#genuine question like i am fr

[plusultraetc]

after a full year of wondering I am putting this question out into the universe. does anyone know who this person is?? are we supposed to know???

[chaoffee]

Orion do you have tips on how to write Venti 🙏 I'd be ever so grateful to learn

[Warning: Profanity ahead...and a really long read] Hii, you're in for a long ramble LOL

So, first things first, I'm probably not the best Venti writer out there. No, not even probably, I'm not. I try to write as closely as possible to canon however I know that's difficult as my own headcanons and perception of Venti will show themselves in my writing. And I genuinely think that there are absolutely better Venti writer's out there to ask.

(you can skip to around "Honestly this is..." to skip a whole lot of my rambling because genuinely instead of giving tips I just rambled. No matter how I try to think of it, you'll end up with the entire ramble no matter what :skull:)

Venti is a complex character, like genuinely a very complex character. People like dumbing him down to this silly little guy that's a drunkard and I get real annoyed when that's all people see him as. Venti is much more than the "carefree persona" he puts on. There's so much depth to his character.

Another thing to take note of, when I write for Venti, I'm usually writing him for comfort as he's a comfort character of mine. Most of my works are more focused on the reader than Venti, but the very few times I've written solely for Venti, I wrote angst with him. And there I honestly just went into the zone so how I write him is beyond me.

If I'd have to give tips on how to write him, it would be to make him more than just some silly little guy that's there for comedic relief. If you think about it Venti is the most mysterious archon we've met so far. He speaks in riddles when he knows he can't give an outright answer because that defeats the whole point of figuring it all out on your own.

He's a mischievous character. From hiding the broken Holy Lyre of der Himmel that he immediately made a break for after saying his little trick won't last forever to forging Morax's signature back when the aristocracy rules Mondstadt in order to help free Mondstadt once more. Another thing people tend to forget in the fandom is that Venti is actually really intelligent, which again isn't recognized under his "he's just a silly little guy" thing the fandom has going on for him.

Okay, I'm getting off track, this is more turning into me ranting about the fandom and being way to passionate about him :skull:

How I try to write him is to show depth to his character. I learn something new about his character every day. Like genuinely. If it wasn't for the venti nation over on twitter who are just as passionate about him as I am, I wouldn't have known half the shit I do now.

I think reading his character story and the Mondstadt lore (like the skyward weapons lore) really helped me find some depth into his character as not only the infamous bard of Mondstadt but also the god of Freedom and Hope. Maybe looking at the actual demon Barbatos would give some ideas on him as well.

Writing him is honestly a hassle, because you need to know when he'd make a riddle or a rhyme off the top of his head and when he'd talk to you like a normal person. Even in his voicelines, as far as I can remember, he doesn't rhyme often. Which made me realize that Kazuha really does talk by spitting out flowers from his mouth because I swear it's easier to write for Venti than for Kazuha who speaks in flowers :sob:

Another thing that helped me understand him a little better is simply looking up his fandom wiki page and seeing how they describe him. The first time I saw what stood there, I was like, "oh...that actually makes sense." (in reference to him hiding a lonely soul specifcally.)

When I do write him, I try to still keep his characteristic traits like being mischievous, carefree, wise, and lonely. Like I can absolutely imagine him stealing some apples from Dawn Winery and to be cheeky, he'd even sit atop the winery eating at the apples. But I keep in mind how he'd sometimes just sit alone and think. Like in his story quest, where at the end he sits on the hands of the Barbatos statue after telling us the story of the nameless bard and how he became the god of freedom. How he grieves for a friend/the friends he had lost. You can't tell me that by the end of his story quest you didn't feel the loneliness that basically oozes off of him.

I try to creep in that old timer feeling too because let's be real, he's a god, he's over thousands of years old, he has experience, ya get me? He'd have that hint of old soul vibes. And also let's not forget webtoon Venti where he was loud and proud about his songs (or rhymes or whatever was exactly said there) being twice as good as that of Barbatos himself (ironic because he literally is Barbatos). Like he is proud of being the best bard in Mondstadt.

ALSO Venti is super observant, like I will die on this fucking hill. He would know when something's up.

A big thing that I want to incorporate into my writing if I write him and it needs this, is that it will always feel like he's hiding something from you. Because it was recently brought to my attention that he doesn't always tell the truth or he talks in such a roundabout way that it diverts your attention to something else.

That and the fact that he is literally trying to hide just how powerful he truly is. He doesn't like drawing attention to himself, especially if it outs his true identity. Fucking "the weakest archon of the Seven" my ass. Like did you know that before people use a glider that they literally need to say a prayer to Barbatos to allow them to glide? I didn't either until a recent read up on a hyperfocus on Mondstadt fashion and someone on reddit said that people offer prayers to Barbatos every time they glide. If his power as an archon is based on how many people believe in him, than fuck bro you're straight up lying if the entirety of Teyvat is literally praying every time they use a glider. Like my dude is literally such a liar just to conceal his tracks and diverts attention away from himself.

Also whether or not that reddit user is correct on the prayer thing, I have no clue. I might be AR 59 but I am so behind on actual quests and shit that I just don't know, so how credible or true that is, I'm not sure. You can only trust any of my words when it comes to the archon quest lore :skull:

Honestly this is just turning into a ramble of a lifetime. I apologize sefhfef Overall, I'm not exactly sure how I write Venti or if I write him correctly. When I write there is (sometimes) no thoughts behind my eyes, just aggressive typing while I listen to music and I just pray that I write him accurately. Venti is such a complex character that it's hard to simply just...give tips because there's so much about his character that I could talk about.

I know for a fact that I try to convey not only his playful demeanor, but also his serious and caring nature. Like please, he isn't always cheerful or playful and he knows when to be serious and take things seriously.

And I try to incorporate that old timer feeling he would absolutely have because he is literally thousands of years old. (Adding this here as well for in case you did skip the whole ramble)

I can ramble about his character for days, probably, and I'd still never get to how I write him.

What I can say is to just listen to his voicelines, read his character story and go off memory of how you perceive him and know of him. Listen to other characters voicelines about him. Get to know him in a sense through those.

If you're unsure of whether you're writing him as accurately as possible (or simply just right), ask a Venti simp/fan to beta read for you. That's what I'm doing with my Eula series, I asked a friend if she could help me write Eula more accurately and she referred me to another friend of hers that loves Eula and that friend agreed to helping me in understanding Eula as not only a character but to also portray her as accurately as possible.

If you have no excessive Venti simps to turn to *tucks hair behind ear* Hit me up and I'll happily help you out by once again rambling about him <3

[luzisahomosexual]

Am I the only one who thinks of charecters as their children? Like I’m younger than most of them but still…

I swear so many people when they read a book or watch a show, they obsess over certain charecters and talk about how inlove with them they are…

I just wanna adopt them all💀

When I say “I love ___” I don’t mean I’m inlove with them or find them attractive, I mean I LOVE THEM SO MUCH THEY ARE MY LITERAL CHILD I WOULD DIE FOR THEM

THEY ARE MY CHILDREN. WTF DO YOU MEAN “Wilhelm is sooo attractive, Simon better watch out” THOSE ARE MY SONS YOU LEAVE THOSE LITTLE GUYS ALONE👊 THEY DESERVE TO BE HAPPY AND YOUR LIL STRAIGHT WHITE GIRL ASS CANT DO SHIT ABOUT IT

[bunkernine]

society if hoo had them at uni age and the lost trio went to chb and chiron is like "how tf are ANY of u alive and unclaimed". wilderness was just community college.

[fightaers]

i just read a TERRIBLE sakura slander i have to actually sit down oh my god

[crackedpumpkin]

okay i have a question because i am desperately in need of validation and also filled with genuine curiosity:

what do y'all think of me?

like sincerely what made y'all follow this account lmfao, im dying to know + i'm just gonna be honest w u and just let yall know that this is lowkey for my crippling self esteem issues 💞

like, do u follow me for my random ass posts or for my writing? gotta know what the people want 🤌🏻 what do yall think im dying to know send in ur asks babes

[subhiscoop]

why does everything. Everything depend on my relations with people?

[iratusmus]

what is one peice.is it like. a bathing suit. insert panel where sally acorn is cutting up film reels here

one piece is the best selling manga of all time and it damn well deserves it

[magnoliamyrrh]

.

[omgeto]

Why do you get so many notes on your fics when you just started posting like a week ago??

Have you not read my navigation 🥱?

[jamesbukkakebarnes]

.

[ohara-n-brown]

Questions I wish I could ask without Allistics thinking I'm being randomly rude, a growing list:

What are you talking about? - 'Too blunt, rude.'

Do I know you? - 'Forgetful, rude.'

Who are you and where do I know you from? - 'Really forgetful, rude.'

What's your name again? - 'Even MORE forgetful, rude.'

Am I boring you? - 'Passive Aggressive, rude.'

How do you want me to react to this? - 'Apathetic, rude.'

What do you want from me? - 'Defensive, rude.'

How long is this going to take? - 'Impatient, rude.'

Are you trying to change the subject? - 'Passive Aggressive, rude.'

When can I leave? - 'Dismissive, rude.'

Why am I here? - 'Antisocial, rude.'

What is the point of this? - 'Arrogant, rude.'

Is this absolutely necessary? - 'Lazy, rude.'

What does that even mean? - 'Too blunt again, rude.'

Why would you do that? - 'Criticizing, rude.'

Are you talking to me? - 'Aggressive, rude.'

Are you trying to start a conversation? - 'Unfriendly, rude.'

Like no fr what are you talking about I'M BEING DEADASS

And they say Autistics are ones that are bad at communication 😐

my Sibling in Christ y'all are the ones that refuse to answer very simple and very clear questions and almost every time without fail I just go

'That's not at all what I just asked you, but okay. Alright. It's fine.'

You ask them 'What are you talking about?' and they act like you've questioned their whole intellect and IQ score 😭😭

Like no sis I just genuinely have no idea what the fuck you're trying to say and honestly you're making very little sense

What, Do I look like Professor X to you??? Want me to read your mind?? What's happening????? What do you mean??!!!!

[multifariousqueer]

omg omg omg can you write smth ab e!42 miles being with a girl who’s super affectionate and girly. he’s like okokok and she’s like lalalala you know?? and one day they get into an argument and it looks like she’s gonna leave but he handles it?

tyilykisses🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼

Ofc Love!!!!

A/n: AHHHH keep requesting and lmk what else I should do

Warnings: Miles being a nonchalant ngga, fluff, angst, possessiveness

You lived a pretty good life. Your parent(s) were active in your life, you had a wonderful boyfriend that would burn the universe to the ground for you, and you got whatever you wanted. Miles kept his job pretty under wraps so you didn’t know what he did, all you knew was that he was buying the newest miu miu jacket and he funded your bath and body works addiction. Everyone knew you loved Miles but they questioned whether or not he actually loved you.

It was no secret that Miles wasn’t as affectionate as you; everyone around you noticed it, your parent(s), your friends and even other family members mentioned it to you:

“You could do so much better, y/n"

“I mean, it seems like he doesn’t even want to date you fr” your cousin remarked

“Yeah are you holding him against his will?” Your aunt chimed in

“I am not!!! He’s just like that” you defended

You were very open with your affection; kissing, hugging and cuddling him a lot. Miles on the other hand, showed his love differently by buying you stuff and spending time with you. He was often very cold and closed off towards other people and they assumed it was that way for you but it wasn’t. Miles was affectionate but he didn’t show it at all for fear of people using you as a weapon against him.

When you got to your room, you felt yourself tear up. I mean sure, miles was nonchalant but that didn’t mean he didn’t love you. Plus Miles would tell you if he didn’t want you, right?

You couldn’t stand with the idea that Miles was doing this out of pity and not out genuine love for you so you texted Miles:

You: Hey can we talk?

seen

this didn’t help the aching in your chest so you tried to fall asleep and forget about it but it haunted your dreams that night. Usually, your dreams are pretty calm but in this one, you were running from Miles and when he caught up to you, he said:

“I DON'T LOVE YOU, Y/N. WHY CAN’T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT??? I wish it could’ve been different” Miles pulled out what looked like a claw but before anything could happen, you woke yourself up.

You woke up in a cold sweat and saw a message from Miles:

3:02 AM

Miles: what’s up, Mami?

4:45 AM

You: Do you love me?

seen

Miles: What?

Miles: What happened?

You: You didn’t answer my question

Miles: yeah, why?

You: You don’t have to lie to me, yk?

Miles: Let’s talk about this tomorrow.

Miles: Did You’re family say some shit again?

You: yeah...

seen

The next day came and you met Miles after school:

“So what’d they say?” Miles questioned

“They said I’m forcing you into a relationship” you admitted, feeling defeated

“Oh give me a break, y/n. Fuck them and their opinions, they don’t know us” Miles said, rolling his eyes

“Miles, they’re my family. And honestly I can see why they believe that” you spoke up

Miles took a deep breath:

“Why? Because I’m not jumping you 24/7? That’s not who I am and you knew that when you decided to date me. As for the family thing, they just jealous of what we have.” Miles said, stoically

“It wouldn’t kill you to show me a bit of affection, Miles” you replied quickly

“no. But it could kill you” he muttered

“excuse me???” you said

“Just know that I do love you, Y/n. I’m sorry that you don’t feel the same” Miles said

“And why are you speaking so cryptically lately?? If you got something to say, speak.” You argued, a sudden burst of masculine energy and ferocity flowing through your veins

“Watch it, y/n. Stay in your place, it’s easier.” Miles said dangerously, he spoke a warning to you

You ran away and went to your room, rushing past your concerned parent as you heard them talk on the phone:

“Yeah, she’s still mad about Sunday hahaha” your parent laughed

“Yeah well we were just joking, you know how we do” The person on the other end spoke, you assumed it was your aunt.

“You know kids y/a/n(your aunts name), especially Y/n. She’s so soft and I don’t want her to get hurt.” Your parent said

“Well at the end of the day, she’ll be okay. And it will be a lesson to her, everyones first love is heartbreaking” your aunt said

“yeah, I guess. Well I gotta go. Love you” your parent departed

“Love you too” Your aunt said

You played crying in your pillow because of what they said and because of your argument. Soon, you heard a knock on the door:

“Oh Heyyyy Miles” your parent greeted

“Hi. Is Y/n here?” Miles asked

“Yeah she’s in her room” Your parent said, opening the door for him

“okay” Miles said, walking in and knocking on your door

“a thank you would’ve been nice’ your parent muttered under their breath. Miles full well heard this but he chose to ignore it because he would have a few choice words with your parent and none of them would be nice

You heard three knocks on your door.

“Y/n? Baby, let me in” he said

“Go away, Miles” you sniffled

“Mami, imma get in one way or another so you may as well just open the door.” Miles threatened

You opened the door with watery eyes and tear stained cheeks. Miles’ heart broke immediately.

“I’m sorry for not giving you the love you deserve. I know I’ll never be good enough for you and you deserve better than me. Your family is right but I need you to know that I am so in love with you, it scares me. When we aren’t together, my chest hurts; I can’t be without you, y/n. I love you so much and I’m sorry I treat you like shit. I can change, mi amor."

“Oh Miles” You hugged him as tight as you could

“I love you"

“I love you too, Mami"

[renranram]

Is there any chance you could make a jschlatt x streamer reader 1shot where she admits she has a small thing for jschlatt on her stream because her viewers asked if she had a crush on any streamers she watches and jschlatt happens to be watching her stream because hes a fan of her🤭 i think its such a nice fic concept :))

Crush

sfw

fem!reader x schlatt

basically the submission hehe

" chat, i am not smashing tommyinit, he's a child! " you roll your eyes as drag the photo of tommy at the 'pass' side

you've been playing smash or pass with your twitch chat for a few minutes now, ' but he's 20 now ' ' he's a grown man ' ' he's a grown man with a husband and a girlfriend ' your chat spams

" well... during my time, he was a child, " you reply, dramatically rolling your eyes as you lean back your seat, talking about your dsmp phase

" but in all seriousness, id still pass him, he's literally like my little brother chat, dont be weird " you chuckle as you scroll to the next option, wilbur fucking soot, you pause, staring dead into the camera

before dragging the thing's photo out of the frame, you let the silence sink in as you glance at your twitch chat

poggerina; o7

y/n4lyfersmwa; mb guys he got out of his leash

bhielatkiffy; WHY IS THE BRIGHTON BITER THERE 😦😦😦😦

you read as you chuckle, " ... anyways.. " you added, scrolling down as a tts donation caught your attention,

y/nsfavkitten donated $15, ' hello y/nn, just wondering if you had any small crush on an old dsmp member? ' the tts reads out

as you shift on your seat, " a small crush? " you repeat, before chuckling, " well.. if you donate another 100 ill tell you " you play it off as a joke

and continue on with the game, you put charlie in smash, ted in smash, jack in pass ( banter ), niki in smash, until the donator actually donated a $100, taking you in surprise

" oh my fucking god, y/nsfavkitten, i was just joking " you chuckle, " should i give you a refund? " you offer, not thinking it'd be serious

y/nsfavkitten: nononono but can you answer my last question? :3

you pause sighing out, before nodding, " for you y/nsfavkitten, fine, i did have a small crush, like a veryyy small crush on someone there " you confess as you can see your chat speeds up

akh1rah_1r: WHO

y/nluvsme: WHO???

jojosiwayouscareme: HELP WHO??

numberoneschlaggot: no way dont tell me you liked dream

" ewww " you squirm, chuckling as you shake your head, " ... i used to have a thing for schlatt " you confess

mitskimybeloved: AHH I CALLED IT

immacomebacklikeaboomerang: ship

renranram : Y/N X SCHLATT CANON FR

you groan out, as you chuckle, " guys dont make it weird " you mumble, a faint blush on your cheek as you shifted on your seat

meanwhile schlatt on the other hand wanted to do backflips, like genuinely, he was like a monkey getting excited over a piece banana

and he thought, why not shoot his shot,

@.jschlatt • 1 minute

same i ship it too, @.y/n'swebbie

↳ 11 ⇆ 9 ♡ 201

as you saw the tweet, your face turned redder like a tomato, chuckling like a teenage girl seeing abs for the first time

" chat, this is all your fault "

[anadiasmount]

all about us? - jude bellingham insta au.

continuation insta au post to ‘more of us?’ 🧟‍♀️

—————————

ynusername added to their stories!🔒

judebellingham replied to your story:

stop being naïve and answer my texts

who’s this weston guy?

answer me y/n i swear

↪️ yourreply: i should be none of your concern anymore. move on like i am.

sent 30 minutes ago**

—————————

judebellingham posted on their feed!

liked by: westonmckennie, gioreyna, jobebellingham, vinijr, camavinga, 3,563,909.

judebellingham: power trip indeed

comments:

user209: WHEN HE LISTENS TO JCOLE>>>

vinijr: ESPECTACULAR 🤍

gioreyna: baby, not even i would want you 🥲

↪️ judebellingham: good me neither. i’m taken.

jobebellingham: amazing bro ❤️

username58: he is so sexy.

user539: why is this man always posting about this girl 💀

—————————

ynusername posted on their feed! 🔒

liked by: judebellingham, yourbsf, yourbsff, westonmckennie, jobebellingham, others.

yourusername: what brent said 👍

comments:

userr23: HOLD ONNNNNNN WAIT A MIN-

yourbsf: okay pics 😛😛

yourbsff: i genuinely haven’t recovered from this past weekend…

↪️ yourusername: me either, but YOLO! 🧟‍♀️

westonmckennie: woah 😍😍

liked by ynusername!

username71: ma’am how do you look so good in every pic??

yourfriend: who’s the guy… 🧍‍♀️

↪️ judebellingham: my exact question.

—————————

messages:

—————————

ynusername added to their stories! 🔒

judebellingham replied to your story:

i’m coming to see you.

we have to talk this out please.

i can’t lose you the way i am. how many times do i have to repeat how much i love you? i want you back y/n. please just listen to me.

↪️ yourreply: even if we do talk, we both can tell there’s trust issues involved. jude i want to do bad, but how many more times are we gonna continue doing this? it’s getting out of hand.

judebellingham: which is why i’m coming to talk to you… there’s still hope in both us, i know there is.

seen 54 minutes ago **

—————————

news/media and messages:

—————————

judebellingham posted on their feed!

liked by: gioreyna, jobebellingham, ynusername, vinijr, tobybishay, camavinga, vinijr, 4,345,790.

judebellingham: what brent said 👍

comments:

yourfriend: is that my queen?

yourbsf: dear lord… have the two of you learnt nothing?

gioreyna: happy for you lad! 🤍

jobebellingham: jesus now you won’t shut up about her fr 😂🤣❤️

↪️ judebellingham: no you won’t, you’ll hear very detail of how wonderful she is 👍👍

username3: NO NO NO NO. DO NOT EVENNNNN.

user53: NO WE LOST HIM. HE SOFT LAUNCHED HER IM SICK 😣😣

—————————

ynusername added to their story! 🔒

judebellingham replied to your story:

great now my hand is cold 😒🙄

miss you so much

i love you. thank you for giving me a chance, as much as i don’t deserve it. words can’t describe how grateful i am for you and what you do to my daily life. thank you for trusting me again, for continuing to love me even at my worst.

↪️ yourreply: what did i tell you about blaming yourself? we were both at fault and i’ll admit that because i also did hurt you at one point. i wanted to you to feel how i felt, so please baby, don’t blame yourself. i love you unconditionally and i miss you like hell.

judebellingham: why are you so perfect? how did i get so lucky? 😩😩

↪️ yourreply: STOPPP

judebellingham: never. i won’t stop 🥴

judebellingham: come to my game against napoli?

seen a minute ago **

—————————

judebellingham posted on their feed!

liked by: ynusername, jobebellingham, tobybishay, vinijr, tonikroos, camavinga, gioreyna.

judebellingham: 3pts and a goal, thank you for you the amount of support. in a happy state of mind with you! 🤍

comments:

ynusername: i love you handsome!! 🥹🤍

↪️ judebellingham: in love with you pretty girl 🤍

ynusername: so proud of you always!

vinijr: he does it again 📸📷

gioreyna: top player. and great bf ig 😵‍💫

jobebellingham: real. had to be you. ❤️

usernameee6128: AWW JUDEEEE

user123: if you’re happy i’m happy!

username405: hard launch!!!

user022: WERE GETTING BF PICTURES DJNDNDJJND

[salaimoi]

i wave goodbye to the end of beginning ˚. ✦.˳· ⋆.✧̣̇˚.

pairing: gojo satoru x fem reader sypnosis: he wasn’t what you desired anymore, but he couldn’t let you go. months passed since your bitter breakup, and yet, he didn’t stop loving you for a second. cw: slow burn. angst for the sake of angst. falling out of love for no reason fr. unrequited love. alcohol consumption (gojo only) no happy ending me thinks, or maybe somewhat. who knows word count: 3.1k

author's notes: i’m mourning gojo and so should you! so here’s a piece of an angsty fic that’s been rotting, unfinished, in my drafts since march 29. i was only gonna post a sneak peek of this and suddenly the holy spirit took over me and drove me to finally finish it??? IF U EVER READ ANYTHING OF MINE PLEASE LET IT BE THIS😭😭i’m so in love with the reader crying scene u don’t get it. the metaphors?! i outdid myself. i am so terrified of the deep ocean, and the fact that i find myself writing about it during angsty hours says a lot about me. i can’t emphasize how much i adore this fic. i just love angst sm idkidkidk

also, this is my first time attempting angst for the sake of angst as well as slow burn (?) so idk if i’ll ever come back to this. not beta read.

Time and again, this mahogany dining table was the scene of numerous heartwarming interactions – mementos Satoru wouldn’t be able to replicate a second time, even if he spent a thousand lifetimes trying to do so. Sure, it was more than easy to recreate the scene, but not the genuine warmth the two of you felt in that moment. He could go to great lengths, such as hand-crafting every single piece of furniture in the room that bore witness – carving and polishing wood until his palms became more splinters than skin. But even then, he wouldn’t come close to reliving any of those gratifying sentiments from so long ago.

All the shared laughter at his trivial attempts at comedy had caught up to you; your smiles were forced lately, and he could tell. He possessed that diamond-blue, six-eyed gaze which consistently made you feel as if he could undeniably read your thoughts, but that wasn’t the case. Even a blind person could discern the unforeseen shift in your comportment toward him, and due to this, Satoru questioned himself relentlessly. 

What if he’d said something to offend you? What if he left the toilet seat up one too many times for your liking? What if he began snoring in bed but you were too considerate to say anything about it? What if he forgot a special date? What if he tried to offer you something you were allergic to? 

What if he stopped being the love of your life...? 

It seemed as if, in a fraction of a second, all the enjoyment you once felt had deserted you, and with it, your love for him. Had you forgotten how happy you were by his side all in the spawn of a few hours, or was this the universe’s twisted interpretation of a joke?

Even if it was, you weren’t laughing.

You told yourself it was fine, that it was a mere wave of sadness that would soon pass, but instead the harmless tide you paid no mind to had brutally swept your body into a sea of despair. Before you could process your predicament, the shoreline was well out of sight – blurring with the deep blue expanse of the oceanic abyss that enveloped your mind.

The longer you fought to stay afloat, the clearer the path became for the briny water to replace the oxygen in your lungs, giving you no choice but to drown as everything around you became a pitch-black, bottomless pit – devoid of any sense of worry for you. 

It was rather often that you were accused of abandoning the ship when things got bad, and yet, here you were – submerging along with it.  

How ironic.

Even he couldn’t save you now. The solace his mere presence bestowed upon you when you needed it most wasn’t there anymore. There was no more capability of initiating conversations with him when you were the only other person in the room, causing the once-upbeat and soothing environment to give way to one of silence and uncertainty; it was as thick as syrup.

Syrup. The sugary taste of it from when you consumed it during breakfast was all but replaced by a repugnant, sour one in your mouth. A persistent echo of those homemade fluffy pancakes you had turned down remained, even though he had made them just for you — his precious girl. 

You insisted you would eat later – an obvious white lie to mask your despondency and lack of appetite – but he spoon-fed you, because in his own words, “What kind of boyfriend would I be if I allow my girlfriend to starve? No, that won’t do. I’ll take care of you even after I've exhaled my last breath.”

“And how would you do that if you’re no longer breathing, genius?” you asked, a wilting smile on your face that you had put on display for him. 

“Well, my dear," he retorts with a smug grin. "I've always believed that love has a way of transcending the boundaries of life and death. And as luck would have it, our love transcends the mortal realm. I will always be with you, in spirit if not in flesh.” he smiles, a twinkle of amusement behind his sapphire eyes before continuing.

“Once I've moved on to the afterlife, I'll find a way to send you sweet nothings and a box of chocolates from beyond the grave. Consider it an eternal gift.”

He declares in a complacent tone as he lounges back in his chair, head resting comfortably on the back of his hands. 

"But in all seriousness," he then adds, his tone becoming more genuine, "I'll do everything in my power to ensure you're taken care of – even if it means making sure my eternal resting place has a Wi-Fi connection for you to receive my messages.” 

Your thoughts were entirely silenced in that moment; white noise overtook the black space within your mind. How had he managed to say such heartfelt words as if they were second nature? This early in the morning, nonetheless.

Would he actually…?

You knew he would.

"But let’s not dwell on my demise just yet,” his words bring you back to the present conversation. “Until the day comes, I promise to make the most of our time together. Besides, knowing me, I’d probably haunt you just to ensure you have someone annoying to keep you company."

He finally remarked, going back to stuffing your face with the soggy pancakes that had been sitting in syrup for too long. 

And you were cognizant of the fact that you alone were privy to this side of Satoru Gojo: the mushy, gentle one who tended to his companion as if it were a god-given mandate. 

To the public, he was a stoic, impervious character who had no dread of others. To you, he was far more vulnerable than he would ever confess. 

But that wasn’t nearly enough to deter you from taking the disheartening decision made later that day.

“I can’t stay here anymore.” austere words you didn’t wish to speak, but needed to, in order to provide some semblance of closure for the both of you. “I can’t love you anymore.” 

A hushed supplication could be heard flying across the room at the speed of light once your hand reached out to turn the bitterly cold door knob, hitting against the back of your head – identical to an equally-cold shower.

“Please don’t leave me,” he immediately protested weakly. 

He approached you with cautious strides, every step causing fragmentation in his all-too-frail emotional state. Even if it was ephemeral, the mutual love between the two of you had already left a blazing watermark on his soul. His feelings for you transcended the nagging rationality that bound his mind, defying all sensible objections he had on the matter of permitting you to depart from his life. Having failed to quell the ardor her felt, it persisted apodictically until he was an arm’s length from your frame. 

And that was exactly it – the same frigid sensation your hand clinged onto emulated the one you felt in your wretched heart the moment he approached you. You’d already turned your back on him and expressed every afflicting anguish that tormented your soul, so why plead now? Now – when you already made the conscious decision to leave him behind. 

Tears neither you nor he could hold back began flowing down your features. A familiar hand lifted towards your cheek soon after, wiping the salty residue off your delicate face with his thumb. 

He never ceased to remind you how gorgeous you were when you cried, frankly because the manner in which your wispy eyelashes retained the saltine tears in your eyes resembled the delicate surface of a tranquil pond.

Every tear you shed would become the gentle water that tickled his skin as his body wafted about in your iris – an eternal reservoir he’d swim in without tiring if the heavens so permitted it.

However, this occasion differed from the rest; the once gentle waters he yearned to lay in became calamitous waves, which may lure him to the ocean’s most profound recesses in the blink of an eye – your blink of an eye. He would usually stay afloat among that innocent gaze of yours, but tonight it was ruthlessly drowning him with no lifeline in sight. 

Even after he implored that your crying would come to a halt, more pungent teardrops bled onto his fingers. An eroding desperation flowed through you, aching to hold onto something, anything, in order to cease the mental decay within your subconscious.

Thus, your own hand extended to hold his against your cheek, a glacial embrace overpowering the warmth of his skin; an identical chill tickled his spine when he absorbed the crispness of your graze, but he paid it no mind.

“Not you too…anyone but you,” he pleaded in a low voice, causing more accursed tears of yours to cascade mercilessly as he embraced you in an endeavor to sway your decision. His voice was gentle and soothing, mimicking a caress you’d never experience a second time. 

“I’m sorry.” you muttered.

Being unable to bring yourself to meet the sapphire eyes that imitated a midwinter sky so perfectly, your head lay low; the only thing visible to him was the top of it. 

It was unclear what you were sorry about. Perhaps you were sorry that you had to leave him behind. Or perhaps you were apologizing to yourself that he was no longer what you thought you wanted with every fiber in your body.

You desired more in this life, and on your game board, he wasn’t a playing piece who could frolic alongside you. It wasn’t because you didn’t fancy his company, rather it was the fact that his own strategy of playing was one that did not catch your eye anymore; it had become a monotonous rehearsal. Every move came to be a discernible one to you – even before he picked up his pawn, causing you to lose interest in the entire game itself.

That realization alone shattered his entire world.

Satoru’s head lay low all throughout as he sat on a wooden stool amidst the empty bar. It was 2 a.m. and he needed to go home, but why should he?

You wouldn’t be there to greet him – or even scold him for that matter. 

Colorless, almost lifeless, marbles stared vacantly at the picture of you on his lock screen; he consistently spoke to your picture as if he were having a conversation with it. At this point in time, it had become routine. Maybe one of these days the frozen-in-time frame would speak back to him for once?

Just once.

Where had that tender smile he’d fallen in love with gone?

Where had you gone?

On a nightly basis, the same detestable conversation from that night redounded from one end of Satoru’s mind to the other incessantly – akin to a religiously recited sermon. 

It was impractical to disregard the harsh reality that sooner or later every cherished individual he held dear to his heart willingly departed from his life – Suguru, and now you. 

If it entailed becoming a regular person, he’d give his life as a sorcerer to ensure the permanent presence of at least one individual in his life. Where was the value of possessing such prowess when one’s vulnerability in the realm of love was inescapable? 

What twisted transaction was that?

He'd even willingly forsake his divinely bestowed talents for the purpose of altering the passage of time, thereby reverting to a period where your presence was far from being nothing more than a diminishing recollection. 

Ijichi had been dealing with this side of his boss for months on end. Regardless of his efforts to encourage Gojo to put an end to this melancholic act of his, he never managed to convince him to do so. Ijichi attempted the compassionate approach, but to no avail. His optimism and patience were dwindling, fearing that this would continue on for eternity – and perhaps it would’ve if he hadn’t stepped in.

This had to end sooner or later, and for everyone involved’s sake, it had to be the former. So tonight, he opted for a sterner, and perhaps more unforgiving, path.

Your car was parked out front of the bar Ijichi had sent you the address to – forehead pressed against the steering wheel as an audible, exhausted sigh escaped your mouth. It was late and you knew this was nothing short of inane behavior. You weren’t doing this for you; you had to remind yourself that you were doing it for him, with the hope that he would ultimately find someone who would be there for him in a way that you were unable to. 

Weary, almost weak, legs lead you to enter the desolate bar. A knife prods at your chest when your eyes dart over to where Gojo was. He kept his head lowered; the only part of him you could clearly see from this angle was his back.

An overwhelming sea of emotions plagued your mind when you witnessed him in such a state. You could feel the knives twist the longer you stared at the back of his fluffy white locks. 

Months had passed since your split, and you realized Satoru’s grief and distress were indeed as dire as his assistant conveyed to you during the phone conversation. 

A tap on his shoulder was accompanied by a sweet voice that had vanished into the depths of his consciousness a long time ago. Perhaps because he didn't wish to recall the agonizing memories that came with your voice, or perhaps because he needed to maintain a pristine, untouched image of you in his psyche.

As you occupy a vacant stool one seat away from him, your attention is drawn to the half empty vodka bottle in his grasp. 

“You know, I talked to your therapist. He said you were getting sober.” 

What you said held true, except you didn’t hear it from his therapist directly; Ijichi was the one who was initially informed about that, and being the caring person he was, he relayed the details to you. Mostly because he felt as if, deep down, you still wanted to know about Gojo’s well-being.

"What are you doing here drowning yourself in alcohol?" you added, seemingly concerned for your ex-boyfriend.

He looked up at you, his eyes red and bleary from the drink. His body froze. Blue pupils dilated in a mixture of shock and happiness. It really was you. Had you come back for him after all this time? 

"What does it look like I’m doing?" he muttered, his voice bitter and angry.

Satoru detested alcohol; it always interfered with his abilities, and being the strongest meant being ready whenever – no questions asked.  After your departure, though, he grew fond of the bitter, burning feeling the liquid provided. That sweet poison was the sole substance capable of muffling the eternal pessimism plaguing his mind.

You approached him cautiously, taking the bottle from his hands and setting it aside. "Come on," you said firmly, "we need to get you home."

He wasted no time to speak what was really on his mind. Even if it was for a mere second, he had felt the sensation of your touch once more. That was more than he needed to vocalize the thoughts that tormented his sanity. Either that, or it was the alcohol he had consumed speaking. 

“Why won’t you love me back?” His words slurred, being far too drunk to care, though. 

“…You’re drunk, let’s get you home.”

“What home? The one I bought for us that YOU left me all alone in?” he deadpans, the silence following being as deafening as a scream.

Ouch. 

“My room feels so empty if you’re not there. I see your precious face and I don't know what to do.” His expression dampens with anguish before he continues – somewhat unclearly, ”whatever I do, I cam’t fubking get you out of my head amd it’s ruining me.” 

“I told you to move on a million times every time you drunk dialed me, Satoru.” 

“If that’s what you wanted, why did you continue to pick up the call?” He retaliates, eyes glazed with forbidden tears on the verge of cascading against his pale skin.

You knew perfectly well why. He knew perfectly well why. Everyone Satoru vented to about you knew why, so why continue to deny it? 

Attempting to keep your temper in check, you take a deep breath, eyes darting back and forth between the door and him. It was more than easy to run away from your problems, like you always did. But not this time.

You owed it to him to at least finally stick around long enough when things got tough. You wouldn’t put up an invisible wall between the two of you anymore, not today. 

You sigh, taking the empty seat right next to him. 

“We can’t go back to how things were. We broke up, remember?” 

“I know,” he grumbles, taking a sip of his beverage. He shook his head, his drunken state making it almost impossible to focus his thoughts or his vision. “But maybe drinking will make me forget that we ever did. Maybe tonight I can pretend we’re still together,” his voice and face etched with sorrow.

His voice trailed off, followed by another long sip of his drink. 

“You need to quit drinking yourself into a stupor, Satoru. This isn’t healthy,” you responded, voice softening out of concern. 

His eyes still clouded with alcohol, he looks at you before speaking. “I don’t know how to move on.” He admitted, voice barely audible. “I don’t know how to live without you. I loved you…and I still do.”

He silently weeps once and for all, crumbling before the love of his life. You didn’t know what else to say, so you settled on simply allowing his head to rest on your shoulder; you always were his favorite shoulder to cry on, after all. Wrapping an arm around him, you pet his head as you lull him. Instinctively, he envelops you into a warm embrace, face burying itself deeper into your chest. 

As he continued to sob like a baby, the sorcerer allowed his emotions to flow freely – months of bottling them up into liquor bottles had finally caught up to him. 

He was beyond ecstatic underneath all the melancholy; not only had you allowed him to get closer to you, but even went as far as hugging him too. He couldn't believe it. Just a few moments ago, you were talking about forcing him to move on, but now – you were actually back in his arms, where you belonged.

He felt relieved for a moment, almost to the point where he wasn't thinking properly anymore. You were finally back in his arms, where you needed to be; he refused to let go.

It felt like a fever dream, but this was all he needed. Even if you’re gone, morning come, he’ll live in this moment for the rest of eternity.