#gonna be a different vibe from step 1 and 2

[emgoesmed]

Scheduled step 3! 😳

Here’s hoping I haven’t forgotten everything related to adult medicine 🥲 Uworld here I come

[glowettee]

✧˖° romanticizing discipline: why your study aesthetic matters more than you think

post 1 post 2 post 3

heyyyy angels, mindy here!

okay, listen. we need to talk about something that people love to roll their eyes at. making studying aesthetic. every time someone posts a pretty study setup, there’s always someone in the comments like, “you don’t need pastel highlighters to get good grades 🙄” or “discipline is about hard work, not vibes.” and okay, sure. but also?

if your study routine feels like punishment, you’re gonna run from it.

the way something feels matters. if you walk into a cozy, candle-lit café with soft music playing, you’ll want to stay there for hours. if you sit down at a messy desk with harsh lighting and a chair that makes your back hurt, you’ll last 15 minutes max. same work, different environment, completely different experience.

so why wouldn’t you make your study sessions feel good?

the truth is, romanticizing discipline makes you want to be consistent. and when you crave the work instead of dreading it, that’s when everything shifts.

so let’s make studying feel like an experience instead of a chore.

✧˖° why aesthetics actually matter

people like to pretend that discipline should be cold, harsh, and mechanical, but your brain doesn’t work like that.

➼ your brain loves sensory rewards. if your study space looks, smells, and feels good, your brain will start associating it with pleasure instead of stress. ➼ habit-building depends on emotion. if studying is something you enjoy (even a little), you’ll do it more often. if it always feels miserable, you’ll avoid it. ➼ your environment shapes your identity. if your space and routine reflect the kind of person you want to be, you start stepping into that version of yourself.

this isn’t about making everything look cute just for the sake of it. it’s about creating a feeling that makes you want to show up.

✧˖° how to romanticize discipline (without making it a distraction)

because let’s be real... if you spend two hours making an aesthetic notion template and zero minutes actually studying, you played yourself. the key is to set up your space and then get to work.

✧˖° 1. make studying a full sensory experience

romanticizing discipline isn’t just about visuals. it’s about creating an atmosphere that makes you want to sit down and focus.

➼ sound: play a study playlist that makes you feel productive (lo-fi, classical, rain sounds. whatever works). keep it consistent so your brain recognizes it as a “focus” trigger. ➼ scent: light a candle, spray a room mist, or use an essential oil diffuser. scent is one of the strongest memory triggers, so pick one that makes you feel calm and focused. ➼ touch: make sure your chair is comfortable, your desk is clean, and your study tools feel good to use.

it’s about tricking your brain into thinking, this is a space where we focus.

✧˖° 2. design a study space that makes you want to sit down

your environment dictates your focus. a cluttered, uninspiring desk will make you feel restless. a cozy, minimal, well-lit space will make you want to stay.

➼ keep only the essentials. a clean, distraction-free setup makes it easier to focus. ➼ add a little inspiration. a vision board, a cute calendar, a motivational quote. just something that makes you feel like that girl when you sit down. ➼ lighting matters. natural light is best, but a warm desk lamp can make nighttime study sessions feel cozy instead of exhausting.

again, the goal is to create a space that makes your brain want to work.

✧˖° 3. make discipline feel like a lifestyle aesthetic

some people make discipline look miserable. but the people who actually stay consistent? they make it look effortless.

➼ romanticize the act of opening your books. make it feel cinematic. the soft scratch of your pen, the glow of your laptop, the warmth of your tea. make it feel like a movie (mean girls, gossip girls... etcc) ➼ dress like the best version of yourself. even if you’re studying at home, wear something that makes you feel put together. ➼ upgrade your study tools. if you like the way your planner, pens, and laptop setup look, you’ll actually want to use them.

this is about shifting your identity. when you see yourself as the kind of person who enjoys discipline, you become her.

✧˖° keeping the balance: romanticizing vs. actually doing the work

okay, but let’s not pretend like aesthetics alone are gonna get you an A. you still have to put in the work. the key is to use aesthetics to enhance your discipline, not replace it.

➼ set a “setup time” limit. you get 5-10 minutes to set up your space. after that? no more tweaking. just start. ➼ use a study timer. 50 minutes of deep work, 10-minute break. repeat. this keeps you from getting stuck in the “pretty but unproductive” trap. ➼ reward yourself after real progress. light a candle before studying, but don’t let yourself scroll Pinterest for an hour instead of doing the work.

discipline first, aesthetic second. not the other way around.

✧˖° final thoughts

romanticizing discipline isn’t about making things look good for the sake of it. it’s about shifting your entire mindset so studying feels good.

when you make your study space feel warm, inviting, and yours, you stop dreading it. and when you stop dreading it, you show up more often. and when you show up more often? you actually get sh*t done.

so go romanticize the process. set up your space. light the candle. play the playlist. and then? open your books and do the work. because that girl you’re envisioning? she’s already you. you just have to step into her.

do not fall into the trap of "aesthetics over work" because there will be NO reason for you to romanticize studying, if you don't actually study.

with love,

mindy

[rotagnus]

who are you, and how can you accentuate that --- 🪲

. .... . .. .. . . .. . .. . .. .. .... . . .. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . .

as promised, i'm on spring break and said that i'd release more self-related readings (and after these, the eyecontactship reading), so here you are. this will focus on who you are as a person, and what habits you can develop in order to better yourself and grow.

pile 1.

you're already a very ambitious and determined person, so i'm hearing that if you want growth? baby, that all comes to you as you simply exist. you're good at manifesting things, some of you may like listening to subliminals if you're bored, or write things down when you want something. you guys are the type of person to have many different things you wanna be--different aesthetics, different personalities, different hobbies, etc. oftentimes, you get lost because you try to force yourself into a single box, taking these labels with you to the grave. my advice? stop. be free. do you think that a horse on a field labels itself a long-haired, draft palomino? that was very cheesy of me 😭 but you guys get the point. you don't always need to be aware of WHAT you are, you're meant to be aware of BEING. of simply existing. a lot of you rush through life and need to find the charm in simple things.

things you can do to accentuate who you are:

-travel!! i'm hearing that you guys are a free spirit and it would largely benefit you to walk, go on a day-trip, etc, preferably by yourself to get your thoughts sorted out. you're the kind of person who is able to think things through when there's some kind of movement.

-learn a new recipe/find a new favorite kind of food.

-dust up your house, vacuum! you're deeply rooted in your environment, so take care of it.

-develop your hobbies. instead of focusing on so many of them, choose one that you want to refine.

-stop trying to fit different kinds of niches. focus on attuning to your own specific vibe. you don't always have to be like everybody else ;)

-get some sunlight. i'm hearing that it'd be very beneficial for you guys, or warm lighting.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

pile 2.

whyy have my feminine energies been in their masculine energies for so longgg?!? goodness. you guys truly don't allow yourself to rest, you're always hustlin' and bustlin' and that's crazy to me. you're also deeply disconnected from your body, kind of similar to pile 3 (i had a feeling to do this pile last). you're truly always having an out of body experience, probably due to anxiety or a fear of feeling too much. you're very observant and you feel others' energies very easily, and you prefer to be by yourself with your music, or by yourself with another energy that doesn't drain you. a lot of you have been quiet recently, and focusing on working on yourself and the connections/hobbies/etc that matter to you. you're realizing your power and how amazing you are, and you're trying to bring your energy back to yourself because you WANT to be a better person, because you know there's good things coming but only after you do the work to open up to them (pile 3 may have similar messages, check it out!).

things you can do to prepare to open up:

-hype yourself up!! things will be working out for you romantically/relationship wise, take that as it resonates, and you gotta know you're a bad b and that you deserve this.

-listen to good music that brings you vibration higher. no aggressive music, but music that makes you feel good about yourself.

-stop focusing on people who don't want you to flourish. your person (a friend you've been wanting to make, a romantic partner, whatever/whoever you're thinking of) is gonna stick with you regardless. that other person? baby, they're in the dark. wish them well and move on.

-WOWW so yeah, for a lot of you, you need to step into your feminine energy. what i'm getting is spending time in nature, get a routine where you drink your favorite tea and converse with the universe, let yourself feel pretty, don't hide yourself.

-like pile 3, focus on your vulnerability. there's a specific connection from which you're trying to run away but also make it work--listen, this is worth it, so work on being open and vulnerable, open that solar plexus UP!!

-pay no mind to people who are from the past. you may feel anger, sadness, etc, but the truth is that this is a new slate. fresh and clean. so leave the past, acknowledge that there's good things in the present, and LEAVE!!!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

pile 3.

woww you guys have been on the grind recently! my intellectual diva. i think a lot of you have been nurturing your relationship with spirit recently, or whatever belief system that you have. this spring has brought you a well-needed and well-deserved rebirth, and you've been enjoying the luxuries of that, basking in your own soft beauty. a lot of you may have started to fix your insecurities, finding yourself, and you remind me of a newborn calf, kind of figuring out what to do with your legs. a main message i'm getting is to take it slow. you guys have a mindset of needing to break through walls, but guys...sometimes there are doors! you don't always have to endure pain and trauma to get good things in life. focus on taking it slow. this is a cycle that will keep continuing until you finallyyy decide to take it slow and not rush for answers regarding your specific situation--you know what i'm talking about.

things you can do to grow:

-some of you need to focus on self love, so i would highly suggest affirmations, and starting to treat yourself like the beautiful being you are. start to unwork those little patterns that tell you that you're not good enough. good things are coming for you, but you have to start to realize that you truly deserve them.

-spend some time with yourself. journal, is what i'm getting. think about who YOU are--what do you like, what are your pillars?

-harmony and happiness are coming as long as you take away fake friendships and connections that were draining you. there's a long line of people who truly want good for you, as long as you finally realized where you're WANTED and not needed.

-go into hermit mode for a bit. a lot of you have a deep fear of being alone which has led to fake friendships/relationships, as mentioned above; you must find peace in your own company before you can find it in others.

-treat yourself! take a hot bath, watch your favorite tv show, do some mirror work; i know i say this in a LAWTTT of my readings but it truly does work wonders. use some essential oils, shea butter, worship your own body. you're absolutely gorgeous--i'm getting a lot of you have self-esteem issues, and this is my message that you're breathtaking. really. so start acting like it, baby!

-learn to be vulnerable, my bleeding heart. your emotions and your desire for joy for everyone are your powers. don't be accessible, but be ready to develop deep relationships as soon as you work on what i've said. in order to connect, though, you must open your heart for the right people.

[whichbasketwitchbasket]

PAC: Cut it out. Tough love reading.

Take what resonates, leave what doesn't. For entertainment purposes only. No pressure; take some of that off.

Pile 1: The Lips

Stop it with the subliminals. Stop it with the tarot readings and the horoscopes. Just stop. Obsessing over it is going to drive you nuts, and it'll only hurt you. Have a cup of tea or something, and do something else. Get a different hobby. What you want will come to you when you forget about it.

Pile 2: The Fit

If you don't want it, don't do it. I get a real strong Capricorn vibe from this pile, either mercury, moon, or mars. There's been a lot of pressure on you to finish out and get your shit together, but really, why not take the break? Is this goal really yours, or is it society's? Your family's? If you don't want to, whose gonna stop you? Be weird. Be out there. Be different. We have social rules, and order, but take a step back.

Be the asshole. Be your own person.

Pile 3: The Face

You are stressing for nothing. Hurry up and wait. You aren't really doing anything. Just festering and thinking and ruminating does nothing but make you miserable, and you won't get what you want any faster.

[imperialtopaz]

Pick A Pile - How will May 2025 unfold for you?

Pile 1 – 👑 Pile 2 – 💁 Pile 3 – 😁 Pile 4 – 🍀 Pile 1 👑 – Song: Headphones On by Addison Rae – “You can’t fix what’s already broken, you just have to let go and be in the moment.” – If you’ve been seeing 333 a lot, that’s a sign. There’s this strong empress type energy around you;think creativity, growth, and feminine support. – This month is all about shifting your focus. Stop looking at what you’ve lost and start thinking about what you want to create in your life. – Put your energy into those creative ideas you’ve been sitting on. Reach out to friends, connect with people who lift you up. – Whatever you do now is going to matter a lot in the months leading up to November. Something big is comingm, like a surprise opportunity you’ve always dreamed of. – I’m getting the vibe of growing up or growing out of a situation you’ve outgrown. You won’t be in the same place you are now in a few months. So if things feel a little stuck right now, just focus on the small steps forward. – I also see this nurturing, motherly energy around you, someone who’s going to help you stay grounded and remind you to appreciate what you already have. If you know this person, try to keep them around because they will help you a lot. – Honestly, you might already have everything you need, you just might not see it clearly yet. Try changing your perspective. Life’s probably better than you think right now.

Pile 2 💁 – The word “treacherous” came through pretty strongly. There might be some kind of unexpected betrayal around you. It kinda feels like not everything has come to light yet… – It might be time for you to take a step back and reevaluate the people in your social circle. – Some folks might see you as someone who “has it all,” and that could be stirring up some jealousy. – That jealousy might lead to drama, rumors, or gossip especially from people who don’t really show their true colors upfront. – If your gut’s been picking up on something weird or off about someone, trust it. Someone’s not being fully honest about their intentions with you. – You may have to let go of people you once believed were solid. That can be painful, especially if it involves grieving the loss of a relationship or friendship. – But in the long run, it’s better to know who’s really in your corner. Keep your energy protected, you’re not wrong for being cautious. Pile 3 😁 – This pile might be feeling kinda.. meh lately like you’ve been stuck in a routine. But deep down you're craving for something more exciting. – At the same time, you might not be the biggest fan of change or stepping outside of what feels familiar. – There’s definitely a theme here around fear of the unknown, not knowing what’s next can be scary, but it’s also where growth happens. – Nothing new is gonna come in if you keep doing the same thing every day. You have to shake things up a bit. – Try something different, try a new makeup, talk to that person, take a risk, start that thing you’ve been thinking about. – Life won’t really start until you do. Pile 4 🍀 – This pile has been putting in work, whether it’s on a project, a skill, or just working on becoming a better version of yourself. There’s definitely an energy of growth and improvement here. – I’m seeing a full-on rebirth, a really positive shift is coming your way. – Travel is also showing up here. It might be to a place you’ve been before, maybe your hometown, an old city, or somewhere from your past There you will see just how much you’ve changed and grown since the last time you were there. – You’re stepping into something new. You’re not stuck anymore. – Someone from your past might pop up too, possibly someone who lives far away and wants to reconnect. – The direction you’re heading in is the right one, and you have spiritual and energetic support backing you up. – Any delays or blocks you were dealing with before? They’re being cleared. Your spirit team is making sure things start falling into place for you. – A possible relocation could be in the cards too..new energy, new place, new you.

[rootspiral]

Agatha All Along deep dive: episode 4 part 2

(Wandavision entries: [1][2][3])

(AAA entries: ep1 [1][2][3][4] ep2 [1][2][3][4] ep3 [1][2][3] ep4 [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][+1] ep5 [1][2][3][4][5] ep6 [1][2][3] ep7 [1][2][3][4][5][6] ep8 [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] ep9 [1][2][3][4][5][6])

THE LITTLE FLOWER POPPIN. THE M'LADY

seems like agatha is having An Emotion

but look! look! rio is once again being super special extra on purpose!! because if she just strolled in agatha would be overwhelmed and run away again. so what does rio do??? she corners her with a grand zombie entrance!!! the more over the top she acts, the more agatha is in her element and comfortable interacting. and in this case, angry is a better start than sad. all part of rio's Brilliant 66-Steps-Plan To Win Her Wife Back™ (or was it 666?)

her face omg

oooh are you mad??? are you big mad at little ol' me???????

agatha is like nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope

imagine being aubrey plaza and being born so effortlessly cool. she's cool even when she's awkward dear lord

jen and alice: kinda stunned by both her hotness and her weirdness

lilia: VADE RETRO SATAN (lilia's spider senses are already tingling)

will I ever be over the fact that Death is just one particularly powerful green witch?? that she's a gentle if odd girl who grows plants and flowers and mushrooms and is called the River of Life??? that she is the embodiment of life in all her forms? that decay and regrowth are all part of the same natural cycle? that the hardest and most inexplicable thing a living being can go through is also the most reassuringly organic and normal???

have I already said "i love you patti lupone" today?

we're off to see the wizarrrrd. her cute peter pan outfit!

what do we think, billy? does she want to talk about it, or does she have the emotional maturity of a baby ostrich?

same girls, same

whoa there ladies, calm down. I'm already taken

lilia is also having an Emotion. it must be pretty weird to realize that your mortal foe is this hot

alice going NOPE when she sees her mom's house. the leaves are red alice, honey. it's your turn.

(does the back of rio's jacket look like a ribcage?)

it's going to be fine baby. your friends are all here. you can do this. deep breaths.

fire moon! fire moon! fire moon! oh this is my favorite trial

*grabs the mike* WOULD

from right to left: would, would, would, would, would, oh hi joe

rio: BITCH I AM?!?!?!?!?!?!? (everyone say thank you costume department)

the Road isn't subtle, BILLY.

sure, there wasn't enough sexual tension already, let's add side boobs, shall we? and rio being like hey agatha, hey agatha, hey. guess what. I'm here again agatha. you're not gonna get rid of me this time agatha.

I keep thinking that every reflection agatha comes across is a "te veo". and even when rio isn't there she is watching from mirrors and from puddles.

OH MY GAWD AGATHA how can you expect me to cope when you look around to make sure nobody is watching and then you lean in so so so sclose and then you say no with such a deep soulful voice and so much intimacy and such quiet anger and not one lil hint of clownery. I AM ABOUT TO GO FERAL

agatha around rio is like, mind screaming in anguish and body screaming in horny. lethal combination

lilia who's been trying and failing for centuries and centuries to come to terms with the violence human beings inflict on whoever is different

if there is one thing a broadway pro is trained to do is making people cry while wearing increasingly stupid wigs

JEN SEEING MASKS BECAUSE SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHO HIDES BEHIND THE MONSTER THAT BOUND HER

fletwood mac?!?!!?!?!?!?!? in this economy?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? I cannot handle much more of this, my emotions are raw and fragile and tender as it is already!!!!!!!!

oh, alice.

well this episode is making me feel like agatha: sad and horny. weird vibe but okay.

go to episode 4 part 3

[demie90s]

Diana Taurasi X fem!Reader

Calm Down. Pt.2

MASTERLIST | MORE | PT.1

SUMMARY: You weren't born a prodigy. You were overlooked, counted out, told to try another sport before you even had a chance to believe in yourself. But when you came back, you came back different.

GENRE: Sports drama, hurt/comfort, slow-burn trust, silent intimacy

WARNINGS: Childhood emotional trauma, mental burnout, emotional numbness, disordered relationship with food/ performance

WORD COUNT: ~ 3.4k

VIBE: You don't talk-but your game does. And Diana hears it loud.

“I need to go,” you say the moment the sunlight starts burning through Diana’s blinds.

You’re standing in the kitchen in a hoodie that doesn’t belong to you, clutching your phone like you might shatter without it. Like the missed reps from yesterday are physically rotting you from the inside out.

Diana doesn’t even look up from her mug. “Where.”

You swallow. “The gym.”

Now she looks up. And she stares.

Your arms are crossed, jaw tight, toe tapping against her tile like your bones are vibrating with guilt. Guilt for sleeping. Guilt for resting. Guilt for eating. You don’t say it, but she sees it all written on your face in bold font.

“I won’t do anything stupid,” you say before she even asks. “I just need to… I need to be there.”

She sighs into her coffee like it’s the only thing keeping her from cussing you out.

And then—she nods.

The gym is empty when you walk in.

Not just quiet—silent. No balls bouncing. No shoes squeaking. Just you and Diana. Your shadow stretches long across the hardwood under the early sun, and you breathe a little easier just walking in.

But Diana doesn’t hand you a ball.

She flicks on the lights, sets her keys down, and leans against the wall.

“Do what you need,” she says simply.

You blink. “You’re not gonna—?”

“No drills. No timers. No reps. Just… you.”

It sounds wrong. It feels wrong. But you nod anyway. You don’t warm up.

You just walk to center court. Right where the logo shines beneath your sneakers. You drop your bag. Then slowly, hesitantly, you sit down. Legs crossed. And pull out your phone.

Diana watches as you go through the same motions she’s seen you do in the locker room, on the bus, at team dinners like you were checking for air.

You load a highlight reel. Your own. Not even the good ones—just the full game footage. And you watch.

In silence. You rewind. And watch again.

You zoom in, freeze-frame your body language, whispering things under your breath.

“Why’d you hesitate?”

“You should’ve passed earlier.”

“What the hell was that rotation?”

Diana watches you with your head in your hands, elbows on your knees, the screen lighting up your tired face like a confession booth. You’re mouthing words now. She doesn’t have to hear them to know they’re cruel.

You press play again.

Then you start writing.

A notebook slides across your lap, and with your pen you scrawl the same tired judgments:

“Not good enough.”

“Be better.”

“They were right.”

“You got lucky.”

“You’ll never last.”

You don’t cry. You’ve done that already. This part? This is scar tissue. Repetition. Ritual.

Diana steps closer.You don’t notice. You don’t look up until the notebook’s ripped out of your lap.

“Hey—”

She flips it open. Reads the page. Page after page after page.

You expect yelling. You expect the notebook to be thrown, the words to be cursed out of your hands. Instead—she sits. Right in front of you.

Cross-legged. Like a mirror.

“You ever wonder why it hurts so bad?” she asks quietly, holding the notebook like it might burn her.

You say nothing.

“Because there’s a part of you that still believes every word.”

“I do believe it,” you mumble.

She cocks her head. “No. You don’t. You’re fighting it. That’s why you can’t stop running. If you really believed it, you’d have quit by now.”

You blink hard.

Diana drops the notebook between you both.

“Get up.”

“What?”

“Get up,” she says, standing.

You do.

But you hesitate.

She picks up a ball this time and hands it to you. Not hard. Not fast. Just gently. Like a gift, not a test.

“No drills. No competition. Just shoot.”

You hold the ball.

It feels heavy in your hands today.

You dribble once. Twice. Step to the elbow. Shoot.

It clanks off.

You flinch. “I—”

“Again.”

You shoot again. Miss again.

“Again.”

You keep going. She doesn’t correct you.

She doesn’t break your form down or tell you what you’re doing wrong.

She just watches. Until one finally goes in. Not a swish. Not clean. But it counts. You look at her like that was your first real breath in days.

“Again,” she says, voice softer.

You shoot.

Make.

Shoot.

Miss.

Shoot.

Swish.

And you feel it.

The thing you lost in the routines. The thing you buried under plays and guilt and bruises and early mornings.

Joy.You laugh. Barely.But it’s real.

She smiles then, and it’s small, but it’s proud.

“You’re not a machine,” she says, walking over.

You drop the ball and let it roll away.

“You’re a player. A person. A fucking miracle of grit and grace. And if I ever catch you treating yourself like a lost cause again—”

“You’ll what?” you whisper, smiling through tears.

She shrugs. “Probably make you run until you puke.”

You laugh again. Harder this time.

And when you finally sit, breathless and lighter, she sits beside you. Same spot. Same floor.

But you’re not watching plays this time.

You’re living one.

You didn’t go to the gym the next morning. You wanted to—your body screamed for it. Every muscle twitched beneath your skin like a quiet reminder that you’d fallen behind. That you were slipping. That maybe, just maybe, taking a break would cost you everything. Your eyes snapped open at 4:37 a.m., the time your first alarm usually buzzed. But you didn’t move. You stared at the ceiling in Diana’s spare bedroom, paralyzed, aching to get up, run, lift, do something—anything. But your legs wouldn’t swing over the edge of the bed. You just laid there, bones tight with guilt.

Two hours later, you dragged yourself into the kitchen. Hoodie swallowed your frame. Eyes red, jaw locked. You hadn’t cried, not exactly. But something inside you still hadn’t closed from the night before. Diana didn’t even glance up at first—she was already dressed, mug in hand, phone in the other. When she did finally look at you, it wasn’t surprise that crossed her face. It was something quieter. Familiar. Like she already knew how this would go. You stood there, awkward and heavy in the doorway, fingers curled into your sleeves.

“Didn’t go to the gym?” she asked casually, like she didn’t already know the answer.

You shook your head.

“Good,” she replied without missing a beat.

You blinked, caught off guard. “It doesn’t feel good.”

“It’s not supposed to,” she said, setting her mug down with a soft clink. “You’re detoxing.”

You let out a bitter laugh, quiet and humorless. “From what?”

“Punishment,” she said simply, not even looking at you now. “You use it to punish yourself.”

You crossed your arms, defensive. “It’s discipline.”

“It’s obsession,” she corrected gently. “And obsession doesn’t love you back.”

You sat down at the counter, more to keep from collapsing than anything else. She handed you toast. You stared at it like it was a challenge. You didn’t eat it. Didn’t even pick it up. Just looked at the crumbs like they were mocking you. “I stayed up again,” you admitted softly. “Woke up in the common room with my notebook. Same shit. Same notes. I didn’t even realize I was writing them.”

Diana exhaled through her nose. “KK said she covered you with her hoodie. Thought you looked like a kid on time out.”

Your throat tightened.

“They played your highlight reel on the bus today. The good stuff. They said it was to remind you who you are. But you weren’t there to see it.”

You looked away, ashamed.

“You’re missing your own greatness,” she said, “because you’re addicted to your own criticism.”

That hit something deep.

Later that day, you did what you always did—you begged her. Quietly. Softly. Like a confession. “Please, let me go to the gym. I’ll keep it light. No reps. Just film study. Please.”

She sighed but didn’t say no. “Fine.”

You practically sprinted out the door, like the idea of rest might catch up if you didn’t move fast enough. At the gym, the air smelled like sweat and waxed hardwood. Familiar. Safe. You kicked off your slides, unzipped your bag, and grabbed your phone.

“Run it,” Diana said, already leaning against the baseline wall.

You started the film. Game footage, your jersey flashing on the screen. And for once, she took the notebook. Held it like it held all your secrets.

“I won’t write anything bad,” you said quickly.

“I know,” she said. “You’re not writing anything. At all.”

You blinked. “What?”

“No notes. No critique. Just watch.”

“That’s not how I do it.”

“Exactly.”

You wanted to argue, but your hands were already shaking. So you listened. You played the film. And you watched.

Five minutes passed. Your fingers twitched.

Ten minutes. You wanted to scribble something so bad it physically hurt.

Twenty minutes. Your breathing settled. You hadn’t realized how hard it had been to just watch yourself without breaking it down to pieces. You saw the passes. The mistakes. The recoveries. The footwork. The quick decisions. And then—finally—you saw the player. Not the failure. Not the fraud. Just you.

After the film ended, Diana tossed you a ball. Not like a challenge—like a lifeline.

“Shoot,” she said.

You stepped up. Shot. Missed.

“Again.”

You hesitated. Shot again. Missed again.

“Again,” she said, no judgment.

You kept going. Missing. Adjusting. Finally—one dropped. Not pretty. Not perfect. But it went in. You looked at her like you’d just come up for air.

“Again,” she said with a smile.

You shot. Made it. Again. Miss. Again. Swish.

And somewhere between the bricks and the baskets—you started laughing. Just a little. But real. It wasn’t about being the best. It wasn’t about proving anyone wrong. You were just… playing. For the first time in months.

“You’re not a machine,” she said when you finally sat down, winded. “You’re a fucking miracle.”

That night, she made pasta. Nothing fancy. Just warm food and silence. You sat on the floor in the hoodie you hadn’t changed out of, knees pulled to your chest. She handed you a bowl.

“This for me?”

“No, I made two for the ghost of Kobe.”

You rolled your eyes, but your lips twitched. You ate. Not because you earned it. But because you deserved to. Even if it would take a long time to believe it.

Practice wasn’t perfect the next day.

Your legs were heavy. Your passes were a half-second too slow. You missed your first three shots during warmups, and you flinched every time Coach raised his voice. But you didn’t spiral. You didn’t vanish into the gym afterward. You didn’t pull out your notebook like a blade and carve every mistake into your skin with ink.

You just breathed. And kept going.

The team noticed. They didn’t say anything right away—not out loud. But you caught the looks. KK nudging you during water breaks, a smile pulling at her lips when you actually took a sip. She said something stupid about your jumper looking “medium-rare instead of burnt this time,” and you let out the tiniest laugh. Aaliyah slapped your shoulder so hard it made your teeth rattle—“That’s the sound I missed.”

You were still quiet. Still intense. Still the first one in and the last one out. But something in your energy had shifted. Your game wasn’t driven by panic anymore. It was steadier. Sharper. Not perfect—but honest. And when you missed, you didn’t look at the floor like it betrayed you. You looked ahead.

Later that night, you sat on Diana’s couch again, half-wrapped in the throw blanket you never folded. You had a plate of food balanced in your lap—real food. Not protein bars and caffeine, but pasta, bread, something with actual warmth. You were eating slower now, actually tasting things. Diana sat across from you with a sports doc muted on the TV, sipping ginger ale like it was a ritual. She didn’t comment when you went back for seconds. She didn’t say anything when you left your notebook closed on the table all evening.

But she noticed.

She always did. That weekend, she found the notebook again.

It was in the trash. Torn pages, some water-damaged from a night you cried too hard to pretend you weren’t. Words crossed out violently, others written over and over again until the pen bled through.

Not good enough.

Why’d you hesitate.

Be better.

This isn’t for you.

You should’ve listened.

Diana stood there holding the mess in her hands, something unreadable in her eyes. She didn’t say a word—just looked at you like she’d seen the inside of your chest and decided to hold it anyway.

You looked up at her from the kitchen table, mid-bite. “Didn’t need it anymore.”

She nodded. “Good.”

That night, she left her bedroom door open. Not on purpose—but not by accident either.

You still had bad days. There were mornings you woke up suffocating, panic already pressing against your lungs before your feet hit the ground. There were nights your chest ached with disappointment after missing one too many shots, and the mirror started whispering those old names again—fluke, fraud, failure.

But now, when it got too loud, you didn’t run from it. You walked into it—with people beside you.

Sometimes Diana would text you one word after practice: Gym?

But it wasn’t a command anymore. It was an invitation.

And sometimes, you’d say no.

Sometimes, you’d let yourself rest.

You learned how to eat without guilt. How to stretch without chasing exhaustion. How to watch film without ripping yourself to shreds. You learned how to laugh again—not just once, not just in passing, but loud, open, stupid laughs that made the rookies stare like they were seeing you for the first time.

Because maybe they were. Maybe you were, too. You weren’t healed. You weren’t fixed. But you were here. Still showing up. Still fighting. Still breathing.

And every time you laced up your shoes, that little girl inside you—the one who was told she’d never make it, the one who once sat on the floor writing she wasn’t enough—she got a little quieter.

Because you proved her wrong. Not by being the best. But by surviving long enough to stay. And Diana?

She never said it outright. But when she passed you the ball after a hard drill, when she let you fall asleep during game film and never brought it up, when she set your favorite protein shake in the locker room with a sticky note that just said You’re doing fine—you knew.

She was proud.

Of the player you were.

And the person you were finally letting yourself become.

[polo-drone-070]

Chugz Learns His Place

1. Built to obey

Sun’s blazing, beach is loud, and my chest is already glazed in sweat. That’s how I know I’m alive.

Spring Break hits different when you’re already trained. I don’t party to let loose—I party to radiate order. No shirt. No thinking. Just flex, serve, obey.

And I don’t need to shout to own the beach. I just sit still, and the sand rearranges itself around me. That’s what Master taught me.

I serve Master Percival (@polo-drone-001). My collar says it: PROPERTY OF 001.

It doesn’t make me less. It makes me perfect.

Every flex, every breath, every silent command that drops from my mouth—it’s part of that chain of control. And today? The next link I’m forging is Chugz (@chevy-gold).

He’s loud. He’s golden. He’s dumb in all the right ways.

But he’s resistant. Not on purpose—just lazy. Undisciplined.

Play-cocky. Big chest, loose tongue, always moving, always talking. He’s not malicious. Just doesn’t know who he is yet.

But I do.

He stomps over, sunglasses crooked, grinning like he owns the place.

2. The First Push

“Maaaack! Let’s hit the surf, bro! I’m buzzin’!”

Arms up. Biceps peaking. He's already flexing, laughing, not a thought behind it.

I don’t smile. I stay leaned back, one hand wrapped around my beer, other dragging across my abs slow, casual.

“You flexin’ without permission again?”

He pauses mid-pose, blinks. “Huh? C’mon bro, I’m just hypin’ the vibe.”

I tilt my head, fix him with that slow look I save for bros who don’t know their place yet.

Then I get up. Real slow.

He laughs nervously. “Bro—Mack, I was just playin’.”

I step in closer. Close enough that our chests almost touch. His smirk flickers. My voice drops. Calm. Heavy.

“You don’t play with command, bro.” “You flex when I say. You speak when I nod.” “You drink when I allow it.”

He tries to grin again, but I can feel him shrinking under the weight. It’s in his breath. The way his eyes flinch toward my collar. The way his arms don’t know what to do now.

So I make the first move.

I press one hand flat on his pec, push him back just a step. Not hard—just clear.

“You think I’m jokin’? I only train bros who got potential.” “If I let you obey me, it’s ‘cause you earned it.”

His throat bobs. He licks his lips. Eyes dart around the beach—but no one’s helping him.

This isn’t a game anymore.

He swallows.

“You serious?”

I smirk. Step even closer. Press my chest to his.

“You think I wear this collar ‘cause I’m weak?” “I obey Master. Doesn’t mean I ain't the alpha down here.” “Respect flows down. Submission moves up.” “Right now, bro? You’re below me. And I’m gonna show you how good that feels.”

He stares at me, sweat beading along his temples, like he’s trying to figure out if he should laugh or kneel.

I tap his chin with two fingers.

“No drinks. No flex. No talk. Until I say.”

I leave him standing there, chest flushed, arms half raised, caught in the tension. His mouth’s open, but he doesn’t say anything.

Good.

The silence means the lesson’s working.

3. Breaking Point

At the bar that night, he tries to test me again.

He’s looser now. Sweaty, golden, flushed from the heat. Still bouncing. Still barking.

“Yo Mack! Shots time, bro!”

I raise an eyebrow. Hold up my collar between two fingers, just enough to make him look at it.

He does. And this time, he pauses.

“No drink,” I say, calm as hell. “Not unless you ask right.”

He laughs it off. “C’mon bro, it’s me.”

I step in again. Real close. Put one finger on his lips. Push.

He freezes. Eyes wide.

“Try again.”

There’s a long second. His jaw tightens. Then—barely above a whisper:

“...Can I have a shot, bro?”

I smile. Just a little.

I nod once. He downs it fast—but he watches me while he drinks.

Progress.

Back at the villa, I find him flexing in the mirror.

Sweat rolling down his back. Arms up, trying to look like me. Mimicking the stance, the smirk, the lines.

But it’s off. It’s empty.

I walk up behind him. He tenses when he sees me.

I don't say a word.

I just press my palm between his shoulder blades, force his arms down.

“You look better when you wait.” “Better when you obey.”

He shivers under my touch. Not fear. Recognition.

He turns, eyes wide, voice softer now. “You always this serious about flexing?”

I grin.

“Only when I care about the result.” “You’re not me, Chugz. Stop tryin’ to lead.” “You wanna earn respect?” “Drop to your knees when I walk up. Wait for the nod. Flex when I say.”

He doesn't move. Just breathes.

Then finally, a slow nod. Quiet. Humbled.

He’s still got swagger—but now? It’s cracking in all the right places.

4. The Collapse

He’s slipping. You can see it now—in the way he moves. Still loud, still trying to play it cool, but there’s hesitation.

The way his eyes flick to me before he speaks. The way he waits half a second longer before flexing.

Chugz is breaking. And loving it.

He doesn’t know how to admit it yet, but his body’s talking loud.

We’re back at the bonfire. Music’s pounding, bros are soaked in sweat and beer, laughing loud under firelight.

Chugz is still riding the edge—still wants to feel like he’s in control. So he slips.

He jumps up on a driftwood log, wide stance, chest up, arms raised in a full double bi. “FLEX LINE TIME, BROOOOOS!”

I don’t move. Don’t blink. I just take a sip from my beer and stand.

Slow. Purposeful.

The laughter fades a little. The heat sharpens. I step toward him, eyes locked.

He sees me. Freezes mid-pose.

“Bro, I’m just hypin’ it up—”

“Did I say flex?”

He swallows. The firelight catches the sweat dripping off his chest.

“You don’t move unless I say.” “You don’t speak unless you’re spoken to.” “You don’t lead. You serve.”

He tries to hold the pose. But his arms start to fall. Like they know better.

I step up to him. Chest to chest again—just like before. But now, he doesn’t lean in.

He leans back.

“Get on your knees.”

The command drops like heat.

He blinks. Scoffs, half-laughing. “C’mon bro, in front of everyone?”

I say nothing. Just stare. Pressure.

“Now.”

He hesitates. Long breath. Then he drops.

Right there in the sand, golden and wide and dumb.

Perfect.

The bros go quiet. Some watch. Some don’t get it. Doesn’t matter.

This isn’t about them. This is about him.

About making him feel what he is.

I step around behind him. Put a hand on his shoulder, press down—just enough.

“You think flexin’ makes you a bro?” “You think shoutin’ makes you strong?” “Nah, bro.” “What makes you strong is droppin’ without question.” “Flexin’ only when commanded. Showin’ respect with silence.”

He’s breathing heavy now. Chest rising. Head low.

I kneel next to him. Hand still on his back.

“You wanna know why I train you?” “Because I see what’s under all that noise.” “And that? That obedient streak? That’s what makes you golden.”

He nods. Barely. Doesn’t speak. Good.

5. Rewiring the Bro

Next morning, I wake before the sun. Step outside.

He’s already there.

Kneeling.

Shirtless, sweatband on, jockstrap waistband exposed, hands resting on his thighs. Eyes closed, breathing slow. Waiting.

I walk behind him. Let the silence burn. Then place one hand on his neck, right where the collar should be.

He doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t speak.

He’s ready.

“You’re not tryin’ anymore, huh?” “You’re not fakin’ the flex. You’re feelin’ it.”

He nods.

“Tell me what you want.”

He opens his eyes.

“Wanna serve right, bro.” “Wanna show off when you say. Wanna be what you saw in me.”

I slide the collar on. He lifts his chin to make it easier.

It clicks in place. I watch the shift happen—eyes soften, shoulders drop. Mind gets quiet.

Perfect.

From then on, he’s mine.

Everywhere we go, he walks half a step behind. Waits for cues. Flexes on command.

His cockiness doesn’t disappear—it just gets reprogrammed.

Now when he smirks, it’s because he knows he’s earned it. When he talks, it’s to echo what I’ve said.

He repeats my phrases like they’re gospel.

“Obedience is strength.” “Respect’s shown through silence.” “Flexing’s a privilege.”

He starts correcting other bros when they act out.

He’s proud of his place. And so am I.

6. Public Display of Obedience

Final day. The whole crew’s on the beach. Sun’s blazing. Sweat rolling.

I step to the center.

I nod once.

“Flex.”

Chugz drops to his knees. No hesitation. No thought.

Just raw, golden muscle posing in perfect sync. His chest is up. Arms locked. Collar glinting.

He holds it. Proud.

The others cheer. But they’re watching him.

Not ‘cause he’s leading. But because he’s the example now.

The proof.

Later, after the sun drops, we’re posted up on the dunes.

I toss him a beer. He catches it, waits.

I nod. He cracks it open.

Wristband stamped TRAINED. Collar tight. Mind loose.

I stretch back, arms wide.

“You learned, bro.” “Took some knocks, but you get it now.” “Obedience don’t make you small. It makes you shine.”

He smiles. Big. Quiet. Happy.

I nod again, proud.

“You’re mine now.” “And that? That’s jock as fuck.” ______ Enjoy da Golden Spring Break with us by joinin da Gold. Mack'll shape you into form if u got potentail. Contact @polo-drone-001, @goldenherc9 or @brodygold for a propa brocess.

[skippingstonez]

Four my beloved! 😭❤️ Your last post was just what I needed, lol. He's so soft.

Would you consider writing a sort of sequel (or not, doesn't have to be related if you don't want) where there's a mutual confession?? ✨️👀 I wanna see them kiss, major soft vibes fs.

My first time really involving the colors so I hope you guys like it! I'll admit it was odd writing 1 person as 4 different people but I like the way it turned out!

Unexpected Happiness

(Four x Reader) Previous / Chapter 2 Warnings: Mild Injuries and tooth rooting fluff.

Four was quite literally giving himself a headache.

“Oh come on!” Blue complained. “At least let me trip him! He’d never see it coming!”

“For the last time Blue, hurting the Captain isn't gonna help the situation. Please just let it go.” 

They had been going back and forth about this for 2 hours now and Green was over it. Vio had eventually stepped in to shut it down though that only ended up in a yelling match between the two. Honestly if it hadn't been for Green, Blue likely would have pummeled the Captain and Vio.

“How am I supposed to just let this go!? That fucking Captain made them cry and were supposed to just ignore that!?”

“Blue this isn't about him!” Red practically begged, his voice still hoarse from crying earlier. “(Y/n) needs us right now. We should be focused on helping them right now, not making Wars feel worse than he already does.”

When Blue didn't respond Four felt like he could finally breathe again. The ache in his heart was still heavy as he looked to his right where Time was carrying you on his back, head resting on the oldest’s shoulder with your eyes closed and eyebrows pinched together. The rest of your body was limp, one arm barely even hanging onto Time with the other dangling uselessly.

Choking on the lump forming in his throat he barely reached out his hand, finger brushing against yours that twitched at the contact.

“Red, you're going to wake them up” Vio warned lightly. Watching intently for any indication that you were now awake.

“Sorry… I just..I wanted to check..”

None of the others would admit that they had all wanted to do the same thing. Finding you on the cave floor had rattled him. The way you had just laid there, unmoving and covered in blood. Breath far too shallow and pulse too faint. He thought he had lost you. 

Seeing you rest in such a similar way made him anxious, fingers twitching to confirm and reconfirm that you were stable now. Head injuries were tricky business with potentially long lasting issues if not treated properly. The potion he had given you seemed to help but it was nearly important to tell if it would be enough, especially while you were asleep and unable to tell anyone if it got worse.

Maaaaaybe he should have let Wars check you out before they got going. 

Four sighs, rubbing at his temples a bit too harshly. Reminding himself that you were strong. If you could pull through earlier, surely it would be alright. You were just resting. Rest was important.

“You alright there Smithy?”  Wild asks, strolling up between him and Time so you're no longer in his immediate field of vision. “Headache?

“Yeah, just a small one. Not a big deal.” He said as Wild pulled out his slate, swiping through it before a few candies appeared in his hand. 

“Would these help?”

It wouldn't. But Four never passed up Wild's honey candies. Plus it could be a good way to distract himself from his worries. Plucking one into his mouth, its thick sweetness coated the inside of his mouth as he let the sugar dissolve on his tongue. The strong honey flavor was soothing and though the pain in his head remained, it did feel a bit more relaxed.

“Looks like there's a good spot up ahead. Let's go ahead and call it a day, get some proper rest tonight.” Time calls out, trying not to be too loud lest he wakes you up. 

Chores were distributed out quickly, each person setting out to do their various tasks to help set up and get ready for the evening in their own way. Somehow, Four was lucky enough to be given maintenance, his favorite task for obvious reasons but today it left a sour taste in his mouth.

“Probably just trying to butter us up so we don't yell at him again, the coward.” Blue mumbled, taking out the various polishes and tools he would need for sharpening. Starting with the rancher’s things he got to work. Taking a few extra minutes to polish the hookshot he had borrowed earlier.

“So what if he is? Honestly it's better than having to go track down firewood or get stuck with dinner cleanup.” Vio countered, moving on to Time’s shield.

“Plus, now we have an excuse to stay close by right?” Green offers, eyeing where Time is helping set you in your bedroll nearby. You had woken up a bit while they had started setting up, but from your groggy mumbling you weren't exactly coherent.  

“Can we go check on them soon?” Red asks in the same sort of tone you would expect a child to ask to stay up 5 minutes longer before bedtime. “I really wanna make sure they're okay.”

“I'm sure their fine Red, we should let them be and get this stuff done.” 

“We do need to go get her stuff. I noticed their shield had a nasty dent in it earlier from the…fall.”

It was a weak excuse but otherwise they wouldn't get an opportunity until after dinner. So he quickly gathered up what he had already finished, distributing the various items back to their owners before making his way over

“Here,” He had approached Time first, handing back his shield and trying not to seem like too much of a mother cuckoo as he knelt down beside where you were curled up on your side. “How are they doing?”

“They seem fine for now but we’ll want to keep a close eye on them through the night. So whoever is on watch should check on them every now and then.” Time explained, running a gentle hand over your head as you curled up onto your side. Face still scrunched like you were in pain. “Actually, since you're here would you mind staying with them for a bit?”

“Y-yeah! Sure, let me just go grab the rest of the stuff I'm working on.!” He said a bit too quickly, dashing off the gather the miscellaneous items still left. He placed them down nearby, taking Times place beside you as the older hero gives him a grateful pat on the shoulder before walking off, leaving the two of you alone. 

Waiting till no one else was around, Red reaches out for you, carding a hand through your hair, brushing your face, everything he can get away with without disturbing you. No one stops him, taking the opportunity to calm their own anxieties by checking you from head to toe.

Blue was surprisingly quiet. Eventually pulling the other back to get back to work on the chore at hand. Picking up Wind's sword and beginning to sharpen it.

“Do you think they'll wake up soon?” He asked. His voice much more subdued than earlier. Like he was asking out loud and not just in his own shared head.

“It's hard to say…. “ Green replies.

His hands fall still, the sailors sword laying across his lap like a foreign object. Tears prick at his eyes, the weight of it all feeling heavy on his shoulders as he tried to keep it together. 

“I…I really hope they do..” Blue mumbled, sniffling back the tears. 

Hope is all they can do right now. Hope for your recovery, and hope the others don't notice the tears sliding down his face.

___________

You jolt awake, sitting up so quickly that it felt like your brain slammed against the front of your skull. Suppressing the whimper built up in your throat you pull your legs up, leaning over to rest your forehead on your knees, breathing through the pain. Fingers brush your shoulder, Fours soothing presence hovering around you that had you melting into his side without hesitation.

“You okay?”  His arm wraps around you, coaxing you to lean further into him. You aren't even sure if you actually respond or not, too focused on trying to get your head to stop piercing your skull. Regardless, Four must have understood your plight as he lays you back down, your head resting back onto a flimsy pillow as fingers comb through your hair. “Alright, just take it easy. I’ve got something that can help. I’ll be right back okay?”

Not wanting to nod your head, you shoot him a shaky thumbs up instead. Hearing him scurry off somewhere you try to get your head on straight enough to think properly but the pain seems to be all you can focus on. It almost makes you wish you were back in that damn cave. Sure you were in pain then as well but not like this. Though that was probably only due to the adrenaline and existential dread that just suppressed it all.

Minutes passed and Four still hadn't come back. You can hear him nearby if you listen carefully enough but there is no way to decipher what he's doing or how much longer it'll take.

“Four?” Calling out weakly to him in hopes he comes back sooner. There isn't a response but you can definitely hear his footsteps rushing back over to you.

“Sorry, sorry it took me a bit to figure out where Wild stashed it in the slate.” He explains like you know exactly what he's talking about. “Sit up for me? This should help with the headache.”

Grumbling out a ‘sure’ he helps you sit up, slowly this time before a warm mug is pushed into your hands.

“I let it cool a bit but it might still be hot.” He warns, as you bring it to your lips. Taking a cautionary sip to check it's temperature before taking a full gulp. The taste of peppermint is strong, but there is an underlying almost fruity flavor  to it that you can't name but it's delicious regardless. You take another big gulp as your head dulls into a fuzzy sort of feeling.

“Two saves in one day,” you whisper, placing the cup down beside you. “Either I'm more of a disaster than I realized or you take your job as a hero very seriously.”

The world around you becomes a bit clearer. Blaring ringing dying into crickets chirping in the distance while bleary shapes of your seemingly sleeping compartment come into focus in the fire light.

“How late is it?” You ask with a small yawn tagged onto the end.

“Not very. I offered to take first watch and everyone only really settled down a little bit ago.” Four said, moving till he was sat on your left. His shoulder brushing against yours comfortably. “Are you feeling better?”

You actually nod your head this time, giving him a warm smile. “Yeah I'm okay. Thank you- again.”

“No problem. I get headaches a lot and potions never seem to help. Someone back home made this tea blend for me and it's been a life saver ever since. I'm glad it seemed to work for you too.”

A comfortable silence fell over you. The tingle of peppermint still in your tongue as you slowly lean over and rest your head on his shoulder.

“Is this okay?” You ask, a bit unsure even though it was just a few hours ago you had your face buried into his chest.

“Y-yeah” His arm snakes around you, landing on your waist to pull you a bit closer. Your heart beats a bit faster at the contact, the conversation from earlier playing in your mind, tinting your cheeks pink.

Tilting your head you glimpse up at his face. Crimson eyes that burn as bright as the fire catch your gaze, offering an awkward smile.

“Can I ask you something?”

A silent nod, eyes glued to yours that now gleamed with curiosity.

“Did you mean what you said earlier?”

“About the Minish?” He clarifies, tilting his head like he often does when he's confused. Something so small that you found so charming about him.

“No, well, sorta I guess, but after that…” you stammered. Nerves beginning to get the better of you. Or maybe it was the concussion.

“...Do I really make you happy?”

Even is the dim light of the fire you could see his face turn red spreading up to his ears that were that drooped a bit in embarrassment. His fingers twitching nervously over your waist as he holds your gaze.

“I meant every word.” His voice is soft and the butterflies in your stomach are threatening to spill out. You sit up straighter, unable to restrain the goofy smile on your lips.

“Really?”

“I wouldn't lie to you (Y/n).” Green swirled into his eyes, clashing against the red like a raging forrest fire. “Just being around you makes my day. But seeing you happy feels like a gift from Hylia herself.” 

His hand comes up to cup your cheeks. Thumb brushing the corner of your mouth as his eyes stare longingly at your lips.

“I’ve missed seeing you happy.”

Four leans in, his face hovering an inch in front of yours as he waits to see how you'll respond. Still grinning like an idiot you lean in as well, pressing your lips against his for a long moment till you pulled back. The tip of your nose brushing his as you both let out a small, relieved chuckle. He pulls you back in, lips moving against yours like it was second nature. His hand sliding from your face into your hair that holds you in place untill his lungs scream at him for air.

You're both panting lightly, holding onto each other lightly as you lean away. 

“I think I understand what you meant now. About finding your own happiness.”

Four chuckles, pulling you closer till you are pressed against his chest. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. And it's right here in front of me.”

Lips meld together once more. Knowing that whatever tomorrow brings, Four will be there to help you through it. And if something small catches the corner of your eye, well, maybe you're lucky is finally about to change after all.

[p1utofairy]

PICK A CARD

“kissin’ and hope they caught us.”

what will a night out with your future partner be like?

disclaimer ✩: 18+ mature themes. take what resonates, leave what doesn't. this is my early thanksgiving gift to y’all 💗 i’m so thankful for the constant support and feedback idk how many times i can say it lol but thank you. enjoy and have a great holiday!

PILE i.

i can see you two in a club/party setting. the music is so loud it's pulsing through your veins, it's not usually your scene, but your person is right by your side holding you close. their hand is resting slightly on your back/waist guiding you through the crowd — i feel like they'll smell really good too they have a distinct fragrance on that's comforting to you. i feel like you'll be so giddy and excited to be outside with them and be seen together. lots of heads will turn for sure. i feel like y'all are a power couple…like looking at you two walking in together just makes sense but it also triggers jealousy and disbelief in other people? you and your person may come from different backgrounds or have different aesthetics but y’all pair together very well. they’re gonna be looking so smug lollll your person is the silent but confident type, like having you on their arm will shut everybody up and they’ll love it. this person could be very popular or well-known in their profession…i'm getting a serena van der woodsen type of vibe so people can definitely be infatuated with them. you might not even like dancing but you will with them! you're gonna be on cloud 9 the whole night, pile 1. some of you might not smoke or drink but you’ll feel high/drunk off them the entire night it’s so cute! u are my high by dj snake and future vibes for sure.

PILE ii.

the atmosphere is sensual af, pile 2. it's giving the vibe of a private dinner at an upscale restaurant/bar or hotel. your person planned this out very meticulously, and they managed to pull it off without you knowing too many details. you’ll be so happy to be sitting across from them and enjoying their company — i feel like you both don't always have the time to just sit and unwind because you both have very demanding jobs/schedules. i see you two flirting a lot with your eyes and smiling so big…the energy is very warm and playful. the sexual tension will be very thick between the two of you lol they might make comments throughout the night about how good you look. the lighting seems very dim and red seems to be the major theme so you could be wearing a red dress, they might give you a bouquet of red roses, their shirt might be red — idk it's something along those lines lol the color red is just significant for some reason. the food, their company, and the ambiance will be 100000/10 and the night won't stop there 😮‍💨 cause when they get you back home? soon as i get home by faith evans just came to mind LOL yeah they’re going to want to make up for lost time and please you in any and every way that they can. OKAYYY PILE 222.

PILE iii.

ah this is my introverted pile! i don't think you get out much, pile 3. if you do it's usually because someone begged you to come out and socialize or you pushed yourself to go. you like having your own space and privacy, and sometimes it's a bit overwhelming having to constantly socialize and be around a whole bunch of people that may not mesh with you. i think that your person will be receptive to this, and will take baby steps to get you out of your shell. they’d take you somewhere where you can relax and be comfortable like a drive-in movie theater or maybe somewhere in nature…it's somewhere you both can be alone and in your own bubble tuning out the rest of the world. i can see them holding you close and you’re leaned back against them just so content and reveling in the precious moment. it’s a night you’ll never forget because you’ll realize just how much they mean to you, and how far you’ve come in this connection. it's reminding me of that picture of ariana grande and mac miller at coachella. so so cute.

PILE IV.

y'all are that cute couple that ride for each other, okay!!! y'all will be so in loveeeeeee my GOSH the passion and desire will be so heavy and evident between you two. lana and asap rocky in the ‘national anthem’ music video vibes — it's like that bad boy meets good girl trope. i feel like this person would want to take you places you’ve never been before…they’d want to get all dressed up in fancy clothes and go out on the town with you. there'd be multiple activities in one night. omg they're so spontaneous it'd feel never-ending! you two will be so giddy around each other lol always cracking jokes and laughing about any and everything. i don’t think that it matters where they take you per se, pile 4. you will have the time of your life regardless. they just know how to light up every room that they walk in and ensure that everyone is having a good time! it's so cute and refreshing, ugh. they're going to really sweep you off your feet. they might have a really nice car and you’ll love being a ✨passenger princess✨ LMFAO they might tease you about it too. this person will be your best friend just as much as they are your true love.

[vorfreudevortex]

1. clutch

a street racer!ino takuma x f!reader fic

redline masterlist // intros // next: chapter 2

warnings // 4k words - swearing, alcohol, smoking, reckless driving (duh), all characters in college or recently graduated, mount hakone's details are not accurate for the sake of the story so pls don't try to clown me for it

the vibes for chapter one

✰ // the cars and the reader’s appearance in this fic are purposely kept ambiguous so you are free to have aspects look, feel, and be modified any way you’d like.

wishing you all a very merry inotober 2024 ;)

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆ ｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

under a dark and comforting blanket of the night, tucked safely away in layers of concrete, satoru click click clicks a lighter until suguru's cigarette catches. white floodlights reflect on candy paints and chrome wheels. the air smells of tobacco, gasoline, and rubber, while the loud hums and purrs of different car engines, chatter, and deep-bass music floats in the air. in this underground parking garage, it seems almost like another world of its own.

suguru geto, satoru gojo, kento nanami, and shoko ieiri are in the center of the garage, hands in baggy pants pockets and exchanging small talk with randoms, selfishly claiming an empty parking spot between their groups’ cars. every time they hear someone bitch about it, a quick “fuck off” is spouted from suguru, and they all know better than to talk back to the suguru geto, the leader of the phantoms.

“how many people are gonna be pissed that a little girl like clutch is driving that monster?” satoru laughs, blue eyes darting around.

“all of them,” suguru scoffs, eyes landing for a moment on a familiar nissan skyline gtr that’s parked directly across from them. the front license plate reads "SHDW1".

a low growl suddenly roars through the concrete walls, making heads snap towards the entrance of the garage. the unknown sound thunders through heads and shakes bones.

“what is that—”

“—is that a v8…”

“…it’s gotta be supercharged!”

suguru smirks. finishing his cigarette, he crushes it on the ground under his fresh new balances and shoko hands him another. he’s calm, but lighting up one cigarette after another is an anxious habit. he knows he should probably quit soon, but he’s too excited to mentally commit right now.

“she’s here!” shoko smiles slyly as her layered necklaces jingle and sparkle under the fluorescent lights.

“with a grand entrance,” kento adds and crosses his arms in front of his wide chest, crinkling the baggy blue button up shirt he had rolled the sleeves on.

the mysterious car slowly rolls its way to the group, attracting a crowd as everyone finds themselves drawn in, walking alongside it with wide eyes and recording phones. the two famous white stripes in the paint is so clean and reflective, it almost blinds those who stand too close. they try to peek inside, but the tint on the windows is too dark and definitely illegal.

“it’s a mustang!—”

“…from america?—”

“—it’s a fucking shelby!”

the group steps aside, suguru's tobacco smoke weaving around and through his glossy black hair while waving a lazy finger to help you reverse into the parking spot. the engine cuts, leaving an excited crowd buzzing and bickering over the hunk of metal in front of them. the door clicks open, and your brother can’t help but smile as you step out. you’ve already got everyone else wrapped around your pretty little finger.

"nii-chaaan!" you shriek, and throw your arms around his neck, but not before he tweaks the position of his cigarette in his mouth so it won’t burn your hair.

“everyone’s looking at you, clutch,” suguru says softly in your ear, you pull away.

“well then, i hope i look cute,” you smile, earning a laugh from your brother.

the people gathered around your car are in a frenzy, to say the least. most of them have never seen an american car before, let alone an imported ford mustang, with one of the most powerful and impressive engines ever built.

“an imported mustang?!—”

“—it’s the phantoms’!”

“…no way that little girl drives this beast…”

you’re snatched away to a crowd of prying questions and flashing phones. suguru, satoru, kento, and shoko lean back on satoru's car and happily watch the circus. your brother feels proud as you even offer to take random people’s pictures in front of your own car, even popping the hood and letting them sit in the driver’s seat as you sweetly thank their compliments with a blush.

it’s all fun and games until the crowd slowly dissipates and a stupid familiar face comes into suguru's line of sight and towards his little sister. stupid shaggy brown hair, a stupid grin, stupid baggy black sweats, and stupid red nike dunks. just seeing takuma ino pisses suguru off. 

takuma couldn’t help himself, you were just so beautiful. big eyes making direct contact with every person who talked to you, long tan legs extending out of a flowing mini skirt and ending in a pair of platform white converse, and a laugh that made him shiver. he just had to come over and see who you were.

"sugu— " satoru starts.

“—i know,” suguru interrupts, already up on his feet and on his way to you. but takuma opens his mouth first, looking down at you with shimmering brown eyes and a toothy grin.

“hey—”

“—no.”

your head spins around, first meeting eyes with the boy in front of you, then over your shoulder to your older brother, who stares blankly at the man with a protective hand on your arm. takuma's smile drops into an innocent, confused look.

“uh… you know her?”

“of course i do,” suguru scoffs. 

“she’s parked right between us and you think we don’t know her?” teases satoru, who has suddenly appeared behind you as well, a sly grin plastered on his face.

“i hardly noticed,” the boy looks back to you and holds a hand out. “hi! i'm takuma ino.”

“hi! i'm—” you begin.

“—not happening,” suguru turns you around, leading you away with satoru.

“really, geto?” takuma ino calls from behind you. “you can’t let her speak for herself?”

“oh shit,” satoru laughs under his breathe. your older brother stops, his grip on your arm tightening as he turns to face the stranger.

“ino. stay the fuck away from my sister.”

✰✰✰✰✰

“nii-chan, what was that about earlier? that guy at the meet?” you ask.

the five of you are now home, in your father’s garage. in your soft pajamas, you lounge back into the makeshift hammock you’re sharing in the corner of the shop with shoko, both of you nursing a beer. your eyes watch as kento and suguru carefully wipe the bugs off the front end of your mustang while satoru rests in a chair beside them.

“ugh,” shoko lights her cigarette. “suguru fucking hates that guy.”

“ino suuucks!” satoru whines, throwing his head back in his chair.

“he’s no worse than you, satoru,” kento adds.

“it's nothing,” suguru says. “ino's just always looking to rile me up.” you giggle a bit and take a sip of your drink. it seems like takuma ino does a better job at riling your brother up than he would like to think.

“i think it kind of worked,” you laugh. “i don’t think you had to be that mean to him, though.”

“you have no idea!” satoru adds. “he’s constantly up our asses.”

“you probably like it,” shoko teases, exhaling smoke. you catch kento smirking to himself.

“i wasn’t that mean, clutch,” suguru says. “i think you’re just too nice for your own good.”

“no i'm not!” you gasp. “i can be mean! i'm mean all the time!”

“prove it,” shoko points at the pile of blonde hair standing in front of you, now messy from a hot summer night out and about. “say something mean to ken.”

“what?” your jaw drops while suguru and satoru turn into a snickering mess. “that’s not fair, there’s nothing mean anyone can say about him!”

“oh my god, just try,” satoru laughs. “i'm begging, come up with something.”

you look to kento with a small pout. he stares back with soft brown eyes and the smallest smirk in the world. “c'mon, clutch” he teases. “you can do it.”

“um… ummm,” you stammer. “you… you should smile more?”

even kento can’t resist joining the others by doubling over in laughter at your ridiculous attempt. was being nice really so bad? it was something your brother had always gently teased you for, his friends joining in by proximity. sometimes he scolded you for it too, but only when someone had taken advantage of your naivety or kindness in exchange for their own benefit.

“whatever,” you blush and finish your beer. “it’s late and i better head to bed. i haven’t slept well since i flew in.”

“we all better head home,” kento says, throwing the dirty towels in a bin. when the others leave, you and suguru lock down the shop and head upstairs to your rooms. you can hear your father’s soft snores in the hallway.

“y/n, get some sleep,” your brother says softly. “tomorrow we’re going to the mountains.”

“the mountains?”

“yeah, you said you wanted to learn to drift better, right?”

you can’t cover the excited smile that grows on your face. “really? but my car isn’t really built for that.”

“don’t be silly. you’ll learn in my car,” he ruffles your hair. “touge racing isn’t for the weak, but you’re a quick learner. we’ll get you comfortable before letting you race.”

“will other people be there?”

“our team and maybe some other people i know practicing during the day, but not many. the crowd will come late tomorrow night when the race starts.”

“people you know, like that ino guy?” you tease. suguru's hand stops on his bedroom doorknob as he turns back to you with a serious face.

“clutch, i'm serious,” he warns. “ino is bad news. stay away from him while you’re here, alright?”

✰✰✰✰✰

later, as you’re half-asleep and snuggled underneath the blankets in your room, three notifications wake you. groaning, you roll over to silence your phone, but not before you take a glance at your screen.

shadow.takuma started following you.

shadow.takuma liked your photo.

shadow.takuma: hey :) i took some pics of u and ur car tonight if u want them

takuma ino has found your instagram. suddenly sleep is not important to you, and you’re unlocking your phone to respond.

clutchcruises: hi! i'd love to have them. tysm!

shadow.takuma: sent 3 photos

the pictures are candids, and surprisingly amazing. the first is a photo of someone taking a photo of you posing in front of your mustang, another is your back turned while a blurred crowd in the background admires your car. the last is of you and suguru, both of you turned away, his arm slung around your shoulders and looking down at you with a smile.

clutchcruises: these are so cute! thank you so much!

shadow.takuma: fs :) u got a sweet ass build going. u do it all yourself?

clutchcruises: yeah haha i don’t really have any friends back home that are into cars so it’s really been just me

shadow.takuma: i'm so impressed… teach me your ways?

you scoff to yourself. “teach me” as if this guy doesn’t know 10x more about modifying a car than you. you can’t help but notice your cheeks turning hot. is he trying to flirt with you or is he just being nice?

shadow.takuma: touge race tomorrow night, u coming?

clutchcruises: i think so! my brother is taking me

shadow.takuma: well i hope he lets u hang around more… it’ll be fun

shadow.takuma: see u tomorrow :)

you smile to yourself as you like his last message. he wasn’t anywhere as rude or troubling as your brother and his friends made him out to be. in fact, he was really sweet. his cute smile was pretty nice to look at too, even if you only caught a few seconds of it tonight. you remember how cold suguru was to ino, and his strict words to stay away from him. there must be something deeper about him that suguru knows and you don’t.

you just can’t help but look at his profile, which is exactly what you expected it to be. thousands of followers and endless pictures of cars. most of them feature an absolutely beautifully modified nissan skyline gtr, with a few other cars scattered in. you pause on a picture of him and a group of guys, where he stands front and center.

oh my, he is cute. broad shoulders you can see through a baggy black shirt and lean, muscular legs poking out from a pair of shorts that end in the middle of his thighs, and crispy bright green vans on his feet. a black beanie covers his shaggy brown hair. he looks tough, a stark contrast to the vibes you read from him earlier tonight. you hardly notice the dude with bright pink hair or the guy with face tattoos standing beside him.

‘shadow.takuma: 1/2 the SHDW crew… and yuji ig’ the caption reads.

how odd. he looks rough in the picture, but he seemed so sweet, so genuinely kind and interested in talking to you earlier tonight. but suguru knows better, and if he wants you to stay away from takuma ino then you will.

you silence your phone and turn back over, letting yourself fall asleep to the sounds of your brother’s snores that came from the other side of the wall, dreaming of grinding gears and roaring engines.

✰✰✰✰✰

the next morning, you’re rearing to get to the mountains. you stumble downstairs after getting dressed in one of suguru's tees, red biker shorts, and your grubbiest pair of reeboks. your dad is making breakfast while suguru sits at the kotatsu.

“three days in japan and you’re already stealing my shirts,” suguru grumbles into his tea. his long black hair is frizzy and knotted, with bags under his eyes and his shorts wrinkled… he was not a morning person.

“if you cover them in grease like mine, she stops taking them,” your dad laughs, peering at you with crinkling and smiling eyes.

“papa, are you coming with us today?” you ask.

“sorry, clutch. i'm busy in the shop today,” he apologizes. “but you all have fun, and most importantly, be safe.”

“she’s gonna wear a helmet.” you whip your head around at your brother's statement.

“what?!”

“you’re gonna wear a helmet,” suguru says, louder this time. “this shit is dangerous and you’re just starting to learn.”

“i already know how to drift, i'll just be learning how to do it in the mountains,” you sit down next to your grouchy brother. you can’t believe he’s springing this information on you now. you know for a fact that suguru has never worn a helmet in his damn life, and having to wear one while learning would make things more difficult and block your vision, not to mention ruin the entire vibe.

“listen to your brother, y/n,” your dad chimes in.

“you have no idea what you’re talking about,” suguru scoffs.

“i literally do, i've been there before. i've drifted before, countless times! i'm practically a professional.”

“i'll believe it when i see it,” he rolls his eyes. “if you’re gonna wreck my honda and break your leg, at least your skull won’t be bleeding out—”

“—suguru!” your dad gruffly scolds, your brother’s awful words dying in his throat.

“i'm just being real, papa,” he broods. his tired eyes meet yours. “eat your breakfast and we’ll go, ken and toru will be mad if we’re late.”

you couldn’t stop smiling when suguru let you drive his nsx up to the mountains, even if it was only to let you get used to the car before having to swing it around. and since you were driving, you took full advantage of your limited freedom by pulling into the cutest coffee shop you saw.

“what are you doing?”

“i'm stopping so my brother can buy me some iced coffee,” you giggle. suguru rolls his eyes but pulls his wallet from his back pocket anyways.

“you’re lucky i love you.”

satoru and kento were leaning on their cars when you finally made it, satoru welcoming you with open arms.

“welcome to mount hakone!” he grinned. he dons torn jeans, a plain white shirt, and his favorite pair of round sunglasses. kento wears a nice pair of fitted grey joggers, a cream long sleeve, and a pair of green-tinted raybans that sit low on his nose.

the drive up was beautiful, with dense and lush trees shadowing the road with rough rock walls and steep cliffs right off the side of the road at almost every winding turn. a light mist had appeared as you ascended higher and higher, and from where you were parked now, you could see mount fuji looming in the distance.

“let me check suguru's car first and make sure everything’s working properly,” kento says.

“we all already know it’s in perfect condition,” satoru rolls his eyes playfully behind his sunglasses.

“i'll do it anyways,” kento responds, lifting open the hood with a soft swoosh. “it’s better to be safe.”

“are you nervous, y/n?” satoru pats the top of your head, earning a teasing grimace from you.

“kind of,” you admit sheepishly. “but i already know how to drift. it’ll just be some added pressure.”

“you totally got this! suguru's a good teacher when he’s not on your ass.”

kento's fist lightly makes contact with his chest, a silent warning to stop being mouthy.

“there’s a scenic lookout halfway down the pass,” kento says, shutting the hood and making his way into satoru's 180sx with him. “it has a good view, we’ll watch from there.”

✰✰✰✰✰

you’re back where you started, at the top of the mount hakone. on your first pass, suguru had directed you to drive normally and take it slow. he wanted you to learn the roads and memorize the turns. kento and satoru had offered you a thumbs up as you drove by on the barren roads. but now, the empty spot from before is littered with cars— the ‘people that suguru knew’. your stomach flips at the thought of an audience, you didn’t want to make a fool of yourself.

suguru steps out of the car. “hey, none of you drive down the pass until we come back up,” he yells. “i'm teaching my sister, so i don’t wanna see any of these cars on the way.”

“what was that for?” you ask as he settles back in the passenger seat. your eyes land on a nearby license plate, one that says "SHDW1". oh god, is takuma ino here? your head spins as you imagine yourself looking like a complete idiot in front of the boy you were texting late last night.

“i don’t want you worrying about any other cars, the roads are already too tight,” suguru explains while he ties his hair into a messy bun. “you ready?”

you take a deep breathe as your fingers start to shake. “yeah, ready.”

reaching into the backseat, he returns with a sleek black bike helmet in his hand. you shoot him a look before silently tugging it over your head. you know better than to fight him on this.

takuma ino fizzles from your mind as you approach the first sharp turn. you let out a sharp exhale. you heart starts to pound in anticipation.

the bend comes closer and closer. you downshift to first. the engine alters.

“just let yourself feel the car,” suguru says calmly. “don’t brake too hard. go back to second when you enter the turn. your intuition will lead you.”

you tap the brake pedal. the weight of the car shifts forward. you enter the turn. the clutch goes in. back to second gear. the engine revs. the back tires lose traction. you feel it.

“feather the throttle.”

you turn the steering wheel into the drift. not too much. your right foot lightly presses into the gas pedal. the tires squeal. the back end swings wide. suguru's honda is completely sideways now. the trees blur past you.

“counter it.”

suguru's hand hovers over the handbrake. he knows he won’t need it. you flip the wheel. your eyes focus in front of you. the car teeters on the edge of being losing control, but never slips any further. you know it. you feel it.

“ease up.”

and you do. the car steadies around you. you feel it. with a flick of your wrist, you straighten the wheel. you fly out of the curve. the line on the gauge set falls.

“breathe,” your brother reminds you calmly. “hairpin next. remember what i told you.”

you let go of the breathe you had involuntarily been holding. the palm of your hand is sweating all over the wheel and shifter. the corner comes at you fast. hard brake. downshift. first gear. tap the brake.

“now! yank it!”

you pull the handbrake hard, the back tires locking up. the gauge shakes violently as it redlines, the shouting engine music to your ears. the back end swings violently, almost throwing you with it. kento and satoru are just shadows as you fly past them. for a split second, the world is nothing but air around you. the world is nothing but nothing around you. it’s happiness. it’s freedom. you feel it.

back to reality. turn turn turn! feather the throttle. tires scream. rubber burns. it smells so good. handbrake down. back to second gear. 

“clutch, you got it,” suguru beams beside you. “it’s a little rough, but you got it. don’t stop, stay focused. keep going…”

twenty minutes later, you’re back where you started, again. you cut the motor, silence filling the car. your whole body shakes. you lift your hands in front of your face as they tremble.

“holy shit…” you exhale, finally. every single muscle in your body had been tensed and flexed, you manually force them relax.

“are you okay?” suguru asks, his voice deep, calming, and grounding.

you’re finding words, about to answer when the door beside you swings open, and your brother's lanky best friend is grabbing you by the shoulders, shaking you excitedly.

“holy shit!! you did it, you were amazing! i knew you could do it,” satoru shouts. “ken and i are so proud of you, you fucking killed it!”

he reaches over you to unbuckle your seatbelt and rips the helmet off your head. satoru lifts you out of your seat and swings you up so you’re sitting on his shoulder. shrieking, you clamp one hand onto the soft fabric of his shirt and the other in his messy mop of ivory hair in an attempt to find balance. you know he won’t drop you as his rough palms politely grip your thigh and waist, but it sure doesn’t feel like it in the moment.

he parades you around, jostling and tossing you up and down on his shoulder as he hoots and hollers. kento stands nearby, laughing and clapping his congratulations, while suguru playfully joins satoru's antics in shouts and leaps.

“satoru!” you scream with uncontrollable laughter. “put me down!”

“we have to celebrate! you finished your first touge pass like a fucking pro!” he shouts.

he finally plops you down on the asphalt and your brother pulls you into a tight hug. “really living up to your nickname now, hmm?” he laughs in your ear. 

but as suguru's strong hands are wrapped around you, you spot a familiar figure over his shoulder. with arms crossed over his chest, he sits on the hood of that skyline with another black-haired boy, the "SHDW1" license plate peeking out from behind his legs. that same toothy grin meets your eyes as he gives you a small nod and salute to your new achievement. you can’t seem to get yourself to look away, and your cheeks begin to burn.

“i'm so proud of you. you’re still pretty rough but we’ll keep practicing,” suguru pulls away, completely oblivious to what just happened over his shoulder. “you’re still shaking. let’s go home and relax before we come back for the race tonight, yeah?”

and when your brother climbs in his car next to you to drive home, you can’t help but steal another glance over to takuma ino from the passenger seat. this time, both him and the black-haired boy stare back at you. you don’t know if your heart is still pounding from passing through the mountain or from takuma's brown eyes boring into you.

you’re almost sure suguru doesn’t notice.

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆ ｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

redline masterlist // intros // next: chapter 2

tag list // @stillnotherapy @rieamena

comment if you'd like to be added.

© vorfreudevortex | all rights reserved. do not copy, translate, repost, or otherwise share my work.

[princemick]

can you share a tutorial on how to make a sticker sheet? it’s an amazing idea!! you’re very good at what you do :-)

Yeah ofc! It's a pretty simple process but I'm gonna explain how to get from this.

to this!

all you're gonna need is a pic you wanna stickerfye and photoshop!

step 1:

cut that puppy out!

(I like using the polygonal lasso most of the time bc I like the handcut vibe but if u have ps2024 u can use the build in cut out feature or any other way to cut it out on older versions w round stuff I tend to mix polygoal lasso and magic wand to select the pic I want)

now mask it n ur layers shud look like this

and then convert it back into a smart object (right click n 'vonvert to smart object) now if u delete ur background layer, ur file shud look like this

n ur layers like this

step 2:

now that u have ur sticker cut out we're gonna throw a little filter on it to make it a little sharper and ass noise to get it ready for the filter effect!

this is the smart filter settings I use for pictures which you get to by going to filter -> sharpen -> smart sharpen

and then I add a 10% noise amount to the pic. the difference shouldn't be to different but it is gonna make an impact on the filter we're adding to it! but this is what it looks like now!

Step 3:

now we're gonna make sure our colours are what we want the sticker to be down at the bottom of your workspace right there

for the valentines day look I'm gonna use pink BUT for this effect make sure ur darkest colour is on top. my colours are gonna look like this!

(important for this is that for your bottom light colour you can go lighter! so make sure you dont use direct white or anything to close to it!)

NOW. we're gonna make sure we have the layer with picture we wanna make into a sticker selected and go to filter -> filter gallery

now your thing is probably gonna look smth like this SO

where you're gonna go is to the tab with 'sketch' and select the halftone pattern

and then this is the settings I'm gonna use for that but you gotta play around w it how you like

and then you're gonna click the little plus at the bottom right here

and then select in again, the sketch folder. torn edges.

these are the settings I'm using but again, play around w it until it looks good to you!

and then you click OK, it's gonna load a little and now you're pic shud look like this and your layer like that!

Step 4:

we're gonna convert this layer into a smart filter again. now to make it look like a sticker we're gonna double click to layer and go into the layer style. we're gonna go to stroke and add a border around it like this

make sure it's lighter then the lightest colour you used for your filter effect

then we're gonna click on the little plus on the left side and add another stroke layer

which is gonna look like this! make sure it's a very very thin light grey line. this is the thing that's gonna make it look like it can be picked off and work as a sticker!

then we're gonna add ONE more stroke layer

you're going to make this last bottom layer the same colour as the light border colour you used in the first layer!

which is gonna look something like this!

your graphic in your preview is gonna look smth like this now!

we're gonna click OK again. and basically. you're basically all done now!

Step 5:

we're gonna make it look kinda printed/paper esc now!

we're gonna start by converting our layer into a smart object again so we flatten our image.

we're first gonna go into filter -> blur -> box blur. and we're gonna box blur by 2

then. we're gonna go into filter -> stylize -> diffuse -> darken only

and lastly. filter -> noise -> add noise by 7%

and ok that is your last step. your sticker is done!

extra step 6:

how to make it look like its on a sheet in plastic. basically you add a little box at the back which is gonna be a lil darker then your stroke layers like this

we're gonna add the same blur -> diffuse -> noise layers as we just added to the sticker to the box

then I'm gonna use this pic to overlay

just add it overtop ur sticker and box. make sure its the same size as the box you just made and then make that a linear burn layer which means it's gonna look like this

we're gonna copy the plastic layer put that under your linear burn layer and make it a hard light layer and get the opacity down a little which means its gonna look like this now

and that's it. ur done. you can add a bunch of adjustment layers until you like the shadow/colour etc. you can add more effect layers or add a little drop shadow to ur paper whatver u vibe w but this is the basic stuff! that's how ya make it look like a lil sticker!

[socksandbuttons]

OK I’m gonna be honest I have a few things to say or ask regarding the been a you .

1)-Assuming that KC doesn’t die in this AU I feel like if old moon ever appeared, and new moon ever became of nexus then he would basically be forced to turn nexus into a been just so he wouldn’t try to kill anyone.

2)-Assuming that Solar still ends up building jack-O-moon and Sun still ends up, adopting Dazzle, (like in the actual canon of the show) does KC treat Jack and Dazzle like they are his grandkids?

3)-finally does KC Ever meet killer sun, and dark sun? If so, how does he react and what is his opinion of them? I can imagine it’s not very positive. Especially since killer sun is trying to kill every moon across dimensions, and KC basically just adopted new moon/nexus.

A.... Okay I did say where we were at in the timeline. This is like... Eclipse had the Star point so like more than a year back where canon is right now. If you weren't there for that plotline, this may explain the confusion on this AU. KC doesnt die, i dont have plans for him dying. This is the route where he actively is more active in the cast (he had a lot of thoughts). He actually came back to check on what the results were on things and not only found out they Killed Eclipse but Eclipse came back as a bean and was having a mild meltdown because of it. That's why he took him away. Old Moon i dont have plans for. Thats not in the cards. You get New Moon all the way through with hints of identity issues cause I liked that in canon, its delicious. There is a bean Nexus alt timeline but thats a different following. A whole different branch. (Dark Sun also in that timeline also a bean and he hates it. these two fight) Solar... IS in this au. Jack?? I dont know. Jack was originally built to protect Lunar from Eclipse in canon. Which... in the Bean Au Lunar and Eclipse are already in vicinity of eachother and KC is the one that steps in to be the buffer between the two in a sense. I have a scene with KC and Lunar talking about this because like uh yeah Lunar was ABSOLUTELY against Eclipse being anywhere near him. (Since this is also after Eclipse did blow him up! they both get trauma of dying). Dazzle... I dont think she's going to be in the au. And I might take liberties. .... I realize you're asking for What If. Hold on. If KC did meet jack and dazzle he would be treating them sorta like grandkids. Uncle?? The family tree is wild. But he is gonna be the one coming in with gifts and also 'we should go camping.' Dazzle would be using him as a jungle gym basically. Jack and KC get to bond over knife fingers a lil bit. KC and Sun absolutely trying to keep Dazzle and Bm a lil seperated. KC isnt aware at first until Sun basically panics and tells him. 'ah. well. Hmn. Im definitely not letting bloodmoon know then.' 'YEAH HE MIHGT HURT HER-' 'im more worried for you about it actually but yes' Anyway Dazzle tries her best to play with Bloodmoon cause him and Jack are vibing. Lunar having to step in and going 'WHY DONT WHY PLAY VIDEOGAMES DOWNSTAIRS DAZZLE' '...is the red guy gonna play too' '.....MmMAYBE?' Eclipse has retreated to the lake and not deal with any of that. And Finally nnnnnNmmmmmmMMM... Not Killer. Killer is never met?? But interesting though. Since your mentioning Bean Nexus I guess. KC aint having none of that. So good Luck Killer. Thrown back into the portal. As for Dark Sun- UH.... KC does meet one in the bean au (you wont get context too much for this one). And he's annoyed with him at most cause of who he comes with and its usually something that causes problems. Also doesn't like how Sunburn basically encourages violence against Moon. In the Nexus Bean timeline?? Yeah Dark Sun is there as a bean too. hes kinda trapped as a bean and he hates it. And Monty punts him. And KC's just making sure to interfere at that point and just accepting yeah hes lookin out for that one even if he isnt sure how to feel about him. He's definitely getting what he deserves a bit though. KC looking at current canon like 'What is HAPPENING'. And he thought he had things to deal with.

[whatonearthisgoingon]

Part 1. of Aaro's Hear Me Out List!!!

Some of my moots (@/werewolfadmirere) were concerned about a Hear Me Out I did recently, and did not expect that level of freak from me. Well moot, I am a freak, and you're gonna see how bad it is! We are strictly doing the non-human characters for the first two parts of this list; if I feel like it, I'll keep going from there!

This is not ranked, this is just as I think of them. No real order.

Sadly only 30 pictures are allowed per post, so I'm going to reblog and continue this list for a while, and will link all the other parts on each part. Each part will have 15 characters, as I'm giving each character 2 pics.

I was also informed I must tag the moots. You will be tagged underneath all this.

TW: Sex talk, obviously, it's a hear me out cake.

Part 1. Part 2.

(Please remember viewers, I am a teenager, meaning other teenagers on the list isn't creepy af.)

#1. Venom from Marvel

Alright, if you follow me, this is probably not a surprise to you at all. I mean, I literally run a side blog of this idiot.

But man, what can those tendrils and tongue do? (Hint from fanfiction: a lot!!)

#2. Sarah Kerrigan, Queen of Blades from StarCraft 2

The original hear me out that started this. Queen of Blades Kerrigan was an awakening when I played her as a kid. Her story is also just sick af. But yeah; mama that could kill me. Would let her infest my terran ass and turn me into a weird little alien creature. Just hopefully prettier than Alexei.

#3. Sadako Yamamura/Samara Morgan

I don't know; her coming out of the well and then the TV was cool as shit to 11 year old me. Would let her kill me if she felt like it. She's a vibe I'm down for.

#4. Xenomorph from Alien (1979/1986)

Diva. They cool, and I'm down to hit. Would I die? Yeah. Would it be painful. Incredibly. But still; damn.

#5. Genya Shinazugawa, specifically in his demon form.

My traumatized baby turns into a traumatized and angry king (even more than normal, lmao). And he just looks adorable and I love him so much. Would be down to hit so hard.

#6. Koro-sensei from Assassination Classroom

Is it the personality? Is it the setting? I don't know. It's probably once again the tentacles- Anyway he's a vibe and I love it; would so hit.

#7. La Muerte from Book of Life

Queen of the Land of the Remembered! Not only was this movie a vibe, she was a vibe! Is she a skeleton? Yeah; but I would take her out and let her hit. She can take my life early and I'd go to the Land of the Dead with her!

#8. Sammy Lawrence from Bendy and the Ink Machine

I don't know what it is. Maybe it's the murder axe; I do love a good killer. But yeah, during that video game phase, he got on the list.

#9. G.I Robot

No, cause why is he such a sweetheart. I don't care what he's done- I love him. There are of course a few different ones, but I love him and I'm so down. I mainly saw him when he was working with Bride; speaking of-

#10. The Bride from DC.

The Queen always slays, and she's fine as hell. Love her. Would let her sleep with me, or shoot my brains out. Whatever works.

#11. Death from Puss in Boots

That boy slayed, and he's such a presence, y'know? Like, the Death Whistle scene in the movie!? God damn; take me down to hell hun.

#12. Maleficent both movies.

Evil fairy with a tragic backstory? Sign me up. Evil fairy who's just evil fairy? Even better. Just, she's, like, always looking good I swear. Slay (me)

#13. Rosie from Hazbin Hotel

Cannibal Demon Queen; would let her have a bite. She's a vibe, and I love her, and we would bitch about Susan together.

#14. Lady Alcina Dimitrescu from Resident Evil.

I'm pretty sure she was every gay girls awakening, right? At least one of them. Yeah, she can step on me, drink my blood, kill me, fuck me, whatever. I am down. Yes, this includes the final form, but I couldn't get any good pics with good resolution; just look it up

#15. Proxima Midnight from Marvel.

Love her. She's a queen. Would let her stab me with that staff- She was beautiful in Infinity War, and the comics. Again, love her.

@acelovesremuslupin @adanmwere @alizardsusername @astrawantssleep @bikisser23 @birdiefromafar @blitzstoneshouldbecanon @bluebasie @cool-lesbian-is-here @cuculoooo @destroy-the-binary @getsuuna @gigiyuu @gimmiecandy @harrietthespywastaken @hey-look-at-the-stars @ineffablelyqueerwolfstarshipper @lllaced @lookitsabooknook @love-hate-love00 @luna---lovegood @mentallyillwacko @mikeywaysbass @mochamoony @moonchild311 @moonsrunes @moonyscribe @mrecury42 @mxlovey32 @my-castles-crumbling @not-a-gay-fangodess @olympushaze @permetutotheworld @reaperlight @reggblkk @serpentine-starlight @siriuslyobsessed394 @siriuslysirius101 @sk1llz-heeler @starman-01 @studying-n-running @symbiotic-slime @tired-writer-in-progress @tistheraven @theduchessr @the-stars-in-between @thepicklekingog @unnecessaryheadache @urpants @welcometoh0rr0rwood @werewolfadmirer @whos-fin-anyway @xxlady-lunaxx @yes-ofc-i-bite

[fallloverfic]

Thoughts on the live-action adaptation of The Murderbot Diaries, Episodes 1: FreeCommerce and 2: Eye Contact:

I enjoyed them well enough. I have criticisms but I'm gonna keep watching. It was funny and entertaining. If you haven't read the books and are at all interested in the series based on the show, I would highly recommend reading them (also the first novella, which the show is based on, is super cheap, and as it's a novella, short). They are much better and funnier. Spoilers below for the books and show

From the get-go: after the first teaser was released, I reread All Systems Red in one sitting, and a good chunk of Artificial Condition. Yes, the story is being massively changed, kind of like they disassembled a puzzle, reassembled the pieces in ways that mostly fit but aren't intended, and then painted over a lot of it so it largely looks right, while the paint is dripping. The core plot is there, particularly at least the major plot beats. Although two cast members have been removed and one added (the latter of which will presumably be in a future episode), and a number of character relationships have been modified as a result, the cast is generally the same. So it's not like "this is entirely different" but rewrites have occurred, which changes a lot, even if, at its heart, it is still very much the same narrative. Anyone who is insisting they haven't changed much or it's basically the story, is not being honest and/or has not reread the books in a while. That's not to say all the changes are bad because they are changes, but the changes exist. A lot of how that works out in the end is subjective.

I like the opening animation. I think it's a cute. I have a soft spot for animated toy openings.

It's a choice but also makes sense to make things more chronological, starting with Murderbot disabling its governor module, while also demonstrating just how much humans abuse it and why it would want to do that. I still think the human hitting it and bouncing off of it is very funny. And I like the armor design. A lot of changes were made to better explain things to an audience that works better for live-action television than books. That's fine as a concept. Again, how it ends up working out for an audience is largely subjective.

The problem with me talking about this show is that I never was able to track who was who among the human cast while reading, except for Mensah lol I care most about Murderbot, ART, and Mensah, so that was kind of it on my list. Humans were just Other. Thus, remembering who is who while learning who is who on the show is EXCITING! But I shall do my best.

I'm not the happiest with describing PreservationAux as "hippies". That's not a term I could find in the books anywhere, so this seems to be a show thing. From a writing angle to a new audience angle, I get why someone might have used it, but it makes no sense for Murderbot to use it (hypothetically it might know what a hippie is, but as a narrative framing reference, it's so far beyond the concept of hippies that it seems weird to use it as a descriptor) and the general narrative step away from treating Murderbot's company as Massive Capitalism Evil Metaphor combined with "Murderbot's new clients are hippies" is not really something I'm into. They might just be slow-building it, and it's not like they weren't upfront with "what's happening with Murderbot is a form of slavery" and also "what's happening with Murderbot is generally horrifying and this is a person they could just murder for parts as desired", but... I don't know. There's a vibe to it I'm not thrilled about, and "hippie" combined with the painting and the singing and the dancing and whatnot is just... hmm. The show seems more focused on how weird PreservationAux is rather than Capitalism Evil, and I'm less trusting of that shift, given, you know, Apple.

The contract scene was very weird in the sense that they were trying to very awkwardly infodump during a contract negotiation and as a result it was perhaps one of the oddest contract negotiations I've seen, even incorporating the science fiction elements. But it's fine for what it is, I suppose.

Volescu has seemingly been removed from the story, at least for this season. In the initial rescue sequence, Arada takes his place. Overse was also for some reason deleted from the story. I would be less averse to shrinking the cast for simplicity if I didn't know, from the trailer, that they're going to add another human worker somewhere, presumably from DeltFall. As someone who's still having trouble recalling who's who - though writing this and watching the show are helping me stick names to faces - shrinking the cast is again not necessarily an issue. But it's a different story.

I was truly not expecting Clark Gregg looking like he just walked off a production of The Wizard of Oz. I know his bit is in the first trailer, but for some reason, I guess because I was distracted by everything else, I didn't process that it was him lol He was funny for all he was not in there long. The Sanctuary Moon bits were, as expected, great. Also loved John Cho, as expected. Great stuff.

I'm still not a fan of how Murderbot is carrying Bharadwaj wrong. It specifically carries her in a bridal carry in the book to keep her alive (or at least that sounds like that's how it's carrying her), and there's a lot we learn about its competence for doing that. Carrying her like a potato sack so her organs and fluids fall everywhere as she bounces on its shoulder indicates a carelessness that just isn't there. Murderbot can be careless, but not like this.

Ratthi's hot. Just gonna say.

Not into how the team is so excited to sexually harass Murderbot from the get-go. From the trailer I'm guessing this is going to be Ratthi's growth from fuckboi to respectful (well slightly less of a fuckboi I guess), but um... Hmm. Also again, maybe part of the whole "hippie" thing? Yes, PreservationAux is proudly queer and full of polyamorous folks who are happy to fuck, but also... hmm.

I really like Mensah. She's great, as always (with caveats, which are largely narrative choices). I also like Bharadwaj. And poor Pin-Lee, trying to support their wife (probably one of the funnier moments in the show was when she sees Arada jump Ratthi and is like "uh, I have to get involved in this somehow" and it's so relatable when writing orgies). Honestly, the whole cast is really great. We were all worried it wouldn't stay queer, given the state of live-action television these days. Yes, it's very queer. That's lovely.

I'm not the biggest fan of focusing on MurderKen. There sure were a lot of shots of that. I get that it's Skarsgard, they're basically obligated to show his nude body at least once cause Hollywood Sexyman, but... mm.

I think it's funny they made me hate Gurathin for largely different reasons than the books make you hate Gurathin lol Like yes, he's a paranoid asshole and a massive dick to Murderbot. In this... he's also extremely weird and asks incredibly bizarre questions (because he's being used to infodump) and Murderbot is... a bit warier than it probably should be of him based on what it knows. Maybe people think he's just Gurathin being Gurathin but he felt weird in a way entirely different from how he is at least in All Systems Red. It still reads as him. Just... different. Maybe if I really shipped Murderbot and Gurathin I'd have enjoyed it more, I don't know. I'm happy for those shippers, though!

I did enjoy the end bit in Episode 2 where Gurathin talks to Mensah. That was nice. The show demonstrates that he's a dick but he truly does care about his companions.

(This section added after the release of Episode 3) It actually still bothers me how much they changed the trip to check out the invisible/modified map parts. This bugged me when the episode aired, in part because of how much Murderbot was divorced from the plot, but there's other things that just speak to greater issues that are present in Episode 3. In All Systems Red, Mensah, Arada, Pin-Lee, Murderbot, and Ratthi all go on the trip together. So far as I can tell, Gurathin, Overse, Volescu, and Bharadwaj stay behind. By this point the humans are aware that there may be sabotage involved in the faulty maps. Murderbot keeps an eye on them as they move around, physically standing nearby and using cameras to observe the different parts of the scene. Murderbot is also far more proactive about being involved in things, noting that it's going beyond its programming to do that, in part because of what it did to its governor module. This was changed to a scene where, for no apparent reason, after being attacked, they go to an unknown location without their security unit, with only two crewmembers (intercut with the incredibly stupid interrogation). There are moments in this sequence that work. It also generally makes very little sense, and makes everyone involved seem extremely incompetent.

(Back to original thoughts) There were a lot of moments that had me genuinely laughing, like Mensah dropping the f-bomb, Mensah and Bharadawaj's chats (especially the one where they're getting prideful about their scientific specializations, very realistic), Gurathin trying to turn a chair that's not on wheels in a way that's not silly, etc. That kept me in a positive mood that still isn't fully pushed aside by the incredibly bad interrogation.

From a visual perspective, I also really liked the "Murderbot turns its head to face Gurathin" moment. It was a little awkward (as Murderbot always is), but it was also fun.

I was however generally more frustrated with how the story made Murderbot seem less competent than it is. Not just the carrying Bharadwaj, but also its detachment from the issue with the maps (it's supposed to be more involved in that), and its not pointing out as much how dangerous the company is. In the book, it's clear Murderbot knows more than the crew, but is keeping quiet out of self-preservation, but because those thoughts aren't being shown somehow, it looks more like Murderbot is following the humans' lead, even if Murderbot is clearly more aware of at least some threats, namely leaving the hub without a SecUnit and how dangerous SecUnits are.

The story is a lot more focused on the humans, and that's understandable and honestly expected, but frustrating. I care a lot more about Murderbot (and the criticism of capitalism), not the human dynamics, no matter how much I understand someone jumping Ratthi's bones.

I hope we get more of Murderbot's obsession with drones and how cool they are. We saw the one, which was nice, but that wasn't even one of Murderbot's drones.

I also appreciated we got its insistence on viewing scenes through cameras rather than its eyes. Murderbot is awkward and has anxiety, and although they don't explain why (that it's part of the unintended side effects of Murderbot's design), I enjoyed seeing how it was all executed on-screen, by and large. Murderbot sitting down in the chair was good.

Also yes, while we've argued over this ever since the announcement was made, I do think it is still a missed opportunity - at best - that the main character is played by a cis white man rather than a queer person of color, particularly someone who's non-binary or agender. I think Skarsgard does fine in the role, like I imagined he might. But they could have done a lot more with it. There's a moment where Gurathin looks at Murderbot and says like, "I just look at you and think there's something wrong" and my thought was "yeah, it's that "white men are dangerous" vibe".

Looking forward to Episode 3!

If you haven't read the books, again, consider checking them out! Kobo sells DRM-free copies, too.

Other thoughts:

Episodes 1-2 (You are here), Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5

[yaralulu]

Summary: Reuniting with Tamlin after fifty years has only made Lucien want more. What’s the worst that can happen on a night out with an old friend?

Words: 12,743

A/N: this is technically chapter 2 of it’s been a long, long time (ik it’s been 46 years 🤧) but i decided to make it its own fic bc the vibes were just WAY too different. i think chapter 1 works well as a standalone so i didn’t wanna mess with that. this is for me and the messy ppl who wanted to watch tamlin and lucien destroy their lives in real time 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️.

Read on AO3

Excerpt below (I have shame and won’t post my smut on tumblr):

He goes back.

A week later him and Tamlin are at the bar again because apparently Lucien really wants to recreate all those times he was carried home by Tamlin. For old time’s sake and all. The bar’s more hollowed out this time of the week, more room for them to breathe and talk and take the night a little slower. Strech it out, savor every rare moment of it. And true to that, Lucien is still on his first drink, enjoying the way it’s creeping into his head, giving him a light buzz that pumps his confidence and makes it easier to smooth-talk around Tamlin. The mother knows he needs it.

It’s not any easier being around him. He’s still getting used to how different everything is about him now, from the way he looks down to the way he acts. Still learning to be okay with the fact that he doesn’t know him quite as well anymore. It’s why he’s here; he wants to catch up and know this version of him. 

It’s weird hanging out with him again—maybe weird isn’t the right adjective but it’s…nervewracking. Lucien is nervous, breaking out with it actually and he’s not used to being nervous, doesn’t know how to act when his body and mind seem incapable of aligning their reactions and working as a unit like they should. This is different than last week. Last week was just an introduction to the new chapters of their lives, them doing the good old catch-up tale and overcoming the shock of how much time has really passed. But this…this is them hanging out. Like two normal friends, bound by no expectations or rules, and it feels like Lucien has time-jumped a hundred years into the past. To an era where being around each other was as mindless as breathing, as routine as waking up every morning. Second nature. 

Some of that echoes even now.

They talk and they laugh and there’s a rhythm to their interactions, a familiar flow that keeps waving in. But it’s like they’re dancing and Lucien can’t seem to remember the steps or how to shuffle his feet. He’s getting there though. With every minute he spends with Tamlin he picks up a move, remembers a step, fills in the gaps of this dance of theirs that’s as old as time. 

It’s weird. It’s new. It’s uncharted territory and home all at once.

“You really want to go head to head on a knife throwing game?” Lucien says, challenging, brows raised above his half-empty glass. They’ve been here half an hour or so, and Tamlin has been eyeing the group of males playing at the dartboard since they got here. It’s apparently sparked his interest.

Tamlin narrows his eyes, flashing bright in the dimmed light. “I don’t like what your tone is implying.”

Lucien can’t fight the smirk that tips up his lips. “That what?” He leans in a little closer, and Tamlin’s scent crowds him—clean soap, the natural musk of him that’s so him, a hint of roses like always. It’s dizzying. Makes Lucien feel off balance on this stool, like he might just fall off the longer Tamlin looks at him. He wants to blame the alcohol but he’s barely half a glass in. This is all Tamlin and his wicked effects.

“That I’m gonna lose,”  Tamlin remarks, offense all around the word lose though his grin betrays him. There’s a sudden determination beaiming his face, a familiar competitiveness burning in him that Lucien wants to get close to.

“Well. You are.” He coos, cocky and confident with a wide grin to go along with it. One he remembers makes Tamlin a tad wild. Tamlin mirrors it almost too perfectly, eyes glowing at the face of some competition, and its all it takes before he’s pushing through the crowd and dragging Lucien to the dartboard to prove him wrong.