#also im tay and i have no idea what im doing but it seems like itll be FUN

[hellaadead]

I’m new here so I got no idea what to say besides….

Antler queen Nat giving her s/o special treatment. She’s clearly favoriting them but nobody really says much about it.

Also can I be 🪼 anon?

haiii welcome. :3 im glad youre here! and yes you can!

none of the girls are blind, infact tai noticed first how you’d always accompany her on her lil antler queen duties and how she has a more gentle and soft tone when she’s talking to you, compared to her gruff and low tone when speaking to anyone else. before becoming the antler queen, she felt like she was helpless, but now she would’ve never admitted it but she gained some sort of confidence boost. albeit it small, but there was something there. she definitely acts like hot shit, just showing off and whatnot. when spring rolls back around, she asks you to come hunting with her (even though you didnt have a single clue how to use the gun cause you sucked at it) and she’s seems to have some extra precision that she never had with travis. it was like, in her blood to be an extra show off when she’s doing anything.

and sometimes if she isn’t ’very hungry’, she’ll give you some of her food, and watching you gobble up the mysterious bear meat sludge makes her feel like it was the right choice even if she was a little hungry afterwards.

she kind of thinks she’s a real queen and youre her royal spouse or something. she think she could be a queen, she tells you one night when you’re laying in bed with her. “maybe a really shitty one, but if being a queen means that im taken care of, it sounds really fun.” she rambled on and on, then noticing you’d fallen asleep on her chest, she sighed contently. she kissed your forehead before she drifts off. she definitely dreams about being a real monarch and going off with their heads! if anyone slightly pissed her off. or pissed you off. she didnt know what she was dreaming about, but she wished sometimes that if they got ‘saved’, she’d keep her role as the antler queen.

[ryuto12]

“What’s more important than here?”

Aight, RWBY Beyond just dropped two seperate episodes but here’s but my take on the bit we got about Tai.

Now I’m entirely of the opinion that the Crown is either super fucking annoying to find in Vale, hiding in a hole in Patch, or somewhere out in Menagerie and that’s why there’s so many Grimm out there.

We saw in V8 Tai was still in Patch, not in greater Vale so either

1. With Beacon being inactive and Pharos being in central Vale which is likely still a Grimm hotspot, Signal is the only combat school in all of Vale. Tai himself is a pretty powerful Huntsmen with him being STRQ and considering that Yang is one of two people to hit Salem and still be living he’s a pretty great teacher.

2. He did end up in Vale after the broadcast and is defending the Crown/trying to clear out Vale.

3. He’s on some important task no one knows about, because Ozma still likes his secrets

I do believe Tai wants to be in Vacuo, he wants to see the daughters he likely thought were dead. Keep in mind it’s also been almost three years since Tai even saw Ruby after she ran away. Last he knew Yang was looking for her, he may or may not have received Ruby’s letter, and then he gets the cutoff broadcast.

Then he likely got the news they were never coming home.

It’s impossible to believe that he’s also just unreachable, Raven has that man on GPS at all times. Something is keeping him where he is, something more important to the mission of saving the world than seeing his newly alive kids.

4. I’m also not willing to rule out that he’s the one who entered the Ever After, because this motherfucker looks too much like Jaune or could just be seen as Yang with short hair from far away. Least likely theory I’ve ever had with my one piece of evidence being that Tai literally has his Emblem tattooed on his body showing how sure of who he is. But Somewhat has no clue who Tai is so I’m just leaving all possibilities open no matter how unlikely.

5. Im also not able to leave out that Salem could’ve had Tai kidnapped. Either by herself for her own agenda of some sort or by Tyrian who is consistently ready to mess up Qrow’s life.

6. My other idea is that yeah, he’s on his way to Vacuo. After The Fall lets us know it’s a few weeks trip on foot from Beacon to Shade, and RWBY+J don’t seem to have gotten back more than maybe four-two weeks earlier. Unlikely because Raven probably went to him to be like “yo (y)our kid(s) are alive” and if he wanted to go back he would have

All in all, I’m for the idea that Tai is the dragon protecting the treasure, the treasure likely being the Crown no matter where’s it at. He wants to be with his daughters, with Qrow and trying to save the world with his family. (Tho I don’t imagine he’s keen on doing so with Raven four feet away he’ll make do) But despite wanting to be with those he loves he’s being kept away for the greater good of the world because keeping Remnant safe is much more important than his personal feelings

[lotties-ashwagandha]

Can I request a tai x van x fem!reader

Reader met Van a while before tai and van like spoke again but when they did they all immediately fell for each other and so when tai says she wants to go to meet Lottie and Misty and Nat tai thinks it’s a good idea for them all to go

Can you do a thing where van tells tai and reader that she has cancer and while they are both heartbroken reader is beyond devastated and can’t stop crying even when Misty comes to them, reader has lost everyone in her life before and she can’t afford lose van or tai

tai x van x reader has me in such a chokehold

-

PRETTY WHEN YOU CRY

pairing: tai x van x fem!reader

word count: 1742

notes and warnings: tw for cancer but that’s it. also yes i named this after a lana del rey song im THAT bitch deal with it

taglist: @ladyveela (gonna tag u w this act bc. cartoonpeoples is deactivated i think lmk if u want off) @thedeconstructionist @cordeliass @paulsonsratched @goodeday2u @christies-fleur @traumatisedfangirl

The silver stars shone above, fractures of moonlight, broken and shining just as ever, perfect. Like diamonds they glimmered, illuminating the earth, the perfect scene before you.

You sat a few feet away from a fire, out in the fielded expanse of Lottie’s compound. You sat against Van, her arm around you and your head resting in the crook of her neck as the two of you sat against the outside of a small gazebo (A/N: was it a gazebo Van was sitting against?? Idfk but we’re going with it ok). The two of you passed a bottle of vodka back and forth, which you had snuck into the compound from Van’s car when you were supposed to be doing your designated activities.

You’d never felt more peaceful. The two of you had been aching for a getaway for a while, but had never acted on it, and though being dragged to Lottie’s compound due to Taissa’s sleepwalking was less than ideal you had to admit it was a decent escape from normal life. It brought you irreplicable peace to be able to sit with Van by the fire, the vodka gently dulling your senses, a cool breeze interrupting the monotony of the spring warmth.

“I’m glad we came here,” you said quietly. You took the bottle of vodka out of Van’s hands and took a sip.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“I didn’t think you’d be into this sort of thing. And all of the other women, they’re a bit…”

“I like them,” you said, “it’s good to be able to put faces to names. You don’t talk about what happened much, but still.”

You heard the rustling of footsteps in the grass as someone approached, and soon Taissa was sitting beside you. You allowed yourself to relax completely in the presence of both of them. You’d never before felt the same sort of peace that you felt with Van and Taissa — you’d felt it a bit with Van, in a way, unexplainable happiness in your relationship as a couple, but ever since you’d met Taissa everything had seemed to click. None of you had spoken about it, but everyone knew it, that she was what had been missing, everyone needed each other.

You handed the bottle of vodka to Taissa, and she smirked.

“Don’t tell Lottie we have this,” you said, “or, surprisingly, Nat.”

She laughed lowly, taking a drink from the bottle. “I pay for almost twenty years of rehab and it’s a week in Lottie’s cult that fixes everything.”

“I think we all know it’s because Lottie and Nat are gay as fuck for each other.”

Both of them laughed quietly at this, mainly because they knew you were right. Everyone who had eyes could see that Lottie and Nat were obsessed with each other.

“Put a couple of women in a cult together and they all fall in love.”

“I hope so,” you said, sparing a glance at Tai, and part of you hoped she knew what you were implying and part of you hoped your comment had gone right over her head.

“Van,” Tai said with a smile, “your girlfriend’s drunk, she’s trying to flirt with me.”

“Yeah, but she tries to flirt with you even when she’s sober,” Van said.

“Shut up,” you smiled, shaking your head. “Don’t act as if you’re not as guilty of that as I am.”

“I don’t mind,” Taissa admitted, and you watched as Van met her gaze.

You knew neither of them would act on it. If you didn’t act first nothing would happen, nothing would change, and all of it would carry on as usual, all three of you lost in darkness.

The alcohol was giving you more courage than you would’ve liked to admit. Without hesitation you pulled Taissa into a kiss, and though she melted into you you pulled away after hardly a moment had passed, gauging her reaction.

You didn’t know what you had expected, but you certainly had not expected her to pull you back to her, lips crashing against yours, both of you engulfed in momentary euphoria. Her hand rested at the back of your neck, ever so subtly controlling, and had you not been in the middle of the compound you suspected things would have gone quite a bit further.

When the two of you pulled away, regaining your breath, you looked to where Van sat on your other side. She seemed mildly surprised, but her eyes were occupied by blatant longing as her gaze flickered from you to Taissa.

Reaching across you, the two of them collided, and where Taissa had been gentle with you she was not with Van, the kiss rough and eager as if it had been all either of them had wanted for years. They had a history, you knew that, but never had you suspected how deeply things had gone, and the realization intrigued you in the best of ways, exhilarated you.

Tai pulled away first, and everyone was silent for a few moments. When she spoke, Tai’s words were barely louder than a whisper. “I want this,” she said, looking from you to Van, “but with Simone in the hospital, and my son…”

“We have time,” you reassured her, giving her a small smile, though the loose ends pained you. “Do what you need to do, and when you’re ready-”

“I can’t give you that much time,” Van said suddenly, not looking at either of you, just straight ahead.

You weren’t yet sure why, but something about her tone had you feeling sick, and you knew that something was wrong. Not in a way that could be solved easily, but in a way that would haunt all of you, that once you knew the truth it could never be forgotten. “What is that supposed to mean?” You asked, and still she wouldn’t meet your gaze.

“I have cancer,” she said nonchalantly. It was as if she’d told you she had a splinter.

For a moment you couldn’t breathe. It was like you hadn’t heard her right, and you were sure you hadn’t until she finally looked at you, and you could see the remorse, the fear, the desperation she was trying so hard to hide.

“You know when people are all ‘it’s okay, I have cancer but the doctors caught it early,’” Van continued, and her gaze moved to Taissa. “This isn’t like that. I have, I think, months.”

“Jesus fucking Christ, Van,” Tai breathed, and still you couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move, couldn’t think. It wasn’t happening — it couldn’t be happening, because everything had been so perfect up until this moment, and if you heard another word of it you were going to die. “When were you going to tell me?” She asked.

“You showed up on my doorstep, I wasn’t going to tell you at all. We hardly know each other anymore, Tai.”

“What about me?” You asked, only processing that you’d spoken after the words had already come out, and you could see the guilt in Van’s expression. “You weren’t going to fucking tell me, were you?”

“I couldn’t, not will all of the shit both of us have been through. I didn’t want to burden you.”

“And it wouldn’t burden me if I woke up one day to see you fucking dead?” You shouted, and she motioned for you to keep your voice down, which you ignored, or you would have if you’d been able to say anything else. Tears blinded your vision, and your hands were shaking, and all you wanted was for all of it to stop and to wake up and realize all of it was a dream, none of it had really happened.

“Listen,” Van said, one of her hands holding yours and the other running up and down your back, which was supposed to be soothing, but nothing could have soothed a blow such as this. “I want you and Tai to be together. The two of you can sell out the store, buy a nice house. Fuck, you could even stay here at the compound if you wanted. But I want you to be able to be happy when I’m not here.”

There was a certain potency of grief that came with knowing she was going to die. That even as she was sitting there before you all of you knew that in a few months she wouldn’t be, and the entire world would die in your eyes. You would have Taissa, but even then something would be missing, and that something would be unattainable, would be Van.

“Misty’s coming,” Van said, “both of you act fucking normal.”

You knew you couldn’t. There was no reaction to this that was “normal.”

You took the vodka bottle, quickly chugging what was left of it before walking away, going to the edge of the forest and further, letting yourself be taken into its depths. You were vaguely aware that Taissa was following you, and maybe she was calling your name or maybe it was your imagination, you weren’t sure.

Eventually you stopped at a fallen tree, sitting on it, and after a moment Taissa was sitting beside you again in the darkness.

Neither of you said anything for a while. There was hardly anything to say, and you could hardly think coherently anyway.

But as soon as you dared, you let yourself speak the thought that had been haunting the back of your mind ever since Van had told you she had cancer.

“This is what it wants,” you said quietly, and you could feel Taissa tense beside you.

“What are you talking about?”

“That thing, the being… from when you crashed… whatever Lottie invoked in the wilderness that never left.”

“How the fuck do you know about that?” She asked, her tone sharp.

“Van told me.”

“Of course she did,” Taissa sighed. Her words weren’t sharp now, they sounded only tired. “She always believed in all of it.”

“And you don’t?”

“I'm not sure anymore,” she admitted, taking your hand, providing whatever comfort she could.

“It chooses, Taissa,” you said, barely a whisper. “It chose Javi, and it chose Travis, and now it’s choosing her.”

It took her a moment to respond.

“You’re not supposed to know those things,” she said, and by her tone, and the look she gave you, her grip on your hand tightening significantly, you knew it wasn’t her anymore.

It was the other one.

[sollucets]

rowan’s gmmtv2024 report:

hi everyone im back from my interview (i dont know yet but i’m hopeful, cross your fingers for me) and im supposed to take a nap before work but i have to yell a bit first you understand

(positives)

1. pluto……. oh my GOD

you guys dont get it i was Really into midnight museum june. i tried my best to watch a lot of things i really didnt like just for namtan tipnaree. i like her So Lots. and namtanfilm i just fully….. had no idea. absolutely none. but it works!! i love it!!! the plot is bonkers (your dead(?) twin was the girlfriend of a now-blind girl that you're lying to now?) and under normal circumstances i wouldnt be interested but namtanfilm Killed this trailer and i also know im going to have Bad second couple syndrome re: whatevers going on with ciize. i love ciize so much.

this was so so soooo good n unexpected . girls kissing onscreen at My gmmtv announcement? :') plus their bathtub scene & that princesses moment.. yeah. that fucks

2. my golden blood

photo proof of me going mildly ballistic about the rumors last week. i did indeed say a few unholy things shortly after this. and to have it be a VAMPIRE BL? gods save us all im going to be so annoying. i was a twilight kid you know it im going to shovel this into my face with abandon

im so down for vampire au fanfic main character princess gawin honestly. wanted by supernatural creatures for his sexy special blood! bridal carried! blood on his university top!!!! i love it i love it i love it

is this objectively a tad embarrassing? yes. are the special effects painfully cheesy? yes. do i care? no 💜

3. peaceful property

this was just so fun to watch the trailer :’) i really love the found family vibes i was getting plus the over the top ghost shenanigans. i’m a casual tay tawan enjoyer & i do really love jan (alex&nim / newjan in warp effect were very fun to me). the trailer felt very warm n fun and bright, so im down. im into it

4. the trainee

we are in “sure i’ll watch that” territory now instead of extreme excitement but i thought this trailer was really fun & cute. i love view, obviously, so the amount of screentime her character got was good for me, and im 👀👀 about those girls. and offgun’s relationship seemed really fun & genuine :’) this seems nice! dont let me down!

5. wandee goodday

i think this looks fun! its a higher heat but still silly, which suits, and it appears to have fake dating which is a weakness trope of mine. also this is one of my bingo squares (adult non-office bl) so yes absolutely ill watch this. thank you p’golf but Please can we get podd Something this time

(mixed feelings)

6. kidnap

i have notably dissonant emotions about ohm pawat (lets not get into it) but i do actually enjoy this kind of forced proximity plotline even if i fear what theyll do with the opening kidnapper/kidnapee relationship. i feel… Something…. about this? yes. something is being felt. there is hope for me here, maybe, perhaps. really though if they want to keep him they should give ohm a smiley role again someday. it feels like everything ive seen him in since bb is all…. violence generational trauma death etc (for the worse imo)

7. gemfourth kiekoi

i think they can do it and it’ll be cute... gemfourth suit aoki and iida well. its just…. i dont know, i have an instinctive ‘noooo’ reaction to this remake. i like kiekoi soso much and i worry a lot. it does not have the exact charm for me.

also for me i wanted something a little different out of gemfourth. they have the range. but again, i do think theyll do well enough with this? so i'm mostly just being..... idk. :<

8. we are

i will at the very least attend e1! but this is too many couples for me if im honest, and they dont seem to be gunning to do anything super interesting. i do love aouboom & i like pondphuwin a lot (i Love pond’s hair in this trailer btw bless) but …. im not invested enough to make it interesting on its own. and [pouty baby voice] i wanted aouboom leads

(negative but ill try to be brief)

9. ossan’s love (the most negative of them all. look away. im so sorry earthmix i love you)

you guys are going to give earth pirapat a fucking complex before he even turns 30. he BETTER be playing haruta (i know hes not). this is just so silly!!! gmmtv doesnt deserve to have this one! this is not right for so many reasons but the most important is that they have no actual correctly aged men. no no no i am so so opposed. and theres not even a trailer 😰 you guys cut that shit out

10. ploy’s yearbook

looks…okay, its giving 55:15 a little bit, but the filmjoong adopted siblings romance threw me so violently that i doubt ill even consider touching it. absolutely not, you guys. gmmtv failing to be normal about siblings yet again! even though i like several of these actresses a lot i really.. i cant do it. also..... is earth a high schooler or is he forty.,, i feel like they're gaslighting us somehow. pairing him with namtan will not improve this situation for me you can't get out of it so easy

(miscellaneous extra commentary no one asked for)

11. only boo (?)

this looks cute? but not in a way where ill watch it unless i have nothing else going on. also unless im mistaken... was that milkbook??? innovation. love it

12. high school frenemies

those boys should be being gay about it instead of whatever shit they're actually doing. very nearly gayer than some of the bl trailers. i do not like this kind of genre thing but viewjune are there so ill still at least consider it.

13. summer nights

incredible how little i can care about something so fast. i'm not like, seethingly angry or anything but it's incredible, truly, how fast any trace of interest dropped away

i dont have anything else to say about the trailers! i will not be addressing the music here as it pains me in many ways.

finally, the personal elephant in the room: no firstkhaotung at all :< you guys know what i am, so obviously i indulged in a little dramatics about it this morning but i do understand. there's a part two that we've now been thoroughly assured they'll be present in, and also they have a show that's actively airing right now, so i'm not too worried. i did sort of expect a minor role for one or both of them at the very least though? but if they actually get a break out of this i'll be happy. please rest boys

(also khaotung on school rangers is, objectively, hilarious. sorry baby they're gonna make you do tasks)

okay! that's all! perhaps nobody wanted to know this

[luckyqueenreign]

No Other Love - Chapter 1: Flight Risk

After weeks of ignoring her feelings for Suresh, Gemma was finally ready to admit to him that she wanted to get back together. With the Casa Amor recoupling in full swing, she never expected him to walk back into the villa with another girl.

🎵 Song 🎵: Flight Risk You'll never leave if I'm already gone...

Tag list: @katsie @future-mrs-suresh @litg-burnbook @0shewrites0 @bradybunch111 @whati390 @hi-im-karla @fujihime-litg @kunepie @differenttyphoonwerewolf @earlyevenings @pho3nixx67 @sienna2world @kikithegr8 @theesocialintrovert @iamgaryrennells @kiwi-tai @abecerra611 (let me know if you want to be added on to tag list)

Thank you to my girls 💖💖 @katsie @0shewrites0 for looking this through and editing my dumb mistakes and making it so much better than it was and @midnightscinema for the Suresh/Lulu date idea!!!

Read on AO3

Is this where our story ends? After everything he said before Casa Amor, this just can’t be the end. 

Gemma looked down at her hands, absentmindedly playing with her gold ring, then stared off into the fire pit. 

Can it? 

She bit back the tears threatening to pour out of her green eyes. She wouldn’t let any of them see how utterly and completely broken she felt. No, broken couldn’t even begin to accurately describe the feeling of having your heart ripped out of your chest and tossed aside like it was worth nothing. Before they’d left for Casa, Suresh’s ultimatum had forced Gemma to come to terms with all of the feelings she’d long since buried and tried to ignore. And she hated how after all this time, after all the pain he’d caused her, how much she still loved him, even now as she watched him take his seat on the opposite end of the fire pit with Lulu by his side. 

From the very first day, when he walked out to greet her by the pool and she saw those dizzying emerald eyes, her feelings for him rushed to the surface, washing over her in an uncomfortable wave. She tried everything she could to be strong, to not cave in to his many advances and false promises of having “changed.” She tried to flirt with the new guys, move on with someone new, but no one compared to him. They didn’t know that she couldn’t hear someone sing ‘Happy Birthday’ without tearing up, especially if it was her birthday. That despite being a horrible singer, she would sing as loud as her lungs would let her whenever she got the chance. That she hated driving and always begged him to, even though she knew he would never make her do something she didn’t want to do. Suresh knew all of that about her, and he loved her for it. 

Loved. In the past. Not anymore. 

“Babe, it’s your turn,” Kat said, nudging her forward. She sat nestled in Finn’s arms, looking happy, safe. All the things Gemma felt like she should be feeling right now. 

Stick or Switch. 

She stood up and took a deep breath. Should she stick with Alfie? The boy who she had tried to get to know, who she’d tried to move on from Suresh with, but somehow things just never felt right. No matter how hard she tried to ignore it, there seemed to always be a gnawing feeling in the back of her mind that something was missing. He just wasn’t him. She looked at Johnny and Nicolas, both nervously standing off to the side. She’d barely gotten to know either of them in Casa Amor, something she now regretted. Again because of him. There was also the matter of Alfie kissing Kat and Gemma kissing Suresh. She knew she had no room to judge Alfie for what he’d done, but she also knew that both kisses had ended things for them before it even properly started. So she knew she only had one choice tonight. 

Switch. 

“Tonight I’m choosing to couple up with this boy because he has shown me that I can have more than what I’ve been offered. That I can have a fresh start with someone new. I’m excited to see where this chapter might take us, so the boy I’m coupling up with is…Nicolas.” 

Both Dana and Kat looked at one another confused.

Nicolas sauntered over to Gemma quickly, wrapped his arms around her and lifted her in the air. He spun her around and pressed his lips onto hers. She wrapped her fingers around his neck, deepening the kiss. From the corner of her eye, she could see Suresh staring straight into the fire pit, eyes unblinking and not straying from the flames. 

“Gems, I feel like the luckiest guy in the world right now,” Nicolas beamed at her. 

She smiled at him as they sat down and waited for Alfie to return. She pressed her body close to his and he held her tight, keeping her safe from whatever outcome was about to unfold before them. 

Nicolas squeezed her a little tighter when they heard the familiar sounds of heels on the villa floors before she saw Alfie confidently stroll back in with Meera. 

This time it was much less painful, since she had no real feelings for Alfie. 

She tried to listen to everyone’s excited chatter as they welcomed Meera back into the villa, but she couldn’t hear anything over her erratic heartbeat. She willed herself not to look over in Suresh’s direction, but there had always been an unexplained gravitational force that pulled them closer. As the islanders got up to say their goodbyes to Eddie and Johnny, Gemma noticed Suresh was still sitting, staring into the fire pit’s roaring flames like he had done earlier, frozen in place. Lulu grabbed his hand and nudged him out of his trance and he gave her a small smile, kissing her hand as a thank you. Gemma had lost count of how many times Suresh had kissed her hands like that, she had always loved that small gesture, one she had always thought was meant only for her. Even with Arlo he’d never shown her this side of him. 

Does he actually like Lulu? 

“I have to…uhm…” Her heart beat faster as she felt the tears pricking her eyes again. This time she knew she couldn’t hold them back for long. She had to get away, she couldn’t let them see her this way. 

“I have to get out of here.” 

“You okay?” Nicolas asked. 

“Yes!” She plastered on the happiest smile she could manage. “I just need some air. I’ll be right back.” 

She didn’t give him a chance to respond. Instead she turned on her heels and hurried towards the villa, the tears already streaming down her face before she even had a chance to step inside. She stumbled as she ran up the stairs towards the beach hut, the unwanted tears blurring her vision. 

“I’ve lived with you and without you. And being without you doesn’t even compare. I want the wild, fun life that we used to have together. I know now that you’re the only girl for me.” She couldn’t stop the words from replaying in her mind over and over.  The words he’d spoken to her before he’d left for Casa Amor. Did she miss something? Had she gotten something wrong? 

How could he do this again? Why was he doing this again? After everything he had said before Casa Amor. How he wanted no one else, how he couldn’t picture his life without her. For him to then waltz back into the villa with Lulu, holding her hand and looking like he’d won a prize. Gemma heard the door click open, and quickly wiped her face clean of tears. When she looked up she saw Nicolas standing there. She tried, and failed, in giving him a smile. He gave her a soft one in return as he sat down next to her, leaving the door ajar. Then he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a tight hug. 

"It's okay, Gem," he said soothingly. "You're all right, I've got you."

She buried her face into his chest, soaking his shirt in her tears. He wasn't the one she'd wanted to hold her, but he was the only one willing, and right now that was all she cared about. As he held her, just letting her cry, Gemma couldn’t help but wonder where Suresh was. Why wasn’t he the one holding her right now? Explaining himself? Explaining why he’d brought back someone new. 

Was any of it real? 

But all of those thoughts made her feel incredibly guilty, especially when another man was holding her, soothing her. Eventually she pulled away from him and used the back of her hand to wipe away the tears. 

"Thank you, Nic," she said, then gestured to her face which she knew would be covered in smudged makeup. "I'm sorry I'm such a mess."

"Gem, you're anything but a mess," he said and wiped under her eyes with his thumbs. "You're absolutely stunning, you're whip smart, and so incredibly strong. What you've overcome since you came in here, what you continue to overcome, it astounds me. You astound me." He rested a hand on her knee, giving it a little squeeze. "A mess? No. You're a wonder, Gemma. You're special." 

She forced her bottom lip to stop quivering, her heart tightened painfully at his words. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, trying to convey how grateful she was. 

She found solace in his chest once more, forcing herself to steady her breathing by listening to his. 

“You’re so sweet, Nic,” she said, making him smile. 

What neither of them saw was Suresh, watching them through the crack in the door, his jaw clenched. He stalked off, hands balled into fists at his sides.

Nicolas pulled away slightly, giving her a warm smile as he brushed her hair out of her face.

"Why don't we get ready for bed, yeah?"

"Yeah," Gemma nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good."

Nicolas met Gemma outside of the dressing rooms, after she’d changed into pajamas and removed the rest of her makeup for the night. 

“Wow,” he gushed. 

“What?” she looked up at him confused. 

“You look stunning.” 

“Thanks Nic,” she blushed. “Come on, let's go to bed.” 

He led the way, holding her hand, stealing glances at her every few steps. This was the exact distraction she needed right now. Because when he looked at her this way, she could forget for a second how broken and empty she felt inside. How this wasn’t the hand she wanted to hold. She searched the sea of beds for her new bed assignment, finding hers right next to his. She crawled into bed laying on her back not wanting to turn to her side and see anything happening two feet away.

“Hey…Gem…” 

She turned over to face Nicolas. He looked a bit nervous like he was lost in thought. 

“I just wanted to say…Thank you,” he paused and bit his lip anxiously before continuing. “I feel so lucky to be here with you. I know that I’m not your first choice tonight.” 

“Nic-” 

“Just let me finish, beautiful,” he smiled at her, cupping her face. “I know that I’m not your first choice tonight but I want you to give me the opportunity and the chance to prove to you why I should be. Suresh, Alfie, none of these guys see what I see in you. You’re special, Gemma. When it came to stick or twist I had already come to terms with leaving. Because if it wasn’t you who picked me to stay, then I would rather go.” 

“Really?” 

Nicolas edged closer to her, until their faces were inches from each other. He took her hand in his and looked deep into her eyes.

“You were the only one for me. From the first day I laid my eyes on you I knew I had to get to know you better. And the more I do, the more I like you.” 

“Nic…” 

“You don’t have to say anything right now, Gem. I just want this moment with you.” 

He looked deeply into her eyes, leaning in gently and pressing his lips tentatively on hers. The kiss started off slow and languid, but soon his tongue was searching for hers desperately and his hands were roaming her body. 

“Nic…” 

“Sorry, I lost myself there a bit.” He  blushed. 

“Good night,” she murmured.

“Good night, beautiful.” 

As her eyes fluttered open the next morning, the first person she saw was Suresh. In the middle of the night, they’d both turned and unknowingly faced each other in their respective beds. He was sleeping peacefully only inches away from her now. So close yet so far away. She watched as his chest rose and fell with every breath, staring at his God-like body. She had always loved waking up before him and watching him sleep. There was a softness and a vulnerability that didn’t normally come out when he was awake. 

Gemma had been so lost in thought she didn’t notice he had woken up and was staring back at her. 

A small smirk touched his lips as her cheeks turned a bright crimson hue, evidence that she had been caught red-handed. He seemed to start to say something but before he was able to get a word out, Nicolas snaked an arm around her waist, bringing her closer to him and kissed her cheek. 

“Good morning, beautiful.” 

The moment was gone. Suresh rolled his eyes and turned over in bed, not wanting to witness this scene for a second longer than he had to. 

She turned over to face Nicolas and gave him a small smile. 

“Morning, Nicolas.” 

“I was thinking I could whip us up some breakfast this morning. Maybe some avocado toast?” 

“That sounds lovely. I can help you.” 

“No, I wouldn’t dream of it.” 

As Nicolas walked out of the bedroom to the kitchen area, Gabi walked over to Suresh’s bed and nudged his shoulder. 

“Suresh, I think it’s time we go for a chat.” 

Suresh sat up in his bed and nodded begrudgingly. 

“Okay, but I’d like Gemma to come too.” He turned to her on the bed next to him, his eyes locked on hers. “Gem, will you join us?” 

“What? No, Suresh, I asked for a private chat with you.” Gabi looked like she was gonna stomp her foot in defiance. “I want to talk about what happened between us.”  

Gemma ignored Gabi, looking at Suresh and his dizzying green eyes. This is what she had been wanting from him for so long. A proper explanation, the truth once and for all. 

“Okay, Suresh, lead the way.” 

Suresh led both girls up to the roof terrace, holding the door open for them to step outside first. Then he made a point of sitting closest to Gemma, their knees almost touching. 

“I guess I should start since I owe both of you answers. Gem, I’m so sorry I never told you about the full extent of what happened between me and Gabi. But you have to understand that from my perspective it was just a fling, I never saw it as a serious relationship and I didn’t want to cause more harm and hurt you even more than I already had.” 

“A fling? You call FIVE months a fling, Suresh?” Gabi snapped.

Suresh paused to collect his thoughts before continuing. 

“I’m not trying to hurt you more than I know I already have. But Gab, we were never that serious. I only ever went to your apartment, you barely came to mine and when you did it was only after we’d been together for months. Did you never wonder why that was?” 

She gave him a confused look but waited for him to continue. 

“It was because of Gemma.”

“Me?” Gemma frowned. “What do you mean?” 

He stared at her sea green eyes with a mixture of adoration and longing, while his fingers inched achingly close to her knee. 

“For months I couldn’t take any of our pictures down. It just felt so…final. So I didn’t. It wasn’t until Simon came over one day and forced me to take them down.” 

Gemma didn’t know what to think. When she first found out he had cheated on her, she had every intention of throwing away anything that reminded her of him. Their pictures, ticket stubs to concerts, and all of the many gifts he’d bought her over their year together. She had worked quickly and efficiently, dumping everything in a large cardboard box, overstuffing it to the point where it wouldn’t close. But when she walked to the front door of her flat she couldn’t turn the knob. She couldn’t throw their memories away. She’d hugged the box close, slid to the ground  and cried. Eventually she’d picked herself off the floor and carried the box into her bedroom, putting it on a shelf in her closet. 

“I-I know what you mean, Resh. I couldn’t get rid of your things either,” Gemma said as she stared at him. 

“As much as I’m loving this trip down memory lane for you two, it’s not really about you, Gemma.” Gabi turned to look at Suresh with an exasperated look in her eyes. “Suresh, I asked you up here for answers for me, not to reminisce with your ex. Because a fling does not accurately describe what I was to you. You liked me, the way you acted around me wasn’t just a fling, even if we didn’t go on lavish trips around the world or fancy dates like you did with Gemma. There was something there. You took me to that lovely restaurant, but then I never heard from you again? Why?” 

Suresh sighed and ran his large fingers through his hair.  

“It was because of Gemma.” He noticed Gabi wince but he continued. “I saw her while we were having dinner. Before that night, I had been able to numb my feelings… I could pretend that I was okay. That I was over her. But that night…that night changed everything. I realized then that I’m still - I was still in love with her and I couldn’t continue seeing you.” 

“Wait, what night was this?” Gemma asked, confused. 

“You were out with your parents at Chez Louis. You looked so happy. I loved seeing you like that. Your parents seemed to be in a really good place too.” 

“Yeah, they are,” she beamed at him. 

“And this,” Gabi  said, motioning to the two of them, “is exactly why I wanted to have a private conversation, Suresh.” 

“I’m sorry. Gabi, I don’t want to hurt you, that’s not my intention here. You’re right, I did like you. You were fun to be around when I was in a dark place, you helped me out of that rut and I’m thankful for that. But Gabi, my feelings for you were never anywhere near what I feel for Gemma. Yes, it was a dick move to ghost you and I’m sorry for that. I should’ve ended things properly and I hope you’ll see this now as me ending things properly with you.” 

“You’re losing out on the best thing you could’ve ever had,” Gabi snapped as she sauntered away from the roof terrace, slamming the door behind her. 

Gemma snorted as she stared at the door. “You sure know how to pick ‘em, Suresh.”

“I picked you once, didn’t I?” 

“Now that was the best thing you ever did,” she retorted instinctively, then froze up as she realized what she'd said.

“Couldn’t agree with you more,” smirked Suresh, but before either of them had a chance to say anything else, Nicolas swung the roof terrace door open.

“Hey beautiful, thought you might need your caffeine,” he said, handing her a large iced coffee, exactly how she liked it. “Also wanted to let you know I just finished breakfast, I wasn't sure if you were done here since I saw Gabi go downstairs.” 

Gemma looked at Suresh, uncertain of what to do. 

“I uhm…” 

**TEXT PING** 

“I’ve got a text!” Lulu shouted from the kitchen below. “Oh my god! Suresh!! Where are you?” 

“Hold up Lu, we’re coming right down,” Nicolas shouted over the side. 

Gemma and Suresh looked at each other and he sighed. 

“We’ll talk later?” Suresh asked. 

Gemma looked at him and hesitated. There was still so much left to say. So many things she needed answers to. She needed more time with him. But what if they weren’t the ones she wanted?

“Please, Gem,” he whispered. 

“Um…okay, maybe later. Let’s go Nic,” she said with her hand outstretched to him. 

Nicolas interlaced his fingers with Gemma’s and led her away from the roof terrace downstairs to the kitchen, Suresh walking behind them. As soon as they stepped outside, Lulu squealed as she came running towards them. 

“Babe! We’re going on a date!” She showed him the text, barely able to stand still.

“What!?” Kat snarled. “Finn and I have been coupled for weeks and you two get to go on a date. How is that fair?”

“You’ve already been on a date with Finn,” Dana pointed out. 

“That one didn’t even count, it was early days! Urgh! Let’s go, Finn.” Kat grabbed Finn by the arm, leading him away to the loungers.

Lulu grabbed Suresh's hand and tugged. “Come on, babe, let’s go get ready!”

He gave her a charming smile and did as she asked. Gemma stared after them, her chest tightening as she begged for him to turn around.

If you still love me you’ll turn back and look at me. If you still love me you’ll turn back and look at me. If you still love me you’ll turn back and look at me.

Her breathing hitched slightly as a chill ran up her spine when he turned and glanced back at her, giving her a small smile. 

[kevin-the-bruyne]

https://www.tumblr.com/chawarin-panich/738091897550225408/hello-i-dont-mean-this-in-an-inflammatory-way

what about DBK? or the now airing Cherry Magic Thai? i mean yeah Tay isn't technically even dark skinned but as compared to the rest of the gmmtv roster... also maybe joong in every series? idk. there's not a lot. sigh.

tagging @burgcheeser since anon is trying to add more context for the question you asked me. sorry for taking so long to respond but I needed some time to first finish laughing at the irony of being recc'd an Aof show in the rampant colorism in Asia diskhorse that I started in response to Aof's colorism hahahahahaha

As someone who's not Thai, I really don't know the specifics of skin tone variations that are acceptable or not in Thailand. I think who's fair and beautiful changes based on how dark the local population gets. Most actors back home (for me) are the same skin tone as Earth (as this is considered quite fair where I'm from) whereas he's 'too dark' for Thai standards. I think in general, if you're looking for a way to support dark skinned actors, the best thing you can do is keep calling for the portrayal of actors' natural skin and oppose whitewashing them regardless of whether you think they are dark skinned or not.

While acknowledging that pinpointing who is or isn't being victimized the most b/c of their skin tone is NOT the focal point of standing against colorism in Asian media. The two people you bring up have always been interesting to me. 1) For all intents and purposes Tay seems like he should fall into the dark skinned actor category but he almost always never does. Is he actually not that dark? Does his own upper class status shield him from it? idk im glad he's having a good time he seems like a wonderful person.

2) Mixed race actors like Joong or Bright who aren't the Korean dewy white that's so popular in Thailand right now but also their relative darkness bears no noticeable consequences to their profession either. I have no idea what the standards of attractiveness is for mixed race actors in Thailand. One thing I can say though is that the lack of darker mixed race actors is not a coincidence - you think there are no Thai/Black mixed race people or what lol

[allexthakatt]

Okay so this idea has been running around my head for like a week and I think I have it all together. I hope this is readable cx

Pairing: Spencer Reid x FEM! Reader

CW: insecurities, poor body image, Spencer being a simp for reader, a little bit of alcohol (very brief), mentions of a case (not explicit)

---------------------

Not Like The Others

"Hey Pen Pen! We still on for dinner this weekend? I've been craving that tai food place for ages!" Y/n walked into the bat cave that was Penelope Garcia's office. It was a good day today, y/n had woken up earlier than she needed to, ate a healthy breakfast for once, got a little makeup on and even had enough time to do a little makeup. It was the beginning of a good day, she was hoping.

"Of course sista. You know I would never ever turn down a tai food night with my best friend." Penelope's bright attitude shined through every crevice of the room. It was hard to have a bad day around her in general. Penelope was just the sun in human form.

"Great. I got a brand new bottle of that Vanilla Crown and some Peppermint flavored Vodka! Some new movies, even though we don't really agree on some, I think I got a good selection of-"

Y/n was cut off by a knock at the door. Spencer walked in with files in his hand, intending to give them to Penelope for Rossi. However his tongue got caught in his mouth as he laid eyes upon y/n. She always made him feel like this; tongue tied and shy. Something about her just made his brain short circuit.

"I-uh. Ahem- I came to bring you these files for Rossi. He wanted you to go through them for him." It was impossible to keep up a cool demeanor with her around. He felt like a teenager.

"Well thank you, boy wonder." The air got suddenly awkward. No one really knew why- well maybe Spencer did. And it was not an awesome reason.

"Hi Spencer." Y/n said with a shy smile. Spencer had this same affect on her too. He just didn't know it even though it was so painfully obvious to Garcia in the room. "G-Good morning y/n. How uh.. How are you?" It was clear to Penelope that he was nervous. Y/n, however didn't seem to catch on. "I'm good, me and pen were talking of getting dinner this weekend is all..." The blush on y/ns cheeks also did not go unnoticed by Penelope. She makes a mental note to bring up this painful transaction later at dinner. Thankfully, before anymore torture can continue, JJ knocks on the door announcing there's a new case.

~

"So what the heck was up with you the other day with Spencer? You were so shy! Y/n is not a shy person." Saturday evening, Penelope and y/n sitting on her couch drinking Crown and watching Twilight. (It was Penelope's turn to pick the movie) Y/n let's her head fall, an apparent blush forming on her cheeks.

"I don't knooow pen. He makes me feel so shy and awkward. Like he's so attractive and sweet I just freeze up and forget how to speak words." Her best friend laughs and takes another sip, preparing to pause the movie because this is much more interesting than anything Bella could ever do.

"You have a crush on boy wonder! Who would've guessed! Can I plan your wedding? Ooh oh oh! Can I name your kids? Wait no- I'll gladly just take one named after me." Before she could continue Y/n put her hand over her friends mouth. "Hold on there, tiger. He probably doesn't even like me back! I mean you saw him that day. He wouldn't even look at me. And let's be honest, pen. Im not exactly his type." Penelope cocked her head to the side, urging Y/n to go on.

"Seriously pen? Spencer likes petite pretty girls. Smart and athletic, or shy and booky. I'm not at all like the girls he's liked or dated in the past. Face it, pen pen he's too good for me.." Whether it was the built up insecurities or the alcohol making her loose, she went on. "I'm no Maeve Donovan, or Lila Archer. Hell I'm not even close to JJ. And his latest girlfriend Max? She was perfect for him. Penelope I'm just not good enough and it sucks but it's true."

Y/n was nothing like JJ, or Lila, or even Maeve. She was more on the plus size, had a more colorful vocabulary. She knew how to play guitar, didn't really read books but rather preferred to listen to music and just chill. She was nothing like the pretty little women that typically caught Spencer's attention. And nothing broke her heart more.

"Y/n just because he's dated different people in the past doesn't mean you're no good for him. Maybe all those relationships didn't work out because they weren't right for him to begin with. Don't assume his feelings, Y/n. Just saying." Y/n took another sip and pressed play. "Please can we talk about something else? I don't wanna be sad tonight." Garcia smiled and changes the subject to Keanu Reeves and puppies.

~

Monday came around quicker than anyone anticipated. She couldn't get Penelope's words out of her head. Could she really have a chance with Spencer Reid? The thought sent butterflies in her stomach. She was practically in love with the man. He was always in the back of her mind, taunting her with those beautiful lips she'd do anything to kiss. His long curly hair she'd love to grip and pull. His-

"Good morning miss Y/n! How was your weekend?" Tara was in a great mood this morning it seems. "Oh hey, it was pretty good actually. And yours? What'd you do?" Out of everyone on the team, (except Penelope of course) Y/n gets along with Tara best. Their personalities bounce off each other in such a way Y/n never feels judged. Penelope and Tara are probably her two best friends in the whole world.

"It was rather great! You know I heard so very interesting gossip about you and pretty boy over there.~" Tara says with a coy look in her eye. "Oh God, pen told you?!" She whisper-yells. The last thing she needed was people teasing her about something that will most likely never happen.

"Hey I'm not saying who told! But what I will say, is that if there anyone in this entire world who's into you, it's Spencer freakin Reid." Y/n's face heated up as she says his name. "Tara! Shut. Up!" She whispers in her face trying her best not to draw attention to them.

"I know you and Penelope just wanna make me feel better but please don't give me false hope. Please." Tara felt a little bad. Y/n has a lot of insecurities built up. She's tried very hard to keep it under control, however those horrible image problems tend to creep up from time to time. Especially when she develops feelings for someone.

Spencer sees Tara and Y/n talking, seeing y/n blush up and Tara and give her a knowing smile. The curious cat he is, walks up close to them to see exactly what's going on. Trying to be sneaky, he doesn't announce he's on his way. If there's something that makes y/n blush like that, he really wants to know.

Pretending to blend in and work on files closer, Spencers ears perk up at his name being said. "I don't understand why you don't just tell Spencer. He likes you back! We all see it, why cant you?" Tell him what? Likes her back? Was it really that obvious? And if it was why hasn't y/n said anything?

"Because there's nothing to see, Tara. I love you guys but please stop telling me stuff that isn't true. I'm not his type. I'm chunky and loud and inappropriate. I don't read a lot of books, I play guitar. Why on earth would someone as smart and intellectual as Spencer fall for someone dull and weird like me?"

Now Spencer was invested. How he not fall for someone like her? Everyone he's been with before let him down or broke his heart. Y/n was different. She runs around his mind daily, her smile, her curves, her laugh and personality. Everything about her makes him weak in the knees. How could someone so beautiful inside and out think something so bad about themselves?

"Y/n..." Tara had no idea her friends insecurities went this deep. However before she could console y/n, JJ speaks up bringing forth yet another case.

-----

A week and a half later. This case went as well as any case can. It ended with the unsub behind bars for life, yes, but not without victims under his belt. It had been particularly brutal, involving naive young women in high school looking to fit in. You could say it hit the women in the BAU harder than the fellas. Every girl in the world knows how hard it is to find yourself, especially in high school.

On the jet ride back everyone was doing their own thing. Luke and Tara talking about the case, JJ texting Will on her phone, Emily fell asleep at the table, and y/n had her earphones in listening to one of her favorite songs.

Spencer on the other hand was trying (key word trying) to read his book. However all that filled his mind was Y/n. He's barely had a chance to speak with her during the case, Emily keeping everyone busy. It was a blessing in disguise, truth be told. It gave him time to think of what needed to be said to her. He realized she deserved to know the truth of his feelings for her. It was decided that he was going to tell her as soon as possible.

After a painfully long ride back to Quantico, everyone bid their farewells to each other, Emily saying not to come in tomorrow. Spencer figured it was good a time as any to talk with y/n.

"Do you want me to walk you to your car?" It was a good first line, a good opening. Of course, Y/n could never say no to him. "Sure, that sounds great actually." They both grabbed their things and headed out.

The walk to her car was quiet, but peaceful. It was never tense or weird with Spencer, she always felt safe and happy just being in his presence. "I could give you a ride home if you'd like. The subway wouldn't be safe this late." She took a risk by asking him. If they were alone in the car together she wouldn't be able to control herself.

"I'd like that a lot actually. Thank you." This is perfect. He can have a one on one with her, be as upfront as possible. "Great, let's go then!" She remained calm on the outside. However inside she was a fucking mess. Why she was so nervous, she couldn't say. And that just made it worse.

When they finally pulled up to spencers apartment, he knew he had to take this moment for all its worth. "You can come up if you'd want. I know nights right after a case is hard on everyone.." Hes nervous and worried he may have crossed a line, but again, Y/n could never say no to him. With a smile, she responds. "I'd love to."

Once finally up, Spencer closes the door behind them. "Would you like some tea or water?" Grateful for something in her system, she accepts the tea and sits on his couch. His home is exactly like she'd imagined. Full of books and artifacts. No tv, she's not surprised. He's always prefer reading rather than watching.

Sitting down next to her with his own cup of tea, he figured it was now or never. "I uh.. I have to talk to you about something."

Her mind starts racing with a million thoughts, but she puts on a brave face and urges him to go on.

"I heard you and Tara talking the other day. And I know how... How you feel about me."

At that point her whole world turns upside down. He heard? She should've paid more attention! Why? How could she be so stupid?! What in the world was she thinking??

She took a deep shaky breath, "So you heard.. Everything?" The air in the room was thick and quiet, Y/n's anxieties growing by the minute.

"I did.. And I need you to know that you're wrong. About it all. I do feel the same, I wouldn't want anyone else. You're perfect for me, y/n. You deserve to know that." At this point Y/n was now up on her feet.

"No no no no... You're lying. Spencer I'm nothing like the women who get your attention. I'm not JJ or Lila.. I'm not Max... Or Maeve... I'm not smart or petite. I'm just... Me." All the insecurities she'd built up, all the nights she lost sleep staying up fantasizing about what will never be.

Spencer could feel his heart breaking with each word that comes out of her mouth. How can someone so beautifully wonderful think something so wrong about themselves?

"Y/n... Please stop telling yourself those lies." He stood up and grabbed her hands. "If there's any word to describe you, it'd be perfect. You're beautiful, inside and out. You don't judge me when I ramble about nonsense and you actually listen to the facts I have to say. You're absolutely stunning, you make me laugh and smile no matter how hard my day was. You're the one thing I look forward to when I walk into the bull pen every morning. You deserve to see what I see: a beautiful woman that I would literally do anything for."

Words caught in y/ns throat. A few tears slipped down her cheek and Spencer leaned in to wipe it away with his thumb. "If you'll allow me... I'd love to prove to you just how amazing you are."

By now they were centimetres apart. Y/n could feel his breath on her lips. Lips that he'd been dying to kiss since the moment they met.

"I'd really love that.." Their lips met for the first time. Finally, Spencer got to feel her this close to him. All those times fantasizing on the jet is nothing compared to the real deal.

When they separated, Spencer leaned his forehead against hers, stroking her still damp cheek with his hand. "You're everything to me. And I will gladly spend the rest of my days proving it." With that, Y/n leaned in again, promising the same to him.

------------------

I'm so sorry this took a fucking lifetime. I just started a new job! And with Christmas around the corner it's very stressful. Not to mention I'm a mother and a wife 🤭

Please tell me how I did! And also feel free to send in requests via private message or an ask! 🥰🥰🥰

[a-dauntless-daffodil]

@lulubellule-kfp your oogway sucks tai lung and kai are flawed/hurt not pure evil rant has changed me spiritually, and honestly, I can’t even give Oogway credit for ‘intervening’ with Tigress.

Oogway is presented as the Wisest and Kindest and Best.

(btw this is very biased and emotional and hammered out in ten minutes and i do love the movies tbh some stories are surface level deep and that's cool)

Oogway is maybe better understood as Thinks He's Wise, Charming Rather Than Kind, and Flawed Like Everyone Else But He's Also The Most Powerful So He Gets To Decide What's Right And Wrong.

his biggest flaw (to me) is in imposing his own idea of the world on everyone else, no matter what the cost, and never self reflecting on how it might be serving him- Even as it hurts and destroys so many others

(grain of salt- we the audience are limited in what we 'know' by what we've been shown so far) (kai and tai lung did do bad things, they did choose to hurt people... and so did oogway. and not having that acknowledge is frustrating. not bad or wrong but, frustrating)

When does Oogway finally do something to help Tigress? Why, after one of Po’s randomly spilled menus happened to flutter into his hand.

Oogway, being dead set on his own philosophy of /there are no accidents/ he orders takeout and chuckles when it gives Shifu food poisoning. The valley is in danger from a rampaging violet dude who’s destroying everything and everyone one in his path but hee hee destiny.

Tigress puts HERSELF forward, willing to fight Boar in her master’s place- and Shifu cuts her off. If she can’t fight like him, then she can’t be ready to fight at all, apparently. So Shifu decides to send a scroll asking for help fighting Boar, and Oogway, deciding that it also wasn’t an accident that Tigress asked to fight Boar, tells Shifu to send Tigress with the scroll instead. Shifu agrees “DO NOT FAIL ME” and Tigress does her thing collecting the Cleaner, Comedian, and Dancer.

(Sidenote: The difference between Tigress instantly seeing how amazing each of them are even though none of them use moves like hers, verses Shifu refusing to accept that there is any other way of being good than HIS way until he literally sees it happening is hmmm yes well, good job mentoring him Oogway, that’s a perfectly healthy mentality to be clinging to, how the heck did Tigress end up more emotionally balanced than the guy raising her) (im gonna give credit to the people running Bao Gu orphanage or actually maybe just the fact that Tigress spent part of her childhood around so many people not like her but who learned to accept her as a friend)

When Shifu gets pissed at Tigress for ‘failing him’ (even while he fails to listen when she tries to tell him how amazing these four people are actually, Shifu would rather die than be wrong. Healthy!), Oogway does go talk to Tigress…… to fire her up for fighting Boar. Alone.

Which is, apparently according to him, the Thing The Universe Wants To Have Happen, and that’s why he’s going along with it. Because he sure as heck didn’t sTOP Shifu from raising Tigress under yet another painful crushing weight of expectation, like he already did with Tai Lung. Nooo, it took a random flyer flying into Oogway’s claws before he was like you know what, maybe Tigress completely giving up her sense of personal identity in a desperate bid to win the love of her father figure is wrong actually. Wow who'd have thought!

Or does he even care about that. Does he only care now because ‘the universe’ seems to be saying so? TIGRESS LOOKS BASICALLY GROWN UP IN THE SHORT HOW LONG HAS OOGWAY WATCHED SHIFU MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE WITH HER THAN HE DID TAI LUNG AND DONE NOTHING? TO HELP?

Oh yeah and then, when Tigress gets the tar beaten out of her by Boar because she’s still trying to use the forms Shifu insisted she should be using (even as it is literally getting HER killed), Oogway not only doesn’t do anything to help her, he makes Shifu stand there and watch as he almost loses ANOTHER student, ANOTHER (almost) ADPOTED CHILD.

And? AND???? Oogway could have healed Shifu whenever he wanted? Just like he could have TALKED TO TIGRESS whenever he wanted! For fucks sake if he’s so in tune with the universe and so wise, why didn’t he just wander around the nearby villages and FIND the other Five himself? TIGRESS FOUND VIPER AND MONKEY WITOUT ANY DIRECTIONS OTHER THAN AN OCCUPATION TITLE! THEY WERE RIGHT THERE!!! MONEKY’S BACKSTORY SAYS HE AND OOGWAY EVEN MET BEFORE!

'oogway knew shifu and trigress needed to go through all this in order to grow as people'

PAIN ISN'T THE ONLY WAY FOR PEOPLE TO GROW. SOMETIMES PAIN BREAKS PEOPLE! SOMETIMS CHALLENGES AREN'T WORTH THE SUFFERING IT TAKES TO SURVIVE THEM!

and SOMETIMES IT LEAVES PEOPLE WEAKER THAN BEFORE- SEE, SHIFU BEING UNABLE TO OPEN UP FULLY WITH TIGRESS AS A FATHER THE WAY HE DID WITH TAI LUNG, BECAUSE-- OH WOW, THAT ENDED BADLY AND SEEING THE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN TAI LUNG AND TIGRESS HURTS AND SCARED SHIFU!!!!

it's almost as if all three of them could have used the guidance and support of a wise and kindly older friend.... instead of series of tests and trials to 'help them' become whatever they were 'meant to be'

Oh but oogway was saved by pandas and now theres a panda orphan being raised in the village nearby (am i really supposed to believe oogway wouldn't notice PANDA right next door to him) and if a flyer from his dad’s noodle shop leads to shifu getting food poisoning then everything must be part of the grand plan to someday make a panda oogway’s ‘true heir’ or whatever.

Hm? What’s that? Po’s only an orphan because a warlord killed his mom and destroyed his home? And all that happened ALSO because of a dumb prophecy and an obsession with destiny?

Oh wow that also must be the universe talking and totally not be a thing oogway maybe could have helped with or something.     

(i don't think oogway was trying to hurt people or be selfish. but intentions are only useful in so far as they might make you change course once you see the damage you are un-intentionally causing, and ooogway... seems to have failed that spot check. which, you know, fair, most of us do. he just happens to be causing a lot more damage than a normal person would be capable of)

Oogway's pacifism is both extreme and twisted.

He won't 'fix' mistakes or accidents because he believes it's all part of some future destiny... but inaction is also an action with consequences, and who is he to decide the destiny of others by even deciding they have one?

Well. He's the most powerful guy around. It's not like there's anyone around to challenge him or prove him wrong.

....Po, sweetie, now that you're enlightened an all, could you go to the spirit realm and kick oogway's butt a little? for me? thanks dude love u

On the other hand, Po and Tigress being the anti-Oogway and Shifu respectively gives me life.

like yes! always try to be better, always try to help! be accepting of others differences and pain and traumas and do everything you can think of to be there for them when they need it! Admit when you fail! Admit when you mess up! Make friends and reach out- Ask for help when you need it too!

You don't have to be perfect to be a friend!

It's better to know and accept that you won't ever be perfect, actually, and still decide that you are worthwhile. And that so is everyone else.

TLDR: oogway's ability to find inner peace and ascend off to retirement even while everything around him is going to heck is a very inward-facing thing, which says a lot about him. I think maybe he needs to re-do his spiritual enlightenment, i think he missed a spot. But if his only goal is to break away from earthy attachments and pain and people in general, well, gold star for that. He succeeded. I sure as hell wouldn't want to.

funny thing is, i only ended up watching kfp because my depressed nephew is into taoism and wanted someone to talk about the movies with. thats not destiny tho, oogway, that's just being a friend

[robinrequiems]

hey any1 want some superman jon and batman Damian hcs? too bad cause you’re getting them

• damian realized why no one wanted to be batman when he turned 18 and Bruce decided to give him batman when he was 22.

• jon realized why jon didn’t want to be superman when he also turned 18

• oh and right, by gave, I mean bruce sorta can’t be batman anymore. medical reasons…

• damian sorta uh. persuaded clark into giving jon superman.

Damian: look. I don’t wanna be worlds finest with you, old man.

Clark: im- im not old—

Damian: listen here, jon and i? we are gonna surpass you and my dad. so give it to jon and let me prove it.

Clark: this doesn’t seem like a good idea— you aren’t ready— neither is jon

Damian: wait- wait, you don’t believe in your son and i??? wow. WOOOW. okay. i see.

Clark: that’s not it!-

Damian: sure. sure. don’t worry. I see now.

Clark: wait I do!

Damian: no, no you don’t.. it’s— it’s okay, I get it, it’s me, huh?

Clark: no!

Damian: I get it

Clark: please i do! I’ll - oh my rao, you’re playing me

Damian: i am. i cant do this without jon though. please, Clark.

Clark: *sigh, how did he get manipulated by a kid he used to babysit* okay.

• okay so now jon may be a little overwhelmed because one day he’s flamebird, the next, he’s becoming superman? huH. it’s extremely uh. worrying. and really just? wow.

• does Damian feel bad? oh yeah. he does. so bad. but he really can’t do it alone. they always dreamed of being their parents. or being better than them. but they grew up and realized that they really didn’t want to be their parents.

• but here they were, getting fitted for their suits and adding their own details to it.

jon: hey, you look hot

damian: please. shut up.

• they could do this. they could do this. shoot they can’t do this.

• damians own anxiety was going 50 mph. look, okay? remember before heretic when Bruce thought that Damian would become a satanic batman and basically rain hell all over gotham? yeah. that’s what is going on in damians mind.

• he doesn’t want to be that. ( “you won’t be like that, cmon, d, we’re gonna be better.” ) and how Damian wants to believe jon so bad..

• he doesn’t want to become obsessed with Batman like his father did, he still wants to have a life. he doesn’t want to isolate himself away and adopt kids as a coping mechanism. that’s why he needs jon to be superman. jon helps him, he helps him not go off into his own little world and stay there. he believes that with Jon, he’ll be okay. he has to be. maybe he uses jon as his own coping mechanism, but that isn’t the point.

• together, they will outshine their parents. the supersons can do this. they are the next generation, and it’s not like they are alone. they have so many other people to help them. they’ll be okay.

• they have been preparing for this their whole life, but they both feel like they got it too soon. they thought they had more time. Damian does feel guilty when he hears jon talking about how stressed he is about superman and not living up to whatever the hell he has to live up to, but Damian does fear what would. or could. have happened if he didn’t have jon with him. becoming batman took a lot out of him, more than he would like to admit. he just got constant flashbacks to heretic and that whole fiasco he thought he put behind him a loong time ago.

Jon: are you sure you’re okay?

Damian: yes idiot, quit worrying.

Jon: I’ll always worry about, d.

• jon somehow becomes MORE sappier when he becomes superman.

• okay, also, funny story. ( Clark and Bruce don’t find it funny AT ALL ) superman and batman? yeah they sorta kissed after an almost alien invasion. in their suits. uh. in front of an alien who they were arresting for the green lanterns. most people believe that when people say it, it’s a lie, kidding. no they don’t. there were pictures.

bruce: you want to explain this?

damian: not really, no.

• the public knows there’s a new Batman and Superman since yk. Jon’s face is public and was seen as superboy flamebird and now superman, and batman was slightly smaller and had some different moves

• but here’s their main line up: batman ( dami wamie, obvi ), superman ( jonnyboy kent ), nobody ( maya:)) ), green lantern ( tai pham, my baby boy ), lace ( wallace west 2, he goes by lace instead of flash because i said so. ), and shazam ( billy b ).

• fun fact, they have a den mother even though they are all in their 20s. poor dinah.. yeah black canary is their den mother. ( stole it from from yj )

• dinah makes sure they get their injuries checked out, train regularly, and you know. don’t blow up a building.

• again.

• ( when damian and jon were younger, in their teen years, they stupidly accidentally blowed up a building. in their defense, the building was owned by the penguin. and there were no civilians in the area. but they also got a lot of men sent after them.. oops. )

• they are very chaotic. they are the definition of dumbass energy sometimes.

• damian tries to keep the pda down whenever he’s batman, BUT JON DOESNT KNOW HOW TO DO THAT

• hence the amount of photos of jon hugging Damian or kissing him

• damian has never once initiated one in suits

• ( that one time jon almost died does not count )

Damian: thought you were gonna be batman.

Tim: nah, i don’t wanna be bruce. i saw what it did to dick. I would’ve became just like him.

Damian: am i like him??

Tim: god no, bruce would never kiss superman or date him or spray paint the new justice league logo— nice logo, by the way— onto villains bases

Damian: is that a good or bad thing?

Tim; good, that means you probably won’t be a total emotional stunted person using crime fighting as an outlet for unresolved childhood trauma.

Damian: you do realize why i became Robin right

Tim: .. not the point im trying to make. I mean now, brat.

• sometimes you can see some of the heroes dropping by to surprise kids, they heard that their old mentors used to go to children’s hospitals to visit sick kids, so they did that too. on a rare day where there isn’t any crime, which is really rare, they go to a school and talk if it’s a weekday, or they drop by an orphanage to hang out with kids.

• they have gotten into a lot of trouble though. they’re still learning how to work as a team. jon and damian are used to being solo and working with each other, Tai had tagged along a few times when they were younger and knows how they work, along with maya, but billy and Wallace do not.

• they often all get into arguments.

• damian lacks a filter and will criticize everyone if they mess up. and he often goes off alone or is too blunt.

• it takes a long time before they all realize that Damian is just: Damian, he doesnt mean to be mean. ( surprisingly )

• billy is used to being the big kid stuck at the kids table, it’s funny that he’s actually the second oldest when he used to be the youngest. ( lace is like.. 27? shazam is 25.. nobody 24. & the supersons 22. pulled all those ages outta my ass. you’re welcome. )

• dinah is also their therapist. poor dinah.

• like really giving pity to dinah. but dinah loves those kids, she has known some since they were kids. she used to take damian out for ice cream and train with him, and also babysit him. ( AUNT DINAH IS MY FAVORITE GOODBYE ). and she did the same with Jon.

• dinah actually does help a lot of them get over their trauma, not completely, but most have finally spoken about it. they began talking after they all got hit with fear gas.

• that was a bad night.

• they had almost disbanded before when they thought lace had died by the hands of captain cold. they had been arguing all day, and if they didn’t, they might’ve saved him:

• but turns out he wasn’t dead.

• but the argument was still there, and it was strong. it took a while for them to actually work together without dinah forcing them.

• then soon came another new member after maya left to go do some undercover mission for the justice league regarding some alien tech being distributed some place. it was a sad goodbye, but she would be back and she would have a place here.

• welcoming: yara flor. yara was a bit headstrong and wild. damian has screamed at her a lot and almost got into a fist fight with her before being dragged off by his boyfriend 💋

• but she settled in fine. minus the fact damian really wanted to shove a batarang up— anyways. she just had to learn teamwork and shit, she was used to being a solo and she was somewhat new. so they helped her out and she became a solid member of the team.

• sometimes damian and jon just go and sit on a rooftop like they did as kids togeyher. just alone with each other. thinking about how their life changed so quickly.

Damian: i thought we’d ruin our fathers’ legacies and plummet to the ground.

Jon: *he coughed* ..what?

Damian: yeah. i didn’t think we’d get this far, but here we are.

Jon: of course we got this far, and we’re gonna get further.

Damian: i know.

• oh yeah. so. superman. fucking proposed after they defeated darkseid. ( the battle was long, so many people were left injured and on the brick of death, Damian and jon had been separated when it all started. Damian had stayed on earth at first before going to apokolips. Damn he hadn’t seen it since he got resurrected.

Darkseid: oh. I remember you.

Damian: mhm?

Darkseid: ah yes, the little boy who was resurrected here.. the chaos share, your father used it on you.

Damian: i know. i remember what happened. I was there afterall.

Darkseid: I wonder if you are as smart as the original batman.

Damian: i am.

• damian was buying time. he was waiting for reinforcements, namely the people who had powers and could take him down. damian wasn’t stupid. he realized darkseid liked to talk. his friends were fighting off the female furys or whatever they were called. he just had to wait and entertain.

Darkseid: quite the ego there.

Damian: i saved the justice league when i was 13, i deserve to have an ego.

Darkseid: oh, you are by far more talkative than the original.

Damian: thanks.

Darkseid: not a compliment, you fool.

• yeah so. darkseid tried to kill damian, with a beam thing. Damian was about to flip away like the baddie he is, but. jon. went out and yk. took the hit. dumbass.

Damian: you have such a big hero complex.

Jon: wow I just saved you and that’s what you say?????

Damian: yes.

• anyways, after they defeat darkseid, jon pops out a ring from his pocket and asks damian to marry him on apokolips.

Damian: you seriously couldn’t wait til we got on earth?

Jon: dames you almost died. what if- what if something happens, I’ve been putting this off for so long. cmon please?

Damian: you’re seriously asking me to marry you here where, I’m pretty sure, a lot of shit happened to our parents here.

Jon: no time like the present.

Damian: fair. okay.

Jon: just okay???

Damian: im sorry, do you want me to cry or something?

Jon: ughh, you can be so extra and petty sometimes.

Damian: i am not being petty.

Jon: just because I ask you to marry me here you wanna be like “okay” and that’s it

Damian: you’re so dramatic. I’ll marry you. I wanna marry you. Better?

Jon: yeah:)

[citrus-cactus]

You ever grab a digimon side character and be like "IM GOING TO TREAT YOU LIKE AN OC... NOW BECOME DEVELOPED"

Sometimes! I think I have built my own impression of Willis/Wallace from the many years I've spent thinking about him (for better or for worse), but he's a struggle to flesh out because he's so... intentionally enigmatic and different depending on which source material you're using, rotfl.

I do have some headcanons/ideas I've wanted to expand on for the sake of character development in fanfic regarding the following minor characters (but sadly have very little fanfic to show for it).

(This got kind of long, under the cut to spare your dash):

(The Fuji TV crew! Mainly the two on the right, Sakurada and Chioka--although Yuki and Hiroaki play a small role in the snippets about the other two I've written. Spoiler alert: these two guys get digimon partners in the end!)

(Maki and Daigo! I have been writing a fic that shows select moments of backstory/Tri from Maki's perspective, but its been stalled for a while. ERGH!)

(THIS L-corp scientist! How exactly did we get here, L-corp scientist?? You might actually be the most important living* adult in Appmon, you deserve a real name and a backstory and BOY do I have THOUGHTS on THAT!)**

* “living” meaning “not assumed to be dead” for a significant portion of the series.

** Please watch Appmon ;D

But then again, I'm just as likely to take a minor character and give them something to do for the sake of continuing the development of a MAJOR character, or exaggerate their traits/take them to the next logical extreme for a quick laugh (i.e. dumb comics and sketches). This has resulted in:

Cody's grandpa Chikara and old!Gennai bonding over a shared love of prune juice;

Mr. Fujiyama being single and Actually Clueless when it comes to giving advice about romance and dating (and asking Nancy Takaishi on a date anyway, to TK's horror);

TK's grandpa Michel giving Tai advice on his love life;

Davis becoming CONVINCED that Jun is using some sort of black magic/love potion on Matt and Tai, because they have been spending Way Too Much Time Together for No Reason He Can See (hijinks sibling warfare ensues);

Izzy & Ms. Kamiya do more baking together (post Digimon Movie). Izzy is a bit thunderstruck by what she considers "following a recipe" (bizarre substitutions and food combinations that would make 1950’s-era instant food corporations proud), but they have fun and eventually make something edible (to Tai's relief). Now that I think about it, she and Mimi would really hit it off!

(Writing this, I realized I have a lot of ideas about the American English dub versions of the minor characters, particularly the adults, because they are so cartoony/embellished themselves! One of the great things about the dub IMO is it gave them a lot of personality and character traits, which are ultimately a good match for my sense of humor. Also I am Old and like to see the adults do things and go on their own adventures, lol).

I don't believe that any of my interpretations or the situations I would be likely to put these characters in are particularly original or unique to the point of seeming like OCs to me (mmmmmaybe L-corp scientist a little, because there's almost nothing about her in canon and fan mentions tend to be very brief/divided, but I have Many Thoughts about how, exactly, we got there). Ultimately, I tend to be of the opinion that characters exist for the purpose of telling stories, and therefore I end up only developing headcanons or engaging in minor-character character development when it seems appropriate for whatever story I'm trying to tell (which makes individual characters somewhat subject to change from story to story, although I strive for SOME consistency between individual works because I'm particular about that sometimes!). But I DO really enjoy seeing other people's headcanons and stories, particularly since we don't have a lot of in-universe information about these minor characters. Having that much room for interpretation is really fun!

(Jyou/Bike Girl is still one of my favorite minor character ships, even though we as a fandom know NOTHING about her :))

I don't know if that answered your question, but thanks for the ask!

[kaylorrehabcenter]

Rating Every Song on Fearless Based on How Gay it is

Hello friends! I still have a few song analyses in the pipeline (and one on Lover the album) but today in honor of Fearless (Taylor’s Edition) being announced and Love Story being released in a few hours I thought I’d do something fun to celebrate!

And you know what? Fuck my usual disclaimer, I am the word of god here. Try and change my mind about any of these. I dare you. (I kid I kid this isn’t that serious and you’re free to disagree <3)

1. Fearless 15/10

Everything about this song is so fucking gay oh my god. This isn’t a fruit, this is a whole ass edible arrangement. As a small rural town Gay (my hometown has a population of less that 4,000 and where I’m living now has a population of 2,500) this uh. Hits.

“And I don't know how it gets better than this/You take my hand and drag me head first, fearless”

Y’ALL

The idea of falling in love with someone who makes you less afraid of your homophobic small town…….it’s getting to me.

“My hands shake, I'm not usually this way but/You pull me in and I'm a little more brave/It's the first kiss, it's flawless, really something/It's fearless”

This is making me emotional, I'll be honest. I see so much of my friends and my experience in high school in this song. 

This quote I found on genius is from when the album was released on BMR’s website.

“When I wrote ‘Fearless,’ I wasn’t dating anyone. I wasn’t even in the beginning stages of dating anybody. I really was all by myself out on tour and I got this idea for a song about the best first date. I think sometimes when you’re writing love songs, you don’t write them about what you’re going through at the moment, you write about what you wish you had. So, this song is about the best first date I haven’t had yet.”

This just screams baby Tay writing gay folklore to me, about the gay stories she wish she had. Notice how there are no pronouns in this song??? Fruity I’m telling you.

All that to say. I’m crying because the linear note says “I loved you before I met you” and I want to go listen to Long Story Short and cry now.

2. Fifteen 1/10

Objectively pretty straight as she’s singing about her and Abigail’s dating boys in HS. And Taylor got with a senior guy. Good for her I suppose.

Unless he was one of the shitty ones in which case.

“This is life before you know who you're gonna be”

This however, is a cute line and the whole song makes me warm and nostalgic. You can also hear her crying after the line “and Abigail gave everything she had to a boy who changed his mind” which makes me emo and I’m sure will take on new depth after Abigail’s divorce and hurt me even more.

Other highlights that make me sob include.

“When all you wanted was to be wanted/Wish you could go back and tell yourself what you know now/Back then I swore I was gonna marry him someday/But I realized some bigger dreams of mine”

Bigger dreams of hers indeed :’)

(Also how can you say she’s a gold star lesbian when this song exists. She was obviously dating boys in high school and even if you think she’s a lesbian. Comp het is a hell of a drug kids.)

3. Love Story 8/10

Tried to change the ending indeed.

This is THE Taylor Swift song, and maybe it’s the nostalgia talking but damn I still love it. Written because she wanted to change the ending of Romeo and Juliet (how anyone likes RandJ enough to want to rewrite I have no clue.) and/or because her parents didn’t approve of a guy she was seeing. (according to genius, it would’ve been too early for Joe J so it could possibly be Boys Like Girls frontman, his image did clash with hers and they did release some cute songs together. However if you want my take it’s probably folklore about Emily, take for what you will)

This song has very oft gay vibes with the ‘They don’t approve of our love angle!’ but uses male pronouns so points redacted for that. HOWEVER this is a very early use of ~the male perspective~ in Taylor’s songs and for that it deserves all the love.

“ So I sneak out to the garden to see you/We keep quiet, 'cause we're dead if they knew/So close your eyes/Escape this town for a little while”

More rural town angst!!!

Nothing gets me more than rural town angst.

“Romeo, save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel/This love is difficult, but it's real”

Originally the lyric was “this love is different”. Granted I do not remember the source, i’s just lore implanted into my brain, but make of that what you will.

“"Marry me, Juliet, you'll never have to be alone/I love you, and that's all I really know/I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress/It's a love story, baby, just say "Yes"”

Marry me Juliet from the male perspective :)

Also worth noting. This is Karlie’s (and Kim K’s lmao) favorite Taylor song which. While basic as hell. Makes this cover sad as hell to this former Kaylor. (thanks @swiftgron-get-married for the tears <3)

Also not to make this about a man AGAIN but the secret message is “Some day I’ll find this” AND SHE DID IM CRYING.

4. Hey Stephen 1/10

The one thing Camilla Cabello and I have in common is loving this song, so I have to live with that for the rest of my life.

This song is very painfully straight.

How can you think this woman is a gold star lesbian.

The only noteworthy thing is that this is one of the few songs she confirms who it’s about. The secret message is “Love and Theft” which is the name of a country music duo who went on to open her Fearless tour. Which, does make me side eye this song a little bit.

Still a cute song.

“Hey Stephen, boy, you might have me believing/I don't always have to be alone”

5. White Horse 1/10

Oh look. It’s track five. 

You know maybe this is just me being a bitch but in my ranking of track fives this is. Pretty low. Maybe on the bottom.

Like I don’t have a lot to say about it. 

She’s going through it over a guy. He was a cheating dickweazel. 

“'Cause I'm not your princess, this ain't a fairytale/I'm gonna find someone someday/Who might actually treat me well”

“Try and catch me now, oh/It's too late/To catch me now”

These lines hit though!!

And she found Joe!! Who treats her well!!!! And she isn’t the princess, she’s the prince who dropped her sword and knocked on her door!!! But this time if they come for them she’s ready!!!

Yes I will make every song about Long Story Short <3

6. You Belong With Me 5/10

Ah yes. The other THE Taylor Swift song.

You know. If I went to a high school with a cheerleading squad. And I had a crush on a cheerleader. I would blast this song. So for that it gets a 5/10. Otherwise. Fairly straight and fairly iconic.

7. Breathe 8/10

Well. We know this one is about a woman. (Emily Poe for those not in the know. Ha. A rhyme!) That alone has an 8/10. And it’s the first time she has a featured artist so bonus points for that!

It was nominated for a Grammy and it fucking lost to Jason Mraz. When’s the last time you thought about Jason Mraz.

I will not have Kaylor feels on a fucking Fearless song but damn is it VERY easy.

“Never a clean break, no one here to save me/You're the only thing I know like the back of my hand”

“It's 2 A.M, feeling like I just lost a friend/Hope you know it's not easy, easy for me”

Also this bridge? Goes off. HIGHLY underrated. 

8. Tell Me Why 3/10

You know. Maybe this album isn’t as gay as I once thought.

This song does bop though, not as good as her other angry songs on this album. But I can vibe with this you know. Why are you being an asshole mysterious man.

“You could write a book on how to ruin someone's perfect day”

This has to be one of baby Tay’s best burns. Damn. 

“Why do you have to make me feel small/So you can feel whole inside?/Why do you have to put down my dreams/So you're the only thing on my mind?”

Men ain’t shit kids. However, bonus points for the shade. 

9. You’re not Sorry 1/10

Ok, ok. Maybe this was a foolish endeavor.

Because yet again we have a very straight song. A good song. That was on Taylor’s episode of CSI. But oh dear. Very straight. Gets a measly one point. We started this post off so very very gay but damn. We seem to be nearing the end on a very straight note.

10. The Way I Loved You 20/10

Hey Remember what I said about this album being very straight.

WELL THAT WAS A LIE.

Is this a comphet album or am I projecting.

This is one of my favorite baby gay Taylor songs. Her masterful use of pronouns (he is sensible! And so incredible! And all my single friends are jealous! But I miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain, when it was two am and I was cursing your name!) makes the other person she’s singing about completely vague, while we know she isn’t happy with whichever guy she’s dating.

Mayhaps an early reaction to PRomances?

Either way this song is so good, truly an underrated gay gem I mean. Look at it.

“Breaking down and coming undone/It's a roller coaster kind of rush/And I never knew I could feel that much/And that's the way I loved you”

AND THE BRIDGE. Do all of her gay songs just have kickass bridges?

“He can't see the smile I'm faking/And my heart's not breaking/'Cause I'm not feeling anything at all/And you were wild and crazy/Just so frustrating/Intoxicating, complicated/Got away by some mistake and now…”

Damn. I’m imaging this with 2020 vocals and fucking ascending.

Also please watch the live performance of it from the Fearless tour. It’s such a damn shame this got cut from the movie and some woman in the front row is wearing a cowboy hat. Everyone is holding up those cameras everyone had to have before smartphones. Taylor is being endearing. It’s a good time.

11. Forever and Always 6/10

Bonus points for the ~drama~ of it all. Added last minute to the album? The iconic throwing of the chair in live performances?? All of it very dramatique and for that we stan.

Still pretty straight.

Also Joe Jonas responded to the song and why do I find his response so damn funny. “It’s part of being a musician, I guess. You write songs about each other.”

This is another song where the idea of Taylor’s grown up vocals on this is………..whew

12. The Best Day 0/10

This gets zero points because it’s about her literal mom.

Still makes me cry.

God bless Andrea Swift indeed

13. Change 13/10

We start the official tracklist with a gay song. We end it with a gay song.

We will ignore that it was originally written for Scott and BMR and instead induct it into the hall of gay pride anthems, as it should be. 

“We're getting stronger now, finding things they never found/They might be bigger but we're faster and never scared/You can walk away, say we don't need this/But there's something in your eyes says we can beat this”

“This revolution, the time will come/For us to finally win/And we'll sing hallelujah, we'll sing hallelujah”

The music video is cringe though lol

14. Jump then Fall 10/10

This song is gay because I choose it to be. <3

Like. Picture baby Taylor writing this song and playing it on her guitar to a girl she has a crush on telling her that she’ll protect her and they’ll be safe and in love and happy together. Gah, maybe I’m ~projecting~ but this sweet ass song always gets me and is EASILY in my top five Taylor songs. Super underrated and hecking cute. 

“We're on the phone and without a warning/I realize your laugh is the best sound/I have ever heard”

Like. Look at this shit.

“I watch you talk, you didn't notice/I hear the words but all I can think is/We should be together”

Tell me this is about the first time you get a crush on a girl and she’s your best friend and she’s amazing and beautiful and you realize you kinda want to kiss her and you hope she wants to kiss you too.

“I had time to think it oh, over/And all I can say is come closer/Take a deep breath and jump then fall into me”

And she’s the Romeo who's going to protect her!!!!! She’s the knight in shining armor in this song and I love that for her??

“The bottom's gonna drop out from under our feet/I'll catch you, I'll catch you/When people say things that bring you to your knees/I'll catch you/The time is gonna come when you're so mad you could cry/But I'll hold you through the night until you smile”

I won’t divulge into full on analysis here because. This is what this post is about but PLEASE listen to this song more. It’s such a gay little gem.

15. Untouchable 9/10

How does she make a cover sound gay.

It sounds so gay.

“You got to come on, come on, say that we'll be together/Come on, come on, little taste of heaven”

Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay

16. Forever and Always Piano Version 1/10

This song gets 1/10 because I don’t like it. There. I said it.

17. Come in With the Rain 3/10

I can see why this is a bonus track. It doesn’t hit me as much as the other songs on the album.

But damn if I don’t want to scream sing this one driving down a high way.

18. Superstar 7/10

You can’t tell me this song is about a man. I simply won’t entertain the idea.

You cannot prove to me that this song is about a man. There is not a male pronoun in sight. 

>:)

19. The Other Side of the Door 6/10

Is this song about having a fight about being in the closet? Probably not. Will my gay little brain make it about that? Yep!

And that, funky little queer pals, is my gay rating of every Fearless song. Like and subscribe, #t3atmidnight

[ashketchup119]

WELCOME EVERYONE TO ENLIGHTENMONTH (i know im three days late but it be like that)!!! Koukari is one of my oldest ships, so yall KNOW i had to do something. This is actually a snippet from the very long, very fun digimon fanfic I’ve been writing for oh… seven years? Thereabouts.

I still have things coming up for pokemon and the next chapter of figuring it out as we go coming out later today, but i threw all of that to the wind and sat down and, in a fit of inspiration, typed all of this out at 2 AM last night. That being said… ignore the typos. Hope yall like it!!

Together

Enlightenmonth prompt 1: morning/evening

The whole restaurant seemed to be holding its breath.

Well- “whole” implied that there were more than three people in the restaurant.

Kari took quiet sips from her tea, hands shaking noticeably as she stared out the window at the evening sky. Her hair was disheveled, her cheeks red, and her eyes dropped occasional tears that she was quick to wipe away. The tea clasped within her hands had long since gone cold, but she continued sipping anyway, seemingly oblivious to the change in temperature.

Izzy was typing away at his keyboard, somehow managing to click the keys silently in a manner that made clear how much time he spent typing. His hair was messy, his eyes unfocused, and his left eyebrow let out an occasional twitch. He seemed to be staring both through and at Kari, who was looking out the window.

Tai was texting someone on his phone, blissfully unaware of the silent exchange that seems to be happening between his sister and his best friend. He’d hung his jacket on the side of his chair, and had three empty cups in front of him, along with a couple of empty plates.

“Joe is trying to get everyone to buy Mimi a gift for her visit next week.” Tai all but yelled into the empty air, and both Kari and Izzy started and turned to look at him. “I don’t think I’ll do it because broke college student with a kid on the way, but do you guys have any plans?”

“I,” Kari began, voice cracking slightly. She cleared her throat, and continued, “I was thinking of getting her some new scrunchies. She seems to really like those.”

“Mm, that’s a good idea.” Tai murmured. “Izzy?”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to see Mimi during her visit.” Izzy answered offhandedly, returning his focus to the computer screen and the keys beneath his fingers. “I’m very busy with classes.”

‘And I don’t know if I’d be welcome there anyway.” Went unsaid, but Kari, ever the intuitive one, picked up on it anyway.

“We’d be happy to have you. If you do find the time.” She muttered, crossing her arms and pressing her hands to her forearms.

Izzy looked at her for a moment, eyebrows raised, then quickly schooled his features. “We’ll see.”

The strange tension returned.

“Oh, I’ve gotta go.” Tai spoke after a few minutes, shoving his phone in his pocket. “Soccer practice!”

Kari and Izzy nodded, and Tai ran out of the cafe.

For a moment, neither of them did anything. Kari sat still as a statue, and Izzy ceased typing in favor of staring at nothing.

Kari’s lips pressed into a thin line. “We should talk.”

Izzy sighed and closed his laptop. “I know.”

“You seem to know a lot of things!” Kari hissed, finally looking at Izzy.

“I don’t.” Izzy replied mournfully. “I-“ He hesitated. “I… feel like… I don’t know anything at all.”

Kari scoffed and looked back at the window, tears falling freely down her cheeks.

“For what it’s worth… I’m sorry.” Izzy felt the distinct urge to reach across the table and wipe the tears from Kari’s face, but he also knew that would make things worse, so he kept his hands on the table.

“…Okay. You’re- you’re sorry. You’re sorry.” She repeated, feeling as though she couldn’t remember the meaning of the words. “Sorry for what? Sorry for- for running away?! Sorry for- for-“ She gestured vaguely at her stomach. “For this?!”

“I didn’t run away!” Izzy yelled, then looked down at his hands and murmured, “I didn’t run away. You- just-“ He struggled to figure out his next words. “What was I supposed to do? You didn’t want me around! You said so! If-“ His voice broke. “I would’ve stayed if you’d asked me to.”

The silence returned, though this time the very air around them felt oppressive.

“I wanted you around.” Kari whispered. “I just said I didn’t because- because I was scared.” She wiped some more tears from her eyes, then added, “I still am.”

Izzy hesitated for a moment, choosing his next words carefully. “I’m scared too.” He finally confessed. “I don’t know how… it’ll all work out, but.” He paused. “But I want to be there. I want to help you. I want us to get through this- together.”

He held out his hand, and Kari stared at it for a moment before she slowly clasped it between her own.

“Together?” Izzy repeated, hopefully.

“Together.” Kari confirmed, smiling.

[coweggomelet]

i apparently enjoy putting down my thoughts on the off chance someone will read it and enjoy it so here’s rwby rewatch vol 3. i’m ready to be sad!!

(note: it’s long i’m sorry, i have many thoughts and i tried to narrow it down but oh boy do i think im funny)

- the SOUND DESIGN. AGAIN

- ruby you’re so precious. so sweet. so eager. so earnest. c’mere and i’ll protect you from all the bad shit that happens to you later

- hi cardboard cutout tai

- i keep getting an ad for a rooster teeth show called camp betrayal and the way this man says “hoo hoo hoo” will haunt me for the rest of time

- oh shit the fact that it’s called amity has such insane implications for what it’s used for later. jesus.

- “bffs!” “No.” “…/yessss/” love them

- yeet the yang

- god ruby’s admiration of emerald is so sad in retrospect like… oh boy ruby you’re in for it

- PYRRHAAAAA I LOVE YOU DONT LEAVE ME

- “even if you know how a story ends, that doesn’t make it any less fun to watch” wow cinder are you psychic

- ummmm they’re having a talk can you please respect their privacy

- thor whomst??? i only know nora valkyrie

- BROODY MAN

- hiiiii gavin

- so much mid battle banter. in the middle of a big important fight they just have to make jokes and argue. i love teenagers

- SILENCE YOU BOOB

- awww winter you’re a disaster and you’re horribly emotionally repressed because of your bitch ass dad but jesus christ you care about your little sister and you wanna know she’s doing okay and i’m emotional about it

- PENNYYYYY my love just keep being you

- jeez i forgot how early on ironwood was talking his shit about being “someone who will act”, the “only person” who will do what needs to be done, as if his course of action is what needs to be done

- every single person who underestimates emerald and mercury gets so fucked up. like so many people look at these youngerish teenagers with some funny one liners and banter and go “oh they seem capable and they’re confident and funny so i like em but i can take em” and then absolutely get the shit kicked out of them. and i think that’s why they’ve been so successful, cause nobody takes them seriously enough to consider them a threat.

- see this is why i love rwby. coco just turned her handbag into a gatling gun and cut down a field of grass with it

- god the way they hint at emerald’s semblance before fully showing what it is. *chef’s kiss*

- winter marry me

- we love an uncle who absolutely destroys his nieces at video games

- “they do and they’re called silver!” ruby i love you

- top heavy. heheh

- this dude’s weapon is a trumpet!! she’s got glowing nunchucks!! i love this show!!

- this battle music is AMAZING what the FUCK they’re fighting to JAZZ

- cinder if you keep having vague ominous dialogue people are gonna get the wrong idea

- oh yeah great idea asking a child to take on immense power which sends her into a stressed out panicky spiral and alienates her from the people she finally feels legitimately connected to and for once didn’t feel alienated from

- oh fuck. oh fuck the finals. oh god. oh no.

- she’s so happy. she’s so ready to have a good fight. i’m gonna cry

- FUCK

- and with one moment, the entire show flipped on its head

- god when i watched that the first time i fuckin freaked. i was not prepared man. i was warned. but i was not prepared for this much of a fucking tone change man. that quickly. like tone changes (in my experience) normally happen gradually, but this one happened in, what? 30 seconds?

- fuck

- god this is so bad

- and it GETS WORSE i can’t do this

- love that we can see yang’s distraught eyebrows through her bangs

- after this episode was the first time my friend asked me “how we doing buddy?” and i’ve only wanted to kill her more since then

- oh god emerald’s backstory. this poor child. she was so alone and cinder was there and said i can give you a place i can give you a purpose i can give you security and emerald latched on so hard.

- hiiiii laura bailey i wish you had more than a lil baby line and some sounds of effort

- god that little anklet

- god what a fuckin backstory episode man. backstory? evil plan explanation? idk but it was good

- great parent move. telling your kid you’ll only save them once.

- jaune you sweet good boy. what a good boy. i love him

- god this poor child. she doesn’t deserve this. FUCK i’m so sad. is that the last conversation they have?

- oooooh shit this song is so good. what the fuck i have chills it’s so fitting

- god everyone else is so happy and excited and then there’s ruby who is one of the very few people who knows how bad a fight between penny and pyrrha could be and pyrrha who’s got to decide if she wants someone else’s aura smushed with hers, which could turn her into a different person. FUCK

- peeeennyyyyy “salutations!! it’s an honor to meet you!” it huuuurts

- it makes me so sad but damn was this a good diabolical plan

- god im so sad. penny is so good. and pyrrha’s fuckin eyes. and ruby just collapsing. jesus christ. it’s all fuckin falling apart

- oh fuck here we go. those klaxons are so terrifying

- it makes me so happy that torchwick gets rescued and then like maybe a couple episodes later just gets swallowed

- the fuckin adam fight is coming up too. jesus. really piling on here

- RUBY IS USING ONE OF PENNY’S SWORDS IM GONNA CRYYY

- and she doesn’t even hesitate to save pyrrha

- the one and only time (to my memory) that ironwood is gentle is when he says no one would blame the students if they left. that might be the last time he actually remembers that they’re all teenagers and feels sympathy for these children with all this pressure on them

- oh yeah the big boy

- the first time i watched this i was LOSING MY MIND this whole time. like yang attacked mercury and from then on man. just freaking out.

- eurgh grimm juice

- c’mon blake you got this. i mean. technically you don’t. the fight goes poorly. but you fuckin try and you’re so brave about it and i love youuu

- shut the FUCK up adam you GROOMED her you ASSHOLE

- aahhhh i love velvet!!! her semblance and her whole fighting style is so goddamn cool and has such interesting implications for using weapons and powers of people who are dead

- OH SHIT SHE DOES SUMMON HERE DOESNT SHE. partly but still

- get fucked, torchwick. GET FUCKED. get fuckin chomped

- a backhanded slap feels so much more violent than any fighting with weapons

- uh oh evil katniss

- god. the fucking blood splatter turning the whole shot red. just their silhouettes. the slow motion. the arm slowly separating.

- my friend was also a big fan of “how we feeling?”

- bad. the answer is bad you fuckin sadist

- oz is… a lot of things, and one of them is a goddamn good fighter

- oh god oh noooo she’s gonna kiss & yeet AWWWW FUCK this is heartbreaking

- pyrrha i love you

- if i don’t look it’s not real

- oh pyrrha my love

- awww hey tai. what a good dad. love tai

- i’m so sad. everyone’s so sad. and then salem just has to do an ominous lil monologue where she lays out her whole plan to divide them and makes a fuckin semblance pun. she’s such a good villain

- jacque you stiff bitch

- they’re all fuckin scattered and depressed

- love team rnjr tho

- there she is. god what an ending

[immortal-green-snom]

Whom do you ship Oz with??? I know you see Qrow and Oz as friends but besides Qrow, who do you ship Oz with?

I ship things mainly for the dynamics of the couple, and often times don’t pay much attention to what’s happened in Canon. I rarely ever Vibe with canon. So yeye!! It’s all more to do with personality here!!

(Keep in mind, these are ships where Ozpin is SEPERATE from Oscar. No merge stuff. No Oscar here. Just imagine Oz is still alive or somethin. He’s still his OWN SEPERATE PERSON with his OWN BODY for these ships. Because just..... nopenopenope--)

Ozpin X Gynda and Ozpin X Oobleck or my big ones. I love them. nothing else on this list tops them. I’ve said why i like them both before, so imma delve into how i feel about the other ships

You know my stance on Ozpin and Qrow, so there ya go!! I WANNA ship them, cause it’s one of the bigger Ozpin ships out there and has way more content than anything else, but at the same time I just mehhhhh at it. I WISH I liked it. REALLY I do. but for some reason my brain can’t see them together in that way. They’ve definitely got more of a close brotherly bond to me in my weird brain-hole

Ozpin X Ironwood. Ironclock seems interesting!! There are aspects of it I like, but I got bored with it quickly. They don’t have too much to bounce off of each other with. Ironwood’s SO serious and I think that seriousness would make Ozpin all serious and it’d just be SERIOUS all the time. bleeeeeeeegh serious asdasidnassldnaslidnnsalidn

Ozpin x Roman was just brought to my attention and OOOOOHH. I kinda like it. definitely kinda shipping this. The dynamic of crime boss x headmaster? stellar. both two fancy dudes with their fancy canes and their bad bitch right-hand ladies. yeah, I bet Oz and Roman would have fun together.

Ozpin X Neo. I’ve had some say they think Neo is wayyyy younger than Oz, but I’ve personally always seen them as bein around the same age? idk. Anyway, bet Ozpin knows sign language. Also, Ozpin TALLLLL. and Neo SMALLLL...... LOVE height different ships. Potential to be cute.

When we see him in the show, I will likely ship Ozpin X Theodore, tho leaning a bit more towards bromance side of things, based the patchwork knowledge I have heard about Theo. Bromance good. Love bromance. So i guess that ship would be more platonic for me.

had a TERRBLE ship idea of Ozpin X Hazel once, IF SIMPLY FOR THAT JUICY JUICY DRAMA. IT’S JUST FOR THE DRAMA AND BECAUSE BIG MUSCLE MAN + SMALLER SCHOLARLY MAN KINDA CUTE--I’M SO SORRY (also this was before Hazel beat the shit outta Oscar in canon, so now u can imagine imma lil less inclined to ship this, even if Hazel WAS technically redeemed. But of course--Canon? Who TF is She??? So... hmm). Ignoring Canon, they’d have a quiet kind of relationship. They don’t make much sense to anyone else. Their conversations are mostly in facial expressions. Ozpin chuckling into his mug, and Hazel grunting in response to most things. Hazel would be protective of Oz. Kinda always standing nearby like a big ol bodyguard in case his BF needs him. I KNOW this probably doesn’t make a LICK of sense to anyone else, again, im so so sorry. My ship brain is just weird

Ozpin x Salem but ONLY if Ozpin is evil too so they can be an evil couple (I have a soft spot for two evil bitches being soft and in love. none of the abuse shit of course, of course. tho I’d more prefer an Evil Ozma X Salem for this idea. Like, a version where things didn’t go to shit, i guess. I just love Evil People being in a Healthy Relationship, what can I say?)

Ozpin X Tai: Potential to be cute. Haven’t thought much about this one. But i can kinda-sorta see it. I’ve always liked the idea of Ozpin being like a cute uncle to Ruby and Yang anyway, so just let him marry Tai and give them another dad lolol (could u IMAGINE how shocked and pissed Raven would be tho?? HAHAHHAHAHAHAHA)

Ozpin X Summer: nah

Ozpin X Raven: Things to explore here, most DEFINITLY. but also nah for me. Feels more like a Worse Cloqwork, which i already kinda don’t ship. so yeye. nah.

Ozpin X Willow came to me at complete random once. Now THAT’S interesting to think about, too, tbh. Willow divorcing Jaques ass--or well, technically he’s dead now in canon--and getting someone who will actually treat her right. Ozpin would be SUCH a gentleman tbh

Anyway. That’s all i got for now. Are some of these ship ideas weird AF? yes. totally. 100%. But when Ship Brain says Ship, I often times can’t stop it lolol

[luckyqueenreign]

No Other Love - Chapter 3: Mad Woman

The islanders head for a night out at 'the movies' where secrets are revealed.

🎵 Song 🎵: Mad Woman

Every time you call me crazy I get more crazy What about that? And when you say I seem angry I get more angry

Thank you to my angel bb @katsie who spoils me with her editing skills and who I love so much and don't deserve. She also added like a full page to this so this was basically cowritten by Kat.

Tag list: @katsie @future-mrs-suresh @litg-burnbook @0shewrites0 @bradybunch111 @whati390 @hi-im-karla @fujihime-litg @kunepie @differenttyphoonwerewolf @earlyevenings @pho3nixx67 @sienna2world @kikithegr8 @theesocialintrovert @iamgaryrennells @kiwi-tai @sortedchaos @pus-things @abecerra611 (let me know if you want to be added on to tag list)

Read on AO3

Gemma was suffocating under the pressure of it all and she couldn’t breathe. She awoke to find herself tangled under Nicolas’ heavy limbs, his leg splayed on top of hers and his arm draped heavily over her chest, preventing her from taking anything but small shallow breaths. She tried twisting her body underneath him but it only made him stir and move closer to her, holding her tighter than before. 

This is impossible. I need to wake him up or I’ll suffocate to death. 

“Nic,” she whispered. 

“Mmm…” he groaned. 

“Nic, I can’t breathe,” she gasped. 

He opened his eyes slowly and smiled, gently lifting his leg and arm off of her. 

“I’m sorry about that, beautiful.” 

She suppressed an annoyed groan. Why did he have to keep calling her that? Suresh had always called her that. It was his thing, and Nic doing it made her uncomfortable.

“It’s okay. I just wanted an earlier start to the day,” she said, stretching as she got up. “But you sleep in.” She noticed Suresh wasn’t in bed and she couldn’t stop herself from wondering where he’d gone. She immediately pushed the thought from her mind. 

He’s with Lulu now, she reminded herself and quickly headed for the dressing room to clear her head.

She could hear the other islanders finally getting up as she finished getting ready, and listened as some of them called dibs on the showers, others headed out to the gym, while the sensible ones announced they were getting breakfast. Her heart skipped a little when her phone pinged, and she listened to see if anyone had heard. Then she was filled with a sense of dread as she realized the text she received was specifically for her, it was production asking her to head to the beach hut for an interview. Oh god, this isn’t going to be fun, she thought as she reached for the door knob. Before she had a chance to even reach it, it flew open and she stumbled back. A pair of hands grabbed her arms, keeping her from falling. She stared up at Suresh with wide eyes, and he smiled down at her.

“You ok, G?” It was like an unspoken electric charge passed between them, drawing them closer to one another. 

“Yeah, sorry about that,” she said, straightening herself out and taking a small step back, out of his grip. 

“Don’t apologize.” His hand twitched at his side as he dropped it. He wanted to touch her face but didn’t know if it would be a good idea or not. As if his hand made up his mind for him, his palm reached for her cheek, taking a strand of hair that had escaped her messy bun and tucked it behind her ear. Gemma took a shaky breath, frozen to the ground, unsure of what to do or say. Words were lost to her at this moment, stuck in the lump in her throat. She smiled up at him and right as she was going to say something they heard someone walking down the hall, towards them. His hand left her cheek, leaving it cold in his absence. 

They both turned to see Nicolas walking towards them. Suresh sighed, clearly annoyed to see him. 

“I’ll catch you later, Gem,” he said as he walked away, stealing one final glance at her. 

Nicolas walked up to her smiling, holding out his phone. “Hey Gem, did you get a text to come to the beach hut, too? Nicolas asked with a big grin. “I think we’re doing a couples interview.”

“Yeah…I did,” she said. “Let’s head inside.” As he closed the door behind them, Gemma briefly touched her cheek. 

Following their uneventful beach hut interview that took up most of the morning, Gemma found herself on the daybeds with Nicolas’ head in her lap as he told her different stories that she’d inadvertently stopped paying attention to. She added in the occasional  “umms” and “ahhs”, laughed when it seemed he was getting ready for a punchline, but she was too distracted to focus. She was absentmindedly playing with his hair when she saw Suresh pulling Lulu for a chat on the bean bags. Until then she hadn’t noticed that they were the only two not spending the day together. Suresh looked awkward, like he was having a hard time saying what he needed to say. Lulu sipped on her water bottle and nodded sadly. She said something with a crease in her brow, but Gemma couldn’t hear any of their conversation from where she sat, and it wasn’t like she could read their lips either. 

Are they breaking up? she wondered as she continued to weave her fingers through Nicolas’s hair. This looks like a breakup chat. 

At that moment, Suresh got up and hugged Lulu. 

That was definitely a break up chat. 

Suresh glanced around and Gemma’s chest tightened when they locked eyes. He took a deep breath before making his way over. Her hands started to sweat. 

He’s coming to talk to me. He’s coming to talk to me. He’s actually coming to talk to me. 

Her heart was hammering against her ribs and she was certain they were being bruised. She couldn’t breathe, her hands stilling in Nic’s hair. He didn’t notice.

She couldn’t help notice that Suresh looked anxious. Why was he anxious?

You’ve got this, Gemma, she told herself as she tried to calm her own nerves. 

*TEXT PING* 

Alfie and Meera were in the kitchen when he shouted, “Hey! I’ve got a text!” 

Suresh sighed, but changed course and walked over to the kitchen with the other islanders coming up behind him. 

Alfie made a show of clearing his throat before he read out the text as dramatically as he could, “Islanders, it’s time to get glammed up and hit the red carpet as you attend Mad Movies the premiere! #SpillThePopcorn #ITV2andChill.” 

“Mad Movies? So the movies are about us?” Nicolas asked. 

“It seems to be that way,” Alfie said, then continued reading the instructions. “This will be a boys vs girls challenge. Each team will sit on opposite sides answering questions. Whoever gets the question right, or closest to the correct answer, will get to choose which movie they want to watch.” 

“Oh…” Nicolas suddenly looked nervous. 

“You look a little green there, Nic. You have any secrets you don’t want shared?” Kat teased. 

“What? No!” Nic answered, his voice a note too high. “I’m totally fine.” He smiled at Gemma, but she could sense something was wrong. He was hiding something.

“Should we go get glammed up then girls?” Lulu asked. 

“Yes, let’s go!” Gabi trilled. 

After finishing up their looks, the girls made their way outside and gawked at the yard, which had been completely transformed in a matter of hours. In the middle of the lawn were two long tables lined up with popcorn, snacks and drinks. A row of chairs were lined up one side, facing a large theater-sized screen that read ‘WELCOME TO MAD MOVIES’.  

“Oh my god girls! Look, that table is for us, I cannot wait to see what hot goss we’re going to uncover!” Kat laughed. 

“Be careful what you wish for, Kat. You and Finn both have movies up there,” Dana cautioned. 

Kat leered at her, flipped her hair and proceeded to ignore her. “Obviously Finn’s been a good boy but if we girls win the first point, that’s definitely the movie we’re watching first. No ifs, ands or buts about it.” 

Gabi rolled her eyes and said, “I’m glad we’re all being team players here.” 

*TEXT PING* 

Gemma looked down at her phone and read out the first trivia question, “On average, roughly how many acts of sexual intercourse happen around the world every day?” 

She could hear the boys murmuring but focused on what the girls were saying. 

“OK, there’s eight billion people in the world,” Lulu whispered. We have to factor in babies, kids and super old people. None of them are having sex.”  

“And the text says everyday, too,” Gemma added. “The number can’t be that high.” 

She could hear Nicolas suggest two billion and the boys agreeing. 

“So what are we thinking, like 80 million?” Dana asked. 

“Yes! Let’s go with that,” Gabi whispered. 

Gemma wrote in their answer and a few seconds later they received a text alerting them the girls won. 

“Yes! Girls win, the answer is 100 million and we get to choose the first movie,” Gemma said excitedly. 

The screen suddenly updated and listed the ‘coming attractions’. 

The Sure-shank Redemption 

The Disaster Artist 

Good Finn Hunting

The Fast & The Furious 

“Girls, we obviously want to start with Good Finn Hunting, right?” Kat asked annoyingly. 

“Ugh just let her have it,” Meera said. “If we don’t give her the movie now, she’ll be whining about it all night.” 

The girls looked at Meera surprised and a few chuckled. 

“Personally I want to see The Sure-shank Redemption,” Gabi said and pointedly looked at Gemma. “See what kind of mess Suresh has been getting into behind our backs.” 

“We don’t have time for this…We pick ‘Good Finn Hunting’,” Gemma conceded. 

The screen came to life with Finn and a busty brunette chatting in bed at Casa Amor. She was wearing skimpy lingerie and eyed him seductively. 

“Do you know who you’re sharing a bed with tonight?” she asked. 

He smirked at her and played with her hair. 

“Well I couldn’t possibly kick you out of my bed when you look this good in it,” Finn teased. 

She inched closer to him wrapping herself around him and the clip cut to another scene. 

Finn and Eddie were whispering in what still looked to be Casa Amor. 

“So where’s your head at?” Eddie looked at Finn with a worried look on his face. 

Finn ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “Mate, I don’t know. Don’t get me wrong, Kat’s a great girl and all, but her kissing Alfie? That changed everything for me. She’s so immature, how can I possibly trust her? And then there’s Millie and Gemma, who I think are way more my type.” 

“Would you ever recouple with either of them?” 

“Honestly…Yes. Millie might be a little high maintenance for me and bringing her back from Casa Amor might prove challenging, but Gemma? She’s special. There’s something about her that I just can’t put my finger on. She’s stunning, obviously, but it’s more than that, isn’t it?”  

Kat looked at Gemma and Finn with fire in her eyes. 

“So I’m not your type then, Finn? You want Gemma now?” She said Gemma’s name as if it were sour and having it in her mouth disgusted her. “And who the fuck is Millie? Was it that bitch you spent the night with, while I slept alone every night?” 

“Kat, I was just mad about the kiss before Casa,” Finn said as he shifted awkwardly. “It  didn’t mean anything.” He stole a glance at Gemma, then quickly looked down at the beer in front of him. 

“I won’t sit around and be made a mug of, Finn,” she hissed, crossing her arms over her chest. “You better come and speak to me immediately after this is done.” 

*TEXT PING* 

“Come on guys, it’s all good, let’s move on to the next one,” Alfie said, trying to break the tension. “Let me read the next question.” He took a deep breath. “What precentage of people use their smartphones during sex?” 

“Ok girls, we need to get this one. The last movie was savage and now I'm scared to see what footage they have on us,” Gabi said. 

“It’s got to be high, people film it or watch porn on their smartphones,” Dana said. 

“Ok, so what are we thinking, like 50%?” Meera asked. 

There was a mixture of ‘yeahs’, so Meera sent in their response. 

*TEXT PING* 

“Answer is 20%. Boys win!” Alfie cheered. 

Once more the screen came to life with a curtain closing on the boys’ coming attractions, now listing the girls’. 

There’s Something about Meera 

The Ex Files 

The Truth About Kats & Dogs

She’s Just Not That Into You 

LuLu Land 

The Wedding Planner  

“Finn, you want to see Kat’s?” Alfie offered. 

“Actually, yes,” Finn said. “If you boys don’t mind.”

“I’d much rather watch The Ex Files,” Suresh said, eyeing Gemma. 

“Let’s do that one on the next go,” Nicolas said. “I’m curious about that one, too.” 

“Alright,” Alfie said, rubbing his hands together excitedly. “Let’s see The Truth About Kats & Dogs.” 

The screen faded to black, then an image of Kat lit up. She sashayed into the living room to find Suresh deep in thought. She sidled up close to him on the couch, placing her hands on his shoulders and started gently massaging him. 

“Suresh, it kills me to see you so upset,” she cooed. “Are you spooked by Gemma’s secret, that she was going to propose to you?” 

He shrugged her off his shoulders and moved slightly over, creating more space between them on the couch. 

“Kat…please. I’d like to be left alone right now, if you don’t mind.” 

But Kat wasn’t taking no for an answer. She gently cupped his face and forced him to look at her. 

“Babe, you said it yourself, you’d both be better off if you moved on. So why don’t you let me help you. I can take your mind off of Gemma,” she giggled and leaned just a little bit closer. “Help you see what else is out there. You might like it.” She attempted to close the distance entirely, but Suresh stood up so fast Kat nearly face-planted into the pillows.

Suresh headed to the bathroom, locking the door behind him. 

The clip cut to a different scene with Alfie and Kat on the roof terrace. 

“Babe, I know what I saw,” Kat said, her lips formed into a slight pout. “Gemma and Suresh were inhaling each other. I honestly think if I hadn’t interrupted them, they would’ve had sex right then and there in the middle of the day, on your shared bed.” 

Alfie looked at her, confused. “That can’t be. Gemma and I…we were finally in a really good spot. And Suresh is with Arlo. How could they do this to me?” 

Alfie looked as if he might cry. With one finger Kat gently stroked his cheek, landing on his chin. She lifted his head and forced him to look at her. 

“You deserve the world, Alf.” 

She looked at him with a hungry desire, then kissed him hard. At first it was clumsy and sloppy as she caught him off guard, but soon he joined in. Their tongues greeting each other for the first time in weeks. Alfie didn’t care that this was wrong, that he was cheating. All he cared about was that someone in this moment wanted him. The clip ended when Gemma opened the terrace door and caught them. 

“So it was you!” Finn shouted. “This whole time you had me thinking it was Alfie who initiated the kiss but it was you the whole time.” 

“Are we disregarding that she also tried to hook up with Suresh?” Dana asked. 

“Especially after I told her that it would make me uncomfortable,” Gemma added, looking at Kat angrily. 

“You’ve got a lot of nerve, Finn! I only kissed Alfie after you kissed Arlo. And Gemma, I told you I was going to put him to a test and he passed, you should be thrilled.” 

“I didn’t ask you to put Suresh through a test, Kat,” Gemma hissed, tensing up in her seat. “You decided that all on your own.” 

“This is exactly the shit I’m talking about. We were coupled up when you inserted yourself in both scenarios.” Finn took a large swig of his beer. 

*TEXT PING* 

“Looks like you and Kat will need to sidebar on this convo later, we have a new question,” Suresh said. 

“On average, how often do men think about sex?” 

He glanced up at Gemma and smirked. She tried so hard not to respond, but the corners of her mouth deceived her as they curled up into a smile. She looked away and focused on the task at hand. 

“I feel like there’s not a number big enough,” Gemma laughed. 

“Yeah, it’s gotta be high,” Meera said. 

“Every fifteen minutes,” Dana suggested. The girls all laughed in unison, including Kat who seemed to be getting slightly more comfortable after her and Finn’s outburst. 

“Let’s say, 18 times a day. That’s at least once every waking hour,” Lulu whispered. 

*TEXT PING* 

“Every seven seconds, boys win!” Suresh said, squaring his shoulders as his eyes locked on Gemma. “And we already know which movie we’re watching. Let’s play ‘The Ex Files’.”

The screen showed Gemma holding the Casa Amor postcard in her hands, staring at it longingly. She hadn’t let go of it since they received it nearly three hours ago.

“Babe, you’re going to burn a hole through that picture,” Dana chuckled.

“He’s sleeping alone on the daybed,” Gemma said for the umpteenth time, looking at Dana with excitement. “Maybe he really meant what he said, about wanting us to try again.”

Dana nodded slowly, eyeing her friend warily. She wanted Gemma to be happy, of course, but this wasn’t a cut-and-dry situation. 

“Okay,” she said cautiously. “So, best case scenario is he comes back single. Do you think you’ll be ready to take him back?” 

Gemma looked back down at the postcard, a warmth spreading from her chest and throughout her entire body. Suresh was sleeping peacefully on his back, his chiseled body only partially covered by the duvet. One of his arms was bent behind his head, one leg poking out from the covers, nearly hanging off the side. She imagined herself back in those arms, lying next to his warm body again. 

Gemma opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She closed it and tried again. “If he comes back single…” She made a noise, like a groan and a sigh wrapped into one. Saying it out loud would make it real. She wouldn’t be able to pretend anymore. She wouldn’t be able to lie, to say she was fine when she really wasn’t, because someone else would know.

“Yes,” she managed to croak out, staring at the postcard. She couldn’t look at Dana as she spoke, opening her heart knowing she could potentially get hurt again and she wouldn’t be able to fake her way out of it. “Yes. If he comes back single, and still wants to make it work like he said, then I’m ready to give him a chance again.”

“Are you sure, Gem?” Dana pressed, placing her hand on Gemma’s knee. “Could you fully trust him again, truly?”

Gemma finally looked up at her, holding her gaze. “I already do,” she admitted. “I hate to admit it, but I do trust him again. He’s shown a different side lately, I really think he’s changed. And besides–” She nearly choked on the lump in her throat and took a deep breath. Her hands were shaking and she gripped the postcard tighter, memories flooding her mind. “I can’t not try, you know? It’s Suresh.”

The screen faded to black and the silence was deafening. Suresh looked over at Gemma, and for the second time today, the electric charge between them once again ignited a fire. 

“Gem–” 

“Not now, Suresh. Not  here.” Her eyes pleaded with him to let it go for now. She avoided Nicolas’ glare as she took a big gulp of her wine and continued looking straight ahead. She couldn’t talk about her feelings for him here, not in front of everyone. She’d take him aside after the challenge and speak to him privately. She couldn’t avoid it now. 

“Well at least they’re not all bad,” Dana muttered under her breath. 

Suresh kept glancing at Gemma, hoping she would look at him, but she continued to stare at the screen. He ran his large fingers through his hair as the next text came through. 

“Let’s get on with it then, I’ve got the next question,” Lulu said. “To the nearest hour, how long did the longest kiss without a break reportedly last for?”

“I’ve read this! It was fifty nine hours,” Meera said. 

“Without a break? There’s no way! How did they eat and sleep?” Kat chimed in. 

“No, trust me! I literally read this article before I got here,” Meera said. 

“Okay. Send it, Gabi,” Gemma said. 

*TEXT PING* 

“Girls win! The answer was fifty nine hours!” Gabi cheered. “Good on you Meera!” 

“Which one do you girls want? Gemma, should we go for ‘The Sure-shank Redemption’?” Dana asked. 

“I’d like to see that one,” Gabi chimed in. 

“I really want to see Alfie’s movie but I can’t tell which one he is,” Meera whined. 

“Then we can figure that out on our next win,” Gabi said. “We’re going with ‘The Sure-shank Redemption’.” 

Suresh came to life on the screen, slumped over a fruit bowl in the Casa Amor kitchen. He was rearranging them until he found the orange he was looking for. 

“Why the long face?” Eddie asked. 

Suresh sighed and looked around to see if anyone else was within earshot of them. When he deemed the coast clear he whispered, “I’ve just been having a really hard time here. I know you boys all said I should forget about Gemma, that she didn’t give me a response before I left and that that in and of itself is a response, but mate I miss her so much.” 

“What about Lulu? You’ve been chirpsing away all day with her.” 

“Lulu is great. She’s nice and all, but there is absolutely no spark. And the only person on my mind is Gemma.” He sighed, picking at the sticker on the orange. “I actually hate that I have to pretend to graft, right now.” 

“Why are you pretending to graft? Why don’t you just go back single and tell Gemma how you feel?” 

“Because what if it’s a scenario where one of us will get dumped if the other twists. I’m coupled with Arlo right now and I have no faith that she won’t twist. She knows Gemma and I kissed before Casa, so she’s gotta be fuming.” 

“Fair point.” 

“I just wish I didn’t have to hurt Lulu or string her along in the process.” 

He doesn’t want Lulu. Gemma stared at the now-black screen with renewed confusion. He’s only ever wanted me. 

“Well, at least now it makes sense why you dumped me this afternoon,” Lulu stated. 

“Lulu…” Suresh said nervously. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” 

Gemma finally dared to look over at Suresh, and without saying anything they both instantly understood each other. There was still an undeniable spark between them and apparently neither one of them were ready to let it go. 

*TEXT PING* 

“Alright girls, here we go,” Meera said, breaking the silence. “What percentage of women fantasize about other men during sex with their partners?” 

A chorus of ‘I’ve done it’s’ started as most of the  girls admitted to having done it.

“So what are we thinking, then? I think about 45%. Is everyone happy with that?” Dana asked. 

“Yes! And I get my Alfie movie if we’re right, right?” Meera asked. 

“Yes, babe. You’ll just have to decide between the last two because it was unclear which one was his or Nic’s,” Gemma said. 

 *TEXT PING* 

“Girls win! The answer was 46%!” Meera beamed. “Dana, you smashed it!” She  looked at the screen, trying to decipher the title to figure out which of the remaining two movies belonged to Alfie. 

“It can’t be The Fast & The Furious because that’s probably a sex thing and that is definitely not Alfie.” She  winked at him. “We’re going to go with The Disaster Artist.” 

The screen showed Nicolas pacing back and forth on the rooftop while Pete and Johnny sat on the bench, watching him. 

“What’s the game plan boys?” Nicolas asked excitedly. 

“Game plan?” Johnny looked at Pete with a confused look. 

“Yeah, what are you on about, Nic?” Pete asked. 

“Come on! You can’t tell me that you two came in here with no game plan? We’ve had the opportunity to watch these girls for weeks and you guys are just squandering it away?” 

“I just don’t look at this as a game,” Pete said. “I like Arlo and I have a connection with her, so I’m going to explore that.” 

“Same for me,” said Johnny. “I like Dana and Gemma. But I don’t know either of them well enough to say who I have a better connection with.” 

“First off, you’re wasting your time on Dana. She’s been on Gabi’s ass since she turned up in the villa, which is weird if you ask me since Gemma is supposed to be her ‘bestie’,” he sneered. “I’d say focus on Kat, just play up that Finn is definitely cheating on her.” 

“Why Kat? She’s not really my type,” Johnny said. 

“You can’t have Gemma, she’s mine. I’ve had my sights set on her since she walked in the villa.” 

“So you like Gemma then?” Johnny asked. 

“What does it matter if I like her or not?” Nicolas laughed before continuing. “We just need someone desperate and lonely enough to convince that they should bring us back. I’ve been studying Suresh, I know his mannerisms. I’m just gonna copy the bloke and have her eating out of my hand.” 

“I don’t like this plan, mate. Gemma’s a great girl, she doesn’t deserve this,” Johnny tried. 

“I look at it as me doing her a favor. She’s damaged goods right now. First Suresh pies her off for Arlo, then Alfie kisses Kat. Who's going to come in now and want to deal with that? And besides, now she doesn’t have to go back to her shitty, cheating ex and she can be with a real man for once.” 

Gemma felt her skin burning, her jaw hurt from clenching her teeth so hard. She turned and looked at Nicolas with venom in her eyes and wished she could strike him with a blow so hard that it would send him straight back to Coventry. 

“Desperate and lonely?” she snarled. “Damaged goods?”

“Gemma…” Nicolas held up his hands palm-up, fighting to keep his voice as calm as possible. “This  is completely out of context, it’s bad editing. I didn’t say half of those things in that way, you have to believe me.” 

“FUCK. YOU. Nicolas. And if it wasn’t clear we’re fucking done. Don’t you dare try to come and talk to me after this.” 

“Gem-” 

“She said she’s fucking done mate,” Suresh barked, nearly getting up from his chair. “Get it through your thick head before I help you understand.” 

“This isn’t about you!” Nicolas snapped back. 

Suresh stood up from his chair abruptly, nearly knocking over the table, and glared at Nicolas. Alfie stood up quickly to block him. 

“It’s calm, it’s calm,” he said with both hands on Suresh’s shoulders, trying to get him to focus on him and sit back down. Gemma acted more on instinct than sense as she hurried over to the boys, pushing herself in between the two men. Her hands replaced Alfie’s on Suresh’s heaving chest. His nostrils were flared, his body rigid.

“Resh, look at me,” she said. His eyes flickered down to her, then returned to Nicolas who was standing behind Alfie, practically hiding. 

“He’s not worth it. Sit down, please,” she begged, and he looked back down at her. His eyes searched her face, brows creasing as he did. She pushed his chest softly, so he took a deep breath and nodded.

“Fine,” he said, ticking his jaw. “For you.”

He gave Nicolas another glare, but did as Gemma asked and sat down. As he watched her make her way back to the girls’ table, his hand twitched. He wanted so badly to just reach out and pull her back, to kiss her and hold her, to just have her back in his arms. 

 *TEXT PING* 

“Let’s just move on, it looks like this is our last one,” Dana said, then proceeded to read the text. “How long does the average female orgasm last?” 

“This will be embarrassing if we don’t get this one, girls,” Lulu said. 

“I don’t know, like ten seconds?” Meera said. 

“I don’t actually sit there and time my orgasms out,” Kat snorted. 

“It’s gotta be more than ten seconds, I think maybe fifteen,” Gabi suggested. 

“Okay, we’ll  go with fifteen.” Dana typed out and sent in their answer. 

 *TEXT PING* 

“Boys win!” Finn whooped. “The answer was twenty seconds.” He gave the girls a suggestive wink, then looked up at the titles on the screen. “I think we’re just going to pick this one at random and go with ‘The Wedding Planner’.” 

Meera eyed Alfie suspiciously. “Alf, you didn’t want to watch ‘There’s Something About Meera’?” 

“Have you seen these movies?” Alfie asked, shaking his head. “No, I’ll stay away from the drama, thank you very much.” 

Meera huffed as she crossed her arms and turned to watch the screen come to life with the next movie. 

Gabi sat on the roof terrace, hugging her knees and stifling her tears, when Nicolas walked in. 

“Gab, babe. Why are you so upset? Was it your chat with Gemma?” 

She looked up at him with tears streaming down her face and nodded. 

“But it’s not just my chat with her.  Everyone here looks at me like I’m some homewrecking slut. And I’m not! What I had with Suresh was real.” 

“I’m sure it was babe,” he said soothingly as he sat down next to her. “After all, he left her for you, right?” 

“Exactly!” Gabi exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air. “I didn’t even know about Gemma when we were together. He never mentioned her until the tailend of our relationship. And even then he never told me he cheated with me.” 

“It’s not right that he put you through that,” Nic said, placing a hand on her back, rubbing it softly. 

“No, it’s not! And we might not have been together as long as he and Gemma were, but I know he was absolutely crazy about me. He only had eyes for me the whole time we were together and I am tired of being made out to be some dirty little secret,” she scoffed. “What he and I had, you can’t fake that. If Suresh were here right now with the two of us in his face, I know he’d pick me over her and that’s what makes me so mad! Because if anything, she  was the other woman!” 

Nicolas hugged her close, stroking her hair as she continued. 

“She needed to propose to him to get him to commit to her. But I know for a fact he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me.”  

“How do you know that for sure,” Nicolas asked, eyeing her skeptically.  

“Because I found a ring,” she said. “He was going to propose to me, not her. ME!” 

[gaylorlyrics]

Folklore Songs - what are they about??

This is a developing thread, but I’ve been listening all day so I’m taking a stab at it.

1."The 1"  

Common consensus is that this is about Dianna Agron and what they could have been. Telling lyrics are the general idea that the relationship wasn’t truly given a chance (”it would've been sweet, If it could've been me”) and “Roaring Twenties”, referring to the below circus themed party pics with Diana dressed like a flapper

tbh im not totally sold on this - most because it seems more recent with lyrics like, “In my defense, I have none for never leaving well enough alone” sounds like a reference to ME! and “Roaring twenties” sounds like a reference to something that happened this year (2020). Also “throwing pennies in the pool” could be a reference to throwing Penni (Karlie’s agent) in the pool. Finally, Route 1 is the road along California’s coast, where Tay & Karlie drove on their legendary road trip...this makes my lil Kaylor heart worry. 

2. Cardigan

This is the first installment in the Teenage Trio, which also includes August and Betty, and is told from the perspective of Betty. It’s about feeling so loved by someone but then being betrayed by them (”Chase two girls [Betty + August’s narrator] lose one”). The line ”And you'd be standin' in my front porch light” foreshadows to James professing love in “Betty”. Potentially Taylor is Betty - but I’m still thinking about that theory.

3."The Last Great American Dynasty"  

We <3 a Rhode Island throwback. Here Taylor tells the story of her house in Rhode Island that Rebekah “Betty” (??!?!??!! more on that later) Harkness used to live in. Rebekah married an heir to Standard Oil which made her one of the wealthiest women in the USA at the time. She was also known for making a scene (”She had a marvelous time ruining everything”). Additionally, she founded the Harkness Ballet (”And blew through the money on the boys and the ballet”). After Rebekah’s death Taylor purchased the house and it is now best known as the place of many epic 4th of July parties.

4. Exile

Such a sad song! This is a duet between Taylor and Bon Iver, telling the story of a failed relationship that they have tried to mend many many times. Interestingly, this is also about a love triangle (like the teenage trio) -  "I can see you starin' honey/Like he's just your understudy." This line specifically feels like it could be about bearding, and seeing someone else with the person you love, but feeling like - or knowing - it’s fake. “You were my town Now I'm in exile seein' you out” references and end to the relationship Taylor discussed in False God “Staring out the window like I'm not your favorite town I'm New York City”. To me this indicates that it is about Karlie and them breaking up or going through a rough patch - continually trying to fix things - and eventually being unsure that it could ever be repaired.

5."My Tears Ricochet"

This is pretty clearly about Scott & Scooter - “And if I'm dead to you, why are you at the wake? Cursing my name, wishing I stayed” and “You had to kill me, but it killed you just the same” seem to be a reference to them trying to exploit her work and how her leaving Big Machine really ruined the business - plus there’s some LWYMMD imagery. “You wear the same jewels that I gave you as you bury me” also seems to be a clear reference for trying to use Taylor’s own work against her, taking the profits, and pushing her out of the deal. As if we needed more evidence “You hear my stolen lullabies” clearly references her stolen masters.

6."Mirrorball"  

Big 80s prom vibes from this song. Mirrorball is about being famous and all of her work - her most personal thoughts and dreams - just becoming different ways for other people to see themselves once she releases her music into the world. Part of being an artist is knowing that your work will reflect more of who the viewer is than who you are yourself. Here she uses the metaphor of a disco ball to explore that idea, and worries that she is losing her own identity through it “I'm still trying everything to keep you looking at me”. She also alludes to her fears that she will age out of relevancy “I know they said the end is near”, something she discussed in her documentary Miss Americana. Obviously this is internalized misogyny because we love Taylor and will listen to her music always and do not subscribe to the belief that women need to be young to be relevant because if they were a man then they'd be the man, and tay’s the man <3 

7. “Seven”

Personally, this is one of my favorite songs on the album. It’s so sweet and pure and lovely. This is about young love, with imagery of summer, toys, and child’s dreams to runaway together. Many people have speculated that it is about the same girl that the two unreleased Taylor songs “Sweet Tea and Gods Graces” and “Me & Britney” are about. 

[Side note: initially I wondered if Me & Britney was about Britany Maack, Taylor’s long time friend who recently got married, but the names are spelled differently. Also the line in Seven “I can’t recall your face” indicates that this is about someone who Taylor is not currently in touch with.] 

Both M&B and STAAG seem to be about the Seven relationship because there are general parallels with outdoor scenery, childlike wonder, and ( in the case of STAGG) sweet tea. Also all three songs indicate a gay relationship: STAGG - “And you can love like a sinner and lose like a winner”, M&B - “That boy she went ran off with, well, I thought he was crazy. Maybe I was just jealous that he'd come between me and Britney”, and Seven - “You won't have to cry or hide in the closet And just like a folk song our love will be passed on”.

8. “August”

This is the second installment in the Teenage Trio, told from the perspective of the “other woman” who James meets while on summer vacation. The other woman (she doesn’t seem to have a name...unless it is August...which it could be? idk) is in love, but realizes that James isn’t in love with her - “Will you call when you're back at school? I remember thinkin' I had you”. The line “Remember when I pulled up and said "Get in the car" references the same incident which is retold in Betty, but this time with James telling Betty it was just a summer fling that didn’t mean anything.

9. This Is Me Trying

Here we have a break up song, about Taylor trying to win her lover back and feeling completely lost without them, unable to concentrate or be around people, and turning to self sabotage. It’s about the general loneliness that one feels when they’ve lost someone they truly love, and the miscommunication that can happen in a relationship when you’re not understanding each other or receiving love in the same way (hence the song’s title). I think this could be about Karlie, it seems clear that their relationship has not been smooth and that they have had many on-and-off times. It could also be serving a purpose of building the Joe break up narrative, but only time will tell for that.

10. “Illicit Affairs”

Taylor loves her secret love - this song reads like a sad version of “I Know Places”. It seems clear that this is about Karlie Kloss. “Tell your friends you're out for a run” is one of my favorite lines because Karlie started Klossy run club, where you commit to running a certain distance in a month - and she posts about it on instagram CONSTANTLY. But overall, the song details a relationship of a woman being with someone she doesn’t love (kushnerd) and sneaking around to meet up with the person she does love (tay!). The line “Tell yourself you can always stop” is so sad to me, the idea that Karlie got into this and keeps telling herself that it will only be a little longer and she can leave when she wants, but staying in her fake marriage anyway.

11. Invisible String

This is pretty much the only pure love song on the album - about feeling connected to someone throughout your whole life, knowing that that somebody is out there, and then finally finding them. Taylor talks about being in Centennial Park in Nashville as a teen, and then eventually showing her lover around. The song is really self referential, with lots of easter eggs for her past work, including Bad Blood and Delicate. She also references Joe Jonas with the line “Cold was the steel of my axe to grind For the boys who broke my heart Now I send their babies presents”.

Some people have pointed out that there is a similar idea presented in Jane Eyre - when the protagonist says to her love interest “I have a strange feeling with regard to you. As if I had a string somewhere under my left ribs, tightly knotted to a similar string in you."

12."Mad Woman"  

Another Scooter one - “It's obvious that wanting me dead has really brought you two together”. “The master of spin” is word play referencing the masters records scandal. “Watching you climb over people like me” points out that agents and labels are making money off the performers they find and pushing them around. There’s also a reference to Scooter’s wife Yael and how he cheats all the time, but she doesn’t do anything likely because of her own internalized misogyny - “has a couple side flings. Good wives always know. She should be mad, should be scathing like me”.

13. “Epiphany”

The first verse of this touching ballad is about Taylor’s grandfather in WW2, storming the beaches at Normandy - “Crawling up the beaches now "Sir, I think he's bleeding out"”. The second verse is about a nurse helping patients with Covid-19 - “Holds your hand through plastic now "Doc, I think she's crashing out"”. The bridge here talks about wishing there was some great epiphany, some magical solution for the suffering in the world. The chorus refers to experiencing trauma with others and staying loyal even in the hardest times, even if it means literally dying. Although this seems like a departure from the themes of rest of the album, the whole album examines loyalty and considering what you would do for the people you love - so I really don’t think it’s a departure at all.

14. “Betty”

Obviously this is the gayest song on the album and an early fan favorite. It is the final song in the teenage trio, told from the point of view of James, going to win Betty back after betraying her and sleeping with someone else (August!?) over the summer. The line "Will you kiss me on the porch in front of all your stupid friends?”, a line that is very clearly about wanting to kiss a woman, is especially striking (& gay!) when sung by Taylor. The clearest version of this plot is someone begging for forgiveness after betraying the person they love.

There is also a bit of a nod to a line in “Picture to Burn”, a break up song off Taylor’s first album. In PTB Taylor says “So go and tell your friends that I'm obsessive and crazy that's fine, I’ll tell mine you’re gay”. This lyric has since been changed in versions available online, but on the original album that's what it was. This is interesting because she’s calling attention to knowing that someone is gay and hasn’t told their friends...which you would definitely know if you had dated them.

The names “James” and “Inez” are both mentioned in the song, which are the names of Blake Lively and Ryan Reynold’s daughters. James was already featured on a Taylor Swift album, as the lil baby voice at the beginning of “Gorgeous”. Worth noting that “James” is traditional a male name, but that this character is named after a female.

ALSO I have this theory I’m working on that Taylor is Betty and this whole album is in the same world with the same people, but WILL POST MORE ON THIS LATER.

15."Peace"  

Ok - this is Archer 2.0 for me, about how she is worried about how no one will ever love her or stay with her because its too much work - “the rain is always gonna come if you're standin' with me” and “No, I could never give you peace” are pretty telling lines about her concerns that people will think it is not worth it to be friends with or in a relationship with her due to all of the baggage that comes with it. 

The opening lines - “Our coming-of-age has come and gone Suddenly this summer, it's clear” feed into my emerging theory that all of these songs exist in the same universe and are about the same three characters...but I’m still figuring that one out. The line “And you know that I'd swing with you for the fences Sit with you in the trenches” reference Seven and Epiphany, respectively - further supporting that all of these songs are in the same world.

16. “Hoax”

Out of all of the songs that make my little Kaylor heart ache - this is the most heartbreaking. Specifically the line “My eclipsed sun” refers to Karlie, who Taylor has called “sunshine” on multiple occasions, and her light being covered up by her contract with Kushnerd and Scooter. The line “Don't want no other shade of blue But you” makes it clear that this song is in reference to the muse for the album “Lover” - aka Karlie. 

However, this is a song about betrayal and completely trusting someone, only to find that they stabbed you in the back, as is clear by the line ”Your faithless love's the only hoax I believe in”.

Additionally, the line“You knew it still hurts underneath my scars” seems to again feed into the idea that all of the songs on the album involve the same characters. This one is a bit more clear, it seems that - if this theory is correct - Betty is the narrator of this song, as she referenced her scars before “Drew stars around my scars” in Cardigan.

OK- I'm going to go deep into song by song later, but I just wanted to get something out there!!! Also def interested in hearing what everyone else thinks!

EDIT: I just found some lyrics from The Lakes in an article from Billboard. I wanted to add them in even though we don’t have the full song because I felt like we really ended on a sad note with hoax and then when I saw these I was like there is hope!!

SO the lyric Billboard included in their review was “A red rose grew up out of ice frozen ground / With no one around to tweet it” which is a continuation from the line from “Hoax” - “ This has frozen my ground”. What I’m taking from this is that in the final song Taylor finds hope <3