#also I’m not going to say this show is good but I am going to say it’s gay and I love it

[chris-slut]

hii love i have a request! chris knows you love to read romance but he never knew that u liked reading smut. when he finds out, he gets a little turned on..

𓈒𓏸 𖦹 lost in the fire ⸝⸝ 💌 .ᐟ ׄ ׅ ྀ

pairing; dom!chris x bookslut!reader

summary; you tell your boyfriend, chris, your going to hop in the shower. while in there, he notices your bookshelf in front of him. chris has always thought you read normal romance book’s— so he of course picks one up and slowly skims the pages. his eyes widen as he notices what you’ve been hiding from him.

! chris p.o.v x 3rd person p.o.v !

!warnings!; SMUTTY SMUT, oral (fem!receiving), p in v, protected sex, blindfold, handcuffs, pet names, (baby, slut, whore, ma.), overstimulation.

authors note; i’m sorry if this isn’t as smutty or too smutty— but it just seemed right for the idea you know 🤷🏼‍♀️! also i absolutely HATE this.

imani = pink

chris = blue

book characters = purple

“CHRIS, BABY,” imani calls out to chris, his head turning around to face her. “yeah?” he questions her. “i’m gonna go shower— just stay there okay?” imani mumbles to chris and he nods at the girl. she gets up and grabs her towel, swinging it over her shoulder. imani walks into the bathroom and lock’s the door, chris turning his phone on right after.

after 15 minutes, chris gets bored and turns his phone off. he walks to the closest thing next to him— her bookshelf. his long fingers run across every cover of the book, looking for one that he hasn’t seen before. he picks up a book called “shred of decency” and skips to the page she left off on.

“i want this morgan” , “what do you want?” say me. remind me we’re meant for each other and that we can forget our lousy morning and the rest of our troubles. “to suck you.”

chris’s eyes widen as his cheeks flush a deep red color. has my girlfriend been reading smut this whole time? just right next to me in bed every night? chris’s eyes scan at the tabbed pages, flipping through them.

he sees pages with sentences like “idea for chris,” or “want to do.” why hasn’t she ever asked me about doing any of this? was she to nervous to ask?

* CHRIS’S P.O.V *

‘WHAT THE hell. no way my girlfriend has been reading this shit our whole relationship and said nothing. i mean— do i not give her enough?’ i look to the side and open her drawer, a pink puffy set of handcuffs and a silk black blindfold appearing in-front of my eyes. we’ve had things like this around just incase something came up and we were in the mood. but, obviously if she thinks i’m not giving her enough— tonight will definitely show her i am able to.

the bathroom door unlocks as i quickly shove both of the items into my back pockets, turning around to see her in just a towel. my cheeks go back to the red color they were before as my cock aches for attention in my pants. god she looks so fuckable. “chris, baby, your staring—“ she says as my hands land right to her waist, my nails practically digging into her sides.

“those books, the page— your a slut imani,” i mumble to her, placing a wet kiss on her neck and biting down gently. her breathe hitches when i do so, letting a whimper slide past her lips. my fingers slide down from her waist to the center of her core, her juices immediately coating my fingers. “so fucking wet and i haven’t even done a thing— such a good girl for me,” i mumble against her once more, leaving a bite mark against the soft skin along her collar bone. “and these, these are finally getting used tonight,” i say to her once more, taking the pink fluffy handcuffs and white silk blindfold out my pocket. i quickly put them back in to slide my hands up and down her thighs.

imani sucks her breathe in as her cheeks turn red. “chris.. we’ve never done anything like this before— are you sure about it?” she asks me in a concerned tone. “after those smutty books i saw baby, i’ve never been more sure,” i say to her, grabbing her wrists and pinning them up against her head, trailing the sloppiest kisses down to the spot just below her belly button.

* 3RD PERSON P.O.V ! *

“tell me what you want baby, use your words,” chris mutters against imani’s stomach. a whimper falls from her mouth as she looks at the boy through her eyelashes. “please.. please just make me feel good chris,” she begs as a smirk plasters on the boys. chris grabs her by her waist and places her down on the bed, angling her where her hands are above her head and against the headboard.

chris grabs the pink fluffy handcuffs from his pocket as he puts her wrist together, locking it onto the headboard. he quickly grabs the blindfold from his pocket after and ties it across imani’s eyes, blocking out her vision. a whimper escapes her lips as chris goes down slowly, inching closer and closer to her soaked core.

“fuck chris- don’t be a tease please..” imani tells him but he smacks her thigh. “don’t tell me what to do you whore,” he spits out at the girl as he places a bite against the inside of her thigh. he licks the spot and goes to the other one, repeating the same thing.

imani bucks her hips up. chris quickly holds down her waist as his nails dig into her hips. “don’t fucking move, you got me?” chris demands, imani nods her head and lets chris continue.

he moves his face right above her soaked core, his hot breath beating onto it. chris slowly licks upwards as whimpers begin falling from imani’s mouth.

“f-fuck..” she says as chris dives in, nose rubbing against her as he sucks on her clit. “taste so fuckin’ good ma,” chris tells her as he groans.

he continues sucking on her until he starts feeling imani’s legs shake. “oh shit- gonna cum chris!” she moans out.

before anything could come out, chris pulls away and begins taking his sweatpants and underwear off. he grabs the condom that’s next to him and rips it open with his teeth, sliding it over his length. “chris- what the-“ before imani could complain any longer chris plunged into her.

a loud pornographic moan escapes imani’s mouth as she tries to get out of the handcuffs. “fuck chris— please! to much!” imani cries out as chris goes thrusts in and out of her harshly.

“cmon baby, the tabs you have on those books? the sentences you have written down? you were begging for this. are you really gonna beg to stop?” chris tells her as he slowly pulls out, just incase she was sure.

“no chris.. fuck— don’t stop,” imani accepts her defeat. hearing this scentence, chris wastes no time plunging back into her.

the room is filled with slapping noises and whimpers from the pair.

“chris.. i’m cumming!” imani screams out as chris’s thrusts go faster. “fuck, so am i baby! cum with me alright?” chris says.

imani scream-moans outloud as she feels herself release onto him, chris realessing into the condom not the long after her.

he takes the condom off and ties it, walking to the bathroom and throwing it in the trashcan.

“here you go baby,” chris whispers as he takes both the blindfold and the handcuffs off. “was it to much?” he asks while putting the items away.

“it’s never to much with you, trust me.”

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - The Heat is Rising

Sorry this late, blah blah real life actual job blah blah.

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

June 2024 Week 3

Ongoing Series - Thai

Wandee Goodday (Sat YT) ep 8 of 12 - Why is it so good?! It’s unfair. Cause I know pain must be incoming. Also... Yak moved to the "rao" pronoun for his confession! SO ADORABLE!!!!! Can you see me kicking my feet and squealing with joy on this side of the screen? Well I am. 

Sunset X Vibes (Sat iQIYI) ep 2 of 12 - I think I'm finding this show a lot funnier than the show is trying to be. The pose in the doorway. The sparkle pants. The creaking of the leather. It’s all hilarious. The foot massage. So silly. Simultaniously, full of thirst. Yay! I like thirst. Not entirely sure why he’s dicking him around and not dicking him out but hey the tension is fun. Also the shot staging is very good. Very yaoi. Lin going to have so much power in this relationship once he starts trying on seduction for size. All just to say, it’s good and I’m enjoying it.

My Stand-In (Fri iQIYI) ep 9 of 12 - you know I'm enjoying it a lot, so a surprise to see a Star Hunter beat it out? It's just MosBank are SERVING classic BL and I am a sucker for that kinda smut. Back to Stand-In...

It’s sad and a little complicated and interesting. And I’m still enjoying it very much. But this episode was mostly a rehash of information we already had been given, it was slow. Although since the acting is so good in this particular show, I didn’t mind it as much as I might have in a pulp piece, for example. 

My Love Mix-Up Th (Fri YT) ep 3 of 12 - I’m very much enjoying this. Not quite as much as I initially enjoyed the JBL version. But I’m liking a lot. There’s something particularly high school teen YA angst about this IP. Even more so than something like Make it Right or Love Sick. It’s just the cringe reactions and the constant embarrassments and the roller coaster of emotions that each character goes through in every scene. I forgot how exhausting it is to be a teen.

We Are Cute (Weds iQIYI) ep 12 of 16 - We Are Cute continues to be very cute indeed. Honestly Phum doesn’t need to flirt with Peem, Peem is already in love. The learning about each other is fun, but the fact that Phum still constantly communicates via kissing is great. I love that we have a couple whose love language is smooches. TanFang endgame is my favorite, I fucking LOVE them. But... NO SINGING. Worst fake band ever? Place docked in BL standing this week for that alone.

Love Sea (Sun iQIYI) ep 2 of 10 - It's fine I guess? Trash watch here.

Knock Knock Boys (Thurs Gaga) ep 5 of 12 - It’s ridiculous and they're very cute and I kind of don’t know what’s going on. But the young one getting his first dildo and skipping with excitement was utterly adorable. And it is the first rep we’ve got for such a thing in this genre. So good on you little pulp!

Only Boo! (Sun YT) ep 11 of 12 - Everything felt a little rushed and oddly paced in this episode. Not entirely sure why K came back to him. Anyway, I hope it’s all explained in the finale.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

At 25:00 in Akasaka AKA 25 Ji Akasaka de (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 10fin - I’ve made no secret about the fact that I haven’t been wild about this show.

Here’s a few things I enjoyed about the final episode: Uke initiated the sex scene!! Lots of tenderness. Long takes plus the absence of (and then very gentle introduction of) music. Unexpectedly high heat. Condom rep! The gayest bedroom layout ever. What I didn’t like: The absolute pinnacle of frustration for P'ABL on the other side of the screen wanting to grab the leads and shake them until their teeth rattled and scream "FOR THE LOVE, just TALK to each other!"  Oh but they are so cute and SO POLITE when the finally do reconcile! 

In conclusion:

A BL about the making of a BL where the famous one has a crush on the obscure one. It’s already been done.  Recently. By Japan. I would be tempted to say "better" but I didn’t like the first version either. At least this was less stalkery? Look, this show was fine. Just, in a word: cool, unengaging, and frustrating. OK that was 3 words. But they’re apt. A lackluster offering with a great ending. How to rate that? I despaired but ended up on 7/10 - do better Japan, I know you can.

Blue Boys (Korea YouTube) - it got its part 2, thank the BL gods, rounding this one into an 8 ep series. Still short (those eps barely scrape 10 min at most) but a solid little offering.

Charming reunion romance full of class + coming out struggles and great chemistry all of which was let down by a curtailed length. Had it just been given some legs, it could have grown wings and taken flight, but in the end it is simply too short. Still enjoyable and certainly worth your time. Cause ya don't need much of it. 8/10 RECOMMENDED

It's airing but...

The Last Time (Thai Fri YT?) - Convoluted story of loss and possible reincarnation or something. Can't find it.

OMG Vampire (Thai Sun ???) 10 eps - I've put the search on hold for a bit and y'all can let me know if it's worth tracking down.

In case you missed it

I mean you were under a rock on Tues Jan 18th Thailand's senate passed the Marriage Equality Bill. As of typing this, the King still has to sign it into law, but he's unlikely to veto. So it's a matter of time before everything is official. Thailand follows Nepal (2024) and Taiwan (2019). Both of those were judicial, Thailand's is legislative.

Let's Eat Together Aki and Haru 2 AKA Aki wa Haru to Gohan wo Tabetai 2 Haime! (Japan movie) - Continued the (frankly) lackadaisical story from part 1 and was meant to drop yesterday. We thought maybe Gaga, but nothing so far.

The Time of Fever AKA Unintentional Love Story 2 (Korea movie) trailer released to Korean theaters 5/25. HoTae & DongHee, side couple from Unintentional Love Story are back! Same actors, same character names. I love them. Devastated this hasn't had international distribution.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

Last of the June Releases

6/26 The Rebound (Thai Weds Gaga) - MeenPing are back in their 3rd BL together, a basketball based romance (Meen was a national basketball player, so yay for that). I like this pair better than most (I still do miss Meen with Est but Est has a fantastic looking new BL coming from GMMTV so yeah...) Anyway I'm up for a sports romance starring a man who, yah know, actually played that sport so... I'm game (pun intended).

6/26 I Hear the Sunspot AKA Hidamari ga Kikoeru (Japan Weds Gaga) 10 eps - A new series adaptation of beloved yaoi I Hear the Sunspot (first adaptation was feature film Silhouette of Your Voice 2017).

6/30 The Trainee (Thailand Sun YouTube) 12 eps- office romance between a boss/employee featuring OffGun. Taking over Boo's spot for GMMTV.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Lip touch! So sexy. So rare from Korea. Blue Boys.

I do love a meta call out moment.

Tiny idiots (affectionate)

Love their kisses. Such a great side couple.

All Wandee.

(Last week)

QUICK NOTE: I'm flying international back next weekend and the damn thing is gonna take like 72 hours or whatever insanity. Needless to say, I may not get to this round-up for ages. So don't panic, I'm not dead just sleeping.

Streaming services are listed by how I (usually) watch, which is with a USA based IP, and often offset by a day because time zones are a pain.

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in it's infinite wisdom doesn't like too many tags.

There's these tricks, remember.

[akilahia]

Thinking about IHNMAIMS in pretty much all of its forms.

Specifically Ted and Ellen. Obviously in the Game their relationship is very different from the short story/comic/radio drama, with Ted being in love with Ellen(although it’s evident it’s because she is the only woman left alive). In the game he shows devotion to her, he is willing to push past his usual methods of flirtation and find other ways to get what he needs.

But in the other adaptions his feelings towards Ellen are mixed. I think his unique backstory with being so dependent on women to live a happier and more lavish life style, significantly effect how he views Ellen beyond AM’s tampering

Throughout the short story Ted constantly thinks ill of Ellen. Even though prior to being placed in this hell, she had only had sex twice before. But she is the last woman alive on earth. The video game(while following a different plot line(still one that is extremely tragic and literally made me cry)) expresses that even before Ellen’s assualr she had little to no interest in sex. She would never have had sex with the four men if it weren’t for

1. AM

2. Being the Last women alive

3. AM’s deliberate tampering

In a world where characters like Benny have been so permanently physically marked as a form of torture by AM, something like sex, is not as extreme in comparison(at least from Ted’s perspective). However to be the last woman alive, with minimal interest in sex, to be tampered with in such a way, is such a horrific form of torture.

I’m going to shift a way from this for a second to talk about Ted’s backstory for the video game. I understand that the videogame makes changes in terms of backstory for some of the characters(like Benny), so we can’t claim Ted’s backstory for the game is even remotely close to whatever it might have been for the short story. However, I still think can provide interesting context to his behavior towards Ellen.

Starting off, he really isn’t the cool rich guy that he played himself off to be when life was still normal. He never came from money, he was poor and he was forced to work and couldn’t go to school. However he was good looking which is resulted in older woman being attracted to him. And when he was NINETEEN, one older woman gave him her husband’s money and offered him the chance to travel and live in luxury.

Now this probably isn’t important, or was even taken into consideration by the game makers, but I was curious as to what the possible age gap between this older woman and Ted could be. The were together for 5 years, then she died

She died specifically of an aneurysm, which according to Google typically happens between the ages of 30 to 60. There is all this stuff with the Cold War and ww3 and I was going to try to do all this math with it but it’s too late for that and not relevant to the point I’m trying to make. But I’m just going to do some simple mental math and estimate that it might have been late 60’s or early 70’s when the older woman and Ted first got into a relationship. As I’m assuming everything went to shit in 1995 since that’s when the game came out, and 25 years had passed after he met the woman. Also this makes sense as Ted’s grandfather sold the farm due to the Great Depression, since most people married and had kids young, I’m going to be generous and say grandpa was 30 in 1929, and Ted’s mother or father was 9, then 10-12 years later Ted was born. Then 19 years later it would be about the 60’s or 70’s.

I am going to presume that the older woman had been married to her husband for at least 15 years. So it might have been 50’s at the earliest possibility. And the average age people married at then was when they were in their 20’s. So when she met Ted she was AT THE EARLIEST 35. Making her at least 16 years older than Ted when the first got together. But also worth noting that they do specifically mention older. So if we look on the higher side of the typical ages for aneurisms she could have been 55 when they first met(as the 5 years would pass making her 60) so she could have been 36 years older than him.

This seriously isn’t relevant to the actual point I’m trying to make with Ellen and Ted but I got sucked in. I guess I just wanted to highlight that Ted did not have the power in this relationship, he was young and poor, while she was old and rich, and I can imagine how that kind of relationship would impact him.

The next thing I want to note is the use of the word ‘lover’.

Though it can be used in a strictly romantic non intimate sense, I think it is used in the sexual way here.

Especially with the provided context of two different definitions of the word ‘lover’ both highlighting it’s connotations with sexual relationships

Furthermore, Ted’s relationship with the older woman is essentially just a sugar baby relationship. She is letting him experience things he never could have without her money. She teaches him how to act as a socialite and gets him used to the high life.

In connection to the sexual elements above, there was a video I wanted to link here but I can’t find it anywhere anymore. It was a YouTube video with a bunch of sugar babies discussing their experiences. And one woman confides that you really won’t make much money if you are in a platonic or non intimate romantic relationship with your sugar parent. If you want to make money and live richly, you have to preform sexual favors.

Now it’s hard to say if this was the only relationship with an older woman that Ted had been in. But regardless of whether it was one woman or a billion, using his body in order to get something that he wants has become an important asset to Ted; As seen in the castle with the maid and the witch. His love for Ellen(in the video game) helps him break past this fatal flaw of his, despite AM’s obvious temptations to make him fail.

Even if this stuff was in anyone’s minds when they wrote Ted’s backstory but I think it’s extremely important to note, especially as we return to my main point.

As stated before, Ted views Ellen negatively due to her promiscuity, despite the desire(felt really gross typing this word in this context) being placed in her as a form of torture by AM. She also is a woman, and Ted’s life has been spent around using and being used by women, so definitely lots of conflicting stuff there. Additionally Ted’s experiences with sexual relations are shown to be based in being transactional.

When he agrees with Ellen to go to the caves to get the food, she rewards him by being intimate with him to show her gratitude. Ted sees it as her ‘using him.’ (From the Radio Drama, I was going to post the clip but I could only post one video in a tumblr post apparently)

In the comic, after this encounter he questions her motivations. What she got out of it, once again thinking transactionally. But her response

“Does there have to be a reason”

Really gets to me. Especially after looking at all this intertextual context. Thinking about video game Ted’s backstory with book Ted’s thoughts and behaviors, he is shown to always think there is some kind of catch. No one is doing something without getting something in return, especially if that thing is kindness.

Ted is so intensely paranoid(as seen in all versions). I think by pairing up the backstory for the game with the short story/comic/radio drama it’s evident to see how heavily affected he is by it.

He thinks he has been tormented less by AM, making him paranoid of the others, contributing towards his behavior towards Ellen. Yet despite everything from the past and all of AM’s tampering, he still finds comfort with Ellen. Her unfaltering kindness manages to reach him even when he dismisses it as a farce. She doesn’t hate him or the others for how they’ve treated her, she still wants to help them. He still cares for her and the others. But he is filled with so much fear. He even apologizes to her.

I feel like at that point in the Radio drama marks a shift. Ted has made a realization about AM and it’s a lot for him, but Ellen is there for him. It’s a genuinely sincere act of kindness from her where she doesn’t ask or expect anything in return. They have some kind of connection. Once again blending the different versions, I think that this moment between them comes together in the end when they kill the other victims together. They don’t speak to each other, they just do it quickly and he kills her. And here he doesn’t refer to her by any degrading names. In the comic he holds her. Like how in the radio drama she held him.

Overall I just wanted to point out how well all these versions really mix to provide so much more behind each character. The backstories for the video game allow the reader to understand book Ted’s actions and relationships from a new angle.

The is was super duper major mess of a ramble. It’s now 3 am and I have a migraine, so I’m done for tonight. I might clean this up another time or make another post about Video game Ted with context to his backstory since I didn’t include the events from the video game in here.

Once again these are just my thoughts and beliefs on how I think the video game backstory for Ted provides interesting context for Book Ted. I know that both stories play out differently and both Ted’s act differently so please don’t get angry if you disagree with the message of stuff I said

[erinwantstowrite]

Let me just quickly say, cross-overs can sometimes get REALLY difficult to map out and write in a cohesive way but you have absolutely NAILED IT!! I absolutely ADORE LoF!!! I usually don’t even bother reading fics with the ‘Richard Grayson is Richard Parker’ premise cause I felt like they were super confusing and overcomplicated but this fic?? SUPERB. ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE. OH MY GOD I ADORE IT. Everyone’s characterizations are so nice and wonderful aaaaaaah!!!! <33333

Ok ok I did actually have a question as well: would you be willing to share what your writing process looks like in terms of a chapter you’ve already posted? I was just wondering since I’m also currently working on my own fic (it’s been a few years but I managed to get fixated on an idea and it grew legs lol) and I’m currently fighting the organization of it haha.

How do you keep track of the plot points and/or foreshadowing you want to get a ‘lightbulb!’ moment for later? Do you have any tips?

Thank you so much! I absolutely adore your writing AND your art is so gorgeous omg it adds so much to the incredible story :DDD I hope you have a good day!!

I have a secret: I actually didn't like "Richard Grayson is Richard Parker' tag for a while for the same reason. Sometimes they felt like they missed the mark or it's just. A thing that's there? I almost didn't include it for LoF, but I'm glad I did because it changed the direction in such a big way.

Another secret: this made me incredibly happy because I have read so many wikis and scoured the internet to make sure that I had enough info on both fandoms so LoF could make sense to anyone who's reading it, whether they know Spider-Man, Batfam, or neither at all. Sometimes I worry a lot before I post that I'll miss a mark and will confuse people.

As for the question: I definitely am willing to share what my writing process looks like!

Be prepared for under the cut, I love to yap. It's in my blood to yap. And that's why it took a minute to get to this ask haha

(Spoilers for Leap of Faith!! Everything mentioned has already been published ((Chapters 1-11))

I had to go and find out which chapter I wanted to use as an example and I think we're gonna go with Chapter 5 for the most part :)

My writing process is, as described by alighterwood:

I think the description fits because while I'm all over the place, I have to be very detail oriented and I store everything in one spot.

Starting with the overall process, what I find is most helpful for me, when organizing, is having a notebook rather than doing it all digitally. I've been using a 70 sheet notebook that I had lying around waiting to be used, and as of yesterday, I officially filled the entire thing front to back. It's been an incredible help, for a lot of reasons, but mostly because it's a lot easier to remember something I physically wrote down than it is to remember something I typed. I'm now on to my second notebook for LoF, and I might even have to get a third.

In another ask, startupkat asked me this:

And I shared a little about my outline process there, but I'll try to go into a little more depth here. Emphasis on little because this is so long.

I write a truly insane amount of outlines in this notebook.

This is just what I can show you, but a good chunk of the notebook is just outlines. Over and over and over again. That's because they're always changing/adapting based on so many different factors. Sometimes I get to a chapter I thought I had fully planned out and then realize it just doesn't work anymore. Other times, I get to the chapter and realize I don't want to write that anymore/isn't as interesting as I thought it would be. A few times I got halfway through a POV of a scene I was struggling on and decided to switch POV's, which will change up the outline for a chapter every now and then.

Which is why I don't write incredibly detailed outlines and try to keep it vague until I actually get to that chapter. It's a lot less daunting to rewrite a chapter outline than it is to rewrite the entire outline.

Fic outlines and Chapter outlines look a lot alike.

This is what I said in the other ask, but I didn't elaborate on it all the way.

I make a list just like that, and then I try to put it in chronological order/in an order that makes sense. I keep the Fic outline vague by writing down "Goals" for a chapter rather than scenes. But I also keep notes to myself if I really think something is important. The more important I think a scene needs to be, the more details I write down to make sure my future self recalls what I had in mind when I thought it up.

Really simple example:

Chap 1 Goal: Peter gets to Gotham and meets Babs while running around. Meet Nightwing too? Get shelter.

Chapter 2 Goal: Bats are like "???" about Peter. Batfam dynamic important... Peter stalking Batfam back? Peter meet Batman >:)

When I get to a chapter, that's when I make a far more detailed list of wants/needs/goals. It's the Step 2 from the Step 1. Here are some examples from Chapter 5:

Needed to have:

More POV's from universe 1299 (Peter's home universe)

Tony's POV more specifically, how he's doing/feeling, what he's figured out

What they've figured out on 1299 side vs what's going on in 1300 (Gotham)

Explaining more about Peter's trauma/his past

Dick learning more about Peter, and vise versa

Wanted to have:

Ned being a more central character

Natasha :)

Loki being a little shit

Tony and Cap bickering

Peter talking to Nightwing again

The last name Grayson

Gymnastics!!

(This is the shortened list, because the chapters are so long)

When I looked at this list before writing my outline, I had to figure out how I could incorporate everything. If I needed more 1299 POV's, and I wanted Ned, Natasha, and Loki, there's one scene accounted for. I had to get their side of things and wanted that trio together. I needed a Tony POV, and I wanted Tony and Cap bickering, so those went together, plus I got 1299's POV of Ohnn and his plans explained.

I needed to have Peter explaining more about his trauma, and Dick and Peter to talk/get closer. I wanted a Nightwing POV, to have Peter say his last name, and them doing gymnastics. I knew Peter wouldn't willingly talk about that, so I had him have a nightmare. Not only did it give readers perspective but it made Peter more susceptible to talking to Nightwing because he was more emotionally vulnerable/lonely, and that's how that scene came together.

That's when I would write down the chronological order of these events by writing out "Scene Blocks." (This is what I wrote down but my handwriting was so bad I can't subject y'all to it):

scene 1- Ned talking to Loki. Natasha should be nearby and observing Loki's behavior. They are not on friendly terms. Ned is more worried about Peter than he is as to what Loki could be up to, so Natasha takes on that role.

scene 2- Tony is freaking out about Peter being in an alt dimension. He should attack Ohnn when he's not prepared for it. Beat his ass? Beat his ass. Cap there too.

scene 3- Peter's nightmare. "Ben, where do you go when you die?" "Where do you think?" "With you. Where you went."

scene 4- Nightwing and Peter.

Of course, things come to attention when writing. Like originally, Tony and Cap were arguing in the Tower. But it was a little too much like his and Natasha's argument, and I kept in mind that Tony is smart. Sometimes I forget that the characters are smarter than I am, so I have to account for what they would figure out. So Tony would have picked up the puzzle pieces and come to more conclusions than I originally thought about, and I figured he'd be way more proactive about it than just. Being in the Tower and waiting.

Which means that that scene ended up being as listed above: having a squabble with Cap, learning more about Peter's dynamic with the Avengers in this universe, and seeing how Tony is reacting to it by throwing himself head first into trying to capture Ohnn.

I'll realize I need something else to be mentioned or put in and I'll have to shimmy things around, but that's basically how it goes.

As for other forms of organization:

Keeping a timeline is so important because it tells you a lot about the environment your characters are in. It's also important to remember what a character has on them, what money they've spent, who they've met/who you have mentioned, every alias that is being used, to read your work and write down edits you want to make before you make them, to write down ideas beforehand of situations you can use, and, most importantly: MAKE A MAP!! This has saved me so many times. Sometimes your brain WILL trick you or make it harder on you to envision a scene. Make a map of where your characters are physically!! It will save you too!!

As for foreshadowing and plot points, I'll let you in on yet another secret:

Your subconscious is doing a lot more than you think it is.

Sometimes when I foreshadow something, I didn't even know I was until I got to it. I very often go back to read chapters that came before this to see what I've mentioned and what I haven't, and when I do, I'll see something and go "I have to bring this back" or "I almost forgot about that!"

Other times, I am very aware of what I'm foreshadowing, and that's because I follow a mystery plot formula. You have to keep in mind everyone's intentions, all the time. How are they feeling? What are their motivations? And: what are they doing right now, while this character is doing this?

Like Beck and Ohnn. From the very beginning, I knew I had to make sure that it was obvious Ohnn wasn't working alone. From there, I had to weave through the story and slowly build him up as someone who's working behind the scenes. Even from Ned's first POV, I made sure to mention that this person knows Tony and is tech savvy.

My biggest tip is to make sure you reread your work or at least skip through it, because sometimes you don't even know that you placed something there.

And sometimes, it's very purposeful. :)

I hope this helped! I really tried to keep it short but I am insane and the process is sooooo long. It sounds complicated but it really is simple when you're actually doing it I swear

[starstruckphantommoon]

Katsuki Bakugo: You Were Reckless

Genre: Fluff with a little bit of angst

Pairing: Katsuki Bakugo x fem!pro hero!reader

WC: 1,158

Hello guys!

I have a quick little author's note for you guys before you continue with reading the story down below.

So, to start, when I had first wrote this story a while back, I wanted it to be longer and have a flashback that explained as to why the reader is in the hospital in this story, but I couldn't think of a way or spot in the story to fit it and have it make sense so this story's on the short side... If you guys want me to do a prequel kind of thing to this, please let me know and I'll definitely do it when I get the chance too!

I also have a scenario that's kind of like this but it has a battle scene against a villain, but the only difference is, is that the reader doesn't end up going to the hospital at the end, so if you guys want me to post that one, please let me know! I'd just have to edit it some more and think up a good title for it since I haven't yet!

Anyway, that's it for my author's note!

Enjoy the story guys and I'll see you for the next one which will most likely be posted early to mid-next week at some point!

The gentle hum of what sounds like machinery and the beeping of a heart monitor is what wakes you up. You slowly open your eyes, only to be blinded by a bright light against a white ceiling, which causes to close your eyes again with a groan.

After a moment, you open your eyes again and your years adjust to the lights. Once your eyes get adjusted to the light, you turn your head against your pillow, seeing that you're in a hospital room.

There's a few moments as you look around the room where you don't remember as to why you'd be in a hospital room, but then the battle against a few villains you were in with your longtime boyfriend - now fiancé; Katsuki Bakugo aka Dynamight where you got knocked out from exceeding your quirks limit.

You continue to look around the room and when you look towards the room's window, you see Katsuki sitting in a chair, looking out over the cityscape. “Suki?” You question softly with a gentle groan as your eyes still haven’t fully adjusted to the white walls and bright lights of the room. Katsuki grunts in response as he turns to look over at you from his seat. “What happened? Did we get ‘em?” you ask referring to the 3 villains the 2 of you had been fighting before you fell unconscious. “Yeah. The villains are all in custody.” he confirms. “Good.” you sigh out with a smile as you relax against the mattress and pillow. “Another win.”

All in a day’s work for a Pro Hero.

“A win?” Katsuki repeats icily. “You seriously call that shit show a win?” Opening one eye you see you your fiancé gripping the arms of the chair that he’s sitting in, smoke coming out of his hands.

What crawled up his ass and died?

Knowing that he's just worried about you because you got hurt during the battle earlier, you try to console him and reassure him that you're okay. "Katsuki, I'm fine. You don't have to-" “You nearly died (Y/N).” he hisses, cutting you off. “And until you stop pushing your limits, you’re gonna be on desk duty.” “What-? D-Desk duty?” you sputter out in surprise. “Are you kidding me Katsuki?” you ask. “How am I supposed to show that I can stop pushing my limits if I’m stuck behind a desk?” “By following my directions and doing what I say!” Katsuki exclaims back. “This isn’t a game y'know?! This isn’t UA where you’re sparring, and you can just go to Recovery Girl if you get hurt!” “I’m good at what I do as a Pro Hero! You of all people should know that by now!” you retort back at him angrily, as the heart rate monitor on the other side of your bed starts beeping rapidly, matching the pace of your pounding heart.

“You may be good at what you do as a Pro but you’re so damn reckless!” he exclaims. “I may be reckless, but I get the job done!” you exclaim back. “Your recklessness will end up getting you killed one day (Y/N)!” His words echo off the walls of the hospital room as you glare at each other.

After a minute or two of glaring at each other, Katsuki gets up from the chair he’d been sitting in, running his hands through his spiky blonde hair aggressively before he speaks again. “As a Pro Hero, sometimes the best win is being able to come back home. Alive.” His voice is much quieter as he says this and your glare lessens at his words, sensing the worry in his voice. “I always make it back home alive, Katsuki.” you counter, your voice matching his.

He turns away from you, looking out the window behind him. “Yeah, you do..., but you end up doing something reckless and I have to rescue your ass in time before you get hurt or worse... ...killed...” He replies, his voice cracking slightly at the end. Katsuki's body is tense as you watch him closely, not really knowing what to say, because you know that he's right. You are reckless when it comes to certain situations, especially when innocent people are in danger because of villains wreaking havoc.

"Kat I-" you start to say but you cut yourself off when you see his shoulders shaking slightly.

'Is he… crying…?’ you wonder to yourself. The cocky, hot-headed Katsuki 'Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight’ Bakugo is crying?

“What do you think is going to happen if I don’t make it to you in time one day, (Y/N)?” Katsuki asks you gently. “Have you ever thought about that?” Unfortunately, no… you really haven’t thought of that possibility of him not getting to you in time like he did today.

At the thought, you shift uncomfortably under the covers as you hear the raw emotions flooding through his voice as he speaks. “If I don’t get to you in time, I get to bring your body back to the agency, and then go to our apartment only to be reminded that I wasn’t able to save you; …that I failed you…“

The silence that fills the room following his words is unbearable.

You’ve known Katsuki for nearly 10 years now, since your first year at UA and you dated him for just over 8 years before he had proposed to you almost a year ago now, so you know for a fact that if something happened to you because he couldn’t get to you in time, he wouldn’t be able to stand himself if he was the reason that you died - even if it would really be your fault for being so reckless and pushing yourself too far and putting yourself in a compromising position.

Katsuki loves you that much, so much in fact that he would blame himself if you didn’t make it because he couldn’t get to you in time… “Katsuki I-…” you start only for your voice to cut off as you don’t really know what to say. You sigh gently before continuing. “I never really thought about it that way…” You hear Katsuki scoff. *Tch* “No, you haven’t,” he starts as he turns back to you, walking over to your bed and sitting on the edge. “because you always seem to think that I’m gonna be able to save your ass every single damn time. So, you’ll be on desk duty until I say so.” You nod in understanding, accepting your punishment for being so reckless on the field. “I’m sorry, Suki.” you say grabbing his hand. Katsuki shakes his head slightly as he gives your hand a squeeze. “Don’t be sorry dumbass, just come back home alive, that's all I care about.”

"Okay. I'll come back to you if you do the same for me." you reply, knowing just how he can be as stubborn as you, if not more sometimes.

"Always."

[bitchesuntitled]

Some Broken Hearts Never Mend

Pairing: Dieter Bravo x f!actress reader

Warnings: Language, mentions of drugs, pregnancy, lovers to enemies, angst angst angst

A/N: Huge thank you to @noxturnalpascal and @beefrobeefcal for helping me with this! ❤️ I don’t usually do angst but trying to play around with it and I needed the practice. This is for @tightjeansjavi's June Writing Challenge. Also tagging @jay-zzle because she is my permanent cheerleader

Masterlist||AO3

divider by: @saradika-graphics

The lights are flashing everywhere, hearing your name and Dieter’s being shouted left and right. Where to look, what to do, you love sharing this moment with him, watching his smile beam as the congratulations are being shouted out.

“I can’t believe this is real,” Dieter whispers in your ear with a smile, rubbing the bump of your belly.

Paparazzi is shouting out excitedly, seeing you two together along with your prominent bump on display. You both kept this news under wraps until you couldn’t hide it anymore. It’s too hot in the summer to try wearing the oversized hoodies you’d been wearing all spring. It was decided between both of your teams that the best thing for an announcement was to show up to Dieter’s premier with a dress that would show off your bump, letting the world know that Dieter Bravo was about to take on the most important role of his life - a family man.

“Dieter! Dieter over here!” You see Adam from Entertainment Tonight waving you both down.

You nudge Dieter, motioning towards the host, and make your way over for the first interview of the night.

“Hey guys! I’m just so excited to see you two! Wow,” Adam says your name, “You look absolutely glowing. Is there maybe a reason why?” he teases.

“Well, I don’t know,” you laugh, shrugging your shoulders, “Babe?”

“Hmm…” Dieter says, rubbing your bump, “I think because you’re having my baby?”

“I can’t believe it! First, you get this man sober, and now,” Adam says with an amusing smirk, “You’ve gotten him to have a baby with you?”

“She’s a witch!” Dieter exclaims with a massive grin, “I swear. She put me under some sort of spell!”

The interview went on for a little longer, delving into Dieter’s role and how he prepared for the movie. Interview after interview, the baby was brought up.

What are you hoping for? Boy or girl? Healthy.

Have you thought of any names? Yes, but not sure yet.

Do you know what the sex is? We want it to be a surprise.

The same questions were asked repeatedly until it was time to go inside the theater.

—

“Hey babe, I’m gonna be going out, hanging with some friends,” Dieter says, waltzing into the living room with his phone and keys. You pause the TV, scooting to the edge of the couch. “You don’t need to get up.”

“What friends?” You ask concern etched on your face. It always makes you nervous when he is going to hang out with friends solo. It wasn’t that you didn’t trust Dieter, it was just that he’s had his fair share of relapses.

“Sam, Claudia, and Percy.”

You make a disgusted face as soon as Percy’s name is mentioned. Sam and Claudia, you trust. Percy, you do not.

“Babe,” Dieter starts, “I know you don’t like the guy but he just got out of rehab. No drugs will be around, everything will be just fine!”

“He just got out of rehab that was court-mandated, Dieter,” you seeth, “You really think he took that shit seriously?!”

“Baby,” Dieter sighs, placing a hand on your stomach, “You gotta watch your blood pressure. Not good for Peanut.”

Inhale. 1 2 3 4. Hold it. Slowly exhale. 5 6 7.

This has become your mantra lately, the doctor was getting worried about your blood pressure and stress levels. He had said that it could cause early labor. Six months along, and you needed to start paying more attention to this stuff. The last thing you want is for Peanut to come before they’re ready.

“I just don’t trust him,” you explain, “The last time you hung out with him you relapsed and went down a rabbit hole.”

“I know,” he said, head dropping, “I’m sorry. I really am, but I promise it won’t happen again. There’s not supposed to be any hard drugs, maybe some weed but that’s it.”

“Fine,” you groan, “I mean it though Dieter, you can’t have any more slip ups. Gotta think about Peanut.”

“I’m always thinking about you and Peanut,” Dieter grins, placing a tender kiss on your forehead. “I’ll behave and be home before ten.”

Dieter wasn’t home before ten, or eleven, or twelve. It was nearing two in the morning when you finally heard the front door open. Sliding your feet into your slippers and grabbing his tattered green robe to wrap yourself in, you made your way to the living room.

“Fuck,” you hear Dieter say sniffling, “What the fuck did I do?”

“Babe?” You ask, coming into the living room, Dieter slumped on the couch, “Everything okay?”

“I fucked up,” he whispers, pushing his hands against his eyes, “I promised yo-,” he chokes on a sob, “I promised you I wouldn’t and I fucked up.”

“Dieter,” you sigh, approaching the couch to sit next to him, “Look at me.”

He shakes his head, looking down at his lap, fingers twitching against his face. He looks so helpless like this. You grab his hands, and pull them into your lap.

“Babe,” you try again, “Look at me,” reaching your hand to cup his cheek, forcing him to look at you. Watery bloodshot eyes stare back at you.

“I’m so sorry,” Dieter whispers, closing his eyes, a lone tear running down his cheek, “I should’ve listened to you.”

He tells you what happened. You nod in understanding, this was just a slip-up, you can forgive him yet again. You know it was just a bad judgment call to go out tonight. He will get through this just like he has every other time.

—

“Looks like you’re doing well, baby is right on track and appears to be growing as they should,” the doctor says, looking at your chart, “Only about two more months to go and then we can start looking to induce you. I want to see you in two weeks.”

You give a small smile and nod, rubbing your bump, slinging your purse over your shoulder, willing the phone inside to buzz as you make your way to the receptionist’s desk, making small talk with her and getting your next appointment set. You thank her as you take the appointment card, sliding it into your purse as you walk out the door.

Inhale. 1 2 3 4. Hold it. Slowly exhale. 5 6 7.

Dieter’s been missing, three weeks to the day now, and no one can find him. His management team and assistant have been on a hunt trying to find him but of course, Dieter has gone off the grid. Last you knew paparazzi had gotten pictures of him somewhere in Europe, but that was last week. His PR team and your own told you not to look at the pictures but you couldn’t not see them when a pregnancy craving hit and you got ice cream late one night.

Dieter Bravo, Trouble in Paradise?

Sources close to the actor state he’s not ready to be a father and ran from his relationship to [redacted], fellow actress who is pregnant with Bravo’s first child.

The small article included pictures of Dieter exiting a club with one arm around a blonde woman’s shoulders and the other arm around a brunette man’s waist. The three of them were walking down the sidewalk. The final pictures in the article showed Dieter kissing both of them.

Stars has tried to reach out to each of the couple’s publicists for comment with no response at this time.

You felt your heart breaking in the middle of the checkout line. He was the one to bring up having a baby. He was the one to convince you to get pregnant. He was the one who time and time again reassured you this is what he wanted and only wanted it with you. 

You felt so stupid, like a poor pathetic girl, when everyone had warned you about him. They’d all told you so many times. Dieter Bravo is a mess. Dieter Bravo can’t be tamed. Dieter Bravo isn’t  meant for relationships. As it turns out, they were all right, and you’d just ignored every warning given to you.. Dieter had kept using after the last slip-up. What was an accident became once a week, then three times a week, and then turned to daily use. Slowly but surely you were giving up, giving up on the one person who you trusted the most.

He made you feel loved, cherished, and special. He always made you feel like no one else could compare to you or your love for each other. Now though, he makes you feel like a fool. He makes you feel like the dirt underneath his shoes. He makes you feel like… like, like—

Your thoughts are interrupted by the buzzing in your purse. The number wasn’t one you recognize but you answered anyway in hopes it was Dieter.

“Hello?”

“Baby,” Dieter’s voice sounds through the phone, “I wanna come home.”

“Dieter?” you ask, “Where are you?”

“I’m at an airport in Paris,” he says sniffling, “I wanna come home.”

“Come home, please,” you beg, “Just come home.”

—

Dieter came home the following day, detox in full swing. He was shaky, sweaty, and puking, and you were staying by his side the entire time. Doubt begins to crawl into your brain, this being the fourth or fifth time you’ve helped him through detox. Is this going to be how your life plays out? Private doctors, in and out of your home like a revolving door. Make sure he’s comfortable, providing you with the necessary instructions to get Dieter through this so he doesn’t have to go to a facility again.

“I think he should consider going to rehab again,” Mark, his manager, says.

“Mark, I don’t know what else to do,” you sigh, shaking your head back and forth. “He doesn’t want to go. He told me every single hiding spot he has here at home and I went through all of them and flushed everything.”

“Just think about it, think about your baby and your own health,” Mark says firmly, “I’ve worked for Dieter for many years and this isn’t going to be the last time this happens.”

“I know,” you whisper, tears threatening to spill over, accepting defeat. You hadn’t meant to fall in this deep with Dieter if you’re being honest with yourself. It was supposed to just be a summer fling but as time went on he squirmed his way deeper and deeper into your heart, making room for himself to curl up inside, and making himself a nice little home there. It was becoming too much to handle, the stress weighing you down more as the days passed by.

If anything was going to prepare you for a newborn it might as well be this. Dieter shouts for you from the guest room in the middle of the night, waddling through the doorway you see him sprawled out on the bed. A thin sheen of sweat covers his chest, turning on the bedside lamp he winces.

“Baby,” Dieter groans, reaching out for you, sitting on the bed you give him your hand, “I love you. I love you more than anything in this world.”

“I know, D,” you murmur, the tears already threatening your waterline as he grasps your hand like it’s his only lifeline, “I know.”

“Hey,” he says perking up some, “Once I’m through with this we should go on vacation somewhere!”

“D we can’t,” you sniffle, rubbing the hand he isn’t holding onto against your nose.

“Why not?”

“Peanut,” you say, giving him a small smile.

“We’ll just take Peanut with us,” he smiles, moving one of his hands to rest on your stomach.

“That’s not really how it works, D,” you groan, “We can’t just up and leave whenever we want to. Not with Peanut.”

“Fine,” Dieter says firmly nodding, jaw going rigid, “Guess it doesn’t matter what I want to do then.”

“No,” you whisper, “It doesn’t.”

For the first time in your entire relationship, Dieter looks angry. He lets go of your hand and rolls over, his back facing you.

“Dieter,” you say softly, placing a hand on his shoulder, “Would you consider going back to rehab?”

Dieter doesn’t respond. When you repeat yourself he just grunts and shoves your hand off his shoulder.

Inhale. 1 2 3 4. Hold it. Slowly exhale. 5 6 7.

The next morning when you wake, he’s gone again. A note with his chicken scratch left on his bedside table.

You’re right. Checking into White Oak again. Things will get better. I promise ❤️

Love, D

—

It took four days. Four days for Dieter to check himself out of rehab and go missing again.

“I can’t fucking do this anymore!” You wail into the phone, leaving yet another voicemail on Dieter’s brand new phone, “Dieter, I need you to come home. Please. If not for me then for Peanut.”

“Fuck!” You shout, throwing your phone across the room, and beginning to pace back and forth. There is nothing you can do besides wait. Wait and hope that Dieter’s not lying in a ditch somewhere. You can feel your heart breaking into a million pieces.

You reach down, trying with all your might to grab your phone and then you feel it. A sharp pain in your groin and liquid rushing down your legs.

“Ahh!” You groan out, the pain sending you to your knees, reaching for your phone and dialing 911, waiting to be put through to a dispatcher, “No, no, no. This can’t be happening. It’s not time yet, it’s not time,” you clutch your stomach, telling the dispatcher you need an ambulance and your address.

Inhale. 1 2 3 4. Hold it. Slowly exhale. 5 6 7.

While you lay on the floor waiting for an ambulance to arrive the only thing you can think of is Dieter and how he should be here. You pick up your phone one more time and try calling him again.

“Hey, it’s Bravo, can’t come to the phone right now but you know what to do after the beep.” Beep.

“Dieter, I’m going into labor. An ambulance is on the way. I need you, please,” you continue through tears, “I’m so scared and I need you. Please come back. Please.”

—

It’s almost been a month since you’ve been home from the hospital. Dieter still hasn’t shown back up, has yet to meet his beautiful baby in person. You started seeing a therapist to help you process everything you’ve been through with Dieter. Looking over at Peanut sleeping peacefully in the bassinet beside your bed, you can’t help thinking about how it’s so unfair to this little baby to have a father who would choose drugs over them, but there’s nothing you can do besides be the best parent you can for Peanut. 

It startles you to hear a crashing sound coming from the kitchen. Slowly making your way out of bed to grab the baseball bat from the closet, you glance over at Peanut one more time before leaving the bedroom to see who dared disturb your peace.

“God damn it,” you hear Dieter groan, “I could’ve sworn I had some in here.”

You try to calm your heart rate, peering around the doorway to see Dieter rummaging through a kitchen drawer. He’s finally shown up. Not for you, not for his baby, but only to try and find drugs. He’s literally only here for the damn drugs. Your therapist had warned you about this moment.

Inhale. 1 2 3 4. Hold it. Slowly exhale. 5 6 7.

“Where the fuck is it?!” Dieter hisses, still not noticing you in the doorway, flipping on the lights.

“Gone,” you state firmly, setting the bat against the wall, and crossing your arms, “I flushed everything.”

“Why the fuck would you do that?” Dieter shrieks, facing you in the doorway but barely focusing on you. “You had no right to do that!”

“I did it because you asked me to when you were detoxing the last time.”

“I never said anything like that,” he seethes, stalking towards you, pointing a finger in your face, “I would never ask you to flush my shit.”

“Dieter, where have you been?” you ask, noting his blown-out pupils, and the wild look in his eyes. “What the fuck did you do?”

“Needed some space,” Dieter scoffs shrugging, “It’s not that big of a fucking deal.”

“Peanut.”

“The fuck?” Dieter asks, looking at you with malice in his eyes.

“Peanut,” you grit through your teeth, pointing down the hall, “You fucking promised me, Dieter. You promised.”

“Oh get off your high horse,” Dieter yells, “Don’t hold that against me when you baby trapped my ass!”

“I- what?” you say through gritted teeth, “You wanted this just as much as I did! It takes two to make a baby!”

“Fuck that!” Dieter laughs maniacally, “I never wanted to be a fucking dad!”

“D, you don’t mean that,” you say, shaking your head, tears brimming your eyes, “That’s the coke talking. You haven’t even seen Peanut, you don’t know what you’re saying.”

“I’m Dieter-fucking-Bravo, baby!” He shouts, throwing his arms up into the air, “I’m not gonna be held down by some relationship and a baby at home!”

“Fuck you,” you point to the door, face serious. “Get out of this house.”

“My fucking pleasure!” Dieter roars, walking out of the kitchen and slamming the front door.

—

Five years later.

Dieter was flipping through the channels, trying to find something interesting to watch on tv. His high was still lingering, not quite sober but not quite as high as that first hit. The ET channel starts blaring your name, with a picture of you, Peanut, and some guy.

“Looks like there’s an engagement in town,” the host says with a smile, “Looks like she’s got herself a type, but who is this mystery man? It’s rumored they met when he was doing some remodeling work on her house two years ago.”

“That girl’s been through enough!” The other host announces, “Bout time she gets her happy-ever-after!”

Wait, what? No, you’re his. His love, his fairy-tale ending, his forever. Dieter’s world is twisting sideways, Peanut is the spitting image of him. His baby, his baby he has never even met.

“No, no, no,” Dieter groans, picking up his phone to try and call you, the phone goes straight to voicemail. He tries calling your publicist next, again straight to voicemail. Next, he tries your manager, with the same results, over and over again until giving up and calling the one person he can trust.

“Mark,” Dieter cries into the receiver, “Please tell me it’s not true.”

“Dieter,” Mark grunts, “It’s three in the morning, what the fuck are you doing?”

“Is she really getting married?”

“Dieter,” Mark let out an exasperated sigh.

“I need to go back to rehab,” Dieter announces, “If I get clean and do all the steps she’ll have to take me back right?”

“Dieter,” Mark says firmly, “That’s not how it works. Let her go. She’s had to change her number fifteen different times now because you somehow keep getting it. Her entire team has your number blocked.”

“She’s the love of my life, Mark,” he whines, “I can’t just let her go. Starting tomorrow, I’m sober.”

Dieter begins cutting ties with most of his friends or really it was more cutting the people off who encouraged him to use. He went through the detox, he went through the steps as best as he could. He wants to impress you, he wants to get you back, get his kid back, fuck this guy who swooped in while he was away.

---

He’s six months sober. He hadn’t been sober for this long since before Peanut was born. Dieter found out from a friend of a friend’s friend where exactly you were living for the right price, Hollywood would never change. He makes the drive to your house, flowers in the passenger seat for you, and a teddy bear for Peanut. He’s ready to grovel at your feet if that’s what it will take. Pulling up to the curb he sees a nice suburban home. It’s nothing like what you two had shared, no ornate bushes out in the front yard, no massive gate surrounding the house keeping you caged in, kids freely playing in the neighboring yards. The front door opens and he feels like he’s been sucker punched. You’re standing there, staring daggers at him. He watches you leave the doorway, and as you walk towards his car he can’t help but think you look just as beautiful as the first day he met you.

He opens the car door, grabs the flowers and teddy bear, and gets out.

“Stop right there,” you state firmly, shoulders back and head held high, “What the fuck are you doing here Dieter?”

“I’m sober,” he says, “I thought- I thought maybe I could come and try to talk to y-”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” You laugh, but not the soft laugh that fills him with so much light like Dieter remembers, this laugh doesn’t bring him comfort, it only brings him a sense of loss.

“I haven’t used in six months now, I’m trying to change, I really am,” he sighs, “I know I fucked up, I know I’ve been gone but I can’t think of you marrying someone else. I can’t”

“You’ve been gone?” You ask, shaking your head, “You were more than gone, it’s been five years. What did you think was going to happen Dieter? That I would still be in that house, taking care of our baby all on my own just waiting on you to come to your senses? Don’t act like you were just gone on a business trip, it’s been five damn years!”

“No, that’s-” he starts, swallowing the lump in his throat, “That’s now how I meant it.”

“Then how did you mean it?”

“I haven’t been good in a long time. The last time things were good was when I was with you.”

“And?” you ask, gritting your teeth together, “What does that have to do with anything? You left Dieter. You left me. Alone, pregnant, I almost lost Peanut because of you.”

He hates this, he never thought he’d see a side of you like this. Angry, mean, spiteful. You were always forgiving, tender, and always cared about his feelings. What happened?

“What happened to you?” Dieter asks, shaking his head, “When we were together you were never like this. You’re being so hateful.”

“What happened to me?” You shout, “Dieter, you! You happened to me!”

“Babe,” Dieter looks past you to the man at the door, “Everythin’ a’right?”

“Yeah, Joel,” you say giving the man a warm smile, the smile that was once for Dieter, “I’ll be back in a minute.”

“Daddy look at this!” Dieter hears a kid shout, and the man named Joel responds to the kid’s voice with a “Comin’ kiddo!”

“Is that-” Dieter swallows, feeling his mouth go dry, “Was that Peanut?”

“Yes,” you reply coldly.

“That’s not Peanut’s dad. I’m Peanut’s dad!”

“You lost the chance to be Peanut’s dad when you never showed up for the birth,” you say stepping closer to him, “You lost the chance to be Peanut’s dad when you decided to break into our home to look for drugs when they were a month old,” pushing against his chest, flowers and teddy bear falling to the ground, “You lost the chance to be Peanut’s dad when you fucked off for the past five years. Don’t you ever call yourself Peanut’s dad, got it?”

“Biologically I am Peanut’s dad,” Dieter protests.

“You may be the sperm donor but that makes you just about as much of a parent as a toilet seat does,” you spit out, turning and storming off.

Dieter watches you walk away back to your home, his heart heavy with regret. You were the last reason he had to get sober and get healthy and you didn’t want him. He ruined it. 

He turns around placing his hands on top of his car, closing his eyes as his head fills with dark and sad thoughts when he hears a small voice say, “Momma, why was the man you have a picture of in your bedside table here? And why’s he look so sad?”

Dieter’s head perks up and a hopeful grin spreads across his face.

[chemicallywrit]

Happy Audio Drama Sunday! It’s a beautiful day in the vacation spot where I find myself this weekend, and the week was full of beautiful audio fiction. Shall we?

🐭 I am a firm believer that everyone is sleeping on Counterbalance. This is a high fantasy story that starts out with a magical scholar trying to fix a tear in the fabric of magic, and then you realize this magical scholar is a feathery mouse person when she meets someone super weird-looking: a human. The worldbuilding is superb, the sound design and acting gorgeous, and I didn’t even get to the third member of the trio, Malaki! This week’s episode was especially meaningful. A huge sacrifice, a revelation, several moments of honest vulnerability. I’m crie. Go listen to Counterbalance.

🍔 Midnight Burger is always. So good. Look, the sheep this week were great, but that wasn’t even my favorite part. David is everything to me, and I’m desperate for him to stay in Casper’s life, although not as desperate as Casper. The revelation about Gloria’s past was PROFOUND. And I am literally always here for Leif throwing down with the federal government. Please shoot DARPA. They deserve it.

🔥 Hey @theheartpyre, thank you for this bonus episode about Logan and Finn. I love them. They should kiss maybe?

🌊 What do you even SAY about @thesiltverses? That the culmination of Faulkner’s hubris has finally come to get him, and I don’t feel sorry for him even a little bit? That HR Owen’s performance as Sibling Rain was absolutely chilling? That I want to see Carpenter wreck shop but I Fear??? How is this going to end?

🐲 How we feeling about Inn Between? I’m so proud of the finale and so excited for what’s next. I’m maybe…a third of the way done writing season six? We’ll see how the rest goes.

🧟‍♀️ This week we start recording our new story for The Dead! I’m also privileged to get to be a producer on @shelterwoodpod, and I’ll be doing some work for them too this week. Keep a weather eye out late this summer for their premier! This show is going to be so good.

See you next week!

[freakyfrye]

ᝰ. 𝔭𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔭𝔞𝔯𝔱𝔶

requested: lucifer x reader, female (she/her/hers), random prompts 17 - #10. platonic

type: drabble (of some sort), prompt: "having power means nothing if you're all alone in the end." "you have me, don't you?" "do I? do I truly have you, no matter what?"

content: angst, mention of depression & mental break down, no happy ending, fear of abandonment, mention of swears, self sabotaging lucifer, technically no mentions of gender but was requested as such

note: my reasoning for a no happy ending is becuz canonically he ended up having no one, he even pushed Charlie away at first—also I like angst. I might do an alt ending where it’s a good one if asked. Anyway, ask box is open!

Pathetic. A man beyond redemption and in this moment, recognition. First to be exiled from heaven; left to his own devices, inwhich he was left to rule hell with his beloved and watch his family of two grow to three. Yet, by some fucked up twisted ploy, he falls from that too.

“What’s the point..” Lucifer murmurs, slouching in his seat at his workbench, a finished duck held tightly in his hands. You look up from your book, tilting your head as you hum to let him know you didn’t hear him. “What’s the…” he starts again, trailing off, “What’s the point… having power means nothing if you're all alone in the end.”

“What are you on about now?” you ask with a sigh, sitting down your book to give him your undivided attention. “You’re not alone. You have me, don’t you?” You don’t need to take a guess to know what’s usually going on with him, but this was new.

Lucifer scoffs with a chuckle. “Do I?” he asks in disbelief, his body curling in on itself, revealing his vulnerability and letting his insecurity of abandonment shine through. “Do I truly have you, no matter what?” His hands are squeezing the duck so tightly out of nerves, an eye pops out.

Color yourself confused. Is your longtime friend, ally, and current boss comparing you to all those who betrayed and left him after all this time? “Are you fucking dense?!” you hiss, upset at his accusation. “I fell from heaven for you because I believe in your dreams. And I am still here long after she left us.”

Lucifer shoulders visibly tense up at the mention of his ex-wife. Blinking back the shock, he turns to you with narrowed eyes, throwing the duck to the floor in growing rage, “Well, maybe you shouldn’t have. Maybe you should have stayed where you were welcomed.”

You slightly flinch at his glare, but refuse to show face, “Are you saying I’m not welcome here anymore?” Despite the calm in your down, your heart was breaking. Was your friendship just a ruse? What’s got him acting not like himself?

Without missing a beat or batting an eye, he answers with a heavy tongue but laced with venom, “I’m saying you should leave..”

[enjoythesilentworld]

I can’t believe I almost missed the chance to ask you to write smth. That’s what I get for having a busy tumblr dash. Anyway. “Join me” as a prompt pls? 💜

hello my darling Lia. you know i'd write anything you asked me to. for today, here's a (not) little ficlet in which Simon neglects to read the fine print and somehow it actually turns out really well for him.

💜enjoy xx

Alone in a foreign country, Simon must find a stranger to join him on the romantic couples food tour he’s accidentally booked. (a 2.3k strangers to lovers, fake dating, speed-run of an AU) if you see this again for day 2 of simon's month dont worry bout it

Simon curses under his breath as the confirmation email comes in.

So, he’d booked the food tour a little quickly, possibly without reading all the fine print. He can’t even blame a language barrier because he’s in Spain and, thanks to his mamá, his Spanish is really better than his English.

The solo-travel thing had been a bit of a last-minute decision. Spurred by the post university graduation crisis of, ‘Oh Fuck What Am I Doing With My Life?’ whichled twenty-somethings around the globe to grab a backpack and buy a one-way plane ticket. Simon’s decision was also encouraged by the fact that he’d woken up one day and realized he was in a toxic relationship, quickly packing his bags and saying Hejdå to a two-year relationship. He’s only about three weeks into the whole self-discovery shtick, but it seems to be going well so far. He enjoys the independence of it all. Not that he’s not independent at home — in fact, he’s been a little bit too much of an adult since he was 10 — but more so that he doesn’t have to worry about anyone else. Simon goes to museums when he wants to, stays for as little or as much time as he wants. He eats when he wants, goes to shows he likes, and doesn’t spend every second of every day worrying about everyone else. (Of course, he’s called his mama and sister nearly every day since he left, but he’s working on it.) He also, apparently, incorrectly books guided food tours that are actually romantic couples excursions. 

Glancing around the nearly empty breakfast room at his hostel, he chews on his options. One is to show up to this tour alone and look like a dumb tourist. Two is to find someone willing to go on it with him.

There’s a pair of British girls in the corner, giggling over their plates of breakfast. Simon recognizes them from the stand-up comedy show the hostel had organized the night before; they’d been attached at the hip the whole night. Slim chance of separating them. Crowding around the cereal bar is a group of American guys who all look like fraternity brothers. If Simon remembers correctly, he’d overheard some vile words from them in the bar last night, and so he’s is not too keen on participating in any sort of tour with any of them, romantic or not.

The only other person in the room is sitting a few seats down at the communal table: a very good-looking man with light auburn hair and high cheek bones. His long fingers, nails painted a deep purple, hold up a book with one hand and gingerly lift a coffee cup to his lips with the other. He’s dressed quite casually, in an un-done button up over a tank-top and baggy trousers, but somehow makes it look refined. Simon noticed him yesterday afternoon in the hostel café, noticed the way the man’s eyes tracked Simon from across the room.

His pretty brown eyes are no longer locked on the pages of the book, but have found Simon again and caught him staring. Simon forces himself to hold his ground and smiles, glancing down at the book title. It’s by a Swedish author, he realizes, and a gay Swedish author at that.

Gesturing with his head, Simon asks, “Is it good?”

The pretty man places his coffee cup down clumsily. “Yeah, it’s one of my favorites.”

“I hope I’m not interrupting.”

“I’ve read it a million times,” he says, closing the book. “I’m Wille.” 

The light blush on his cheeks is endearing.

“Simon.”

Wille smiles softly and nods, “Trevligt.”

He’s polite and looks suspiciously rich to be in this hostel, but his eyes are kind and has a rainbow pin on his tote bag so, before Wille can say anything else, Simon slides one chair closer.

“Are you doing anything today, Wille?”

Wille moves to the chair across from Simon. “Nope.”

Simon props his head on both his hands and gazes at this beautiful stranger, wondering why he didn’t speak to him the day before. “Would you like to join me on a romantic food tour around Barcelona?”

Wille quirks an eyebrow, then mirrors Simon’s position. “I would love to.”

The tour doesn’t begin for a few hours, so they sit and chat while the breakfast room fills up around them. Wille laughs when Simon explains how he’s gotten himself into this situation, and the sound sets little sparks bursting in Simon’s chest. What luck he’s had this morning.

Simon learns that Wille is also at the beginning of a self-discovery trip, running away from a family legacy and a desk job he desperately did not want. He also learns that Wille is incredibly funny and quite flirty, though whenever Simon starts flirting back he becomes incredibly flustered. His stare, though, is the thing that gets Simon the most. Wille looks at him so intently, gaze flitting between Simon’s eyes and his mouth, listening to every word and seemingly staring directly into Simon’s soul. It would be troubling if he wasn’t so goddamn beautiful.

The conversation flows so easily between them that Simon, so wrapped up in Wille’s laugh and crooked teeth, almost forgets they have somewhere to be.

They walk quickly through the streets of Barcelona together, heading towards the café at which they’re meant to meet the rest of their tour group. Wille’s fingers brush against Simon’s a few times, though his voice never falters, so Simon isn’t sure if it’s just him that feels the jolt of electricity each time.

“You said this is a romantic food tour?” Wille asks, reaching out to pull Simon out of the way of a passing cart.

The city is bustling with life around them, the sun shining hot between the buildings, people hanging off balconies, chatting with neighbors or stringing up laundry to dry. It’s absolutely beautiful, and somehow it seems a bit more colorful than it had the day before.

“Yes.”

“Is it going to be obvious that you and I just met?” he says, letting Simon go ahead of him to squeeze through the crowd, staying close, with a hand hovering over Simon’s lower back.

“Well,” Simon muses, “we could make it a bit of a game. If you’re down.”

Looking over his shoulder, he sees Wille’s eyes light up with mischief. “I’m down. What kind of game?”

Simon chuckles and shrugs, checking his phone to make sure they’re still headed in the right direction. “We could pretend to be a couple. You know, really put on a show.”

“That sounds very, very fun, Simon.”

For the last ten or so minutes of their walk, they establish some basic rules. They’ll hold hands and gaze lovingly in each other’s eyes and ramble to anyone who asks about their beautiful love story. The goal is to one-up every other couple there by acting sickeningly in love. By the time they make it to the café, only a few minutes late, they’re holding onto each other and cackling at the increasingly ridiculous ‘meet-cute’ ideas they’ve come up with.

There are three other couples in the tour: one looks like a very young newly-wed couple, another is a pair of middle-aged ladies, and the third is a pretentious-looking, older couple who already look fed up with everyone else. As the tour-guide starts on their spiel, Wille wraps a tender arm around Simon, pulling him close and whispering jokes into his ear, somehow making them look more like a couple than even the newly-weds.

They sit down to start, and Wille lets Simon order for them off the selected menu. They feed each other bites of tomato toast and gently wipe crumbs from each other’s cheeks, all the while giggling to each other and only half-listening to the explanations of the food. It also seems they’ve unintentionally started a competition with the other young couple of who-can-look-more-in-love. When Wille hands Simon a napkin before he can even ask to wipe up his splashed juice, the man of the other couple tries to lovingly whisper something in his wife’s ear but gets brushed off as she’s too busy listening intently to the tour guide. When Simon holds out a forkful of potato omelette for Wille, the man tries to do the same, but his wife shakes her head, smiling, and fondly pats his cheek then turns back to her own plate.

As they move through the next few stops — a restaurant, a food cart, and an open-air market — he and Wille fall even further into their ‘game’. There’s plenty of very intentional touches and exchanged loving glances, but Wille also asks Simon about himself. About his family and his dreams and where he’s going next. Simon learns even more about Wille’s obsession with frogs and his love for lakes and his passion for writing. The rest of the tour group fades away, and things between them start to feel a little less like a game and a little more real. The prolonged eye contact becomes less playful and more loaded. The lingering touches become less out of competition and more out of some deep urge. Simon’s eyes flick more often down to Wille’s lips, watching him lick cream off his fingers or clean gazpacho off his spoon.

Maybe it’s the wine, but as they head to their last stop of the day, hand in hand, trailing behind the group, Simon finds himself hoping Wille isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. He’d made a few friends over the past few weeks, but it always seemed to work out that when he was having a great time, the person would be leaving the very next day, heading off to some new country or heading back home.

Wille grins over at him and points out a pretty sculpture, mumbling something smart about the artist and looking absolutely ethereal in the light of the early evening with his flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes. Maybe it isn’t just the wine.

Their final destination is small tapas place on the beach. Simon and Wille have given up any pretense of listening to the tour guide or of playing their little game. Instead, they sit close at their table and chat about their favorite memories growing up and tell embarrassing stories. Simon, as he’s done at every place, translates every bit of Spanish on the menu and giggles helplessly as he corrects Wille’s pronunciation. They share a plate of pulpo and split a liter of sangria and it’s one of the most perfect days Simon’s ever experienced.

“I’m really glad I misread that website,” Simon says, fiddling with his fingers. When he glances up, he finds Wille grinning at him. He takes Simon’s hand.

“Me too.”

After the tour concludes and their guide bids they all farewell, their group mostly scatters. But, Wille and Simon stay at their table, finishing off their pitcher and becoming increasingly rowdy with their jokes. After a few annoyed looks from their waiter, they collect their things and stumble down to the beach. Simon jumps onto Wille’s back, laughing loudly and savoring the feeling of Wille’s strong hands wrapped securely around his legs. Wille wades out into the shallow water of the beach, and Simon yelps when he pretends to nearly drop them both into the cool water.

Eventually, Wille lets him down but takes his hand instead, and they walk down the sand, talking about the food tour and realizing that they maybe didn’t pay attention at all.

There’s a warm buzz in Simon’s body, making him giddy and calm all at once. When they make it to a small concrete pier, Wille pulls him out to the edge of it and they stand, arms wrapped around each other, staring out at the Mediterranean.

Simon sigh happily. “Beautiful.”

“Yeah. Very,” Wille says breathlessly, and Simon looks up to see Wille staring down at him. He smacks Wille’s chest playfully.

“You’re an idiot, Wille.”

Wille laughs, “I’m being serious!”

“Sure,” Simon hums, turning back to the water, biting back a smile.

“Hey.” He turns back again and Wille’s face has sobered, and he’s now gazing down at Simon with that same intense stare. “You are beautiful, Simon. You’re also funny and kind and— I had a really, really great time today.”

He squirms slightly at the force of the words, the conviction in Wille’s tone, but can’t help but let his eyes flicker down to Wille’s lips. He’s so close and looks so pretty in the cool lighting of the twilight evening and Simon’s never thought it could be possible to fall for someone like this, this hard, in one day.

“Me, too,” Simon whispers. Then, “Wille?”

“Yes?”

“Can I—”

Wille nods, gasping, “Yes,” before Simon can even finish his sentence and then they’re both rushing forward.

Finally, after thinking about it nearly all day, Wille’s lips connect with his. He tastes like fruity wine and olives and something so Wille, and Simon melts into his arms, coming up onto his tiptoes to press further into him. Wille’s hair is soft under his fingertips and though they’ve basically been touching all day, this is different and overwhelming and everything.

When they break apart, giggling into each other, the lights have come on along the paved pathway by the beach.

“Maybe we should head back?” Wille suggests, looking just as much like he doesn’t want to head back as Simon feels. But, it’s getting late and he’s also starting to feel tired from all the wine and walking, so Simon nods and takes Wille’s hand again.

They trail slowly back through the streets, pausing occasionally to exchange a quick kiss, or to slip into an alcove and exchange a slightly longer one. By the time they make it back to their building, Simon’s limbs feel syrupy with sleep and his chest feels warm with the events of the day.

Two steps up the stairs to the front door of the hostel, Simon stops and turns.

“Where will you be tomorrow?” he asks, looking down at Wille.

Wille smiles. “Wherever you are.”

[throwmeabonepleaseandthankyou]

I’m curious to Dream’s, Cross’s and Fresh’s personalities and how the would treat/act to someone they’re attracted too?

All three of them are certified goobers

Also, this is LONG, so see more under the cut 😅

Dream :

One of the sweetest people on our list, and good-gods he spoils the hell out of you.

While he would know that you like him, he'd think it'd be because of his aura, and would play off you confessing like a babysitter would a child.

He doesn't take it seriously at all, and would never bring it up again.

Although, he eventually realizes he likes you. Like, a lot.

He finds himself squeamish around you, knowing that he likes you and you like him.

Gold-tinted face around you, and his aura would seem a bit brighter when you sit next to him.

It'd start out small, y'know, him holding your hand, asking you to come hang out with him and Core, and even showing you in favorite spot to sit and read.

But eventually, it becomes all too obvious that he likes you, to the point even the Toriels are giggling about the Guardian of Positivity's little crush on the human.

Word comes around that he likes you, and poor thing is hiding out in his residence.

He's just shy when it comes to romance, give him a break :(

Once he warms up, he's a genuine sweetheart, he really is.

He starts to actually glow when you finally confess/accept his feelings. He's so happy that he starts to happy-cry.

Please take care of him.

Fresh :

Fresh is a uhhhhh interesting subject to say the least.

You'd be confused if he actually likes you or not, because he treats everyone the same.

You have some special permission though, stuff you can only really get away with.

You're still getting censored though LMAO

Unlike Ink, who just finds someone to latch onto, Fresh has to have someone dangle some keys in front of him to even give you a lick of attention.

I like to believe that Fresh knows how people are feeling, like Dream and Nightmare, but he just ignores it.

So if he notices you like him before he does, you'd think he'd try to stay away. Right?

Wrong! He thinks it's cute, and he's intrigued. Although, he'd treat your feelings like a big joke and just tease you constantly.

But, if he finds himself slowly becoming attached, he just kinda... disappears for a bit.

He thinks avoiding you will make them go away, and from personal experience, it doesn't!

Then, when he finally decides to come back around, it's like having a cuddly bodyguard.

He's a parasite, and thinking about how that works... you're more than likely his only possible romantic interest. Ever.

Now don't excited though, he's still not into like... that. Proposing it to him will just confuse him as you try to explain what exactly you want to do, embarrassing you while he keeps staring at you with that puzzled puppy tilt.

Although, he likes kissing. Weird flesh interaction with his human? Sign him up!

He's a weird guy, and weird guy likes weird things.

You'd probably end up sitting in his lap often, as he's a big guy and you probably aren't. (We're looking at 6'4-6'6 here people!)

You'd be one of the only people he'd be comfortable letting take off his glasses. Although, only a peek, he'd take them back with a laugh and give you something else on his person to mess with.

Cross :

A loyal skeleton with the training of a royal guard. It's what he was literally made to do.

So, romance is a bit out of his ball park.

The second he finds himself falling for a human? He is very lost in himself.

He is.. confused. He goes to Ink about his feelings first, realizing that was a bad idea after Ink smiles brightly.

In Ink language, he's saying "I am about to ruin your whole fucking week."

He has to tie him up and toss his ass into the Doodlesphere so he doesn't snitch to you.

He has a traditional way of courting you, with Epic supporting in the background. He offers you flowers, chocolates, and a bunch of other things.

He's so shy while doing it though, his face basically up in flames from it.

Cross is the ultimate gentlemen to the person he's attracted to, as it takes a lot for him to even start to develop such feelings in the first place.

Epic is the ultimate wingman, hinting at you that Cross likes you and telling Cross things he's found out about you.

He would follow you around, acting like a bodyguard and even treating you like a higher class sometimes, which can be flattering but embarrassing.

He's your silent soldier that has only one thought on his mind. Besides his AU.

[thisnameisquitequeer]

Been seeing some criticisms of Stolas from the last two eps that I’m just like…did we watch the same show?

Disclaimer before I begin; I think both parties have made mistakes and both need to grow. I am only focusing on Stolas bc people seem to give Blitzø the benefit of the doubt/understand his actions in a way they seem unwilling to do so for Stolas

Going through different opinions I’ve seen:

- “Stolas is abusive bc he forces Blitzø into sex work/he threatens Blitzø’s business to get sex”

I do agree that Stolas creating the Full Moon transaction wasn’t great, and their relationship could never be more than sex until that was dropped. HOWEVER Blitzø is not blameless in that situation. He is the person who snuck into Stolas’ house and seduced him bc he wanted to steal from him. Blitzø’s business is based off of using Stolas’ stolen property. You could argue that it shouldn’t belong to Stolas or that imps are treated so lowly in society Blitzø had no other choice? But asking for the book back isn’t “threatening Blitzø’s business” it’s…getting back what he stole so Stolas can do his job

- “Stolas is abusive bc of the power/class difference in their relationship”

I do think the class difference is something they’ll have to overcome but I would call it a character flaw of Stolas more than abusive. We do see him condescend to Blitzø earlier in their relationship in Lululand and Truthseekers but I’d argue that is more to do with Stolas being incredibly sheltered and too lovesick from his first relationship. I’d argue this is an earlier element of their relationship that there may still be some work left to do but by the breakup I don’t think is there as much. I think Blitzø externalizes a lot of his insecurities onto Stolas’ perception of him, but it’s mostly that a projection

-“Stolas is at fault for the break up bc he wouldn’t hear Blitzø out/bc he projected Blitzø outside his house”

The breakup is both their fault but I don’t think this is really fair. Yes, Stolas was so busy rehearsing his lines that it didn’t occur to him that Blitzø might need a minute to react or might feel like Stolas’ feelings came out of nowhere. But we don’t always react perfectly when we’re upset or hurt. I don’t think Stolas really believed Blitzø would say yes. A part of him probably hoped, really wanted to think Blitzø would but he was probably expecting a rejection. And to not only be rejected but to be mocked with the words you most want to hear after you’ve just been vulnerable…I would probably walk away from that situation too. Did Blitz start to realize at the end that he fucked up and Stolas was serious? Sure, after he screamed a bunch of insults at Stolas and made him cry. We as the audience know Blitzø’s history and saw him change at the last second but Stolas doesn’t and had his back to him so couldn’t see his expression soften. Also Stolas has lived close to 20 years with a wife who always screams and belittles him so I don’t blame him for not wanting to hear Blitzø out after that

-“Blitzø tried to apologize and Stolas wouldn’t hear him out”

Except…no he didn’t? Sure at the very end of Full Moon he attempts a last minute sorry but only after he’s pushed Stolas so far. He could’ve tried to text Stolas an apology or he could’ve tried to apologize when they were by the pool in apology tour but he doesn’t. At that point he’s still just trying to pretend everything is fine between them and get back to sex with Stolas bc he believes that’s the only reason Stolas likes him and if he can only give Stolas a good lay everything will go back to how it was. Blitzø doesn’t want to apologize, he wants to reset the status quo and Stolas won’t let him.

-“Stolas being upset in Apology Tour came out of nowhere/is bad writing bc he only cared about Blitzø for sex before”

I’m sorry…did we watch the same show? Sure, Stolas is a bit horny on main for Blitzø in the first 2 eps but that’s bc this is his first relationship and he’s excited. But as early as the Harvest Moon Festival he’s wanting to spend time with Blitzø and talk to him more. From then on he’s trying very hard to connect with Blitzø and keeps being shut down. If Full Moon had been Blitzø’s first rejection of Stolas you could maaaaybe see Stolas’ reaction as overkill but not with everything we’ve seen of their relationship and is shown in Stolas’ apology song. The only reason you could think Stolas felt nothing for Blitzø is if you took everything Blitzø said at face value and he is shown by Fizz’s reactions and Stolas’ actions to have a skewed perspective

TLDR; Stolas is not blameless but the way some fans maliciously interpret all of his actions just doesn’t square with the text of the show

[distractedducky]

So I was thinking about it… why sterek

I’ve shipped a lot in my time. From the classics like spirk and destiel, to the straight vampire diaries nonsense, from murder husbands to buddy to name a very small few. They all hold weird little places in my heart and mind but they fade and as I flow in and out of fandoms I move on to the next hyperfixation. But sterek just keeps sticking around.

It’s an old ship for me. If you go on my ao3 all the way back to 2013 you’ll see my first ever book mark was a sterek fic. That fic is still a comfort fic for me today and is something I read when my anxiety is uncontrollable.

It was something I read late in 2022 when the reality of the pandemic and the last few years hit me hard and got me back into Teen Wolf so hard it actually pushed me out of the supernatural hole the start of the pandemic put me in.

I’ve always been a shipper and I have my ride or dies, my OTPs and Ot3s, and so on and so forth, but fandom has always been weird for me. I started young and witnessed the birth in Tumblr and ao3, as a tween my taste can only be described as pure trash* Affectionate * but as I got older, like most things in life, my taste changed. And though I still love me some hot garbage, I engage with it differently than that little 12-year-old who thought werewolves and vampires were cool no further explanation necessary.

Now I’m an academic, a librarian, who actually studied critical lit analysis, book studies, and religion. Who spent years learning how to dissect prose and poetry to look beyond text in an professional setting. And though I don’t regret it and it has led to some fun changes in the way I engage with fiction it also kinda ruined the fun engagement I had with things back in the day when baby me bookmarked that first fic.

I need more from my characters now, more from my fandoms and it has led me away from and into the arms of content that I never saw coming. (Looking at you Danny phantom phandom) I needed depth or the potential for depth that some shows just didn’t lend themselves to cleanly enough to satisfy me and yet… sterek persisted.

One of my problems is I didn’t really engage with the fandom when the show was airing and only watched a few season sporadically until recently, so I wasn’t there when things were forming organically. It has left me out of step with the primary directions fan content creators have taken with the ship and the directions they took, though fun and interesting, aren’t really my usual thing.

I hate the infantilization of stiles and other teen wolf characters like Isaac. I generally hate infantilization of adults, hyper feminization of certain types of characters and so on and so forth and it has to do with my own gender stuff, but I usually avoid it in fanfiction. I am also not a huge fan of modern werewolf romance erotica. I have a lot of opinions on real supernatural mythology and legends and I don’t like the anthropomorphism that shows up a lot in werewolf stories. Not that I haven’t read some amazing takes on werewolf lore, especially in the Teen Wolf fandom but I’m speaking generally. I’m also not a fan of pack mom stiles (again my own gender stuff) and though I think Scott’s inconsistent character and writing throughout the show lens him to be whatever your fic needs to be (best friend, hype man, wingman, idiot, genius, villain, so on and so forth) I don’t like a lot of the 'Scott sucks just because' fics. I don’t like the hate in the fandom around that. I also don’t like the hypermasculine depictions of Derek in a lot of fics and on and on. I have read a lot of TW and sterek and by all accounts, it should be a fandom I wouldn't personally engage with this much. Yet for all that, I have found there is an exception to every trope I hate, every hard line i draw for myself, because the fic was just so good. For every dozen or so fics that seem to tell me that this isn’t the fandom for me, there is that one amazing thing that says “No! This is exactly where you wanna be”.

Like I said, I need more from my fandoms now a days and most of what that boils down to is plausible deniability. I need enough gaps in the narrative to fill them in myself, but with enough connective pieces that everything can make sense when put together. The fatal flaw of telling without showing, which allows people to extrapolate out what they want from certain things -all the subtext with none of the text - is exactly where my degree comes in handy.

And sterek well… I think what it is for me as a shipper is the inconsistencies. That is kind of why I still ship it so far and for so long. It's the fact of why was Stiles in Derek's dream at the end of 3b? We can talk about all the things with him being his anchor and the grasping at straws that we as shippers all love to do but the narrative fact is they did not spend that much time on screen together or even saying they were doing things off-screen together. That leads us to a lot of whys. Why were they together at the beginning of season two talking about the alpha pack? Why were they in certain situations in season four that ld them to work so well? What happens in all of this dead time? What happens in season six? We see stiles in episode one be like "Oh my God Derek is a mass murderer wanted by the FBI" and at the end of the season, they've apparently driven and or flown back to California together, apparently spent some time together. They're not on the run from the FBI so that got cleared somehow, stiles isn't limping so his foot healed. There's so much dead time like that throughout the show so when scenes happen like the hand on Derek's shoulder after the death of Boyd you're left thinking that's kind of off, we haven't seen any interactions with them that would show that they have that kind of deep solemn relationship where comforting him would make sense.

The show notoriously has a terrible timeline, but all that does is fuel the fact that we don't know how much time any of these characters are really spending off-screen together. We can only assume that it happened in this weird dead time. This is why somehow Derek's view of Stiles in his head is like a calm stable dependable figure who can help him talk through an issue. This is why they always gravitate towards each other in fights. This is why they work so well together in a crisis. Like we have to assume that happened before which is stupid and I know it's so much reaching, but in my little brain, it's the only way that makes all of this random shit fit together- so I gotta ship it. Obviously, the real-world explanation is inconsistent writing plus putting space between them once the writer stopped wanting people to ship it, but because you get all of these disjointed scenes where they're too intense for what we've been previously seeing there is some type of disconnect here -what is that? and if you're looking at the show, not as a work of fiction, but as a narrative, what else are we gonna do then assume that they have spent way more time emotionally connecting than we have seen on the screen.

And for me that’s everything I want in a ship, that ability to play and extrapolate random events and ask, okay now how would these all fit! And that’s what spawns great ideas and stories and art and why I ship it, dispute the fact that it really shouldn't work for me personally.

I think it’s why a lot of people still stop sterek despite the fact that the attitude towards it and the show has shifted a lot and in many different ways in the last decade.

Sorry for the rant, I’ve been thinking about this for days and had to get it out there. I hope I didn’t offend anyone. I truly love the Teen Wolf fandom and everything it’s done and everything it created and I’m so happy to be able to engage with it.

[heliza24]

Ok, so I really love how this episode set us up for a huge climax happening in Dubai in the final episode.

It’s clear that Armand’s manipulation of Lestat before and during the trial needs to be revealed. And I think Daniel and Louis are going to work together to expose Armand’s lies.

For a long time I struggled to think of a way Dubai could end where it wouldn’t feel unbalanced between the three characters there. But this is how they do it, I think.

Daniel helps Louis realize how he’s been manipulated by Armand. That’s the pay off of the Daniel/Louis friendship, of Daniel paying back the way that Louis’s words supported him through a lifetime of reporting and writing. He uses those skills in return to help free Louis. And Louis is able to use that to reclaim agency over his life.

I really loved that we saw Dreamstat in Dubai in this episode, and that the version of Lestat we got there was the most loving, the most accepting of Louis and Claudia we’ve yet seen. I think it opens the door perfectly for Louis and Lestat to reunite in 2022. I would love for Louis to be single for a while, to work on himself and reach an inner peace. But I would also love for him to reunite with Lestat. Louis is more powerful now, both because he’s aged as a vampire and acquired more gifts, but also because he has finally processed what has happened to him. And Lestat I think understands his wrongdoing, and could do better this time. If Louis were to get back with Lestat at this point, they could go into it with open eyes as equals. I’m sure they will still have conflict in some ways which the show will continue to explore. But it could be a more sustainable kind of conflict. There could be some happiness there. And i think their reunification is what the story needs. To make good on the promise and the premise of the pilot, of Lestat sending his love to Louis and Louis sending it back to Lestat.

Daniel will be motivated in the finale by his hatred of Armand, and his desire to get to the bottom of this guy who has fucked with his life so severely. And Daniel is the only person who has ever really seen through Armand. He’s the only one who has been able to recover his memories from him (Louis would not have gotten there without his help), he’s the only one can get Armand to spill parts of his story (I loved that interview with Assad where he says that Armand telling Daniel his 18th century history in episode 3 is Armand thinking he’s controlling the narrative, but in reality he’s exposing himself to Daniel). And he’s the only one that Armand really fears being seen by (“why should I show YOU my shame”). There’s a thin line between love and hate, and there’s even a thinner line between the person you most fear being seen by and the person you most want to be vulnerable with. If episode 8 ends with Daniel metaphorically pinning Armand against a wall… well that sets us up perfectly for them to explore that love/hate dynamic in season 3, including figuring out where that dynamic first started back in the 1970s/80s, which at this point I am convinced did happen.

@bluedalahorse and I have talked constantly about how we’re most excited to see Armand’s mask finally slip all the way off, and I think we will get there next week between the loss of Louis and the perception of Daniel.

I’m not exactly sure how they’ll set up the segue into season 3, but I love love love that they are sending Armand, Louis, and Daniel into the finale with so much on the line. I am really excited to see how it plays out.

[fanficshiddles]

Eternally Mine, Chapter 14

‘I think I’m still stuffed from yesterday’s meal, I don’t know how I’ll fit in another one today.’ Claire groaned as she fell flat on the bed, waiting for Loki to button up his shirt.

‘I’m sure you’ll manage once you get a sniff of dad’s Christmas dinner. It’s amazing.’ Loki grinned.

‘Oh I am looking forward to it, you’ve talked it up so much.’ Claire said. 'I'm just not promising that I won't fall into a food coma afterwards.'

‘I’m really honoured that you wanted to spend Christmas with me yesterday, instead of with your parents and Louise.’ Loki said as he finished buttoning up his shirt.

‘Of course I wanted to spend it with you. Our first Christmas together, just the two of us. I’m glad your dad was happy to have us today instead of yesterday.’ Claire said as she rolled onto her side to watch Loki’s devilish fingers folding down his collar.

‘Dad tends to prefer going all out on Boxing Day, says Christmas Day is for relaxing and doing nothing. He will have gotten a Chinese takeaway last night, I know it.’ Loki chuckled.

‘Fair enough. He’s probably had enough from dealing with you as a kid on Christmas day anyway.’ Claire smirked and sat up.

‘Cheeky.’ Loki growled at her.

‘It’s a shame Louise isn’t coming back until New Years. It would’ve been nice if she’d been able to join us too.’

‘I know, but I bet she’s delighted she’s managed to get home for Christmas this year.’ Loki smiled.

‘Yeah, she is.’ Claire nodded.

‘Though Chris is going to be a nightmare today, I can just feel it in my bones.’ Loki huffed.

‘What makes you say that?’ Clarie frowned.

‘Well, Louise won’t be there. So he’s bound to be in a pouty mood in the first place. He’s going to be a pain in the ass, mark my word.’

‘I’m sure he won’t be too bad.’ Claire laughed.

-

Loki was right. Chris was in a bit of a brooding mood, though still not as bad as he used to be before he and Loki reconciled. He was just a bit snippy before dinner now and then, making the others do a lot of eye-rolling. Though he was still much better to be around than he used to be.

Loki managed to escape for a short while to go help Lucius in the kitchen with the last preparations for dinner. Leaving Claire with Chris in the living room with some wine. Though she had hoped for a bit of alone time with him.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a photo album. Chris raised an eyebrow at her when she scooted across the sofa to sit right next to him, with the album on her lap.

‘What’s this?’ Chris asked.

‘Some old photos I wanted to show you. Thought you’d like to see them.’ Claire grinned and passed the album to him.

Chris put his wine down and curiously opened up the album. Claire saw his face light up instantly when he saw Louise in the picture. It was of her and Claire when they were teenagers, at Claire’s birthday party.

He slowly flicked through them and laughed at some of the goofy pictures.

‘Louise had an emo phase, did she?’ He chuckled.

‘Wasn’t really a phase… I think if she hadn’t met a certain someone, she likely would be looking quite different to how she is now.’ Claire said quietly.

In the pictures for a good few years Louise had different colour hair or strips of various colours. She also had earrings and looked to wear a good amount of make-up, that she did really well.

Then there was a picture when they were a bit older, it was a family meal for what looked like Christmas. Though Louise didn’t look quite the same, the sparkle in her eyes was gone and her hair was her natural brunette, she no longer had earrings in either or wore much make-up aside from a bit of foundation.

Chris noted that the guy sitting next to her at the table was blurred out.

‘I love this photo because it was our last proper Christmas meal together, though for obvious reasons I needed to blur him out…’ Claire explained.

Chris flicked over the page and there were just two pictures left, though they both showed Louise not looking her happiest like in previous pictures. An underlying sadness.

‘The light in her eyes disappeared when he came into the picture…’ Chris growled and closed the album.

‘Certainly did… Though look at this.’ Claire pulled her phone out and flicked through her photos, she showed Chris a picture she took of him with Louise at the Christmas ball. They were dancing and the picture clearly showed that sparkle back in her eyes.

Chris didn’t realise that Claire had taken sneaky pictures of them dancing, but he adored the picture. The way Louise was looking up at him with her arms around his neck while they danced made his heart flutter.

Claire flicked to the next picture, one that he knew she took as she had them both pose together.

‘You can see her eyes are full of life again and the light is back when she’s with you.’ Claire smiled.

Chris swallowed a lump in his throat and the biggest smile spread over his face.

‘Wow, you managed to get him smiling, at last.’ Loki teased as he walked into the room.

Chris glared at him and picked up his wine glass. ‘Seeing pictures of Louise, of course I’m smiling.’ He huffed at his brother.

‘Come on through, dinner is ready to be served up.’ Loki chuckled.

Everyone went through to the dining room and the smell was making Claire’s mouth water. More so when Lucius gave her her plate, it looked incredible.

‘Sorry Loki, you did a brilliant dinner yesterday but this looks to be even better.’ Claire said as she picked up her cutlery to begin once Lucius sat down.

‘I’ll take second place as a win, because dad’s Christmas dinners are always fantastic. Like I said.’ Loki said as he reached over to squeeze her knee.

During dinner they all chatted about what they got for Christmas and other various things. Though after they finished eating, the conversation turned a little heated.

‘At least there won’t be a hunt this time.’ Loki said, when they’d just been speaking about rogue vampires.

‘What do you mean there won’t be a hunt?’ Chris raised an eyebrow at him across the table.

‘You can’t possibly be holding a hunt?’

‘Why wouldn’t I? It’s tradition.’

‘You already had one at Halloween, don’t you think that’s more than enough?’ Loki argued.

‘That wasn’t the proper hunt. Of course I’m planning one.’ Chris argued back.

‘Have you told Louise this? What would she think?’ Loki hissed at him.

‘Do not bring my soulmate into this. She knows what I am and what I do.’ Chris growled.

‘So, you have told her? That you’re going to be kidnapping innocent humans and tossing them into the woods so they have to run for their life, till they’re caught by viscous vampires that will tear into them?’

‘It’s not all going to be innocent humans there.’ Chris snapped, trying to justify it.

‘Boys, that’s enough.’ Lucius said firmly.

‘No, dad. He’s being ridiculous if he thinks that Louise will just turn a blind eye at this. Right, Claire?’ Loki’s voice was getting higher and higher.

‘Don’t bring me into this.’ Claire said as she sunk into her seat and tried to hide behind her glass of wine.

‘If you don’t tell Louise, then I will.’ Loki yelled at Chris.

‘You have no right to. I will tell her. Not that it will effect her, anyway.’

‘Of course it will! It effects all of us vampires, plus our partners. What kind of message are you giving the hunters if they find out you’ve kidnapped a bunch of innocent humans again? There’s always an influx of hunters that come here after the hunt. And it’s your fault, every damn time!’ Loki shouted at him and slammed his fist down on the table.

‘I’m outta here. I thought you were trying to accept me for me, but clearly not.’ Chris snarled and stood up abruptly, the chair screeched across the floor behind him.

‘Thanks, Dad. It was lovely… Thank you, Claire, for showing me the pictures.’ Chris said as softly as he could before he quickly downed the last of his wine and stormed out of the room.

When Loki, Claire and Lucius heard the front door slam shut, Claire and Lucius both groaned and face-palmed.

‘You couldn’t have just avoided that subject for one day?’ Lucius sighed and shook his head as he began gathering the dishes up.

‘It doesn’t matter what day it is, he’s in the wrong.’ Loki huffed and folded his arms over his chest.

‘We all know he is trying lately, but getting the hunt out of him is going to be a tough one.’ Claire sighed, she was trying to be sympathetic to both. She understood where Loki was coming from, of course. Though she also knew that it wouldn’t be easy for Chris to change his ways completely so soon.

-

Chris was furious, he went for a fly around the city, looking for someone to bite. He eventually found one, a rogue hunter that was walking alone from a meal out. Not exactly an innocent human, though he didn’t know for sure if the hunter was one that just went after bad vampires or not… but he couldn’t wait any longer.

He swept down on the hunter and took her out easily and quickly, because she was intoxicated and unsuspecting. Though he still felt on edge and pissed off after the feed, it did help a little bit.

‘It needs to happen. It’s tradition. Louise will understand, I’m sure of it.’ He said to himself as he paced back and fore over the hunter’s body. ‘What if Loki’s right, though? What if she hates me for it?’

He growled in annoyance as he stopped and ran a hand through his hair.

‘I hear you’re in a bit of a dilemma.’ Came a familiar voice from behind him.

Chris turned around and narrowed his eyes at Toshi. ‘Of course you’d appear. If you don’t mind, kindly fuck off. I’ve had enough of a lecture from my brother tonight.’ He snapped.

Toshi folded her arms over her chest and shrugged. ‘If you don’t want to hear my plan to help your hunt go ahead, that’s fine.’

She turned on her heels and started to walk away.

Chris clenched his jaw and ran a hand down his face with a sigh. ‘Toshi. Wait... Let me guess, Loki messaged you to find me and stop me from hunting?'

Toshi stopped and turned around to face him with a little smirk. 'Close. Claire messaged the group chat saying that you two had been bickering over the hunt.'

Chris ran a hand down his face with a groan. 'That damn chat you girls have.'

Toshi laughed and walked closer to him.

'Look, I get you want to keep going with the tradition of the hunt. I won't try and stop you if there's no innocent humans taken.'

'Like you'd be able to stop me anyway.' Chris gloated as he folded his arms over his chest.

'Perhaps I could, perhaps I couldn't. But I think deep down you'd rather do it a better way, a way that wouldn't risk anything with Louise.' Toshi said knowingly.

Chris just glared at her for a minute, then his phone pinged. He pulled it out and took a glance. It was a text from Louise.

L: Hey, heard things were a bit rough at dinner with your brother. Just checking in that you're ok? x

Chris slid his phone back into his pocket and looked at Toshi, who was waiting patiently with a hand on her hip for him to say something.

Chris sighed. 'What did you have in mind?'

[slafkovskys]

Listen I think the “Calling my boyfriend my husband” trend would be hilarious with either Keller or Nils (enjoy feral Will Ferrell)

“okay,” you sigh as you prop your phone against the cereal box on the kitchen counter. even after your following had grown, you still refused to invest in any “professional” equipment, “it’s almost eight o’clock now and nils has to be at the airport by nine- i think?”

you cut yourself off with a yawn as the suitcases by your front door catch your eye, “but we’re going to do something a little different today. if you haven’t seen this trend going around, basically people are calling their boyfriends their husbands to get their reactions, but i’m going to be calling my husband my boyfriend to see what he does. also- oh! and here’s the star of the show now.”

nils walks down the hallway with his suit slung over his shoulder, his shirt untucked, and barefoot, “have you seen my loafers, sötnos?”

“are you sure that you didn’t put them in my pile to pack?” you question, sending him a smile when he rounds the counter and places a quick kiss on your lips.

“i don’t think- maybe,” his shoulders fall as he grabs the smoothie you had made for him. he gestures to your phone, “what are you filming?”

“just a morning in my life, combined with what it’s like when dropping my boyfriend off at the airport,” you don’t miss the way that his face twitches at the word, but he doesn’t bring it up, or rather you don’t give him the chance to because you’re ushering him back towards the bedroom, “go get your belt and your shoes, we don’t want to get stuck in traffic.”

your next opportunity arises in the elevator when you hold your phone in the air to capture your outfits, “this is what it’s like when your boyfriend plays sports for a living. he’s in a suit at eight am and i’m still in my pajamas to take him to the airport.”

he waits until you stop recording to speak, “‘m not your boyfriend.”

“what?” you act confused as the elevator doors pull open.

“you called me your boyfriend. we’ve been married for almost a month now,” you can’t quite pinpoint what was going on in his head, but you quickly shake it off.

“i didn’t realize. ‘m sorry.”

luck was on your side and of course, you hit the back end of morning traffic. you turn and look at nils— whose expression was still as cloudy as it was in the elevator— and ask, “do you mind if i record and answer a couple of questions people have about when you’re gone? you might have some insight too.”

“sure.”

you had moved maybe twenty feet in the last five minutes, so propping your phone on your center console to capture the both of you was no problem, “so since we’re stuck in traffic because my amazing boyfriend here just could not function without a specific pair of loafers and we had to tear through his luggage to find them,” you squeeze nils’ cheeks and you watch through the camera as he cuts his eyes at you, “we thought that we’d answer a couple of questions that people ask mostly about road trips and how we maintain our relationship with him being gone so often.

“personally, it was hard at first and i’m not saying that it gets easier having a boyfriend who’s away so often, but it’s definitely about having a good support system. we’ve been together for three years now and i’ve got, you know, other wags on the team, my friends and family, and my boyfriend will call at least a couple of times a day when he’s gone, so that’s helpful,” you sigh and look at nils, “what do you think, ni?”

“um, yeah. first, i’m not her boyfriend, i’m her husband. ring and all,” he lifts his hand to showcase his wedding band to your phone, “i don’t know why she keeps saying that like we didn’t just go to get her last name legally changed yesterday, but-”

and that breaks you. you cover your mouth to try and stifle your laughter. nils looks confused as you grab onto his arm with your free hand and try to catch your breath, “oh, you took it better than i thought you would.”

“took what?”

“that’s how i know you don’t watch the tiktoks i send you,” you sigh, “there’s a trend going around where people call their boyfriends their husbands to get their reactions and i decided to switch it to see what you would do. you didn’t disappoint.”

the car in front of you finally moves up a little and nils still looks confused, “so you didn’t forget that we got married?”

“no, ni. i very much remember.”

[tread-octane]

As those at Tread Tuning know, on the last Monday of every month I announce who wins the coveted “Employee of the Month” award. This one’s going online because I have something important to say and I think everyone should hear it.

@mitch-petrol, you are the Second Best mechanic at Tread’s Tuning. I need you to know that second place isn’t losing, and that I am not your rival. I am your boss and mentor, I have more than a decade of experience that you don’t have yet. Despite that, you’re Almost as good as I am at most things around the garage, you already act as a mentor to your fellow employees, and you are a loyal and dedicated member of our team. You’re also only 20 years old. When I was your age, I was wasting my time in college on a full ride scholarship with no idea what my future would look like beyond that. You’re still learning, but you have great promise and have already grown so much in the 3 years I’ve known you. And while I can’t say I’m thrilled with your off the clock conduct this month, it made me realize that I haven’t been showing you how much you are valued here. Mitch, there is no one else I would trust to watch the shop alone, and no one else I could think of ever replacing you.

So, even though I am hands down the Best employee at Tread’s Tuning... today I name Mitch Petrol as our June Employee of the Month!