. 

They had spent the entire summer afterwards training together and discussing tactics and teams, but also, just hanging out, they would often just end up at Nemona's beach battle court, laying out in the sand, almost passed out from exhaustion, under the late setting august sun, the orange hue would make Nemona's eyes even more golden and Juliana could just stare endlessly, sometimes, she'd even stop listening to what Nemona was saying. 

All this reminiscence was put to a halt when they heard the announcement that Miss Briar called for her, Carmine, Kieran and Drayton. That's when they got informed of the expedition to Area Zero, and while it was nice to see Miss Geeta and Rika, Juliana couldn't quite shake the empty feeling she had since her recent championship fight, so much that she even almost asked La Primera if she knew why Nemona wouldn't return her calls, but she knew better than to bother Miss Geeta with that, she also felt it was somewhat disrespectful to deviate the subject from such an important matter to her personal drama.

When they returned from the expedition to Area Zero, Kieran decided to take a break to put his emotions in order and Carmine went with him back home. This left Juliana alone with the rest of the BB Elite 4 trying to figure out how to piece the League Club back together, thankfully, the tension the league was under dissipated after Juliana was crowned champion, they even managed to do some unranked battle events so that members could learn from each other without worrying about the competition aspect. Director Cyrano even had the great idea of bringing over people from Paldea to give a few lectures and interact with the Blueberry students. Juliana loved the idea, it would be amazing seeing the people who helped shape her journey in Unova, maybe it would help it feel a bit more like home for the remainder of time she had to spend there. 

As soon as it was time for school break, Juliana hopped on a plane back to Paldea. She was excited to see her friends and discuss her brand-new project with Miss Geeta. But the trip was long, while sitting for hours on the plane with no familiar face to talk to, Juliana was forced to face the same feelings that had flooded her after her championship fight at BB Academy. 

Seeing her friends, also meant, for better and for worse, seeing Nemona. Juliana didn't quite know what to say to her, should she apologize for the misunderstanding? Should she tell her she became a champion somewhere else? Should she tell her she missed her? And what about her feelings? Up until being so long apart from Nemona, she never questioned they were some sort of best friend duo, and chucked the clear chemistry they had to the fact they were both really passionate about Pokémon battles. 

But there was something more, Pokémon battles had nothing to do with the honey-gold color of Nemona's eyes during sunset, nor they were at play when Juliana's hands would shake when greeting her rival, or how her heart would sink every time she caught as little as a glimpse of someone who looked like Nemona. Juliana's thoughts were more entangled than a Mareep's fur and she didn't really know how to make sense of them.

After many restless hours, and almost zero sleep, Juliana was jolted by the feeling of the airplane's wheels touching the ground as it landed, she had spent the last few hours listening to music trying to distract herself from the mess going on in her head, so she kind of lost track of where she was. Her stomach sank when she realized the deadline to figure out the jumbled mess in her head was approaching.

Upon exiting the airport, she decided to ride Koraidon's back, taking advantage of his newly found ability to fly. It was both refreshing and nostalgic to see Paldea up from above, all the places she'd ventured through now just seemed so tiny, she looked fondly at ever gym building, every team star base and titan's lair she could spot from up above. It truly felt like home and despite the lingering conflit in her mind, Juliana was now a bit more at peace.

It wasn't long until she reached Cabo Poco, the anxiety she felt was undeniably rising, since Nemona lives just down the street from her, she made sure to approach her home from the back ending, as to avoid a possible confrontation she was not ready for, landing Koraidon in her backyard, barely avoiding stomping her mom's vegetable garden. 

Juliana called her faithful companion back in his pokeball and went inside. As soon as she entered her home she noticed the cozy familiar smell of her mom's cooking.

"Great to have you home, Juliana, how have your studies been?" - Her mom said with a warm smile.

Juliana felt a sudden overwhelm and unable to reply just hugged her mom, fighting back the tears that were now flooding her eyes.

“¿Que pasa chiquita? Are you not enjoying your stay in Unova?" - Her mother asked in a deeply concerned voice.

Juliana pulled away, and wiped her eyes as she mustered the strength to answer her mom's question without having her voice break.

"No it's not that, I just missed you a lot."

"¡Tonta!" - her mom chuckled. - "Go take a shower, dinner is almost ready."

Juliana went up to her room to grab some comfy clean clothes and she couldn't help peeping out the window trying to make out something, anything, that might resemble Nemona's presence in the house down the street. Truth is, it was too far, she could barely make out the windows in Nemona's house, they looked like little light specs on a huge concrete block.

After her shower, Juliana was presented with an array of her favorite dishes on the table, and, while her appetite wasn't the greatest, she couldn't help but sit and enjoy her mother's effort for a warm welcoming dinner and take the opportunity to tell her about all the crazy adventures she went on during the last three months. 

The next morning, she woke up in a rush, kissed her mom goodbye and headed back to the academy, after all, she still needed to consult Miss Geeta about bringing Paldean mentors to Bluebery Academy, and she also needed to catch up with her friends. 

Quickly enough she was out the door with an half eaten breakfast sandwich in her hand, she hopped on Koaraidon's back, this time they were taking the ground route, a decision she promptly regretted when she was approaching the crossroad between Cabo Poco and Poco Path, realizing she was passing right in front of Nemona's house, she ducked on top of Koraidon... As if Koraidon could be easily mistaken by any regular old cyclizar. Thankfully there was no sign of activity in the masion, after entering Poco Path and safely out of what could be Nemona's line of sight she let out a sigh of relief, it was time now to head to the academy. It then dawned on her, if Nemona isn't at home, she must be at the academy right? 

Juliana proceeded to stall the whole trip to Naranja Academy, she stalled so much even Koraidon was growing impatient with the slow pace his trainer had imposed. Ironically enough she was stalling as much to get back as she did when it was time to leave three months prior. 

Upon arriving at the academy's front gates Juliana trembled as she dismounted Koraidon, despite it being the beginning of winter she was sweating profusely, her hands were soaked to the point she almost dropped his poke ball. She walked in and asked the receptionist if Director Clavell was at the academy, upon receiving a positive answer she rushed to his office to book a meeting with him and Miss Geeta regarding her recent project. 

As Juliana walked into the director's office, she was met with a very enthusiastic Director Clavell, clearly overjoyed to see her.

"Miss Juliana! How great to have you here! How have things been in Unova? Director Cyrano hasn't given you much trouble, has he?"

"Ahah Hi, Director Clavell! It's been great, and actually I'm here because I have a project, I'd Like to run by you and La Primera, I was thinking we could maybe schedule some time to discuss it?"

"Well, of course, I'd be much obliged to help with any project you might have in mind, may I ask what will this one entail?"

Juliana proceeded to explain the idea Director Cyrano had and how she was thinking of putting it into practice.

"Very well, it does seem interesting, I would be very happy to release a few members of our school's faculty at the time to partake in that project of yours, and I'm sure Miss Geeta will have no opposition regarding League members as well, but you do need to talk to her first, we can do that tomorrow. Well but what about your personal endeavors? Have you reached any new goals, made new friends?"

Juliana then told Director Clavell all about Carmine and Kieran and the rest of the BB Elite Four, how she became a champion and how much she actually enjoyed doing double battles more often and the hands-on approach the classes held in the terrarium had, but also just how much she missed her friends and professors, so much she actually even kind of missed Miss Rockford's weird aura.

Director Clavell agreed with a chuckle, despite being the school’s director, he had formed a closer bond with Juliana, maybe partially to blame for their combined efforts during operation Starfall, he couldn't help but look at Juliana in a more familiar way and therefore being a little less formal around her. 

"Well now, you must want to go see your friends, right? Master Arven is most likely in the cafeteria, he has been busy revamping our school’s menu along with Mr. Saguaro, and Miss Penny should be..."

"What about Nemona??" Juliana hurriedly interrupted the director who looked at her with a rather surprised look.

"I'm sorry director, I didn't mean to be rude... I just... Need to know if she's ok..."

The director looked at her with a warm, understanding gaze, he could see in Juliana's face something had been bottling inside her for long and she just couldn't hold it back any longer. 

"Well, you see, as I was going to say, Miss Penny should be at the Pokémon league, helping the cyber security department, while miss Nemona goes around checking the gyms, just like you did last semester. They should both be back tonight.”

Juliana let out a sigh that danced between relief and sadness, she thanked the director and left his office. The girl decided to follow his instructions and headed to the school’s cafeteria trying to find Arven. 

And she did find him, Arven was in the kitchen, wearing a big orange apron, looking super serious and focused preparing a few dishes, this was something Juliana just HAD to tease him about later, but, for now, she was happy just glancing at her friend while he was busy working.

It wasn’t long before Arven’s deep focus was broken by catching a glimpse of Juliana’s face in his peripheral vision. He jolted when he realized it was her, dropped the kitchen utensils and ran to hug her. He tackled her so hard they almost fell flat on the cafeteria floor, the other students looked startled at the duo while they burst into laughter in a hug that was long overdue.

“Long time no see, right hermanita?” – Arven said with a huge grin on his face while putting Juliana back down.

“Right, I missed you.” – Juliana answered with a huge smile.

“Same, we have a lot of catching up to do!!”

“Ahem” – Mr. Saguaro coughed as to get Arven’s attention.

            Arven’s excitement was quickly dulled out by Mr. Saguaro’s intrusion.

“Right, I have to go finish these new dishes we’re trying out, sit down, I’ll bring you something to eat while you wait.”

            Juliana happily obliged and sat down at the nearest table. It wasn’t long before Arven brought her a plate with some seafood and vegetables and a few shiny specs that were oddly familiar.

“We’re trying out some special dishes with Herba Mystica, try that and tell me what you think.” – Said Arven while putting down the plate in front of his friend.

            The girl picked up her fork and tried to grab a bit of everything in the same bite. As she brought the fork up to her mouth, eyes widened, it was slightly spicy but incredibly flavorful. She was speechless so she just gesticulated approvingly around the plate. It was good enough of a reaction for Arven, who happily marched back into the kitchen.

            As soon as Arven’s work was done he sat right next to her. By that time Juliana had again started to be engulfed by the sinking feeling that had haunted her for weeks now.

“¿Qué pasa? Is my food that bad?” – Arven asked looking at his friend with a seriously worried expression.

“No it’s not that… it’s just…” – Juliana started to fight back tears as she tried to put into words the absolute mess of emotions that plagued her. “It’s Nemona… I… I haven’t heard from her in a while and I miss her, and I don’t know if I miss her as a friend or something else, I have no idea what’s-” Juliana realized she had just started dumpung her huge mess of emotions onto Arven. “I’m sorry… I’m a mess.”

“Tranquila niña, you’re a mess, but you’re our mess, and you should continue talking if that helps, just maybe not here? How bout we head up to my dorm, Mabosstiff sure misses you a lot too.”

            Juliana happily agreed. When they got to Arven’s dorm, he let out Mabosstiff, whom promptly jumped up at Juliana and started licking her face.

“AHAHAHAHAHA who’s a good boy? You are, you’re the best boy.” Juliana said between giggles.

            As soon as Mabosstiff calmed down the two were able to return to their conversation.

“So… About Nemona… The girl has been a mess since you left, what happened?” Arven said in a surprisingly worried tone, Juliana never imagined he had actually grown to care so much for Nemona.

“So I left for Unova right? And I didn’t find her before leaving, I tried calling but she didn’t answer, I was trying to get a hold of her until the very last minute, but I just couldn’t, so I left her a text saying I was going to Unova and I’d call her to explain when I got there. Turns out she read the whole situation wrong, I think she understood I was moving to take on the Unova League and got REALLY upset. She hasn’t answered any calls since then… I think she hates me.” – Juliana was almost crying at this point and the desperation in her voice was palpable.

“Oh… That explains a lot…” – It was like someone flicked a switch in Arven’s head.

“Uh?! What do you mean?!” – Juliana was puzzled looking at Arven.

“Well, you see… Turns out when you left Nemona was out trying to catch Pokémon, I guess she didn’t have her phone with her as to not scare the mons away? When she came back she was fuming, she plopped down on the table where me and Penny were having lunch and just started ranting on and on about how she caught this shiny growlithe to impress you, and you just went and abandoned her, and how she felt so betrayed you moved on to bigger and better things and just left her behind, me and Penny were really confused, because we knew it was temporary so we thought she was over reacting… But she was too nervous to discuss it rationally so we just dropped it and let her go through what she had to go through, and of course offered as much support as we could, but we did avoid talking about you in her presence so I guess the misunderstanding is still well present in her mind.”

            Juliana couldn’t believe her ears, just the mere thought of making Nemona so upset felt like a sharp stab to her chest. 

“And how has she been since then?” 

“Weird…”

“What do you mean weird?”

“Like, really weird, like she’s not even Nemona, she’s always slumped over some table, doesn’t battle quite as much, sometimes she’ll accept a challenge when people accuse her of losing her spark, she’ll go, absolutely destroy whoever she’s facing and then slump back down again, it’s like she doesn’t even enjoy it anymore.”

            Juliana was overwhelmed with guilt and just buried her hands in her face.

“She did perk up a little tho, just last week, when that Pokémon League lady came talk to her.”

“You mean La Primera?”

“Yeah, I guess she gave Nemona some sort of task and that got her engines running again.”

“Yeah, Director Clavell told me she sent her to go check on the gyms, I guess that must have sounded like enough of a challenge to Nemona.”

            They both chuckled remembering Nemona’s usual highly energetic attitude, always looking for a challenge.

“But now back to you little buddy. What did you mean about not knowing if you missed Nemona as a friend or something else?” 

            Juliana really hoped Arven wouldn’t bring that slip of tongue up again, but Arven was sharp as always.

“Well…” – Juliana’s face was now hotter than a Charmander’s tail. “I guess what I mean was…”

“You don’t need to explain.”

“I don’t?”

“You’re my little budy remember?”

            Juliana nodded unsure where Arven was going with that.

“You like Nemona, I know that, I knew that before even you knew.”

“Wha- HOW?!”

“Well, remember when we went to the lab in the lighthouse? And my mom… Or, in this case my mom's stunt double, asked us, pardon, asked you to gather a team to go into the zero lab and I mentioned asking the student council girl?”

“Hum, Hum.”

“Yeah, you went all red, you looked like a pokeball, it was funny.” 

“Oh shut it!” – Juliana said, blushing.

“It’s true, and then, when we went down to area zero, I saw the looks you guys were shooting at each other, and by I, I mean we, me and Penny were making fun of you guys the whole time, but you were too busy looking like two birds in love to notice.”

            Juliana’s face was now back to that same pokeball shade of red. Arven just laughed at her.

“Look, what I mean is, you guys adore each other, and you should talk and clear up that misunderstanding.”

“Yeah… you’re right… I need to talk to her.”

“You do. But you should rest a bit first and put those ideas in order before you go and ramble nonsensical things again.”

“You’re right, I’m going to my room rest for a bit.”

“You do you bud, if you need anything, just call.”

            Juliana gave Arven a big hug and he kissed the top of her head, the two friends said goodbye and the girl went up to her dorm.

            As she was walking she kept on thinking about what she would say to Nemona, she didn’t even know if she’d want to talk to her, and, to add insult to injury, Nemona wasn’t even at school, she either had to stalk the entrance/Nemona’s dorm room waiting on her to arrive, or hope she’d run into her.

            All the what ifs started bearing too much weight on Juliana, the girl decided to go take a shower and try to clear her head. As she arrived to her room, she searched up that same playlist she was listening to on the plane, since it managed to get her some sense of peace. Whilst having her phone in her hand she had a brief moment of courage and started writing up a text.

“I miss you tesoro… I’m at school… If you wanna talk…”

            Juliana hit send before her brain could actually register what she wrote, it was better off this way, she wouldn’t have said anything otherwise. Then the girl just turned the music up, trying to drown the recent amp up of noise and anxiety in her head, and went into the shower.

            As she showered a million thoughts raced through her, she wondered if Nemona has read the text, if she would reply, if she even got the text, as far as she knew, she could very well be blocked. This seemingly unstoppable train of thought was becoming way too much. Juliana tried focused on the music playing from her phone to distract herself and the she heard it:

“Back when we were still changing for the better,

 Wanting was enough, for me it was enough,

To live for the hope of it all,

Cancel plans just in case you call,

 And say meet me behind the mall.

So much for summer love, and saying us, 

Cause you weren’t mine to lose,

You weren’t mine to lose…

And I can see us lost in a memory,

August slipped away,

Into a moment in time,

Cause it was never mine.”

            The song spoke weirdly close to Juliana’s heart, so much so she had those verses stuck on repeat from that moment onwards. 

As soon as she got out of the shower she checked her phone again, still no answer from Nemona. Juliana needed something to occupy her mind, a battle was usually her privileged form of destressing but that was out of the cards at the present moment. It was then that Juliana remembered, she had a guitar tucked away beneath her desk, she was never that great of a musician, but she used to play for fun before enrolling in Naranja Academy and going on all these crazy adventures.

            She pulled the guitar out of the bag, carefully tuned it and searched up the chords to the song that was now engraved in her brain. She started trying to strum along to the song, trying to regain some practice, it had been months since she last played anything at all.

            After a few tries the girl was already feeling comfortable enough to play and try to sing at the same time, so she started humming along with the song. Eventually she started full out singing, she felt her heart alleviate with every verse, she even forgot the dorm walls were paper thin and someone, anyone on the outside could hear everything.

            As a matter of fact someone was listening just outside her door. 

While still hurt, Nemona couldn’t resist wanting to see Juliana. When she saw her friend’s text she rushed back to the academy as fast as she could. She missed Juliana so much she even temporarily forgot the reason why she was mad, she needed to give her a hug, and possibly beat her up in battle, but give her a hug first.

When she arrived at the academy, Nemona went straight to Juliana’s room, she was just down her hall when she heard some faint strumming coming from the girl’s room. She stopped for a bit, thinking back, Juliana had never told her she played any instrument, but she did recall seeing a weirdly shaped bag under her friend’s desk.

She started walking again, slowly this time, as to not make any noise, she was intrigued and wanted to hear more of what Juliana was playing. Then as Nemona was about to reach Juliana’s door, the girl started singing…

“Salt air, and the rust on your door I never needed anything more Whispers of "Are you sure?" "Never have I ever before"

But I can see us lost in the memory August slipped away into a moment in time 'Cause it was never mine”

Nemona was speechless, she knew Juliana had many talents, but she had never pegged her for a singer. She leaned against a wall to hear more closely, her friend’s voice was soft in a way Nemona couldn’t really describe. And the feeling it transpired was starting to wear on Nemona as well, she could tell those words were felt, it was some sort of catharsis. 

The girl engulfed in the song continued:

“Cause you weren't mine to lose You weren't mine to lose, no…”

…Nemo…

            Nemona froze, she realized, in some way, in some capacity, her friend meant what she was singing to her. Thinking back on what she heard her friend sing, it kind of made sense, but, if she felt that way how could she leave like that? She couldn’t take it anymore, she didn’t hear anything else coming from her friend’s room so she just stormed in.

            Juliana was now crying, with her face buried in her desk, her guitar on her lap, she was crying so hard she didn’t even notice the door open.

“Jules!” – Nemona called for her, with just about as much pain in her voice as her friend had just moments ago.

            The girl who was sobbing suddenly froze and looked up.

“Nemo?”

            Nemona walked up to her friend, took the guitar from her lap and ducked down to her level, pulled some of the hair that was covering her face behind her ear and smiled.

“You never told me you sang!!!”

“Well… ahm… it just never really came up I guess.”

            Nemona just stood there face to face with Juliana, looking her in the eyes for a moment, before she proceeded.

“You know, you owe me an explanation.”

“I know, I tried to find you before I went, I tried to call… I…. I’m so-”

“Shhhhh” – Nemona pressed a finger to her friend’s lips to silence her. “You owe me an explanation, but not now.” 

Nemona stood up and pulled her friend off her chair and into her arms. Juliana just buried her face in Nemona’s neck, as she pulled her closer and started caressing the back off her head. The two girls stood there hugging for what seemed like an eternity, truth is, neither of them wanted to let go, Juliana could hear Nemona’s breathing and Nemona could feel Juliana’s heartbeat pressed up against her chest, they were perfectly in sync, just like in many other things. 

“I was never going to leave you” – Juliana broke the silence, still holding on to the other girl.

“I couldn’t just leave you, I only accepted because it was temporary, and I even considered not going when I didn’t find you the day I went.”

“¡Cállate loca!” – Nemona exclaimed as she pulled her friend closer. “I would kill you if you didn’t go, I’m sorry, I overreacted.” 

            Juliana squeezed Nemona before letting go from the hug, but Nemona didn’t fully back away, leaving them mere inches from each other’s face. They looked into each other’s eyes for a solid minute before they both became quite flustered, trying to hide the sudden shade of red that flooded her face, Juliana hugged Nemona again and that’s when she heard Nemona, in a shaky voice that wasn’t at all usual in her.

            “Jules?”

            “Di-me tesoro.” – Juliana answered, blushing even harder while taking shelter in Nemona’s arms.

            Nemona’s grip tightened around the girl, as if she was trying to hide the fact that she was now shaking.

            “I… ahm… how do I say this…” She dragged trying to muster the courage to say it. “I… I always was… yours to lose…”

[asma-al-husna]

Allah calls Himself Al-Haseeb— The Reckoner, The Accountant, The Sufficient— on three occasions in the Quran. He’s the one who keeps account of everything in the worlds and requites even the smallest of deeds. Al-Haseeb is The Sufficient; in general because He takes care of all His slaves, giving them benefits and warding off harm. Al-Haseeb takes extra special care of those of His pious slaves who put their trust in Him, giving them support and victory!

The Ultimate Reckoner, Accountant, and Sufficient One

Haseeb and Haasib come from the root haa-seen-baa, which points out to three main meanings. The first meaning is reckoning, counting, and calculating. The second main meaning of this root is to give without sparing and to give without the receiver’s expectation. The third is to suffice, to be sufficient, or to be without measure.

This root appears 109 times in the Quran in eight derived forms. Examples of these forms are tahsabanna (“think”), hasbunaa (“sufficient for us”), and al hisaab (“the account”).

Linguistically, hisaab is used to indicate an account, bill, or balance. Al-Haseeb is the One in whose hand is the final account on the Day of Judgement and He will present to mankind their balance in which every detail will recorded to be followed by a most accurate, just, and eternal recompense.

Al-Haseeb Himself says: Is not Allaah Sufficient for His slave? [Quran 39:36] … And sufficient is Allah as Accountant.” [Quran, 4:6] and … And when you are greeted with a greeting, greet [in return] with one better than it or [at least] return it [in a like manner]. Indeed, Allah is ever, over all things, an Accountant. [Quran, 4:86]

Running the Cosmos with Ease

The name Al-Haseeb is close in meaning to Al-Hafeedh, The Preserver. The balance of the entire cosmos shows that there’s a great power capable of computing even the smallest atom up to the largest planet; that power is Allah (swt). The course of the moon, the sun, the clouds, the change of seasons and all systems in the universe perfectly run their course to guarantee the preservation of our life on earth in the best way so that we are able to do what we are created for: to worship Al-Haseeb.
Surely we have created everything according to a measure. And our command is but one, as (swift as) the twinkling of an eye. [Quran 54:49-50] His attribute of hasaba truly is miraculous.

How Can You Live By This Name?

1. Bring yourself to account.
[It will be said], Read your record. Sufficient is yourself against you this Day as accountant. [Quran, 17:14]. Make it a daily habit, for example before you go to sleep, to sit back and do ‘muhassabah: honest self-criticism. Bring yourself to account before you’re brought to account. Make a list with your main weaknesses and make a practical plan on how to work on them.

2. Repent within six hours to Al-Haseeb.
A very important consequence of taking yourself to account is that you repent. How can you repent if you don’t even realize you did something wrong? That’s why al muhassabah is so important. The Prophet salallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam told us about a beautiful opportunity: The Scribe on the left delays registering the sin of a Muslim for six hours. If he repents (within these six hours), and seeks Allah’s forgiveness, they drop if off. If he doesn’t, they write is down as a single sin. [At-Tabaranee] When you’re about to sin, remind yourself that this sin will be written down and presented to you on the scariest day of your life: the day of Judgement. Take your chance to repent within six hours to avoid your sin being presented to you on this dreadful day.

3. Be honest in your dealings.
Even when people might not find out you were not honest in your dealings, Al-Haseeb will add it to your account. So always be honest in any transactions you do, at work, at school, even in dividing things at home amongst your family and children.

4. Say hasbun-Allaahu wa ni’mal wakeel.

‎حَسْبُنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيلُ means Allah is Sufficient for us, and He is the Best Disposer of affairs and is one of the most powerful statements we are taught to say in the Quran and the Sunnah. If you put your complete trust in Al-Haseeb, by leaving all matters to Him by seeking only His pleasure, by accepting His decree, and by submitting to His will, you can face any challenge in life. Ibn ‘Abbas radiyallahu ‘anhu said: When (Prophet) Ibraheem ‘alayhi sallam was thrown into the fire, he said: Allah (Alone) is sufficient for us, and, He is the Best Disposer of affairs [Al-Bukharee].

5. Return the greeting of salaam.
Al-Haseeb even accounts our salaam. He ‘azza wa jall instructs us: And when you are greeted with a greeting, greet [in return] with one better than it or [at least] return it [in a like manner]. Indeed, Allah is ever, over all things, an Accountant.[Quran, 4:86]
So if a Muslim greets you with the salaam, return the greeting with a better salaam (wa ‘alaykum ussalaam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu), or at least equal to the salaam that was given. Therefore, the better salaam is recommended, while returning it equally is an obligation.

6. Ask Al-Haseeb.Aim high in asking Allah Al-Haseeb; instead of just asking for Paradise, ask for the highest level, Jannatul Firdaws bi ghayri hisaab– without reckoning. A very important daily dhikr is: حَسْبِىَ اللّٰهُ لَآ اِلَهَ اِلَّا هُوَ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ وَ هُوَ رَبُّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيْمِ Allah is sufficient for me. There is no God but He. I have placed my trust in Him, He is Lord of the Majestic Throne. Whoever says this seven times in the morning after fajr and seven times after Asr, Allah will take care of whatever worries him/her of the matter of this world and the Hereafter. [Muslim]

O Allah, Al-Haseeb, we know that You measure and bring all to account. Guide us in bringing ourselves to account regularly, make us of those who remember Your hisaab and repent to You continuously, and adorn us with trust in You during all life’s challenges. You are sufficient for us and You are the best disposer of our affairs, make us reflect the signs of Your amazing attribute of hasaba in the entire universe and in ourselves and make us enter Jannatul Firdaws al ‘Alaa without reckoning, ameen!

[cloverdaisies]

BLACK HEARTS - L.SY C.CH L.JY

description: a mysterious trio rules the night, masked in balaclavas armed with whatever they could get their hands on… one favor can reveal a whole lot more than you expect. this is not your first visit to the black hearted universe.

member: sangyeon, chanhee, juyeon x you

genre: angst!action!crime!au!

channel: @deoboyznet

warnings: violence! triggering scenes! reader discretion is advised.

a/n: big thank you to @winterchimez and @heemingyu for helping to curate the ideas to write this piece !! i challenged myself to write this in an hour !! which i just about achieved !! i just had a moment where i was like guys let’s put our brains together and that idea of spontaneity is what makes pieces like this special!

When imagining criminal talk, you imagine murder, guns, the same cold-hearted clichè you hear on the silver screen, however when encountering brains that are not well developed enough to find full time jobs to be honorable members of society you find conversations like these:

“I’m literally batman.” Sangyeon spits across the passenger seat where Juyeon is busy groaning in annoyance, left palm rested on his head.

“No because that would mean I’m robin which is just so wrong.” Juyeon retorted, looking out to the road ahead ignoring the disappointment from Chanhee who had the courtesy of listening to these imbecilic conversations in the back seat.

“Guys-” Chanhee began but was shortly cut off.

“I would be batman.”

“No you wouldn’t, I’m batman.”

“Literally how? I’m batman.”

“Guys?” Chanhee couldn’t seem to get a word in between the two grown men as they drove to their destination, seemingly forgetting all about any plans or what they had to do. “You both are batman, I’m robin.”

Being the only one with a degree in computer science and the brains to execute any plans, Chanhee didn’t mind being robin as long as it settled the childish arguments between the two.

“We’re 5 minutes out, I’ve got into the security systems and disabled the CCTV cameras so we should be good to go. The place closes in 10.” Finally getting his words heard, the other two boys nodded and Sangyeon stepped on the gas - a wide cheshire cat grin spread across his face.

The night was a deep navy, the clouds wrapping up the silver crescent moon in a soft grey blanket, the street lights flickered as the wind hurled and whistled like the sound of pained ghosts.

A small café, bar at night, dimly lit with warm lights stood out from the other stores on 7th street, the place always did well and attracted customers from all over the globe with its homemade goods, in house brewery and highly prestigious aesthetics.

You were working your late shift that night and if you hadn’t noticed the red security light on the cameras begin blinking and suddenly going out - you’d have no reason to believe anything was wrong.

On the phone to your manager, you frantically began asking whether the security had been breached, as you couldn’t get on the till machine to view the stores earnings either - being the lazy old man who you’d woke up from his beauty sleep, he of course began yelling and being entirely unhelpful.

“I’m telling you, I can’t get on to the checkout the lights on the cameras have gone off, I’m scared this hasn’t happened before.” You try to your best to explain how dire the situation was but it was clearly landing on deaf ears.

“Y/N, it must happen all the time. I’m going back to bed I don’t have time for your shit this evening.” With that he hung up, leaving you afraid and the sound of tires screeching from behind the glass window pane had made everything you suspected feel as if it was coming true.

Frantically you got down behind the counter, making an attempt to press the panic alarm but failing as the sound of the door being shattered into tiny crystals screamed through the store, masking your whimpers you kept a tight grip of your mouth.

“Hey kitty cat? You can come out we know you’re here.” A low voice purred, already mapping out the sequence of your death you kept quiet and tried to prolong the moment.

“Come on birdy, you can’t hide.” With that two feet landed in front of you with a slam, a man dressed in all black, features covered by a balaclava crouched in front of you, a pair of unsettlingly familiar cat eyes smiling at you. He reached out, gently pulling your hand away from your mouth. “You know, I won’t hurt you, we just want some cash darling.”

In his right hand was a smaller gun which he didn’t point directly at you, he just led you to the counter where you hadn’t transported the money to the safe yet.

You opened it allowing him to grab all the cash you’d made that day and stuff it into the duffel bag the other was holding.

“Thanks, princess.” The other zipped up the bag, noting the sound of sirens beckoning in the distance.

Since you were unharmed, you didn’t really care that they’d stolen all the money you’d earned that day, after all you never saw a penny of it anyways. However, you’d realized there was a third man in the mix, slightly daintier in frame who rushed out of the private stairwell carrying an arm load of cash stolen from the high security safe upstairs - how did he even get in there?

The sirens closed in, they began to panic as the red and blue flashes closed in on the store.

“Go out the back. It’s unlocked.” You had no idea why you’d told them that, however something in your conscience told you to, whether the devil on your shoulder had told you or you genuinely hated your job that much.

“Why?-” The familiar cat eyes asked, whilst the doe eyed one also stared in confusion over at you.

“Guys there’s no time let’s go.” The muscle of the group barged through the back door, just in time for officers to breach the building.

“Are you unharmed? Are the perpetrators still in the building?” An officer with a megaphone yelled into the store, you did the standard procedure and walked out with your hands in the air.

The last thing you expected was to be grounded to the floor by an officer, your face hitting the pavement lightly with your hands behind your back.

“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.” The officer spoke in a gruff voice, screaming to stop resisting as you laid confused.

“I literally work here. I didn’t do anything.”

“Ma’am this store closed hours ago, you have no-”

A shot, a deafening shot that began a frenzy, the officer behind you fell to the floor before you were grabbed and within half a millisecond told to sprint.

A jet black Mercedes had blocked the main road, the sound of chaos erupting behind you, before the door opened and you were let in. The driver sped to the scene before your saviour swept into the passenger seat, if they'd been able to send more police cars there would have been a high likelihood you'd have never gotten away. However, leaving the scene the immense stomach feeling of guilt consumed you.

"You killed a man? Why would you do that?" You yelled suddenly as a silence grew across the men that had gotten you in to the situation.

"Hey, I didn't kill him, it’s not fatal he’ll be fine.” Pulling off the mask, cat eyes revealed himself, his black hair, sharp gestures and sultry voice. Juyeon Lee? You almost couldn’t believe your eyes.. nevermind look at his.

“Besides he would have either killed you or you’d be behind bars. No state attorney would give you a good time in court, we’re just repaying the favor.” Also ripping off his balaclava the driver looked back at you in your seat, his honey skin and deep brown eyes. Sangyeon?

“Do you guys have no sympathy? Is this what you’re doing with your lives now?” You asked distraught over the entire situation that had unfolded.

“Sometimes it’s safer to be feared than loved, y/n.” Sangyeon looked back, a sadistic grin painted across his lips as he almost looked down on your tears.

“Just be quiet and we’ll talk more when we get back. Sangyeon drive.” The boy next to you spoke, his eyes engrossed in the laptop in front of him. He had a more ethereal appearance than the others almost fairy-like which must be a great disguise of innocence for the life he lived. Possibly the most shocking reveal of them all, Chanhee Choi.

Despite feeling as if your entire world had collapsed in front of you and the wavering feelings of guilt eating you up like a lion to steak, somehow it was the most alive you felt in a long time. However the most shocking reveal of this entire encounter was that the same people you’d went to high school with, were living double lives as some of the most notorious criminals in the city.

As you’d arrived a small home located in the middle of a forest area you hadn’t recognized before, the same familiar cat eyes had something to say after the others had already wandered inside.

“I don’t want to be anywhere near you.” You looked at Juyeon seriously folding your arms, had you not had history you probably would have been more grateful for his actions tonight.

“That was years ago, darling. Do you think I still love you? Do you think I still care?” He laughed, his teeth curling into a smirk and his tongue poking the side of his jaw.

“Clearly! You jumped in front of an armed police officer you absolute maniac. I was always right about you, you’ve become some kind of psycho, that’s why I broke up with you and why the hell is Chanhee even involved with you?” You yelled, quickly being hushed by his voice as he stepped closer.

Something about meeting an ex after years of being apart can feel awkward, but for you it felt like time never passed. The evil inherently toxic nature of Juyeon was always drawing no matter how much you told yourself no, it was addicting.. those feelings of spite, anger, envy were all things that buried that burning feeling of love.

As he looked at you under the moonlight you’d been reminded of the way his eyes softened, the way that the cold words he choses were always ways of communicating that he cared. He didn’t enjoy that he’d corrupted your life, he thought he was saving you. If you couldn’t bare the weight of your world he would take you into his, he didn’t want to ruin your life.. He’d risk his life for you, since he knew his was a lot less “valuable”, which you continuously told him back then wasn’t true.

“Maybe I do but remember, you wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for me y/n and I told you not to fall in love with me.” He shook his head, looking down at you, tracing his finger across your jaw, bringing back all those feelings of safety you once felt. “There’s nothing left for you but me. Everyone else is gone. It’s always been that way and you know that.”

Unfortunately he was right.

TBC.

[curator-on-ao3]

Again, cool response to the last question, so I'll let you pick from these options:

And there are things I have fan-fixed in my head to the point that I have to remind myself that the fix-it isn’t part of the actual canon: favourite one of these?

Or

Your/a favourite part of actual canon. Like, maybe something little but it's just so lovely and fitting to you and you're just happy that it exists?

I’ve been a little down on Trek lately, so I’m going to type as fast as I can to brain-dump, in show order, the first things that pop into my mind that I absolutely love in Trek canon:

Kirk calling Nomad his son, the doctor

Christine Chapel’s snark to Roger Korby about schtupping the androids

Mark Leonard’s performance in Balance of Terror

the Horta (a great mama)

“Edith Keeler must die.”

Captain John Christopher, United States Air Force. Serial number 4857932.

Tribbles

the lesson of The Cloud Minders that we must have empathy and listen to others when they tell us about their lived experience in an environment unlike our own

the cheap-ass animation of TAS

Q

Bynars and Minuet

Beverly Crusher’s frustration in Arsenal of Freedom (and the episode’s Good Ship Lollipop joke)

Picard shooting the other version of himself in Time Squared (to clarify: out of respect for those times when we have to stop ourselves from getting caught in loops/doing stupid stuff and we summon up the courage to break a bad cycle and move forward)

K'Ehleyr

Picard out-lawyering the Sheliak

Rachel Garrett; Yar and Castillo

Lal (but I can’t watch the end anymore, it hurts too much)

the Shakespeare and “Set a course for Betazed. Warp 9.” comedy in Ménage a Troi

Best of Both Worlds, I and II (Shelby inclusive)

every conference table discussion in all of TNG

Beverly’s jump in Remember Me (such a damn good episode)

the reveal in Future Imperfect (which one? all of them)

The Dancing Doctor tap dancing with Data

Darmok. And Jalad. At Tenagra.

Ro Laren

Troi saying, “You could have easily been right” to Ro in Disaster

Hugh, Third of Five

the fact that The Next Phase has so many plotholes and they’re forgivable because the episode is so fun and great

Scotty on the holodeck version of the TOS bridge and Picard joining him

Rascals!

Deanna’s “Ancient West” outfit

the Jefferies tube music and make out session in Lessons

Attached. Oh, my heart.

the Enterprise with three nacelles … and that absolutely perfect last shot of the series

“You exist here.”

Sisko’s casual, everyday affection for Jake

“Old Man”

Rejoined. Lenara Khan. The love. That kiss. The emotional stakes. All of it.

the three Ferengi hitting their own heads to try to fix their universal translators so the 20th century Earth military people mimic the movement to try to communicate

every second of Trials and Tribble-ations including Sisko working overtime to stop fuckmaster Dax, tossing the tribbles, Sisko meeting Kirk, “We do not discuss it with outsiders,” and so much more

Kira blaming Bashir for putting the baby inside her when … you know … behind the scenes

The Sons of Mogh helping with the harvest in Children of Time

Far Beyond the Stars — some of the best if not the best science fiction I have ever seen

the monster fakeout (and kindness) in The Sound of Her Voice, even though the end makes me cry

“Computer, erase that entire personal log.”

Solok

Sisko and Kassidy discussing their comfort levels about a simulation in which the reality was segregation

Janeway waterfalling off the sofa to be closer to Mark on the screen

“Warp particles!”

the lizard babies

the two Janeways in Deadlock

Remember (a painfully good Holocaust episode that doesn’t get enough credit and, yes, I know the path the script took and I’m glad it ended up as a B’Elanna episode)

“I don't know what I'm seeking.” “Then I believe you are ready to begin.”

“The child you spoke of, the girl. Her favorite color was red.” Also, Tuvok’s meditation lamp in the window for Kes.

hot damn, Counterpoint, yaaas

everything in Relativity

“The Yankees, in six games.”

Janeway going after Seven in The Voyager Conspiracy

“This is Lieutenant Reginald Barclay at Starfleet Command.” “It's good to hear your voice, Lieutenant. We've been waiting a long time for this moment.” “The feeling is mutual. Unfortunately, the micro-wormhole is collapsing. We have only a few moments.” “Understood. We are transmitting our ship's logs, crew reports, and navigational records to you now.” “Acknowledged. And we're sending you data on some new hyper-subspace technology. We're hoping eventually to use it to keep in regular contact, and we're including some recommended modifications for your comm system.” “We'll implement them as soon as possible.” “There's someone else here who would also like to say something.” “This is Admiral Paris.” “Hello, sir.” “How are your people holding up?” “Very well. They're an exemplary crew, your son included.” “Tell him, tell him I miss him. And I'm proud of him.” “He heard you, Admiral.” “The wormhole is collapsing.” “I want you all to know we're doing everything we can to bring you home.” “We appreciate it, sir. Keep a docking bay open for us.”

“Nice hair.” (Live Fast and Prosper)

Janeway and Jaffen in Workforce

the spot-on legal concerns of Author, Author

“Set a course. For home.”

(Nothing from Enterprise or Prodigy only because I haven’t watched enough of Enterprise or any of Prodigy)

Burnham and Georgiou forming the delta with their footsteps

the CGI on only the shields protecting Burnham from space

“Are we in session? Because I didn't know you were practicing again. Because if I have your undivided attention for fifty minutes, I can think of a whole bunch of other things we could be doing.”

“That's as depressing a trait as I've ever heard.” “I don't give a damn … I still don't give a damn.”

Cornwell beaming in, phaser aimed, taking command of Discovery

Cornwell phasering the fortune cookies

Cornwell’s voice breaking: “So my Gabriel is dead.”

Detmer’s little bounce when Emperor-as-Captain Georgiou takes command

Pike beaming aboard and instantly being all like MOJAVE to prove to the audience he’s the guy from The Cage

New Eden. Everything. Oh my God (pun intended). The visuals. Owo’s backstory. Pollard patching Pike up after he’s shot. The light at the end. Oh my God, yes. That episode. Yes.

Number freaking One beaming aboard and having her lunch briefing with Pike (Chris and Una’s decades-long friendship wasn’t canon yet, but it shows here so beautifully)

Gabrielle Burnham

“In case the shit hit the fan.”

Michael Burnham on truth serum

Book

Laira Rillak, everyone!

Q&A

season 1 Raffi Musiker

Fleet Admiral and Commander-in-Chief Kirsten Clancy

“You owe me a ship, Picard.”

“You need a feather in your hat.”

Riker greeting Picard

Hugh greeting Picard

the separate trio of Raffi, Clancy, and Deanna all telling Picard he’s shit

Rios singing in Spanish

President Annika Hansen

everybody finding each other in the Confederation Universe

Liam Shaw — a character with incredible highs and lows

Majel Barrett as the computer voice when the crew gets to the Enterprise D

“Somehow I figured you might.”

everything in Ghosts of Illyria

Spock and La’an’s mind meld

Spock and T’Pring in Spock Amok

“You cannot resign. The loss to Enterprise would be unimaginable. To me.”

“If you’re going to steal a starship, do it correctly.”

Neera Ketoul

La’an normalizing needing to eat all the time as a teenager (especially important for girls to hear)

Pike and Una visually checking in with each other so often that it’s in their cartoon versions (that whole episode, actually, including, “Riker!”)

That’s scrolling through episode titles and jotting down stuff I love off the top of my head, fam.✨

Thank you so much for this ask, anon! ❤️ I needed this positive energy in my life.