#fly br edits

[oc-tournaments]

ROUND TWO - MATCH 7

Linnea vs Patrica Evelar vs Nelson Maxwell

LINNEA: @moons-br

PATRICIA EVELAR: @i-eat-worlds

NELSON MAXWELL: @chimkinnuget

Due to the poll between Linnea and Patricia being a tie, they both have been brought forward into the poll against Nelson. I apologise for the need for this edit, ideally it won't happen again.

VOTE BASED ON THE INFORMATION BELOW CUT!!

Propaganda Content Warnings: Parental death for PATRICIA, missing children, loss of limb for NELSON.

LINNEA:

PROPAGANDA: So she's a bard/warloc dnd character and the dm and me both have an agreement to make her fly so close to the sun that when she falls she /falls/. Her thought of endings are 1. Become a vampire in hopes to learn more. 2. Become a litch in hopes to learn more. And 3. Unwillingly Become a god of forbidden knowledge as a punishment/consequence. We've only had 2 sessions so far and she already has a curse and WILL be getting another one because it's part of her planned arc.

She had daddy issues and slight mommy issues too, she was a stand in parent for her 3 youngest siblings and her older sister is very traumatized and scared while her older brother hates her. She is willing to sell her own souls for more knowledge and is violently protective of her friends.

THEME SONG:

PATRICIA EVELAR:

PROPAGANDA: Pat was born with powers that allowed her to manipulate massive amounts of energy. As a teenager, she accidentally dropped the roof of her house on her family, killing her parents and severely injuring her sister. After experiencing three years at a “School for Powered People” where she was forced to wear suppressant cuffs that permanently damaged her wrists, and messed with her powers development. She was eventually employed by INSUPA, who saw her powers as a means to an end. They sent her on a suicide mention against the advisement of her close friend and father figure Joseph. She died at twenty one in Joseph’s arm from a catastrophic wound to the chest after her own powers tore a hole in her heart.

THEME SONG:

NELSON:

PROPAGANDA: Girlboss was on a camping trip with his son and two daughters, and randomly all three kids disappeared. He spent hours even DAYS searching for them until eventually he spiralled into madness, slowly losing his grip on reality until he lost his head when he was attacked by an animal, killing him instantly. He found himself in an empty void, his head replaced with a tv screen. He also lost a hand during the time searching for his kids.

also he was forced into a marriage and like his wife left him and only gave him weekends with the kids so that's that

THEME SONG:

[autumntouched]

Day 12 of Ode to Phoenix

This is the first NSFW, 18+ ode to Phoenix so for anyone who wants or needs to (ahem minors,) please exit stage left or right at this time.

Prompt: When Hangman compliments her lingerie, Phoenix realizes it's his favorite and uses it to seduce him. Part of the Hannix Football Rivalry AU...don't ask me how the Super Bowl ended up in this one. It did.

Requested by: @melodiousoblivionao3

Warnings: Not really a plot, just Hannix smut. m masturbation, m/f blow job, m/f vaginal fingering, mention of m/f intercourse

A/N: Once again, from my brain to the page with few edits. Sorry for any mistakes. xx

Team Colors

They’re not practical. The silky ribbons that hold the dark green satin and lace thong together come undone too easily or show through anything that hugs her hips. A friend gave them to her as a joke several years ago, and she almost never wears them. But she and Jake are behind on laundry, and it’s the only option left in her drawer if she wants to be ready to go in time. 

“Phoenix, are you–,” Jake trails off as he comes through the bedroom door. She pauses her search for a t-shirt and looks over to find her boyfriend staring like his brain is buffering. “Is that new?” he stammers. 

She knows what he’s talking about, but she never misses a chance to mess with him. “Is what new, dickhead?” Natasha asks innocently, looking around.

He swallows and reaches up to rub the back of his neck. His gaze jumps up and down between the matching lace bra, which he’s seen plenty of. His eyes darken to the color of the lingerie she’s wearing. “That thong,” he chokes out. 

Natasha turns to face him and pops her hip. He fidgets, subtly widening his stance. “Not exactly new. Like it?” 

Jake struggles to get ahold of himself because they don’t have a spare moment before they have to head out. “Looks good on you.” He slides his hands into his pockets and turns to leave.

“Weren’t you going to ask me something?” she prompts, not trying to hide her amusement. 

It takes him a moment to remember. “I was going to ask if you’re almost ready, but uh, no rush.”

All day she catches him watching her, gaze lingering on her lower back and hips, what’s underneath her jeans no doubt preoccupying his mind. But before they get home, he gets called in early the next morning to cover for one of the instructors and the thong ends up in the hamper before he has time to appreciate it. 

---

Natasha smooths the freshly made bed and wonders where Jake is with the rest of the laundry. “Bagman!” she calls. 

No answer. He doesn’t respond to "Jake" either.

She exhales sharply through her nose, annoyed. He probably got distracted on his phone. She heads down to the laundry room to check on him. The door is ajar, and it’s not the sound of the washer or dryer coming from the room.

Jake breathes heavily over the muffled slick friction of his hand on himself. A high whine punches out of his chest on what sounds like a particularly firm stroke. Natasha bites back a smile and creeps forward on tiptoe to peek into the room. 

He leans against the wall, head thrown back and hand in his gym shorts. His throat muscles strain with his mounting arousal. Clutched to his chest is her green thong. “Fuck, Nat,” he exhales. 

“Did you summon me?” she asks softly, pushing the door open all the way. 

Jake’s eyes fly open and whatever part of his skin isn’t already flushed goes bright red. “No!” he shouts, throwing away the panties like that will save him now.

“Didn’t realize how much you liked those on me,” she teases, stooping to pick up the abandoned evidence. His chest heaves as he waits for her reaction. She makes a mental note to pack a little surprise for him the next time he goes on a trip or deployment. But for now, she sways her hips on her way to him and presses the thong to his stomach. 

“How about you hold onto these while I finish where you left off?” Jake’s pupils blow wide open at that. 

“Huh?” he asks stupidly.

She doesn’t give him a chance to put his brain back together. Natasha drops to her knees, one hand still holding the thong to his abdomen while the other tugs off his shorts and works his boxer briefs down his shapely thighs. He’s still holding his full, hard length, his head glistening with his precum. The musk of his aroused sweat and sight of his well-endowed dick stretched to its zenith goes straight to her core. She wraps her hand around his and lowers him to her mouth, darting out her tongue to swirl his tip. There’s a sweet edge to the saltiness of his leaking precum from the peaches he ate earlier. 

He grunts and lets out a litany of “Fucks!” when she wraps her lips around him and sucks lightly. She loves the taste of him, the way he fills her mouth as he releases his hold to her. The hand over his stomach slides down to brace herself against his base, her thumb stroking through his pubes as she takes him in her mouth. Broken, ragged sighs and moans burst out of him as she sucks him down. 

“I love how good you are,” she breathes across his tip before lifting him so she can lick a slow path from his balls to his head. The contrast of his hard erection with the petal soft skin of his dick is making her own brain intoxicatingly fuzzy. 

“Oh god!” he shouts. Then pleadingly, “Nat.” The fist clutching her panties goes to his face. She presses her advantage and licks the same path again, sending his hips back into the wall as his precum spills over her lips and chin. He watches, eyes hooded and lips gnawed swollen, as she drags his fluid up to her mouth then licks it off her finger. She swallows, and his dick jumps hard. A molten swell of satisfaction pools between Natasha’s legs and floods her already soaked underwear. 

Jake surges down and captures her mouth with his, his lips and tongue dragging the breath right out of her lungs. Natasha has to let go of him to wrap an arm around his neck and hang on lest she pass out from the sheer assault of him on her senses. 

“Let me fuck your mouth,” he begs when he breaks away. 

Her voice is wrecked, her vision a little hazy as she stares up at him. “Give me your shirt and promise to cum all over my tongue,” she rasps, “and my mouth is all yours.” 

“Good lord, are you trying to kill me?” he moans. Jake rips off his shirt and hands it to her. She uses it and his discarded shorts to pad her aching knees. He settles back against the wall and in the laundry room light, he glows like her own glorious Eros. She wants to lick every bead of sweat that glistens between the carved ridges of his abdomen and chest. Gently, he strokes her hair before lacing his fingers through it. “Let me know if I hurt you or you want me to stop?” 

She nods and parts her lips for him. It’s too much for Jake to watch himself stroke in and out of her mouth, but Natasha treasures every trembling clench of his muscles, the roped veins in his arms as he holds off his release, the alluring column of his throat, and the perfect arch of his jaw. She opens the back of her throat and hums her pleasure, ignoring the dribble of drool forced out by his girth. His panting accelerates with his pace. 

“How is your mouth this perfect?” he groans. Jake chances a glance down in time to see her smirk and throws his head back again. “Fuck!” 

The little room fills with his increasingly loud, desperate gasps and keens over the wet lap of his dick in her mouth. Natasha presses forward so that his thighs meet her breasts and her hands can knead the muscled curves of his ass. There’s something about being on her knees for Jake that makes her high on her love for him, the feeling that there is nothing she wouldn’t be willing to do for him. She tilts her head to give him a new angle, and to breathe a little easier, and his fingers curl in her hair. “Yeah there, Nat. That’s so good.” 

His hips start to move more urgently. “So close. I can’t–I’m going to come.”

“Mhmm,” she encourages, relaxing her own muscles and closing her eyes because now he’s thrusting against the back of her throat. She can always tell from the pitch and cadence of Jake’s gasps how close he is to finishing, but what she loves most about taking him in her mouth is that she can also follow the subtle shifts in his body on its way to finding his release in her.

When she hears him on the brink, she sucks a little harder on his next thrust.

“Nat,” he chokes and gives way to his climax with a long, stuttering groan. His balls and dick constrict in rapid succession before the swell of his cum rushes through his length and bursts in hot spurts down her throat. She moans around the feel of him pumping out his release as she swallows everything she can. Jake’s legs tremble under her hands as he shudders through his orgasm. . 

Carefully, she slides her mouth off of him and scoots out of his way. He tosses her thong onto the wash machine and sinks to the floor. Natasha curls up between his legs, leaning into his heat, as he continues to come down. A little clumsily, he uses her t-shirt to dab his cum off her face then drapes his arms around her. He looks down at her completely love drunk, eyes slightly out of focus and mouth slack with a dopey smile. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t stop thinking about how hot those panties looked on you, babe.” 

She reaches up and strokes the damp strands of hair behind his ear. “I guess I’m going to have to wear them a little more often then.” 

He nuzzles her neck with a breathless laugh. “Like every day, please.” 

---

As soon as he knows the Chiefs are going to the Super Bowl, Jake calls dibs on them, leaving her the Eagles by default. “Mahomes is from East Texas!” he defends himself adamantly. “I root for anyone from East Texas.”

She rolls her eyes and gives him the finger.

They opt to stay home and watch the Super Bowl together, a decision that draws enough raised eyebrows that they end up making up a party that they’re going to just to avoid the knowing looks. 

Natasha isn’t sure whether Jake has a Chiefs t-shirt or buys one for the occasion, but on game day he puts it on before going to pick up their order of wings and fries while she picks out something green. At a sudden burst of inspiration, she closes the kitchen and living room blinds before changing into her Eagles Super Bowl outfit. 

Jake nearly drops the bag of food when he notices her watching the pre-game coverage on the sofa. 

“Phoenix, what the fuck are you wearing!” he yelps. 

She grins evilly and folds her arms on the cushions. “Green. For the Eagles. Like we agreed.” What she’s really wearing is a sheer green bra and his new favorite pair of underwear. 

“For fucks sake, Nat! How am I supposed to watch the game with you in that?” he complains. 

Natasha smirks. “Sounds like a problem for you, not for me.” 

But it’s most definitely her problem by the time the Chiefs win the coin toss because even propping his legs up on the coffee table and holding his beer in his lap, Jake can’t hide that at least her outfit, if not her team, has his full support. 

When the Eagles score right out of the gate, Natasha’s touchdown dance to “We Will Rock You” ends any pretense that they’re going to make it through this game. He slams his beer on the coaster and launches himself to his feet. Bodily, he lifts her over his shoulder and lightly smacks her ass.

Laughing, Natasha doesn’t have time to get her bearings before he dumps her on the sofa and pins her in place with a kiss that makes her forget where she was going with this other than where she’s landed. He tastes of beer, wings, football, and a day he promised to spend alone with her. And the way Jake's kissing her, tongue stroking hers, hips swaying his erection over her core, hand kneading her breast, she wouldn't mind if he never stopped.

She runs her leg along the line of his, and Jake growls. He kisses and nips his way to her chest, his tongue teasing her nipple through the barely there lace. "Fuck, Jake!" she hisses when he slides open her bra with one hand. The release of her chest feels so good and the way he's staring down at her peaked and hardened nipples like his birthday has come early quickens the pulse in her core.

If she doesn't stop him now, she's not going to be able to put the breaks on this much longer. Natasha presses a hand to his chest. “Hold up, Texas Hold ‘Em! No cum on the couch.” 

Jake grins slyly and tugs out the bow on one side of her underwear. She looks down at his hands as he switches sides and pulls apart the other bow. Their foreheads are practically touching, their breaths racing against one another's as they watch him lift the top of the thong off her like he’s just unwrapped a present. 

His breath hitches when he sees how wet his own anticipation made her. So much for no cum on the couch. Making a split second decision, Jake tugs off his shirt and spreads it under her hips. He traces her soaking slit, and she’s already wet enough for him to slip two of his large fingers into her. 

Natasha arches her back off the pillow and lifts her hips onto his hand. He watches her biting her lip and leans in to kiss her again. His weight settles over her, pressing her into the sturdy softness of the sofa’s cushions. At some point, the Chiefs score and then the Eagles again but the only end zone Natasha and Jake still care about is the one his fingers and mouth are driving her toward. 

They're already cuddled naked in a large throw blanket, exhausted and spent, when the Chiefs win the game. But Jake musters his stamina to drive home one last orgasm and his victory, his fingers laced through hers as she cries out his name.

–

On the third day of deployment in the Indian Ocean, Jake pulls out a black undershirt for the day and something tumbles out into his seabag. He runs his hand over the top of his things and freezes. 

He lifts out a green lace and satin thong and a folded piece of paper.

In case you want to remember how hot I look in these while you’re gone. Love, Natasha

Something about his shirt catches his attention. It smells like…he holds her lingerie to his nose. He’s fucked and never leaving his bunk. She sprayed it with her perfume.

Ode to Phoenix Masterlist

[im-not-buying-it-ether]

Headcanons that can and will make up how I write the Marvelous Bats AU I’m trying to actually write

Everyone has a minor upgrade or addition on the powers they have. Eugene has his technokinesis, Pedro is physically stronger than Billy even though they have the same blessing, Darla is faster, Freddy has some minor telekinesis and is better at flying in practice, and Mary’s courage is infectious to the degree of getting people out of being scared frozen in an emergency and getting them to rescue themselves and have the bravery to help others along the way.

Billy and Mary are still twins, she’s adopted by the Bromfields and Billy is newly fostered by the Vasquez’s but they all work and spend time together as a family unit despite the separate home lives

Billy knows how to make portals anywhere with doors, the place just needs to have a door. (He has tried getting the Batcave that way but apparently the car doors of the Batmobile don’t count)

Yes all the Bats know the Marvels identity’s and vice versa, the rest of the League? Nope. Just think Batman mellowed out in his crusade to learn Caps identity

Yes Bruce wanted to adopt Billy, Billy said screw that and Jason pointed out how bad of an idea it would be to have a kid named Batson in the public eye of Gotham. “The Joker can and will try to make a bad joke out of the kid Bruce.” “Yeah Batman, you want me to die in a robin costume of all things?” Bruce just stayed silent for a moment and almost started crying (it’s was only a week later Jason took a good look at the kid and realized Billy is a mini him and Bruce probably didn’t like the Robin comment)

Damian, Darla, and Jon are the true kid hero trinity. Their mission? Chaos

Freddy just about passed out when he met Barbra, the super amazing Batgirl is the super cool lady behind the monitor that’s one of freaking Batman’s most essential teammates? Oh the feeling of finally seeing a super like himself

Tim met Billy and Mary’s parents through his own when he was little, the 3 of them had a very long discussion about cool archeology stuff for a good few hours

Because his hero form is his “full potential” and is very big Pedro asked Jason to help him get from how he is now to his hero form, seeing as his body type was closest. Now they work out together every Tuesday and Friday (school and vigilante work permitting) half of it is actually working out and the other is building Pedros confidence

Batman and Captain Marvel make a point to block and argue heavily against any other Marvel joining the League, Billy is the only one until the rest of the family does meet the age requirement they have. Billy does the heavy lifting expected of the actual Champion of Magic and his siblings enjoy the small town hero life and look out for Fawcett and the Rock when he’s off world, Mary is the defacto leader when he’s gone.

Like how every Bat has their designated Super and sometimes Wonder, they all have a Marvel they hang out with more than others. Mary and Dick hang out and bond over being the unfortunate voice of reason siblings, Darla is the childish influence making Damian act more his age and love doing it. Billy and Bruce are the respective “heads of the family” and Bruce checks in a lot on how Billy’s life is going with the occasional leadership tip thrown in to help with hero work. Jason tutors Pedro when they’re both visiting, if they cross paths on the job they’ll talk sports a lot. Freddy and Eugene talk a lot about strategy’s, games, gadgets, and superpowers with Barbra and Tim.

Tawny and Alfred are golfing buddies, they also build miniatures of flag ships together and talk about their weird family of supers over tea

Eugene has hacked the Bat-computer on multiple occasions, each time to make an edit to any files Bruce makes of the family, mostly something childish like adding “the amazing” or “the super awesome” before their hero names in the files. But one hack he did was into his contingency plans files, which nearly gave Bruce a heart attack thinking there was going to be another accident that would almost kill his friends.

The hack was the change of “Further research needed to figure out a strategy for neutralization, for now the best strategy is to trick or force them into using their trigger phrase to de-transform before incapacitating them” to “let their siblings deal with the situation”

The Justice League’s first introduction to Captain Marvel was during a “Superman is being affected by Red Kryptonite” situation. By the time they caught up to him in Fawcett their resident hero was helping the man up and panicking over how much he hurt him trying to wrestle the Kryptonite off him, they offered him a seat with them by the end of the week after satellite imaging showed that he led Superman into the air after he knocked down a building and delt with him without further damage and Superman’s account that he broke his arm and bruised multiple ribs trying to stop him. Billy was 9 at the time and only had his powers a few months at that time so he had no idea how much he needed to reel his strength in and was panicking too much to properly do so either way in that fight.

Damian was jealous that Billy got into the league so young and Bruce still won’t let him on despite his capabilities but realizes Billy only got so far because of a lie of omission and one event where he severely harmed Superman, he’d call his father an idiot if he hadn’t tried to keep an eye on such a worrying individual

The Vasquez’s know their kids visit the Wayne’s every other day, as do the Bromfields, but only Vic and Rosa know about the superhero part of it all. The Bromfields just think Mary is visiting a girl friend and having sleepovers every so often, they aren’t entirely wrong since she does hang out with Cass and Stephenie but they don’t need to know her whole superhero life. It’s framed as a mentorship so that their kids can do their best with the powers given to them with a healthy amount of encouragement in still being kids and attending school, it’s mostly just the two families spending time with eachother though.

Black Adam used to antagonize the Marvel Family but after a fight with Billy 1v1 he saw he was a child and stopped trying to actively kill him, he’s now their weird uncle figure who pops by to show them some fighting moves and try to tell Billy to stop being the champion until he’s older.

Black Adam is closer to the movie version solely for the purposes of expanding the family size, he looks like his classic comic self but has to shift in morals and backstory he had in the movie

The fight happened in a empty patch of dessert outside Khandaq when Billy was 11, no one on the League knows why they suddenly stopped fighting or why Cap officiated the guys wedding but their happy he figured something out so his city didn’t get torn up every month by their fights anymore.

The hero names and nicknames for the Marvel family are as follows

Billy Batson —> Captain Marvel (Cap, the Captain)

Mary Bromfield —> Mary Marvel (Mary)

Freddy Freeman —> Lieutenant Marvel (Lieu, Captain Marvel Jr. (by one annoying reporter))

Pedro Peña —> General Marvel (The jolly green giant, Greenie)

Eugene Choi —> Chief Marvel (Chief, Master Chief (self proclaimed, never used))

Darla Dudley —> Ms./Princess Marvel (Ms., Missy Marvel, Missy (Used for professional purposes) Princess (Used every other time as her choice of code name))

Adriana Tomaz —> Isis (/got the amulet of Isis as a wedding gift from Darla from the Rock, she didn’t know what it was but is happy she got cool powers with the rest of the family/)

Amon Tomaz —> Horus (/name changed from comics to coincide with the change in family dynamic between him and Adriana from siblings to parent/child/)

Theo —> Black Adam/Khem Adam

Shout out to @thefantasmarex for reminding me how much I love these two families together

[eliihgc]

"Welcome back, Armin!" | "Bem-vindo de volta, Armin!"

(ENG) Headcannon time!

"Armin and Angel never really broke up; despite him going abroad to study game design, most weekends and holidays he would fly back to visit his family, friends and girlfriend. After 2 long years of lots of saudades and waiting, Armin was back to stay."

A sweet welcome back to my love :3

(PS: Yes I brought his hair back, it was stronger than me ok)

(PT-BR) Hora do headcannon!

"Armin e Angel nunca terminaram realmente; apesar dele ter ido estudar game design no exterior, na maioria dos fins de semana e feriados ele viajava de volta para visitar sua família, amigos e namorada. Depois de 2 longos anos de muita saudade e espera, Armin estava de volta para ficar."

Um doce boas-vindas pro meu amor :3 

(PS: Sim eu trouxe o cabelo dele de volta, foi mais forte do que eu ok)

**The original illustration is not mine, I just edited it for fun. Credits go to the original creators**

Side blog for MCL stuff 

More edits: Halloween edit (2020) | Whispering to Castiel

[vroomvroommbtch]

So it goes: Part 27- MI x OC

Masterlist

Summary: If it was Daniel's birthday, then there was gonna be alcohol. If there was alcohol, then Maggie was going to drink. And if Maggie was going to drink, then she would open her mouth and say a few things that she always wanted to say to Michael.

Pairing: Michael Italiano x fem!OC

Warnings: Swearing, alcohol, Maggie being a drunk mess, mentions of Z*K Br*wn and the orange tractor.

Word count: 8.7k

A/N: If this thing is up it’s because miracles do exist and I wanna thank Grammarly for making it possible with their app 😭♥️ Okay, this can be a mess because I normally edit it WAY more than I did but I’m an anxious bitch so bare with me 🫶🏻 Also if the format its fucked up I apologize bc my phone shows me a different shit than my computer and I won’t be able to fix it till I have a new charger for my goddamn computer🥲 BUT HI! Okay we’re back to the usual schedule of me taking forever to post bc vacations are over but I’m trying my best istg 😭 So, hope you like it, enjoy, thanks for the likes and let me know what you think! See ya! 🫶🏻

---

Part 27 - Let me down easy.

They couldn’t catch a goddamn break. None of them could get more than a week of peace. It was like life was laughing at their faces all over again because every single time they thought things were fine, something shitty had to happen. But the ultimate shitty thing on this occasion was the British Grand Prix and how it completely ruined Daniel’s birthday weekend.

It started okay. It started more than okay because they were in the UK so it mean their families and friends coming for the race and especially for Daniel’s birthday. It also meant Olivia spending time with her grandparents because Joe and Grace flew to the UK too, so they were all kisses, hugs, and smiles.

That’s actually how things have been for the last month. First, it was Maggie’s birthday and all the happiness it brought her. A week later Jas' birthday came, which was just a little happy celebration with just the six of them in Canada, where Jas insisted that she would have loved to have her family and friends over, but she was happy to have her little family with her and that they could all celebrate later when they get together for Daniel’s birthday. But then Montana came and that was Maggie’s little piece of heaven.

Montana wasn’t in Maggie’s plan. She wasn’t planning to go there after Canada. Instead, she was planning to fly back to Dublin, stay some days there, and then go to the UK in time for the Silverstone race, but none of that happened. The second Daniel hear the words ‘Dublin’ and ‘Flight’ coming from her, he insisted that she couldn’t miss their trip. Besides, Daniel insisted that they didn’t want to handle Michael and his lovesick puppy face because he missed her, so she needed to go. On the other side, there was Jas, Blake, and Michael telling Maggie to do whatever she wanted to do, but deep down she could see how Michael wanted her to go with them, so she didn’t have many options. It took half an hour, a soft ‘I’d love you to come with us’ from Michael and one very much insisting Daniel for her to say yes, but she didn’t regret it.

Montana was somehow a gift to all of them. It was like the breeze of fresh air they needed desperately. Maybe it was the fresh air or the fact that they didn’t have to think about planes and flights and all that for a week, but Maggie was happy. She had been drawing more than she had been doing in months, she had been learning how to play the ukulele that Daniel gave her for her birthday, and she had been laughing her ass off constantly thanks to their friends, so it was good.

What made everything better was how happy her family was. Daniel was all happy to be able to be a full-time dad the whole week without having to worry about interviews, publicity, racing, or going to the MTC. Jas was happy to spend time with her fiancée and her daughter and Olivia were just over the moon about everything. She was everybody’s toy and the little spoiled tiny queen of the group, and even if Olivia was just a five-month-old baby, she loved it. Just like her dad, Olivia loved people, she loved to play with people and they knew it would be a different story if she could walk because she would be everywhere. They also knew she wouldn’t stop talking if she already knew how to do it, but meanwhile, she was a happy, giggly, babbling thing who loved to play peekaboo with whoever was available and ready to be her play date.

And to add to all that, things with Michael were better than ever. Even if they had a still pendent talk for the summer break, they were almost back together. They were sharing a room without silly excuses and without sneaking into each other’s room, they were waking up and going to bed together, they would go hand in hand everywhere like they used to, and Michael would tell to everyone who would listen that Maggie was his girlfriend. He was a happy man saying she was his girl and Maggie was over the goddamn moon.

Everything about that damn trip has her over the moon, but especially those little stolen moments with Michael. From riding a horse like she always wanted to and finally doing it with him because she was too scared to do it alone the first time, laughing so uncontrollably that her tears were streaming down her face, snuggling on his lap by the fire at night and sharing beers while they watched a rodeo, it was all a dream. Even trying to warm him up with a towel and wrapping her arms around his body after he and the boys jumped into the goddamn cold river was a damn delight. It was just one memory behind another and all of them were with her family and friends, but especially with Michael, so it was one of the best trips of her life.

But just like it came, it went away. Their little week was over and they had to go back to reality, flight to London and they all went back to their regular schedules and normal lives, which sucked. But the thing that London brought back and that did not suck at all was Maggie’s return to her favorite place in the UK -and in the whole world- and that was Michael’s apartment. After months of coming and going from Lily’s to Jas and Daniel’s apartment, Maggie wasn’t thinking about where she was going to stay when they landed in London. Even if she had the keys and she could go whenever she wanted, Maggie was too tired to go all the way to Lily’s, so she figured the best thing was to stay with Daniel and Jas. She didn’t even ask simply because she didn’t have to, but the one who asked was Michel.

She wasn’t expecting the question, not when they were in a plane flighting over the middle of the ocean. She wasn’t expecting it while she was trying to get some sleep against his shoulder while Michael was reading a book on his Kindle. She wasn’t expecting it, but suddenly another kiss on her head and a whisper brought her back to reality, making her look up at him. Not even the grumpy mood she was in for yet again not being able to sleep on a plane stopped her from smiling at him. And out of nowhere, Michael asked where she was planning to stay when they get to London. She was too sleepy to answer, so she just whispered a little ‘Dunno’ as she shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal. She wasn’t looking for anything with that answer, she was just being honest because she had a slight idea but she wanted to lay down on the first bed she could find. And since she wasn’t looking for anything, it took her by surprise when Michael asked if she wanted to stay with him those couple of days until they went to Silverstone. She could see the expectation in his eyes when he asked. She could see how he was worried about a negative because she hasn’t stayed there in too long. She could see how Michael wanted her to say yes.

Her answer was an absolute yes. There was no doubt she was going to say yes to such a proposal when she missed that place more than any other. But before Maggie said yes, she moved her hand up to cup his cheek as she gave him the softest and smallest kiss, whispering against his lips that she missed his bed. That was the shortest way she could find to say she missed every single thing about that apartment, but Michael didn’t need explanations.

But what finally made her say yes with both her words and her head was his answer. The second he whispered ‘Then come home’, Maggie could have sworn her heart jumped out of happiness. It took all from her to not cry right there in the middle of the plane, so to calm herself she nodded while she whispered ‘Okay’ against his lips, stealing one kiss and then another. That made the trick finally made her fall asleep. Knowing that in just a couple of hours she was gonna be in bed right there at his place was like a magical solution to her problems.

But the real solution to almost all of her problems was finally walking inside the apartment. It was coming home after a terrible trip that lasted months, all to find her things still there where she left them. Her books were still on one of the shelves in the living room, her favorite blanket perfectly folded and resting on the back of the cream couch, her favorite cup in the kitchen, her shampoo and all her things were still in the bathroom, and the drawers were her things used to be were still empty waiting for her things to be back.

But what made her heart melt was the picture on his nightstand. For years the last three years it has been the same picture of Maggie smiling at the camera. He took it in Abu Dhabi, the first time Maggie spend his birthday with him even if they were surrounded by people and even if they were nothing serious. She was smiling because the one behind the camera was Michael, but also because he was telling her how happy he was that she did everything in her power to fly in time and spend the day with him. She was smiling because Michael was telling her that she looked beautiful even when she knew she was a little disaster fucked, with her hair all messy after being against the pillow and lips all swollen and red after spending so much time making out. She was a mess but how happy she was to be sitting in the middle of that bed, wearing nothing but his shirt and her panties and not caring if someone could find them.

Maggie knew perfectly fine how Michael had every single picture of her and them together hiding on his phone. She wasn’t surprised because she did the same thing. Every single piece of evidence about what they had was hidden on their phone and that’s how things were until everybody found out about them. The same thing happened with that picture on his nightstand. Maggie knew that Michael used to hide it in the drawer of his nightstand every time someone went to his place. He hated to do it but nobody could know about it. It was their little secret so nobody could know, but that picture was a vivid memory of those days. Every single time she got into the bedroom and saw that picture, Maggie couldn’t help but look at that little happy twenty-five years old version of herself and think of how everything changed. All that twenty-five years old kid wanted was to be able to sneak and steal a couple of stolen hours with the boy who she liked, the one she was convinced she could never have for more than some stolen nights.

But the twenty-eight years old actual version of herself kept wanting the same thing. In the middle of all the mess and the rollercoasters and everything that happened in between, all she wanted was the same guy she liked so much, the one that she finally got, the one that she thought she lost and that finally now she was feeling that she was finally getting back. The one that was making dinner reservations so they could go with Jas, Daniel, and Olivia that night.

It was the same guy that found her looking at the new picture on his nightstand because he changed it for one with Maggie and Olivia. They were in Perth and everyone was happy because the youngest Ricciardo was finally in his father’s hometown. In the middle of the mess of things and suitcases, there was Maggie, holding Olivia in her arms as she showed her around the place. Maggie knew perfectly fine a two and a half months baby would never understand what she was saying, but she knew talking to babies was good for the development of the brain, so she did it. She went around showing her the house and where everything was and then she went outside and did the same thing. That’s exactly when Michael took the picture. Maggie joked about how much he loved to take pictures of her in her worse moments because she was a disaster again, just out of a plane after an insanely long plane, barefoot wearing one of his shirts, messy ponytail, and no makeup, but the smile on her face was huge. She looked happy because she was in one of her favorite places in the world with her whole family and it was all good.

And just like that afternoon in Perth but months later, everything was good in London too. She was with her back against Michael’s body as she looked at the picture on his nightstand, all while he held her close with both arms around her waist, and it was good. It was all good. And it felt good.

Everything was incredibly good all week, but then the race happened and it was a disaster. And since it was a disaster and grandparents were in town to look after Olivia, they decided to drink. It took them five minutes to decide where, but then they agreed the low-key place to go was Lily’s apartment because the neighbors in front of her were her friends and the neighbors downstairs were on vacation, so there was gonna be zero complaints. Once the location was all settled and done and Daniel was done with media and debriefing, they all drove back to London and before they all knew it, there were bottles and pizza boxes everywhere. From tequila to wine and bottles the champagne, there was everything because Lily was always a wonderful hostess and she said that her Aussie brother deserved nothing but the best for that celebration. Besides, it was a double celebration considering that none of their friends were around for Jas’ birthday, so double the celebration, double the bottles.

And like Cam used to say ‘Double the bottle, double the trouble’

“Okay, okay c’mere to me, y’all!” Lily yelled, standing in the chair where she was sitting before, hitting the glass of champagne in her hand with one of her rings so they would pay attention to her.

“Lil you’re already drunk, babe” Jas laughed, as they all turned to look at Lily.

“Shush! I wanna make a toast!” Lily exclaimed, finally making Jas stay in silence so she could start talking. “First, thank you for coming to my humble residency, make yourself at home, and please don’t puke in my plans or my vases” she joked, making everyone in the room laugh with her. “No, but for real this time, I wanna make a toast, first to the beautiful Jas, the woman who treated me like nothing but a sister since I can remember. I love you and I’m nothing but proud of you and to see the wonderful woman you became and especially to see the wonderful and cool mom you are. And to the birthday boy. My mate, you’re the coolest friend and dad out there, D. Also you’re the best and fastest racing driver in the whole goddamn world, no matter what results or your goddamn team says. This is my flat and I make the rules so fuck em all. I think I talk for all of us when I say you both are the glue that keeps this crazy family together. And I think I also talk for all of us when I say we all love you with all our hearts, so happy birthday to you both. Cheers!” Lily yelled all happy, but before she raised her glass, she was talking again. “Sorry, no! I mean Enchanté! But hey also a toast in honor for dear Mr. Zak Brown and his team with his shitty orange tractor!”

That last part had everyone laughing after a general Enchanté from the group as they raised their glasses and bottles. Of course, they all were laughing because after the disaster of a race there was nothing else they could do, especially Daniel. But between all the laughs and smiles, there was Michael. “Don’t be mean, Lil” he smiled as he shook his head.

Of course, he was the one who said that. Maggie wasn’t surprised he was the one who said that. There was nobody in the world as good as comprehensive as the man by her side resting his free hand on her waist. Every single day Maggie wished she could be half as comprehensive as her boyfriend was; she wanted to be half of the good person he also was, but that night it wasn’t gonna happen.

“Mean? I am mean? Shut up, mate! You’re too good” Lily asked, getting down from the chair as she laughed.

“Are you serious saying she’s mean? Really babe?” Maggie also wondered, looking up to her boyfriend with a tiny smile on her face. “Okay listen to me because I’m gonna say something too” she stated, walking to the chair where Lily was standing before so she could give another speech to her friends.

“You tell 'em kiddo!” Ben yelled from the couch as Cam on his side applauded, both with big smiles on their faces.

“Listen to me, you flutered bastards! I wanna make a toast for this mate right here” Maggie pointed to Daniel, who automatically raised his beer as everyone cheered for him. “My boyfriend here is the most wonderful person in the whole universe and he says we’re mean for calling the orange car a tractor, but hey! Maybe you’re right, love, I mean tractors are faster”. And there was again, everyone in the drunk laughing because of a stupid comment. But the good thing was that even Daniel was laughing. Even with all the shit he was going through he was laughing and Maggie couldn’t love her brother-in-law more. “But for real, I wanna make a toast for our Danny boy, because this man right here gets his ass in that bloody car almost every single weekend to drive at 300 hundred and something kilometers per hour. He goes and works his ass off all damn day every single day to be the best of the best and not only does he do that, but he’s also the coolest dad and friend and he’s always there for us. We don’t appreciate you enough, bro. You have a daughter and a wife and a mom and dad and a family and friends who love you so damn much and there you go risking your life every single fucking weekend to do your job and what does your team do? Give you a shitty strategy and an even shitty car, goddamn it! They fuck you up every single time and you go and put on a smile like the good guy you are! They don’t deserve you, mate. They don’t deserve you and you deserve way better” she finally breathed, blowing Daniel a kiss as all the room cheered again before she continued, all while looking back at Michael. “So, mon amour, my girl Lilian might be mean, and I might be mean. Damn, I might be a mythic bitch, but I can assure you, the CEO who promised Danny everything and more is meaner than us. So happy birthday, Enchanté, and cheers to you Dan, and that orange tractor. May life bring you nothing but happiness and a winning car because you deserve a championship more than any other human being out there”

Maggie didn’t need to get down from the chair because Daniel did the job. With the biggest hug that possibly existed, Daniel held her as tightly as possible and then stayed there for a bit more after Maggie finally put her feet on the ground. She knew perfectly final after that terrible day he needed all the love, hugs, and affection he could get, so she didn’t let him go. She didn’t let him go until he did, but before that happened, Daniel kissed her on the head. “Thanks for having my back, kiddo”

“I’ll always have your back, mate. That’s what family does. Besides I somehow still have to pay you back for introducing me to that handsome friend of yours” Maggie shrugged, slapping his chest as carefully as possible, knowing perfectly fine that even when they were partying, Daniel must be destroyed after the race.

“He’s a cunt but he’s alright I guess” Daniel shrugged too, looking back for a second to where Michael was standing and then back to Maggie. “I love you, y’know that?”

“I know, D. I love you too” she winked.

But before Maggie could do anything, she felt two hands on her shoulders and there was no need to turn around to know who those hands belonged. She knew those rings and those always black nails too well to not recognize her sister’s hands, so she leaned on the side so Jas would stroke her cheek.

“You’re right and they’re cunts” Jas pointed out, letting her sister go to be able to hug Daniel’s side. “We all know they’re cunts”

“See? Your wife says so! They’re an absolute geebag” Maggie insisted, pointing to her sister, trying to somehow show Daniel that she was right about what she said in her speech.

To say things between McLaren and the Irish sisters weren’t nice was nothing but an understatement. To say things between any of their friends and family members and McLaren weren’t nice was more likely. They were all pissed. David, the all-time McLaren fan was in the middle of a breakup situation with the team, not believing how they were treating his son-in-law. On the other side was André, the French grandfather with the biggest ‘I knew he shouldn’t have left Renault’ speech buried deep inside his heart but without telling anything to Daniel because he didn’t need more pressure than what he already had. Then there were their friends who refused to go to the race with Mclaren’s shirts even if they had a 3 on them and instead they all went with Daniel shirts because Jas designed them and because they felt represented Daniel way more than with the team shirt. Then was Esme and Aoife and both of them wanted to go and give Zak and Andreas a piece of their mind because they were overprotective mothers and grandmothers and they hated when someone messed with their family.

Then there was Maggie who was pissed. She was absolutely pissed when she heard Zak talking about Daniel, but she had Michael calming her down like always. He was there telling her that’s how the sport was and how he understood why she was mad, but that there was nothing they could really do except support Daniel.

But if Maggie was pissed then Jas was furious. When the declarations before Monaco surfaced, Jas wanted to take the first flight to wherever Zak Brown was and give him more than a piece of her mind. She wanted to have a long talk with him, but Daniel calmed her down which was probably worse.

Maggie and Jas were almost like twins but the difference was that, when Maggie bottled something up, it ended up running wild in her mind until she let it go. But with Jas, there was no letting it go. When Jas bottled something inside her and especially when someone messed with her family, all that grew inside her and that fire ended up turning into a bomb. She was like that when someone messed with any of her friends or family, but it was a hundred times worse when someone messed up with Daniel.

From day one Jas needed to protect him. She had the feeling inside her and it just grew bigger and bigger as the time with Daniel passed. She knew it was impossible all things considered, but she needed to try and, at least, protect him as much as possible. So when her husband’s boss said the things he said and when Jas couldn’t take it out, it turned into a bomb. Everyone was expecting it to be a mass destruction kind of bomb, but instead, it was like a silent one that would kill slowly.

Jas used to like Zak, he looked like a friendly guy and she decided to believe him when he promised to give Daniel a fast car to win races, but one day all of it changed. From chatting at the paddock and the garage and even at the MTC, Jas went from that to refuse to go with Daniel to having dinner with Zak simply because she didn’t want to fake a smile the whole dinner. She begged her future husband to forgive her for not going with him and invent some excuse as to why she wasn’t going, knowing perfectly fine that wherever Daniel was going, Jas was going too. That’s how things always were no matter the team he was in. It didn’t matter where or when, Jas was always his plus one, always by his side with a smile on her face, always trying to rise to the occasion. For four years Jas never refused an invitation and she was always ready to go, but she refused to be at the same table as her fiancée’s boss. So from a friendly talk, she went to a serious and deadly ‘Morning’ the first time she ran into him that first morning at Silverstone. Maggie did exactly the same thing and then both the sisters went to their business talking about whatever topic they were talking about.

Maggie knew Jas wasn’t planning to talk to him that weekend. It was Daniel’s birthday weekend so she wasn’t planning to ruin it, but it all went to hell on Saturday. Jas was joking with Dom and Maggie at the paddock, right in front of the Mclaren building when apparently someone heard their jokes. It was right after FP3 and before quali that Blake went to find Jas and she didn’t need him to say a thing to know something was happening. Maggie was right with her when it happened and she also knew there was something wrong, but her first thought was Daniel. What none of them were expecting was Blake saying that Zak was looking for Jas to talk to her. Blake offered to go to her but all Jas said was a simple and short ‘Thanks B, but I can deal with this shit on my own’ before she went straight to Zak’s office.

Ten minutes later Jas came out, just as serious as when she went in. To say everyone was expecting her to say what the hell happened inside that office was not enough. They were too curious and too worried, but Jas didn’t say a thing. She just whispered that it was all fine and settled. It wasn’t until she went with Maggie to Daniel’s driver's room before quali that she told Daniel, Blake, and Michael what she and Zak talked about. It wasn’t pretty at all. It was civilized but it wasn’t nice. Maggie was surprised they would let Jas get inside the Mclaren garage and hospitality again, but she was absolutely proud of her sister. And by far her favorite part of the talk was the last thing Jas said to Zak. ‘He’s Daniel Ricciardo, the Gran Prix winner, the man who people love and the man who gave you your first victory in a decade. He’s the only driver who gave you a win since you have been in charge of the team. But you? You’re just some CEO who failed during his time at Mclaren and the man who’s trying to ruin one of his driver’s career and reputation to justify the incompetence of his team. But let me tell you one little thing, Zak. You picked the wrong guy to fuck it with so good luck doing it’.

Everyone’s jaw dropped when they heard those words coming from Jas. Maggie knew perfectly fine her sister was capable of that and much more. Damn, the boys knew it too, but they were in a mix of surprise and disbelief. But then they were all trying to figure out what the hell to do. Daniel was all proud of his wife, Maggie proud of her sister all while Michael and Blake were trying to convince Jas to apologize before everything became worse. But Jas didn’t apologize. She stood tall in the garage the rest of the Saturday and then all Sunday. But the one who talked with his boss was Daniel. They talked that same Saturday after the quali, but for what Michael told Maggie, Daniel didn’t go to apologize about his future wife’s words, he just went to make clear he was gonna put his family first in any kind of a dispute.

But the detail that Jas forgot to tell them and that she remembered later was nothing but the fact that she disinvited Zak to the wedding, which made Maggie laugh her ass off as soon as she heard it. So after all, it wasn’t weird to hear Jas saying they were a bunch of cunts.

“And my wife is always right” Daniel affirmed, kissing Jas’ forehead.

And just like she didn’t need to know Jas was the one placing her hands on Maggie’s shoulders, this time Maggie didn’t need to know the one placing his arms around her waist and hugging her from behind was Michael. She could recognize his hands and arms anywhere, but most importantly, she could recognize his touch anywhere. “Talking about wives, here’s mine” he smiled, bending down enough to be able to kiss her left cheek and then her neck.

‘Here’s mine’. If he was trying to kill her that night he wasn’t that far from getting it.

“Hey you pretty boy, when are you gonna put a ring on my baby sis’ hand? And not that cute little one you gave her. I mean a real stone” Jas asked, making Maggie choke with her beer as Daniel laughed his ass off.

“Wow, no pressure” Maggie coughed, trying to breathe normally again so she could keep talking. “This is the part of our lives where everyone around us starts to get married and have babies and I’m kind of scared so chill, for fuck’s sake” she practically begged, leaning her back against Michael’s chest.

Maggie wasn’t joking when she said people around them were starting to get married and have babies. Jas and Daniel were getting married in a month, Dom proposed to Sara one week ago and they were getting married at the end of the year and she knew Ben was looking for a ring to finally propose to Cam after a lifetime together, so that left just Lily who was single and Maggie and Michael who were in their little word. That plus Olivia bringing the baby fever to the group was making Maggie feel nothing but pressure. But there was Michael, kissing her head, holding her closer with his arms around her waist and his hands resting on her stomach, making Maggie forget about all the problems and worries.

“Listen, I’m not planning to run away and I’m especially not planning to let her run away, so don’t worry. The rings and the kneeling will come eventually” he explained, kissing her cheek again, tickling her with his stubble.

But before Maggie could say anything, Lily was dragging Maggie to the kitchen without giving her time to kiss Michael. And maybe Maggie shouldn’t have followed her friend, because two hour later she was drunk. She tried to convince herself she wasn’t drunk drunk, but she was definitely not sober. And when Maggie wasn’t sober, she would always look for Michael because if he was around, she would automatically turn into an affectionate and clingy kind of drunk, needing nothing but love from the man of her dreams.

“Heyyy that’s my Mikey! I was looking for you!” Maggie exclaimed as soon as she saw Michael in the living room, opening her arms to hug him and resting her head on his chest.

It was an automatic response for him to hug her. It was automatic for him to place his arms around her waist and kiss her head, and she loved to feel his smile against her skin, almost as much as she loved the way he smelled. “I was just talking with Ben and Dom at the balcony, sweetheart”

“I missed you. I really, really missed you” she spoke against his shirt and she had no idea if he hear over the music, but her brain was yelling that she needed to tell him. He needed to know, so she just went with it.

“I missed you too, baby girl” Michael affirmed, kissing her once again as he moved his hands over her back, stroking her slowly.

“Listen to me. I had a bloody brilliant idea!” Maggie suddenly said, moving away enough to look up at his eyes, but never leaving the warmth and comfort of his arms and his body. But before she could say whatever she was gonna say, she decided to change the subject even if for a second. “Did I tell you that you look quiet tidy tonight? You look so cute with this shirt” she wondered, moving her fingers over his chest, touching the white material of his shirt.

“How much did you drink, babe? Because the British in you is showing up and for it to happen you need to be very drunk. First comes Irish drunk and then British drunk. Then if you reach the Aussie drunk is cause you’re smashed”

Maggie could see his efforts to not smile. She could see how he was really trying to stay serious because clearly someone had to be responsible and look after her drunk ass, but it only made Maggie melt even more. That tiny little smile on his face and those wrinkles on his eyes just made her go feral, losing the point for a second as she kissed his chest and hugged his waist tighter.

“Doesn’t matter, but listen to me! I wanna take you on a date!” she suddenly exclaimed, moving her hands up and placing them on his neck.

Maggie wanted to act like she wasn’t that drunk, but she realized that maybe she was very much drunk when she didn’t realize that Michael made them move to one of the chairs on the small balcony. At least she didn’t realize it until she was sitting there on his lap, which made her smile more because she loved to sit on his lap and snuggle there as long as she could.

“You wanna take me on a date? There’s no need to do that, sweetheart” Michael smiled, moving her hair out of her neck and shoulders and then stroking her cheeks with one hand, all as he held her waist with the other one, making sure she wasn’t gonna fall anywhere.

“But I want to! I wanna doll up and dress all nice for you and pick a cute place to go! We never do that. We never go out alone. We can count with both hands how many times we actually went alone on dates. I mean, I can’t count right now 'cause I’m kind of sloshed but you get it” she insisted, looking at him with the bigger pout trying to convince him.

And Maggie knew it worked as soon as Michael traced the pad of his thumb over her lower lip, so she made it more difficult for him as she kissed his thumb, all while a little smile appeared on her face. “Yeah, I get it. And you’re kind of right about it. We didn’t get that lucky with timing for dates”

“See? I’m right. Besides, I gotta win my baby boy back. I gotta show my favorite Aussie man how much I love him” she murmured, closing her eyes as she let Michael stroke her cheek with his thumb. “I gotta win my boy’s heart back”

Since her eyes were closed, Maggie had no idea what to expect, but it was more than a happy surprise when she suddenly felt Michael’s lips over hers. It wasn’t a deep, passionate kiss, it was the contrary. He was so soft, so sweet, so gentle and so loving that Maggie wanted to stay there forever. It was just slow and so full of love, just sharing peck after peck like there was nobody else around. There was no hurry and pressure, so it made it all better.

“Sweetie, you don’t have to do any of that to win me because I’m all yours, you hear me? I’m all yours” Michael whispered against her lips, almost like a secret between them. Everyone there knew it, but she loved that little secrecy. “But we’re gonna go on a date. I promise that we’re going somewhere nice this week before we go to Austria”

“We can go next week. We have a free week. Or we can wait for France and you take me on a date in Paris. That’s romantic shit” she giggled like a little girl, pecking his lips like it was the biggest secret in the world and then hiding her face against Michael’s neck after that short kiss.

“I thought you were taking me on a date”

“I take you to one here, you take me on one next week, and then we decide one together in Paris. J'aime Paris mais je t'aime plus” she giggled, all proud of herself for being able to talk in French when she was so drunk.

“I love that deal. But I love you the most” Michael affirmed, kissing her forehead as Maggie snuggled even closer to him because there was no proximity enough for her at that moment. She needed to feel him as closely as possible, so she hugged him tightly as possible, even in her drunken state.

“I love you the most” she repeated, opening her eyes to look at his face and kiss his cheek. But what caught her attention was another scene. There was Jas and Daniel, right in the middle of their mess of drunk friends, dancing like there was nobody else in the apartment. They were just holding each other, moving at their own rhythm and smiling while they kept talking about who knew what. Maggie couldn’t be happier for her sister. Jas waited for so long for someone to share her life with and she waited even more for someone like Daniel and now she finally got that. Jas got her fairytale with the man of her dreams and the most beautiful baby in the world, just like Maggie always knew her sister deserved. “You think we’ll be like that one day?? The kids, the dogs, the white picket fence with the pie at the windows?” she asked, pointing with her head to Daniel and Jas.

“You want all that? The minivan to take the kids to football practice too?”

But even in a drunk state, Maggie could notice that under that little joke there was part of truth. She knew those brown eyes too much, so she knew that little sparkle mean something and it made her stomach twist and her heart skip a beat.

“God no, I hate minivans. I could never be that kind of mom. But you? You’re totally that kind of dad. Taking the kids to football practice and being the team coach” she joked too, moving her hands to his neck, letting her fingers run through the short hair on the back of his head.

“You can bet your pretty ass, sweetheart. I mean it's my job after all” he stated, looking down at her with the biggest smile on his face. “Do you wanna have kids someday?”

To say that question took her by surprise was an understatement. It took the air out of her lungs completely. Maybe the shock was bigger because she was drunk, but whatever the reason was, it hit her differently. They have always joked about it, they did it more than once but Michael never asked if she really wanted kids. It was always teasing about assumptions of how things would be if they had kids one day, but nothing more than that. She never dared to ask either, too scared to ruin it with the question, too afraid to hear the answer, and even more terrified of what could happen if they were on different pages.

“What kind of question is that? Of course I want, but just with you. Wouldn’t have a baby with anyone else than with my baby” Maggie admitted, looking up into his eyes again. That was her chance to do it. That was her chance to find the answer to her very simple and yet so complicated question, so she took a deep breath and let it go before she finally threw it. “What about you?”

It was another whisper that she wasn’t sure Michael could hear over the music. It was just another murmur carried by the breeze, not really knowing if it was gonna be answered. But then Michael smiled at her. He smiled like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Like it was easy to answer and even easier to make it happen. He smiled like that was the most logical thing in the world and like it was something that was gonna happen soon.

“I want everything with you” Michael wondered, kissing her forehead a couple of times, all while her heart jumped with happiness thanks to his answer. “How many do you want?”

“Two. I have two hands so that’s it. That’s all I can control considering I can barely take care of myself” she giggled, kissing his cheek and jaw.

“Hey, I’m here to help take care of yourself, beautiful” he affirmed like it was the most obvious thing in the world. And meanwhile, Maggie thought it was going to be a way better idea to get up and sit again on his lap, but this time facing Michael and placing her legs on both sides of his. “Also two it's good. I like it. And I could always convince you to have another one”

It was ridiculous, but as soon as Michael said that she was giggling like a little kid, hiding her face on his neck as he placed his hands protectively around her waist once again, holding her close and making sure she wouldn’t fall at any second.

“I don’t think so, stallion. Three it's like too much, especially if they’ve your energy. But hey, c’mere to me, you going to S and Dom’s wedding? S told me you’re invited”

Sara and Dom’s engagement were pretty much the subject of the weekend. That, the Ricciardos’ wedding and Daniel’s birthday, and everyone’s hate against McLaren were the four subjects. Sara and Dom were trying to keep the news of their engagement and tell everyone after Daniel’s birthday because they didn’t want to steal the spotlight on his weekend, but they were two sillies. Between Sara forgetting to take off her engagement ring and Dom not being able to keep his mouth closed, they blew it and ended up admitting and telling everyone about it. So now all the talks were about weddings and invitations and preparations for it, which was nothing but fun.

“Do you want me to be your plus one?”

“You’re the only plus one I want” Maggie confessed, even if it wasn’t a secret. But instead of answering, Michael smiled. It seemed like the answer to every single question they had was gonna be a smile. But Maggie was more than okay with that. They knew each other like the back of their hands, so there was no need to say it to know what was on his mind. The happiness of hearing her say those words was all around him, showing up not only in his smile but also in the way his eyes were shining. “Besides it's gonna be during winter so I’ll need someone keeping me warm”. Not that there was any need of convincing him, but she could try.

“Just tell me when and I’ll be there” Michael agreed, kissing her temple, her cheek, and then her lips. “Besides, I’d never miss the chance to get under your skirt after the wedding”

“Or during the wedding. We do love toilets. You putting a baby inside me during a wedding would be a hell of a story”

Just like Maggie knew Michael enough to know the jokes were hiding part of truth in them, she also knew Michael was trying to calm himself as they talked. She could feel the shifting in the chair, the way he was trying to keep his breathing calm and steady, and especially the way his arms squeezed her body against his a bit tighter. She knew perfectly fine all that drunk talk was doing things to Michael, and how she loved it, even if she was probably going to die of embarrassment the next morning. “I think we should plan that a bit more. Timing is not really on our side right now, baby”

“But think of how fun it would be to make it, Mikey. All the practice so you can finally be my baby daddy” she whispered against his ear, kissing the spot on his neck that Maggie knew would make him tremble. “We can even start practicing today”

But again, Michael did nothing. He and his composure made him stay still, taking deep breaths as his head leaned against hers. “One day, sweetheart. I promise you one day it will happen, but not tonight. We’ve to go home and we’re gonna give you a warm bath, a warm tea, and then straight to bed. And no complaining. You gotta let me take care of you”

Maggie knew perfectly fine it wasn’t a question. She knew perfectly there was no way that she would convince him to do anything because she was drunk and he was a sunshine in form of a handsome Aussie man. There was no way anything was gonna happen that night and, even when she was dying to get inside his jeans, she couldn’t be more grateful to have to sweetest, most caring, and a wonderful boyfriend in the world who was ready to carry her drunk all the way home, make her a tea and then give her a bath to fight her deplorable state. Plus, Maggie knew he was also gonna look after her hangover ass the next morning, so she needed to make a mental note to thank him in some way.

“Just cause I fancy you” she stated, kissing his cheek and then moving just enough to look at his face once again. “You’re gonna miss me when I leave to go to Dublin?” she wondered out of nothing.

“You’ll be away one week” Michael pointed out, resting their foreheads together, sharing the same air as their noses brushed slightly, moving his hands under her shirt and resting them again on her lower back.

Michael wasn’t joking when he said Maggie was going to be away one week. Instead of going to Hungary with them, she was going to fly to Dublin to help her mom and the girls with the last-minute organization and preparation for Jas and Daniel’s wedding. Better said, with the first or their two weddings. The first was going to be in Dublin and it was gonna be way more intimate, just close family and friends, and then the big one was gonna be at winter break during the Australian summer. That meant Maggie and Michael being away from each other for a whole week, which haven’t happened in months, so it was starting to make Maggie feel a bit anxious even if it was illogical.

But the most illogical thing was the fact that she didn’t get the joke the first time she heard it, all thanks to the alcohol inside her body. “And? That means you won’t miss me?”

And there was again, the soft smile on his face, the shiny eyes looking at her and his left hand going from her back to her face, stroking her cheek with the pad of his thumb, being so careful about it that it looked like Maggie was going to break at any second. “I’m gonna miss you every second of every single day till I see you again, Margaret”

“That’s what I wanted to hear” she murmured as she kissed the palm of his hand and leaned her head against it, closing her eyes for a second that felt like a century. “Babe, I want fairy cakes. Or better, your banana muffins. But with chocolate chips and nuts. Can we have some of those?”

“I’m making you some tomorrow morning. Otherwise, you’ll get all grumpy” Michael joked, which made Maggie tickle his sides to make him laugh, making her feel all happy and warm inside thanks to that sound.

“Hey, I’m not grumpy. Not with you”

“You’re grumpy when you’re hangover and when you’re sleepy. And sometimes when you’re tired. But I also know you get grumpy with everyone else except with me” he clarified.

Michael was right when he said Maggie was never grumpy with him. In fact, he was the only solution for her grumpiness. That or a nap or sometimes ice cream was what would get her out of that state. But Michael was the most efficient solution for it, fixing everything with some hugs, some kisses, or even just being there by her side. Sometimes something as simple as holding her hand or placing one of his hands on any part of her body would make her feel at ease. It worked because the grumpiness would turn into clinginess as she wouldn’t let him go from her side, focusing on nothing but the way he would move his fingers over her skin as he promised that everything was going to be okay.

“Cause you’re my baby. You’re my sunshine and my love and all my dreams come true and you’re the prettiest” she explained, cupping his face between her hands as she spoke. “Like you have the prettiest face in the world. Did I tell you before how much I like your face? I love your freckles and your pretty brown eyes. I really hope all our babies look like you cause then they’ll be the prettiest babies in the world”

“I love your face too, sweetheart. But I insist, I love you more” he insisted, giving her a soft, little kiss on her lips, making her smile again. “Let's get you some water and then I’m calling us an Uber so we go home, yeah? You need to get some rest”

“You’re taking me home?” Maggie wondered, as her shiny eyes looked up at him with nothing but expectation for his answer. For a second Maggie forgot she was staying with Michael again. She was so used to going from one to another and not staying with him and she was so drunk that her messed-up brain was nothing but confused. She needed to know if they were going home. She needed to know if they were going together back to his place. She needed to know if she wasn’t imagining things and if she was finally going back home with the man she loved.

“Yeah, princess, I’m taking us home” Michael answered, and with that Maggie let go of a breath she didn’t know she was holding.

That’s when Maggie finally got to catch a break.

---

Taglist

@jamminvroomvroom​ @starlightoctavia @dr3lover​ @monte-carlando​ @brightlightsinlife​

[danceswithsporks]

Clone Baes as things that have happened in my friends group. ROUND 2!

Band edition!

Wrecker

Holding a Tuba: Hypothetically. How far do you think I could throw a toddler if I hit them with the bell of my tuba?

Fives

Standing next to Wrecker with their trombone: I’m gonna put my head into your tuba and I want you to blow as hard as you can!

Special Guest Obi-Wan

Doing a live tv interview at an away football game: We’re really glad to be able to bring the marching band with us for these playoffs. Over here is our low br-

Turns around to see Fives head in Wreckers Tuba in clear sight of the live cameras and is now trying to distract said camera man- So let me tell you why the arts are so important over near our percussion section!

Special Guest Mace

(As our principal)

Calls Obi-wan as soon as the live broadcast ends- WHY THE HELL IS THERE STUDENTS PUTTING THEIR HEADS IN THE TUBA ON LIVE TV?!?!

Obi-wan

They where checking for something stuck inside?

The low brass section that was in the middle of getting chewed out- Nice cover

Crosshair

Directing band practice as a sub: Now I know your director likes to do things a certain way. -pulls out a nerf gun- but I do things a different way. If I hear talking I will fire at that section.

Echo

Sitting on the bus after an away game-Hey bus driver? Tech isn’t on the bus, I think they’re still at McDonalds.

Cody

Driving said bus down the highway: That was 20 minutes ago! Why didn’t you say something sooner?

Droidbait

We honestly didn’t notice until they called my cell?

Obi-wan (again)

Why didn’t you say something right away?

Droidbait

Oh they just called us. They where in the bathroom pooping.

Tech

Holding theme park map after band competition: Ok so if we go this route around the park we should be able to hit all these rides before the award ceremony.

(They in fact missed the award ceremony)

Special Guest Ahsoka

Sitting at banquet table on a boat after band competition: My water tastes like vodka?

Chaperon sitting nearby: How the hell do you know what vodka tastes like?

Ahsoka taking another quick sip before it’s taken away: I’m a senior in high school. I’d be more concerned if I didn’t know.

Chaperon: Well, can’t say you’re wrong there.

Waxer

Hey Boil, I’ll give you $5 to play from the tuba locker for the rest of band today!

Boil

Heck yeah! Now I can get an ice cream at lunch! -proceeds to get into band locker for the rest of the 50 minute class-

Kix

Playing their double bass as the band practices the Jaws theme song. Song get to the crescendo before the shark attacks.: FIVES DUCK!

Fives ducks just as the bridge of the bass goes flying by their head- WHAT THE HECK?

A month later they try the same song now that the bass has been repaired.

Obi-wan had jokingly moved the bass away from everyone incase it happens again.

Song gets to crescendo ago.

Bridge goes flying off again.

Kix- alright we can’t play this song anymore.

Obi-wan- that’s fair. -proceeds to take song off list-

[smallblueandloud]

some leverage: redemption reactions

i finished leverage redemption today! and i don't have anyone to talk to about it so, here we have my reactions for all eight episodes, both positive and negative. please feel free to reblog/comment -- discussions are what i'm here for! (under a cut because spoilers and also this ended up being 2k. whoops!)

EPISODE 1: the too many rembrandts job

the "aww, this guy is trying to pull his first heist! how cute" job

what they chose to do with nate was... interesting. it might just be that i read too many of those cracky "here's how they should explain nate's absence" posts, but i was expecting something funny. the grief permeating this episode -- it makes SENSE, but it was still weird. leverage doesn't usually have sadness like this. pain, yes, rage, certainly, but sadness? not usually

the way sophie immediately spots the signs of a con and slips into a character? phenomenal. i'm here for EXPERTS BEING EXPERTS and this show does NOT disappoint

harry wilson is a really solid character! most impressively, he's not flynn, which is impressive enough that i'm making a whole bullet point about it. i was worried that noah wyle was kinda a one-trick pony, but it appears not! good for him tbh

i'm LIVING for the ot3 moments in this episode. "what happened?" "we happened" YESSSSS!!! i wish we'd had more domesticity, but i know they did what they could

"he gets it from his father" FUCK!!!!!

the discussion about redemption in this episode is FANTASTIC but personally i am still delirious with excitement about "my nana leads a multi-denominational household" so expect those thoughts in 3-5 business days

EPISODE 2: the panamanian monkey job

the "flash electropop concert" job

BREANNA INTRODUCTION! i love her so MUCH, y'all. we only got to see her dynamic with hardison in this one episode, but man, it manages to be one of her best dynamics anyway. i just! i love her! i love the way the team works with her!

"in our field, you're one of the best. but there, you're the only one." god we have ELIOT/HARDISON rights and i am NOT OKAY. just!! them!!!!!! being supportive!!!!!! they have learned how to be sweet with each other! they work together so much better (in part because we're seeing them from harry's outsider pov instead of nate's insider pov, but STILL)

midway through this episode, i thought "huh, leverage always focuses on specific people, when really the problem is systematic, and pretending it's anything different is just an excuse to not fight for change". and then at the end harry talks about how the system itself is broken! i love knowing that john rogers and i were reading the same tweets last summer. it's a good feeling to trust the people making a piece of media

who let noah wyle speak spanish. whoever it was, they need to rescind their permission

god, the parker/hardison in this episode. THE PARKER/HARDISON IN THIS EPISODE! they KILL me friends they KILL ME!

also just like, hardison in this episode in general. he made a star trek reference! he made a doctor who reference! he decides there are other people who need him more! the way they wrote around gina bellman's maternity leave in s2 was good but this was phenomenal.

also i'm here for ot3 crumbs so "is this like the time when eliot wanted us to say no" is going on my ot3-is-canon conspiracy board

this is a tiny detail but eliot taking out the drone with a goddamn ORANGE was so good. he's so good at his job!! they're all so good at their jobs!! i know i literally just talked about this but AAA

EPISODE 3: the rollin' on the river job

the "sometimes you just want to rob a vault wearing a floofy dress, and that's valid" job

i did... not. like. how the villain in this one was an immigrant whose exploitable weakness was a "desperation" to be included in the upper crust. and the fact that they beat him with a literal southern belle who explicitly beats him BECAUSE her family has been in the area for "hundreds of years"? it just feels Iffy.

also iffy about this episode was breanna's characterization. it felt inconsistent. she feels inconsistent across the whole season, but this episode in particular... she tells harry she's only with the team because she's desperate, that she doesn't believe in hope, and then at the end of the episode she tells parker she wants to be there to change the world. and like, even in the first place, she's not here out of desperation! SHE asked to join the team! like, i can see how it all kinda fits together, but it just feels... inconsistent. idk. i think these scripts all could've benefited from an extra round or two of editing.

anyway! i loved the way they tied hardison into these episodes, even though aldis hodge couldn't be there. he has binders! breanna doesn't want to read them! parker did! he put in big letters, "when in doubt, trust the person in the van". i'm just so !!! about how much i love him and how much he loves his team and how much his team loves him. FOUND FAMILY, BABY!

all inconsistencies in breanna's characterization aside, i really liked her speech at the end. i know how she feels! it's really nice to have someone on the team who's from -- not my world, really, but a lot closer than any of the others. it's a nice feeling! i love her a lot. i hope her writing gets more consistent

lol, parker ate eliot's carrot cake. i love the parker/eliot rights we get in this show, they're so domestic and it's wonderful.

EPISODE 4: the tower job

the "hardison made his partners learn klingon" job

watching this episode was what made me go "they're not going to make us sit through a harry/sophie romance... right? right?"

i'm still not sure they're gonna let us avoid it but it COULD work so... i've decided to just not worry about it for now

i liked the number of ways the con goes wrong! it was fun to watch them work on the fly like that. i think them not having a dedicated Mastermind(tm) is a good watsonian explanation for their plans being pretty haphazard in general, but it's good, they think well on their feet

nate was a chessmaster. he had the whole situation in his mind from the beginning, accounting for every possible outcome. parker and sophie are much more adaptive, and it's cool to see. they can rely on their respective skillsets a lot more than nate could

a really solid episode! probably one of the strongest ones in the season. i liked it a lot.

(ALSO as mentioned above the klingon lines were fantastic and not just because they were a star trek reference -- every time eliot and parker both mentioned hardison, together, it added a year to my lifespan)

EPISODE 5: the paranormal hacktivity job

the "sophie was worryingly prepared to fake her death" job

i know why they characterized the client as a skeptic, i really do, and i loved the format of this episode, but also. But Also. she should've been a love interest for breanna and I'm Right.

having a girl's episode was the CORRECT choice. they do crimes in their free time! they fleece newbie, cruel criminals! it's so good!

it would've been cool to have eliot around for the assassin guy, but it was also cool to see the others take him out without having eliot to rely on. it's like getting to see how they'd take out eliot, if they were ever on opposing sides.

PARKER CANONICALLY USES SCRIPTS IT'S THE BEST THING EVER

breanna bristling about letting the criminal into the theater's electric system was so good god i love her so much. she knows hardware! i bet she likes to work with her hands. i bet she stims. i bet she has adhd

actually, sidenote, but i LOVE these headquarters. they look so nice! the stage is so nice! i loved having an episode set in and around it, it was such a good choice.

EPISODE 6: the card game job

the "FINALLY AN EXPLICITLY QUEER LEVERAGE CHARACTER" job

QUEER BREANNA QUEER BREANNA QUEER BREANNA QUEER BR

UNFOLLOW ME NOW THIS IS GONNA BE THE ONLY THING I POST ABOUT FOR THE REST OF TIME

GOD, what a good way to reveal it. it's fully about her! i love queer romances, of course i do, but i don't think i've ever seen a character come out without a romance being their reason for doing so (however indirectly). i still think she should've gotten a date with the client from 1x05, but i really liked this too.

this episode just felt like a love letter to fandom, and i love that. i love how much it shone through. i'm used to writers specifically going out of their way to make fun of fans and laugh at them, so it was just. really nice to have someone stand up and go, no, this is important for a reason! people love this for a reason! it MEANS something!

very fun to watch eliot swordfight. very fun to watch sophie recite a sonnet in her classic fashion. very fun to watch parker work at being a good mentor. breanna was so excited about the card game! they're all so good!

oh, and i guess harry's here too.

EPISODE 7: the double-edged sword job

the "harry is addicted to mobile games, which is a mood" job

hot take alert! i think this is the weakest episode of the season by a LOT. it needed so much more editing. it felt so disjointed, so all over the place. the plot was haphazard but in a muffled way, where you had no idea why they were doing what they were doing. the climax was sudden and didn't make any sense. it was just weird.

i'm not the person to comment on this but it feels kind of lazy to cast an east asian guy to play a socially-awkward tech genius. just a thought.

oh, of course jonathan frakes directed this episode. sometimes his stuff is really good but other times (ahem, ds9 3x02) it's disjointed and all over the place. i'm not even surprised it was him.

idk if i have anything else to say about this. oh! some of the team moments were great -- mostly involving eliot. i loved the moment of him recognizing the headshot, i LOVED the ten seconds of everyone teasing him. he and parker talked about the wellbeing of their friend, the woman whose ex tracked her down!

separate bulletpoint to say how much i LOVED his conversation with breanna outside the house. he's so good at reassuring! he could go deeper there, talking about being better than your worst day, but he knew when not to push! it was so good.

"first off, this guy can't TOUCH hardison" deserves its own bulletpoint because like. y'all. Y'ALL.

EPISODE 8: the mastermind job

the "eliot is more than just a pretty face" job

oh man this post is so much longer than i thought it would be. okay just one more episode and then i'm done.

the callbacks to original leverage were SO well done and made me feel emotions without feeling overbearing.

i didn't like the central premise -- that nate would share so many details with a random insurance agent -- in the first place, but i did like how it allowed them to bring back nate without actually hiring timerty mcasshole.

i liked eliot's insistence that he's more than just the muscle! he is, and it's really good to know, textually, that the writers do too!

me, watching the resolution of the episode: ah, yeah, insurance fraud. a classic!

harry bonding with his guard had "they don't even have dental!" energy and i am SUCH a fan. i know it was all for the con but also give me harry, unable to stop advising people, even when they're actively holding him hostage

parker! on the phone with hardison!!!! ADORABLE

is it just me or was someone else expecting the accountant's name to be something significant? with the way they led up to it, i was waiting for a "sterling" or something else. my sensors were pinging for another tara reveal. i'm still convinced we're gonna get this guy dramatically revealed in the season finale.

a really nice episode! i had a lot of fun with it. and now i want to rewatch the rashamon job, but tbh i ALWAYS want to rewatch the rashamon job.

and that's a wrap! overall, a fun season, i enjoyed it a lot. not as solid as original leverage, but it's the very beginning, and it was put together during a global pandemic, so i'm cutting them some slack. also levar burton is gonna show up at some point. that's a big reason of why i'm cutting them so much slack.

my personal ranking of the episodes is 1x04, 1x06, 1x08, 1x01, 1x02, 1x03, and finally last (and least), 1x07.

what did you guys think of the new season? what was your favorite episode? do you agree with any of my opinions? disagree with any? let me know, please, i'd love to discuss!

[goldandbluesmiles]

Unwavering.

Summary: Bruce has a near-death experience and becomes a guest to some familiar figures.

Ao3

Part of my btafam flufftober2020

Note: Written for a prompt by @bane-rights-writes Hope I did it justice! Also tagging @fictionalguystalker cause they asked. Hope you enjoy!

Unwavering.

That's how they described him.

It didn't matter if he was Bruce, Batman, or even Brucie. A father, a son, a friend, a hero, a businessman and or an airhead. Unwavering, or some synonym, always came up in a conversation when describing him.

Batman was unwavering in his support, in his justice, in his ideals.

Bruce was unwavering with his faith, kindness and dedication.

Brucie could hold a room at the edge while tipsy on champagne.

Unwavering. That's what it was.

The hero was unwaveringly steadfast. The father was unwaveringly devoted. The son was similarly loyal. The businessman was dedicated to a fault. The airhead was always reaching out, whether it was good for him or not. The friend was always there, even when you weren't aware.

Unwaveringly. That was just how he did things.

At least, that was how it had been.

And then Robin fell and Bruce lost his baby.

These days Batman was violent. The hero had started to disappear in smoke. The father had become distant and the son was barely there enough to say a word. The businessman was becoming a mess and the party boy everyone knew had retreated into a shell. The friend had disappeared and Bruce Wayne seemed to be walking empty.

The man knew he had to do something, he knew he was hurting them, all of them. He knew his son would have been ashamed.

He just...The darkness was just so much easier.

xxx

Batman should have seen the hit coming but he was tired and angry and not thinking straight.

Joker goons. All dressed like their psychotic master.

Batman hadn't been paying proper attention, he had slipped, maybe by accident and maybe on purpose but he did slip. When the thug behind him came with a lead pipe, there was no one there to watch his back.

If he had stayed awake, he would have felt that pipe, and many more, beating into him. He would have heard Agent A's voice begging him to get up and then promising to rescue him.

Instead, he was already far far away.

xxx

Bruce woke up slowly, almost like he was emerging from still tar. The first thing that came into view were treetops, a little bit of blue sky peeking through.

Getting his bearings right, Bruce gingerly sat up. Looking around he could see that he was in a place with a lot of trees and on further analyzation a very familiar place with a lot of trees.

The woods behind the lake house.

Bruce remembered running out here once and getting lost. The sun had been setting, the winter evening turning frigid and he had been so scared that he would never find his way back to his parents again.

His father had found him though, had picked him up and held him close and shushed him all the way back to the lake house. There, his mother had also hugged him and they had all sat down to drink hot chocolate by the fire.

It was one of Bruce's earliest memories.

In the present, he got up and started to walk in the lake house's direction by memory. He had taken the path so many times, some alone and some with his boys, that his feet knew where to go by their own volition.

As he neared the edge of the woods, he heard the sweet sound of a child's laugh. A very familiar laugh.

Hurrying so much that he was practically running, Bruce quickly made his way to the edge of the woods and froze.

From where he was standing, he had a clear view of the back porch.

A steady beam of sunlight seemed to be falling on the building. On the porch, there was a small round table for three with lemonade and biscuits. Just off the porch, there was a woman dancing with a young boy, both their laughter mixing together though the child was much louder.

"Mom," he whispered, scarcely believing his eyes and ears, "Jason,"

"Yes, son," murmured a voice from beside him, "It is them,"

He whirled around and nearly dropped from shock.

"Dad," he said softly

Thomas Wayne stood there in all his glory, full head of hair, bushy mustache, vibrant blue eyes and the suit he had been wearing on the night he had died. Not looking a day over, thirty-six.

"Hey, Kiddo,"

Bruce sobbed and practically collapsed into his father's arms. Thomas held him close, gently shushing him and whispering sweet nothings into his ear.

"It's alright, Bruce. It's alright,"

"Dad," he whispered

"Dad!" called out another voice

Bruce jerked out of his father's arms just in time to catch a small bundle flying toward him. He hugged his son close to him, holding him so he was being crushed to his chest.

"Jaylad, Jay, my baby," he cried, "You're here Jason, you're here,"

"'Course I'm here, ya big boob. Stop ya whinin' and hug your ma,"

Bruce smiled and still holding on to his boy, he turned to Martha Wayne. His mom gave him a soft look before engulfing him in her arms.

"Oh my boy," she murmured, "How you have grown. Alfred did a wonderful job with you,"

"Yeah," he murmured into her shoulder, "Yeah. He did,"

"Come sit," she told him mas she pulled away

Bruce swung Jason onto his back making the boy giggle and shriek. They all headed toward the table where Bruce kneeled in front of his son.

"I'm so sorry, Jaylad," he whispered, "I'm sorry I wasn't fast enough,"

Jason tilted his head in confusion.

"Dunno what you're sayin' Bruce," said Jason, "I'm gonna grab another glass,"

With that, the boy turned and ran inside.

"Come sit," said Thomas, gesturing toward the table

"So, tell us," said Martha as they sat down, "How have you been?"

"That's a long, complicated story, mom," said Bruce

"Tell us,"

He started from his teenage years, narrating his school experience, good and bad, an edited version of his travels, his time as Batman, adopting Dick, adopting Jason. Somewhere between all that, Jason had come back and climbed into Bruce's lap. It was a little awkward considering that Jason wasn't as small as he used to be when he was a young boy but Bruce made it work. He wasn't about to let his son go.

Bruce ended his story before he got to the part about Jason's death. If his boy wanted to ignore it, he would too.

"Colourful life you've had," said Thomas

"Yes, it has been," said Bruce smiling down at Jason, the sunlight starting to make him drowsy.

"I think you still have many years to live that colourful life," said Martha, voice even so gentle

He held Jason close, though the boy didn't seem to notice, staring off into the distance.

"I want to stay,"

"You don't belong here," said Thomas

Bruce could feel his desperation clawing at his insides.

"But I- I really wanna stay, Dad," he said

"Jason," his mother said gently, "Come here,"

Bruce tried to grab the boy but he sprang away from him and straight into Martha's arms. She stood up and took him off the porch, where they started to dance again to a tune only they could hear.

"You have to go back," said Thomas

"But why?" whispered Bruce, "It's so peaceful here,"

"But isn't there someone else waiting for you,"

Someone else.

Bruce

That sounded like-

Bruce, please.

Oh god.

I still need you, B.

Dick

I'm so sorry Bruce. I'm sorry I wasn't there. I'll be better.

Nonononono. Dick.

"Go, son," murmured Thomas, "We'll be fine,"

Bruce stood up and bolted from the table. Jason waved to him as he ran by an ad he stopped long enough to give him son a hug.

"I love you," he whispered to him

"Run along, ya big boob,"

Bruce ran back into the forest where he had woken. As he went past the trees, they seemed to disappear, turning into wisps of nothing.

Bruce, please wake up.

The darkness seemed to be growing around him but Brue didn't care. He kept following the voice.

I love you, B.

Out of the darkness that had not surrounded him, a small beam of light appeared.

Dad.

"Dick,"

xxx

Dick had lost track of how long he had been sitting there, saying things as if they would bring Bruce out of his comma. Alfred was hopeful. Leslie had taken off the oxygen when Bruce had started breathing on his own, telling them that it was a good sign. However, it had been five days and the man still hadn't woken up.

Dick had barely left his side alternating between telling him funny stories and begging for him to wake up. After the first day, Alfred had put his foot down and made a schedule for him so he could take care of himself. According to said schedule, it was now time for him to get up and take a walk in the garden.

Not wanting to upset the man, especially when he had so much on his mind already, Dick started to get up, squeezing Bruce's hand as he did so.

Except for this time, Bruce squeezed back.

Dick stilled. had he imagined-no there it was again.

"Dad," he said, "Dad,"

Bruce stirred and his eyes fluttered open.

"Dick,"

Dick could have cried from relief.

"Yes, yes it's me, B," he said

"Dick," Bruce repeated, eyes coming to focus on him

"Yeah," whispered Dick, squeezing his hand, "Let me just call Alfred,"

Alfred was called and came down as fast as he could. He checked the man over and deemed him fit and fine.

"Don't you scare me like that again, my boy," said Alfred

Bruce, who now seemed much more present, smiled, "I'm sorry, Alfie,"

"Hmm," murmured Alfred, "Well, I have some calls to make and I am sure you two would like some time alone,"

Dick sat down and took Bruce's hand again.

"You really scared me, B,"

Bruce looked at him for a few moments and then smiled sadly.

"I haven't been a really good paren have I?"

Dick stilled, "No, Bruce I didn't mean- I mean I'm an adult now and-"

"Dick," he murmured squeezing his hand gently, "I know I haven't been great. I'm gonna change that,"

"You were grieving," said Dick

"So were you," returned Bruce, "I should have listened to you. I'm going to change some things now. I'm gonna talk to Dinah and get help and I'm gonna get better and I will try harder to be a better dad. I promise I will try,"

"Wow," said Dick, tears springing up in his eyes, "Must have been some hit to the head,"

Bruce smiled and pulled him in for a hug.

"You have no idea," he sid into Dick's shoulder

Dick didn't know what that meant and at the moment he didn't care, he was just glad to be hugging his dad again, feeling light the first time in months.

xxx

Batman, Bruce, Brucie Wayne.

The father, the son, the hero, the friend, the businessman and the airhead party boy.

Take him in any form and the man was unwavering in his own way.

He hadn't been for a while though. Not since his little bird fell and he lost a son.

But maybe, just maybe, with a little motivation and a little more help, he could be again.

Just maybe.

[pinkyshy101]

So..... I just finished kipo and.... Wow. So many thoughts. Mostly good ones, but I just..... Wow. So freaking good, everyone needs to watch this show

Uh, spoilers ahead, I'd do the cut thing but I'm on the app, so rip, I do have this tagged as spoilers so hopefully anyone not wanting to get spoiled will have those filtered out... Anyway, here's a few thoughts I had throughout the episodes (what I can remember, anyway)

(ok well I was able to edit this on my laptop so there’s a cut thing yay)

First off, kpop narwhals were definitely not something I expected, but it sure was something lol I don't listen to kpop but like that was neat

Benson called Troy his boyfriend!!! They're boyfriends!!! It's just so casual and so great aaaaaaa I love it I love it I love it more gay rep is always 👌👌 and I mean there's other cartoons like she-ra or steven universe etc that have good wlw relationships, but seeing a mlm relationship?? That isn't really made to br a big deal?? And it involves one of the main characters, and not just one of the main characters having two dads in the background?? So good!!! So so good, I love it

Asher's new haircut?? Amazing, I love it and I love them so much, I wish Asher and Dahlia got to do more this season (Troy too, but he still did a little more than those two) but I still loved what they did do!

Idk if it was just me, but something about how fast Song recovered from being the mega monkey, it felt kinda weird? Like she had been trapped in the mega monkey for 13 years, clearly she was struggling to do anything in there, she was so weak she could barely talk, but once she was freed she was slightly weak for a few minutes then she was almost completely better? I mean, she obviously wasn't all better, clearly she struggled with things like trying to remember the scientific formulas and stuff (idk much about science), but like, physically, with talking and walking and all that jazz, she seemed pretty fine? Idk, that felt a little odd to me

Benson and Troy kissed!!! It was so freaking cute, and again it was just normal!! Nothing was made a huge deal about it being two boys, it just, it was normal, and it was cute and great!!! I love these two aaaaa

For a second I thought they were going to make us feel all sympathetic and junk for Emelia, and then it turns out she freaking killed her brother???? What???? Emelia whyyyy

Also maybe I missed it but like?? How did Hugo get hurt again?? I guess when he was flying between Kipo and Emelia he got struck or something?? Idk, maybe I'll have to rewatch it or something to catch it but like.... Rip :(( I didn't expect them to kill him off :(( not like that :((

That time skip at the end??? Benson and Troy being all cute?? "Babe"??? So freaking cute I love it

Kipo's new haircut!!!!!! Wolf's hair!!!! But like, especially Kipo's hair, w o w I am Not Straight (I mean we been knew but like)

I have more thoughts about it probably but overall it was just??? So good??? I loved it so much????? And I'm glad my college decided that today and tomorrow was going to be a fall break for some reason cause that gave me plenty of time to watch and freak out about it lol

[sanstropfremir]

below are the dance crew missions (Prowdmon and YGX's videos are the only ones mnet uploaded re. full fancams; Want's video is uploaded by a fan who edited the rehearsal + final performance together. I couldn't find a video for their crew that was a stand alone). but also like, supposedly if u use a vpn and set ur location to korea, u can find all the full fancams on mnet's channel. they didn't open it to the united states which is why i couldn't find any of it.

ranked from highest to lowest in terms of judges' scores:

1. Prowdmon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvVzDMBjDyg&t=13s&ab_channel=MnetTV

2. Hook: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G370lUiaruY&ab_channel=DyaRana

3. Holybang/Coca n Butter (same scores): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkoNTW2kN_s&ab_channel=DyaRana

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pi9_ij9Z_IE&ab_channel=DyaRana

5. YGX/La Chica (same scores):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2UZTtkE_Ec&ab_channel=MnetTV

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-JAX5DE5hI&ab_channel=Ainahrose

7. Want:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyBZRo6g508&ab_channel=PRIDECHAEYEON

-

some notable comments from judges: (1) felt like YGX, La Chica and Want's dance routines were very familiar to the original song and artist (e.g. La Chica took pieces from Beyonce's performance and rearranged it accordingly rather than making it their own; felt like Chr*s Br*wn and his song was too strong that their choreo was overall very lacking and plain); (2) praised Holybang and Coca n Butter because they were able to finally show their strength as female hip-hop crews. also sharing that they did really well with dance formations; (3) praised Prowdmon and loved their formations because it seemed like pictures but shared that one lacking aspect was it focused too much on Monika; and (4) shared how they liked Hook's formation and that despite having a guest performer (snsd sooyoung), they were able to bring the spotlight back onto the crew.

-

at the end, with all the final scores (including fan votes/video view count), la chica was last. they chose want to battle against and won, meaning want was eliminated from the show. in my opinion, i personally really liked prowdmon, holybang, and coca n butter.

also would like to know, what are ur thoughts on some crews having idols included? i know u mentioned before that idol dancers are different from professional dancers in the way they are trained. but do u think it's okay for them to be included in this show that is originally designed to put the spotlight on professional dancers? when the crews saw that want and hook had idols in their performances, they shared their discontent because it felt like they were using them to easily gain fan votes. also sharing that they didn't feel like they were on the same level to be judged with them (which is kind of confusing and ironic because the judges for the show are idols. and the third judge is a sm dance director who works w nct, shinee, and red velvet). the next mission they have is to choreo jessi's new song and that received a lot of criticism because again, these dancers are being pushed to the back and putting the main focus on the idol. i think the dancers' discontent is valid? like, they havent gotten public attention like this before until recently (dancers from the show are now getting their own fancams when they perform w idols and have much higher views than the idols themselves - e.g. want's emma ping pong (hyuna) fancam). but also, like i think idols being included in this conversation drives the public's views and getting that mainstream attention. i'm not on one side or the other but i think it's more of mnet's fault for trying to stir drama and setting the show up to be formatted in this way that does not truly respect the dancers.

i am in fact, going to fly to korea and break into mnet's studios and destroy that goddamn fucking boom crane. all these routines are choreographed for eye level or like maybe 1-2ft higher literally why do you keep filming from like 25ft in the air.

ok lemme do a quick rundown of my thoughts on each routine and whether i agree with the judges and then i'll get to your other question after!

1. prowdmon

i agree this is the best routine of the lot. i really like it; i don't mind at all that it was focused on monika because obviously something is more resonant when there's a recognizable face attached, and also i don't think it was that focused on her? the choreography uses her as a framing device which i think is a smart way to do it, because it gives a bit of structure to the routine without having to add a narrative. plus i think they didn't lose sight of the crew and the formations were the best and most well thought out, with no awkward transitions. also props to them/their creative director for actually getting mnet to use their steadicam with intention, and they put the most thought into where the eye of the camera and the audience was.

2. hook

i never thought i would say this about a female crew routine but cool it with the tricks, netflix's cheer! i don't know that i would give this routine second, since i don't like it very much, but i do agree with what the judges on that they managed to keep the focus on the crew even though they have much larger numbers and a guest performer. i have the same observations about this choreo as i do about the other hook choreo, because it doesn't really look like anything's changed: they're still making very interesting single formations and using unique gimmicks, but there's very little thought in stitching those pictures together into a unified piece. it also means that there's a lot of places where there's dancers scuttling out of the way like sand crabs. like this choreo just feels like a bunch of fun ideas slapped together (this is not helped by the fact they used four(?) songs???), including the guest dancer. i think the reason sooyoung doesn't feel particularly out of place is because she's just the climax gimmick of an increasing series of gimmicks, and she doesn't actually do anything other than be snsd's sooyoung. also she's not old because she's like what, 30? but she feels too old for this routine and this crew. like this was not the crew i would have expected to have brought her in, nor is she the snsd member i would have picked? it must have been a connections thing, because hyoyeon is right there, she would have been a way better fit.

3.1. holybang

i like their music choice the most out of everyone but dear lord they kneecapped themselves with their costume choices. i don't think mnet has actually hired a stylist or (god forbid) an actual costume designer that knows how to design for dance because this just sad. i went scoping around and unfortunately couldn't find this stage in any higher resolution which is a shame but it also proves my point, which is that whatever the dancers are wearing has to serve the purpose of the dance. there is a difference between wearing something that 'feels/looks cool' versus wearing something that emphasizes and accentuates the choreography. these costumes no doubt look cool, but there's a big problem with contrast and how stark it is. this particular choreo is really heavy on fluid arm movements, so somebody had the right idea by putting gloves on them, but there are two problems here; firstly, the wing curtains and backdrop are black and/or dark, so any time there's hands in the air they're immediately lost, and second, the gloves don't cover the whole arm. the fact that the rest of the costume is skintone on white on beige on white floor means that the lights wash the rest of the body into the floor and there's no definition on the limbs accept on the ends, with the gloves and the boots. so what ends up happening is that there are a lot of black points flailing around the central waist mass (because of the corsets), and it's very difficult to follow the choreo. obviously this would be a little bit easier to distinguish if this video did not have eight total pixels but that doesn't matter, because as a designer you need to be looking at the bigger picture, which means at the farthest sightline and the closest one. these are the mega crews, there's a lot of dancers and they're meant to be spectacle stages, which means you need to be extra conscious of what shapes are being made in the whole mass, because the audience isn't going to be able to see every detail. dance costume design is it's own category within costume design because it has a unique set of requirements. it's a shame mnet didn't bother to get a dance designer but also really good dance designers are hard to come by.

3.2. coca n butter

i think my biggest issue with this choreo is that it isn't structured as well as it could be. there's a couple of formation transitions that were not as clean as they could have been and some of them were just downright awkward. i'm also confused by the lack of a solid ending. like were they just a whole measure off??? why was there a whole five seconds of silence while they got into an ending pose?? did it just get cut off in that video?? they also haven't put very much thought into where in the space the focal points are. there was a lot of sudden switching between the front and back of the space, which only worked because they had the boom crane to do fast zooms, because there was little warning or transition. you can use a more upstage (farther back) emphasis if you're doing something like traveling, but that kind of sudden focal point switching is confusing to the audience if you do it too often because it doesn't follow a logical line of sight. used well and only once or twice it's an effect technique, but there were at least three or four here and they didn't feel very well thought out.

5.1. ygx

i agree with the judges for these last three; although ygx's is the best of the bunch, it's not a particularly outstanding choreo to watch. it's mostly well executed and interesting, but it feels very typical for them and even though the phone light gimmick was a good idea, the stage is too bright for it to work well. i actually kinda had trouble figuring out what was going on at first. as much as i hated that skz 100sec stage on kingdom, they executed that light effect really well, and for small scale prop lighting like that you really do need it to be dark (or for the lights to be really powerful) for it to work.

5.2. lachica

i don't.......like this routine. i get the impetus behind it, especially for this show, and it's nice that they included all the crews' flags but also.....this is SO on the nose. like way too on the nose. like beyonce already did this ten years ago you don't need to do it again don't disrespect the queen like this on the nose. if you wanna do run the world you gotta at least put a new spin on it somehow. also i don't know how i feel about them predominantly using a dance style that was invented in ballroom culture for this. i don't think anyone would really be that upset about it, but it doesn't sit right with me. i don't think their formations were that interesting and there was a lot of crab scuttling. personally i think the want routine was worse than this so i don't agree that this should have been last, but since want got eliminated anyways i guess that means i still agree regardless?

7. want

i managed to find a different version that had the full routine, so no worries there, but yea, too much chr*s br*wn, choreo not very strong or interesting, and same focal point issues as coca n butter but worse. their transistions were messy and several of their formations were offcentre or skewed. i like that they had that lil headphone gimmick at the beginning but it wasn't enough to save it.

---

as far as having idols on the show....hmm. frankly with the way mnet has set the show up, yea i think it's fine that there's idols on the show. a lot of these dancers work with and for idols anyways, the two industries are very closely intertwined in korea whether the dancers like it or not. i do think it's usually going to set whatever crew has the idol on it up for failure (technically and artistically, not in voting or results) though, because there's really only a handful of idols that can actually keep up with a career dancer anyways. HOWEVER. do i think mnet should have set the show up this way? no. they could have very easily done the same thing that sdc did where the idols are brought in as judges and team captains only and not as actual competitors, because that equalizes the playing field. they got half of it right with boa and taeyong as judges, because those are two idols that are going to be fairly well qualified, as i said before. but as we all know mnet likes drama, so by adding idols into the ranks as competitors it drives the stakes more and ignites the same debates that people have been having (mostly quietly, before this) about idols vs dancers, which is driving engagement. you're very right, it's unfair to the dancers and they're absolutely correct in being discontent about it, because ostensibly, the show should be about them, not the idols. but i don't actually think mnet designed the show to put the spotlight on professional dancers. i think mnet saw the massive success of another dance based competition show that was planning on going more 'global' and thought they could cash in on the hype/compete with it in the only way they could, which was using idols in a more significant capacity. it does not strike me as a coincidence that swf and sdc are airing at exactly the same time. and mnet is deliberately angling the show to be aggressive, competitive, and combative (even if the dancers don't actually give a shit), versus sdc where the show slogan is literally like, 'love and peace' or some shit, and although it does retain a lot of competitive elements, the dancers and the production staff care more about the quality of the work than anything else. like there was a fairly large fuckup in a routine in i think episode four or five and they just cut the whole thing from broadcast. the editors left enough in to tell what had happened but that was it. whole routine and segment gone. so honestly? i don't think mnet is doing this for the benefit of the dancers at the base of it. i am very glad that the dancers are getting recognition for it, because they deserve all of the credit, but that was probably more of a fringe benefit from mnet's point of view. from what i've seen the show is not respectful to the dancers and that's a shame because i think they could be producing something a lot more interesting and fun if they gave up on this whole aggressive competition thing.

[fy-chajunho]

190321 Cha Junho at Blue Carpet Event © fly me to july do not edit, crop, or remove the watermark

[timelock97]

Time Never Stops

Chapter Six: How Could I Not Love You?

Word Count: 3073

Prologue   Ch 1   Ch 2   Ch 3   Ch 4   Ch 5

Warning: Implied Smut / Language / Fluff

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I take a step back, "You, what?" I whisper, looking at him with my eyebrows knitted together, my hands unclenching.

"I love you." He whispers, moving toward me, cupping my face. My lips quiver and I pull away from him, running my hands through my hair.

"No, no, no, you can't." I try and reason, my mind not being able to comprehend what he was saying.

"Why the hell can't I?!" He fumes, moving toward me again, catching my arm as I try to go up the stairs to hide.

"It's not fair!" I yell, a few tears falling down my face as I spin around to face him, yanking my arm from his grasp. "I have been pinning over you for years!" I place my hands on his chest to push him away, but he catches my wrists, holding me there. Frustrated tears begin to fall down my cheeks, "And here you are telling me that you love me. I'm just me, Tom."

"(Y/N)..." he breathes, he lets go of one of my wrists. They fall to my sides as his thumbs brush against my face to wipe the tears away.

"You shouldn't love me, Tom." A sob escapes my lips as I lift a hand to cover my mouth. "I don't fit in your world. The only reason we are still friends is because we don't know how not to be. How can you love me?" I whimper, my greatest fear about our relationship out in the open. In reality, I was terrified to lose him. Tom is my rock, my late night pick-me-up, my everything. Without him, what did I have?

"How could I not love you?" Tom whispers, cupping my face, not forcing me to look at him, "You're my best friend. You know when I need you, even if it's just leaving me voicemails to make my day better. You drop plans and make time to fly out when I am stressed. You talk me down when I am on edge and make me think rationally. You," he lets out a sigh brushing his thumbs under my eyes gently, "you are the one person I can rely on and can confine in and I would be so lost without you." Tom lets out a soft laugh, shaking his head. "And you don't fit? (Y/N), that is such a lie. You have always fit in my life, hell I can't remember a time you weren't in my life. My friends are your friends. My co-stars ask about you all the time, doesn't help that I talk about you all the time. My, no, our fans love you! Have you not seen all the fanart and edits that they make of us?"

We both let out a wet laugh, my hand finding its place on top of his on my face, finally meeting his eyes for a minute. "Those make the days that I miss you so much better, next to being able to actually talk to you, of course."

Tom smiles at me, "And, my family loves you. You sometimes know more about them then I do. Hell, sometimes I think they love you more than me." He laughs, his hand that isn't covered in my own moves to my waist.

"Tom," I whisper, hand moving from on top of his hand to wrap around his wrist. "I- I."

"Say it," Tom breathes, his forehead pressing into mine. I can smell the alcohol on his breath, but his cologne overpowers my senses, and in the moment I can't focus on anything else except him surrounding me.

I let out a soft laugh, my nose brushing against his. "I love you, Tom." With that, my back is against the wall and his lips are pressing against mine. The kiss pouring all our unspoken emotions out into it. It's not like any kiss I have had. Some can be hot and passionate, soft and barely there, or the most awkward thing that any person can experience. Kissing Tom was like coming home for the first time in a long time. It was comforting, filled with love, and made me feel like letting go would never be an option again. My hands tangle into his hair, pulling him as close to me as I could while his hand on my waist tightens. A soft gasp leaves my mouth at the feeling and Tom takes the chance to deepen the kiss. The two of us stay like that for what feels like an eternity, but we have to eventually part for air. We pull away panting, his forehead pressed to mine with tired smiles grace our bruised lips.

"I've wanted to do that for so long," he pants, smiling at me.

"That is definitely better than what I imagined," I giggle, brushing my nose against his.

"Oh, so you've imagined kissing me?" His voice deepens, lips grazing against my neck and collar bone, my own body reacting by revealing more of my neck to him. Tom continues to kiss my skin before trailing his lips up to my ear, "What else have you imagined? Because I've imagined a lot." He states as his hands squeeze my hips.

"I don't think I should answer that question," I giggle as my fingers hook around the collar of his shirt.

"Oh, love," he mutters, " 'think you just did." I let out a squeal as he lifts me up under my thighs to wrap my legs around his waist. "And I think we have a lot of time to catch up on."

~

I let out a pained breath as the growing headache pulls me from pretty painted dreams that would never happen. I peel my eyes open and notice a glass of water and two pain killers waiting on the bedside table. I lean across slowly and take the glass and pain killers, quickly swallow them down in hopes they will relieve the throbbing in my skull. I roll over and stare up at the ceiling, grimacing to myself at the pain, trying to recall the previous nights events. We went to the bar, some guy tried to get me to come home with him, Tom and I fought, Tom-

My mind catches up with my body, Tom whispering against my lips, "I don't ever think I can live without you."

I turn my head to see that Tom was no longer in bed, his side almost cold. I roll to the side and slowly stand. My legs ache as I grab Tom's sweatshirt that was laying crumpled on the floor when we had changed last night to go to the bar, and change into a pair of underwear. I spot Tom sitting downstairs with his head in his hands when I look over the balcony. I carefully walk downstairs and make my way over to him, my footsteps light against the hardwood flooring.

"Tom?" I say, softly grabbing his shoulder.

Tom jumps under my hand, moving almost so quickly that he nearly rips my hand off his shoulder. When he looks at me I notice the fear and worry in his eyes. "(Y/N), I didn't realize you woke up." He wipes his eyes softly before forcing a smile on his face.

"You okay?" I ask, moving so that I am standing beside his chair and not behind it.

Tom sighs, shaking his head as he shifts to he is facing me. He hangs his head "I'm so sorry. (Y/N), I don't know what came over me last night-"

I brush my hand through his bed head, "Tom,"

"You wanted to wait til marriage and I took advantage-"

"Tom, listen to me," I state, taking his chin in my hand and forcing him to look at me, "I trust you with my life, have for a very long time. I have no regrets about what happened last night." I watch as his body relaxes, a few tears slip down his face and I replace my strong hold on his chin with both my hands cupping his jaw. "I trust you with everything that I have, and if it were anyone, I'm glad it was you." His eyes shut and he turns his head to press a kiss into my palm. "I love you, Tom."

"I love you too, (Y/N), so much." Tom's voice cracks at the end, but he has a soft smile on his face. Tom tugs me by my thighs to pull me between his legs to hug me, his head resting on my stomach. I smile at the feeling of his hands, one resting on my thigh and the other that had slid under his sweatshirt to rest on the small of my back. I run my fingers through his hair until he pulls me so I'm seated on his lap, giggling. He nuzzles his nose against mine before letting out a laugh. "God, it took us so long to admit that we loved each other." He buries his face into my neck, holding me close to him. "Why did we ever think that we needed to hide that from one another?"

"I have no clue," I hum, wrapping my arms around his neck, holding him close, "but I am glad we got that all figured out. Especially since everyone already thinks we are dating anyways." I giggle, smiling when Tom presses lingering kisses over already darkening bruises along my skin.

"Little lovely wife." He hums, making me laugh louder.

"I think we are a little further away from that at this moment in time-"

"A lot closer now than it was when we were two," he mutters before pulling away, looking at me. "Love?" I let out a soft hum, running my hands through his hair again. "Would it be appropriate to ask my lovely lady out on a date?"

"I would love that, baby boy." I muse.

"Please, don't call me that," I open my mouth to protest but he smiles up at me, "in public. I will never live it down if anyone else hears it."

"That I can handle," I giggle smiling at him. "But can we get food first, I'm hungry." I pout my lower lip out, Tom brushing his thumb over it, smiling gently.

"How about we go out to eat this morning then we go to the Japanese gardens this afternoon?" He nuzzles his nose against mine, before pressing a tender kiss to my lips.

"Sounds perfect," I whisper, smiling at him, "But, I'm going to hop in the shower first." I pat his chest, climbing off his lap, only to be caught by his hand.

"Can I join?" He wiggles his eyebrows at me making me laugh.

I bend forward, teasing him by biting my lip before whispering in his ear. "Nice try, Holland, but not happening." I turn and walk back to the stairs and walk up to the bathroom, glancing at Tom before I enter the room, seeing him turned in the chair, arms folded over the top, smiling at my retreating figure.

Tom and I walk hand and hand into a small cafe in town, Tom only letting go to open the door for me.

"(Y/N), Tom! Hey!" Tom and I turn to see Chris and Zack sitting in a booth, the one behind them being completely vacant. I motion for him to follow me and we toss our coats into the booth before walking over to say 'hello' to our friends from the park.

"Hey, guys! What have you two been up to?" I ask as I hug Chris, Tom shaking Zack's hand.

"Oh, just work, we decided we needed a morning out so we decided breakfast then we would go to the art museum. What about you two?" Chris answers before hugging Tom as I hug Zack.

"We are headed out to the Japanese gardens after we get breakfast, we were sick of our usual breakfast routine." I giggle, Tom returning to my side.

"Why don't you two sit with us, we wouldn't mind the company. Also this place gets busy and an extra booth open would help then out." Zack says with a grin. Tom and I look at each other before he grabs our stuff while Chris moves to sit next to Zack.

"I mean, we wouldn't mind joining you, as long as you really want us to." I state with a smile. The boys nod as we slip in the seat, a waitress trotting over to bring their drinks and get ours since the guys had only recently got here.

The four of us look at our menus as the waitress sets down a coffee for both Tom and I before moving to another table.

"Something is different about you two." Chris wiggles his finger at us.

"Well, um..." Tom chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I know what it is," Zack states, sipping his coffee, "(Y/N), dear, you may want to fix your shirt a bit. Have a nice hickey showing." Tom glances down and is quickly helps me fix my shirt, blushing wildly.

"You two did," Chris audibly gasps, "the dirty?"

Tom and I laugh, trying to figure out what to say before I place a finger to my lips smiling.

"We are proud of you, and it's good to see you both happy and together." Zack smiles.

Tom looks at me, smiling before lacing his hand into mine. "It took us a lot of time, but we finally figured it out."

"Sometimes love happens that way," Zack says, his arm sliding across the back of the booth to wrap around Chris' shoulders, making Chris blush.

My mouth falls open, but it changes into a bright grin. I turn my head to look at Tom, his eyes meeting my own. "It really does."

After about 2 hours of talking, laughing. and eventually exchanging numbers, Chris and Zack offered to drive us to the Japanese gardens so we don't have to get an Uber.

"Have a nice day, you two!" I call, waving at them as they drop us off.

"You too! And remember to keep in touch! I mean, we will check social media but we wanna know how you two are doing normally!" Chris calls before pulling out.

Tom squeezes my hand, looking at me with the softest expression. "C'mon, love, let's go exploring."

~

I smile as I look at myself in the mirror later that evening, dressed in a pair of black booty shorts and one of Tom's v-neck shirts. I brush my fingers over the darkening skin along my neck and chest, blushing at the memories from the night before. I bite my lip before grabbing my phone, only to notice that Tom had tagged me on a post on Instagram.

tomholland2013 Spending time with @timelockgameplays my best friend, my lovely little wife, my everything ❤

I smile, clicking to comment.

timelockgameplays You're such a sap, you're lucky I love you, tiny tottling husband ❤

Content, I scroll down and read the comments, giggling along the way.

hazosterfield Glad my best mates are having fun, just hopefully not too much fun 😉

zendaya Oh, yes, this is definitely too cute to be legal.

JacKyleGP Glad to know you two are having fun while we suffer! @timelockgameplays

Oblivion Leave them alone, @JacKyleGP . Have fun on your trip @timelockgameplays @tomholland2013

"I see you've seen my post," Tom's arms wrap around my waist, kissing my neck delicately.

"You really are a sap," I giggle, leaning back into him. I kiss his jawline, cupping the opposite side of his face. "And are horrible at keeping secrets. I thought we were going to wait to tell everyone, or at least tell our parents before we told everyone else."

"Well, technically I didn't tell anyone-"

"You implied it, basically the same thing-" I giggle in his arms as he peppers kisses from my jawline, down my neck, and back up again.

"You did say that everyone thinks that we are dating," Tom turns me around in his arms before kissing me, smirking against my lips. "So I thought we would speed up the process. Besides, our mums already knows that we are dating-"

"And how is that?" I tease, running my fingers through the hair on the nape of his neck.

"I may have sent one of the pictures of us kissing to my mum, who sent it to your mum," Tom chuckles, blushing.

"Who were you planning on sending it to?" I ask, tilting my head to the side.

"Harrison," he states, looking to the side.

"One more question," Tom playfully rolls his eyes in front of me, "Why were you planning to send a picture to Haz?"

"He said I had to send him proof if I got the balls to either tell you I loved you or kissed you. And I figured a picture of me kissing you was better than a picture of you laying in bed after last night's events." Tom states, biting his lip.

I blush wildly, turning my face away from him. Tom cups my cheek, turning my face back to face him. He smiles at me gently, brushing his thumb against my lips, before dipping his head down and kissing me again. I hum against his lips, tugging him closer by the chain around his neck as he lifts me up on the bathroom counter. I pull away giggling, pressing my forehead to his, causing him to pout at me. "You set me in a bit of a puddle."

Tom chuckles with me, smiling at me. His eyes are bright, swimming pools of hot chocolate, that in the sun shined and sparkled.

"Tom?" I mutter, he lets out a hum in response. "I um, was wondering, if um." I let out a laugh, Tom lifting his head to look at me carefully, "Could we, maybe, try last night again?"

Tom's cheeks flush a dark shade of red. "Are you sure, we don't have to do anything you aren't comfortable with-"

I cut him off with a kiss, smiling into it. I press my forehead against his, "I trust you with my whole life, Tom. And we did say at one point in our lives that the plan was to spend the rest of our lives together," I lean toward his ear, "so why wait?"

Tom lets out a deep chuckle before lifting me up, making me squeal, carrying me to our room. "God, I love you."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think! Reblog and comment!

@revenantwriting   @bellagrayson-wayne

Chapter Seven

[nnjzz]

DAS SYNTHETISCHE MISCHGEWEBE & ANLA COURTIS / RICARDO DIAS GOMES & LOÏC PONCEAU / SEIJIRO MURAYAMA & FLORIAN TOSITTI / PHANES

DIMANCHE 15 MARS  

NB / à noter que le concert commencera tôt : 19h ! puisque nous sommes tenus de respecter un couvre-feu pour le son : la fin des concerts aux alentours de 22:30 au plus tard ! 

Le Non_Jazz s'associe avec l'éminent label SDZ Records - qui en 2020 fête son VINGTIÈME anniversaire : champagne ! pour une programmation " SPÉCIAL DOUBLE MESSIEURS "  avec QUATRE duos non-mixtes néanmoins internationaux    DAS SYNTHETISCHE MISCHGEWEBE & ANLA COURTIS / de/arg RICARDO DIAS GOMES & LOÏC PONCEAU br/fr SEIJIRO MURAYAMA & FLORIAN TOSITTI jp/fr PHANES it/fr  

[ ( NB /   à noter aussi qu'il y aura comme un " prélude " à cette soirée au même endroit : pour la sortie du livre " Disorder - Histoire Sociale des mouvements punk et post-punk" (ouvrage collectif) : un événement feat. une performance par Jacques Pochat, Romaric Sobac et Richard Comte y aura lieu à 17h...  ) ]

===========

DAS SYNTHETISCHE MISCHGEWEBE & ANLA COURTIS / de/arg Un album vient de voir le jour sur le label Fern Recordings et ce concert devrait servir à " marquer le coup " ! DAS SYNTHETISCHE MISCHGEWEBE projet de musique concrète / électroacoustique de Guido Huebner, plasticien et compositeur autodidacte (depuis 1983), considéré comme le chainon manquant entre MERZBOW et Pierre HENRY.... Sa musique bruitiste et minimale laisse beaucoup de place au silence, à la rupture et à la respiration. Il intervient autant lors de concert-performances qu’avec des installations multimédia, de la poésie expérimentale, des livres, des essais, ou des sites internets. Ses nombreux travaux ont été publiés sous forme de K7, vynils, cd sur des labels en Europe, au Japon et aux États-Unis. Il a composé des pièces pour l’ensemble ZEITKRATZER (ou Ulrich KRIEGER) et a collaboré avec des musiciens comme Frans de Waard, Ralf Wehosky, The Newblockaders, Radu Malfatti, Thierry Madiot, Claus van Bebber ou Roel Melkoop..... Après Berlin, Barcelone, Bordeaux, et Nice le musicien allemand baroudeur réside actuellement à Caen en Basse Normandie. (Sonic Protest 2011)

ALAN COURTIS / arg Membre fondateur des Reynols, groupe de folie surréaliste “culte” avec plus de 100 enregistrements au compteur, il a tourné intensément tout autour du globe (Japon, Europe, Usa, Amérique Latine) et ses  collaborations tous azimuts avec la crème de la scène expérimentale internationale constituent un impressionnant “tableau de chasse” ressemblant à un véritable “Who is Who” de celle-ci :: Pauline Oliveros, Lee Ranaldo, The Nihilist Spasm Band, Damo Suzuki, Makoto Kawabata, Eddie Prevost, Mats Gustafsson, KK Null, Sir Rick Bishop, Yoshimi P-Wee,Masonna, Günter Müller, Jason Kahn, Toshimaru Nakamura , Solid Eye, Thomas Dimuzio, Rudolf Eb.Er, Kouhei Matsunaga, MSBR, Yoshida Tatsuya, Tetuzi Akiyama, Lasse Marhaug, Ashtray Navigations, Michael Snow, Uton, Birchville Cat Motel, Culver, Dan Warburton, Andrey Kiritchenko, Stilluppsteypa, The New Blockaders, Avarus, Kemialliset Ystävät, etc, etc, etc (etc).

La musique de Courtis se compose des manipulations spontanées de sons préparés, d’interventions sur cassettes/bandes, de traitements d’enregistrements environnementaux, de soli de guitare (ou autre instrument à cordes) non-préparée, jeux de détournements d’objets divers, cymbales, synthétiseurs ou outils informatiques, mélangeant l'acoustique à l'électronique, et le pataphysique au ban©al.

https://fernsrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/squenun

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw6r75JAJog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieEXN526Pfg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgBS6BtlUeo

RICARDO DIAS GOMES & LOÏC PONCEAU br/fr Il s'agira d'une collaboration inédite à l'issue d'une résidence par ces deux artistes aux Instants Chavirés.

" Peut-être du chant non amplifié et peut être de la danse ; de la basse et du lecteur à bande Nagra E, assurément des plaques de verre, de la porcelaine, des boîtes à hachi-harsh (avec des IN et des OUT) : oui ! Des microphones en cascade (modérée) et deux pierres semi-précieuses un sub, on espère des structures longues et des structures courtes ; des systèmes et circuits à niveaux multiples une boite de cigarillos vide un Ricardo Dias Gomes et un Loïc Ponceau sortant de résidence aux Instants Chavirés un AMAS CONSIDÉRABLE d'incertitude excitée "

RICARDO DIAS GOMES

« Between the snake’s belly and the ground, between the closing door and the fleeing finger, between the end of the day and the fall of the night: there is the music of Ricardo Dias Gomes » – Arto Lindsay

Expérimentateur respecté de la scène musicale de Rio de Janeiro depuis le milieu des années 90, Ricardo Dias Gomes est principalement connu pour son travail sur trois albums de Caetano Veloso acclamés par la critique à la fin des années 2000: Cê (2006), Zii and Zie (2009) et Abraçaço (2012).Bassiste sur ces trois étonnants opus post-Tropicalia et sur les tournées mondiales qui les accompagnèrent, Gomes s’en est inspiré pour se lancer dans l’enregistrement d’un premier album solo, -11, sorti en 2015. Sur -11 Gomes a joué tous les instruments et s’est appuyé uniquement sur son instinct pour trouver une direction musicale : le magazine anglais The Wire souligna la qualité de l’album qui « n’est pas s’en rappeler d’autres débuts solo rugueux et personnels comme ceux de Laetitia Sadier ou Money Mark » et le Chicago Reader succomba à l’étrangeté du disque qui « alterne entre de tendres ballades introspectives, d’abrupte grooves électroniques et une ambiance dissonante ». Gomes vit désormais à Lisbonne a sorti en 2018 un deuxième album – comprenant notamment une participation d’Arto Lindsay – sur les labels SDZ Records et Kill Shaman.

https://ricardodiasgomes.bandcamp.com/

LOÏC PONCEAU Ethnomusicologue, membre de l’Unité de Recherche Spatio-Sonore de Californie Française et musicien (Détresse Collée, Dragon du Poitou, Lès Modernos, L.T. Létext), Loïc Ponceau bricole. Le choix de ce terme ne doit rien au hasard : il cerne en effet assez précisément une manière de faire se chevaucher des objets hétéroclites, par essence et provenance. Des éléments considérés comme des corps instrumentaux rudimentaires que l’on assemble, détourne et s’approprie, dans un à-côté technique où le jeu, l’exploration et le risque sont primordiaux. Microphone, plaque de verre et pierres se chevauchent ; maracas, bande magnétique et os à moelle rencontrent une voix nue.

En plus de la musique de ses multiples projets, Loïc édite avec l’URSS,CF différents types d’objets (cassette, vinyle, affiche et même un livre à venir) pour différents artistes (City Dragon, Ys, Yann Gourdon, Dragon du Poitou, Stephen O’Malley, Ratcharmer, Jean-Marc Toulassi …), en privilégiant l’optique phénoménologique (saisir « la situation en train de ce se faire »).

https://ursscf.bandcamp.com/ https://lesmodernos.bandcamp.com/album/la-croute https://editions-gravats.bandcamp.com/album/l-s-modernos

SEIJIRO MURAYAMA & FLORIAN TOSITTI jp/fr  

Duo de caisses claires.

Percussionniste, Seijiro Murayama travaille en France depuis 1999, après presque 20 ans de parcours musicaux dans le domaine de la musique improvisée. Pour lui, l’improvisation est un souci artistique majeur même si, en public, il n’exerce pas toujours cette pratique. Son approche est basée sur l’attention à l’espace et au lieu, à l’énergie du public et notamment à la qualité du silence à des niveaux différents (physique, social, ontologique).

Percussionniste, musicien autodidacte, Florian Tositti s’intéresse aux phénomènes audibles dans un travail articulant le son à l’architecture et à l’espace social. Il cherche à construire des performances en fonction des sites, mettant en oeuvre une démarche à la fois conceptuelle et improvisée se rapportant à l’art sonore et aux poétiques de l’expérience, tendance reflétant une volonté de découvrir plutôt que d’inventer.  

https://contrepoint.bandcamp.com/album/no-title-untitled

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnNDJ5bAKVE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS5h0QDsoA8

https://soundcloud.com/tositti

PHANES it/fr  sont / est  Augustin Bette ( batterie, pédales ) et Luca Ventimiglia (electronics), tous les deux très actifs dans environ 362 projets émanant du très prolifique collectif 2035. "Jouer comme si l’on dessinait une forme géométrique où l’accumulation de lignes tracées à des vitesses différentes donneraient, à force, un polyèdre incertain, troué. L’électronique est obéissante, les autres instruments moins, improviser avec cette tension. " On verra ça !  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORDtgOkIPVw 

Fly - Jo L’Indien

[lordgeebsdom]

2019, a year in review: Superlative Edition

-Gareth Bill

Athlete of the year:  Lamar Jackson - QB Baltimore Ravens.  HM: Kawhi Leonard - SF Toronto/LA

Lamar Jackson came out of nowhere to light the league on fire in 2019 breaking Michael Vick’s all-time record for rushing yards by a Quarterback and redefining the position in the process.  From his five touchdown performance in Miami to being the assumed MVP, there wasn’t a week where Lamar Jackson didn’t dominate headlines and he continues to show superiority as Baltimore has secured the Number 1 seed in the AFC.  Honorable mention goes to Kawhi Leonard for producing the first ever buzzer beater in a game 7 in NBA history and for also bringing Canada their first NBA title.  Even against a Kevin Durant-less Golden State Warriors team, Leonard stepped up and delivered when it counted most.

Song of the year: Lost Lately- San Holo.  HM: Daemon Veil - EPROM & G Jones

Sander van Dijck, better known by his stage name “San Holo” surprised us with “Lost Lately” in June of this year.  A melancholic and melodic ballad of discovery and feeling “lost in aftermath of a breakup” spoke to feelings of insecurity and extends a friendly hand to those in need.  From an endearing marketing campaign featuring “lost” posters where fans could call a “helpline” to hear an exclusive sample of the song, to a music video taken straight from EDC: Bitbird executed an almost perfect build and drop for “Lost Lately.”  Great followup work to last years “Album1” and I definitely am excited about his future projects for 2020.  Honorable mention goes to the IDM monster “Daemon Veil” by EPROM and G Jones.  Plain and simple, I loved this ear worm.  There’s so much going on from the initial baseline drop to the stuttering minefield of drops and turns that follows before a calming conclusion.  Every time I hear this track, I see it too: the flying snares, the zips, zooms and wubs, the story it tells me….its captivating and satisfying.  While it isn’t as friendly for casual listening like my 2018 song of the year “Time” (also by G Jones), Daemon Veil is an IDM banger that I’ll continue to blast well into 2020 and beyond.

Album of the year: Good Faith- Madeon.  HM: Hollywood’s Bleeding - Post Malone

This was a tough call for me, there was a lot of great albums that came to us in 2019 but Madeon’s “Good Faith” stands tall above the rest.  From the initial singles of “All My Friends,” and “Dream, Dream, Dream,” to the unexpected bangers of “Miracle,” and “No Fear, No More,”: “Good Faith” makes a solid argument not just for album of the year but possibly even for the decade and I simply cannot recommend it enough.  Honorable Mention goes to “Hollywood’s Bleeding” by Post Malone.  Like many, I have thoroughly enjoyed the evolution of Post Malone from SoundCloud sensation to certified super-star, and “Hollywood’s Bleeding” continues to show us that this artist is just getting started.  I loved “Goodbyes,” “Circles,” “Sunflower,” and many other tracks on that album, and I’m confident many others did as well. Rapper, Rockstar, Soul-singer and bro: best of luck in 2020 and beyond Post, we’re all eagerly watching.

Movie of the year: Its a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.  HM: Avengers: Endgame

Easily the most contested category of the year and the hardest decision made in these superlatives.  2019 produced some awesome films but Tom Hanks’s take on Fred Rogers gave me chills that I hadn’t felt since seeing Christopher Reeve’s Superman as a child.  Like Superman, his presence among adults and children alike would universally cause awe and calm, almost god-like tranquility through security. In a year that was defined by division, unrest, cruelty, and anger: Fred Rogers reminds us that there’s still a great deal of hope for humanity, and it all starts with being a good neighbor.  Young, old and everyone in between can learn something from this deeply affecting story about humanity and connection.  Honorable mention goes to Avengers: Endgame for managing to be the only major franchise ending this year (Game of Thrones, Avengers, Star Wars) that managed to do it with a consensus BANG!  It was a 3 hour film that somehow felt like an hour and half, and when Captain America held Mjornir with every Avenger ever at his back and said “Avengers, Assemble!”, I couldn’t help but fist pump with a grin from ear to ear.  Tony Stark’s dying words of “I am Iron-Man,” gave me goosebumps and Black Widow’s death made me feel genuine loss: The Marvel Cinematic Universe managed to execute a singular plan and vision over 23 films and that is truly exceptional. 

Actor/Actress of the year: Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur/Joker.  HM: Florence Pugh - Midsommar

Joaquin Phoenix’s long anticipated and controversial performance as Joker was the best singular work I saw this year.  Authentic, gut-wrenching, thought-provoking, and anything but boring: Joker gave us the next step in comic book cinema and a new cultural icon in the process.  Arthur Fleck is a poster child for mental illness, something that currently is at the forefront of our society and gave the general public a poster child for such conditions.  Phoenix’s Joker will one day be recognized in the same light as we currently see Che: an underdog figure of resistance and revolution standing against a seemingly unstoppable status quo and inspiring the unseen masses in the process.  Honorable mention has to go to one of my new favorites in Florence Pugh and her performance as Dani in “Midsommar”.  Her pain, confusion, and ultimate triumph that unravels throughout a trip to a small village in Europe during their mid-summer festival is the stuff of “slow-burn horror” wet-dreams.  There’s a scene early on where her character has to convey immense grief after suffering a personal tragedy and I can still hear that crying in the most haunting way.  Pugh’s performance stuck with me in a year full of great ones, and I’m very excited to see her future work including “Black Widow” in May.  

Television show of the year: Watchmen- HBO.   HM: Good Omens - Amazon Prime

Watchmen blew my mind, and I the less I say about it, the better.  A continuation of the story told in my favorite book of all-time, “Watchmen” managed to tie together many loose plot threads from that story while also moving the universe forward in new and exciting ways that matched the tone of the graphic novel.  Regina King’s “Sister Night” was a complex, likable, and tragic protagonist uniquely qualified to walk us through this new chapter, and without spoiling things anymore than I already may have: YOU NEED TO WATCH THIS.  Honorable Mention goes to Good Omens on Amazon Prime.  To any familiar with the story or Neil Gaiman’s work in general, you know what to expect: deep stories, complex and likable characters, and witty dialogue that will make you pause and think or laugh feverishly in equal measure.  Its only 5 episodes, so there’s really no excuse to not dive into this one and see how the world ends…..or rather was supposed to…

Game of the year: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice - PS4/XboxOne/PC. HM: Apex Legends - PS4/PC/XboxOne

From Softwares’ “Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” stands tall in a year that finally saw long awaited projects like Obsidian’s “Outer Worlds” and Kojima’s “Death Stranding” get long-awaited releases.  An exciting and more stealthy evolution of the Dark Souls combat system made me feel like a real Ninja for the first time since Ninja Gaiden Black on my original Xbox.  The demanding, but fair gameplay combined with a variation of environments including haunted Japanese forests, Sengoku Temples, Palaces and gory battlefields came together to give the most complete package I played in 2019. Just don’t be too surprised if the final boss gives you problems because that f***er can almost made me break a controller.  Honorable mention goes to the game that managed to dethrone “Fortnite” as the most popular game for like a whole two months.  Respawn entertainment developed the awesome Titanfall series that I personally enjoyed and rumors had been circulating for quite awhile that they were looking to expand Titanfall into the booming genre of BR or Battle Royale.  Apex Legends is the answer to those prayers and still continues to push out new skins, content and weapons at a regular rate.  Did I mention it is also completely free to play? 

Story of the year: President Trump becomes the third President to ever be impeached 12/19

HM: Henry Nobrega wins the fucking BVN Football Fantasy Football title. 11/19

To be perfectly honest, this is the first category that really could have gone either way for me.  President Trump becoming the third President in US history to be impeached for abuse of power and obstruction of congress was massive; regardless of how you feel about President Orangutan.  His tenure as President has produced a number of newsworthy moments but this story stood out among the others for sheer importance and international embarrassment.  Speaking of embarrassment, that’s essentially what my good friend Henry’s fantasy football team has managed to be every year that I’ve played with him.  A perennial basement dweller that typically auto drafts due to some BS excuse, and a resident near the bottom of our power rankings but this year he flipped that script on its head.  He managed to draft my Athlete of the year, Lamar Jackson, and the last great white running back in Christian McCaffrey.  Not only did Henry surpass his preseason ranking of bottom, he managed to win both regular season and postseason titles and beat a solid team by Graham Heck in the process.  I got love for you bro, but I’m still perplexed on how your season managed to be as dominant as it was.  Sorry Greta Thunberg, but these stories had my jaw on the floor, maybe next year lil’ Queen.

Meme of the year: Baby Yoda of the Disney+ show “The Mandolorian” 

Was there every really a doubt here?  Baby Yoda or “The Child” as he’s known on the show is the biggest pop culture icon born on the internet in 2019.  The gap between Baby Yoda and what I considered to be an honorable mention was so wide that he will officially stand alone in this category.  Baby Yoda’s cuteness managed to melt even my stone cold heart this year and that is absolutely an achievement.  What made this creature so endearing was the universal applicability though music, sports, culture, and food: Baby Yoda was everywhere and the internet found common ground and shared meaning through sharing little graphics everywhere prominently featuring him as the centerpiece.  Well played Jon Favreau, we love this little guy and everyone thanks you for creating him.  

[hannahhaslem]

HTML Basics Guide for Code Box

This will be the first step by step guide on my website. I have made this guide easy to follow and after each section, there is an exercise specific to each section. This is for users to put their knowledge to the test and practice what they have just learnt. Images will be added to the PDF version of this step by step guide. The content I have written for the Home page will be visible on my promotional website for Code Box.

Home Page

Coding made easy, no matter the coding language!

Code Box is the best place to learn code in an easy and enjoyable way. With easy step-by-step guides, you'll be developing websites in no time!

The first guides available will cover the basics of HTML and CSS. These guides will be easy to follow and informative.

HTML Basics (PDF)

Introduction

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is the standard markup language for websites and documents to be viewed on a web browser. HTML is the first building block to develop web pages. This guide will cover the basics of HTML, so you can learn how to begin to build your own website from scratch.

HTML uses a ranges of elements and tags to display the content on a web browser. An HTML element consists of a start tag, content and end tag. An HTML tag is the opening and closing tag for the whole element, for example <h1> _______ </h1>.

Before you start learning HTML, you will need a text editor. For this guide, please download Brackets. This is free so once you download Brackets to your device, you are ready to start coding! In order to view your html document on a web browser, you will also need to download Google Chrome, which is also free.

TIP! Once you have started the below tasks, use the Live Preview tool to view your work on Google Chrome. Remember you can keep both Google Chrome and Brackets open at the same time to see how the information is displayed once coded.

Once the application is downloaded and on your device, you can open a new document and save this under the file name index.html and in a folder called ‘Code Box Guides’.

Once you have done this, you will then copy the following code exactly to begin your coding journey!

<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en">     <head> <meta charset="utf-8">       <title> London </title>   </head> <body>

HTML Headings

<h1> to <h6>

These tags define HTML Headings. <h1> defines the most important heading, while <h6> defines the least important heading.  

Now over to you!

Exercise 1:

Take the following headings and use the appropriate heading tags to show their level of importance i.e. which would be the main heading and which would be shown as sub headings.

London Before you go Things to do London Attractions

HTML Paragraphs

<p>

This tag defines a paragraph in HTML. Any content within the <p> tags is treated as a paragraph. Paragraphs are usually represented as blocks of text.  

<br>

This tag can be used to get a line break between paragraphs without having to start a new paragraph. This tag has no closing tag.  

Try it yourself!

Exercise 2:

For this exercise use the paragraph tags to edit the following sentences. These sentences will be under the ‘London’ heading.

London is Europe’s largest city and one of the largest in the world. London has a population of over 7.5 million. The City of Westminster is home to the majority of the Parliament buildings in London. London is also home to Buckingham Palace which is where Queen Elizabeth II lives.

After you have completed this task experiment with using line breaks <br> to see how it changes your text in live view.

HTML Links

<a>

Hyperlinks are defined with this tag. The href attribute specifies the destination address (https://www.ixdbelfast.com) of the link. The link text (This is a link.) is the visible part in the web browser. By clicking on the text, you will be taken to the specified web address. Links in HTML don't always have to be text, they can be images, tables and lists etc.  

Now it's your turn!

Exercise 3:

Under the ‘London’ heading, add this link and text.

https://www.visitlondon.com Visit London Now!

HTML Images

<img>

HTML Images are defined by this tag. The <img> tag does not have a closing tag. The src attribute identifies the image by the URL. The alt attribute is known as alternative text, this is text  that shows if the image doesn't load correctly.

Try it yourself!

Exercise 4:

Choose an image of the London Eye, save this image in your already made ‘Code Box Guides’ folder. Under the heading ‘London Attractions’ add this image and add the alternative text as ‘The London  Eye’.

HTML Buttons

<button>

This tag identifies a button in HTML. This tag has both a start and end tag.  

Over to you!

Exercise 5:

Add a button that says ‘Click here for more information’ under the image of the London Eye.

HTML Text Formatting Elements

These are a range of elements that can be used to edit text in HTML. These are shown below in code and live preview. The live preview image shows how each text formatting element looks  when shown on a web browser.  

Now it’s your turn!

Exercise 6:

Under the ‘Before you go’ heading re-write these sentences and edit each one with one of the following formats: important, italic, highlighted and underlined.

Don’t forget to take your passport when flying to London. In London you can only use ‘Bank of England’ notes. Some museums and tourist attractions are closed on Mondays. No vaccinations are needed for London.

HTML Tables

HTML Tables are defined using the <table>. Table rows are defined using the <tr> tag, a table header is defined using the <th> tag, by default table headings are bold and centred when shown in the web browser. The tag <td> defines the table data/cell. The <td> tags are the data containers of the table, however, unlike table headings, all table data is left aligned. Table data can contain more than text, they can also contain images, lists, links etc. The <table style=“width:____> tag defines the full width of the table. This is how wide it will be across the web browser page. The whole table can be later edited using CSS (See CSS Basics Guide)

Over to you!

Exercise 7:

Make a table with the following information. The table should have a width of 80%. This will be under the ‘Things to do’ heading. The below information is in the order it should be entered into to the table, all you need to do is add the correct table tags.

Shopping Sight seeing Fortnum and Masons London Eye Selfridges Buckingham Palace Hamleys St Paul’s Cathedral

HTML Lists

Within HTML, there are a range of different types of lists that can be used.

The first one is Unordered Lists. This type of list starts with the <ul> tag, which stands for unordered list. An unordered list uses bullet points instead of numbers to label list items. Each list item starts with the <li> tag.

Next up is Ordered Lists. This type of lists starts with the <ol> tag, which stands for ordered list. This list uses numbers instead of bullet points to label list items. Again, like before, each list item starts with the <li> tag.

The last HTML List is a Description List. This is a list that describes each list item. The tag <dl> defines a description list, the <dt> tag defines the list item and the <dd> tag describes each list item.

It’s your turn!

Exercise 8:

Make an ordered list with the following places. This list will be under the ‘London Attractions’ heading.

London Eye Big Ben St Paul's Cathedral Buckingham Palace The Shard Tower of London Tower Bridge Tate Modern

[jobinterviewghost]

The Australian Career Book Award Statement (Melbourne Saturday 26 October 2019 11:30 am).

The Australian Career Book Award for 2019 will be announced in the Chamber Room at the Hawthorn Arts Centre on the corner of Glenferrie Road and Burwood Road Hawthorn, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3122 on Saturday 26 October 2019 at 11:30 am by RSA ANZ Chair, Mark Strachan https://www.linkedin.com/in/strachanmark. Beverages will be served. Registrations at https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/australian-career-book-award-presentation-ceremony-2019-tickets-73909690875

About The Australian Profession Book Award

Established in 2018, started and assembled by Lawrence Arnold FRSA and supported by the Royal Society for the motivation of Arts, Makes and Commerce Australia and New Zealand RSA ANZ, The Australian Career Book Award will go to an Australian career book published after 1 January 2018. The book is a Print-on-Paper book that reaches the largest possible market with regard to the defined audience. Books can cover any aspects of profession development, employability, employability abilities, and the abilities required to get and enhance work. The awarded book combines innovation with rigour, produces modification in the reader's profession understanding and consists of strategies to improve private or group results.

The 6 Finalist Books, Authors and Publishers are:

Future Fit-- How to Stay Relevant and Competitive in the Future of Work https://www.careerceo.com.au/futurefit  Andrea Clarke https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrealouiseclarke Major Street Publishing, 2018 https://majorstreet.com.au/products/future-fit-br-i-small-by-andrea-clarke-i-small

The future of work has to do with skill, not innovation. If we want to outrun the algorithm to remain protected in the future of work, we need to invest in our own skill in methods we may not have actually thought about.

Fly!-- Life Lessons from the Cockpit of QF 32 https://flythebookcom.wordpress.com Richard de Crespigny https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-de-crespigny-am-3bb33 Penguin, 2018 https://www.penguin.com.au/books/fly-9780670078738

FLY! details the elements of personal and corporate durability for any individual who wishes to develop their self-confidence and courage and fortify their durability to survive the unthinkable occasions.

Gigsters-- Any Age or Ability Employees, Specialists and Business owners https://gigsters.net Sue Ellson https://www.linkedin.com/in/sueellson +61 402 243 271 [email protected] 120 Ways Publishing, 2019 https://120ways.com/books/gigsters-any-age-or-ability-employees-experts-and-entrepreneurs Gigsters are smart people who

understand that their skills, understanding and networks will allow them to ride the waves of ever fluctuating economies. Gigsters of any age or ability use technology to bring in lined up gigs. The 1 minute commute https://www.robertgerrish.com/author

Robert Gerrish https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertgerrish Pan Macmillan, 2018 https://www.panmacmillan.com.au/9781760555474 Take creative charge of your career and be your own employer. A how-to handbook for anyone launching or aiming to refresh and re-energise. Durability at Work-- Practical Tools for Profession Success https://careerbalance.co.nz/resilience-at-work  Kathryn Jackson https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathrynjacksonnz Routledge, 2019 https://www.routledge.com/Resilience-at-Work-Practical-Tools-for-Career-Success-1st-Edition/Jackson/p/book/9781138305120 Whether you are working in a rough field of work, browsing a complicated task market or merely trying to achieve your career ambitions in a world that won't stop changing

, then this might be the ideal book for you. Profession Conversations https://www.deliberatepractice.com.au/services/career-conversations  Greg Smith https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-smith-4739a7  Wiley, 2018 https://www.wiley.com/en-au/Career+Conversations:+How+to+Get+the+Best+from+Your+Talent+Pool-p-9780730372028 This is your guide to developing the abilities needed for efficient career discussions with your staff, supplying detailed directions on how to integrate this capability into your management routine. Award Committee Members June Smith CDAA expert

member and Chartered Member Australian Human Being Resources Institute is an identified trainer with substantial experience in offering career modification and outplacement services for state government departments as well as recruitment and selection at all levels including statutory

board visits. https://www.linkedin.com/in/june-smith-5b5b505b Kaye Nolan FRSA CDAA professional member, Profession Advancement Specialist for seventeen years, and a signed up psychologist. She transitioned into these functions after managing and teaching in the Diploma of Expert Writing and Editing at Chisholm Institute. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayefnolan Sandy Hutchison

AHRI professional member, previous HRD Asia-Pacific for MMC, Founder and CEO of Career Cash Life, a digital, self-service career and advantages platform. She also holds board positions supporting gender related problems at Women and Management Australia and Australian Gender Equality Council. https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandyhutchison1 Warren Frehse CDAA expert member and CICA signed up professional career advancement professional. Having a comprehensive business HR and outplacement consulting background, Warren is currently a Senior Advisor in professions and employability at The University of Melbourne. He is a published author of Manage Your Own Career: Transform Your Job; Reinvent Yourself, and

composes extensively for different media consisting of work environment posts for The Age, Herald Sun and Sydney Morning Herald and has actually featured in podcasts for graduates making the transition into work. https://www.linkedin.com/in/warrenfrehse Philipa Duthie FRSA Director of the RSA ANZ, after having held previous tactical roles with the society. She has substantial knowledge of the NFP and social modification sectors, and has worked in college and federal government functions. She likewise works as a freelance copywriter and editor for an ethical clothing label, and advocates for supply chain transparency. https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipa-duthie-355a917a Lawrence Arnold FRSA Award Convenor, CDAA professional member, and Melbourne CBD profession counsellor. Just recently published books on profession and employability are: The Australian Profession Passport: cross the profession border with your core abilities for work(2017 ); and The Australian Career Coach: career assistance for experienced specialists and new graduates( 2015). https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrence-arnold-frsa-31572019 The Australian Profession Book Award Supported by Royal Society for

the motivation of Arts, Produces and Commerce RSA ANZ https://www.thersa.org/fellowship/in-your-area/international/australia--new-zealand!.?.!Convenor!.?.! Lawrence Arnold [email safeguarded] +61 449 746 955 https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrence-arnold-frsa-31572019!.?.!Director RSA ANZ Philipa Duthie [email secured] https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipa-duthie-355a917a Media Enquiries welcome to Award Convenor, Award Committee Members, individual authors or publishers. Award site for the newest info https://www.careermelbourne.com/the-australian-career-book-award Hashtags #tacba #futureofwork

#gigsters #careerbook #australianauthor