#honestly i just got out of a recording session which i jumped into shortly after home from work

[equalseleventhirds]

the more gomens2 i consume the stronger the urge grows to go 'if x event had happened in the bookverse it would've been y instead'

but that would be fun only for me and like, five select mutuals, and would simply torment everyone else and probably draw the ire of some fans. so i won't.

[imaginetonyandbucky]

Height diference ,Size kink Tony is just so short, fits everywhere and always looks up to Bucky as if being kneeling, so Bucky really can't stand being in a room with him wihout getting horny

Summary: James Barnes, former Winter Soldier and current hot mess, is trying to gather the courage to make a move on the maybe hot mess but definitely hot Tony Stark. An undercover mission gone awry gives him the chance he was looking for, albeit not in the form he expected.  (Spiritual sequel to In From the Cold but it can be read as a standalone)

Link to Ao3

Feeling the Heat

Chapter 1

James would like for the record to state that if it wasn’t for Tony’s goddamn eyelashes, he wouldn’t be in this mess. He wanted to feel them on his lips when he kissed the laugh lines at the corner of Tony’s eyes and he wanted to feel them brush his skin as Tony fell asleep on his chest.  Tony’s warm brown eyes were already arresting enough without the thick fringe, the way they sparkled with amusement even when Tony wasn’t smiling or how they would go sharp and distant when he was deep in thought.  But the kicker, what really got to James the most, was the way that Tony would sometimes glance up at him through those thick eyelashes when they talked.  

Tony was short, yeah; whenever Tony stood next to him, it always surprised him that Tony only came up to his chin because honestly, Tony had so much presence that it made him seem taller.  But Clint was the same height, and so was Bruce, and neither of them made James feel tongue tied and gave him the butterflies that Tony did. Ridiculous.

So after much thought, James decided to blame the eyelashes. Weeks of study had revealed that there was a sweet spot where James could stand, far enough that Tony wouldn’t have to lift his chin but close enough that he did have to look up, that would almost always lead to at least one such glance. James had planned assassinations with less effort than conversations with Tony.

He sighed.

But if he were honest, it probably wasn’t just the eyelashes.  Tony could be next to him in the elevator and James would think about picking him up and how Tony could wrap his legs around his waist and that would bring Tony’s generous mouth level with James’s and that’s when he would have to derail his own train of thought lest he embarrass himself. On the bad days he fantasized about pulling Tony into a hug, wondering if he would fit right under his chin like it seemed like he would.  He also wanted to tuck Tony into bed and aggressively big spoon him every time Tony ghosted around the place late at night with that sad, haunted look in his eyes.  He knew Tony was strong and capable and that the Iron Man suit could take far more damage than James could in his best body armor, but he still daydreamed about being able to stand in front of Tony and protect him.  To let this mangled body save a life instead of only having memories of taking them.

“Whatcha thinking about?”

James jumped when Tony appeared right at his elbow. Tony frowned and moved his cup out of harm’s way when James almost spilled his coffee.  “Jeez, jumpy much?” Then with apparently a death wish he poked the century’s most prolific assassin in the side. “What’s got you so on edge?”

Predictably, James’s brain froze when presented with a conversational ambush, especially when he saw that Tony was wearing a tank top and low-slung jeans that revealed a tempting line of skin at his hips.  There was a smudge of grease on the back of the hand holding the coffee cup, a red line around his eyes from where he had been wearing goggles, and his hair was sticking in all directions like someone had been ruffling their hands through it.

For a quick, sharp moment James wanted him so much that his chest ached.  Swallowing around the tightness in his throat, he finally noticed that Tony was looking at him expectantly. He pulled his thoughts away from Tony’s eyelashes and realized he’d been asked a question. “Just tired,” James mumbled and got up to go back to his room, afraid his thoughts would show on his face.  He so mortified that he didn’t even notice the way Tony’s eyes followed him as he left.

(More after the break!)

.                                              ———————

Jab. Jab. Roundhouse. Elbow. Jab. Jab. Uppercut. Knee.

James let himself fall into the rhythm of his workout, the world narrowing to just him and the thud of impact as he hit the punching bag.  Behind him, Steve was on the souped-up treadmill Tony had designed for them, his strides a quick counterpoint to James’s strikes.  After thirty minutes they would switch, then lift weights, then spar, trying as ever to reach muscle exhaustion before boredom set in.  The best days were when Tony would put on a suit and spar with them outside, but he had too many demands on his time to be able to do it more than once every other week or so.

Which was probably for the best, considering that after those sparring sessions, the leftover adrenaline and endorphins gave James a hard-on that just wouldn’t quit.  He would invariably spend the next few hours masturbating until his dick got chafed to fantasies of peeling Tony out of his suit and bending him over one of his work tables, or maybe having Tony ride him on the back of one of his motorbikes.

James dragged his thoughts away from that and tried to focus on his work-out, getting back into his rhythm until the loud smack of a hand hitting a practice mat broke his concentration; looking up, he realized that on the other side of the gym Tony was getting a martial arts lesson from Natasha. He quickly forced his eyes away and back to the bag, because Tony was wearing another tank top and his biceps were almost as bad as his eyelashes.  Plus, he was also wearing those thin workout pants that always clung to his ass when he started sweating and that shit was not fair.

Jab. Jab. Jab. Elbow. Cross. Jab. Hook.

Steve tapped him on the shoulder and gestured towards the treadmill.  As he cranked up the speed, James tried to get back into the exercising mindset but his concentration was shot. Sometimes when he was tired and high on endorphins, he could have a normal conversation with Tony instead of being the tense, wound-up wreck he usually was.  Now, however, all he could think about was pinning Tony to the mat, both of them sweaty and breathing hard, and Tony looking up at him through those goddamn eyelashes-

He tripped on the treadmill and had to grab the sides before he fell.

“Careful, Buck,” Steve said with a small smile, as if he knew what James had been thinking about.  “If you bite it on a treadmill, Sam will never let you live it down.”

“Yeah, yeah,” James muttered.  “Everyone’s a fucking comedian.”

                                   ———————

A week or so later, James found himself wide awake at three in the morning, something that happened with enough regularity that he knew that he wouldn’t be going back to sleep any time soon.  With a resigned sigh he climbed out of bed and started wandering through the compound, checking that all was well while he waited to get tired enough to go back to sleep.

To his surprise, he saw a light coming from the kitchen; approaching quietly, he smiled to himself when he saw Tony staring blearily into the fridge.  He was barefoot but still wearing the clothes from earlier, his fancy dress shirt pulled free of his pants and sleeves shoved messily up to his elbows.  James gave himself a minute to watch fondly as Tony went on his tiptoes to search through the top shelf of the fridge before he cleared his throat and came closer.

“Wha- oh, hey James,” Tony said, squinting at him from around the light of the fridge. “What’re you doing up?”

“Couldn’t sleep.  You?”

“Got tied up in paperwork and now I’m hungry.” Looking over his shoulder, James realized Tony’s problem; there was a bunch of food in the fridge, but it all needed to be cooked, and while Tony could cook, he was an indifferent chef at best.  He would inevitably get impatient and turn up the burners to make everything cook faster, then wince his way gamely through his burnt meal and live off smoothies for the next few days.

James gently hipchecked him out of in front of the fridge and gestured for him to sit.  “I’ll make you something.”  He knew Tony was tired because he went without argument, claiming a seat at the bar and propping his head up on his fist as he watched James pulling eggs out of the fridge. “Omelet or scrambled?”

“Oh.” Tony perked up at that. “Omelet.”

As James chopped vegetables for the omelet, he was acutely aware of Tony’s eyes on him, feeling his gaze like the heat of the fire; despite that, though, the “What were you working on?” James said as the eggs started to sizzle.

“Budget forecasts,” Tony answered with a yawn.  “It’s that time of year, so.  I’ll be at it for the next few days.”

James made a face.  “I thought you had people for that?” He gently sidled the spatula under the egg to fold it over without breaking it and plated it, sliding it across the bar to Tony.

“I do,” Tony said shortly as he started to eat.

It took James a moment to realize why Tony wouldn’t trust anyone else to approve Stark Industries’ budget. “Oh. Right.”

Tony shrugged, like yeah, I was betrayed by an old family friend and now I have trust issues, what do you do. “This is amazing,” he said, gesturing at the omelet with his fork. Tony’s eyes softened from their tiredness and he smiled, making James felt his face get warm and turned away from Tony to put the dishes in the dishwasher.  “No problem,” he mumbled.  James knew it was time to make his escape when he was tempted to drape himself like a blanket over the tired slump of Tony’s shoulders and press a kiss to his messy hair, so he said something about getting some sleep and fled.

                           ———————

“No, it hasn’t happened yet, but it will, I swear,” Tony said into his phone as he bounded up the stairs leading to the shared living room.  From his half-hidden position next to a giant ficus tree, James took the chance to look his fill before Tony noticed him.  Today he was wearing a burgundy dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up over his forearms and a vest; his collar was unbuttoned and the small vee of skin showing there, the divot at the base of Tony’s throat, made James die a little. “Why do you care so much? Is there a betting pool? Do you have money on this? Because if so I want in.” As he listened to whoever was on the phone – probably Colonel Rhodes, judging from the way Tony was grinning at whatever he was saying – he was searching the couches and coffee tables.

James looked guiltily at Tony’s tablet on the table next to him, which he had used earlier instead of going all the way back to his room for his own.  Discretely, he cleared the browser history and cleared his throat to get Tony’s attention, waving the tablet at him.

“Hold on a second,” Tony said into his phone then tucked it under his arm as he took the tablet.  “Thanks, Terminator.  How are you doing today?”

James shrugged, barely able to look at Tony straight on.  “Not bad.  Had therapy this morning.”  The therapist had said that his infatuation with Tony was good, that it was a sign that he was emotionally ready for a relationship, and encouraged him to make a move.  James had stared at her like she was speaking Ancient Greek.  “Going to watch a movie with Steve and Sam this afternoon.”

“Oh, yeah?” Tony grinned.  “Which movie?”

“The one about the giant shark.”

Tony made a thoughtful noise.  “The dinosaur one is better.  You and I should go see that one sometime.”

Now James was staring at Tony like he was speaking Ancient Greek. “Oh…kay?”

“Good.”  With another blinding grin, Tony put his phone up to his ear. “Alright, I’m back, Rhodey.  I have my tablet, what was it that you wanted me to look at?”

“He said we should go see a movie together,” James said. “What does that mean?”

Natasha shrugged and didn’t look up from painting her toenails. “That he wants to see a movie with you?”

“But is it a date? Did he ask me out on a date?”  Is this what a heart attack felt like? James felt the need to lay down, so he slid out of the chair and laid down on the floor to stare at the ceiling.

“I don’t know, you’ll have to ask him.”  She laughed when James said something uncomplimentary in Russian. “I think it’s a good idea though. You would be good for him.”

“How?” He asked, spreading his hands wide. “I’m a fucking basket case.”

“Bold of you to assume we aren’t all basket cases,” she said with a raised eyebrow. “But you’re a mother hen, it’s in your nature to take care of people.  And Tony has a bad habit of running himself into the ground if he thinks it’s for a good cause, so if anyone could use a mother hen it’s him.”

James was speechless. “Mother hen?” he repeated incredulously, turning his head to look at her.

“You heard me.” Natasha straightened and admired her toes then started on the other foot.

James grunted and watched her careful strokes with the tiny paintbrush as he thought about what she’d said.  What’s the worst that could happen? He couldn’t imagine Tony being cruel about turning him down if he wasn’t interested.  And if he wasn’t, Bucky could track down the nearest Hydra base, wipe his own memory, and move to Mongolia. “Ok,” he said finally. “Sure.  I’ll ask him out on a date.”

[onestowatch]

Turbo’s “Heart Stop” Is Proving Country/Hip-Hop Is More Than a Passing Fad [Q&A]

Photos: Joseph Morrison

In a space defined by viral, meme-worthy tracks like Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” and RMR’s “RASCAL,” enters Calgary-born artist and producer Turbo. The country/hip-hop crossover artist and his latest single “Heart Stop” combines traditional rap beats with acoustic guitar and catchy lines like “you wanna party with a rock star?” The song is confident and honest, honoring the defining features of each genre without the exaggeration typically seen in other crossover tracks.  

The son of a prominent bluegrass guitarist, Turbo grew up with country music but also drew inspiration from unlikely sources. Drawn to rap and hardstyle at an early age, he cites Avicii’s “LE7ELS” as the reason why he began producing. 

After quitting music for years, he ultimately came back to it after high school and became obsessed with production, perfecting his skills. Eventually, this persistence led him to the creation of “Heart Stop,” released via 10K Projects / Homemade Projects / Internet Money Records. 

Ones to Watch got to ask the rising artist about his father’s influence, taking his friend to the hospital during the making of “Heart Stop,” and his thoughts on country/rap crossovers. 

Ones To Watch: You grew up the son of a famous bluegrass musician. How has your father's career in music influenced your own? Has he given any good advice?

Turbo: My father’s talent has always been a huge inspiration. He’s also very wise and gives good advice for the decisions I’ve been making here. Bluegrass is a very unique form of country music. It’s almost an acquired taste, once you appreciate the skills of a bluegrass musician, you can’t get enough of it. I’ve always admired my Dad’s confidence and presence when he’s on stage shredding brass and singin’. 

You started producing at a young age, but you stopped working on it for a few years until you turned 18. Why did you take such a long period off, and what was the turning point for you that made you want to commit yourself to music again?

I set aside my creativity around the age of 12 and became enveloped in trying to make friends at school and fit in with certain groups. I can’t remember a time where I felt secure/safe in school. My grades were awful. I was both bullied and the bully at times. I eventually got sick of trying to fit in and just went with the flow and by high school I made an amazing group of friends that actually supports me and trusts me, and I would die for them. 

Like I said, my grades were bad, so I didn’t get into university after high school. I didn’t even know what I wanted to do with my life, I just wanted to go to school with my friends, wherever that be. I enrolled in online courses at a learning centre to upgrade. That ended up being a disaster… At the end of the first semester, I was jumped in the school parking lot by group of idiots. I dropped out because I refused to go back to the school itself, and the school never transferred my grades online.... rubbish. My parents felt a lot of concern for me, so they let me hunker down and take time off school. I got a job at a liquor store. 

It wasn’t long before I picked up old hobbies, including producing music. I remember I would lay on my bed after all of this happened, listening to the new music that was coming out, becoming obsessed again, sparking a vision. I pretty much spent 100% of my free time producing music after that. Every day it slowly pieced itself together, I had no idea I’d make it this far.

Your music has both hip-hop and country influences which, before the days of "Old Town Road," was practically unheard of. Did you ever expect this kind of crossover to become mainstream, and why do you think people are finding hip-hop and country crossovers so appealing?

In the 21st century, there’s heaps of music, let alone genres. People don’t tend to listen to one genre. As a matter of fact, people will just name the genre they don’t like instead. Musicians are like this too. Music inspires music, so I think country-hip-hop was inevitable. I tried to be the first big artist, but Lil Tracy x Lil Uzi beat me there. Then Lil Nas X came shortly after. I believe that meme culture is the gateway for this genre. It’s not being taken too seriously. That’s the fun in it. Just let go and get hillbilly and be open minded. My mission, though, is to show people that this is the start of something enormous, not a temporary trend.  

How did your debut single, "Heart Stop," come together?

I made “Heart Stop” with Alec Wigdahl, Cody (CXDY), Henry (Pharaoh Vice), Edgard Herrera, Taz Taylor and myself. Right away I went in the studio with a large group of Internet Money producers and the mission was to create brand new music on the spot. Nothing came out of me. It wasn’t looking good for Turbo. 

The session came to an abrupt stop when Taz suddenly got rushed to the hospital because he wasn’t feeling well. A few hours later we found out Taz was doing okay, so we got back to work. The vibes were now really strange, aside from my nervousness. We sat back down in the studio and started from scratch again. I wanted guitar, so the famous, Alec Wigdahl, laid it down, and then Cody, Henry, and Tanner laid down the beat.

I was freestyling a bit but couldn’t come up with much, so Alec stuck around and wrote the chorus with me. I started with, “You wanna party with a rockstar?” Alec rhymed it with “I’m not afraid to make your Heart Stop,” and we just looked at each other and smiled because it was such a fit for the night that just went down. I wrote the verse myself, Edgard engineered it, and the next day Taz woke up in the hospital bumping that shit. I’ll never forget that feeling. 

You are quoted saying "the best songs come from me sitting in a room alone and just taking my time." What part of song creation do you love most? 

My favorite part is writing hooks. I know how to make something stick in your head. There’s no formula, I usually just imagine a crowd at a concert or party singing the lyrics. I like to be alone because when people are in the room, it feels as though you have to perform for them, which may not be 100% genuine. Although collaboration does go a long way and Alec was the first person I made a song with, and it went great. Most of my songs on my new project were written when I was alone. 

What is a typical day in quarantine for you?

Typical day of quarantine contains waking up around 2pm, making a cup of coffee while FaceTiming my manager Niall, playing guitar for at least an hour, then I hit the Xbox with the fellas. The past few weeks has been busy with my music video and song release. No time for toys, boy’s gotta work. I haven’t worked on too much new music since quarantine because I’m stuck at home... I’m ready to get back in the studio soon. 

Who are your Ones to Watch?

My Ones to Watch are currently Alec Wigdahl, lil spirit, Ty Fontaine, Moe Young. I know these are people beside me, but this roster is honestly unmatched. Taz Taylor has the next generation under his wing, and it’s a matter of time before we take over.

Listen to “Heart Stop” below: 

[dawnover-dusk]

Future (Yugyeom)

genre: sort of college!AU?, fluff

word count: 2,826

note: I used to be total JYP trash, and this was one of the first scenarios I wrote/posted before deleting that blog completely. I thought it could just live here now …. and ya’ll can cringe along with me

series: i used to be a got7 stan until they finally found their music sound and i didn’t like it lol

Future (Yugyeom) | Problem (Jinyoung) | Falling Slow (Youngjae)

“Hey it’s your girl Jimin! You know what to do.”

You sighed as you ended the call and tossed your phone onto your bed. You followed your phone shortly after, the mattress squeaking as it took the brunt of your weight. Pressing your face against the pillow, you let out a whine, wondering why your best friend wasn’t picking up your calls. The showcase is this weekend, so I guess they’re practicing…

You rolled onto your back and stared up at the cracked ceiling of your dorm room. I have nothing to do on a Friday night, you mused, listening to the quiet sound of rain and cars rounding the block. You grasped for your phone and turned it on, flicking through Instagram and watching Snapchat stories with no particular interest in anyone else’s life…

Wait.

You swore that you just saw Yugyeom run by as Jimin lip synced to a song in the foreground—and was that Jinyoung in a dress?

Grinning, you texted Jimin with several laughing emojis and a “Props to Jinyoung for fly-kicking Yugyeom while in a bodycon dress. Is this what people in your department do all day?”

You were jolted from your self-induced YouTube haze by the sound of Taylor Swift welcoming you to New York. You located your phone and fumbled with its case, muttering, “Yes, Taylor, I’ve lived in New York my entire life…” before seeing an extreme close up shot of Jimin’s face as your caller ID. You giggled to yourself and as soon as you answered the call, you heard Jimin shout, “COME DOWNSTAIRS!”

Looking out of the window, you saw Jimin standing at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the porch, her arms folded against the early spring chill. You waved at her and dashed downstairs to meet her on the porch. She met you with a hug and you jumped up and down, cheerfully shouting, “Weekly hangout sesh!” You let go when you heard the sound of gravel crunching as a car drove down the driveway. As the car came to a stop, the door opened to reveal Yugyeom, who grinned at you and extended his hand out to offer you your favorite iced drink. You let out a small “hooray” as he sipped on a chocolate shake.

“Okay, my turn to drive!” Jimin squealed as she tossed her small bag onto the passenger’s seat. She began to adjust the mirrors and the seat to fit her infinitely smaller frame as Yugyeom switched to the backseat. Shrugging, you began to walk around the car towards the passenger door when Jimin stopped you.

“Nope, my bag called shotgun. Go sit with Yugyeom,” she teased, mischievously smiling at you. Confusion crossed your face as you glanced at Yugyeom through the open door. You weren’t sure if it was the dim lighting or not, but you saw his cheeks flush before his face retreated into the shadows as he moved to make room for you.

“Can I just say that Yugyeom is six feet tall and that this makes no sense? Or can I just pull my seniority card here?” you asked. Jimin responded by getting into the car and closing her door. You sighed and got into the backseat, noticing that your outer thigh was flush against Yugyeom’s lanky legs.

Your chin found Yugyeom’s shoulder as you whispered, “Does she know that she’s going twenty below the speed limit?” He laughed as he glanced at the speedometer. Sure enough, Jimin was going at twenty miles per hour at ten o’clock at night. Yugyeom reached over to flick the back of the girl’s head, who let out a loud “Yah!” in surprise.

“Jimin, just pull over and switch with me,” Yugyeom sighed. “I told you that it’s different driving at night.”

“No, no, I got this.”

“You know that we could’ve just walked over the Got7 house faster than it’s taking you right now?”

“You know that you should just shut up, right?” Jimin retorted before conceding defeat and putting the car into park.

You shook your head as you watched the two of them before muttering, “Why am I friends with freshmen?”

“HEY!”

Yugyeom held the door open for you as you took off your shoes and ran to hug the older members of the performance group. Got7 was a subunit of the largest dance crew at your university, JYPENT, founded by an alumnus known notoriously by his initials, JYP. You heard that he ended up founding a real entertainment company and would frequently come to the showcases held at the end of each semester to recruit talent.

“What took you so long?” Jinyoung asked, slinging his arm around your shoulders.

“Jimin was driving,” you exaggeratedly sobbed and placed a hand on your forehead, “I thought I was going to die!”

“Okay, you don’t even have your driver’s license and you’re old, so back off,” Jimin sassed.

“Also, save the acting for the PMAs.”

“Speaking of performing and media arts students…” You opened Snapchat on your phone and played Jimin’s story again. “Jinyoung, do I even want to know?”

“Oh, that’s the dress for my solo stage in the showcase!” Jimin remarked. “Jinyoung joked that he could fit into it—let me tell you, I did not know what to feel when I saw that. I think I’m honestly traumatized.”

Jinyoung hit Jimin’s shoulder lightly in protest as the younger girl ran off to talk to Jaebum with a light bounce in her steps.

-

You first met Jinyoung during your sophomore year at the university’s Writing Institute, where you were paired on shift to offer feedback on student assignments and essays. Through him, you met many of the JYPENT members, and you began to help behind the scenes during their big showcases. You were especially close to the older members of Got7 as you were the same year as them, and you looked forward to graduating with them in May.

With the addition of the newest members of JYPENT, Jimin, Yugyeom, and BamBam served to round out your group of friends by bringing spontaneity and carefreeness. Jimin even brought Yerin out of her quiet shell, and seeing them perform on stage together moved you to tears sometimes. Although you called them your babies, Jimin quickly became a friend that you could rely on, even with the age difference.

Unknown to you, however, was that she was also trying to get you with Yugyeom ever since the fall, when she saw his face light up with glee after you stole his fluffy black sweater to wear on your walk home after a late night dance practice session.

Jimin didn’t let him live it down.

She had decided that tonight was the night to put her plan, which she lovingly referred to as “Make Gyeomie a Man!”, into action. It was already late April, the showcase was this weekend, and you were set to graduate next month. It was now or never! She made eye contact with Jinyoung and Jaebum, whom she had recruited to this mission, and jerked her head to the side.

Jaebum rolled his eyes. He thought this whole thing was quite juvenile, and honestly, he had told Yugyeom to just confess before they graduated, or he would regret it. Jaebum couldn’t help but indulge Jimin in her shenanigans, though, so he reluctantly walked over to speak with Yugyeom.

“You’re not hitting your moves cleanly,” he stated bluntly. Yugyeom looked at the leader of his group in slight confusion as BamBam scurried off. Jaebum sighed and pulled out his phone. “I’ve been monitoring the dance practices, and your moves are not sharp enough; they’re almost sluggish. I know JYP is coming for tomorrow’s showcase, and I know that this is your dream, so I want you to do your best, okay?”

Yugyeom quietly nodded, even though he was confused by the suddenness of the conversation. Jaebum smiled contently and added, “It’s already eleven, so you should fit in an hour of practice and then have a good sleep.” He smirked when he saw Yugyeom’s eyes wander to where you were seated on the floor of the living room, playing with Coco. “You should ask if she wants to accompany you; she was actually the one to point out the mistakes in our choreography,” he lied easily. “She could provide good feedback.”

On her end, Jimin sat next to you as you and Youngjae played fetch with Coco. Jimin was watching the conversation across the room, though, and as it wound down, she nudged you for your attention.

“Hey, Jaebum’s making Yugyeom practice the choreography again tonight. You should probably get your stuff out of his car.”

You frowned as you checked your phone for the time. “It’s so late though! And the showcase is tomorrow.”

“Yeah, Jaebummie just wants Yugyeom to be perfect so he can get scouted tomorrow and officially join the company as a trainee.

“Well, he’s not going to be perfect if he’s half asleep!”

Your attention turned to the tall boy walking towards you. Getting up from the floor, you wiped stray dog fur from your jeans as he asked, “I’m going to go to the practice room, do you need a ride home?”

“Nah, I’ll keep you company. Though I may fall asleep, being old and all,” you joked. You hugged Jimin and the rest of the Got7 members before you left, promising to arrive early to help set up the showcase tomorrow.  

-

You ended up recording his choreography practices on your phone, and you pointed out spots where he seemed off or could have cleaner moves. As he spun and posed for the final move, sweat dripping down his forehead, he turned around in the silent room to see you asleep on the couch. Looking at his phone, he frowned to see that it was already one in the morning, and he felt a little bad for keeping you out so late. Grabbing your phone and putting it in his pocket, he gently lifted you up and carried you to the car.

As he parked the car in the driveway, he heard you stirring awake in the backseat. Your voice came out scratchy when you asked him for the time, and you nodded sleepily as you opened the door. “I’ll just stay the night; you should get some sleep.”

The two of you walked into the quiet house. He shuffled to grab you one of his t-shirts and left the room as you changed. Yawning, you padded into the living room, intent on sleeping on the couch, but you found him nestling into the blankets.

“Yugyeom, go sleep in your bed. You have to dance tomorrow,” you whispered, pointing to the room that you just came out of. Yugyeom waved you off, but you grabbed his hand and pulled him off the couch. “Let’s just share it,” you suggested.

Yugyeom’s eyes widened slightly when you pulled him back into his bedroom. You began to climb into one side of the bed as he stood there, staring at you in a mixture of shock and panic. You sighed and said, “You have a queen sized bed because you’re freakishly tall, let’s just sleep.”

He snapped out of his state and turned off the light, climbing into the bed as well. He made sure to leave a body’s width of space between the two of you, but you foiled his plan when you curled up, close enough for him to feel your body heat, and whispered good night.

-

Yugyeom woke up an hour before noon, and to his disappointment, he found your side of the bed empty and smoothed out. Grabbing the note that you left on the pillow, he smiled as he read that you were preparing the auditorium and that you had left some breakfast in the microwave.

After a day of last minute practices with his group, wardrobe fittings, hair and makeup, he finally found you checking the seating placements for the reserved rows at the showcase venue. Your face brightened as you saw him in his stage outfit, and you wrapped you arms around him, inhaling the scent of his leather jacket. “Look, you’re all grown up,” you smiled, “I think I might cry.”

Withdrawing from the hug, you looked up at him before standing on one of the seats to get to his eye level. You placed your hands on his shoulders and said, “This is my last showcase, so you better kill it out there, okay? And then you will get scouted and I can sell your sweater on Ebay for millions.” You smiled at him before wrapping your arms around his shoulders, bringing him into one last hug before dress rehearsals began.

Jaebum watched the two of you and smiled. He texted Jimin, “Surprisingly, I think your plan worked.”

Jimin replied a few seconds later, “Did you doubt me?!!! Also, Jinyoung totally stretched out my dress, ugh~”

-

The lights dimmed as the last performance for the night ended. Loud cheers and claps reverberated through the auditorium as Jaebum stepped onto the stage to thank the crew members and the behind the scenes staff. You watched from stage right, trying to contain your emotions as your last showcase was coming to a close.

“Finally, we would like to thank an honorary member of JYPENT, who has helped us practice and stayed up with us for three years while we chased our dreams,” Jaebum said, his voice crackling through the speakers. He pointed over to where you were standing, and you felt a gentle shove to go towards the spotlight. Jimin and Yerin walked over from the opposite side of the stage and handed you a bouquet of flowers. You could hear Jackson shout from backstage to make a speech.

“I’m so thankful that I got the opportunity to work with all the JYPENT members, especially because I’m not in their field of study. To all those who have already graduated and to those who I haven’t met yet, I hope you all achieve all the things that you’ve dreamt of doing…JYPENT has been my second family…”

Your voice faltered as you began to cry. You tried to hide behind the bouquet of flowers as the audience cheered. Jimin hugged you as the rest of the JYPENT members swarmed onto the stage for a final dance party.

Your friend steered you backstage and into the the arms of Yugyeom, who ran his fingers through your hair as you pressed your head against his chest. Jimin excused herself to join the dance party on stage, but not without snapping a few pictures of you two on her phone. She ran out laughing as Yugyeom glared at her and drew his thumb across his throat as a threat.

Your breathing calmed as you hesitantly whispered, “I’m going to miss you the most, Gyeomie.” He pulled a way slightly, and with incredible fondness in his eyes, he leaned in and cautiously kissed you. You responded by tip-toeing and pulling him closer.

-

The remaining JYPENT members hollered as you and the graduating members walked down to receive your diplomas. You spent the rest of the day taking pictures with your second family, determined to preserve these memories for years to come.

At the barbeque held at the Got7 house, you felt arms around your waist as Yugyeom bent down to whisper excitedly, “Guess what?!” Boyish glee was written all over his face and you faced him, his arms still settled comfortably on your lower back.

“You’re officially a trainee?” You deadpanned. His face fell into a pout, complaining that you had “ruined the surprise.”

You laughed and reached up to ruffle his hair. “My boyfriend’s super talented, so why wouldn’t any entertainment company want him?”

Jimin and Jackson sighed and said dramatically, “Oh, young love!” You turned to look at your best friend before tackling her to the ground and tickling her until she surrendered.

“And I know you’re a trainee too, Miss Solo Artist!” You got off of her and helped her back up as she tried to steady her breathing. “Ugh, I hate how you all are so talented; you’re all going to be famous and forget about little old me.”

“Never!” Jimin gasped in an expression of mock hurt. “I’ll forget about you in a few years tops, so you’ll still be ‘little young me.’”

You groaned at her joke and slapped her shoulder. “Okay Miss Thing, this is why you are a singer and not a comedian.”

Jimin nodded at Yugyeom, who was fooling around with the other Got7 members. “Have you told him about your grad school plans yet?”

You smiled smugly. “Nah, it’s still sort of nice to hear all these reassurances about our relationship and how he’s going to make it work and whatnot. I honestly think he’s more worried about it than me!” you exclaimed.

[paranormalhousewife]

In my previous post I introduced you to Al… well, George as he was originally known by. As I had mentioned, it took a few years before I learned who he really was. This post is about how I learned about him.

Shortly after I moved out the apartment I noticed that the tapping on the windows and walls had followed me. Out of habit I would say hi to George and it would usually stop. A few years later I started working with a paranormal team based out of Wilmington, NC. They were just starting out and I was helping them find and train new members. I would commute down every other weekend or so from my Dad’s house (where I was currently living) to Wilmington. I went on a few investigations with them. They were the first team that I worked with to have an ovilus. It quickly became my favorite tool to use because it allowed me to talk George. Often though during investigations George proved to be a prankster. He would imitate supposed spirits of the area just to get talk time on the ovilus. Eventually I would catch on because to date, he is one of two to actually make the ovilus speak two or three-word phrases most of the time. I would call him out and tell him that he needed to let the other spirits speak. I don’t know if it was because he could show the other spirits how to use the equipment or they felt more comfortable because George was there, but we always got more evidence when George was on the investigations with us.

George definitely proved to protective of me at times. I remember one investigation in Virginia. We hadn’t even really started the investigation when stuff started happening. We were all sitting around the dining table get our equipment ready (checking batteries, making sure cameras were working, testing voice recorders, etc.). I remember that evening I was feeling kind of down. I was dealing with a break up and hadn’t quite shaken that off yet. While I was checking my equipment one of the investigators on the team who was testing the video recorder gasp and started recording me. I was confused and looking around the group. Everyone was staring at me. Even our hosts. It was then I realized I felt movement on my hair which was weird because I had it up in a bun and hairband as was the usual at that point for investigations. After a few moments the girl holding the video camera showed me what she recorded. On the video she captured my headband coming up backwards off my head before moving forward to sit like a crown on my head. I reached up and my headband was still sitting like that. Don’t ask me how I knew it, but I knew George had done that to try and cheer me up. I don’t have access to the video anymore because I broke ties with that group once I found out that the leader of the group liked to fake a lot of his evidence to get more likes and follows on social media.

Later that night we were doing an EVP session with the ovilus in one of the upstairs rooms. I was sitting on the floor by a courting couch. We started jokingly asking questions if one of the ghosts wanted to sit on the couch with one of us. When it came time for me to ask if the spirit wanted to sit with me the ovilus said yes. So, I followed up with did they want to court me since it was a courting couch. The ovilus stayed quiet. The leader of the group then asked if he should sit on the couch with me. The ovilus very quickly said no. So, the leader asked if he could court me since the spirit didn’t want to (which was creepy in the fact that he was twice my age and on an investigation with his live-in girlfriend). All of the sudden the ovilus let out a HIGH-pitched screech. While I was recoiling and covering my ears I didn’t see the leader suddenly jump, scream and jump back. He said that he had stood up to check on the ovilus when a large black shadow rushed at him from across the room and went through him. Half the group actually witnessed it as well. At the time I didn’t know it was George until later when George did that to someone else and to me a couple of times. I know it sounds scary, but I now know it was his way of protecting me from someone.

It was about another year before I figured out that George was actually Al. The group was actually at Jeremy’s house conducting an investigation and George was coming through the ovilus very strongly. He refused to give up microphone so to speak. So, we took opportunity to really talk to him and have him tell us about himself. That’s when he told us name was Al. Then he started saying the word Rall on repeat. We didn’t know what it meant so we broke our rules and broke out our cell phones to start googling what he was saying. Finally, we found out about a naval ship called the USS Rall. Upon further investigating we found out that one of the crew members killed on the ship was named Alexander Gordon Taylor. While talking to the spirit we now know was Al, Al told us more information about himself that we were able to confirm online. He was from Pennsylvania (like Jeremy and my dad). I asked Al why he chose to watch over me. The ovilus responded with ring. That’s when I remembered that right before I moved into the apartment my dad had given me a ring that he had worn since he was 18 years old. I asked Al if he was attached to that ring and he said yes. I asked him why. The ovilus said “Dad. Crazy. Ass. Safe.” I asked if he meant my dad was a crazy ass (ass is definitely not programmed in the ovilus). The ovilus responded with “Yes. Now safe”. So I asked it “Do you mean you kept my dad safe?” “Yes.”

It was later I find out that on April 12th, 1945 a kamikaze pilot crashed into the USS Rall which caused Al’s death. Later the ship was taken to Charleston, SC and sold for scraps. Some of those scraps ended up on the USS Iwo Jima which launched April 12th, 1965. Twenty years to the day that Al was killed. My dad served on the USS Iwo Jima during Vietnam. When I told Dad about Al and what he said during the investigation my dad agreed with Al that he was a crazy ass in Vietnam. He often took on missions that others shied away from because of the danger. Dad also said that he lived through stuff he shouldn’t have. His superiors thought he had a death wish but my dad survived Vietnam. He was one of the lucky ones that made it home. Even after he got out of the military, my dad was in situations that he shouldn’t have made it out of as a police officer. We both started wondering if that was because of Al watching over him. Either way Dad was happy that I had someone else watching over me.

Once I realized who Al really was I started doing some research on him. I wasn’t able to find much but I did find out that he was from Harrisburg, PA. He had a wife and possibly children. He was a Navy reservist. Once we are stateside I want to go to Harrisburg to do more research on him and try to find his family. I know he would love to see them and know they are okay. When Jeremy and I had talked about going before to Pennsylvania, I happened to look out the window of our old front door. I couldn’t see clearly because of the way the glass was cut but I could see what looked like a man dress in Navy dress whites standing at the door. The man did a sharp turn (like the kind you see military members do) and walk away. I ran to the door and opened it thinking someone had walked up to the door and was leaving. Our doorbell didn’t work at the time and the person may not have known that. I went onto the porch and realized there was no one there. No one on the street and no cars leaving. I honestly think it was Al.

Speaking of stateside, I know Al will be happy to be out of Japan. He has shown up a few times while we were here, but he definitely isn’t happy about it. In fact, before we moved here, Jeremy, his friend Seth, and I sat down to talk to Al. We recorded most of the conversation. I have the video of it below. You can see how he has a unique speech pattern with the ovilus. The fact that he runs so many words together quickly (which you aren’t supposed to be able to do with an ovilus) usually alerts me to when it’s Al talking versus another spirit. Please excuse the screaming at the end. Right before the screaming you’ll hear the ovilus say “turn around”. What we didn’t realize at the time was that my black cat, Kali Ma, was walking behind me and jumped up on the table. Having a black shadow launch itself into your face in the dark usually scares anyone. So, me and two Marines started screaming when Kali Ma startled us.

I’m so appreciative of Al. He shows me kindness when I need it, tough love when I need it, and protects me from others he thinks are trying to harm me. I have more Al stories to share but those are for another day.

In my next post I’ll tell y’all about how Jeremy and I accidentally adopted a spirit that makes it impossible to have a pet sitter.

Meet Our Ghosts: Al (Part Two) In my previous post I introduced you to Al… well, George as he was originally known by.

[filipeteimuraz]

How to Improve Your Customer Service with These 8 Ways to Get Feedback

It doesn’t matter what type of business you have or how long you’ve run it. Your customers are the lifelines of your brand.

Whether you sell products, offer services, or a combination of the two, customer service needs to be one of your top priorities.

You could have the best product in the world, but if you don’t treat your customers well, it’s going to hurt your bottom line. On the flip side, you could have a product that’s average, or even subpar, and be extremely profitable if you provide excellent customer service.

How is that possible? Well, the numbers don’t lie.

According to research, 80% of consumers say they’re willing to pay more money to businesses offering better customer service.

But that’s not all. Failing to provide good customer service can result in the loss of your customers.

What exactly causes a business to lose customers? Research shows that only 14% of customers stop supporting a business because they are not satisfied with their products or services. And 9% leave because of the price.

But look at the top reason why customers leave a business. Nearly seven out of 10 customers will leave because they don’t feel valued.

In short, customer service is more important than what you’re selling.

Now that we’ve established why improving your customer service is important, it’s time to take steps in that direction. But how can you improve your customer service if you don’t know what your customers want?

It’s simple. Just ask them.

Getting feedback from your customers is a crucial component of your customer support strategy.

It shows them you care about their opinions. Furthermore, the results can help you better your business and ultimately make more money.

If you want to provide excellent customer service, I’ve narrowed down the top 8 ways to get feedback from your customers.

1. Create surveys

Leveraging customer surveys is the most logical place to start your quest for feedback.

Depending on what you’re using the survey for, the questions and potential responses can vary.

It’s important to have a clear goal when you’re creating these. For example, if you’re trying to improve your customer service, you don’t necessarily need to ask the customer about a specific product.

That said, surveying customers about a previous purchase shows them you value their opinions, which they perceive as good customer service.

The idea is to get your information and get out as soon as possible. Customers don’t want to fill out a 20-minute survey.

People are busy. In all honesty, they’ve got better things to do. I recommend using an online resource such as SurveyMonkey to create your surveys.

You can create an account for free and have access to templates and pre-written questions about specific topics. Obviously, you can customize those to fit your business and goals.

Once your survey is complete, it’s easy to distribute it electronically to your customers through all your marketing channels.

Since time is of the essence here, keep your surveys short and limit them to a handful of questions. Don’t ask obvious or misleading questions.

Don’t ask questions and provide answers you want to hear. You may be doing things wrong. Allow your customers to share that information with you.

Sometimes you need to give your customers some extra incentive to fill out a survey to get as many responses as possible. A discount off their next purchase should be sufficient.

2. Interviews

Interviews might not work for your business.

It’s much easier for brands with brick and mortar locations to conduct interviews than for online businesses.

Sure, ecommerce companies can still interview customers. But they’d have to set up a Skype session or phone call to do so. This isn’t impossible, but it’s more of a hassle.

But those of you with physical store locations can interview customers when they shop in person.

The best time to do this is after the customer has checked out and is getting ready to leave. You don’t want to bother customers while they are shopping because it could potentially prevent them from making a purchase.

Since it’s not the most common practice, this strategy could really help you gain an edge over your competitors.

Nearly 90% of marketing experts believe that improving the customer experience is the top factor for differentiating their brand from the competition.

Before the customer leaves your store, politely ask them if they have five minutes to answer some questions. If you tell them the interview is going to be five minutes, you’d better stick to five minutes.

Conduct the interview away from the register so it doesn’t hold up your line.

It doesn’t need to be in an office, but go somewhere with some privacy so other employees and customers can’t hear the responses.

Introduce yourself and explain why you’re conducting the interview. Establish a rapport with the interviewee so they feel comfortable answering your questions honestly.

Make it clear that you won’t be offended by their responses. Some customers may be hesitant to provide negative feedback if they are saying it directly to your face.

You’ll need to let your guard down and ask questions in a way that gives them the opportunity to say how they truly feel.

The great thing about an interview, as opposed to a survey, is that the answers are more authentic. Customers have a chance to tell you what’s on their minds, without having to select from a pre-determined list of survey responses.

Record your interviews, with the customer’s permission, of course. That way you won’t have to scramble to write notes while they are speaking.

Again, you can offer an incentive to customers who take the time to answer your questions. Thank them for their time, and give them a coupon.

3. Add a comment box to your website

This one is pretty simple.

Include a customer feedback form on your website. That way, people who are visiting can see this as an opportunity to share their opinions.

Here’s an example of a basic version of a comment box on the BuildFire website:

You have different options with these comment boxes. As you can see in the example above, this form requires you to include your name and email address with the message.

But you could provide the visitor with an anonymous option.

If customers do provide you with their contact information, it’s always in your best interest to reach out to them when you receive the message. This is especially true if they are voicing a complaint.

Apologize for any inconvenience you may have caused them. Offer a solution.

Let them know that you value them as a customer and that you’ll make improvements to ensure this won’t happen again. Thank them for reaching out to you.

Here’s something else to keep in mind. Don’t be discouraged by negative comments.

You should be thankful the customer told you about their poor experience instead of leaving without saying a word.

In fact, only 1 out of 26 customers will complain if they are unhappy. The other 25 will just give up on your brand and stop buying.

When a customer gives you negative feedback, you still have the opportunity to make things right. Not all is lost.

You can turn a negative experience into something positive by mending that relationship.

4. Third-party reviews

Your business is on websites such as Yelp, Google Local, and TripAdvisor.

Just because you don’t control those websites doesn’t mean you should ignore them. Make a habit of checking those listings weekly, at a minimum.

If you are getting tons of reviews, consider checking more frequently.

For starters, you want to make sure the information listed on these sites is accurate. I’m referring to your hours, phone number, menu, pricing, etc.

But you also need to consider the customers who willingly took the time to write about your business.

Good comments. Bad comments. You want to pay attention to all of them.

All too often when we talk about customer service, it seems like businesses automatically jump to the negatives. While it’s important to be proactive about those poor experiences, it’s also necessary to keep track of the positive ones.

This will reinforce what you’re doing right. You’ll know what you should continue doing instead of changing something that customers are happy with.

5. Live video broadcast

Jump on the live video bandwagon.

Facebook. Instagram. YouTube. All of these marketing channels have live streaming features you should be taking advantage of.

While this tactic isn’t quite as intimate as a focus group, which we’ll discuss shortly, it gives you the opportunity to reach a high volume of customers at the same time.

Here are some of the top benefits of live video streaming, according to brands, retail companies, agencies, and other marketing executives:

As you can see from their responses, a more authentic interaction with the audience ranked first on the list.

This authentic interaction is great for getting customer feedback. That’s because customers can comment in real time while you’re broadcasting live.

Everyone else watching can see those comments as well. Respond to comments.

Depending on how many people are watching your stream, it can be overwhelming to keep up with comments. That’s okay. Take your time to go through them.

The great thing about these live streams is you can save them and refer to them at a later time. Read through the comments, and take notes. Group similar statements so you can prioritize what needs to be addressed first.

Live video is great for customers as well. They can watch it on their smartphones from the couch as opposed to being bothered when they are in your store.

6. Focus groups

Focus groups aren’t nearly as popular as some of the other feedback methods. This is mainly because the logistics are more complex.

But that doesn’t mean you should ignore this option. Even if it’s not your top choice, conducting a focus group should still be in your arsenal of potential ways to get feedback from your customers.

An ideal focus group is conducted in person, with all the participants in the same room. Groups of six to eight customers should commit between 30 and 60 minutes of their time to participate.

Being in a room together will allow them to feed off each other.

One person could say something that another customer may not have thought of. As a result, it could trigger a response based on that customer’s experience.

Focus groups are great for testing new products and ideas. Allowing your customers to be part of the innovation process will make them feel valued, the importance of which I have already talked about.

Customers who participate in focus groups should be compensated much more than those who fill out a survey online.

Your customers who complete a survey may get 20% off their next purchase. But it’s not unreasonable to provide a $50 or even $100 gift card to customers participating in focus groups. You should also provide them with some food when they arrive.

7. Follow-up emails

After a customer makes a purchase, you should send them a follow-up message, asking for their feedback.

I’m sure you’ve seen these before. Here’s an example of a short survey from Venmo embedded directly into an email:

As you can see, this survey is directly related to customer service.

In addition to embedding the survey into the email, you could also provide a link for the customer to provide feedback through a platform like SurveyMonkey, which I talked about earlier.

You may even decide to send a link to the comment box on your website I previously mentioned.

Just realize that any additional steps a customer has to take to give you feedback will decrease the chances of it being completed.

Don’t be annoying. All too often I get three or four emails from a company asking me to provide feedback for my most recent purchase, flight, etc.

You don’t want to be that person.

If they don’t respond after the first message, you could send one more reminder. But that’s it. If they still haven’t given feedback, you could always try again in the future after their next purchase.

8. Social media comments

You need to stay active on social media.

But in addition to posting content on a regular basis, you also have to track what your customers say about you.

Don’t ignore your notifications. Read through your comments and direct messages.

Do this on all platforms. Facebook. YouTube. Instagram.

Use the Twitter advanced search query to find out what customers are saying about you, even if they don’t tag you directly.

Check out these comments from a post on the Lululemon Facebook page:

The first comment is positive, and the second comment shares some criticism.

But do you notice something they both have in common? Lululemon responded to both of them.

As I said before, you need to treat both positive and negative feedback the same. In both instances, you want your customers to know you value them.

More than half of consumers say they expect brands to respond to their feedback. If their comments are negative, that number jumps from 52% all the way up to 72%.

Conclusion

If you can’t keep your customers happy, your business is going to struggle. It’s a fact.

Customers care more about customer service than they do about the quality and price of what they’re buying.

That’s why it’s so important for you to find ways to get their feedback. But there is no one-size-fits-all way to do this.

Not all customers will respond to all tactics.

In order to get responses from as many customers as possible, you’ll need to try different approaches. This will also help you get accurate results.

Refer to this list of my favorite 8 ways to get customer feedback. Ultimately, this will help you provide enhanced customer service.

What method is your company using to get feedback from your customers?

https://www.quicksprout.com/2018/06/22/how-to-improve-your-customer-service-with-these-8-ways-to-get-feedback/ Read more here - http://review-and-bonuss.blogspot.com/2018/06/how-to-improve-your-customer-service.html