#but how do you jump from that immediately to saying finn and millie are getting the most screentime in s5 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jerrienelock · 3 years

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Without You - Sadie Sink

Takes place after the filming of Stranger Things Season 3

Exhausted.

Sadie is exhausted from all her sleepless nights. The sleep she longs for, no longer around, not since you left. She misses your presence, your hugs, your delicate words, your gentle touches. She just wants to be in your arms relishing in your radiant warmth, feeling your loving kisses to the back of her head.

She just wishes you had told her how you were feeling before that fateful day happened.

Splashes of water coat her face, trying to wake herself up, and cleanse her mind of you so she is prepared for her first interview since you left. Sadie shuts the water off, her hands now firmly on the sink. Her gaze locks with her reflection. Her once smooth skin, disturbed with protruding deep purple bags under her broken teal eyes. Her lips automatically dropping into a deep miserable frown, she finds no need for her mouth to break away from that position for it was practically engraved into her skin.

But soon she will have to tear it out and upturn the frown in a mask of joy and perfection. She doesn't want to do that, she just wants to go home and cry into one of your hoodies and not come out for days on end or until filming starts up again.

She should be strong, but without you there it feels like her whole world is slowly falling apart, and just a gentle push can send it tumbling down. You were her rock, her saviour, her superhero that fends off all the bad guys for her.

But now that you're gone, she has to do that all alone.

An interview without you at her side feels so daunting, she won't be able to clutch onto your hands when she feels a slight bit of nerves. She won't be able to rely on you to get through the merciless questions that will only be worse, now that you're gone.

"Sades?" A soft voice calls from behind the bathroom door. Sadie quickly stands up straight and regains her composure just as the door opens to reveal Millie. "Oh Sades," The Fifteen-year-old says sympathetically opening her arms for the redhead.

Sadie instantly buries herself into the younger girl. "I miss her." She mutters into Millie's shoulder.

"I miss her too."

Millie tightens the hug and she stands there holding Sadie with all her might, afraid that if she were to let go the older girl will break down and shatter right in front of her. But she could feel Sadie begin to sob and heave in her arms. "It's okay," Millie hushes the girl, her one hand rubbing Sadie's back delicately.

After a few more minutes Sadie tears away brushing away her running tears, "I got given the camera she would do her diary entries on. Could we maybe watch it later, at my house with the boys?"

Millie nods, "We would love to do that. Now come Sades, we have to go, it's going to start soon."

The interview was the longest two hours of Sadie's life, she wanted to hide away from all the questions and sympathetic looks she had been given throughout. Noah had noticed her discomfort and had his hand placed on hers comforting the hurting redhead all throughout. The rest of the cast had helped with the questions she had found quite hard to answer, the one's involving you, and how she was feeling since your passing.

But now she sits in her living room cuddled into Millie, with your stuffed dog, watching as the boys try to hook up your old camera, all arguing as they figure out what cable goes where. This earns a small smile from Sadie.

Soon the boys get the camera working and instantly your bright cheery face pops up on the TV. Sadie sits up a little straighter at the sight of you, her heart both racing and aching at the same time. Millie pulls the girl closer to her, in a way of further comforting her but also to make room for Caleb who wanted to sit next to the pair while the others sat on the ground in front of the couch.

"Hello!" Your voice exclaims through the speakers. "Welcome to Diary Entry One! I am as you can see on the set of Stranger Things Season Two!" The camera flicks around showing the bustling set before flicking back around.

The cast knew exactly when this first took place, the first day of filming just after they had all met Sadie.

"We got a new girl here as well, her name is Sadie Sink." You gush into the camera, a pink hue evident on your cheeks. "She's really nice... and pretty." You murmur the last part looking off to the side. "Anyways! Let's go see her!" You quickly rush off to where you had been looking at, camera in tow and stop at a then fifteen-year-old Sadie, "Hello bloody tampon, say hi to the camera!"

Everyone laughs, including Sadie who remembers that exact moment.

"What did you just call me?" Sadie questions in disbelief and You laugh, "You heard me." Before Sadie could say anything else, you quickly leave and shut the camera off.

"Hello!" You shout with Finn alongside you, "This is, drum roll please Wolf boy," Finn drums his hands on his lap, "Diary Entry Two!" You and Finn cheer loudly capturing the attention of some of the crew members behind you. They immediately hush you both as they film a scene involving Sadie and Caleb. You and Finn quietly apologise before making your way over to Dacre who speaks with Natalia and Joe.

"Dacre!" Finn calls out causing the man to stop and turn to them, a bright smile on his face.

"Hello Lacey, Mike. What can I do for you?"

"Can you answer some-" Finn begins but you cut him off abruptly

"Is Sadie single?"

Finn turns to you and the camera wide-eyed. Dacre raises a brow, throwing a quick glance over to Natalia and Joe. "I don't know? Why, are you interested?"

Your voice sounds panicked from behind the camera, "No! I mean, Finn is."

"Y/n!" Finn shouts, "I don't!" He quickly grabs the camera from your grip and turns it to face a laughing you before cutting the feed.

"Oh, so that's how that rumour sprouted. You look so scared," Sadie giggles and Finn sends her a mocking glare.

"I didn't know she was going to say that okay?" He chuckles.

The next video rolls on and it shows both Sadie and you.

You set the camera down in front of Sadie who was busy getting her hair done. She eyes the camera cautiously as the stylist ducks out the way slightly. "This is Diary Entry number three... I think," You sit down on a chair next to her, your stylist moving in to prep your hair. "We are almost finished filming!" You smile and look over to Sadie who does a quick glance at you. "Anyways, it's time."

"Time for what?" Sadie quiers

"Time for the questions silly," You laugh tilting your head back as your stylist combs your hair. "First question, how has your time on set been?"

"It's been great! Everyone is amazing!"

"Everyone? You sure you don't mean just me?"

Sadie giggles, "Sure."

A few more questions were asked, them mainly being about how she has felt about her time acting and being forced in a room with you and the others. She had opened up slightly about how she felt kind of isolated in the beginning due to everyone already knowing each other until You and Millie kindly took her under your wing.

"Okay last question, do you have eyes for anyone?" You smirk and Sadie goes silent.

"No comment," You gasp.

"What! Sadelyn Sinkhole does have eyes on someone," You lean forward much to your stylests dismay as she pulls you back. "Who is it?"

Once again Sadie replies, "No comment." and you huff.

"I will get it out of you. It may not be today, but it will happen someday."

Sadie's cheeks turn pink and she can't help but hide her smile in your stuffed teddy, reminiscing about how she had ended up spilling her feelings to you not even a day later. To her surprise back then you had reciprocated her feelings and even managed to steal her first kiss, she doing the same to you.

The next video rolls on with you beaming once again in the camera.

"Hello!" You exclaim once again, in the background was the cast in their season two attire watching you with smiles. "This is Diary Entry number four, we have now finished the infamous season two!" The group breaks out into cheers and a round of applause, and you place the camera down on a stand so that everyone was in the frame and move back to go sit next to Sadie, pushing Finn out of the way in the process.

"I can't believe you couldn't tell she liked you!" Finn exclaims gesturing to the action you had pulled. "Your girlfriend literally pushed me out of my seat," He laughs making Sadie snigger.

"So Caleb Mclaughlin." You start, capturing the young boy's attention, "How was it like to kiss the gorgeous Max Mayfield, the infamous MadMax," You tease and the boy bows his head in embarrassment, Everyone laughs and so do you but it was cut short as you began to cough. "You okay Y/n?" Sadie questions and you nod while Sadie not so sneakily brings her hand into yours.

"Wait!" Millie jumps in disbelief her eyes trained at the holding hands, "Were you two a couple then?" She flickers her gaze over to Sadie who turns as red as her hair, "Oh my God! We thought you two got together just before Season Three." Millie smiles slapping Sadie's leg jokingly, "You dirty dogs!"

The entry's continue, this time mostly showing you and Sadie alone. Most of the time, your hands were wrapped around her waist while she holds the camera up at you two in various locations.

"First date!" Sadie exclaims looking lovingly over at you.

"Can you see me?" You question trying to look over into the camera to see if you were in the frame- you in fact were not.

* "Sades!" You call out for her from her living room. "I got you something!" The camera flicks down to a necklace with a small pendant in your hand.

While that video shows, Sadie herself glances down at the necklace you had given her and fiddles with it, her heart fluttering in her chest.

"Do you think they'll freak out when we tell them?" Sadie questions fiddling with your hand as the camera shows you both walking back onto the set for a reading. You nod, "Oh, most definitely." The camera cuts and then turns back onto an unknowing Millie waiting for you both at the entrance to the reading.

"Y/n! Sadie!- Woah." Millie's eyes go wide as she spots your hands, "Are you two?" She gestures between the both of you. Sadie confirms with a kiss of your cheek causing her to squeal and run in to tell everyone.

* "Hello! And we're back! Season Three of Stranger Things, it's your favourite character Aunt Helga speaking." You laugh at your own words, "I'm joking, it's the best character out of the show, Dustins' sister Lacey. Today we are as usual on our first day back at filming." You cheer, "This is Diary Entry number five."

"Y/n! Where are you?" Dacre calls out in the background, "You have to go get pepper-sprayed in the face!" You widen your eyes slightly, and Dacre appears behind you, "It's just water don't worry."

The camera cuts but then is turned back on to show a smiling Dacre, he flips the camera around and it shows you being dunked in the Henderson's kitchen sink by Caleb and Sadie. "I'm drowning!" You yell out gasping for breaths. "I'd rather you drown than go blind, Lacey," Sadie comments in Max's character. Caleb goes to turn off the tap but instead accidentally turns it on full speed, the water hitting you right in the mouth making you choke and develop a coughing fit. "I didn't mean to literally drown her!" Sadie yells and Caleb throws his hand up defensively, "My hands slipped."

That scene was a blooper itself but yet it was still kept in the actual show.

Many more diary entries ended up being full of bloopers, you hanging with Sadie and sometimes the rest of the crew until it started to change.

There you stand in front of the camera, your hands clutching your chest tightly, "My chest hurts." You croak out, tears swelling in your eyes from the pain.

The cast visibly sit a little straighter at the sight of you.

You stand there for a few more seconds just holding onto your chest before finally you drop your hands down and stand straighter. You furrow your brows, "It's gone. I don't know what it is but it's been happening a lot lately." You announce but quickly shrug it off as you hear your name being called. You grab onto the camera and run out where Sadie is standing waiting for you with a bright white smile. You grab onto your girlfriend's hand and you walk off to your next scene.

Another video rolls on this time showing you setting the camera down in a position so that it showed the set you were on. You are then seen dashing back onto set and getting onto your starting position with Gaten at your side. The video goes on as normal with the familiar star court scene and then all the way to the end, with Dacre having moved it for you to get the right angles where you stand near a casted officer, signalling the end of the filming process.

"Cut," The director yells and cheers are heard all around. You jump up and hug the nearest person to you, this being Sadie and enrapturing her into a joyful kiss before moving on to everyone else.

The mood is noticeably ecstatic and everyone is busy cleaning up, with you having a quick word with Sadie before going to head for your still recording camera, shouting a 'Shut up' to Caleb who had mocked what you said to your girlfriend. Your smile is bright and inviting until it drops to a stone cold expression.

And then you were seen clutching onto your chest, feet staggering and skin paling before dropping to the floor.

"Y/n!" Gaten screams hurtling over to you, just in time to catch you. You weren't moving and the camera shows it, it shows everything happening at that exact moment. It shows Gatens terrified face as he shakes you, trying to wake you up. It shows crew members flying over to you in a hurry. It shows your girlfriend and the others staring at you horrified and worried.

"Someone call an ambulance!" The director yells shoving past all crew members who were just crowded around you. Immediately chest compressions were started.

"Oh God," Caleb murmurs his teary eyes entranced on the TV. He wants to look away but he can't.

Sadie sniffles, her heart aching tremendously at the screen.

Millie and Finn hold a sobbing Sadie in the far corner of the screen, while Noah is seen dashing for the camera and turning it off.

They thought it was the end but another clip rolls and a bloodshot eyed Sadie Sink appears in one of your hoodies, holding your stuffed dog close to her chest. She was in your dressing room, it was known by the pictures you had placed on the walls of your family and the cast behind Sadie.

"Hi Y/n," Sadie croaks out, voice breaking instantly. She can't speak, her throat hurts and her tears just flow out coating your stuffed animal with her tears. "I miss you. It's only been a few hours since you left us, but I miss you so much." She brings your hoodie to wipe away a few of her tears, "I just want to say I love you."

Sadie can't look at the video anymore, her heart aching in great amounts in her chest, her bottom lip quivering noticeably. She turns and shoves her head directly into a saddened Millie who immediately takes her into her arms. Sadie wishes it was you instead.

She can still hear her own shattering voice in the video, each word breaking and every sentence ending with a cry. A cry of mourning. A cry for you. A cry for you to just come back and tell her you're not going anywhere. A cry for her broken heart.

Sobs wrack Sadie's body and a loud cry exits her making the crying cast members cast looks of sorrow, heartbreak and pain at her.

The video proceeds and Sadie is now still sat in your chair, this time not saying anything. Your stuff dog is latched to her chest, her chin sitting on top of the toy while she runs little patterns on her knee- something you would do to her when you felt nervous in interviews or big events. And then the door quietly opens and Sadie is seen turning back abruptly, her head shaking furiously.

"No, no, no, no," She sobs as your dad steps foot into the trailer there to retrieve your stuff. "Please can I keep the camera, please!" Your dad shakes his head sadly, tears in his own eyes as he reaches down to grab hold of the device.

"Please!" Sadie begs, "I can't live without her. I can't live without seeing her!"

The camera cuts off.

***

Masterlist; celebrities

#sadie sink #sadie sink x reader #sadie sink x fem reader #fem! reader

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maybe-your-left · 3 years

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HI BABY! IM GLAD TO SEE YOU BACK MY LOVE💖

WHAT ABOUT DEALERS CHOICE, 29 WITH KYLO?!

I LOVE YOU SM💖💖💖💖💖

awful-how dare you pick this.

okay so context-i was at the dog park with mitchell and we met a child, yes a HUMAN CHILD, with the name.

MILDEW.

———

“Her name is what?”

“Mildew.”

You stared over the dinner table, face controted with confusion. You had your hand placed on your chest like a woman who was just offended. Which you were, very offended. “Could you repeat that?”

Kylo chuckled a little, running a hand through his hair, “Mildew, her name is Mildew. It’s not that weird.”

“Kylo,” you breathed through your nose, this was a disaster. All week you had been waiting to meet him, and now on your first date you find out he has a dog named...Mildew. What kind of psychopath does that?

He reached a hand across the table, placing it atop your own. Stroking his large thumb across your knuckles, “It’s not a big deal-she's a good girl.”

“Then why is her name,” you swallowed hard, “Mildew.”

“Because she likes to swim,” he looked at you like it was the most obvious answer. Waving down the waiter with his freehand for the check, giving him his black card with a smile. “Do you want to meet her?”

“I honestly don’t know if I can call a dog Mildew in good conscience.”

-------

Two days later, you stood at his front step. Hand poised over the door, ready to knock. Probably set Mildew off on a barking spree from your presence. Ugh, you turned green at the thought, why did he name her that?

You tapped a little, immediately hearing a loud howl. She must be a big dog, you never saw a picture of her from his Tinder profile. The only reason he brought her up is because you mentioned you loved dogs, and he lured you in. With his handsome face and muscles and well groomed hair.

‘Of course it’s got a weird name,’ your roommate cackled when you told her the news, ‘His name is literally Kylo-is he like an off-brand Kyle?’

The door opened a crack, revealing a black snout. Smushing against her owner's black-clad leg, you heard him hissing behind the door, “Stoppit you little shit.” She growled more, you took a few steps back as a precaution… he never told you what breed she was…

What if she hated people he brought over?

Oh my god, what if his last girlfriend was eaten by Mildew???

Kylo wrestled her away from the door, pinning her head between his legs as he opened up with a crooked smile. “Hi,” he pulled the door open wider, face faltering when he looked between his legs to his struggling baby, “She’s just excited, I don’t want her to jump on you.”

You gave a nervous smile, finally peering down to see the monster herself…

Oh.

It’s a black lab.

With a long pink tongue lolling out of her square head, trapped between her master's knees. Her mouth popped open, whining to be let free and say hello to the new person, Kylo brought a hand down and patted her head. “Sorry, she's just really big and I never taught her to not jump on people… she might try to hug you.”

You smiled down at her, squatting in the doorway so you were her height. She squirmed at that causing Kylo to grip onto her baby pink collar, “She’s a kisser too.”

“Hi, pretty girl,” you cooed, bringing your hands to scratch behind her big ears. Whoa, she has a big head. “Aren’t you so sweet,” she struggled in his hold, whining louder to be released. “Kylo, it’s okay she can say hi.”

“Okay,” he sighed, looking straight into Mildews eyes, “Be sweet.”

Once he let go of her collar, she lunged for you. Rearing back on her back legs and placing her big paws on your shoulders. A long tongue bathed your face as you squealed from excitement.

“Hi-Hi-Hi!” you spoke through the kisses. Mildew didn’t stop, instead she kept trying to get closer to you. Climbing into your lap almost, causing you to fall flat on your back on Kylos porch.

Through the kissing onslaught, Kylo roared over the excitement, “Milly! Stoppit! You’re being rude,” he tugged back on her collar. But she didn’t budge, just whined to be held by your small hands.

Enough was enough, Kylo scooped the full grown lab in his arms. Angling her face away from his so she couldn’t kiss him, “Are you okay?”

Kylo looked down at you with worried eyes, hoisting Mildew in his arms so he could hold a hand out for you.

You slowly sat up, wiping your face with your sleeve. Letting out a soft chuckle, “I’m okay, she’s okay. I might need to wash my face off though.”

———

KYLO HAS A BABY NAMED MILDEW AND SHE IS HIS PRETTY PRINCESS QND SHE GETS WHATEVEE SHE WANTS.

Mildew is 3, a pure bred Black Lab.

she’s the light of his life.

———

TAGGING: @finn-ray-nal-beads @onlykyloscenes @candycanes19 @historyandfandoms50 @caelum-phyriina-vermillon @ghoulian13 @mrs-kylo-ren @millenialcatlady @relationshipwithmybed @dancingmicrobes @wayward-rose @contesa-lui-alucard @daydreamsofren @insufferablelust @ohdamnadamm @mariesackler @caillea @safarigirlsp @jalexunderthestars @shesakillerkween @glassythoughts @zimmermansbrat @not-the-teen-witch @jynzandtonic @roanniom @celestiasin @glassbxttless @cornmousequeen @driversmutbucket @blowthatpieceofjunk

if you want more, feel free to request from my Ask Fridays post 😊

#adam driver #kylo ren #adamdriver #boyfriend kylo ren #boyfriend kylo #ask fridays #dealers choice #5.21.2021 #my writings #historyandfandoms50

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gone-cotta · 6 years

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Finn Wolfhard x Reader: First Appearances

Part 1.

It was the night season 3 of Stranger Things went up on Netflix. The Duffer Brothers were throwing a party in celebration, with the entire main cast invited. You were fairly new to the cast, but decided you might as well go anyways.

You knocked on the front door and Matt Duffer opened it after a moment. He smiled, before telling you that most of the cast was already there and in the backyard. You hesitantly walk out the sliding glass door to see half the cast hanging out by the pool deck.

You stepped out onto the grass, the springy green blades grazing the sides of your sandals. As you set the small cloth bag you brought down by the table, Sadie noticed you and walked over.

You and Sadie had become fast friends after meeting. After all, you were both relatively new and the original cast had a different bond. You two were of course friends with them as well though. Your other closest friend on the cast were Noah and Gaten.

“Hi Y/N! I’ve been waiting for you since I got here” She said, smiling. Her fiery hair was tied back in a ponytail, which she had over one shoulder. “Caleb and Gaten have been having a weird pun war for the past 10 minutes”

You laughed, and headed over to the two boys. They sat hunched forward in the poolside chairs, facing one another. Millie sat with her feet in the pool, laughing as she watched the two boys try and out-pun each other.

After watching the two boys fight for a few minutes, Gaten turned to you. “Y/N, tell this fool that my puns are obviously better than his” he said, and Caleb opened his mouth in protest, but you interrupted before he could say anything.

“Sorry Gaten, but I have to say that Caleb might be better” you said, and Gaten looked at you with a look of disbelief on his face. Caleb laughed before saying “Told you so!”

As Gaten moved on to asking Sadie and Millie who they thought was better, you turned and saw Noah and Finn walking through the sliding glass door. The two boys had on swim trunks and T-Shirts, but as you watched them walk over to Joe and Dacre. who were sitting at a table on the opposite side of the pool deck.

You kinda liked Finn. A lot. But then again, who wouldn’t? It just sucked that the boy seemed to dislike you for some reason, even though you only interacted with him in interviews and scenes you had together in the show. He just always seemed to ignore you, and only talked to you if he had to.

You watched for a moment as Finn said something to Joe, and took something off his plate of food. Without even looking up Joe picked up his waterbottle and lightly splashed his shirt. Finn started back, and you heard him shout “That’s cold!”

Joe laughed and said something and Finn motioned with his hands, before tugging his shirt off and throwing it aside. Immediately after you saw this you felt a blush creep across your cheeks, and turned back to Sadie and the others before anyone noticed you staring at him.

An hour later, after eating and talking with the cast, Matt and Ross Duffer had the idea to take a picture of everyone jumping into the pool together. Everyone was excited and agreed to do it.

Soon, the actors walked to the edge of the pool. You had on a dark 2 piece, and stood awkwardly beside Sadie and Millie, who both looked amazing. Sadie had taken her hair down and it flowed around her shoulders in gorgeous fiery waves, and Millie looked as amazing as always with her dark hair falling to her shoulders.

Ross was near the other side of the pool, camera in hand, telling everyone to get into a line. You obliged, standing on the end with Sadie next to you. As you two chatted, Noah walked over, Finn following. As Noah stood, leaving a gap between you an him for Finn to stand, Finn turned and said “Never mind, I’ll go to the other side”

As he walked away, his dark curls bouncing slightly, you noticed her shot you a look. It looked like a look of annoyance, but it was hard to tell as it lasted only a moment.

Noah watched him, and sighed. “What was that?” Sadie asked him, peering around you. She couldn’t help but notice what had happened. Noah shook his head.

“He hates me is what happened” You sighed, and looked down. Noah immediately looked at you in surprise.

“What?”

“He hates me. Or at least dislikes me” You said again.

Noah laughed, and moved so the sunlight reflected across his bare torso. “What makes you think that?” he asked, but you didn’t have time to respond as Ross began a countdown to jump.

“Tell you later” you said quickly, and turned to face the iridescent surface of the water.

“3! 2! 1!”

You sat on the stairs in the shallow end of the pool. You swished your legs underwater, watching the little rainbows and reflections under the surface. Sadie had gone to the deep end and was talking with Millie and Finn, hence the reason you were alone.

As you watched Sadie say a sarcastic comment, followed by her splashing Finn with a handful of water, you couldn’t help but smile. Suddenly a body jumping into the water a foot in front of you made you jump. You hadn’t noticed Noah as you were too busy staring at Finn.

Noah broke the surface of the water, and laughed at the look on your face. He brushed his sopping hair back with one hand and sat on the step next to you.

“So why do you think Finn hates you exactly?” he asked after you shot him a look that plainly said ‘shut up’

“Well he always ignores me. And only interacts with me when he absolutely has to. I don’t even know what I did! Plus you saw what happened earlier” you complain. Noah ponders this for a moment, his hazel eyes unreadable.

“I-I’ll....talk to him” he said, a small smile on his face. And you instantly became suspicious.

“You know something” you said, narrowing your eyes. Noah just smiled and insisted he didn’t, but you hung out with him enough to know something was up.

After a few minutes of him insisting he knew nothing, you gave up and he suggested a game of Chicken. You were hesitant to agree, but the more he asked and tried to persuade you the funner it sounded.

“Fine. But only if Sadie plays” you eventually agreed.

Since apparently it was “unfair” if you and Sadie were on the same team, you paired up with Noah while Sadie got Joe.

“Hey! That’s not fair” Noah shouted as Sadie brought him over, but as Joe started saying he wanted to be on her team, he gave up.

You got onto Noah’s shoulders, and Sadie onto Joe’s. Then the two boys started moving towards each other and you and Sadie started awkwardly shoving each other, water droplets flying through the air as the boys struggled to maintain balance.

Eventually Sadie succeeded in pushing you backwards, with the help of Joe being much bigger than Noah. You splashed under the water, and came to the surface gasping.

“we are the champions!” Sadie exclaimed, a victorious smile playing her lips as she raised her hands above her head. Noah muttered something under his breath about her only winning because of Joe, and you laughed.

“I’m gonna go dry off now” you said, and turned only to bump into Finn. He turned and looked at you before you narrowed your eyes. He looked startled for a moment, but you turned and swam towards the steps on the opposite side of the pool before lifting yourself out of the water.

two can play at that game

You were inside now. You chatted with Millie beside a bowl of chips. You had just asked how things were with Jacob and she had smiled and blushed, and pulled out her phone, revealing he had been texting her at that very moment. You smiled. Despite the media and fanbase always saying how much they despised Jillie, you couldn’t help but think that it was almost cute how happy he made her. In the end it was her decision, wasn’t it?

As Millie showed a picture of her and Jacob at the beach, you looked behind her out the door and saw Noah walking Finn across the grass. Noah had a towel around his shoulders, and Finn had just put on a shirt. Noah appeared to be encouraging Finn, making hand movements and talking. Finn had an almost nervous expression on his face, and his eyes were focused on the ground.

Then they opened the sliding door and Noah pushed him in, giving him a quick thumbs up, and looking over at you. When Noah said you looking, he hastily pretended to be doing something else.

You focused back on Millie, only to realize seconds later Finn was walking towards you two. He tapped Millie on the shoulder and she stopped talking. “Um Millie? Do you mind if I talk to Y/N for a moment?” he said. Millie raised an eyebrow.

“Sure” she said, and waited for Finn to speak. He awkwardly coughed. “Actually...I was wondering If I could talk to her alone...” he trailed off, and you realized this was the first time you had seen the curly haired boy like this. He seemed nervous, his dark eyes flickering from you to Millie.

“Oh. Sure!” she said, and backed away, shooting you a confused glance and mouthing “whats happening”. You simply shrugged and turned to Finn.

There was silence for a second until Finn awkwardly began. “So, Noah said you think I dislike you?” he started, and you instantly regretted telling Noah. If you knew he was going to tell Finn, it would have saved a lot of awkwardness to just be quiet.

“well, not so much as dislike as hate, but sure. Yeah, I do think that” you mumbled. And Finn searched your face with concerned eyes, before taking a deep breath.

“Well, I don’t just to be clear. In fact, things are almost the opposite” he said, and your eyebrows shot up in a look of surprise. What was going on? Was this some type of prank?

“I actually really like you Y/N. I see you on set with Sadie and Noah, and how you are always so amazing. You are super pretty and smart, and I just didn’t know how to go about it” he said. Your eyes widened. You were speechless for a moment before you realized he was waiting for you to say something.

“Oh! I-What? Then why would you always ignore me?” you stuttered. Finn nervously messed with his hands.

“Well I had never really felt this way for someone before. Sure, I had a tiny crush on Millie when we started, but by time Season 2 started that had ended. This is nothing like that” he began. “I originally asked Noah for advice but he didn’t really know what to say, and I knew Gaten and Caleb might tell you. So I asked Joe and he said I should just...play it cool. Seem ‘uninterested’” he finished, and you inwardly thought that it was a tiny bit funny to see how flustered he was.

“That doesn’t mean completely ignore though” you pointed out and he nodded.

“I know, that was really stupid of me” he admitted. “Anyways, I guess what I’m trying to say is....would you-”

Finn was cut off as Millie shrieked from outside. She was talking to Noah and was looking inside with a look of shock on her face.

“Really!?” she exclaimed, before looking inside and realizing that both you and Finn were looking at her. She looked at the door she had forgotten to shut all the way and flushed, tugging it shut. Noah was face palming next to her. It was obvious what Millie had just found out, from the way she was looking at Finn.

You looked back to see Finn’s face completely pink. “I-I think I’m gonna go outside now. Talk to you later Y/N” he mumbled, and walked away into the house before you could reply.

You stood in shock for a moment, and grabbed the table for support. There was no way that had happened. No way in hell. What was he going to say?

You sat down and put your head in your hands, your heart pounding. What was next?

Okay so I don’t even know what that turned into. I was originally planning on writing a short but found it too fun writing smaller scenes, like the chicken fight and the pun-war. I’m going to continue this, but as of right now I have no idea how long it will take for a second part. Please let me know if you want more and feel free to leave ideas and suggestions. Also let me know if you like it because I will work harder to continue it if I know people actually like it.

#finnwolfhard #finn wolfhard #x reader #sadie sink #stranger things #noah schnapp #joe keery #millie bobby brown #strangerthings #mike wheeler #finnwolfhardxreader

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trashmouth-writing · 7 years

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Interviewer [w.o.]

[Warning: might contain the slightest ST2 spoilers]

'Let's go, Sadie, the limo's here!' Y/n called out loud as she read the text from Finn, letting the girls know their ride had arrived. Noah, Caleb, Millie and Gaten had already left and they all would meet at the red carpet for the Stranger Things premiere, that show in which y/n had been cast as another of the Hawkins Laboratory's experiments, "005." Sadie walked out from the bathroom, hurriedly checking herself in the vanity mirror one last time before leaving the room with her friend to meet up with Finn and catch the ride. As they walked through the lobby, Finn complimented both girls' dresses and they did the same with his look as well.

They made it to the limo quickly and safely, and the three of them just made small talk with each other during the short ride to the premiere. 'Man there's going to be so many pictures and interviews, I'm aready tired' Finn commented, both girls nodding in agreement at his statement. 'Yeah, who said heels were comfortable?' Sadie added, y/n joined her soft laughter afterwards. Once they made it to the place the main event was being held at, the three of them stepped out of the limo, Sadie first, y/n after her, and finally, Finn. Cheers and applause could be heard from the crowd as they spotted three of the show's main actors.

As soon as they felt ready, they all walked the short distance from the main entrance to the first end of the carpet, waving at the fans who were yelling their names, begging for an autograph, a picture, anything from them. Y/n knew she wasn't allowed to do so, but she stepped to the side and started signing some papers, taking a couple selfies and making small talk with her fans, until a security guard came and took her back to the main aisle. She and Sadie walked a couple steps forward to catch up with Finn, who was already posing for pictures. They both walked up to him and the three of them smiled and posed, trying to give all of the cameras a front angle.

Soon, the interviews began. First came a girl from Just Jared Jr. and asked them a couple questions about the show before moving on to Winona and David. Their second interview, though, was pretty unexpected for both the interviewers and the actors. The interviewers turned out to be Wyatt Oleff and Jack Dylan Grazer! They both greeted Finn with a tight hug and shook the girls' hands. When Wyatt shook y/n's hand, he wouldn't let go for enough time to make it a little awkward. He cleared his throat and brought the microphone close to his lips. 'So, Sadie, y/n, how did it feel to... join the... uh... the girl's part of the cast?' It looked as if he has forgotten the question he was going to ask.

And it was as if y/n was lost in another galaxy. Sadie started speaking immediately, while her co-star just stared at the taller interviewer. 'It looks like we've lost little y/n over here' at the sound of Finn calling her name, she snapped back to reality. 'What? No, I was just... posing for pictures' ' In Wyatt's eyes, am I right' Jack added sarcastically, making the five of them giggle before continuing with the short interview. After that, they reunited with the rest of the kids' cast, including Joe and Natalia. Soon the whole cast was together, and they all posed together and divided by groups, fictional families and canon couples for some pictures before leaving for the main event. From the distance, Wyatt stared at y/n while Jack just looked at him and went 'dude, you got it bad.'

Later, at the party, y/n, Millie and Sadie were sitting and chatting after many pictures, some interviews and even a little bit of dancing. 'You should've seen the way they stared at each other, Mills' Sadie said in a total gossip-like tone. 'We were not staring! I was looking at something else.' Y/n tried to defend herself, but Millie was already searching the internet for pictures of the red carpet. 'Oh my goodness, dear Lord of drama!' Millie exclaimed as she found what she was hunting for. 'Let me see!' Sadie called, taking the phone from her friend's hands. 'Holy shit, they look adorable!' A male voice called from behind, the three girls turned their heads up to meet Finn's and Noah's faces. 'You two stop it right now!' Y/n threatened the girls with her finger, not wanting the rest of the cast to find out about this, or else, she would never live it down.

But Mille's phone was already in Noah's hand and Gaten and Joe had joined him and Finn, the four of them watching the pictures. Y/n groaned in despair and covered her face with her hands. 'Aw, it looks like our little baby y/n is growing up!' Joe teased, they all laughed. 'Oh no' Sadie suddenly said, as she had spotted Jack and Wyatt enter the room. It was as if her words had called Jack's attention, cause he immediately found the spot they were sitting at. 'Fuck my life' y/n muttered, faking a smile as both boys approached them.

'Hey honey, hey sweetie, hey baby' Jack greeted the three girls in a fake seductive voice, they just chuckled and greeted him back. 'I thought making voices was my game' Finn called, referencing his character from IT. 'Oh, right. Sorry I stole your job' Grazer snapped back, sharing a short laugh with his friend. Wyatt greeted the rest of the cast that was sitting with them rather quietly and shyly. Y/n knew it wouldn't take long for the boys to start talking about them both. 'So, Wyatt...' it was Gaten's voice. 'What are your intentions with our y/n?' The poor girl just face palmed herself, knowing he was joking but still feeling sorry for the poor boy.

'Oh, ehm... see, I-' he tried to follow along with their game and improvise something, but he was cut off by Finn's voice. Suddenly, Finn, Noah, Gaten and Joe were standing behind y/n, as if they were her protection squad or something. 'Bro, you know I appreciate you, but if you hurt her I swear to God...' 'Finn, I swear to the Shadow Monster if you don't shut your mouth I'll shoot you and drop you in the vines.' Jack, Noah and the girls laughed while poor Wyatt just chuckled, he was visibly nervous. He shot a 'can we get out of here' look to y/n and she got it immediately. 'I'm gonna get something from the snack bar, be right back' she announced. 'Go with her' Jack mouthed to Wyatt, which he had been hoping he'd do.

'I'm sorry, I don't know what got into them' she apologized, trying not to look too directly at him. 'It's okay, they're just being a tease' he replied as they made it to the bar. Y/n took two brownies for her and some snacks for her friends. 'Let me help you' Wyatt offered, taking some of them in his hands. 'Thanks, you're such a gentleman' she said in a fake damsel-in-mistress voice, and he couldn't help but laugh. She smiled, looking up at the boy. 'Hey, would you like to, uhm, hang out sometime?' She asked. The boy froze and his eyes widened. Had y/n l/n really just asked him out? Before he even dared to?! Oh God. 'Yeah, that'd be nice.' He said, trying to sound chill, while on the inside he was jumping in joy.

'So? How'd it go?!' Millie asked as soon as y/n closed the door behind her. She looked at her friend and couldn't help the widest grin from appearing on her face. 'Holy cow y/n you better start talking because I've been dying to know!' She exclaimed. 'Well, we went to (restaurant) and he asked me to be his girlfriend-' she was cut off by Sadie. 'You said yes, right?! You said yes, please tell me you said yes!' Y/n rolled her eyes. 'I said no, Sadie. Uh, obviously I said yes!' Both y/n's friends started screaming like fangirls. 'And...' she added.

Sadie and Millie turned back their attention to y/n, who stayed quiet for a couple seconds before adding, 'he brought me home, I mean, in a cab of course, he can't drive yet, and if his parents-' 'FOR GOD'S SAKE Y/N JUST SAY IT' Millie yelled. 'Okay, okay! Geez! He walked me to the front door and... and we kissed!' The three of them started jumping and screaming in excitement. 'Holy shit y/n you just had your first kiss!' Sadie pointed out. 'I know!'

'Finally, you're here, how'd it go?!' Finn asked as soon as Wyatt entered the apartment. 'Bro, it was amazing, dinner was great, the movie was awesome, dude, I swear...' he didn't finish his sentence before Jack was there, interrogating him as well. 'Did you two share a milkshake? Did you take her home? Did she thank you? Did you teo kiss? Did you make out in her porch?!' Wyatt laughed. 'No, we did not make out. We kissed, though. I kissed her actually.' Was his answer. Both boys stood there, proud of their friend. 'You're not a baby anymore! Guess now you're actually Stan the Man!" Finn joked. "You got your first kiss!" Jack pointed out. Wyatt chuckled. "I know!"

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gloriousgwendolinechristie · 7 years

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Press: Rian Johnson's Parting Porg Gift, Lightsaber Bruises, and More From the Cast of Star Wars: The Last Jedi

SYFY – The full press push for Star Wars: The Last Jedi is now at full hyperspace, with director Rian Johnson and the cast appearing almost everywhere as we inch closer to the film’s release on December 15th.

Rian Johnson gathered together with cast members Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Laura Dern (Amilyn Holdo), John Boyega (Finn), and Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma) for a Facebook Live event, and the gang passed around an upturned stormtrooper helmet full of questions. Here are some of the best responses!

On which cast member is the funniest: John Boyega was quick to say BB-8, and the others quickly agreed. Hamill joked that if his beeps are translated, “he kills it every time.”

On which cast member has the best pet: Boyega again jumped in and declared that his British Nigerian cat was the best of the bunch. When Hamill brought up the fact that his own daughter’s dog, Millie, has over 19,000 instagram followers, Boyega came back at him with a response for the ages– “My cat doesn’t need followers, cause he’s got self-esteem.”

Does the cast ever think of stealing BB-8? Most of them do, but this is when Rian Johnson dropped a porg-bomb on the porg-ceedings. When one of the actors mentioned stealing a porg, Johnson said that he doesn’t need to do that, because master craftsman Neil Scanlan gave him a fully functional porg replica as a wrap gift. The rest of the cast instantly came down with a big case of porg envy.

On calling or texting: It wasn’t really related to the film, but a lightning round question asked if everyone preferred to text or call. The result? Everyone present preferred to text, to which Hamill quipped, “Old fashioned technology takes a dive.”

What would you ask your character if given the chance? Christie was quick to say that she would ask Phasma why she was so mean, while Hamill went with the classic line, “Aren’t you a little short for a stormtrooper?”

Boyega said that he would ask Finn who his father was, but when it came time for Laura Dern’s answer, she froze and said nothing. Of course we still don’t know much about Dern’s new character of Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo, but Mark Hamill almost spilled some of the blue milk about her.

When the upturned helmet of questions was passed to Dern, she hesitated. Seeing this, Hamill said full out, “You’re very brave in the movie.” Dern had the following response:

She laughed very soon after, but she wasn’t about to confirm or deny any information. She’s a regular David Lynch performer, so she certainly knows how to keep secrets.

On how filming this movie has changed their lives and their careers: Speaking of David Lynch, the Twin Peaks/Blue Velvet/Wild at Heart actress answered this question by saying that her kids can actually see her in a movie for once, inferring that Blue Velvet in particular is not especially suitable for children. Boyega said that he “gets a whole bunch of free stuff”, and Christie mentioned how her friend’s kids think she’s cool now, and not just “lofty and distant.” Hamill probably had the funniest response, saying that they all “get to do publicity for a movie that really doesn’t need any.”

On the best advice they’ve gotten about being in the spotlight:

Christie: “Wear underarm deodorant.”

Hamill: “Enjoy it while it lasts.”

Boyega: “Can’t remember. Jet lagged.”

Dern: (from her third grade teacher) “Keep your eyes on your own paper.”

How often did someone accidentally get whacked with a lightsaber? This question got interesting fast, and mostly because of how it was handled. Hamill immediately started talking about the lightsaber battles of the original trilogy (saying that Vader’s helmet limited his vision, so he would get brusied up a bit), but when it came time to talk about the lightsaber battles in the new film, Hamill left it with a “Do I use my lightsaber, uhhhh…” and Johnson joined in with him. Fans are dying to know whether or not Luke Skywalker will be busting out his classic green lightsaber in the new film…whether or not this happens, both Hamill and Johnson seem to realize that the fan desire for it is strong.

Press: Rian Johnson’s Parting Porg Gift, Lightsaber Bruises, and More From the Cast of Star Wars: The Last Jedi was originally published on Glorious Gwendoline | Gwendoline Christie Fansite

#gwendoline christie #game of thrones #got cast #Brienne of Tarth #star wars #Captain Phasma #The Force Awakens #Mockingjay 2 #Commander Lyme #THG #The Hunger Game

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newstechreviews · 5 years

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A child opens a box. He starts jumping and screaming with joy—not an unusual sound in the halls of Mattel’s headquarters where researchers test new toys. But this particular toy is a doll, and it’s rare for parents to bring boys into these research groups to play with dolls. It’s rarer still for a boy to immediately attach himself to one the way Shi’a just did.

An 8-year-old who considers himself gender fluid and whose favorite color is black one week, pink the next, Shi’a sometimes plays with his younger sister’s dolls at home, but they’re “girly, princess stuff,” he says dismissively. This doll, with its prepubescent body and childish features, looks more like him, right down to the wave of bleached blond bangs. “The hair is just like mine,” Shi’a says, swinging his head in tandem with the doll’s. Then he turns to the playmate in the toy-testing room, a 7-year-old girl named Jhase, and asks, “Should I put on the girl hair?” Shi’a fits a long, blond wig on the doll’s head, and suddenly it is no longer an avatar for him, but for his sister.

The doll can be a boy, a girl, neither or both, and Mattel, which calls this the world’s first gender-neutral doll, is hoping its launch on Sept. 25 redefines who gets to play with a toy traditionally deemed taboo for half the world’s kids. Carefully manicured features betray no obvious gender: the lips are not too full, the eyelashes not too long and fluttery, the jaw not too wide. There are no Barbie-like breasts or broad, Ken-like shoulders. Each doll in the Creatable World series looks like a slender 7-year-old with short hair, but each comes with a wig of long, lustrous locks and a wardrobe befitting any fashion-conscious kid: hoodies, sneakers, graphic T-shirts in soothing greens and yellows, along with tutus and camo pants.

Mattel’s first promotional spot for the $29.99 product features a series of kids who go by various pronouns—him, her, them, xem—and the slogan “A doll line designed to keep labels out and invite everyone in.” With this overt nod to trans and nonbinary identities, the company is betting on where it thinks the country is going, even if it means alienating a substantial portion of the population. A Pew Research survey conducted in 2017 showed that while 76% of the public supports parents’ steering girls to toys and activities traditionally associated with boys, only 64% endorse steering boys toward toys and activities associated with girls.

For years, millennial parents have pushed back against “pink aisles” and “blue aisles” in toy stores in favor of gender-neutral sections, often in the name of exposing girls to the building blocks and chemistry kits that foster interest in science and math but are usually categorized as boys’ toys. Major toy sellers have listened, thanks to the millennial generation’s unrivaled size, trend-setting ability and buying power. Target eliminated gender-specific sections in 2015. The same year, Disney banished “boys” and “girls” labels from its children’s costumes, inviting girls to dress as Captain America and boys as Belle. Last year, Mattel did away with “boys” and “girls” toy divisions in favor of nongendered sections: dolls or cars, for instance.

But the Creatable World doll is something else entirely. Unlike model airplanes or volcano kits, dolls have faces like ours, upon which we can project our own self-image and anxieties. Mattel tested the doll with 250 families across seven states, including 15 children who identify as trans, gender-nonbinary or gender-fluid and rarely see themselves reflected in the media, let alone their playthings. “There were a couple of gender-creative kids who told us that they dreaded Christmas Day because they knew whatever they got under the Christmas tree, it wasn’t made for them,” says Monica Dreger, head of consumer insights at Mattel. “This is the first doll that you can find under the tree and see is for them because it can be for anyone.”

The population of young people who identify as gender-nonbinary is growing. Though no large surveys have been done of kids younger than 10, a recent study by the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that 27% of California teens identify as gender-nonconforming. And a 2018 Pew study found 35% of Gen Z-ers (born 1995 to 2015) say they personally know someone who uses gender-neutral pronouns like they and them, compared with just 16% of Gen X-ers (born 1965 to 1980). The patterns are projected to continue with Generation Alpha, who were born in 2010 and later. Those kids, along with boys who want to play with dolls and girls who identify as “tomboys” and don’t gravitate toward fashion doll play, are an untapped demographic. Mattel currently has 19% market share in the $8 billion doll industry; gaining just one more point could translate to $80 million in revenue for the company.

Mattel sees an even broader potential for Creatable World beyond gender-creative kids. In testing, the company found that Generation Alpha children chafed at labels and mandates no matter their gender identity: They didn’t want to be told whom a toy was designed for or how to play with it. They were delighted with a doll that had no name and could transform and adapt according to their whims.

Photograph by Angie Smith for TIME. Shi’a, left, and Jhase play with Mattel’s gender-neutral doll

But it’s parents who are making the purchasing decisions, and no adult is going to have a neutral reaction to this doll. In testing groups, several parents felt the “gender-neutral” branding of the toy pushed a political agenda, and some adults objected to the notion of their sons ever playing with dolls. Mattel’s President Richard Dickson insists the doll isn’t intended as a statement. “We’re not in the business of politics,” he says, “and we respect the decision any parent makes around how they raise their kids. Our job is to stimulate imaginations. Our toys are ultimately canvases for cultural conversation, but it’s your conversation, not ours; your opinion, not ours.”

Yet even offering customers that blank canvas will be seen as political in a country where gender-neutral bathrooms still stir protests. Mattel joins a cohort of other companies that have chosen a side in a divisive political climate. Just in the past two years, Nike launched a campaign starring Colin Kaepernick after the NFL dropped him from the league for kneeling during the national anthem to protest racism. Airbnb offered free housing to people displaced in the face of President Trump’s travel ban. Dick’s Sporting Goods stopped selling assault-style weapons after the Parkland shooting. All these companies have reported eventual sales bumps after staking their claim in the culture wars.

When pressed with these examples, Dickson admits that staying neutral is not an option if you want to be perceived as an innovator. “I think being a company today, you have to have a combination of social justice along with commerce, and that balance can be tricky,” Dickson says. “Not everyone will appreciate you or agree with you.”

In fact, dissent among boomers, Gen X-ers and even millennials may be a positive sign, according to Mattel’s own researchers. “If all the parents who saw the dolls said, ‘This is what we’ve been waiting for,’ we wouldn’t be doing our jobs,” says Dreger. “That would mean this should have already been in the market. So we’re maybe a little behind where kids are, ahead of where parents are, and that’s exactly where we need to be.”

***

Walking into Mattel’s headquarters, it’s difficult to imagine a gender-neutral world of play. A huge mural depicts some of the company’s most recognizable toys. A classic bouffanted version of Barbie in a black-and-white bathing suit and heels squints down at visitors. In another picture close by, a little boy puffs out his chest and rips open his shirt, Superman style, to reveal a red Mattel logo that reads “Strength and Excellence.” Even a toddler would be able to discern the messaging on how a woman and a man are expected to look from these images.

But the evolution within Mattel is obvious once visitors make their way past the entryway and into the designers’ cubicles. Inspiration boards are covered with pictures of boys in skirts and girls in athletic gear. The most striking images are mashups of popular teen stars: the features of Camila Mendes and Cole Sprouse, who play Veronica and Jughead on Riverdale, combine to create one androgynous face, and Millie Bobby Brown and Finn Wolfhard, who play the main characters on Stranger Things, blend into a single floppy-haired, genderless person with sharp cheekbones.

In the past decade, toy companies have begun to tear down gender barriers. Smaller businesses like GoldieBlox, which launched in 2012 and builds engineering toys targeting girls, and large companies like Lego, which created the female-focused Lego Friends line the same year, have made STEM toys for girls more mainstream. Small independent toymakers have pushed things further with dollhouses painted green and yellow instead of purple and pink, or cooking kits that are entirely white instead of decorated with flowers or butterflies.

Perhaps it’s surprising, then, that nobody has beaten Mattel to creating a gender-neutral doll. A deep Google search for such a toy turns up baby dolls or strange-looking plush creatures that don’t resemble any human who ever walked this earth. Nothing comes close to the Creatable World doll that Mattel has conjured up over the past two years.

Scientists have debunked the idea that boys are simply born wanting to play with trucks and girls wanting to nurture dolls. A study by psychologists Lisa Dinella and Erica Weisgram, co-editors of Gender Typing of Children’s Toys: How Early Play Experiences Impact Development, found that when wheeled toys were painted white — and thus deprived of all color signaling whether they were “boys’ toys” or “girls’ toys” — girls and boys chose to play with the wheeled toys equally as often. Dinella points out that removing gendered cues from toys facilitates play between boys and girls, crucial practice for when men and women must interact in the workplace and home as adults. She adds that millennials (born 1981 to 1996) have pushed to share child-care responsibilities, and that battle ought to begin in the playroom. “If boys, like girls, are encouraged to learn parental skills with doll play at a young age, you wind up with more nurturing and empathetic fathers,” she says.

And yet creating a doll to appeal to all kids, regardless of gender, remains risky. “There are children who are willing to cross those gender boundaries that society places on toys, but there’s often a cost that comes with crossing those boundaries,” Dinella says. “That cost seems to be bigger for boys than it is for girls.” Some of those social repercussions no doubt can be traced to parental attitudes. In Los Angeles, the majority of the seven parents in an early testing group for Creatable World complained the doll “feels political,” as one mom put it.

“I don’t think my son should be playing with dolls,” she continued. “There’s a difference between a girl with a truck and a boy with a Barbie, and a boy with a Barbie is a no-no.”

The only dad in the group shrugged: “I don’t know. My daughter is friends with a boy who wears dresses. I used to be against that type of thing, but now I’m O.K. with it.”

In videos of those testing groups, many parents fumbled with the language to describe the dolls, confusing gender (how a person identifies) with sexuality (whom a person is attracted to), mixing up gender-neutral (without gender) and trans (a person who has transitioned from one gender to another) and fretting about the mere idea of a boy playing with a doll. A second mom in Los Angeles asked before seeing the doll, “Is it transgender? How am I supposed to have a conversation with my kid about that?” After examining the toy and discussing gender-fluidity with the other parents, she declared, “It’s just too much. Can’t we go back to 1970?”

After the session, Dreger analyzed the parental response. “Adults get so tied up in the descriptions and definitions,” she said. “They jump to this idea of sexuality. They make themselves more anxious about it. For kids it’s much more intuitive.”

Why, exactly, a new generation is rejecting categorizations that society has been using for millennia is up for debate. Eighty-one percent of Gen Z-ers believe that a person shouldn’t be defined by gender, according to a poll by the J. Walter Thompson marketing group. But it’s not just about gender — it’s about authenticity, whether real or perceived. Macho male actors and glam, ultra-feminine actresses have less cultural cache than they used to. Gen Z, with its well-honed radar for anything overly polished or fake-seeming, prefers YouTube confessionals about battling everything from zits to depression. When the New York Times recently asked Generation Z to pick a name for itself, the most-liked response was “Don’t call us anything.”

Perhaps their ideas of gender have expanded under the influence of parents who are beginning to reject practices like gender-reveal parties that box kids in even before they are born. Jenna Karvunidis, who popularized the gender-reveal party, recently revealed on Facebook that her now 10-year-old child is gender-nonconforming and that she regrets holding the party. “She’s telling me ‘Mom, there are many genders. Mom, there’s many different sexualities and all different types,’ and I take her lead on that,” Karvunidis said in an interview with NPR.

Perhaps it’s that a generation of kids raised on video games where they could create their own avatars, with whatever styling and gender they please has helped open up the way kids think about identity. Perhaps the simple fact that more celebrities like Amandla Stenberg and Sam Smith are coming out as gender-nonbinary has made it easier for other young people to do the same. Generation Alpha, the most diverse generation in America in all senses of the term, is likely to grow up with even more liberal views on gender.

“This is a rallying cry of this generation,” says Jess Weiner, a cultural consultant for large companies looking to tap into modern-day markets and navigate issues of gender. “Companies in this day and age have to evolve or else they die, they go away … And part of that evolving is trying to understand things they didn’t prior.”

Photograph by JUCO for TIMEMattel, which calls this the world’s first gender-neutral doll, is hoping its launch redefines who gets to play with a toy traditionally deemed taboo for half the world’s kids.

Mattel isn’t the first company to notice the trend among young shoppers moving away from gender-specific products. Rob Smith—the founder of the Phluid Project, a gender-free clothing store that caters to the LGBTQ+ community in New York City—says several large corporations, including Mattel, have approached him for advice on how to market to the young masses. “I work with a lot of companies who are figuring out that the separation between male and female is less important to young consumers who don’t want to be boxed into anything,” he says. “There’s men’s shampoo and women’s shampoo, but it’s just all shampoo. Companies are starting to investigate that in-between space in order to win over Gen Z.”

Still, Mattel enters a politically charged debate at a precarious moment for corporations in America, where companies that want to gain customer loyalty are being pushed to one aisle or the other. A study from the PR agency Weber Shandwick found 47% of millennials think CEOs should take stances on social issues. Some 51% of millennials surveyed said they are more likely to buy products from companies run by activist CEOs. Now, if you walk into a Patagonia store, you’ll see a sign that reads, “The President stole your land. Take action now.”

Such activism is often born of self-interest: companies want to appeal to liberal customers and retain young employees and their allies. They face little risk by speaking up, but major consequences by sitting on the sidelines. In August, customers boycotted Equinox and SoulCycle—two companies that have aggressively courted the LGBTQ+ community—when reports emerged that their key investor was holding a fundraiser for Trump with ticket prices as high as $250,000. According to data analyses by Second Measure, a month later, SoulCycle attendance is down almost 13%.

Weiner says SoulCycle’s experience should serve as a cautionary tale. “I think businesses of any size now recognize that their consumer base values transparency over any other attribute. They want to know that your board is reflective of your choices, and that’s caught a lot of businesses off guard,” Weiner says. “You can’t talk about gender equity in your commercial and then have no women on your board. They have to be savvy.”

Now, a toy company has chosen to make a product specifically to appeal to the progressive part of the country. Lisa McKnight, the senior vice president of the global doll portfolio at Mattel, says major retailers have been enthusiastic about Creatable World. “They’re excited about the message of inclusivity,” she says. “The world is becoming a more diverse and inclusive place, and some people want to do more to support that.” When pressed on the risks, she lays out the alternative. “Candidly, we ask ourselves if another company were to launch a product line like this, how would we feel? And after that gut check, we are proceeding.”

Photograph by Angie Smith for TIMEThe dolls faces betray no obvious gender: the lips are not too full, the eyelashes not too long and fluttery, the jaw not too wide. Here, the dolls faces are painted at Mattel’s headquarters on September 5.

Mattel will launch Creatable World exclusively online first, in part to better control the message. That includes giving sneak previews to select influencers and leaders in the LGBTQ+ community. Selling the doll in retail stores will be more complicated. For one thing, there’s the question of where to place it in stores to attract the attention of shoppers who might not venture into a doll section. Store clerks will have to be trained in what pronouns to use when talking about the doll and how to handle anxious parents’ questions about it. And then there are practical concerns. Dickson admits the company is ready for the possibility that protests against Creatable World dolls could hurt other Mattel brands, namely Barbie.

Mattel has taken risks before. Most recently, in 2016, it added three new body types to the Barbie doll: tall, petite and, most radically, curvy. It was the first time the company had made a major change to one of the most recognizable brands—and bodies—in the world in the doll’s almost-60-year history. The change helped propel Barbie from a retrograde doll lambasted by feminists for her impossible shape to a modern toy. She is now on the rise. Her sales have been up for the last eight quarters, and she saw a 14% sales bump in the last year alone, according to Mattel.

But Mattel felt late to the game when it changed Barbie’s body: For years the Mindy Kalings and Ashley Grahams of the world had been championing fuller body types. Parents had been demanding change with boycotts and letter campaigns. By contrast, Creatable World feels like uncharted territory. Consider children’s media: Disney hasn’t introduced a major gay character in any of its movies, let alone a gender-nonconforming one. There are no trans superheroes. Even characters whose creators say they are queer—like Dumbledore in the Harry Potter series—haven’t actually come out on the page or the screen. In that pop-culture space, a gender-neutral doll seems radical.

Even though there is no scientific evidence to prove that this is the case, there will be customers who say that even exposing their children to a gender-nonbinary doll through commercials or in a play group would threaten to change their child’s identity. This debate will spin out into sociopolitical questions about whether the types of toys children play with affect their sense of identity and gender.

That conversation, if it comes, is worth it, according to Dickson. “I think if we could have a hand in creating the idea that a boy can play with a perceived girl toy and a girl can play with a perceived boy toy, we would have contributed to a better, more sensitive place of perception in the world today,” he says. “And even more so for the kids that find themselves in that challenging place, if we can make that moment in their life a bit more comfortable, and knowing we created something that makes them feel recognized, that’s a beautiful thing.”

#Blogger

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itsfinancethings · 5 years

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September 25, 2019 at 12:01AM

Photograph by Angie Smith for TIME. Shi’a, left, and Jhase play with Mattel’s gender-neutral doll

***

��I don’t think my son should be playing with dolls,” she continued. “There’s a difference between a girl with a truck and a boy with a Barbie, and a boy with a Barbie is a no-no.”

The only dad in the group shrugged: “I don’t know. My daughter is friends with a boy who wears dresses. I used to be against that type of thing, but now I’m O.K. with it.”

#IFTTT #Blogger

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milliebobbybrownfan · 7 years

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New Post has been published on Millie Bobby Brown Fan #MillieBobbyBrown #StrangerThings

New Post has been published on http://millie-bobby-brown.com/pressphotos-millie-for-new-york-magazine/

Press/Photos: Millie for 'New York' Magazine

For the Child Stars of Stranger Things, Fame Hasn’t Changed a Thing. Almost. Since Stranger Things debuted in 2016, the core tween-and-teen members of the cast have handed out peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches during a live Emmys telecast; celebrated ecstatically on national television when they won the Screen Actors Guild Award for best TV drama ensemble; met President Obama, who, according to actress Millie Bobby Brown, told them they were “cool”; appeared before thousands of screaming fans at Comic-Con; been celebrated on social media every time one or more of them does virtually anything semi-adorable; and seen their series get nominated this year for a slew of Emmys, including one for Brown’s performance as the telekinetically powerful Eleven. (The Stranger Things kids will not be on Emmy PB&J duty this year, America.)

Ask the members of this gang of six — that would be Brown, 13; Finn Wolfhard, 14; Gaten Matarazzo, 14; Caleb McLaughlin, 15; Noah Schnapp, 12; and now Sadie Sink, 15, who joins the cast in the forthcoming second season as a skater girl named Max — what feels most different about their lives now versus a year ago, and they’ll mention how often they get recognized in public or how many new followers they’ve gained on Instagram. But otherwise, they insist their day-to-day is mostly the same.

“It’s definitely been affected by the show a big bunch, but it’s not different,” says Brown. “I’m still the same person.” (For the record, during this interview, Brown requested a can of Coke to drink. She did not, however, crush it using her mind.)

“A lot of people consider us famous, but I think we all hate the F-word,” says Matarazzo, who plays Dustin, the one with the infectious grin. “All we are is people doing our job, and our job happens to be in the public eye a lot.”

As improbable as it sounds, given the toxicity that often results from mixing youth with sudden celebrity, the members of the Stranger Things cast come across exactly like their characters on the show: as good, grounded kids who genuinely like and support one another.

During production of the second season of Stranger Things — which took place over eight months in Atlanta starting last fall, under what the cast admits was a lot of pressure to replicate season one’s success — the six actors regularly messaged one another in a group chat they named “Stranger Texts.” They rarely brought their phones to set, though, opting to spend their downtime engaging in more old-fashioned pursuits. “We play cards, we play Monopoly, we play games in the school trailer,” Brown says. “As soon as we’re working, we’re kind of like those ’80s kids again.” They often hung out together off-set, too, taking day trips to Six Flags and trick-or-treating as a unit, which, since they were in costume, mostly enabled them to go unrecognized. “This one kid was like, ‘Are you the cast from Stranger Things?’ ” Brown recalls. “And I was all like, ‘No, I’m Harley Quinn.’ ”

Even outside of filming and their various publicity commitments, the kids stay in touch — though, as is typical in any group dynamic, some one-on-one relationships are closer than others. Brown and Sink, for example, immediately connected as the only two girls of the group and planned a late-summer vacation together with their families. If there’s any latent jealousy between any of them, it’s not apparent. Schnapp — whose character, Will, is absent from much of season one after getting sucked into the Upside Down, the show’s disturbing parallel universe — was sometimes sidelined from the onslaught of media attention in the first season. When asked if that was hard for him, he simply says it’s been nicer in season two, now that Will has a more front-and-center role in the story. Then his castmates immediately jump to his defense.

“Noah wasn’t a part of a lot of the press stuff” last season, says Wolfhard, who plays Mike. “I remember we were super-bummed when we heard that he wasn’t coming to The Tonight Show. But now it’s all cool.”

“And now we have Sadie,” Schnapp says, careful to make sure no one feels left out.

“We really are best friends, I feel like,” says Matarazzo, and Sink jumps in to say: “It’s not an act.”

At least one thing has changed for these kids, Wolfhard concedes. Back home in Vancouver, Canada, he says, “The bullies at my school are kind of afraid of me now. Which is great.”

*This article appears in the August 21, 2017, issue of New York Magazine. – Source

2017: New York 2017: Photo Session #017

#Photo Sessions #Photos #Press #Projects #Scans #Season 2 #Stranger Things

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itsfinancethings · 5 years

Link

Photograph by Angie Smith for TIME. Shi’a, left, and Jhase play with Mattel’s gender-neutral doll

***

“I don’t think my son should be playing with dolls,” she continued. “There’s a difference between a girl with a truck and a boy with a Barbie, and a boy with a Barbie is a no-no.”

The only dad in the group shrugged: “I don’t know. My daughter is friends with a boy who wears dresses. I used to be against that type of thing, but now I’m O.K. with it.”

#IFTTT #Blogger

0 notes