#and another performance with my current schools ensemble

[straystars-and-planets]

music when the moon rises

music major!Bang Chan x music major!reader (part 1)

CC (Campus Couple): [acronym] a couple who attends the same university.

Synopsis: Chan is well known, both on campus and within the music school: genius producer, member campus rap group 3RACHA, a fantastic vocalist, and somehow friends with someone from every department/major (and handsome with the cutest dimpled smile, not that you were looking). What happens when you happen to run into him after a late night practice session?

a/n: hi this is my first work I'm posting for skz (and k-pop in general) Just trying to give everyone a taste of my writing style, I have more installments for all the members in this campus couple series coming up + a few more wips for later!

wc: 1.68k (oops) of bang chan hcs (because I can)

tags: non-idol!au, college/university au, domestic fluff, fluff, sleep deprivation/staying up super late (sleep is important everyone!!!)

cw: implied fem!reader, mentions of anxiety/stress relating to school/grades, cursing/swear words (both reader and chan use curses liberally + let chan say f*ck)

masterlist | series masterlist | taglist form | part 2 (coming soon!)

💜 reblogs are appreciated + constructive feedback welcome 💜

Virtually everyone on campus has at least heard of Chan. Musical wunderkind, has seemingly performed in every ensemble (orchestra, choir, band, jazz, chamber music, you name it, he’s probably played in it).

Also part of the iconic rap trio 3RACHA, any time there is a concert on campus they’re either one of the main acts or opening for a guest artist.

Chan has also individually released a few mixtapes SoundCloud, is very excited because he now has an EP on Spotify too! Some of his songs have made their way onto party playlists. Needless to say, this man is everywhere and seems to know everyone and anyone on campus.

You’ve bumped into Chan a few times, either in classes or in the hallways between rehearsals. He sometimes flashes you a friendly smile whenever he sees you in passing, but other than a few “hi’s” and “hello’s” the two of you haven’t spoken much. 

It’s a few weeks into fall semester and you are already irritated with the lack of practice space. Your dorm has zero (if not negative) sound insulation so you can’t really use it to practice your instrument.

Unfortunately there are only a few practice rooms available on campus, and no matter what time of day they all seemed to be occupied, either by another musician or adventurous couples who use them for “duet rehearsal” (a/n: iykyk - yes I have unfortunately witnessed the latter)

You get a brilliant idea at midnight after a late night study session in the music library. You’re already in the music building, and you have card access to the department. Surely no one is using the practice rooms at this time.

Your sleep deprived speculations prove to be true and you almost cry as the first room in the hall is unoccupied. You notice one of the production studios across the hall has its door closed but chalk it up to someone forgetting to leave it open on the way out.

Once you’re settled you begin warming up, letting the tones of scales and arpeggios sing through the space. It’s the first time you’ve been able to have quiet and uninterrupted practice (thankfully your roommate had been understanding about you needing to practice in the dorm, but you still tended to play quietly/half-heartedly to avoid any noise complaints).

After a rough run through of the piece you’re currently working on, you start picking through the score measure by measure. Totally immersed in the music in front of you, you don’t notice the door to the production studio creak open, nor do you notice the head of disheveled curls that appears in the window of the practice room. 

A sudden knock on the door startles you out of your zone, and you can’t help but let out a shriek and throw your score at the window. When the folder falls to the ground you’re met by the sight of a surprised Chan, mouth open and ears turning a little red.

To this day Chan swears he wasn’t intending to scare the living daylights out of you, it’s just the way you played was so beautiful and enchanting and he just had to know who was playing it (and then beg them to record some samples for a future/secret project pretty please and thank you 🥺)

After your first THRILLING encounter you keep bumping into Chan everywhere. At music department events/socials, and around campus (particularly the cafe/coffee shop).

You also run into him more in classes (or at least start noticing him more). He’s a guest performer for the experimental piece the orchestra is performing, or subbing for the pianist who was sick during orchestra rehearsal. During breaks you banter with him (he asks whether you’re planning on being in the building late, you tease him for his insomniac habits)

Slowly, over the course of fall semester he develops a soft spot for you. Definitely very fond of you, and at first is in total denial, thinks he is just doing this because he’s trying to be a good upperclassman/mentor for you.

(Meanwhile all his friends, especially Jisung and Changbin, are losing their everloving minds trying to convince Chan that he’s falling for the ‘cute late night girl’)

Probably has an epiphany that he’s basically in love with you while sitting in the audience for one of your concerts (one of the fewe that he’s not performing in). Like yeah, he definitely goes to his friends’ performances/showcases to support, but not all of them. (Damnit, Jisung was right to tease Chan about planning to go to all of your performances that he has time for.)

Then you come on stage for your concerto and he is absolutely entranced. Blushes when you seem to make eye contact with him after bows. Probably red cheeks & ears he is SO glad he wore his beanie today. Plus he thinks you look stunning in the dress you chose, the navy blue fabric makes you look so beautiful and elegant. He loves that it has a bit of your personality with the asymmetrical design and subtle lace appliques.

Now that he is FINALLY aware of his (massive) crush on you he’s going to try to be subtle and show you more affection/flirt more. Tries to subtly woo you by bringing you late night snacks, or inviting you to hang out before practice/rehearsals.

Chan is pretty much a blushing mess anytime he spends one-on-one time with you. Occasionally attempts to use cheesy pick up lines but plays them off as jokes because he is a SHY and nervous boy doing his best to flirt. Probably ends up laughing at most (if not all) of the lines he tries on you.

Thankfully you also find this funny (and cute) so you indulge him. Though occasionally when there’s a particularly sweet/cheesy pick up line you can feel your cheeks tingle and you get uncharacteristically giggly while your heart flutters in your chest.

Sometimes hangouts are just you and him, other times they’re with his friends. You slowly get to know other people. Meanwhile his friends are trying to send Chan to an early grave by not subtly hinting at his crush (aka. one time Felix tries to straight up tell you "Channie-hyung is in love with you," but thankfully Chan was able to smack a hand over Felix’s mouth in time).

Multiple death glares towards his so-called friends now menaces behind your back + creative sign language indicating he may strangle them later

After you start dating, Chan admits that he has tackled Jisung, Changbin and Minho as a last resort to get them to shut the fuck up before they can blurt out “By the way Chan wants to date you” or something else that would cause him to have a quote: " heart attack before the age of 30." His words not Y/N's Chan this is why Seungmin calls you old

At this point you’ve picked up on Chan’s attempts to flirt with you, so you start trying to flirt back. Searching up pick up lines to try on him, reminding him to get sleep/rest, bringing food to his studio if you happen to be free. Of course, Chan is a little a lot dense so he keeps thinking you’re just doing this as a good friend. 

By the end of the semester everyone thinks you and Chan are dating since you two have continued to banter/flirt in public at all hours of the day and night. Jisung and Felix stage an “intervention” by inviting you to coffee where they beg you to please ask Chan out because he won’t shut up about his pining for you at home (pretty please he likes you so much 💖)

You end up heeding their advice (read: Felix and Jisung continued to pester you about it in person and via. text) right before winter break. Chan was hanging out with you backstage before your final recital/evaluation when you just casually asked, “Hey, do you want to get dinner with me tonight?”

This poor man is so shocked, he almost spews water all over your beautiful recital outfit. Thankfully he has the reflexes to turn away before he ruins your dress. Honestly you have to pound his back a few times just to make sure all the water is out of his windpipe.

He’ll agree to the dinner. Leaves the dressing room so you can properly warm up + get to your place in time. Probably about 15 minutes before the show starts he realizes, oh shit, did she mean like a date????? SPRINTS to the nearest grocery store so he can buy flowers, makes it just in time to slide into the seat as the concertmaster plays the tuning note. 

Definitely looks very disheveled waiting for you in the lobby. His curls are all over the place and he didn’t wear his beanie tonight to fit with the formal vibe of the concert (CURLY CHAN SUPREMACY). Pretty much shoves the bouquet in your face before realizing he didn’t actually confirm that this was a date. 

“This is a date right?” he asks, looking a little sheepish. Without the beanie you can see the way his ears turn red and his dimples start showing when he gives you an embarrassed smile. Of course you nod in agreement and giggle when Chan wraps you in the warmest hug ever and jumps around while also congratulating you on a great performance. Chan gives the best hugs you can fight the wall

Your first date ends up being at this hole-in-the-wall chicken place that Chan found back in his first year. Imagine the two of you eating fried chicken at 11 PM dressed in super formal clothing because you decided to go there straight from the performance venue.

Spend the rest of the time before winter break starts pretty much attached to the hip with each other. As music/performance majors most of your final assignments are due before or very early during finals week, so you’re able to relax and take the time to spend quality time with each other. 

Wine night where you both improv on different instruments/vocals and create a joke song about how much you hate spicy food, specifically how Buldak ramen is a crime against tastebuds

Definitely miss him over the winter holidays, you are glued to your phone whenever you have the time, texting/calling him, sending him pictures and selfies. He’s not much better, sending you pictures of Christmas in Australia with his family (INCLUDING BERRY!)

©@straystars-and-planets 2023. do not copy, translate or repost my work.

[droughtofapathy]

"Welcome to the Theatre": Diary of a Broadway Baby

Good Night, and Good Luck

April 8, 2025 | Broadway | Winter Garden Theatre | Evening | Play | Original | 1H 40M

Welcome back to yet another review of a wildly expensive celebrity-driven play. I'm here to tell you everything you're missing out on in this hot-ticket production. In a startling turn, I found that it ended up being more stirring than I had anticipated. Depicting the real-life events surrounding Edward R. Murrow and Sen. Joseph McCarthy's infamous showdown in the 1950s, the show is an adaptation of the critically-acclaimed 2005 film. At the end of the day, this is a cinematically-driven story that is far more effective on film than it is on stage. However, in this increasingly fraught time, and with mainstream media being what it is, the show's core still resonates even if the execution is ultimately uneven.

The design and staging of this show must be commended. Eschewing the very thought of the minimalism we've all suffered, the set design is sprawling and detailed, creating a more lived-in world. The massive cast (many of whom are essentially background actors) have their hands full with the carefully choreographed stage business that runs the gamut from old-school film editing to soundbooth engineering. To aid in scene transitions, a jazzy radio singers serenades audiences at certain interludes, lending further credence to the richness of this world. That being said, from what I hear, not all vantage points are as stellar as mine. Based on the staging, I can only imagine the nightmare of being on the right side of the theatre. Sitting in the front row of the left mezzanine, I had a gorgeous view of the entire set, and was never once blocked from seeing Clooney or his co-stars. But a roving camera and some actor blocking would have surely obstructed a good deal of the front orchestra during crucial scenes. And if I'd paid $900 to sit up close and personal to Clooney and then got blocked out by another actor, I'd be furious.

Because I'm giving out a lot of spoilers, and because this ended up being about as long as you'd expect from me, I'm putting the rest below the cut.

Verdict: Well...I'm Glad I Saw It

A Note on Ratings

The show suffers from poor and often plodding pacing that prevents a sense of real urgency (which, I suppose, might well mirror our current situation). Certain exchanges also fail to play out well in the vast and deep set. Intimate and interpersonal moments between characters never quite captures the appropriate mood as actors work with the entire newsroom just behind. Moreover, the sublplot involving the secretly married couple only serves to drag the narrative further. I thought that the actress playing the Patricia Clarkson role was especially unsuccessful and flat, and fear this must be attributed to a great screen actress (Ilana Glazer) just not being cut out for stage work. Though the character is underwritten (as are all the non-Clooney roles), she is still given several 1950s-style zingers that should land well, but her line reading is only ever just that: a reading. The rest of the ensemble is more-or-less fine in what they're required to do (play second, third, and fourth fiddle). Frankly, it's a sea of white men who all kind of look alike and you could mix them up every performance and nothing would change.

Generally successful in conveying the show's core message, Murrow's newscasts are both riveting and exhausting in equal measure. It is very much a preaching-to-the-choir act as Clooney delivers grave and provocative messaging, but you know, the thing about that is that the choir is also part of the church and needs it just as much as the congregation. Given the outlandish price tag on these tickets, one can assume that perhaps this particular class of audience may need reminding. As Murrow, Clooney is good. I wouldn't say he's necessarily magnetic, but I can never be sure if my less effusive praise is just me being a mean lesbian misandrist. He does occasionally stumble on a word or two during his broadcast segments, and sure, it's a major role responsible for nearly all the spoken words in this show. But c'mon. He has his moments of impressive triumph, such as his opening and closing speeches, done behind a podium, and during the more intense broadcasts. Still, so much of this show relies on archival footage and real news reels. The use of digital projection here is less irritating than I found it to be in other shows I could name this season, and mostly effective.

And then there's that ending sequence. Look. I get that audiences need more spoon-feeding these days because apparently media literacy is dead, but this seemed a little too heavy-handed. Spoiler, but the show ends with a montage of news clips starting from when McCarthy's investigation all the way up to present day. Events depicted include: Columbine, 9/11 (it shows the plane hitting the tower), and a slew of political soundbites about, well, you can guess. And the final shot is that clip of that tech boy doing his little Nazi salute. Which. Big audience reaction. Then, addressing the audience, Murrow essentially lays the blame at our feet for allowing news to become this sensationalized drivel for entertainment's sake. And that's certainly powerful. But it really could have been cut and the point still landed just as well.

Ultimately, I found the story to be deeply compelling, but there's very little need for any of you to see it on stage when there's a perfectly good movie (with Patricia Clarkson). I do think that me having the privilege of sitting in prime seats and not paying a dime (thank you to my mother who just wanted to see George Clooney) contributed to me having more positive feelings than I might have had I shelled out the $250. If I'd actually been out that cash, or if I'd picked right mezzanine instead of left, I don't want to think about what I'd do. If you can go for free, it's worth the night.

[iamthemaestro]

re: the old school version of Auld Lang Syne: have you found a recording that includes “we’ll tak a cup of kindness yet”

I keep looking for versions that have ‘tak’ in there and haven’t found anything

sorry for letting this sit in my inbox for so long!

my favorite version, which I have posted about before, is Tim MacDonald & Jeremy Ward's version which is an excellent rendition performed in the historical technique, but I mistakenly assumed this was the pre-1799 tune and this does not appear to be true. I assume this tune probably has 20th century origins but it seems even the artists themselves cannot trace it to a concrete source... regardless I think it's a beautiful rendition and the whole album is really really great.

another version I really enjoy is the one by La Nef, one of my favorite early music ensembles—this is indeed the pre-1799 tune which I have really come to like, perhaps even more than the current popular version. I feel like it's something about the stepwise motion that just Gets Me. either way this is a beautiful and very historically authentic version that sticks with the original pronunciation. this whole album is also full of really beautifully performed Robern Burns stuff.

[lycanthian]

hey wait. what fucking war in enstars

um. yeah. the war. it was like, a whole thing? i wont explain the whole thing here but like. generally enstars in its current state At This Moment has 4 primary Years to choose from

chronologically:

1. War Era

- in which the school is radically changed by an extremely passionate student council president in order to raise talented and unique idols. he does this via "war"

- usually referred to in flashback sequences.

- this era is never depicted as the Current Era in any of the series' 8 year lifespan.

2. ! era.

- this is the Present Day of the first game. generally the two main games are discerned between with the amt of exclamation points. its confusing

- main story follows a rookie unit into stardom by challenging what the student council president sets up back in the war.

- this era ends with a graduation event, and all students moving up a grade or graduating out.

3. !! era.

- the Present Day of the second game, which introduced 3D mvs and rhythm game aspects.

- the major status quo change here is that that old student council president has now started a large Production Agency Conglomerate, called Ensemble Square, that oversees all the characters and their units

- 8 new characters / 2 new units are introduced as they begin a new year. generally follows those two new units as theyre haphazardly thrown together and forced to perform, though has a good and healthy amount of content for other units as well.

4. Post-Grad !! era

- current day as of right now on JP servers.

- another graduation event was held back in march 2023 in which the second graduating class, well, graduated. everyone else moves up in grades as intended

- well, actually, just kidding? that Big Production Agency Conglomerate, Ensemble Square has now also absorbed the 3 named idol schools into the ES Academy. we dont know much about this currently tbh.

- honestly not much about this era in general is known. we havent gotten super important stories about the new school environment or anything yet to my knowledge. theyre still running stories and events that take place before that last graduation, or stories that dont take place at the academy (and thus we dont see it)

anyways. all of this to say that the war is insane. read the wiki page if ur interested! (content warning for short references to violence and suicide) https://ensemble-stars.fandom.com/wiki/The_War

i know you just asked abt the war but its important to contextualize it within the reference of the other eras! its very interesting to me actually that they do go the road of nobody strictly winning or losing the war (because war is bad for everyone involved), and especially looking into how it affects characters and relationship in post-war stories! :3

[supercantaloupe]

You said you're in grad school for musicology once, right? I'm curious as to what that's like and how you got there, since I wanted to major in something like musicology or music history for my undergrad but there's almost no programs for either on an undergrad level in my area (Except for one school) and I'm kinda loathing the idea of doing another 4 years of performance but I'm willing to do it as a means to an end (please disregard this ask if I was wrong abt your major btw )

under the cut for long answer ⬇

i think i understand where you're coming from. there were a lot of factors that went into where i chose to attend for undergrad but a chief factor among them was i wanted a liberal arts college with a music school, NOT a conservatory, because i knew if i put myself in the environment of a conservatory and spent 100% of my time working for performance i would burnout and quit. i wanted a school where i could balance music and other studies, which was important to me because when i started college i actually didn't know if i wanted to major in music. i started out as a music major but that was almost a placeholder at the beginning; i didn't know what ELSE i would study, but i figured it would start out in this music thing and i could switch majors later if i wanted. it turns out i didn't want to switch, and i ended up graduating four years later with a music degree, and 99% of the time i don't regret it. (the 1% is my standard built-in neurosis that makes me doubt everything i do all the time. it's whatever.)

but i will also add that i have a bachelor of arts, not a bachelor of music. so my BA program, while definitely music-forward (especially in my junior and senior years), was not quite as intense music wise as as a BM; i wasn't required to take private instrument lessons after three years, i wasn't required to do a junior or senior recital, i wasn't required to play in a major ensemble for all four years. (some of these things i did anyway for various other reasons, but they weren't required to graduate.) and i had more liberal arts (non-music) gen ed requirements to fulfill.

one other thing i'll mention is that even within the BA music program there were different concentrations/tracks. i was actually no emphasis/general, while i think every other BA music student in my year was performance emphasis. so me doing the general/no emphasis concentration within BA music changed some of my requirements as well (the performance emphasis track i think required that senior recital as well as some extra ear training classes i skipped). in hindsight if i could go back and change anything about my undergrad degree, i would go back and do BA music with a music history and literature emphasis, and/or pick up a music theory minor, but neither of these options were made known to me until it was too late to fulfill the requirements before graduation. so it goes. (i'm not even totally sure if these programs still exist given the current state of my university's music school but i digress.)

anyway, i went into undergrad not knowing what i wanted to do, even if i wanted to stick with music as a degree in the first place, and i came out the other end enrolled in grad school for musicology. i'll say that it took me until like. junior year to have a clue what musicology as a graduate program is, and it wasn't until my senior year that i actually realized it's what i wanted to pursue (and that there are ways to apply a background in musicology without necessarily becoming a full time researcher or professor, which is not my goal). i'm actually not just studying musicology right now, i'm in a dual degree program for musicology and library science, on paper i'm studying music librarianship but in effect i'm doing a lot more than just that. the musicology stuff is what i'm especially passionate about (especially history and public musicology) but the library science stuff brings with it a lot of practical skills that i think will be useful once i'm done with this whole school thing. plus my dual degree program doesn't require a thesis, so, win.

since i'm only halfway through my first semester of what will most likely be a three year program, it's hard to say so far anything actionable about musicology as a grad program. for one thing my school is kind of....struggling, in a lot of ways, and musicology as a graduate program area is actually shut down now; music history and theory courses will still exist, of course, because students in other programs still need to take them too, but there will be no more musicology masters or phd students after me, which is more than a bit of a bummer, tbh. and we were a small program in a small school to begin with. at any rate, i've been enjoying my musicology classes so far, with the exception of my analytical techniques class which is the most mind numbingly boring weekly three hour lecture i've ever had to suffer through (why does it take ninety whole minutes to explain what an imitation mass is?? come on). but course offerings and program requirements vary from school to school.

now i don't have a clue what your options or limitations are when it comes to picking a college. i had my own list and i ended up pretty happy with my choice in the end, but no doubt we have different lists. knowing that, i guess if i had to give you some actionable advice, it'd be this:

it's okay to go in undecided and pick a major later, or to start with one major and change it. undergrad is the time for you to figure out what you want to do with your life and career, and you find that out by trying stuff out.

so i suppose my next point of advice is "try stuff out." even if it seems wacky. i did one semester of composition lessons. taught me that i am Not a composer, lol. but if something seems interesting and the opportunity is there, i recommend taking it. by senior year i'd figured out that i loved music history but i'd already completed all the undergrad course offerings in the subject, so they let me into one of the grad classes. in the end that actually helped me get accepted into my master's program now.

don't limit your search for schools that have a major specifically in "music history" or "musicology," especially in undergrad. maybe a couple of schools will have one, but that's pretty specific for a bachelor's degree. but while every school is different in how they structure their degree programs, i'm willing to bet a lot of them offer a similar emphasis/concentration system like mine did, and/or minors. poke around on the websites of schools that interest you, or contact someone in the department who works there via email (there's almost always a contact listed for the department heads and/or dean of enrollment), try to see if any of them have concentrations in what you're interested in if not a highly specific major.

but also, if this is what you really want to study and there are truly no schools that offer programs that you like nearby, you may have to consider the possibility of expanding your search radius. i got lucky with the fact that the school i liked best was close to home, which was important to me. but there are schools with programs that are just as good if not better halfway across the country (and i did consider them when it came time for grad school). basically, start with a large list of potential options first, you can narrow them down later as you go along with the process of college searching. it's a big decision, so you should take your time with it.

if you're not totally set on doing four years of performance, i don't recommend trying to do that as a means to an end. that path leads quickly to burnout if you aren't careful. even if "BM [instrument] performance" sounds more prestigious on paper than "BA music", in the end it doesn't actually make much of a difference. if you decide halfway through undergrad you want to switch to performance, you can, talk to your advisor about it. if you decide after graduating you want to focus on performance, you can do a DMA program somewhere for grad school. hell, there's no shame even in starting out as BM performance and then switching to BA music or something completely different later. keep your options open, but i don't recommend trying to pigeonhole yourself just yet, especially with something that's just a "means to an end." for me, the bottom line with playing music is that i enjoy doing it, and while getting play alongside or as a portion of my education was important to me, if it was the only thing i would've quit years ago, which is not a thought i like to think about.

[cloudcountry]

life update because i wanna ramble to you:

things are going slowly. i got accepted to two colleges at least :3

i have exam week the week after the next but i did all my duel enrollment exams already and my school has senior exemptions so im exempt from my other exams so that’s nice

unfortunately due to my school’s current play of Christmas Carol, ill have to miss my lessons on friday morning :C which sucks since one class were behind in due to the teacher being sick earlier this week and another class being on a time crunch so if we don’t have the lesson tomorrow then we’d have to come to school during exam week and id rather have an extra week for winter break sigh

speaking of christmas carol, uh, opening night was a disaster. ensemble (which includes me) couldn’t remember some lyrics, our director who was playing scrooge this year messed up some lines, and the tech crew is just overall bad this time around they keep messing up. also the children ensemble are frustrating at times. i keep having to whisper yell at them to get out the way or the dressing room for me and the other ghosts to do our quick change 😭

overall, my life will be at peace again once this play is over

OH also i somehow worked really quickly on the thingy i planned that i asked all you guys for a reference for so at least i won’t have to worry about posting that one late :3

in hindsight maybe things aren’t going that slowly lmao

yhats a lot on your plate rn :C make sure you're getting enough rest okay? im proud of you for working so hard ^^ and im glad you've already been accepted into colleges!!! o yea plays are hectic and take up so much time and energy but i hope your next performance goes well!!!

[stoneworldsimp]

the dying poet

senku x reader

warnings: angst, mentions of food/water deprivation, swearing

day seven.

fuck, fuck, FUCK!

it felt like you had been running for hours, trying to shake this wild animal off. you made sharp turns behind large bushes in hopes of losing it, you’d hold as still as possible behind large roots on the ground, but the animal kept finding you in one way or another.

“please go away,”you panted. “c’mon. you’ve been chasing me fucking forever, can’t you just give up?!”

you were tired; your legs were about to buckle in on themselves. dinner one night was suddenly ruined when you realized the fucker was watching you eat. in the beginning you thought it was only after your food, not you; you threw a random ration away from your camp in hopes to get it away from you. in hindsight, it only worked until you fell asleep.

you were lucky to wake up the next morning alive; your set up had been ripped to shreds, and footprints were on the ground around your body. it was painstakingly slow and nerve wracking to escape your position, but once you had everything you absolutely needed, you booked it.

sprinting for miles after miles proved to be very difficult for quite some time now.

the phone...it’s weighing me down. my bag of food isn’t even half as heavy as the phone.

looking down at the call button in your hand, you thought about tossing the phone. maybe i can fix it.. no, i don’t have any tools, the fucking animal chewed on them like dog bones. is there any way to put the wire back together...?

“FUCK my life!”

you took the phone off your back and threw it to you left, careful not to trip yourself in the process. immediately, you and your body felt the difference. with your new found energy, the run away was becoming easier, and helped you see a large cave just over the horizon. using the last of your energy, you took as large of steps as you can, and practically threw your body into the cave. the animal’s footsteps were nowhere to be heard, but you figured you didn’t want to take any chances and look behind you. you were finally breaking free from being chased, just a little deeper into this cave, and if i can find specific markings then i can backtrack—

a deep, loud rumble took you away from your thoughts. in no time, you were engulfed in dust and thick particles you didn’t know of.

the caved had closed in.

day one.

“i can do it.”

“are you sure? its a pretty perilous trip—“

“you should at least bring one other person with you—“

you sighed, exasperated that you had to defend your case once again. it had been days since the decision was made; you were going to make a trip to another part of the island in hopes to find extremely specific materials for one of senku’s projects... and it was far, far away.

quite frankly, you were the only one fit for the adventure. you were known to travel well on foot, had an exceptional sense of direction and you had a good eye for natural elements, as well as food; you also were unintentionally the least helpful when staying in the village. you didn’t have the crafting skills to successfully make glass or metal components for his experiments, and you never trusted your brain when helping senku with calculations and blueprints.

hearing senku and gen talk about this long trip to another part of the island was almost a dream come true. it was perfect for someone with your skillset, and kept you from being in the way of everybody else.

“it’ll be fine. c’mon, you guys have SOME faith in our traveler, right?”

you turned around, a smile on your face as you caught senku walking out of his lab. thank you, you mouthed.

once senku reached you and the group of villagers crowding near you, he spoke up again. “this trip is a straight shot from the bridge, the only problem would be that it’s going to take some time. possibly a month just to get there. but you,” he turned to face you,”have excellent outdoorsy-type skills that will make it really easy for you to spot what we need right away. everyone needs to stop worrying, because you’ll be there and back in no time. two months will pass like nothing.”

as the rest of the group walked away, mumbling their skepticisms, senku took your hand and tugged you back to the lab.

“what’re you taking me here for? oh wait,”you planted your feet at the front of the lab curtains, keeping the both of you from entering. “are you making me help you with your math again? because—”

“no, you’re pretty terrible at calculations,”he replied. “i have something for you.”

you puffed out your cheeks in embarrassment, but your expression completely changed once the curtain was opened.

on the table, there was a telephone. if was the size of a backpack, but it still had a speaker, a microphone, and a call button.

“i made it for you to take on the trip, in case you have any emergencies. i fully trust you in your own survival skills, but you never know if something extreme happens.”

you gave his hand a squeeze before letting go. as you walked closer to the table, you touched the outer fabric. you turned back to senku. “thank you.”

“you don’t have to thank me. i’m only making something that’s essential to your travels.”

“even still,” you trailed off. “i appreciate it.”

you turned back around and beamed at senku. “i’m not going to call you until i get there. i want to make sure that no enemies try to tail me if they hear me, as much as i’d want to give in right away and hear your voice. something like that...”

“how corny.” senku smiled and pulled you close while you laughed. you jumped a bit when his hands made their way around your waist.

“a bit touchy today,” you asked, grabbing hold of his shoulders. “but i’m not complaining.”

“i’m stockpiling the feeling of you for the weeks to come. we’ve never spent this much time apart before; it’s only logical.”

“i guess you’re right.”

he kissed you, multiple times; each one was deeper than the last.

day eleven.

he brought me a flower every morning, because i always slept in later than him. he’d wake up at the asscrack of dawn, just to have more time to jot ideas down. i used to try and pull him back to sleep with me, but he was so overflowing with plans, i didn’t want to stop him.

you turned on your side.

i remember he went to explore with chrome really early one morning, and apparently they found some huge meadow with a bunch of plants. ever since then, he would bring me a different kind; it was always a single flower, too. they were different colors and shapes, and some were enormous and some were smaller than my finger. he never woke me up for it, though. he would just leave it for me when i woke up on my own. it was always a surprise, almost startling when i’d open my eyes. it was my own pick-me-up for the day, in a sense.. no matter what happened the night before, waking up to a new type of flower would put me in a good mood every time. it was better than a coffee in the morning.

i wonder if he’s looking at the flowers with chrome everyday while i’m gone. man, i still wake up hoping to see a new one in front of me.

sure, reminiscing was fun and felt good, but what’s the point? you had eaten all of your food approximately two days ago, you only had about a teaspoon of water left, and there was no getting out of there. the way you came in had been covered in a dam of rocks. you couldn’t even dig yourself out.

you furiously wiped the tears that fell from your eyes. “senku...why did i think i could go alone?”

day fifteen.

poke, poke—

something was touching you. no, someone was touching you. your head bobbed side to side, in an attempt to shake them off.

damn, that’s persistent.

opening your eyes, you woke up to senku smiling. he was knelt beside your form. “wake up, sleeping beauty! it’s been almost three hours.”

it’s only been three hours?!

you sat up way too fast, and felt lightheaded as you tried to ask,”but...why didn’t you.. wake me up earlier? did everybody...did everyone eat already?”

he laughed. “yeah, sorry. we all thought you were out doing something with chrome. but,” he turned around, to grab something behind him,”i saved some in case you got hungry when you came back.”

you took the food in a dizzy haze. was it even food? you didn’t care too much, it felt like you hadn’t eaten for a long time. any food at this point was good food.

you couldn’t even swallow the first bite. “do you- is there..any water?”

“what?” senku pulled away from you, a look of disbelief painted across his face. it was clear as day.

you hesitated, feeling more lightheaded than before. “w- water?”

“don’t you remember?” he asked. he turned away from you. “there hasn’t been any water in days.”

it’s been days.

your body jolted from its spot, and harsh reality hit you square in the face.

yes, right. you shakily rubbed your eyes to make sure they weren’t cemented shut.

in the cave, finished your food, no water to be found. making yourself walk around was no use, either; without the fuel, your body was essentially just a trembling mess.

you scowled at yourself; unsure of what to do, what to even think.

day eighteen.

you remembered how he kissed you. the first kisses the most; you always had to tell him to not look so terrified. you also had to remind him to not stand like a statue when you kissed. pretty soon, after some reassurance, he got comfortable. there was nothing but confidence in the way he caressed your face in his hands. usually he was the one to pull away; you were so mesmerized, it felt as if the world completely stopped.

they were always quick and out of the way in public. usually, it was on your forehead or your one of your cheeks. the deep kisses you felt when you two were alone were incomparable. soft lips remained on yours for what felt like centuries. he tasted sweet, in his own way—

wait, who?

you licked your lips slowly, trying to think.

it was no use; you couldn’t even remember what he looked like. you lolled your head to the side and stared at the outline of a rock a couple of feet away.

once i get out of here, i’ll kiss him. whoever it was. it won’t matter if it’s just us, or more people. i’ll kiss him forever.

maybe if i go to sleep.. i can see him again.

[jimblejamblewritings]

luck be a (leading) lady | part 4.

[Posted 2022.09.20]

Summary: Y/N has always been a background character. That’s just life for some folks isn’t it? But what if she’s determined to not just be another member in the ensemble? What if someone helps her step into the spotlight in her own special way?

Warnings for the Series: a teeny bit of angst but mainly fluff

Pairing: ricky bowen x black!reader

Word Count: 2.3k

A/N: I will get back to the Harry Potter series when I finish this one

Previous Part | (Series Masterlist)

The entire cast was back in the drama room as if the incident with Ms. Jenn almost losing her job never happened. It was a rough runthrough of the songs before the holiday break. Thanksgiving and then not too long before the show. You weren’t going to have the most relaxing holiday break. For once, you weren’t performing in The Saltwater Company’s winter play production because you had the biggest role of your life. You had been shocked when you auditioned to actually get such a role but you were excited nonetheless. Of course, you had to get through High School Musical first. 

“Alright, that’s a wrap for today,” Ms. Jenn said, closing her notebook. “Good job everyone. Ricky and Nini, practice the Start of Something New over the break, okay? It could be just a smidge better.” 

“I thought we did pretty good,” Nini said with a shrug.

Ricky looked over at her with big eyes. “You did? You thought we were good?”

You quickly turned around to pack your bag to avoid any secondhand embarrassment you might get from either one of them. You only turned back around after Carlos yelled that everyone was invited to a Thanksgiving party at Ashlyn’s house and he’d text everyone the details. Your eyes met Ricky’s. 

“I’ll text you,” he mouthed, knowing he and Gina were the only ones that currently had your number. The rest of the cast still didn’t really know who you were. 

Ricky was confused when his doorbell rang after Thanksgiving dinner with his dad. He laughed seeing you and Gina standing in the doorway. You were wearing a ridiculous little hat and Gina was holding a tray of cupcakes. 

“So I googled Ashlyn’s house and she’s the street over from you guys,” Gina said as she walked past him and into his house. “My mom dropped me off and I was going to walk you and Y/N over but it’s kind of cold out so I made you guys these hats? Um, I don’t know—”

“I love it,” you said, poking at the knitted beanie. 

Ricky laughed. “I can see that… and your outfit is interesting. Leg warmers?”

“I have some work to do at Ashlyn’s house, this was a compromise so I don’t have to leave early.” 

“The leg warmers are a compromise? You look like you belong in Step Up.”

Gina snorted. “I’m sorry? You used to hate musicals but you watched the Step Up series?”

Ricky just shrugged. Setting down the cupcake tray for a moment, Gina pulled the other knitted beanie with ear flaps out of her bag and put it on Ricky’s head. The three of you were laughing at how ridiculous you and Ricky looked with the hats. Knitting was clearly not one of Gina’s strong suits. The other girl picked up the tray again. 

“Ready to go?”

“Actually, can I meet you guys there?” 

You and Gina looked at each other. You gave her a nudge, feeling like she might relate to whatever was happening with him. Taking the cupcake tray from Gina’s hands, you gave them both a smile. 

“I’ll be waiting outside when we’re ready to go to Ashlyn’s.” 

It took a couple minutes but eventually Gina and Ricky were outside. You guys started walking to Ashlyn’s house, Gina a couple of steps in front of you. You walked shoulder to shoulder with Ricky. 

“Are you good?” you asked. 

“Yeah… no, but I’ll tell you later, okay?” 

“Okay.” 

You guys entered Ashlyn’s house, seeing Nini hanging up the phone from talking to someone. Gina kept walking to go put up the cupcakes. You were locking the front door and checking that you had everything in your backpack. 

“I didn’t think you would make it,” Ricky said to Nini. “We heard a rumor that Carlos went off the deep end with a game?”

“We?” 

“Me and the gals.” 

You chuckled, making both of them look at you. “Are you one of the gals?” 

“Y/N, I am so one of the gals. We’re besties aren’t we? We have matching hats to prove it.” 

“What’s my favorite color then?” 

“Cloud grey, what’s mine?” 

“Blue?” You gave him a sheepish smile. 

“What shade?” 

“Blueberry?” 

“Wrong, it’s d—”

“Denim blue,” Nini cut in. 

“Blueberry’s close,” you added, giving Ricky a pat on the shoulder. “I’m gonna go find Gina.” 

“Or you could go play the game?” 

“People, Ricky. You know I can’t.” 

“Just go sit on the couch then, baby steps. I’ll be over soon.”

You groaned but walked over anyway. You did just as suggested and sat on the couch. Gina sat right next to you, handing over a plate of snacks. You sat back while she played the High School Musical board game that Carlos made with everyone else. Technically Gina was playing for both of you. Unfortunately, you guys weren’t on Team Wildcat but Team West High Knights. It was you, Gina, Ricky, Big Red, Ashyln, and two other members of the ensemble. Everyone else got the cool team. 

Your team wasn’t winning but it was still fun playing. Besides, there was still time to turn it all around. Team Wildcat wasn’t ahead by that much. You sat up a bit when your phone vibrated— it was your silent alarm. Looking around for your backpack, you saw it by Ricky’s chair. You got up and grabbed it as the other team spun to hear what their next challenge was. 

You headed out the front door. Thank goodness Ashlyn’s lawn was dry and the grass was relatively flat or this would’ve been bad. The stretching routine that you did wasn’t the most elaborate but you had stretched before coming over and only needed a warmup that ensured you wouldn’t injure yourself at all. It was definitely cold outside without much on but you couldn’t put on more than the sweater over your dress otherwise you wouldn’t be able to check your lines. The real question was should you practice the entire time with music or properly go over counts that had been ingrained in your head since October. 

You had to practice but you gave yourself the smallest amount of time possible so you could get back to the party. Still, at least one runthrough of a couple songs without music and just counts would be helpful. You got up to test the grass. Deeming it good enough, you started to dance— beginning with a quick pas de chat. 

“So this is the work?! You’re a ballerina!” 

Your concentration broke. You saw Ricky standing on the porch. He noticed you leave and after fifteen minutes, he just wanted to check that you were alright or at least didn’t walk home alone. You walked back towards the front porch. 

“Yeah, the nutcracker production I said.”

“No, right, but do you really need to practice now? How much do they make the ensemble do?” 

“Surprisingly a lot… actually, I’m, um, I’m playing Clara.” 

“Clara? The Clara?”

“It’s my first big role.”

“Big role? It’s the role. And at The Saltwater Company, that’s only major. Why didn’t you say anything? That’s amazing. Everyone else shoul—”

“Ricky, Ricky, wait. Can we not?” You reached for his arm to stop him from going back to the house. 

“You don’t want to tell anyone?” 

“I… it’s not that important.” 

“Y/N.” 

“What if they want to come see me perform?” 

“Of course they want to go. We’re all going.” 

“What if I mess up and everyone sees. Can we just not, please?” 

“Okay. But you’ll show me right?” 

“You already caught me.” 

Ricky sat on the porch and you went back to the middle of the grassy lawn. He watched as you performed some of the routines. You kind of hated the audience, only your cat— Samson— ever watched you this closely. Even Kiana never got to see a private solo practice. But Ricky was quiet and just sat cross-legged on the porch while you danced. He only moved to give you light applause when you finished and gave a curtsey. 

“That was incredible.” 

“Thanks. Promise not to mention it.”

“Gina and Big Red?”

“Just them.”

Ricky held up a pinky. You laughed but hooked your pinky around his anyway. You guys both looked in confusion at seeing Gina storm down the driveway. She had some tears rolling down her cheek. 

“G, you okay?”

“I’m going back to your house, Y/N, and I’m going to ask my mom to pick me up. There’s no point in sleeping over anymore.” 

You dropped your hand from Ricky’s. “I’ll talk to you later… Gina!” 

“Is Gina okay?” Ricky asked when you called him. 

“Her mom just picked her up. She’s moving again.”

“Already? What?”

“She has no choice, apparently… Hey, give her some grace if she snaps or something. These last ten days are probably not going to be the best for her.” 

“Totally understand. Do you think I should call her?” 

“Right now? No. But definitely in the morning.” 

“Roger that… Hey, Y/N?”

“Yes?”

“I’m proud of you. Making friends with G and me, being there for her.” 

“Thanks, Ricky. Goodnight.” 

The phone call ended with a click. You didn’t see Gina at all when you got back to school after break. Hopefully, she’d just be missing one day instead of pulling away from you guys completely. One problem ran into another as you entered the auditorium with the rest of the cast for morning rehearsal. Most of the stage had been burned down. 

“Ms. Jenn?” Carlos asked. 

“Minor mishap, kids, let’s not think about it too much. We need a new venue but more importantly, you guys need to stay focused.” 

“How? The stage is gone and the firefighter lady just said almost all the costumes are gone!”

“We’ll figure it out. Rehearsal today is going to be a meeting in the cafeteria. Okay? Great.” 

You guys weren’t sure how great it was when you showed up to the cafeteria. It was obvious that without a theater or at least a stage there was no show. You guys could make do without the costumes and sets could be put together quickly if you all stayed up for nights to work. But you still wouldn’t have a theater. 

“I guess we could consider other venues,” Ms. Jenn suggested. 

Everyone started chatting to think of ideas. Ashlyn piped up. 

“The old Kingston downtown?” 

“It’s condemned.” 

“Lucky Ducky Puppet Pavillion?” EJ offered. 

“Just got bought to become a Starbucks.”

“The community theater near the puppet place,” Carlos brought up. 

Everyone agreed until Ms. Jenn had to stop all the chatter. 

“We don’t have enough left in the budget.” 

Ricky’s head turned to face yours when you tapped his shoulder. He leaned over so you could whisper in his ear. 

“We have a spot!” Ricky said, standing up. “Maybe, we’ll know by tomorrow night.”

“Where?” 

“The Saltwater Company.” 

“Ricky, I just said we can’t even afford the community theater.” 

“Y/N’s got us.” Ricky nudged you. You looked around and then at Ms. Jenn. 

“I’m pretty sure Bennet will let us use the main theater or at least the small stage.” 

“The main theater? Y/N, honey, how is that going to work without using my entire salary.” 

“I’m, I’m playing Clara this holiday season and I’ve been with the company since I was four. Bennet will let me. I probably just have to show up for morning rehearsals or promise to do the next puppet show for Larry but he’ll say yes.” 

Seb held up his phone. “It seats seven hundred people!” 

Everyone was in shock when they saw your theater in person. Of course they had been there for performances but that was just to watch. Bennet walked Ms. Jenn through everything, including where you guys should leave your stuff so it didn’t get moved or thrown away. He stood right in front of you after he finished the brief tour. 

“How much is this going to cost me?” 

“Remember the solo you didn’t want.”

“But Mackenzie’s playing the Sugar Plum Fairy.”

“Not anymore, she wanted to be the Snow Queen anyway and I finally have my vision. I’ve always preferred Clara turning into the Sugar Plum Fairy instead of just meeting her.” 

You didn’t say anything because that would be costing the venue for the rest of the cast. Instead, you simply headed to the stage to stretch with the rest of the ensemble. The rest of rehearsal, you barely made eye contact with anyone. The last thing you wanted was someone asking questions about you being in the nutcracker. Ricky came over to walk outside with you— you guys had taken to carpooling almost everywhere, switching off every other day. 

“You know,” Ricky said as you guys got into the car. “Recluse superstars aren’t really in style anymore.” 

“I think it adds mystery. I still have time to work on it.” 

“What if you get scouted tomorrow?” 

“I’m not getting scouted for anything, Ricky. I just need to learn to work through the anxiety but that is a problem for later.” 

“You know what’s a problem right now?”

“Gina?”

“Gina. Did you get the text?”

“You mean the letter about how we’re some of the best friends she’s had and she’ll miss us.”

“That’s the one. You don’t think she already left?”

There was one to find out. Your car didn’t make a left toward your neighbor but made a right towards Gina’s area. While driving to find Gina, Ricky was telling you— and partially asking for advice— about him and Nini almost kissing backstage. You weren’t quite sure how sound your advice was. Nini and Ricky were in a weird position. You wouldn’t consider them toxic that they should never be with each other but they seemed to be on different paths. Ricky conceded to that point. He liked your idea of just seeing where it goes with Nini whether good or bad. The car finally pulled up to a house with all the lights off. 

“So this is it? She’s gone.”

(part 5)

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[offtorivendell]

The Gavotte, and it's potential significance to Azriel and Elain Archeron

Please don't screenshot this post without credit.

Disclaimer: I am no historian, musical or otherwise, just another person who grew up playing the flute etc. in a few of their school's bands and ensembles; I know there were/are many of us. 😂 Please forgive any inaccuracies.

While working on a fic, and trying to correctly encorporate the music that Elain likes, I once again came across the passage in ACOSF where she mentions enjoying a waltz and a gavotte. Firstly, this took me on a tangent of searching for the old sheet music I haven't played in a while to find my favourite gavotte, and then back to Google to look into the history of the dance itself. Because why not?

Well...

It turns out that the Gavotte is a kissing dance.

The gavotte is a French dance, reportedly originating from the Dauphine region in the south-east of France, said to take its name from a folk dance of the same region (though other theories exist). Gavotte, interestingly, comes from gavot, which means 'alpine dweller,' or 'mountain dweller.' Could this have anything to do with a potentially slumbering Dusk Court currently residing under the mountain from which the Hewn City is carved?

While the gavotte eventually became popular with the higher classes of France and England in the late-seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries, it reportedly originated as a lively peasants’ kissing dance much earlier on, in which couples ended their performance with a kiss, or alternatively, the gifting of a flower, as was more common in its later years at court).

While the gavotte was popular at certain European courts in the late 1600s, and throughout the 1700s - so, before the Regency era (which is technically from 1811 to 1820 but, in terms of cultural trends, this can be expanded to cover 1795 to 1837) - it was still included in Regency era dances. Given many of us think that Elain and Azriel's relationship will be at least partially modelled on a Regency era romance - including charged glances and stolen touches, not to mention Feyre said that they would be a 'handsome' couple - then it could be (hypothetically, of course) significant that Elain mentioned that she enjoyed a gavotte. Or not, because the dance's association with flowers and kisses alone is compelling.

What could the gavotte have to do with Elain and Azriel?

As we just learnt, the gavotte is a dance that is typically ended with the presentation of a flower, or a chaste kiss.

Which couple have been dancing around each other for the last year, sharing charged glances, and stealing touches?

Which couple's first kiss was interrupted by Rhys last solstice, right after a flower (symbolised by the rose necklace) had been gifted, and placed around her neck?

Azriel and Elain Archeron. 🌸🦇

As @alwayssara said in this post, which is a really sweet parallel/headcanon, and I need for it to be true, we learnt about two dances in ACOSF: the waltz and the gavotte.

Did Elain learn to dance the gavotte when she - I assume - took dance lessons as a young girl, as many children of wealthy families once did? Or did she somehow come to love it when they lived in their rundown cottage, during their years in poverty? It was probably the former, given Elain’s apparent grooming to become the sister who would marry to further their family's connections (and then, likely, to marry them out of poverty), but I would love to learn that she sneaked out to the occasional village dance, as a small act of rebellion, however unlikely.

Azriel, who was there in ACOSF, when Elain listed two of the dances that she enjoyed, later waltzed with Nesta, at the winter solstice celebration at the Hewn City - the only male to whom Cassian would willingly 'yield' her - and he was, as Lady Catherine de Bourgh would have said, 'a great proficient.'

This leaves one of the aforementioned dances un-danced, so...

Will Azriel dance a gavotte with Elain in her - hopefully their - book?

@nikethestatue wondered how Elain and Az would share their hypothetical first kiss? Could a dance be their impetus? Or part of the build up?

Will they be together on the Continent, perhaps on a mission, and they end up at either a seat of power, or a local village, where nobody recognises them, or knows that Elain has a mate? Where they don't need to hide?

Who would instigate it? Will Azriel opt for the more conservative floral offering, but Elain decides to hell with it?

Have tensions been simmering all throughout their mission? Will Elain have to psych herself up throughout the entire dance, battling nerves? How well does she remember the steps, if it has been - potentially - at least a decade since she last danced a gavotte? Does she become flustered at her lack of prowess, but Azriel thinks her blush is the prettiest thing he's seen in centuries? (Thanks, as always, goes to @nikethestatue for encouraging the fluffy headcanons).

As always, so many thoughts. Hopefully some of them come true. 😂

[the-celluloid-correspondent]

Tár

Lydia Tár considered one of the greatest living composers-conductors and the first ever female music director of the Berlin Orchestra, life falls apart as horrible accusations are made against her.

It was going to be sooner or later till an accomplished filmmaker decided to take on the complicated phenomenon of "Cancel Culture". Cancel Culture both has its virtues and toxicity. Finding the right balance between these two stark differences was going to be a monumental task for any filmmaker. Not only is the balance difficult, but also puts everyone who works on this type of film in the crossfire of this unpredictable trend. Thankfully, Director Todd Fields chose to remain neutral to this trend, which gives probably the most honest look at this phenomenon.

The brilliance that lies within Tár is the film's ambiguity. Field delves deep into Tár's character showing her numerous complexities, layers, and relationships. So complex that it requires several rewatches to fully grasp her character properly. We see her through an unbiased lens. No choppy editing to make her look in a specific manner. Just numerous long takes with elevated dialogue and minimum editing for us to get a clear picture of Tár's character. The audience is only given quick, mirage-like glimpses into what she is accused of but never a clear, unbiased picture. How one views this is entirely left up to the audience, which is where the brilliance of this film lies. Field allows the audience to determine whether or not Lydia Tár should be canceled.

I am sure it's a pretty safe call that Cate Blanchett has secured herself another Oscar with this performance. She masterfully portrays the numerous complexities of Tár's character and her dramatic fall from grace. At numerous points, I forgot that I was seeing Cate Blanchett on screen, but instead, I saw Lydia Tár. She completely embodied her character. Her ability to showcase so many emotions without saying a word proves yet again that she is currently one of the best actors in Hollywood and easily deserves her third Oscar. Noémie Merlant and Nina Hoss are both able to hold their ground against Blanchett and both portray characters that a much deeper and more complex than they seem. Overall, masterful performances from the entire ensemble cast.

For a film that is about a composer's fall from grace, the score is sparingly used. The score is only present when she is conducting and I respect the Field's approach to this. It gave the film a sense of realism and made the score more powerful when it was present. The film is beautifully shot with stark hues between brown-gold and blue-grey. All of the orchestral scenes were wonderfully shot and incredibly real. Real enough that it reminded me of my days in middle school band.

My only real complaint about this film is that it felt a little long and some scenes dragged out longer than should. With that stated, Tár is a fascinating character study of human nature and all of our complexities. Furthermore, it respects the intelligence of the audience to make up our own minds about Tár innocence or guilt. Do you think she deserves to be canceled?

I am giving Tár, an A-.

[starmakerphantom]

OCs! Woo

Hi im Phantom and my hyperfixation is making ocs. These are my ensemble stars ones i have drawn already and some infos about them!

Akio Nijihara

-Part of a unit whose theme was that they are RPG charackters. Hes the healer

-His whole gimmik is that hes a nurse. Modeled after my sister who is very low empathy

-I gave him sister related trauma

-i need to make his other unit members.

-his glasses are fake, he wears them for aestatic

he will get a drawing with a plague goctor outfit and he will get a drawing with a labcoat where just....candy drops out. Im just bad at art

Kihiro

-insecure little bitch, copes via means of fashion and being not nice

-mainly sensitive about his looks and being small (basically "if people want to stare at least give them a goo reason)

-blooms on stage, his worksona is very pleasant to work with

-will always choose the sluttiest costume available

-actually used in an rp!! Gay gay homosexuall gay

-His unit is named Chronostasis, their theme is Gay Lasertag

-he wears a facemask and froggy hat. Used to wear a hoodie but the hat was a gift from his units leader

Secret Garden

Oh damn a whole unit but i dont have their costumes

Leader- Sai Himawari

A poet, an artist. If words fail, sing. If singing fails, dance

-Logical conclusion? Become idol

-(obv. a valkyrie mega fan. He would never admit that. We know its true)

A romantic soul

dense fucker, Aji could be stabing someone in the background and hes like "what did we say about using our words"

Hes a wip

Aji Kengai

-oh boy

-a gardener

-"yeah thats safe to eat, trust me bro"

-is an idol because hes BIG GAY for Sei, and with big gay i mean hes a yandere because im cringe

-bad at words

-i loaded all my body image issues into him

-if he smiles with his eyes closed, run

If you put their names together (Ajisei) supposed to spell the japanese word for hydragena :,)

Kokoro Cafe

WHAAAT, Another Unit? YES! Main boys. Their gimmik is that they cute cafe staff/ a host club

Leader- Gekko Amina

-looks and talks a bit sus, but actually a good boy

-got scouted, formerly know as the karaoke king

-loooots of confidence, a bit cringe

-shark teef, has to wear braces.

His jacket is so big it has room for another guy

-ironically, he has stae frigth

I FORGOT TO WRITE DOWN HIS NAME AAAA ITS ON THE OTHER REF

-movie fan, but like only old hollywood stuff because he likes the divas so much

-has adapted the personality....is aware he currently lacks the talent to justify it

-friends with Gekko so thats how he ended up here

-has trouble taking no for an answer

-i just think hes cute

Hayato Mikimura

-"Haha great plan guys, anyways wheres my paycheck"

-In need of money. Does this for the money

-scam artist. And not ashamed to rope the other 3 in

-has a twin sister who used to medel

-gets cold fast

-at least he provides brains

Yani Hanabe

-"Wait this is an idol school?" Didnt you go trough the entrance and performance exams? "yeah-" AND THAT DIDNT RAISE QUESTIONS??

-Anxiety on legs

-needs a haircut

-and better clothes

-actually the one who had the idea of the cafe theme after a job brougth them all together

-he is their SON but they also bully him the most

All 4 of them have crossdress designs. Take a guess why

The one i havent drawn yet but is the worst/ best idea

-he has (animu)amnesia

-but is convinced becomming an idol will help that

-im working on it once my hand is doing better, i work better AFTER i drew a vague concept

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

I can make a shuffle with that many boy. Theres already a temporary unit in story

I love ocs so much. I want more

I want to use them more

Im just very shy about showing my writting

If ur lucky i manage to do more idol costimes

[chocoholicannanymous]

Concepts of Insanity (Glee)

AN: No proofreading whatsoever. Subject to rewrite if I change my mind about it. Take it or leave it.

Concepts of Insanity

“Kurt? Oh, there you are, good. We have an emergency!”

Kurt smiles a little as he finishes up rearranging the flowers. He adores Isabelle, he really does, but she's a bit...excitable. There's always an emergency, or a disaster, or a catastrophe. So far today there's been four, unless he's miscounting; a lose hem, a missing delivery of non-alcoholic champagne, Isabelle almost fainting from forgetting to eat, and the flowers he's currently fixing not being enough something or other. He's actually kind of curious what it is this time.

He gives the flowers a last look, nods with satisfaction and turns around. The smile on his lips dies the second he meets Isabelle's eyes. This isn't a normal emergency.

“What's wrong?”

“The musicians are here, only the vocalist is currently throwing up to the point where they've called an ambulance.”

Kurt winces. That doesn't sound good for whoever it is. Also it really doesn't sound good for them. Isabelle had gone out on a limb with the small ensemble she'd hired for the event, deciding to make the music more than a background by having some songs performed with vocals. To have the vocalist missing would throw off the setlist. Maybe not enough for most people to notice, but at an event like this? Someone would definitely notice.

Especially since word seemed to have spread.

“I've spent the last ten minutes on the phone, and there's not a single vocalist to be had. This is so bad, Kurt! I'm never going to hear the end of this.”

Kurt hesitates, uncomfortable with voicing his possible solution, but deciding to offer it up anyway. It's Isabelle.

(Plus Rachel will never forgive him if he doesn't and she finds out.)

“I know it's not what you were aiming at, but my roommate is a NYADA student, and I know that most of the songs you picked out is in her wheelhouse. I could call her? If she answers she could hop in a cab and be here in 30 minutes.”

Isabelle looks a bit hesitant, but nods.

“Please do. I'll pay for the cab too, obviously. Check back with me in 5 minutes?”

Kurt agrees and hurries out to a silent space, phone in hand already dialing as he walks. There's no response for his first call, and Kurt leaves a hurried voice mail for Rachel to call him asap as it's an emergency. He then sends the same message as a text before trying to call again. He manages to squeeze in a total of five calls before he has to return to Isabelle, without response.

Maybe Rachel's in the shower again. Or singing. Or on a date with Brody.

“I'm sorry, Isabelle. I couldn't get hold of her.”

“Never mind, I have an idea. Can you do it?”

Kurt stares at her, not quite believing he heard her right.

“Me?” She nods and he shakes his head. “Isabelle, you've never even heard me sing!”

“True. But honey, I know how good you are with fashion. For you to chose music over that you have to be either insanely talented or just insane. So, will you do it?”

Kurt wants to shake his head again. What she's suggesting is crazy. Yes, Kurt can sing, but... His focus on music is more and more looking like insanity. He's just gotten rejected by Carmen Tibideaux a second time, for crying out loud. “Devoid of complexity and depth” echoes through his skull.

Except. This is Isabelle asking. His fairy godmother of sorts. He owes her.

“Are you sure? I'll do it, if you really want, but I'm not going to be anywhere as good as whoever you'd hired,” or Rachel for that matter, “and I don't want to ruin this for you.”

“You are going to be amazing. Thank you, Kurt, you're a lifesaver!”

And with that Isabelle floats off, leaving Kurt in a dazed state. He's going to panic, sooner or later, but for now he's still too stunned for it.

Right. His first action has to be to talk to the ensemble. The plan was to have the vocalist on three sets of three songs throughout the evening, but he's not entirely clear on what numbers had finally been picked. He will probably need to review lyrics up until the guests arrive, provided he can actually manage all of them. He's got a good range, yes, but that's not everything.

Oh, and he should swing by Isabelle's office and nab the blue west he'd spotted earlier – he'd dressed to fade against the wallpaper, not to be seen.

The first set goes well, as does the second. By the third and final he's lost enough of his nerves to let Isabelle drag him out on the floor instead of going off to hide as he'd initially planned. Several people drop by to talk, and he gets more than a few compliments. Maybe it's more about looking good to Isabelle than about actually liking it, but Kurt will take it anyway.

“So, you must be not just a talented singer but talented in fashion too for Isabelle to have taken you under her wing. Do you study fashion or music?”

The woman, Nadia something, asking sounds genuine and so Kurt gives her a small smile and answers as pleasantly as he can.

“Neither actually. I'm applying to NYADA though.”

There's a flash of something in her face, but Kurt can't quite make out what it is.

“For the spring semester? Ah.” She hesitates, sends a look towards where Isabelle is talking animatedly about something, and then looks at Kurt again.

“Can I be honest? Carmen Tibideaux is a very talented woman, in everything she does, and she's got an eye for picking out talent. However, she's also got a bit of a reputation.

“She loves to discover new talent that others overlook. Except every now and again she'll go about it in a rather underhanded way. She'll have someone audition, someone talented but a little raw around the edges. Someone with a ton of talent but a weak resumé, often with a little less self-esteem than most performers. She'll praise them and then turn them down. Most of the time they'll come back, looking for a second chance – she said they were great, right? Surely that means they'll get the part sooner or later, if they just approach it right.”

Kurt swallows. It sounds a little too familiar for comfort.

“Sometimes she'll turn them down both a second and third time, and then she'll put them on the spot, giving them another chance as long as they step out of their comfort zone and perform to her standards. And then she'll take them, and she'll own them. They'll go through their whole careers claiming they owe it all to her.”

She looks Kurt in the eyes, sincerity radiating out of her – but Kurt knows how little that means, in these circles – and a kind expression on her face.

“I'm not saying that's you, but for you to be applying to the spring semester, with your level of talent... If she's doing it to you, you should know you're not the first, and I doubt you'd be the last.

“Any school would be well served to have you as a student, I think. I already know you're talented, and as I know Isabelle I also know you have to be hardworking. Plus, seeing as that ensemble always works with a female vocalist I'm assuming something happened to have you step in at the last minute, meaning you stand up to pressure.

“NYADA is not the only school in New York for a young man like you, and I'd argue that it's not the best either. Think about what I've said, will you? And thank you again for a very enjoyable performance.”

It's only years of pretending in the face of bullies and a worried father that allows Kurt to pull of a believable goodbye and graceful exit. After this he's definitely hiding in Isabelle's office, damn it.

When Kurt comes back to the loft it's late and he wants nothing more to fall into bed, nighttime routines be damned. But Rachel's sitting on the couch, waiting for him judging from the expectant look on her face.

“I tried to call you.” It comes out a little flat, but Kurt doesn't have the energy to pretend. He needed her, called an emergency damn it, and she hasn't even texted him back in the six hours since his frantic calling.

“I heard, but I was busy practicing my number for tomorrow.” She doesn't even look sorry.

“Oh? I thought you said you didn't have any assignments for tomorrow.” That was why he'd felt safe calling her, after all.

She just waves a hand, clearly not too bothered.

“Nothing official, no, but that's no reason not to be ready to perform. I'm sure there will be an opening for me to dazzle my classmates.” And she goes on to describe the songs she's considered, and who's done them, and why her version is better, and Kurt just...tunes her out.

She hasn't even asked what he wanted. It's as if the thought hasn't even passed her mind. Well. If she's not interested then he's not going to waste his time telling her – especially not since she's bound to get upset over losing an opportunity to perform for an actual audience. He's also not going to waste his time listening to her go on about what she'd done instead of checking in on him.

“I'm going to bed.”

“Kurt! I need your input on this, surely bed can wait a bit?” When he shakes his head  her face hardens. “Fine, be that way. NYADA is hard, you know. It takes dedication. Maybe if you showed a little more of that you would have gotten accepted.”

Kurt shoves down the desire to slap her and bites out a “goodnight” before stalking off to bed. He can't believe she went there. Oh wait, he can. It's so Rachel, to just look at herself and ignore everything else. Show more dedication? Devoid of complexity and depth. Fuck her. Fuck them both.

Kurt had knocked his audition out of the park. Rachel and madam Tibideaux both had admitted that. Meanwhile Rachel had choked. Yet he'd been rejected while Rachel fucking Berry swanned around NYADA claiming to be dedicated. She never should have gotten accepted based on her audition. And somehow he just knows that there's no way she'd admit that Kurt should have been given that spot, not her.

As for madam Tibideaux and her “I rarely give anyone a second chance and if I do it's on my terms”... Bah! Rachel had harassed her way into her second chance. Hell, she'd recruited several others to also harass the madam on her behalf.

But somehow Kurt reapplying was the foul thing here. Right.

Maybe it was time he looked at options other than NYADA. That woman at the vogue event, she'd said that other schools might be a better fit for him. She'd sounded like she knew what she was talking about. Unlike Kurt, honestly, who'd pinned his hopes on NYADA based on Rachel. Hindsight has him questioning if he'd been slipped something, because leaving his college education up to whatever Rachel wanted? Insanity.

Well. Insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting a different result, right? Clearly it's time to change his approach.

O--o---o--O

A week later Rachel comes home from the NYADA Winter Showcase bubbling about her success and how she's taken them all by storm. She makes a snide comment or two about how Kurt should have been able to see it for himself, had he taken the ticket she'd gone through so much trouble to acquire for him instead of doing whatever (it's called work), and Kurt just nods. He doesn't really care, but. He has to at least pretend to listen to preserve peace in the loft.

“Oh, I almost forgot! Madam Tibideaux asked after you.”

Kurt stills like a dog scenting prey. This he wants to hear.

“Oh?”

“Yes, apparently she was considering giving you another chance at applying. I don't know why she had to do it tonight, as it's for NYADA students and you're not, but she did. You should probably contact her. If you apologize properly she might still be open to it.”

Rachel looks at him, waiting for a reaction and clearly not pleased with what she's seeing.

“Well?”

“I'll think about it, Rachel. Calm down.”

And he will. Only he's not too eager to apologize to madam Tibideaux, or give her another chance to toy with him and probably reject him (he didn't show up for what she had planned, after all). It all sounds very much like what Nadia described at the vogue event. He listened. He might not have liked what he heard, or wanted to believe it, but he listened. In more than one way.

Over the past seven days he's written half a dozen applications to various music schools in New York, and sent them out. His current favorite is the New School, where a tour of the campus has given him a very good vibe. He'd be happy there, he thinks, and they might be happy with him. At least that's his take from meeting a couple of faculty members, one of the more prestigious of which just so happens to be Nadia.

Who would have guessed that doing a favor for Isabelle would lead to this? He might just owe her even more by now. Fairy godmother indeed.

~ The End ~

[contrabassconversations]

934: Remembering Wolfgang Guettler

obituary courtesy of the International Society of Bassists:

Wolfgang Güttler, whose decades-long career as a performer, recording artist and educator garnered numerous awards, including the Concours de Genève, died on September 18, 2022. He was 77 years old. 

Born in Brasov, Romania, he was solo bassist with the SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg, and tutti double bass with the Berlin Philharmonic and Bucharest Radio Orchestra. He served as professor of double bass at the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln and the Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe, and gave masterclasses at the Julliard School. 

  He was dedicated to expanding the double bass repertoire, from classical standards to jazz, and was a champion of contemporary music. His remarkable musical partnership with the Rumanian double bass virtuoso Ovidiu Badila was cut short by Badila’s untimely passing. 

  Says Martin Wind of his late teacher Wolfgang Güttler, “He encouraged me to listen to my own voice, follow my instincts and become an independently thinking, complete musician. In my 25+ years of teaching there has not been one day where I did not pass on the lessons that I learned from him.” Petru Iuga also paid tribute upon learning of Güttler’s death: “He was one of the greatest bassists and musicians I ever met. A great man, friend and a spiritual double-bass father who has inspired me.”

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  Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio - CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah’s website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

  Upton Bass String Instrument Company - Upton’s Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.

  theme music by Eric Hochberg

Check out this episode!

[putseraphinaonthaphone]

Chromatic

Classical Pianist Katsuki Bakugou has a favorite coffee shop on the short walk from his studio back to his apartment. It's small, 24 hours, and has a stage that's always free for musicians to use. And it's run by you, a would be musician who's a better baker and coffee maker-that he can't stop coming back to see.

@nanamisbento & @hanji-is-life both made a world of difference in making me feel confident enough to write this as a full drabble, so thank y'all <3 y'all are sweethearts and I love this au so muchhhh

~light angst, slow burn, black!queer!reader, musician au~

"Cross my heart hope to die, I ain't got no love to give," you plucked at the guitar strings lazily your eyes focused on nothing but the strings and trying not to cry- and if felt like your alto voice was fighting through gravel. Huskier than normal, verging on tenor like you always dreamed about, and you were too fucking sad to enjoy it.

You missed your friend, you missed talking to him. Teasing him, making him laugh. And worse, you knew the home he went back to wasn't the healthiest. You knew all too well how a house could be so much worse than the stress of school.

"Baby boy so goddamn fine, swear you give me a peace of mind," and it was true. Just being near him, talking about poetry, anything, made you feel so calm. Fuck you missed him.

"Swear you make this young girl go crazy," If some tears fell onto your fretboard at least it was late enough that no one would come in until the morning rush.

"Now how could a man like you want somebody, so incredibly immature, insecure just like me?" Because he was just as insecure as you. It's why you two would talk on the phone for hours on end, about all your fears and worries, as much as your happiness. He was the friend you could talk about the lowest lows with because neither of you were afraid or unfamiliar with rock bottom- mentally, emotionally.

You slipped the strap of your electric guitar over your head and put it back on the rack (you left it out for musicians of all kinds to play when they felt inspired by your shop's vibes) and wiped your aching eyes. You didn't see or hear Bakugou slip back out the side door he'd came in through.

~

He'd first started coming in April, when the Washington rain was too torrential not to seek cover. He'd walked in soaking wet and spitting curses as he shut the door behind him. Ash blond hair and garnet eyes plus a jawline you'd cut yourself on meant you were half way infatuated before he even ordered.

"Black coffee with extra raw sugar, and whatever bread you have that's not sweet." It was a rumbling bass of a voice and damnit now you were officially in love- but then you noticed a case that you guessed carried an electric keyboard by the shape at his feet and in your excitement (that distracted you from his stunningly pretty face enough you could talk to him without tripping over your words like you were sure you were going to when you first came to take his order) you grinned at him so genuinely he forgot he was pissed.

"Sure thing, but just so you know- we have a permanent open mic set up here. You can play whatever instruments of mine you'd like to use, or you could set up your keyboard. It's great to see more musicians in here." You meant it, he could see in the way you seemed to light up like fireworks just talking about it.

"..Maybe next time." He tried to say hell no I'm never coming back to this tiny ass shop, do you know the size of the stages I usually play?!

But how could he regret his grumbled words when you clutched your small notepad to your chest and asked him in a rush (with a sparkle in your big doe brown eyes that didn't match your shaved head or heavy silver rings and earrings but was adorable nonetheless) "You mean it? You'd play here?"

It wasn't the same eagerness of ochestral directors prepared to embarrass themselves for a chance for The Katsuki Bakugou, classical pianist prodigy, to play with their ensembles. It was just a person who loved music and ran a tiny well cared for shop that was full of second hand furniture and mismatch cutlery and china, that was excited at the thought of music being played at all.

"Why not? I could play some of my own compositions for once instead of another goddamn Bach piece." You must have been imagining the blush on his cheeks because it was gone in seconds, and he was glaring at you with only the slightest of smiles taking the sting out of his words. "But am I going to get that coffee before I catch a cold from the fucking rain currently soaking my fucking clothes?"

Now it was your turn to feel heat burning in your cheeks as you sheepishly saluted "Right, coffee," and ran back to your bar to start his order. You found some fresh plain yeast rolls on the top shelf of your display case and an old towel in your supply closet. And if you didn't think about how much of a dork you made of yourself in front of your hottest customer to date your hands didn't shake when you put together his coffee in the largest cup you could find.

"Least sweet bread I have, black coffee with a fuck ton of raw sugar.." You winked to (hopefully) let the blond know you were kidding, "and a towel to make sure you'll survive long enough to play for me sometime."

He snorted and snatched the towel from your hands, starting to rub it vigorously over his hair with a blatant lack of fucks for how fluffy and wild it made it hair, but it seemed to you that there was humor in his voice as he sighed, "That depends on how good your shitty coffee is."

~

He started coming in on the regular after that. Sometimes dressed in a suit, that he was all but ripping off until he could roll up the sleeves of his dress shirt and unbutton the collar so he could breathe. (The first time you saw the bare column of his throat and the obvious strength of his chest meeting the delicate structure of his collar bones, you had to blame lifting heavy bags of coffee beans for your breathlessness.)

Sometimes he came from the opposite direction, dressed in jeans and old tshirts when it finally started warming up. He brought in his keyboard on those days and played a range of compositions you knew were his without him having to tell you. His left hand was more comfortable in the lower octaves of his keyboard when it was his own work, and there was more grief mixed in the bombastic anger that fueled the more staccato and forte phrases that had everyone in the small shop falling quiet to listen. Because it wasn't just hammering at the keys, it was complex harmonies of thirds and major sevenths that haunted the air even as he was moving on to the next phrase that was more of a murmur of echoing themes that passed back from hand to hand.

But your favorite times to see him was during your night shifts, when the shop was mostly deserted except for your quieter night owl regulars. Then he'd play pieces that were.. lullabies. Soft melodies and less minor chords than his daylight pieces. He'd take breaks in between pieces to come talk to you at the bar, ask your opinion on his playing- the genuine way he listened to your comments and compliments making your heart melt more than his good looks could have done alone.

And some nights, especially when it rains, he's telling you about the superficial nature of the classical music world and how sometimes he wishes he'd never gone into orchestral piano and just stayed in his old tiny but cozy apartment.

"Maybe we would've met anyway, and you'd still have this place and I'd come play for scraps on the weekends." And damn the wistfulness hits him hard, you can see it in the way his eyes soften for the first time in knowing him.

"I wouldn't let you play for scraps, it's tiny but it's my place. And your music would only add to the atmosphere. You'd get full employee wages and free coffee on the house." You're wistful too, and maybe it's the rain but you'd love for this dream to be real. Even for a moment.

~

You were sure you'd actually walk into being head over heels in love if he did one more sweet thing for you with his signature grumble and glare. But it was weird, ever since a few weeks back he'd stopped coming by as often. Looked at you strange when you teased him like you were both used to, and played pieces with more anger and sorrow than you'd ever heard from him before.

It was turning into the longest you hadn't seen him by the end of the week, so you were fucking furious when he strolled in one night.

Obviously coming from one of his bigger performances with the coattails and tuxedo tie, but no smile to show for it. Not even smugness in his eyes from a performance well done. He looked a little like shit actually, dark circles under his eyes and something indescribably sad in his garnet gaze that sought you out as soon as he walked in. It was the only thing that stopped you from completely ignoring his order when he came to the bar.

But you couldn't stop the obvious way your jaw was clenched while you worked, the hurt in your eyes when you set his coffee down in front of him.

He said your name, low and questioning, confusion growing on his perfect stupid face and that's when you couldn't take it anymore. He looked like shit, but you felt it. Losing one friend in a year was more than enough heart break for you. Having a friend, who you were already half in love with, start ghosting you on top of that? You weren't strong enough to take the highroad.

"Don't you fucking dare look at me like you don't understand. I don't understand why you decided our friendship doesn't mean shit to you anymore. If you were going to fucking ghost me I would've preferred if you'd done so before I started waiting for you to come by." You were glad no one was in the shop but the two of you when you realized somewhere along the line of yelling at him you started crying. Kat was looking at you with his mouth open in shock, and you didn't want to wait around to drag out your embarrassment.

But you were surprised when he came after. Calling your name again, moving quickly to get around the counter to follow you.

"Wait. Wait." His hand grabbed your wrist, the first time he touched you with no pretenses or excuses. The strength and gentleness of his hold only making it harder to stop your tears.

"I didn't mean to make you cry." You almost wished he'd go back to his more brash daylight self, you can't handle how quiet and gentle he gets in the early morning hours. Your heart was too soft on him already- even in your anger, you didn't resist when he pulled you close and cupped your cheeks. The pads of his thumbs wiping away your tears.

"You were crying that night too, when you were playing. I'd never heard you sing before." His fingers were on your lips, silencing you before you could even ask what the hell he was talking about. It was too much. Being unable to escape the way his eyes watched you, the way his voice got quiet- confessional.

"Let me finish. I heard you sing, and I saw you cry, and the thought of you crying for another man made me so angry I thought I'd die from how much I hated him. Whoever he was. So I stopped coming by as often. I didn't know that would hurt you.. I didn't think you would care if you were still heartbroken over some asshole." It was starting to make sense, starting to make you hope that maybe.. maybe he felt the same way you did.

"I get heartbroken over friends you know. Just friends." Your words are slightly muffled by his fingers, but its worth it to see the hope flare to life in his eyes.

How had you both missed it? All these months of longing.

"But the way you broke my heart by just not coming by? When I didn't even know what was wrong? That's worse than anything I've ever felt before-"

Your first kiss with Katsuki was salty from your tears, but it was okay.

He wanted your tears, your lips, you to be his and only his.

~

[symphonicscans]

Interview with Hozumi for Sarasate Magazine, 2019

There are next to no interviews with Hozumi, so when I heard about this magazine having one I immediately bought it. Finally got around to translating it, and while it doesn't really talk about much, it's better than nothing! I formatted it to fit the original magazine, but there is also a text transcript as well.

Download the interview in PDF form (or read the transcript below) (I was also really pleased to get my headcannons confirmed XD)

WHO IS SOLLIMA?

Hozumi’s “My Giovanni” was inspired by the piece Violoncelles, Vibrez!

In the story, the main character Tetsuo Tezuka idolizes a cellist named Giovanni Bazzoni, who is modeled after Sollima, and the piece that inspires him is Call of the Cello, which is of course based on Violoncelles, Vibrez!

Giovanni Sollima * Composer, Cellist

Born in 1962 in Palermo, Sicily, Italy, he studied cello with Giovanni Perriera and composition with his father Eliodoro Sollima at the Conservatorio di Musica di Palermo. After graduating with honors, he continued his studies on cello with Antonio Janigro and composition with Milko Kelemen at the University of Music in Stuttgart and the Universität Mozarteum in Salzburg. In 1997, he founded the Giovanni Sollima Band in New York City, a group made up of musicians who were already active as soloists and chamber musicians, with such luminaries as Claudio Abbado, Martha Argerich, and Philip Glass. His compositions are often said to be strongly influenced by minimalist music, but he has established his own style by freely incorporating a variety of genres, including classical, rock, jazz, bop, and ethnic music from the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and Africa.

His most widely recognized work is a ballad for two cellos and string orchestra, titled Violoncelles, Vibrez! (1993), which was dedicated to his close friend Mario Brunello, a fellow student of Janigro. It has been performed by many cello ensembles in Japan, including in an arrangement for eight cellos. His other solo cello piece, Lamantatio (1998), which requires the cellist to sing as well as play, is also frequently performed. He also has written a work for shamisen and orchestra, which was commissioned in Japan. He currently teaches at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome, and the instrument he performs on is a Francesco Ruggeri made in 1679. His first visit to Japan was in 2004 for the “Summer in Tokyo,” where he performed Violoncelles, Vibrez! amongst other pieces.

A Must-Read Comic for Cellists

“Boku no Giovanni”

Writer/Yumi Kogo

Characters

The cast of the comic

Tetsuo Tezuka

A boy who loves the cello. After looking for a fellow cellist to play with, he ends up having mixed feelings about Ikumi’s cello talent. He later goes to study with Yuriko Soga in Italy. After returning to Japan, he enters a competition.

Ikumi Tachibana

The other protagonist of the story. The only survivor of a marine accident, he is taken in by Tetsuo’s family and is introduced to the cello. He grows up to become a emerging cellist in the classical music world.

Tetsuro Tezuka

Tetsuo’s older brother and good friend. He used to play the cello, but became jealous of his brother’s ability and stopped playing. Later he becomes a ‘mental trainer’ for musicians.

Yuriko Soga

A cellist living in Italy, Tetsuo initially refers to her as the ‘witch.’ She has a carefree personality, but she is an internationally famous cellist. She later becomes Tetsuo’s teacher.

Yukari Narita

A student in the piano department in a Music High School. She becomes Tetsuo’s accompanist, introduced to him by Yuriko. She likes his free style of playing and they become fast friends. She brings out the best in Tetsuo.

-

“Boku no Giovanni” is a popular music-themed manga serialized in “Monthly Flowers,” a manga magazine for women published by Shogakukan. There have already been four tankoubon released. The manga depicts the lives of two boys who choose to dedicate their lives to the cello, and it’s become popular not only with women but men as well. The story is different from the usual type that follow music students living happily while competing with each other, instead delicately portraying the struggles of a boy who aspires to find his place in the world of music. It is in this setting that the character modeled after Giovanni Sollima appears, and they play an important role in the story.

The Beginning

Tetsuo Tezuka, an elementary school student who plays the cello in a small port town, feels lonely because his older brother Tetsuro, his only cello-playing friend, has stopped playing. Tetsuro had begun to feel inferior to Tetsuo’s rapid improvement, so decides to distance himself from the cello so he wouldn’t end up hating his younger brother. Unaware of his feelings, Tetsuo repeatedly asks him to play ‘Giovanni Bazzoni’s’ work for two cellos, Call of the Cello with him.

At the same time, a large passenger ship sinks on a stormy sea off the coast of their island; a faint voice in the distance is heard. Ikumi Tachibana, who followed to voice to the beach, loses his mother — his only living relative — in the accident, and is taken in by Tetsuo’s family. There, Ikumi learns that the voice he heard was actually Tetsuo’s cello playing.

World-renowned cellists Sollima and Yo-Yo Ma as models

Tetsuo starts playing the cello at age six. He always asks his older brother to play together with him.

It all started when he saw a video of Call of the Cello by Giovanni Bazzoni, which his father gave him. The character of Bazzoni — who has a great influence on Tetsuo — is modeled on Giovanni Sollima, the cellist and composer, and Call of the Cello is reminiscent of one of Sollima’s masterworks, Violoncelles, Vibrez! The other cellist in the panel, Lesser Curtis, is modeled after Yo-Yo Ma. Tetsuo was fascinated by the ‘shadow dancing’ between the two world-famous cellists and became enraptured with the cello.

***

Ikumi finds out that Tetsuo wants somebody to play cello with, so he can play Call of the Cello with them, so he asks Tetsuo to teach him how to play. Both boys start out lonely, but day by day they grow closer through their connection with the cello, and vow to remain lifelong friends.

The world-famous cello “Witch”

Another person who stands out in this story is the character of Yuriko Soga, a world-famous Japanese cellist living in Italy. Every summer she visits Tetsuo’s house to relax. She has a carefree personality, but her playing is of the highest level. Through Yuriko, Tetsuo realizes how difficult the life of a professional cellist is, but also thinks that he has no talent. As if to fight against this reality, he refers to Yuriko as a “witch” and rejects her as an outsider in his world.

One day, Tetsuo spends a week at his grandfather’s house, and when he returns home he finds that Ikumi has effortlessly learned how to play the Dvorak Cello Concerto, which he is unable to play yet. He becomes angry and jealous of Ikumi’s talent and his ability to play with the ideal sound that he wants for himself, and there are many scenes after this that make the reader turn the pages with a heavy heart; only in comics can you see the mood and atmosphere of a person’s feelings at a glance.

As if to escape from Ikumi, Tetsuo goes to study abroad in Sicily, Italy, where Yuriko lives. Five years later, he returns to Japan only to find that Ikumi’s talent has blossomed. Tetsuo pursues his own unique way of making music, but struggles to find a pianist to accompany him in a competition due to his strange way of playing. Through his connection with Yuriko, Tetsuo is introduced to Yukari Narita, a high school pianist who prefers a free style of playing, and this inspires Tetsuo to search for his own style in earnest. It will be interesting to see how his relationship with Ikumi and his future as a cellist develops in future chapters...

(Caption beneath image: Monthly Flowers March 2019 / featured cover illustration)

Interview with the Author of “My Giovanni”

- Hozumi-san - Discovering Sollima and the Fascination with the Cello

Hozumi-san, the creator of “My Giovanni,” debuted in 2010 with her work The Wedding-Eve, which won the Silver Flower Award at the Monthly Flowers comic audition. She made her published book debut with the same work, which is a collection of short stories of which the title is one. The book won the 4th Pukurog Grand Prix in the manga category, and also placed second in the “Staff Choice: This Manga is Amazing!” It also placed second In the ladies’ comics category. Subsequent works include Sayonara Sorcier, which depicts the life of Vincent Van Gough, and Usemono no Yado.

My Giovanni was inspired by a performance of Sollima’s Violoncelles, Vibrez! The series began in 2016 and is still ongoing. We asked Hozumi-san to talk about her encounter with the cello, its appeal, and how My Giovanni was born.

She first fell in love with the cello through 2CELLOS.

Q: I understand that you have always liked minimalist music. How exactly did you come to know about Sollima?

A: My first exposure to minimalist music was with Michael Nyman’s The Heart Asks Pleasure First, but one day I got hooked on 2CELLOS. I had a CD of cellist and composer Siegen Tokuzawa, but I had never watched a proper cello performance before. When I started listening to 2CELLOS, I became more and more fascinated with the sound of the cello and started listening to serious classical music. That’s when I came across Sollima’s Violoncelles, Vibrez! From that point on, I started buying Sollima’s recordings and playing them while working on manuscripts (laughs). After that, I listened to recordings of Joe Hisaishi, Ryuuchi Sakamoto, and others that had a bit of minimalist elements, but I still find it difficult to listen to completely minimalist music. I prefer works that mix minimalist elements with folk and other styles.

Q: I heard that your encounter with Sollima’s works is what led you to create My Giovanni. What was it about Sollima’s music that appealed to you?

A: More than anything, it’s the drama! Of course there’s a strong element of repetition since it’s minimalist, but after listening to a song I feel a sense of fulfillment, as if I’d watched an entire movie. When I heard it for the first time, I remember being impressed and thinking, “Wow, I’ve found such an amazing piece of music!” I was so impressed. It seemed like all of human life experience was depicted in it, and I racked my brain wondering if and how I could draw a manga like that. I started to draw it, but it still didn’t reach the ideal I have, and I’m still struggling with it (laughs).

Q: Do you have any specific cellists that you modeled the characters of Tetsuo, Ikumi, and Yuriko Soga after?

A: I don’t have anybody specific in mind, because I think the way they perform is related to their personalities, so I wouldn’t want to attach them to a specific cellist. I’m not sure it’s a good idea to use anybody in particular as a model because, for the sake of the story progression, I sometimes have to push through the performance scenes with a more comic-like style…

But I have a feeling that there is a bit of Sollima in all of them. Actually, learning to play the cello has made me realize that more.

Q: Hozumi—san, your drawings of cellists are natural and beautiful. Is there anything you pay attention to when you draw them, or anything you are very particular about?

A: I really appreciate you saying so. But I don’t think I’m quite there yet. I actually started cello classes and tried to play the cello myself, but it’s really difficult to draw not only the instrument itself but also the playing position — and not only for cellists. I will continue to work hard to draw the flow of the skeleton and muscles as realistically as I can.

Q: You said you’re learning to play the cello. What was your impression of the cello when you started playing it?

A: This might not be something to talk about in a classical magazine, but I was in a band for a while when I was in school, so I had a little bit of experience with the electric bass. So, when I started cello, I had the faint hope that I would be a little better than an amateur because it was a string instrument… but (of course) it was completely different. Unlike electric bass and guitar there are no frets, and even just holding the bow is very difficult. It was a struggle for me to make a single note sound good. Since then, when I hear cellists play — which I used to listen to without much thought — now I am in awe of them. When I draw the characters in my work I think, “It’s amazing, they can all play so well.” (Laughs)

Q: What is the appeal of the cello for you?

A: It has a wide range, with high notes that pull at your heartstrings but also deep bass notes. I think it’s great that they can play everything from melody to bass lines, and since I used to play the bass I think it’s really cool to be able to do that! As a manga artist, my motivation for drawing them is to find a way to express the sexiness that cellists exude when playing cello.

Q: What are your favorite songs, both to play and to listen to?

A: I haven’t gotten very far with my playing because I’m too busy with the manuscript, but I often listen to the song Rain by Ryuichi Sakamoto. It’s a trio for piano, violin and cello, and I imagined this song when I was drawing the live performance scene for the same ensemble in the comic. I also like Piazzolla in general, but in particular I often play Duo de Amor when I’m drawing.

I really like to hear the cello played by my teacher.

Q: How much time do you spend practicing the cello? What do you find most difficult when you practice?

A: Actually, I haven’t been able to attend classes since I had a health scare last year, and I’m not able to play as much as I used to. Really, all practicing is difficult, but if I had to pick one thing I’d say that even though my left hand fingering is good, I can’t keep up with the bowing… sorry for being such a beginner…

Q: Is there a moment that made you glad you started playing the cello?

A: I’m really only a novice, so just being able to play a single note with a tight, deep sound is a great feeling. “Amazing! I can make the cello sound like a cello!” That alone makes me very happy. Also, it was really helpful for me to understand how to hold the bow and use proper tilted posture as a reference for drawing, it was really great! I’m also happy just listening to the teacher play so skillfully in front of me.

Q: What color is your case?

A: I haven’t bought a case yet because I’m still at the stage where I’m renting my cello, but I like white ones and the deep red Bordeaux-like color, and in the comic Tetsuo’s case is white and Ikumi’s is Bordeaux.

Q: Like My Giovanni, many of your works feature gentlemen, siblings and their home environments. Are those things you consciously decide to focus on?

A: When I create my stories, I often adapt and build on my own experiences as a teenager, so that might have an influence on my work. However, I think the best part of a story is to leave things to the imagination of the reader rather than explaining everything about how the story came to be. Although there are fragments of my personal memories in some parts, it is undoubtedly the original story of the characters, and I hope you will enjoy reading it until the end.

[hamiltonimagines]

Fell For You

Pairing: Daveed x Reader

Summary: Y/N is in the Hamilton cast and faints during the show. Daveed is concerned and misses the show to stay with her and help her get better.

Word Count: 2.4k

Warnings: Fainting/Passing out

I had feeling a little sick all day, but I had to power through it, because it was it a two-show day. Tomorrow was my day off so all I had to do was make it through today. I took some medicine before I left my New York apartment and grabbed my big bottle of water. If my voice was going to make it through two shows, I would need all the help I could get.

I walked into the theater and started the walk to my dressing room. “Hey Y/N” I heard a voice say behind me. I turned around and saw none other than the one and only Phillipa Soo. I was in the ensemble and played Eliza’s understudy. Because of that I became best friends with Pippa, Jasmine, and Renée.

“Hey Pip, how are you?” I asked, knowing I would have to act like I wasn’t sick so no one would know. “I’m good, but how are you? You look like you’ve had a rough day” she asked. “No, I’m perfectly fine. I’m ready for two shows” I said, faking enthusiasm.

“Come on Y/N, you can’t trick me. What’s up?” She asked. “I may or may not be getting sick, but don’t tell Lin or anyone please” I begged her. “If you don’t feel good, just take the day off. You work so hard, you deserve a day off” she assured me.

“I can make it through today, tomorrow is my day off. I promise I’m fine” I said. She stopped me before we walked into the dressing room we shared with Renée and Jasmine. “I won’t tell anyone, but only if you take care of yourself, don’t push yourself too hard. If you get worse I’ll tell Daveed. You know he won’t let you perform while you’re sick, he loves you too much” she teased.

“Come on Pippa, Daveed and I are just friends. We aren’t in school anymore, a girl and a guy can be just friends” I said, trying to convince her, but she knew me too well and would never fall for that. The truth is I’ve had a crush on Daveed since I met him. We’re really good friends and I knew telling him how I feel would just ruin things.

“I’m just saying, you both act like a married couple. And the way Daveed looks at you, proves he has to like you” Phillipa told me. “The way Daveed does what?” I heard a recognizable voice say and then felt two hands rest on my shoulders. I froze, realizing it was Daveed.

“Oh we’re just talking about how much better Anthony would be playing Lafayette and Jefferson” I teased. “Oh haha so funny” Daveed said, faking laughter.

“Lin said he wanted to talk to me about something, so I should probably go do that” Phillipa lied, as smirked at me and walked away.

“So how’s my favorite Y/N?” Daveed asked, as he moved to stand in front of me. “I’m doing great” I lied, smiling. Then I got that familiar scratching in the back of my throat. I quickly covered my mouth as I had a coughing fit. There was no way Daveed would believe that I wasn’t sick. “Hey, are you okay?” He asked me, as he placed his hand on my shoulder. “Yeah yeah I’m fine, guess I just choked on air a bit” I lied, trying to convince him. “Orrrr you could say I took your breath away” he said and winked.

“Alright that’s enough. You’re such a flirt” I said, rolling my eyes. “Just for you, my love” he joked and blew me a kiss. “I’ll see at call time” I said turning around and walking into my dressing room.

My cheeks were beyond red, I could feel the heat radiating off of them. There was no way he didn’t notice how much I was blushing.

I sat down in front of my mirror and heard giggling behind me. I turned around and saw Renée and Jas both with the biggest smirks on their faces. “And you say you guys aren’t dating” Renée said. “Oh shush, he could hear you” I whispered. “Ooo someone’s cheeks are red, I wonder who made you blush like that?” Jasmine teased. “I can’t stand you two” I said, giggling. I turned around and got ready for the show.

I had made it the winter’s ball scene. I was dancing with Daveed and he had a worried look in his eyes. “You okay?” He asked me. I just nodded, I needed to save my voice as much as possible. He went along with it, but still looked concerned.

I had made it through the first half of the first show and it was currently intermission and I was in my dressing room sitting down, trying to drink as much water as possible. I kept coughing and felt absolutely horrible.

Daveed walked in and sat down next to me. “I know you said you were okay, but I’m really concerned for you” he said as he turned to face me. “It’s nothing, just a little cough” I reassured him. He pressed his hand against my forehead. “Y/N you’re burning up. Please talk to Lin, he’ll let you stay backstage. You’re really sick, you might make it worse. I don’t want you to be in pain” he said, sounding very worried. “I can handle a little sick, and I’m drinking water. It’s just half the show and then another show. I can do it, I promise” I told him.

I felt so bad for lying to him and minimalizing this, but I didn’t want to disappoint anyone by failing at doing my job.

Then they made the announcement for places and Daveed helped me stand up. He put his arm around my waist and helped me walk back up to stage.

“As soon as you need to get off the stage, let me know and I will figure it out” he promised me, before leaving to go to the opposite side of the stage.

I put on a fake smile and walked out and performed to the best of my ability.

We got to the Stay Alive Reprise and I was standing in the wings. I was standing in the wing, looking for my water since my throat was burning. I couldn’t find it and realized I had left it in my dressing room. My muscles wouldn’t allow me to walk all all the way there even if I had the time.

I cursed under my breath and leaned over and put my hands on my knees. I tried to regain my breath and I heard loud footsteps. I looked up and saw Daveed running over. “Lin told me you looked sick, you need to stop. You can’t go back out. Have you been drinking water?” He asked me. “Daveed, I’m fine. I’ve been drinking water, I can finish the show I promise” I told him.

“You don’t look good Y/N. Please just stay here. You won’t disappoint anyone, no one will get mad at you. I need to know you’re safe” He confessed.

Had I not been so horribly sick, I knew I’d be blushing at how concerned he was. I heard where we were in the musical and ran back onto stage to my spot, before Daveed could stop me. Everyone would think I was weak if I couldn’t finish the show.

I finally made it to the end of the show. We were all doing the final bow. I had made it through the first show, I had told Lin I couldn’t do the second show. But, I made sure to finish the first one.

I stood next to Daveed when we did our bow. I was holding onto his hand like my life depended on it. I knew I was far too weak to be standing on stage. I hadn’t had any water in a while and I could barely stand up on my own. Daveed had definitely noticed and was supporting a lot of my weight, by letting me lean on him.

We took our final bow and he held on tight to my hand to make sure I didn’t topple over. I kept that fake smile on my face for the crowd. Then we started to walk off the stage. Daveed held onto my hand and we walked off the same side of the stage. “You did it, you crazy powerhouse. Now let’s get you some rest” he whispered in my ear.

I was not walking as fast as him even though he tightly held my hand. All of a sudden, the room started to spin and I felt lightheaded. I felt like I couldn’t keep up with him. I had to keep going, I was almost off the stage. “Da..dav...daveed..” I said, just as we made it into the wing.

My hand dropped from his and I felt myself slowly start to fall to the ground. It felt like I was watching it in slow motion. I heard Daveed call out my name and then everything went black.

I slowly opened my eyes and winced at how bright the light was. I looked around and recognized I was in Daveed’s dressing room, then I saw Daveed sitting next to me. He had his head in his hands and he was messing with his hair.

“Daveed?” I said, trying to get his attention. He quickly looked up to meet my eyes. “Y/N you’re awake!” He said, with the biggest smile on my face. “Did I really faint or did I imagine that?” I asked him. “No, you really fainted. Gave me and everyone else a heart attack. I was so worried about you” he said, looking relieved.

“I’m sorry for scaring everybody” I said, honestly. “This is on me, I should’ve stopped you from performing. Then this wouldn’t of happened” he said, blaming himself. “This isn’t your fault, you tried to stop me, but I didn’t listen. I pushed myself too hard.” I told him. “Next time, please be careful, I can’t watch you get hurt” Daveed said.

My feelings for him felt ten times stronger. He was so caring and compassionate. Too bad he would never like me back and we could never be together.

“Wait! If you’re here, is the second show already over?” I asked him. “No, it’s going on right now. They’re in act one” he told me. “What? Then why are you here? You should be out there, not in here playing nurse” I said, I felt guilty that I made him miss a show. “No, I chose to be here, you’re more important” he said grabbing my hand and I blushed. “You shouldn’t have to miss a show because I’m a mess” I told him.

“I can’t believe you still don’t get it” he mumbled under his breath. “Get what?” I asked, confused.

“I like you Y/N. A lot. I have since we first met. I’m here because I care about you too much to just leave you here by yourself. I know this will ruin our friendship and you’ll probably hate me, but I can’t watch you as you talk about how you feel like you’re a bother, when there is nothing in this world I’d rather do than be here for you” he said.

I was in complete shock. I couldn’t believe what he just said. Was this a joke? A cruel trick? He surely knew about my feelings and was trying to mess with me. After all these years, had he really felt the same way?

“You....you like me?” I asked, still in disbelief. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t of said anything” he said, putting his head in his hands. “No no don’t be” I said. He looked up at me with a confused expression. “I like you too, I always have. I thought you knew all along” I confessed. It felt so good to have it off my shoulders. “You’re not just saying that?” He asked me, still cautious. “I mean every word, I promise” I said, smiling.

“Well then, come here you dork” he said as he cupped my face and pulled me close. Our lips connected and it was so much more than I had ever imagined. It felt right. It felt meant to be. I placed my hands on his chest and he continued to kiss me. He placed one of his hands on my waist and then we both pulled away and leaned our foreheads against each other’s.

“Hey how is..OHH would you look at that?” We heard someone say. We looked over and saw Lin standing in the doorway. “It’s intermission, I was coming to check on Y/N. But, I see you two have finally gotten up the courage to tell each other how you feel. It took you guys long enough” Lin said, with a smirk plastered to his face.

“Alright, you can go now, but don’t tell anybody” I groaned. “Oh I’m telling everybody, I mean, nobody will be shocked” he teased as he left the room.

“Well I guess they were bound to find out somehow” Daveed said, as he kissed my hand. “We are never hearing the end of this” I said, giggling. As soon as I said it, both our phone pinged. We looked and everyone was sending messages in the Hamilton groupchat about how much they shipped it.

“That was quick” he said, before putting down his phone and pulling me into his lap. I placed my phone with his and admitted “I can’t believe it took us so long to get to this point. All it took for us to finally confess our feelings was me fainting”. He smirked at me and said “I guess when you fainted, you fell for me”