#box office collection news online

[bau-thoughts]

Helping Spencer Reid recover from top surgery

I’m fully prepared for this to not do as well but Spencer is 100% trans in my head and he deserves to be pampered like this.

Spencer Reid has wanted top surgery since he was 15 years old.

At age 23 he is given an appointment date for his top surgery and at age 24 he is being driven to the hospital by you for his surgery date.

“Are you feeling okay Spence?” you ask, seeing him bouncing his leg in the passenger seat.

“Remind me Spence, how long will the surgery take? I know it was mentioned during the consultations but I can’t remember.”

“It shouldn’t take more than 4 hours. Do you have enough stuff to keep you busy while you wait?” He asks, trying to keep his mind off the surgery. He had been waiting nearly a decade for this and he didn’t quite know how to feel about it.

“Yeah I’ll be fine. I’ve got a couple of books in my bag to keep me entertained.”

The two of you park outside the hospital and you walk with him to his doctor’s office, you take his hand on the walk there and you try and figure out if you did that to comfort him or to comfort yourself.

As you watch him get wheeled down the hallway, a tear of happiness rolls down your cheek. You know how much he’s been waiting for this day and you’re so excited for him.

When he gets pushed around the corner before the operating room you turn around and go back to your car. In the boot of your car is everything you could think of that Spencer might need during his recovery. Spencer already researched everything he might need immediately post-op and systematically packed a bag based on the likelihood of him needing an item.

You start driving back to your apartment trying to make the most of the two hours you’ve given yourself to prepare your apartment. As you open the front door to your shared apartment, you struggle trying to get the box inside while propping the door open.

You start by preparing your shared bedroom. In the box you’ve collected pillows in a variety of firmnesses, which you arrange like the photos you were able to find online, multiple fuzzy blankets and a new weighted blanket to put over Spencers legs, and new soft button-up shirts. You had found Doctor Who and Star Trek cartoon characters printed across the shirts at you and Spencer’s favourite local thrift store when you were trying to find him a new cardigan.

You pulled out the picnic basket from your one year anniversary date Spencer took you on and filled it with his favourite snacks and drinks. On top of the pile, you gently place a cheesy mug you found for him with “Get it off your chest” written across the side for his sugar with a side of coffee. (There’s a picture at the bottom)

You climb onto the bed and hang small fairy lights above the bed to help with overstimulation from the ceiling light. You also place a new dim lamp next to the bed that’s bright enough for Spencer to read.

You hear a faint buzzing from the kitchen and realise your alarm is going off to remind you to go back to the hospital to pick up Spencer.

You rush down to your car and get back to the hospital as quickly as you can. You run inside and find Spencer’s room where he’s asleep with bandages wrapped around his chest. He slowly wakes up from the anaesthesia as you sit by his bed with a book open in your lap.

“I want to hold your hand when I look down for the first time.” You take his hand and squeeze it tightly.

“Look down whenever you feel ready.”

[earlycuntsets]

"your star

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE

The Black Parade is Dead!

At this point, MCR needs no introduction. The band led by Gerard Way is an icon of current punk-rock and every day thousands of fans around the world join their "carnival". The good news is that the quintet will release The Black Parade is Dead! this month and we will invite you to its launch!

BY: XABIERA SAN MIGUEL B.

When My Chemical Romance visited South America with their world tour last February and we learned that Chile and Argentina were included in the tour, we perfectly understood that thousands of fans would fulfill their dream of seeing their favorite band live, however, not all of them could attend the event, and for that reason, when we found out that the CD+DVD The Black Parade is Dead! would be arriving in record stores on July 5th, we got our act together and got ex-clusive tickets for the launch. Yes, just as you read it, we will invite you to the premiere of My Chemical's new material…, but first things first, you should first know what all the musical fuss is about.

Why not miss The Black Parade is Dead!

To begin with, this is the second live DVD in the career of the quintet from New Jersey, which began its history in the winter of 2001. The first was Life on the Murder Scene and was released in 2006.

The dual-format material includes completely live images and sounds, and compiles two concerts from The Black Parade World Tour, but they are two completely different concerts from each other.

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE

DEAD

The tour, which began in February 2007 and ended on May 9 at New York's Madison Square Garden, included 138 dates of electrifying concerts, in which Gerard Way, Ray Toro, Bob Bryar, Frank Lero and Mikey Way

they gave their best.

On the one hand there is the CD with the complete recording of the show that the band offered last October 7 at the Palacio de

www.theblackparadeisdead.com"

[next page]

The boys performed on October 24, 2007 at Maxwell's Club in Hoboken, New Jersey, in front of about 200 people.

The DVD was directed by Adam Rothlein, an expert in the field, who had already worked on DVDs for Green Day, System of a Down, All-American Rejects and Disturbed.

As this is a limited and collectible edition, edited especially for fans, the material comes in a digipack (cardboard box with two compartments, one for each disc) and includes a booklet.

20 pages with exclusive photos from both concerts.

The second envelope of the packaging includes a sheet printed on both sides, with thanks from the group and photos of the merchandising available online.

Mexico City Sports. On this occasion, MCR reviewed its entire album The Black Parade.

The album will be available at the Record Fair the first week of July and its reference price is $15,000. Both materials will not be sold separately.

On the other hand, there is the DVD that rescues the very intimate concert that

If you were one of those who attended the show that MCR offered in Santiago de Chile, you probably remember that on that occasion, unfortunately Frank Iero, the band's guitarist, could not be present. Well, this is your chance to see it in all its dimensions.

We invite you to the launch of The Black Parade is Dead!

For the only time in history, Warner Music has organised a DVD Avant Premiere as a DVD release, so you can watch the concert on the big screen! So pay attention and come get your tickets. Tú Magazine and Warner Music invite you to the DVD Avant Premiere

The Black Parade is Dead!

To attend the Avant Première, redeem

Free! This coupon for an invitation

for two people in our office,

Located at: Rosario Norte 555, 18th Floor.

Neruda Building. Las Condes, Santiago.

The function will take place on Tuesday

July 8, 2008, 7:00 p.m.

at Cinemark Alto Las Condes (Kennedy Avenue 9001, Las Condes. Santiago, Chile).

Don't be left out: We have 40

double invitations.

We will be open between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

Promotion valid until Friday, July 7, 2008, or while supplies last

invitations.

On the day of the event, The Black Parade is Dead! will be sold prior to the performance."

tu mexico 06/2008

link to the black parade is dead full show with the mentioned maxwells hoboken nj 10/28/2007 show

[mochinek0]

Unexpected Angel (Finale)

Previous

On Monday, Carrie smiled and made her way to Marinette's desk, but she wasn't there. She looked around, but no one else seemed to be concerned. Carrie saw one of the girls that Marinette usually spoke to her and made her way over.

"Felicia, where's Marinette? I haven't seen her yet." Carrie whispered, "Was she fired or something?"

Felicia giggled, "Marinette? Didn't you know; she's the lead designer for the Wayne collection. She was moved to a secure room to start working."

'What? That litle high schooler was a designer? How did she get to work on the new collection?'

"Isn't she a little too young?" Carrie questioned.

Felicia looked at the secretary confused.

"No. I'm pretty sure Bruce and Tim had to pay a pretty penny to get her to come here from Gabriel and Paris." Felicia stated, "She's had her own clientele since she was thirteen; all big names, too. I heard Tim was such a fan of her work and that's why he wanted her to work here. I mean, he would have access to her and could ask her to make a set of his own clothes, too."

Carrie smiled and quickly walked away. She couldn't believe that her new go to had been taken away. She knew no one there would listen to her. She would have to do all her work on her own. She hated it.

Carrie smiled as she was called up to the top Wayne offices.

'This could be it! A promotion!'

Carrie smiled as she was brought in front of Bruce, Timothy and Damian Wayne.

"Carolyn Briggs, you are fired." Damian declared.

'What?'

"E-Excuse me?" she stuttered out, "Is there layoffs? Have I done something wrong?"

Tim smiled and asked her to look at the monitors. Curiously, Carrie turned to the screen on the wall. She watched in horror as she watched herself force Marinette do her work for the last month. They even had the audio of her calling their designer: useless, waste of space, irresponsible, and doubting how she was hired. The next thing she knew, she was slapping Marinette in the face.

"Security saw it happening on their monitors and brought it to our attention a few weeks ago." Bruce spoke up.

"We thought Marinete would come forward, on her own." Damian declared.

"When you assaulted her, we had to take action." Tim explained, "Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a huge asset to this company."

"This obviously isn't the first time you have pulled this sort of stunt." Bruce continued.

Again, Carolyn watched in horror as her 'relaxation period' came up. They had video eveidence of her sitting around and doing nothing. She sat at her desk filing and painting her nails. They showed her proof of her going back to her old department and flirting with her old supervisors. She shrunk in on herself as her screen came into view and they saw her purchasing things online, on company time. It was even more humiliating to watch her run to the printer and try to copy the papers that needed to be done. Finally, the Waynes showed her crying in an empty room. Carolyn had mascara running down her face, as she blamed Marinette for getting yelled at.

"It shouldn't take five years for someone to figure out how to work a printer." Tim stated, "Most people get the hang of it after one month. We have every right to take you to court and sue you. You would have to pay us back all the money you earned over the last five years."

'There's no way I can pay all of that back.'

"Or" Damian spoke up, "you can take being fired and leave without a word."

Carolyn stood up from her seat and walked out of the office. She grabbed a box from the fashion department, where her boss said nothing. Likely, the Waynes had told him already. Carrie cleaned out her desk, quietly. No one stopped her to ask her what was going on. They were too busy running around, pulling fabrics, or sewing.

Carrie took a step off the elevator. There was Marinette talking to one of the tailors. Before she could utter a word, she spotted Damian Wayne walking over to Marinette. The tailor quickly left, as Damian handed Marinette a coffee cup.

"Oh, thank you for the coffee. I really needed it." she smiled, " I didn't know you worked here. Thank you for the advise. I got all my work done and I didn't stress out. Even my boss said I was doing better. I don't have to force myself to eat anymore."

"And your sleep?" he asked.

"I've been sleeping later, but feeling more refreshed. I'm also getting so much done." Mari answered, "So, will I get to know you name this time?"

"Another time." he stated.

Marinette smiled, "Maybe another cup of coffe? It would be nice to have a friend in Gotham."

"Perhaps." the young Wayne replied.

Satisfied with his answer, Mari walked towards the elevators on the other side of the room. Damian turned towards Carolyn and glared at her. She quickly rushed out the doors of Wayne Enterprise.

'They were protecting her. If those rumors really were true, I would have been found out eventually.'

TAG LIST: @animeweebgirl @a-star-with-a-human-name @meme991001 @vixen-uchiha @abrx2002 @alysrose-starchild @fandom-trapped-03 @dood-space @moonlightstar64 @saltymiraculer @marveldcedits20 @09shell-sea09 @icerosecrystal @animegirlweeb @insane-fangirl-of-everything @blueblossombliss @nickristus-dreamer @megawhitleycalderonpaganus @missmadwoman @meira-3919 @wh0douthink @princessdaisysolosyourfaves @blep-23 @fangirlingfanatic @darkhinauniverse @ravenr22 @im-a-satanic-ritual @ravennm84 @rainbowbunny0159 @bianca-hooks123 @a-slytherinish-gryffindor

[jezabelle9299]

Intimidating S.R x FEM! reader

Overture-While you're cataloging a new collection in the archives, a young Spencer Reid wanders down in search of an art print stored in a different archive.

Inspired by the opening of season 2 episode 14 'The Big Game', when Gideon visits the Smithsonian to look at Havell's Audubon paintings. (We're going to pretend this isn't the episode Reid gets kidnapped in) Later piece is inspired by any of the many times prostitutes flirt with Reid throughout the early seasons. I looked at a few maps and online catalogs of the museums current collections to kinda figure out how long it would take to walk there, and what pieces are stored where, but it might not be 100% accurate so don't hold me to it.

Cws- Brief mentions of robbery and prostitution (separate occasions)

A/N- This has been bouncing around my brain like a DVD menu screen, I'm so excited about it. I'm a museum studies major so I'm making this girl live all of my dreams.

Your favorite part of the job by far, was cataloging the new pieces. Whether they were from other museums or private collections, unpacking those boxes let you indulge in a bit of nosiness everytime. This particular collection was from a recently closed exhibit, so you were doing the overnight shift. No one else was in this part of the museum, and your boss was doing a showing of some prints to a collections enthusiast so you had the place to yourself. 

You threw on some headphones and got to work, once you finished this you could go home. You’d just cataloged and packed the first half of the pieces, but as you were about to start on the rest, you saw something move out of the corner of your eye. Archives were a slightly creepy place to be at night anyway, the shelves looming over you, and the underground structure providing little light outside of your small workspace, but that was definitely unusual. When you finally turned around, there was a full-on stranger walking towards you. He was about your age, but he definitely didn’t work here, you would’ve remembered 

“Jesus! Walk louder! I didn’t hear you come down here.” 

“I called out twice to try and see if there was anyone down here.”

“Point taken.” You shrugged it off, you’d never seen him before. He definitely didn’t work here, he was cute and about your age. You’d remember him. You both stood there just kind of looking at each other, not fully sure what would happen next.

“Are you going to like— rob me now? Or maybe introduce yourself?”

“Oh! Sorry, my name's Spencer Reid, I was here with a colleague. He was looking at some ornithology prints upstairs, and he told me to come down to find—well you I assume, and get the last print in the set, and ask for directions to the coffee machine?”

“Sure! Just come over here and I’ll look it up for you.” You set down your clipboard to head back to your little desk, the only one with the lamp still on. 

“So, what exactly are you looking for?”

“It’s a Robert Havell, Frigate Pelican.” You typed in the name into your system to make sure, but you knew now why your boss didn’t come to get it himself. It wasn’t in this museum, it was in the archive under the Renwick gallery, almost a mile away. 

“Alright, I can be back with it in like an hour, it’s at the gallery on 17th street. This was a split collection and it’s still in that archive. There’s a coffee machine down the hall on your left, and I can meet you back in my boss’s office.”

“An hour? Are you walking this late at night?” 

“Yep. But I’ll go as quickly as possible.”

“I can’t in good conscience let you walk that far by yourself this late at night, would it be alright if I came with you?” 

“Alright! Only if you want to though, I promise you don’t have to.”

“I want to, if that’s ok.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.” You smiled at him, and while you were grabbing your keys and ID, he went from relieved you said it was ok, to completely red at the idea of being around you alone for the next hour. He was stuck in place as you passed him and got halfway down the hall, before he started running to catch up. 

“Where exactly are we going?”

“We need to go up the elevator, through the garden, and then it’s pretty much a straight shot down 15th and through Lafayette park.”

“I thought we could get through the archives?”

“We could, but it would take longer. I get distracted easily, and it’s a nice night out anyway.”

*****

About halfway through your walk, you’d already felt like you knew him. When you were passing through a particularly busy part of the street, someone called out to you. Well not you, they called out to Spencer. 

“Hey cutie, you’re back. I told you I’d remember you.” A woman in high heels, a fur coat, and shorts entirely too short for the chilly weather, called out for him. You didn’t place any judgment on her, but the look you gave Spencer. Shock, and trying your best to stifle laughter at his panic.

“Oh–um. Have a good night.” He rushed off, in his haste grabbing your elbow to pull you along with him. Once he’d gotten far enough away for his embarrassment to pare down, he let go of you, realizing with a whole new sense of self-consciousness that he touched you without even thinking about it. 

“That was not what it looked like. I swear– I was talking to her with my boss last week, we were doing interviews for a case; and she well– she called me cute, which is what that was about.”

“You don’t need to explain yourself to me. I would tend to agree with her anyway– you are pretty memorable.”

“I– thank you. You’re memorable too.”

You walked the rest of the way with Spencer almost trailing a half step behind you. You were so mesmerizing, he just couldn’t help it. 

By the time you finished the walk, arriving at the security booth to get back inside the archives, you already felt like you knew Spencer. 

“ID please.” The security guard spared a singular glance towards yours, and you realized you forgot to ask Spencer if he had his on him. 

“Oh I forgot they check IDs of any guests coming into the archives, you have your driver's license on you, right? Or any ID is probably fine. I didn’t even think about it.”

While you were rambling about it, Spencer pulled out his credentials, showed it to the guard as if it were nothing. Because he’s a federal agent -apparently- he didn’t need a visitor badge. 

“You’re in the FBI?”

“Yes?”

“How on Earth did that never come up on the twenty minute walk here.” You finally got moving again towards the art storage, now trailing alongside Spencer, more focused on him than looking where you were going. 

“It did.” 

“When?”

“Why did you think I was interviewing a prostitute?”

“I don’t know! I thought you were like– a lawyer or something. You’re so fancy! And nice! And you know– Young!” 

“I–you think I’m fancy?”

“You’re wearing a suit with a sweater vest at 9pm on a Saturday night.” 

“Fair enough. But no, I'm not a lawyer. I’m glad you think I’m nice though.” It was your turn for your face to heat, and for you to hide your head. 

“Of course I think you're nice.”

When you finally found what you were looking for, you started heading back. He told you about some of his interests, but mostly he wanted to know about you. All you wanted to hear about was him though, he was so interesting. 

“What do you do for the FBI?” 

“Behavioral Analysis”

“Oh my god. Oh if I’d known that I would’ve changed everything I’ve done so far. That’s– I mean that’s so intimidating” And now he was laughing at you. 

“I don’t think anyone has ever described me as intimidating. Off-putting and annoying sure, but intimidating is new.” 

“You’re very intimidating. I’ve never met a guy who knew that much about historical art without even being in the field before, and now I know you could read my behavior? I must’ve come off like a total idiot like–15 times by now.”

“I don’t think so, quite the opposite actually.”

“Well thank you, but I was making a conscious effort not to make it clear I have a huge crush on you, and then you tell me you could tell anyway?” 

“You have a crush on me?”

“Well–yeah. I thought you could tell.”

“Not really.”

“Oh.” It felt like an eternity before he responded.

“I have a crush on you too, for the record.” 

“Yeah?”

“Most definitely.”

An older man came out of the building before you could walk back in.

“Reid! Where’d you go? JJ called, we need to leave for the office.” 

“Oh–um, I’ll call you? What’s your number?” You checked your lanyard and your pockets as best as you could while holding the flat-packed print. 

“I don’t have a pen or anything on me.”

“You can just tell me, I’ll remember it.”  After you said your goodbyes he disappeared again, and you went to put away the rest of the collection. Spencer called you the next morning to set up your first date, and though he never stopped amazing you, you wouldn’t describe him as intimidating anymore.

[loveroftoomanyfandoms]

Every Little Thing She Does is Magic, Chapter 5

Pairing: Platonic Steven Grant x Reader (for now)

Rating: T

Word count: ~2000

Story Summary: Steven meets a beautiful woman in the Egyptian exhibit at the British Museum...

...Too bad she's his new boss.

Tags/Warnings: Canon Divergent since Steven still works for the British Museum post-canon, No Jake Lockley, developing friendship

A/N: ICYMI, I've been going through some personal stuff, but Steven has been a welcome distraction so I was able to get this next chapter written fairly quickly!

If you want to be tagged in this or any of my other writing, let me know!

Steven opened his desk drawer for the fifth time since he had arrived at work that morning and checked to make sure the gift he had bought Dr. Y/LN hadn't accidentally gotten damaged.

He took a deep breath. He had sent her a text message before he had left for work asking if he could briefly meet with her that morning and was awaiting her response.

He hurriedly unlocked his phone as it alerted him of a new message. I'm in my office now. Come on up whenever you're ready.

Steven grabbed the gift bag and headed to the elevator, his heart thrumming nervously.

Calm down, Marc said. It's just a gift. It's not like you're proposing to her.

Steven shook his head. What if she doesn't like it?

She will. I'm sure of it.

Steven got off of the elevator and made his way to Dr. Y/L/N’s office, noting that Helen hadn't yet made it in.

He checked his watch. Well, it's no wonder Helen isn't here yet. It's not even 8 am.

He paused in the open doorway. Dr. Y/L/N was standing by the window and looking outside, the early morning light giving her an ethereal glow. She's so beautiful.

He gently knocked on the door so as to not startle her. “Er, excuse me, ma'am.”

Dr. Y/L/N turned towards him. “Hi, come on in. You can close the door behind you.”

Steven nodded as he stepped inside and closed the door.

Dr. Y/L/N walked over to her desk and sat down. “How can I help you, Steven?”

“I'm sorry to bother you this morning, but I, er, I just wanted to say that you're a wonderful director and that I really enjoy working with you.” Steven set the gift bag down on her desk. “And I also wanted to give you this.”

Dr. Y/L/N’s brow wrinkled, an adorably confused look on her face. “You got me a gift?”

Steven nodded, fidgeting nervously as Dr. Y/L/N reached for the gift bag. “It's not much, but I just thought, well…” 

He paused as Dr. Y/L/N pulled the ‘World Pyramid Tea Collection' he had gotten for her out of the bag. “You had said that you wanted to try different varieties of tea, so when I saw this I thought you might like it.”

What he didn't say was that he had been planning on buying a varietal tea set to give to her since the day he had walked her home two weeks prior and that while doing a rather extensive search online for the perfect one had stumbled upon that particular set.

A smile spread across Dr. Y/L/N’s face. “This is so sweet of you. Thank you.”

Steven nodded slightly. “You're very welcome, ma'am.”

Dr. Y/L/N opened the box, her smile becoming even brighter. “Ohmygod, they're actually shaped like little pyramids. That is so cool!”

She looked up at Steven. “Is it okay if I give you a hug?”

Oh dear gods, yes. Steven nodded. “Yes, that would be quite alright.”

He sucked in a breath as Dr. Y/L/N walked around her desk and wrapped her arms around him in an embrace. 

“This is one of the kindest, sweetest, most thoughtful gifts anyone has ever given me,” Dr. Y/L/N murmured into his ear. “Truly, thank you so much.”

Hug her back, dumbass, Marc chided.

Oh, right. Steven quickly returned her embrace, tucking his face into Dr. Y/L/N’s neck as she hugged him tighter. “I'm very happy that you like it.”

Dr. Y/L/N nodded against him. “I love it.”

They stood there with their arms around each other for what couldn't have been more than a few moments, but felt to Steven like it lasted a lifetime.

Finally, Dr. Y/L/N gave him one last squeeze and stepped back. 

She gestured towards her box of tea. “Would you like to join me for a cup of tea? I'm excited to try out all of the different varieties.”

Steven nodded. “I would love to. Do you know which one you want to try first?”

“Probably the Earl Grey.” Dr. Y/L/N gave Steven a bashful smile. “It smelled so good when you had it the day you walked me home.”

“It is quite nice.” Steven gestured towards the door. “Shall we, then?”

Dr. Y/L/N took the Earl Grey pyramid out of the box. “Did you not want to try one of these?” 

“Oh, no, I keep a tin of tea in the staff kitchen,” Steven replied. “I don't want to take one of those in case it's a flavor you might like.”

“Oh, okay then.” Dr. Y/L/N picked up her coffee mug. “After you.”

They headed downstairs to the staff kitchen, which was blessedly empty.

Steven filled the museum's electric kettle with enough water for both of their cups of tea then turned it on before grabbing his own mug and tin of tea bags. 

He watched as Dr. Y/L/N carefully opened the box containing her tea bag.

She glanced over at him. “I'd like to preserve the pyramids, if I can.”

Steven grinned. “Spoken like a true archeologist.”

Dr. Y/L/N shrugged, a small smile on her face. “Or just a sentimental sap.”

Steven shook his head, touched by the thought of Dr. Y/L/N wanting to keep the box intact because it had been a gift. “Nothing wrong with that.”

Dr. Y/L/N took her tea bag out of its box and smelled it before dropping the bag into her coffee mug. “Mmm, that smells so nice.”

Steven nodded as he opened his tin of tea bags and set one into his own cup. “Oh, yeah, I agree. I love the smell of bergamot.”

He paused as the kettle clicked off. “Oh, there we are.” 

“How long do we let it steep for?” Dr. Y/L/N asked.

“Anywhere from 3-5 minutes,” Steven answered as he picked the kettle up off of its base. “Of course the longer you let it steep the stronger the flavor. May I?”

Dr. Y/L/N nodded and slid her mug towards him. “Thank you.”

Steven poured some hot water into her mug. “You're welcome.”

He poured some water into his own mug then emptied the kettle before setting it back on its base to dry. “Anything exciting on your agenda for today?”

Dr. Y/L/N shook her head. “Just the usual business stuff -- writing reports, meeting with I.T. about the PA system upgrade, and trying to update the gift shop offerings. Certain things are just not selling.”

She paused. “Actually… I know that's not your department anymore, but while you were in the gift shop, was there anything you wished we would've carried or something you felt was unnecessary?”

Steven nodded. “Actually, yeah. First of all, I don't know why we have so many themed sweets -- it's not like those even existed back in the time they're supposed to be representing. Also, maybe we could add some buildables to the shop?”

Dr. Y/L/N’s brow furrowed. “Buildables? You mean like Legos or something?”

“Sort of, but I was thinking more like wood kits and 3-D puzzles.” Steven pulled his phone out of his pocket and pulled up an example of what he was talking about. “The manufacturer has different kinds -- the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Parthenon, all the wonders of the world.”

Dr. Y/L/N nodded. “Okay, yeah, I like that. Anything else?”

“Possibly a larger variety of plushies. All we have is Taweret right now.” Just anyone but Ammit, he added silently.

Dr. Y/L/N nodded. “Okay, I'll see what I can find. Thanks for your input.”

“Of course. Happy to assist.”

Dr. Y/L/N bit her lip. “You know, I have to be honest with you, when I received your text this morning saying you wished to meet with me I thought you were coming to tender your resignation.”

“Oh, no.” Steven shook his head. “No, no, absolutely not. When I told you that I plan on staying right where I am, I meant it.”

As long as you're here, anyway, he added silently.

“I’m very glad to hear that.” Dr. Y/L/N’s lips quirked back up into a smile. “After all, who else would save me from chatty board members during the museum galas?”

Steven shrugged, a small smile forming on his own face. “I'm sure there would be plenty of others willing to come to your rescue.”

Dr. Y/L/N shook her head. “No one quite like you, though.”

There was something in her expression that Steven couldn't quite place, but before he could even try, Dr. Y/L/N had cleared her throat and glanced down at her tea. 

“You're definitely one of a kind,” she added as she dipped her tea bag into her cup a couple of times. “I mean, I doubt anyone else would also be willing to sneak away from a fancy party with me to go translate ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs on a sarcophagus.”

Steven chuckled. “For the record, I would happily sneak away from a fancy party with you anytime.”

Dr. Y/L/N looked back up at him, a grin spreading across her face. “In that case, maybe during the next gala we can go hide out in Ancient Greece and drink tea.”

Steven nodded with a grin of his own. “That definitely sounds like a good time.”

“Great.” Dr. Y/L/N looked down at her cup of tea again. “So, do you think this has steeped long enough?”

Steven picked up a couple of teaspoons off of a drying mat next to the sink then slid the sugar canister in between himself and Dr. Y/L/N. “Oh, er, yeah, probably.” 

He handed her one of the spoons. “It depends on how sweet you like your tea as to whether or not you want to add sugar and just how much, but I find about a teaspoon does the trick for flavored teas. Gives it a bit of sweetness without overpowering the flavor.”

Dr. Y/L/N nodded. “I'll defer to your expertise, then. After you.”

Steven took his tea bag out of his cup and discarded it before spooning some sugar into his tea and watching as Dr. Y/L/N did the same.

He waited as she finished stirring her sugar in and rinsed off her spoon. “Moment of truth, eh?”

Dr. Y/L/N huffed out a laugh and raised her mug in a toast. “Bottoms up.”

She took a cautious sip, her eyebrows raising at the taste. “Oh, wow. Wow, this is really good.”

Steven smiled in relief as he rinsed his own spoon and set it next to hers. “Yeah?”

“Mmhmm.” Dr. Y/L/N took another sip. “I see what you mean about adding just a small amount of sugar -- I don't think I'd like it if it wasn't sweetened at all, but this is a nice balance between sweet and citrusy.”

Steven took a sip of his own perfectly-sweetened cup of tea. “It definitely took some trial and error to get the ratio just right.”

Dr. Y/L/N checked her watch. “I should get back upstairs so I can get ready for my meeting with I.T., but thank you again for my gift. It really does mean a lot to me.”

Steven nodded. “You're very welcome. And let me know how you like the other varieties.”

Dr. Y/L/N smiled with a slight nod of her own, then picked up the box for her tea bag. “I will. Have a good day, Steven.”

“You too, Dr. Y/L/N.”

Steven waited until Dr. Y/L/N had left the staff kitchen before putting his tea bags and the sugar away.

I told you she'd like it, Marc said in his head. You did good.

Steven picked up his cup and headed back downstairs to his desk, smiling to himself at the memory of Dr. Y/L/N’s arms around him as they had embraced. Yeah, I did, didn't I?

[sophie-looks-at-stuff]

Some Modern Aemond Headcanons:

Hey y'all! So the votes were pretty close, but by a slim majority it looks like one post per character was the winner! 🥳 I also just have too many ideas for certain characters! So I'm going to start with my favorite, the man, the myth the legend, Aemond himself. My internet is going to be a little spotty for the next few days, since I'm going to be moving, but stay with me! I'll get them all on here at some point :)

He has a big black/gray great dane named Vhagar. I saw someone else say he’d have a great dane, and I totally agree!

He experimented with different colors for his false eye, blue, green, maybe even the signature Targaryen lavender. But ultimately he settles with the sapphire blue stone. It’s different, and makes him feel badass, but also a little pretty :)

Mans is the embodiment of dark academia, from style to work ethic. He’d be a double major in philosophy, and history. Maybe a minor in business, just in case Aegon somehow convinces Alicent and Viserys to give him the family business instead him. He’d still be the CFO or something, but CEO does have a better ring to it…

He'd get his own apartment as soon as possible. He doesn't like having roommates all up in his business. He refused to stay in a dorm room with a total stranger, so he and Aegon teamed up for once to convince Alicent to let them do an apartment together instead. But after a year or so, Aemond needed his own space… Aegon isn’t exactly neat and tidy sometimes. 

Speaking of his apartment, I think Aemond would be pretty minimalist. He doesn't super love clutter. But his office might be the one exception. Since he's a double major with a minor, he's got a lot of textbooks, and novels lying around. Unlike Helaena, he's not a collector, or a huge fan of nic nacs. But he does have his posh tea, and I think he'd have a small collection of about 3 or 4 daggers.

It would be interesting to see him with an s/o that is a collector, he'd probably end up designating a part of his house to them for all their little things. He could handle a small corner or bookshelf, but it grows on him overtime. And he gets secretly a little excited every time they bring something new home. "Hey look what I got at the antique store today!" "Add it to the shelf love :)"

Definitely a smoker. He knows it’s a bad habit, but he’s not super driven to quit either. It’s a stress reliever, and it gives him something to do while thinking. Helps him process stuff. (also it’s just kind of hot to think of Aemond with a leather coat and a cigarette, plus that motorcycle I mentioned earlier…) 

Black is his favorite color/shade, at least for clothing and interior decorating. But ever since he was a kid he's had a thing for blue, a deep ocean, sapphire blue. That's probably why he settles on the blue sapphire for his eye.

Modern boyfriend Aemond would be a secret romantic I think. He didn't really have many girlfriends if any in high school. He'd have had his first kiss and all that, but they weren't really on his radar. Part of me thinks Aemond would be with someone a slightly more extroverted than himself. They would get him out of the house a little more, even if it's just to take Vhagar for a longer evening walk than usual.

I think one of his love languages would be gift giving. He can be a little closed off sometimes, so when words seem to fail him, he'd find a way through gifts. They'd range from a bouquet of your favorite flowers, to a private dinner at the nicest restaurant in town. You saw a dress, or top you liked online? It would be nicely wrapped in a box on your bed within the next couple days.

He needs someone with patience. He's insecure about his eye sometimes, (not all the time, cause I feel like he has some days where he's totally feeling it). He might take a while to let down some walls, but when he does, you can read him like a book. You see him squint a little at something his brother said? You know he's annoyed and wants to change the subject.

Looovvessss dark chocolate. More particularly though, he loves chocolate covered espresso beans. It's his snack when studying.

He runs cold, he has an extra layer with him at all times. Sometimes it's a sweater under his leather jacket, or a scarf Alicent made him tucked into his bag.

[haee-elia]

spence-tober: day 18 - archaeologist

pairing: archaeologist!spencer reid x fem!actress!reader

summary: in which you open up during an interview to promote your movie about your boyfriend, whom you met on set.

word count: 1950

warnings: fluff, not much if any dialogue between you and spencer, mostly story telling through descriptive narratives

spence-tober masterlist

From where you’re sitting on the famous Graham Norton’s couch, you can’t really see the stage audience, not with all the bright studio lights surrounding you on the set. But you don’t mind, it wasn’t like it was your first rodeo being on a talk show.

After all, you were a highly decorated actress having made your start when you were just a teen in indie films and then graduating to a TV show that ran for several seasons and then starring in blockbuster after blockbuster. 

You’ve loved acting ever since your first theater class in high school and decided to try your shot right after you graduated. Since then, you’ve starred and dabbled in a lot of shows, movies, and other. It was only a few years ago when you had decided to accept a lot less roles than you usually would and be more picky, wanting to get an online degree and enjoy your young adult life. 

Since your small break from acting, you’ve completed an online degree, learned some new hobbies, and did some small renovations on your house. You were already well off from box office backpoints, residuals, and contractual salaries and under your belt already you had a Tony, an Oscar, and two Emmy’s. You cooled down your ambition and worked on yourself.

Until that is, you got an interesting email in your inbox one day coming from one of the first directors that gave you a chance in the industry. In the indie film you had worked on together, both the director and you had risen to a small level of stardom and had been able to take on a lot more work after the film had released. You had bumped into each other a few times in the rest of your careers, but this time, they was reaching out for a role they thought you were perfect for and might be interested in.

It was a role to play an archaeologist in a historical film loosely based on a true story. You accepted the role and officially ended your small break in your acting career. Although you had taken on a few more roles here and there since finishing the shooting for the film, this was your first time back on a talk show to promote something you worked on.

“How is everyone feeling tonight?” Graham said, greeting all of you on the couch.

It was the director, yourself, and a few of your castmates. In your small break from acting, you found yourself valuing comfort over fashion more and more and so you sit dressed in a comfortable lose fit dress. It’s still designer and very expensive, but you’ve paired it with a sensible pair of black wedge heels and simple jewelry from your own personal collection.

The rest of the couch gives their answers first before Graham looks to you, “I’m really good, thanks.” You say. 

To you, it seems like a generic answer and in fact, if it was anyone other than you, Graham would move on, but he gets a sly playful smile on his face and you just know what he’s going to do.

“Really good?” Graham repeats, “That wouldn’t have to do with who’s here tonight with you, would it?”

You blush under the teasing gazes of your castmates and Graham.

“I’m not sure I know what you mean.” You say unconvincingly.

He grins and then gestures his hand to behind him, pointing at a random wall of the set, “Are you sure? Because I could have sworn there was someone waiting for you back in the green room.” 

You smile and shake your head, you just knew Graham was going to pull something like this. How could he not? It was the leading story of gossip sites, twitter, and tumblr for days on end when the news broke.

“Oh, do you mean my boyfriend?” A cheshire-like grin grows on your face and your face burns even more when the studio audience cheers at your last word.

Graham nods, loving the applause and cheers, “Didn’t you meet him on set?”

Before you can answer, your director/friend decides to pipe in, “I hired him to work on set and then I come to find out he’s actually slacking off with her!” He jokes, pointing your way.

You scoff with a smile on your face, “Oh please, you played matchmaker all the time!” Your castmates nod in agreement.

What Graham has decided to bring up is your newly public relationship which bloomed when you were filming on set for the movie. Because of the large historical and archaeological background of many of the characters and how it caters to the main plot of the movie, several consultants were hired to bring some validity and realism.

One of those was Dr. Spencer Reid, a professor on a short sabbatical from teaching archaeology. His job was to consult on the actions of the characters and help teach some of the actors and actresses who’s characters have a background in archaeology some tips and how to be more natural in the motions. 

Your character has a large archaeological background and had the most scenes where you were seemingly handling fossils or excavating them. 

That’s how you met Spencer and after spending months together, working together, seeing each other every single day on location, crushes on both sides formed.

“Guilty!” Your director exclaimed, holding his hands up as if he was caught.

The room laughs again. “But you admit you were distracting him from his job?” Graham prods, playfully.

You shrug, a smirk on your face, “You could say he was distracting me from mine.” You counter.

“Okay, okay.” Graham says, jokingly backing down.

He moves onto your other classmates with fun anecdotes about them for most of the rest of the interview. But then, as the interview goes to close out and nothing too eventful has happened, you knew he was saving that Graham Norton mischief just for you.

“Circling back,” Graham says, making direct eye contact with you.

You groan in fake annoyance, a knowing smile on your lips. 

“Oh come on,” Graham replies with a chuckle, “You didn’t think I was going to let you off that easily, did you?”

Shaking your head, you wait for Graham to go on. 

“Well, I thought that we shouldn’t waste this opportunity, so I asked your dear boyfriend to join us during the break.”

He turns to the camera, “Ladies and gentlemen, let’s make some room on the couch for Spencer Reid!”

You can’t help but correct him, “Dr. Spencer Reid.”

“Dr. Spencer Reid!” He remedies.

With this cue, your cute professor boyfriend walks out on the stage. He’s squinting because of the bright lights and even brings up a hand to block some of the blinding studio spotlights. 

He isn’t wearing anything too fancy, though he would argue that he was wearing his good slacks and a new button up. To be honest, any clothes that didn’t have any dirt or various sediment on it was good enough for you. 

Spencer’s eyes, framed by his glasses, quickly find you on the couch and you’ve already scooted down to make some room for him. His hands hang awkwardly by his side and you know he’s fighting the urge to wipe his sweaty, anxious palms on his pants.

When he reaches you on the couch, you guide him down with your hands taking his. You also give his hands a small squeeze of assurance and comfort.

Frankly, you’re not sure why he’s agreed to such a situation in the first place. 

Spencer didn’t naturally get nervous by famous people like you thought he did when you first met him. In that particular situation, Spencer was really just nervous because his massive crush on you was growing each and every day. If only he knew it was the same for you.

Spencer, however, did get nervous in situations with lots of people or when the attention would primarily be on him. This made being a professor as a first career quite confusing for you to wrap your head around, but Spencer relaxed a lot when he was talking about something he’s passionate about.

“So, Dr. Reid-” 

Spencer interrupts Graham, “Please, just call me Spencer.”

Graham smiles at him, “Alright,” He continues on, “So, Spencer, have the two of you realized how viral you’ve gone?” He asks first.

You and Spencer exchange a look.

How could you have not realized? When you had accidentally leaked your relationship on an actress-friend’s podcast, you first panicked. But was assured by your friend that it could be edited out if wanted. After a long discussion between you and Spencer, you decided it was time to soft-launch your relationship and was prepared for the news to break.

What you didn’t expect was how the world freaked out. You knew a few sites would report on the announcement, after all, you were a well known actress who’s fans were often loyal and you hadn’t been in a serious or noteworthy relationship in a while.

A few days after you went public, edits were being made of your boyfriend’s interviews, people not even in the major were signing up for his upcoming classes, and the world fell in love with him as did you. You two were proclaimed the new ‘it’ couple and the flame was fanned with pictures you two shared to your social medias. 

You had once asked Spencer if it was bothering him that he was getting so much attention, but he answered with a peck on your temple, then nose, then lips and a sweet phrase on how the only attention that mattered to him was yours.

He remedied with a followup to say he also hopes his students pay attention to him. At which you laughed and kissed him back.

“No, at least, not at first,” Spencer answers honestly, “It has calmed down from that initial wave and we’ve learned to deal with it for the most part.”

You look at him by his profile and smile, proud of him. He has done interviews, but none with the main focus being your relationship.

“And how would you say did your relationship progress off set and when filming wrapped?” 

“Well, it was a lot less sand.” Spencer jokes, making the crowd laugh. “That and we grew to know each other beyond our jobs. There’s more to both of us than our occupations and that was an important step in dating for us.”

“No sand certainly is a bonus.” Graham confirms, gaining a laugh as well. 

“Now, Spencer, you’re a professor in archaeology?” 

With the short remainder of the interview, Spencer’s anxiousness and tense body language melts as he gets to talk about what he knows best. The audience, and Graham, love him and eat up his responses. You already know your castmates love him as well judging by the way when they extend an invite out to you, they ask you to bring Spencer if he’s available. 

Although you’re rather proud of your boyfriend being so comfortable in the spotlight, you do ask out of curiosity how he was able to overcome his anxiousness later that night after you had gone back to your shared hotel room to unwind for the night.

With you leaning against his frame, both propped up in a sitting position in the bed, he would simply smile down on you and ask if you didn’t remember.

He’s able to relax when he talks about something he’s passionate about.

When you ask him what he means, Spencer simply presses a quick kiss to the top of your head and answer.

“You, of course.”

a/n: i didn't mean for this one to be so long but i got carried away... i can definitely see myself writing more about this pairing because i think so much can be expanded upon it. i also really like the style i did this one as writing domestic fluff or meet cutes over and over can be a little draining, especially doing it everyday

[collapsedsquid]

A few months ago, I bought a $60 toaster on Amazon that just would not heat up enough to toast bread. I wanted my money back. But repackaging the toaster and dropping it off at a post office seemed like too much of a hassle. So I did something slightly nefarious: I logged on to Amazon, opened the customer-service chat window, and told the outsourced worker on the other end that my toaster had never arrived. The agent apologized, asked zero follow-up questions, and immediately refunded me $60. I had committed a common, low-grade version of a type of fraud that has proliferated in recent years as massive online retailers flood the world with packages and offer customers frictionless returns. Often referred to simply as refunding, it involves finding ways to get money back for products people have not actually returned. A lot of refunding is perpetrated by sophisticated cybercriminals who trick retailers and shipping companies at scale, obtaining high-value products in bulk and reselling them online to customers who want watches, computers, or other expensive items for cheap. According to a December 2023 report from the National Retail Federation, retailers lost $101 billion from return fraud last year. Refunding first emerged alongside the early-2010s explosion in online retail and typically involved simple methods like buying items and claiming they never arrived (like my toaster). But as companies caught on, tactics evolved. In 2019, a fraudster who went by Bob published Bob’s Refunding eBook, which collected a number of methods that had been circulating on hacker forums and other underworld sites. (Nowadays, such tips circulate mostly on Telegram, the anonymous chat app on which much contemporary fraud is coordinated. The community is crass, like 4chan refitted for the zoomer mind: Refunding chat rooms with thousands of members host a flood of racist memes, slurs, cat GIFs, and extreme porn mixed in with advice on fraud methods.) Bob is credited in fraud circles with popularizing FTID — Fake Tracking ID, wherein the scammer returns an empty box to a retailer but edits the shipping label provided by the company to an address that is slightly different from the warehouse where returns are meant to go. The package gets scanned by, say, UPS when it’s picked up, allowing the customer to claim a refund, but it will never arrive at its destination.

New SBF just dropped

[atalossofwords]

YOU TASTE THE SILVER - IvanTill WIP (Part 5&6)

And we have two more POVs on this one! I was posting just one at a time to give myself a buffer to posting on AO3, but I wrote more than I expected haha.

That's right! The first chapter is now up on ao3 on this link. Please come by and leave some kudos!!

part one - part two - part three - part four

Things move on smoothly for Till. He's used to his new apartment, his set-up is pinterest-worthy if Hyuna has anything to say about it, and he's even opened his PO box again, warning his fans to only send letters and small packages, since he really enjoyed reading what everyone had to say.

(He's actually working on a collage of sorts, decking out one wall of his office with the letters. He always feels warm, looking at them. Kirby sent a really cute letter full of mongmong stickers, Bonbon's kid drew a really cute crayon rendition of his dad peering at his phone while vacuuming, and Jaewoon sent about 5 different drawings he treasures greatly.)

Leaving his PO box open, however, also means Navi has been sending a never-ending stream of little gifts. Almost none of them come with letters, or if they do, they're brief and printed from a computer. Apparently, since Till only comments on the contents of the gifts if he happens to wear them on-stream and said viewer comments on it, Navi decided that's the perfect excuse to spoil Till without making him lose his composure on-stream.

So far, Till has gotten; a new sweater, a varied collection of rings, a bundle of cellphone charms after he commented the string he looped through the case to hold his phone in case it falls frayed away.

Apparently, Navi also managed to walk around the "small package" limitation by sending gift cards for several stores. Till had no idea furniture stores even did gift cards.

He felt… sort of warm. If it was just an old man looking to spend his money or lure Till in, they'd probably insist on more diamonds or expensive stuff, right? Or insist Till comment on the gifts live, if it was some sort of sasaeng looking for attention.

Navi never did any of those things. After the diamonds, the gifts were never something Till would consider super expansive, unless you counted the frequency of them. The rings were silver, but none had jewels, the phone charms looked like something Till himself could get online, except the tags on them showed they were bought in Taiwan. The gift cards were weirder, but nothing more expensive than what Navi would donate over the course of one or two streams.

That is, until this latest gift.

Till stares at it, feeling the bottom of his stomach give out. He's in his kitchen, back from a supermarket run after he picked his latest batch of letters. He was going to read them while he ate lunch, but he feels 0 interest in his food right now.

He's holding two tickets for Mizi's concert, in the VIP section. One of those that comes attached to a meet-and-greet.

Clipped to them in an inconspicuous pink paperclip is a note.

I don't know if you got tickets for yourself, but I won these and will be out of the country at the time. I hope you can enjoy them with someone else. If the staff needs any information about the VIP status, here's my number. (xx) xxx-xxx. - Navi.

It is a handwritten note, written with a black pen in a hurry, so much so Till has to squint to make some of it out. The handwriting looks like someone who's not used to writing, with lots of places where the pen left marks as it hovered over the page without gliding, except the signature, which looks practed and neat.

Till has no idea what to do about this.

He calls Hyuna.

"Hi, I'm live." She answers, and he swears. He forgot to account for her streaming hours. He must sound agitated enough it worries her, because there's the sound of a few buttons being pressed, probably muting herself. "Till?"

He takes a deep breath.

"Sorry, I can call later." He says, putting the tickets down carefully and taking his lunch to the sink. He won't finish it.

"It's fine, what happened?"

"Navi sent in another gift." He can practically feel her rolling her eyes equal parts exasperated and relieved.

"Till, if you called me to fawn over your potential sugar daddy–"

"It's two tickets to Mizi's concert, VIP, with a meet-and-greet. And a number to contact if there's problems getting in." He says quickly, interrupting her. He runs one hand through his hair, starting to get stressed. Is this a trick? Is Navi going to be waiting on the seat besides these, corner Till in the show? No, they wouldn't send two tickets if this was the case.

"Holy shit." Hyuna says, entirely surprised. He makes a little agreeable noise. "Holy shit, Till, these aren't just expensive, they're like, hard to get. Did you message them yet?"

Till shakes his head, then realizes she can't see it. "No, I didn't call or message. Should I?" On the other side of the line Hyuna makes a tsk sound.

"No, don't call or message it. Let me finish the stream normally, and then we can look into it, okay? You said two tickets right? If you decide to go, take me or Isaac, and it should be alright." Till hums his agreement, and lets Hyuna go to finish her stream. It's a good plan, Hyuna can and has punched guys who harassed her, and Isaac is built like a brick house, no way a weirdo is getting close to him with Isaac there.

Dewey is probably a bad idea, he's more likely to punch first and ask questions never.

Till sighs, puts the tickets back on the envelope and goes take a bath, hoping it'll help him relax and maybe bring back his appetite.

Ivan is taking a water break from rehearsals when his phone chimes with a notification from an unknown number.

He immediately feels dread, did his number get leaked? He sits up, putting his water bottle down and opening the message.

Unknown [ 3:24PM ] Is this Navi?

Ivan blinks at the message, not understanding it for a long second. And then he is hit with the memories of staying up at night some days ago, reviewing the footage from the day's shoot and going over the script time and time again, because his performance was horrible and the whole scene had to be scrapped and he was so frustrated, and…

And Sua sent a message asking if he'd meet her for Mandated Lunch Time before Mizi's concert next month, and he remembered he couldn't make it since he'd be shooting that day, and he thought.

Till likes Mizi. Ivan has Mizi tickets.

He doesn't even remember what he wrote on the damn letter, oh god, did he sign with his name? Plaster his address on it??

This is fine. Ivan is fine. He asks one of the fight coordinators for five minutes and heads into the bathroom.

You [ 3:25PM ] Yes, who is it?

Better to see what they know before saying anything incriminating.

Unknow [ 3:25PM ] This is Till. Did you really send me Mizi tickets? How did you even get them?

Okay. Deep breaths, Ivan. You can do it. Say this is Navi, you really sent the tickets and that it's no big deal, and you got them… How did you get them? You can't say your real name, and saying you bought them for Till would sound weird, these really are expansive.

Ivan takes a deep breath, and sits on the toilet's lid, crossing his legs to rest his elbows on his knees.

You [ 3:26PM ] Hyung, you always said you liked them, and I happened across these as a job perk. I'll be out of the country, so it was no problem to give them to you.

Unknow [ 3:26PM ] A job perk? Even if that's true, they can't have been cheap. I've already told you, there's no need to keep wasting money on me.

You [ 3:27PM ] It's not wasting money, hyung. I really enjoy your lives, and it makes me happy knowing you're enjoying yourself. I work in the industry, so I know some people who are much less talented than you with a lot more opportunities. I just wanted to give you something to enjoy.

Ivan's fingers are flying over the keyboard before he's even conscious of it, indignation flaring up in his chest. Till works so much, he produces and sings and plays the guitar and drums, he writes his own lyrics, he's so incredibly talented and it makes Ivan furious to know he doesn't see it.

Ivan's been in the spotlight since he was a child acting on toy commercials, met even more people when he and Sua acted together as the twins of a famous singer on a period drama, and there's so many of these so-called "idols" that have a pretty voice and body and nothing else to give. So many actors bank on their looks and have 0 dedication to the craft. It makes Ivan livid.

You [ 3:27PM ] Hyung is so hard-working, and I really wish you'd see it. Your music deserves to be sold on albums and people should praise you so much more for how good your lyrics are. The people I work with don't put half the effort Hyung does, and they get to go to shows and afterparties all the time. I just want to let Hyung see his Idol and have a good time, since I won't use the tickets anyway. Is that bad?

Ivan is… breathing hard. He's somehow lost his cool. He watches as the three dots appear and disappear, and decides to get up. He exits the stall, splashes some water on his face, combs his hair back. Does a breathing exercise his mother taught him and Sua when his father and Sua's mom were fighting, and looks back at his phone.

Unknow [ 3:28PM ] Thank you. I'll enjoy the show.

Unknow [ 3:29PM ] Can I still message this number after it?

Ivan lets out an entirely undignified squeal, and almost does a little victory dance, all previous frustration wipes clean. Till wants to keep talking! Till isn't rejecting him!! Ivan has Till's phone number!!

You [ 3:29PM ] Yes! Hyung can message me whenever <3 I'll do my best to answer!

Unknow [ 3:30PM ] Great. I'll let you know how the show goes, then.

Ivan may be getting ready for a heart attack at the tender age of 22, but he's never regretted anything, in his life, ever.

part seven

[theomeganerd]

Nintendo Celebrates MAR10 DAY 2024

March 10th, often referred to as "MAR10 Day" by fans, saw a flurry of exciting announcements from Nintendo in celebration of everyone's favorite plumber, Mario. Here's a breakdown of the key reveals:

1. A New Animated Mario Movie: Following the success of the 2022 live-action film, Nintendo confirmed the development of a new animated Mario movie. Details remain scarce, but the announcement video hinted at a return of the voice cast from the previous film, including Chris Pratt as Mario and Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach.

This news comes as a welcome surprise for fans who, despite the live-action film's box office success, expressed mixed reactions to the voice acting and certain creative choices.

2. Release Dates for Upcoming Games: Nintendo also unveiled release dates for two highly anticipated Mario titles:

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door: This beloved GameCube RPG classic will be making its long-awaited return to consoles on May 23rd, 2024. Fans can expect the charming story, turn-based combat, and quirky humor that made the original a cult favorite.

Luigi's Mansion 2 HD: Gear up for some spooky fun with a remastered version of Luigi's Mansion 2. This enhanced edition, hitting store shelves on June 27th, 2024, promises sharper visuals and potentially improved gameplay mechanics.

3. Classic Games Return to Switch Online: Expanding the library of retro titles available through the Nintendo Switch Online service, three classic Mario games were announced for future release:

Super Mario Bros. 2: The Lost Levels (NES): This challenging sequel to the original Super Mario Bros. tests players' skills with its relentless difficulty.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (Game Boy): Join Mario on his quest to collect the six golden coins in this side-scrolling adventure.

Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 (Game Boy): Take control of Mario's greedy rival, Wario, as he searches for hidden treasures in this unique platformer.

Specific release dates for these titles haven't been announced, but their addition provides Switch Online subscribers with a delightful dose of nostalgia.

4. A Glimpse into the Future: While details were scarce, Nintendo also teased a collaboration with The LEGO Group. While the exact nature of this project remains under wraps, speculation suggests a potential LEGO Mario set or even a full-fledged video game.

5. A Message from the Mastermind: Adding a personal touch, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamato delivered a heartfelt message to fans, expressing his gratitude for their continued support and hinting at exciting things to come for the Mario franchise.

Beyond the Headlines: While these announcements were the major highlights, Nintendo also offered discounts on various Mario titles and merchandise throughout the weekend, further fueling the celebratory spirit of MAR10 Day.

Analyst Take: Experts believe these announcements are a strategic move by Nintendo to capitalize on the enduring popularity of the Mario franchise. The diverse range of content, catering to both nostalgic fans and newcomers, ensures continued engagement and potential revenue streams.

[a-crumb-of-whump]

A New Beginning #10: Needs To Know

Masterlist

Content: Multiple caretakers, non-human whumpee, human caretaker(s), [mentioned/implied] non-con, photographed without consent, [implied] PTSD/trauma, [mentioned] starvation, recovery.

-

“It’s finally open!”

Adam laughed, tagging along behind Ryker as he excitedly pulled him towards the new toy store that had finally opened about a week ago. From what they’d been able to make out online, it had a lot of fidget/stim toys and Ryker was more than ready to add to his collection, despite having virtually no space left for them.

He had to admit, it was a pretty little store. There was very little in terms of things he personally enjoyed, but Ryker was already headed straight for table with the fidget toys on them; practically bouncing the entire way. It was like watching a child find their way around a candy store.

“See anything you like?”

“Are you kidding? I want it all.” As soon as Adam stepped in closer to him, Ryker grabbed him by the hand and held on to it; biting his lower lip. “This was a terrible idea. Gonna walk outta here with nothing left in the bank account and a whole lotta toys.”

Adam rolled his eyes and reached out to grab the rope of a feather-shaped chew necklace. “Don’t be so dramatic. It’s all cheap. Grab what you want. I get paid tomorrow anyways. Do you think Carlos would enjoy something like this?” He held it out to him. “Might stop him from chewing on his sleeves so much.”

“Yeah, it might!” the taller one of the two chirped. Then he turned to look at Adam again, as if trying to get a sense of his tone. Adam found that sometimes he couldn’t tell, nor could he identify sarcasm or jokes when other people made them. It’d gotten worse over the past year or two, but he knew it’d always been there.

“Can I really get what I want?”

Adam shrugged. “Sure. Maybe try and keep it under twenty dollars, but I’m not gonna be mad if you go over. Besides, you’ll have heaps of new stuff to show Carlos when we get home.”

After excitedly fist-bumping the air, he dove right back into the toys; picking out every colour he liked and gawking over the amount of toys there were that he’d never even seen before. If it weren’t for the fact that he kept turning around and showing Adam everything he picked up, he could have sworn the guy had forgotten he was even there.

It must have been nearly forty five minutes of wandering the toy store and chatting to the worker before Ryker finally announced that he was ready. By then, he had both his hands full with toys and a sheepish grin on his face as he sidled up to the counter to pay for them.

“Carlos is gonna love these,” he said confidently, already placing each toy inside the bag as she scanned them. “Maybe I should make a communal area for my toys so he can use them, too?”

Adam raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure? You’re usually super cagey about people touching them.”

“Yeah! I mean – usually I am, yeah, but this is Carlos. I trust him.” He shuffled back and forth on his feet for a moment, as if contemplating what to say next. “Plus… it’s kinda nice having someone around that understands the enjoyment of these kinds of things. I love you, but you’re kinda boring.”

“Me?” Adam sputtered. He could hear the woman behind the counter snickering. “Boring? I think not.”

Ryker leaned down to kiss his temple. “Of course not.”

After they’d finished paying, the two placed their stuff in the car and made a quick trip to the post office to pick up a package that had arrived several days ago. It was addressed to Ryker, who decided to open it before they headed home.

Despite not looking over at him, Adam could practically feel Ryker’s body stiffening the moment he read the note that was attached to the inside of the box.

“Who’s it from?”

“My dad,” he answered, voice lowering a little in volume as he placed the note down and slowly began to examine each of the things inside the box. There were several scrapbooks and dozens of loose photographs inside, all facing downwards. As soon as he flipped the first one over, Adam felt his stomach lurch.

Ryker’s balled up hands shook as he looked at each of the photos, one by one. Each of them involved Carlos, either restrained in some way or so beat up that he couldn’t have made it too far anyway. He had no clothes on in any of them, and there was blood splattered everywhere. All the photos seemed to have a similar theme. In some of them, he had a gag in his mouth. In others, it was a muzzle that clearly burned wherever it touched him. Despite the vampire’s inability to be affected by drugs, he looked as if he’d been given something.

Maybe it was just the lack of food.

Adam reached out to take Ryker’s hand into his own, slipping his fingers between his larger ones in an attempt to gain his attention. “I think we need to put them away.”  

 “Fucking monster.” Ryker put the now-crumpled photos back into the box and tossed it into the back seat. Adam could see his face getting redder and redder with every passing minute, and he wasn’t sure how to help. “How can anyone be that fucking cruel? I didn’t-“

He suddenly paused, as if trying to compose himself before he started talking again. Adam heard him suck in a breath before releasing it again; the hand that was in his never loosening.

“I knew he liked hurting him, but I had no idea about the photos he took of him when he did. Some of them look like they were taken recently. Like… a-week-before-I-picked-him-up recent. What am I supposed to tell him when we get home? ‘Hey, there’s a box in the back of my car with a heap of vulnerable photos of you in it’?”

“We’ll figure that out. Carlos isn’t expecting us home for another hour, so how about we buy some food and sit by the water for a while? Might help you to clear your head a bit before we head back.”

After a long pause, Adam felt Ryker lean his head on his shoulder and wordlessly nod; huffing slightly under his breath. “Do you feel like ice cream?”

Adam snorted. “Sure.”

-

Carlos was curled up on the couch with the animals when the humans finally arrived home almost an hour later.

“Good afternoon!” he chirped, a lazy smile on his face as he waved at them from under the quilt that was usually draped over the side of the couch. He made a brief attempt to crawl out from underneath the pets but the weight of them kept him grounded, so he was forced to greet them from afar. “Did you have a good time?”

“We most certainly did,” Adam answered on his way to the kitchen. “Ryker got a heap of new things for you both to use.”

The vampire immediately lit up and turned his attention back to Ryker, who offered a smile of his own the moment he saw that he was looking at him. “Really? Like what?”

“Do you remember when I showed you all the stress toys I have in my cupboard? Well, I found a new place that’s opened up that sells them, so I may have gone and bought a heap of stuff. Including this necklace,” he said as he reached into the bag. As soon as he handed it to him, Carlos took it and smiled; commenting on how pretty it is.

“You think so? Well, then it’s both aesthetically pleasing and useful. We got it for you to chew on. Thought it might help stop you from chewing on your sleeves so much.”

Carlos tilted his head. “Does it work?”

“Sure! Lots of people use them, especially those with anxiety. You don’t have to use it like that if you don’t want to, but we saw it and thought it might help you.”

Much to Ryker’s delight, Carlos seemed to love it. He slipped it around his neck and tucked it inside his shirt, admitting that he wanted to keep it clean while he cuddled with the animals. The rest of the toys were tucked safely away inside the cupboard that held all Ryker’s other things until he was able to find a communal area to put them in.

“So…”

Ryker jumped the moment he heard Adam’s voice from the bedroom door. He sat up a little and glanced over at him, just to see him leaning against the doorframe with a hand on his hip.

“You gonna talk to him about those photos?”

“No.”

Adam raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”

Slumping back against the headboard once more, Ryker pulled his favourite pillow close to his chest and continued to squeeze the pink stress ball in his hand. Though he tried his damn hardest not to let it show, he felt sick. Through all the years that he’d been alive, he’d never known that his father had evidence of the things he’d done. The implications of several photos within that pile weren’t lost on him either. He knew Carlos had been assaulted a lot over the years, both physically and sexually, but he hadn’t realised his own father had contributed to that.

“He doesn’t need to know about those photos,” the human muttered. “Not yet.”

“I think he does need to know-“

“Not yet,” he insisted, firmer this time. “I will tell him when I feel it’s right, but not right now. That fucker has hurt him enough.”

Adam was uncomfortably tentative as he sat down beside him on the bed and let one of his hands come to rest on his thigh. “How would you feel if someone did that to you?” he asked quietly. He no doubt felt Ryker stiffen irritably beside him the moment he asked. That was enough of an answer. “I know you’re doing your best, my love, but this – no matter how hard the conversation may be – is something he deserves to know.”

He was right. Deep down, Ryker knew he was right, though he hated to admit it. The idea of ruining the streak of good days Carlos had been having lately saddened him immensely.

But he was right.

“…I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”

Adam pressed his forehead into Ryker’s shoulder and squeezed his thigh. “Thank you. I’m proud of you.”

Ryker merely grunted in response.

-

Taglist: @alexkolax @emcscared-whumps @espresso-depresso-system @inkkswhumpandstuff @pigeonwhumps @pumpkin-spice-whump @roblingoblin285 @sacredwrath @stabby-nunchucks @thingsthatgo-whump-inthenight @trans-writes @whump-blog @whumpshaped @whumpycries @why-not-ask-me-a-better-question

(Ask to be added or taken off! The taglist is for the main story, along with any AUs, drabbles, etc.)

[denimbex1986]

'Next week comes the strangest pairing at the multiplex we've seen in years. We're talking, of course, about Greta Gerwig's Barbie and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer — together dubbed Barbenheimer — set to go toe-to-toe for box office dominance on 21 July. The former is a hot pink franchise comedy inspired by the iconic line of Mattel dolls, the latter a stylistically austere biopic about the invention of the atomic bomb. Such is the striking contrast at play, of course the internet (read: Twitter) was going to do what the internet does and meme the shit out of it: now, all anyone can talk about online is Barbenheimer, sucking attention away from other major summer releases like Mission: Impossible 7 and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

Though this clash of cinematic titans might've been elevated to event prominence by the internet's collective love of ironic memedom, it's hardly the first example of diametrically opposed movies dropping on the same day. Fifteen years ago in the US, on 18 July 2008, cinemas were similarly split into two queues: the Batman enthusiasts on one side, clamouring to get into The Dark Knight and usher in a new superhero movie age; on the other, ABBA stans awaited a trip to the sunny isles of a fictional Greek island in Mamma Mia!. Had the internet grown beyond its cringey 9gag nascency by then, it might've been the original Barbenheimer. The Dark Mamma, if you will.

After all, there are huge parallels between the duelling duos. The Dark Knight was the dark and dreary, terminally serious Christopher Nolan movie. Mamma Mia!, the fun-loving “chick flick”, a jukebox musical for the gays and girlies to let their hair down with campy, sun-kissed escapism. Say you did the double bill back then: you could spend two-and-a-half hours with Christian Bale growling gravely under the cape and cowl, then it'd be time for cocktails on the beach with Amanda Seyfried and Pierce Brosnan. With Barbenheimer, it's another pitch-black Nolan flick where its male lead does a lot of broody staring into the middle distance, contemplating the deep evils now ushered unto the world, paired against Barbie, where men are Just Ken. For both Mamma Mia! and Barbie, it's hard to think of more colourful chasers to stave off Post-Nolan Depression.

The Dark Mamma, alas, never took off as Barbenheimer has. Indeed most people online, anecdotally, simply forgot that the two released on the same day, such was the broad surprise when viral tweets prompted by Barbenheimer brought new attention to the OG. (Here in the UK, they came out eleven days apart.) Little media coverage at the time pointed to the contrast, the most prominent article available on Google search being a Vulture piece from the week of release, the headline of which jokingly announced Mamma Mia! and The Dark Knight as battling “for the very soul of America.” Strikingly similar contrasts were zeroed in on: “Are you a happy person, or a sad one? Do you see the glass as half-full, or half-empty? Do you prefer your toast with strawberry jam, or do you like it sprinkled with shards of broken glass?” All ring true of Barbenheimer, too, only the question now isn't which, so much as which first. Shard sarnies, nevertheless, remain ill-advised.

Hollywood studios know exactly what they're doing with such stark counter-programming: the lack of demographic crossover suggests, on paper, that the movies won't eat into each other's profits, giving audiences a variety of options. In 2003, for example, X-2 was released into US cinemas on the same day as The Lizzie McGuire Movie, and in 2015, Mad Max: Fury Road roared onto screens simultaneous to Pitch Perfect 2. Barbenheimer is distinct in that we seldom get such a major clash of two big-budget summer blockbusters, nor a meme-propelled online movement spawning Etsy merch and Twitter stan rivalries. But that's the key thing, and the true movie-loving spirit of Barbenheimer: while we might joke about Nolan nuking Barbie's Malibu Dreamhouse, these aren't warring parties battling for audience supremacy. Much like The Dark Knight and Mamma Mia! — which went on to be the first and fifth-highest grossing movies of 2008 — early projections suggest that both Barbie and Oppenheimer will both do pretty well for themselves. And there's only one winner when that happens: the movies.'

[ducktastic]

Gameological Awards 2023

Game of the Year

Cocoon is a perfect game. There aren’t many of those. It’s a tight four-hour adventure that steadily introduces new ideas and mechanics, explores those ideas, and challenges the player to think critically, then move on to the next new idea. And it does all of this without a single spoken or written word. The language barrier is non-existent. The player is constantly immersed in a series of environmental puzzles that expertly straddle the line between Zelda dungeons and Portal test rooms, with genuinely some of the biggest “NO WAY” moments I’ve experienced in years. Just a marvelous game. Nothing else came close this year to the sheer exuberance in interactive experience as Cocoon.

Multiplayer

Super Mario Bros Wonder did something that had long seemed impossible. It made online multiplayer Super Mario Bros not only sensible, but advantageous over single-player. By turning the other players into “ghosts” like a racing time trial, we no longer had to worry about bumping into one another and ruining our experience of precision platforming. Rather, by observing the other players and allowing them to see us at the same time, we could point out helpful tips and hidden secrets to help one another along. If one player was hurt, other players could go back and revive them. We’d get bonus points for reaching the finish pole at the same time. Finally, 14 years after New Super Mario Bros Wii first tried the multiplayer Mario experience, Super Mario Bros Wonder made it feel truly cooperative rather than combative.

Backlog

Guardians of the Galaxy is better than it has any right to be. Especially considering what a mind-numbing mess of monotony the previous year’s Avengers game was from the same studio at Eidos. Perhaps it was the lowered perceived marketing value of the Guardians over the box-office-topping Avengers brand that reduced corporate oversight and allowed the developers to actually deliver a game that had a compelling narrative with will-written dialogue, varied environments with slick and entertaining combat, and that all-too-essential sense of player agency that makes the audience feel like they’re actually contributing in some small way rather than just watching an incredibly drawn-out movie. Whatever the circumstances, Guardians of the Galaxy came out as a genuinely solid action-adventure game. I played it twice, just to see how my decisions changed the story. AND THEY DID, and I was pleased. Great job.

Didn’t Click

I really want to like Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon. The watercolor storybook aesthetic is lovely, the dual-character controls seem compelling, and I generally enjoy the world of Bayonetta and love most things Platinum work on. The opening hours of this game just bored the heck out of me. I was constantly getting caught on invisible geometry in the environment and the slow storybook segments inspired me to grab a pillow and blanket more than adventure forward. I’m hoping the rest of the game after the opening hours is far more engaging but I took a break from this title months ago and haven’t been back yet.

Unexpected Joy

Suika Game appeared almost as a meme. My first exposure was on TikTok, as a group of people settled into a ramen restaurant in Japan smaller than your average American studio apartment all looked up from their drinks to observe a television over the bar where, instead of live sports, the news, or the drama du jour, there was a collection of cartoon fruit struggling to merge similarly sized fruits into larger ones, clearing space in their confines. I was instantly charmed. OF COURSE I would rather watch this in a bar or restaurant over literally anything else. Weeks later, videos of the game were slowly infiltrating my feed, with links to blog posts about this game available exclusively on the Japanese Nintendo Switch eShop. Within days, I’d convinced myself to buy Japanese eshop credits through an import retailer and download the two-year-old cult title for approximately two dollars. I showed it to friends. I showed it to co-workers. I told pretty much anybody I could about this impossibly addictive kawaii fruit arcade game. And then, finally, in late October, the game suddenly appeared on international stores, followed days later by an English patch. Everyone could play. Everyone SHOULD play. It’s the definition of joy. Uncomplicated, bright, surprising and, above all else, delightful. And if Baldur’s Gate III can count as a 2023 game after being in Early Access since 2020, then surely the global release of Suika Game counts as a 2023 game after being locked to Japan for one fewer year than that.

Best Mechanic

Crafting my own divination deck in The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood was the single most personally empowering experience I felt in any game this year. It was easy enough to do the “game math” of “well, if I use components with more red crystals then I’ll get more red mana back when I used this card” but I found it far more compelling to read all of the descriptions for every component available and craft a narrative where the locations, characters, and artifacts complimented one another and told stories within themselves. Like the traditional major arcana of the tarot, generating a narrative that made sense in my own mind outside of the game made it all the more intuitive to read the cards’ “meanings” when they were pulled from the deck. It genuinely felt like tiny pieces of my own soul were being spread throughout the deck of cards, that these were unique to me and my own experiences. The deck was personal both to my character and to myself, and that intimate connection made the high fantasy all the more tangible.

Favorite Game Encounter

The Master Sword. It’s a common element in pretty much all the major Zelda games. Getting your hands on it has always been an empowering and inspiring moment of Link’s journey, whichever version of Link this may be. But Tears of the Kingdom makes it special in a way it’s never been before. The moment when Link collects the Master Sword in Tears is not simply a culmination of his many trials, no longer merely a symbol of his accomplishments and various macguffins collected so far in the game. Sure, it’s still those things just like every time before, but this time it’s more. It’s a relationship. It’s a bond. It’s a loved one’s deepest wound, a burden for you to bear on their behalf. It’s the physical embodiment of timeless suffering, of timeless love, of timeless faith. And you picked it up. You struggled, it struggled, but now it’s in your hands, and now you carry the burden. And it doesn’t weigh you down.

Best DLC

Remember when MediaMolecule made great games? I know a lot of focus over the years has been on their democratization of game design tools, from LittleBigPlanet to their latest title Dreams, but their self-contained adventures like Tearaway are just incredible. MediaMolecule went ahead and dropped their next unbelievably addictive, polished, original standalone game COMPLETELY FOR FREE inside of Dreams this year, and the model train arcade challenge Tren stands tall amongst not only their own titles but possibly even the entire history of Sony-exclusives. The only reason more people aren’t completely obsessed with Tren is that the overall package of Dreams intimidates them, and with Sony shutting it down soon, Tren seems destined to be lost forever. Here’s hoping MediaMolecule release it as a standalone title, and soon.

[starsbegantofall]

room decor refresh

Haven't really had the chance to test out my embroidery machine because I was waiting for some bobbin thread and then I decided to rearrange my office and bedroom and moved heavy furniture all over the house. I have yet to finish cleaning and rearranging my office so I can actually have space to set up this deceptively giant embroidery machine, it's almost bigger than my Ikea work desk.

I did manage to replace almost all of the artwork on my bedroom gallery wall with my latest fave fanart and original art prints from artists online and at art markets. I also sorted out a huge box of miscellaneous stuff collected over 6 months (including old unopened mail... oops), just 3 more large boxes to go through plus the stuff in the garage lmao.

Here is the refresh, I am still in love with that clearly home-made wisteria wall decor. Haven't replaced the Inosuke print because well, I was too lazy to bring in the ladder and I still love him. But everything else was replaced, I hope to refresh the wall a little more often and try to cycle through all of my numerous art prints at least once if they weren't already used in my computer setup. Speaking of, I am due for both a PC setup refresh and a new theme for my bullet journal... hmm, we'll see which happens first, hahah.

[apcthetics]

*˖ ⊹ ────────  lore dump.

this is just a little collection of explanations about where my characters currently are physically, emotionally, career-wise, etc. it's mainly for me to keep myself straight with my ideas and their development but uhhh also to make sense if i drop any of it in a post. that's all ! read or don't read at your discretion ! don't matter to me.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  alistair castillo.

i really don’t imagine his life changes much from day to day to be totally honest………. there is nothing new happening in his life he’s still just being a menace upon new york and giving people sick ass tattoos.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  brady ackerman.

he’s been wound up in a lot of different projects and probably running himself into overdraft; busy filming the next season of his show, and also alongside it trying to finish out a manuscript for the next book he’s supposed to be writing, all while flying all over the world in just a handful of weeks. hasn’t touched down in new york for more than a few days in the past 2 months but hey at least he’s successful right. right guys. right. haha. he's not tired at all. don't look at his dark circles for too long. 

*˖ ⊹ ────────  caleb williamson.

christmas is a pretty big time for his little side gig selling rare records online, so that picked up quite a bit even as his music lessons kind of trailed off as kids went off on winter holiday. it’s also just been rly quiet for him because obviously christmas didn’t go very well as family dinners never really go well at the willamson/michaelson house and then luvena has been either away or rotting in her room so there’s not really been much for him to do if levi and trinity arealso preoccupied (with each other? idk i dont god mod 👀. ) he did do a really successful new years eve show i think that he’s proud of but mainly it’s just been his little side hustle and now as lessons are picking back up.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  clementine bailey.

so clem is still in the process/paperwork of buying the diner, all the bank loans and everything like that but she is now effectively in charge of it which has definitely been ! a big deal ! her and loren moved into a new apartment and clem has yet to even unpack most of her boxes because she’s spending a lot of time at the diner going over all the financials and trying to teach herself how to handle the back end of a business instead of just the front half. it’s A Lot and she’s definitely Stressed and crying a lot and everyone has been getting 3am baked thumb print cookies, but don't even worry about her !

*˖ ⊹ ────────  damien clarke.

christmas is always the best but busiest time of year for retail so i imagine damien has been putting in a lot of extra effort to make sure that it’s special !! he did some big holiday toy drives alongside some local charities, but since the christmas rush has kind of fallen off and times are slower he’s now just trying to get through the pile of bookkeeping and administrative stuff that he needs to worry about. i have been playing with the idea of him running a very limited indie comic publishing thing out of the back office of his shop, having started with the one done by him & honey and now kind of expanding to artists who maybe don’t have the funds or ability to afford printing and stuff themselves but………… idk the logistics of that yet so it’s definitely just an idea in his head that’s in the early stages. he’s having fun with it. honestly he's having a great time.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  eli russo.

again i don’t think his daily life has much variation. working security at a show venue a few evenings a week and still coaching the Youth ™ w/ boxing a few days a week… sometimes he does do like 14 hour days which is a bit unfortunate and his schedule is all over the place which is bad for the brain that can barely remember what day it is on a good week but you know!!! his memory has been slightly improving thanks to all of the puzzles & all that stuff!!! so like good for him!!! go off king!! 

*˖ ⊹ ────────  elijah guiterrez.

again i just brought him here so i don’t really think things have been particularly outstanding in his life. just him and carmen doing their little school thing idk. he’s working as a TA in among all the other school stuff he’s doing i suppose.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  esther thomas.

lowkey i think she’s started dropping off from doing auditions all together… like she’s so bored of them, and getting anywhere in the snow and cold is rough, so while she hasn’t admitted it to anyone or even necessarily herself she’s just like. not been looking. kind of giving up on her dream but doesn’t want to admit that because then that means her parents were right. but like really she’s resigned herself to the bartending life. otherwise nothing new.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  grace bao.

she’s been stuck in this hellish domestic civil lawsuit at the moment that’s eating up practically all of her spare time because the judge and the defense are assholes and she has gotten competitive about it, alongside all of her Daughter Responsibilities for her parents and their millions of holiday and new years parties. grace does nothing but work, eat, be miserable at charity dinners, work some more, and maybe sleep right now. that’s her whole social life. 

*˖ ⊹ ────────  jackson ruíz.

construction is fairly seasonal work so while he’s still working he’s not as busy as he usually is, and also it’s winter and everything is depressing, so he’s definitely been deep into hermit “i haven’t seen you in a week” mode. especially with giselle kind of flying out to conferences and stuff there hasn’t been much reason for him to get out of his apartment. he’s in a Depression Era but hey ! it happens ! 

*˖ ⊹ ────────  kal sekh.

i think the news of eren’s diagnosis has had quite an effect on kal, especially having to keep it a secret from everyone and also because she doesn’t want as much support for it as he feels like he should be giving, so he’s slipping a little bit into old habits again and overworking himself into the ground so he doesn’t have to rly stop and think about what’s happening. double shifts and insomnia are back baby !!!!!!!!!

*˖ ⊹ ────────  kas peters.

just came out of a period where he had a few different mural commissions going on all at the same time and he was much busier than he’s usually used to so now he is simply basking in the fact that he doesn’t have to worry about funds broke-ass artist bitch but also that he doesn’t have anything to do. just kind of vibing. fucking around with his art in his room. fucking around w/ gabriella’s emotions. you know how it is. no cares in the world for this guy.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  minji kyung.

around new years she had the opening of her studio !! so she’s been very busy, not really making art but she’s been spending a lot of her time at the gallery/studio. this is a really big change from her because she’s kind of lacked purpose or a project for a really long time that i imagine she’s just really happy and really excited ??? but also probably very daunted because she feels like she doesn’t belong or doesn’t have the skills to do it properly yano. 

*˖ ⊹ ────────  reid baker.

he took a little vacation time off since his work is also pretty seasonal to go back and visit his parents on the farm, but mostly his life has been no different except he’s been shovelling snow off the central park steps instead of just being a glorified gardener. honestly he’s pretty chill he doesn’t have the braincells to be anything except chill.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  sebastián dominguez-herrera.

this bad boy went on tour !!! first it was america, and following that he did a few shows in europe & south america. he’s also been working on his next album in between, but he’s at a bit of a stand still with that one because he isn’t feeling ~ inspired ~ and he’s kind of groggy and thinks he’s sick all the time because all the travelling + the winter that he’s not really used to. drama queen never experienced seasonal depression before and hes getting a little taste of it.

*˖ ⊹ ────────  wren noor.

i think wren is starting to actually reconsider the kinds of things she wants to do with her life and the degree she already has now… i think maybe she’s looking into online courses at other universities where she might be able to finish her masters but also is considering a career change totally… she’s been spending way more time on the roof with her telescope and getting excited about that stuff again as she heals, but definitely is still cautious,,, anyway she's been doing her research.

[nickgerlich]

And Ye Shall Marvel

Show me an effective digital campaign, and I will show you one that has high levels of user engagement. It’s one thing to pull all the levers and be everywhere, but it is quite another when you invite people into the campaign to reach for a little more.

And that is exactly what Coca-Cola is doing with their new Marvel joint promotion. It brings two powerhouse brands together to coincide with the late-July release of yet another Marvel movie. The promo includes special cans and bottles bearing Marvel super hero images, along with scannable QR codes. Once scanned, users are whisked away to AR content to supplement and support the messaging provided on the packaging.

There’s somewhat conflicting information online about exactly how many characters will appear, and where they will appear. It looks like Coca-Cola Classic and Coke Zero will share center stage, although I did read one story implying there could be more. Also, the number of characters ranges from “more than 30” to as high as 38.

That’s a lot of opportunities for engagement!

It’s also a page from an old playbook in the beverage industry, minus the QR and AR aspects. Starting back in the 80s, beverage makers started releasing sets of cans to coincide with a cross-promotion of another brand, or to promote something for which the beverage company had an exclusive affiliation, like the Olympics. As a long-time collector of beverage industry memorabilia, I can attest to how intense things can get trying to find every one of the items in a set. Because an incomplete set is just that: Incomplete. No bueno.

The current promotion will be in more than 50 countries, and already eBay is filled with cans from across the globe. Collectors alone will probably ensure the success of the campaign, but once you factor in the casual consumer just scanning the can they happened to get at the local c-store, this has the potential to be massive in impact. Maybe.

The movie doesn’t come out for another 3 1/2 months, and already supermarket shelves are filled with the initial shipments of Classic and Zero. The cardboard 12-pack packaging reinforces the campaign, and stands out nicely on shelves. Visual appeal is high.

The campaign comes at an important time for Coca-Cola, as well as all soft drink manufacturers, because consumption is down. Per capita consumption peaked around 2000, with about 50 gallons apiece. It has dropped steadily ever since, and now sits at just under 43 gallons per person. Stir in the Ozempic craze, and it is possible that food and beverage makers selling less-than-healthy products may continue to see sales declines.

But that decline started long before silver bullet products like Ozempic were ever available, meaning that changes in consumer behavior have been ongoing. I honestly could not tell you the last time I actually sipped a soft drink, although I still buy—and drain—cans I need for my collection. Can the current promotion reverse this downward spiral? That’s a tough call, because the trend line is clear. Coca-Cola needs it. Oh, and Disney, who owns Marvel, could also use a big boost at the box office. Misery loves company perhaps?

There’s another interesting aspect at play here as well. Quick! Show me a product that used a QR code before COVID. I’ll wait. I might be waiting a while, though, because I bet you can’t think of one. But show me a product available today whose packaging doesn’t contain a QR code, and I bet you would be equally hard-pressed. They became ubiquitous during the pandemic, and marketers and consumers alike finally realized their value.

I use the word “finally” because QR codes have actually been in existence since 1994, although they did not get a bump until about 2010. It’s just that there were still too few people with smartphones then to be able to scan them, and they landed with a thud. Worse yet, you had to download a QR-reader app. At least phone manufacturers finally figured out they could build that into their native camera app, and they could be used in myriad applications.

I saw them in China in 2019 as a payment gateway in restaurants. How many of you have paid your tab with a QR code here in the States? It is starting to gain traction, and I love it, if only because I do not have to surrender my card to a total stranger, who disappears with it for five to ten minutes.

As for marketing engagement, they are the best we’ve got these days. Not too many years ago the best we could do was invite people to visit a website. That took too many steps, though. A scannable code makes it easy, and I suspect that both parties to this promo are going to be exclaiming “Marvelous” before it is all over. One can hope.

Dr “Who’s Your Super Hero?” Gerlich

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