#first thing I post in probably months and its at 12:45am my time

[queenmylovely]

Helloo i was wondering could we get a smutty roger blurb pretty pleasssseee maybe due to the recent pop quiz videos 🙄 like he's on the show and youre watching in the audience as a friend and his team losses + he's hella annoyed so he's determined to get home asap so he can relieve his frustrations but you decide to come home with him to cheer him up but you don't know what you are in for because he can't resist you when he's in this mood 😍

1st Holiday Advent post yay! (send me a request here and check out the explanation here) Anyway, this has been in my inbox forever, so thank you for your patience anon, I reward you with a honkin’ 2.5k words (warnings are smut, 18+) Masterlist

☆☆☆

You were attending the taping of one of the episodes of Pop Quiz that Roger was on. He had invited you the week before after you had mentioned that you always caught the episodes when they aired and liked answering the questions yourself. It wasn’t totally clear if this was a date or not, but you were fine with either. Not that you didn’t really fancy Roger, you just were okay with it being a friendly invitation as well. The two of you always flirted and were touchy, but you knew you were just a flirt in general and Roger himself was touchy with all of his friends.

The idea of asking him out had been something you were toying with, but whatever was between you and Roger seemed like something that would develop on its own time and in its own way. You knew it wouldn’t be a conventional sort of relationship, which you were totally okay with, so you figured it’d be best to just let everything happen the way it was going to.  

Sitting in the front row of the studio audience, you had a great view of the stage other than what was obstructed by the cameras. Luckily, Roger wasn’t obstructed so you could watch him all night. At the beginning, he would wave to you during commercial breaks or mouth things when the other team was answering and he was sure he wasn’t onscreen. He made you laugh a lot with all of his faces and you had to stifle yourself to keep from interrupting the taping.

Unfortunately, as time went on, it became clear that Roger’s team was losing and by three quarters of the way through, they were too far to come back and win. You could tell Roger wasn’t happy. You would’ve bet money that no one else could really tell the difference in his behavior, but having been his friend for quite a while and seeing the way he acted in the studio, you could see the slight differences. His hand was tucked into the collar of his shirt and you could see his fingers underneath the fabric moving underneath like they were tapping out a quick rhythm. His answers to the questions became short and gone was the funny banter and quips that he was usually known for. He probably wouldn’t have been so upset, but his team was doing poorly mainly due to a few mess ups on his part, and he felt guilty and stupid for getting the answers wrong.

Roger kept his composure through the rest of the show, but as soon as it was done, he was finding you to leave. The host tried to invite the two of you to the pub with everyone else, but Roger waved him off saying it wasn’t a good night for it.

Once he got to you, Roger grabbed your hand a little roughly and pulled you next to him, saying with a gruff voice, “Let’s get you home.”

He led you out of the studio quickly, to his car that was parked in the garage. Roger let your hand go so you could both get in, turning on the car and then practically speeding out of the garage. As soon as he got to the highway, he pushed the accelerator hard, going well past what you knew the speed limit to be.

“Roger, Roger, slow down!” you cried out, gripping the door next to you and subconsciously pressing your feet into the brake pedal you wished was on your side.

“Don’t worry love, the street’s empty,” Roger assured you, keeping up the speed.

“Well, what if someone else gets on?”

“Then I’ll slow down,” he looked over to you to make sure you accepted his answer and when you nodded, he turned back to the road, increasing his speed further.

A little less worried, you started paying attention to where he was going and realized he was taking you home.

“You’re going to my house?” you asked in confusion.

“Yeah, I said ‘let’s get you home,’” he reminded you shortly.

“Oh,” was all your reply, disappointed because you knew he was planning to just drop you off and be on his way. You had been looking forward to the rest of the night with maybe a drink or two and lots of good conversation with Roger.

It wasn’t long before you arrived at your house, Roger stopping in front of your driveway and putting the car into park.

“Sorry I kind of ruined the night. ‘m just not in the greatest mood after the shit that was that show,” Roger said, looking down at his hands on the steering wheel instead of up at you.

You put your hand on the closest of his and he looked up, “You know, it wasn’t all on you. And besides, it’s just a bit of fun for a show, right?”

Roger moved past just feeling the warmth of your hand on his to answer, “Yeah, I guess.”

Rolling your eyes fondly, you suggested, “Why don’t you come in for a drink or something. I hate to send you home without having cheered you up, even just a little.”

The earnest look in your eyes and how close you were to him made Roger eager to say yes to your suggestion. But he thought again and wondered if he should because he knew that whenever he got in this mood he was prone to doing whatever he could to relieve the frustration. That often included sex with whoever was around and willing, but he wasn’t sure that the possible risk to your friendship was worth the fuck he wanted just to release some steam.

Roger also knew there was something between the two of you and wasn’t sure that now was the time to expand on it, without practically any patience on his part. He was about to decline your offer and just drive home to work his irritation out on his drums when you let go of his hand.

Before he could react, you shut off the engine and pulled the keys from the ignition, unbuckling and throwing open the door of the car. You got out, shut the door, and ran, stopping about ten feet into your lawn.

“If you want them back you’ll have to come in first!” you shouted to him. He watched you in surprise, which quickly turned to shock and then a fire low in his belly when you tucked the keys into your bra with a laugh.

He got out of the car, almost slamming the door shut and you tensed in anticipation. He started like he was going to start running and you bolted a couple steps, but he was just messing with you. So you watched him again, and he walked, slowly this time, until he was five feet away. When you were least expecting it, he lunged for you, but you were just far enough away to stay out of his grasp. You made it to the door and unlocked it before he got there, leaving the keys in the lock to slow him down before continuing into your house.

Roger watched you disappear into your house, shaking his head as he pulled your house key from the lock and walked in, shutting the door and locking it behind him.

“I’m going to get those keys,” Roger announced to you as he sauntered into the kitchen where he already knew you’d be.

You held out a drink for him, whisky, neat, that you had poured from the bar cart in your kitchen.

“Not for awhile you won’t,” you replied as he walked around the counter to you, leaning back against it.  

He took the drink you held out to him, and the two of you cheersed before taking a sip, looking each other in the eye.

“So what do you suggest we do until then?” he asked, swirling his drink and cocking his hip to the side.

“Well, we’ll have to finish our drinks, of course,” you reasoned, moving a step forward and taking another sip.

Roger, on the other hand, downed his drink all at once, then looked at you and said, “What next?”

“We could listen to some music,” you suggested, getting another step closer.

“Not really in the mood to listen to music,” Roger muttered, setting down his empty glass on the counter; you did the same with your still mostly full one.

Rolling your eyes, you took the last step until you were right in front of him and then waited until he looked down at you before speaking, “What are you in the mood for?”

***

There was a moment of silence and tension before you rushed together, meeting in a fervent kiss. Roger gripped you by your waist and you held yourself steady by wrapping your arms around his neck. That steady was knocked off balance as Roger flipped the two of you around, pressing you against the counter with his hips. You moaned and parted your mouth when Roger’s tongue ran along your lower lip. As he deepened the kiss, his hands slid down to your ass, squeezing it before using his grip to lift you onto the counter.

Laughing, you widened your legs and used your heels to pull him closer until you could feel his growing hardness pressing against you. The kiss made you feel hot all over and you shrugged off your jacket. Roger let his fall to the floor before moving his hands to the buttons of your blouse. He undid it as you nipped at his neck, but when he tried to undo your bra, he couldn’t.

“Oh, it’s-- it’s in the front,” you explained and undid the clasp between your breasts. Then, when you did, Roger’s keys fell to your lap.

The two of you paused for a second before you burst into laughter and Roger dropped his head to your shoulder, his breath tickling your skin.

“I--I told you I would get them,” Roger told you through chuckles.

“Shut up and kiss me,” you replied as you tossed his keys to the side, and he did.

As the kiss got more intense, you raked your fingers through his hair, pulling roughly at the ends. Roger groaned deeply in his throat, pulling back to mouth at your neck, using his hands to feel your breasts. As a spike of heat travelled through you, you pushed him back a little to hike up your skirt (which you were grateful you wore) and pull down your underwear as quick as you could.

Roger did the same, kicking his pants off all the way before pulling you to the edge of the counter. You reached between you and ran your hand along the length of his dick, getting a sense for it and making sure it was ready, the moan that came from Roger’s lips just being an added bonus. He reached between your thighs and swiped his thumb up through your folds, gathering some wetness before rubbing your clit in tight circles.

“Fuck. Mm, just fuck me now, I’m ready,” you said breathlessly.

Nodding, Roger let you guide his cock to your entrance, pushing in slowly until he bottomed out. Giving you a second, he pulled out just as slowly then started fucking you for real. His pace wasn’t too fast, in fact it was just right and hit you in all the right places as you gripped onto his shoulders and used your legs for leverage. His thumb stayed on your clit and that matched with his sharp thrusts made your pleasure grow faster than you expected.

It wasn’t long before you couldn’t keep quiet, telling Roger all the ways he was making you feel and how good he was fucking you. Roger was just as loud, but with moans instead of words and each of his sounds sent another bolt of pleasure through you.

“Roger, fuck, fuck, I’m gonna co-ome, keep going,” you said, your voice breaking.

In return, he snapped his hips into you with each thrust, and as you clenched around him, his shaky moan was all it took for your orgasm to take over. As your muscles tightened and your eyes closed, pleasure waved through you, making it almost hard to breathe with how good you felt.

Roger kept going, and even as you came down, showed no signs of stopping. You could tell that he was working off some frustration, and it honestly made you feel heady that he was using you for it. Luckily you weren’t too sensitive, and despite already coming, each thrust still gave you pleasure.

Wanting to help him along, you clenched around him, at the same time moved to kiss his neck. You kissed until you found the spot that made him groan, deciding to suck and nip your way to leaving a hickey there.

Before you knew it, you began to feel another orgasm building, and you moaned against Roger’s neck as a particularly strong wave of pleasure went through you. You kissed your way up to Roger’s mouth and kissed him again, reveling in the feeling of his tongue against yours.

But then you felt his fingers on your clit again and you broke the kiss to tell him, “Oh Roger, oh my gosh, you’re gonna make me come again. Fuck me.”

“Already am, but I can sure go harder,” Roger joked, voice a little uneven.

“Yes, that, do that,” you agreed, nodding quickly.

Roger complied, and as his thrusts grew harder you keened at the feeling. His free hand went into your hair, pulling your head back enough so that he could lean down and get his mouth on your breasts. He kissed his way to one of your nipples, bringing it between his lips as he sucked.

One of your hands went behind you to keep you up but the other went to the back of Roger’s head keeping him in place. And then Roger tugged at your nipple lightly with his teeth and you were cumming, tightening your grip in his hair and moaning brokenly at the feeling.

Even as the hot pleasure ran through you, you could feel Roger’s hips stuttering and the change made you whine. Just having caught your breath enough to talk, you grabbed Roger’s shoulder, “Come, I need you to come.”

“Where?”

“I’m on birth control, inside me, please, fuck,” you pleaded, a little because your sensitivity was getting stronger, but mostly because you wanted him to reach that high too.

And just a few thrusts more, with the clench of your walls around him, Roger came into you, moaning into your chest as his thrusts slowed down. When he stopped, he stayed inside you, and you ran your fingers through his hair as he came down.

Breath still heavy, Roger started pressing lazy kisses up your chest and neck before finding your mouth and kissing you slowly. After a minute, you pulled back and smiled at him.

“So that happened,” Roger said, his smile matching yours.

“Yeah, finally,” you said with a laugh. “Guess we should thank Pop Quiz for adding the last bit of frustration that made it all boil over.”

“Yeah, guess we should,” Roger muttered, leaning in and kissing you again.

★★★

tagging bc its sooo long: @riseetothesun @drowseoftaylor @caborhapch @queenlover05 @johndeaconshands @stardust-galaxies @theblossomknows   @buckyluvrs   

[tsukkiseasalt]

Eyes That Won’t Wonder

2

“What, what!?” You shriek.

Another low laugh erupts from him as he leans against the door, his large frame blocking any potential view of the inside.

“I believe that is a compliment.” He mumbles his lips curling up into a sly smile. 

“Y-yeah, it was.” You stammer, words barely making themselves out of you as your stomach begins to do cartwheels.  

“As much as I'd love to stay right here and chat, you’d probably find it to be much more comfortable inside.” He says, smile fully present now, and you take a moment to admire the sight-storing it in your mind. He moves enough for you to slip right past him and pause the moment your feet touch the dark hardwood floors. 

The aroma is the first thing that invades your senses. It smells of pine and a rich tobacco, with slight hints of something sweet- maybe vanilla, you can’t really tell. The home is just as beautiful on the inside as it appeared from the outside. The dark hardwood floors complimented the ivory walls and dark rust colored trim. The living room was sparsely decorated though, it had only one couch, a chestnut loveseat and a matching recliner. He obviously doesn’t get many visitors. 

“Your home is beautiful.” You say breathlessly, eyes roaming the space in awe. 

“Thank you.” He exclaims, a large hand grazing the small of your back as he slips behind you and towards the kitchen. His touch makes your knees go weak and you steady yourself by placing a shaky hand on the door.

“Would you like something to drink?” You hear him call from the kitchen.

“Ah, water please.” You answer, taking a few deep breaths before you saunter over to the counter placing your folder in front of you. He slides the glass in front of you and you nod as a thank you before you begin to sip.

“I don’t think I ever caught your name.” He says leaning back onto the fridge, arms folded over his massive chest.

“Oh, uh, my name is y/n y/ln.” You mumble your index finger rubbing the rim of the glass. 

“Lovely, it fits you.” He says, eyes catching your own. You can't help the blush that arises on your cheeks. 

“T-thank you.” You manage to stammer out, silently cursing yourself for getting so flustered so quickly. He was a patient not some guy at a bar, you needed to get a grip and you needed to get it fast. “Uhm, you’re a bit younger than most of the other patients i have worked for. Is there actually anything wrong with you?” You quiz, but the words come out a bit harsher than you intended. “Oh goodness, I did not mean that in a bad way at all sir- Mr. Wakatoshi, oh my goodness. I am so sorry.” You exhale letting your head fall into your hands. Your words are all becoming a jumbled mess and you can't help the shame that creeps up your throat. Great, now he probably thinks I'm some kind of asshole.

“No, it's okay. I understand what you were trying to say. Two years ago I had to get a disc in my back replaced and it took a lot out of me. Though I can still get around pretty well, there are still certain tasks that I need help with. I am also set to have another surgery on my knee two months from now, so I thought it would be better to have someone get accustomed to me and my habits beforehands.” He says voice monotone. Is he angry?

“Mr. Wakatoshi, I am so sorry if I came off as rude earlier- I didn’t mean to offend.” You say feeling guilty. 

He shakes his head. “You’re fine sweetheart, I’m actually quite flattered that you think that.” Before you have a chance to relish his words he starts again, “I’m going to go put some clothes on, but here. I made a list- well a schedule really- of how my day usually functions. You can look over it and if there is anything that seems to be a bit much for you let me know and we will make alterations to it.” He says walking out of the kitchen and returning with a piece of paper. “Here, I will return shortly.” He says handing you the paper. Your eyes skim the page as you read the text.

7:30am- Arrive & make coffee ( I prefer mine black)

7:45am- Read the newspaper

8:00am- Feed Randy & Lyle 

8:15am- Pour second cup of coffee & wash dishes

8:30-9:30am- 2nd Workout (If you could have a bowl of fruits waiting that would be lovely)

10:00am- Post shower stretch (Help isn’t required but appreciated)

10:30-12:00pm- Take Lyle to the park (You are more than welcomed to join us) 

12:30pm- Lunch / with Aone* (*Mon. & Thurs. only)

1:00pm- Stop at farmers market

1:30pm- Arrive home & check on Randy

1:35-4:00pm- Varies (You may leave at this time or you may stay for dinner.)

4:00-6:00pm- Prepare dinner

6:05- 6:45pm- Eat then wash dishes

All that is required of you is bolded, the italicized text is completely voluntary, though I would enjoy your company.

“Goodness.” You mumble, placing the paper down. “This is even less than I did with Washijō.” You thought you had it easy then just checking his oxygen, helping him up, and taking him wherever, but you were basically an in-home barista.

“I hope it isn't too much.” The voice startles you as he appears beside you now fully clothed- well not really. He had on a pair of dark sweatpants and a gray sleeveless shirt putting biceps on display for all to see.

“Uh, no, not at all sir. I was expecting much more actually.” You admit eyes darting between the paper and his arms. 

“Oh, well I'm sorry to disappoint you.” He says voice low as he bends down to tie his shoes. “I’m sure that there will be more for you to do after my knee surgery.”

“Yes, and I'm not disappointed sir, I'm honestly kind of relieved. I haven't worked with anyone in quite a while, so this is a good refresher to allow me to get back into the routine of things.” You say words falling from your lips before you realize it.

“Is that so?” He asks standing back up to his full height, face full of curiosity.

“Yes, my previous patient passed away and I took some time off. He and I were close, friends even, and the death really hit me hard even though I knew it was coming. It still hurts ya know.” You exclaim as feelings of sadness wash over you at the thought of your friend. 

You didn't know what you were expecting when you told him that, maybe an ‘i'm sorry for your loss’ or nothing at all but it is safe to say a hug was not one of those things. His body was warm and his chest was solid- it felt good. You wrapped your own arms around his waist and closed your eyes. 

“I hope that one day you and I could be friends as well.” He says quietly pulling away. 

You don't fight the smile that graces your face, “Yeah, I feel like we will.”

The words seem to liven him because a large smile spreads across his face again. “Well I’m gonna go lift now, feel free to look around. There's food in the fridge and snacks in the pantry. Make yourself at home.” He says walking to the back of his home.

“Oh, Mr. Wakatoshi!”

“Yes love?” He asks, turning back around, a smile still lingering on his lips.

“Who are Lyle and Randy?” You ask looking back down at the paper, partly to hide the blush that you are now sporting. “Are they your children?” 

“Yes, they are my children. I’ll introduce you when I return.” He laughs before turning back around and disappearing into a hallway.

You sigh as soon as he is out of eyesight dropping your head onto the cool marble countertop, raising your head just enough to read the time on the clock that sits unwavering by stairs. 8:37. You had just under an hour to get somewhat acquainted with the home you would now be in for ten hours a day for six days a week. You decide to begin with the kitchen, opening and closing drawers & cabinets identifying the contents within them, occasionally rubbing a light hand over them. Next is the living room. The wide open space is mostly vacant and you take a seat on the loveseat sinking back into the cushions. “Nice.” You mumble.  

Pushing yourself up you wonder to every room opening the door just enough for you to peek in and see what it is. You hesitate though when you get to the room at the end of the hallway. It’s his. You could sense it, nonetheless you slowly push the knob down and peek inside. It’s clean just like the rest of his home. You don't linger and decide its best to close the door & move onto the next. 

By 9:15  you’d looked throughout his entire home, and it was more beautiful than you could have imagined. The ceilings in the bathrooms were high and had beautiful artworks painted atop of them, they looked as though they belonged in a museum rather than someone's guest bathroom. The spare bedrooms were just as lovely. Each had a shelf that was littered with books and knick-knacks that looked foreign. All of this just fueled your curiosity- what did he do & how long did he do it?

You shrugged as you went back into the kitchen jumping when you saw his large frame in the fridge. He was shirtless, again, but this time his hair was wet and clung to his head. The small gray stripes were clear as day against his dark olive locks.

“Oh, hi. I didn’t think you’d be done yet.” You say awkwardly scratching the back of your neck.

“Yes, I finished early and decided to shower & grab a snack.” He says waving the bowl of strawberries.

“I was about to prepare one for you.” You said.

“Oh, thank you. You don't really have to do anything today, just get accustomed to things.” He says popping the small red fruit into his mouth. 

“Would you like me to stretch you out?” You ask, remembering the list. 

His eyes shoot up to yours as soon as the question escapes your lips and you realize how wrong it sounded and before you had a chance to correct yourself he spoke. “You stretch me out, I mean i’ll try anything once but i’d prefer the opposite..”

His words startled you to say the least, and almost instinctively the words flowed from your lips, “I’d like to see you try.” 

His eyes widened at your remark and at that you began to spew apologies. “Shit, fuck, DAMMIT. God, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to say that, the stretching part I mean. Well I meant that, but not what I said afterwards. Ok, let me start over. What I meant to say is do you need help stretching considering you just got done working out. There, that's what I meant.” 

Your eyes are frantic as they lock with his. God, it's the first day and I'm already gonna lose my damn job. Just great. His lips are pressed in a straight line for a moment before he finally lets the edge of them glide up into a small smirk. 

“I’ve already stretched, but I suppose I could go a little deeper, maybe a little harder this time.” He says emphasizing the two words as he pops another strawberry between his lips smirk still evident.

“The stretches of course.?” You ask for clarification.

He hums and pops another strawberry between his lips setting the bowl down onto the counter stalking towards you, his large figure quickly engulfing your much smaller one almost instantly. “That’s not quite what I had in mind.” 

You can feel his warm breath on your lips as he leans down, “But if that is what you insist.” 

A loud bark bellowed throughout the kitchen causing you to jump. He smiled and wrapped a protective arm around your waist. “No need to fret, he was probably just getting anxious to meet you.”

“He?”

“Yes, my son, or at least one of them. Come on so I can introduce you.” He says guiding you down the hallway, to his room you assumed. You were correct, you realized as he pushed the door open revealing a large dog. 

“Don’t worry sweetheart he doesn’t bite. Daddy made him promise to be on his best behavior.” He whispers lowly into your ear. 

Fuck, this may be harder than I thought.

hiiiiii, this is the second chapter & you can just check the tag eyesthatwontwonder to read the first. anywaysssss i hope you enjoyed! likes and reblogs are always appreciated <33

[rovalent]

‘After keeping all plans of their first comeback aside, Royal has finally decided to move things along. Luxe’s performances on the Samsung New Year Special brought them a lot of attention and most certainly gave them a lot of buzz. Positive or negative, every new comment under their performance videos only made them rise on the pages of famous websites and search engines. Using this to their advantage wouldn’t be too hard.

Their first comeback also means their first release as a 5-member group. Im Nayoung’s official stage name was officially confirmed to be ‘Zoe’ through an official statement by a Royal representative only a week ago. Together with the other 4 original members, the group will make their comeback with their mini-album ‘Fantasy’ on February 24th. This means there are a lot of things to get done and the girls should put their all into it.

The practice schedule will be completely focused on the final preparations for the album. Dance practice will start right away and be the biggest focus for the members. If they don’t have anything more important to do then they should probably be learning the choreography which will be thoroughly taught by Yoo Jaekyung and her fellow dancers. The songs that were given three months to learn should all be recorded on February 8th. Members will go into the studio in order of age to record their parts. When they aren’t recording, members are expected to be practicing.

As a solo schedule, Cheri will take part of the recording for ‘My Love From Another Star’ from February 2nd. She will be expected on set for 9 hours (7 to 4pm) to get her makeup and wardrobe done in the morning. Filming for her day scene will last from 10am to 3pm. After filming for the scene concludes, she will get cleaned up, return her costumes, and return to her idol schedules. The script for this scene will be mailed to her one week prior to filming. She will also get one hour of rehearsal with the lead actor before official filming starts.

To match with their concept, members will have to change their hairstyles according to the company’s orders. Those whose current hairstyle doesn’t match the one seen below will go together to the same salon on February 10th to get their hair done for their comeback.

Cheri - Long, straight, black (reference)

Yena - Long, wavy, blonde (reference)

Ella - Long, straight, black (reference)

Xayah - Long, straight, brown (reference)

Zoe - Long, wavy, black (reference)

On February 13th, a photo shoot will occur in a small set in the Gangnam district for both the photobook that’ll come along with the CD as well as the photocards. There will be two different sessions: one for the pure side of the album and another following their sexy concept. The photocards will follow the same pattern (use this photocard as an example and a darker version of it for its counterpart). When they aren’t being photographed, members are allowed to practice in a spot of the set that doesn’t get in the way of the staff or in the changing room. They won’t be explicitly told to do so and they should also avoid getting sweaty or ruining their makeup.

Finally, the music video for their title song will be filmed on February 15th and February 16th. A full film crew is provided by Royal, including camera staff, wardrobe and makeup/hair staff, lighting staff, catering crew, and a director. You may, at any time, ask for guidance from any of these members of the production. On the 15th, the first section of the where they pose in white (0:00-0:16) and dance scenes in the white outfits (as seen in 0:56 and 2:33) will be recorded. On the 16th, scenes with the light background (as seen in 0:19 and 0:28) and the brick wall (as seen in 1:42 and 3:17) will be recorded.

As the first variety appearance with the full group, Luxe will record an episode of Weekly Idol on February 18th. This will follow the events from TWICE’s part in Episode 228 which can be seen here. All mentions of debut should be changed to it being their first comeback, and any quotes and the performance of ‘Like Ooh-Ahh’ should be changed to ‘Confused’. Any other changes should be made accordingly (such as their personal introductions and showcased talents) to fit in with Luxe members. Luxe’s appearance will only be enough for half an episode, and the other half will be filmed by a different group. It should be also taken into account that the MCs will be the current ones: Lee Manseok, Shin Beomsu, and Ryu Seojun as the IC equivalents of Nam Changhie, Jo Seho, and Hwang Kwanghee. This episode will air on a Wednesday, February 27th.

On the very same day of the recording, February 18th, the first teaser will be released for their comeback on Luxe’s official social media.

As a special surprise to the fans and a tease on itself, all 5 members will come together to hold a Vlive in their dorm on February 19th. They are instructed not to spoil anything regarding their new album and help Zoe get used to how it works. Apart from that, the members are free to interact with the viewers however they’d like as long as they keep up with their image.

No matter how busy their month will be, nothing will beat February 24th. Luxe will have their debut stage on the same date as their album release on Inkigayo. They’ll get there a 6:30am as usual, but instead of staying until late for a live performance, they’ll pre-record it at 9:00am instead of having a rehearsal. The members will then prepare themselves for their showcase which will start at 6PM, the same time as the album release. Fans present will get to watch the MV for the first time in the audience, followed by a live performance of ‘Confused’. The MC this time will be the well-known Lee Jonghyuk. During the showcase, Luxe will also perform their debut song ‘I Feel Good’, ‘Luv Me’ and ‘Under The Street Lights’. The time in-between will involve the members explaining their title track and album as well as their concept, a profile introduction of each member, and then the showcase will end with a second performance of ‘Confused’.

The following is the music show promotion schedule for Luxe’s ‘Confused’ activities:

2/24, 3/03, 3/10: SBS Inkigayo

2/25, 3/04: Arirang Simply K-pop

2/26, 3/05, 3/12: MTV The Show

2/27, 3/06, 3/13: MBC Show Champion

2/28, 3/07, 3/14: Mnet M!Countdown

3/01, 3/08, 3/15: KBS Music Bank

3/02, 3/09, 3/16: MBC Music Core

On February 28th, Luxe will record their dance relay for ‘Confused’ to be uploaded on the same day during their time waiting for M!Countdown (you can use this to see how it works).

Music show promotions will last for a total of three weeks this time. Programs will begin pre-recording early in the morning and groups are expected to stay at the broadcasting station until the live broadcast takes place later in the day. Although music shows in real life follow varied recording schedules, for IC writing purposes, the schedule for every music show will follow this consistent pattern (except for February 24th):

06:20AM: at broadcasting station: basic first rehearsal on stage; no makeup, casual clothes.

06:45AM: head to salon: get makeup and hair done.

07:45AM: return to broadcasting station: eat breakfast, nap in dressing room/space.

09:00AM: dress rehearsal on stage; stage outfits, makeup on.

09:20AM: return to dressing room/space: rest, eat, nap.

11:00AM: final camera rehearsal on stage; stage outfits, makeup on.

11:15AM: greet senior artist groups at their respective dressing room/spaces, accompanied by a manager. you may not sleep during this time, up until the live broadcast.

07:00PM: live broadcast; when not performing, must stay in dressing room/space until the ending stage of the show.

08:00PM: line up in waiting room area to formally greet producers, director, and senior staff.

09:00PM: meeting time with fans who attended the recordings.

10:00PM: return to dressing rooms to clean up, change back into casual clothes.

11:00PM: arrive back at dorms.

You will gain +5 POINTS TO DISTRIBUTE AS YOU WISH, +3 DEBUT POINTS and +2 ACHIEVEMENTS for completing the written requirements explained on the idol tier page. As this is a song promotion month, one of your chosen achievements must be relevant to the above schedule and all required content should be written about activities listed on the above schedule for the month of February. Posting about March activities will not account for February points (more information for their March promotions will come on their March schedule). There is a capped maximum of five solos, sets of starters and/or partnered threads you may write to collect this month’s points.

To clarify, the only form that needs to be submitted at the end of the month is a verification form for your debut points and achievements. Any SP points earned can be collected as soon as you finish the requirement for them. At the end of the month, as you did with your previous evaluation forms, you will submit the following form to the Points Verification blog:

IDOL’S NAME - ROYAL ENT - FEBRUARY SCHEDULE (for the March 6 verification form)

PROOF OF ACTIVITY: [ x ]

POINTS: +00 SP [ distribute these however you like ]

TOTAL POINTS EARNED: +00 SP +00 DBT

+1 WK ACHIEVEMENT #1 [ NUMBER OF TIMES TAKEN + CURRENT LEVEL ]

+1 WK ACHIEVEMENT #2 [ NUMBER OF TIMES TAKEN + CURRENT LEVEL ]

NEW DEBUT POINTS TOTAL:

**** For participating in a total of 20 music show performances during this promotion period, Luxe will earn 20 EXP for their overall group experience. Their appearance on Weekly Idol will give 1 EXP, their VLive 1 EXP, and the dance relay another 1 EXP. Cheri’s solo schedule gives 1 EXP making it a total of 24 EXP.

* Rookie and trainee characters are allowed to attend pre-recordings and fan meetings to interact with idol muses if they choose to do so. Just be realistic about the scheduling; trainees who skip too many lessons to support idol muses will be noticed by their company staff!

[ladybekool]

Tag Games ♡

OK JULS HERE WE GO  i’m in the mood omfg it’s gonna be long. @ttaewo​ you ask for this.

NINE THINGS ABOUT ME RELATIONSHIP STATUS: SINGLE and happy FAVOURITE COLOURS: yellow and very toxic green PETS: i used to have fish but they all die so nope, only my lil’ sis’ (héhé) WAKE-uP TIME:  MY BODY SEEMS TO HAVE AN INNER ALARM AT 8 AM RECENTLY #LITTERALYFML THIS IS HOLIDAYS CATS OR DOGS: ... both ? really both. CHAPSTICK OR LIPSTICK: LIPSTICK (chateau wine colooor)(lalala) LAST SONG I LISTENED TO: You never walk alone - BTS

RANDOM TAG GAME: rules: go to this website: www.random.org/lists and pick 15 of your bias/faves 1. MUM/DAD: Jisoo (FUNNY TIMES) 2. SIBLING: Kihyun (omg my sassy bro... love this) 3. GRANDMA/GRANDPA: Hwasa (MY GRANNY IS FUCKING COOL ANS SMEXY) 4. HAUNTS YOU: Mark Tuan ( i would be so pleased but lowkey afraid with all this little giggle) 5. GIRLFRIEND/BOYFRIEND: Amber (.........i’ve been blessed) 6. YOUR EX: Jaehyun (LMAO) 7. YOUR BEST FRIEND: The8 ... (OMG COOL BESTIE) 8. PROPOSED TO YOU: Jongup (ofc.. i mean.. yeah) 9. YOUR BOSS: Lisa !!! 10. RANDOM PERSON YOU MEET AT THE BAR: Yugyeom (JUST AFTER BOWLING LOL) 11. RIVAL: Wonho (oh man i’m in deep shit) 12. FIRST KISS: Jungkook (rfdjsk CUTE) 13. SUGARHIGH AND SINGING KARAOKE: Namjoon (!!!!! itwouldbesofunimdying) 14. PLAYED 7 MINUTES IN HEAVEN WITH: Taehyung (..oh my..) 15. GAVE YOU YOUR FAVOURITE DESSERT: Suga (ok this is so funny. SUGA give me my fav DESERT)(WOUHHH)(*cough* cookie *cough*)

5 COOL FACTS: rules: give out 5 interesting, strange, weird, cool, dope af, bizarre facts about yourself. it can be absolutely anything! and then tag 10 people that you’d like to know more about! keep it going! ❤️ 1. i spoke to myself a lot and when i’m in the street i sometimes pretend i’m on the phone 2. i have a birthmark pretty cool but pretty huge on my groin (i think it’s the name of it but not sure) 3. i have a tattoo 4. i have no shame 5. i did a voguing-dance-battle one day in front of a crowed it was a queer party in Porto and I legit start to dance in the middle of a crowed even if i didn’t knew shit about voguing. i didn’t win but i did it and i’m so proud of it lmao

TOP 15 KPOP SONGS OF 2016: (in no specific order) 1. Monster, EXO 2. Highlight, Seventeen 3. How’s that, HyunA 4. Save Me, BTS 5. Lie, BTS Jimin 6. Awake, BTS Jin 7. Begin, BTS Jungkook 8. Boys Meet Evil, BTS J-hope 9. The Last, Agust’D 10. MOBB 빨리 전화해 (HIT ME) (Feat. KUSH) 11. January (Feat. YDG) - 빈지노 (Beenzino) (not kpop but still) 12. Monsta X - All In 13. Monsta X - Fighter 14. B.A.P - Killer 15. Vain hope(희망고문) - NELL(넬) (again not kpop but STILL)

GET TO KNOW ME TAG: rules: answer the questions in a new post and tag 20 blogs you would like to get to know better TAGGED BY: @ttaewo​ thanks NICKNAME: morguy, momo, mo, mori, mogo etc... GENDER: female STAR SIGN: vleo HEIGHT: 166cm TIME RIGHT NOW: 10:45am LAST THING GOOGLED: groins english FAVOURITE BANDS: BTS, NELL, Moderat, Simple Minds, Massive Attack, Mansionair, Monsta X, Exo.... A LOT I DON’T KNOW FAVOURITE SOLO ARTISTS: HA:TFELT, AMBER, LUNA, Sevdaliza ... I DON’T HAVE A FAV I’M SORRY SONG STUCK IN YOUR HEAD: Nell - Vain Hope... LAST MOVIE WATCHED: I DON’T REMEMBER LAST TV SHOW YOU WATCHED: F*cking Hwarang WHEN DID YOU CREATE YOUR BLOG: 2012 ! WHAT KIND OF STUFF DO YOU POST: meme, aesthetic, thoughts, shitty selfie, kpop WHEN DID YOUR BLOG REACH ITS PEAK: idk? DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER BLOGS: YES DO YOU GET ASKS REGULARLY: NO NEVER lmao, no one give a shit about me lmao WHY YOU CHOSE YOUR URL: ohhh hm, first it was “ihauntedbambismom” then i saw a funny ad about lady cigarette named ladybecool so it was it and recently i changed it because it was funny...... FOLLOWING: 473 POSTS: 7,480 HOGWARTS HOUSE: SLYTHERIN AND PROUD POKEMON TEAM: i don’t know nor i care ? FAVOURITE COLOURS:  yellloooowwww AVERAGE HOURS OF SLEEP: 5-7 hours (same juls) LUCKY NUMBERS: 8 FAVOURITE CHARACTERS: me WHAT ARE YOU WEARING RIGHT NOW: my pj litteraly a pink velvet pyjama. HOW MANY BLANKETS DO YOU SLEEP WITH: 2 DREAM JOB: working in the music industry (kpop?) as an art director DREAM TRIP: south korea....

ALPHABETICAL TAG GAME: A - AGE: 22 B - BIGGEST FEAR: dark C - CURRENT TIME: 10:55 am D - DRINK YOU LAST HAD: hot water (DON’T JUDGE ME CATHY IF U READ THIS) E - EVERY DAY STARTS WITH: opening my laptop F - FAVOURITE SONG: ... i don’t know it change all the time G - GHOSTS, ARE THEY REAL?: yup there is one in my room i talk to them sometimes H - HOMETOWN: hmmm i kinda don’t want to say it, but it’s in france I - IN LOVE WITH: ... food. J - JEALOUS OF: no one ? K - KILLED SOMEONE:  MY SELF ESTEEM ? L - LAST TIME YOU’VE CRIED: on valentine’s day during hwarang ep18 fucking shit M - MIDDLE NAME: DANY JACKY N - NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: 1.. 2 ? (i don’t see the second one) O - ONE WISH: Happiness for everyone P -  PERSON YOU’VE LAST CALLED / TEXTED: @lbrtlss​ AGAIN NO SHAME LOOOL Q -  QUESTIONS YOU’RE ALWAYS ASKED: what’s this ? or what are we eating ? R -  REASONS TO SMILE: the sun is bright rn♡ S - SONGS LAST SANG: CYPHER PART4 T - TIME YOU WOKE UP: 8AM SHT but then i sleep again and usually it’s 10am U - UNDERWEAR COLOR: grey? V - VACATION DESTINATION: SEA !!! W - WORST HABIT: rambling X - X-RAYS YOU’VE HAD: none ahahha Y - YOUR FAVOURITE FOOD: EVERYTHING EVERYTHING “Mianhae I hate u Saranghae I hate u, Yongseohae” ... I NEED U FOOOD Z - ZODIAC SIGN: leo

ARMY TAG: WHO WAS YOUR FIRST BIAS WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED STANNING BTS? Tae ? probably WHO IS YOUR CURRENT BIAS? ALL OF FUCKING THEM WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE BANGTAN BOMB? THE TROT ONE !!!! everypati say nOoOoOOOoo WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE BTS SONG? TOMORROW if i have to choose WHICH MEMBER IS YOUR BIAS WRECKER? AGAIN, all of them WHICH MEMBER APPEARS IN YOUR DREAMS THE MOST? Namjoon ? or Taetae WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE BTS MV? ........ Save me. But .. all of them. but Save me is simple and so efficient i really like it. WHICH BTS CHOREOGRAPHY DO YOU DANCE TO MOST OFTEN? IDK ? All of them. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN AN ARMY? hmpf  7 months WHICH ALBUM TRACKLIST IS YOUR FAVOURI WINGS even if 화양연화 Young Forever changed my life WHICH ALBUM ART IS YOUR FAVOURITE? 화양연화 Young Forever ! WHICH MEMBER WOULD YOU CHOSE TO BE YOUR HUSBAND? NAMJOOOONNNNNN

♡ that’s it. bye.  i didn’t do the handwriting one because i’m hella lazy to get up my bed HAHAHAHA tagging people i love / i’d like to know better: @vmonstalove​ @my-son-taehyung​ @lovebeweird​  that’s for uuuu PLEASE DON’T HATE ME LOL

[stuffedinside]

The Beginning

The order of my posted story might not be good. I just write when I’m in the mood, hence the order.

So, I’d like to share the process of my luck (?) in joining this electricity government-company. I’m no longer seeking money from coffee industry, instead I change the course to electricity. It was about months before my work-contract in my old company expired, around July or August. My senior from college organization shared this information on Whatsapp group. I never bothered to check it before, since I have no plan of leaving before that contract ends (though I occasionally apply for multinational company’s vacancy for management trainee). But somehow, one thing led to another (mainly because of the succeed of my friends in this company), so I checked it out. It’s easy to fill the form online. I do that often. But someday, my friend who applied the same vacancy told me that the applicant need to submit the document directly in a job fair in Bandung. That gave me second thought. Too many efforts while I’m still considering to stay at my old company.

But, I think this is Allah’s way of leading me to this path. My father happened to visit Bandung at the same time, inviting me to come to Bandung to check on my little sister. Then I thought, what a chance. So I prepared every files needed and packed my bag then went to Bandung. It was Friday night. I spent all Saturday with my family, since my father would be leaving on Sunday. So I thought submitting the papers on Sunday won’t be hurt, since the job fair last till Sunday. So when I went there, it was very crowded, too many people gathered in one place. I arrived around 11:45am, bad timing since the gate was closed for lunch break. So I waited for almost one and half hour. The queue is impossible, beside they also said that the entry tickets were sold out. Lucky me I got a very last place in ticket queue, while not so lucky for other job seekers at that time. My luck came again when they said that they opened a direct line only for paper-submit. And the other luck came again not long after when they divide the queue for online apply and manual apply which the line is a bit longer than the online apply.

I brought 2 files in a hope that I could submit it for my friend. Too bad they didn’t accept since the applicant itself need to submit it. That day was exhausting but little did I know that it would be worth. Around 3 weeks after visit to Bandung, I got an invitation to attend the first preliminary test. Of course it was in Bandung. The test was academic and English test. I still remembered that it was on Tuesday, while I got the announcement in less than a week. So I request an off day to my manager. It was easy to request a day off at my old office since it was a branch. You just need to tell that you want to take a day off give the paper, and get it signed. Voila, you have a day off.

The test was early in the morning, so I decided to sleep in Bandung at my friends’ that night. Thanks to two of my best friends, your part in my career is very substantial. I almost got late, as my behavior to hurry in the last minutes. I found the test acceptable. I could handle it well and had no worry after it. So I spent the day well with my friends and went back to Jakarta.

I passed into the second test. It was announced only the day after the test. I took a gamble here to go back that day hoping that I got the second test at the third day it was held. So I needed to act quick since all of the test took place in Bandung. The day was so close I couldn’t bear to request for another day off. So I told my boss that I was sick that day and asked to take a rest at home. He said he was okay with that. The test was at 11am, so I decided to go to Bandung that morning at 5am. The sun probably hadn’t rise yet. The second test is physical checkup. I did some research before the first test about the steps in the recruitment process. So I quite knew vaguely about the test. Since I only knew about the rumor, I only ate a bread in the morning because I didn’t want my cholesterol coming high. Turns out it was literally physical test, but I got to have 70 cm for my abdominal ring. That was my first physical checkup. I was shocked, though I’d expected it before.

Thank God I still passed into the third test. The announcement came a week after so I request for another day off. My manager guessed it correctly that I was taking a test, so he asked where I applied. The third test also happen on Tuesday (perhaps it was my lucky day). I arrived early that day so I went to visit my friends before the test. The test was a new developed adaptive test. It depended on every each of your answer. I felt pretty confidence at that time.

Lucky me I still allowed to take the fourth test. It was only a week after the last one. I felt happy cause I didn’t need to wait for a long time to get assurance. On the other side, I was furious on how to ask a day off. My branch manager won’t have a problem with it, but the head office surely will ask about my absence. Though it was my right to claim the day offs, but it was odd to have too many in a month. But I thought I was saved because it was a new circular attendance calendar in my old company. The off days didn’t look too obvious. The test was early morning, so I stayed at my friends that night. This time I was worried sick after the test. It was a usual psychology tests I used to take. None of it I hadn’t tried before. But I kept have a feeling that I was caught using an eraser when drawing by one of the observer. It was forbidden to use eraser but I couldn’t handle an itchy feeling to erase a bad line in the drawing. But however I went home that night praying that I didn’t matter and I would pass this test.

The fifth test was lab test, where your blood would be tested and all. It was scary according to many people in their blogs and online forum of this recruitment test. The one thing I fear was my cholesterol level. Even though I’m from West Sumatera, I rarely eat its food. I’m not that really fond of Minang food. Lucky me. But still, I was worry that my cholesterol was high. Other thing I fear was my blood pressure. I always knew that I had low blood pressure from the time in college. I often felt dizzy after taking too many stroll or taking stairs. Some people at the forum recommended to have a healthy diet after psychology test. It would give us around two weeks to wash out bad things in our body. As much as cleaning our blood. I followed the suggestion, but didn’t fully gave much attention for it. I only controlled to have a less rice, ate green veggies, and took less eggs. I was very worried about the psychology test so I didn’t put my full attention into my diet. I ignored the fruits and more green veggies since I thought there might be a chance that I didn’t pass the test.

When the announcement published at the website, I prayed hard, even the days before. And thank God, I passed it. I feel a big relieve and ready to plan another trip to Bandung to attend the fifth test. For a week I planned my diet and prayed that it wasn’t too late. On the day before weekend, I checked my blood at pharmacy that served instant blood-checking. Man, the cholesterol was the nightmare. Not really high but above the high line by 7 points. But surprisingly my blood pressure was normal. So after that I went to supermarket and brought apple, pear, lemon, cucumber, papaya, mango, dragon fruit, broccoli, and tomato. That was my big plan to suppressed my cholesterol. I even bought brown rice. Whole weekend I spent by drinking fruits and veggies juice combination. The first time I drank it, it tasted like shit. I almost threw out, literally. But I endured it and somehow, the day after the juice became a more acceptable. I also drank honey-lemon shot and lemon-infused water for a week before. The test was Tuesday. Before the day, I took the blood test twice. The first one stated that the cholesterol came down to 197. I was relieved. But that was not enough. And after many efforts I took another test on Monday. The result was 174. Thank God all my efforts weren’t useless.

So I went to Bandung after working on Monday. I took a day off again this time. The test was at 6am, and I also felt the need to have a good sleep before the test since it would affect my blood pressure. After fasting for 12 hours, my blood and urine samples were taken. I had another test. This was my first lab test so I felt a little bit exciting. I had electrocardiograph (ECG) test, chest Rontgen, and hearing test. The hearing test was giving me feeling the same as psychology test. I knew I did it right, but I didn’t have a clean start. That was my habit. If I did a mistake at the start then I started to feel anxious for the rest of the event, even though I didn’t make any other mistake.

The announcement was 2 weeks after. I felt worry when I opened the file. But, once again, I had my luck. The sixth test was interview with human resource and a psychologist. This time I took another day off, probably my last one. I decided to sleep at my friend to avoid coming late. The interview was going well. It took about one and half hour. Form what I read in the forum, that was normal. After that I went to visit my little sister. Her place was not far from it. I also had a good time with my friends. I felt very confidence about the result and that affected my mood. The interviewer even advised me to give a resignation letter as soon as possible. But I’m not a risk taker that much. The confidence I had still had some worry of failure. So I postpone the resignation plan and continued my work life as usual. 2 weeks after the announcement came. I couldn’t tell how I felt that day. I waited it for 2 days and was sure that the announcement would came that day. And it was, at 2 pm. Alhamdulillah, perhaps it was the best path Allah decide for me. I told my mother and that night wrote my resignation letter. It was the craziest week of my work life. Plus, I needed to go to Bandung again to sign the work contract. This time I ask permission not to come to the office. My day off was pretty much run out.  The sudden leave and the problem I had at that time took all my energy. And so my last day which was on Friday was extended to Saturday since I kept missing small things.

That exact Saturday, I went to Bandung because I need to check in on Sunday morning. One side I felt excited and relieve, the other side I felt exhausted and sorry not to resign early so that I had a few spare time to rest and do nothing.

But now, here I am. 3 months later. Survived. I couldn’t thank God more for this blessing. I am happy.

[mauridianhallow]

how was your day off? what did you do?

Oh. My. God. My Day Off™ (as we shall be referring to it) was AWESOME! Mediocre in some regards, but we must remember it is not the extravagance of the act but the freedom to act itself that made my Day Off™ so good, and why I have been looking forward to it for weeks! This is gonna be a long one, because I am so excited to talk about it, so strap in friends. Let’s go! We shall begin, as all stories must, at the beginning. Saturday 18th of November. 12:30AM. I have just finished work, my cousin’s funeral had been on the Friday, and I had been working in my family’s pub at the wake, (big Irish Catholic fam, take the stereotypes and multiply them by a random number, you’re probably right) and after finishing cleaning and making sure my bar is absolutely spotless, my aunt and I finally locked up. It was now, officially, my Day Off™. The first thing I did was crack open a beer. A Miller’s. I’m not usually a fan of American beer (because in all seriousness most of it is catpiss) but this? This beer? This beer which I was able to sit in my kitchen, speaking to friends, and just Enjoy™? It was the second best tasting beer I have ever tasted. I went upstairs, having informed the world through Snapchat that for the next 24 hours, I was free, and just stripped off. I just got to stand there, had a look at the scars on my back, my leg muscles, the bruises and cuts on my arms. Life. I realise I’m always rushing about, always from one thing to the next, sometimes that takes a tole on your body and while that’s nothing to be ashamed of, as I stood there naked I decided that sometimes I was a little hard on my body, the only one I’ll ever have, and I’m gonna look after it a little. After all, it’s my body’s Day Off™ as well. I ran a bath, I don’t usually get a chance for a bath, but my aching muscles needed it. One of my best friends, Carol, works in Lush and for my birthday a few months back she got me a bath bomb, so it seemed I was going all out this evening. It was 1:15AM. The bath was heavenly. I got to take care of myself, my body, my spirit felt rejuvenated, I got an opportunity to shave for the first time in a while, and when I stood up to get out of my bath, I felt prepared for the coming day. Just as I went to enter my bedroom, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror in the spare room, it wasn’t the same body that went in, it truly looked relaxed. It felt it too. 1:45AM. I’m still 100% awake, I’ve had a coffee and I decide to catch up on some shows I’ve not had the opportunity to see because of life. The latest episodes of Flash and Arrow, I’m excited for the 2 night crossover event and put the date in my planner. I switch to Designated Survivor, a show on Netflix that I’ve become addicted too and although it’s very “feel good, good guy always wins, moral of the story is...” kinda show, there’s nothing wrong with that. I love it! It’s about 4AM now, some sleepiness has started to come over me, my eye lids are getting a little heavier and I know I’ll be sleeping soon. I give myself a long sleep when I set my alarm, for about 11AM, because I deserve it. Why not, eh! The sleep was perfect, I had wonderful dreams about my friends, about the Reading and Leeds Festival during the summer, and when I woke up it was naturally with no alarm blaring, no one knocking on my door reminding me I have responsibilities. It was 10:45AM. I get up, stretch and go make myself some breakfast, no one is home (and won’t be until 7PM) so I don’t bother even dressing. There’s something strangely liberating about being able to wake up, walk downstairs, make and eat breakfast naked. But I’ll move on, I’m sure no one wants to hear about THAT hahah! When I’m deciding what to wear for heading into Glasgow, I pass over the darker colours of my wardrobe, no greys or blacks today, no today I want to walk down the street and feel awesome! I settle for my blue tight-fit gym t-shirt, my red tartan (plaid?) shirt to go over it, blue jeans and a pair of nice brown winter boots I bought a while back and never really had the chance to wear. I’m wearing my expensive underwear, it’s comfy and I feel great. To cap it all off, my blue double breasted long coat, the very same one I wore when I was 17 and walked into my last year of High School. I have a special connection with this coat, and I always feel great wearing it! I pack my bag, not of study material for today I refuse to study, but with my notebook and planner, a book I haven’t had the chance to finish in months, some snacks and a can of Arizona Green Tea. I wrap my scarf tightly around my neck and I walk out into the world! I catch the 11:21AM train into Glasgow, I’m going to get my phone screen repaired but I’m not worried. I’m messaging Chelsea, we’ve been talking a lot more recently and I like it. She tells me she’s working today, in Glasgow and I make a note of the time. If I get a chance I’ll pop in a say hello, if only briefly because I know she’ll be busy. I still feel great! It’s about 12PM that I finally get into the City, walking past the Counting House in George Square, I decide to jump in for a quick pint. I know there’s football on today so the place is packed. I only stayed for 30 minutes but I reminded myself I wasn’t jumping from one thing to the next today, I was under no obligation to hurry. It felt nice. When I reached the Apple Store, I entered into its clinical environment reminded of how cut off this place is from the rest of the world. I hand my phone in, they quote me a time of around 4/5PM, and when I leave I feel strange. I really am so used to having my phone in my pocket, I fidget with it a lot, I feel slightly cut off and while there’s a brief moment of anxiety, it soon passes. The world in mine today. I visit some shops, most are preparing for Christmas time and all look beautiful. I have about 3 hours to kill, to do what I want. As I’m passing by the Stairs at the Buchanan Galleries Concert Hall (if you’ve ever been in Glasgow you’ll know the ones) and am hit with a sudden wave of nostalgia. I’ve had so many good memories here; shopping trips with my parents as a kid, summer days as a teen, first kisses, teenage crushes, political rallies, moments of pure peace and moments of excitement! I’ll be truly sad when they are gone to make way for something else but I smile as I head to the cinema. There’s only one thing for it today, Justice League! I’ve been so excited for this! I can’t wait to see my childhood heroes come together, I haven’t been this excited for a superhero team up film since the Avengers all those years ago! I pass by the machines that let you book tickets immediately, and go to stand in line. Not because I don’t want to use the machines, but because I very rarely get to go through the excitement of the cinema experience. Standing in line, buying a ticket, talking with the people and what they think of the film. Again, it’s the freedom to do it that I am enjoying! It’s about 1:20PM. The film is beautiful, so fantastic, and while this blog post isn’t a film review, I will definitely recommend it! If someone had told little 12 year old me that one day I would be seeing live action adaptations of my heroes, he would’ve cried probably. A slight tear did in fact gather, more of nostalgia than anything else, for the innocence of childhood and how I really do need to remind myself to enjoy the little things more. When I leave the film, the wind and cold hit me but I’m smiling and very happy! I jump into the Apple Store to check how the phone is coming along and they say about half an hour until it’s finished. I thanked the lady and decided I have time to jump in to Chelsea’s work, say hello, and grab a coffee. I just hope it’s not too busy! When I walked in the door I managed to get a look at her without her spotting me. She was so excited to get this job, and I can definitely see why! She seems in her element, and happy! We speak briefly, joke a little, I pick up my coffee and go sit in the corner. I’m in no rush. I bring out the book I’ve been reading throughout the day in the small moments I get between things, and finish a couple chapters, I’m so close to the end! My coffee tasted great, extra caramel, whip cream and all! Just as I check my watch for the time I see it’s 4:15PM, but because I promised myself there would be no rushing today, I stay seated. My drink isn’t finished, and I’m enjoying my book. I give it another 10 minutes and as I go to leave I try to say goodbye to Chelsea, although the shop is quite busy now and I’m not sure she heard me. No worries though! I do make a promise to try and see her more often, maybe we could do something around Christmas time, but I put it from my head and leave to pick up my phone. I am content. The people at Apple were very nice, I had expected to be paying upwards of £100 for this new screen, but I was told that I was under warranty and it wouldn’t cost me a penny! I am elated! This day just gets better and better and better! I check my watch and see it’s about 4:25PM, and start walking to High Street. There’s music in my ears, memories of a good day in my head and happiness in my heart! I could have went to Queen Street, it’s closer but as I say again, it wasn’t the need to hurry that was driving me today, but the choice to relax and enjoy myself. The walk was very nice, the train journey nicer. I managed to finish my book, and while we all know the emotions around finishing a book you’ve been trying to read for months, I was very very happy. I used the train WiFi to but some Christmas presents for my niece and nephew, and when I got home, into the heat, there was no collapse of exhaustion. No falling onto my bed dramatically, I got into my pyjamas and jumped into bed. A quick nap, I deserved it. When I wake, it’s about 8PM, I’m rested and feel hungry and decide I don’t want to cook tonight, I’m going to treat myself to a pizza takeaway! I spend the rest of the night talking to friends, messaging Chelsea, eating and playing some of the new Assassin’s Creed. I can’t remember what time I went to sleep, because I didn’t need to worry about it. The day ended with complete contentment, my heart felt light and my head cleared. My Day Off™ had been perfect. Did I do much? Maybe not. But everything I did do was because I COULD! Let’s look at it like this; I slept late, got my phone fixed, did some Christmas shopping, saw a film I’ve been excited about for a long time, saw a girl I hadn’t seen in months, had great coffee, ate great food, napped out of deserving not out of exhaustion, played some video games, and fell asleep at a time I didn’t need to worry about. No studying. No work. No responsibilities. Perfect. And that my friends is the very long story of my Day Off™. It was one of the best days I’ve had in a long time. I hope I get another some point soon. Thank you for asking Anon, that was very nice of you. I just woke up about 20 minutes ago, it’s 8:18AM, Sunday 19th of November. It’s no longer my Day Off™. And life is good.

[blazehedgehog]

Hey, kids! Can you figure out what’s wrong with my desktop?

I have some bad news: that Sonic Mania video review I’ve been working on for like, a month? It’s postponed. Maybe indefinitely. Well, not indefinitely, that’s dramatic, but the long story short is that my desktop may be dying or dead and I’m a little lost as to what to do. It’s a long story, and kind of boring, so you’ll have to click through to read the full post: 

9/29/2017: I hook my computer tower up in the spare bedroom at my brother’s place where I’m living until we can move in to our new apartment. It has been shipped from Colorado to Nevada in a moving trailer with as much padding as I could find. It probably still wasn’t enough. The system boots up fine, but very slowly, and software (especially games) stutters. I shut it down and touch a few connections inside the system, making sure the RAM, graphics card, and HDD connectors are firm. It’s not very thorough as far as checks go, but I start the system back up anyway. Stuttering is still there. The system doesn’t have internet yet, because even though I bought a $15 TP-Link USB Wifi adapter back in February or March in anticipation of this moment, I absentmindedly left it in storage. Storage doesn’t have lighting inside of the units, so finding the Wifi adapter will have to wait until the sun comes back out. I think maybe the stuttering will go away once I connect it to the internet, since some games act funny when they can’t connect to the web.

9/30/2017: With the TP-Link USB Wifi adapter installed, the system updates everything but the stuttering problem persists. Friends urge me to open the system and do a full check of all the connections. Some suggest taking everything out and reconnecting it. I don’t do that, but I do find that the CPU cooler is loose and that the backplate on my 1060 is also loose (this is me pushing down on the metal plate, which has separated from the 1060′s chassis a little bit, allowing the loose screws to raise up). I take the 1060 out and gently tighten all the screws so the backplate doesn’t shift around anymore, and I manage to snap 3 out of 4 of the CPU cooler pins back in to place (it’s one of those generic, stock Intel coolers). The 4th one kind of snaps in, but it’s a little mushy and these coolers are fragile so I figure it’s good enough. Amazingly enough, the computer starts up much faster and all stuttering in games is gone.

10/1/2017: A new problem has emerged: when the system sits overnight without being turned on, on first boot it will show the BIOS logo, POST, and then instead of loading Windows, it gets stuck on a black screen. While on this black screen, if I hit the reset button, the system boots normally. One friend suggests a power supply issue. I contact EVGA, my PSU manufacturer, who claim to have a 10 year warranty. EVGA says that doesn’t sound like a power supply issue to them, and we start talking about what it could be.

10/2/2017: I have this strange paranoia about the power cable I’m using for the tower and whether or not the surge protector is too old. I grabbed a newer surge protector from storage thinking that may also fix the stuttering problem, but since it didn’t fix that nor the black screen problem, I plug the computer directly in to the wall outlet and joke to myself, “hopefully this isn’t a bad idea.” Is it a bad idea? I can’t quite remember.

10/3/2017: Out of options, EVGA suggests I just disassemble the entire PC besides the the CPU and see if the black screen happens. If it doesn’t, reconnect the entire computer component-by-component until it happens. Then, simply replace that component. That sounds like a lot of work, and given how small this spare bedroom is, I don’t have a lot of room for that kind of stuff. I’ll have to psyche myself up for it.

10/4/2017: Suddenly I realize: the first time the system started up, it didn’t have the black screen problem. It was only after I connected the TP-Link USB Wifi adapter. I pull it out of the system before I start it up, and sure enough, it boots straight in to Windows. A quick Google search reveals others, with nearly identical models of TP-Link adapters, suffering the EXACT same problem. It’s a long standing hardware conflict with a Windows 10 USB 3.0 Controller and TP-Link devices that neither are interested in fixing (and at least for some, seems to cause a variety of USB problems until they got rid of the device). This guy says his TP-Link device actually damaged a USB 3.0 port of his because of this problem. A friend suggests an internal PCIe Wifi card. It’s $60, which is a lot for someone who is still technically homeless, but you get what you pay for, and last time I cheaped out with the TP-Link adapter, it bit me in the butt -- so I go for it.

10/7/2017: The ASUS PCIe Wifi card arrives, I put it in, and it works with zero problems. The day is saved. Or is it?

10/11/2017 (12:45am): Around midnight I go to the bathroom and return to find my TV is turned off. My computer monitor is too big to use with my tower in this tiny room, so I have it connected to a TV. Same size, but the base is smaller, so it fits on this table easier. What this means is that when my desktop tells my TV to enter standby mode due to inactivity, the TV just reports “No Signal” and turns off after 30 seconds. Absentmindedly, I move the mouse but forget to to turn the TV on at first, and by the time I get the TV on and it stops showing the Vizio logo, the computer is already mid-reboot for some reason. Seems like coming out of standby with no display may have crashed the video card. Surely it’ll come right back on.

1:05am: Windows has been stuck on a loading spinner for close to 20 minutes. I’m getting worried and looking up stories from people who left their system sit on this same spinner for hours, even days, with no progress. The HDD activity light hasn’t blinked in a while. The system is just sitting there. Some solutions say to just shut it off and try again. So, I throw caution in to the wind and go for it.

1:15am: It takes at least another five minutes of loading spinners, but the system finally boots. Seems like Windows may have rolled back to a restore point as some icons have been moved around on the desktop to old positions, but not everything was rolled back (the event viewer makes no note of this). Not only that, but my ASUS PCIe Wifi Card is gone. Windows is complaining about there being no ethernet connection, which it shouldn’t be doing. Checking the device manager, the ASUS wifi card is there, but it’s saying there “aren’t enough free resources” for it to function. Code 12. A Google search on my tablet says this means it’s run out of IRQ slots. What? It wants me to disable other devices on my system to make room. Does that mean something with my Elgato or the 1060 is broken? Given this was apparently a video error, I’d say the 1060. The day before, GeForce Experience had notified me of new drivers and I ignored it because I was in the middle of something. Maybe I stumbled upon an IRQ bug they patched?

1:35am: I uninstall, reinstall, disable, and renable the PCIe wifi card repeatedly. I get out the CDROM that came with the PCIe card and install the “official” ASUS drivers instead of whatever Windows thinks it needs (Windows says it’s a Broadcom device; it’s not). Nothing changes: every time I reboot, it’ll say wifi connections are available, but when I connect, I get wifi for a split second and then the device disappears and stops functioning. I’m considering downloading clean Nvidia drivers on a USB stick using my laptop to see what that does.

1:50am: I’ve run the Windows Hardware Troubleshooter. It states the obvious: hey, your wifi card’s not working. It claims to do some magic behind the scenes but nothing works. The problem evolves and the Hardware Troubleshooter next says the wifi card’s drivers might be faulty, even though five minutes ago they were fine. Look, all I need is those Nvidia drivers. I plug in the TP-Link USB Wifi adapter, knowing that’ll give me internet long enough to download the driver update. This was a bad idea -- I’d uninstalled the device completely, and I think it needed the drivers disc before you plugged it in to the USB port. Windows seems to summon drivers from somewhere, for something, and instantly the whole system is brought to its knees and eventually BSODs with a DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION. This essentially means that a piece of software caused an extreme memory leak (or something similar) and this is Windows catching it before it could cause real data corruption from an overflow or something.

2:13am: The system boots up after the DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION blue screen and I load up Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU), ready to, at the very least, clear out what is probably just a bad Nvidia driver. DDU says I should run it in Safe Mode, and I idly wonder if maybe I can just turn my antivirus off. I disable Malwarebytes, and for some reason pop in to the Device Manager to have one last look to see if the Wifi Card is still broken. Instead of being broken, it’s merely disabled. That’s... new. I re-enable it and suddenly Wifi just... works. I have full internet again. It’s like nothing was wrong. What? I didn’t actually fix anything. Why is it working now? Maybe it was me turning off Malwarebytes? Was it conflicting with Windows Defender? (for the record, I’d had Malwarebytes installed for a while but all of its real-time protections were turned off -- until the night before, where it updated to a free trial of the premium version and turned all the real-time protections on). Just to make sure no conflicts happen in the future, I uninstall Malwarebytes.

2:41am: Sure enough, I tell the Nvidia Tray Icon to update my 1060′s drivers and an entry appears in the Event Viewer saying the GeForce Experience is either missing or corrupt (The GeForce Experience handles driver installation and other things like video recording, etc.) The tray icon downloads and installs a fresh copy of the GeForce Experience to replace the corrupted stuff.

2:54am: Wifi disappears again. Same problem: there aren’t enough IRQ slots. When the GeForce Experience reinstalled and updated the drivers, the Nvidia Tray Icon went away and never came back. Maybe something’s still corrupted in there. I boot in to safe mode and use DDU to clean out the all traces of the Nvidia driver.

3:02am: When I restart with no graphics drivers, wifi is instantly working again. This looks promising. Fresh install of the drivers and everything’s looking like it’s back to normal.

3:40am: Wifi goes out yet again, because once again, it’s run out of IRQ slots. What do I gotta do to make sure this stays fixed? Well, since restarting last time fixed it, maybe restarting again this time will fix it.

3:45am: The system hangs on the “Restarting...” screen. Not sure what to do, I leave it there for a few minutes until eventually it cuts to a blue screen. Our old pal DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION is back.

4:02am: The system seems to have steady wifi for about 30-45 minutes before it runs in to that IRQ error and dies. Now, the IRQ error precedes a guaranteed DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION blue screen, usually by only a few minutes. I’ve also noticed that when the wifi runs out of IRQ slots, the ASMedia eXtensible USB 3.0 Host Controller also fails along with it (no error about system resources, it just stops working, this time with “Code 24.”).

4:45am: Something weird has started to happen. Wifi will dip out for just a second, but then come back and the system will be “fine.” It’ll still eventually BSOD with the Watchdog Violation, but it’ll keep the internet up until that moment.

5:10am: The event viewer starts spitting out weird warnings about “Reset to device, \Device\RaidPort0.” followed by messages about retrying “IO operations” on the Disk at “logical block addresses.” Checkdisk seems to not care, says all drives are healthy. Earlier in the night a friend mentioned checking out software called “WhoCrashed?” that analyzes BSOD crash dumps and can help tell you what’s going on. I have to clear some HDD space for it, but eventually it’s just a matter of time of waiting for the next BSOD. I also install a system resource monitor called WhySoSlow from the same place just to see what’s going on under the hood. At this point, it’s been over an hour, and I start to think maybe I won’t have another BSOD.

5:20am: Idly, I run a system integrity check (sfc /scannow). This scans core Windows components for errors. It says everything is fine.

5:50am: Within five or ten minutes of the integrity check finishing, “Application Responsiveness” and “Kernel Responsiveness” in WhySoSlow spike HARD out of nowhere. They go from 0ms to peaks of 200ms or more. It’s like when I plugged in the TP-Link device a few hours earlier. The system is incredibly sluggish, but the Event Viewer isn’t reporting anything out of the ordinary, the USB 3.0 controller’s still working, and so is the wifi. Even the system temperatures are normal (40C and below), so this isn’t a loose CPU cooler again. Regardless, boom: we have our Watchdog Violation BSOD to analyze.

6:08am: Windows is LETHARGIC to start up. It takes forever just to get to the desktop, and even longer to show icons. I manage to get it to load WhoCrashed and it analyzes five dumps made by Windows. Unfortunately, I can only read one and half of another. The system won’t shake this sluggishness and I know what that probably means. I snap photos of the two entries so I can look at them in detail later, with the other three impossible to read.

6:10am: Windows BSODs again with another Watchdog Violation. WhoCrashed said the Watchdog “detected a prolonged runtime at an IRQL of DISPATCH_LEVEL or above” and that this was “typical of a software driver bug” and not a hardware issue. Of the second memory dump it read, all I could make out was that the error happened in asstor64.sys -- aka the ASMedia eXtensible USB 3.0 Host Controller. I try to get Windows 10 to boot in to safe mode so I can have a look at the rest of the dump analysis, but Microsoft removed the ability to boot you system in to safe mode by holding F8. Now you have to actually get in to Windows and pick “Safe Mode” from a menu option. Hard to do that when Windows “loads normally” and eventually BSODs before you can get to the Safe Mode menu.

6:16am: Windows is still starting up INCREDIBLY slowly. I can’t even get the start menu to come up. And, before I know it, once again, boom: Watchdog Violation. They’re getting closer together.

6:20am: As Windows 10 once again lurches back to life, I try and get it to shut down, but the start menu still won’t come up. Instead I hit the power button to force a shut down, but it gets stuck on the “Shutting down...” screen for several minutes before also getting a Watchdog Violation Bluescreen. Instead, while it’s on the BIOS screen, I just power the system off entirely, frustrated.

And so here we are. I’m back on my laptop now. My incredibly slow, incredibly small laptop. I’m lucky to have it, but this thing has problems of its own I don’t want to talk about right now.

So what do we think happened? I’ve spoken to four or five friends now, and there are three running theories:

One friend says it sounds like a bad motherboard. This is the motherboard I have, and I paid $140 because I wanted something reliable. It was “Tom’s Hardware Smart Buy 2014.“ (I bought it in 2015 when it was on sale for Black Friday). Apparently ASRock Mobos have problems where if they lose power suddenly, they can develop problems, and the power apparently did go out yesterday (10/10/2017) in the morning while I was asleep. The system was off, however, but it was still connected directly to the outlet -- opening it up to power surges. Still, one would think power surge problems wouldn’t slowly get worse over time, and you’d think it’d manifest as a power supply problem first, right? Either way, I have a 10 year warranty on the EVGA PSU and even though Newegg doesn’t sell my mobo anymore, this one is nearly identical and costs $100. That’s a lot, especially after I complained about $60 for the wifi card, but it’s either that or no computer at all, period.

Other friends say to boot in to safe mode and reinstall all of my motherboard drivers. That’s an inexpensive option to be sure, but it really did seem like things were getting worse, not better. With as slow as the system was getting, it seems like hardware damage may have been done.

Related to the above, the BSOD problems didn’t start happening until I plugged in the stupid TP-LINK USB wifi adapter without reinstalling its drivers from the disc it came with. Could that be mucking up the internals? But again, if it was getting so slow, that probably at least means reinstalling Windows 10...

Or perhaps a fourth option that you out there on the internet know about...?

Anyway, this has been a hellish night, on top of a hellish week, on top of a hellish three months. Sickness and hospitals (and hospital bills) and almost not finding an apartment and now my computer progressively having a worse and worse meltdown. Any tips you out there have would be welcome.