#at least the confession didn't send them to hell

[sweetnans]

love me already

Pairing: f. reader/bakugo katsuki Summary: dual POV where mc is tired of waiting for Bakugo to be truth and confess his feelings for her. tw: none. Just fluff and chaos.

"Y'know, I think I'll just tell Bakugo I like him." You were drunk, and a sort sense of boldness invaded you all of a sudden.

"Girl, don't do that." Mina put her hands on your bare thigh from your skirt ridden up. "Wait till you sober up"

You were hanging with Mina after a month of not seeing each other, being pro heroes tide up your schedule so you were out of reach most of the time, only reachable by the phone. You had a blast of a night, went clubbing, and drank while dancing like old times.

"He's playing with my mind, I swear," the words spurred out of your system, and you felt like you might start to cry in any second. "He's always sending texts and asking if I'm hurt after a fight and-"

"Hey! He doesn't do that to me!" Mina whined, putting her left hand above his heart.

"Exactly! He's this obsessive fucker who thinks he's better than everyone else, always so cocky and he had me wrapped around his fingers with the details that I know he only do to me, so obnoxious" you let a sigh trying to come down from your despertarion but something made you see red again. "And yet he never confessed! I'm tired Mina what if he's just playing with me and doesn't want anything serious just fuck with me and hop on to the next. Maybe he thinks I'm playing hard to get, and now I'm kind of a challenge to him, you know the bastard"

Now you were upset.

"Mmhm, just give him some time. He has had a crush on you since we were at UA" Mina bit his nails and poured another glass for you.

"Exactly, that's what everyone says! His mom, his dad even Midoriya who can't catch a fucking clue even if it's tingling in front of his eyes. If He thinks I'm going to wait forever for him to grow a pair of balls? He's got another thing coming. " You downed the entire glass, and Mina hurried to pour another.

...

"She haven't talked to me in an hour," Katsuki stated, folding some papers on his desk.

"Man, it's her night off duty, I heard Mina said that they were going out tonight," Kirishima made a spun in his chair. "Partying and doing girl's shit"

Bakugo hated staying in the office so late, but the papers were not going to fill themselves out. At least Kirishima was there with him, trying to calm him down, but doing a pretty bad job.

"I swear if Mina let her fall into a ditch again I'm going to-"

"For fuck sake, bro!" Kirishima rolled his eyes, almost disappearing in his skull. "It was one time! Let it go. She was fine and giggling like a mad woman when you went to her rescue"

"I just worry about her," he grunted. "I'm a hero, that's my work"

"Yeah, with civilians, but she's a real hero, y'know." Kirishima pushed. Not in the six years that he'd seen Bakugo after you, has he been able to get the real confession out of his mouth.

Bakugo checked his phone again. Nothing.

...

"I'm going to get up there and tell him that I'm done waiting for him"

You didn't know how you convinced Mina into your crazy idea, but now you were outside, in front of your apartment's lobby, waiting for a cab.

"Don't you think you need to reconsider, maybe? You're tipsy honey, what if he's not even there" Mina tried to talk to you out of it, but she knew better, you were stubborn as hell, the least she could do was following you and making sure that, this time, you didn't end up in a ditch.

"He's there, he told me," you stopped a cab lifting a finger and told the driver the direction.

The way to Katsuki's agency was a haze. You remember looking at Mina, her eyes closed, trying to rest before the chaos breaks loose.

"Do you know what you are going to say?" She mumbled with her eyes closed and grabbed your hand to reaffirm her company and her friendship.

You had no idea.

...

"This is taking ages," Kirishima complained, trying to read the papers and arrange them by dates. "Why can't we just shred them and pretend it didn't happen?"

"The TV broadcasted the fight, you dumbass"

Katsuki was tired too, but he needed to make and fill the reports before tomorrow morning.

"Did she answered you?" Kirishima asked.

It was a lame night. He was practically locked up with his best friend all alone in his office. He had a purpose, and that was making him confess his love for you.

"No," he briefly checked his phone again before returning his eyes to the files. "What if she's in a ditch?"

"She's not!" Kirishima raised his voice qhile laughing, and Katsuki only grunted in response. "So what's the deal with her? You still like her or what?"

"Who told you I liked her in the first place?" He was smug about his answer, not giving away any hint of his real feelings for you.

"C'mon, everybody knows," something dark flowed into Kirishima's mind. He felt like a child poking a mad dog with a stick. "At least in our class, I mean, I remember Todoroki showing interest in her once, and you completely beat him up in spared fight, and Mirio that time he gave her a flower from the patio, you were fuming I still remember the red shade of angry in the tips of your ears"

"Keep working"

That phrase only gave him more fuel to continue the poking the beast game.

"Man, why don't you just be truth to yourself? Like, is it that hard to accept the feelings you have for her? She's amazing, smart, beautiful, She's a beast on the field and has a great heart. What's the problem, Dynamight?

He touched a sensitive fiber using his hero name. He always bragged about being the best, bold and facing everything, and everybody who dared to get in his way, but he was acting like a real pussy with you.

"I'm scared I'm not good enough, you happy?" He was upset, and Kirishima was astonished with his confession. He expected an angry gremlin yelling at him for being so annoying, spurring out his confession between variabilities of insults, but he didn't expect his best friend, the know it all and do it all feeling like he wasn't enough.

"Not enough? Have you seen yourself in the mirror lately? Yeah, of course you have a shitty attitude, but you care for her. You're the main example of manliness. You are always taking care of her, giving her your attention, making time for taking her out of a ditch while you were patrolling, I mean, I would've left her there" Kirishima joked to make Bakugo less worried about himself. "I'm telling you man, you are it for her, but you gotta hurry the fuck up because what you see in her, everybody could see it too"

In the quietness of his office, full of papers with his best friend, giving shitty but quiet good advice, he realized that he needed to tell you his feelings, he couldn't wait anymore time.

...

You sobered up real quick. Having the massive building in front of you in the middle of a cold and freezing night, returned every sense that you needed in your body.

"You are doubting" Mina established.

"I'm freezing," you counterattacked. "Why didn't you tell me to put some jeans on?"

The dancing and the drinking made you feel hot and raised your temperature and you knew it, so you put on a skirt before going out without thinking you would come out of the house after coming from the club.

The lights were on, in the floor where Bakugo's office was situated. If you squinted your eyes, you could even see the shapes of Kirishima's and Bakugo's bodies through the glass. Or you were just still drunk.

"He won't be there forever, and you're going to catch a cold if you keep us waiting here for something to happen," Mina urged, hugging herself to keep the cold out.

"You're right, it's now or never," you said, walking determinated into the big glass doors to make yourself in.

With Mina behind you, you pushed the doors, and the guard glanced at you. He recognized you and Mina immediately, but you two put your credentials out just for safety. He gave you a nod and you continued your way to the elevator.

"Are you nervous?" Mina asked while you pressed the elevator button.

"Like shit." You watched the countdown in red numbers above the elevator doors. The elevator was in Bakugo's floor so no one was around.

The ding in the elevator startled you a little, and the turmoil in your stomach didn't make it any better. Mina pushed you through the open doors and pressed the button to Bakugo's floor.

...

"Thank god it's done." Kirishima was spining in his chair while Katsuki looked for his stuff to bring them home with him. "Are you ready to face your true feelings?"

Kirishima didn't drop the topic after the big confession and the great advice, he kept pushing his best friend and giving him ideas on how to tell you, some of them were good and some of them were trash, but Bakugo just listened and ignored at the same time.

"Shut the fuck up" Katsuki growled lowly stuffing his belonging into his black backpack.

"Isn't it romantic? Like, after all this time, you could just walk in with a bouquet of flowers and, wait no, walking? That's lame. What about a white horse? Yeah, that's manly. " Kirishima was hopeless, and even though Bakugo showed a scowl at his words he was actually having fun.

"No horses, but maybe a bouquet will be cool," he was making peace with his own feelings. At the end of the day, what was the worst that could happen?

...

"I think I'm going to pee, shit," you pressed your bladder, and Mina laughed at you.

"You can't be serious right now, we are halfway," she said while you danced funny in front of her.

"I'm sorry I process my emotions somatically," you started to feel cloudy, and your hands started to sweat.

"Hey, relax. He's so into you, maybe he'll stand like a rock for the first three seconds but then he will be all over you confessing, don't worry, and if I'm wrong you can always have Shindo"

You made a gag.

"I hate Shindo," you told her.

"But he follow you like a puppy," Mina imitated a cute puppy joining his hands under her chin and poked out her tongue.

The elevator stopped with a big thump, and you feared in a good way. You had your adrenaline up, and there were still remains of booze in your system to give you a boost.

"It's time, big girl." Mina patted your shoulder and gave you a little push.

...

Kirishima stretched himself, and Bakugo took his backpack, grabbing the zipper of a back pocket to fetch the keys of his office to close it.

He was busy looking for the keys when Kirishima started patting him in the arm repeatedly.

"What?" He told him tired and with heavy eyes. Kirishima's eyes were the exact opposite of him. They were big and surprised, looking at the other side of the glass doors of his office.

He followed Kirishima's look and stopped in you.

At first, he thought it was a kind of a mirage, then he thought that maybe he was more tired than he realized, and then he thought that maybe it was a villain whose quirk was morphing into peoples body's.

Every thought ended at the sound of your voice.

...

You walked through the hallway, practicing a speech of what you were going to say to him. You did it over and over, stumbling words in your own mind. You were there, physically and mentally, ready to take all your feelings for him out. You couldn't chicken out.

You saw his figure in the last office at the end of the hallway, body contouring to grab something from his backpack.

Kirishima was the first to notice you, his eyes wide open at the sight of you two walking in the middle of the night like you owned the place. He gave multiple pats to Bakugo's arm, and from afar, you could notice that he was tired.

Maybe your boldness wasn't the best thing to do at that moment.

You couldn't make your way out because he turned his gaze from the backpack to you in a second. By his look, you could see the gears in his brain moving to give some sort of explanation of what was happening in front of him.

He opened the door, forgetting completely that Kirishima was in his way. The red-haired boy pushed him a little, giving him courage, not caring that his best friend kinda kicked him, stumbling against him.

You two were in the same hallway looking face to face. Your two best friends a step back making themselves a crowd in what was about to happen.

"What are -" Katsuki started disoriented, looking for proof or a mark that you were injured or hurt.

"Shut up," you told him. Katsuki was very surprised at your determined tone.

"I'm liking this already," Kirishima muttered behind Katsuki, grinning like the Chesire cat.

The silence between the four of you was something that was eating your bones. It wasn't awkward, but it was heavy. You told him to shut up, but you weren't talking either, and you knew it. All the speech that you practiced before vanishing from your mind.

"Are you-

"Are you going to love me already!?"

You spoke at the same time, but your message was clear. Mina was right, Katsuki stood like he was made of stone, rigid, stoic, not even a muscle moving from your confession.

You sounded desperate. You blamed your thoughts, your desire to go pee, that you were at least fifteen percent still drunk and that you were freezing. You wanted to get over this chapter in your life, you didn't want to fool around any longer and for that you needed to know if Katsuki was on the same page as you.

"Oh my god," Mina said, holding his face with both hands.

"Shh," Kirishima silenced her. "This is better than the ditch episode"

You could tell that the booze in your system worn off just by waiting for Katsuki's response. The tic tac in your intern clock made it impossible to bear the silence.

"Are you going to say something, or are you going to stay there forever?" You hurried him, trying to hide the anxious feeling that you felt coming out of your voice.

...

Kirishima kicked Bakugo's heavy boots to take him out of his trance. It worked.

You always said to him that you were half witch, at least, always feeling before it happened. He wandered if this was one of those situations.

"I'm-

It was the first time that he felt speechless. He knew you from head to toe, and now he noticed that you were under the effects of alcohol but sounded sure about it. The way that you let it out was some kind of outburst from the time he took to process what he really felt about you. He knew he treated you differently. He liked spending time with you, and he found himself checking his phone very often, looking for a message from you. He was whipped.

He saw your bottom lip quivering, and he knew he had to do something.

...

It happened quickly.

First, you throwing your feelings at him like it was a ball of fire, then his eternal silence, and after that, your guts twisting inside of you, your throat closing, your nose pricking and your bottom lip trembling.

It was over for your fantasies with him.

Was it the worst-case scenario? Yes. Will you be able to get over it? Absolutely. Will the healing process hurt? Like hell.

You were weighing your options when the sound of heavy boots against the carpeted floor woke you up from your suffering.

He was a mere inch from you. Your body and his body were separated by a thin layer of air. You could feel the air coming out from his nose, hitting your forehead. He was tall, and you were almost the size of a elf.

"Never call me out about what I already do"

That's everything that came out of his mouth before joining his lips with yours in a feverish kiss. He wasn't gentle, but the way that he grabbed you by both sides of your face made you float in your spot.

You didn't have the time to process what he said or why he said that, forgetting what you said first, but ignoring the cheerful sounds coming from your friends mouth, you could only concentrate in his mouth moving against yours. Finally.

Do not edit or reupload my works elsewhere! All rights reserved.

[hansolen]

one more love song?

pairing ⇾ luke castellan x hades’ daughter reader (gendered stuff isn’t mentioned anywhere in the post so it can be read as gn)

word count ⇾ 3k

summary ⇾ luke is a simp, tries to confess, you guys share earphones and sit near the lake at night. the moon loves you 🫶

author’s note ⇾ so most of this is just happened to be written as luke admiring the reader rather than what i was actually going to go for, but i’m really happy with how it turned out :) hope you enjoy it as well 💌 wrote this all in one setting. when inspo hits.. it hits like a truck 🚛 this one is for my quiet people, and maybe a little self indulgent. guilty as charged your honour. no use of y/n.

you had a thing for luke castellan, and he had a thing for you too. it was no secret to anyone. but none of the other campers understood why you both preferred to dance around each other’s feelings rather than addressing them. even though everyone could feel the immense tension you both carried around whenever you were near each other, no one chose to mention it. it would be like taking a gun and pointing the muzzle right at ones own head — it was a death sentence really, hearing you both deny it. so they all just went along with ignoring it like you both pretended to do.

you were the daughter of hades, the king of the underworld and part of the trinity. that definitely added a little intimidation to your already mysterious aura. luke on the other hand was a possessive guy, even if he didn’t show it. sure, he was extremely confident, and even a little egotistical - yes, but all for the right reasons of course (as per him). but he was possessive nonetheless. that’s why it killed him inside each day that he couldn’t call you his, and himself as yours.

he really didn’t like anyone else approaching you with any unwanted intentions. though, don't get him wrong, he's well aware that you could protect yourself. hell, you could protect the entire camp just by yourself alone, but still — he felt a pang of jealously whenever some apollo’s kid talked with you for too long. or when your discussions with some guy from the hephaestus’ cabin were too long. he knew that you guys were just discussing your plans for some of their inventions and how you could help by designing their ideas into structural sketches. afterall, you were good with sketches, a hobby of yours, those from cabin 9 made sure to utilise to their fullest. even though he knew it all, he still felt some unwanted feelings swirl inside him.

he wanted to confess to you, oh he wanted to do that so badly. but he just didn't know how to.. you didn't seem the kind who’d like the usual route. for the sake of olympus itself - you didn’t even send him any signs, other than meeting back his longing gaze with just as much passion. he knew there had to be something between you two. there’s no way it could be all in his head.

but you — you never tried to make the first move, shit, you didn’t make any moves at all. and luke knows he’s a confident guy, he knows he’s amazing and all that glory speech he gives around to the new comers but oh you. you just make him rethink it all. he doesn’t know how to act around you - he feels so different around you.

as if you put some kind of spell on him that makes him loose this carefully handcrafted personality, his façade. and he's back to being the kid he was - just trying to prove himself somehow in some way. but at least you never abandoned him.. nor did you ever make him feel unwanted. unlike his.. his dad. he doesn’t need to impress you, you’ve made that clear with your actions. but still he - he really wants to.

𓇚

he recalls back when you still pretended to be unclaimed and stayed at the hermes cabin. though later on (like a whole month later) everyone found out that you knew your dad was hades and you shifted to the newly made hades cabin. it happened in such a funny manner where you stated it to the suprised chiron like it was just another fun fact about you. totally not some very critical and important information. camp half-blood having a kid of one of the three and not just any but of hades, who was always so adamant on not sending his kids to camp that the gods had an entire incident regarding it. but here you were.

anyway that’s not the point. he just really liked you and had felt a pull towards you since the beginning. he observed you from afar during your first few weeks at camp. when it was your third week at camp and you had developed the constant habit of staying up every night and sneaking out. he followed, ofcourse he was just being a good head counselor. afterall till you were in the hermes cabin you were someone he had to make sure followed the rules or whatever. he didn’t care for that much, he just wanted to know what you were always up to.

you always hid away by the time he followed you out. he had made sure that this week, this day, he’d finally follow you without you hiding away in the shadows. of course you weren’t dumb either. you could feel another shadow added to the ones you were controlling, and you felt like having a little fun with the castellan boy. so you let him follow you. (and luke found out about that fact weeks later, and safe to say he was annoyed that he wasn’t slick enough. though he got back on you, he showed you just how smooth he could be during sword fighting practice. spoiler: by the end of the match you were under him with a sword pressed on your neck and his smirk making you feel things.)

back to what happened on your third week at camp - as he followed you he realised you were headed towards the lake. oh so this was your favourite spot. he looked at you from afar, you looked breathtaking.

the moonlight shined on your figure sitting by the lake. you were probably listening to some music, since you had your earphones in.

he held his breath, he wanted to carve this scene in his memory forever. you truly looked like a goddess, the serene view and a serene beauty (you). a perfect combination indeed.

after giving himself some pep talk mentally and encouraging himself to actually go to you, he finally did. and oh boy was he glad he did - because that was the start of your friendship, and something more.

he still fondly remembers how you smiled when he finally came and sat beside you.

“finally came out of your hiding spot, castellan?” you said in a light tone. “you knew?” he asked suprised, but not really. “i know everything that goes in the shadows.” you said and smiled while taking off one earphone and handing it out to him. he took it gratefully.

that day you shared an earphone with him and in return took a piece of his heart with you.

that was the beginning of whatever the hell was going on between you and luke castellan. he understood later on what you had meant by the shadows comment when a week later you had casually revealed who your father was and shifted cabins, much to luke’s displeasure.

but you guys remained friends nonetheless and continued to keep each other company on moonlit nights.

𓇚

he still remembers when you first came to camp. you were so eerily quiet. your presence drew him to you like a moth to a flame. your eyes felt like they held galaxies and whenever you met his gaze he felt his heart could explode. though you didn't smile often, but oh god’s when you did grin at some stupid lame joke he made, or when something silly happened, he just found himself falling deeper and deeper in love with you.

though he notices. he notices how you keep your smiles to yourself and put a hand over your mouth whenever you do laugh. the reason? he truly doesn’t understand. because why in the world would you do that? you’re the most gorgeous being to have graced this earth, why would you not let him get addicted to your smiles and the sound of your melodious laughter which is sweet like nectar and has the warmth of ambrosia. as he knew it was a rare sight, he made sure to capture the memory to replay it in his head whenever he misses you.

you're so beautiful to him and your presence is so comforting. the deathly touch your aura carries has makes it all the more breathtaking. oh he's in it bad. he knows it.

𓇚

both your secret meet ups began increasing as weeks went by. you both talked about everything under the sun (or the moon, in your case). and even though you weren’t much of a talker when you were in groups during the day, luke felt glad that atleast when you were with him you spoke your heart out.

you made him feel so much at ease. even with all his responsibilities at camp and his plans.. and everything else that eats up his soul — in moments such as these, he feels like just another teenage boy. not the kid who got abandoned by his parents, not the teenager who had to protect his friends and had to prove something to the gods, not the head counselor and the greatest swordsman to have been in 300 hundred years, but just- just another teenage boy, a boy in love. oh he loved you. so much.

and that's why he decided he was finally going to confess to you tonight. he was going to set up a beautiful moment and hold your hand while looking in your eyes and confess how much he adores you and finally ask you to be his.

he felt a little nervous, which is so unlike him. c’mon, he has fought innumerable monsters and survived so many deathly quests, how is finally telling you what he’s been wanting to since forever making him more nervous than either of those situations? oh the things you do to him..

when he reached there you were already sitting near the lake at your favourite spot. as soon as he came closer, you turned your head towards him with a soft smile and said, “hey you” “hey me” he replied. he doesn’t miss the way you put an automatic smile on his face, as he sits beside you. you both sit in comfortable silence, your bodies making contact from the shoulders. neither of you move away, finding comfort in one another’s presence and touch.

being a demigod was.. anything but a normal experience to say the least. but finding someone who makes you feel.. more closer to the human part of yourself was something not everyone could find. but you both were so glad you did with one another.

as moments passed by, luke felt you lean your head on his shoulder. he relaxed into your touch as he looked down at your face to find your eyes closed. he knew you weren’t sleeping, just resting. he found himself forming a small smile as he looked at you.

then he started, “you know, i wanted to tell you something today.” you hummed in response waiting for him to continue. “i..” he felt his throat dry up. it’s always so easy to talk to you, so why is it that right now he feels unable to form words? your presence is always so calm and serene so why does his heart feel like it’s going a million miles per hour?

“hey.. hey look at me” you said in your calm voice as you softly held his face. he met your eyes, and oh he swears he could just get lost in the galaxy that lays within your eyes. you look at him with you sweet smile and say, “you can tell me anything, you know?” “i know.” his reply is almost immediate. you just smile at that “then go on”.

he closes his eyes to compose himself. he knows that he doesn’t need to pretend with you. but he also wants to tell you everything he feels for you and how you’ve taken all over his body, mind and soul. but he can’t formulate them into words. he just— “i love you too castellan.” “what” “what? you were trying to confess right? i only helped you.” you said smiling softly at him. “i.. well i..” he was dumbfounded. he had thought of so many ways this would probably go and the many ways he could say it but you.. you said it first.

“is that a pout?” you ask with a giggle. he feigns offense, “i do not pout.” “oh that was definitely a pout.” you teased. “it wasn't.” “oh it so was.” he rolls his eyes. “whatever. i just wanted to make it romantic or something i don't know. i mean i even got you a cassette tape with songs i dedicated to you and—” “you dedicated songs to me? and got them in a cassette tape? how even- when did you get the time to get that done? did you go out of camp for-” you said suprise clear in your voice but he interrupted you. “well obviously i dedicate songs to you infact they were so many that i had to choose the best of the best. and how i got the cassette and the player is just part of the trade secrets, darling.” he winked. and you just giggled and kissed him.

luke had imagined kissing you before, but it was never as close to the real deal. he was addicted to say the least. your lips tasted so sweet and felt so soft. for being the kid with the aura of death, you sure brought back life to him.

by now you were on his lap with his arms wrapped around you. you both were just sitting on the grass and taking in each other's presence and feeling peaceful with how close your hearts were.

slowly you took out your earphones from your pocket and gave him one wire. “so, one more love song?”

© hansolen do not repost, translate and post anywhere else.

author's note ⇾ aand that's the end haha. hope you liked it <3 this is my first fic ever like everr and i didn't even think i’d be able to write something that i would actually wanna post, but something in me lit up when i saw my favourite childhood book series was finally getting the adaptation it deserved and then this came out of it <3 would love to know your thoughts on it.

[save-the-villainous-cat]

What about a sub!villain who tries to play the part of the suave, dominant villain cause they’re afraid of vulnerability… and an actually dominant hero who sees through it and flips the script. Could it also be spicy please?

Also, your writing is amazing and it makes my day better! Thank you so much for sharing it! I send you hugs!

"You may think you're deceptive. But you are not." The end of the villain's dagger nearly buried its way into their own skin. Although the villain couldn't recall when the hero had gotten a hold of it during the fight, they were quite pleased with the result. (The result being the hero on top of them, still panting from the fight.) "Your effort is quite delightful, though."

The villain cracked a smile.

"Oh, you want to ravage me so bad..."

"Your imagination doesn't even come close to how bad I truly want that," the hero answered.

There was something in their presence that stirred the villain in an exciting way. Was it their body? Their personality? Their morals and their desires? Usually, the villain considered themselves to be talented when it came to reading people and analyzing the relationships they had with them.

For better or worse, it was different with the hero. More confusing. More dangerous.

At this point, the villain was playing with fire - they didn't know exactly what their relationship with the hero was nor where they stood.

"I loathe you for being my only weakness." The hero let the blade dig into the villain's chin until they looked up. "And destroying you would probably bring me some peace."

"Oh." The villain had never heard such a blunt statement coming from the hero. At least not something this personal and...open. It nearly made the villain sick to their stomach how casually the hero had mentioned it.

Slowly, the hand which wasn't holding onto the dagger travelled up the villain's arm until those cursed fingertips found a shaking wrist and grabbed it.

"But what am I without you? What is Orpheus without his muse?"

"You're so charming today..." The villain tried to sound as flirty as they could but their voice was inexplicably trembling.

When had the hero decided to be so horrible and seduce the villain? And why on earth was it working?

"How does that make you feel?" the hero asked, their voice nothing more than a whisper. They freed their index finger from their grip around the villain's wrist and slowly, agonizingly, let it travel upwards. The villain took in a sharp breath, surprised by the hero's actions.

It felt a little too intimate. Nearly immoral.

The villain felt quite stupid for blushing, after all, it was just the hero's finger rubbing against their palm and their breath on the villain's neck.

"I'm..." The villain tried to concentrate but it wasn't that easy anymore. They closed their eyes, close to defeat already. "Sorry, what do you mean?"

Did the hero have to level their weight on the villain's hips? Did they have to say these things? Startle the villain like that? Couldn't they just flirt, try to kill each other and go home after?

Did the hero have to whisper something this close to a confession into the villain's ear?

"How does it feel to be my only weakness?" the hero murmured. Their grip loosened and slowly, their hand began their conquest towards the villain's fingers. "How does it feel to mean so much to me? To occupy my thoughts during the day? And my dreams during the night?"

Hell, the hero was dreaming about them?

"What are you doing...?" Suddenly, the hero let their fingers entwine, squeezing gently and for whatever reason, the villain took in a quick breath.

"I believe we both know you crave a superficial relationship. Something that makes you feel superior and secure. But I can tell you from personal experience that those relationships don't work out in the long run. They will make you feel miserable. They will make you feel worthless. If I want you, I will want you bare. And there is nothing I desire more." Their lips were close to the villain's. "In your own time, of course. You strip. Figuratively and literally, obviously."

"I- You-"

"I am always willing to help, though." The hero smirked lazily and squeezed the villain's hand. "There is no reason to feel ashamed. Or to feel weak. After all, you have me in your hand."

The villain couldn't say anything.

It had started as a normal fight. With the usual flirting.

And now, the villain was actually thinking about opening up to someone. To talk about all their horrible fears and the self-doubt. About all their mistakes and regrets.

This had to be some new weapon or master plan to turn the villain into a good person. Whatever it was, the villain feared they would think about this encounter for the months to come.

"I will keep this, though," the hero announced. They held up the villain's dagger and pushed themselves off the villain. "Everyone needs a memento of their beloved, don't they?"

All the villain could do was stare as the hero blew them a kiss and vanished into the night.

[rubra-wav]

Hiya! I absolutely loved your posts about the HH main cast dealing with a sick reader and them being sick. You did a phenomenal job with them!

As for a request, what about Vox, hell’s resident bipedal tv, hc’s of him realizing he’s legitimately falling for reader?

Vox realises he has feelings for you

A/N : Thank you so much seriously!! 💛

Cw: SFW, gn!reader, suggestive comment at one point, angst-ish/ Vox coping

- It'll be a good long time before he realises he's fallen for you, and when he finally does, he's fully in it. There's no turning back and there's no backpedalling. He's absolutely whipped.

- It hits him one day like a train that he's actually in love with you all at once.

- He hung out with you the afternoon, and that night he's laying on his back with his phone gripped in his hand against his chest.

- It's been exactly 3 and a half hours since you were out together on a movie date at the VIP premiere. (as in in the ridiculously lavish movie room he had within Vee tower)

- He had been counting.

- You hadn't texted him back yet, and he was tapping his claw impatiently waiting for you to message him back with the world's biggest pout on his face.

- He'd already sent 4 texts, and none of them had been answered yet. He had to stop himself from sending more because he didn't want to seem too desperate. (Even though he was)

- He told himself he'd be mad that you had made him wait whenever you got back to him. He'd blow up over it.

- However, the second his phone buzzes and he sees the notification from you saying you had fun and were sorry you hadn't gotten back immediately it's like his dopamine receptors have been kicked into absolute overdrive.

- He's giddy. Warmth is flooding his chest, and he starts breathing heavier as the world's dorkiest smile spreads across his face.

- It isn't then that he realises exactly, but it's when you leave to go to sleep after texting him for a couple of hours with a flirtatious comment that has his head spinning and sparking.

- You were talking about how you'd washed your sheets that day and were making your bed. He acted like he was bored, and your next words absolutely took him out.

- "Fine. Next time, come over, and I'll spread you out on my bed then."

- When he calms down, it's messed up again as he's questioning himself.

- Why did I glitch out to them saying something that resembles a shitty pick-up line? Why did I count every minute that passed the second you went home? Why do I feel like I'm on drugs the second you pay me the slightest bit of attention.

- OH FUCK -

- He goes through all stages of grief as he realises he's in love with you in a single second and ends up causing a blackout in his bedroom in the process.

- When he roboots, he holds his head in his hands and chugs delulu juice instantly feels absolutely terrified.

- It's humiliating for him to have such delicate feelings, let alone for someone who surely doesn't feel the same way. His experiences with real, genuine romantic love for other people have hardly ended well.

- He likely tries to distance himself from you because he's scared of the fact he is so attached to you.

- It's been ages and ages of being attached to you but he's only fully realised - or at least fully acknowledged the extent of that attachment.

- His distance from you is shortly lived however as he craves you and your presence so badly he's disgusted at himself.

- He would not be the one to confess 9 times out of 10.

- Even if it's glaringly obvious you are also into him, he copes so fucking hard he's actually delusional with the excuses he makes about it.

- He basically friendzones HIMSELF.

- You could kiss him on the cheek or hold his hands in yours or cup his face lovingly and he would be there glitching while thinking about how you must just be like this with everyone else-

- He's charismatic, charming, and can often read everyone around him like an open book - analyse their behaviours, true intentions, expressions, thoughts under it all, etc.

- But he's so terribly stupid with love.

- You need to confess to him first most likely and he'll probably still think you're bullshitting him.

- Literally finds every reason of why you aren't in love with him and tries to twist everything that way.

- Even when he's in love, he wants it to be reciprocated obviously. The thought of it not being requited as he expects is embarrassing at best.

- But, he's genuinely probably even more terrified of what that means if you do love him back.

- It's easier if you don't love him back for him because he's scared of the way you might further bring out whatever imperfections and vulnerability he's shown you already after actually being in a relationship with you.

- He craves being in a relationship with you and the security you could bring him to expose those parts of himself he desperately conceals with masks resting on masks, but also its deeply unnerving to him simultaneously.

Infuriating watching the process of this man actually realising he's in love for real, honestly 😭

[punkeccentricenigma]

Rise!Boys accidentally confess their love to Reader.

Relationship status: Romantic

Reader prounouns: They/Them

TW: Slight angst for Raph's part, Some grammatical errors because english is not my first language.

Author's note: Just enjoy lol.

.⋆｡⋆˚｡⋆｡˚｡⋆. .⋆｡⋆˚｡⋆｡˚｡⋆.

Leonardo

◇ Ever since Leo realized his feelings, his casual demeanor towards [Y.N] had turned into almost aggressively flirting.

◇ Despite not wanting to rush into confessing his feelings, he was practically a simp for that person..

◇ But he also teased them often, of course, not on a seriously offensive level. Just light pokes and prods.

◇ I'm sure he bragged to anyone about his not-yet relationship with [Y.N].

"Oh, and I recently won a unicorn plushie for them, and they were really delighted! WE'RE MEANT TO BE TOGETHER!"

"Pepino, get the hell out of here."

◇ Just as Donatello had enough of his (non-)twin, he now wanted to dig a hole to hell and throw him in there to finally get some rest.

◇ Anyway, the accidental confession happened one night when neither he nor [Y.N] could sleep.

◇ They were sending each other various memes through Discord in bulk. This boosted his confidence even more, leading to him typing 'I love you.'

◇ Of course, he hadn't sent it yet; his mind was suddenly filled with not-so-good thoughts. What if they don't feel the same? What if they laugh at him?? Or something worse?!

◇ Despite his persona, the boy was full of insecurities, from his looks to his personality, but with them... he felt good about himself.

◇ But would such a confession be too simple? The boy decided to wait at least one day before confessing his love.

◇ But fate said 'nuh-uh,' and his phone fell on Leo's face, causing panic. Due to his carelessness, he held the device wrong, resulting in the accidental sending of the ill-fated message.

"No, no, no, NO!" His voice trembled as he tried to delete the message immediately. Unfortunately, the app froze to his disadvantage. "Damn it!"

◇ When he managed to reopen the app, there was a new message.

◇ "... You are not joking, right?"

◇ This night would last even longer than a turtle had anticipated.

Raphael

◇ I think it happened during the attack on their home by Shredder. Absolute chaos, a storm of emotions, the perfect situation for an imperfect love confession.

◇ "Raph, have you lost your mind?!" [Y.N] began, full of outrage. "Why didn't you let me stay? Splinter and Draxum need help!"

The turtle furrowed his brow bones, looking down at the shorter person with regret. "It was the only way, I'm sure they'll handle it."

"And what if they don't? What if they needed our help right now?"

◇ No matter how advanced [Y.N]'s combat skills were, Raphael was even more opposed to the idea.

◇ "Nothing will happen to them!" Raphael raised his voice, as if trying to convince not only the teenager but himself. "And stop arguing with me; I'm the leader here, and I make the decisions!"

"Damn it, I don't understand you! I could handle it, and you would have more time to plan; I'm not needed here!!"

◇ Just a reminder, everyone present was watching this argument.

◇ "Yes, you are!"

"No, I'm not!"

"You are! I don't want to lose you like Gram Gram; I love you too much!" His angry red face suddenly turned shocked. Oh, oh. Did he really just say that??

◇ His dark eyes met the teenage counterpart's. Their whole face was red, and their determination to sacrifice themself slowly faded from their eyes.

"... Fine," [Y.N] muttered and sat down in the seat next to Michelangelo.

◇ When all this chaos is over, they'll have to talk, this time more calmly.

Donatello

◇ Donnie has a need to be as organized as possible, so before suggesting anything, he has to plan everything out and make sure that any confession of feelings will go perfectly.

◇ Of course, he had a large folder with potential scenarios that could happen before and after the confession. It had a bit of a vibe from his previous reincarnation, but much less scary and obsessive - he simply felt strong discomfort without preparation.

◇ Leo likes to tease him about it, by the way.

◇ Anyway, there was one situation the boy didn't anticipate. One night, he had been working on another invention all night, aimed at stealing another battery from the Purple Dragons, and in the morning, he fell asleep at his desk, or rather, he was half-unconscious.

◇ "Dee, come to bed." Raphael's voice echoed through the lab, gently shaking the sleepy Soft-shell's naked shoulder. In response, he got some sluggish syllables and a hiss. "You can't sit here like this; it's not healthy." "And sitting here all night is unhealthy enough," he added quietly.

"Get lost..." That's all the turtle understood. Raph rolled his eyes and moved away from his brother a bit.

"I'm not going to struggle; I'm sleep-deprived myself," the red-loving enthusiast said, picking up his phone.

◇ And so [Y.N] appeared in the lair, as the ultimate weapon.

◇ "Donnie! Get up! Lie down in bed!" The teenager themself was not well-rested, considering the early hour, but they tried not to sound irritated. Donnie mumbled something again and straightened up in his chair.

"Raphaello, leave me alone," Donnie started, putting his hands on the keyboard. Apparently, he had no intention of opening his eyes. "I still need to make a few changes to the code..."

"Wait, do you think I'm Raph??" [Y.N] asked in surprise, pointing at themself. Did their voice really sound so manly and deep?? Since when??

"And you're talking in the third person again; I've told you that it's no longer fashionable." Donnie tried not to hit his head against the desk even a little, wanting to at least be somewhat awake. The human wanted to say something, correct him, but gave up with a certain idea in their mind.

◇ they had noticed strange aspects of their friend's behavior lately. He was more open to their, often grabbing their hand or hugging their despite his usual aversion to it, he made various devices for their that made quite an impression on their... there had to be something to it!

◇ "Hey, buddy," the human leaned lazily against the desk, trying their best to mimic the speech style of the oldest of the brothers. "Do you, you know, have something going on with our best, most wonderful human friend??"

"You mean April?" Ouch, that hurt, even though [Y.N] felt the same way. "She's our almost-sister, Raph, yuck."

◇ "Oh, no! [Y.N], I meant [Y.N]!" The teenager corrected themself, slightly annoyed. It was weird.

"What about them? I already told you." No! Not like that!

"Ahahah, you know I have a bad memory when I'm not stressed!"

"Mh..." Pause. Did they say something wrong? Donatello is overly smart; he should figure out what's wrong! How will they explain this? "Everything's fine; my plan will be initiated in half a year at the latest." Plan? What plan??

"Plan...?"

"Rendezvous plan, duh," Donnie replied, resting his head on his hand. "I know you advised against it, but I can't do it differently. I need everything to be tip-top before I confess my feelings to them."

◇ "..."

◇ "..."

◇ "Raph...?"

◇ [Y.N] remained silent, trying to control their sudden heartbeat and their face turning as red as a strawberry.

Michelangelo

◇ Playing the role of Dr. Delicate Touch, the boy knew perfectly well what he felt and wanted to confess his love, but the natural fear of rejection also got to him.

◇ He wanted to think this all through. He wanted to do it as smoothly and charmingly as possible, but not in a way that made it seem like he didn't care. He didn't want to throw such important words to the wind!

◇ His artist's soul played a significant role here. Every time he felt great, he had to sketch something related to love.

◇ Just woke up from a fantastic dream? He had to quickly grab his sketchbook and sketch [Y.N] in a floral wreath.

◇ He was on patrol and saw their favorite cafe? He started sketching the teenager drinking coffee in the nearby sand with his finger, taking a picture of it as a keepsake.

◇ Spending quality time with [Y.N]? He convinced them to start painting each other with his favorite markers, and under the pretext of light fun, he drew orange hearts on their cheeks.

◇ It was all fun until there was an 'accident' during one of the previously mentioned activities.

◇ So, Mikey and [Y.N] were in his new room after Shredder's attack, and he needed help with some unique decoration.

◇ "Wait, isn't that a neon banner from the nearby store??" The teenager asked, pointing at the mentioned thing, peeking out from behind the boy.

"I neither confirm nor deny it!" Mikey laughed, shrugging his shoulders. "You have to admit it fits perfectly."

"Mhm, but I doubt you'll fall asleep with this," [Y.N] said skeptically, picking up one of the cardboard boxes that contained a surplus of notebook-like items. "Where does this go?"

"Oh! Just put it next to the cabinet; I'll put them in the drawers in a sec."

The human nodded, and as they took a few more steps, they tripped over the cables lying on the floor. they fell to the ground with a squeak, dropping the box less than half a meter in front of them.

"Are you okay??" The orange-loving enthusiast quickly ran to his friend, helping them get up as they groaned in pain.

"Yeah, I think so..." Their voice trailed off, surprising Mikey, who followed their gaze.

◇ His pupils immediately narrowed upon seeing an open sketchbook with many drawings and sketches of [Y.N], with a predominant theme of love.

"Mikey...?"

"IT'S NOTHING!" The teenager shouted, hastily picking up the sketchbook from the floor and pressing it against his plastron.

◇ Their faces both turned equally red with excessive thinking.

◇ Oops.

[genshin-obsessed]

Helliuw~ Can I request how Luocha from Honkai Star Rail going after his crush (reader)? Thank you!

𓆩⟡𓆪 Ooh this is a cute one!! Well they all usually are, but I really like this one. Luocha is just so *sigh* 𓆩⟡𓆪 This was also much longer than I intended it to be, i didn't even realize. It may not be entirely compatible with his personality, but I was just having too much fun to change it.

How He Confesses

Luocha is a generally observant person, and he's good a picking up emotions of others. So, it wasn’t hard for him to recognize that his own emotions stirred when he interacted with you.

However, just because he can recognize these feelings doesn't mean he's good at acting on them. He’ll understand them but he’ll try to either deny it or just avoid it for a while in the earlier stages.

Luocha doesn’t want to rush things, which is why he tries to take it slow. But over time, he realizes just how much he loves you.

It does make it harder for him to take it slow, so at some point, he throws caution to the wind and just attempts to confess.

Here’s the thing, there’s a certain rule to confessing, right? Like you don’t just say it to someone’s face that you love them without setting up something. Doesn’t need to be anything grand, but some effort has to go in it.

Well, that’s what he tried. See, he wanted to confess in private, wanting the atmosphere to reflect the love he felt for you. So, he set up a little picnic in a secluded area he’d found. It was perfect, with how easily the stars could be seen, to the way the moonlight poured onto the seating area. It was truly the definition of beauty. The setup was easy, he needed a blanket, maybe a couple of pillows, a bottle of wine, some snacks, and a clear night.

But then apparently it was an extremely windy night? Like, he couldn’t get the blanket to stay, the small rocks weren’t helping too much, the basket flew away, he accidentally spilled the wine before he could even set it up. Like, the date failed before he even asked you to join him.

So, he tried something else. Decided maybe something indoors would be a more neutral choice. Even if it started raining, you two would be fine. So, he set up a reservation, asked to be put in a more private area so you could talk without much noise. The venue was all fancy and stuff, so you'd love it for sure!

But apparently four customers got into a heated argument that became physical. Somehow the fight moved to the kitchen and they ended up starting a fire? Everyone was evacuated and Luocha got a call mere hours before the date that they’d be closed for a couple of weeks due to the damages.

So, that clearly failed. Well, to hell with fancy confessions, he just needed to tell you right? Maybe it was best to confess in person then give you the option to take some time to yourself and think just in case. He was a little disappointed that his other plans didn't work, but maybe it was for the best! Putting you in that situation might force some pressure onto you to give him a response immediately.

The next time you two met up, he decided to go for it. He was running with the conversation and was building up to the confession… when you got a call from Yanqing claiming he had an emergency he desperately needed you for… and you had to leave.

At this point, Luocha had to wonder of it was even in the cards for him to confess. Cards! Oh! Nothing could possibly interrupt a card, right? Sure, it was the tackiest idea ever, but desperate times call for desperate measures!

The process of writing a love letter was much more complicated than he realized. He needed it to be short and concise, but not abrupt. He also didn't want it to be too cheesy with over the top metaphors and whatnot. Honestly, it took him at least 6 drafts before he settled on one that was bearable.

He debated on sending it to you through the courier but decided against it since so much had gone wrong already. Best part about this idea? He didn't need to take up too much of your time, even a few minutes worked as he just needed to explain it. Basically, he gave it to you and instructed you to keep it safe until you got home and then read it, so that you had that privacy. You agreed and he went home feeling somewhat mediocre. On on hand, he finally got the confession out, but on the other, it was such a dumb way- in his opinion (Pocky thinks love letters are hella romantic).

APPARENTLY you lost your entire bag and the letter with it. I mean, Luocha was at his wits end. It’s like the entire universe was against him just confessing. Everything that could go wrong, literally went wrong. Your entire backpack vanished! You wouldn’t even get a chance to reject, which, at some point, had someone stopped being a fear of his due to these bizarre circumstances!

Finally, he gave up and just kept his mouth shut. He realized how much trouble was being caused every time he confessed and decided to save the entire world some grief and just bury his feelings. He’d just die with them.

The days went on, nothing really happened. Like those weird events just magically went away which did make him wonder if he was being set up. He threw that out the window when he realized no other soul other than him knew about his feelings. You two hung out as often as you usually did but you started noticing Luocha’s behavior. It was… odd. Less cheery and more distracted. You tried to ask but he kept saying it was nothing and he was just tired.

Honestly, Luocha hated lying to you. Omitting details for others was easy but for you, it felt wrong. He didn’t want to distance himself but clearly he wasn’t meant to be with you.

Then you did the unthinkable. You just… confessed. Lemme explain:

“I’m ok. You’re worrying again.” Luocha said with a slight chuckle as he raised the teacup to his lips. He easily noticed you weren’t really convinced in the slightest, but he didn’t intend on letting you know anytime soon. Who knows, the entire street might explode to keep him from confessing.

“Of course, I would worry. I really care about you, you know.” Your words were spoken with no hesitation that it made Luocha’s hand pause in the middle of him taking another sip of his hot beverage.

“Huh? O-oh, thank you. That’s really kind of you.” He said, slowly returning to reality and waving his hand a little. As if you didn’t have to say such a thing to make him feel better.

“I mean it.” You pointed out as you leaned forward a little. “I really like you and you being so withdrawn makes me worry a lot.”

“I can assure you, I really am just- wait, what?” Luocha’s eyes widened as he fully registered what you’d just said to him. You seemed confused by his expression and just shrugged.

“Well, yeah. It’s normal to worry about someone you like, right?”

“R-right but you like me. Like… you’re romantically interested in me?” His words were deliberate and he wanted to make sure there was absolutely no confusion between you two whatsoever.

“Yes. I have a crush on you. Well, for me it's a bit more intense than like but you know what I mean.” His eyes immediately darted around and he even turned around to see the area behind the outdoor café. “Luocha? What’s wrong?”

After a moment of silence from him, the blond man sighed and turned back to you. You could visibly see the relief he felt.

“Honestly, I was expecting a skiff to crash and kill us.” You were taken aback by his morbid words, your eyes widening.

“Wh-why?”

“Yeah. Why? That’s my question too.” He replied, rubbing his face. “Wait, no. Forget that, you actually feel the same way?”

“Feel the same? Wait, you like me too!? Why didn’t you say anything?” You asked, leaning even closer. At the simple words, Luocha felt a bitter feeling in his chest.

“I tried.” He replied flatly, pushing his hair back to recompose himself. “But my confession quickly turned into a series of unfortunate events.”

“Oh? What happened?” You asked, eyes filled with curiosity as you waited for him to elaborate. He was about to, opening his mouth to speak before he fell silent once more. What? No! No, he couldn't waste any more time.

“N-never mind that! Let’s talk about us. You like me, I like you. We should just go ahead and just get married.” You couldn’t help but laugh at his words, shaking your head a little. Now, it felt like he was returning to his normal self. Honestly, it wasn't that bad of an idea- technically speaking.

“Marriage? Shouldn’t we go on a date first?”

“Why? Tomorrow’s never guaranteed and we might as well just make it official.” That and… Luocha was a little scared to propose seeing as how his confession went. At this rate, you’d be the one proposing. Well, he actually didn’t hate the idea.

You couldn’t help but laugh again and Luocha felt a smile tugging at his own lips. Ok, maybe he was jumping ahead a little too fast. So instead, he reached out and grabbed your hand, feeling the warmth and comfort of it.

“Kidding. Why not turn this into an official date, then?”

“Yeah, I like that.” You said, nodding and squeezing his hand. "I mean, I don't mind getting married right now but we should probably take it slow."

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Stuck Between a Jock and a Metalhead

Summary: Nancy, on a whim, decides to visit Steve at Scoops Ahoy, which leads to her overhearing confessions from Steve that leads her to think about the decisions she's made. A few days later, she decides to come back. She finds him being hit on by the town freak. What's a girl to do? Oh, get stuck in a freezer with the both of them.

A/N: Oops, I made this chapter a little angsty. I do love Nancy now, flaws and all. Oh, the title is a play on for stuck between a rock and a hard place. Thought it was funny.

Chapter One

Nancy Wheeler was confident in her decisions, to say the least. She never really doubted when she was in the right. It was a constant struggle, though, to look at someone's else's side of things. It was why she loved looking at the facts, put plain and simply before her. The facts are that she was interning at the local newspaper and that the news reporters seemed to hate women or look down on them at least. They surely didn't respect them.

"I mean, like what year are we in now? There are tons of female news reporters. Get ahead of the times!" Nancy complained.

"Well, there's a reason why people call this town so conservative. Will this town ever be willing to change?" Steve asked, shaking an invisible magic eight ball. "Sources say: unlikely. I mean, now, they really won't be subject to change with the way this mall moved in and took away their businesses."

"The same mall you work at?" Nancy asked in amusement. "By the way, what the hell are you wearing?"

"I can't believe you're just now noticing. This is my uniform," Steve said and flipped the hat back onto his head.

Nancy had stopped by Scoops Ahoy after coming into the mall to try to find Holly a birthday gift. She had spotted Steve behind the counter and had to stop in. Now, here they were, in the back room conversing like old friends. Steve stood up from the table and slowly twirled around before striking a pose. His back was to her, and he peered over his shoulder, his hand over his mouth as though he was shocked. His rear end was sticking out. He looked like he got caught doing something he shouldn't. Nancy burst into a fit of giggles.

"You're an idiot, Steve Harrington," Nancy said softly.

"And you're - uh - anyway, yes, this is my uniform. It's completely fucking embarrassing but not as embarrassing as being too stupid to get into anywhere," Steve said.

"Despite what I said before, you're not stupid. Although, you can be an idiot at times. It's not who you are, and if your dad ever makes you feel like that, then just send him my way. I'll kick his ass," Nancy said.

"You're the only person in the world I believe could actually take that asshole," Steve said.

"Thanks. I should probably go. I told mom I would be home soon," Nancy said, getting up.

"One thing first, and I'm not sure it was my place to say, but this job of yours. . .you're not getting paid, your skills aren't being put to good use, you have to ask what else am I getting out of this? What else am I learning?" Steve asked.

"Well, I'm learning what not to do," she said, and he laughed.

"You know, it's okay to give up something that's not working for you, and it's okay to fight for it. Whatever decision that works best for you, Nancy, it's okay," Steve said.

"Stop saying okay. I hate that word," Nancy said softly.

It made her stomach turn the way he said it softly, reminding her of the way he said it that night he told her to go with Jonathan. A small portion of guilt nestled in her stomach. She shook it away and smiled.

"It was good to see you again, Steve," Nancy said. "We should talk again soon."

"Definitely," Steve grinned. "Did I help at all?"

"Yeah, actually, you did," Nancy said.

As she walked out of the break room, she passed Steve’s co-worker Robin. She gave Nancy the stink eye. She wondered if it was because she thought there was something between her and Steve. Was Robin jealous of her? Did she want to date Steve? Or was she dating Steve? God, Nancy hoped not. She blushed, realizing that she had no right to be jealous of someone she didn't have any interest in anymore. . .or did she? Nancy walked briskly away, moving out of the parlor and towards the exit as quickly as possible. Halfway towards the exit, Nancy realized that she had left her purse. When she walked back in, there was a closed for lunch sign out front. She went in and headed towards the break room. She paused by the door when she heard her name.

"You're friends with your ex?" Robin asked. "That's a little. . . Unusual."

"I take what I can get," Steve said.

"What does that mean?" She asked and paused. "What? Are you still in love with her?"

Nancy sucked in a breath and waited hopefully for the right answer.

"I mean, I don't know. I guess so. How does one fully stop loving Nancy Wheeler?" Steve asked. "I just want her to be happy. If Jonathan makes her happy, then I'm happy, too."

"It doesn't kill you inside every time you hang out to see her with another guy?" Robin asked.

"Well, this is the first time we hung out in a while. After it all. . .ended, Nancy invited me to have lunch with her Jonathan, but I couldn't. . .it was too painful. I spent lunch in my car blasting Careless Whisper and crying. I got my heart broken, and I didn't have any friends. I mean, the friends I had I walked away from. They were assholes, yes, but I knew Tommy all of my life, and he wasn't always like that. My parents were never home, still aren't, and I just had no one. The kids I started to babysit helped a lot, but considering they were kids and one of them was Nancy's brother, I couldn't exactly talk to them about this," Steve said. "Before we broke up, I tried everything to befriend Jonathan because I knew how much he meant to Nancy. I guess I just didn't want to admit how much."

Nancy pressed her hand to her mouth, tears filling her eyes as she tried to muffle her sobs. She didn't know anything about all of that or the fact that Steve tried to make friends with Jonathan.

"You didn't want to lose her. The fact that you tried to befriend him says a lot about you," Robin said. "I wouldn't have been able to do that."

"I can't hate her for making the choice that she did. I was never enough to be it for her, but I respect her choice even if I don't like it. I can't force her - " Steve choked up. "I can't force her to love me."

"So pathetic," Robin said softly with a hint of affection and Steve laughed.

"Definitely pathetic," Steve said and paused. "I miss her so much that it's stupid. I just wish that I could move on. I think I'm trying too hard. I guess I can't force that either."

"I think I can help with that," Robin said in a mischievous voice. "It requires me taking over the whiteboard, though. What are your preferences?"

"Men, women," Steve said.

"I meant like how do you want me to tease you mercilessly while I do this, but that is. . . That is good to know," Robin said. "Um, right, thanks for telling me."

Crying softly, Nancy quietly and quickly walked away. She'd get her purse some other time. She ran all the way to the bathroom and locked herself in a stall. What he had said then was something she always suspected about Steve, but she never asked, never wanted to be pushy about that part of his life in case he wasn't aware, but turns out, he was. It was all the other stuff that was overwhelming her. She couldn't stop picturing Steve alone in his car, crying. She had so wanted to believe that he had been fine, that he wouldn't be affected by what happened. Or maybe she just hoped that he wouldn't care because it was easier to escape the fact that she fucked up. She didn't intend to hurt Steve, but she did it anyway, and maybe there was another reason why she didn't want to think about how he felt or that moment at the school. She didn't want to think about him walking away from her after begging her to tell him that she loved him. She didn't want to think about him telling her it was okay or hearing him call himself a shitty boyfriend. It was easier to ignore all of that than to admit that she didn't feel like she deserved him.

Jonathan doesn't deserve for her to think that way either because her relationship with him means something, doesn't it? Everything happened so quickly. Maybe that was why she wanted it to happen so fast. Why she had acted the way she did with her feelings for Jonathan? She wanted to destroy her relationship with Steve, to make him hate her the way she hated herself, and she wanted him to feel guilty the way that she did with Barb. She was so mad at her before she died. Why couldn't Barb have understood that it was her choice to have sex with Steve? That the moment he talked to her, it was decided, and the very moment his lips touched hers. She bought a new bra, bought a new sweater, and she even lied to her mom about why she needed birth control.

"This isn't you, Nance," Barb had said.

"Why couldn't you have just gone home?" Nancy whispered to the empty bathroom.

The real person she wanted to be angry with was Barb, and how grotesque was that? How could she be angry at Barb for being in the wrong place at the wrong time? No, because if Barb had gone home and just let her make her choice, then Barb would still be alive. Nancy's stomach rolled. That's what Steve represented, not his guilt because he did nothing, but her own for being so angry with Barb before she died and for being angry after. The real person to be angry with, she knew, was Dr. Brenner. He was the man who started all of this, who led Barbara to her death. If she could bring him back and kill him again, she'd kill him a thousand times. She couldn't go down that road again. She knew the risks she took when she sought justice for Barb. She risked the whole damn town to do it. She wasn't sure she could put something like on Steve again because she still loved him, and he deserved better than that. Nancy wiped her face and came out of the bathroom to find Robin leaning against the wall. She was holding her purse.

"You left this. I saw you run in here. Damn, you're fast," Robin said and handed her the purse.

"Thanks," Nancy said, taking the purse and Robin narrowed her eyes at her.

"You came back for the purse. You heard us," Robin said, and Nancy didn't say anything. "You still love him."

"He deserves better," Nancy said.

"Doesn't he also deserve to make that choice for himself?" Robin asked.

"I - why do you care so much?" Nancy asked.

"I'm a firm believer in second chances. Without them, I wouldn't be here. My mother thought she'd never see my father again or to tell how she felt, but the chance came around again, so . . . Here I am," Robin said, raising her hands up in a shrug. "Gotta believe that there's hope for everyone."

Nancy stared at her for a moment, trying to figure her out. She washed her hands and dried them off.

"Don't tell Steve about this," Nancy said softly.

"Tell him what?" Robin shrugged and left the bathroom.

When Nancy walked into the house, Holly was playing barber shop with Mike's hair while he screeched that she was pulling his hair on purpose. Judging by the mischievous look on Holly's face, she was. Nancy smiled and shook her head before walking into the kitchen where her mother was making lunch.

"Hey, Nance. Did you find what you were looking for at the mall?" Karen asked.

"I think so," Nancy said softly as she stared at her mother.

She realized then where the choice she made with Jonathan was leading her. It was the path that she thought Steve would lead her down to: an unhappy marriage. She still liked Jonathan right now, and she wanted to continue to like him. Not that her mom didn't love her dad. It's just that she didn't like him very much. She wanted a partner that she not only liked but loved as well.

"We like Steve, but we don't love Steve," Murrary had taunted.

Nancy blushed furiously. He had been wrong. She should have said something then, defended Steve then because it was true. She liked Steve, and she loved him too. As much as she cared for Jonathan, as much as she liked him, she didn't love him the way that she loved Steve. The more she thought about Steve, the more she started to remember everything that she loved about their relationship. She remembered nights when they would curl up and watch Tom Cruise movies. They would both gush and giggle over him. Thinking about it now, he definitely had a crush on him like she did. She remembered watching him bake, and when a Bob Seger song came on, he would pull her in his arms to dance. He wasn't afraid to let her lead either. It wasn't just Bob Seger. It was Queen, Bowie, and Madonna. Occasionally, it was stuff like Eddie Van Halen, too. She loved the fact that he didn't just have a particular genre that he loved. He appreciated all sorts. And when she had to babysit Holly, he would come over to help, and he was always so good with her. He was good with both Holly and Mike. She loved the way that he wasn't afraid to be an absolute dork. Her dad was a quiet man, but he always some managed to pull a conversation out of Ted, and he loved to help her mother in the kitchen. She remembered all if without the cloud of guilt weighing her down.

"Nancy, honey, are you okay?" Karen asked.

"I messed everything up," Nancy burst into tears.

Chapter Two

[respectthepetty]

Second wild theory based on some thoughts and your tags that all Phee and Tan want is a confession: what if that's true? What if Phee and/or Tan gets the gun and starts an exposition drop about Non while holding the remaining boys are gunpoint and demanding answers and THEN THEY GET ATTACKED BY THE KILLER WHO IS NON'S BROTHER???

First, I need you to know that on a scale of "being completely normal about this show" to "if this show fails me, it'll be my villain origin story" that I'm currently FAR PAST the latter.

So with that being stated, I'm operating off of Wild Ass (Slasher) Theory 101 for this show aka

We've already met the killers and brother.

TLWR: Non is still alive. And it's all Dr. Sammon and Pit Babe's fault.

All the players are already on the board. We've seen all them in the first half, so now we are being reminded that we have seen them in the second half, like how the woman Keng was speaking to on the phone in episode seven about the money laundering was there in episode six.

And Perth's character was there too. (In the background in the purple/black jackets with the grey shirt)

So we've already met the brother somewhere in the first six episodes. Considering that two of those episodes were set in the past and Non would've noticed his brother, that means that we've seen the brother in the present.

We all keep stating White or Tan is Non's brother. There are some theories Perth is Non's brother, but he didn't notice him the gambling hall, and if the parents are really sending money to their gambling son then what is life?

White is my vote for final gay, and yours too. White is morally superior to the rest of the group and he is clever, which are two qualities a final girl must have. He also has a thin background story - he is dating Tee. Tan has no background story. He is simply everyone's friend who came along AFTER Non went missing; therefore, he is Non's brother.

And I think that Phi and Tan wanted the boys to confess to whatever they did to Non. Phi's dad was and perhaps still is a police chief. Tee's uncle is possibly going to jail, but wanted Non dead. Perth's character might be an uncovered reporter like the lady speaking to Keng was, and maybe, just maybe, the knowledge of what happened to Non could be of use to somebody beyond just Tan and Phi.

So scare the living shit out of the boys? Sure! Terrify the hell out of them? Of course! Maybe stab them a little bit here and there? Well, when in Rome (or the woods), do as the Romans do. Give them some hallucinogenics? Duh! Yet I don't think they intended to kill any of them (well, at least not until they got the confession).

But Por just had to run into the damn tree after seeing something in the camera.

Which caused Phi to ask Fluke how long he could keep Por alive since they planned to get that confession before the next vehicle arrived. But then Fluke cancelled their Uber.

White found the walkie-talkie that could be called for help. White found the gun that Fluke is now waving at everyone. White found the knife. White realized there was no cell phone service. White saw the tape. Pure and innocent White just keeps doing ALL the things that nobody asked him to do when WHITE WASN'T SUPPOSED TO EVEN BE THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!

But now we have Jin seeing Mr. Keng, and Fluke spilling all the tea as he screams that "these fuckers killed someone," so Tan is going to get what he came for one way or another, even if a couple of dead bodies have to be exchanged for him to finally hear what happened three years ago to his brother?

And all of this makes sense in my head. Tan and Phi just wanted a confession. They didn't want anyone to die. However, they couldn't control every aspect of this weekend plan and shit went off the rails. Por ran into a tree. Fluke got a gun. Their Uber was cancelled. And now they have to figure out how to finish this murder mystery party when half the participants are losing their effing minds.

But then there is Uncle Dang.

And our Troublesome Trio looked genuinely shooketh when they saw what had become of him.

In Wild Ass (Slasher) Theory 101, nothing is supernatural. The killer can be everywhere because there is more than one killer, and that's why I'm praying Non is still alive.

The boys made Non the killer. Jin said since Non wrote the killer, Non would understand him better than anyone else.

Uncle Dang died first in the original film. Por was the director who took Non's writing credit. Top was the next to die before he screamed "cut!" at everyone. Fluke was probably next after that. Tee replaced Non, so it would have been Tee and Jin in the end, and Jin was the original main character and final gay as he deserted Non in the woods.

Non is finishing his movie, the way he wrote it.

And this is where my crazy really kicks in.

Phi knows.

Por, Fluke, Tee, Top, and Jin did a very bad thing to Non and ALL have seen and heard something out there in the woods.

White is Tee's boyfriend. He came around after Non went missing. He has seen a rash on his skin.

Tan is probably Non's brother. He wants a confession, but Tan saw something in the house that scared him.

Phi has seen . . . nothing. Phi has heard . . . nothing. He knew how to work the security system. He keeps giving orders. He continues to state the killer is a person.

And he'll do anything for Non.

He was very upset at Non, but he did tell Non he'd forgive him . . . if Non got lost and died.

Por, Fluke, Tee, Top, and Jin couldn't decide if Non was missing or dead, and the mafia is sending death threats and putting hits out on Non, so perhaps Non took a note from Pit Babe's Charlie and died. Or maybe he took a note from a different Tan and died (after killing his boyfriend).

Dr. Sammon, the writer behind Manner of Death, and Pit Babe's writers are the writers for Dead Friend Forever. Pit Babe is based off a novel, but in the Venn Diagram of BLs in which someone fakes his death the overlap is very slim with Chains of Heart being the third, and surprisingly, the screen writer for that series also wrote the screenplay for Dr. Sammon's Make a Wish. The world is small.

So why not disappear? Why not fake his own death?

But also, why wait three years to show back up?

Because the main threat is neutralized and awaiting jail time, but maybe, just maybe, Non hasn't been completely quiet for three years.

Mr. Keng very well might have died from the mafia. He was warned to watch out knowing how dangerous investigating them could be.

But . . . what if somebody else killed him?

Like I wrote at the beginning, I'm being crazy about this show. Wanting Non to be alive is very wishful thinking, but in my mind, if anyone is attacking these boys, I want it to be him. Tan seems pissed, but the most he has done is (intentionally) lose Top in the woods, and Phi is busy protecting Jin (because he wants to save him for last?), so they might start demanding answers in all this chaos, but if Phi's boyfriend died like Pit Babe's Charlie, don't you think he'd be like Barbie and forgive his boyfriend if he came back into his life magically? And don't you think he'd be willing to help his boyfriend get revenge on all the boys who left him for dead, especially the one who is about to leave the country forever?

Because I think he would.

But, then again, Non could actually be dead and Jin could be a good guy who I keep incorrectly blaming for everything.

Because it wouldn't be the first time Dr. Sammon killed a gay.

But it would be the first time she kept him dead.

So is this gonna be like Director Tee & Co. finally skipping out on a time jump when I needed it the most in Hidden Agenda even though that's what he is known to do, or is Dr. Sammon and the Pit Babe crew going to stick to the game plan and raise the gay from the dead?

I guess I'll have to wait and see.

[elijahs-dumps]

HUSKERDUST IS AMAZING!!! ... sort of

Okay, so, Hazbin Hotel. Obviously HUGE SPOILER WARNING ahead, but this show was fantastic! I've been a fan of Vivziepop's work for a while now, and even though I don't really enjoy Helluva Boss, I was really looking forward to Hazbin for many years. However, just because you really enjoyed something doesn't mean you can't acknowledge its flaws. And in a show with as many pacing issues as Hazbin, where do you even begin? Well, my personal main issue with the show was Huskerdust. Not because the ship isn't likeable, it's simply because most of what I didn't like about the show can link back to these two characters and their dynamic. So I guess I'm using them as my Trojan's horse in a way!

Huskerdust, which is the ship name between Husk and Angel Dust, is one of the main romances within Hazbin Hotel. Vivzie told us it would be a slow burn pretty early on, but honestly I think this ship is one of the fastest slow burns known to man. I mean, they had a cutesy little duet where they danced together in the fourth episode! This is tied to an underlying issue with the show's pacing all together. If Hazbin had more episodes like it should've, I think this "slow burn" concept would've worked better. Considering the fact we only had episodes, and the two characters still haven't really "confessed" or kissed yet, I suppose you could call it whatever you want to really.

The two characters and their dynamic is set up very early on, even in the pilot. It'll usually go something like, Angel will target Husk because he's the only one Angel can get a reaction out of in the hotel. Angel will do anything from making an innuendo, to literally sexually harassing Husk. And naturally, Husk will get frustrated because Angel is pushing his boundaries. Do I think it's weird that a show which talks about SA still uses sexual harassment as the butt of its jokes? Yeah, I think it's super weird and a little insensitive. But it's not my place to comment on such matters because I'm not properly educated, so I'm just gonna brush over it for now. It just makes this ship a little tough to swallow for me, considering Angel's blatant disregard for Husk's feelings.

However, even though Husk is the only one Angel can toy with at the hotel, Husk is also the only one who "sees through" Angel and the fake persona he uses as a means to cope and protect himself. This creates conflict, because Husk will call Angel out when Angel pushes his buttons, and Angel will get defensive and lash out. We see this in episode four; Masquerade. After a bad "shoot" with Valentino, Angel comes back to the hotel and gets into an argument with Husk which causes him to storm out. Charlie and Vaggie send Husk after him, and Husk finds Angel at a dive bar of some kind (I think).

Before we continue with Huskerdust, I've got something major I need to get off my chest about this episode. If Charlie is so "madly powerful' like Lucifer, and she knows Angel is being mistreated by Val, why can't she free Angel from his contract? Or at least try to talk to Angel about his situation after this episode? Maybe she did, and we just didn't see it because of the five-month-long time skip (which is another problem with this show's pacing), or maybe soul contracts work outside of angelic power. But I feel like it would've been nice if they told us that Charlie tried to help Angel more, just for my own peace of mind. Because to me, I just felt like Husk and Charlie brushed off the reality of Angel's situation very easily, regardless of that the fact that they're in Hell or not. I get that shitty things probably happen in Hell all the time, but c'mon!

Speaking of Charlie, this show does an awful lot of telling when it comes to Charlie's issues and not a lot of showing, Her "daddy issues" are one example of this, but right now I'm talking about how the characters often mention that Charlie solves everyone's problems to avoid her own. I thought this could be a interesting character flaw in hindsight, because wanting to solve everyone's problems for them can lead to a lot of boundaries being pushed, and character conflict arising. I was a bit surprised when Charlie immediately left the studio after Angel yelled at her, and seemed to handle is extremely maturely. She even goes as far as to blame what happened on herself when it was clearly Valentino's fault. While I think it's cool that Charlie handled everything so well, I also would've liked to see her struggle with this a little more. I think the concept of Charlie not knowing when to back off could be a good opportunity for some actual growth from her, instead of her development or growth just being explained to us every episode. Unfortunately though, Hazbin clearly didn't have the time for this kind of character work because the show is so plot heavy.

Back to the ship, once Husk finds Angel the two sing a song called Loser, Baby. Which is basically Husk trying to cheer Angel up and get him to stop self-loathing so much. I'll get a little personal for a minute and say if I was Angel this would not have worked on me at all. While I do think Angel has some self-hatred problems, his issues clearly run so much deeper than that. However, this was obviously just the first step in Angel's long road to healing I suppose, considering he only opened up to Husk so much. That being said, it's not like we even get to see Angel heal or develop further because of the time skip. Something else that rubbed me the wrong way with this whole scene was how Husk tried to relate to Angel by speaking about his own experience with Alastor. We find out that Husk used to be an Overlord, and that he lost his soul to Alastor in some kind of bet or card game. Alastor is one of our main characters, and they really put him up side by side with Valentino, out of the blue like that, like... Let's all think logically for a minute. This, combined with that one scene from episode five, made me like Alastor a little less. I understand that Alastor is sick and twisted, he's completely and undeniably evil. But seeing how his actions directly affect another member of our main cast was really off putting, and it put such a huge damper on this "found family" energy that Hazbin Hotel was clearly was aiming for.

Oh, and remember when I mentioned Valentino? Yeah, he's not safe either. I didn't even think twice about this character until one of my friends told me Val was their favorite character. It made me look back on all his scenes, and I realized something. He's actually really funny, and pretty entertaining to watch. Even the way he talks about Angel Dust when Angel Dust isn't present is played for the laughs. If anything, the way Val acted in episode four was a complete 180 from episode two. I thought this was a questionable writing choice, I'll be honest. Why would you purposefully write this character to be almost likeable to a certain extent, only to have him commit inexcusable crimes in the next episode. Look, if you're a Valentino fan, good for you. I'm not going to tell anyone not to like a certain character, because that's just not fair. I just personally disagree with the way Val was written. I think trying to paint Val as if he's just like every other character on this show whenever he's not actively abusing Angel really diminishes Angel's suffering from a viewer perspective.

I also feel like episode four kind of dug it's own grave in a sense, regardless of anything I've said so far. Because this episode is entirely about Angel Dust, he obviously gains development and growth from it. And in a show like Hazbin, with poor pacing and not enough time to flesh out characters, Angel's current development now sets him apart from anybody else in the entire series. Now even Charlie, the main character, seems one dimensional when compared to Angel Dust.

Circling back to Huskerdust again, I should probably acknowledge that Husk and Angel never even got another real one-on-one interaction after this episode for the rest of the show! Except for a really small one in episode six. But they literally exchange like three sentences, and about four or five months have passed between episode four and six, so do with that what you will. Not to mention, Husk refers to Angel as “kid” in one of these sentences. While I do think the age gap between Angel and Husk is strange, I feel like it’s easily defendable. I’m sure once Husk and Angel actually become a couple, Husk will stop calling Angel a kid. And we all know Angel isn’t a legal minor by any means. I don’t think it was necessary for the story though, and the two easily could’ve been made closer in age so this ship wouldn’t seem as… peculiar. Let's also remind ourselves that Huskerdust somehow has more substance than the main pre-existing couple. Yet again, this is just a side effect of "too much to do, not enough time to do it". But we will save the Chaggie discussion for another day...

So, do any of these things make Huskerdust bad? No, not in my opinion, at least. I'm still rooting for this ship no matter what, and I will personally be storming Prime Video HQ if they don't become canon next season. I think all ships and shows have their own problems, and for whatever reason the problems within Hazbin Hotel stood out to me more than I was expecting. Still, I did enjoy this show a lot. I might even do another post about it soon. And I'll definitely be counting down the days until season two drops!

[sunnynwanda]

hello! your writings are *chef's kiss* and almost read them all, more than twice.

Can we get a possessive female superhero who just defeated the previous villain because they were boring, met a new rookie villain who don't have powers but she can make powerful weapons but not enough to defeat superhero. thank you so much!

New Toy

Superhero groans, slamming the newspaper onto the table and throwing her head back. "Can't a girl get her morning coffee before having to deal with you little shits?"

She turns around, only to discover a scrawny little thing awkwardly standing nearby with a strange-looking weapon. Uh, right. The newspaper she was reading did mention a rookie scientist-turned-villain with no powers except for their brain. They were the new sensation. How utterly boring.

"I thought crime was supposed to happen at night?" Superhero taunts, expecting some form of witty banter in return. Smart villains were her favourite. It kept things interesting, at least for some time. The previous Villain was rather good at keeping her entertained. Still, things got stale, and the Villain wanted to retire and focus their attention elsewhere, so Superhero gave them that opportunity.

"I, uh... I didn't think about that," Villain confesses, rubbing the back of their head sheepishly. "We can reschedule?" They suggest, staring at Superhero with barely hidden admiration. That's new.

Superhero quirks an eyebrow at that, surprised by the response. Not many things could leave her speechless, but this thing right here managed to do just that. She gives Villain a quick once-over, taking in the lab rat look. How come you decided to be a villain? She can't ask that, so she opts for a simple nod.

"Sure thing." Part of her is tempted to tease them further, and she gives in to the urge. "You want my schedule or number to text your new arrangement?"

Villain's blush is so contrasting against their skin it cannot be concealed even by their mask. Superhero doesn't hold back her satisfied smirk. Well, aren't you delicious?

"N-no," Villain stutters out, their eyes dancing across Superhero's face, delighted at the smug smile of hers. The fact that she finds them exciting sends a shiver down Villain's spine, making their knees feel weak. They gulp, collecting themself before speaking in a more determined tone. "I challenge you to a fight. Central square, 7 pm."

Superhero nods, watching Villain clutch their weapon like a lifeline. Interesting. What did that pretty head come up with? She wants to know that. She wants to know Villain, too, but it can wait. Right now, Superhero needs to fight them in front of an audience to lay her claim on Villain. To make them her nemesis. Very own personal enemy that only she gets to play with.

"Okay, 7 pm it is," she accepts, her eyes sparkling with a forgotten sort of excitement. This should be fun.

Villain smiles before remembering they should attempt an intimidating look. They furrow their eyebrows in a pathetic attempt to look anything but cute, then get on their motorcycle, zooming away. Once they are several streets away, they come to a halt, peeling their mask off to allow the wind to soothe their burning skin.

What. The. Hell. Did. Just. Happen?

They've never felt this flustered in their entire life, and that was telling something. How on Earth were they supposed to fight their own idol? Villain had no idea. But they had to think fast because their date battle was mere hours away.

Superhero watches them disappear down the street, her mind already occupied by the sweet little Villain who decided to stand against her. It was cute, really. She chuckles, shaking her head as she picks up the newspaper, her eyes running over the titles as she sips her coffee. If there's one thing she knows for sure, it's that tomorrow morning, there will be news about her new toy Villain.

A/N: Hi, love! I've had this request for a while, kept coming back to it and finally, it's here. This snippet took a turn I did not expect it to take, if I'm honest xD Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy reading this. Thank you for the request and for reading, I appreaciate it! <3 Love, Sunny xo

Masterlist

Taglist: @marvellousdaisy @alltimelowing @lateuplight @surplus-of-sarcasm @betwist @excusemeasibangmyheadonawall @enemies-to-idiots-to-lovers @miaowmelodie @thatonerandomauthor @hhabaddon @burningoutlikeicarus @daemonvatis @weepingcowboywolfbat @thelazywitchphotographer @kaiwewi @soul-of-a-local-bard @pigeonwhumps @aflyingsheepnamedrose @thatneptune @ohwellthatslifesstuff @worldsfromhoney @thiefofthecrowns @crow-with-a-typewriter @qualityrabbitsoup @stargeode @villain-life @villainsblood @whumpifi @glassthedumbass @silviathebard @misskowe @ayeshaturnedtoashes4444 @m4iloblu3

[thatswhatsushesaid]

I just re-read the whole guanyin temple sequence for the sole purpose of finding and sharing that devastating piece of official xiyao art with the rest of the class (as one does when one resides full-time in xiyao hell, like I do), and that re-read just drilled home for me just how easily jin guangyao could have killed or at the very least seriously injured literally everyone who converged on the temple--if he had wanted to. case in point:

jin guangyao has lots of jin sect disciples with him on-site exhuming his mother's remains. it would absolutely have been possible to tell them to stop digging and start helping him clean house instead;

lan xichen's spiritual energy has been sealed;

as soon as lan wangji shows up, jin guangyao manipulates him into sealing his spiritual energy as well by threatening wei wuxian. ...and then he lets wei wuxian go so that he and lan wangji can have their Moment, to go oversee the exhumation process instead (say 'thank you, xiandu,' you wouldn't have that heart-felt love confession without his leniency);

as soon as su minshan shows up, that's one more armed and capable (shut up sms critics, there will be no sms slander on this post; he's cringe, not incompetent) cultivator on his side;

when he provokes jiang cheng into leaping to wwx's defence (something that even wwx points out is unnecessary, since wangxian could easily have leapt out of range of jgy's guqin string strike), he stabs jiang cheng right in the chest--but intentionally does not deal him a mortal injury. instead, he just seals his meridians and basically sends him to go sit the corner to stew impotently next to poor, emotionally traumatized jin ling;

all of this happens before nhs's trap is triggered. jgy has the upper hand, he is in complete control of the situation, and while he is on a pretty tight deadline, it is absolutely clear at this point that his priority is not in sowing more chaos and bloodshed, but in retrieving meng shi's remains and stopping additional interference. sure, he's spilling all the tea to provoke his opponents into making mistakes so that he can take advantage of their weaknesses to disable them. but that was his goal: to disable.

like... killing all of these conveniently disabled captives would have been the logical next step for someone hellbent on mass murdering the whole jianghu to cover up his dirty little secrets, and he absolutely could have done it, if he'd wanted to.

but he didn't.

[wowzask1]

Seethe Part 1, KM x Reader

Warnings: angst, profanity, toxic relationships, not healthy

Word Count: ~ 1.6k

You scrambled through your purse, fishing for your phone for the fourth time tonight. You were angry. No, beyond that. You were fucking furious. This was millionth time Mingyu stood you up. And you'd made up your mind as you sat in the freezing cold outside of your favorite restaurant, — the one in which he had confessed he had loved you, that it would be the last.

He hadn't texted, he hadn't called, hadn't nothing. He didn't even read your array of texts. Did he even care about you? Was it this easy for him to disregard you that he couldn't even take a few seconds of his time to reply?

The sound of giggles and snickers took you out of your trance. You glanced to your left. There was a couple walking towards the restaurant's entrance, hands interlocked and eyes filled with fondness. They looked like they were in love. Your heart hurt. You looked away, careful to not stare for too long. You hoped they wouldn't think you were some sort of creep. 

The hostess had refused to let you in, even with the reservations paid full and under YOUR name. She quote, "Miss, your whole party must be present in order for us to seat you," unquote. In which you relied,

"I'm sorry. Could you make an exception? I don't understand. You're still receiving the deposit for both of us. My boyfriend is just running a bit late.. can't you just seat me? I'll even pay extra. It is freezing out here," You pleaded.

I mean would one unoccupied chair really be that detrimental to a michelin, million dollar restaurant?

She hadn't budged. Instead, She huffed, clearly annoyed. "Look, ma'am I'm sorry that your boyfriend stood you up, but that's your problem not mine. Okay? Now if you'll execute me I have other people to tend to. Goodnight." And of course she couldn't wait to leave your eyesight before dramatically rolling her eyes.

Ouch. She was right, and you knew it. Maybe that's why it hurt even more. Because it was the truth. Because you were pathetic.

This was your last straw. Your feet were starting to numb from your six-inch red bottoms, the ones he had gifted you the last time he couldn't make it last time he left you in the cold. Even worn them he still managed to tower over you.

Kim Mingyu was a busy man. You knew that. He knew that. Hell, the whole world knew it. So it was expected for him to be busy all the time. You understood this. Yet you still chose to fall for him. You chose to be in this relationship. The promise ring that rested on your finger said as much. Now that was undoubtedly your fault. Still, you didn't expect your lover to basically ignore you, to pretend you didn't exist.

You both promised to put in the effort, make your relationship work, to communicate. Clearly, only one of you meant that.

You haven't seen him in 9 months. You both planned to meet several times prior, but of course that was interrupted by his demanding schedule. And you understood. Well, at least you would have, if he would've told you.

Everyday you you texted him, and everyday he replied late. Some days he wouldn't even bother to. On the very rare occasion that he answered yours calls, he was elsewhere. Your calls would last for a few minutes, before he would have other pressing matters to tend to.

When he couldn't meet you the first few instances, he would call you up, apologizing, explaining himself, and it would end with you two falling asleep to each others voices. Now he would just send you something expensive, in place of an apology.

And you could imagine the pain you felt in your heart when he would hang up your phone call only to receive a notification of his ongoing livestream. Or to see yet another video of him flirting on a fan call. You can't not say you were jealous of how much attention he have to his fans, but that would just be a sad excuse of the truth. In verity, you wish that he paid as much attention you as he did them, if not more. Was that too much to ask?

It was no doubt your relationship was falling apart. Three years, you thought. Three years for nothing.

You wondered how low he thought of you. Did he think you were some sort of loyally blind  dog? A dog that would follow its owner wherever he went, even if it was towards a burning building, it's impending death?

You opened the camera roll on your phone. And there was your reflection. Your face was swollen, hair undone, cheeks drained of color from your future frostbite. Your eyes were starting to sting. Fuck. It was coming, and you knew it. You were not about to have a meltdown in front of the humongous window which behind sat a floury of people.

I have to get out of here. You wiped your tears before they could even fall.

ʕ•̫͡ʕ•̫͡ʕ•̫͡ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

The ride home was the worst. You were huddled in the corner of your Uber, sniffling and trying your hardest not to break. And clearly you hardest was not good enough, which was apparent through the visibly uncomfortable expression painted on your Uber's face.

After what felt like multiple, excruciating hours, you finally arrived to the entrance of your apartment building.

"T-thank you," you croaked, throat dry. You were dehydrated from your overflow of tears. The Uber mumbled nothings and drove away, racing to get away from you. Geez. Were you that unpleasant to be around?

You scurrily walked whilst rummaging through your purse. The only thing that could soothe your evening was your warm bed and takeout.  You couldn't wait to — you felt something grab at your arm.

"Seriously?! I'm not in the mood for this. Abduct me another time you piece of —" You tried to shake off whoever gripped your arm. In great impatience, you finally look up at your left. Your eyes widened, and mouth gaping at the man before you.

Mingyu.

Kim fucking Mingyu.

Suddenly, at that moment, all the self-pity you felt somehow dissipated. And your wallowing sorrow conformed to rage. Hot, red, burning rage. Your composure cracked.

"Hah! Are you fucking kidding me right now? Now you decide to show up? After making me wait in the freezing cold for an hour? What do you take me for?" You shoved him off.

"Fuck, baby I can explain. I'm so sorry. I just got caught up in  a meeting, and —,"

You scoffed. "Oh wow. Really? All it's been these days is caught up. Caught up in this, caught up in that, fucking hell Mingyu. When are you never caught up in something."

"That's not fair Y/N. You know how busy I am. I didn't choose to be late."

"Late? You weren't just late. You didn’t even show up!" You could tell he had something to say, but you weren't finished,

"And you know what's not fair? The fact that my boyfriend puts in no effort in our relationship. And I'm left looking like a fucking idiot. I’m not just one of your fan girls, Mingyu. I’m your girlfriend for crying out loud!”

"Are serious right now? How could you even say that? I have a priorities Y/N. I cant just abandon them the moment you call, okay? I'm not the only person who suffers through my actions," he scowled.

"Hah. You're right. So what does that make me? Am I just a fucking burden to you then?" You were absolutely livid.

"Y/N. For fucks sake. Don't play stupid. You know what I meant —,"

"You know you could've called me right? You could've texted me, at least gave me a heads up. But I guess I'm not a "priority", huh Mingyu?," you questioned, getting even more heated up by each passing second.

He rubbed his temple, heaving out a breath.

Oh. Seriously? He was irritated? What a fucking joke.

"I tried, alright? My phone fucking died. I would've called if it didn't."

"Oh, did it? Was your phone dead the last few months too. Cause it sure seems like it.” You crossed your arms, hoping to find warmth in your own embrace.

"Y/N, I am trying my best here! Why are you being so damn difficult. I don't want to fight right now. I'm tired, alright? Can we just head inside and talk about this some other time? Please," he urged.

No. Not this time, you thought. No fucking way. You were tired too. Tired of this bullshit. Tired of burying things deep. And tired of feeling sorry for yourself.

"Well maybe your best isn’t enough for me,” you shot. “I’m done.” You stormed off, rushing to your door. You couldn't let him see you break. You refused to.

Mingyu’s eyes widened.

"What are you —," it took him no time for him to follow after you.

Once again, he grasped your hand as you were about to open the door. Only this time his grip on you was tightened. He spun you around and pinned you to your door. Your hands were clasped together and constrained.

You looked glared at him. “Let me go, Mingyu. I’m serious.”

"Don't walk away from me." His tone was stern, his voice hoarse. He was breathless and pissed. You could tell he was fuming. The veins on his hands and neck appeared more evident. His eyes glowered down at you. Though it was delivered as a command, it sounded like plea.

"For the last time, let me go. You don't wanna talk? Then we won't. Ever, even." His grip on you only tightened. Shit. He didn't respond. He just stayed quiet.

"Let go of me Mingyu! It fucking hurts." You true to writhe your hands away from his grip, but it was no use. He was much stronger than you. "If you don't let go of me, I'm going to fucking —,"

His lips were on yours. His kiss was rough, tense. You could feel the unease. But you couldn't give in. If you did, the what would it lead to? Would things go back to what they were? You didn't want that.

When you didn't kiss him back, he stopped. He looked in your eyes, desperation in his features. This is all that you need. But you didn't want to go back to before. You wanted change.

"Y/N. Please." He leaned in again, mere centimeters away from your lips. He was breathless and so, so close. You wanted him. You needed him. But, you had to fight against it.

And just when you thought you had it all figured out and mind made, his lips latch onto yours. And in the end you couldn’t resist it, because your body betrays you, and you kiss him back.

Part 2

[anotherttpfanaccount]

this is me nitpicking, but it bothered me ever since i noticed it, so

.

so, in the podcast, Amir shouts at Rupert to toughen up, to fend for himself, 'cause Amir couldn't save him anymore. and while i could generally understand this being in a moment of anger, i feel like this still leaves Rupert looking like a male damsel of some sort, since Amir doesn't specifically apologize for that, just for yelling.

and it looks like this has at least some effect on a few of the fans too, from what i've seen? 'cause i've read here and there on how people like that Rupert took 'more initiative' in s2, when it never came off to me as him not doing so in s1?

sure, he's not as physically strong as Amir, but it's not like Ru hasn't done his own thing until s2.

the voice didn't have to convince Rupert to go to the Hollow, anyway. he was already going to do that, because his Kingdom was in danger and his mom sure as hell wasn't going to do anything about it.

yes, he was unprepared, but most teenagers would be, especially since he didn't have time to go back and get supplies.

and in the forest, he was willing to fight. poorly, but still willing.

when Amir had the cave collapse on him and trap his legs, Rupert was confident and determined in saving him, despite the protests. and he technically saved Porridge, too.

and then when Amir was ( not? ) about to send Porridge running, Rupert stood up to him and told him to knock it the fuck off.

then made a plan to trick Barabbas, Cedric, and Crazytooth to give their weapons and leave them defenseless, saving himself and Amir.

then he technically saves both of them again by surrendering and confessing his love for Amir in the forest, which heals it.

and throughout most of this, he keeps the overall objective in mind. to get to the Hollow and break the curse.

like.

he's not a helpless twig.

he's a pretty capable guy, just might not be able to throw a punch without spraining ( or breaking ) it.

i guess people think he took more initiative because he was more willing to bring out his sword and more prone to being stern // angry or something like that, but i don't think it was for the better ( as in, i don't think s2 improved Ru's character that much ).

soooo...

if it were me, i would've made Amir recognize Ru's capabilities pre-s2.

[lenasai]

a lil confession from a guy who used to like blaseball. going to preface with i absolutely loved it, the culture, the community, the characters and setting and all. i made art, wrote fics, bought the albums. but as someone who wasnt usamerican, who lived on the opposite side of the world in fact, i always felt a little left behind. joining late contributed to the feeling of lockout, timezone mismatch meant that i slept through events like voting, and the finale.

and… the communal character building. sometimes i felt like i had to force myself to use a usa-centric lens to see what everyone else saw. the deicide jokes were funny, but not when my actual rl faith started being teased and challenged as well.

i think i'll still always keep a shard of blaseball near and dear to my heart. the good parts of it really were amazing. but sometimes when i see people say they miss it, i think, i wish i could miss it as fiercely as you guys do too.

hey, i wanna say thank you for sharing this with me. i think it's an important perspective to put out there. i debated on whether i wanted to maintag it since i don't have a way to reach out and ask if it's okay to do so, but i really think other people should see it. (you can always send me another message if you want me to delete it and i will do so asap)

blaseball, as a game and as a community, was wonderful and overall a net positive, but it was by no means perfect. it had its flaws like any other community, in this case driven by the fact that its active fanbase was largely white and centered in the united states. there were a lot of people who felt ostracized by a community that was supposed to be welcoming to everyone - and whether it was people not knowing how to keep a bit contained to the circumstances of its universe or shutting down discussions about problems in character writing, there were people who got hurt. we cannot and should not pretend that never happened.

and of course, as you mentioned, the game was designed in a way that mostly centered the united states. i think there were attempts to fix this during coronation with planned events at different times, but we never got to see that play out. hell, you could even see it in which locations got to be represented by teams. i'm not personally sure how i feel about the fact that a lot of the teams that were represented outside of the us were prehistory teams. it feels like they took a step in trying, but those are all teams that wouldn't ever see active play, so it rang a little hollow to me.

at least from my perspective, it seemed like there were dialogues happening about this and that there was progress being made to fix those issues, but then the game ended and we didn't get to see anything come out of it. i really don't want to see that all be for nothing. i hope that everyone who learned something from this community will take those lessons and apply them to how they interact with other communities.

thank you again. i am truly sorry we didn't get to have the same experience.

[falling-star-cygnus]

✨The Hazbin Pokecenter of Redemption✨ bc lets be real, i was gonna make a Hazbin Hotel Pokemon AU sooner or later

"Well, it's not very clever!" "Hah HAH, fuck you"

It still takes place in Hell, Charlie is still vying to save her people, but Pokémon can be encountered both in life and death :D -> Ghost types are of course the most common, but at least every type of Pokémon has circled through. Whether it be because they got sucked in by Dusknoir or just simply died or were just created there

The Pokémon that end up in hell do start to change, though, becoming something more uncanny the longer they've been exposed to the sinners and hellborns

Part One: The Morningstars {bc i just realised I can't cram everyone into this without it being LONG}

Lucifer Morningstar - Flapple - Eternatus

-> He has cutesy pokémon tucked away in his palace with him, but he only ever uses Flapple and Eternatus for battle. He'll just take walks with Duckletts, Psyducks, Applins, Quaxly's, Silicobras, etc. -> He did make sure that Charlie was familiar with all of his pokémon, though, which Lilith didn't especially like -> He likes to make little bows and items for his pokémon, dressing them up like dapper little things and making poképlushes in their image -> Lillith and Lucifer exchanged Applins to confess to each other

Charlie Morningstar - Litten {KeeKee} - Skiddo {Razzle} - shiny!Skiddo {Dazzle}

-> Razzle and Dazzle have both been altered by Hell's atmosphere, so they're more autumn themed than spring themed -> Since Charlie and Alastor both have cloven pokémon, they have specific nights where they help each other take care of them -> Kind of naïve when it comes to pokémon maintenance, tbh, but she's willing to do anything to learn {from her mother, from Vaggie, really from anyone willing}

Lillith Morningstar - Meloetta - Kommo-o - Appletun

-> Like with Lucifer, Lillith has other pokémon that she doesn't use for battle {a shiny Jangmo-o, Applins, Chatots, Ralts, etc.} -> She breeds Pokémon, mostly just because, but for aesthetic and combat purposes too -> Not especially fond of pokémon that aren't pleasing to look at. She's not cruel to them, of course, each creature gets treated gently; she just... doesn't want Charlie near them -> Lillith took most of her pokémon with her to Heaven, but she left a Chatot to send the message of "being out for a while."

[scratchandplaster]

Kicks

CW: pregnancy and its side effects, comfort

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

"Fucking hell!"

Stitch by stitch, the yarn slipped off his needles. Shepard threw the half-finished potholder back on the bedside table, tired and disappointed.

Of all Grandma hobbies, he hoped knitting would be the easiest to learn. A terribly wrong estimate. But if nobody from either side of the family felt ready to swallow their pride and fill this role, he had to do it himself. Saved them all plenty of worry in the future anyway.

"I suck at this," Shepard confessed and looked imploringly at Claire, who waddled in from the en-suite.

"Very much so, love" she cackled, rolling under the blanket next to him, "but it will look great if you keep trying."

He shifted, then, stuffing a pillow underneath her feet and lifting her legs up. At the end of the day, the swelling got especially bad. With slow and gentle strokes, Shepard massaged along her sore muscles in a patient rhythm, the perfect way to help Claire settle down.

Nevertheless, the discomfort grew with every day. Soon. Soon, both were ready to welcome him into the world. Today, other issues had to be discussed.

"Why did a Marcy Smith, from three towns over, send you a check for 500 dollars? Reason for transfer: baby clothes…"

"A kind donation," she huffed, eyes closed in pain.

"Since when do you take handouts?"

"Since the father left without a word." Claire pouted, peeking through her lashes to admire her husband's dumbfounded expression, "I heard he ran away with his mistress, poor me."

"You're horrible." I love you.

"You like the new Dremel set I got you? Then stop whining," she teased, a smug grin on her lips.

Fair enough. Shepard usually had to be content with one or the other tale about uncurable illness to earn his income, maybe a lame dog to care for here and there. What could he say, Claire really was his better half, in every aspect.

Minute after minute, he kept guiding the pressure from her legs, until she protested, less than half-awake: "I need to pee."

"Again? "

"Tell that to him." She sighed and pointed down to her stomach.

"Please, stop bullying my girl," he whispered and pressed a kiss where he suspected his child's head. The little fist pushing against Shepard's cheek begged to differ.

"Did you see that?" He gasped, quietly marveling at how their baby tossed and turned under his fingers, like he was swimming laps for the fun of it. "Rude, Lukas, very rude."

Claire smiled down at her boys. Another twist inside her - and a bolt of sharp pain shot up to her lungs. It didn't matter how much she tried, she never got used to her son's late-night acrobatics; at least not without help.

"Can you do it again?"

"Sure." Shepard cleared his throat awkwardly. Who would have thought that his old hobby kept being useful? "But don't laugh if I'm still a bit rusty."

He joined her under the sheets, hands cupping under her stomach and lifting the weight of their son up, even if the relief only lingered for a short while.

"Alright, then. Take a deep breath in."

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

Thanks for reading 🤍 [Masterlist]

Prompt: bonus flashback/relapse/medical complications

@augusnippets @whumpyourdamnpears