#clearly I had a lot of content on my camera roll haha

[chalamet-chalamet]

Timothée Chalamet & Austin Butler-Dune: Part 2 press

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy weekend Fandom :) Per usual we have a few high content eps then the next is a little lower. Still a good ep to be had though. Seeing a softer side to Tim for Angela. What a good friendship they have. And the continued reasons to dislike Lucy’s parents so much. I go off on her mom so be prepared. They spend this episode apart which always makes me sad. But it’s a great episode regardless. Let’s get this started.

3x10 Man Of Honor

We start off the ep with some flashbacks to the academy. At first I thought my clip was shaky, then I realized its Nolan's shoddy camera skills not mine LOL This is the one moment I wanted to highlight out of the academy shots. Lucy’s reason for becoming a cop. It’s prominent for later in this episode. Especially with her bloody mom….Her feeling adrift since college and not knowing where she belonged. That when she stepped into the LAPD It finally clicked.

Saying she didn’t feel the time she spent before this was a wasted effort. Which is amazing most people regret the wasted time. To me I agree with her. It’s that time before you find your thing that eventually leads you to it. That need to want to protect others from harm as part of her reason. Fantastic and very Lucy. I do love her finding her place as a cop. It’s why she fights tooth and nail at everything she does with this job. What Tim saw in her from day one. That fire and drive to succeed. Love our girl.

The scene in roll call is hilarious. Jackson’s dad told him when he got P2 he got bottle of whiskey. That he was called up to the front and given this. They are both operating under this assumption when Grey mentions them. It’s too damn funny. I love their friendship so much. It truly one of the best parts of this episode. Jackson gets tongue tied so Lucy steps in for them both. Telling Grey it's their first day as P2's all exicited.

He asks them if they want flowers? Cupcakes? It's why Grey asks Lucy what the reward is for making P2 above. They’re insanely embarrassed by the time Grey is done with them. They get to ride together which is the highlight after all that. It’s so weird to have roll call without Tim there though. I feel his absence but I guess even T.O.’s get days off. Boo.

We catch Jackson and Lucy in their shop. Jackson keeps getting ‘Congratulations’ texts from his family. You can see the slight jealously on Lucy’s face. I totally get it. For the most part I relate to Tim. When it comes to poopy unsupportive parents I'm right there with Lucy. She and I are alike where I too have tried on a lot of hats. Just trying to find myself as well. My parents being judgy unsupportive jerks the entire way.

Lucy has finally found what her calling is and just wants her parents to be proud of her. Makes me wanna cry just writing that out. Because even when you don’t have good relationship, there is still a part of you craves that approval. When really is should be the other way around. They should be vying to be in your life.

Jackson invites her to his family tradition dinner. So sweet he really takes care of her so much. Lucy declines because her parents are supposed to come over for dinner. She thinks they’re finally coming around to her being a cop. Jackson is so excited for her and says that’s great. I love this scene. They’re so excited to be riding together it’s adorable. Getting to use ac and listen to music haha It's precious.

We cut to Tim on his day off. Yelling at Kojo to move when he’s given up on their walk LOL It's the way Tim whines at Kojo that makes me laugh so hard. Kojo refusing to get up even though they are close to the house. That dog clearly runs that relationship and it makes me giddy to no end. I adore any scene we get with Tim and his dog. Ovary explosion for me. I’m a huge animal lover. To have a dog and Tim in a scene? Phew lord. Gimme. Tim gets a text from Angela saying she needs him ASAP. He finally gets Kojo to move by asking him if he wants a steak? Lmao Spoiled Fur-baby.

Tim gets to the address and it’s a wedding dress shop. He enters hesitantly wondering what is going on... He asks the employee where she is? They tell him she is currently in the changing suite. She’s gone through half their tissue supply. Aww poor thing. Tim sighs and makes his way to her. Once inside asks what’s wrong? Is she going into labor? Lmao No love. Nothing like that. He is straight with her when she asks if she looks fat. I love how he tells her like it is while also being sweet about it. The Tim Bradford special. Telling her who cares what her stupid friend thinks. If she's not ashamed of her baby bump then screw everyone else.

Angela is still upset she can’t hide her belly in her dress. Then we get to see protective/supportive Tim come out. Mmm one of my fav flavors. Asking her ’Who said you have to hide your belly?’ Angela tells him her bridesmaids did. The dress she’s in was supposed to camouflage it the best and its not doing that.

I adore him building her up when she’s down. Look at him taking the skills he learned from Lucy. Using them in this scenario. I love it sfm. Tells her to show off her baby belly. To be proud not ashamed. To wear what she feels confident in. Ugh my heart Timothy. He’s doing exactly what she needed. This is why she texted him. To be that emotional support friend. Her face says it all in that gif above.

What I love about this scene we get to see another side of him. Not just work Tim. A supportive and thoughtful friend. If Lucy could see him right now she would be dying haha He asks her what her dream dress is? Angela tells him what she wants. He says he’ll go get the dress lady and they’ll start there.

I love this man so much. It’s insane. She looks so at ease and taken care by the end of their scene. What a good bestie does. Can only hope we can have scenes like this when Tim marries Lucy. Angela helping him out but giving him crap in a loving way baha Good man right here. Already loved him before this but this only adds to it. Like a sundae that was already delicious and adding on more yummy toppings. Only makes it even better.

Angela is trying on more dresses. Tim asking her if she’s doing ok? I’m loving this soft version of Tim. If he’s this sweet and supportive with Angela. Can only imagine how he would be with Lucy and their plans when they get there. Angela says hard to get dress on over her bowling ball. Naww Tim’s face when she finally comes out is so cute. Once again all I can think of is his face when he sees Lucy in hers someday. I'm sorry I can’t help it LOL My brain is wired to go there now with them together.

Tells her ‘Whoa.’ building up her confidence even more. It’s so sweet. Angela agrees it’s perfect and thanks Tim for doing this with her. He does the sweetest smirk and lets her know ‘Of course’. A crash interrupts their little moment. Two ladies are fighting over a dress. Tim and Angela come out to see the fight. The dress lady says she’s called the police. Not to worry. Tim starts to film it in case they need it for evidence.

Then his future wife and her bestie show up on the scene. Tim couldn’t be more delighted to watch her and Jackson handle this. Lucy is distracted the minute they enter the scene. Tim Is in a dress shop for one and two with Angela. Her reaction couldn’t be more pure and adorable. Asking if he’s there to help her pick out a dress? Just the thought of it is making her so happy and proud of him. The immediate joy on her face.

The thought of him doing this makes Lucy so damn giddy. Jackson doesn’t have time for her work flirt and goes after the suspects LOL Tim’s reply is classic Tim. God forbid she get to see another soft side of him. Which is exactly why she’s so giddy BTW. Tim replying to her question 'All he’s doing right now is watching her not do her job.' Ha God Tim you could’ve at least said hello. She gets nervous and side steps before helping Jackson. It's adorable. She's totally lost her place in her excitement and is clearly distracted by it.

The more the situation escalates the more Tim and Angela enjoy themselves. Angela commenting ‘They grow up so fast don’t they?’ One of them tries to take off with the dress. Tim helps Lucy out cause he can’t help himself. Sticks out his leg tripping the suspect. He could not be enjoying himself more if he tried. Just being a proud hubby filming her arrest and making comments along the way hehe Lucy's face while he does this. She is not amused at all. I’m cracking up. God I love these two idiots so much. Act more married please. You are fooling no one.

Her dinner will her parents Or really parent has arrived. Lucy being a wonderful daughter her mother doesn’t deserve. She's made lotus root soup which is her favorite for their evening Trying to curry favor with her before their dinner even begins. I get it. Her mom shows up solo…. Congratulates Jackson before he leaves. She is nicer and more of a supportive parent to Jackson than her own daughter… ugh been there…Lucy asks her where her father is?

Her mom says off handedly like it’s no big deal he’s at his book club. Like this dinner meant nothing to him. Her face kills me. Trying to just shake off the hurt. Melissa crushes this scene btw. My heart breaks for her over and over. Lucy continues to brush it off and say they can have a girls night to celebrate then. Her mom drops the hammer very early. Doesn’t even try to pretend to be happy about her graduating to P2. Says she isn't there to celebrate.

Saying how they need to talk about this whole police thing. Like it’s just been some random hobby the last year or so for her. Even gives a sarcastic 'Brava.' Like she didn’t almost friggin die from this 'hobby' last year. Telling her to do something meaningful with her life. To get a real profession. The emotional abuse happening in this scene hurts to watch. It gets under my skin as the hits keep coming. Basically saying what she’s doing doesn’t mean anything. Once again Melissa is wonderful in this scene. Watching how it slowly escalates and her body language through out. Trying to take what her mother is telling her and not let it affect her. It works for a little bit but not long...

States she wants Lucy to do something she’s proud of. One of the rudest things to tear your child down with. To only think of yourself and how their decisions make YOU look. Pisses me off so much. Just because my parents are the same damn way. To only think of themselves and not of their child. Such a narcissistic way to view Lucy and what she’s done with her life. How her career embarrasses them and they'd prefer her to just leave the last year or so behind. Just because it doesn't puff them up around their friends.

My parent's are obsessed with status as well. If I'm not using my degree (which I only got for them BTW) for a job it's not something to be proud of. Even though the job I currently have gives me independence to live on my own with no roommates (which is not cheap these days), pay all my own bills, and take care of me and my dogs with no help. But since it's not what they consider a profession to be proud of they aren't proud of me. So I relate painfully so to Lucy in this scene. Also the school thing such a boomer answer. My parent's are the same way.

To think school is the only answer to everything. That obsession with status and only wanting your kids to do their approved career choices. What makes them look good and smell good in front their social circle. Instead of thinking hey my kid is happy, they’re providing for themselves, they love what they do. They’re independent. No they only think how it negatively impacts them. I'm so mad for Lucy because I’ve lived this. The heartbreaking way she asks ‘Can’t you just support me?' Thinking why is this such a big ask?

This is why the support she gets from Tim is EVERYTHING to her. Why she lives and breathes for it. When you’re torn down your entire life it’s hard to have self esteem. Hard to believe you’ll ever be good at something. Even if you are you don't truly believe you are until someone tells you repeatedly. Emotional abuse growing up leaves lasting scars. You can see where it all stems from for Lucy in this one scene with her mother.

Her mom goes on to tell her to find a career that really helps people. Like a doctor. Uh she has. You just don’t like it. Says she doesn't mean to be blunt, but really she does. If her mom would take her head out of her ass for two seconds. She would see Lucy already has all the things she’s harping on her to achieve. I want to hug Lucy so much while her mom berates her. Giving me flashbacks to my own mother. The pot shots leave wounds that are hard to heal.

The way she says ‘They'll always love her but’ and there’s the emotional manipulation. Basically saying our love has a price tag and that tag is the job of OUR choice. Not the one that makes you happy but the one that is socially acceptable for them. The way she cringes and moves away from her mother's touch. Knowing it’s manipulative. Hurts my soul to watch. Last thing she wants right now is fake affection.

I do need to commend her for having the backbone to tell her mom to give her space. I've never had the guts to stand up to my mom. I just avoid her like the plague these days. Rarely interact with her. Easy when she lives on the other side of the country. All the way in Alaska and can stay there. So huge props to Lucy for being overwhelmed and setting a boundary in this moment.

That if she’s done expressing what a disappointment she is that she can just leave. Her mom doesn’t fight her in the least really. She does a little stomp trying to exude some power over her. It doesn't work. Then Lucy yells at her to go and she finally takes off. Phew. Hard scene to watch. The shot that pans out of Lucy is a great one but a heartbreaking one. Makes me so emotional to watch this scene. This scene resonates with me so much in the worst way. I wanna hug her so badly in that last gif. Wishing Jackson was there to do it for me.

The cuteness continues for Tim and Angela while they taste test cakes. This is a much needed contrast to Lucy's SL atm. Angela sighs and says this is stupid. That no matter what she picks Patrice will overrule her. Tim is sitting there all arms crossed. Has become one of my fav poses for him. Yum Tum. Says all authoritatively ‘Don’t let her.’

What I’m loving about theses scenes is we’re getting background on Tim. Which I always love getting. Why am I not surprised his dad got drunk and ruined his wedding? That his whole family seems like one giant disaster zone? (Other than Genny) I love him taking his past experience to help guide Angela with her wedding. Such growth. Saying a million things like what his wedding had you can’t control. But this she can. So to pick what she really wants.

Angela says she wants a Tres Leches cake, but Patrice will think it's too ethnic. SMH ..Tim goes into protect mode once again. I love it sfm. Letting her know ‘Screw Patrice. If she has a problem with Tres leches or anything else for that matter she can answer to him.’ Side note anytime Eric says any Spanish word I wanna climb him like a tree. He says it with the right inflection and it’s sexy af. You know he learned all that from his wife and I love it. Feral Caitlin will cool down now but hot damn. Protective Tim and a slight accent with a Spanish word? Lord help me. Also in the black hoodie? He’s trying to kill me.

Angela replies really? Tim nods his head and says 'Hell yeah.' Then proposes to him with a cookie to be her man of honor baha I love this episode for them. He tells man of honor isn’t a thing...She says yes it is. Lets him know he’s only person who’s made her feel sane. That she needs him to get through this wedding. He caves and says fine hehe Angela tells him his first duty is to fire her current made of honor Gretchen LMAO His reply ‘What?! ‘ I’m rolling. I love this man so much.

We catch Lucy and Jackson at the station next day getting their war bags loaded. Lucy saying he got in late must’ve had a good time. He shows her the necklace they gave him. St. Michael. Patron saint of cops. Lucy looks jealous and asks if his parents will adopt her? Jackson immediately sensing something is wrong. He asks if she had trouble with her folks? Picking up on Tim’s habit of being a lying liar who lies. She isn’t truthful with him and he can see right through it. The concern written all over his face.

Angela invites Gretchen to the station to be fired by Tim. It’s too funny. Tim asks why she can’t fire her? She says she’s working a case and has to go. Tim calls her a coward when he see’s Gretchen arrive lol. Another fun piece of history for Tim. He was at Angela’s nieces quinceanera. It’s how he introduces himself to Gretchen seeing as they met there before. Love them being close enough friends for him to attend that.

Gretchen is legit eyeing him the entire scene. Her eyes checking him out up and down. Can’t blame her look at the man. He is a sight to behold. Low key hits on him asking him if wants to make a little extra cash as the stripper? LMAO Too bad Lucy isn’t around to see this interaction. He always gets so flustered when someone does. I swear he doesn’t know the gorgeous creature he is when they do this.

Tim tells her she’s been fired from MOH. His cute little look when he says Angela picked him to be her man of honor. He’s happy to do it for her but doesn’t want anyone to hear it....lol You think she’s gonna be mad. Nope just relieved. Telling Tim it’s been a nightmare. Pulls out this massive book of ‘Patrice’s picks’ and the anti-anxiety meds that come with it. My god. Also the phone just for wedding needs. Tim’s face is hilarious he looks so very overwhelmed.

Lucy and Jackson get to end their day on a high note. They were able to link up with Nolan/Harper on their OP. Rescued a little girl and got her safely back to her mom. This scene is so validating for Lucy. Reminding her despite what her parents think this is her calling. That this is the right path for her and she’s helping people like she wanted to. May not be the way her parents approve but she is. Grey telling them that little girl wouldn't be here without their hard work. They're being put up for an award too from Grey as well. That is the icing on the cake for her in this scene. She needed this after that horrible fight with her mother.

We find Tim and Angela on the rooftop walking toward something. She asks him what he’s doing? He tells her ‘Being your man of honor.’ They walk up to a trashcan that has the 'Patrice picks' book in it. He tells her he has one job. Give her the wedding she wants. He douses it all in the lighter fluid. Hands her the lighter and asks if she cares to do the honors? Then Angela praises him and calls him amazing.

He could not be cuter when she says this to him. Being Tim he deflects it with sarcasm saying ‘All the time.’ Ha! It’s much different than the smile we get out of him in 5x13 when Lucy calls him amazing. But it is different when the love of your life calls you that vs your bestie. Still I love this for him. The Patrice phone rings and Angela tosses it in the fire. Tim has them step back cause the battery in it is gonna explode LOL Such a damn cute episode for Tim I can not stand it.

Best part of the episode for Lucy is this next scene. I love Jackson so very much for his loyal and loving friendship. Also for how he handles this whole thing. Knowing something is off with her. He called her mom and was told what her mom said. Tells Lucy he told her mom if she didn’t apologize to her she wasn’t going to set foot in their apartment again. Such a good friend. That’s a true blue bestie right there.

Then he follows it up with something even sweeter. Handing her a jewelry case saying this was from the West family. To remind her there are people out there who are proud of her. Proud of what she’s accomplished. I’m melting this is so damn sweet. I might get a cavity. He helps her put it on. Then tells her he’s taking her to dinner. For baseball steaks. She asks if they can do sushi instead? LOL Jackson easily concedes and says ‘Deal.’ He'll do whatever she wants.

Jackson takes care of Lucy so well. Filling that role until Tim is ready to step in and take his place. He would’ve been SO SO happy for her and Tim. To see Lucy be taken care of and treated like a Queen. Which she so very much deserves. To see her properly loved and happy. Makes me emotional thinking he’ll never get to see how happy Tim has made her.

Such a good episode even though Chenford were apart their SL’s separately were so good. What makes them so great. Can have amazing SL’s even when apart. Although I prefer them together heh.

Side notes-Non chenford

Getting to see Capt Anderson in their graduation flash back. My heart. I miss her.

The flashbacks to them at school were every cute. Lucy kicking ass in their combat classes. Of course she did. Nolan even commenting 'Think twice before taking on recruit Chen’ Obviously.

Nolan had a SL but I didn’t care about it until it involved Jackson and Lucy 😂

Thank you as always to those to like, comment, reblog and support these reviews. They’ve helped me a lot getting through this extended hiatus. I hope they’ve been helping you all as well. Shall see you in 3x11 :)

[hardcasey]

Sweet Tooth

Won't Fade into the Background - Part 2

Pairing: Toast x F!Reader

Summary: You are an owner of a bakery on Coruscant and end up running into a certain clone with a penchant for baked goods. 

Word Count: 7k (I got carried away lmao)

Rating/Warnings: T, Mostly fluff again, though it gets a little PG-13 at the end. Nothing too crazy tho.

A/N: Who’s more of a background clone than everyone’s fave boy Toast? I decided to give him the classic bakery au meet-cute that he deserves. <3 Not proofread so let me know if there are any glaring errors!

“You sure you don’t need any help cleaning up?” Your employee, Vella, called from the front of the shop. 

You poked your head out through the little window that separated the kitchen from the rest of the store. “I’m good, Vel. Go enjoy your Friday night.” 

“Alright, night boss,” The Twi’lek woman gave you a mock salute and laughed when she saw you roll your eyes before turning and heading out the door into the busy Coruscant streets. 

You turned back to your current task, taking inventory. It was not the most glamorous job, in fact it was your least favorite part about owning your own business, but it had to be done. With a sigh, you started counting, quickly losing yourself in the monotony. 

You were the proud owner of a small bakery on Coruscant. It was not the most lucrative job by far, but it had always been your dream to bake for a living, and you were proud to have achieved that goal so quickly. It had taken a lot of hard work to get to where you were now, along with quite a bit of luck. You had been finishing up your last year in culinary school when you walked by a place for rent right in the heart of the city. It had been right around when the war started, and the owner wanted to sell off the space as quickly as possible. You had the sneaking suspicion that he may have been involved with the Separatists and was trying to jump ship and flee the planet. Honestly, you didn’t really care what his deal was, only that he was giving you the place for a steal. Seppie or not, you were thankful for him. There was no other way you would have been able to afford a place in this part of the city otherwise. 

You had dropped a considerable portion of your savings into the purchase and renovation of the bakery, and there were times that you were subsisting off of nothing but cheap instant noodles, but everything had worked out in the end. The prime location meant there was a lot of foot traffic and it didn’t take long before you were turning a profit. And the quality of your pastries and baked goods earned you a loyal customer base, and you had many regulars that stopped in for a cup of caf and a little treat on their way to work. 

Once you finished up taking inventory, you headed out to the front to start cleaning up, stacking the chairs up on the tables so you could start sweeping. You were saving up for a droid that would sweep the floors for you, but you were still a ways off from that so you had to do it the old fashioned way. 

It was then that you noticed there was someone looking in through the window, clearly ogling the display of pastries and cakes that was there. The light from the setting sun pouring through the window cast their face in shadow, so you couldn’t tell who it was. 

Might as well invite them in, you thought to yourself as you leaned the broom against the wall. After all, the bakery wasn’t technically closed yet, though you almost never had customers at this time. 

You swung the door open and were about to say something to the figure when you saw them jump, clearly not realizing you were there. 

“Oh, hey, I’m sorry for scaring you! I just wanted to let you know that the bakery is still open if you want anything.” You said gently, holding your hands up in a placating manner. 

Now that you were outside, you could see the figure more clearly. They were a human male, with tan skin and warm brown eyes. He was wearing a grey uniform and his short dark hair was partly obscured by a matching grey hat. He seemed very familiar to you, and you were about to ask if you knew him, before it hit you. Duh! He was a clone. You weren’t used to seeing clones in anything other than their distinctive white armor, so it took a moment for your brain to put two and two together. 

“Oh, uh, I was just looking, ma’am! I’m very sorry.” He said quickly, the same way that a kid who had just been caught with their hand in the cookie jar would. He looked so sheepish, as if he was about to bolt any second. You weren’t sure why he was so apologetic, he was just looking through the window. A bunch of people did that. 

“No need to apologize, everyone looks through the windows.” You said, flashing him what you hoped was a reassuring smile. 

“I, uh, just wasn’t sure if you were gonna run me out or something,” he told you, averting his eyes and rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Why would I do that?” 

“Not many businesses are open to clones, and I wasn’t sure. I’ve never seen any clones in your shop and I guess I just assumed.” 

Okay, that lowkey made your blood boil. Why would anyone discriminate against the clones? They were the ones putting their lives on the line to protect the Republic, for kriffs sake! You hadn’t interacted with many clones, but the ones you had run into were nothing but polite and respectful. 

“That’s terrible! We absolutely allow clones here! You know what, come inside. There are still some pastries leftover from today. I’ll put them in a box for you and you can bring them back to your, er, squad? Company? Your friends!” You finished breathlessly, a little embarrassed you knew so little about anything involving the military. 

“Are you sure? I-I don’t have any money to pay for them,” He said sadly, his eyes darting down to his shoes as if there was suddenly something fascinating about them. 

“Nonsense! They’ll be going bad soon anyway and will just end up in the trash. You’ll be doing me a favor, honestly.” Without allowing him to protest further, you grabbed his elbow and tugged him into your shop. In the back of your mind you registered how big his bicep felt, which surprised you. He looked fit, yes, but it wasn’t like he was some meathead. Maybe his uniform just did a good job of disguising how strong he was. You felt yourself blush once you realised the path your thoughts had veered down and quickly pushed them out of your mind. 

“It smells good in here,” he said to no one in particular as he dropped his harm and headed behind the counter to start filling a box with leftover pastries. 

You smiled at him, before you realised something. “Forgive my manners, but I didn’t catch your name.” 

“CT-1928, ma’am.” He replied, his back straightening ever so slightly as he did, as if the action was ingrained in him.

“Do you have a nickname? I know a lot of clones go by them instead of their number.” You said delicately. You didn’t want to offend him by asking, but it felt so strange, so dehumanizing, to call him by a number. 

“Oh, uh, my brothers call me Toast.” He said, once again sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s not the greatest nickname, but it’s the one that stuck.” 

“Haha, I think it’s cute. And don’t worry, my parents used to call me Possum when I was little, because I used to climb around and get into the trash. It was cute until they said it in front of my friends, then they started calling me that too.” 

He laughed at that, his shoulders relaxing, his posture not so stiff. “My brothers started calling me Toast because the first time they served toast in the cafeteria after I got my assignment, I ate so many pieces I made myself sick.” 

“Pfft. That’s amazing,” You laughed as you shuffled things around so you could fit one last croissant inside. You got the sense the clones didn’t often get to have sweets, so you were going to make sure Toast could bring as many back as possible. “So are you here on shore leave?” 

“I’m actually a member of the Coruscant Guard. So I’m here often. Well all the time. I walk by this place every time they send me off to run errands, which is often since I’m still the new guy.” 

“Oh, that’s cool. That means you work with senators, right? That must be… something.” You’d read stories on the holonet about some of the more notorious senators and you doubted they treated the clones particularly well. 

“I haven’t personally worked with any members of the senate, though a lot of my brothers have. Most of my day is spent staring at security cameras. So, pretty boring. Though I’m not complaining.” 

You tied up the package with a neat little bow before handing it to him, another bright smile flashing across your face. Something about his earnest, open demeanor was very endearing to you and you secretly hoped you’d get to see him again soon. If not anything else, you could at least learn a little more about the clones that dedicated their lives to protecting the Republic, since your knowledge on the subject was apparently so lacking. 

“Well it’s good to hear that you’re local. Hopefully you can stop by again the next time you’re running errands. And feel free to invite your brothers too!” 

“T-thank you, ma’am. That is very kind of you.” He said before taking the box of pastries in his hand, holding it almost reverently. He was trying to hide it but you could tell he was very excited to eat some sweets later. 

With one last nod he headed out of the store, the bell chiming lightly after him. You stood there, simply watching his receding form blend into the crowd, catching yourself smiling at the prospect of seeing him again. 

~~~

Toast hadn’t made it three steps into the barracks before his vode were descending upon him. Well not really him as much as the box full of sugary confections in his hands. 

“What ya got there?” Jek inquired, already tugging at the ribbon to investigate the box’s contents. 

Toast shoved his greedy hands out of the way and marched over to the counter where they kept the caf machine, which was in a perpetual state of disarray. The caf machine was old, probably older than any of them, and saw high traffic 24/7. Honestly, with the amount it leaked and sputtered, it was a miracle the machine was still functioning. Toast hoped it would at least until the war was over because when it went, Fox would be in the grave right next to it. 

“You know that bakery on the way back from the Jedi temple?” Toast inquired as he placed the box on the counter, starting to pick at the knot so he could open it without cutting the ribbon. It was a pretty striped pastel pink and he wanted to keep it. 

“The one with the little tooka-shaped cookies?” Rhys’ eyes went wide with excitement. 

“Yeah, the lady who worked there saw me looking inside and then gave me all the leftover pastries from the window.” 

“For free!?” Jek exclaimed as he shuffled back towards the box, “What did you get? Did you get an eclair? Please tell me you got an eclair.” Toast nodded and handed his brother one, who promptly dug in. 

“What’s this about eclairs?” Stone rounded the corner, instantly noticing the box and saddling up to him. “Did you get sweets?” 

Toast spent the next few minutes divvying up the various pastries between everyone. He chose something made up of many thin layers of dough, filled with chopped nuts and soaked in honey. Baklava, he thinks it was called, or maybe balaclava? He didn’t know the difference. But he didn’t care as he devoured it, savoring each bite like it was something precious. He glanced around and saw all his brothers were experiencing similar states of bliss, if their expressions were anything to go by. 

~~~

He didn’t have a chance to visit the bakery for the next two weeks, too busy running around dealing with mess after mess. One day, a prison riot. The next, bomb threats at the senate. Everyone in the guard was so exhausted and in desperate need of a break. So when Hound mentioned he was taking Grizzer for a walk, Toast decided to tag along so that he could get some fresh air. Well, fresh for Coruscant. 

At some point they’d run into Rhys and Thire, on the way back from patrol duty. Neither of them were in a rush to get back to HQ to receive new marching orders, so they ended up tagging along. 

Their little group wandered the streets, just walking with no direction in mind. Grizzer had his snout pressed close to the ground, desperate to sniff everything. Toast smiled at the massiff’s antics from behind his bucket, before glancing around and realizing they were just a block away from the bakery. 

“Hey, guys. Wanna stop at that bakery? It’s just over there.” Toast asked, pointing his finger at the little awning in front of the shop.

Thire looked at him as if he had two heads. “Why? Do you think we’ll get handouts again? Not that I’m complaining, free is free, but didn’t you get those because it was the end of the day and she was planning on throwing them out? It’s the middle of the day now…”

“Well, she said I could come back whenever. And that I could bring you guys too.” Toast felt his cheeks heat up for some reason, suddenly feeling embarrassed. What if she was just being polite, and he wasn’t really supposed to come back? What if he brought too many of his brothers and she thought he was taking advantage of her generosity? 

He was just about to suggest they should move on when Rhys piped up. “Well, what are we waiting for? C’mon.” He was already halfway to the bakery before anyone could respond. Rhys had a major sweet tooth and nothing motivated him more than some sweets. Hound and Grizzer were right on his heels, having missed out on the pastries last time. 

Toast caught up to them quickly, with Thire right behind them, though they all froze as soon as they made it up to the doors. There were people inside this, lounging around sipping drinks and chatting. Could they go in? Would people get mad? 

All his vode were waiting for him to do something, and his eyes searched frantically around the storefront as if he would find an answer there. And, surprisingly, he did. Sort of. Because hanging right in the window was a sign that read ‘CLONES WELCOME’. You had to have hung it after your interaction, there was no other explanation. Something about that made his heart race. 

All of a sudden, you appeared in the window, a friendly grin on your face as you pointed at the sign and waved for them all to come in. 

“You didn’t tell us she was pretty, vod,” Thire whispered as they shuffled their way inside. Toast could just feel the shit eating grin from under his brother’s bucket. He just gave a noncommittal grunt as a response, which only made Thire laugh. 

The group of them stood awkwardly in the threshold of the store, not really knowing what to do with themselves. A few patrons looked over to see what was going on, and Toast braced for some sort of outrage at clones invading their space, but after a few seconds they all turned back to whatever they were doing before. 

Toast stood there dumbly, just staring at you. He hadn’t really been able to take a good look at you the last time, too distracted by how strange the whole situation had been. But now he could see that Thire was right. You are pretty. Very pretty. 

If you noticed how tongue-tied he was, you didn’t show it. You just greeted them with another smile and oh Maker that smile. It was the kind of smile that lit up your whole face and Toast wanted to see it every day for the rest of his life.

“Hi! Is this your first time here?” You asked, cocking your head to one side. 

“He’s been here before.” Hound answered, shoving Toast to the front of the group. 

“Oh, are you the one from a few weeks ago? Toast?” 

You remembered his name! He was pretty sure he was about to melt into a puddle right then and there. It took a second to realize that he hadn't answered yet and he quickly sputtered out, “Y-yeah. That’s me.” 

“I’m glad you came back! And you brought your brothers,” You turned to address the rest of the clones and offered out a hand, “It’s nice to meet you all, what are your names.” 

Hound, always the people person and the one most used to interacting with the public, stepped forward and shook your hand. “I’m Hound. That’s Thire and Jek. It’s nice to meet you ma’am, I’ve heard you’re a great baker, though I wouldn’t know first-hand.” 

You cocked an eyebrow at Toast, “You didn’t share?” 

“He was out on patrol, I swear!” Toast stammered, holding his hands up in front of him. 

“Hmmm, I guess I’ll take your word for it. Though I think he should get to pick out what he wants first. It’s only fair.” 

“Really?!” Hound exclaimed. His enthusiasm seemed to rub off on Grizzer, the massiff sitting up on his back legs and wiggling excitedly before letting out a happy bark. “Down boy,” Hound ordered, placing a hand on Grizzer’s hand to calm him down. 

‘Awe, he’s just excited,” you giggled as you bent down to give him some pats of your own. “Can he eat treats? I have some by the door that I give to some of the other dogs.” You asked Hound as you straightened back up. 

“Yes, he loves treats. Would you mind if I took them to go? I don’t want him spoiling his dinner.” 

“Of course! Now pick out what you all want. And you can put a box together to take to your brothers.” 

You spent the next twenty minutes helping them pick out pastries, answering questions so they could pick out something for each of their brothers. After they had made their selections, you sat with them at one of the tables and chatted. Well, you mostly asked questions and they all talked over each other in their excitement. Still, you enjoyed the time with them, happy to provide a place for them to relax and unwind. Their jobs seemed incredibly stressful and by reading in between the lines of some of the things they told you, they seemed to be mistreated by a good portion of the senators, made to run menial errands or be the punching bags senators took their frustrations out on. You could especially see it in Toast, in the way he was so scared of offending you, how he would avert his eyes all the time and flinch if someone spoke too loudly. It honestly made you want to burn down the senate building. 

Everyone had finished eating when Thire looked down at his wrist and exclaimed, “Oh kriff, it’s been over an hour! Fox is gonna kill us.” 

Toast scoffed. “Correction: Fox is going to kill you and Rhys. Hound and I are off right now.” 

“Bring him an extra tiramisu to smooth things over.” You said, already wrapping one up and adding it to the rest of their haul. 

The group scrambled around, putting their buckets back on and grabbing the various pastry boxes you’d filled for them. Toast paused before turning to you. “Um, we don’t have any credits on us right now, but I can bring some tomorrow. The Guard has a small discretionary fund we can-”

You stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. It’s on the house.”

“A-are you sure? That was a lot of food…” Toast didn’t want her to lose money because of him. After all, he was the one that brought his brothers here. 

“It’s okay, seriously. I actually started a little program where customers can buy a coffee or a pastry or whatever for a clone. There’s actually a little bucket next to the register that I set up,” you turned and pointed at it so he could see. “It was actually my employee Vella’s idea. She came up with it the day after we first met, and it’s been pretty popular. There are a lot of people out there who are really thankful for what you guys do, you know.” 

Toast didn’t know what to say, but he felt like he wanted to cry at such a nice gesture. “That is… really kind of you. Thanks.” It didn’t feel like nearly enough, but they were the only words Toast could form at the moment. 

“Of course,” you said, giving his shoulder a little squeeze. “Now go catch up with your brothers, and let the rest of them know they’re always welcome to a free drink or pastry here.” 

Toast thanked you once again before heading outside to where his brothers were waiting, trying to convince himself that your hand hadn’t lingered on his arm for a beat too long. No, it was just wishful thinking. 

As he and his vode made their way back to the barracks, Rhys threw an arm around his neck and said, “Wow, Toast, your girlfriend is the best!” earning him snickers from the rest of the group. 

“She’s not my girlfriend!” Toast tried to protest. 

“But you want her to be~” Hound teased. And he was right, Toast wanted that more than anything in the galaxy right now. But he knew it was impossible. You were beautiful and kind and funny and perfect and he... was just a clone. 

“It’s not like it could ever happen anyway,” Toast sighed. 

Thire nudged him with his shoulder. “Psssh, we all saw how her hand lingered on you. She definitely likes you.” 

“Definitely,” Rhys echoed. 

Toast smiled under his bucket. It might be a pipe dream, but in that moment he allowed himself to indulge in the fantasy. 

~~~

In the following weeks, you fell into a sort of routine. Toast would stop by your bakery at least once a week, sometimes more depending on his free time. And you cherished every moment you got to spend with him. Sometimes he would bring fellow members of the guard along, and every visit ended with your stomach cramping from how much you’d laughed at their various antics. You were confused how such a chaotic bunch of individuals were able to come together as an effective police force… that is until you met Commander Fox. His talent for wrangling them deserved a medal in your opinion. 

As much as you enjoyed his brothers, you really looked forward to the times where you and Toast were alone together. He’d always come to you with some wild story of an eccentric prisoner or a crazy heist perpetrated in the lower levels. Honestly you hadn’t expected him to be such a gossip, but you were hardly complaining. 

In return for his stories you started teaching him how to bake. It started off with him just watching you work as he talked, sometimes asking questions about what you were doing or peaking over your shoulder to get a closer look. Eventually he became an assistant of sorts, spending his time grabbing ingredients for you and washing the dishes once you were done with them. 

Today was the day you were going to convince him to bake a loaf of bread with you. You were going to start him off with a simple loaf of white bread, one that didn’t require much kneading and didn’t have a long proving time. You had already pulled out all the ingredients, bowls, and utensils and were waiting patiently for him to arrive. 

By the time you heard the bell ring and saw him coming through the door, you were tapping your foot in anticipation. He wasn’t late - in fact he was right on time as always - but you were just itching to see him. 

“Toast! You’re here!” Ugh, that was the best greeting you could come up with? you cringed internally. Luckily, he didn’t seem to mind your banal greeting, a smile on his lips as he pulled his bucket over his head and placed it on a nearby shelf. You found yourself longing for a reality where he greeted you with a peck on the lips along with that sweet smile. Maker, you had it bad for him. 

His eyes flashed over to the ingredients on the counter. “What are you making today?”

“I’m not making anything today. But we are. I think it's time for you to try your hand at baking. And in honor of your love of toast, we’re starting off with bread.” 

He rolled his eyes at that, but the corner of his mouth still quirked up, showing off one of his dimples. “Isn’t bread kind of hard to make though? Maybe we should start out with something simpler…” 

“Where’s your courage, soldier?” you teased, poking a finger at his chest. He huffed and you laughed. “Now c’mon, wash your hands and get your apron on.” 

He ended up taking the top half of his armor off, in only his blacks from the waist up, his sleeve rolled up to his elbows. You were half thankful and half disappointed the apron covered the way his form fitting shirt stretched across his chest. At least you wouldn’t be distracted, but boy oh boy did you want a closer look. 

The two of you chatted about your days as you started working on each of your loaves. With so few ingredients the process went quick, and soon enough you were kneading the dough. 

“Now this is called the slap and fold technique. First get your dough together in a ball like this… and then you slap it down!” You demonstrated by taking your lump of wet dough and slapping it down on the table. “Then you just fold it in half and repeat. We need to do it for about five minutes.” 

“I think you mean we knead to do it for five minutes,” Toast said with a cheeky grin.

“Blegh. Terrible.” You flicked a bit of flour at him as punishment. “I think you knead to be locked up for that pun.” Toast just laughed and continued working, the smile on his face never dropping. 

Once you were ready, you shaped both of the loaves and put them in the oven. When you turned back to him you couldn’t help but giggle. He was absolutely covered in flour. 

“What? Do I have something on my face?” He asked, face suddenly becoming serious. 

You stepped close to him and brushed his face clean with your thumb. “On your face, in your hair, on your shirt. I think you managed to get flour everywhere except the apron.”

“Well you were the one throwing it at me!” came his retort as he used his hands to shake his hair out, turning it from  grey back to its lovely dark color. 

“Touché. Now let me help you get cleaned up. I think you got some on your back. Somehow.” You grabbed a washcloth and wet it under the sink and started using it to wipe the flour off his clothes.  

“It’s one of my many skills from cadet training.” He told you, eyes twinkling, as you dabbed at a spot you missed on his face. You could feel his lips moving as he spoke. Stop thinking about how soft they probably are, you chided yourself. 

“You’re just lucky you’re so charming.” 

That made him blush and avert his eyes, which would have been cute if you weren’t worried you’d gone a bit too far. You didn’t want to embarrass him or anything. You had thought the two of you were flirting, but maybe you read the situation wrong. You were notoriously bad in the romance department, something Vella had told you after the third time you had missed a customer trying to flirt with you. 

Toast cleared his throat before turning back to you. He noticed you’d stepped back away from him and sighed internally. That would have been the perfect time to kiss you or ask you out or something. Anything other than dancing around each other like you two were doing now. Despite the fact that his brothers believed you two were already together - no matter how much he protested - he still wasn’t sure if you felt the same as he did. He had his suspicions, but what if he was wrong? You were his only friend outside of his brothers and he didn’t want to do anything to mess that up or make it awkward. 

He thanked the Maker you didn’t tease him, just turning and starting to wash the dishes. He grabbed a bowl and joined you at the big industrial sink, dunking his hands in the warm sudsy mixture and used the sponge to start scrubbing at the stubborn bits of dough that refused to come off. The two of you worked in silence, though not an uncomfortable one, Toast was glad to find. Just as he was finishing drying the last bowl, he remembered something. 

“Oh, uh, I almost forgot. Do you know Senator Amidala?” 

“Not personally, but I’ve heard of her.”

“Well, she is throwing a banquet or something in a few days and the bakery that was supposed to handle the desserts fell through at the last minute. Thorn suggested you as a replacement and asked me to ask you if it was possible.” 

“Hmm. It depends on how long I’d have, and what kind of desserts she wants. Plus how many guests she’s having. I’m not saying no, but I’m not sure how realistic it is. It’s just me, Vella, and two others on staff.” You had started pacing, already running the logistics through your head.

“What if me and the rest of the guard helped you?” 

You paused your pacing to look at him. “That could work… but would you all even be able to take off work?”

“Well, it’s been pretty slow this week and we’re spending most of our time getting ready for the party…” You responded with a noncommittal hum so he pressed on. “How about I call Senator Amidala and Commander Fox on the coms and we can get everything worked out?”

“Yeah, sure. That’d be great.” 

For the next twenty minutes you hashed out the details with Senator Amidala - Padmé, she insisted you call her - and Commander Fox. Eventually you settled on an order of one large, four-tiered cake and a hundred little fruit tarts. Fox had been hesitant to lend out his troopers until Padmé had offered to replace the old coffee machine in the guard’s office. The party was in three days, so it would be a tight deadline, but you were sure you could do it. Especially with the guard’s help. There was also the motivating factor of the hefty payment Padmé was offering. It would be enough for you to buy an army of cleaning robots!

As soon as you hung up you were already placing an order of the ingredients and messaging your employees to tell them about the job. You were so focused on your task that you jumped with the oven’s timer dinged. Toast stifled a chuckle behind his hand and you shot him a look as you pulled both loaves of bread out of the oven. Both loaves were a perfect golden brown and looked absolutely delicious. 

Toast hovered over your shoulder as you placed the bread on the cooling rack, and you had to slap his hand away a few times as you waited for them to cool. Once you could hold them safely in your hands, you handed Toast his loaf and took yours in your hands. “C’mon, let’s take a picture together with our bread.” You tucked yourself into his side and held your loaf up as he snapped the picture. 

Once you were satisfied with the picture you relented to his puppy-dog eyes and cut into the bread. You both slathered a piece in butter and tapped them together as if they were wine glasses before taking a bite. 

“Mmmmmhhh,” you both groaned in unison at the first bite of warm bread. There was nothing better. 

“This is so good.” You mumbled in between bites. 

“So much better than anything in the caf.” Toast agreed, his eyes half-closed in bliss. Before you missed it, you snapped a picture. Toast with his toast. It was perfect. 

~~~

You stared at the sight of the twenty clone troopers in front of you, decked out in aprons and hair nets, standing at parade rest in a line as Commander Fox, also in an apron, paced back and forth, hands behind his back, as he gave them their orders. 

“Now I want you all on your best behavior. It may seem like you’re on a break, but I want you to treat this as if you’re still on the clock,” He stopped pacing and turned to his men, “Do I make myself clear?” 

“Yes, sir!” They all responded with a salute. 

You took that moment to snap a picture of them all, Fox’s head snapping towards you at the click of the camera. “I want to remember this,” you told him, fighting back a smile. 

You turned to Padmé, who had insisted on coming to help out herself, bringing along her two droids and a Jedi to offer some extra hands. She came complete with a chic outfit for the occasion and you envied how good she looked at six in the morning. You showed her the picture and she asked, “Can you send that to me?” Fox huffed loudly and the two of you broke out into a fit of giggles. 

Once you got a hold of yourself you started listing out tasks that needed to be done to Fox. “We’ll need people to clean and cut the fruit for the tarts. Another group can help with mixing and cutting the crust. For the cake, we’ll also need one group handling the batter, and another the frosting and decorations. And we can rotate who is on dish duty.” 

Fox immediately started delegating out tasks to his troops and you assigned a member of your staff to help each group. Everyone quickly scrambled to start working on their tasks, the troopers clearly very excited to help. 

Throughout the day you flitted from group to group, demonstrating how to do things when needed. Your employees were handling everything so well and you made a reminder to yourself to give them a nice bonus after this. You stepped away from where Vella was showing the boys how to make flowers out of frosting and found Toast lecturing his brothers about the right way to measure flour. 

“You can’t just scoop it out straight from the bag, you’ll use too much that way. You have to sift it in like this,” He started demonstrating the proper technique for them, and you noticed he had somehow managed to get flour all over himself again. 

“Good job, Toast,” You said as you passed him, brushing the flour out of his hair as you went. “Keep up the great work, boys!” You gave them a thumbs up and moved onto the next group, dodging the R2 unit as it made a beeline to the fridge, a tray of freshly cut fruit balanced on its head. 

The next two days passed by smoother than you could have hoped. There were only a few minor incidents. Hound tripping over R2 and spilling some batter, Thorn having to scold Jek and Rhys for eating half of their frosting. Nothing you couldn't handle. Commander Fox had everyone working like a well oiled machine, making sure everything stayed on time. Throughout both days, Padmé’s protocol droid busied himself with taking pictures of the event, and Padmé promised to send them all to you after the party.

It got down to the wire, but you managed to put the last slice of jogan fruit on the hundredth tart with forty-five minutes to spare. Your employees handled loading everything up into the speeder to take them to the venue. You watched them out of the corner of your eye to make sure things went smoothly. Padmé came up to you and thanked you profusely for rushing such a huge order and promised to promote your business to all her friends before she and the rest of her entourage hopped into the speeder with your employees and took off for the party. 

You turned back to the clone troopers, who had already finished washing up most of the kitchen. “Don’t worry about the rest, guys, I’ve got it. You should probably start heading back and start getting ready.” 

“Trying to kick us out so soon?” Fox mused. 

You laughed. “Actually, before you go, I have a little surprise for you all. As a way to say thank you and as a pick me up before the party. I know those things can be tiring.” You went and retrieved the gift you had stayed up all last night working on, keeping it behind your back until you were right in front of them. 

You held out a plate of cookies shaped like their helmets, each one customized to look like the helmet of each of the troopers there. You had recruited C3-PO to take reference pictures of all of their helmets while they were working, and the droid had really pulled through for you, even managing to get detail shots for you. 

“Woah, are these our helmets?” Stone asked as you handed him his cookie. 

“Look, it’s me.” Thorn said to Fox as he waggled his cookie in front of his brother’s face. Fox rolled his eyes but even he couldn’t fight his smile away. 

You beamed as each of the troopers examined their cookies and thanked you for them. They all groaned as you forced them to get together for one last picture and the shutter had barely flashed before they were scarfing down the cookies. 

Once they were done, Fox and Thorn started hoarding the group through the door. Before Toast could follow his brothers, Fox turned to him, “You stay here and help out with the rest of the clean up.” 

Toast blinked for a moment before he responded with a “Yes, sir.” 

He waited until he was sure the last of his vode were out the door before he turned to you. He planned on saying something funny or romantic, but all his words failed him as you launched yourself at him and pulled him into a big hug. “Thanks for all your help. I couldn’t have done this without you.” You told him, your voice muffled from your spot pressed against his chest. He returned the hug and rested his cheek against the top of your head. 

You couldn’t be sure if it was him who tilted his head down or you who tilted your head up, but you soon found yourselves nose to nose. Maybe sleep deprivation lowered your inhibitions, because you soon found yourself raising up on your tiptoes and pressing your lips to his. His arms tightened around you as he returned the kiss, letting out a groan as you both melted into each other. It started off sweet and gentle, but quickly developed into something more heated as you swept your tongue across the seam of his lips. He let out another tortured whine as he opened his mouth up to you, pulling you flush against him with one hand falling down to grab your ass while the other hitched your leg over his hip. 

Eventually you needed to come up for air and reluctantly parted from him, a blush rising to your cheeks as the string of saliva that connected you broke and dribbled down your chin. He wiped it away with his thumb before bringing his forehead to rest against yours. The two of you stayed like that for a while, gazing into each other's eyes as you caught your breath. 

You brought up one of your hands to brush a bit of flour out of his eyebrow. “You managed to get flour on you somehow. I don’t think we even used flour today.” 

He grinned at you. “It’s one of my many charms.” 

You giggled and pulled him back in for another kiss. Your lips had just met when you heard a camera shutter go off and you both whipped your heads around to the source of the noise. 

Vella stood in the doorway to the kitchen, camera raised and a shit-eating grin on her face. “Haha, I knew it! Thire owes me ten credits!” 

Both of you blinked at each other for a moment before joining in with her laughter.

[prettyoddfever]

P!ATD – December 2006 after the NRWC tour

The band seemed exhausted by the time the Nothing Rhymes With Circus tour ended on December 9th in San Diego, but their appearances kept coming...

12/10 – KROQ ALMOST ACOUSTIC CHRISTMAS: The very next day P!ATD appeared on the second night of the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas in Universal City (here’s my tag). This was my least favorite performance the band ever did. I thought the modern-style stage didn’t work with the concept of the NRWC costumes & performers, the cameras were being creepy about zooming in on the dancers, the guys really needed a break, and it was nothing like the NRWC tour so poor Brendon was stuck in the weird spot of whether or not he should interact with the crowd or fully go for his creepy character (which didn’t even make sense in that setting). Fans could watch the webstream and a lot of us were like ehhhh this isn’t the best. But P!ATD got to meet Tom DeLonge so that was neat. MTV said that P!ATD also used this time in LA to meet with some potential producers for their new album.

THE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED PHOTOSHOOT: I heard that this maybe happened during the day on December 10th, so I’m putting it here as a possibility... the band did look like they were wearing that photoshoot’s makeup during the KROQ performance (and by that I mean Bden’s eyebrows were really intense lol). 

12/11 – JAY LENO: Here are some pictures – they link to the performance of Lying Is The Most Fun. Once again, the camera decided to ignore Jon Walker. But some cool things happened too, like how P!ATD met Jimmy Carter that night. Ed Norton from Fight Club was also there and Brendon was clearly trying to not freak out haha.

12/12 – THE MEXICO SHOW: Mexico City was the final concert in the Fever-era tour schedule. This show was a pretty fascinating hybrid of what P!ATD had done over the past 3 months. It looked SO much like the October international tour (to the extent that I can almost guarantee a few shots of Brendon in Mexico will accidentally end up in my October tag). The band was back to a plain stage & basic outfits, which looked so confusing when they did their NRWC covers of Eleanor Rigby & Killer Queen. Except they also opened with Time to Dance like they did in October. The Mexico show messes with me so much and I love it. Here’s a playlist and an interview.

OTHER RANDOM STUFF FROM DECEMBER

Ryan’s holiday greeting

the band’s holiday greeting

their Rolling Stone photoshoot & interview were done in December 2006, so I’m still listing it here even though the content wasn’t released until January 2007 (and the rest of the photoshoot wasn’t shared until 2008).

Jon said had been with the band for most of 2006 (he first joined a tour they were on in late January). He told MTV that "I might get a tattoo that just says '2006,' cause it was such a big year. Really, just the whole year in general has been amazing to us."

Brendon had to make a YFly profile, but he didn’t do much with it. He mainly just filled out his interests... I don’t think anyone was surprised to see that he loved Halloween, pop tarts, Journey, Queen, capri sun, The Dark Crystal, and Labyrinth. He put Where The Wild Things Are as one of his favorite books too. That social media site's whole angle was the fact that celebrities were actually verified.

Some bands were still hating on P!ATD for not paying their dues. And at this point it was like omg they’ve been touring for 1.5 years now, get over it. Las Vegas Weekly did an interview with Brendon in December and said “Where there's some grudging respect for The Killers on the local scene, veteran Vegas bands don't seem to like Panic! much. How does that make you feel?” Brendon answered: 

“Honestly, when I hear that kind of thing, I don't get mad. I kind of feel that if I was in their position I would probably say the same things that they say about our band. If I was in their position, I would be upset. If I was in a band that had been playing live shows in Vegas for five years and built up all this credibility, I would probably say the same things right off the bat, without even listening to our band. But that just springs off of jealousy, I think, and ignorance. So I don't think about it too hard, just kind of write it off. It doesn't really bother me too much.”

this auction happened for Virgin Mobile’s charity Virgin Unite (but idk why the band signed the butt of a reindeer for that lol).

There were SO many fake screen names being passed around for the guys. A couple fake Brendons took things too far and kind of hurt his image... like they were saying ridiculous & horrible things and people honestly believed it was him. I heard that one of the accounts wasn’t too harmful but also didn’t seem to have much creativity – they were just recycling the slightly creepy comments that Ryan had said to girls on livejournal in 2004 lol (like “you look like you want sex bad”). Another girl pretended to be on tour with the band and actually got pretty far with that story. She even ran a fake Brendon account (brenny123bear) so “Brendon” could talk about how much he liked her and things got weird from what I heard. 

The fans who were around in 2005 still had Brendon, Ryan, and Spencer’s actual AIM info but most of us didn’t bother to step in & correct anything in the lengthy debates over which screen names were real... I mean, obviously the guys weren’t going to spend their scarce free time chatting with hundreds of middle school girls. Ryan was too busy to do the book club back when P!ATD was only opening for TAI and now the band was getting ready to play Times Square after a massive arena tour. So many people were reporting that the band looked physically & emotionally exhausted. Ryan Ross was not busy writing secret poems for 12-year-olds.

Speaking of things Ryan Ross did not write... lol there were a lot of fake lyrics for the second album being passed around. I thought this was super entertaining because it wasn’t really hurting anyone’s image. Most fake lyrics were dismissed pretty quickly, but I have to share this part of one song that was believed so much that it was posted to a few of Ryan’s fan pages:

Matrimony is Paving the Way for Preplanned Alchemy As the rain falls, my umbrella doesn't always work drip drop drip drop splish splashing in my brain It's a flood honey, a real mach five Oh dear, I fear a dreadful drizzle my dear It's time to fly south with the mice Dripping dripping dripping in my Sunday morning tea One lump or two? How do you do? It's the monopoly guy These mice aren't blind, baby, but I guess they don't see the light But you know, maybe it's just dark or something baby, I don't know It could be the wool pulled over their eyes by father time or a gardening bird

a decent amount of fans swooned over those lyrics and said that Ryan was such an amazing writer. I was almost tempted to start writing the most cringey stuff “from Ryan” just to see if people would automatically love it.

P!ATD and some of their songs were on a lot of “Best of 2006″ lists around the world. IWSNT was the predictable choice for Best Song, but several lists also chose The Only Difference (although it was way further down the ranking... like Rolling Stone had it as #84 on their list of the 100 best songs of the year). Other highlights from some lists: IWSNT was #20 on Billboard’s top singles of the year, #31 on NME’s Top 50 Tracks of the Year, AOL put IWSNT as #19 and The Only Difference as #29 on their Top 100 songs of 2006, the IWSNT video came in at #1 on Fuse’s year end countdown. AFYCSO was #13 on NME’s list of the top 50 albums of 2006 and #32 on Billboard’s year end charts. Kerrang also put AFYCSO as #15 in their list of the top 20 albums of the year (it didn’t come out in the UK until 2006).

NME put Ryan Ross as #17 in their list of the 50 coolest people in rock & roll. The band was also 3rd in Rolling Stone’s “best dressed” category of their reader’s poll. P!ATD was simultaneously the best & worst band in a lot of other polls... here’s one example.  

IWSNT was nominated for “Best Single” at the Virgin.net Music Awards (fans could vote).

Brendon was single again, so the tween magazines were finally accurate. There were rumors that he was dating a girl named Holly, one named Jadie, and also Kelly Clarkson.

Ryan told Rock Sound in 2008 that the first time he got drunk was at a hotel in LA in December: “Our manager bought me a shot and it was the first time I’d ever drank – I got drunk from one shot – belligerently drunk! I didn’t get sick, it was just laughing, hanging out and sitting in my room.” Rock sound asked if that led Ryan onto the slippery slope of boozing and Ryan said “yeah! I guess it did and unfortunately our manager is to blame.”

Ryan told MTV that the upcoming video for Build God would have "dry humping, excessive drug use, pretty much anything vulgar.”

these posters showed up by Times Square.

Stylus Magazine put IWSNT as #33 in a list of the top 50 singles of 2006 and said:

“As emo ascends into mainstream culture (in its noun form, it's now a cafeteria tribe like skaters and jocks), it's been fascinating to see which aspects of the genre are embraced by the MySpace generation: pretentiously verbose lyrics are apparently still in, but the lo-fi howls and jigsaw time signatures of late '90s Jade Tree bands have been replaced by garish theatricality and a thick rhythmic crunch. Part of what makes Panic! At the Disco stand out even further among this new crop is that on "I Write Sins Not Tragedies" the makeup-caked band weds the startled cries of male sexual angst to the delicate baroque touches of xylophone and pizzicato strings. It's all pretty ridiculous, to be sure, but the commitment is admirable, and I certainly can't deny the awesome rush I feel every time I belt out that serpentine chorus in the car.”

Brendon supposedly made one last lj entry on December 22nd that was friends-only:

just let me run where i want to run home. bored. i found my old scrapbook. millions of baby pictures... how did i get so ugly? i guess that's just what happens when you get older. or at least it did as i got older. i never thought having friends was this critical to survival. it almost feels worse waking up with no agenda, no comrades, and no comprehension of what "normal" means. it's always been the case: music never let me down. cheesy, i know. but so true. "i live in the numbness now, in the background."

NEW YEAR’S EVE

Here’s more about the NYE performance in Times Square. That was Bartram’s last performance with the band, so he was only around for part of 2006.

Here’s a quick video greeting (Jon’s comment was also in this article but idk how it’s a resolution):

P!ATD also had a NYE Celebrity Playlist on their MTV page:

THE MAIN POST

[seventyfiveapples]

Shaken

CHAPTER 5

Bright / Nick Jakoby x OFC

(Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4)

Oh hello: it's you, plot and angst. Yes that's right, but there is important background stuff to lay down. I promise there will be sexy times soon. (SO SOON.) So, I was thinking that if Nick was the nation's first orc police officer and it's present day LA, and "races living separately" is a thing, then it might be a pretty Big Deal for an orc and human to date. So that had an affect on some of the conversations in this chapter, and maybe Ward has a little “journey” as he evolves on this topic. Is this too much exposition? Is this too plot heavy? Would it stop me if it was? haha enjoy.

The sun was bright and warm the next day, and Nick took a moment to tilt his head upwards and take a deep breath before climbing the stairs to the station. Was it always this bright? Did the lantana on the sidewalk always smell so sweet? Everything seemed a little... more today. He smiled to himself, thinking about his date with Lucy - their conversation, the way she looked at him... even the end of the date, when their goodbye kiss was so rudely interrupted by the San Andreas fault.

It was a small earthquake: 3.5 or 3.6 tops, but he could tell Lucy was thoroughly freaked out. He realized that she must be relatively new to the area. 

When she gripped him tightly for stability, he thought his heart might pound right out of his chest: Not only did she seem to like his company, she trusted him. She believed he could keep her safe. He wanted to keep earning that trust, to make her feel safe as much as he could. Every now and then he could tell that there was something… some fear at the back of her mind… that kept her always a little on edge.

When she’d asked to come see him at the station today, her whole demeanor had changed. He saw her fear most clearly then.

Oh shit, he thought suddenly, seeing Daryl at his desk across the room. She’s coming to the station today. Nick still hadn't told him that Lucy was human. Maybe it wouldn't be a big deal... Maybe he should tell him just in case.

His partner waved at him from across the room.

“Hey Casanova, how was the big date?”

Nick couldn’t help himself from grinning ear to ear.

“It was… really good! Really REALLY good.” He smiled to himself for a moment and then just shook his head. “She’s incredible… funny, smart, kind, driven... AND,” he concluded, “she picked the smoothie café.”

“Well, aren’t you two just two little orc peas in a pod? You know what, I’m happy for you, Nick.”

“Hey Daryl, can I talk to you about something?”

“Sure thing right after you go turn this paperwork in.”

Daryl handed him a small stack of folders. Nick frowned. Daryl hated to turn in paperwork. The new Captain could chat up a brick wall, and might not even notice. He would take up no less than fifteen minutes of Daryl’s time every time he saw him, regaling him with tales of the glory days of his youth while Daryl tried his best to politely excuse himself. If Daryl Ward could barely get a word in edgewise, Nick didn’t know how anyone else managed.

Luckily for Nick, the captain’s anti-orc bigotry expressed itself in something close to the silent treatment. He barely said two words when he saw Officer Jakoby. For once, Nick didn’t entirely mind being treated differently.

He headed down to drop off the papers.

***

One thing Lucy would never get used to in Southern California was the earthquakes. There was something so unsettling about the ground under her feet moving… what kind of place had she moved to, where she couldn’t trust the ground?

Luckily, yesterday’s was a smaller one. Nick had taken it completely in stride. He hadn’t even flinched when the tremor rolled through - or when she grabbed onto him for dear life. Real smooth, Lucy. There’s that confident image you try to project.

She thought of how he looked at her when she'd held him. She didn’t think he’d minded one bit, actually.

In the police station, she walked straight to Officer Jakoby’s desk. It was empty for the moment.

“Can I help you, ma’am?” Asked a tall, black, human officer from behind her.

“Oh! Thank you, I’m just waiting for Officer Jakoby.”

“He’ll be right back if you want to have a seat. If there’s anything I can help with, he’s my partner.”

“You’re Daryl Ward? It’s nice to meet you! I’m Lucy Harris and-“

“You’re Lucy Harris.” It was more of a statement than a question.

“That’s right, Officer Ward, and I was-“

“Lucy Harris. Teacher, smoothie fan... you’re a human?” He had an odd look on his face as he asked her this question. What was going on here?

Lucy said nothing, watching Daryl as he looked at her with an expression she could not interpret. Finally, she spoke.

“Um, yeah. Last time I checked... Is Nic- Officer Jakoby coming back soon?”

“Yeah, why don’t you just take a seat.” He said, suddenly chilly. Lucy pretended to be fascinated with the contents of her purse while she waited.

After a few minutes, Nick came back. He smiled when he saw Lucy but paused as he approached, seeming to sense something off in the room.

“Hey, Nick. Thanks for meeting with me. Is there somewhere we can go to talk privately? This is kind of... sensitive.”

“Sure. We have a few empty offices down the hall.” He turned to Ward and saw a look that was a mix of... Disappointment? Disgust? Something in between?

“Partner, we can talk in a minute, but right now I could use your help.”

***

The three of them sat in an empty office while Lucy removed three items from the purple canvas tote bag she had brought with her.

“I came home a week ago and my roommate had found this propped against our front door,” she started.

The officers looked closely at the items - torn brown wrapping paper with Lucy’s full name printed in block letter, the framed photo, and the note reading “Found you.”

“Do you have any idea who might have left this?” Asked Ward.

“Absolutely."

***

Two and a half years ago, Lucy Harris didn’t exist.

Jennie Perkins, however, was living a quiet life in Tacoma, Washington. She worked as a teacher at a highly regarded private school and lived with her boyfriend of a year and a half, Dave West.

One day in the early spring, an FBI agent approached her, out of the blue. She told Jennie that her boyfriend was not who he claimed to be, but a murderer and drug dealer involved with organized crime. She brought boxes of photos and documents: not enough for a legal conviction but more than enough to convince Jennie, who was undone by the news. She was shocked and unmoored. Everything she knew about the person she thought she loved had been a lie.

The agent convinced her to hide cameras and listening devices in strategic locations around the house. She advised Jennie to “act normal” until they could build an airtight legal case.

Easier said than done. Overnight she’d gone from a relatively carefree life to being essentially a spy, knowing that her partner was living a double life and trying to make sure he’d be arrested. Acting normally without tipping off a paranoid criminal required tremendous effort.

After a couple of months, something violent happened at their house while Jennie was at work. She never found out what it was. In fact, she never saw the inside of that house again. The takeaways from the incident were 1) that one of the cameras was knocked loose in front of Dave and his “colleagues,” and 2) that Dave probably knew Jennie had hidden it, and was cooperating with the feds.

The agent and Jennie agreed that they would fake Jennie’s death (an elaborately staged car accident) and she would move out of state under an assumed name until the trial was over. The FBI slotted enough resources to help her get set up, and Lucy Harris was “born.”

About a month ago, Lucy received notice that the trial was about to start. The FBI agent had contacted Lucy/Jennie to start making arrangements for her to come and testify.

That phone call was the last time anyone had heard from the agent.

A week later, they found her body in a field by the highway.

Her apartment had been torn up as if someone was looking for something… Lucy had a pretty good idea of what. Not quite three weeks after that when the package had shown up on Lucy’s door.

“So," Lucy concluded. "Billie and I moved into a new place. Luckily, her brothers had an empty rent house right next door. I was just starting to feel okay again, but the afternoon someone slashed two of my tires. They left this.” She reached into her bag to pull out the knife and note. She couldn’t look Nick in the eye when he picked up the note full of slurs and read it.

“Apparently, he's close by, and he knows where I am. And I don’t know what to do. So I wanted to just report this, just in case there's some way to find him or stop him.”

There was a moment’s pause, as the officers digested what she had told them. Daryl spoke first.

"Damn," he said. “That's... a lot. Look I know this is a long shot, but I don't suppose you have any evidence about this? Before we commit to any security detail, we'll need some hard proof.

Lucy looked up, surprised. She let out a sudden sharp laugh.

“Oh no, I have tons of evidence! Boxes and boxes. I made copies of everything I gave to the agent. It’s all in a safety deposit box. I’m pretty sure that’s the only reason I’m still alive. I haven’t visited it in months, but it’s all there.”

“We’ll need to see it.”

“Well then you’ll need to figure out how to get me there unrecognized, because I am pretty sure he’s following me.”

Nick swallowed hard. Had he followed them on their date? Lucy looked at him, a guilty expression washing over her face.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, Nick. I should have. I just… it seems like I keep putting more and more people at risk. I had a great time with you, but I don’t blame you if…” she shook her head. She didn’t have to say it. She knew he’d want to call it off. Hot tears sprang to her eyes, as the reality of the whole situation settled on her. It was the first time she’d talked about this in two years to anyone except Billie.

“Lucy, you haven’t done anything wrong. Daryl, could you give us a minute?” After his partner left, Nick moved close enough to lay a strong hand on her forearm and look straight in her eyes. “Lucy, I really like you. I’m not going anywhere. It’s going to take more than that to get rid of me.”

“More than a murdering psychopath?” she said with a skeptical laugh.

He raised his eyebrows. “Murdering psychopaths? I eat those for breakfast. They go great with that kale smoothie.” He didn’t often make jokes, but when he did, they seemed to have been borrowed from cop movies. Lucy broke into a loud laugh, part nerves and part surprise, and hugged him. 

“Now, tell us everything that might help us track down this asshole.”

***

Later, on patrol, Nick broke several minutes of silence with a pointed question. “Something on your mind, partner?”

“I guess not.”

“You ‘guess’ not? The fuck does that mean?”

“If you don’t want to tell me about your business, then I guess it’s not my place to say shit about shit.”

“Meaning?” Nick asked gruffly.

“Why didn’t you mention she was human?”

“Does it matter?”

“You know what all those assholes at the station are gonna-“

“Does it matter to YOU, Daryl?”

Daryl looked out of the window, not answering. After a few seconds, he spoke.

“You should have told me.”

“Ward,” Jakoby started, keeping as even a tone as he could, “are you upset because I didn’t tell you, or are you upset because you don’t think orcs and humans should date?”

Ward paused again, and tried to choose his words carefully. “Each of the nine races stay separate, you know that. That’s why there’s peace.”

Nick snorted, a humorless laugh. It was two steps forward, two steps back with his partner.

“Peace?! Is that what you see out here?” Driving through an Orcish district, they saw gang-tagged graffiti on every wall, smashed windows covered with plywood boards, crime scene tape around one corner, and a group of teen orcs glaring at them. In the distance they could see a billboard advertising jewelry. It read: “exclusively available in the Elf District.”

“I’ll tell you what I see,” Nick concluded, “a powder keg. I don’t think keeping people separate is really helping anything.”

He continued: “Look, Lucy and I didn’t plan this, and we’ve only had one date, but I really like her. How the fuck does that hurt anyone?”

After another pause, Ward finally spoke. “What about her? I mean, you’re used to all the bullshit people say. Do you really want to put her through that?”

Daryl had struck a chord. Nick hated to think of Lucy - of anyone - being insulted or attacked because of him.

“She’s not naive, Ward,” Nick responded in a softer tone. “It’s her choice to make, and mine. No one else’s.”

“I just… it’s not going to be easy for you.”

“Maybe not. Since when do I take the easy road?” Nick asked, smiling a little. “I’m used to people - humans, orcs, whoever - saying shit to me. They’re going to do that anyway.” He stopped for a minute. “I know they say shit about me to you, too.”

It wasn’t an accusation, but Daryl felt a pang of guilt. Had he heard what the other officers said about him on a daily basis in the locker room? Had Daryl even spoken up? He couldn’t remember.

“I’m not asking you to confront them, or fight my battles. I’m just asking - in this situation, with Lucy - if people get ugly, it would mean a lot to me to know I had your support… if I do have it.”

Nick looked at him with questioning eyes and Daryl sighed. He’d never known any orc-human couples and it just seemed odd to him, but Nick had a point: who did it hurt? Nick’s request was so sincere it cut through anything Daryl might have said in protest.

Besides that, Daryl thought of Lucy's story. How were they ever going to find this guy? A little orc/human racial tension might be the least of their worries.

More than anything he kept thinking, what if the tables were reversed? What would Nick say if Daryl asked for his support, for anything?

He would offer it without hesitation, of course.

“Yeah,” Daryl replied at last. “You got it, Nick.”

***

Across town, Dave West paced in his makeshift room: an abandoned shipping container at the very far end of the docks. At his feet lay a spectrum of weapons, but he would have to add to these: most of them wouldn’t do too much on the orcs that were protecting Jennie now. He logged onto his computer to keep tabs on her through the GPS tracker he’d placed on her car.

The police station, huh? He wondered if it was business or pleasure. He flipped through the photos he’d taken of Jennie and the orc police officer on their date. He’d probably have to move a little more quickly than he wanted to.

There was still no sign of her visiting any storage units or banks with safety deposit boxes. He had to wait, for now, damn it. As long as that evidence was out there, he was in danger of not only criminal conviction, but he was in danger from all of the other people who were mentioned or implicated in whatever she had gathered.

He’d be better off in prison than out and “free” with them as his enemies.

No, for now, he just had to wait for her to slip up. Once he destroyed the evidence, he could kill her and everyone who tried to help her, and get back to San Francisco.

Or, he thought, flipping through the photos again, he could help things along and get... creative.

@beastlybfs @bonnietakesnosh-t @fantasticauthorofzonk

[dreamingofjoon]

No One’s Perfect Pt.3

Kim Mingyu x Reader

Word Count: 3.9k

Warnings: Sexual Content

A/N. Thanks for all of the support on this. I really enjoyed writing it and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter♥

Part 1 | Part 2

This photo does not belong to me. Credit here:)

“Back so soon?” he raised an eyebrow.

“Haha. Very funny.”

“You think I’m joking?” his eyebrow remained high up on its perch.

“I’m laughing. It must have been a joke.” you rolled your eyes.

“Don’t get sarcastic with me.” he almost growled.

You paused for a moment before letting your next remark die in your throat.

“Fine. Sorry.” you muttered before rolling your eyes.

Almost two years had already passed since Mingyu had been admitted and you always made sure to visit him at least once a week. If you missed a week, he would ignore you the next day you came. Although it hurt, you knew it was just his way of making you realize how much he had missed you. You probably never would have thought that if he didn’t suck it up and explain it to you one afternoon. During the first three months, he still played around, toying with you despite his obvious infatuation.

He had located every camera in the room and thought carefully about what he wanted to discuss before you came. It made you think that all he had to say to you was planned but if that was it, you wouldn’t have had much to talk about. He always found new ways to keep you interested even if not much was going on in the center.  His therapy sessions were going well, the nurses told you but you weren’t sure about that. He always seemed devoid of emotion unless he was with you. Others may have seen him as normal yet you knew better. He was one of the best actors out there. Too bad those acting chops were used to hide himself from others.

You were once allowed to view one of his sessions and what you saw did not surprise you. He behaved well. He answered all questions asked. Half of his answers seemed rehearsed but it was obvious that the doctor could not tell. Even in his rehabilitation uniform, hair down, and one or two breakouts on his skin, the man looked so handsome. You would not have been surprised if his face was a reason the doctor was tripping up. Was she new to the field? Or was he just that entrancing?

This was what lead you to begin your own sessions. The two of you spoke quietly and you figured that he must have found out what you were trying to do. Nonetheless, you tried your best with subtle surveys of what was going on and sincere questions about how he was feeling. Sometimes you could see the amusement in his eyes as you spoke. You loved when that glint showed up when you walked in the visiting room but it saddened you when you knew it left as soon as you were gone.

After the nine month mark, Mingyu was wrapped around your little finger and you, likewise. It was obvious who had more power over the other although you managed to beguile the man unknowingly at many times.

It had now been twenty-one months and a discussion had risen about when Mingyu would be let out of what he described as “an interesting group of intellectuals mixed with morons”. There was no cure for psychopathy and rehabilitation was never going to be fully successful. Discussion about his job had also begun to resurface at work. Saying people were shocked was an understatement. Mingyu knew it was going to be like his if he had been caught. He thought that you might have been obedient due to fear or maybe even because of your love for him yet you managed to surprise him when he was asked to go along with a pair of officers during work.

He was certainly an asset to the hospital but the idea of having a patient as a doctor scared many. The idea of someone who held no empathetic tendencies was something that many others were fearful of. You knew better than them, your fear long subsided but still did not have the bravery to speak up for him. You knew that if he wanted the job again, he’d be able to gain it. Deceit was indeed his specialty.

As you sat across from him again, listening to him ramble about his day and other patients he had met, you realized how much time you had invested into the man in front of you. You said it yourself, you would not be one to fall prey to the concept of Stockholm Syndrome yet there you were, listening to the man who kidnapped you, blabbering about things you were not even listening to anymore. Sympathy was only one of the things you felt. Respect was somewhere in the mix. Although it was a dangerous mix indeed. All you listened to was the depth of his voice and how it sounded in the empty silence of the room. How he took control and corrected your sarcastic attitude with a mere statement.

The attitude that allowed you to be unapproachable for years upon years. The tone that you took with even your parents sometimes was emended when you were in his presence.

“Distracted?” he snapped his fingers in front of you, bringing you back to the current moment.

“A bit. Yeah.” you chuckled, slouching in your chair.

“Tired? Is it work?” he pried.

“I’m just wondering about how it’s going to be when you get out of here.”

“Don’t worry your pretty little head about that. I have more in the bank than you’d think.” he winked. “My apartment should be secured, and even if they don’t want me back at the ward, I’ll be able to figure something out.”

“Oh? Are you living another life? Secretly a drug lord?” a smile started its way onto your face as Mingyu’s lips curled upwards.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Y/N.”

“That’s another thing. When are you planning to tell me? I bet you’ve done your fair amount of research on me.” you sat up, the idea of Mingyu stalking you past work hours, sending a fearful chill through you.

“I’m not as much of a stalker as you think. If I was, you’d probably have been smart enough to leave me by now. Let me say, you’ve surprised me by not running off yet with a sob story.”

“Isn’t that a reason why you love me?” you questioned, framing your face cutely.

He chuckled. “Indeed. You may be right.”

You furrowed your brows at his statement. “May be?”

“Y/N. You know I can lie. I’m probably one of the best actors out for goodness sake.” You nodded at his self-glorifying statement knowing in all honesty, the truth in them.

“Yet I can’t seem to bring myself to do it to you. Very few things hurt me and those things have only increased with your presence.”

To this newfound information, you nodded again but felt as if your were able to reanimate the almost lifeless man in front of you, allowing you some joy in the relationship you had. What kind of relationship? You were never sure and now that you were sitting through this explanation, you were even more confused.

“I can’t say that I love you. As you know, in my case, love is something that is described as a feeling of fascination or power rather than an emotion. I am not devoid of all emotion. I’m not a monster but I can’t pinpoint what I feel for you. At first it was just a simple interest–”

You stopped him as his speech continued to wound both your pride and your brain. You were not going to sit here and acknowledge his uncertainty in surety of emotions even though you spent so long, sitting here, listening to him, showing him what he meant to you.

“Don’t do this now, Y/N.” he quietly pleaded.

“How long have you been in here?” you asked as he grasped your hand in his larger ones.

“Almost two years.” he said with a bit of hesitation.

“How long have I been visiting you, sitting here, keeping you company?”

“A year and and eight months. Once a week if not more.”

“Why do you think I continued to do so?”

“I couldn’t be sure why. You’re a psychiatrist for God’s sake. It couldn’t have been because you loved me. You’re too smart for that. If anything, maybe attraction, fascination. Your mind doesn’t work like others. I could never know why unless you told me.”

You chuckled again at that, sniffling a bit.

“I’ve been told that I was kind of hard to read.”

“You are. The hardest case I’ve ever encountered.” he uttered.

“Then you wouldn’t mind ending this case study now?” you asked before tearing your hand away from his grasp.

“I need to figure it out. I have to get to the bottom of this one.” he said as he gripped your shoulders instead.

You pushed him away before standing up.

“Maybe we can continue another day then.”

Three weeks and you hadn’t seen him yet you knew what was going on. His condition and current due time to get out were all relayed to you. These tings would usually be kept confidential but you were a victim here and had specifically requested to know these things to which your demands were complied.

In a month, Mingyu would be released with this occurrence on his record. People thought you were crazy to care so deeply for the psychopath yet you couldn’t help it. And now that he had told you about his feelings, you had to be sure of yours as well. What hurt you more was not the fact that he didn’t know what to feel but rather that he knew exactly what to say and it was an accurate representation of what you felt as well.

You couldn’t play it off and as the saying goes, “Time will tell”.

As you at home, laying on your mattress, trying to sleep, you heard a series of obnoxious knocks at your door. You sat up, clearing your bleary vision before slowly rising to your feet. A scowl made its way onto your face as you tiredly shuffled to the door, the clock by your door read four forty-two in the morning. Who would want to disturb your day off like this? There was one person that came to mind but in your sleepy haze, you weren’t thinking clearly enough to pinpoint the possibilities.

You asked who the person was only to receive a gruff voice, voicing a name. “Mingyu.” You hesitantly opened the door, revealing Mingyu in the most disheveled appearance you’ve ever seen him in. Yet he still took your breath away.

“May I come in? he rasped and you moved aside for him.

After you heard of his discharge, you continued to stay away. Before you took even a glance at his face, you needed more time. It had been another two weeks. He hadn’t contacted you since then and you couldn’t dare think to reach out to him. If he didn’t want to talk to you, you wouldn’t force it.

As he walked into your apartment, you were suddenly aware of the mess you had left during the past week of work. With Mingyu gone, the ward had long ago, piled you with more as they looked for a replacement. You were finally getting all of the patients and recognition you wanted but still felt wrong as Mingyu was not there to witness you coming up.

Mingyu made his way to your couch and you shuffled behind him, wanting to desperately hear what he had to say.

“What are you doing, knocking on my door at four in the morning?”

“I’m here to say what I should’ve said when I was discharged. I’m sorry it took me so long to come around.” he spoke softly, quietly, as if you two weren’t the only ones in the room.

You waited patiently for his answer, wanting him to finally give you the answer you had been begging for. Whether it was closure or whether it was him admitting to himself that he was also crazy about you, that was where you would start off.

Arms crossed, your eyes started to sting with the possibilities of tears. Why? You had no idea. He had said nothing yet but you were ready for those tears to spill. You felt the first drop spill when your lips were suddenly connected with Mingyu’s in a searing kiss. The single droplet landed on the hand that was cupping your face, keeping you close to his. You tried to pull back for a moment, wanting to catch your breath but he wouldn’t let you. He keep his grip on your face and kissed you deeply but excluded his tongue.

You uncrossed your arms and brought them against Mingyu’s chest, wanting to inquire as to why this was his statement rather than a verbal one. He pulled away reluctantly, slowly opening his eyes while keeping his grip on your cheeks.

“You didn’t… say anything.” you chuckled through pants.

“Actions speak louder than words.” he retorted.

“I’ve been waiting for your words though.”

He shushed you, assuring that you would hear them after.

He brought the two of you together again, swiping your lip with his hot tongue to ask for permission. You opened up gladly. It felt like everything that wanted to be said was finally pouring out. Like he said, actions were effective when it came to speaking louder than words.

As you brought your arms around his neck, Mingyu took his time, sliding his hands down to your neck, to your back, and finally on your ass. You yelped as he squeezed and pulled you onto your toes, urging you to jump. He caught you as you sprung and connected your ankles at the small of his back.

Any sounds that you were making were muffled by the sound of your lips smacking together. You attention was everywhere as he groped your butt and took in the taste of you through your connected mouths.

“Can we take this to the bedroom?” you asked before he pulled you back into the kiss.

“What if I want you right here?”

“As great as that sounds, I need this to happen on a bed.” you enunciated.

He started walking and pushed different doors open with his foot until he found your bedroom. As his bulge started to really rub against you, you griped his hair even tighter which made him groan.

He fell on top of you as the two of you tumbled onto the bed. His grinding only increased in pace, finally eliciting a moan from you as he moved from your face to your chest. Your large t-shirt did not allow him to make any contact with your skin which angered him a great amount. He roughly pulled you shirt up, letting it bundle up at your neck. He kissed down your chest, between your breasts before taking the right in the large hand and circling the left with his tongue. He didn’t allow himself to take your nipple into his mouth for a while because he loved seeing your squirm. Your hands were in his messy hair only worsening its appearance and your head was thrown back, mouth slightly ajar as you whined.

Mingyu finally gave in and took the hardened bud into his mouth as he harshly pinched and tweaked the other. You moaned as he switched before he starting going lower again. His lips skimmed your navel and he groaned into your stomach, burying his face and you watched him.

“What’s wrong? Am I… Do you think I have a little too much fat?” you asked him, ready to push him away as you were now aware of how much you had been eating the past few weeks without regard to how it would look when all of the collateral damage gathered sooner or later.

He paused at your stomach laving his tongue right under your navel.

“Certainly not. I was just taking my time. I have you back. I can see you, touch you, and finally, taste you. You smelt so sweet, I couldn’t help but take a deep whiff.”

“Of my stomach?” you giggled.

“You got a problem? he laughed before pulling down your pajama pants to reveal your gray cotton panties that had a small bow in the middle.

“Cute underwear.” he commented before lowering himself further and taking the band of your panties in between his teeth before letting them snap back.

“I haven’t even prepared…” you muttered to yourself but he heard, lifting his head.

“What do you need prepared? You’re already wet.” he grunted the last statement.

You hadn’t shaved in a while and you were worried that even the smallest bit of fuzz would disgust him.

“Do you think I’m afraid of a little peach fuzz?” he chuckled as his face nuzzled into your core, his nose ticking your clit through your underwear. “What man would I be if I couldn’t even handle that?” he smiled before peeling off your panties.

You clenched your thighs as he knelt on the edge of your bed, licking his plush lips.He slowly pried your legs open by your knees and pulled your body towards him. He stared you dead in the eye as you peeked through your fingers before allowing his tongue to brush against your clit where he then lowered it to your slit. His tongue continued in patterns before sucking your clit. His hands went for your inner thighs before he allowed his tongue to dip into your heat. You pulsed around him,feeling everything and every side his tongue had to offer. You cried out, happily removing your hands from your face and grasping his hair.

He dove his tongue in and out of you, fucking you eagerly with the muscle before he chose to show your clit more attention. You could feel your stomach tightening as his ministrations continued before he pulled you even closer to his face and shook his head from side to side, giving you the edge that you had been thinking of.

He slowed himself and soon pulled himself up and took off his shirt, wiping around his mouth with it and tugging his pants down along with his boxers. His hard-on stood at attention and it seemed as though he needed more attention than you did. He took a condom out of his pants’ pocket before rolling it down onto himself. You tried to sit up and grasp at his length but when you did, he pushed you down again.

“All I need is for you to sit tight and enjoy yourself. Understand?” he smiled.

You nodded as he brought his lips to yours again and you moved your head to the side, not enjoying the taste of yourself. You much preferred the minty flavor that he had kissed you with earlier.

“What?” he asked as his face burrowed into the crook of your neck.

“You just ate me out and then tried to kiss me.” you chortled.

“Not into that? Noted.” he said before beginning to suck on your neck. You moaned out for him as his distracted you from the feeling that came with him pushing into you.

A few seconds passed before he started moving slowly, building up both speed and stamina. He made sure to leave marks both where they could seen by others and where they would remind you in private of this night you had shared. His thrusts pushed you back as they hit somewhere deep inside of you. It seemed strange how he hit that one spot every time he pushed back in but you questioned nothing. The way he was pleasuring you was the only focus worthy of being thought of. 

Your arms reached around the man, pulling him closer to you. At this point, you couldn’t have cared less about the taste of your cum n his tongue. You connected your lips once again and relished in the current event as Mingyu pounded into you at a speed that set both of you off. The coil in your stomach once again released, allowing you to cum with an exclamation of Mingyu’s name. He followed suit and moaned your name, slowly continuing to pump in and out of you.

He wanted to lie on top of your forever, he really did. Your walls still pulsing around him and his cock softened inside of you but knowing you, he needed to clean up a bit. As you basked in the afterglow of such great sex, Mingyu got up and disposed of the condom before walking out into the kitchen. He found paper towels and wet them with a bit of water before wiping himself down and coming back to the bedroom to clean you up as well. Every time he wiped against the bruises that adorned your skin, he would smile proudly to himself.

He found a drawer where you kept you undergarments and looked for a pair of comfy panties for you as you laid curled on the bed. He spotted a blue, silk thong and admired it for a second or two before grabbing a pair of beige cotton ones and making his way over to you. He pulled on his boxers before pulling your legs towards him and helping you pull the panties on. Your shirt was still bunched up above your chest so he only pulled it down before pulling the large covers over you.

“Still want to talk?” he asked as he slipped in behind you and put his hand over your stomach to which you hummed.

“But didn’t you say that actions speak louder than words?”

“Words still need to be spoken to communicate.”

“Then proceed.” you answered.

“If someone like me can feel love, then that’s what I feel for you. Scientifically, logically, that is untrue. But when you left, there was no other way to describe it. It wasn’t infatuation because I’m still here over two years later. If anything, I’m just crazy about you.”

Your heart swelled at his confession. The only downside being that you had to be gone for him to realize.

“If I still visited you every week, would you have realized that?”

“Of course I would have. Even the shallowest of emotions are bound to surface, are they not?” he brushed your ear with his lips, making you shiver even beneath the warm blankets and his body heat.

“It’s crazy that you finally came to terms with it.” you smiled widely.

“Was that a pun?” he inquired as you started laughing.

“How you know?”

“I missed your bad jokes.” he smiled back.

“So… do we have a title for… this?” you turned to face him and gestured between the two of you.

“You can be the Harley Quinn to my Joker.” he answered as he encircled you in his arms.

“I’ll take the job position.”

“Is being my girlfriend a job?”

“You make it seem that way sometimes. You wouldn’t dare kidnap me now that you’ve got me, would you?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it. You’re free to go. But now, you’ve also got a full time job.” he grinned as you burrowed into his chest, awaiting sleep to overtake you. It already felt like this was a dream. An upsetting, almost too sweet of an ending to what began as a nightmare. You thought you wouldn’t be the one to succumb him but you did just as the others. The only difference was the he had finally submitted to you as well. 

[theofficialcunt]

Simplicité - Chapter 7

The next few days went by smoothly, the salon was fully booked and Adore was still getting used to her new role as Bianca’s assistant, as well as balancing her new love life on top of that. Conversation with Bianca outside of work had become scarce, even more so than before. Most nights, Adore would find herself locked in her room talking to Farrah, or better yet locked in Farrah’s room.

It was cool having a roommate like Bianca. It had been Adore’s first time living with someone other than a family member and so far she was digging it. The freedom to come and go as she pleased was exhilarating, and she wouldn’t trade that for the world.

Life for her was good.

For Bianca on the other hand…

“Sorry pussyface, I can’t tonight. I got a date.” Courtney drawled over the phone, wiggling her eyebrows promiscuously into the iPhone camera. Bianca sighed to herself as she slumped back down on her bed, making sure to hold a fake smile for the Facetime camera.

“Another date? Isn’t that the fourth one this week?” Bianca asked, bitterness lacing her voice as she unhooked her bra with one hand.

“Yep! Being single rules!” Courtney exclaimed. “Hey I gotta go, I’ll see you tomorrow B.”

And with a click she was gone.

Here Bianca was, alone on a goddamn Friday night, in the middle of Chicago. Not one of her friends was unoccupied. Was there something wrong with her? When did she become the reject of the group?

She was a bit annoyed with Adore; ever since her and Farrah became exclusive her work performance had plateaued and her growth had come to a screeching halt. She desperately needed to get her shit together, at least enough for the Modern Salon interview next week.

It’s not that she was bad at her job, the girl just needed to watch her words. Bianca would cringe everytime Adore would screech “Oh party!” or say things like “Sweet man,” “Chillax bro,” and her personal favorite “We’re totes excited to see you! Byeeeee.”

Unfortunately for her, she had not been able to properly talk to her about it. Every chance she got, Adore would be rushing out the door with that loud, annoyingly whiney airheaded blonde on a smoke break.

Adore wasn’t the only one who had been neglecting her job lately. Courtney had been dragging herself into the salon with makeup from the day before. When she had tried to call her out on it, she said she was trying the new effortlessly chic look, which reportedly consisted of smudging her cat eyeliner in a way to make a “soft” smoky eye. Add the remnants of a nude liquid lipstick, a smudged brow, and glitter halfway down your cheeks and you have this Fall’s It Look according to Courtney.

Do these girls realize who she is? She has literally done everything they have, except for one, she freshened up her makeup before her shift if she was out all night, and two, knew how to do her damn job.

She shook her head and began to scroll through instagram, where she found two nearly identical pictures in her feed.

courtneyact: Oh my gosh! Ran into farrahrized and adoredelano at Roscoes. #girlsnightout

farrahrized: Date night with my baby adoredelano and my “twin” courtneyact

Adore was sandwiched in the middle of the two blondes, golden arms linked with hers as they all posed sexily for the camera. Farrah’s long platinum hair was straightened, she was dressed in metallic silver booty shorts with a rhinestone bra. Her abs shone gold from the flash (of course this bitch put highlighter there), while Courtney’s jaw was slack, blonde curls cascading around her face. She was in a short black dress, with dark red lips and a weirdly shaped headpiece. Adore was the most simple but most striking of them all, wearing a Nirvana t shirt and black ripped jeans.

Bianca clicked on Adore’s instagram and hit follow, her breath hitching in her throat as she saw the picture she posted.

adoredelano: Well I’m one lucky bitch courtneyact farrahrized

Her arms were around Courtney and Farrah’s waists, as their lips were pressed to her cheeks. Adore was smiling with her mouth wide open in the photo, almost as if she were caught mid laugh. Her head was tilted back and Farrah’s hand appeared to be touching her crotch, while Courtney’s hand rested on her right tit.

Bianca was jolted into a pure rage, her stomach feeling ill from the pure envy seeping through her veins as she fixated on the image. Without thinking, she typed out a quick comment and hit send on the photo.

thebiancadelrio: you call that lucky?

She didn’t even care if it was rude. Sure, maybe it was pure coincidence that they had all run into each other but maybe it wasn’t. They didn’t have to stay together at the bar.

The more she thought about them out having fun without her, the more angry she felt.

courtneyact: Sorry babe. Blondes have more fun. ;)

Bianca rolled her eyes. She didn’t need her false pity. It was too little too late for that anyway.

———————————

Adore softly unlocked the front door to her apartment, tip toeing in as she eyed the large clock on the wall. 1:30 AM. Ugh, she had work in 7 hours and was most definitely not looking forward to it.

As she softly padded into the house, she noticed that the lights were still on. As she turned her head towards the kitchen, she jumped back startled at Bianca’s brown eyes that were fixated on her.

“What the fuck?!” Adore exclaimed.

“I know, I look like that girl gremlin they poured water on without makeup on. Thanks for the confirmation.” Bianca retorted dryly.

“No man, It’s not that.” Adore started. “I just didn’t expect you to be up.”

“Someone has to make sure that you’re okay to actually come into work tomorrow.” Bianca smirked, raising a brow before gesturing to her tea pot. “Tea?”

“Sure.”

Bianca grabbed another mug, pouring the contents into it before sliding it over to Adore. Adore smiled, letting the sweetness slip down her throat as she studied Bianca’s features. This was the first time she had seen her with no makeup on, and she was gorgeous without it. Her natural eyebrows were more of a golden neutral brown color, instead of the dramatically drawn on dark brown ones she was used to. Her skin was smooth and reminded her of deep caramel, dewy as if she had just moisturized her face with 6 different creams. She could appreciate her dimples a lot more without the layers and layers of creams and powders, and idly wondered why she opted for so much makeup on a daily basis.

“You know, you’re like super pretty without makeup.” Adore murmured.

Bianca raised an eyebrow tiredly, for once not really wanting to challenge the girl.

“Thanks.” Bianca whispered softly.

“I’m serious. You’re a natural beauty.” Adore said, locking eyes with her. She drained the rest of her tea, setting the mug down on the counter. “Thanks for the tea. I’m gonna go get some sleep.”

As Bianca watched her go to her room, she couldn’t help but wonder if it was the alcohol talking or if Adore really thought she was pretty without makeup.

———————————

The next morning, Courtney stumbled into the salon with a false eyelash falling off of her eyelid, flyaways dancing around her roots, and dressed in one of her famous backup outfits.

Enough is enough, Bianca thought, annoyed, as she watched Courtney set her purse down at her station. She sat in her salon chair and put her face in her hands, clearly tired and not at all ready for the day ahead.

“Hi!” Bianca exclaimed, raising her voice so loud that it echoed throughout the lobby. “How’s my precious Court doing? Are you all set for work today? You’re fully booked!”

“Jesus, can you take it down a notch?” Courtney moaned, rubbing her temples.

“Why, whatever do you mean?” Bianca asked, tilting her head. “Is something the matter?”

“Hey Courm! How are you feeling? Damn dude you sure pounded those jello shots back last night-“ Adore stopped as she realized Bianca was standing right there. “Oh hey B. Sorry, Starbucks was out of Everything Bagels so I went to like 5 different ones to get you yours. I didn’t mean to be late to my shift, but I didn’t think you’d mind since I rode with you here anyway.”

“Oh it’s quite alright, just come into work whenever you’d like! Who cares if you have to drive to 5 different Starbucks and waste our time. Adore, you could have just gotten me a yogurt parfait.” Bianca seethed before turning to Courtney. “ But it’s okay! Wear your backup outfits, pass off last night’s makeup as a smoky eye look, I don’t care. But honey, at least glue your fucking false eyelash back on.” Bianca handed a stunned Courtney her eyelash glue before spinning on her heel towards the office.

“Fuck.” Courtney mumbled.

“What crawled up her ass this morning?” Adore muttered.

“A late assistant and a half drunk hair stylist.” Bianca barked from the stairwell.

——————

“Courtney!” Farrah drawled, giving her an air kiss before sitting down next to her in the stylist room. “What happened to you last night? Who was that girl you were with?” Courtney had just finished up her third haircut of the day and was currently on a 30 min break.

“Oh my god, so I took this girl home last night, and-“

“Wait wait, I wanna hear!” Adore said as she ran up the stairs from the basement. “That red headed girl you were with looked hot! Did you fuck her?”

As Adore pounded up the stairs obnoxiously, Bianca rolled her eyes as she typed an email to a client. Since when have Adore and Courtney been BFF’s? She didn’t hire an assistant to be sitting in her office by herself. She hit send on the email, before grabbing her phone and sending a text to Bob.

Bianca: Wanna get drinks tonight?

“So, I ended up taking her home and you won’t believe what happened. She fell ASLEEP!” Courtney groaned.

“No!!!” Farrah gasped, fake crying as she shook her head.

“It gets worse guys.” Courtney whined, looking between the two girls.

“Oh god.” Bianca muttered as she listened in from the office.

“She fell asleep - in the middle of sex!” Courtney screamed. “But that was okay, her cute friend Ivy explained to me that that usually happens when she gets excited.”

“Wait bitch, you took more than one girl home?” Adore asked. “That’s a baller move.”

“Why of course! And thank god I did, because Ivy was kind enough to sleep with me while her friend was passed out.” Courtney said batting her eyelashes.

“OH MY GOD!” Farrah shrieked as Adore’s laugh rang throughout the salon.

“What? I’m a classy lady, so I insisted that we let her join in once she woke up. I feel bad, I had Ivy screaming so loud I think she ended up waking the poor girl up…Anyway, at least it all worked out in my favor in the end.” Courtney shrugged.

“That’s fucking badass!” Adore cackled.

As the girls laughed together on the second floor, Bianca’s phone rang with a text.

Bob: Sorry bitch, got plans already. Soon!

Bianca frowned, sitting back in her chair as she began to feel a sinking feeling hit her stomach. Adore was fitting in great with the other girls (and Bob), which was great - fantastic even. But she couldn’t help but feel lonely as she heard them laugh and gossip upstairs, not even paying her any mind.

She watched the clock tick down, slowly watching as their lunches all trickled away before she barked Adore’s name to beckon her back downstairs.

“Yeah, B?” Adore called as she skipped down the steps.

“Can you get me lunch from EP?” Bianca asked, not making eye contact. “Cuban sandwich and if they don’t have it just get me the Chicken and Wild Rice soup.”

“Sure! Anything else?”

“Nope that’s all.” Bianca said, realizing at the last second that she was sending her into Farrah’s ex flings restaurant. Whoops.

“Okay, be back soon.” Adore said, quite cheerfully to Bianca’s surprise.

That could only mean one thing.

———————

“You didn’t tell her?” Bianca glared at Farrah as she mixed toner into a small color bowl.

“I-I didn’t know how to tell her!” Farrah protested. “It’s not like we were official. She won’t come out of the damn closet.”

“So let me get this straight, Eureka wouldn’t come out of the closet so you didn’t consider you guys to be an item?”

“It was a mutual understanding.” Farrah clipped.

Bianca was utterly disgusted. First of all, you don’t keep past relations from someone you’re dating. Especially if they work just down the street and have multiple opportunities a day to get in touch with them! The only reason people hid exes from their current partners was to still have them as an option in case things don’t work out.

“Mutual or not, Adore has the right to know especially since we work almost right fucking next to her!” Bianca snapped. “If you really respected Adore you would tell her.”

The tension was growing thick between the two of them. Maybe part of it was jealousy, but the other part of it was that Bianca cared about Adore and didn’t want to see her get hurt.

“Bianca enough.” Courtney hissed. “This is Farrah’s relationship, not yours. Stop trying to get into her business.”

Bianca shot daggers at Courtney with her eyes before she turned her attention back to Farrah, making sure to keep intense eye contact with her. She learned a long time ago that her eyes were her deadliest weapon.

“She deserves to know, Farrah.” Bianca spat, before going back downstairs to her office. Leaving a confused Farrah alone in the shampoo area, with a bowl of color and a bigger mess than she anticipated.

——————

“Hi, can I get the cuban, a blueberry/lemon scone, a raspberry salad and a grilled cheese to go?” Adore asked as she approached the cash register.

“That sounds like Bianca’s order-“ Eureka stopped in her tracks as she turned around and faced the raven haired beauty. Her heart sank as she noticed she was even more beautiful up close. Her lips were plump and full, a cherry red color from the lip balm she had put on. Heavily lined blue eyes were a striking contrast against the long black hair framing her face. The mystery girl’s skin was smooth and to top it all off she had impeccable bone structure. She stared up at her slightly in awe, so mesmerized by how pretty she was.

But then she remembered she was supposed to hate her. She entered in the order on the cash register seriously, trying not to make anymore eye contact.

“It is! I guess you know her order pretty well by now huh?” Adore laughed.

“Yeah. Anything else?” Eureka asked coldly, grabbing a paper bag quickly.

Adore’s smile faded as she shifted uncomfortably. Did she say something wrong?

“No that’s it.” Adore mumbled.

“$30.65.”

Adore raised an eyebrow before handing over the company credit card. Eureka slid it, handing her the receipt before going back to the kitchen to get her food.

“Hey what’s your name again?” Adore asked when she came back.

“Eureka.”

Adore felt her blood go cold as she realized that this was the girl that Farrah used to flirt with to get free food. She wondered if that was all that they did. By the glare on her round face, she was assuming that there was something that she didn’t know.

[brittanyinterviews]

Simone Anne, Wedding, Travel, and Commercial Photographer

Simone Anne, Wedding, Travel, and Commercial Photographer

---

This interview was conducted via email in October 2019.

---

Brittany: How did you get into wedding, travel, and commercial photography?

Simone: I started with photography my senior year of high school when I took a black and white film photo class. I’d love to say that it was love at first click, but it was just something I enjoyed (although, true to my obsessive nature, I spent hours and hours in the darkroom on weekends, so I must have loved it in some way). I was finishing up a roll of film at the park taking photos of my mom when she got tired of me taking her photo. My mom, who doesn’t love being in front of the camera, pushed me towards another woman in the park. “Excuse me,” I said. “I’m taking a photography class at the high school and need to finish up this roll of film for school. Do you think I could take a few photos of you?” She said yes, I awkwardly manually focused and snapped some images. Then she turned to me and said, “I’m actually a professional photographer.” Shanti, the photographer I met in the park that day, became my mentor, friend, inspiration, and more. She’s a wonderful human, inspiring business owner, and incredible photographer. Without her and this chance encounter in the park, I would not have gotten into photography and it would not have turned into my career in this way.

Brittany: Can you describe a typical day as a professional photographer?

Simone: I am very much not a routine oriented person and one of the big things that I love about my role as an independent business owner is that for the most part, I get to mold my work days to how I’m feeling. There are (of course) photography days where I am working with clients with my camera: Usually we’re outside, exploring around, and having a ton of fun. I love these days so much. I also love editing days, where I tuck myself in at my desk, put on an audiobook or podcast (I listen to a TON of audio in this role and love it very much), and make the images match my vision.

A huge part of my job is also back end things: I send a lot of planning and organizing emails, talk to my clients on the phone a lot to help them plan their day or pick their photographer, and work on various web things. For commercial jobs or travel jobs, I’ll put together fancy pitch / proposal decks to get the job, go back and forth with them on the phone and via email to make sure all of our plans are set, and more. Most of my wedding photography clients find me through Google and I spend quite a bit of time working on my website, dealing with pages and content that drive traffic, and working on the back end things (I don’t have a developer so it’s all just me). There’s always a lot going on and I am a work-a-holic who loves to get everything done as soon as possible, always.

Brittany: Can you describe the process of planning an engagement, wedding, or elopement shoot with a couple, touching on logistical details like timing, picking locations, and mapping out the kinds of photos you'll be taking?

Simone: My biggest goal for a wedding is this: I want my clients to have their dream day, whatever that is. I ask questions to help them narrow in on what kind of day they want and what that might look like and then I make suggestions as to how photography can fit into and augment that. I always tell my clients, “I’ll never tell you what to do, I’ll just tell you what your choices mean.” What this means is that I’m never ever leaving them hanging, but I will make whatever they want work, as long as we’re realistic about the timeline and build in the time they need for their dreams to come true. It sounds very up in the clouds, but ultimately it means that the way that I do it, wedding photography is a super fun and rewarding part of an overall joyful wedding day where we get exuberant, meaningful images that are beautiful, too.

That being said, in terms of locations and timelines, I do make suggestions. For locations, I like to get a general sense of where clients love (ocean, mountains, town, etc.) and make suggestions from there. I have a HUGE library of past work and can often share that to inspire locations, otherwise I am always scouting and exploring and love to share new finds.

In terms of the kinds of images I am going to make, I feel so lucky to have clients that trust my vision completely. I am always happy to work in a request or two, but mostly my clients come to me without anything except love of my work and trust in me and it really opens us up to a super fun and rewarding experience working and creating magic together.

Brittany: Many of the moments you capture seem so natural and your subjects seem far from stiff. Do you find yourself directing your subjects? How do you make them feel comfortable in front of a camera?

Simone: I absolutely direct and pose clients, but never in a way that asks them to stand there and hold a moment. I believe that good “posing” is less about telling you how exactly to position your body or interact with your partner, but more about figuring out where your body is its most comfortable, most you, most beautiful, and how you and your partner most naturally fit together. It’s pretty common for me to get on the phone with a potential client and have them tell me that while they love the natural, candid look of my work and want that for their own photos, they don’t actually feel that relaxed in front of the camera. This is very normal! I do a fun kind of posing that lets my clients relax, have a wonderful time, AND come away with photos they absolutely love.

Brittany: You've worked with brands like CLIF Bar and United Airlines. How does a commercial gig come to be?

Simone: I’ve gotten my biggest commercial gigs through Instagram, where clients are looking for a powerful combination of high quality photography and a strong social media presence. Most of these clients have then licensed images for other use after the fact as well.

These types of jobs have led to other commercial and editorial jobs as well: Word of mouth and experience of course go a long way.

I am not a high production commercial photographer who manages production teams of 30 people over a week in a big company’s office building. That’s just not what I do or what I am interested in, so in that sense “commercial” is perhaps not quite the right industry word, although I am working with commercial partners on big jobs.

Brittany: How has your business grown or changed over the years?

Simone: Over time, I’ve dialed in my voice and my work to really and truly represent who I am, how I approach photography, and how I work on a wedding day. With a strong voice (or brand) and strong images that fit within that story, the clients I work with these days are people who I utterly and truly love and who are SO excited about my work (beforehand, on the day of, and when they get their gallery). It’s ideal because it works as a win-win all around for my clients and myself and I am endlessly thankful for the wonderful relationships and jobs this has brought me.

Brittany: In addition to being an amazing photographer, you're clearly a UC Berkeley grad in that you steep yourself in local and global issues. Is there any issue you think more people should be paying attention to right now?

Simone: I don’t understand why managing climate change isn’t our number one priority at all times, above profit, above politics, above everything. The concept that there are people out there who don’t believe the science boggles my mind and I find our lack of care for the planet embarrassing and upsetting.

Brittany: You're definitely an expert in social media and have a background in marketing. If you could share one tip (or even a pet peeve) on how to use social media better, what would it be?

Simone: Honestly as our social media lives and IRL lives become more and more intertwined, my advice for both is the same: Focus on being interested, not just interesting, and the rest will follow.

I’ll follow an interesting account that doesn’t know how to use hashtags over a glossy, perfect account any day and overall those accounts and people that build a real rapport or community will always have a voice that outlasts the social media platform and usage tactic of the day. All that and you didn’t sell out! ;)

Brittany: Have you always been interested in photography and art in general? Can you describe your first "art memory"?

Simone: I have always been interested in art and writing, but photography was a later interest acquisition. I grew up without a television and while it meant I miss out on a TON of pop culture references, it also meant I just kinda putzed around and created a lot as a kid.

I was really, really into scissors as a young child and created a lot of collages and cut paper art. (I still love doing this, haha).

I also wrote a LOT. My parents still have so many little homemade books: For example, I had an adventure series I wrote about a girl who liked to explore outside named Art with probably five or six “books” in the series. I’ve also kept a journal since I was six years old. I’ve written in them a few times a week pretty consistently my whole life and I have a printer box full of old thoughts, worries, interests, travels, and more. And since everybody asks if this comes up: I don’t really read through them! Maybe one day I will, but for now the joy has been in the writing and exploration of them.

Brittany: I know you're a writer and have been making pottery for a few years now. Have you ever experimented with other creative mediums, like video?

Simone: I’ve never played with video professionally or even with my camera, but I’ve fallen in love with video on Instagram Stories! It’s such a versatile medium, where you can meld sound, movement, and vision to share a true sense of place. I’ve considered experimenting with this “for real,” so to speak, but video editing is time consuming and a true art.

Brittany: You've traveled all over the world, including places as far as South Africa and India and as close as the John Muir Trail here in California. What's on your travel bucket list?

Simone: I want to spend more time in India, for sure. Getting just a month in only a few of the Northern states was seriously not enough. So much to explore (and eat!) and so many interesting, historic, and beautiful things to see. Other than a return to India, I want to spend some time in Bolivia (I have tentative plans to be there for a job next fall!), explore Greece and Portugal, and get back to Africa (not sure what’s at the top of my list, but possibly Egypt, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Rwanda, Morocco… Ahh, so many ideas). In short, everywhere!

Brittany: What can we expect to see from you in the future?

Simone: I want to work on more editorial and travel projects, am interested in pursuing writing more seriously, and will continue to photograph rad couples getting married with joy and intention (so, more of that). I really love the life I’ve built and right now I just want to continue that: Grow and finess my business, travel more, and pursue some personal projects as well.

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Photo by Karen Santos

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Special thanks to Simone for discussing her work with us. You can follow her work on her wedding photographer website, travel and editorial photographer website, travel, editorial, life Instagram, wedding Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest.