#beeper responds

[manicplank]

The Color Pink (Part 5)

This looks long, but there's a lot of dialogue. Enjoy!

The First Date

Hazel was rushing to close up the cafe in a fit of excitement. Today was the day she got to go on a date with The Noise. She was so ecstatic that she was shaking. She hurriedly put all the dishes on the rack to dry. She locked up and raced home as if she was being chased by a tiger. She took a shower and blow dried her hair. She added an extra little curl at the ends. She was debating whether or not to put makeup on but decided against it as she wanted to be as natural as possible. She put on a cute pink and white plaid dress with a cropped cardigan over her shoulders. She wore a white bow in her hair and white Mary Janes. She took the short walk to The Pig City and tried to find a cab, but it was so busy that she couldn't seem to get one's attention. She waved her arms until she was practically flailing. She finally got one to pull over for her. She realized she never got the address to the place. "Where to," the cab driver asked.

"Do you know the bubble tea place," she responded.

"Ramen Spot is the only place in the city that serves bubble tea."

"Okay, then go there."

The Noise was nervous. On his way home from work, he was trembling. He had to stop and take a few breathers, he even chain smoked three cigarettes as opposed to his usual one. He didn't know why he was so nervous. It's not a date, he thought, it's totally not a date. But it was a date, and he knew it. As much as he denied it, he wouldn't have been so nervous if it wasn't. He got home and showered. He was still super nervous. What if she doesn't show up? What if she changed her mind? What if she can't stand me and leaves? He put on a nice but somewhat casual grey suit with a yellow dress shirt and black tie. He inhaled deeply and sighed before he headed out.

Noise got there before her, and this made him even more nervous. He was definitely overdressed for being at a ramen shop. He sat down at an empty table, and his phone vibrated. It was a text from Hazel;

Cab got stuck in traffic, but I'll be there in a minute!

He felt great relief knowing he wasn't going to get stood up. The door opened, and there she was. He looked up and tried to keep his jaw from dropping in awe. She looked around but didn't see him at first. He waved at her, and she was shocked to see what he looked like out of costume. She had seen it before in some of his shows and movies, but to see it in person was a whole different experience. She smiled before she walked up to the table and sat down. "Hey," she greeted, "I, uh, didn't recognize you at first." He smiled and let out a tiny laugh.

"Yeah, I don't blame you," he scratched the back of his head. "I mean, I don't expect anything less considering I wear a mask most of the time."

She scanned the table. "Um... Where's the menus?"

"Oh! Sorry, I forgot you haven't been here before. The menu is at the counter."

"You order at the counter?"

"Yeah. You order at the counter and then they bring your stuff to you when it's ready."

"Wow, that's unique. I've never heard of that."

"Everything here is really good. At least, I think."

"Well, come on! Let's order!"

They walk up to the counter, and Hazel grabbed the menu. She scanned it for a minute as she was anxious about taking too long.

"I'll take the rose black bubble tea," The Noise started to order, "and two orders of the fried dumplings." He looked at Hazel and nodded. "You ready?"

"Oh! No, no, I can pay for myself," she fretted.

"Come on," he spoke calmly, "let me treat you. That way, you're not losing anything if you don't like it."

She smiled and shrugged. "Okay, um... I'll get the strawberry milk taro bubble tea and um... the house tonkotsu ramen?"

The cashier smiled and nodded. The Noise paid, and the cashier handed him a beeper. The two sat back down at their table. "I gotta be honest," The Noise vented, "I'm a bit nervous."

Hazel sighed and giggled. "Me too. I don't know why, but this feels so different from when we talk in the cafe."

"Because it is different. A different atmosphere, a different place, different circumstances."

"I'm mostly surprised you asked me out. When we were in the cafe, I thought you were just being nice."

He laughed. "I thought the same thing! I thought you were just giving good customer service."

"Yes and no. I mean, of course I wanted to give good service to The Noise."

"Please," he smiled, "just call me Theodore."

"Wait," she raised her eyebrows, "is that your real name?"

"Yeah. Theodore Noise is my actual name. I was born with it."

"The Noise... Theodore Noise... Oh, my God, that's so clever!"

"Heh heh..." He blushed. "Thanks. Not as clever as your French 'Noisette' thing."

She laughed. "We both have clever little plays on our names, huh?"

"Yeah."

"..."

"..."

"So," she started, "tell me about your line of work! What's it like being a celebrity actor?"

"Eh, it has its pros and cons."

"I remember you telling me that at the cafe."

"Yeah. It's great, but it can suck at times. Don't get me wrong, it's a lot of fun most of the time, but it's still work, ya know?"

"I get it. I have the same feeling about working in my cafe. It's nice, and I'm glad I do it, but some days are just so grating."

"Running a whole business is grating in general. Would you be surprised if I told you I do office work, too?"

"Really? That's crazy!"

"Well, yeah, but I'm the CEO. I have to do interviews and paperwork for employees, I have to proofread scripts, go over pilots, go through reviews and ratings. The list goes on and on."

"That sounds awful!"

"It's not the worst, but I prefer to be on set."

"I can sort of relate. I have to do all of my own financial and accounting assets. It's miserable! I get it wrong all the time, I'm terrible at math!"

"Same here. Math is the bane of my existence. Thankfully, I have an accountant for all of that. She's also my financial advisor."

Before Hazel could respond, the pager started beeping. A couple shrimp employees came out with their food, and Noise waved them down. They came over and served them their food and drinks. Hazel was impressed, the food looked amazing. Theodore handed them the pager and thanked them. She stopped them before they left, "Can we get some chopsticks?" One of the employees left and came back with two pairs of chopsticks. Noise looked nervously at the chopsticks. Hazel thanked the employee before they walked off.

"Those dumplings look amazing," she said.

"Yeah," he responded, "they're great."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I just um... I don't know how to use chopsticks."

"Really?"

"Mhm. It's a bit embarrassing, I know."

"No, it's not! Here, I'll show you."

She took her chopsticks and held them in her hand. "See," she pointed it out, "you hold them like this." He put the chopsticks in his hand. He tried his best, but it felt so awkward. "You use your thumb, index, and middle finger to control them back and forth." He tried to pick up one of the dumplings and dunk it in the cup of sauce, but he dropped it. It splashed and left a small mess on the table. He blushed and seemed flustered. She giggled, "It's okay. It takes a minute to get the hang of. You can keep trying, or you can just eat with a fork if it makes you feel more comfortable."

"I think I'll just use a fork. I'd hate to make a mess." He grabbed a napkin and wiped up the small spill. "Thanks for showing me, though."

She smiled. "You're welcome! Don't worry about being bad at it. It takes some practice."

He laughed, but he still felt a bit embarrassed. "Anyways, did you want to try one of the dumplings?"

"Oh, um, what's in them?"

"It's a mixture of chicken, pork, cabbage, and carrots."

"Nah, I don't really like cabbage."

"Neither do I, but you can't even taste it. It's really good with the sauce, too. They make their own soy sauce."

"Alright, I guess I'll try one."

He scooted his plate to the center of the table so she wouldn't have to reach over it. She picked one up with her chopsticks and dipped it in the sauce. She put her hand underneath to catch any of the drips as she took a bite. Her eyes widened. She chewed it and swallowed. "Wow," she exclaimed, "that's amazing! You weren't kidding!"

"I know! I was super shocked when I tried it. There's only six of them, so that's why I usually get two orders. They also have them boiled, but I like the taste of the pan fried."

She took a bite of her ramen and slurped it up. "Oh! Sorry, that was rude."

"How is it rude? That's how you're supposed to eat ramen."

"Oh, thank God, you actually know the etiquette."

"Yep. I'm not entirely ignorant."

"I didn't mean-"

"No, no, I know what you meant," he chuckled.

The two went on to eat their meals and drink their teas. They small talked here and there in between bites. The tension wasn't as high, and the mood had lightened a lot. Hazel mixed all the toppings into her soup. "You want a bite," she asked.

"Mm-mm," Theo shook his head. "I'm not the biggest fan of ramen."

"Really?"

"Yep. I've tried it a couple times. It just wasn't for me."

"That's fair. At least you tried it."

As they tried to enjoy their meal, they were interrupted by a group of fans. Three women had approached the table. "Sorry to interrupt," said one of them, "but are you The Noise?" Theodore sighed, "Yep, that's me. I'm kind of in the middle of something, though."

"Can we get your autograph?"

"Yeah, but make it quick. Got a pen and paper?"

One of the girls scrambled over to the cashier to borrow a pen. He didn't have paper other than receipts, so he gave them three blank ones. She rushed back over to The Noise and handed him the pen and papers. He signed all three and handed each of them one. They looked at each other and squealed. As they walked away you can her each of them say;

"I'm gonna get mine framed!"

"I'm gonna get mine laminated!"

"I'm gonna eat mine!"

Theodore looked over at Hazel. "Sorry about that." He looked slightly annoyed. "That happens a lot. I swear it's been happening more and more."

Hazel smiled. "That's okay! Don't let it ruin our meal."

He smiled back. "Yeah. You're right."

-

The two finished their meal and continued to chat for a bit longer. It had gotten dark out, and they had already been together for hours. The awkward tension had faded away completely. It was time for them to part ways. Theo held the door for her as they left. She turned around at him and had a huge smile.

"I had a great time tonight," she giggled.

Theodore smiled back at her. "I'm glad to hear that. I did, too."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Come here!" She held her arms up, and he hugged her. They held each other and swayed for a bit. Hazel's heart raced as she rested her head on his chest. She felt something with him, something special. He was sweeter than she thought, especially with how bashful he got when he first saw her. She thought it was cute when he got embarrassed for not being able to use chopsticks. She was still a bit in denial. Maybe it was just her being in her own head and being intrigued by her celebrity crush.

What she didn't know is that he felt the same. His heart was also racing. What he classified as "totally not a date" had quickly turned into one. He already felt comfortable with her. He could actually be and act like himself. She was so soft and comfortable to hold. She was beautiful and kind. He realized that she wasn't just being nice to him when he was at the cafe. She was genuinely being herself.

They pulled away after hugging and swaying for minutes straight. He dragged his hand down her arm as the hug ended and held her hand. She looked down as she blushed.

"You want me to drive you home," he asked.

"No, I'm okay. I'll take the cab."

"Okay," he smiled at her, "just thought I'd ask."

"But I would appreciate it if you stand with me while I wait for one. I don't uh... really feel safe in the city at night."

"Of course."

They stood together side by side as the date had come to a great end. He looked at her, finally realizing that he did like her. He swallowed his fear as he said, "Wanna do this again, sometime?"

She looked at him in delight. "Of course!"

"You have my number. Call me or text me anytime. Even if we don't make plans, I'd love to get to know you better."

"Absolutely! Just don't let me interrupt you at work again!"

They laughed as a taxi pulled up. She kept eye contact as she debated kissing him, but she decided it was way too soon. Instead, she pulled him in for another hug. "Thank you," she softly said into his ear. She got into the taxi and waved to him as it pulled off. She watched out the window as they drove through the city. All of the lights were so beautiful. Even though the city was full of crime, it was also filled with grace. She couldn't stop smiling as she thought about him.

He watched as the taxi pulled off to make sure she was safe. He walked off into the parking lot and back into his car. He huffed as he sat. He pulled the pack of cigarettes out of his dashboard and hit it three times on his hand before he opened it up and took out a cigarette. He grabbed a lighter and shielded the flame from the wind as he lit the cigarette and took a long drag. He exhaled, "Ugh, fuck." Despite the good time, he couldn't help but feel anxious. He was worried that something would go wrong, that he would ruin it somehow.

[deadmomjokes]

as a teacher, hearing about the way you communicate so clearly and thoroughly with your child is so inspiring. I wish more people had resources on how to communicate with kids like you do.

I'm very bad at taking compliments, so I'll just say "Thank you" and also qualify that she makes it pretty easy. She's very smart and has always, from day one basically, needed to know the reasons behind everything. In other circumstances, she would probably be called "stubborn" or "defiant." But the thing is, I remember my own "stubbornness" growing up, and it was almost always the result of me not understanding why things were the way they were. From a young age, I hated with a burning passion the "Because I said so" thing. So I determined that I didn't want to do that when/if I had kids of my own.

My daughter is very bright and curious and makes that easy for me. Her "why" phase was/is pretty specific, which is helpful in keeping ahead of the frustration-induced rage-meltdowns. (Not all of them, of course, because some concepts are really hard to grasp even as an adult, let alone when you're 4 years old and everything Feels Too Big.)

But I also made a conscious effort to start practicing early, before she could talk or push back on a lot of stuff. It felt so weird and silly at first, but I basically narrated everything I did with/around her, and put a reason for it. So a trip to the store sounded like this:

"We made it to the store to get our groceries, so we have yummy food to eat. Let's go inside and get a buggy--that's where we'll put all the things we get, because we can't carry them all in just our hands. I'm going to put you in the buggy, too, right here in this seat, that way you can see what's going on but I have both my hands to push the buggy and grab the things we need. Here, look, some bananas! Let's get some of those because you love to eat them. Oh, no, sorry baby, we can't eat them right now. This stuff isn't ours until we pay for it at the very end-- that's the part with the beep-beeper and the bags. When we get home we can have some of the bananas, because then they are our bananas." Etc, etc, on and on.

People looked at me like I was nuts. It felt a little nuts at times, especially before she could respond verbally. But it worked. It built a habit for me to give a reason for why I'm doing things, or making her do things. More importantly, I feel like, it made me stop and question when I didn't have a good reason for my answers or behaviors. Like if she comes up and asks to blow bubbles outside, and I go, "No baby, not right now," she can be like "why not?" And I have to look at myself and my reasoning. Is it because I'm actually busy or we're genuinely about to do something else that precludes the 5 minutes it'd take to do bubbles? Or is it because I just don't feel like it? It's not fair for "I don't feel like it" to supersede her desires for connection and entertainment all the time. (Sometimes you're just worn out and don't have the bandwidth for it, and that's valid. Parents are people too! But it can't be all the time, yk?) So if I don't have a good reason why not, I let her know that I thought about it more and changed my mind, and off we go to blow bubbles.

I also heard the advice, idk where or when, that you need to practice on your children what you want from them. So if I want my child to be kind, I have to be kind to her, in ways that she can see and appreciate. If I want her to know it's okay to change your mind, I have to point out when that happens for me, like in the above bubbles example. If I want her to be a decent human being who respects others, is empathetic, appreciates the efforts of others, speaks kindly, thinks about how her actions impact those around her, etc... You get the idea. It starts with me. And I try to consciously remind myself of that fact.

It's not always easy, because kids aren't always rational (but to be fair, neither are adults lol). And what is rational to a 4 year old is not always the same as what is rational to me, the adult with almost 3 decades of experience more than her. So sometimes it's like explaining to the wind why it ought to blow in a different direction. But the longer I get to know her, the more I'm able to pick up on the way she sees things, her personal defaults, the way she talks around concepts she's not sure about, etc. It's part of what's cool about getting to be her parent. I get such a close-up view of this little person becoming a little person, and it makes me stop and think about things I have taken for granted for a long time.

I'm rambling again, but I have developed a lot of Strong Feelings about the way kids are treated and looked at in general, and a lot of determination to do better for the kids I get the privilege of loving.

[onboardsorasora]

De-Aged Daniel is on AO3

Ok, because I know myself and know I lack a certain self-control element. I've gone ahead and ignored my work lmao (there's that self control). I made a quick banner and the 3 written 'chapters' are up on ao3.

Some Housekeeping.

I shall challenge myself (and you) and make this fic a crowdfunded fic. I am not offering any original idea for this story, I will use whatever is in my inbox to push the plot along. (I'm giving myself leeway because I do love to come up with shit randomly so this isn't a hard and fast rule)

Besties in my inbox, I see yall making plots in there! I'm going to endeavor to answer with fic where applicable. If I don't answer your prompt, it just means that I haven't figured out how to link it to the current 'plot'

There are some that can't be responded with fic so I'll use those to clarify plot points if people need them.

So far, we have a loose getting back together/exes to lovers thing going on so we're using Little Daniel to show Max why he and Big Daniel broke up in the first place. Got it.

Also, Big Daniel is back in the past living it up in 1994. Got it. (gonna have this man running around with a walkman and a beeper in no time lmao)

So, lets keep this fun and cute! The overall goal is fluff. Guys I cannot stress this enough, if you give me even a hint of angst I will run with it.

Ok I think thats it lmao enough of my rambles.

[paarthurnax59]

"Never To Be"

Chapter 3

Warnings: fluff, flirting, angst, past trauma, serious talk of abuse, Dean being a huge dick to young!reader

Chapter 3

   Over the next few days, Steve would come in the to the Big Apple Café and asked if he would be seated in your section. He told you once a conversation about how much he liked the choice suggested for him and ordered it whenever he was being served by you, and always leaving you a big tip after. As time went on you and Steve got to know about each other a little more. How his parents were Irish immigrants, and his father was serving in WW1 and passed from mustard gas poisoning. His mother had raised him on her own and later passed away from tuberculosis when he was eighteen.

   You told him that your parents passed when you were five years old and were taken in by a man named Bobby Singer. Not wanting to tell him too much about your life, you left out that you once used to hunt the supernatural. You most certainly didn’t tell him about the Winchesters, let alone Dean.  Nobody needed to know those details about your life. 

  You don’t know why but talking with Steve just felt more natural. Your talks just flowed like a river and there was never a dull pause in your conversations with one another. You also loved hearing him talk about World War two and his experience with his time with the Hollowing Commandos and his battles with Hydra. It’s one to talk to a history teacher who was never there, but it was completely different experience talking to someone who was there and is still able to remember unlike many old men his age.

   Furthermore, whenever you are serving Steve, you often see some of your coworkers smirking at you and even watch you as you converse with the former World War two veteran. You could have sworn that you saw some of the servers chuckle and raise eyebrows at you coming back from serving Steve. Sometimes you wonder if people ever get any work done.

“Wait, hold on! You knew Wolverine? The famous X-man with the claws?” You asked him excitedly while having a conversation with while bringing his drink during lunch hour. Steve chuckled as he saw your reaction as he drew in his book. You couldn’t tell what he was drawing but just let him have his space then try to sneak a peek, no matter who much you wanted to.

“Wolverine? That’s what Logan calls himself these days?” Steve chuckled while drinking an ice-cold lemonade that you had made yourself. You whipped your apron down from previous crumbs that caught on to it.

“Hey, it suits him very well. Also he’s my favorite of the Hollowing Commandos.” You stated as a matter of fact and Steve placed his heart on his chest and gave an fake offensive sigh with a smile still on his face. 

“I’m heartbroken, (Name). I thought I was your favorite!” Steve laughed when you told him about your infatuation with the famous mutant. Shrugging, you smirked looking down at the handsome New York native. 

“I have a type and I am not ashamed of it.” You stated proudly, laughing with America’s first avenger. You chuckled as you placed down his plate of a Philly cheese Stake. Steve then looked up at you curiously and was beginning to get flustered. He stroked his hair and huffed loudly for the tenth time he was at your table.

“So…(Name), I have been meaning to ask you something…” He got all nervous suddenly as you placed his order on his table and looked at him. 

“Yes, Steve?” You responded and stood up straight to looked down at him as he was sitting down.

“I was wondering if you would-” Steve said but was interrupted by a buzzing sound of his beeper and groaned as he saw who the message was from.

“What is it, Steve?” You asked him to want to know what was causing him so much distress. 

“It’s Director Nick Fury of S.H.E.I.L.D. He needs to meet with him and it’s urgent. I’m so sorry to ask you this but can you put my lunch in a to-go box, quickly?” He asked and you nodded, took his plate and told him you would be right back before he could leave. You came right back out with a cardboard box with his food, to find he was talking to an attractive, red-head woman in a black leather jacket. Her green eyes turned to you as she gave Steve a nod and he turned to see you holding his lunch.  “Oh, (Name)! Thank you! I really appreciate it! I can eat this on the Helicarrier!” He cheeringly stated as he took the food from you and then Natasha walked up to you and smirked.

“So, is this her, Steve? The pretty waitress that you can’t seem to shut up about?” The woman asked and Steve just blushed red like a cherry.

“Shut up, Natasha and let’s go. Bye (Name), I will stop by again when I can.” He said as he gave you the money for his food and a huge tip for you once more. The woman, known as Natasha, smiled at you and led Steve what looked like a fancy black SUV and both of them got in and drove off as quickly as possible. Dumb founded by what happened, you went back into the restaurant to the kitchen. Where Katie was there waiting for you.

“So?! How did it go?!” She asked as she tried to get up in your personal space. Some of the other waiters, both men and women alike, wanted to know how you interaction with the famous Steve Rogers was going. 

“It was fine, but he left early. He said it was an emergency and got his food to go.” You responded nonchalantly while you shrugged your shoulders. The stares you were getting from the others were starting to make you nervous.

“What did he say to you before he went?” One other waitress asked of you. 

“Well, it seemed like he was going to ask me something. But he got a message and said he had to leave with his friend.” You replied and the other employees gasped and whispered to one another. You felt confused as to what everyone was whispering about and what is it that you were not getting. “What are you guys talking about?” 

“He was going to ask you out!!!” One waitress blurted out looking like she was about to jump up and down, making your mouth drop and a small gasp felt from you plump lips.

“What?! Come on! Don’t be ridiculous! You don’t know that what he was going to ask me out.” You shrugged off the comment the girl said and folded your arms.

“Honey, the food is not the reason that boy keeps coming back here. He’s got it bad for you.” One young black waitress said with a hint of sass to her tone while she rolled her eyes at you. Looking dumb founded you looked around and saw quite a few of the other employees nodding their heads in agreement. 

“Come on, (Name)! We see the way he looks at you when you aren’t looking. He always asks for you when you are working and if not, he goes someplace else! It’s obvious he likes you!” One male waiter interjected as he took a step-in front of you. The words your coworkers were telling you made your head real with questions. Was it true? Was Steve Rogers really going to ask you on a date? You blushed as the thought comes into your mind, but then was soon clouded by your old memories of your life before you got to New York, along with Dean’s last words that he had said to you.

“You are nothing more than a useless, stupid bitch that had been nothing but a burden from day one.”

“They are dead because of you!” 

“If you want to die on a hunt, be my guest!”

“You’re not worth it, princess! You never were! So why don’t you just take that fucking bag yours, get on that fucking bus and get the hell out of my life!” 

   You got emotional and felt as though tears were about to stream down your face, you ran out of the kitchen, with everyone’s eyes staring at you. Once you stepped out of the building, you let the waterworks fall on your cheeks, hugging yourself tightly hoping the pain will go away. The sound of the sirens wailed in the streets of New York, making it much harder to calm yourself down. You hear a door bursting open from behind and your name being called.

“(Name)! What’s wrong?” The voice you recognize as Katie walked up behind you, concern laced in her tone. “You kind of scared us for a second. Are you okay?” She asked you when approached you cautiously. 

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I just don’t like having that much attention on me is all.” You sniffed as you tried to get the words out. While you were being honest about not liking so much attention, telling her about the last few words Dean had spoken to you was out of the question. Katie didn’t need to see how broken you really were. Not to this degree anyway. In the eighteen months that you have known her, you never really told her much about Dean and how much he hurt you. You simply told her that he was going to go live with his girlfriend and parted ways from him. Never had you said anything about that night and how much he broke your heart. Buried deep in your memories and in your heart.

“(Name)…this is not just about that. Something about this is bugging you and I really want you to tell me. Does this have anything to do with Steve? Or was it someone else?” Shea asked looking at you when you refused to make eye contact with her. You shook your head in denial, making Katie step forward to you. “(Name), you must tell me. The way that you ran out of there like you did hurt.” She said softly as she grabbed your hands. You looked up at her with red eyes and her eyebrows furled looking down sat you with sorrowful expression. “Please tell what happened. Does it have something to do with that guy? What was his name? Dereck?”

“Dean. His name was Dean. But it doesn’t matter.” You lie, hoping that Katie would drop the whole conversation. However, you weren’t that lucky with her.

“Come on, (Name). I saw the look on your face when you ran out of the kitchen. Whatever happen between you and this Dean guy, it broke you. Like you were traumatized from your experience with him.” She cautiously spoke while both of your hands remained in hers. “Please tell me.” Your friend pleaded looking into your tear-filled eyes and your quiet sniffing as you hugged her tightly and she returned the hug by wrapping her arms around you. Shaking and sobbing, you continued for a few minutes while Katie rubbed your back up and down. “It’s okay, sis. Let it out. Just let it out.”

“He was…so cruel to me….Katie” You admitted to her as you broke out in more sobs as your friend continued to hold you. 

“Dean?” The blonde-haired woman finally asked.

“He was…the reason I left Kansas… and everything that I have ever known. He said some of the most horrible things to me. Things that… no human being deserved to hear.” You cried as your sobs still continue.

“Well, what did he say?” She asked once more while she pulled away from you looking at your red puffy eyes and tear-stained eyes. You sighed as you tried to calm down from your emotional breakdown. For years, you had never told Katie about the things Dean had said to you. You never had a reason to, until now. 

“He said I was a bitch and called me stupid. That I didn’t matter to him and was never worth keeping around. Dean was always so callous and cold toward toward me growing up.” You admitted, making Katie step back from you in shock.

“He said this shit to you?”  Katie gasped taken aback from the information that you had withheld from her for a year and a half. She thought maybe it was something more civil, that you two had parted ways as friends.

“Yes, on the night I left Kansas, he even pulled my hair and hurt me by nearly making me fall to the ground.” You cried as Katie continued to stare at you in shock. “He even destroyed my cellphone so I could never call him or anyone that I used to know because he also blamed me for one of our friends’ deaths. He made me so isolated and forced me on the bus to the east coast. I haven’t been back there since.” Katie stood silent for a while, she looked down at you with absolute astonishment. Fear started to take hold as she looked at you in silence. Silence caused by exposing your past to her, now worrying that she is going to look at you. Would she look down on you now that you had been more honest with her about your history? “I get that this is not someone wants to hear, and I never wanted to dump all this on you. And I understand if you-”

   Just when your mind started to believe the worst, Katie then pulled you into a tight, bone crushing hug once more. She rubbed your back up and down in a very comforting way. Your arms surrounded her as she spoke softly to you.

“(Name), nothing you say or anything you went through is going to make me think any less of you.” She uttered softly, still hugging you in her embrace. You continued to cry but intently listen to what your best friend was saying. “I had no idea that you went through something like this. And honestly, it all makes sense as to why you are so closed off from people, let alone from men. Whatever this Dean guy did was psychotic. He was psychotic.” She observed from what you were telling her. However, you felt the need to defend him in some way. 

“He was one of the few people I had known growing up. I have known him sense I was five-years-old. I looked up to him since he came into my life. To everyone else he was kind, selfless and gentle. To me, he was always so mean and cold. For years I tried so hard to impress him, to make him proud. I one time drew a picture of him and his family before his mom died.” You confessed but was careful with not wanting to tell her about the hunter’s life. “I gave it to him on his birthday and you know what he did?”

“He did what?” She asked curiously with sad eyes looking down at you.

“He crumbled it up, said it was crap and told me to never go through his stuff again!” you burst out sobbing while not letting go of Katie. For some reason, that memory of you and Dean had hit you the hardest, even more than the night you left. You had worked so hard at that picture and been drawing for weeks so that you got every detail right. You even tried your hand at colored pencils with Dean’s drawing. By the time you were done, it looked so bright and colorful that it almost seemed lifelike. Hoping Dean would be happy and proud of how hard you worked on it. You were only fifteen at the time and didn’t have a job to buy anything for Dean for his birthday. So, after seeing him crumble that drawing you did for him, you sobbed on the floor of Bobby’s kitchen after he left the room. “I worked so hard on it and he just crumbled it in front of me! I didn’t stop crying the entire night! I felt so humiliated even though it was just me and him in the room.”

“Did anyone else not know about it?” She asked with every word you tell her making her upset.  

“No. In fact, whenever someone else was around, Dean had acted like nothing had happened. He was always nice and civil when other people were around. When we were alone, it was a very different story. I was so nervous about giving him the drawing in front of other people that I gave it to him in private.” You professed to Katie as you pulled away from her slowly and wiped away the tears from your face. “All my life he had made me felt useless and unwanted, and I often wondered if the people around me felt the same. They just never had the guts to tell me.”

 As you finally calmed down from your emotional breakdown, you hugged yourself tightly rubbing your arms. Katie, who looked like she was about to cry herself, look down at you and touched your cheek. She gave you a sad smile and wiped some of the tears from your face.

“(Name), babes. I want you to hear this and remember what I am about to say to you. You are not useless, or unwanted. Not even in the slightest. Here, at work or wherever it may be, there are people who really do care about you. People have love for you here.” She softly stated hoping it would calm your nerves. Looking up at her with red puffy eyes, you continued to listen to what she was saying. “You are one of the smartest, most talented, and hardworking people that I know. After telling me all of the stuff that you went through, just made me have even more admiration for you.”

“Really?” You asked in astonishment looking at the tall blonde.

“Of course. (Name), what you have experienced was abuse. Emotional and mental abuse, and not a lot of people break from that.” She admitted firmly and honestly.   “Whatever this dick had done, was to put you down because while I don’t know him, it sounded like he was using you as a scapegoat for whatever problems he had. He just saw you as someone young, innocent, and vulnerable, and then decided to aim all his anger out on you. You were just there and honestly it is something that you should never blame yourself for.”

    You let her words sink in and had thought about all the times Dean had made you feel so insignificant. It was true that Dean had a terrible childhood.  He was always left behind by his father to look after his younger brother since he four years old. He never got to have a normal childhood. Always left alone with Sam, moving from place to place, and having no stability whatsoever. It would explain why he is the way he is. Of course, he would never take his anger out on Sam. He loved Sam with all he had, practically raised him. So, when you came into the picture, all bright-eyed, sweet and unblemished from the world of monsters, it was fair game to him. Despite that, you couldn’t help but fall for him, even though you were eleven years younger than him. You stayed with him through everything. Hunting down Azazel, his father’s death, him going to Hell, the angels, Lucifer getting free and the apocalypse. Most people would say it was pathetic staying with someone like Dean, let alone have feelings for him. However, loving someone doesn’t always make sense, nor is it easy to shake off. 

“If anything, it was a God send that he sent you away. You were not safe or happy with him. I know that when I found you outside our apartment that you felt so lost and broken, but at the same time had a heart so big that anyone would fall in love with you after just ten minutes.” She said as she took your hands into hers and held tightly on to them. “And…I think…that’s why Steve has grown so fond of you and why he likes being around you. He can see that spark that’s in you, (Name). The same one I saw when I first met you.” 

 With Katie’s words making your heart swell, you begin to tear up again. Not tears of sorrow or pain, but of gratitude. The thankfulness of a friend that cared deeply about your well-being. You felt like you haven’t had that in so long. She reminded you of Sam in a lot of ways. Which made you miss him even more. You hugged her one more time before you broke away from her.

“I know that It doesn’t seem like it now, and that it’s going to take time to get over the years of torment that Dean had put you through, but it will get better. Just give it time.” She looked at you as her face then turned slightly more serious. “However, the next time you talk to Steve…and he asks you out…you are going to say yes.” She said, which then made you snort in amusement.

“Whatever happened to “give it time”?”  You chuckled at Katie for her pushiness to go and date Steve.

“Girl, I know what I said, but you would have to be very stupid to pass up a guy like Steve. Any girl would be walking on a mine field just to even talk to Captain America.”

(A sample of what Reader's art-skills were like at fifteen. not my artwork!)

Please comment, like and reblog!

Part 4

[spidey-bie]

Another thing about Comic!Hobie, he's only ever been outside of his universe when he's fighting something and then immediately leaves. This bitch would have no idea at all what a cellphone is, and I'm just realizing the fucking complications of that in a modern world. How the fuck do people in the 70s meet? "Damn, bruh, that's shit, wanna go to the park at the light of the waning sun and smoke a jiffy?" or some shit. I had a scene where they meet for the first time via Moxie running full fucking force behind him to give him their number so that they can talk schedules and details for painting time, and then realized Hobie would fully bluescreen at getting seemingly some random cryptic ass code from this really cool person and prolly not knowing how to respond. Do you look stupid infront of cool person? (Because gwen stacy is his idol because of how she lived) Do you go deadpan and just straight say "I ain't got that"? The culture differences are actually harder then I realized for people in different time periods, with different regions, with different historical events.

Oh my fucking god, someone having to fucking teach him and I know in my goddamn heart he's gonna hear about surveillance and immediately go "The media is already tryina kill my ass, nuh-uh, you take this bullshit back. I want none of it" I'm realizing how big letters are as a form of communication without shit like social media or texting. It's never really sunk in this much. Hobie brown angrily writing a fucking letter to someone is now living in my head rent free.

I love how I forgot all about letters and immediately went to beepers. Ansi and Hobie have two-way pagers that Ansi hacked to work across dimensions in case of emergencies (or frankly for whenever he's bored and wants Hobie to come by)

Nobody writes about technologically challenged Hobie (because of him making watches in the movie or whatever 🙄) but I'm holding onto the headcanon that the Riri Williams of his universe made the watches and he was just stealing parts.

Honestly him being able to put together multiple multi dimensional watches but not knowing how to make a phone call sounds hilarious.

Hobie I'm with the boomers on this new tech business Brown now lives rent free in my head.

[softquietsteadylove]

For the wildfire one. Gil’s alarm goes off. Out of instinct Thena slightly jumps ready to run out too. but when she realizes she may asks herself if she would go back

Thena slurped up her spaghetti loudly. It was just the absolute best whenever Gil made it, and it was everything she missed while she was out patrolling: it was hot, it was meat that wasn't dehydrated, and it was easy to chew.

Gil said nothing across from her. If he thought her manners were off-putting then he was too sweet to say anything about it. He ate much more politely, twirling his fork and everything.

This was their third dinner together this month.

She was circling tighter and tighter, going less far out each time. And she was stopping by his cabin at least once a week, sometimes twice if she was feeling restless.

He always greeted her warmly, welcomed her inside, asked if she'd eaten and if she wanted to shower. If she was outstaying her welcome with him, she had no way of knowing.

A sharp and rapid beeping sounded from close to the door.

They both looked up sharply, the sound eliciting an instant and instinctive response. They were both trained to recognise that sound above all others.

Gil leapt up from his seat, abandoning his meal and running to his beeper. "Brush fire, there are at least two families in the area we have to make sure don't get trapped."

Thena's gut clenched. Families getting trapped by wildfire were exactly the reason she was no longer part of search and rescue. If anything, her boys were probably already out there. Gil was part of local forces. She didn't have to go out there. She didn't even know if she could anymore.

"You don't have to."

She hadn't even realised it, but she was beside him, leaning over to see the info coming through to him. She had jumped up to respond to the call just like he had. It had happened as automatically as the breath she took.

Gil looked at her more directly. "Thena, look at me."

She must have looked insane for him to be speaking in soft tones, trying to talk her down like a caged animal. "I'm fine."

"You don't have to go out there," he reasserted, squeezing her shoulder. "You're not on rescue duty, you're patrol. The fire is a freak accident, probably a camp that wasn't extinguished properly. It'll be an easy job."

But all she could think about was the hot lick of flames around her, the harsh glow of red and yellow searing her eyes. It consumed her nights, kept her waking in a cold sweat. She loathed and missed it.

But then she thought of Gil. He hadn't been called out in the time she'd known him, at least not for her to witness so directly. He wasn't technically search and rescue--he wasn't a jumper. He was part of ground forces. He had a team, and reported to the local station, and he had training and turnout gear just like the rest of them.

But the idea of him walking into that monster, flames biting at him like white hot teeth--she shook her head.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." He patted her hand, which she was just realising she had put on his arm. Her subconscious was clawing at him. He started to pull away, the soft cotton of his t-shirt sliding out from under her fingers.

"Don't." Both of them were surprised that she said it. She didn't sound like herself. She sounded like a trembling thing, begging him not to go and do his job. Her hand tightened against his arm, "don't."

"Thena," he lamented, already trying to gently peel her off of him. "I have to. But-"

"No!" she snapped, and at least sounded more like herself when she did. Last thing she wanted was to sound like some crying pup with him. "Gil, if it's a brush fire you know it's already twice the size it was when they spotted it."

"You don't know that-"

"Yes, I do!" she bellowed, stepping forward and forcing him back. "I know the wind, I know how it moves with the fire. I know how it swallows things and I felt the air out there today! It was prickly, I should have known better."

Gil's brow furrowed, "lightning? But the towers would have-"

"Sometimes they don't even bother looking, she dismissed. She had radioed in to them and been dismissed enough to know that they were not overly concerned with routine checks. "There must have been a quick strike that started something in the dry lands."

Gil looked at his watch. "That's a lot of time for it to spread, if it's not a small brush fire."

Thena looked out the window of the cabin. There wasn't any smoke, which meant the wind was in their favour. "I have to tell my guys. And you should tell the station to call and ask if there's been any precipitation reports from the other towers."

"What are you doing?" he asked as she went to her bag, digging through it. "Thena?"

"I'm coming with you," she snarled, digging out the heavy gear in her pack that took up more than half the room in it. It wasn't the heaviest, and it wasn't even necessarily the right suit for what they were going to face out there. But it was still fire protection. "You'll need a tracker with you if there are civilians out there."

"Thena, you're not cleared for duty."

She sighed as she pulled on a longer sleeved shirt and then her jacket on over it. She pulled off the elastic she had around her wrist at all times and dragged her hair into a low ponytail she could tuck into her jacket back. "I am."

"But I thought-"

"I was cleared for duty last year, but I didn't think I could take it."

Not even her old crew knew this. She had failed her initial psych eval after her last rescue had resulted in three very young casualties--that part was real. And she had been relegated to patrol duty as a means of sequestering but not firing her. It wasn't good PR to fire a rescuer with severe PTSD (or PTSS, it was being called now, she'd heard).

But she had been cleared to return to work last spring. Technically, she was fit for duty. The only one who didn't think so, was she herself. So she had asked to remain on area patrol. She didn't mention it to her old station, or her boys--no one. No one needed to know she woke every night, shaking and screaming. No one needed to know she couldn't search or rescue ever again.

At least not until she'd gotten Gil out of his cellar and he'd held her like she was the only thing standing between him and death. One stupid hug and she was going soft again.

"I didn't know."

"No one does," she sighed. She stood, kicking off her boots so she could get the incredibly heavy pants on and up her legs. She secured the suspenders and tipped her shoes upward again to jam her feet in. "But I think this is bigger than they even know right now. Finding those families in time will need all hands on deck."

Gil just nodded, also gearing up. He only ever lazed around in standard issue clothes until he could well and truly go to bed anyway. He got his own suspenders clipped as well. "You sure you want to do this?"

Did she see those kids' faces every time she closed her eyes?--yes. But would she think about these families as well if she didn't go with him now?--very much.

"I have to, and so do you," she sufficed to say. "You ready?"

He nodded, pulling his helmet and goggles off the hook by the door last. "You?"

She ignored the question, unclipping her helmet from the outside of her bag and fishing her goggles out of her jacket pocket. It felt familiar, but also foreign after two whole years without it. "Let's go."

They left, Gil not even locking up behind them. He all but threw himself into his truck, Thena climbing in beside him. He picked up the radio first and foremost. "This is Gil, two miles off the 147 southbound. I can hit the lake area and move from there, ETA ten minutes."

"Copy that Gil, we'll have units meet you out there."

He set the radio down, driving full speed as far as the truck could get them before they would have to go on foot. He barely even glanced at her. "Hey."

She didn't respond verbally, gripping the door as they bounced around.

"Wolf," he addressed more fittingly for the situation. He caught her eye darting over to him and decided it was enough. "There's no room for pride out there. It gets too much, you tell me and you fall back. Clear?"

She smiled. The last thing she needed was coddling, no matter how sweet, or well intended. And of course Gil - the big, sweet softie - knew that. She puffed, "clear."

"Copy," he also puffed out a faint, sardonic burst of air. They both had to steel themselves for the fight ahead. But at least they were on the same page. They were ready to be a real team.

And she could have no better partner out there.

[floridaboiler]

They Live Among Us

My husband and I went through the McDonald's driveway window and I gave the cashier a $5 bill. Our total was $4.25, so I also handed her 25c. She said, 'you gave me too much money.' I said, 'Yes I know, but this way you can just give me a dollar back.' She sighed and went to get the manager who asked me to repeat my request. I did so, and he handed me back the 25c, and said 'We're sorry but we don’t do that kind of thing.' The cashier then proceeded to give me back 75 cents in change. Do not confuse the people at MacD's.

We had to have the garage door repaired. The repairman told us that one of our problems was that we did not have a 'large' enough motor on the opener. I thought for a minute, and said that we had the largest one made at that time, a 1/2 horsepower. He shook his head and said, 'You need a 1/4 horsepower.' I responded that 1/2 was larger than 1/4 and he said, 'NOOO, it's not. Four is larger than two.' We haven't used that repairman since...

I live in a semi rural area. We recently had a new neighbor call the local city council office to request the removal of the DEER CROSSING sign on our road. The reason: 'Too many deers are being hit by cars out here! I don't think this is a good place for them to be crossing anymore.'

IDIOT SIGHTING IN FOOD SERVICE. My daughter went to a Mexican fast food and ordered a taco. She asked the person behind the counter for 'minimal lettuce.' He said he was sorry, but they only had iceberg lettuce.

I was at the airport, checking in at the gate when an airport employee asked, 'Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge?' To which I replied, 'If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?' He smiled knowingly and nodded, 'That's why we ask.'

The pedestrian light on the corner beeps when it's safe to cross the street. I was crossing with an 'intellectually challenged' co-worker of mine. She asked if I knew what the beeper was for. I explained that it signals blind people when the light is red. Appalled, she responded, 'what on earth are blind people doing driving?!' She is a government employee.....

When my wife and I arrived at a car dealership to pick up our car after a service, we were told the keys had been locked in it. We went to the service department and found a mechanic working feverishly to unlock the driver’s side door. As I watched from the passenger side, I instinctively tried the door handle and discovered that it was unlocked. ‘Hey,' I announced to the technician, 'its open!' His reply, 'I know. I already did that side.' STAY ALERT!

They walk among us, they breed, and they vote….... You now have 2 options... Delete it….. or Send it along to put a smile on someone's face today!. HAHAHAHAHAHA

[mermmarie]

First pictures of the new year!! Belated Christmas gifts for the best rp partner in the universe @seafoamtaffy!! 😚 💖 These are scenes from our Bayverse roleplay where Leo and Aida (her oc) share an intimate moment. ~ 💙

A snippet of the scene is under the cut if you should so like to read it! 😊

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

Leonardo’s lips parted as his beeper chirped back at him.

Aida…

She had responded and she was near.

He was supposed to be the groups fearless leader, but as the beeps sounded through the storm, he felt a tightening in his chest… He hadn’t seen the girl in two years and they were most likely going to have a tough conversation, especially if her partner, Bonnie, was going to be with her.

He pulled down the hood of the poncho he wore out and tilted his head to the sky, letting the rain soak his skin and mask. The cool water reminding him of meditation and easing his anxious mind. After a few seconds of basking in the rain, he pulled his hood back over his head and carried on in his search for the girls.

He leaped from rooftop to rooftop with ease, regardless of the battering rain. Leaning over the edges of buildings to scout out the area below for anyone familiar. Ten minutes or so had passed and there hadn’t been any sign of the thieving duo, but he wasn’t discouraged. The beeper was still signaling off, meaning its receiver was within his vicinity. He just had to find it.

It was then that he heard an echo of beeping through the rain, and his head snapped in the direction it was coming from. He jumped to a nearby fire escape, and hung off the ladder, examining the alleyway below him.

And that’s when he saw someone…

A woman ran into the alleyway. The entirety of her being had been soaked by the rain and it was difficult to make out her features through the onslaught; but the rapid succession of chirps that came from the sister device of his beeper verified that she was one of the girls he had intended to meet up with tonight.  

Suddenly, the woman stopped in her tracks and looked about her surroundings. His looming presence must’ve tickled at her sixth sense, as she eventually looked up and immediately flinched at the sight of him.

“Jesus!” She hissed and put a hand over her chest to calm her racing heart. After taking a breath, she narrowed her eyes, trying to enhance her vision through the dark and rain. However, the hood of his poncho covered most of his defining features, except for his piercing blue eyes.

She swallowed her anxiety and called out, “Michelangelo?” But after a few more seconds of observation, her eyes widened with clarity. “Hermano.” She breathed.

Leonardo stared back at the woman in silence, not certain who it was standing beneath him at first. The lack of pony tail had him assuming that it was Aida below him, but it had been two years. And from what he had known about women, is that they liked to change their appearances a lot. He remembered Aida’s hair being neck length, however this woman’s hair went down past her shoulders. She also appeared to be taller than the Aida he had known, but only by a half inch or so…

Thanks to his mutated genetics he was able to pick up the whisper of the familiar nickname through the storm, and his eyes widened with recognition.

It was Aida…

In an instant, he let go of the fire escape and dropped to the ground on his feet with a loud thud. Slowly, he rose from his squatting position and straightened till he towered before her. There were only a few feet between them, but now knowing it was really her, he hesitated to close the distance. His muscles tensed as his heart beat against his armored chest, but he hid his anxiousness behind furrowed brows and an upturned chin.  

But the apathetic expression quickly faltered when he noticed her trembling.

The outfit she had chosen to go out and meet him in was not… best suited for this kind of weather. The thin layers of clothing doing nothing for her but hold onto the cold water. The fact that she would even come out in a storm like this at all for him pricked at him, and he felt a long lost fondness emanate from his chest. The sensation had him feeling conflicted, and he broke eye contact from her briefly to contemplate the situation.

He was supposed to be mad at her, not taking pity on her… Maybe it was because he had taken up the responsibility to watch over her family in her absence, and that was why he couldn’t be entirely upset with her. Her twin siblings had always talked up their big sister to him. Chattering on about how she was working so hard to send money home for their mother, and how she always called on Sundays to see how their week went.

The importance of family hadn’t been entirely abandoned in her disappearance, and that was better than nothing at all.

His eyes were pulled back to her when he noticed her trembling again, and he felt his own ‘oldest sibling obligations’ eat at him. If she stood out in this storm for any longer, she was sure to catch a cold. With a quick flick of his wrist, he whipped off the poncho he was wearing and extended it to her. The rain now coming down on his scaled skin, but it merely felt like a cold shower to him.

“You’re gonna get sick.” He said bluntly.

The woman looked up at him, unsure if his gesture was a cruel trick or not. Her hand shook when she finally took the poncho from him and he registered the surprise and relief that washed over her when she felt the warmth coming off the large fabric. She held it close to her chest and soaked in the water and heat as everything suddenly crashed over her.

Abruptly, she sucked in a shaky gasp, buried her face in the wet material, and cried.

“I’m s-sorry!” Her entire body shook as she sobbed. “I’m so s-sor-sorry!...”

Leonardo’s eyes widened at her sudden admission and when she broke down into tears, it was like someone had reached inside his chest and clutched his heart. He had heard through media that having children made you kinder, but Senshi wasn’t even his biological child; however, to that point, Master Splinter wasn’t his biological father either, yet he had never held anything over him after he apologized. His father was always compassionate and understanding, but most importantly, forgiving.

Leonardo had went out tonight with the intention to say his piece with the girls and walk away. He was supposed to get closure for his brothers, who they had hurt so badly. He should’ve been upset with her.

Without thought, he quickly reached out again and pulled her into him, clutching her tight against his body. His arms wrapped around her small frame and he rested his chin on to the top of her head. The cold seeped off of her person and into his warm skin but he wasn’t bothered by it. His brothers would be shocked to their cores at his action but he didn’t care. Somehow, he knew this was the right thing to do, only it wasn’t just that…

He hadn’t realized it before, probably because he had managed to find ways to keep busy; with looking after Aida’s family, and then adopting Senshi as his own. But he hadn’t thought that Aida’s disappearance had affected him the same as it had his brothers. However, the sting of longing in his chest as he held her tightly told him that there had been a void in him all along.

And now, he was full again.

[lavendercatboy-blog]

Poll is set to a week but I’ll probably be deciding in like a day or two, it’s just to give more decision time

Also feel free to respond if you’re not a mutual, I just want my gaggle of idiots to help me decide on resurrecting Beeper or not

[theomnicode]

Imagination of the universe

Someone actually made a good point on reddit.

"Imagining"? They imagined the universes inside themselves and turned each atom in the opposite direction. And then Saitama moved in time, as if he had turned the atoms in the real world. That is, has his imagination become real? Or did he really create an entire universe that was connected to real

At this point? I'm gonna say yea, to the first one at least.

That much I've made a meta about that he visualizes things and it just happens. With his cognitive powers, what he imagines happening, happens.

Bending hyperspace gates, multiply himself, multiply his arms, appear where he imagines to appear from, imagining how he can fight and dodge things by slowing down time...just one aspects of his powers. Divine power is helluva drug, you can do anything with it.

(Saitama casually bending reality meta here)

But did he accidentally create an entire inner universe by imagining it? Err...if he imagined his atoms mimicing Garou's atoms. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it means he's imagining the universe that exists in each being, the soul. Divine power. Stuff.

Not saying it would be out of his grasp though...imagining an entire universe, that is. If he can vividly imagine his own soul, which would be this in cosmological terms. He'd just need to think on bigger scale lol.

The confusing part comes from whether it means if saitama just imagined his inner universe to become real or if he imagined the inner universe that was part of him.

And... you know what guys?

I think I got what this uncanny feeling is with all these chapters.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say what I think is happening...

Don't click if you don't want a potential surprise ruiners just btw.

Saitama is STILL imagining his own inner universe.

Saitama imagined punching monsterization out of Garou? Bam, people are suddenly forgetting the essence of monsterization.

Saitama saw Garou turn into salt? Zombieman is confused about how Homeless Emperor actually met his end.

Garou should not remember fighting Blast either in that order. But Garou who imagined his inner universe with Saitama would.

Garou too, is imagining his inner universe.

No wonder chapter 170 was so idyllic...it was exactly what Garou wanted lol.

No wonder everyone looks so weird at times too. Like Sitch is lacking his large nose from far away. It's hard to imagine all the minor details.

Like Tareo's shirt.

Or that the couch should not have a rendition of God's cube in it.

Or that Genos does not actually look like a cat. And rover keeps changing sizes depending on who is looking. Black S imagines Rover as pathetic or that's how Rover actually looks like if Black S is not affected.

All the inconsistencies and weirdness.

The road should probably be straight too, if I am all honest and not look like fata morgana, uneven and very much not straight. And the world not be full of holes after Boros's attack like the last time Saitama saw City A. Erosion might happen, but not a straight road? Idek, these roads look pretty nice to me. Hell there should be more roads, but they are conspiciously lacking. Probably because Saitama doesn't imagine them being around.

Funnily enough, even the heroes in the cafe seemingly respond like Saitama would have responded. Despite having their beepers which provide location information where the distress signal is sent from, they try locating based on the sound when they can't find their way around the place.

Then they arrive late to the scene, much like Saitama himself. A rendition of how he would imagine himself responding to a monster attack indeed.

Something happened that we still aren't privy to in between chapter 169 and 170.

Like, idk...Saitama going to fucking bed and falling asleep because he had been up for longer than 24hrs.

Either Saitama is having some wild ass dreams or his powers are messing with everyone else's cognitive thoughts or this is all some fucked up dream scenario made by OPM God sending subliminal messages to everyone and everyone is just imagining all kinds of shit happening.

Still imaginary fake stuff regardless. Someone has some really fucking vivid imagination. It's either Saitama, Garou, OPM God, everyone or all of em.

Maybe OPM God is trying to superimpose webcomic parallel world into manga verse lmfao.

Zombieman threw lampshading at God, so I'm going to point my finger there.

Iaian in redrawn chapters has this to say about it.

"Being of immense power that is the very incarnation of despair and beyond human ability to defeat."

Oh and Garou is not past Garou, pretty sure it's not. It's future Garou imagining his own inner universe, the same as Saitama.

That's why he spouts his rhetoric into a dine and dash investigation and skips the actual interrogation entirely, because he cannot imagine how that one would go for real.

The one problem though is that future Garou is still dead.

Who knows if Garou being dead means he can actually get to uh, meet this being of immense power that is the very incarnation of despair...that would be fun wouldn't it.

Imagination is getting pretty real though. A bit too real if you ask me.

What is real and what is fake anymore?

However...if one gets too immersed in their imagination, it may be too difficult to stop daydreaming to notice the dangers.

Saitama's finally getting what he wishes for too. Some actual, real and not so boring monsters I bet.

Someone has to slap him awake before it's too late.

[pandahelper01]

The Evolution of Pagers in Lebanon: Their Relevance in Times of Crisis and Explosions

In recent years, Lebanon has faced a series of crises, including political instability, economic hardship, and devastating explosions. One aspect that often goes unnoticed during such turbulent times is the importance of reliable communication systems. Amidst the challenges brought on by these explosions, pagers have re-emerged as a crucial tool for maintaining communication, particularly when other technologies fail. This article explores the evolution of pagers in Lebanon and highlights their relevance during emergencies and times of crisis.

A Brief History of Pagers in Lebanon

Pagers, also known as beepers, first gained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s as a reliable means of communication for professionals like doctors, journalists, and emergency responders. In Lebanon, they became a staple in certain industries, especially in healthcare, where quick communication was vital. Pagers were valued for their simplicity, long battery life, and ability to function even when phone lines were congested or down.

By the early 2000s, however, the rise of mobile phones and internet-based communication technologies led to a sharp decline in pager usage. In Lebanon, as in many other countries, the digital revolution meant that pagers were largely phased out in favor of more advanced devices that offered a range of services beyond simple messaging.

However, recent explosions and crises inLebanon have revealed that pagers still have a significant role to play in emergency communication. The return of pagers highlights the importance of having redundant communication methods during times of disruption.

The Return of Pagers During the Beirut Explosion

One of the most tragic events in recent Lebanese history was the 2020 Beirut explosion, which claimed hundreds of lives, injured thousands, and caused widespread destruction. The aftermath of this disaster saw large-scale communication failures, with mobile networks and internet services being disrupted for hours, if not days. This crisis highlighted the vulnerability of modern communication systems that rely on digital infrastructure.

In the wake of the explosion, emergency responders and healthcare professionals found themselves relying on pagers once again. Their ability to work independently of cellular networks made them indispensable for coordinating rescue operations, medical care, and relief efforts. In hospitals, where every second counts, pagers provided a reliable means of communication between staff, ensuring that critical information could still be transmitted even as other systems failed.

How Pagers Work and Why They Are Reliable

Pagers use radio signals to send and receive messages. Unlike mobile phones, which rely on cellular towers and internet connections, pagers operate on a network of radio frequencies that are often more resilient during times of infrastructure damage. This makes them an ideal communication tool when cellular networks are congested or down.

In Lebanon, where explosions and other crises can disrupt communication infrastructure, pagers offer a reliable alternative. Their simplicity ensures that messages can still be sent and received with minimal delay, even when other methods are unavailable. Moreover, pagers do not rely on apps or software that require constant updates, making them immune to many of the problems that plague modern communication technologies.

The Role of Pagers in Lebanon’s Healthcare System

Lebanon’s healthcare system has faced immense pressure over the past few years, particularly during the aftermath of explosions. In these situations, fast and reliable communication between medical professionals is critical. Pagers play a vital role in ensuring that doctors, nurses, and emergency staff can coordinate effectively, even when traditional communication networks are down.

During the Beirut explosion, for example, many hospitals were overwhelmed with injured patients, and the need for quick communication was paramount. Pagers provided an instant, dependable way for staff to communicate with one another, making sure that resources were allocated where they were needed most. This ability to transmit urgent messages without the risk of delays made pagers a critical tool in managing the crisis.

Pagers in Other Sectors: Government and NGOs

Beyond healthcare, pagers are also used by government agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are involved in disaster response and relief efforts. In Lebanon, where explosions and crises can cause widespread disruption, NGOs rely on Pagers to coordinate their efforts across different regions and ensure that aid reaches the people who need it most.

Government agencies responsible for coordinating rescue and relief operations also use pagers to communicate critical updates to their teams. With the country’s infrastructure frequently being damaged during explosions, pagers offer a simple but effective means of staying connected in the field.

Mohamed Soufan on the Resilience of Pagers

Lebanese software engineer and cybersecurity expert Mohamed Soufan has been an advocate for the resilience of pagers, particularly during times of crisis. According to Soufan, "In a world where we are increasingly reliant on complex digital systems, it's important to remember the value of simpler, more reliable technologies. Pagers have proven themselves time and again, particularly in Lebanon, where infrastructure is fragile and often at risk."

Soufan believes that while modern technologies offer many conveniences, the resilience of pagers should not be overlooked, especially when lives are on the line. "Pagers continue to have a place in our communication ecosystem, particularly in emergency situations. As we've seen in Lebanon, these devices can be the difference between chaos and coordination," he adds.

Conclusion: The Continued Relevance of Pagers

The evolution of pagers in Lebanon has come full circle. Once seen as an outdated technology, pagers have re-emerged as a critical tool in times of crisis, particularly during explosions and other emergencies. Their reliability, simplicity, and independence from digital infrastructure make them an essential part of Lebanon's communication landscape, particularly for healthcare workers, emergency responders, and relief organizations.

While mobile phones and other technologies have taken center stage in everyday communication, the ongoing relevance of pagers in Lebanon's most challenging times serves as a reminder that sometimes, the simplest tools are the most effective.

[jupiter-reimagined]

Stone: What if... What if I crash this party?

Me: Why would you do that?

Stone: You really think I wouldn't come running after all of my messages via the beeper weren't responded by Kali?

Me: Yeah, okay, but how would you even find out where Kali was when you realize he's not at his ranch? It's not like you have him microchipped.

Stone:

Me: You have him microchipped???

Stone: Well, I couldn't go off the grid without knowing there'd be a way to find my bestie. I don't trust his parents to try and find Kali if he ever went missing.

I think if Stone did crash the party, the one who'd be the most surprised would be Kali, who was so certain Stone didn't even really care about him once they both retired. And Stone would be like "Well shit, I'm sorry I made you think that. Guess I gotta enter society again."

sylvester, at mārīte: ... yeah stay away from that one. he looks too big for his own good. i think i heard the lock get broken

mārīte: aw man :(

butcher isnt happy that theres a stranger showing up uninvited. sure, he knows kali, but ffs tonight is his and dominics night to shine, not stones. also the fact that he somehow got past all the security *and* the id checks the staff of the building do to make sure no unauthorized personnel enter.

what a way to make first (and second) impressions. butcher would be this close to slamming the door in his face, be it broken or not, if kali didnt stop him in time like "oh, i know him"

... there goes charlie. instantly back in his own room. the party was already small as is, but stone made his anxiety spike. so he just hangs out with mārīte on the floor, and they wait there until the cake (which butcher delivers to them)

[parttimepuff]

Wait yeah how ARE you gonna explain Hermit and Magolor? Like Orbee just kinda got brought up but you won’t say you have 1.5 other matters hanging out? That seems important

"Fuck! We forgot to tell them!" Beep exclaimed. "Er, yeah, we did." Reverie nodded. Truthfully, he wasn't sure if bringing the two up along with everything else would have been a good idea to do at once. "We'll have to tell him soon. But, y'know, also check with the two of them to see what they think." Gremlin figured. His niece, having already shot to the front door, paused with her hand on the doorknob. She didn't like what that implied.

"They’ll be scared of them too?" The Matter asked, turning to face them again. No one really wanted to say so, but Gremlin reluctantly replied. "…yeah. Yeah, they probably would be." He apologetically confirmed. "In Wiz's case, his reputation has taken a hit once before… I dunno how he's gonna feel about this." Reverie pondered, bringing a wing to his chin in thought. "Huh…?" Beep muttered, confused and worried.

"Mm, you mean he'd be scared to be viewed bad again, right?" Gremlin questioned for her benefit, Reverie glancing away. "I don't know, I don't, feel like I know him well enough to judge that." The Dream Fae admitted. Luna frowned, finding it unfair that they were almost deciding what Magolor would think before he had a say in it. "Just as well that you talk to him about it, then." She pointed out

Dropping her hand off the doorknob, Beep slowly floated back to them. "I guess." She mumbled. Her uncle took note of her somber attitude, opting to throw in his own two cents. "No real point speculating about it when we can just ask him. I can't say I know him well enough, either, but we have, a similar background. And I'm still here." Gremlin reminded them. "Yeah…" Reverie agreed, hoping the Halcandran wouldn't be entirely opposed to coming clean.

"Okay…" The Matter sighed, sitting back on the couch. The atmosphere had become more melancholy and that was no way to celebrate. "…hey, we need to get ready for the party still, right? Let's do that first." Luna brought up. The reminder quickly gave Beep some energy. "Oh yeah, yeah! I wanna do that…" She expressed, a bit hesitant. "And we're gonna!" Reverie jumped in.

"Right! I'll text 'em that we're heading back to have some fun." Gremlin suggested, reaching for his cellphone. "I can tell em!" Beep responded, her method decidedly faster. "Oh yeah! Let 'em know I'll bring Beeper Bites!" Luna chimed in. "And I… have some snacks here? I could bring 'em!" The Dream Demon added, already beginning to search about the kitchen. The Matter smiled. They could just celebrate right now. 'Wiz, Hermit, we're coming back. And we’re gonna celebrate.' Beep communicated to the two Matters. 'Celebrate?' Magolor was the first to respond, relief clear in his thoughts. 'Come home safe.' Hermit insisted, not entirely sure what they were doing, but knowing it was a good thing. 'Yeah!! We'll be here and ready to have a party!!' The Halcandran added. Beep smiled more at that. "They’re waiting for us, let’s go home." She told the others. "Let's!" Her father agreed, ready to celebrate the good news.

[hackernewsrobot]

Apple responds to the Beeper iMessage saga: 'We took steps to protect our users'

https://www.theverge.com/2023/12/9/23995150/beeper-imessage-android-apple-statement