#and i'm unemployed so i'm home alone

[gregorygerwitz]

Moustead + Hollywood AU

Jay Halstead had lost count of the number of dangerous stunts he'd done. He'd actually lost count of the number of movies he'd worked on to begin with, and then multiplied by the number of stunts he'd done for each one... well, he hadn't gotten into the business because he was good at math, that was for sure. He did it because he was good at it. He did it because he enjoyed it. He did it because the rush of adrenaline that came with it was almost as good as the connections he made doing it.

He'd been working with Thelma Gerwitz and her productions company for years without a single bump in the road. He was in every standard contract that Elliot Knox's agent drew up after the actor's big break - the fastest growing name in Hollywood had to have the best stuntman in the business for every role, of course. It meant Jay had steady work for as long as Elliot did, and as each contract was signed, he learned more and more about the production company that seemed to be bankrolling the star's entire rise to fame.

"Halstead! Get over here!" "Is there something you need from me, Thelma?" "Show Greg around the set, will you?" "Aren't there PAs for that? They get paid to deal with visitors." "Don't be ridiculous, Halstead. Greg isn't a visitor. My son will be working with the director this week as the liaison with your stunt coordinator. You aren't too busy to give him a tour, are you?" "No, ma'am."

One set tour and one week of his performance being run by another set of eyes for approval is all he'd signed up for. When that turned into three movies in a row, and then a brief stint on some show marketed to teenagers, and half a dozen more movies... Jay saw more of Greg than he even saw of Elliot. That might have had something to do with how much time they spent in Jay's trailer. Liaising. About stunts. And definitely not making out against every surface they could find.

He was just getting tired of that - sneaking around, hiding under the bed or in the cramped trailer closet when someone needed Greg's attention - when it all went wrong.

Elliot was throwing one of his usual fits, something about Jay's jawline showing up too much in a shot and taking the attention away from him. He acted as if anyone even knew Jay was there, as if he didn't brag in every single interview about doing his own stunts. But that was just what the job was - doing the dangerous stuff that no one else wanted to do, and letting Elliot take the credit for it. That was what he expected to do on a daily basis. At least it was a good paycheck.

What he didn't expect was a miscalculation, a rig that wasn't checked thoroughly enough, a harness that wasn't quite up to holding his weight. He was supposed to be caught in the middle of the fall, stop in midair so that the footage could be cut in with a take of Elliot hitting an airbag and continuing with the scene. Instead, the rope just kept slipping through the rig, and it was Jay who was filmed at the end of the fall, but there was no bag to catch him. So, when he fell, he hit solid ground, and the crack that filled his ears at the impact was quickly replaced with the ringing coming from inside them.

A fall like that was more than enough to end any stuntman's career, no matter how much of a recovery he would make. That was a fact that Greg had known before he knew he wanted to work on movies at all. He followed his mother to sets through his childhood, watched movies get made, watched stunts performed by professionals to make for perfect shots. When he brought up the idea of directing a movie of his own, she encouraged that dream, with the stipulation that he learned the ins and outs of it all before he did it on his own.

Greg liked working with the stunt teams almost more than he liked working with the stars. He knew what to ask them to get just the right shot for the final product, knew how Erin, the stunt coordinator on most of his mother's films, liked to communicate with her team. He fit in better with the nobodies, as Elliot liked to call them, than the people who had cameras pointed at them beyond their ten hour filming days.

Specifically, he really liked Jay.

He really liked the privacy of trailers, and getting time alone with someone who didn't want his attention just to get on his mother's good side. He really liked talking about his work, and the directorial decisions he helped make on set every day, even if his name was what had gotten him in that position in the first place. He really liked kissing the man who cared about his input where they couldn't be interrupted or judged by anyone who wanted to insert themselves into his life.

Watching the fall that ended his boyf- best friend's career was a moment he would never forget. It had felt like slow motion, like a bad dream that he was going to wake up from at any moment. But he never did.

Instead, Greg pushed through the worst of his fears and anxiety and stopped by the hospital once a week. He never made it past the elevator, sometimes staring at the hallway that led to where he knew Jay was, but never stepping out of the protective cage. If he did, he might get the ground ripped out from under him, as if he was the one who had fallen, not wanting that feeling back of his stomach in his throat. Maybe he was. Maybe he had fallen even before the malfunctioning rig had taken so much from him.

He got glimpses of Will, the brother he'd seen pictures of but never met. He got quiet updates during lunch breaks on set from Erin. Jay was going to be fine. He was expected to make a full recovery, after more time than anyone would like him to spend in a hospital and a strict physical therapy schedule. But he had his family to get him through that, and Greg knew from the start that he'd never had a chance at being part of that inner circle.

He let himself be swayed by his mother, pushed his focus back to his career and the stunts that had to be filmed for each project. After two years, he could forget about Jay when he was awake, put all of his attention to what needed to be done in a work day, and those eyes would only haunt him in his dreams. It was good for him, or so his mother liked to tell him, not letting himself worry about something he couldn't change. He could gain his own reputation in the industry, start signing onto his own projects, and take on the task of directing a movie from the start of the process to the end.

It was long enough after the incident that he didn't think about it when he was planning a scene with Erin. He didn't even think about it when the new stunt guy on his set took a turn on the track too fast and ruined the shot by bumping into the camera. He didn't think about it while he marched across the set to give the apparent rookie a piece of his mind. He didn't think about it while the car's door was pushed off and landed on the ground - the model was completely totaled, so he was quietly glad that the rest of the run went flawlessly, even the way the vehicle flipped across the tarmac, and the VFX team could fix the botched angle.

He didn't think about it until the familiar body straightened up, and for the first time in years, he was looking at Jay Halstead again.

"I thought you always said you were going to leave it to Elliot to make the dramatic entrances." "This entrance wasn't dramatic." "You showed up on my set, Jay. Two years of radio silence and then you just showed up without so much as a hello before you busted a camera." "I told Erin that the track was-" "I don't care. Last I checked, you were out of the stunt game completely. Get off my set and leave it to my real crew." "Your real crew? Sorry, I was under the impression that you asked for me specifically." "After you never texted me back or returned my calls? Why would I ever want to see you again?"

[disdaidal]

WAIT i saw ur post earlier about waking up with a headache and forgot to reply but HOPE you're feeling better. also STRESS is draining and not having the energy to be online is so fucking real. but hi how are you i miss you i think of you lots i hope you're doing okay 🫶🏻

Oh, I'm fine now, thanks! :3 The headache was absolutely killing me yesterday, but it's gone now. Turns out it was 'that time of the month thing' after all, so... *sighs*.

But maaaan~ I've really missed you too and hope you're doing okay yourself, aside from all the stressful stuff and all. 😅❤️ I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind going on a vacation somewhere far away, nice and chill where one could just settle down and relax and not think about... anything lol. 😎✌️ At least for a while.

[unnamed-atlas]

WE FUCKING WIN THESE!!!!

[iero]

Every time I mention living alone to my mom, my mom always has to talk about how much she hates that I live alone and always extends an invitation to let me move in with her and her boyfriend and six months ago and before, it was a very hard no and now I'm like... Now I'm considering it to be honest.

Living alone, the number one most negative thing about it is that you’re left to simmer in your own thoughts because it’s just you there and if you’re a Master Overthinker, someone who just gets stressed super easy or you just suffer from classic mental illness? It’s not ideal.

[chlorinecake]

❝ TADAIMA ❞ ✦ — 𝐎.𝐒𝐓 🍙

PAIRING: Pervy Homestay Roommate Shotaro x F. Reader

GENRE: Smut, Enemies to Fuckers, Set in Japan

SYNOPSIS: While on a 2-week trip in Japan for a cultural research project, you end up boarding with the strangest man imaginable: He’s dirt rich, unemployed, and triples as a pervert…

WARNINGS: KINKTOBER SPECIAL, swearing, mentions of EJ from &TEAM, voyeurism kink, mutual masturbation, shotaro gets drunk at a restaurant once, use of sex toys (a vibrating dildo), handjob, clit play, kissing, switch!taro x switch!reader, minor use of the japanese language (sorry if its cringe or inaccurate lol)

WORD COUNT: 7.5k (I still don't know how that happened) — DAY 3

COLLEGE: A JOURNEY that most folks, including yourself, viewed as a grueling scam that ironically accessorized an equally crooked work-system proceeding the four mandatory years of academic suffrage.

But at the end of the day, every scam succeeded on the back of fraud, and if you were gonna get something worthwhile from your college experience, that is, beyond just a fancy diploma to hang on a wall, you’d have to adapt the same dirty playbook...

Skipping over some boring ass details here, but you decided to become a cultural studies major at your university for the sole benefit of being able to jet off around the globe once every autumn for free, and it was honestly the best.

Taking free trips so long as you tackle some pointless academic assignment almost felt like cheating... or better yet, like living life on easy mode...

Your current voyage was set to explore a place in Asia, specifically the humble city of Tokyo, Japan.

You’d be traveling alone for 2 weeks alongside a homestay family that your academic advisor arranged for you to stay with.

Brimming with excitement, you remember promptly leaving the airport with your bags secured and a camera in hand, eager to begin your overseas adventure in a foreign land!

Unfortunately though, your enthusiasm quickly waned the moment you arrived at your homestay host's doorstep, which brings me to introduce your internal eyeroll as provoked by the one and only Shotaro Osaki, a.k.a. the menacing man in his early twenties that you'd be sharing a home with until you returned back home 14 days later...

TIMESTAMP: 1日目

“Not to sound rude or anything, but I was expecting a host family...” you specified at the front door while kicking off your shoes, shocked to only find two young men occupying the large home.

“And that’s exactly what we are, silly!... Me, plus my friend Shotaro here, plus you equalsss... well, one big happy family!” Euijoo Byeon, the taller and younger of the two, chirped reassuringly, but his efforts still didn't aid your confusion.

“Correction: "Host family" is just a mainstream term, and doesn't strictly refer to full families only... kinda like in this case where I'm the actual homeowner and EJ's just a friendly freeloader,” Shotaro clarified, but you found yourself focusing on his facial features more than any of the words that came out of his mouth so far...

His pearly doe-eyes, button nose, heart-shaped lips, thick hair, and even his angular jawline... it all garnered your attention—

“Heyyy, I'm not a freeloader!” Euijoo defended himself with a forced pout, “I contribute around here pretty often with the homestay students, in case you forgot...”

“Please, you already know that everyone who steps foot under my roof is obligated to serve me in one way or another... including you, ____-chan.”

He smiled as he said those words, looking you dead in the eye with his hands in his pockets.

“Excuse me?” You asked in utter shock at his bold statement.

“Oh, c'mon... acts of service are my love language... that is... right after physical touch...” Shotaro said with a deep sigh, right before taking a few lazy steps until there was no more than a gentle push separating you two.

A brief silence filled the room until EJ helped himself to moving your suitcases from the front door, and off to another room as the sudden business reminded Shotaro to stay on track with you.

“Follow me as I take you on a brief tour of the house, please...”

His home was adorned with beautiful Japanese calligraphy paintings, elegant Shoji screens, and a stunning view of cherry blossoms in the living room. The scent of green tea roamed the halls, but the room you’d be staying in had its own scent… similar to that of cardboard… and grass...

It was like its own little secluded hideaway from the rest of the home, and you felt honored to have such a nice space all to yourself.

“I recently added this extra room to the place after my last homestay student trashed the first space… that’s why it still smells a little… earthy in here,” Shotaro said as if he'd just read your mind.

“Oh, I don’t mind the scent at all!” You replied, hoping that your gratitude was evident. “I really appreciate you even giving me this room...” your voice trailed off, but only because you noticed that Euijoo had helped himself to fully UNLOAD your luggage items now...

“Euijoo-san, thank you for carrying all of this for me, but I can take care of my belongings myself from here,” you said in the most patient tone you could muster.

“Oh, that's nonsense…” he responded with a swatting hand, “you just got off an exhausting plane ride and deserve a break... Besides, it's a joy for me to help homestay students, anyway...”

“Euijoo-san, seriously, I’ve got it,” you said more casually this time, and in a failed effort to hide the anxiety and frustration growing within you.

The tension was almost unbearable for you in this moment—

“You’ve got some pretty nice clothes, by the way, ____-chan,” the young man went on, flipping through your clothes as if they were pages in a comic book.

“T-thank you,” you said shyly, really feeling your face burn up as he slowly started to put your items into the bedroom dresser one by one.

And his hands were so meticulous, too... carefully refolding any pieces that got jumbled up on the way here... you'd otherwise be exceedingly grateful for Euijoo's help if it weren't for the eight-inch secret you were hiding in one of your suitcase compartments—

“Wait, what’s this?” Shotaro asked with raised brows, his otter-like features causing a pit to form in your stomach as he reached over EJ’s shoulder, grabbing the cylindrically wrapped up scarf from your exposed luggage.

Similarly to Euijoo's movements, Shotaro's hands began to slowly unwrap the item, and at this point, you couldn't hold yourself back anymore.

“Shotaro-san, don’t touch that please!” You yelped, snatching the cloth from his hand as both confused and intrigued faces surrounded you now.

Shotaro, being the menace that he was, shook his head in response, almost as if judging you for reading in such a way,,, “You know what they say about secrets, ____-chan… it’s only a matter of time before they come to light…”

His voice held a cheeky undertone that made you internally wanna kick him in his gonads, but instead, those instincts were cut off by a faint buzzing sound.

It was coming from behind the cloth you held securely in your hands, and perhaps almost too securely given how you’d just accidentally triggered the ON-button on the damned thing...

“Is that a..?” Euijoo began to ask with his own puppy-like eyes rounding innocently, but Shotaro nudged his friend's leg.

“Can you go check the mailbox? I think the package I order just arrived a few minutes ago…”

“But the mailbox is so far from here... plus, you don’t even order stuff online these days—”

“Euijoo, do as I say…” Shotaro said more sternly this time, and EJ simply chuckled awkwardly before bowing his head slightly to display apology,

“Sorry, Oniisan,” he smiled facetiously, right before standing up from where he sat and stammering out of the room.

Shotaro waited until he heard Euijoo open and close the front door of the house before saying anything else to you, which only led to you saying something first.

“NOW do you see why I said I could handle my own belongings?” You asked rhetorically, just as you turned off the toy by pressing the OFF-button through the fabric, ceasing the vibration sound that once filled the entire room.

“Yup... I see it crystal clear,” Shotaro smirked to himself before continuing, “I’ll give you your space though after you let me see what you're hiding first… promise...”

And with that, you had more than enough verbal evidence from Shotaro to confirm that he was a raging pervert...

“You... you wanna see my toy?” You asked again despite how obvious the answer was, but only because you were in utter disbelief of his shameless offer.

“Yes,” he clarified with a plain expression, poking his lips out slightly, “and then I’ll leave you alone right after I get what I want... It’s a simple condition, really…”

You flashed him a dead-pan look to which he simply shrugged, right before leaning down to dig inside your suitcase once again.

“Alright, let’s seeee… what other surprises do you have in here?… ooo, I think I feel something—”

“Okay, enough!” You said in a raised tone, making the strange man smile for reasons you didn't understand, “I’ll let you see it, okay? Just... get your hands outta there immediately!”

“No problem, missy...” he practically whispered, standing up from the ground with a proud look plastered across his now irritating face, making you feel all the more embarrassed...

Still, there was something about the awkwardness that made you feel hot all over, and you were hoping it was just because there wasn't a ceiling fan in the room..

With slow movements and a deeply exasperated exhale, you finally pulling back the cloth encasing the item, just enough for him to get a fair peak.

And to your surprise, you almost hurled with his eyes sparkling with yet another glint of excitement...

“So... you’re a dildo kinda girl, huh? A vibrating one must've been pretty pricey, though... how’d you even get past security with this thing?”

“Luck, I guess…” you muttered awkwardly, right before abruptly swatting his hand away as he reached to pull back more fabric. “Hey! You look with your eyes, mister, not your hands…”

“My apologies,” he chuckled once again, both at your words and the way your palms felt a bit clammy when you touched him...

He couldn't help himself from having dirty thoughts about you, either... your nervousness from simply showing him your sex toy was just too adorable to ignore… he wondered how nervous you’d get if you ever let him use it on you one day—

“Shotaro-san, you can leave now,” you said plainly, reminding him of his part of the deal as he clearly got lost in his thoughts on the accident...

“Okay okay, I’m going…” he said, stepping over a few clothing pieces that EJ had left scattered across the room floor while making his way to the door.

“Oh, and I thought I should mention, there’s a convenience store a few blocks from here that sells sex toys, too… specifically from the more portable variety, though…”

SHOTARO WAS QUICK to establish a list of “house rules” for you to abide by the very next day of your stay.

Needless to add, but yes, you were a stranger in his home, so of course you expected him to set boundaries for you to follow, and you respected that for the most part… or at least, that was until his proposals started to get a bit over-the-top for your taste...

TIMESTAMP: 2日目

“Anyways, curfew is 8 p.m.,” Shotaro stated while leaning against a wall in his kitchen, arms crossed over his chest as if the pose would make you take him more—

“Seriously?” You asked in utter shock, though, as per usual, he obviously wasn’t joking.

“Yes, seriously… and if any instances arise where you find yourself struggling to comply with the set curfew, you will promptly be asked to turn over your spare key privileges…”

Euijoo was once again stuck in the middle of all of this, awkwardly sipping from a bowl of soup as the tension between you grew so thick, he could cut it with a knife.

“Fine,” you shrugged, already having had enough of going back in forth with him, as this wasn’t even the first disagreement y’all had had that morning…

TIMESTAMP: 3日目

The days were flying by fast, and you hadn’t even put a dent in your list of activity plans for the trip.

You couldn’t exactly put a finger on where all your time was going, but you knew you had to get out of the house soon so you could take some photos and write about your experiences for the project.

In the meantime, you simply decided to push out a few words about your homestay living experience so far, just as Shotaro, of all people, took his daily stroll through the living room, wearing nothing but a body towel that lazily sat around his waist.

It was evident that he’d just gotten out of the shower, too, especially with the way his bare feet were tracking water all over the house.

What made the whole thing even more annoying though is that you could hardly keep your eyes off of his bloody abs—

“Sorry if I’m distracting you, ____-chan,” he said in a muffled voice, standing a few feet away from you now as he made his way into the laundry room before letting the towel around his waist drop to the floor with a heavy thud, “I’ll be outta your hair in a minute…”

You almost gasped out loud at the sight of him in his squeaky clean birthday suit, lifting your laptop high enough to cover your eyes… anddd to cover your clearly flustered face, too.

“Y-yea, no worries,” you replied with a tinge of discomfort in your voice as the tiny grunts left his lips echoed off of the walls, and you assumed it was because he was doing a heavy load of laundry, “take your time…”

SHOTARO WAS SUCH a shameless weirdo, and that’s a heavy statement coming from someone like you…

Admittedly, you’ve met your fair share of odd people in the past, but never someone like this… never a person who was so strict to their own rules, but completely ignorant of other people's boundaries…

And to top it all off, he went as far as to task you with mopping the floor up after his promiscuous little water mess, dubbing it your “reasonable service” to assist him as a guest under his roof…

TIMESTAMP: 4日目

Knock, knock, knock.

With loud pounds, Shotaro’s balled fist clashed from behind your sliding bedroom door.

“____-chan? It’s almost 9:00am, aren’t you awake yet?”

“Uh… y-yea, just give me a sec!” You called out, only having gotten up about five minutes ago to brush your teeth and change out of your pajamas.

“I’m sorry? I can’t hear you very well…”

“I said just give me a sec, sir, I’m almost done!”

“Okay, I’m coming in—”

“Shotaro-san, no!” Your voice blared from where you stood, but it was already too late… Shotaro was slowly sliding the door open, and a pang of embarrassment overcame you for a plethora of reasons…

(1) Your bed was unmade, (2) the floor was decorated with stuff that should’ve been neatly tucked away in either your drawer, closet, or suitcase by now, and (3) you were only wearing pants at this point, having to cover your bare chest with your forearms to hopefully avoid flashing him.

“Did you run out of clean bras to wear or something?” Is the first thing he asks you, and you internally face-palmed yourself.

“W-what? No, I’m just gonna wear this one again, it’s fine—”

“Nonsense,” he interrupted you, “I’ll start a fresh load of laundry for you right away…”

“Shotaro-san, I sincerely appreciate your kindness, but I don’t mind bringing my clothes to the laundromat down the street…” you clarified as he had his back turned to you, and you took this as an opportunity to throw on a baggy T-shirt real quick.

“Look, I’m unemployed for the season, so helping with house chores is the least I can do to stay busy…” he replied, making you roll your eyes in memory of the stunt he pulled yesterday, “oh, and are your tits still hanging out or can I turn around now?”

“Oh- right… yea, you’re all good,” you stammered as he turned around to see your face as he spoke, and you helped him by picking up some of your clothes from off the ground, too.

“But uh… I also wanted to apologize for disrespecting your home recently, sir… I’m not usually this disorganized, though… I guess I’ve just been a little tired…”

“Oh, I can tell…” he replies in a voice that makes you quirk a brow at him.

“Wait… you can?”

“Sure,” he shrugged, “your face looks bloated, your eyes are all puffy, and you walk around as if you’re six months pregnant… it’s honestly pretty depressing to witness…”

“Oh…” is all you managed to say.

Usually, you’d be a bit offended if someone said you looked tired, but from Shotaro’s perspective, it seemed like he expressed those thoughts out of concern.

“Y’know, the best part about not having a demanding job or being in college is that you have more time to take care of yourself… both outside and within…”

“Okay?” You replied redundantly, not sure on where he was going with his “Shotaro Wisdom.”

“I just think that you need a traditionally cooked Japanese meal to soothe your jet-lagged bones... it’ll be my treat…”

“Shotaro-san, my diet is just fine… and I get that you’re concerned, but you really don’t have to do all of that for me…”

“Well I insist... You spend all day and night either bound to your bed or roaming my kitchen, anyways, and that’s no way to fully experience the beauty of this city. You’ve gotta be more adventurous, ____-chan… otherwise, what’re you gonna write about in your cultural project, huh? Your adorable homestay host? My cherry blossom garden?”

Slam.

He dropped the dirty clothes basket on the hard wooden floor, and you’re just now realizing that you’d followed him all the way from your bedroom and into the infamous washing room.

Though, Shotaro in all his oddness was right about you… about you not being adventurous enough on this once in a lifetime opportunity to travel… and you know it was only out of shyness that you’d been hermiting for the past few days, but you really did need to get out more if you wanted any chance at writing a good paper—

“Can you pass me the detergent from up there please?”

“Sure,” you chirped, standing up on your tippy toes to reach the top shelf, and Shotaro couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

“Thanks, pretty,” he said, and you fight with a bull’s strength to not make a face at the random pet name.

“N-no problem,” you finally replied, resting your hands at your hips as you watched him load the washing machine.

“So, what color are you wearing later?” He asked, and the question reminds you of his offer to take you out to eat.

“Ugh, I’ll let you know when I decide, but right now I’m thinking something either black or grey… what made you ask?”

“Because I wanna match with you,” he responded shamelessly, “That way, if we cross paths with any weirdos while we’re out, they won’t approach us because they’ll assume I’m your boyfriend...”

“Righttt…” you went on, thinking to yourself how weird these people must be if even HE’S calling them weird… “anything else you wanna say before I go and get dressed though?”

“Yes, actually... try to be ready by 14:00 p.m… my favorite chef’s on duty during mid-evening’s and you must try his dumpling soup recipe!…”

A few hours later, you found yourself on a tour of Tokyo beside Shotaro, taking photos of local shrines, indulging in delicious street food, and just simply enjoying the aura of the vibrant city together.

And as on par with his plans, you and Shotaro arrived at the traditional Japanese restaurant just in time to be served by his favorite chef.

Though, it's not like effort went very far once Shotaro got to drinking, which left you thoroughly entertained by his tipsy charisma.

“Heyy, these chopsticks are almost as big as your dildo back home,” Shotaro giggled while eating beside you, cheeks a flushed hue from the warmth radiating throughout his entire body...

I wonder how useful he’d be in this state if any alleged weirdo's approached us later on, you thought to yourself...

“Mhm… looks about seven inches to me,” you responded plainly, right before stuffing your mouth full with another flavorful soup dumpling.

“Wanna see how many I can stuff inside you before it doesn’t fit?” He went on to ask, eyes widening as if he just suggested something totally normal.

“Maybe another time,” you smiled half-heartedly, patting him gently on his head, “when you’re less drunk on… well, whatever the name of that drink you just had was…”

“It’s called shōchū, ____… say it with me!” He chirped with a raised hand to the sky.

“Shōchū,” you repeated again with him, a small smile creeping up your face.

“Yikes, your pronunciation needs a little work…”

“My apologies, Taro… I’ll make sure I work on that for you…”

“Aww… you’re giving me a nickname?” He pouted, leaning his head on you. “I had a dream about you the other night and you called me that same name… it was pretty explicit, though…”

“You can tell me about it later…”

“Okay… what do you think of the food?”

“It’s really tasty, actually. Thanks for taking me out, I really needed this…”

“You’re welcome… thanks for letting me lean on you, too… most people push me away when I do that…”

“And by most people, you mean Euijoo-san, right?”

“Yes… he claims to dislike touch with his words, but he genuinely loves it… I remember one time we went clubbing together, and a really hot girl kept trying to dance on him… he awkwardly pushed her away, but he couldn’t stop thinking about it once we got home…”

“Interesting… do you always overshare like this when you’re drunk?”

“Not like I’d remember anyways,” he shrugged, “can you tell me a secret about something, though? To even out the playing field?”

“Huh…. This isn’t really a secret, but I rarely admit this… I have a tendency to judge people before getting to know them…”

He was quiet at first, stirring the foggy broth in his bowl with a chopstick before asking quietly, “Like you judged me?”

“Yes, like I judged you… you seemed… I don’t know… weird at first? And a bit overbearing, too…”

“All those things are true though,” he giggled.

“Sure, but… never mind, you’re right… I still think you’re weird…”

“Oh yeah? Just wait til I tell you about—”

“Later, Taro… I’d love to hear all about it then…”

TIMESTAMP: 8日目

You and Shotaro developed a quirky friendship with each other, and it was quite refreshing in contrast to your initially rocky start with him.

He was a pervert. You caught onto the way his eyes watched you through the cracks of doors, or fell to glance between your legs every time the chance was made available. Always caught him going through your things under the excuse that “if it’s under my roof, it’s under my control.”

So, you made clear to him a few of your own boundaries, and luckily, he agreed to respect them… for the most part…

The rules followed a simple list…

1. “No more sneaking and spying on me.”

2. “No more going through my things.”

3. “No more walking around naked when I’m around.”

4. “No more weird questions about my sex life.”

In the last four days, he followed you to the bathroom three times, asked about your sex toy twice, and walked around the house half-naked only once… you’d say that was a good sign of improvement, honestly…

You kept yourself busy by annotating every relevant detail and observation from your time in Japan this far, and you were slowly starting to gain reassurance in your abilities to produce an excellent cultural project in time for the deadline.

TIMESTAMP: 12日目

One evening, after yet another day full of laughter and cultural escapades alongside Shotaro, you and him found yourselves lounging on the tatami mats in his living room, enjoying a bowl of miso soup, stewed meat, and some of Shotaro’s homemade onigiri.

Earlier that day, you and him were busy cooking in the kitchen together, where he even shared with you a few of his not-so secret secret Osaki family recipes.

He took the honors of playing photographer for you though as you offered to tuck the seaweed wraps around the triangular mounds of sticky rice.

“Look at you, you’re a natural at this, pretty,” Shotaro complimented you while snapping a few more pictures, and you shook your head at the comical tone of his voice, “now all there’s left to work on is pronouncing ‘onigiri’ properly!”

“Ha ha, you’re so hilarious,” you replied sarcastically, making him chuckle slightly at his own sense of humor, or perhaps, the lack thereof.

There was one moment in particular though that really got your heart racing between him… it was when he scooted himself behind you as you stirred the bubbling pot of miso soup, guiding your wrist with his delicate hand.

“You have to stir carefully from the bottom ____-chan, or else you’ll break up the chunks of tofu we just neatly cut up,” Shotaro whispered from above you, given the height difference, and you’ve never heard his voice sound so calm til now.

He let you lead your own hand for a bit just to check that you had the stirring motion down on your own, and he smiled softly once you did it correctly.

“Like this?” You asked, feeling a lot more nervous than expected while he was so close to you, despite how the other night at the restaurant and bar you found it much less nervous inducing when Shotaro kept leaning his head all over you.

“Mhm… just like that,” he hummed, right before his warmth left you as he walked away to return back to cutting up the stew meat…

Since that moment, the air was filled with an electric tension that neither of you had acknowledged yet as the sun began to set, casting its warm glow through the shoji screens.

In the middle of Shotaro telling you a story about his childhood though, the jingle of keys sounded at the front door as EJ invited himself to join you two once his shift at the local bakery ended.

“I come bearing treats!” He smiled vibrantly, right after bowing his head slightly to show his respects.

“Euijoo-san, how nice of you to join us,” Shotaro said in a corny accent, “how was work?”

“Exhausting… especially because I lost track of time and missed my lunch break…”

“Awww, bummer,” you pouted, “I’ll fix you a plate while you wash up then…”

“Ahhh, thanks a billion, ____-chan… since my own best bro doesn’t seem to care about me anymore,” the young man sulked playfully, and Shotaro widened his eyes in confused offense.

“What d’you mean I don’t care about you? I literally made you onigiri with my bare freaking hands, you ungrateful fart—”

“Acts of service may be YOUR love language, but it isn’t mine,” EJ reminded his friend before dramatically crossing his arms and walking out of the room, “remember that the next time you insult me, Shotaro-san… hmph…”

A few more minutes passed before the third member of your uncanny trio settled down to eat with you guys, provoking you to take a deep breath, summoning courage within yourself.

“Euijoo-san, Shotaro-san… you both have truly made my time in Tokyo one to remember,” you began, watching them shyly nod as your words touched the tenderness of their hearts.

“But,” you went on, voice catching slightly as you tried to keep their attention, “my time with you all is dwindling, and by that, I mean tomorrow is my last day here…”

You watched as the expressions on their faces shifted from joyful camaraderie to sudden surprise, and you couldn’t shake the guilt ones bulding up inside you now.

They had made the Japanese lifestyle seem so inviting for you that just acknowledging that you’d be departing soon hurt…

“No way, it’s been two weeks already?” Euijoo exclaimed with shock, his chopsticks paused mid-air. “Can’t your school let you stay a little longer? I’m sure Shotaro doesn’t mind opening his house to you for an extension…”

“I really wish I could take that offer, Euijoo-san,” you replied, offering a soft smile to hopefully ease his emotions, “I just have to get back for school… plus, changing my flight dates so late wouldn’t be a wise move on my part…”

Shotaro looked down for a moment, a flicker of disappointment crossing his sullen, otter-like features. “It’s been so nice having you around here,” he said quietly, his tone laced with something that you couldn’t quite decipher, but you knew it was different from his usual chipper.

After dinner, the three of you tried to shift the energy by sharing a few more stories and cleaning up the kitchen together, your harmonious laughter echoing beneath the dim house lighting.

Excusing yourself, you eventually retreated to your bedroom after everything was tidied up, but your mind remained a swirling sea of freshly acquired memories of the past few days.

You were gonna take a walk to clear your head and sight-see for what might be your last chance, but your plans were cut short once you realized it was past your curfew, the clock reading 8:00pm on the dot, and you respected Taro too much now to disregard his rules…

Sighing, you closed the door to your room, the world outside faded away, leaving you only to your thoughts and the slightly improved clutter of personal items that you’d worry about packing up tomorrow morning.

You were too emotionally drained to do anything in this moment, other than something to take the edge off… and quickly…

Across the hall, Shotaro sat in the living room, wishing he could shake off the heaviness in his chest. He had grown so fond of you over the last days, your laughter, your genuine curiosity about everything around you and your interest in his culture... The sound of the sliding door to your bedroom clicking shut reached his ears.

“No more sneaking around and spying on me,” your voice faintly resounded from a few days ago in the back of his mind, but a certain impulse washed over him, and he couldn’t help but draw himself to your room, once step at a time.

And it came to no surprise that the clicking sound he heard wasn’t even from the door, but better yet, your suitcase latch after your brief search for the infamous cylinder wrapped in cloth.

You still hadn’t learned how to properly lock the doors behind yourself again, which is why you set that no peeking rule down in the first place… you knew secrets enticed Shotaro, but in this moment, you just focused on taking care of yourself… just like Shotaro said, both outside and within…

Kneeling down, Shotaro edged himself towards the door, where a slender crack allowed him a stingy look inside.

The soft glow of your dresser lamp illuminated the room, casting gentle shadows along your bedsheets and your now half-naked body.

You wore nothing but a baggy T-shirt and panties as you got positioned into your back, legs spread just enough for Shotaro to see everything… your graceful and seren silhouette, and your pulsating core… it all caught his attention, and it all made him all the more aroused…

Luckily for the both of you, EJ had locked himself up in his room to wash off his long day of work, and the sound of the water running faintly in the background acted as a timer for you to finish by.

You began to slid your panties down your hips, each motion fluid and unhurried as Shotaro's poor little heart raced, quickening the pace of his breath.

Slowly caressing over your skin with one hand, you reached for the dildo with the other, and unbeknownst to you, Shotaro was just a few feet away from you, untying his pants as his semi-hard dick sprung out, almost hitting the door.

You just hoped that Shotaro had busied himself somewhere in the house so he wouldn’t find you like this… though, once the head of the toy circled your clit before you slowly lined the head up with your entrance, your mind couldn’t shake the thought of him…

The thought of how he’d feel inside you, or the thought of his hands pinning yours over your head and to the mattress…

Finally inserting the toy all the way, you felt your breath hitch as you started sliding the dildo in and out of your cunt, already coating it in your slimy juices.

The room was silent except for the sound of your own soft gasps bouncing off the walls. Shotaro licked a stripe of spit up his hand before cupping the base of his cock with his palm, already too caught up in the private world of his thoughts to care about how perverted of him this was.

The way he stroked himself mirrored the pace that you set for the dildo as you kept fucking yourself, circling your hips against the mattress as you somehow widened your legs even more.

And by now, Shotaro was in visual heaven, despite the fact that he hated how slow you were going with it… he hated that he couldn’t make himself go any faster until you did.

“Nghh~” a needy mewl ripped from under your breath, and Shotaro felt himself shiver at the way you lifted your hips into the toy now, gripping at your tit with your free hand.

Words can’t begin to describe how badly he wished he could cup your breasts in his hands…

Your hole was impressively taking all of the toy’s girth, but from the looks of it, your pussy was still suffocating around it, being stuffed to the brim as your walls quivered in ecstasy.

So that’s how she likes to be fucked, Shotaro thought to himself, and your lips ironically started to cry out yes as he kept his grip firm around his shaft.

A stream of your own arousal dripped unto the sheets, coating the dildo and your pussy lips in a delicious shine, and Shotaro swore he would’ve sold his soul just to get a taste—

“Shit,” he swore, a free hand flying to cover his mouth as he can barely keep his sounds in now.

You picked up the pace, and he pumped his cock even faster, knowing better than anyone that his rough fingers didn’t feel half as good as your pussy probably does.

He watched the way your tightness gripped at the dildo every time it hit that special spot inside you, and at this point, you were too turned on to pretend like you don’t hear him.

When he had cursed, you noticed his boba eyes peeking at you, and although your first instinct was to shut your legs and scold him, you let the moment take its course…

“Taro,” you said in a seductive voice… one that comes out naturally because of the state you’re in, “you’ve never been very sneaky, y’know that?”

His round eyes nearly popped out of his head at your offer, and he was torn between whether he should pretend like this never happened or just adhere to your lust-laced words.

“Q-quit being shy, Taro,” you whined out again, stammering over your own words as the dildo started to vibrate, “just get in here before I- fuck... ch-change my mind...”

Shotaro could hardly believe his own ears once you announced your scandalous invitation to him, and doesn't think he's ever put his dick away so quickly, either...

Carefully sliding the door open, he slipped through the narrow gap he provided for himself before locking the door back behind him and joining you on the bed.

You were definitely feeling a little less bold now that he was barely a few inches away from you, but the ways his eyes flickered between glancing at your face and then your sloppy cunt motivated you somehow—

“Want some help with that?” He offers quietly, and you respond by slipping the thick toy from your hole, a wet pop filling the room as you lazily held it towards him.

And although his face still appears like a cross between shocked and dumbfounded, his body posture is confident as he takes the toy from your grasp, caressing your exposed thigh just to see you shiver.

He give you one more glance for approval as if your consent wasn't already obvious enough before sliding the tip of the toy between your slick folds, but he's applying a lot more pressure than you did when handling it... not that you had a problem with it anyways...

“You're so sensitive,” he chuckled slightly, watching the way your torso clenched as he pressed the dildo against your entrance, and you're suddenly feeling shy yourself now-- “And pretty,” he continued, complimenting the view of your beautiful bare body before him, the purest look of lust upon both your faces, “so, so pretty...”

A soft moan escaped your mouth as he pushed the toy all the way inside you now, and his method of pumping you felt way better than what you usually did for yourself.

“T-Taro,” you whined, watching as he continued to fuck your cunt open with the dildo, fully focused on pleasing you... he was so fascinated by the way your walls clenched around the silicone, lewd noises filling the room as you grew even hazier in your head.

“What is it, ____?” His voice came out deeply as his gaze barely met yours from behind his neatly cut bangs, his cold hand pressing firmly on the bulge in your stomach, as created by the long toy inside you.

“T-touch yourself,” you whimpered, reaching down to grab his wrist as the pressure he applied became too much for you to speak over, “while you keep touching me...”

That's all it took for him to slowly get to work on shimmying down his pants again, and single-handedly at that. The tip of his cock was sore with a throbbing need as he took his shaft in his free palm, stroking it to the same pace that he set for the dildo inside you.

And his moans were joining yours now, his starved out teeth biting at his lower lip as he continued gliding the toy in and out of your pussy, making your eyebrows furrow at the sight before you.

You imagined that the dildo was his cock as you threw your head back against the pillows, closing your eyes while he did the same by imaging you were responding this way from taking his cock, fucking the pathetic silicone into you just like his hips would.

And as badly as the intrusive thoughts were telling him to toss the toy and just fuck you properly himself, he knew there was a better way to help you get past the sexual frustration of not coming... and he didn’t want to pressure you into doing something you weren’t completely down for…

“Play with your clit for me, baby,” Shotaro slurred while speeding up the movements of his hand pumping his length, and you adhered to his words immediately, sliding your hand down to rub at your sensitive spot just like he told you to.

“That's it baby,” he sighed, chest heaving as he felt himself reaching the point of no return, “you're close, aren't you pretty?”

“S-so close,” you winced desperately, and it only takes a few more thrusts of his hand and circles of your own finger before you were falling over the edge, covering your mouth with the back of your hand to keep your moans in.

And your eyes are pricking with tears given how good the stimulation felt, but you knew Shotaro hadn’t reached his climax yet.

With the little energy you had meddling within your system, you sat up to meet him where he sat, the dildo still jammed inside your pussy as you pulled his face to kiss you, and the contact was hungry… Shotaro’s own mouth gaping open to groan as you kept your grip tight around his neck while looking deeply into his eyes.

He was a panting mess now, and you wanted to help him feel just as good as he had made you feel.

“____, you don’t have to—”

“Shhh,” you interrupted his choked out sentence, kissing him once again as you moved your hand to take the place his around his shaft, “let me return the favor, baby…”

Although a bit delayed, Shotaro eventually nodded in compliance, resting one of his free hands behind him to brace his weight on the bed and his other free hand at you ass where he spanked you slightly.

“B-bounce on it,” his voice came out, and a bit strained in tone as he spanked you a little harder this time, reeling a soft whine out of you, “p-please baby, ride that dildo while you jerk my co— holy fuckk…”

You were still so sensitive in this moment, so the overstimulation was insane once you started grinding against the toy, lifting your hips to ride it as he watched with lust-ridden eyes.

And your delicate hands were doing such a good job of pumping him, too, stroking his length at just the right pace while paying extra attention to the head of his cock, the part that you knew would make him feel the best.

“God, you’re so fucking good at that, pretty,” he praised, and you kissed him instead of saying anything, bouncing so hard now that even the bed is starting to squeak beneath you two.

And the sound made Shotaro smirk… the sound of your juices squelching around the toy… of your heart beating fast behind your chest… the gentle meals escaping you, and the sound of your hand stroking him to heaven—

“Fuck!” He suddenly cried out, as quietly as he could as to not alarm EJ, and that’s when you knew he had finally reached his climax.

Breaking from his lips, you reached behind yourself to grab the scarf you used to wrap up the toy and held it over the top of his cock, just in time for his pearly spurts of his release to fill up the cloth.

Your warm hand slowly pumped the girth of his shaft, continuing to milk him dry as his hand gripped your hips tightly at the feeling, and you’re certain you’d have a bruise there later from his force.

And there is was again… Shotaro’s infamous smile as he sighed beneath his breath, releasing his grip on your hip while looking into your eyes now.

“Sorry I messed up your scarf,” he said plainly, and you can’t help but smile at his remark.

“Eh, it’s alright,” you returned, taking the bundle of fabric from his cock and holding it in your hand, “you’re in charge of laundry duty, anyways…”

Both of your cheeks were as warm as fresh baked milk bread now as you awkwardly lifted your hips off the dildo, the slimy object falling from your hole with a gentle pop as you took the cum rag and wrapped the toy in it, too.

“So…,” he began, voice returning to its usual pitch as you helped shimmy his pants back up, “do you always cum that hard, or was that orgasm special just for me?”

“Shut up,” you scorned playfully, nudging his shoulder slightly to which he chuckled alongside you.

But that’s when you both noticed it… the sound of the water running had stopped, and you’re sure it hasn’t been running for a while.

The two of you exchange worried looks as your ears keen in on the sounds behind the door, if any at all…

“Should I just…?” Shotaro started to ask while getting up from the bed, but you placed a hand at his thigh, keeping him in place.

Step, step, step.

Euijoo’s house slippers slid across the floor as he made his way to your bedroom door, the silhouette of his frame being clear as day behind the slightly opaque door, and you wonder just how much he can see from his point of view.

“Hey, is Shotaro-san in there with you?” He asked, visibly tucking his hands in his pajama pants pockets, “I heard the bed creaking, and he has a strict ‘NO-SEX IN THE HOUSE’ policy…”

“Yes, he’s in here—”

“We weren’t having sex.”

You and Shotaro’s of your voices came out at the same time, and by this point, EJ is really confused, even though both of your sentences were 100% the honest truth.

“Right,” is all the poor boy says before turning on his heel and walking in the opposite direction, “just make sure you end your little sleepover in time for me to get my work clothes washed by tomorrow morning…”

⋆♱✮ Thank you to everyone reading this fic of mine, which actually concludes DAY 3 of my Kinktober Event !! Also, if you're interested in reading more works like this, feel free to check out my main enhypen masterlist or my kinktober masterlist by clicking one of these links !!

⋆♱✮ PERMANANT TAGLIST:

@squoxle, @nishiimuranights, @ashgonedash

@yourmomscuntis2tighy, @wonbinisbabygurl

@watamotee33, @addictedtohobi, @ot7sevenlvr

⋆♱✮ KINKTOBER TAGLIST:

@pasteltheghost16 @fawnpeaks @melonvrs

@mheretoreadff @skzfelixlove @inishij

@yaorzu-blog @andromedawillburyyou @ramyeonzprincess

@zaihypen @simjaeyunns @gardenwonnies @hynier

@idontknowhowtomakeusernames @enhymeowz @minhosimthings @stormy1408

@crownj1min @jay-0n3s @gacktsa @leeknowinggg

[thelordfool]

HELP ME PLEASE!!!!!

Long story short: I'm unemployed and will not, unlike what I originally thought, qualify for unemployment benefits.

Please read the readmore for additional context on why I'm unemployed. This post is basically a continuation/update/redo of this post. I'm suffering a sickness with no medicine the past week, applied for almost 100 jobs the last two weeks, am disabled/queer/nonbinary/tired of ebegging. I'm also in the negatives in my bank account because my car payment came out, so I need to get that covered.

pp/vm/ca

$250/$1151.51

i need at least $511.51 of this by the first. please spread if you're financially unable to help, every person this reaches helps! here's the breakdown of the costs: $640 - car payment + late fees $380 - rent $131.51 - negative amount in bank currently

Oh hey thanks for stopping by to read this annoying tale of woe and being angry at capitalism. Prepare for wall of text.

I once had two jobs. The first job, at a chain restaurant, was a bit of a clique-y experience where I was working my damndest to be the best bartender they ever had. I still have all the cocktails memorized. However, I continually faced discrimination in the form of severe misgendering, no matter how often I corrected them. I was also set up for failure. Usually, when someone gets hired for a position, there's some amount of training to be done, no matter how experienced they are, right? I was going in nearly entirely inexperienced into the role. I knew how to make cocktails, sure, and was and still am very good with people and selling. But I was trained for two days. Two. Then, on my first night alone (a Friday), I was watched by one of the bigwigs at corporate who saw every little flub and failure. This caused a demotion-ish. I was demoted to barback but was allowed the same privileges. Until their next visit. That upset the hell out of me - I was well trained by that point and could do it all, with one hand tied behind my back. I digress. It was about 2 months following my demotion when i finally walked out. A new bartender had been hired and she thought I was being a total creep by looking at a ticket that had just come in. She stormed off to report me to the manager who, even after hearing my side where I had asked her if there was anything on the ticket that I could grab, said that I "needed to communicate better," and "you should be learning from her," and "you're a grown man, you should know better." I don't think I need to explain why that was so upsetting.

But I didn't report them, because I just wanted to be done with it. I was also working another bartending job, and everythign was literally perfect other than the hours, honestly. I loved the product the distillery made, I loved the people I worked with, and most of all: I had my own regulars. Last month, they hired a new hospitality director, who announced there would be some restructuring, including getting rid of servers while also making a full dinner menu to serve alongside drinks. I said nothing of it, despite my disagreements, and she assured us all that no one would lose their jobs, but just moved into different roles. We all kinda grumbled about it, and I told her that under no circumstances would I work back of house. Easy peasy. Till it wasn't, and I came home to a voicemail while on break with my partner that I'd been let go due to the restructuring. So much for no one losing their jobs, right? I hadn't been the only victim of this. I have my suspicions as to why the new hospitality director did these things, but I've no energy to throw around conspiracies. All I know is that I was shafted by both of these places and I'm tired of being broke. I'm applying, still going to fight, and... sigh.

tl;dr (why did you click the readmore?): i left a job due to discrimination and lost another due to company restructuring and i'm tired and sad and aaaaa.

[megzscribbleznwordz]

Hi! I absolutely ADORE your athf headcanons! I love reading them, they make me so happy :)

I'm not exactly sure what to request, I just wanted to tell you that I loved these, but in the spirit of Valentine's Day, are there any Valentine's or physial touch/cuddly hcs that come to mind for the cast?

(Also clingy feral Err is something I never thought about before but works so well I love it so much)

GO MY ALL_OUT EVERYONE GETS A LIL' BEAM! I apologize for being a day late... I figured I'd take the opportunity to cover a lil' bit on everyone :D! I'm putting it under a cut because it's,,,,,,a lot lol

Frylock

Frylock is typically fairly romantic, but not overly touchy in the way of PDA…although he’s more cuddly than he lets on!

Valentine's Day for Frylock is a very relaxed but very drawn out process with acts of love in between. A lot of gestures he planned out in advance, like flowers delivered whilst he’s out buying a gift, reservations at his partner's favorite restaurant, etc.

Frylock’s pièce de résistance of Valentine's Day is a handwritten love letter detailing how happy he is with his lover, some of his favorite traits about them and how excited he is to spend another Valentine's day with them.

Master Shake

Shake is absolutely the most touchy motherfucker out there. Always has his hands on his lover somewhere, be it casually resting a hand on their ass or wrapping an arm playfully around their shoulder

Shake has what I call affectionately “Time Blindness”. He probably doesn’t realize Valentine’s Day is soon until he’s caught in a conversation about it. Once he realizes he’d briefly forgotten, he puts all his energy in making a day of it for his lover

Definitely relaxed and honestly probably a cheap event, but full of love and devotion (dude is unemployed, but he tries!). Things like making his beloved a lovely homemade dinner, having an at-home spa night, as well as giving a couple smaller traditional gifts like a single red rose and a small box of chocolates

Meatwad

He’s such a sweetheart, and gives small Valentines to literally everybody in his life. Cute hand drawn cards with little sweet sentiments written for each person

Meatwad loves hugs, so much. He’s a big hugger, and definitely gives very good hugs. Like squeeze the life out of you type hugs.

He puts all his Valentine's Day effort into making a dessert. I headcanon that he likes to bake, and although he probably isn’t very good at it, it's the thought that counts!

Ignignokt

Ignignokt is surprisingly tender, especially when he and his partner have some alone time away from prying eyes. He’s a bit less reserved with his affection around Valentine's Day, and is very clear and direct in expressing his love to his partner.

Valentine's Day is one of the few times he attempts to plan a more in-depth and expensive date event. Making reservations at an expensive restaurant, buying his partner gifts rather than stealing them, etc.

Ignignokt also makes a quiet (but notable) show of doing things for his lover in the way of favors. Need laundry done? That’s his problem today! Forgot grocery shopping? He’ll take care of it! 

Err

Never forgets Valentine’s Day, he's very excited for it and planning in advance. He loves having a set aside day just to spend with his partner, and loves picking different events to do together or different experiences to get tickets for

He’s the touchiest guy ever. He’s very clingy in a very high-energy way; He needs his beloved to be hugging him, holding him, kissing him, making some form of physical contact with him else he hum loudly like a demanding microwave until they do...

Valentine’s Day for Err tends to be dedicated towards a specific event he found to be a good time for him and his partner to do together; If it’s dinner, the day is spent shopping for an outfit and discussing food options. If it’s an event you are absolutely in attendance open-to-close. No matter what it is, the day ends with a surprisingly tender declaration of life from him as he slowly drifts off to sleep in his lover's arms.

Emory

Emory is the thoughtful type when it comes to Valentine’s Day. He ensures whatever he has planned is something that takes thought and effort. Something emotional too, I feel like of all the boys he’s the one who’s most comfortable showing his vulnerable side

He takes aside the time in the day to tell his partner how much they mean to him, express appreciation for them and all they do for him. When it comes to planning the day's events he makes it a conversation of if his lover want to have a plan or have a specific idea for what type of date they’d like to go on

Emory goes all out for the gift part however. I know I’ve mentioned this before but he remembers everything his partner likes. He gets or picks a bouquet of their favorite flowers, gets their favorite candy in the cutest most Valentine’s Day-styled packaging, and some small piece of hobby-associated equipment or supplies. 

Oglethorpe

Oglethorpe is excited for Valentine’s Day with his partner in the same way a small child is excited for Christmas. I feel that whoever his current partner would be is the first one he’d have (I headcanon that he doesn’t have much relationship experience. He’s just happy to have someone to spend Valentine’s Day with)

He’s very touchy and cuddly. Any downtime between whatever he and his partner are doing during the day is spent with them in his arms carried around like a childhood comfort item.

Oglethorpe probably gifts something he’d hand made or something of comfort. I mentioned this in a previous post, but I headcanon him to very crafty and surprisingly good so he gives very well and lovingly crafted gifts

Carl Brutananadilewski

Carl is initially indifferent towards Valentine’s Day. He’s unused to all that “gushy, goo-goo” type stuff, according to him. The truth is a bit more sad…He’s truly unused to having someone care for him, and completely unsure how to go about planning stuff for his partner

The actual day of Valentine’s Day, Carl spends the day pulling out his best romantics. He’s a bit less unsavory than usual, more sincere and genuine in his compliments…even laying it on thick with very sweet and genuine yet awkward expressions of physical affection

He’s a bit of a classic lover at heart. His biggest plan for him and his lover is an expensive, fancy dinner followed by a relaxing night together. He makes a small vacation of it, paying for a hotel for the night for him and his lover to get away and focus on each other. It’s a whole lot of effort on his part; he’s not used to so much tenderness and it’s very emotionally vulnerable for him, but he loves every second of it

[witchinatree]

magnus protocol episode 39 ramble

we're back to sam already??? holy shit

also i have that dumbass stewart little song stuck in my head "name another rapper rhyming stewart little with stewart little" "this is not coworker music i'm unemployed" it goes needlessly hard

anyway

awww they're looking for alice!!! oh shit she might not be an adult orphan i guess

INSANE LMAOOO

who you gonna call..

oh no i think alice was home

ALICEEEE AU ALICE OH MY GOD

???WHAT???

they were still together and is this sam now dead

broken heart emoji

SHE LOVES HIM SO MUCH WAIT

MARRIED?? MARRIED????

oh. oh my god. why am I crying bro

oh

this answers a lot of the genetics between universes questions i've had i think

ooooooooh that's horrifying

these terms like incursion and towerfall i'm in tears and the fucking dreams bro

alice statement oh no does this mean the archivist is nearby

or is she just talking

please tell me she's just dramatic and there's no archivist in the area

oh my god the buried and its connection to modern day working welcome back

i wonder if alice and sam could've been in the worms episode domain like the buried where the people were worms because of the pressure of reality

THE FLESH???? WHY ARE YOU HERE 💔💔💔💔💔

oh my god it's an allegory for being transgender oh my god oh my god alice dyer i am in TEARS

i thought it was about being overwhelmed by working but no it's so much more i iiiiii

thank you rustyquill i think i'm crying though

sam i feel you need to give her a hug

"don't go" NOOOO NOOOOO MY BABY MY BABY MY BABYGIRL I LOVE YOU I'M CRYING

THERE ARE TEARS STREAMING DOWN MY FACE PLEASE GO BACK FOR HER PLEASE DON'T LEAVE HER ALONE PLEASE

What. What. "that was grief." "once someone's gone, what's the difference?" i can't do this

I TOLD YOUUU I TOLD YOU I YLD YOU GO BACK GO BACK GO BACK GO BACK GO BACK GO BACM FOR HER PLEASE GO BACK PLEASE GO BACK PLEASE GO BACM PLEASE GO BACK PLEASE GO BACM FOR HER PLSASE

YOU CAN'T END IT THERE I'M BAWLING?????

jaw on the floor tears streaming down my face nose running out the DOOR ears burning AND THEY DIDN'T EVEN GIVE ME BASIRA 💔💔💔💔💔🥀🥀🥀🥀 YOU WALK INTO MY HOME YOU GET INTO A FIST FIGHT WITH ME YOU PUMMEL ME DIRECTLY INTO A GRAVE YOU CAPTURE MY SOUL AND MAKE ME WATCH AS YOU TORTURE MY LOVED ONES AND YOU CAN'T EVEN GIVE ME A BASIRA HUSSAIN MENTION????????

[moonlightazriel]

Mask Off /// Ghostface!Azriel X F!Reader

Summary: "can i please request one where azriel is ghostface and he terrorizes bad people, and he has a rival ghostface who interrupts his missions/steal his targets and it pisses him off so he plans to kill the rival, he has the ghostface pinned and takes the mask off, plotwist it’s his mate who is just as confused as him."

Warnings: Mentions of murder and blood.

Word Count: 2,2K

Notes: I'm completely obsessed with Scream for a really long time, so this request was so fun to do. Also, thank you @fieldofdaisiies for this amazing little Moodboard for this fic. Happy Halloween guys!

Main Masterlist

The lights flickered, and the sound of his boots against the wet floor contributed to the eerie atmosphere, the slight splash of water whenever he stepped on a puddle. Azriel felt his blood run hotter as anger spread throughout his being, pinned against a wall, throat slit open, was his target, a well-known rapist, the male he was supposed to kill tonight. 

On the wall behind him, written with the man’s blood:

“Too late, Mr.Ghostface! Maybe next time..” 

Consumed by rage, Azriel let his fist connect with the corpse’s face, the impact breaking the nose, but he wouldn’t mind, would he? 

He walked away, removing his mask and the cloak, revealing equally black pants and a t-shirt. He shoved everything inside his backpack and walked to where he had his motorcycle parked. He sat on top of it, mind still rushing with anger as yet another target was getting killed before he had the chance to do the job. 

Azriel knew that he was wrong on a certain level, but Velaris needed him, needed this. He was paid by someone named R to get rid of the bad people in the city, corrupt politicians, rapists, murderers, drug dealers, and all the scum that composed the underworld of Velaris. 

It was Cassian, his ex-military best friend who had suggested this to him, R paid well, and he was unemployed for a whole year, depending solely on the income from his wonderful mate, Y/N was the sweetest woman alive, she always helped him a and she was the light of his life. 

But her work in an office was barely enough for her to finish her college degree and for them to get going, with the Increasing of their rent, and everything else. He had to watch her work hard while his applications were denied, one after the other. So in a desperate measure, he accepted. And as much as he hated it and hated to lie to her even more, he was happy to be helping and keeping her safe from people who would harm her. 

At least like that, soon enough he would have enough for her to drop that awful job of hers, her boss would hit on her and make her life hell whenever she denied him, Azriel had to contain himself many times, how he wanted to get rid of him, for even thinking about laying a finger on his mate. 

He headed home, where Y/N was resting, trying to forget about his rival that was trying really hard to get him pissed. About two months ago he started to get where his targets were supposed to be, just to find them killed, dripping in blood and with their throats open. Pretty much like he did whenever he got to actually finish it. He was trying really hard to find who this was, cuz not finishing a job meant not getting paid. 

He slowly climbed into bed, his warm mate turning to his side, hugging him, kissing his arm in her sleep, her fresh scent as she had just walked out of the shower, relaxed him enough to fall asleep fast. The tiredness of the day weighed on him. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

“What about your trip?” Azriel asked, shoving a handful of cereals in his mouth as he watched Y/N sip on a cup of tea, her working clothes doing wonders to her body, he watched her up and down, stopping at her blushing cheeks, this woman would be the death of him. 

“He got a new secretary, I pity her, but at least he left me alone and I don’t have to travel with him anymore.” She said with a relaxed smile and he nodded. 

“Good, I hated when he took my mate away.” Which, to be fair, was quite often, not long trips, but often enough to annoy Azriel. 

“Not anymore, love.” She said, finishing her tea, and rushing to kiss him, before getting her keys and leaving for work. 

His phone buzzed on the countertop, a message from R telling him that his next target was chosen and he should be found at a party in two days. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Y/N tapped her nails against the desk, feeling the anger creep up in the form of a cold shiver in her spine. Her boss was particularly annoying today, she closed her eyes. The image of the lifeless body, his blood warm on her made her squeeze the mouse between her left hand. She killed criminals, not really annoying men who didn’t know their places. Her phone buzzed. 

“The black party. In two days. Y. Slater.” It was all that said, she sighed. The money was good, another rich person trying to get rid of their enemies, it didn’t hurt that each one of her targets were bad people, someone who had done terrible things to others for their own gain. 

She had never killed before this, but as she saw the innocent hiring proposal for a bodyguard, and the really good amount of money they promised, she applied. She had a very vast knowledge of martial arts, and she could easily get rid of someone, so when the handsome male said what he really wanted, she agreed. The chance of a better life for her and her mate was beyond her morals. 

Not having to struggle with rent, college debt, and everything else. The thought of not living in that crappy place anymore, not needing to count every penny at the end of the month, and wanting to take him out and shower him with gifts made all the wrong things about the job useless. 

So she took a deep breath, deleted the message, and went about with her day, mind focusing on the amount of money she would have if she kept saving it. The only difficult part was to explain this to Azriel. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Everyone wore black, and the masks also were present, so no one minded the masked figure lurking in every corner. Azriel kept a close eye on his target, the man was surrounded by people and a half-naked woman squirming on his lap. 

From the corner of his eyes, another hooded figure caught his attention, same clothes and the same mask, but significantly smaller. Azriel narrowed his eyes, looking like his second target arrived just in time. 

The party went on, and the other Ghostface remained rooted in place just like him, it didn’t seem like they saw him, which was good for him. The woman still squirming in the male's lap whispered something in his ear, he nodded eagerly and they got up, heading for a more secluded place in the luxurious nightclub. 

Y/N had spotted her rival as soon as she arrived, but her target was the main focus, annoying them was just a bonus. Rhys would send her on missions in another city, which led her to pretend to travel a lot for work, but as her targets got killed and Velaris was on a growing spree of bad people, he moved her here. 

She was always a step ahead of the other one, and this made her proud. She would linger a little longer sometimes, just to see them burning with rage, then she would rush home and pretend to be asleep, always the nice, dutiful mate. 

The woman who escorted the target yelled something about getting more champagne and left the room. As she passed by Y/N, the latter tapped her shoulder and warned. 

“Don’t come back.” She placed her indicator finger in the mask's mouth and the woman swallowed dryly, a shiver down her spine. She nodded, rushing away from the scene.

The room was big, a bed was placed in the center and mirrors filled the ceiling. Rich people really liked to show off. The door to the bathroom swung open and the male stepped out again, heading for the bed. Azriel opened the door, and the male jumped in his seat. 

“I think you have the wrong room dude.” Azriel walked closer in silence, blade in hand, shining in the dim light, the male’s breath got stuck in his throat and a tickle of sweat ran down his forehead. “Is it money that you want?” Azriel shook his head in denial. “I can pay whatever your price is, just leave me alone.” The male tried to get up but Azriel rushed, his knife sunk in the pale skin as the man tried to dodge. “WHAT THE HELL?” 

Azriel turned around, and the other Ghostface dared to show up, closing the door, only one of them would get out of this room, and most certainly would be him. He removed his knife, stabbing the man three more times before he turned to the other one, the male fell to the floor in a puddle of blood and agony, whining like a pig as he tried to crawl away from them. 

He launched for them, his big body overpowering their smaller one, they were sent with their back to the door, the air getting knocked out of their lungs, Azriel threw a punch, hitting the wooden door as they spun, getting out of the way, the other one kicked his stomach, making him curl as they darted towards him, circulating him and jumping on their back. 

The small arms wrapped around his neck as they tried to knock him out, the man kept crawling and agonizing towards the bathroom, his cries annoying both of the killers. Azriel stumbled backward, knocking them on the wall two times before they let go of him, he turned to them, punching them in the nose, this made Y/N dizzy and she used her knife, making an ugly slash across his forearm. Azriel hissed in pain and anger and his hands grabbed the small and very soft waist, tackling the other one to the ground. 

He sat on their stomach, pinning their hands to the ground with his right hand while the other one reached for the mask. A million scenarios passed through his mind, but in neither of them, the face of his mate would be bleeding behind that damned mask. 

Azriel didn’t say a thing, just watching the blood drip from her nose. From the punch he had given her. Her eyebrows scrunched in confusion as he didn’t fulfil his plans, instead, he reached for his own mask, her eyes widened as his flushed face was revealed to her. 

“Well, this is new.” She said, and it felt like he was awake from a trance, blinking, he took a deep breath. 

“I must say, I wasn’t expecting this.” He retorted, feeling the urge to laugh at the whole situation, while he was sneaking out to do his job, she was doing the very same. “Out of all people, I’d never thought it was you. Maybe Cassian or someone else.” 

“Cassian is in this too?” She asked in disbelief. 

“He introduced me to this.” He winked. “But you? Never you.”

“I’m not as sweet and innocent as you think, handsome.” She giggled and Azriel leaned in, kissing her forehead. 

“I see that sweetheart.” She scrunched her face in pain. 

“Can you get up? My head is pounding.” He quickly got up, pulling her with him, more blood dripping from her nose. 

“I’m so sorry, love.” He apologized. 

“It’s okay, we should probably see your arm, it’s pretty bad.” Azriel brushed her off. The male kept crying, trying to close the bathroom door. 

“Do you want to team up instead?” She asked, knife in hand as she walked towards the bathroom, Azriel watched as she stepped on top of the man, grabbing a handful of hair, pulling his head backwards as she lowered and slashed his throat, blood splashing on the white floor. “I was planning on actually killing you but I’m glad it’s you Azzie.” She winked and Azriel laughed at the similarities. 

“That’s funny, I was planning on killing you too, I’m glad I didn't do it, baby.” He pulled her closer. “We’re teaming up for sure, but only if you tell me how you tricked me last week.” He said, pulling her with him as they weren’t leaving a crime scene but rather a nice restaurant. 

“Of course love, if you show me how you tackled me down to the ground.” She turned to him, winking. “It was kinda hot.” 

Azriel laughed, they both got their masks back and he led the way back to his motorcycle. As they removed their clothes and masks he looked at her. 

“How did you get here?” He inquired. 

“Nah, got an Uber, rather easy to leave a crime scene like this.” She said with a laugh, looking at the mask in her hands before shoving it inside his backpack. “Do you think R would mind us using the uniform in bed?”

“What?” He asked, climbing the bike, she got up behind him, leaning closer to his ear. 

“You look so good in that mask, it would be such a waste not to use it, Mr.Ghostface.” She purred in his ear and he shivered, smirking as she got his helmet on her head, starting to drive home. 

“You’re such a temptation.” He barked and she giggled.

“Only for you, handsome.”

[stargazer2709]

The Boogeyman & The Hangman | 1. After Hours

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I'm a Gotham man from birth. A man who lived under the wing of a Falcone for twenty years, even since I was just a young boy. Doing what I was good at made me who others think I am. Loving made me who I really am.

After the best part of my life, the job was just dealing with obstacles for the Family that I chose, or maybe they chose me. However, that didn't stop me from being kicked out, despite working there for almost half my life. Who doesn't love receiving nothing but pats on the back for their hard work?

The worst part about being unemployed is that you have nothing else to think about, and I can't deal with the absence of the woman who gave me hope at the lowest point in my life.

My former boss, Carmine Falcone, was killed a few days ago, and I can say that he has left a very big space to fill. Things have not been the same since he passed away, and with it the end of my service to the Family.

Anyway, today, November 23, I just finished one last pending matter, returning to my apartment tired, it being still very dark before dawn. Just when I think this early part of the day has been stressful enough, I get a phone call. No one but my good friend Oswald Cobb, calling at this hour, I'd be willing to bet he's screwed up somewhere and needs help or it's going to be a night of drinking.

“What's the matter, Oz?” I say as soon as I answer the call, and the phone is on my ear.

“Hey, what's up? Listen here, somethin' big just happened, and I'm gonna need a hand.” Yes, indeed, he screwed up. “Come on, I'm at the Iceberg Lounge, it'll be a quick matter.”

Oh God.

“Fine. I’ll be there.” As we finish talking, the call ends and I can only theorize what the hell mess Oz has gotten himself into this time to ask me for help.

Do I have another choice? Of course not, I don't. Since any Oz-related business involves a car, I have no need to use mine. I hail a cab outside my apartment and ask to be taken to the club. I pray that this little matter will not be so important and I can return home early.

Fast forward a few minutes and I'm here, at the Iceberg Lounge, closed for obvious reasons, after the blood of Gotham's most dangerous bastard was spilled literally right at that entrance. Getting out of the cab, my most reasonable option to find Oz would be in the back, and I was right. I can see the beautiful Maserati parked, but no sign of good old Oz.

I'm about to call him, when I'm surprised by the sound of a door opening and there's the man. Apparently he doesn't come alone. He looks at me with a certain sparkle in his eyes. He seems pleased to see me.

“Hey, come here now, I need someone strong. This kid is a fuckin' spaghetti strand, he's not helpin' me at all.” He sounds exhausted, apparently carrying something. Or someone.

“'Kid'? What kid?” The moment I approach to help, just after Oz, a young man comes out of the place, with a worried and completely scared expression. I don't know which part of this strikes me as weirder, the part where Oz is removing a corpse from his own club or that he just adopted a stray.

I help load the bagged corpse with the help of Oz and the guy I barely know and together we get to the trunk of the Maserati to leave the place. Closing the trunk, I finally get a breather and head over to Oz to talk.

“I don't know if I want to know who this poor idiot is, and what he did to end up like this." I say this jokingly, and receive a brief awkward silence, which is then softened by that oh-so-sarcastic Oz tone.

“You're right, you don't want to.” He pats me on the shoulder and walks with his classic limp towards the boy. “Now, you wanted my car so badly, you can drive.” After that, he gives the car keys to the young man, to which he agrees and takes them. “Go on.”

It was all a long, uncomfortable car ride to specific points in the city that would eventually end at a junkyard where Oz would dispose of the body. I waited in the car for a couple of minutes for the two guys to finish the job, sitting in the back seats, in this case, like a child with two parents arguing while he looks out the window.

As we return, the boy is back behind the wheel and Oz is in the passenger seat. The whole atmosphere feels lighter and my good friend turns to look at me with a more carefree smile.

“Hey, man, the kid's stayin' with us, okay? This is, uh... Victor.” He returns to his seat and continues smiling at me through the rearview mirror.

“Nice to meet you, Victor.” Now I lean over to the front seats and pat the boy on the shoulder, trying to comfort him, because I could tell he had had a bitter experience just now.

“N-nice... Nice to meet you too, sir.” He answers me and seems less nervous than he was a few minutes ago.

Oz smiles as he assures us that we are all in the same boat, as this mess seems to have only just begun. An issue later got in the way, as Oz was in charge of the Falcone Family's Drop operation, and he had to keep an eye on it, especially in these tough days. It's not all good news when it's time to start the engine once again to head to the Falcone Mansion, as my good friend has been requested for a 'business meeting'.

Holy crap, it's even dawn already.

And so, our journey ends at the entrance of the mansion, parking there, planning our next steps carefully.

“Alright, listen, if we don't come out...” There is a slight pause in his words and in an instant he continues. “Nah, we'll be fine. You'll be fine. It's gonna be fine.” The boy at this point doesn't know whether to actually be scared or not. Maybe it's just Oz playing one of his practical jokes on matters like this. For God's sake. “I'm messing with you, kid! Alright, just sit tight, you know? Maybe look for your sense of humor. It's gotta be here somewhere.”

Oh man, this guy. Before he interacted with his door to leave, I stopped him by putting my hand on his shoulder having approached him.

“Hey, hey, what do you mean by 'we'? Do I really have to go in there?”

“I need you to be there. That way they'll know I have your back, you know? Come on, they're just weak pricks, they couldn't do anything to you if they wanted to. You just have to be there, dammit." Without even letting me respond, he opens the door and walks out, leaving me behind.

As always, I can't let good old Oz go in there without me.

“Easy, Vic. It's just in and out. Just stay here.” Just like Oz did, I'm just trying to make the boy feel safe even in these circumstances. I open my door too and follow Oz into the mansion.

The doors open into a small dining room where the guys behind this stupid business are waiting for us.

“Johnny. Milos.” My good friend greets them both, walking around the place until he sits down. The two men pay attention to him, and then notice the anomaly here. Me.

“What the hell is he doing here?” The man sitting at the end of the table asks, clearly not happy to see me here.

“Hey, calm down, Johnny, he's with me, okay? If we can finish this soon, go ahead.” Oz has my back even when I'm not welcome in this house, at least not now, not when I have no one else to owe loyalty to.

Viti and Milos prefer to leave the matter aside so as not to make it bigger than it is. It's just blah blah, business, and they will move the operations to Robbinsville. Oz tries to counter-argue with an alleged shipment that will arrive in the next few days. I admit this guy always has an ace up his sleeve.

At this, the two subjects in front divert their attention to the other side of the room, leaving everything in an awkward silence. What the hell are they looking at?

“Sofia, please, join us.” Now Milos motions with his hand for the person they were looking at to come closer. But hearing 'Sofia', just that, makes my heart, without exaggeration, want to jump straight out of my chest.

Damn. Is it really her? It's been ten long years. Maybe I've gone mad and this is a product of my fatigue and exhaustion from long days of work.

“Oh, I didn't mean to interrupt.” That melodious voice echoes in my head over and over again. I'm so afraid of turning around and discovering that voice is just in my imagination, or maybe I'm hallucinating.

The fact that Oz turns to look behind him gives me some hope. Maybe I'm not hallucinating it. Maybe... it is her.

“Oz, you remember Carmine’s daughter?”

“Yeah.”

Oh my God. Seriously, it's her. I immediately turn around and what a surprise, it's her, Sofia Falcone, finally and after ten years, without a window in between to separate us.

“Sofia. I thought you were still at, uh...”

“Arkham?”

“Yeah.”

“No. I've been rehabilitated.” That lovely, subtle, elegant voice, along with a smile are so far the best damn thing that has happened to me this crazy week.

Just seeing her, out in the open, without that striped suit, finally within my reach, makes me feel so many things right now. I could take her in my arms, hug her, kiss her, as if the day after this one didn't exist, but I can't take that risk. Not even for me. For her. I would love to be able to obey my feelings, my heart, but the show must go on.

“Miss Sofia, it's... A pleasure to have you back home.” And there it is, my best attempt at the proper, formal man the Falcones had hired long ago, the one who would never dare even look in the same direction as the princess of the family.

She looks at me, instantly deducing my false role as a bodyguard who is just doing his job, without any personal motives or love affairs involved. That smile on her face could mean many things. To those in the room except me, it might just seem like a polite response to my greeting. But for me, I think it's the best way she finds to reciprocate without pulling back the curtain of fiction.

“Yes, quite a pleasure, indeed.” She answers dryly, as if my presence doesn't keep her awake at night, as if I'm just someone else standing in the room like the rest of the guards at home. Without anything else to add, she looks back at the back of the room, now addressing Milos. “Have you asked him about my brother?”

“I thought we agreed-” The bearded man tries to reply but is interrupted by the beautiful and elegant newcomer.

“Have you heard from Alberto?” Now she asks Oz the questions, maybe he might have answers.

“Al?”

“He went out last night, he refused his bodyguards, and he never came home.” She remains sharp with her words, but I can bet that deep down she is dying of anguish to know the whereabouts of her brother.

“Sofia, that's enough.” Viti breaks the tense atmosphere, putting his word over hers.

“I-I better get out of here.” Feeling this atmosphere as much as everyone else, like water almost reaching the point of drowning him, Oz decides to leave before this gets worse. He walks to the exit, but not before saying goodbye. “And, uh... It's good to see you.” After this, he walks away, not even making sure I'm following behind him.

“Well, uh... I think... I should go too.” Personally, I also feel the tide rising over me until I almost drown and I decide to leave too before the bomb explodes. “Excuse me, gentlemen.” I nod my head to the two men, and then to the beautiful young lady. “Miss.”

I'm about to start walking out of the room when Sofia stops me in my tracks, mentioning my name, and having all my attention to herself, she speaks up. “Don’t go yet. We have a lot to talk about. I’ll wait for you at the end of the hall.”

At this point I have no idea how to react. Maybe this really is Sofia's new mood, or maybe it's her wonderful acting tool in front of the judging eyes of the Family. Whatever it is, it's Sofia, and I would do anything for her. I nod again and I can leave the room, still trying to come to terms with what has happened. The woman I once loved and still love is here, just when I thought I couldn't miss her anymore in life. Once upon a time this seemed like something far away from happening.

Only a few minutes pass when I see Sofia coming towards me. That white outfit of hers suits her incredibly well, and I've noticed that over time she looks even more beautiful than she did years ago. She stops right in front of me, looking up at me with her gaze that now seems more vulnerable than a moment ago, as if just passing through the door made her mood change.

With her so close, I can only think about the time we missed each other, and which I plan to make up for. Starting now.

Finally, after a long time, I can feel Sofia's body and the warmth of it close to me, having surrounded her tightly with my arms, bringing her closer to me. Every part of me shivers at the feeling of this kind of physical contact with her. Her hands touching my back in response to my hug causes something in my body that I haven't felt in years, and I'm not exaggerating. It feels like we haven't hugged like this in a lifetime. After all, I've waited a whole decade for this.

“I... I don't know what to say, honey, I... I missed you so much.” Along with my body shaking, my voice shakes being so close to her, and I can't find a better time to speak than now, hugging her body.

“I know, love, I know.” Her voice so close to my ear is just one of many reasons why my knees might give out and let me fall to the floor. She buries her face in my neck area, feeling her hot breath on my skin, which only makes me want more. “I'm finally here, just for you...”

We separate from each other's embrace and, standing face to face once again, the kiss we've been waiting for years is a reality. Every second Sofia's lips press against mine makes the seconds I spend missing her, wanting her, worth it. I just want to stay like this forever, enjoying this moment for longer than circumstances could offer me. A caress on my cheek gives me the reassurance I needed. My love is back, and she's not going anywhere from now on, and I wouldn't let her go again.

Sofia's slender fingers slide over my cheek after she pulls away from me once our kiss is over. I can still taste her on my lips, and though I could have a lot more of them another time, her presence is enough for me. A warm smile appears on her face and that's when she speaks again.

“Like I said before, honey, we have a lot to talk about, so I hope you're hungry. We'll go get lunch.” Damn, she's so straight-laced when she wants something. And I'm certainly in.

This day just gets better and better.

[strangepetscomicbooksbat]

Current Madison Family Tree

Current family tree of Madison Hernandez from Hunger is So Heavy under the cut

So at the top we got.. Rosa and Manuel Hernandez. I'm using the format of the family tree website- Rosa was a School Administrator. Interesting facts: Rosa, despite her husband's generosity, is a known penny pincher. When Manuel passed, it was up to her to distribute his wealth among their children. She didn't. Currently, she is a Dementia Patient in an assisted living facility.

Manuel was a Post Master. Interesting facts: He was a veteran of the Vietnam War, Manuel attended a segregated school, and learned to read English from a man at a gas station. He worked hard in life to give his girls the world. 100s attended his funeral (100s more than Madison predicts will attend their grandmother's).

They had two children, Faith and Selina. Faith is older by 6 years. Faith stopped Nursing school just before graduation to marry her first husband. Two years later, they divorced. Then she married her second husband and had Vickey, during this time period she became a radio host. She then divorces Vickey's dad, and marries her third husband. One month before Madison's birth, she has Jameson. Vicky was the first girl in the family to get diagnosed with ADHD, and she inspired Madison to pursue a diagnosis as well. She works as a marine biologist. She isn't really one to answer her phone, but she started really thriving when she moved out of state for college. Jameson is a kind of classic jock. His parents held him back a grade, explicitly so he could do better in sports. It created a real rift between him and Madison. Madison thinks a dumb jerk, he thinks they're a pretentious jerk. They fought so bad as kids that playdates stopped when they were seven. Selina works in healthcare cybersecurity, though she originally graduated with a degree in art history. She briefly worked for Paul, her now husband, in his architectural office. She went back to college with Madison was 14 to get her masters in Cybersecurity, and is happier with where she is now. Is still a Hernandez; she kept her last name when she married.

Paul Hernandez is an architect. He travels quite a lot for work. Madison really thinks he's the one they got the ADHD from, but they think they might have gotten the autism from their mother's side. Paul really cherishes having such a large family through his marriage to his wife, as he is no-contact with his own. Alexander Burr is the oldest son of Paul and Selina. Madison knows he used to want to be an author, but nowadays he works as a herpetologist. Alex really always wanted to become an author, but his mother urged him to go into STEM, lest he end up like her (At the time, an unemployed stay-at-home mother.) Fun Fact: He was the only child Selina planned on having. Oh well. He was the first to change his name to distance himself from his family. He also acted as Madison's primary caregiver until he left the state for college at 22 Thomas Hernandez ran away from home when he was 17, an he ended up doing online schooling as he hung around with a band in their tour bus. Eventually, the lead singer got busted for some nasty allegations about his interpersonal relationships, and Tom did what every Texan guy does when he needs a job. He got his associates and went into Oil and Gas, where he now works offshore most of the time. Fun Fact: He was the baby that happened when Selina had an IUD Madison Hernandez was the third and final child, as Selina went on to have her tubes tied after delivering her much awaited baby girl. Selina was pretty excited to have a girl, for the first few years. She enjoyed having a baby to dress up again. Madison uses they/them pronouns, though she/her doesn't exactly bother them. They are attending community college and pursuing a degree in Public Health, and live alone in what was once their childhood home. They are also diagnosed AuDHD with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and anxiety and depression that they are medicated for. Additionally, they use a cane due to a mixture of joint issues and lasting effects from a gymnastics injury they got when they were fifteen.

[hoforwonho]

get to know your tumblr mutuals !

I was tagged by @sillyabtmusic thanks !!

tagging: @sonsband @sapphicshawol @sanstropfremir @kafffeesatz @moonflowerglowing @neonsbian @fairyjiu @kimkaitual @shiningwonho @kingleedo

what's the origin of your username?

to quote the rapper Im Changkyun, "I am what I am, man"

otp(s) + ship name

we don't do that here

song stuck in my head

right now Chest by Just B

weirdest habit/trait

don't have one i'm perfect thx

hobbies

I have gone through so many hobbies over the past few years. Journaling, baking, chess, writing, etc. The one I've stuck with the longest has to be gaming. I'm also trying to get back into reading, but I'm so bad at managing my time & prioritizing that.

if you work, what's your profession?

I work for a nonprofit & I do a little bit of everything. Mostly behind the scenes work/paper work - but in the past year I've taken on a bigger role with clients.

if you could have any job you wish, what would you have?

Unemployed and paid for it. Genuinely would like to not work, but instead volunteer in my community with my own hours. But if that's not an option... Librarian... in the right setting. My internship was an actual nightmare & I faced sooooo many challenges. I think I'd like to be a librarian in an older community

something you're good at

People - I've always been pretty good at communicating and working with people. Which might sound like a stupid thing to say?? But I'm 99% sure the only reason I still have my job is because most of the people that work with love me and talk me up so much.

something you hate

People. I really like my job right now because it's mostly behind the scenes. My boss pushed me into taking on a different role with clients because he knew they'd like me - and it's kinda been a lot. People can be super exhausting & draining - and staying positive and empathetic while you're drained is hard. I'm also suuuper introverted and when I'm out with people I need like a solid 4 hours of alone time when I get home.

something you forget

everything. I genuinely have the worst memory in the world. Like every now and then I see who I'm mutuals with and it's like when did that happen???

your love language

Time. Someone choosing to use their time on me >>>>>

favorite movies/tv shows

Movies: Pearl, Monkey Man, Catwoman (2004), Scream, The Dressmaker, Halloween TV Shows: The Glory, Law & Order SVU, Golden Girls, Charmed, The Haunting of Hill House

what were you like as a child

Super kind & trusting - but also so stupid. When I was 7 I started my own personal library and gave out my books to other kids with a note that had a return date - I only got a few back

favorite subject in school

Depends on the year. Middle School I was in advanced math and it was so fun.

High School I'd say history College I took a few religion courses and had the best time of my life. I think that was partly because the professor was an actual saint and I think about her very often. She had a few courses that focused on sexuality/gender & religion and they were mind blowing.

least favorite subject in school

Chemistry. Worst time of my life.

what's your best/worst character trait

Best: Empathetic. I'm a good listener & can be a good person to vent to. Worst: Perpetually anxious & can be a bit of a bitch in the right situations. Actually a lot of a bitch. Actually many people close to me would & have used the word cunt. But!!! I'm super lovable!!!

if you could change any detail of your life rn, what would it be?

I'd want a little more job security (thanks government...)

if you could travel in time, who would you want to meet?

I don't think I'd want to travel in time honestly? I'm also not like big on meeting famous people. I mean maybe I'd want to go back and meet Phyllis Schlafly and be like hey what the fuck

[hollyisanonymous]

Life Update!

Cat distribution system works hard, apparently. Yesterday [11/15] when I was leaving work, a cat refused to leave me alone. Meowing like crazy, practically tripping over my legs, all that. It was raining, she put her paws up on my car door when I closed it to leave, and started begging and I just. Couldn't leave her.

We already have two cats in the house and a third would put a not-fun amount of financial strain on us, but we're going to keep her at least until we can get her spayed, vaxxed, and free of fleas. Whether this is her forever home or not, she's here for the time being.

That being said: baby is expensive, and I'm about to be unemployed [my job is seasonal, unfortunately], so any support would be appreciated. Can't offer much in way of art right now, but I will make sure to keep a list of people who donate so y'all can get a little something whenever I'm not in the pit of being unable to draw.

Also, for anyone asking, her name is Wren. Short for Her Majesty, Princess Wren.

[poetrysmackdown]

some informal thoughts

hello! hope the holiday season has been kind to all of you. and i hope all my jewish followers had a lovely hanukkah! anyways, since i said a few months ago that i’d pick poetry smackdown back up sometime around this time of year, i thought i should make a post. the gist of it is that i’m still quite busy, i have a break that’s about three weeks shorter than I was planning on, and i don’t currently have the mental bandwidth required to read, contemplate, and sort through poem submissions in a way that does justice to them, even if i were to recruit some friends to help out. since running a tournament format requires at least five weeks of continued engagement once it’s underway, and since i’m not at capacity to offer that right now due to the change in my schedule, i’m gonna have to bow out for now. sad bc i was looking forward to it!

my hope is that i’ll have some more time over the summer to hunker down with it, in which case you’ll be hearing from me. it’ll frankly depend on the kind of job i land in for the summer, but i find that my unemployed spirit can typically keep me doing stupid shit regardless of workload...to a point. i don’t want to make any promises because i don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up just to let them down again LOL. i do admit the amount of exposure the first tournament got has made me feel like more of a perfectionist this time around, doubly because i don’t feel that i’m very suited to being a public online presence (even a relatively quite small one)—i’m bad enough at responding to emails for my own real life responsibilities, let alone tumblr asks for the silly responsibilities i invent for myself lol. that’s not to say i no longer want to do it, or i don’t enjoy it, or even that i don’t feel capable of making a really interesting bracket—just that if i am working to put something new together, and if people are taking the time to submit poems they care about, then i don’t want to half-ass it.

my second admission is something like this. I made the original bracket as a celebration of poetry and our relationships to it. yes it was silly and competitive, and the poems were very tumblr, but still, celebration was the intention—I wanted to have conversations about poetry. I stand by the bracket format as a fun and valuable way to foster conversations about poetry, but truthfully, the poems i’m wanting to have conversations about right now—the poems that we should be talking about right now—are ones that i'm not comfortable putting in a bracket. I reblogged The Baffler’s Poems from Palestine collection on here earlier, and Najwan Darwish’s “Who Remembers The Armenians?”, which I still often find repeating through my head when I'm traveling from one place to another, walking home or riding the bus. I came across this beautiful thread recently where people have been translating Dr. Refaat Alareer’s “If I Must Die” into their own languages (this just makes my translator's heart sing!!!!!!). @havingapoemwithyou has been posting some great poems from and for Palestine as well—check out their tag here.

There's always more to add, and I'll be posting more on here as I come across it, but that's what I feel anyone should be focusing on right now when it comes to poetry. i think poetry can be an escape but it should never be a distraction. does that make sense? i wouldn't be against doing a one-off poll here or there, but it feels weird to be making a tournament for poetry right now, or anytime soon. i feel like what free time i have right now is still best utilized helping my friends with organizing in the real world. and god, a bit off-topic but while I'm talking, fuck poetry foundation—I have so much respect for all the poets keeping up the boycott, because while i think it's a simple decision, it's not always an easy one (Aurielle Lucier discussed that here).

anyways, if you read all of this, thank you for your time!! I could go on and on, but really this was just meant to be a message telling y'all that there won't be another tournament for a while lol. even so i'll be trying to use this small silly platform as best i can until palestine is free because that's the absolute least i can do.

[hoofpeet]

Dude, seriously. Touch grass and get offline for a bit if it's that stressful.

For reasons..... I'm unemployed and don't wanna leave the house unattended; meaning I'm home alone all day and rely on comms to make money now so I kinda can't unplug ... I'm kinda trying to limit how much I use tumblr but. In general I just hate the state I live in and everything happening in my life

[velgroverp]

YANG HANSOL, do you believe that the grove will hide your secrets?

It's best to think again. The grove can only do so much for you. You've lived amongst it's protection for 2 WEEKS as one of the town's UNEMPLOYED. Do you think the grove owes you? At 22 YEARS OLD, there's no guarantee what you'll experience here in velgrove. You may be AMBITIOUS and CURIOUS, but the grove knows you're also GULLIBLE and CRITICAL. Maybe you are like an ICOSAHEDRON DICE. Will that change by the time the grove is through with you?

residence: fields, farmer's barn

DECEMEBER (AGE: THIRTEEN)

at the most important age of my life, i am fatherless. homework is easy because eomma has a brain. talking gets...easier every time misol opens her mouth. strength? courage? all that it takes to be a man? i have been robbed of it. all of it.

thanks appa.

if not for misol, those punks would leave me on the streets for dead! i know they're probably sad about their own lives. that's why they punch me. at least they have the strength to, like real men. me? i'm still flimsy.

and yet, i cannot give up.

where did you go? eomma says you died when we were young, but if that's the case, then why aren't there any pictures of you? i know there must be some other reason. you wouldn't abandon me here, right? APRIL ( AGE: FIFTEEN)

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY I'LL EVER SHOW MY FACE IN PUBLIC! AGAIN! it was embarrassing enough that my dream girl from math class told me she'll only ever see me as a friend she probably heard how lame i was from all those jerks, but then misol had to try and come SAVE ME! MY OWN SISTER! it's bad enough that i am exactly 3.03 centimeters shorter than her, but the fact that she felt the need to protect me.

IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY. and she just doesn't get it! just for one day, i'd like to be seen as a true man with the ability to hold my own. appa. don't think i've forgotten. soon enough we'll both be sleeping at that cabin on top of the hill...or fishing together in the belly of a beast... or just playing chest together.

why did you leave?

---

happy birthday to my precious hansol and misol! i'm so sorry i can't be there to tell you how much you two mean to me in person. i have to leave town for a week, so hansol, make sure misol is on her best behavior! and misol, make sure your brother doesn't lose his head. for my misol, a star charm, to remind you that you are never alone. and for my hansol, a brown leather journal to start writing about the aches and pains of adulthood. promise to save me some cake for when i return!

eomma

--

JUNE (AGE: TWENTY-TWO)

okay. clean slate. i'm twenty-two now, and maybe it's time i give up on the mysteries. eomma got me this new journal. i've finally entered into real adulthood-- full of financial responsibility and milestone crises. i think by next year i'll start investing into my own home for me and my future spouse to move into. maybe a few years after that i'll have a lucrative career and have my name attached to multiple research papers. the future is limitless!

AUGUST (AGE: TWENTY-TWO)

WHY ISN'T SHE BACK YET? IT'S BEEN WEEKS. OVER A MONTH. she said she would be back. is she okay? does she miss us? i'm trying to bury my emotions deep inside to show misol that i can be strong (and slightly optimistic). the door never opens unless it's misol. the stove is never on unless we're cooking. there's no one to comment on our childish antics.

it's really the two of us against everything.

FEBRUARY (AGE: TWENTY-TWO)

misol doesn't look the same anymore. the disappearance is chipping away at her spirit. and, for the first time, i'll admit that i am a coward. i cannot protect my family. i cannot protect my sister. all i can do is sit here and watch her rub the tiny star in between her fingers. over and over. she's wishing for eomma to return, i know it.

but all i have is a note from...sumyeong? my alleged uncle. i didn't even know i had an extended family...though i'm sure eomma had to come from somewhere. a funeral for my halmeoni which took place the week she left. is this where she went? should i even bother following if all we have is each other.

MAY (AGE: TWENTY-TWO)

so we've started our journey to velgrove. i've convinced misol that maybe meeting our uncle sumyeong will either answer all our questions OR at least point us in the right direction. who knows? maybe we'll end up staying awhile and fitting right in with the rest of our family!

@velhansol