#all i know is strictly vibes nothing but i’m already sold

[aylinaliens]

Bed Friend [2023]

[findmeintheferns]

your bestfriend’s roommate

(part one)

𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂: you’ve had the same plug for years, but he wasn’t replying & you were desperate. your bestfriend had been wanting you to switch to her roommate for ages so fuck it. problem is though, you weren’t expecting her to be this attractive…

𝓦𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰: a lil bit of smut, drug use (weed), slowish burn, kinda boring sorry lol writers block

𝓦𝓸𝓻𝓭 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽: 2.2 k

𝓟𝓪𝓲𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓰: dealer ellie williams (TLOU) x reader (y/n)

You stare down at your phone for the 100th time only to once again get met with a blank screen. It had been 5 whole hours yet still nothing. You tried not to let it bother you but at this point you were well and truly feeling impatient. You groan, flipping the phone over so you can no longer fixate on it.

Dina notices your frustration, “I’ve told you so many times that my friend is a way better plug, she replies almost instantly. Plus, she’s in my dorm, you can visit me & stock up at the same time.”

You’ve heard this spiel before, but you weren’t sold on it. You liked having a dealer that was strictly business, you’ve never been one to want to stay and chat, you just want to get your weed so you can go home & get high as soon as possible. Plus, you’ve had the same dealer for over 2 years now, going to someone else would be like a betrayal.

You go to reply but Dina beats you to it,

“Yeah, yeah I know. You guys have an unbreakable bond or whatever.”

You give her a small smile, “I mean hey if he doesn’t reply in the next hour, I might get desperate. I told Alex we could smoke & get ice-cream tonight.”

Dina lets out a snort, “Oof yeah, you’ll definitely be needing the weed if you’re spending the night hanging out with him.”

You roll your eyes, not wanting to reply to her snarky comment. You had nearly been dating for nearly a year, but she still hated him. She never really liked him in the first place, she says ‘his vibe is off’, whatever that means. After a little incident with his best friend Mia however, her dislike turned to hatred. Nothing bad even happened, you overreacted. They hung out, you weren’t aware, and you walked in on them hugging. You got upset at first yeah, but he reassured you that it meant nothing, that she was having a bad day and it was just a simple hug. You believe him, so that’s that.

Dina grabs your phone from off the table, distracting you from your thoughts.

“Just let me put her number in your contacts in case okay? Her name’s Ellie.”

“Fineeeee. I need to go anyway. If I don’t study for this exam I’m screwed, I slept through like half of the lectures.” You sigh, stressed about all the content you have to somehow remember over the span of a few days.

Dina pulls you into a hug, “You’re terrible. Good luck with that, I love you dumbass.”

You pull away and laugh at your brutally honest friend as she begins to walk away, “Yeah, yeah, I love you too I guess.”

You grab your bag, placing a tip under your now empty coffee cup before leaving the little café.

You stare at the clock, it’s an hour before you’re meant to meet Alex and your dealer still hasn’t replied.

“Ughhhhhhh. Whatever. Fine. Fuck it.” you murmur, pulling out your phone.

You really didn’t feel like texting a new dealer, you’re pretty introverted already and it seemed like a lot of effort. But what were you supposed to do.

You unlock your phone and open contacts, Ellie’s profile popping up straight away. You send a short text, introducing yourself as Dina’s friend and asking if she had anything to sell tonight, you weren’t in a place to be picky.

To your surprise it was only 5 minutes before you received a reply. Her response was short too;

-

ellie: yeah, i’ve got a bunch. do you want to come here & pick up? that way you can decide what you want

y/n: oh okay, sure. what time?

ellie: now?

y/n: okay. see u in 5.

ellie: you know where to find me

-

You did appreciate that she didn’t drag out the conversation, but you were still nervous about meeting someone new. Dina’s dorm room is only a short walk from yours which you couldn’t lie, was pretty convenient if Ellie did become your new dealer. Once you arrive at the door you stop for a moment and take a deep breath in, hoping the conversation would be as short as it always was with your normal dealer. If only Dina was here to make things less awkward, but she had volleyball on tonight.

You knock and the door opens instantly. Suddenly your whole body completely stiffens as your eyes meet the girl opening the door. You know you should be speaking right now, but you’re weren’t mentally prepared for this. She looked absolutely nothing like you had imagined. You don’t know why but you kinda assumed she’d be on the gross & dodgy side. She was in fact the complete opposite. She was wearing baggy grey sweatpants and a tank top that hugged her body. Her short brown hair was half tied up in a little knot, her fringe falling over her face. She must of been getting ready for bed. You really wish Dina had gone into more detail when describing her, you weren’t prepared for her to be this…well, attractive, for lack of better words.

“Y/n? You here to pick up yeah?” Ellie’s voice snapped you out of your thoughts.

“Hey, yeah, sorry. Yes I am” you quickly respond, kinda embarrassed about the pause.

“All good, come in and I’ll get you what you need. Sorry about the mess.”

You walk inside the dorm, you had been in there before obviously, but not while Ellie was there. You never even really payed attention to her side of the room yet now you can’t take your eyes off it.

“So, what are you after? I’ll see if I have some.” Ellie asks

“Honestly I don’t mind. Whatever’s your favourite at the moment”

You don’t want to drag this out, you need to head to Alex’s soon and you already feel awkward from the previous interaction.

“Hmmm. Probably blue dream then, it’s mostly Sativa. Really helps with relaxing.”

You shrug “I trust you.”

She puts your weed into a small ziplock baggie and you pay. You quickly try and say goodbye as you walk towards the door but she stops you

“Yeah you’re gonna have to stay at least for a little longer.”

Confused, you stare at her blankly, “Umm, why?”

She returns your glare, “Have you never picked up before or something?”

This kinda offends you and you don’t really know why.

“Yes I have. For your information my dealer just isn’t responding tonight. This is a one off.”

Ellie scoffs, “Huh, lemme guess. Derek is your dealer?”

This takes you back for a moment,

“Yeah… how do you know that?”

She laughs, relaxing her stance and moving to lean back onto her bed.

“Makes sense why you don’t know pick up etiquette. You need to stay here for a little so it doesn’t look sus. Otherwise cops will catch on, just like with your friend Derek. He was lazy and now he’s screwed. You definitely won’t be hearing from him for a while.”

Great. Well that makes sense why he wasn’t responding. You sigh and flop down onto Dina’s bed, staring up at the roof. You really don’t feel like staying here for any longer.

“Aww, am I that terrible to hang out with?”

You roll your head to stare at her, but she’s already looking at you. You wonder what she’s thinking.

“It’s not that” You lie, because it kinda is. “I’m just meant to be meeting up with Alex right now”

She laughs to herself again, “Oh that’s right, Alex, your boyfriend.”

“What’s funny about that? How do you even know that?” you retort, pissed off at this point.

“No, no, nothing. Dina told me is all.” She smiles

You sit up, ready to leave, “Right, well, I need to go. Thanks for the weed.”

You move towards the door but once again Ellie stops you before you can open it.

“Hey, I’m sorry” She says softly “I didn’t meant to upset you, stay a little longer and have a joint.”

The way she’s looking at you makes your stomach churn, but not in a bad way. There’s something so endearing about her, even when she’s pissing you off.

“I really should go, I’ll be late” You respond, trying to not be tempted by the offer.

“It’s on me, just because I annoyed you” she smirks.

You know you should decline, but it’s a lot harder than it would seem.

“Fine. One joint”

So, you didn’t just have one joint, you both shared quite a few. You weren’t sure if it was just the weed that made being around Ellie more manageable, but you were actually having fun. You unintentionally lost track of time, talking about anything and everything. Ellie told you all about her Astronomy major and her favourite astronaut, Sally Ride. You told her about how much you hated math and your inability to focus during lectures. You had moved closer together so that you were both laying down, squished on the same bed staring at the roof. Ellie turned her head to face yours,

“You look pretty stoned” she whispered, a big grin on her face.

She was so close to you it made you nervous, but also kinda excited. She looked incredibly attractive, you kept trying to deny it, but you couldn’t help it. The way she held herself, the way she spoke, her looks, all of it was pulling you in even though you knew it shouldn’t.

You giggled, wanting to reply with a snarky comment but being too high to think of one. You went to take the joint from her, but got distracted by the tattoo on her arm. It was pretty big, it was some sort of moth and a fern. You followed it down until it ended, stopping at her hand. You intertwined your fingers with hers, lifting it up so you could get a better look.

“What?” she laughed, confused as to what you were trying to do.

You didn’t think, you just spoke, “You have really attractive hands Ellie”

For a moment she looked taken back by your comment, but she was too high too overthink it. She moved so that her body was on top of yours, your hands still connected. You felt yourself getting wet, too horny to think about the consequences of what was happening right now. She grinded her thigh into your pussy causing your eyes to roll back as you let out a soft moan. She leaned down and pushed your hair behind your ear.

“Oh yeah?” she whispered, replying to your previous statement “You should see what they can d-“

Ellie was cut off by the sound of ringing. Fuck. You jerk up, grabbing your phone. Surely enough, it was Alex calling. What had you done.

“Fuck, fuck-fuck-fuck” you mumble under your breath, picking up the phone call.

-

Alex: “Y/n? You okay?”

Y/n: “Alex I’m so sorry I was studying and I must have fallen asleep.”

Alex: “Ah, no weed then?”

Y/n: “No weed, I’m sorry. Rain check?”

Alex: “All good, love you.”

Y/n: “Love you.”

-

You felt incredibly guilty, probably the most guilty you’ve ever felt in your life. How could you lose track of time like that? How could you act on impulse like that?

Ellie broke you out of your train of thought “Shit. I don’t even know how that happened. Y/n? Are you okay? Fuck I’m sorry.”

You knew you had to leave before you made an even more regrettable decision. Quickly grabbing your stuff you began to walk to the door,

“All good. I need to go. Thanks, erm, for the weed”

Ellie tries to say something else but it’s too late, you are out of the dorm in no time, almost sprinting back to your room.

That night you got barely any sleep, mad at yourself for taking things so far. You knew it was wrong, so why did you feel yourself wanting more.

[fansofvow]

Fan Spotlight 🎉

Alright, enough with all the negative vibes. This is my blog and I feel I am allowed to vent on it, but I do want to swing things back to positivity so let me turn that Spotlight back on and shine it on @alex-cyprin​. They choose the following image to represent themselves:

Name/ Handle: Usually people call me Alex due to my username, though I’m comfortable being called Vik.

Nationality: I’m a Pacific Islander.

Where can we find your art? Alex-cyprin is my handle on Tumblr, I go by the same name on Instagram.

How/when did you discover Lovestruck? I didn’t exactly know Lovestruck, instead I knew of the individual apps since I was already into otome games and a fan of Voltage Japan.

What was your first route? Medusa, like I said, I was aware of the individual app for Astoria and Medusa and Hades were heavily praised. She was my first choice.

Are you currently following any route? Wrath, Yvette, lowkey Nav but I’ve never read him but I do get a lot of content from him. XD

Which route is your favorite? Ultimate favorite route is Cyprin of course. Though followed by them is Rory.

Were you aware of the writers’ strike when it was happening? Yes I was! Reached out to a few to show some support.

Who are your Top 3 LIs according to the app? Are they still your top three? Ahh so embarrassing, my top three isn't accurate from what I truly read! Most is from heart Quests and I tend to get a lot of repeats. My Top three according to the app is Renzei, Cal and Zoe. Renzei and Zoe are strictly by heart quest. Cal is because I love MC’s booty ❤️

What piece of art are you most proud of? I would like to say the recent Cyprin art I did for their birthday, it’s a combination of lovestruck and Final Fantasy XIV as the card derives from one of the special cards of Astrologian.

What artist inspires you? I don’t have a specific artist though I originally wanted to draw due to all these comic books I’ve been reading.

What is your favorite Lovestruck CG? Favorite goes to Rory! I can’t help it when she has so much!

Do you have a favorite screenshot? I'd be lying if I didn’t do this too!

Do you read / create art for other fandoms? Drawing never originated by my love of Lovestruck. It came from my Naruto fandom! I lowkey into ocs and rp there. I’ve met one of my closest friends to whom I still talk with.

What would you say to someone considering reading Lovestruck? The stories are written all so good you truly get attached to the character. I think once that happens, I’m sold. Stories always make the characters, if they want grade A story with some visual aspect to it, Lovestruck is there.

Finally, one LI, 24 hours to do whatever you want: who is it and what do you do? After a lot of thinking and talking, I’d pick Rory. I’d love to spend a day of nothing but whirlwind. Cruising all around LA, drinking some orgasms, running into whatever casino and gambling till someone kicks out Rory. Lord knows i'd be the poor sucker they try to drain my money. Though after such whirlwind of a day, I’d like to just stay in the mansion with Rory, playing a simple card game with Rory to the tune of Me Gusts by Anitra, Cardi B and Myke Towers. We have whatever take out the gang decided for the night.

[evening-starlight]

Chances {Chapter Fourteen}

This chapter super heavy and long

Master List

T/W: mentions of grooming, domestic abuse, divorce, cursing, sex

Finally Light

Word Count: 2027

    This chapter is fucking heavy, guys. There will be talks of grooming, sex, abuse, and overall bad vibes. Please be careful reading, and if it's too much, you can skip this chapter. I will never ever hold that over you if this could be triggering. Take care of yourself first.

    I sit with my back to Tom's. We got home a few minutes ago and decided to do a trick Stevie had taught me when I was having trouble opening up. Back to back was supposed to help me feel like I was talking to myself about everything.

    This is supposed to be the part where I spill my guts and everything that happened with Jared, but I can't. I know he won't judge. He's shown that over the last few months of us being together. Tom's taken it slow, and he's shown me multiple times I can trust him. But this might break us.

    I take a deep breath and start from the very beginning. "I was introduced to Jared at fourteen. I was young and naive, and he was an older, wiser man. He told me the things I wanted to hear. But, as I've said before, it was all innocent for a few years. He'd introduce me to his girlfriends as his little sister for the longest time. He'd help me with my homework and would scare away the bullies.

    "He had me sleepover at his house whenever my parents were fighting, which was a lot. It wasn't until sixteen that things started getting weird. I basically lived there from sixteen on. I showered, slept, ate, and hung out there with my friends. It became my home. It was more home than my parents' house.

    "Again, it started innocently. I'd be in the shower, and Jared would need something from the bathroom. I used his a lot just because the water pressure was the best. But it was glass. He'd shield his eyes the first few times and then would walk in without bothering.

    "Slowly, he'd just stay in there and have chats with me. We'd talk about innocent stuff like school or work. We'd talk about how the band was doing and if we found a record label yet. That's actually where he offered to get me a deal with his record label while I was in the shower. And he did. He made good on that promise. Virgin Records signed us the next month for four records. But I thought it was all normal things friends did for and with each other.

    "Jared was a king at making me think I was crazy. He did it all the time that, at one point, I thought I was. He called me dramatic and a girly girl whenever I made a deal about wanting to do something he didn't want me to do. Like, go to prom. I missed out on every high school prom because he didn't want me to go with another boy. Hell, I missed out on graduation because we were on our honeymoon.

    "We had a sleepover the night before my eighteenth. He said it was because he wanted to be the first person to wish me a happy birthday when I woke up, but looking back, he really just wanted to be there when I legally turned eighteen to do everything he's dreamt and said he wanted to do to me. He'd say things all the time like, 'the boy who gets to fuck you first is going to be so lucky.' or 'I'm surprised I don't have boys knocking down my door to come in and take you.' I thought that's just what you say to your friends.

    "But that night, we went to bed in his bed, and I remember waking up to him going down on me. The clock read twelve o'five. He waited until exactly midnight to start, like those few seconds between the 23rd and 24th would mature my brain. At the time, I thought it was romantic. He waited four long years to do this." I feel the cool tears stream down my face as I remember that traumatic night. The rock in my stomach grows with every sentence I utter, slowly causing my voice to become tight. Like the rock was taking up my airways. "And then he started changing.

    "He wasn't my best friend anymore. He was this controlling monster. He slowly drove a wedge between me and everyone I cared about, including Robbie. Granted, Robbie was still reaching out to me every day with stupid memes and horrible jokes. And I saw the band once a week in the studio, but only because Jared would be there with me. He wouldn't let me go in alone. I thought it was romantic.

    "I almost broke up the band because they were always so mean to Jared. They would make mean faces and be short. They'd start arguments when I was in the booth and couldn't hear what they were saying. And they tried to kick him out of Robbie's parents' house when we went over to announce our engagement. At the time, it was awful. My friends weren't accepting of my love for Jared. They were the problem." I choke back a sob, replaying all the fights the band and I had about my engagement.

    "Soon after our engagement," I continue. "Jared started controlling me even more. He sold my car without asking because 'I have him now' and our driver, why would I ever need to drive myself anywhere? He went through and blocked everyone's number that was a guy and the band except Naomi. She was the only person allowed to text me and strictly band things. I thought this was all normal. I thought this is what you do when you're in love.

    "The band came to my wedding, only because I wouldn't talk to Jared until he agreed to have them there. Robbie was actually my bro of honor; he didn't want to be called a maid at the time but now relishes in the term. I wouldn't let up on that either. Jared had drilled it into my head that I was unloveable. That he would be the only man who has ever loved me and will ever love me until I die. Fuck, those were even his vows, 'I have proven I am the only man who can and will ever love you the way you deserve to be treated.'" I sob loudly. Tom reaches back and holds my hand tightly, grounding me slightly.

    "That cemented it in my head. Deserve. Deserve to be treated. I deserved to be treated like he was treating me. I had done nothing wrong my entire life, but obviously, if he puts it into our eternal vows, it's true. I was eighteen. I didn't know any better.

    "My parents were talking to me more, wanting to be a part of my life. But every time I spoke about something bothering me, I was told to suck it up; that's just what a wife does. Suck it up and suck him off.

    "It wasn't until a studio day when Jared was away on a movie set, and Shannon was out of town, that things started coming to light. I was arguing with Robbie about this god-awful melody he came up with. Like to this day, I still think he did it on purpose to start a fight," I say with a  light laugh. "And then Robbie slapped me. Like, hard. Red marks and everything. I gave him a fat lip in return, and the first thing out of his mouth was, 'so why do you fight back when I hit you, but you let Jared abuse you like that?'" Tom squeezes my hand as I choke again.

    "I was with him another six months before he went from slapping to fists." I swallow harshly. I hate talking about this part. The traumatic events making my hands clammy and shake. "I was black and blue for weeks, and after one vicious fight, he wasn't discrete about where they were placed. So I avoided the public for three weeks, hiding in the house as the bruises and cuts went away.

    "I realized I was alone. I was totally alone in this marriage. I didn't have a husband, I had an abuser, and my friends were right. So I called Naomi one day when Jared was gone and had them meet me at her apartment. We came up with the money and the plan to get me out of that relationship. So I moved in with Robbie and Naomi, where Jared couldn't find me, and had my lawyer serve him.

    "And then my parents found me. I don't know how, but they showed up at the apartment door and started berating me about how a divorce will mess up my life and how I can't do that because what will it say about them? That their daughter is twenty and divorced like a slut.

    "I couldn't believe it. Maybe I was supposed to be unloveable my whole life. Maybe my friends were just big dreamers, and I deserved every punch and awful name thrown at me. Jared flipped his tune on a dime after he was served and got ahold of me.

    "He offered me my own place to live, that he'd pay for it as long as I stayed married to him. He'd find the perfect place for me, with a  view and everything. He'd buy me a car and let me drive myself to the studio. I felt like I was falling in love again, but I wasn't. I was falling into a false sense of relief.

    "His name is on the lease and continues to send gifts, trying to buy my love back.

    "It was a messy divorce" I get back on track. "When I moved out of his place and into mine, it became clear what all I was missing. I was missing club nights with the gang, movies, and normal young adult things. I already missed out on my teenagehood. I wasn't going to let him ruin my twenties. So I threatened him that I would leak all the evidence and information I have about him if he doesn't sign the papers. They were in my lawyer's office the next day.

    "He didn't let me read the prenup before I signed it. The entire divorce settlement went to my parents. They got to be filthy rich for the rest of their lives like they always wanted to be. Jared sends them thousands every month that should have been sent to me.

    "He's threatened to take away my deal, my apartment, and ruin my name every day. Obviously, I still live there and have my deal, but he shows up everywhere all the time. He seeks me out and inserts himself into my life. I've tried everything, but even restraining orders can do so much. And I do fall back into that habit when things are hard. He's easy. I know what to expect from him. I know how to conduct myself to keep him happy. I know him." I pause, thinking over if I missed anything with Jared. "So, that's the sob story of my awful past." I finish. I hear Tom sniffling behind me. "Are you crying?" I ask.

    Tom turns around and hugs me. "I'm so sorry you had to go through all that, Love. He's a terribly awful man who should be behind bars the rest of his life." I hold onto him tighter. I knew he cared, but enough to cry on my behalf? "If I ever do anything that reminds you of him, please just let me know. I never want you to go through that again. Especially with me." I let myself cry, releasing all the shame, guilt, and horror that's sat in my stomach my whole life.

    I felt lighter after that night. Tom has this extraordinary power of making me feel like I was a feather and worthy of love. He's never lost it, and I hope I never do.

Tag List: @queenofallhobos​

[kbrown78]

Monthly Wrap Up: December

Last month of the year! This was the month where I tried to tackle all the books that I had set aside that I wanted to read before the end of the year, and I actually managed to read all but one of them, so that was good. Unfortunately it wasn't a great reading month. There was one book that I really loved, but the rest of the books were just mediocre or bad. 2 of those books I gave 1 stars to and 1 of them was the last full length novel I read this year, which was a huge disappointment. The very last book I read this year was a collection of short stories that I had already read and while it wasn't bad, it wasn't as good as I remember it being. So it's sad that I ended this reading year not with a bang but with a fizzle. I do plan on posting a yearly wrap up and some best and worst of the year lists, but I can't say when that will come out because I imagine they will take awhile. Happy New Years to everyone and I hope you have a good 2019.  

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant: I was intrigued by the premise of The Red Tent, with it being biblical fiction novel that focuses on the females, specifically Jacob's wives and his daughter who is only mentioned once in the Bible. I was in the mood for a historical fiction and for a female driven narrative, so I picked this one up. I would recommend this book if your looking for a light historical fiction novel, with little action, and don't mind the fact that the story is based on stories from the Bible. The first half was decent when it focused on Jacob's four wives: Leah, Rachel, Zilaph, and Bilah. I liked reading about their stories and I thought their relationships were well done, with it's ups and down. Then when things shifted to Dinah, I started to lose interest in the story. I was never attached to Dinah like I was her mothers, and I felt she and all relationships she was in were fairly underdeveloped. By the end of the book I was just skimming through the story because nothing changed or progressed. In general I would say this book has pacing issues because everything felt fairly quick but nothing was really happening. I didn't feel like this was the female driven narrative I was looking for because Dinah was underdeveloped even though it was her story and for the a book titled the red tent, which was strictly a woman's domain, the story spent very little time in the red tent. The book was mediocre, with the only really bad aspect of it being Dinah's romances, but as both as historical fiction novel and one that focuses on the women, I found this book to be a little disappointing.

Daughters of the Storm by Kim Wilkins: This was a book I was so eagerly anticipating, like I went out and got it the day it finally came out in paperback. I understood that it would focus on 5 sisters going on a quest to save their father from a curse, so I thought I was getting a good sisterly narrative. I also went into this book thinking it was a standalone, and I've really been in the mood for some good adult fantasy standalones. Whatever expectations I had going into this book were quickly ruined. The plot was simple, find the cure for a dying king, but it was too simple of a plot for a book that just dragged on. Maybe it picks up more in the second half, I wouldn't know because I DNFed this book half way in (because of that this will be my full spoiler review). I was bored with the story and the world building had very little development. In fact the only thing the only piece of world building that had any development was the new religion gaining popularity, which is both clearly based on Christianity and will clearly be used against the sisters because it doesn't want women in charge. While those aspects were bad, they weren't what caused me to quit the book. Despite this being an epic fantasy, plot is pushed aside to make the story more character driven, and that was the problem. I really hated the characters, with a burning passion. I admit I struggle with unlikeable characters, but if you're going to write unlikeable characters I at least want them to be sympathetic the majority of the time. I don't have to like what they're doing but I do believe they are doing it for good reasons. Of all the POV characters there was only one that I found sympathetic, even though she had her faults, and that was Rose. She's trapped in a loveless marriage to broker peace and had a child with her husband's nephew. My only issue with her is that she doesn't try to be sneaky with her romance when no one wants it to happen and she doesn't see her husband as a threat because he doesn't like women in power, even though he clearly is. All other characters were horrendous. Will is a prince who turns into a crazy killer once he gets the notion of power inside his head. I could say he was sympathetic because he did want to protect his mother, but I just get crazy vibes from him. He does get killed in this book, so I'm not sure if he was even that relevant of a character. Willow is a zealot of the new faith (whose name I cannot remember, tri-something), who does shady things just cause angels are telling her to (my guess is that she's got a mental disorder which is causing that). Ivy is a brat who complains about doing any work and is only interest in men, who she thinks she's in love based on one glance. Her maturity level doesn't improve and I think she's the one that tells Rose's husband about the affair in the hopes that her and the king's nephew will end up together (which all backfires in the worst way possible). I think she's also killed in this one, but I'm not sure. Ash was the one I was hoping to like, but she was just brooding (which I hate) and really wishy-washy, not having much of a spine. She tries to talk to people about her magic, but no one will take her seriously because of how young she is, and in the end she goes into self exile because she doesn't want to hurt her sisters, which I didn't really like because it solidified me not caring about her. Now we get to the worst one, the sister that I actively wanted to die in this book and honestly the main reason I put this book down. Bluebell was the absolute worst. She had no redeeming qualities whatsoever.  Where do I even begin the her. She's the oldest sister and heir to the throne, but she absolutely abuses her power. In fact I'll just copy everything I wrote about her in a recent Top 5 Wednesday post explaining why I hated her.  She only likes people if they are blindly obedient to her and is very mean and insulting to her sister Rose because Rose won't do this (in fact she makes it clear that she only views Rose as whore to be sold off), seems to think she's a great leader but shows very few qualities of being a great leader, sees everyone as either an underling that must follow her without question or an enemy that must be slaughtered with no in between. Her worst offense is that she thinks everything she does is the absolute right thing and won't entertain the possibility of being wrong. She is very cruel to her step mother, despite everyone telling her to stop, and as a result the step mother accidentally curses the father because she is terrified of what Bluebell will do to her when she comes into power. When Bluebell discovers this, she doesn't see the error of her ways, she's determined to kill the woman and only stops because her father (the only person I believe she cares about) told her to stop because it would look bad. I hated her with a passion throughout the first half of the entire book and hoped that she would change in some way by the end but nope. She is just as self righteous as she was at the start and is unsympathetic of Rose's suffering. She's just a stupid bully who wants an army of sycophants. Yeah, I hated her, she might be my least favorite female character of the year. At halfway into this book I skipped ahead to see if anything gets redeemed or solved, and nothing does, so needless to say I won't be reading the next book. I almost thought this was a debut novel because of how poorly it was written, but turns out it wasn't. I do applaud any one able to successful produce a non toxic novel, because it's a long challenge, but as an author with multiple novels already out these basic storytelling mistakes shouldn't be happening (this was the same problem I had with V.E Schwab). This book was one of the biggest disappointments of the year and I'm glad I waited to get it in paperback because I will probably be unhauling it.

The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine: This was an interesting case because I thought I would be saving this book for January but I ended up deciding to read this book and see if it was as good as I remember and I am so glad I did. It's a Snow White retelling that has a more modern feel to it. If you liked Snow White's back story in the first season of Once Upon a Time you will probably like this one. It has several nods to the original story but adds it's own twist to them, and I really loved that. Lorelai is a great protagonist because she's very mature and takes her responsibilities seriously and wants the best for everyone. She also has magic which is really cool and makes her a worthy opponent to Irina, the evil queen. Irina was a fantastic villain, like she would arguably make my top 5 list of best villains for this year. You get that shred of humanity within her and bits of her back story which makes it clear why she is the way she is. Unlike the original version, Irina isn't obsessed with beauty, she's obsessed with power and loyalty, which makes her both dangerous and a little crazy. Kol is the prince who was made king at the beginning of the book, and I also really liked him. He's similar to Lorelai in many ways because he's willing to make some significant sacrifices to ensure the safety of his people and loves his friends and family. Lorelai and Kol's relationship was so good because they talk and push themselves to be better for the other. There's a bit of Insta Love but because the time length it took for them to get serious and the fact that it's contained within just this story makes it easy to forgive. All in all I thought the story was great, the characters were great, the relationships were great, and even the magic was great and I'm so glad this book was as good as I remember it being. The only reason it's not 5 stars is because of some miscommunication stuff and stupid character choices. The Shadow Queen received 4.5 out of 5 stars.  

The Registry by Shannon Stoker: I got the next book in the trilogy this year, and for awhile I was debating if I should reread this book or not. I didn't need to reread it but there was a part of me that wanted to, so I did and I'm glad I did. This is a fairly underrated dystopian, about a future America where women are married off to the highest bidder in a system called the registry. The protagonist, Mia, has an awakening shortly before she's has her debut, and she makes a quick decision to run for Mexico with her best friend and a farm hand, as her psychopathic fiance works to prevent her from crossing the border. One reason I liked this one was because it's not like a stereotypical YA dystopian. It isn't about one girl trying to take down a system, or about romance (although that does come up), it was a display of frighteningly realistic dystopian environment and a straight forward chase narrative that is definitely suspenseful. I liked Mia, I thought she was a fairly well rounded individual, and while Grant (Mia's fiance) was a disgusting character and was pretty realistic and served his purpose well. The rest of the characters I didn't like so much: Andrew (the farm hand) was a bit flat and brooding, Carter was a bit entitled, and Whitney (Mia's best friend) was so whiny and naive. I get that she serves as a bit of foil for Mia, but I would have liked them to have a stronger relationship. The only thing I really disliked about this book was the romance. This book does have a love triangle in it, and unfortunately it's not one of the better done ones. Andrew and Mia's romance felt a bit forced and Andrew wasn't nice to Mia the majority of the trip. Carter, on the other hand, is more positive and outgoing with Mia, but there's a scene where he just kisses her and only afterwards asks for her consent. Both seem to struggle with grasping the severity of her situation and treating her like and normal person, but for different reasons. If this book didn't have any romance in it, it would have had a much higher rating but because of the romance and a few other things I couldn't give it over 4 stars. The Registry received 3.5 out of 5 stars.  

The Collection by Shannon Stoker: After finishing the Registry I moved right on to the Collection, which takes place immediately after the end of the previous book. Mia, Andrew, and Carter crash land in Mexico where Carter and Andrew are taken and forced to become a part of this militia group and Mia has to save them. That is what the first half of the book is, and I definitely preferred the first half to the second half of this book. It had a clear story line and conflict and made room for character growth. Mia is a good protagonist who has evolved from sheltered girl to determined survivor to trained operative who is willing to put her self at risk to protect those she cares about. It was great to watch her transformation, but it was too rushed in this book and she succeeded too easily. Like all of her training takes place over just a few chapters which has a 3 week time period, and when she single handedly goes on her mission to save the boys from this militia group, she succeeds on the first try with no consequences. That felt both unrealistic and very rushed because I think if proper time and been given this could have been a really good story. I still don't really care about Andrew. I don't know what it is, maybe it's because I find him boring and a bit stupid at times. I think his experience with the militia was a frightening one that could have been an interesting narrative, but I think he was the wrong character to show that through and again it was just to little for me to work with. I won't say what happens in the second half, since the synopsis didn't really go into that, but the narrative takes a completely different turn. It becomes much more of stereotypical YA dystopian and there's a lot of filler and things that didn't make sense, which I didn't like. I will say that I love the headers that are put at the beginning of each chapter because it really gives insight about how the world few America and how America censors itself. I do think Mia and Andrew's relationship did develop, especially with them wanting to be open with each other and talking about their future together, but I still don't feel any pull for them and I don't really get why they are so attached to each other. The one thing I've saved til the end is Grant because his story stays the same throughout the whole novel, and I really like reading from his POV. While I still think he's a horrible, horrible person it's interesting getting into his mind. He is such a snob and considers everyone beneath him and violence is his solution to everything. We also learn a little bit about his past, which doesn't do anything to make him more sympathetic but it puts somethings into perspective. I like that his fatal flaw is definitely showing in this book and you know it's going to come back and bite him in the end. While there were parts of this book that I thought were good, I had a lot more issues with this book than I did the previous one and definitely felt like it had a bit of a slump going on. The Collection, sadly, received 2.5 out 5 stars.  

The Legend of Holly Claus by Brittney Ryan: Oh what a disappoint this one was. Not as bad as Daughters of the Storm, but it was definitely one of the worst books I read this year. I used to read this one around Christmas, since it's about Santa Claus' daughter, but then I stopped doing that for a few years. With doing all the rereads this year I thought this one would be great to save for Christmas, so I did and while it definitely delivers on all the Christmas feels, it fails as a story. Basic premise is Santa has a daughter with “the most pure heart” but then this evil wizard, Herrikan, seals her heart in ice so that he can posses her heart one day and be free and sets a curse upon the Land of Immortals. Eventually Holly grows up and goes to New York to defeat Herrikan. The plot of this book makes little sense honestly. I liked the start with a child giving Santa a wish which allows him to have Holly, but it was fast downhill from there. I don't understand why Holly's heart was frozen. Was it to preserve it's purity? Was it to make it easier for her to die? I honestly don't know. Then there's the curse upon the Land of Immortals, where Santa rules, that prevents anyone from leaving. I've stated that I struggle with unlikeable characters, but here you have the exact opposite with a character that is just so perfectly pure that she comes off as annoying and stupid. I can't say I disliked Holly because she was put in a sympathetic situation, being isolated from everyone, but there were times I just wanted to smack her on the head she was being so obnoxious. Also during Holly's childhood she isolated because everyone was afraid of her even though they were explicitly told several times the curse lingers because of their fear. For immortal beings I can't say anyone was smart or even wise. Herrikan sucked as a villain, he was just so flat. The romance was one of the worst cases of Insta Love I have ever seen because it literally happens over one night. The ending was a total cop out, like everything is just magically perfect again. And this book made me dislike Santa Claus because he was such a smothering parent! Like how dare you make me dislike Santa! I think the ultimate message of the book was a good one and there were pretty picture in the book, but those were the only positive thing I can say about this book. The Legend of Holly Claus gets the dishonorable title of being one of the few books this year that I gave a 1 star to without DNFing.  

The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo:

I'll be slowly rereading all of the Grishaverse books to get ready for reading King of Scars, and I decided to start with this one since it's a cute filler book that has fairy tales set in the world of the grisha. All of the stories in this book are clearly inspired by several fairy tales that many people would be familiar with. I have to admit I didn't love this as much as I had when I first read it. Part of it was because there were stories that I didn't like, but part of it was also because I had a bad experience at a book signing I went to and I couldn't shake that feeling off. My favorite story was When Water Sang Fire, which is also the longest, but I also liked Little Knife, which is the shortest, because both display that Bardugo can produce a good complete story and have the pretty writing. My least favorites were the Solider Prince and the Witch of Duva. The Solider Prince was inspired by 2 great stories, but they just didn't mesh together well in this case. I'll get into more of the reasons I didn't like the Witch of Duva in my full review because there's a lot I have to say about that one. There's also a constant theme through out all of these stories, which is make the original villain sympathetic and make the typically most innocent person in the story the villain. That worked but only to an extent. I know Bardugo likes writing morally gray characters and sympathetic villains, but that doesn't always have to be the case. You can have a well written villain who is just bad. The Language of Thorns received 3.5 out 5 stars.  

Thank You Everyone

Keep Calm and Keep Reading

[shtbgs-blog]

me: has 500 muses me: adds more

shush i am in a battle to have the most muses and just bc i have like 600 doesn’t mean i don’t want to play them a few of these are old old old muses I always have muse for and would love to start playing again.

under the read more you will find introductions for:

ambrose hartley ( bebe rexha ) colby blackstone ( sofia black-d’elia ) harley maddox ( miley cyrus ) brinley joseph ( chloe norgaard ) quinn james ( kehlani parrish ) daniel silver ( herman tommeraas ) lance nash ( justin bieber ) holden clover ( james franco ) & conor johnson ( nicholas hoult )

Do I hate myself? Yes I do.

AMBER ROSE “AMBROSE” HARTLEY looks an awful lot like BEBE REXHA. SHE is TWENTY-SEVEN and while they're PLAYFUL, they have a tendency to get pretty ABSENT MINDED. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to HURRICANE by HALSEY. 

Ambrose came from a really loving family tbh like, she had no problem with them at all in the slightest

her problem was she just couldn’t stay tame no matter how hard she tried, even when she was young she seemed to be full of energy and at the age of six they had adopted another little girl to be Amber’s best friend

For a long time they were the closest of friends, and there were times where Amber thought they’d be friends forever, but as they grew older she could see how different they really were, and how perfect she seemed to fit into Amber’s family

Better than Amber ever had, actually.

So at the age of eighteen she packed up her things and moved out.

She didn’t move far, at first, instead she decided to crash with one of her girlfriends but that honestly didn’t last long.

That was when she began to travel but no one ever seemed to match her wild and adventurous persona.

While she was gone she did do a lot of bad things you could say. One of those things being mixed up with a man who actually sold her for prostitution but you won’t ever catch her talking about that

During one of these wild adventures, though, someone made the joke that they thought her name was Ambrose because of how fast she speaks. Ever since then it just stuck. That was a few years ago ( 25 )

She just recently came back to Kola after deciding maybe it was time to go home and see her family and old friends. But who knows how long this will last.

COLBY BLACKSTONE looks an awful lot like SOFIA BLACK D’ELIA. SHE is TWENTY and while they’re LAID BACK, they have a tendency to get pretty IMPULSIVE. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to FAST CAR by KHALID COVER.

papa was a rolling stone..... legit

her dad is a rock star and she’s one of hadley’s siblings

her mom is just as wild and firey as her father with a legit passion for music and maybe did a few songs with him but she was most known for kind of being a hot mess ( courtney love vibes )

which is why it’s so fucking weird that colby is the way she is like? she is just this soft spoken chill individual who likes to take photos

she’s been her parents photographer for events since she was sixteen but she’s been dying to get away from them 

so off to kola university it was, where she’s studying photography

she’s here to have a good time and she’s pretty chill

unless you get her stoned then she’s fucking wild

oh and when she’s drunk????

she’s basically a fucking rockstar just like her parents

HARLEM “HARLEY” MADDOX looks an awful lot like MILEY CYRUS. THEY are TWENTY FIVE and while they’re ACCEPTING, they have a tendency to get pretty OBNOXIOUS. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to CURSE OF CURVES by CUTE IS WHAT WE AIM FOR. 

Harley is here to steal your girl honestly they flirt with every single female they come into contact with it’s kind of overwhelming 

but they arent strictly into females they just feel more comfortable around them

They have always been masc / the dom in every single relationship they’ve been in, romantic or platonic. 

They just have always had that more dominant personality type which has lead to them getting into a great deal of fights

When they were seventeen they came out that they identify as agender and go by they/them pronouns but their parents just didn’t seem to get it???

it wasn’t super bad or anything it just lead it to be awkward in their house hold so Harley decided to leave at the age of eighteen after graduation

Ever since they’ve been living with their best friend ( wc ) 

They work in a liquor store where honestly they get to pick up on a lot of people and get invited to a lot of parties so they dig their life a lot tbh.

BRINLEY JOSEPH looks an awful lot like CHLOE NORGAARD. SHE is TWENTY-ONE and while they’re HELPFUL, they have a tendency to get pretty SKETCHY. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to RAINBOW by KESHA

. oh my god this is my oldest muse I’m bringing in so far and I’m actually writing a book based off her life so there’s a strong ass chance this is gonna be long and I’m gonna have the absolute most muse for her because i know her so well

so basically when brin was 16 her father convinced her to start dealing drugs for her in school because it was like the easiest way for him to make money since so many people in LA, California were smoking pot esp in high school 

And her dad has always been like a brodude more than an actual father figure and like she agreed because hey she got to pocket some of the cash and she was able to live her best life right

wrong at seventeen she actually fell in love with someone while her father was gone for a full fucking month and he had the audacity to come back pissed off at her for pulling away from him / he also may be on the run from the cops bc he almost got busted but he was mad at her for the former

so he took her away from la and they began their travels on the road

she never even got to finish high school

Basically she lived in an RV with her father traveling from city to city selling drugs just to get by

Her father had a way with talking to people that made it easier for them to sell and what not but soon, her father’s connection ran dry

She was nineteen the first time one of her fathers friends cornered her in the small RV bedroom and no matter how loud she yelled, he never came.

He swore it’d never happen again.

Three months later it was an almost routine practice and Brinley realized she never meant anything to him

She was too scared to leave and still to this day hasnt

She’s currently living in Kola, California but she’s staying in a motel room

Her father was able to score some drugs when they got there so she’s currently selling but she’s scared when the drugs run out he’s going to turn back to the old routine.

Give me some new friends for her

give me some people who will show her she can leave her father and stay in kola forever

QUINN JAMES looks an awful lot like KEHLANI PARRISH. SHE is TWENTY-THREE and while they’re SELFLESS, they have a tendency to get pretty MESSY. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to THE FEELING by JUSTIN BIEBER. 

Quinn is such a mess of a human being I swear to god

She would give her left foot to a stranger if they needed it which is wild because she thinks thats her best attribute

NO IM JOKING BUT SERIOUSLY THIS GIRL WOULD GIVE ANYONE HER WORLD and she’s so quick to fall in love with people it’s absolutely disgusting

but she’s just the kind of person who thinks too far ahead but she’s such a fucking optimist she feels like everything will work out and nothing could POSSIBLY EVER GO WRONG!

wow is she constantly wrong it’s a problem but listen you can’t get her down no matter how hard you try

she’s new so thats legit all i know about her

DANIEL SILVER looks an awful lot like HERMAN TOMMERAAS. HE is TWENTY-THREE and while they’re HELPFUL, they have a tendency to get pretty UNREALISTIC. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to I’LL SHOW YOU by JUSTIN BIEBER.

Oh my god this wild fucking animal right here was well, at first he was cosima silver’s nephew but now since i have them in the same group he’s her cousin and lives with her in the apartment above her little shop

This did not happen easily, oh no, he comes from a family of very strict parents who actually exiled Cosima’s family from their lives at a young age because they believed in her ‘gifts’ and they thought they were crazy

Daniel, though, thought the exact opposite. When they were young and before the split happened Cosima would talk to Daniel about her gifts and he would reel in them and he literally loved it so much

But when they were cast out of the family Daniel sort of realize just how horrible his family actually was??? and how different he was????

Sadly his dumb ass was honestly stuck there until a month ago where he finally packed up his shit and completely bailed on his family then moved in with Cosima and he’s been here ever since

He works in her shop as a tarot card reader or rather, he’s trying to learn how to do it. He has literally no gifts but he wants to help people and maybe start to learn from Cosima 

Personality wise he’s my big pansexual mess who is flirting and messing around with just about everyone every chance he gets and he just lives for making out and hooking up and having a good fucking time okay

LANCASTER “LANCE” NASH looks an awful lot like JUSTIN BIEBER. HE is TWENTY-SIX and while they’re RELIABLE, they have a tendency to get pretty IRRITABLE. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to HOLY GRAIL by JAY Z FEAT. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE.

 lets start off with the fact that Lance is the oldest of SEVEN CHILDREN his mother being the common denominator 

Lance was the first born and her most prized son out of all the kids but as he got older, and she started having so many suitors, and started toying with various hard drugs he sort of lost that connection with her and was forced to grow up way too young.

When he was ten, he already had three siblings, each one of them born a year or two after the other and Lance was the only one who could really take care of them. Him and the second oldest were often left in charge of the kids but they didn’t want much to do with all the kids and Lance sort of understood that.

When he turned nineteen and the second oldest was eighteen they left town without so much as a letter which only forced Lance to become the actual father the whole family needed.

His life has always been about the kids. He now has siblings ranging from 3 to 25 and he usually keeps tabs on all of them. 

But ya boi has to make money some how, so, he’s dedicated any time he can get away from the youngest kids to doing what he does best and thats babysitting drug addicts or being a designated driver.

He personally does not do drugs but he knows what to do and how to take care of people when they’re tripping so he has become the druggie babysitter of Kola, California.

He’s honestly a really cool dude who is actually really fucking helpful all of the time

He just gets really god damn moody sometimes and wants to punch people in the throat but think about it his day starts at 6 AM with 2 children and 2 tweens, you’d be moody as hell too by 9 pm while driving some drunk asshole home

HOLDEN CLOVER looks an awful lot like JAMES FRANCO. HE is THIRTY-NINE and while they’re BALANCED, they have a tendency to get pretty FICKLE. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to A WALK THROUGH HELL by SAY ANYTHING. 

his gif doesn’t match my aesthetic at all or his aesthetic but IDGAF BECAUSE IM ALIVE FOR IT

ANYWAY Holden is a cop:tm: he’s been idolizing them his entire life and now he’s just a good guy cop who sometimes lets people off with a warning and is that ‘cool cop’ around town like

all the kids love him, even criminals like him he’s just really charismatic and seems really chill????

ugh i have literally virtually no information for him other than he was divorced and it’s gonna be one of the many wcs i write up and submit but if someone wants an ex husband who gets too focused on his job all the time hmu for sure

he also has a younger brother who may or may no t better be dave franco

CONOR "CJ" JOHNSON looks an awful lot like NICHOLAS HOULT. HE is TWENTY-SEVEN and while they're COMPASSIONATE, they have a tendency to get pretty RECLUSE. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to IDK LOVE by JEREMY ZUCKER.

ok he’s not a zombie in his main verse but like if u think for ( 1 ) second im not turning him into a zombie for the zombie verse ur WRONG!!!!

but lets focus on mainverse cj and talk about zombie cj later

Conor has always been a nice and compassionate kid and honestly, he got married at 23 to the love of his life

But after three beautiful years he lost his wife to a car accident and he hasnt been the same since

a lot of people in town look at him like this poor broken bird because ever since his wife died he hasn’t been able to be like a normal human being 

he doesn’t go out

he barely goes to work

he’s going to lose his house

he’s just in a deep deep deep depression and honestly it’s actively sad

but he’s still nice and charming and flirty at times but it’s very rare

[shutupkimjongdae]

[TRANS/MAGAZINE] Popteen Magazine - EXO-CBX for July Issue 2017 To view as HQ scans, click here and zoom in!

source: x translator: dianne + fai please do not repost without permission!

To read as text only, keep reading!

If EXO-CBX were your classmates... ♡

EXO's first unit finally at Popteen!! Known not only in Korea and Japan, globally-renowned super group EXO forms its first unit!!! Female students in Japan can't stop adoring them! ♥ EXO's first unit, EXO-CBX, releases its mini album 「GIRLS」 for their Japanese debut!! If the three members were your classmates...? Let's know more about that dream-like world ♥

PROFILE

EXO's members, Chen, Baekhyun and Xiumin, comprise of the first unit. The group had its debut with their mini album Hey Mama! released last October 2016 in Korea. With a fresh appeal, they're finally ready for their Japanese debut! CHEN • Born on September 21, 1992. Mainly known for his singing prowess, especially the range he can cover for high notes. Has sung popular drama soundtracks for his solo activities and has previously participated in a musical. BAEKHYUN • Born on May 6th, 1992. The unit’s mood-maker with his bright personality and outstanding talking skills. His colorful and sweet singing voice is his specialty. Showing a charming yet sexy performance on stage, that gap is the charm point! XIUMIN • Born on March 26th, 1990. Alongside his cute and loveable outer impression are outstanding reflexes. He also has a manly side that allows the members to rely on him. Achieved his first acting role this year in 『Kim Seondal: The Man Who Sold the River』.

Individual Q&A

Q: What kind of character were you when you were in high school? C: I was the type who often listened to the teacher. I was the model student of some sort, I think. It’s common to encounter these kinds of boys in class, right? During high school, I was quite enthusiastic about skipping classes (laughs). Because I was just then starting with music-related activities, I loved listening to songs. B: Firstly, students in the entire school knew about me (laughs). I was pleasant, and very fun (to be around), also I’m a little strange, which is rare, and I think that’s why a lot of students knew about me. When I was in school, I was known as the kid who talked a lot and had a lot of interesting stories and the kid who could sing well (laughs). X: When I was in high school, I was quite an ordinary student. Talking about myself like this might be too much, but I was somewhat of a model student. I strictly kept to the rules, and I attended school without missing one day. I was quite ordinary, but after that, I was like a child who always played with his friends. Q: What kind of girls were popular when you were in high school? C: In my opinion, the most popular girl was a girl with long hair and an innocent image. Looking at Popteen, there seems to be a lot with innocent and mature appearances. Each person has her own charm, and I would like to convey these words of admiration to each of them. I think we are successful in terms of getting in touch with teenagers through this photoshoot. Please look forward to EXO-CBX’s activities, and I hope to communicate with everyone. B: Cute girls. There are girls who looked cute no matter what they were doing, right? Girls who make you smile whenever you look at them. I think these kinds of girls were popular. Japanese high school girls have this impression of being pure, don’t you think so? Their teenage years are the times when they have the most overflowing confidence, and I think even their facial expressions are very beautiful. Since we also have a teenaged appearance (laughs), we want to be an existence that is like your friends. So don’t hesitate and please come closer to us! X: When I was in high school, I didn’t pay any attention to girls. I really liked soccer, so compared to girls, I liked playing soccer with my male friends more. From the point of view of someone like me (who did nothing but soccer), the readers of Popteen don’t look like high school students, but more like dolls! And to let us EXO-CBX be part of (your teenage years) is an honor. Also, since all of us look like teenagers, I think we can blend well in the magazine (laughs). We are also working hard to get closer to our teenage audience, so please watch over EXO-CBX. Q: Honestly, were you popular in high school? C: Moderately, fairly... I was average (laughs). B: The girls didn’t view me as a man; rather, I feel like they viewed me more like a friend. I don’t know the reason for that, but it’s probably because I had a mischievous image. X: I was a member of the soccer club, and I really did nothing but soccer, so I don’t even know if there was anyone who liked me nor do I know if I was popular. In fact, if I had popularity, it’s probably among my male friends (laughs). Q: When you were in high school, what subjects did you like and what subjects were you bad at? C: My most favorite was music. I wasn't good at math. B: The subject I liked was music, and the subject I was bad at was math. X: I liked math, and I was bad at Korean. Q: What would you want to do if you could go back to being a high school student? C: If I could go back to my high school days now, I think I'd practice singing more. It’s because the me back then used to skip singing practices. Looking back, it could have been better if I diligently practiced then. The current me is actually bad in singing (laughs). B: Firstly, I want to drink lots of milk because I want to become taller (laughs). And then, weren’t there a lot of adults who said 「The time when I went to school was the best time」? The me now probably thinks the same, and I feel envious towards high schoolers. The reason is that you’re by your parents’ side, you can receive pocket money from your parents, and you can go about your daily life without worrying about anything. That’s why if I go back to being a high schooler, I think I would play a lot more (laughs). X: If I could go back to my high school days, I probably would want to study a lot harder. I really didn’t realize it back then, but now, whenever I look back, I have the feeling of 「Ah, I wish I had studied more」. I want to do my best in studies and then get number 1 in tests. I want to be number one in the whole school.

GROUP INTERVIEW

While commuting to school or after classes, I want to feel excitement with EXO-CBX's songs! Q: Tell us your thoughts on your Japanese debut! X: I was very very happy with the idea of meeting the Japanese fans outside EXO's group activities through EXO-CBX. We are grateful for this. C: With various types of music included, we had a good opportunity to meet everyone. With this chance given by our Japanese debut, we want to exert our very best to be able to meet more Japanese EXO-Ls. B: Until now, it's rare to meet the Japanese fans, so the thought of meeting them is strong. That's why it is exciting to know that even with the slightest chance, we can meet the fans. Q: What triggered the unit’s formation? B: First of all, the three of us get along well. We have the same mindset when it comes to the desire to perform. Also, since we live in one place, we act natural around each other most of the time. A conversation just went, "Let's try this". Q: What kind of group is EXO-CBX? C: A different side apart when we’re with EXO shall be seen and I think an example could be our hard work. I’m sure with the music and performance, a carefree vibe can be felt. Q: When your debut was finalized, were there any reactions from the other members? X: The prominent comment was “Ooh~ Fighting” kind-of-feel (laughs). C: We already had activities for , but after the promotions, a lot of members said “I want to do it with you too!” Q: Who, for example? CBX: D.O. (laughs)! B: Because D.O. is an actor with movies to shoot, he was busy with filming. If D.O. were to be included in EXO-CBX, he might fail to attend the debut (laughs). Q: What is the concept of your Japanese mini album ? B: It’s a mini album about some of women’s thoughts presented from a man’s perspective. If women would watch this, there are relatable moments summarized into the song. We wanted to convey to women that “money is not everything” and I think a lot of situations are presented as we sing this song. Q: What song do you recommend to teenaged girls? B: The lead song “Ka-CHING!” Because of its exciting and rhythmical sound, it fits perfectly with the current season and you can relax your shoulders while listening to it. X: On the commute to school or home, I think you’ll feel good while listening to it. Q: What to look forward to in the dance performance? B: To be honest, there are a lot of keypoints in the song’s dance. And if you dance with us, your feet will feel lighter. Q: Is there a trick on how to sing EXO-CBX’s songs well in karaoke? B: Since the readers are female, raising the key two or three notches (laughs). Also, remember the dance steps on the chorus part. Inside the karaoke box, march while singing. C: It’s easy to follow so try it out together with your friends. After that, your stress will fly out of the window. Q: When the three of you have promotions, does each member have a role? B: There are no specific roles assigned, but for example, watch out for the gear when we drive (t/n: dance step included in “Ka-CHING!” during the bridge part). Xiumin is the neutral N, Chen is the drive D, and I am reverse R. As to why is because Xiumin maintains as a neutral person. Chen has the “Let’s do that! Let’s do this!” kind of enthusiasm with regards to group activities. I’m the “Eh~ We need to do something to that extent?”, looking at things a step backwards (laughs). X: Ahaha (laughs)! That’s right! To add to that, Baekhyun reassesses things at times, but there are moments when he betrays that mindset. That’s why it’s not always the case that he looks at things a step backwards. Q: Lastly, please tell us your thoughts on your Japanese activities. B: Firstly, we are really looking forward to the upcoming free event. We're not only meeting the fans but also a general audience who can watch us, and this makes me feel excited. X: From now on, every time an album is released, we’ll aim to have a concert tour along with that. C: The Japanese debut and free showcase are big challenges to us. To get good results, I want to show my best to everyone. B: Please look forward to it and we’ll be happy to receive lots of love from everyone!

QUOTES

C: Let's dance KA-CHING! together and release some stress! B: I'll meet the Japanese fans and it makes me excited! X: My goal is for EXO and CBX to have their concert tour at the same time.

[renegade-is-in-my-blood]

Exploring Czechia with my American friend was great fun. I already shared a small preview of what happened in Karlovy Vary on our first day there in my Exploring Czechia with an American: Karlovy Vary Day one edition. As promised here is day two that was way more interesting.

I don’t remember ever having such a busy day.

We were staying at Hotel Marttel where we had a generous breakfast before we headed out for our day of fun. Our time schedule was so tight and we needed to check out in the early morning.

But that left us with our luggage and we sure as hell didn’t feel like carrying it with us the whole day. Luckily people at the hotel were incredibly kind and let us keep our bags in their storage until whenever we were ready to pick them up.

Our Karlovy Vary tour started at around 8 in the morning.

The weather really sucked that day. Small drizzle. Strong wind. Cold. My umbrella broke after a few minutes so I was walking around with a broken umbrella all wet anyway.

We did our research and had some points we wanted to visit for sure but other than that it was my favorite aimless walk and exploring whatever beauty you find on the way.

The morning walk thought mostly empty city was spectacular. The architecture there is just magical. Full of colours. Patterns. The fairytale like colonies were everywhere and only added to the romantic spirit of the Karlovy Vary. Just check out the pictures I took:

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The day before we found the Elizabeth’s spas we wanted to visit so naturally our next steps led there.

I was so cold and super excited for a spa day. I was imagining all of the massages and procedures I’m gonna get once we get there.

We arrived like and half an hour after opening hours and we were way too late!

Most of the procedures were sold out except for the ones that were way too late for us. Bummer.

I guess you need to be there even before opening hours to grab the massages or other medical/beauty procedures. Gonna remember that for the next time and you should too.

I was not feeling like turning back without getting any ME time in the spas.

Elizabeth’s spas offer not only regular spas to the visitors but also a swimming pool with some jets, saunas, and jacuzzi. Not ideal but at least it was something. We bought ourselves a ticket for 2 hours for around 300Kc. Thankfully there were only very few, mostly old people so the jets were free for us to use. I didn’t do much swimming as those 2 hours were all about relaxing for me.

Sadly no photos from there but trust me, it was worth putting down my phone for at least 2 hours.

We tried to walk everywhere during that day no matter the terrible weather. God bless google maps cuz without them we would be so lost.

Our next stop was the Museum of Becherovka.

Becherovka is an original Czech alcohol drink that was born in Karlovy Vary over 200 years ago. You can imagine how popular it is here when it has a whole museum dedicated to it.

You can’t miss it cuz there is a big ass bottle of Becherovka right in front of the museum.

What sucked about the museum was the fact that they didn’t offer an English tour. Only languages available were Czech and Russian. Most of those tours were naturally sold out, because why not with our great luck that day.

The Becherovkas next available tour was in 2 hours and the other tour of Glass museum we wanted to do after this one was further away. We didn’t even know if they would hold the tour at the time we needed. That was a pickle for us.

With such a busy schedule we decided to risk it.

We got tickets for the Becherovka tour later and rushed to the other museum we wanted to visit – Glass museum.

This time only we used the bus because we were in a hurry and we really didn’t have time to explore the beauty of Karlovy Vary. We googled everything from where is the Glass museum, what bus to take or what bus to get off.

It was quite difficult to find. You’ll have to go past some flats and children’s playground and it looks nothing like you’re just heading to a museum. I was losing hope very quickly until I saw tall glass ball figures in the distance.

Way out of ordinary therefore that’s where I’m heading.

Suddenly we were in a super clean, luxury room where almost everything was made out of glass, hard shapes and you just knew the place was super expensive. And the people were just casually having coffee in there.

We stepped up to the big blackboard where the tours and the prices were listed. The lady at the cash register was super nice and explained that the tours are not strictly tied to a time and that it only depends on how many people are interested. We were in luck for the first time that day as the tour was starting in like 5 minutes and it was in English.

You have 3 options for tours.

You can visit the museum only where all of the amazing glass products are displayed.

Or you can go to the museum and to the Moser glasswork factory and see how are the glass products actually made.

Or just the glasswork factory.

Of course, we got all in for around 180Kc each.

Our tour group considered of 6 people only and the tour guide. One older Czech couple, one middle-aged American couple and me and my friend we represented the young couple and mix of both nationalities. The tour guide had a tough job of speaking both Czech and English so everyone would understand.

The whole tour was way more fascinating than I thought it would be.

We got to see how the glass is made from scratch and we witnessed the men handmaking them right in front of us. For our own safety, we needed to keep the distance from them but honestly, it was not that far. Just check out the pictures.

It was incredibly hot in the place and I was mesmerized.

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What was the most ridiculous to me was how chill those guys were. There are random tourists watching them work with freaking hot glass but they were super relaxed.

There were guys wearing flip flops! Flip flops. You’re taking a glowing mass of glass our of furnace that is literally over 1300 °C and you’re wearing flip flops. That’s just awesome. I wish I had balls like that.

There were guys that were smoking right there at the workplace. Again. You’re working with a hot mass of glass and you’re actually blowing into that hot mass and you have time to smoke a cigar whiles doing it. Incredible!

I don’t know if I ‘m allowed to share this information. I just hope I’m not gonna get them into trouble but the level of no fucks given while doing such incredibly beautiful works was incredible. That’s a goal.

Here is a short video I took of the glass manufacture in Karlovy Vary.

After like 15 minutes in there, we followed to the actual museum. It’s totally up to you how much time you want to spend there. We got the tape recorder that told us about the history and stuff but if I’m being honest I was not into it at all.

It was nice to look at the products and see the development but after few minutes I was done.

As we were in a hurry we headed out earlier but we just needed to visit the gift shop. We were so curious about the prices of such delicate hand made glass and yes it’s just as expensive as you would expect it to be.

I enjoyed the gift shop way more than the museum. It was more glamorous. Fancier. Scarier cuz I was so freaking worried we would accidentally break something and won’t be able to pay for it.

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We quickly took the bus back to the alcohol museum and we were right on time!

That’s some good time management right there.

The Czech language tour of the Becherovka museum started with a short movie about the very interesting history of the brand. Luckily they had English subtitles so even my American friend could follow up without my constant translation.

After the movie we were in the most interactive museum, I have ever been to.

If you’re not familiar with Becherovka it’s basically a plant-based alcoholic drink that’s very similar to medicinal stomach drops. It’s very bitter and burns your throat but in a nice way.

The exact types or amounts of herbs in the Becherovka are unknown but we got to see and smell the potential ones in the herb room.

There were several parts of the museum. The first one was the historic, many documents, recipes or bottles from 200 years ago in comparison with today’s ones.

Then there was the herb room. Another one was the water room where you could taste the water used for making of Becherovka. Then an alcohol room with barrels of pure alcohol. Bottles room with virtual reality goggles that took you to an actual factory that’s near Karlovy Vary. The distribution room where we put a sticker to where we came from for a museum visit. Many more interactive rooms that were so well made.

The whole tour ended up with everyone’s favorite part.

Becherovka tasting.

Simple drinking at the bar, but this time Becherovka only.

Becherovka currently has 4 types of drinks and we got to taste them all with the basic description and introduction from the tour guide.

The whole mood of the tour was so light-headed and relaxed. I was enjoying it so much, mostly for the vibe of it.

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We were so hungry by the time we left the alcohol museum so we just ate at the closest restaurant we could find.

It was still raining but that was not stopping us. What was stopping us form any more adventures was a train we needed to catch in order to continue with our exploration of the Czech republic.

We did manage to do some more walking around to get some souvenirs from Karlovy Vary, but I don’t think I’ll ever forget this trip.

As we left our bags at the hotel, we headed up the horrible hill to get them and then head back down by bus this time, as the raining was only increasing.

We were actually grateful for the long 3 hours train ride back to Prague. At least we could sleep it off on the train and wake up fresh for the night Prague.

Karlovy Vary left an amazing impression on me. I was aware that the city was popular for its beauty but that is something everyone needs to witness first handed. It’s so hard to describe the general spirit of the place, but trust me it felt so good to just be there.

I absolutely recommend checking out Karlovy Vary as one of the top places to see in Czechia.

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Exploring Czechia with an American: Karlovy Vary Day Two edition Exploring Czechia with my American friend was great fun. I already shared a small preview of what happened in Karlovy Vary on our first day there in my…

[thatfestivallife]

And so Festival Season 2018 commences…. as my two Indian festivals of 2017 (GOAT in January and Magnetic Fields in December)  neatly bracketed the year does this mean there is no such thing as an actual festival season anymore!?

I wasn’t planning on heading to Sunsplash… I’d heard really great things about it from pals who went last year but I was planning  to be out of Goa by then and had vague plans to head North to Gujarat for Uttarayan, the incredible looking kite festival… but alas a cultured trip was not meant to be and in classic style I stayed in Goa way longer than originally planned! No regrets though, it was an amazing weekend with my Goa family

♥

These big idiots were the reason I stayed for Sunsplash!

Bristol crew inside the venue!

Those Festival Facts

What? Now in its 3rd year, Goa Sunsplash is India’s biggest (and only?) dedicated Reggae & sound system culture festival. It was started by the Reggae Rajahs (great name) Indias main sound system crew.

Where? This year it was at a new location, Riva beach resort which is situated on the Arambol side of Mandrem. It’s a quite fancy resort right on the beach (similar to the one GOAT was in last year) and it hosts a weekly reggae pool party every Sunday anyway so I was unsure what they were gonna do to make it special… but the vibes were allliiiiive!

There were two stages ‘Arambol Grove’ which had all the live music and bigger acts on a stage in front of grassy area surrounded by palms and little stalls and another stage on a lower area of the resort below the pool ‘Mandrem Verandah’. After 10 the music went inside which classically was a bit air-conditiony and vibe-less but, fair play with sound restrictions and licensing. It was called the Lion’s Den but definitely not like the Lion’s Den I’m used to 😉

When? It’s on a Saturday & Sunday and this year it was the second week of January but this could change next year – I’m not sure!

Who? Such a lovely crowd made up of plenty of little kiddies running around (most of whom I was pleased to see had that ear defenders on!), plenty of dreadlocks and all nationalities coming together for a musical mix of mainly reggae with a bit of the complimentary ska, dub and jungle thrown into the blend as well!

How much? Pre bought tickets were 2000rs for the weekend or if bought on the door 2000rs for a day or 3000rs for the weekend.

Jonny’s new vest from Lauren’s boutique

Babestation Hannah

We arrived in high spirits early on Saturday afternoon and were greeted with the groovy as hell Funk Attack, a band fronted by the INCREDIBLE MC Kaur (who I have a huge lady crush on). We’d actually already boogied through the night to them the week before at Vaayu a week before. They fuse funk and hip hop and are just ace..  my favourite quote from MC Kaur the other week:  ‘You don’t need glitter in Goa you just dance and shine from the sweat!‘

Me sporting some new silk bloomers which will be part of Dulcie’s Feathers new strictly limited edition range! Sign up to the mailing list to be the first hear when the new collection arrives…

Lauren straight up babein’!

My gorgeous pal Lauren who you might recognise from my post about another Goa festival, GOAT, had a stall there selling her wares, there was face painting, my pal Jo selling his kombucha and just generally a real community feeling… as the lovely Craig who was hosting the main stage put it –  a sense of “lots of tribes coming together” and a perfect ending to my short time as a part of the Goa season.

THESE TWO!

Think this chick’s name was Durga… she was killing the style game all weekend

Michael getting stuck in to the face paint. 

There is nothing better than a skank in the sun with ya mates apart from a skank in the sun with ya mates when you can also have a splash in the pool or the sea half way through.

We went down to the beach for a dip on the Saturday and spent a lot of Sunday floating about in the pool having a mild boogie… Down by the bottom of the resort there were little chill out platforms jutting onto the water which were nice if you wanted to get away from the music for a little bit.

More new Dulcie’s feathers silky garms – this is the new tie back crop flip reversed upside down!

My babe Eleni straight off the plane!

Goa ain’t all psytrance…

It’s a popular misconception that Goa is all psytrance… actually after a total of 4 months living there over two seasons I’ve only been to one psytrance party! This happened to be an 8am New Years day trip to a giant outdoor psytrance venue called Hilltop – which I’ll admit I loved…

In North Goa there’s a thriving reggae scene (holla Thursday nights at Rock Waters & Sunday days at Riva!) as well as plenty of techno parties, incredible live music from all over the world in Arambol (check out Twice in Nature) and newer sounds being pushed by the folk at Vaayu… and I’m sure this only scratches the surface! If you’re a music lover and have been put off Goa cause you think it’s all Goa trance then definitely reconsider.

Baby Aurora transfixed by Craig’s dreads

The only Geordie in Goa…

Goa Sunsplash was quite simply two days of pure bliss in the sunshine surrounded by the bestest people. As a very wise person I met on the Sunday night told me…  ‘Everything is better where the coconuts are’.

Silk jumpsuit from…. you guessed it Dulcie’s Feathers! & yeah I know – there were a lot of outfit changes at Goa Sunsplash…don’t say you’re surprised!

Top tips and advice if you’re thinking about attending Goa Sunsplash in 2019…

Getting in! If you want to save money then buy your ticket beforehand & not on the door – this year was the bargain price of 2000 before the festival (£25) and I believe it was only 1000 if you bought it even earlier! They’re sold at a lot of local venues, I got mine at The Garden of Dreams.

Where to stay? If it’s in the same venue again I would recommend stay in Mandrem or Arambol where there are plenty of cheap accommodation options from guest houses to beach huts you should be able to get something decent from 400-800rs… I always recommend just turning up. A lot of places you can’t book online anyway and if you’re there in person you can often haggle the price.

What to eat / drink? I didn’t eat at the festival but there were food stalls which were catered by the resort – pretty average & pretty pricey. I did have a bit of cake from a lovely little vegan cake stall though!  The bars were well stocked and pretty reasonable, we were on the Rum Punch both days which was only 100rs a pop! Like Magnetic Fields you had to buy tokens in order to pay for things.

Getting home… Be careful with the taxi drivers outside, we had a pretty savage altercation with one outside on the Saturday night – as much as I love Goa it can be a sketchy place sometimes, no one from the resort even came to help us when we were having our issue with the taxi driver (I’m talking him chasing three girls with a palm branch) so have your wits about you and stay in groups when you’re leaving anywhere etc and be wary when walking along the beach at night as it’s super dark.

Read about more festivals around the world here… I’d love to know your recommendations! Which festivals are you planning to go to this year?

Follow me on Instagram to keep up to date with my travels… only one week until back home and in the office, eek!

  One love at Goa Sunsplash Reggae Festival ’18 And so Festival Season 2018 commences.... as my two Indian festivals of 2017 (GOAT in January and…