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atalana · 5 years

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If Five was somehow given a way to assure his family's safety, do you think he'd have the potential to be a true villain? Like not necessarily evil but if he refuses to care about himself or others, would his lack of wanting anything reduce him to an antagonist? Or could he become a hero proper, or something else entirely? I'm curious about your thoughts on this!!

Hooo boy this is an interesting ask, thank you so much!

To first off answer your question, yes, absolutely, Five has the potential to be a villain. Under those specific circumstances, debatable, and there’s a few different factors that could go into it, so lets go into them properly

First off, how is he ensuring his family’s safety, and also does that affect the apocalypse? Because let’s take that one first, if his family survived into the apocalypse with him, Five would not be the Five we know. Honestly, as much as the apocalypse would suck, I think all of them would be better adjusted? It’s one thing to survive on your own, it’s a different thing altogether to survive as a team. They’d learn to work together, they’d get better at not following Hargreeves’ rules and life plan and all of that, it would be miserable sometimes, but they’d have each other, and a lot better mental everything.

If it means the apocalypse never happens, then Five travels into the future to meet his ~30 year old siblings. It would be weird, and he’d probably like to get back, but when he discovers he can’t it won’t be life shattering, because he’s still got his siblings, he’s just their younger brother now. Either way, Five has no reason to get involved with the Commission

But let’s say for the sake of argument that the apocalypse still happens, Five is still the Five in the show, it’s just that his siblings aren’t at risk and so we take that away as a factor.

Well, you’re right, he’s got a lot less of a drive to succeed now. But also, I think he still does want to stop the apocalypse? Because that’s what ruined his life, and Five’s not without morals, even if he frequently puts them aside, given the choice he’d still choose to save everyone, he definitely cares about people as a whole. Like, the closer it gets to the apocalypse in the show the more he starts using “everyone” instead of his family, he criticises the Handler for letting everyone die, he sides with Luther because “there are billions of lives at stake, we’re past trying to save just one”. Five, with no other factors changed, still wants to save the world.

So let’s talk about what would get him to leave everything behind.

Would he do it if his life was at risk? Interesting question. Because I don’t think Five necessarily cares about the world more than he cares about himself, it’s more, he stopped thinking about his own life as a factor ages ago. He’s been driven by this task for so long, he doesn’t know what he is without it. And as we’ve talked about, after everything he went through in the apocalypse, and with the Commission, he really sees himself a lot more as a tool to complete a task than a person with a life. He has absolutely no qualms about throwing himself at a problem to try and get it fixed. I think in a straight up “it’s you or the world” he’d probably choose to save the world? But that’s on pretty shaky ground.

For example, the Handler’s offer. He comes back to work for the Commission, if his family is safe and he gets to stop being thirteen again. In the show, both Five and the Handler went into that agreement knowing it was just a matter of who double crossed the other first. But if that was legit? Well, he still disapproves of the entire planet dying, but he’s killed a lot of people by himself, he’s very good at compartmentalising his feelings away in that respect. And he doesn’t like looking thirteen, he hates that people see him as a child, hates that the only clothes that fit him are the Umbrella Academy uniforms. It’s just that his own body dysmorphia ranks so low on his list of priorities compared to the literal apocalypse. Like, you can see it, he wants to take that offer so badly, it’s why the Handler keeps dangling it in front of his face with things like getting him new adult fitted outfits. The main problem is the Commission part. If that offer came from someone he trusted more than the Handler, I think he’d take it. He may not like what he was doing to the world in the process, but getting to look like himself and go live with his family far away from all of this, that’s a pretty tempting choice.

Is there a timeline where Five continues to work for the Commission? I think only if it was the only way to save his family, as in, they’d be actively in danger and continue to be if and only if he refused to work for the Commission. He may be good at Commission work, but he hates the place, hates what they stand for, sees them only as a means to an end. He’s only worked for them to use them, if he was going to continue working for them past the point they’re no longer useful to him, they would have to have something pretty strong to use against him, and after everything, I think his family’s lives are the only thing strong enough.

Now, villain, antagonist, those are interesting words to use here. Because here’s the thing - to many many people, Five is already a villain. Like, just on screen, people Five has knowingly and deliberately killed to further his own goals:

All of the mercenaries the Commission sent after him, who didn’t know what they were there for, just that they had to kill whoever the tracker led them to

At least one person in Dallas, 1963

37 people from the Hindenburg case, as a way to get the Handler off his back

At least one person fleeing the Commission

At least three Commission agents in the theatre

That’s nearly 50 people right there. And if you count all the accidental deaths Five caused with his actions but didn’t give a shit about, or all the people he assassinated when working for the Commission, the number is easily in the hundreds

To the families of all those people, Five is a villain, it just depends on what narrative you’re looking at. Really, despite being the most driven out of all of them to save the world, Five doesn’t have the moral high ground over anyone in this show. Maybe the Handler, but it’s pretty subjective.

Now antagonist, that’s even more interesting. Because in order to be an antagonist, you have to be working against the goals of the protagonists. Well, who are the protagonists in this hypothetical narrative? If you want to keep any aspects of this story the same, it only makes sense for them to be the other Academy kids, right?

So here’s a narrative for you. The Commission gets the upper hand on Five. They find another way to cause the apocalypse that doesn’t rely on Vanya (it’s possible, there’s one point in the comics where Hazel and Cha Cha literally manage to blow up the earth with a bunch of nuclear weapons Hargreeves had been stockpiling, long story, but they could blow up the moon for the same result as in the show). The Commission just wants this whole situation to be over, so they give him a choice - Five can go live somewhere else with his family and ignore the fact that the apocalypse will happen, or the entire Hargreeves family can die right now. But Five has to convince them to go.

Now, what do you do, when your little brother who you haven’t seen in seventeen years, shows up with a bunch of mercenaries and says the apocalypse is about to happen, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it, you just have to go with him and you can all live far away from it if you go right now. Well, you might say yes, if you think he’s being threatened into this, especially if he says your own life depends on it. But if you’ve been raised a superhero, well, you’re a lot more likely to fight back.

And if you see how well he can fight, how willing he is to kill completely indiscriminately, well, you’d probably have a hard time trusting anything he says.

Luther isn’t going to go, because Luther’s duty is to save the world. He’s going to try everything he can to do that, regardless of what Five says.

Diego isn’t going to go, because he cares about these people, he cares about making a difference in the world and doing good. He can’t do that if everyone’s dead.

There’s nothing on earth that could make Allison leave her daughter, and even if she could take Claire with her, I don’t think Allison “trying to be a better person and fix her life” Hargreeves would be too happy about raising her daughter knowing she let Claire’s father die, letting Claire know she’s a coward who took the easy way out

Klaus might go. But Ben would be very very against it.

Vanya will hear Five out, but won’t be able to believe it, and even if she does, she’s got a life here too, and she’s not gonna be super psyched to leave everything just to go with her siblings who’ve always excluded her, and some of whom currently actively hate her.

And let’s be real, Five isn’t going to try and convince them if Five can try and force them. In canon, the only person he talks to is Vanya, and when she doesn’t immediately try to help him, he abandons that plan entirely. He only goes back to his family when he’s out of leads with no idea what to do.

Some of them are going to assume Five is being threatened and try to help him, which Five doesn’t want, because that puts them in more danger. Some of them are going to assume Five’s completely lost it, and is now a danger to them, and are going to try and stop him, which Five doesn’t want, because that’s just letting them all die in the apocalypse.

It would be a disaster, and would go a lot better if these kids could communicate with each other, but they’re so bad at that. I don’t know how the whole thing would play out, if Five would be swayed by their attempts to stand strong against the apocalypse, or if he knows there’s no hope and is just trying to save them against their will, but either way, it would be very fun to watch

#tua #the umbrella academy #five hargreeves #number five #tua meta #the handler #luther hargreeves #diego hargreeves #allison hargreeves #klaus hargreeves #ben hargreeves #vanya hargreeves #words #orbmanson7

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deadmomjokes · 5 years

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I need "Mom" advice...I get married in a couple months and honestly I'm nervous about sex. My actual mom never talked to me about it...was taboo. I barely learned about my period, except some friends explained and helped me through it. I'm afraid I won't make my husband happy or it will hurt. I've heard varying stories of friends' first times, and I don't want things to be awkward. I don't even know how to bring it up with my fiancé.

Thank you SO much forfeeling comfortable coming to me! I’ll try to give a basic “sex ed” lessonhere, and if you’re worried about specific things, please feel free to comeback and ask more, or PM me, or send me an ask off anon to ask about email if you’drather do it that way. Whatever’s going to be most helpful for you. I hope Ican address the concerns you listed, and possibly some that might be underlyingin general (most people have a lot of nebulous nervous feelings surroundingphysical intimacy that can be hard to put to words).

(For those uninterested or uncomfortable, a verybig TW for talking about sexual activity in a scientific sort of way, buttechnical terms and (respectful) descriptions may abound.) LOOOOOOOOONG post ahead, but hopefully comprehensive, respectful, and useful.

First Things First I Guess

Firstly, please know it’s super normal to benervous about sex. Almost everyone is, especially in family or social culturesthat don’t normalize talking about sex. We also do a crappy job in general offormal education about sex and sexuality, so too many people (especially women)aren’t given any background. If both of you are virgins, or new to sexualactivity in general, I bet he’s actually nervous too.

Second, bringing it up is going to be hard, butSO important. It might be worth sitting down and simply saying “I haveno idea how to bring this up, but here it is: I’m worried about sex.” The basis for any good sex life is communication and respect. Ifhe’s not nervous but you are, he has to respect that and be understanding ofthe time you may need to adjust. My guess is he has concerns as well, and beingable to talk about it together will bring a huge measure of relief to both ofyou. Another idea to bring it up would be to write an email or text saying thatyou’re not sure how to bring it up, but want to make sure both of you arecomfortable talking about it, so is there a time y’all could talk about it.Idk, that might be a bit formal for how you guys usually do things, but I knowsome people think better in written form. But being able to talk about your concerns, and having a shared general expectation of how things will go the first time is going to be helpful in making sure you’re not terrified of your honeymoon.

Third, and this is the big one: Almost no one’sfirst sexual encounter goes how they think it will, and that’s almost all because of unrealistic expectations. Sex is a weird concept, bodies areweird, and our cultural and social idea of sex is HIGHLY romanticizedand “sterilized” as it were. We have this Hollywood idea of what sex lookslike and is, and real sex has never been that way. It may end up being awkward physically (more later on that), but that’s okay, because that’s often just how things are, and sexual experiences tend to get better with time. Our culture has normalized the idea of “perfect sex” and promotes this big romantic “first time” narrative, but it almost never works out that way. Not to say it won’t or can’t be fun for you, just know it won’t be all fireworks and amazement right off the bat, because there’s a lot to coordinate between two people and four limbs and blankets and stuff.

Sex might be physically strange or a bit uncomfortable especially the firsttime, but if done properly it doesn’t have to hurt. By done properly, I meangiving both parties enough time to adjust, warm up, and become comfortablewith the situation. First intercourse with any partner, but especially yourfirst EVER partner should be about exploring and admiring each others’ bodies,without pressure to actually engage in classical intercourse (meaningpenetrative intercourse) if you don’t feel up to it. Being very nervous can prevent your body fromadapting in the way it needs to in order to be comfortable and pain-free duringintercourse.

The body has a complex system of reactions thatgear it up for intercourse, but here’s the basics.

How Sex Works Physically

What most people refer to as “foreplay” isgenerally not an optional thing for comfortable sex; smooching, cuddling, and a feeling of closeness are basically necessary to trigger thechemical reactions that start the physical adaptations for sex. Going from 0 (hey how’s it going) to60 (penetrative sex) instantly is going to be uncomfortable at best, but will likely hurtespecially in the beginning. Plus you won’t get anything out of it, and committed-partner sexshould be about emotional closeness as much as it is about physical sensationfor BOTH partners. So spending time cuddling and kissing is an important partof “actual sex.” The chemicals that are released during this time trigger yourbody to send increased bloodflow to the sexual organs, starting the sexual response cycle. (NOTE: Some people can begin the sexual response cycle by thinking about sex, reading or viewing erotic material, or “talking dirty,” so if y’all are really worked up and into it, much “traditional” foreplay like making out may not be necessary. This is usually what’s going on with what people refer to as a “quickie,” both parties are already physically prepared for sex because they’ve been thinking about it and that triggered the sexual response to begin.)

In female/afab bodies, the increased bloodflowresults in swelling of the labia (external parts) and a feeling of fullness,which increases physical sensation (perception of touch), which in turn triggersthe production of lubrication (some people refer to this as getting orbeing “wet” if you’ve heard that term thrown around. And don’t worry, it’s not like a ton of liquid, it won’t be like peeing everywhere or anything, it just makes sure things can move around easily, like an oil coating in a pan.) It also triggers thevagina (the internal parts) to expand, and the vaginal opening to relax and expand. Thesethree processes (lubrication, internal expansion, and external relaxation) are important in making sure sex doesn’t hurt. Like I said,with first intercourse, it may still be a bit uncomfortable because it’s a new sensation and your brain may still be on “no sex, sex is off-limits” mode, evensubconsciously. But if you experience pain–sharp or burning or stinging or stabbing pain, not just pressure (which is normal)– that’s not good, and you should back off and try again later after moresmoochy times or even a good night’s sleep.

Male/amab bodies are somewhat easier to understandbecause much of their adaptation happens externally, and also it’s much moresocially discussed. The penis has a complicated system of tissues that trapthe increased bloodflow coming in, resulting in the enlargement and hardeningof the penis (this is called “erection,” or sometimes informally “getting hard”). It also triggers a production of lubrication, but this is muchless than is produced by the vagina. The male lubrication comes from theopening in the penis, which is called the urethra. (Yes, it is technically thesame tube and opening where urine comes from, but the body totally shuts offthe valve at the bladder for intercourse, so there is no risk of cross-contamination.)During this time, the testicles (most often called the balls, of course) arepreparing semen, which contains sperm and is a thick, viscous liquid. (Theprostate also helps in producing this liquid.) During male orgasm, the semen isexpelled from the same urethral opening mentioned above.

To define, orgasm is the point at which the bodypeaks in pleasure, and is generally the result of repeated physical stimulationto erogenous zones. Erogenous zones are the parts of the body that producesexual pleasure when stimulated. (For many people, this includes not only thegenitals, but the nipples as well.) Male orgasm is easy to identify because itis almost always accompanied by ejaculation (expulsion of the semen), butfemales also orgasm. During female orgasm, the muscles of the vagina anduterus repeatedly contract, which can’t be seen of course(leading folks in the past to believe women couldn’t orgasm).

So, a quick recap: you get all smoochy, then you get all handsy, then clothes come off somewhere in the smoochy and touchy phases, and then if youwant comes penetrative sex. This is the part most people are scared of, and hasthe potential to cause pain if you’re not ready mentally or physically (as inyour sexual response hasn’t yet kicked in all over your body).

I know this is kind of squirmy to say, but itmay actually take several tries (sometimes over several days) toactually “succeed” at penetrative sex, meaning that the penis can enterthe vagina without pain to the vagina-owner. It could also be difficult to findexactly where to put the penis, because generally penis-owners don’t know muchabout what they’re looking for (especially if you’re both virgins), andvagina-owners can’t see what’s going on. So keeping a sense of humor and a lineof communication is super important. Sex is WEIRD. It’s just weird and bizarrewhen you start thinking about it (at least to me, on the asexual spectrum), andacknowledging that and realizing that it won’t be some glamorous tangle oflimbs set to romantic music like on the TV is going to go a long way toward making your experience somuch more positive, and much less awkward.

Mentioned Worries

Re:not wanting it to be awkward. Luckily, it won’t have to be emotionally awkward or embarrassing if y’all go into it with the same expectations, and those expectations are realistic. There’s physical awkwardness, like how a box that’s not heavy but is weirdly shaped is “awkward,” and that’s going to happen no matter what because you’ve never had experience with how to do this sex thing, and you’re not sure where to put your limbs or how to move around another person. But what can be avoided is FEELING awkward, emotional awkwardness, and that’s done through having realistic expectations of what sex is and how it works, and of knowing that both of you are on the same page with this, and are interested in making it work for both of you.

You also mentioned being worried you won’t make your husband happy–I want you to knowboth that this is fine and a good desire (to make him happy), but that it’s not your responsibility to sexually please your husband, and sex is something for BOTH of you. It’s not all on you, it literally takes two to make itwork. Sex isn’t all about him; if it’s something you want to share in yourrelationship, it should be something you want to make work for you, as well as for him. So he has as much responsibility to you as you do to him, to be respectful of your boundaries especially as youfirst get introduced to sex, and to “take care of you” as much as you dofor him. Sex with a new partner is going to take trial and error indiscovering what you both like and dislike, and it’s okay and necessary to be vocal andsay “Please don’t do that” if you need to. I know that you WANT to make him happy, and that’s excellent, because hopefully he wants to do that for you, too! Just know that if sex is kind of weird at first, or y’all can’t quite figure out what’s up on night one, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed as a partner, that you let him down, or that you won’t be able to satisfy each other in the future (even the near future). Adjust expectations so that your first experience isn’t about having the most amazing sex you’ll ever have (more on that in a bit), but about discovering this new facet of your relationship together.

You also mentioned you were afraid of ithurting, and this is the most common fear about sex. You probably heard or readstuff about “breaking the hymen” or “tearing” or something like that.While some girls will have small tears in the hymen (the flap of skin thatsometimes partially covers the vaginal opening), a lot of girls won’t, and thisskin stretches as the physical sexual response (sometimes calledsimply “arousal”) progresses. It’s also less likely to tearor “break” during sex if you’ve used tampons before, because tampons sometimesactually rupture the hymen just by their nature. (This isn’t to say you shouldstart using tampons if you’re not comfortable, of course.) If the hymen doesrupture, you might experience a bit of bleeding, but it’s nothing a pad can’thandle (much MUCH less than a period, more like getting a small cut on yourarm). Sometimes you won’t notice a rupture til after sex if you’re really intoit, but you might also feel it or feel it about to start. If that happens and it hurts, bevocal and tell your partner to stop. You don’t have to hurt during sex, youdon’t owe that to anyone. In fact, you owe it to yourself to NOT endure painjust for someone else’s pleasure. So it might be worth talking to your fiancebeforehand and having a stop-word, which can literally just be “Stop.” Butboth of you should understand going into this that either one of you has the right tosay “no more” at any point.

It may also be worth considering getting somelubricant (”lube”) if you’re really worried about pain, because most pain comesfrom insufficient biological lubrication or insufficient stretching of thevaginal opening, and lube can help with both. Many people find it super fun toapply to each other, apparently, and it can certainly be useful when you’rejust starting out and both new to this idea. (also, if using a condom, lube is important because sometimes the material can irritate the sensitive skin of the vagina and labia) But the most important things youtwo can do for each other as you embark on this adventure together are to bewilling to voice your opinions and feelings, and also to take time to get toknow each others’ bodies and preferences. That’s more or less part of what the honeymoon is for.

Also, make sure you go to the gynecologistbefore you get married. It’s might be awkward or feel a bit embarrassing, but super important in making sureyou’re healthy for sex (just know that gyns do this for a living and have literally seen it all, so your body won’t be a big deal, and they aren’t judging you). And if you happen to have a problem like vaginismus(painful spasms or contractions of the vaginal opening that prevent anythingfrom entering, including tampons or medical equipment) or an obstructive hymen,the Gyn can tell you and help you with that. You can also ask them questions you have about sex, and some Gyns have tools you can use at home to “stretch” the vaginal opening (it’s not generally necessary and is more for psychological assistance than huge physical benefit, but some people who are truly small might actually need a bit of help there, so it’s up to you). You will also probably want birthcontrol, or to discuss options about birth control unless y’all are planning ona baby right away. (Also he should go to the doc and get a checkup, too, justto be safe, and if he’s ever had other sexual partners at any time in the past, he should get checkedfor STDs.)

The Big Important Thing to Remember

Please know:Wedding night sex isn’t going to be the best sex you’ll ever have ever. Cultures inwhich waiting is the expectation or norm (Christianity is the big one for this)tend to promote this idea that your wedding night will be a big amazing reward for waiting, and isgoing to be the most important and pleasurable sex you’ll ever have in your whole entire life and if it isn’t, you’ve done something wrong. It creates a huge amount of pressure surrounding what can already be an emotionally laden experience. But studies on sexual satisfactionshow that couples who have been together for years have the greatest levels ofsatisfaction. So please don’t go into it expecting that your first intercourseis going to make it or break it. It’s more than likely going to be a bit weird even though it will hopefully also be fun and pleasurable, but you’ll have better sex as time goes on and you get to know eachother and figure out what the heck you’re doing.

Think of it this way: say you LOVE music, and have always wanted to play a piano. You’ve never gotten to be around a real piano before, but playing the piano is a lifelong dream. Are you going to expect yourself to be able to play Mozart the first time you walk into a room with a piano? No! That doesn’t mean that the experience of sitting down at a piano for the first time won’t be euphoric and a fulfillment of a dream, but you can’t go into it thinking or expecting that you’ll be a master the first time you touch the keys. Look at little kids meeting a piano– they just smash around on the keys and it sounds awful to US as adults who know what it “should sound like” and who might even know how to read music and play a bit, but that kid is having the time of their life experiencing the magic of music and of playing the piano. First having sex is like that. It probably won’t be perfect, and you may look back on it years down the road and kind of go “wow we were goofy and weird,” but it can still be fun as long as you aren’t expecting perfection going in. So no, your wedding night isn’t going to be The Objectively Best Sex Ever, and you probably won’t be quite sure what you’re doing and might even be kind of bad at it, but that doesn’t mean it won’t also be nice and wonderful. You’re not doing something wrong if you aren’t over the moon with your first experience; it just means you have something even better to look forward to figuring out and experiencing together! Especially if both of you are virgins, you may have a bit of a time figuring out how things work, but that’s not a sign of failure.

Plus, when you’ve been culturally surrounded by a narrative of taboo, it can feel mentally scary to suddenly engage in something that used to be off-limits in the biggest of ways. That’s why talking about it frankly is important (and why I have no problem with discussing sex in educational terms!), and why it’s important to discuss with your partner throughout y’all’s sexual life together.

Sex is messy, there’s fluids everywhere, people get sweaty, bodies are weird, and our brains are weird. But I hope knowing all this can help you feel a bit more prepared, and a bit more comfortable. I know this was long and a ton of info, but I’m super passionate about making sure people are educated thoroughly about this stuff, because I never knew any of it growing up. Our school lied to the state about sex-ed; we were supposed to have it, and they didn’t, but said they did. I never got the sex talk because I wasn’t interested in guys OR girls (I was ace and had no clue, another place education failed all of us), so my mom never told me anything about it. I learned a lot in college through classes and through academic research, and then more when I switched to health as a major (and became enraged that we don’t talk about this stuff!!).

So I hope that despite being long-winded, it can be a useful reference, and hopefully put some worries to rest or at least take it down a notch. And do let me know if you have further questions, or if this was totally off the mark for what you were looking for!

#sex tw #long post #advice #sex education

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lucy-sky · 5 years

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Can you do Justin Hammer with #79 and #87? I'm in a depressing mood right now for certain reasons. For #79, Can you do an alternative universe where he wears an Iron Man like suit? 😙 If not, that's fine. For #87, you can make him an eater 😄

Surprise! I bet nobody expected me to write Hammer first :DDD But the thing is, after Endgame and the flashbacks I feel a bit nostalgic, so… Here ya go. I chose prompt 79.“You’re safe now. I’ve got you.” Hope it’s okay.

New York, 2012, Loki opened the portal and the Chitauri are attacking the city. You are trapped in the office building and the end seems inevitable, but…

1294 words; no warnings. It’s an AU where Hammer is not in jail for some reason (because I can lol). Gif by me; I tried my best to hide his clothes… for the suite please use your imagination:)

When one ofyour colleagues jokingly told you that if you keep working in your headphones,you will once miss the end of the world, you could never think how right heactually was.

On that dayyou were sitting in the office, emerged into working process completely.Sometimes people told you you’re a workaholic and need to have rest more often…You didn’t care. You knew if you didn’t work that hard you would never get thisprestigious and well-paid job. Your boss hired only the best. Plus you were reallyinterested in what you were doing. Yes, you were one of those happy people whoreally like their job. One of the reasons why you managed to succeed in whatyou were doing was that you always took your work seriously. You hated to bedistracted. So your big headphones were always with you. For some reason musicalways helped you concentrate, no matter what it was: classic, jazz, opera orhard rock.

Yourealized something was happening when you felt your chair and desk slightlyshaking. As you turned your head to the window, your eyes widened because thefirst thing you saw was the building on the opposite side of the road simplycollapsing. Then you saw them. Youcouldn’t really tell what were those monsters that climbed on walls, smashedthe cars, destroyed all around… Panic stricken, you rushed to the door, but itwas blocked with something. Without really thinking what you were doing you ranto the balcony door, flung it open and stepped outside.

There was acomplete madness. Surreal. You could see the buildings breaking down, carssignaling like crazy, people screaming… You could also hear the gunfire, butcould it really help? And what were you gonna do? You’re on the 15th floor!

The wholebuilding shuddered and you gripped onto the balcony railings as if it couldhelp. You turned around and saw a big crack on the floor - the balcony wasabout to fall down. You could hold on to the railings as much as you wanted,but it would never save your life. If this goddamn balcony would fall, you weregoing to fall as well. One more tremor, like an earthquake shock and thebalcony dipped to the side. You’ve never felt so terrified, you couldn’t evenscream. Just squeezed your eyes shut waiting for the inevitable.

Suddenlysomething grabbed you and pulled you up in the air. Something definitely nothuman, you could feel the cold metal. Your first intention was to break away.What if it was one of those monsters? You screamed at flinched in metal roboticarms.

- Calmdown. I’ve got you. You’re safe now, - you heard.

You blinkedstupidly at your sudden savior.

- Wh… What…

- Don’tworry, I’m a friend.

You noddedslowly, only now realizing you were flying quite fast above all the chaos onthe streets. Someone who looked like a giant robot held you tightly. After afew minutes he landed on the roof of a high-rise apartment building quite farfrom the city center. The whole madness hasn’t reached this place yet.Carefully, he let you stand on your feet and you just stared at him inconfusion.

- Well,that suit seems to work quite well… - The stranger told, apparently to himself.- Just a couple of issues to fix, and…

- Who… Whoare you? - You finally managed to ask. - Are you… Are you Iron Man?

- Iron Man?- The man in metal suit laughed. - No, I’m afraid Mr. Stark is a bit too busy tosave ladies… Even as cute and smart as you are.

Wait, didhe just flirt with you?

- So… Willyou tell me your name or something?.. – You shrugged.

- Can youkeep secrets? - He asked after a pause.

- Um… well,yes, I think I can, - you replied, frowning.

At that,robotic head opened up, revealing the face of the suit’s owner.

You didn’tknow it was possible that your eyes widened even more.

- …Boss???

- Hello,y/n, - Justin Hammer smirked, looking down at you. - That’s a lovely day, isn’tit? How do you like my new tech?

- Wow… -You struggled to find the right words. - Mr. Hammer, that’s… That looks great! Ireally didn’t know you’ve been working on something like that…

- Nobodyknew until now. Except myself, of course, - he chuckled. - And please, don’tcall me Mr. Hammer. I think we’re now close enough for you to call me Justin…

- But… Whyare you even talking to me right now? Why don’t you go there and help with allthis mess? I mean… Have you seen that? The entire world seems like fallingapart!..

- Oh, don’tworry, darling. I’m pretty sure Tony and his friends will save it for us… I’lljust let him shine a bit before my time will come… It’s only fair, right?

- Umm… Notto offend you, but it’s not really your style to hide your achievements fromTony Stark…

- You knowme better than I expected, - Hammer let out a small laugh. - To tell you thetruth, I’m dying to show Stark the results of my work… And see his face… Butunfortunately I cannot make a decent presentation right now. Basically, mysuit doesn’t work entirely as I’d like it to. As you can see, all is good interms of flying, but the weapons… the weapons are currently in progress. Infact, it’s the first time I’m using this suit in action.

- I see…Then, why did you save me? It was a risk since you didn’t do that before…

- Well, Ihad to try… I really didn’t want to lose one of my best engineers… Plus Iplanned to invite you to dinner someday so that would be a shame… - he gave youa charming smile.

You feltyour cheeks blushing at this. You didn’t really want to admit it, but youalways found your boss pretty attractive…

- Mr. Ha…Justin. Do you really think it’s appropriate to flirt with me at the moment? -You asked, smirking back at him.

- Yeah, whynot? But in case if you’re not into having a date, we could just talk about thebusiness. I know you’re a very talented and hardworking engineer… Also you seemloyal… I figured you could help me with it, - he pointed at the metal suit hewas wearing. - What would you say?..

You staredat him for a couple of seconds. Your brain just couldn’t cope with the fact allthis was happening to you. Justin Hammer was looking at you, smiling, windplaying with his always perfect hair… You suddenly realized you’ve never seenhim without glasses before. It made his look softer, almost tender… Behind thespecs you’ve never noticed the beauty of his emerald green eyes.

- Y/n?

- Yes. Iwould say yes… To both, - you added, a bit more boldly than you expected. - To the business and to the date. Yes.

Justin’ssmirk turned into a wide grin.

- Guess Iwasn’t wrong about you, y/n. Looking forward to our work together.

- Me too.

You stoodthere for a while looking at each other, then turned your gaze to the citycenter. You could hear the sounds of explosions even from here. There were alsosomething strange in the sky above…

- So… -Hammer broke the silence. - Tell me now, is there any safe place I could bringyou until The Avengers clean the mess?..

***

I hope it was okay! Idk if I’m writing Hammer well, but I really saw him in my head while writing it :)

#drabble requests #sam rockwell #iron man 2 #justin hammer x reader #lucy tries to write #replies

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anything-advice-blog · 7 years

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So, I’m a senior in high school, but I’m taking classes full time at a community college. My dad didn’t want me to take classes there full time since it wasn’t “academically rigorous” enough for him, but he eventually went through with it. One of his “conditions” was that I had to take a computer science class this semester. At first I was very excited, but after classes started I realized how much I didn’t like it. (Let me add that I’d like to be a history major and I'm taking the CS class designed for CS majors. My dad has been working in programming his entire career. He thinks that non-STEM majors will get you nowhere in life unless you go to grad school or medical school.) As this semester is drawing to a close, I tell him that I don’t wanna take CS II. He says that I have to and that I’m going to have to double major in CS if I major in history. (My sister majored in East Asian Studies and planned to go to med school, but did not. Did my dad force her go anyway? No.) If I don’t then he says he won’t pay my tuition. There was only one CS class that fit into my schedule for next semester and since it’s with a very popular teacher at night, it filled up before my paperwork to register was processed. There was another CS class that conflicted with two of my other classes. When I told my dad, he tells me to drop the other two classes. I didn’t. So now, all the CS classes are full and he’s telling me that if I don’t find a way into one of them, I’m going to be “severely punished”. (I highly doubt the punishment would be physical.) I went to the college administrators and they told me what I already know–they can’t get you into a class if it’s at capacity. I’m just at my wit’s end. I don’t know how many times I’ve told him how much I hate CS and how I’d like to take classes that I enjoy during my last semester of high school. I’ve told him over and over that I’d take a CS class when I actually go to college. Whenever I tell my friends about what’s going on they just say things like, “Are you gonna let him control your life?”, etc. I don’t think they get it? What am I supposed to do if he won’t pay for me to go to college? I don’t have any kind of college savings. I don’t have a job. I’m only 17 years old. I don’t wanna spend four years taking classes I hate. My mom hasn’t said anything about what’s going on, since she decided to “stay out of it”. I’m just tired of trying to plead my case. I’d take all my classes at my high school next semester if I could. I just want him to leave me alone. I just want my dad to support my decisions and let me live my life. I’m not asking for anything crazy. I just don’t wanna take a class next semester. I’ve never looked for easy As. I’ve been trying so hard to make my classes as academically challenging as I can so I can get into good schools. What should I do? No amount of talking gets through to him. What should I do?

– Class of 2017

_________________________________________________

Hey there love,

Before I give you any advice, I will say this. Parents care an awful lot, and especially when it comes to when they want their kids to succeed and have a good life. Many parents want their children to live a fulfilling and enriching lifestyle, wanting them only to live with good money, and a safe home, while being happy. That said, they can also be controlling because they’re scared that their baby girl or boy will suffer if they pursue something they love but something that doesn’t have an immediate stable foreseeable future and having only to work can be frightening.

First of all, I think it’s great that you’re pursuing something you love. It’s incredibly brave of you, and a great choice. Now you won’t have to worry about doing something you regret and hate for the rest of your life. Never give in to your parents’ wishes of wanting you to be a comp.sci major if it’s the last thing you want to do. However, I think your father wants you to follow in his footsteps for personal reasons such as fearing that history isn’t a good stable career, or maybe it’s because programming is all he’s ever known and knows that since he himself was a comp.sci major, he could help you in some way, and give you a safe future. You need to convince him that you’re growing up, and that whatever you do, you’ll be able to handle on your own. By sitting him down and tell him straight up that you understand that Comp.sci is what he wishes you pursue, it’s simply something that you can never see yourself doing, and be happy whilst at it. Then ask him if he wanted you to be unhappy. His answer would clearly be no. Despite him thinking it’s for your own good, this is your path, and your life. He clearly wants you to have a successful life, but if you’re not happy, it’s in vain. Make him see reason, by saying that history is something you have a passion for, and even though it may not be a “safe” STEM route, it’s something you chose, and won’t regret. By forcing you into comp.sci not only will it be bad for you psychologically, you won’t get much out of it either. Anyone knows that if you hate what you’re doing, you obviously won’t try as hard, and your results will show just that.

Since you can’t get a CS class this semester, take other classes to explore your other options. In the meantime, I think your father despite grudgingly you not taking his choices, he will still pay for your tuition. Why? You’re his daughter. He won’t cut you off just because you want to do something you like. There may also be a cultural aspect to it as well. My father was forced into being an engineer, despite wanting to go into business, and later on, as I grew up, I was expected to be an engineer as well like my other siblings. Now thinking about it, I had a similar situation like you. I was expected to be in a STEM major as well, and after thoroughly talking it out with my father, he let me do things on my own. Like it will be for you, it wasn’t easy. My own father was very angry especially because I didn’t follow something that had a generic safe path. My older sister was a doctor, and older brother had 3 degrees in engineering, accounting and law. As his 3rd kid, I wanted to pursue psychology and he thought that virtually had no job openings. He eventually realized that he couldn’t bend me to his will, and realized how old I was getting. I was no longer his little girl, and he realized it was pointless in directing me, because now I was able to see right and wrong. Still, he had a grudge for a long time, but it passed. It could be the same for you. No parent that cares strongly for their child’s education can hate them. He just worries too.

Try to get your mom on your side. Talk with her about your thoughts often, and when you get through to her, before long, she’ll start defending you and looking at it through your point of view. Remember, if the husband is the head, the wife is the neck. She’s the one behind the true decisions that is silently persuading the husband. Try to make her feel included in your choices, and try to get closer to her. She’ll be more inclined to listen to how you truly feel. Same goes for your sister.

However, if he still threatens to cut off your funds, start looking for scholarships. Even though it’s a hassle, and has incredibly annoying prerequisites, it’s too decrease the competition. Apply to all and any scholarship. Even if you don’t fit the requirements, do it just in case. Many scholarships end up going to waste, because no one applies for them. There are thousands of dollars that go down the drain because no one takes them, mainly because people think there’s too much people competing and give up. Heck, for jokes I applied to a scholarship for engineers, and ending up getting 500$ cause no one claimed it. Look for scholarships and bursaries. If you are coming of age, you can also look at student loans from your university/college as well as fundraising from your high school. Lastly, get a part time job. Find anything because it’ll help pay for expenses of any sort. I would recommend fast-food chains (bubble-tea stores aren’t fast food but they’re always hiring and its boba tea, what’s not to like amirite), or bookstores. They don’t require too many hours, and are usually flexible, giving you time for your schoolwork and breaks.

Maybe to try to get through to him, if you’re able, make him a deal. Deals are usually good ways to prevent conflict and can help satisfy both parties for a short or long time depending on the deal. If you can handle it, tell him that you are willing to take one or two comp. sci courses and will try to enjoy it, but in exchange, you want to be able to make your own career and post-secondary choices. Or anything you want to barter on. Make sure it’s advantageous to your side! He won’t really realize until last minute, and he won’t be able to do anything about it either.

Even though I hate to say this, don’t live for your dad. Or your mom, or anyone. It’s your life, and whatever you choose, at the end of the day, it’s you that’s stuck with the consequences or rewards. Your dad may force you, may threaten you, or even cut you off, but ultimately if you choose to go with his wishes, it’s you that faces the repercussions of it. Do anything and everything you can to defend your freedom as a growing adult. He needs to see that you have your own opinion and mindset for yourself. My dad used to always say this to me: “Whatever you do, do it for yourself, because ultimately, when everything else and everyone is gone, all you really have are your choices, and memories and what you did with them.” Learn that there will always be something or someone against your or in your way. Know that this is life, and pick your battles and try to just breathe and enjoy the rest of your high school life! You deserve it. Realize by the time you hit Uni, you’re in for the biggest rollercoaster of your life.

Really hopes this helps,

~Ella ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ

#ella #school #senior #high school #college #university #class of 2017 #STEM #history #studies #AAB #submssion #27.04.2017 #father #family discord #technology #computer science #compsci

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