#fantas high junior year

[flowersosa]

AHHHH THE EPISODE WAS SO GOOOD

WE GOT:

LORE

THREATS

GOLD

JOBS, ACTUAL PAYING JOBS

ICECREAM

[s0ftpining]

𝔱𝔞𝔨𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔯, 𝔱𝔢𝔢𝔫𝔞𝔤𝔢 𝔯𝔢𝔟𝔢𝔩𝔩𝔦𝔬𝔫! 🎸⚡

[spicykaraage]

Tenipuri Complete Character Profile - Ryoma Echizen

[PROFILE]

Birthday: December 24th (Capricorn)

Blood Type: O

Birthplace: Los Angeles

Relatives: Father (Nanjirou Echizen), Mother (Rinko Echizen), Cousin (Nanako Meino), Cat (Karupin)

Father’s Occupation: Temple Priest (local)

Elementary School: Los Angeles Saint Youth Elementary School

Middle School: Seishun Academy Junior High School

Grade & Class: First Year | Class 1-2 | Seat 3

Club: Tennis Club (Regular)

Committee: Library Committee

Strong Subjects: English, Chemistry

Weak Subjects: Science Experiments, Japanese

Frequently Visited Spot at School: Under the big tree behind the school building

World Cup Team: U-17 World Cup USA Representatives ➜ U-17 World Cup Japanese Representatives

Favorite Motto: “All or Nothing.”

Daily Routines: Playing with Karupin

Hobbies: Bathing with bath salts from Japan’s famous hot springs ➜ Clearing games he’s borrowed, watching cat videos [23.5]

Favorite Color: Silver

Favorite Music: J-Pop

Favorite Movie: Any kind of Hollywood film

Favorite Book: Monthly Pro Tennis ➜ TENNIS LIFE (an American tennis magazine) [23.5]

Favorite Food: Grilled fish (with little bones), chawanmushi, local confections [23.5], shrimp senbei (plum and kimchi flavor) [removed]

Favorite Anniversary: Any day he can play tennis

Preferred Type: A girl that looks good with a ponytail

Ideal Date Spot: Santa Montica Third Street Promenade ➜ Santa Monica Pier Pacific Park [23.5]

His Gift for a Special Person: “Just tell me what you want.”

Where He Wants to Travel: A snow-viewing hot spring

What He Wants Most Right Now: Nintendo DS ➜ Nintendo 3DS [10.5 II] ➜ A smart watch [23.5]

Dislikes: Waking up early, cleaning the temple floors [removed], paparazzi [23.5]

Skills Outside of Tennis: Animals take a liking to him for some reason, can cleanly peel fruit [23.5], horseback riding(?) [TP]

Spends Allowance On: Fanta/Ponta

Routine During the World Cup: Soaking in an open-air bath

[DATA]

Height: 151cm ➜ 152.5cm [23.5]

Weight: 50kg ➜ 47kg [23.5]

Shoe Size: 24cm

Dominant Arm: Left

Vision: 1.5 Left & Right

Play Style: All-Rounder

Signature Moves: Twist Serve, Drive A, Drive B, Drive C, Drive D, Cool Drive, Selfless State, Pinnacle of Perfection, Samurai Drive, Hope [23.5]

Number of Times His Friend’s Visited Him While Abroad: 7.8 times a month

Favorite Brands:

Hats: FILA

Clothing: FILA

Racket: BRIDGESTONE (DYNABEAM GRANDEA)

Shoes: FILA (Mark Philippoussis Mid)

Fitness Test Results:

Side Steps: 71

Shuttle Run: 119

Back Strength: 102kg

Grip Strength: 42.3kg (left)

Backbend: 59.5cm

Seated Forward Bend: 39cm

50m Run: 6.1 seconds

Standing Long Jump: 237cm

Handball Throw: 28m

Endurance Run (1500m): 4:46

Overall Rating: Speed: 4 / Power: 3 / Stamina: 4 / Mental: 5 / Technique: 5 / Total: 21

Kurobe Memo: “Even though many areas already have a high degree of perfection, I suspect it’s highly likely he’ll continue to grow and improve. I would like to see him work on building his body without sacrificing balance.” [RB]

[POSSESSIONS]

What’s in His Bedroom [10.5]:

Trophies from past competitions // They’re placed randomly since he doesn’t really care for them

Alarm clock on his bed // The alarm doesn’t necessarily wake him up…

TV and game consoles // He has several types of game consoles but keeps the one he uses the most (Nintendo 64) connected to the TV

Closet // Where his school uniforms are stored. His mother will put them away if they’re left out

His pajamas he’s left out // He’s always in a rush when he gets ready for school

Karupin’s favorite cat toy // A cat tail toy

What’s in His Bag [10.5]:

A beginner’s guide to doubles // He bought it after playing doubles with Momoshiro. He forgot it was in there

Notebook // His math notebook he forgot to take out

Photos of Karupin // He insists that he didn’t put them in there

Notepad // He’s written down emergency phone numbers since he’s always late

Pen case

Game Boy Advance // Bought for him as a starting school gift, he plays it during his free time

Senbei // He drinks Fanta/Ponta when eating senbei

What’s in His Locker at the U-17 Training Camp [10.5 II]

Game console // A PSP. He’s absorbed in video games when he’s not playing tennis and has recently been playing a tennis game

Photo of Karupin // It’s one of his favorites

Fanta/Ponta // Grape flavor

Senbei // Having Fanta and senbei together is a must

What’s in His Travel Bag [23.5]:

Shio senbei from Okinawa // Gifted to him by Tanishi to celebrate his return to team Japan

[TRIVIA]

The Prince of Tennis 10.5 Fanbook | Publication Date: 11/02/2001

Although he’s lived in the USA, he still prefers Japanese food and isn’t fond of Western food

People tend to be aggravated by him due to his abrasive personality, but he means no ill-intent by it

He gained his arrogant and abrasive personality from growing up in the USA

He will speak his mind regardless of how it sounds as he believes it’s a way of being kind

His first name is written in katakana rather than kanji. It’s alluded that it may be due to his mother being another nationality besides Japanese

Konomi had Ryoma wear a hat since he thought it was cool, and wanted people to associate his FILA hat with him

He is called “Shorty” by Kikumaru but does not mind it since he states height doesn’t matter in tennis

He likes grape-flavored Fanta/Ponta

He keeps everything he needs for school in his tennis bag, hence why he gets confused when some items are still in it

His personality is described as pessimistic, but shy, gentle and always striving for improvement

Konomi originally did not intend for him to be the protagonist. The role was originally going to be given to Kintarou, with Ryoma being his rival. He initially thought Ryoma would be difficult to portray as a protagonist, be better as a sub character and that making him the protagonist would dampen the mood of the series. He eventually decided on Ryoma and built the other characters around him

Konomi describes him as a “bad guy,” and that him defeating people who are even worse is a focal point of the series

The Prince of Tennis 20.5 Fanbook | Publication Date: 12/04/2003

He is described to easily get engaged in a single subject and then excel in that area

When he concentrates, he will become so absorbed in what he’s doing that he will not pay attention to his surroundings

He is described to be suited for professions that require special skills, such as a pilot or astronaut

He is very susceptible to change and has an insatiable desire to become stronger

One of his favorite subjects is chemistry since the science behind the substances changing, combining and gaining different properties reminds him of tennis

He does not remember when he started playing tennis, and states he thinks he’s been playing it since he was born

His secondary sport would be soccer

The Prince of Tennis 40.5 Fanbook | Publication Date: 12/04/2007

He is described to be sociable and lively, but doesn’t get too involved in his personal relationships and tends to be reserved

His friends and schoolmates often visited his house when he lived in the USA

He did not know what “Old Maid” was until he played it at the joint training camp with Rokkaku

In Genius 305, when he had won his match against Atobe and everyone huddled around him, someone had quietly handed him the shaver, but it’s a mystery on who it was

He considers Kintarou to be quite strong, and wouldn’t mind having an official match with him someday

He is the character Konomi states he has the least in common with, the second being Tezuka

The Prince of Tennis II Official Character Guide: PairPuri Vol. 2 | Publication Date: 12/04/2009

He takes naps around the training camp along with Jirou

The Prince of Tennis II Official Character Guide: PairPuri Vol. 4 | Publication Date: 02/04/2010

He had gotten his hat mixed up with Sanada’s

The Prince of Tennis II Official Character Guide: PairPuri Vol. 5 | Publication Date: 03/04/2010

He likes his grilled fish with not many bones and finds removing them to be annoying

The person he currently dislikes the most is his father

If he had a long vacation, he would go play tennis on the western side of Japan since he states they have strong opponents

He wants to win all four major world tennis championships

When asked what kind of plant or animal he is like, he replies with a cat since they’re free-spirited

When asked what his current goals are, he replies that he wants to fight more stronger opponents and win against them

He is named after Ooka Echizen, also known as Ooka Tadasuke

Konomi came up with his “Selfless State” technique since he wanted to write a story where the main character’s dormant power would awaken when faced against an unbeatable enemy. And since Ryoma was a returnee, he had him speak in English to surprise the audience and give his scenes a fantasy-like feel

Konomi corrects his statement that Ryoma didn’t win national USA junior tournaments four years in a row, he had meant that when Ryoma started tennis, he had competed and won in regular USA junior tournaments four times in a row

Konomi states he has tried drawing Ryoma more mature as the series progresses and draws Ryoma’s shoes and racket bigger to make him appear smaller

One of His School Days:

6:30am - Woken up by his cousin

6:45am - Eats breakfast while half-asleep, goes to school

7:30am - Late for morning practice, does 30 laps

8:40am - 1st Period: Math, half-asleep and dozing off

9:40am - 2nd Period: English, Grammar, half-asleep and dozing off

11:00am - 3rd Period: PE, bar exercises

12:00pm - 4th Period: Geography (quiz)

12:50pm - Lunch, buys bread at the school store after eating lunch

1:10pm - Gives in and buys and drinks milk

1:20pm - 5th Period: Science I (physics), is sleepy from eating

2:20pm - 6th Period: Japanese (classic literature), thinks of ideas for volleys

3:20pm - Library Committee meeting, wasn’t listening

4:00pm - Club activities, earnestly practices volleys

5:30pm - Stops by Momoshiro and a CD shop, then returns home

6:00pm - Dinner, bathes (with bath salts from Beppu Onsen)

6:30pm - Rallies with his father

10:30pm - Plays with Karupin while listening to music

11:00pm - Falls asleep while playing games on his bed

The Prince of Tennis II Official Character Guide: PairPuri Vol. 9 | Publication Date: 09/02/2011

Mifune’s eagles are shown to be fond and gentle towards him

The Prince of Tennis II 10.5 Fanbook | Publication Date: 09/04/2013

He texts his mother everyday asking her to send him pictures of Karupin

He quickly became friends with the dogs at the training camp

The Prince of Tennis II 23.5 Fanbook | Publication Date: 05/02/2018

When he and Ryoga were younger, they went out to play and had gotten lost for three days. They eventually managed to hitchhike home

Konomi had originally intended to show him being anxious about joining team USA, but then being helped by them to join team Japan again

Konomi states he may continue his and Fuji’s match in the rain

The items Horio had brought to the camp for him were Fanta/Ponta

The Prince of Tennis 20th Anniversary Book: Tenipuri Party | Publication Date: 08/02/2019

He did not mind playing for team USA and states the country doesn’t matter as long as he can play tennis

He did not care about being on the same team as Ryoga and had actually wanted to play against him

He states he felt some changes when viewing team Japan from an outside perspective

He returned to team Japan because he had thought of the people who made him stronger and wanted to fight alongside them

[redgoldsparks]

June Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

A First Time For Everything by Dan Santat 

A beautifully illustrated memoir of a shy, Asian American thirteen year old's first trip to Europe, in 1989. Dan is a painfully self-conscious kid, bullied at school despite his best efforts to slip invisibly through the school halls. But on a three week summer trips with a dozen other kids his age, some from his school and some from other states, he begins to find himself. This story is framed through a series of "firsts"- first time traveling without his parents, first time tasting Fanta, first cigarette, first alcoholic drink, first time navigating a city alone, first kiss, first time sharing his art with someone. The main narrative of the trip is woven through with flashbacks to particularly emotional past moments- asking a girl out, being romantically rejected, rejecting someone else, helping a girl out who had gotten her period unexpectedly. It captures the wretchedness of junior high, and the way traveling can teach people both about the world and themselves.

Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong

An impactful series of essays that circles around the meaning of "Asian American" sometimes in very broad strokes, sometimes narrowing to the author's specific experience as a bilingual Korean American writer who grew up in the Los Angeles area in the 80s and 90s. I really appreciated the mix of memoir and history, research and cultural critique. Topics range from therapy, the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, racism in academia, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, stand up comedy, the 1992 LA riots, the way childhood is not allowed equally to white and POC kids, the film Moonrise Kingdom and the 1965 Civil Rights movement, shame, deconstructing the English language in poetry, the 2012 documentary Wildness about a trans bar scene in LA, intense female friendships in art school, the poet Theresa Hak Kyung Cha's life and death, activist Yuri Kochiyama, and what debt, if any, an Asian American writer and thinker owes to America. This is a book I can see myself re-reading in a couple years, and getting more from it on a second read; it's rich with quotes and references to other writers, artists and thinkers who have informed Hong's thoughts. Definitely recommend.

In Limbo by Deb JJ Lee 

I'm not going to give this book a star rating, because it deals with some extremely heavy topics I have no experience with (multiple suicide attempts, physical abuse of a child by a parent). This memoir covers four years of the main character's life, all of high school. Korean American Jung Jin, who goes by Deborah or Deb at school, made most of her friends in orchestra in junior high. But in high school she falls out of love with violin and quits music to focus more time and energy into drawing. She floats through school, feeling disconnected from peers and family, especially her mother, who swings from supportive to volatile. Another main theme is friendship- a solid, long-term friendship which Deb neglects, and a shorter, intense friendship that consumes Deb's emotional world until it falls apart. This is a story of quiet survival, of incremental steps towards healing, balance, and self actualization. Like life, it is somewhat loose in structure, but the illustrations are stunning.

The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings read by Angel Pean

Set in a world similar to but one step sideways from our current world, this story follows Jo, a creative, biracial, bisexual woman trapped by the restrictions of her society. In this US, women are under constant suspicion of witchcraft, a crime that can still be punish by public burnings. Women who aren't married by 30 are especially suspected, and have to check in with a counselor bi-weekly, and risk losing their jobs, freedom, and ability to have their own bank accounts or own property. Jo is 28, and while she is causally dating, she has no interest in marriage. She has a hard time believing that love can even exist under the pressures placed on women. It doesn't help that her mother disappeared when Jo was 14, and during the investigation, she was questioned by witch hunters. It's been 7 years and Jo's father decides it's finally time to declare Jo's mom officially dead. This ends up opening up a clause in her will that requests Jo travel to a island in the middle of one of the Great Lakes on a very specific day in autumn and collect a certain fruit that only grows there... This book is so skillfully written, for the first half I was left wondering if magic really did or did not exist; it could just be the excuse that men used to oppress women, queer people, and people of color. But then the book takes a really Kelly Link or Octavia Butler-like twist in the middle and gets weirder and wilder. Highly recommend, especially the audiobook.

How A Mountain Was Made: Stories by Greg Sarris 

A collection of short stories by long time Chairman of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, Greg Sarris; a writer I've been hearing about for years and am finally sitting down to read! These stories are all set around the Sonoma Mountain and Cotati, very close to where I grew up, and I loved being able to picture the foggy mornings, the many oaks, the quail, poppies, lupine, hawks, coyotes, and creeks in these stories. The book has a frame narrative of two crow sisters, Question Woman and Answer Woman, who introduce each story and also appear as characters in one. The stories are interwoven, nearly all set in the village by Copeland Creek where Coyote lives as headman with his wife Frog, his cousin Chicken Hawk, and his many neighbors. The stories use a lot of the kind of repetitive language that lends itself to memorization; I honestly didn't feel like sitting down and reading the book cover to cover wasn't the best way to experience them. It might have been better to flip the book open to a random story and read whichever one caught my eye, especially to read it out loud, either to myself or to a young listener. Maybe I'll get an opportunity to read it that way sometime to a nibling.

The Two Doctors Gorski by Isaac Fellman read by Helen Laser

Annae is a PhD student, a brilliant researcher, and a survivor of academic abuse. She is forced to leave the US when her former mentor claims her research and ruins her name (after sleeping with her). They work in a small field, advanced magic so complex it feels almost more like science, so Annae transfers to a university in the UK to complete her degree. There she finds herself in a cohort of entirely male graduate students under a famous but cruel teacher. Her main defense mechanism and invasive habit is reading minds, a kind of compulsive act that lets her see how her peers view her, and themselves. Unsurprisingly, these insights bring her no peace; Annae tries to rebuild her research, but urge to fall into the same traps as her role models is strong. This is a novella, only about 4 hours as an audiobook, and fairly open ended but I'm still thinking about it.

The Wolf at the Door by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist 

In this contemporary murder mystery/romance novel, werewolves exist and have always lived in small numbers around the world. A few years before this story starts werewolves outed themselves to the US government in order to better liaison with law enforcement to address werewolf-human crimes, but the general public still does not know werewolves exist. Cooper Dayton survived a werewolf attack, and is subsequently transferred from his former job at the FBI into the BSI, the Bureau of Special Investigation. When two bodies turn up in the woods in rural Maine, Agent Dayton is chosen for a trial program, and he is paired up with an agent from The Trust, the werewolf government. Dayton is attracted to his new partner, Agent Park, immediately- but when it turns out Park's family is active in the area of the murder, Dayton realizes he can't rule out the possibility that his co-worker might be actively covering for the criminal. This book starts an enjoyable paranormal romance series complete with plenty of spice but also very solid procedural mysteries. I was glad to be able to guess some parts of, but not all of, the mystery as it unfolded and I also thought the romance novel beats hit well!

The Wolf at Bay by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist 

At the start of this second installment in my new favorite paranormal romance/murder mystery series, Agent Cooper Dayton and Agent Oliver Park of the Bureau of Special Investigations have been sleeping together for 4 months but still have not defined their relationship. Some of their miscommunications stem from cultural misunderstandings, but more of it comes from them both being too gun shy to be the first one to say "I love you." Meanwhile, Cooper takes Oliver to meet his family in the small town of coastal Maryland where he grew up- introducing Oliver only as his partner at work, because Cooper's family don't know he is gay and also don't know werewolves exist. Then a 25 year old skeleton is uncovered on the Dayton family property, and Cooper and Oliver have to set aside their other issues to solve the cold case, which might implicate one or both of Cooper's parents. A very enjoyable second book which manages to avoid a lot of the things that often bug me in romance novels and develops the relationship in satisfying ways.

The Mermaid, The Witch and The Sea by Megan Tokuda-Hall 

Evelyn, the closeted lesbian teen daughter of nobles in an oppressive and strict empire, sets to sea aboard the Dove on a six month voyage to meet the husband her parents have chosen for her. On the Dove she meets Florian, a sailor her own age she who she befriends despite his lack of education and rough manners. But what Evelyn doesn't know is that Florian is also Flora, an orphan who joined the crew out of desperation and killed a man in cold blood to earn her place. And also- the ship is crewed by pirates, who plan to take all of the passengers as slaves. They have also committed a crime against the very sea itself: the capture of a mermaid with intent to sell it's blood, which men drink to forget. This is a dangerous and violent world, but the connection between Evelyn, Florian/Flora and the mermaid might be enough to save them all, with the help of some cleverness, bravery, magic, and love. This book had some tonal shifts that I struggled with, but I deeply appreciated the multifaceted queer rep.

Thrown to The Wolves by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist 

The third book in the werewolf/detective romance series I've been wolfing down on audiobook. In this installment, Cooper Dayton, human BSI agent, is still heaving from the wounds of his previous case when Oliver Park, werewolf BSI agent, learns that his grandfather and head of the pack he abandoned several years ago died. Oliver asks Cooper to come with him to the funeral, and Cooper agrees, having no idea what he's getting into. The couple narrowly avoids a deadly car-crash on the way up to the family mansion in Canada, where Cooper learns that even though Oliver's family is fine with him being gay they are not really fine with him dating a human. Several of Oliver's relatives very explicitly try to scare Cooper off, then he's shot with a tranquilizer in what may or may not be an accident, then it turns out that Oliver's grandfather might not have died of natural causes. Amongst all this chaos, will Cooper decide the wolf world is just too much and that he needs to back away from it? Or will be just dive in even deeper? Even though I could easily guess the answer, I am still very hooked and will definitely read more!

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman 

Seraphina is the assistant composer to the royal family of Goredd, which means she lives in the castle and spends her days auditioning new musicians, leading rehearsals, performing at state functions and giving the vivacious, whip smart, slightly spoiled princess her weekly harpsichord lessons. In two weeks, the most important dragon general will be visiting the capital city to celebrate the 40 year anniversary of the peace treaty between humans and dragons which he negotiated with the current human queen. But then one of the members of the royal family is killed, and some people start pointing the finger at dragons; tensions begin to rise in the city as anti-dragon mobs attack a young dragon traveling the city in his human form. Amidst this tension, Seraphina is even more desperate to keep her longest and darkest secret: that she is half dragon, and carries hidden scales, maternal dragon memories, and a mental link with other powerful beings. This was such an original take on a dragon fantasy, with a rich and complex world, characters that I immediately cared for and rooted for. I'm definitely going to keep reading this series!

Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist 

Human boyfriend Cooper Dayton and his werewolf boyfriend Oliver Park are trying to buy a house together; but their aesthetic sense of what makes an inviting home is vastly different, and neither of them are communicating their needs well to the other. How convenient that their next case for The Trust, the werewolf government, involves them going undercover to a couple's retreat where they will investigate a missing person report while also doing bonding exercises and couple's therapy. Will Cooper finally acknowledge that he was PTSD? Will Park admit their massive family wealth disparity could be a source of tension between them? Will they manage to figure out the link between a threatening park ranger, a local lumber mill owner who wants to buy the land the wolf retreat is built on, not one but two missing employees, the mysterious research of a wolf scientist (who may have experimented on his own children), a wolf pack leader showing up at the retreat unexpectedly? This installment continues the development of the central relationship while also fleshing out the lore and intricacies of the wolf world.

[banqanas]

Lurking on your blog for a while now and loving all the Fanta content, but seeing you mention Gekidan made me perk up with interest. They're so underrated by everyone to the point of some people not even counting them as members of Exile Tribe.

I saw your thoughts on member dynamics between the OGs and the new guys, which made me grin so much, but also a bit sad because there really isn't enough content with them.

All I know is that Onocha pretty much adopted Yuki and to a certain extent also Ken-chan (which was pretty much obvious from the start when you consider why both guys decided on joining LDH and all the more happy to be added to Gekidan; they adore their senpai and he's just as great with them as he was with Kanta when he was added years ago). As for Aki, all I know is that one hilarious interaction he and Onocha had last summer when they were together at the annual summer outing, where Aki was clinging to Onocha the whole time and even joking that he feels a little like his girlfriend (the photos of him leaning with his head on his shoulder as he clings to his arm are so good).

I remember that one thing Aki said after watching the JAM recital together with Yuki and Ken-chan, that he's looking forward to work together with the others on projects as a group. (And then "all" we get is him being adorable with Kazuma, which is really great, but it's just not the same).

But yeah, we definitely need more content with all the members together, but seeing how everyone is always so busy with their own projects is both good (for them) and sad (for us). Still, I'm not giving up hope that one day we will get another entry in the JAM franchise with all the members together.

(It's kinda ridiculous that we have more content of Gekidan adopting RMPG's Riku and being adorable cuties than of the actual members together.)

Hello! Thank you so much for your messages! I'm happily reading them and learning more about gekidan from it! My response has gotten pretty long itself so the rest is under the cut.

I don't think it's obvious given from my current fanta phase but yes I was into Gekidan Exile for a while XD (circa 2022-early 2023) I only consider myself a casual fan of them to be honest but the image of 8 gekidan members performing with taiko drums in the middle of tokyo dome before the start of Voice of Red at High&Low The Live is forever embedded in my mind as the group's image. Gekidan Exile is Fucking Cool.

I was maeken's fan before he joined gekidan (when he was active in Kamen Rider Revice). So it was only when the news of maeken joining gekidan (nov 2022) that i got interested in the group as a whole because I wanted to get to know the kind of group maeken is joining.

Since I went through the Highlow -> Prince of Legend pipeline (around 2021), their presence as prominent members of Exile Tribe was strong since they still got main roles and we can directly see their inter-group interactions. I honestly think these kind of interactions of gekidan being friendly with gene members and also as guiding senpais to the currently rising rmpg group were important to show how much gekidan is a core group in the tribe.

Eventho I was aware of them, unfortunately I wasn't following them too much as a group. Mainly bc my japanese wasn't as good back then so I relied a lot on fansubs. And unfortunately there wasnt any gekidan fansubbed stuffs at the time :'D The only member I gave some focus on was Nobu because he's directly interacting with Kazuma and a littleeee bit of Kanta bc of DTC.

I was pretty much late to the "golden" gekidan age so I wasn't able to follow anything in real time, but even in 2022 I was able to enjoy JAM series and the shows of them as a group that's available on CL 😭🙏🙏

I love that Aoyagi Sho is one of the older members but he's pretty silly who likes to tease his juniors for his own entertainment. I like hearing his loud ossan laughs since he already has a really beautiful voice 🥺 Akiyama and Ozawa san are the ones makes sure the group functions. I like how Machida Keita is pretty quiet when he's with gekidan, in comparison to his very very long list of roles, and is just enjoying their company. Masayasu's roles are always more to the loud types but I was surprised that he's very calm and collected when in gekidan. Onocha, Sway and Nobu are there (i already know their works individually so i didn't have much surprise). and Kanta is the youngest who is the receiving end of Aoyagi Sho's teasings.

I love the Camping Club shows and this gekidan wachawacha episode where Kanta dresses like a minion

This phase was unfortunately short lived bc they didn't do anything as a group after the announcement of new members and my interest in maeken was dwindling bc he wasn't in any project i'm interested in. And this was when Highlow The Worst X premiered and i diverged to another pipeline when I met Kamui -> Keito -> Fantastics.

As for Aki, all I know is that one hilarious interaction he and Onocha had last summer when they were together at the annual summer outing, where Aki was clinging to Onocha (...) (...) Aki said after watching the JAM recital together with Yuki and Ken-chan, that he's looking forward to work together with the others on projects as a group.

OH MY GOD????? I didn't realise I was so out of the loop that I didn't know any of this happening??? Jr gekidan (personal nickname) were at JAM recitals as well??? That means they've been connected even before it was announced they're joining gekidan 😭😭😭 I honestly have no source/fans of gekidan to follow so I would appreciate any and all direction to these 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

But yes!!! Gekidan is Exile Tribe!!!!!!!! And the new gekidan members are Jr Exiles (personal delusion)!!!!!!!!

I am the type of fan that likes to see how my oshi (Maeken in this group) interacts with friends and members, so I am always waiting to see more interactions between the senior and junior members. even if just a quick livestream, I want to see the group together 😭🙏

Not only that, I really do wish to see more integrated projects/activities between them and the other tribe groups like highlow & prilege, but i would consider this a pipe dream for now.

[floraljae]

𝐄𝐧𝐡𝐲𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐠𝐮𝐲𝐬 𝐈'𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬

Alternatively, Nini having too many opinions about guys her age ft. loving slander

PAIRING. ENHYPEN OT7 X FEM!READER

THEMES. CRACK, fluff if you squint lol

WARNINGS. Totally NOT beta'd, food mentions, profanity, very very oddly specific at times because I was projecting, I love Jay.

NOTE. High school is, here in my country, for most part, 9th to 10th grade (we attend 10th for two years) according to the national system (MY country is not like other girls, guys 😩). 11th grade and 12th grade are considered junior college, spanning for just a year and half until we start preparing for university entrances. All of the parties I have actually attended were organised by either my friends from the old school or by the teachers from our tuition/coaching classes lmao. The partygoers’ ages range from 16-18 and there is ABSOLUTELY no booze or whatsoever, just good food, water, fanta, sprite and kid friendly mango juice :D Gonna have to thank God bc my best friend doesn’t use tumblr or she’d actually realise who these chipmunks  are bc of all the oddly specific details LOL

Dedicated to @kristianities and @kdyism , the two ladies I laughed about this whole shiy show to. Enjoy the slander ;-;

LEE HEESEUNG

The guy that looks sane

Probably goes to a coed school and is pretty chill with girls

Turns up in his plain tees and washed blue denim jacket thrown over

Wears a watch, ALWAYS (I’m so sorry this gonna get too specific lol)

Has this pretty famous Instagram account where he uploads covers of his favourite songs

I shit you not, but at least 3 all Girls schools have declared him the campus' national crush (we have that at our skl so kskejdj. The fangirls SCARE me to death)

When he walks in, he looks like the calmest, the most sorted guy to ever exist

From afar, he might look like he is just here to vibe (and he is)

But you might need to reconsider the calm aspect 

Loves the hype

The kind to literally bust a lung to his fave songs

Got some GREAT moves up his sleeve and never hesitates to use them 

Gets super shy afterwards but do we talk about that?

Gonna be very specific here :O But he strikes me as that one quiet kid who has a lot of friends and is very much in demand

His cousin might be a bitch you know from skl, BUT HEY??? He’s nice when you talk to him

Probably even scores your number by the end of the party and sends you the notes he gets from school

Rest 99.9% assured that he's gonna become your new bestie way too quickly

PARK JAY

The rich kid (pt.2) who actually looks and acts like a rich kid lol

Goes to some really fancy All boys' school

Pulls up in a porsche

His ultra modern very hot and sort of overbearing mum drops him off

Wears some cool shirts, ripped jeans, the good students’ enemy, good old platform boots

The kind of guy, I personally, would never talk to

Looks mean

Acts mean 

But isn't actually mean, he's just awkward, you saw him giggle at one of your best friend's jokes from your peripheral vision

Makes sipping Mountain dew look like it’s something fancy

Acts like a casino owner sorry my people I don’t make the rules

Brags about his vacation in Phuket, Thailand 🙄🙄

I wanna throw my mango juice at him

Hangs out EXCLUSIVELY with his tight knit group of friends

Acts like the others are lints

Can have fun when he wants to

Which is only when the music plays

Busts some elegant moves, small steps and all

Makes it all look like he’s at a pub, enjoying a drink and all that rich kid jazz

literally just lady-killing

IT’S THE VIBES I WILL NOT ELABORATE

Unless you're friends or close with any of his friends, the chances of him treating you like a lint is high, not in a bad way!!!! He just won't reciprocate your presence lol

If you happen to be the kid of his dad's friend (istg I am totally NOT projecting rn), he'll be kind enough to spare you a glance and probably ask you why you were riding your bike down the lake without parental supervision or something

100/100 the kind of guy at least one of your friends will have a crush on and bug you about it for the rest of the semester

Is actually shy around girls but his pride won't let him admit that lol

He acts so awkwardly mean I would be best friends with him if I had the patience and motivation to reach out first

SIM JAKE

The friendly childhood friend who is literally too fixated on being taller than you

Another oddly specific dude

But yes

His parents are like- super rich but he chooses to be the biggest himbo

Comes to the party alone, goes home with his friends lol

No but he is so popular with girls it’s crazy

Maybe because he’s the nicest guy ever

Is respectful *cough* and helps you with physics

But he has ONE flaw

And that’s being a childhood friend you probably even forgot about until now

Physics Tutions caused a long awaited reunion of friends and he’s sadly one of them

Will definitely follow you around like a pup until you pay attention to him

Would literally float to wherever the fuck you have been standing with your friends

Yell your name from across the room 

And of course, heads will turn and this bitch will still be as clueless and continue to wave

Trust me, this makes you want to drown in the drink you were probably holding

He will barge into your group and ask “Remember me :D”

LIKE TF I DO

And then he continues to tell your friends how he used to be shorter than you in kindergarten and all through elementary

Spoiler, they know what happens at the end but here we go I guess

He is now a good few inches taller

And THIS BITCH IS LITERALLY SO HAPPY ABOUT IT HELP

His friends tease him about it way too much

I need a Jake ;-;

PARK SUNGHOON

Doesn’t want to be here pt. 1

A dude so pretty that even the parents knows about him

The sole reason as to why he attends is that his friends made him pay for his share of food pt.1

100/100 Missionary All Boys school vibes I will not elaborate

Famous jock who's probably played national preliminaries 

Looks like he’s got something up his ass constantly, too poised and awkward

Wears the same jacket and a pair of washed blue jeans and black Converse highs (not even original) to every single party

The only thing that changes is the colour of the button up shirt he wears underneath. Still very hard to ever even notice because it just alternates between white, beige and black lol

Always wears his dear lil apple watch

Soft spoken, and you will NEVER hear him speak more than 10 words at a time

Looks like he’s gonna pass out the moment a girl tries to talk to him

Not with people he isn't familiar with, at least

Sticks to the cheddar cheese flavoured Pringles and bottled water

Acts like he doesn't know any of his friends if they do something (read: anything)

Just wants to go home but his friends won't let him

Idk why but he strikes me as a person who secretly judges every single person in the room and secretly laughs when someone trips or makes a mishap when dancing 💔🚶‍♀️

You are BOUND to find him sunk into a couch, away from the dance floor after being forced to sway his body a lil

Gets all red and nervous when you try to start a convo

Too awkward hi mum I love him

But hellooo? Ask him about his Missionary school. He won't ever shut up.

KIM SUNOO

The nicest guy

Co-ed schoolboy vibes

Instagram famous OML

He takes pretty photos

And he is so nice :(((

Sunoo I think casually, is actually the only one (except for Jay) who puts some thoughts into dressing himself 

I can literally picture him in these pretty peach/beige/baby blue coloured t-shirts or half-sleeved cotton button ups with small prints or embroidered flowers

I just think he's the neatest and has the most cohesive sense of fashion

The kind to literally fly around the whole place, strike up convos with anyone in sight

A true sweetheart (and saviour) if you're as sulky as me, sitting in a corner because your friends ditched you for a dance 

Yeah because he'll pad pad his way towards you, take a seat, stay silent for about three seconds and ask something like "Not gonna dance?" or "my friends do that too :)</3"

And bam! Before you even know it, you'll be talking to him like he’s your best friend separated at birth

Trust me, he has so much tea

From school scandals, who is dating who to who failed their primary grad prelims secretly, he knows it all

Honestly, it will be really fun to talk to him in general 

I love him pt. 2

The only guy who asks the girls for a dance and enjoys himself very much

YANG JUNGWON

Doesn’t want to be here pt. 2

He just came for the food not even going to lie

Isn't even bothered about his clothing

Wears whatever the Heck he finds first in the closet and a pair of black cargo pants 

You will NEVER see him leave the food counter

But the only time you will find him elsewhere would be when he sees his best friend trying to approach his crush lol

You can see him and the rest of his group walk and laugh exactly half a meter away from them, so not trying to hold their laughs as they hear them attempt to make a proper conversation 

Loves taking pictures of his friends

Mostly cursed ones but at least he takes it for them <33

NISHIMURA RIKI

HE IS SO CUTE I WANNA GIVE HIM HEADPATS

Just here for the dance

And also because he was made to contribute to the budget

That one cute lil dude going through his "I wanna be a cool kid" phase

All black outfits, a lil bit of silver chains and black Air Jordans

Walks around with this grumpy face

But can never keep it bc he is babie

Gets excited when someone tells him his outfit is cool or tells him they know from interschool event and all

Challenges boys from other schools to dance-offs I'M SO SORRY IT HAPPENS IRL TOO

Tell me how he knows ALL those tiktok dance challenges by heart

Famous and too shy

Talking to him would be the funniest because he just CAN'T seem to bring himself to accept compliments with something other than "Thanks....I know?" In the most awkward way lol.

Girls are nuts over him and he's scared lol

Loves the mango juice, thinks the fact that you never get canned Sprite lol

All for candies, even takes some home lol

He appeals to me as the kind of guy, whom you have the biggest urge to baby even though are practically the same age BECAUSE!!! he is so lost and sweet :(((

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

FLORALJAE, 2022

[askagamedev]

How did you get into game developing ? Like the job.

I wanted to design games since I was a child. I used to hand-draw level designs and character designs, outline stories, and come up with gameplay ideas for games back when I was in elementary school. They weren't particularly amazing ideas, but I started when I was five years old. In high school, I excelled in math and science. It made sense for me to pursue engineering and computer science when I went to university, both to appease my strict and demanding parents and to further my personal goal of getting into game dev.

While I was at university, I took a software engineering course that bid teams of engineering students do a self-directed project over the entire class length. I wanted to make a video game and persuaded my other teammates to join me. We ended up making a mod (with a new map and our own game rules) for a popular first person shooter at the time. I spent a huge number of hours working on that game. I roped several of my friends into playtesting my game for me, and I knew I had found my calling when one of them complained about missing dinner because he had been so engrossed playing my game. After that class ended, I started making mods for other games on my own time for fun. I continued to do so through graduation.

After I graduated from school, I went to the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco and handed out my resume to all of the recruiting companies that would take it. I got one callback from a studio looking to hire a junior UI programmer, somehow managed to persuade them that I was teachable and motivated (mostly because I had been making mods on my own), and got a job offer. I’ve been working in games in some form or other ever since.

[Join us on Discord] and/or [Support us on Patreon]

The FANTa Project is being rebooted. [What is the FANTa project?]

Got a burning question you want answered?

Short questions: Ask a Game Dev on Twitter

Long questions: Ask a Game Dev on Tumblr

Frequent Questions: The FAQ

[peachscribe]

Where Nico is in the army and he comes back after 4 years to finally start college and he is Will's roommate

look at me actually doing another one of my prompts so soon after i did the last one

i gotta admit i thought ths prompt was great but i wasn’t expecting it to get so out of hand. like. it’s so long. normally i post from mobile but here i am actually on a computer to add in a cut beCASUSE IT’S SO UNBELIEVABLY LONG brace yourself

also the last time i tried to add in a cut something weird happened where it wouldn’t show what i had written after the cut so if anything weird like that happens again don’t be afraid to let me know like ya’ll did last time

also before we get started: ((tw)) there’s some kinda graphic nightmares and one of the characters has a panic attack. just a psa for anyone who’s sensitive to that kind of stuff

The reassimilation process was something Nico had not looked forward to. Seeing friends after years of being apart, eating his favorite sugary cereal, taking naps whenever he wanted? Easy. Getting to know what life was like without fear? Probably a bit harder.

Nico had snuck into the army when he should've been a senior in high school. Of course, he was found out a bit later on and forced to complete his studies online.

(Which seemed very stupid to Nico at the time. War was happening right in front of everyone's faces, but they were focusing on the meaningless studies of a kid who didn't care too much about stuff like that. And then the war ended and suddenly Nico had no clue what to do with himself. He was glad the Sargent Reyna had forced him to finish high school.)

Without the rigidity of the army and the war providing Nico with some sort of purpose, he found himself enrolling in a quiet university to maybe get a degree in psychology or some other -ology. Tuition was free thanks to his four year service, and nothing was really holding him back, so he just decided to full on commit and live in the dorms.

Maybe communal living would help the assimilation process.

Nico had expected a roommate who talked little to him and minded his own business because Nico could get scary. What he did not expect was a boy the human equivalent of a Labrador retriever who only ceased to be quiet when he slept throwing paper planes at the ceiling and asking about the meaning of shades of the same color in different contexts.

"Blue like the sky during the day time is sort of associated with hope, you know? Because it's bright and lighter," Will was saying, carefully folding another sheet of written-on notebook paper. Nico could only assume that the paper was Will's notes from that day. "But blue like the night sky is darker, and therefore holds a certain heavy weight to it." He threw the paper plane up at the ceiling. It flew up, bounced on the lights, and then crashed nose-first on the carpet. "Do you get what I'm saying?"

Glancing at his watch, Nico looked at the half-finished history paper on his laptop screen, the cursor blinking at him tauntingly. "I'm going to get something to eat," he said, standing up from the small desk and ignoring Will entirely, which was something he had grown quite used to doing after only a couple of weeks of living with him.

Will scrambled up from his lounging position on his bed. "Hey, can I come with you?"

"You've normally already eaten by this time." Nico checked his watch to make sure. 7:32. He was right, of course. Will ate dinner with his friends down in the cafeteria at 6:15 every weekday, and Nico always left the campus to get food at 7:30.

"Well, I've been thinking."

This was probably going in no direction Nico would like.

"And it's been two whole weeks since the semester started, and we haven't really talked, you know?" Nico did know. He was doing it on purpose. "And I just think that we should probably get to know each other better if we're going to be sharing the same living space for a year."

Despite how much he hated the logic of it coming from Will, he knew that he was right. In the army, people had to get to know each other fast to build trust and to make shared life in wartimes easier. If he dragged his feet on actually communicating with Will, there was a chance he'd come to hate this normal life.

So he shrugged. "Okay."

-

They arrived at Nico's usual dinner place (which might've actually had a real name, but the broken neon sign at the front said only 'EAT' so that's what Nico referred to it as in his mind) at 7:58. Will had been chattering away the entire walk to Eat, and Nico tried his best to pay attention.

He slid into his usual corner booth, and the teenage waitress he had come to recognize walked up without a pen and pad. It seemed she was also starting to recognize Nico and his routine.

"Junior burger with lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, French fries and a strawberry milkshake?" she asked, and Nico nodded. She turned to Will. "What about you?"

"Um." He looked around for a menu. He didn't find one. "The adult burger? All the way."

"Fries with that?" the waitress asked, seemingly unbothered by Will's reference to a regular burger as an adult burger, though Nico had to try to muffle an ugly snort.

"Yes, please." Will still looked a bit awkward.

"And what to drink?"

"Do you have orange Fanta?" The waitress nodded. "Then I'll have that."

"It'll be right out," she promised, walking back to the kitchen to relay their order.

"How does she know your order?" Will asked once the waitress was out of sight, leaning in as he did so. As if the question was something scandalous.

"I come here every weekday," Nico said with a shrug, not bothering to keep his voice low or lean in like Will had.

"You really have schedule for yourself, don't you?" Will asked after a moment, looking a little incredulous. "Like, I noticed it after the first week, but you always have these set times you come and go, and now you come to the same place everyday?" He let out a low whistle, shaking his head a little.

Nico didn't understand why Will found this fact so hard to believe, but he nodded a little anyway.

"Anyway," Will said, picking up the salt shaker and fiddling with it in his hands. "You didn't strike me as the strawberry milkshake sort of type."

Again, Nico had no clue as to the significance of such a basic decision. "I just am, I guess. I like sweet stuff," he admitted, watching as Will put the salt shaker down to fiddle with the pepper shaker.

"What's your favorite?"

"Anything really," he answered, tracing the grains of the wood and giving a little shrug. "I wasn't able to have anything sweet for a while, so I've just been picking up where I left of and eating any sweet stuff I can."

They both gave a nod of thanks to the waitress as she set down their drinks before walking off. Nico took a small slurp of his milkshake, relishing the taste of it. Will watched as he did so.

"Why not?" Nico looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "I mean, why weren't you able to eat anything sweet?"

Nico shifted uncomfortably, carefully analyzing his options. He could tell Will about his service, but then Will would know for sure that Nico had fought in the war because of how recent it was, and it could change how he interacted with him. Despite how intrusive Will was almost every waking moment of the day, Nico liked that he never treated him like he was fragile or scary. The other option was lying, which would probably not hold for long. And that could risk a future friendship with him.

He stared out of the window to the road, lit up by street lamps. People walked by, immersed in their own conversations, or walking peacefully by themselves.

"I served in the army."

Will blinked at him, though Nico only knew it because he was looking at Will's reflection in the window rather than his face. "You mean...?"

"Yes, I served in the war."

"Oh." Will sat back, and Nico braced himself for the onslaught of questions.

(Did he serve active duty? Did he ever kill someone? Interesting stories or scars?)

"Wait. How old are you?"

Nico was so surprised by the question that he actually turned to look at Will in the eyes. "What?"

"Like-" Will made a vague gesture with his hands, seeming to search for the right words. "You look so young. Er, well, not really, because the way you hold yourself isn't like a kid and the look in your eyes isn't either, but your physical stature is very..." He trailed off, making another vague gesture, but this time at Nico.

"I don't know if I should be offended."

"No!" Will exclaimed, waving his hands frantically. "That's not what I meant. You're really handsome in an adult sort of way" - Will's face was turning an alarming shade of red - "it's just you're kinda... small."

Nico stared blankly at Will, whose blush was now creeping under the collar of his shirt. He got the feeling that Will didn't say 'small' to be demeaning.

The waitress came by with their food, and Nico watched as Will desperately tried to get a hold of himself. He decided he might as well relieve him a little bit.

"I was a bit young when I joined," Nico said, grabbing the ketchup to squirt a quarter-sized amount of it on his plate.

Will cleared his throat, no doubt glad that the focus was off of his inability to express his words right. "How young?"

Nico thought for a second. "I believe that I had just turned seventeen at the time."

A piece of Will's burger suddenly lodged in his throat, and Nico stared in mild concern as Will coughed violently before taking a large swig of his orange Fanta. "But that would mean you were still in high school!"

The patty on Nico's burger wasn't perfectly aligned with the bun. He fixed it absently. "I snuck in. I did finish my high school course online, though."

Will stared at him, a strange look of awe on his face that Nico didn't quite understand. "That seems a little heroic," he said, and Nico's jaw clenched. "In like a dumb movie protagonist sort of way," Will continued.

Nico let out an ugly snort.

-

As the weeks passed, Nico slipped into a comfortable routine. His classes weren't as on-schedule as he hoped, but he went to Eat with Will on Monday's, Wednesday's, and Friday's, and on the weekends they made macaroni and cheese for lunch and soup for dinner. Sometimes they'd go hang out with Will's friends, though that was only on Saturday's and Nico didn't think he liked it being part of his routine. He preferred it much better when it was just himself or himself and Will.

He would go jogging in the mornings and ignore the nightmares that woke him up in the middle of the night.

Nico was stretching by a bench, trying to loosen his muscles a little before he jogged back to the dorm. It wasn't too early in the morning, though there was a certain chill in the air that cooled the back of his throat and made his breath come out like puffs of mist. He checked his watch. 7:27. Will was most certainly still asleep.

Just as Nico was about to take off again, his cellphone vibrated in his sweatpants pocket. "Nico," he answered without checking called ID.

"Hey," came a groggy voice through the phone that Nico immediately recognized. "Annabeth just woke me up to remind me that you had started school nearby."

Nico didn't mention that he had been going to school for a little over two months. "Hey, Percy."

"It's been a while, Neeks," he said, and there was some slight shuffling, like he was getting out of bed. "I wanted to meet up with you again sometime soon. That cool?"

"Tell me when and where."

Percy rattled off coordinates and Nico took the phone away from his ear, saving a note with the numbers and promising to look up the destination later. They decided to meet up in a month when both of their schedules would align.

"I'm going to try to get a couple more hours of sleep in," Percy said, and Nico heard him stifle a yawn. "It's always easier to sleep when it's light outside, you know?"

"I know, Perce," Nico said, his voice grim as he reached down to touch his toes. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

"The same goes for you," Percy responded. Nico ended the call.

He jogged back to the dorm, listening to the sound of his breathing and the slap of his shoes on the sidewalk.

Nico accidentally woke Will up as he opened the door a little too loudly. Will sat up, letting out a groan and dragging his hands over his face. "Dude. You go to sleep after I do, and then you get up earlier than I do. Do you even sleep?"

Dropping his phone on his pillow, Nico slumped onto his bed, untying his shoes and peeling off his socks. He didn't answer Will's question. Will didn't seem to mind.

"Anyway isn't it a free day for you?" Will asked, grappling for his phone and checking the date. "Why are you up so early?"

"I go jogging," Nico said, voice monotonous as he gave Will a look. This shouldn't be new information.

"Yeah, but we promised we'd take today to relax."

Nico let his mouth quirk up in a little smile. "I am relaxing."

Will flopped back onto his comforter. "You're so strange."

Grabbing a sweat towel draped over his desk chair, Nico wiped down his face and neck, knocking lightly on Will's chest to get his attention. "Breakfast?" he offered, but Will just wrinkled his nose at him.

"You're showering first."

-

After Nico had gone down to the showers, his hair smelling distinctly like green apples (the shampoo Will had bought for him), he returned to the dorm to find Will asleep again.

He sat on the edge of Will's bed, reaching over him and grabbing the extra pillow Will kept by his side. He took a moment to admire the pretty features of Will's face - the light dusting of freckles, the brush of his eyelashes on his cheeks, the curl of his feather-like bed hair - before smacking him with the pillow.

Will shot up, nearly cracking his forehead against Nico's, but Nico moved his head easily, observing the alarm and anger on Will's face as he realized what happened. "Will. Breakfast."

"You do this every time you wake me up," Will grumbled, pushing Nico away (but gently, which is how Nico could tell he wasn't as angry as he pretended to be) and kicking his legs out from under the comforter.

"You wouldn't wake up otherwise," Nico said, moving off of Will's bed to his own, where he watched Will go through the process of ruffling through his drawers and their shared closet to find an outfit.

"There are other methods of waking someone up, you know," Will replied, gesturing for Nico to turn his head as he changed.

"Oh, believe me. I've tried," he said, turning his gaze down at his blankets and only looking at the muscles of Will's back once. "This is the only method that works."

Will scoffed, turning to his dresser and putting on his contacts with ease and wiping his face down with a facial cleanser. "I doubt that." He ran a hand through his hair, fixing it haphazardly in the mirror before turning back to Nico. "So where are we going?"

"That cafe down the street?" Nico suggested, and off they went.

-

The cafe was quiet, but a dull hum accompanied the indie music playing softly from the speakers. Nico let Will order for them both as he chose a table for them to sit at.

Will came back with Nico's regular breakfast order of a danish and chocolate milk and his own order of a breakfast sandwich and a cup of coffee. Also on the tray was a small slice of some dessert that Nico didn't recognize.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing at the mystery desert as Will set down the tray.

"Don't know. It looked nice and the cashier said it was new. I thought you'd like it."

A little twinge of affection nudged at Nico's heart, but he refused to acknowledge it. Just like he'd refused to acknowledge similar feelings of affection he'd began to feel for a couple of weeks.

Nico took a small bite out of the desert, liking the sweet taste of it enough to let himself smile a little. "It's good."

"Can I have a bite?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, offering the sweet to Will. Instead of taking it in his own hands, Will bit into it while it was still in Nico's hands. Once again, Nico felt a surge of affection, but he remained outwardly the same.

Will sat back, wiping his mouth, seemingly unaware of the intimacy of such an innocent act. "Very sweet."

-

They spent the rest of the day at the dorm, lounging on Will's bed and watching sappy rom-coms on his laptop when they both admitted they weren't up to watching action or horror or sci-fi or whatever else.

Will's body seemed to be much like a furnace in that it exuded a comforting heat, and midway through the third movie, Nico pulled the covers up to his chin and leaned his head on Will's shoulder. Will didn't seem to mind, and Nico found himself curling up almost in Will's lap by the time the sky's colors darkened to a heavy blue that descended the small room into a quiet darkness.

When the end credits rolled, Will paused before exiting out of full screen mode, his finger hovering over the button. "Are you always so cold?" he asked, his voice low.

"Usually."

He seemed to think about this for a moment, and Nico wondered if he was going to push him away on account of Nico's freezing feet pressing into Will's legs or his freezing hands tucked between Will's thighs and his own.

But he just exited out of full screen mode. "Which do you want to watch next?"

-

Nico was crouching in the bunker, holding his rifle in his left hand, dagger in the right. His eyes were closed and his muscles were tense as he listened for footsteps.

He tried not to think about how most of the men and women he'd made friends with were now laying lifeless all around the grounds outside of the bunker. He tried not to think about leaving his sister, Hazel, behind if he joined his friends. He tried not to think about the feeling of the rage that lead him to the place he was now. On enemy lines. In a bunker that was the enemy's property.

Footsteps. Not quiet. They didn't know he was here.

Nico opened his eyes, looking down at the near nonexistent supply of bullets he had. That was fine.

The footsteps drew closer.

He always liked the dagger better.

-

Nico was in a prison cell. He heard the laments of the captured around him, but he remained silent. Noise resulted in punishment. He was not fond of punishment.

A guard came by, his tall and wide stature covering the very little light that came from the hallway. He unlocked the cell door.

Sometimes punishment came without a reason.

-

Nico was strapped to a table. The scent of blood was metallic in his noise, and it tasted like pennies in his mouth.

He didn't know anything, he was just a kid, he didn't know anything, he didn't know anything, he didn't know anything.

Words meant nothing when all he could do was scream.

-

Nico jolted awake, his throat tight with a scream he only just managed to hold in.

Will snapped awake beside him, his hands going to Nico's, which were pulling fiercely on his own hair in attempt to get his head in order again.

"Breathe," Will was saying, and Nico found himself coherent enough to feel sorry for his roommate because the one time he wakes up for one of his episodes, it just so happens to be one of the worst. "Nico, take my hands," he said, his voice soft and smooth. Nico latched on to the familiarity of his voice, his hands shakily grabbing Will's.

"I'm s-sorry," Nico heaved, his breath coming in short and unsatisfying gasps. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize," Will said, bringing their hands down to their laps. "Take a deep breath with me, okay?" Nico followed Will's breath, though his own broke a couple of times from sobs. He only realized he was crying when Will let go of one of his hands long enough to wipe his eyes. "Do you see me?"

Nico nodded, though the absurdity of the question cut through some of the fog in his head.

"What do you see?"

"Eyes," Nico managed to say, his breath still coming short and uneven.

"What color are they?"

"Blue." He took in another shaky breath. "Sky."

"Good," Will praised, giving Nico's hands a soft squeeze. "What else do you see?"

"Freckles."

"How many are there?"

Nico started to count, and though his mind tripped over some numbers, he still found comfort in the routine of counting. His breathing started to slow. He didn't bother telling Will how many freckles he had (he felt better by the 137th one), instead hanging his head a little. "Thank you," he said, voice weak. "I'm sorry."

Will rubbed his thumbs over Nico's hands. "Don't apologize." He let Nico lean his forehead on his collar bone, and he continued tracing circles on his hands. "Do you want to talk?" he asked softly after a couple of minutes.

Nico squeezed his eyes shut, focusing on the soft feeling of the pads of Will's thumbs on his hands. "It's dark," he whispered, and Will seemed to understand what he meant.

"Turn on the lights or wait until morning?"

"Lights."

"I'll be right back, okay?" he asked, giving Nico's hands a light squeeze. Nico nodded.

Will let go and left the bed for perhaps five seconds, but Nico already missed his heat and comfort. The lights flicked on.

Suddenly Nico was very aware of where he was and what had just happened. A rush of emotions overwhelmed him, and he couldn't look Will in the eye when he sat down on the bed again.

"Do you want to talk?" he asked again, and Nico found that familiar surge affection travel through him with everything else at the realization that Will would let Nico back out if he wanted to.

Nico pulled at a loose thread on Will's comforter. "No," he admitted, "but you deserve an explanation."

He glanced up at Will's expression long enough to see him break before Will pulled him into a crushing hug that made Nico breathless for a lot of different reasons. "Nico, I don't deserve anything if you're not willing to give it to me."

Tears welled in Nico's eyes, and he found himself hugging Will back.

"I have nightmares," he said softly, but Will still managed to hear him, pulling away a little bit so that he could look him in the eye. "I was just a kid, Will," he said, and one of Will's hands went up to cradle his face. Nico leaned into his touch. "I've done bad things, seen bad things, have had bad things been done to me."

When Will spoke, his voice was rough, as if he was the one about to cry. "Tell me."

So Nico did.

-

Percy Jackson was a man who hated wars. He fought in one before Nico, and he fought in the one with Nico. There was still a shock of gray in his hair from when he had been captured and tortured. Nico met him at one of the camps. They had been friends ever since.

Now, Percy was engaged to his longtime best friend who just so happened to be the woman who had rescued them from the camp and brought them back. Her name was Annabeth Chase, and apparently she was out with the girls to pick out a wedding dress.

Nico walked into the restaurant that him and Percy had agreed to meet up fifteen minutes early, and was not unsurprised to find Percy already there. Percy was making himself comfortable, one hand on a glass of water, the other draped over the back of the booth.

His bright green eyes stood out even from a distance, and as he scanned the restaurant, he caught sight of Nico. An easy smile lit up his face.

"Hey," he greeted as Nico slid in the booth. "How're you doing?"

"I'm managing," Nico said with a shrug, thinking about his comfortable life at the university with Will. "How's the engagement?"

"Pretty good," Percy said, taking a sip of his water through the bendy straw. "Annabeth is stressing about the planning of it, but I know it'll be okay. And it's pretty nice to know that soon we'll be a full on sappy married couple."

Nico let out a little laugh. "I don't know about sappy," he said, thinking of Annabeth's knack for punching Percy when he said dumb stuff and only using the pet name (if you could even call it that) seaweed brain.

"Are you kidding? We'll be the sappiest." Percy's eyes were soft and warm, though a little tired, and Nico couldn't help but think that maybe Percy was right.

"I'm happy for you."

Percy looked down at the ring on his left hand, smiling a little. "Thanks, man."

The conversation halted a little as a waiter came by to take their order, and Nico again wasn't surprised when Percy ordered something that almost seemed too large for one person to eat.

"What about you?" Percy asked when the waiter had left.

"What about me?" Nico repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I mean, I know it hasn't been too long since you started university, but someone must've caught your eye by now."

Nico's face burned.

"Oh, I was right."

Nico covered his face with his hands, shaking his head. "It's not going to happen, if that's what you're wondering," he said instead of explaining.

"I'd like to know the details before you try to tell me something like that."

Finally managing to get his blush under control, Nico removed his hands, fiddling with his water glass. "His name is Will and he's my roommate."

Percy hummed. "Freshman?"

"Yeah, but he said he went to a community college before university, so we're about the same age."

"Is he hot?"

Nico thought for a second of Will's soft lines and golden-boy look. "I would say pretty. Or maybe beautiful?"

"You've got it bad, I think," Percy said, smiling a little. Then his expression turned serious. He leaned in. "Does he know everything?"

Looking down at the table, Nico nodded. "I had a bad panic attack after a nightmare a while back. He calmed me down, and asked if I wanted to talk to him about it. So I did." Nico thought about his life after that, and his heart warmed. "Since then, he's told me that I should wake him up any time I have a nightmare, which pretty much means I wake him up every night, but he doesn't seem to mind."

He didn't mention that they had both learned that Nico slept better when he was next to Will and now they slept in the same bed.

Percy thought for a moment. "Why're you so convinced it won't happen?" he asked, tracing his finger on his sweating glass. "He seems to care about you a lot."

"I don't..." Nico trailed off, his shoulders sinking a little. "I don't know if he wants to deal with someone like me." He paused, a terrible thought occurring to him. "Or if he could even love me after what I told him that night."

The waiter brought their food. Percy gave him a light thanks before turning back to Nico.

"Listen, Neeks," Percy started, making Nico look up at him. "It was hard for Annabeth and me after we came home. We didn't know how to help each other at first, and it was hell on the both of us. But then we learned to let each other know when we had nightmares or when we had panic attacks, and things got easier." He paused, running a hand through his hair. "We changed after the wars, Nico. But what happened to us or what we did - that doesn't change who we are. Will knows how to help you. I'm sure he also knows that you aren't what you've done in the past."

Nico looked down at his plate of food, willing himself not to cry in public. "It really is good to see you again, Percy. Thank you."

-

They spent the rest of the day fooling around in town, and they met up with Annabeth and the girls as well as some of the guys for dinner. By the time Nico got back to the dorms, it was late and he was exhausted but happy. It was nice to see all his old friends again and talk to Hazel in person instead of by phone for once.

Will was sitting on his bed studying when Nico got there. "Did you have fun?" he asked, pushing up his glasses.

Nico checked the time. 1:43. "Aren't you normally in bed by now?"

He gave a little shrug, closing his textbook and stretching. "When you called saying you'd be home late, I thought I might as well do a little studying while I waited for you."

"Idiot," Nico said, though he smiling a little, "that call was supposed tell you that you didn't have to wait up for me."

"Oh, well," Will said, watching as Nico kicked off his shoes and flopped onto the bed beside him. "You look happy."

"I am," Nico said, closing his eyes and tucking his hands beneath his head. "I liked meeting up with my friends again."

Will yawned, rubbing at his eyes under his glasses and putting a light hand on Nico's head. "You'll have to tell me all about it. And maybe let me meet them, since you've been telling me about them for weeks."

"Sure," Nico said, his chest feeling warm and fuzzy as Will ran his fingers through his hair. "But you're about to pass out. Staying up late doesn't suit you."

Will hummed in response, his hand trailing down from Nico's hair to run his knuckles over his cheek. "I like this," he said after a moment, and Nico opened his eyes, his heart skipping a beat.

"Like what?"

"Seeing you like this. It's nice."

"Oh."

For a moment, Will looked like he was going to say something else, but he kept it to himself. "Go change so that we can sleep, okay?"

"You're going to fall asleep before I finish changing," Nico teased, getting up from the bed and grabbing his sleep clothes.

"Will not."

"Will too."

Sure enough, when Nico looked back at Will when he was done changing, Will was laying back on the bed, already in a deep sleep. Nico climbed under the covers next to him, falling asleep with a smile on his face.

-

The year went on, and Nico thought that maybe the reassimilation process wasn't as bad as he thought. He got used to his routine at school, and his routine with Will, and he quite liked the normal life he was living. He also got used to the growing feelings he felt for Will.

"I was thinking," Will started.

Nico wondered if he'd like the direction this was going.

"And I want to get my own apartment when this year finishes. Because that has always been my plan, you know? To live in a dorm the first year, then move out the next year. But I like living with you because you're nice company, and I've gotten used to you always being around, which is a good thing-"

"Will," Nico interrupted. "You're rambling."

"Right," Will said, running a hand through his hair. "Well, I was wondering if you wanted to maybe rent an apartment? With me. If you'd want to rent an apartment with me."

Nico thought about his options. He could say no to save himself from his unrequited love and deal with the heartbreak of being apart from Will. Or he could say yes to be by his side for a little longer and hang on to the hope that Will maybe loved him back (which is something that Percy, Annabeth, Hazel, and all his other friends said when they met Will and heard Nico's stories about him but Nico refused to believe).

"Yeah, okay."

"Really?"

"Really."

Will let out a breath, a smile of relief making his face light up. "Cool."

-

Nico was watching Will cook them both breakfast in their new apartment, his heart light and warm.

Moving in had been a process, but now every box was unpacked, and although they still didn't have matching chairs for the dining table, Nico liked the home that they had made. His nightmares had calmed down a little, and when he got them, Will was always there. He felt comfortable with the life he was living.

"Nico?" Will called, his eyes focused on the pan of eggs in front of him. His voice was a little hesitant.

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm in love with you." Nico blinked. "No," Will continued, still not looking at him, "that's not right. I know I'm in love with you."

Nico checked his surroundings to see if what he was experiencing was real life. He looked out the window. The morning sky was a brilliant and light blue.

"I know I'm in love with you, too."

Will finally looked over at him, his eyes wide. "You are?"

"Yes."

"Oh." He pulled the pan of eggs off the burner, grabbing the plates of toast he had set aside and scraping some of the eggs onto the plates. Nico got up to pour them both some orange juice.

When they were seated at their small dining table, Will paused before taking a bite of his breakfast. "Do you want to go out with me?"

"Yes."

It was only after they had finished their breakfast and were cuddled together on the couch to watch whatever on Will's laptop that it finally sunk in.

"Are you sure?" Nico asked, looking up at Will. "I mean, about dating me. Loving me."

Will found his hand, which was tucked between his thighs, and held it tight. "Absolutely sure." He pressed a kiss to Nico's forehead. "What about you?"

He pressed a kiss to Will's lips. "I'm sure."

[naijanewspapersme-blog]

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4-Star DE Prospect Stephen Herron Jr. Commits to Michigan over Stanford- Bleacher Report

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Michigan's 2019 recruiting class is off to an excellent start after defensive end Stephen Herron committed to the Wolverines Saturday.Herron announced his pledge to play for the Wolverines on Twitter:Hailing from Trinity High School in Louisville, Kentucky, Herron also had offers from Stanford and Texas before committing to Michigan.The 6'3 " and 235-pound defensive end is a 4-star prospect who is ranked as the No. 1 weak-side defensice end recruit from his home state, No. 5 WDE r 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Want-away Arsenal forward Lucas Perez is angry and upset at the Emirates Stadium, with Deportivo La Coruna having made an offer to re-sign him, says the players agent. Perez has struggled to make an impact after a 20million move from Depor a year ago and the signing of France international Alexandre Lacazette has pushed the []The post Arsenal forward Perez angry over squad number appeared first on Daily Times Nigeria. Nigeria News from Nigeria Newspapers 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Artie Burns told ESPN.com's Jeremy Fowler Saturday his June arrest for driving with a suspended license was a "misunderstanding."According to Fowler, Burns said "he was still in the process of switching his paperwork and insurance to Pennsylvania, where he's a full-time resident" and cited frequent traffic checks in his native Miami as the reason for the license suspension.In June, Fowler (via USA Today's Curt Popejoy) reported Bu 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Barcelona Beats Real Madrid in Cristiano Ronaldo's Absence for 2017 ICC Win - Bleacher Report

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Lionel Messi opened the scoring early on and the goals flowed freely as Barcelona took a 3-2 win over Madrid in a pre-season Clasico 

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Bayern Munich Transfer News: Latest Rumours on Renato Sanches and Leon Goretzka - Bleacher Report

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Renato Sanches reportedly doesn't want to leave Bayern Munich for Chelsea. Instead, the Portugal international has his heart set on a move to Serie A side AC Milan.Bayern are said to be willing to let Sanches go on loan this summer but would want a buy option included in any deal with the Rossoneri, per reports.Chelsea are keen on Sanches, but Italian source Fanta Gazzetta (h/t Joe Short of the Daily Express) reports the 19-year-old rebuffed the approach from the Blues in favour of a switch 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Blake Bortles' 5 Interceptions at Practice Cause of Concern for Doug Marrone - Bleacher Report

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone told reporters he was "concerned" after quarterback Blake Bortles tossed five interceptions at a training camp practice Saturday."I think any time someone doesn't perform to what you want to do you're concerned about it," Marrone said, per ESPN.com's Michael DiRocco. "He's not the only one that's out there. There's some good things."We're going to look at it. We're going to look at 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Brandon Marshall Says Odell Beckham Jr. 'Obviously Is the Best Player' in NFL - Bleacher Report

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Charles Oakley on New NBA Generation: Some 'Should Wear Dresses - Bleacher Report

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Conte enquires about Sanches - Daily Times

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Antonio Conte enquired about Bayern Munich midfielder Renato Sanches after his Chelsea side lost to the Bundesliga champions in the International Champions Cup, says chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. Sanches is expected to leave Bayern on loan, having started just six league games in his first season at the Allianz Arena after a 35million move from []The post Conte enquires about Sanches appeared first on Daily Times Nigeria. Nigeria News from Nigeria Newspapers 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino finally captured the one thing it looked like she may never get in her illustrious career: a UFC championship.Cyborg won the women's featherweight title Saturday with a third-round TKO of former Invicta FC champion Tonya Evinger on the main card of UFC 214 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.Bleacher Report MMA had the official time of the stoppage:Right off the bat, Cyborg's devastating power was on display. The former Strikeforce star lande 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

On Saturday,Boston Red Sox pitcher David Price addressed an altercation that he had with Dennis Eckersley on the team plane last month.Per ESPN's Scott Lauber, Price acknowledged he could have handled the situation with Eckersley in"probably a different way," but also told the NESN broadcaster to "show your face."PerDan Shaughnessyof theBoston Globe, Price confronted Eckersley on a team flight June 29 after Eckersley said on the NESN broadcast of a Red Sox game "yuc 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne believes the Premier League clubs spending spree is just what they needed. Bernardo Silva, Ederson, Kyle Walker, Danilo and Benjamin Mendy have been added to Pep Guardiolas squad, with City having spent more than a reported 200million. City are desperate for improvement on last season after failing to win []The post De Bruyne backs Man City spending appeared first on Daily Times Nigeria. Nigeria News from Nigeria Newspapers 

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

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Sun, 30 Jul 2017

The PSG boss was happy with his side's calmness in their come-from-behind victory over Monaco in the Trophee des Champions on Saturday 

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Emirates Cup : Iwobi scores as Arsenal runs riot against Benfica - The Sun

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Arsenal got their campaign at the annual pre season tournament the Emirates Cup underway with a convincing 

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Enyimba's Title Charge Faces Stern Test In Calabar - Daily Independent

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Lagos When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers. This will be the case when at the UJ Esuene Stadium in Calabaron Sundaywhen Enyimba host Kano Pillars in one of the week 32 matches. This match promises to be exciting because encounters between both sides will always come under spotlight. Besides, Enyimba []The post Enyimba's Title Charge Faces Stern Test In Calabar appeared first on Independent Newspapers. 

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F1: Vettel Takes Pole in Hungary, Hamilton Fourth - Thisday

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

F1: Vettel Takes Pole in Hungary, Hamilton Fourth 

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Fassone, Pallotta clash over Milan spending - Daily Times

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

AC Milan chief executive Marco Fassone has hit back at Roma president James Pallotta after he said the Rossoneris high level of spending makes zero sense. Milan have been one of Europes busiest clubs in the transfer window, bringing in 10 new players including Italy defender Leonardo Bonucci and Portugal striker Andre Silva, while handing []The post Fassone, Pallotta clash over Milan spending appeared first on Daily Times Nigeria. Nigeria News from Nigeria Newspapers 

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FirstBank Blow Out Deepwater, Win Zenith Women's Basketball League - Complete Sports

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

By Bamidele Boluwaji: FirstBank Basketball Club of Lagos have emerged winners of the 2017 Nigerian Zenith Women's Basketball League having defeated First Deepwater 84-53 in the final played on Saturday at the indoor sports hall of the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos,completesportsnigeria.comreports. Despite First Deepwater's experience in the annual women league, the team coached by Shola ... Read MoreThe post FirstBank Blow Out Deepwater, Win Zenith Womens Basketball League appeared 

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Follow your heart, Ronaldinho tells Neymar - Vanguard

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

Ronaldinho has encouraged Neymar to 'follow his heart' as speculation mounts that the Barcelona star is set to complete a world record move to Paris Saint-Germain.The post Follow your heart, Ronaldinho tells Neymar appeared first on Vanguard News. 

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Galaxy interested in Ibrahimovic but admit former United striker wants Europe stay - Goal

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

The Los Angeles side's president confirmed that the club would love to have Ibra in the future 

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Galaxy interested in Ibrahimovic but admit former United striker wants Europe stay - Goal

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

The Los Angeles side's president confirmed that the club would love to have Ibra in the future 

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Guardiola praises Ederson's freakishly long goal kicks - Goal

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

The goalkeeper opens up a host of new possibilities to the Manchester City boss as he can kick a dead ball from one penalty area to the other 

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Guardiola praises Ederson's freakishly long goal kicks - Goal

Sun, 30 Jul 2017

The goalkeeper opens up a host of new possibilities to the Manchester City boss as he can kick a dead ball from one penalty area to the other 

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[dareboldly]

The taxi is half way out of downtown Huatulco when I realize that I have not taken the room key from C.C. And thus began the adventure of trying to explain to the driver that I would like him to turn around and return to the restaurant where I have left my husband watching the Canada vs Sweden world junior hockey game.

With each attempt to explain, my gestures grow more wild, my eyes wider and his confusion more profound. He pulls over to the side of the road. He turns and looks at me. “Non comprehende” he says, throwing both hands up and raising his shoulders in the universal sign of, “I don’t get it but I think you may be a crazy woman!”

I point to the keys in the ignition. “Mon Esposo. Kabana Restaurante. Keys.” And I point at the ignition keys again. Turn my hand left to right as if turning a key in a lock. “Porto no ouvret.”

I have no idea what the word in Spanish is for door or for open but I’m hoping somehow, blending French and English and German, the three languages I do speak, will get my point across.

And I am laughing and he is looking more and more worried. Definitely a crazy woman.

Finally, I give up. I throw up my hands as he did and say, “Is okay. Villas Fa-Sol por favor.” I shall just have to get Jordan at Fa-Sol to open my door for me and leave it unlocked until we return after dinner that evening.

And I point one more time to his keys and he says, Kava! And I say, Si! Kava! I hope that is the word for keys and then I add as I point back towards the town. Mon Esposo. Kabana Restaurante.

And he smiles. Big. He turns the car around and we return to the square by the church and he stops in front of the restaurant where C.C. is sitting with his back to us, intently watching the action on the TV in front of him. I call out to him and he brings me the keys. I show them to the driver and he smiles and nods his head and says, “Si. Si. Kava.” I feel his sigh of relief. Not a crazy woman.

I too am relieved. Maybe he will drive me to Villas Fa-Sol and not foist me on another driver as I suspect he might have been attempting to do when we were stopped by another cab and he had been yelling out to the other driver.

I wonder what the words in Spanish are for “Help me! I have crazy-woman in the back seat!”

Eventually, I arrive back at Fa-Sol. I swim and rest in a lounger in the sitting pool and watch the sunset and feel the velvety darkness of the night wrap itself around me. I return to our room high above and sit on the deck, feet resting on one of the white columns of the balcony and savour my alone time until it is time to shower and get ready to meet our hosts, Guillermo and Rosio and our friends Ursula and Andrew. Guillermo and Rosio are taking us out for dinner in Santa Cruz. We are picking C.C. up on our way.

It has been many years since I was in a country where I did not speak the language. Usually, between German, French and English I can find a path to understanding. Though once, at a tiny port in Greece, waiting for a ferry to one of the islands, it did take me over half an hour to order a cup of tea. Who knew ‘tea not coffee’ did not make sense in other cultures? After being offered a Coca Cola, Fanta, and several other drinks I had no idea how to pronounce, the tiny woman dressed in black behind the counter said, while drawing out the long pronounciation of the ‘i’ at the end of the word, “Tzi!” And I smiled in relief as she plopped a tea bag into a cup and poured hot water over it

Not knowing the language makes for interesting conversation, and definitely makes food choices and driving instructions more challenging. Yet, no matter the language, there is one universal sign that everyone understands and connects us all.

In this land where Spanish is spoken at rapid-fire speed and where traffic signs are meant as suggestions only and drivers seem to know only one speed, FAST, the smile is still the fastest way to make a connection.

It may not get you to where you are going, but along the way, you will always feel the warm and welcoming desire of the people to make you feel at home, like they understand you, even when they think you just might be a crazy-woman!

And after a meal shared on the terrace with old and new friends, after good conversation and laughter, no matter what language I speak, gratitude is the universal language of the heart.

In gratitude, I press my hands together, palms facing in prayer, thumbs against my heart and bow my head and say, Gracias.

  Gratitude is the universal language of the heart The taxi is half way out of downtown Huatulco when I realize that I have not taken the room key from C.C.

[askagamedev]

How strongly would you recommend going to school for game design rather than self teaching yourself. I've been in college for a while and im second guessing if i should have tried to learn this stuff on my own since while in college im building up debt and not learning as fast as I thought i should be.

Game design school can be a tricky topic. Here are some links to posts I’ve written about them before:

[On Game Schools and how I got into the industry]

[Which Universities have some good game design programs?]

[What are the financial ramifications of going to a school like DigiPen?]

[Is it viable to teach yourself how to develop games?]

That said, it seems like you’re kind of keen on the financial aspect, so let’s discuss that a bit more today.

Many schools that offer degrees in game design are for-profit, meaning that they’ll pile on the student loan debt pretty quickly, and junior designer positions are both rare and not particularly well-paid - you can expect a salary of around $30-50k USD per year starting out, and most dev studios will be in areas with a high cost of living like Southern California, Silicon Valley, New York, Seattle, Austin, Vancouver, etc. If you accrue $120,000 in student loan debt with an unsubsidized Stafford loan (i.e. “not in financial need”) and the current interest rate of 6%, you’re looking at a monthly payment of $1332 USD per month to pay it off over a period of ten years. This comes out to approximately $15,984 USD per year in loan payments, which will take a pretty huge chunk out of your annual salary. If you take earn a salary of $50,000 USD per year in California, you’re looking at a net take home of around $3,256 USD per month. If you deduct the $1332 loan payment, you’ve got $1924 per month left for rent, food, car, insurance, medical, water, power, internet, phone, and everything else. That’s like… sharing an apartment with roommates for years territory. That’s not quite ramen and ketchup packets territory, but you also won’t be able to save much if you go that route (especially in expensive places like California or New York).

Honestly, it really depends on how much you really want to do this for a career. Going to a game school will probably help you get some callbacks early in your career, as long as you work hard and make some really cool projects to show and tell us about. However, it will also almost certainly put you in very thin financial margins for at least ten years of your life in the very best case scenario. That’s a pretty significant commitment - that will be as long as your middle school, high school, and college years all put together. If this is a sacrifice that you (and any significant other) are willing to make, then I suggest you go for it. But if you’re at all doubtful, I’d consider something a little “safer” that’s game design-adjacent in school like Computer Science. If you get a Computer Science degree (like I did), you could find work as an engineer as well as utilize those skills to work on your own game designs in your own time. Then, after graduation, you could bring additional skills to the table and potentially go after other roles, like [technical designer], [scripter], or [gameplay programmer] before transitioning to a more content creation oriented role once you’re already in the door. It may be a longer road to take, but it is a safer one. It really depends on where it is you want to be, and how badly you want it compared to other things in your life.

This week we continue the Design Phase of the FANTa Project!

[What is the FANTa project?]

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