#hopefully this isn't just a shit show of me talking over you I really just mean to explain where I'm coming from and what I interpreted

[thisapplepielife]

Written for @corrodedcoffinfest.

You Love Me, Now Act Like It

Day #27 - You'll Be in My Heart | Word Count: 1000 | Rating: M | CW: Language, Mention of Weed | POV: Eddie | Pairing: Steddie, Gareth/Di (OC), Previous Steve/Di (OC) | Tags: Bickering, Fools Being Fools, Love Quadrangle, Not Really, But Gareth Sure Wants to Whine About the Past a Lot

"Yeah, well, you've fucked my wife!" Gareth yells, and Steve rolls his eyes.

"Every damn time? That's your only card to play?" Steve asks, not getting riled, not even a little bit. "You don't get to hold that over my head forever. You wouldn't have even met her if it wasn't for me. You're welcome, by the way."

"That's not true. You don't know that!" Gareth snaps, even if they all know that's definitely true.

"Well, technically, I'm the one that went over and said hello," Eddie adds, just to put a little gasoline on the fire.

"Eddie," Gareth says, a warning that he better take his side.

Eddie's not choosing sides in this dumb fucking fight. It's old news. 

Hopefully they both just simmer down.

They do not.

"And I'll dick her down again, remind her of what good sex actually is, if you don't shut up," Steve says, and Eddie has to turn around to hide his smile. 

Steve's choosing absolute violence today, and Eddie loves him a little bit extra for it.

Gareth explodes, and Steve is running, cackling. 

They fight like this all the time, and this is always where it ends up. 

Ten Years Earlier

"Is that Steve Harrington?" Gareth asks, and Eddie jerks his head over to where Gareth is looking. Son of a goddamn bitch, it is. It definitely is.

Steve's standing next to Robin, and has his arm slung over the shoulders of a girl Eddie doesn't recognize. Girlfriend, probably.

"I'm gonna go say hi," Eddie says, and Gareth rolls his eyes.

"Of course you are. He's got a girl, what do you think you're gonna accomplish?" Gareth asks, but he trails along after him.

"Don't know, don't care," Eddie says, and pushes his way through the crowd. He hasn't seen Steve in years, not since Hawkins, when he missed his chance. His window, when they were looking at each other, like…maybe? 

And he ran, too scared of what that could mean. For him, for them, for the band, if he tried to make a move.

Tonight though, he's older and not at all wiser, as he slides his hand along Steve's shoulders, over his back, and Steve jumps a little, turning to see who's touching him.

"Holy shit!" Steve says, dropping his arm from the girl's shoulders, and flings them around Eddie's neck, squeezing. "Eddie! What're you doing here?"

Eddie hugs back, "Playing tonight," he adds, nodding towards the stage.

"Awesome. That's so fucking cool, what a small world," Steve says, still holding on for dear life.

Eddie is the one that steps back first, he always is, however reluctantly, but he holds Steve's arms, looking at him, "You look great. You too, Buckley. And you as well, stranger," Eddie says, laying on the charm. Like he doesn't want to fuck her boyfriend. 

He definitely does.

Has always wanted to, if he's honest with himself, which he rarely is.

"Di," Robin fills in, when it's clear Steve wasn't jumping to introduce her. 

"Yes, sorry! This is Di. Diana. My girlfriend. I know Eddie from home," Steve explains, reaching over and taking her hand. Eddie sees her smile up at him. He hates her.

"This is Gareth," Eddie offers, resting his arm across Gareth's shoulders, so he isn't tempted to touch Steve again.

After the show, Eddie leans against a wall, head close to Steve's face, so they can hear each other over the music.

Gareth's on the couch, sitting between Robin and Diana, his back turned on Robin as he talks to the pretty girl he doesn't know, instead of the lesbian he does. Robin looks less than thrilled with the direction the night has taken. 

Then, Jeff and Goodie are standing over her, holding out a joint, an offer. And Eddie smiles as Robin nods, getting up and following them.

"If you're gonna be in town, we should, I don't know, catch up. Go on a double date or something," Steve says, and Eddie finds himself nodding before he even realizes what he's agreeing to.

A double date? With who? And that's when he realizes that Steve thinks he's with Gareth, which, no. But if that gets him out with Steve for the night, sure, why not? Eddie wants to spend a little time with Steve, before Steve's gone again, maybe to be seen in ten more years. Five, if Eddie's lucky.

Later, Steve and crew gone, Eddie corners Gareth, "We're going on a double date."

"With who?" Gareth asks.

"Steve and his girlfriend," Eddie says.

Gareth cocks his eyebrow, "Well, I sure hope you mean that I'm going on a date with Steve's girlfriend."

Eddie laughs, he wishes.

"I mean, if you can make that happen, kid, you'll never have to buy another beer in your whole life," Eddie says, slinging his arm over Gareth's shoulders, "It's just one night. Do it for me?"

"Fine, but this is stupid. And I hate you," Gareth says.

"You love me," Eddie answers, "now act like it."

Present Day

Eddie finds Gareth sulking by the bar. 

"Stop letting him get to you, that's why he does it," Eddie says.

"I know," Gareth grumbles.

"Does it really bother you that much? Di loves you, kid."

Gareth smiles, "I know. But, I don't love thinking about it."

"Then stop thinking about it," Eddie advises, "You're the one that always brings it up."

"He put his dick in my wife!"

"Recently?" Eddie prods.

"No," Gareth says, pouty.

"Then think about how many times he's put his dick in me since then," Eddie says.

"Thanks for that mental image," Gareth says, then looks at Eddie, with a shit-eating grin, "I could use a beer to help fix this atrocity your boyfriend has committed against me."

Eddie laughs, but opens his wallet. 

Sure, he's had to buy a lot of beer over the years, and Gareth didn't really steal Di from Steve, that fizzled on its own, but it's still been the best deal Eddie's ever made.

If you want to write your own, or see more entries for this challenge, pop on over to @corrodedcoffinfest and follow along with the fun! 🦇

[fuck-customers]

A couple of weeks ago, in a day I didn't work, we had two fights that both required the cops to be called.

The first one was a couple of groups of teens who apparently had beef and pulled knives on each other. An old guy tried to break them up, and both groups turned on him. The issue did end up being resolved without any blood drawn, which is more than I can say for the next fight. (But people wonder why I'm so strict on enforcing the No Weapons rule. It's because I remember the last time someone got stabbed)

Fight number 2 was a drawn-out affair. For context, I work at a movie theater. There was a (white) couple who apparently were in their movie and causing a disturbance by throwing around racial slurs (I was not told the specifics but I'm assuming the N-word) at other (black) customers. For some reason, they weren't asked to leave, just to be quiet, and they eventually shut up. When the couple went outside after the movie, the other group of customers was waiting for them. This was the last show of the night, so the doors were all locked (our doors can be opened from inside when locked, but not the outside. So we lock them while the customers are still in the building). The group, who I'm told had at least 4 people in it, started beating on the couple. I'm not sure where the lady went, but she disappeared at some point. Meanwhile, a manager (I was not told which one) who's helping close up hears some commotion and looks over and sees the racist guy banging on the door and screaming, and he's smearing blood on the door. All the manager knows is that someone is being attacked, so they run over and open the door to let the guy slip inside before closing the door behind him while someone else calls 911. The group scatters. And guess what? The racist guy was pissed that the door was locked, so he punched the manager and also broke the door, because apparently racists don't know how to be greatful to a person of color for saving their ass (basically all my coworkers, including the managers, are POC. So even though I don't know who the manager was, I know they weren't white) So now charges are being pressed both for the assault on the manager and for the cost of repairing the door. But they fucked around and found out, I guess. Or should I say, talk shit, get hit. Granted, I can't really condone beating the shit out of strangers for calling you slurs... I don't really feel bad for the racist couple. Hopefully, lessons were learned, though somehow I doubt it.

Side note, there is actually a customer who calls *me* slurs, and has for quite a while, but I doubt it was the same customer, since she isn't white, and thus doesn't match the description of the racist couple. I didn't see her for almost a year, and then she came in a few weeks ago and was actually behaved and didn't seem to recognize me. So I'm not sure if she did some self-reflection or started on some meds/therapy or found Jesus or something, but whatever it is, I'm glad it's working for her, I guess. Though as far as I know, she's not mentally ill, just a Karen who doesn't like that she has to follow the rules like everyone else.

[spacebaby1]

Hi babe 🥹 I love your vlog!

Can I request a Gojo oneshot where the reader is a foreigner and new to Jujutsu High? Like she was just entering high school and then Satoru falls in love with her as soon as he looks at her?

I also have another idea but I don't know if you like it. I was also thinking about Satoru's lifelong friend reader. Where he has feelings of love for her but she doesn't seem to realize it. And then Suguru's defection happens, and the reader wants to leave with him 😫

I really don't know if you're going to read this, I love you very much and I love your vlog, I'm always watching it!  Greetings from Venezuela 🇻🇪

Omg hello! Thank you for supporting! I really love the second idea and I would love to write it soon🫡💙enjoy, hope you like it!

Standing in front of the huge school building, you read the paper in your hand over and over; Jujutsu High. Yes, it was the building, your new school, but looking around, it seemed haunted and way too quiet since no one was around. You have just transferred to this new school, in the new country far away from your home and didn't know what to do. With a sigh, you walked inside the building, hoping to find someone and ask them for help, and that's exactly what you did.

Walking down the empty hallway was terrifying; your just joined being a sorcerer back in your home country for less than two months and they already decided to send you away since the higher ups needed more sorcerer in japan. Most of the classes were empty as you walked and that's when you heard a sound of talking and laughter and you followed it happy that the building isn't completely empty. Entering the class you saw two boys who immediately turned their head towards the door when you opend it. The one sitting on the chair has his hair in a messy bun while the other was wearing dark sunglasses and had white hair. "Uh, I just transferred here. Sorry to bother you but can you show me where to find the principles office?"

The open with white hair had his jaw slightly open while the one with black hair got with a small smile, "Welcome, I'm Geto suguru and this is Gojo Satoru. Sure we can show you the office." You smiled and followed Geto as he lead the way and Gojo joined him whispering something to Geto to which he elbowed Gojo and murmured a slight "shit up, don't start."

They walked few corridor down till they reached an office, "thank you for helping me. That's very kind of you." Geto simply smiled with a wave and grabbed Gojo by the collar as they walked away. Goja smiled and waved at you as Geto pulled him.

The meeting was brief with the principal and you were happy to get some sleep after the long flight. Falling on the bed you let out a long sigh and without another minute you feel asleep. Only to wake up earlier than everyone or as you thought. After getting dressed in your workout clothes you decided to go for a morning run even though you weren't familiar with the area you thought that you'll stay close; wrong idea as you got lost while running. You sighed when you realised that you had left your phone in your room. So you decided to walk back and hopefully you'll find your back, another back idea. You accidentally walked further into the woods, a sound of footsteps made you turn and that's when you saw it a curse running towards you; your body went numb as you couldn't move. The only reaction you gave was trying to cover your face with your hand but the loud bang made the curse disappear. Your heavy breathing was all you could hear before you looked up to find Gojo standing in distance from you with a concerned look on his face, "you okay?" You pouted before running to hug him for saving you as you cried. His cheeks were burning red but he played it cool by hugging you back and chuckled, "ah, of course you are okay, I saved you." You looked at him with teary eyes and he swears that something screamed in his heart at how cute you looked to which he gripped his arms tightly around you, "thank you." You whispered making his blush and giggle.

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

To Keep Fighting Part One

Summary: Steve kisses Eddie during the make him pay scene. Steve’s parents are decent folk who are furious about being kept in the dark. Steve’s injuries are rather serious. Hopefully, it's just a two parter. Don't worry, Eddie comes back.

Steve held out his hand to help Eddie up off the mattress. The way Eddie's hips were positioned on the mattress, Steve tried not to think about them thrusting upwards or about that stupid slutty looking bullet belt that hung seductively off of his hips. Eddie grinned, his eyes sparkling mischievously as if he knew what Steve was thinking. Maybe if Steve’s eyes hadn't wondered down to his hips or his his face hadn't heated up. Damn it, Steve had been blatantly checking Eddie out, and Eddie knew it.

He grabbed Steve’s hand and let him pull him up. Eddie held onto his hand for a moment, rubbing smooth circles into his skin. He winked and let go. Steve’s face grew warm. Focus on the plan, Harrington, not on the man. Eddie bent over to collect his spear and shield. Steve took the opportunity to let his eyes roam over his backside. Very nice. He heard someone clear their throat, and he saw Robin giving him a questioning look.

"Later," he mouthed.

Eddie straightened up and looked over at Steve, grinning.

"You ever get that feeling like someone is watching you?" Eddie asked. "Strange, isn't or maybe not so strange?"

Steve had been caught. Shit.

"Uh, I mean, yeah, not so strange," Steve cleared his throat. "It happens."

Eddie laughed, placing a hand on Steve’s arm. He lingered for a moment before squeezing his bicep and walking off. Steve didn't really have time to process any of that before they were getting ready to part ways. He made them promise not to be heroes, not to be cute and do anything stupid. Steve turned to walk away.

"Hey, Steve?" Eddie called out.

Steve around, hope rising in his chest as he looked at Eddie, who looked back at Steve. It was a look of such utter clarity that Steve was sure that Eddie was going to walk over to him and kiss him.

"Make him pay," Eddie said.

Steve waited for a moment, hoping for anything else, but when it didn't come, he had to walk away. It felt wrong to leave it like that. What if something went wrong? What if they died?

"Fuck it," Steve cursed.

"Steve, what - " Robin started to say.

Steve turned around and started walking towards Eddie with purpose. He cupped his face and drew him into a searing kiss. Eddie let out a muffled moan before responding eagerly to the kiss. He gripped Steve’s shoulders, pressing his lips hard against his. He let one of his hands travel to the back of Steve’s neck, his fingers curling into his hair. Steve poured everything into the hard, desperate kiss, and he hoped that Eddie somehow knew that he didn't want this to be a one-time thing.

"You're full of surprises, aren't you, big boy?" Eddie asked, leaning his forehead against his. "You better come back now. You kind of owe it to me."

"You better not do anything cute," Steve said.

"Except for you, I promise not to do anything cute," Eddie said.

Steve gave him one more quick kiss and then walked away, feeling hopeful. He smirked when he heard Dustin squeaking and talking animatedly with Eddie behind him. Meanwhile, Robin was gaping at him.

"What the fuck was that?" Robin asked.

"I kissed Eddie," Steve shrugged.

"Yeah, I saw that," Robin said. "I was there. We were all there. You like guys? Since when?"

"I mean, I think I've always liked guy, I just wasn't really sure about it. You know, not until Eddie," Steve shrugged. "Doesn't change how I feel about girls though."

"I can't believe that you kissed a guy before I kissed a girl," Robin said, rolling her eyes affectionately. "Thanks for telling me or showing me. I'm going to go look ahead."

It was awkward because now he was left alone here with Nancy. She was looking at him with an odd look in her eye that he couldn't describe. Was she put off by what he just did? No, Nancy wouldn't be like that. . . would she?

"So, you and Eddie?" Nancy asked.

"You don't have a problem with that, do you?" Steve asked. "I mean, I wouldn't think that you would be, but. . . ,"

"No! No! I don't. I think it's great," Nancy said and sighed. "I know that I've probably been making eyes at you, but I think that maybe, it's just, a trauma response to everything that's going on. Honestly, I think there's always going to be a part of me that's going to be connected with you, a part of me that's always going to have feelings for you. I did have feelings for you. I just didn't know how to deal with everything."

"None of us did," Steve said softly and then paused, smirking. "I don't blame you for making eyes at me. I mean, obviously, you still think that I'm hot."

"Yeah, that's clearly never going to change and clearly, Eddie thinks so too," Nancy scoffed. "He was being so obvious."

"Was he?" Steve asked.

"You whipped off your sweater and threw it at him. The poor man needed a cigarette afterward," Nancy laughed and paused. "You know, I'm not surprised that you like guys."

"Really?" Steve asked.

"You and Tommy were always a bit intimate," Nancy said. "I always thought there was something between you guys, but I figured if you wanted to tell me then you would. I know that I can be pushy sometimes, but I would never push anyone about that."

"Pushy? No, curious or investigative is a better term for you. You really would make a good one," Steve sighed and paused. "You know, there was a few times that we got drunk and got handsy with each other. I didn't really question it then but now. . . with Eddie . . . "

"I think it's different with Eddie. I mean, maybe you were attracted to Tommy but with Eddie, I think that you have real feelings for him too," Nancy said. "And you just weren't ready to accept that part of yourself."

"Well, I'm ready now," he said softly.

"I found it!" Robin exclaimed.

They entered the Creel House and were immediately stopped by the vines on the wall. They nearly choked to death and once again, Steve was gasping for air. Something let them go and they made their way up to the attic. They threw everything they had at the bastard, but he made his escape out the window, wounded but obviously still alive. They made their way back to the trailer, feeling of disappointment and failure weighing heavily on their shoulders. They stopped when they heard the fourth chime and the ground shook. No! No!

"Max," Nancy whimpered.

They ran back towards the trailer, running as fast as their feet could carry them. When they got closer to the trailer, they saw something that made them stop. Dead bats surrounded Dustin and Eddie. Dustin was holding Eddie's still body in his arms and he was sobbing, screaming. Steve froze, his entire body was cold, and he wanted to throw up at the sight of Dustin in such despair. He wanted to scream at the sight of Eddie's still body. Steve collapsed next to them. He was dead. Eddie was dead.

"You promised," Steve whispered. "You promised."

The ground was shaking, and they needed to get out of there. Steve snapped out of it and pulled Dustin away with the help of the others. Dustin was screaming and fighting them. He managed to calm down long enough to let them drag him out of the Upside Down. He knew that they needed to get to the others. When they got to the Creel House, the ambulance was driving away and in the stolen RV, they drove after it. While they were in the hospital, Lucas told them that Max had died and then came back. She had died and now they don't know what's going to happen to her.

This was too much. Too fucking much. As they waited in the hospital, for their parents and to await news on Max. . . the ground shook and Hawkins was hit with a giant earthquake. They all shared a look. Hawkins was being opened, and the Upside Down was spilling into their home. Vecna had won, and they had lost. Everyone's parents had come to collect their kids. . . everyone's except Steve's. . . Shit, they were supposed to come home today.

"Robin! My parents were supposed to come home today!" Steve said.

"Go! We'll stay with the kids. I don't think they're going anywhere, though," Robin said. "No matter how much they try. I think they're talking about carrying them out."

Steve couldn't bring himself to laugh. Eddie was gone, he was gone, and Steve could still taste him on his lips.

"Robin. . . " Steve sniffled.

"Oh, Steve," Robin said and hugged him tightly.

Once she let go, he checked on Dustin before he left for his house. Dustin had hugged him tightly.

"I'm sorry," he sobbed.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Dustin," Steve said and squeezed him, planting a kiss into his hair. "I need to check on my parents, but I'll be back."

"Be careful out there," Dustin said. "Love you."

"Love you too, kid," Steve said ruffling his hair.

He let Claudia pull him into a hug before he left in the stolen RV. There were fires everywhere, splits in the road when he got closer to the center of the town. Bile rose in his throat. How many people died? Were his parents among the dead? When he pulled up in front of his house, he was relieved to see that his parents' car was in the driveway. He stepped out of the vehicle and started to walk up to the house.

Steve could feel the adrenaline start to fade and suddenly he felt really heavy. Everything was starting to hurt. Steve opened the door and walked into his house. He could hear his parents' voices. They were shouting, his name was mixed in somewhere. Everything sounded really far away, like he was under water. Was he in shock?

"Where is he?!" Maggie Harrington yelled. "John, what if he was amongst the - "

"You can't think like that, Mags," John cut her off. "We'll find him."

"Ma! Dad!" Steve called out.

"Oh, thank god!" Maggie shrieked and they ran into the hallway.

Steve collapsed on the floor and threw up all over the carpet.

"Steve!" John yelled.

They rushed to his sides, and he burst into tears when they put their arms around him. Steve yelled out in pain, clutching his parents.

"What happened, my love?" Maggie asked, tearfully. "Sweetheart?"

"Where does it hurt, son?" John asked.

"Everywhere," he sobbed. "We had something. . . we had something. We lost. . . we lost. . . Eddie."

He couldn't help himself when he started telling them everything. Everything. When he was done, he let himself relax in their arms, let himself be soothed by their touch, and then he blacked out.

TWO DAYS LATER. . .

Steve shifted in the recliner, frowning as his mother fussed over him. He hated not being able to do anything, but everything still hurt and as much as he wanted to be able to pretend otherwise, he couldn't really move all that much.

"You don't ever have to worry about us ever leaving again. The company has officially been passed over to Lawrence, and now we can retire. Which is something we have been striving for so that we could spend more time with you," Maggie said as she tucked the covers at his waist.

He was currently shirtless, clothes too sensitive against the road rash on his arms and back.

"You're not going to be too hard on them, are you?" Steve asked.

"Maybe not on Hopper since he spent months in a Russian prison," Maggie said. "They both left us all in the dark. Now, I understand why you didn't tell us, you were listening to them because they were the adults. You're a good boy. Joyce left and I know she was protecting her kids but she left the others here while we were left in the dark. Who was supposed to protect them? It shouldn't have been left all to you, Robin, or Nancy. You're still kids, too. If she was going to leave, then she should have told the other parents. She should have told us."

"Ma, I'm okay," Steve said softly.

"No, love, you're not. I look at you and I see a battle worn soldier. It shouldn't be like that," Maggie sniffled. "I need to yell at someone."

"I seriously told you everything?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, son, you did," John said, leaning against the doorway of the living room. "You also told us about Eddie. . . all about Eddie."

"Dad . . . " Steve trailed off.

"Your mother and I love each other but not in the way that you might think," John said softly, his eyes full of understanding.

"What?" Steve asked in confusion.

"When your father was in Ireland, we hit it off at a bar. We told you that," Maggie said. "We didn't tell you that it was a gay bar."

"What? What were you two doing in a gay bar?" Steve asked.

"I'm a lesbian, dear," Maggie said.

"I'm gay," John said.

"What?! You two are married!" Steve exclaimed.

"We love each other, and we are best friends. We made vows to each other, to our friendship, and we kept them. This marriage may not be romantic or sexual. It does have meaning," Maggie said. "And we've each had partners over the years. We're sorry for not telling you sooner.

"It's okay. Wait. . .How did you - ?"

"Turkey baster," John said. "We both really wanted a kid, and we were blessed with you."

"Holy shit!" Steve exclaimed and then he laughed. "A gay guy and a lesbian walk into a bar, get married, and make a bisexual baby!"

"It's the gayest joke ever!" John laughed.

"John!" Maggie exclaimed but the corners of her mouth were twitching.

"What? Our kid is funny," John said and then he looked at Steve softly. "I'm proud of you, son."

"As am I," Maggie said.

Just as Steve was about to cry the doorbell rang. He quickly wiped at his eyes as his parents went to answer the door. Claudia and Sue rushed to Steve's side as soon as they entered the living room. Charles and the Wheelers followed behind.

"How are you doing, dear?" Sue asked.

"I mean, it hurts but I'll be okay," Steve said.

"Oh, honey," Claudia said.

"Claudia, Sue, I want to thank you for looking after our son while we were away," Maggie said. "I didn't get a chance earlier."

"It was our pleasure, Maggie. He's a great kid," Sue said, looking at him proudly.

"Thank you for telling us about what's been going on with our kids," Claudia said and then sighed. "We haven't been able to pull them away from Max for even a second. Poor girl. Everything they've been through. . . Everything you've been through, Steve."

"I still can't believe it," Ted said, shaking his head.

"Believe what you want, Ted," Karen said as she clutched Holly close to her. "But there's a gaping hole in the middle of town."

Steve smiled. It sounds like they've had that argument before. Maggie knelt down next to Steve.

"We've also contacted Wayne Munson. He's going to come by and we're going to let him know what happened. He's been putting up missing posters," Maggie said softly.

"He deserves to know," Steve said and then he looked ashamed. "I don't know if I can tell him."

"It's alright, love, you don't have to do everything," Maggie said. "We'll handle it."

She pressed a kiss to his forehead. The doorbell rang and she left to go answer it. Steve watched his parents lead Wayne Munson into the living room and he looked down at his hands. They shouldn't have to do this. None of this should have happened. Steve should have stayed behind. No, what if something happened to Robin and Nancy? He had to go and be a hero. He to be cute. Why the fuck couldn't he have listened? Why did he have to try to save them?

He blinked back tears. Getting mad at Eddie wouldn't do anything either. It wouldn't bring him back and getting angry at the guy who was truly responsible for all of this wouldn't help either. Although, picturing bringing that asshole back to life only to kill him over and over again helped a little bit. All of this was so fucked up.

"Steve, are you -," Karen started to say.

"Mommy! It's snowing!" Holly exclaimed.

Karen went to the window her daughter was peering out of and looked outside. Karen gasped causing everyone to rush to the window. Steve was a little slower than everyone else, but he made it to the window.

"What is that?" Claudia asked.

"It's the Upside Down," Steve said. "It's coming into Hawkins."

Steve. . . where am I. . . Steve, I'm so sorry. . . fuck. . . am I dead?

Suddenly, the bat bites flared painfully, and he bent over, screaming. Steve collapsed to the floor, and everyone quickly surrounded him.

"Mommy, what's wrong with Steve?" Holly cried.

"I don't know, sweetie," Karen said.

"John! Maggie!" Sue shrieked.

The last thing he saw before he blacked out was his parents rushing into the room with a sad, panicked looking Wayne Munson. Everything around him was dark and the floor beneath him was wet. Steve walked toward an object in the middle of the strange looking room. As he got closer, he discovered that it was person hunched over and crying. Steve moved forward, his foot making a loud splash in the water. The person whirled around. Steve's heart leapt into his throat. It was Eddie.

"Stevie?!" Eddie exclaimed. "Are you real?"

"Are you real?" Steve asked.

Eddie jumped up and threw himself into Steve's arms, hugging him tightly. Steve winced but hugged him back, burrowing his head into Eddie's neck.

"Did I die, Steve?" Eddie asked.

"Yeah, yeah, you did," Steve said and pulled back from the hug. "You promised that you wouldn't do anything!"

"I'm sorry, Stevie," Eddie said. "I just didn't want anything to happen to you like they did with Chrissy. I didn't want to lose you."

"Instead, I lost you. We lost you," Steve said.

"I think I'm in hell, Steve," Eddie sniffled. "It's like I'm dreaming sometimes. It's mostly just memories. Other times, it's like I'm looking through my eyes but it's like I'm not in control. There's this voice in my head, Steve, and he's telling me or whatever I am now, what to do."

"Like you're a puppet?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, I can see Hawkins and it's a wreck. The voice keeps telling me to feed, Steve, but I don't want to and for a brief moment I can take control. Instead, I went after a deer and there's blood dripping down my chin. It's a nightmare, Stevie," Eddie said.

"I think maybe that it might not be a dream," Steve replied. "I think you're alive, but I don't think you're in control. I mean, the Mind Flayer controlled people last year. You have to fight him, Eddie, you have to take control."

"I don't know, I don't think that I can," Eddie sobbed.

"Baby, yes, you can. You have to, not just for Dustin. My parents just told Wayne that you're dead. He's a mess," Steve said. "Eddie, he thinks you're dead. I hate to be a dick, but do you really want to leave him alone? You have to fight, okay?"

"He thinks that I'm dead," Eddie said softly. "He's probably better off. I mean, I've always been a burden. I mean, he doesn't even get his own bedroom, I'm a constant screw up and I'm sure the murder allegations aren't going to be easy for him. He's better off."

"Don't you fucking say that!" Steve yelled at him, gripping his shirt tightly. "No one is better off without you! Dustin is a wreck without you! He thinks that it's his fault that you died. You can't leave him like this. You can't leave me like this. There isn't a minute that goes by that I don't think of you! Please, I want to be with you. I want to take you on a date. I want to hold you and to be held by you. I want to know more about you. Please, I want you. Most importantly, I want you to fight for you and everyone who loves you. Please, fight."

Eddie surged forward and kissed him, holding Steve's face in his hands. He broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against Steve's.

"Okay," he said.

"Okay," Steve smiled.

"You know, offering to suck my dick would have saved a lot more oxygen than that speech you gave," Eddie said.

"Why'd you have to ruin it?" Steve laughed.

"Nah, I didn't ruin it. I think I made it better," Eddie said. "It was a nice speech, Stevie."

Steve's eyes opened to find his parents crying over him. His nose was wet. Why was his nose wet? He touched his face and when he pulled his hand away, there was blood on his fingers.

"Sweetheart?" Maggie sobbed and he looked at her.

"Eddie . . . ," he said smiling.

"What about, Eddie, son?" Wayne asked.

"He's alive," Steve said before passing out again.

[marble-running]

okay hopefully this will not break your inbox this time so long as i don't send 30 images again

Yuri #1 - Anhane

very yuriful. their first (indirect) meeting is when kohane sees an performing, and wishes she could be as confident and passionate as her. this is actually what unlocks their sekai (vbs has some fate shit going on long story) and they get isekai'd into it although they don't remember that or meeting each other. kohane gets lost and ends up in an's dad's cafe some time later, and thinks an is really cool, but she runs out as soon as an starts talking to her. she comes back a week later because an's performance left such an impression on her, and they talk for a bit, then sing together, and an decides kohane is the one for her, so they become partners. i won't spoil the entire main story for you lol so i'll leave it there.

anyway over the course of the game (not in much depth) kohane starts to pick up skill very quickly. she's very naturally talented, moreso than an. once kohane starts getting mentored, an begins to worry that kohane will get too good for her, and leave her behind as a partner. kohane is unaware of all this and herself has some concerns that she's not as confident or impressive as An, though this isn't as much of a problem as an's abandonment issues. anyway they do work things out in the event the vampire yuri card is from.

for some other stuff. kohane is implied lesbian, she's very attracted to an in the second wedding event, and shows attraction to other girls too (mainly haruka). an is also implied lesbian, and her card story for the anhane/minoharu date night event suggests that she's like. legitimately dating kohane. a later card story suggests this too. haruka says that this is the first time an has ever acted like this with anyone, and the way an's parents act around kohane is almost as if she's an's girlfriend.

Yuri #2 - Minoharu

^ moment that is very important to me they're actually my favourite ship in the game. haruka is the one who inspired minori to be an idol, and she has been a huge fan of her for years. however when she meets haruka in person only to learn she quit being an idol, she decides she has to bring back the haruka she's always looked up to. haruka helps out minori with some training and advice here and there, but still doesn't go back to being an idol. it's only once minori finds out what caused haruka to quit, resolves it, and then puts on a show for her does she convince her to become an idol again. basically minori is able to remind her of why she loves performing so much, she just needed to see this person who she impacted so is so endlessless positive and full of love and passion. minori also reminds haruka of the person she looked up to and got her to be an idol but that's important later and i could go on about it for a long time but i think your askbox has a word limit.

minori is also like. very explicitly in love with haruka. not just like a celebrity crush like she's legit crushing on haruka really badly. there's just SO MUCH of it please check the tvtropes homoerotic subtext page for proseka i spent ages on the minoharu folder when i was 16. oh yeah also implied lesbian, though i tend to just assume its canon for her (and an/kohane/saki). it's implied that haruka reciprocates minori's crush to some degree but she's a bit dense sometimes.

Yuri #3 - Shizuai

first off i am still not over this card. okay so airi and shizuku first met when shizuku was new to the industry. shizuku was upset that she was a burden to the other girls in her unit due to being an amateur who didn't even intend to become an idol (some friends signed her up without her knowledge but she attended the auditions and passed). she was starting to cry, so airi gave her a towel to clean up with. this towel is shizuku's bonus item for gameplay purposes.

however, airi also harboured some jealousy at shizuku over time, since shizuku kept getting promoted and was incredibly popular and got lots of opportunities, whilst she essentially became a tv star instead of an idol. when shizuku quits because she wasn't enjoying being an idol anymore, airi lashes out at her. however this is resolved pretty quickly, and they both decide to become idols again for eah other, since they are each others' idol.

they're like. very clearly in love with each other. airi is attracted to shizuku and bought all the magazines she did photoshoots in and compares shizuku to a swan etc etc but shizuku says some REALLY gay shit sometimes like she has this whole monologue about airi's hands in airi's 3rd event and the card above is her returning a "magic spell" gesture airi did for her years ago. also i showed you the romeo and cinderella 3dmv so you get the idea.

Yuri #4 - Emunene

they are very important to me. emu is super friendly and affectionate with just about everyone. nene is her total opposite - shy and has a sharp tongue. there's multiple times early game however where rui (#1 emunene supporter) points out how nene has started acting differently around emu, she's smiling and laughing more, and is the only person she won't leave on read. in emu's first event nene wants to cheer emu up when she's sad, specifically saying that she wants to see emu's smile again. they become a lot closer over the course of the game, and nene's standoffish attitude around emu and slight annoyance at her going on outings with her completely disappear. they regularly go to each others' houses to watch movies or play video games or go shopping together now. they have an event where they enter a gaming contest together which is where this card is from. nene is also the first one to comfort emu when wxs is at risk of breaking up.

in emu's third event the vocaloids list off emu's favourite things as all being activities she does with emu, with luka going as far as to say that emu loves nene. nene gets flustered and tells them they're just regular activities for them. anyway they got "very good friends"d in the official english translation so you know they're gay. also it's loosely implied that they both like girls. they are very cute and very gay and emu clings onto nene in one area conversation to the point nene is blushing and then they share parfaits together and also got one together ON WHITE DAY.

yuri #5 - polyneed

DO NOT SEPARATE. theyre so devoted to each other it's actually sickening. okay so. they've been friends since elementary school, and then decide to form a band because ichika wanted to play some miku songs. when they're walking home one day there's a meteor shower, and decide to keep playing in the band and spending time together forever. ichika has like a baby gay realisation that she wants to be with them forever here and it's what causes their sekai to form. this yearning shit gets serious. anyway as they get older saki is moved to a faraway hospital, shiho cuts them off because she doesn't want her reputation affecting them, and honami cuts them off because she doesn't want to be bullied. when saki gets out of hospital she decides to get the band back together, and this is the plot of the main story.

anyway post main story the gay yearning shit gets serious. so shiho wants to go pro but the rest are pretty casual about the band. shiho is offered to play for a different group, but leoneed are willing to uproot their lives to stay with shiho. shiho also realises that leoneed is the only band for her. the gacha for that event is called 4=1. the event song is called one and starts as 3/4 time but switches to 4/4 time. the card above is from this set. it's all very domestic and happy leoneed life together forever. oh and then in the ichika event that just ran on en last month they reaffirm their promise under the stars. its shakespearean the star motifs here. okay so their recent world link event was insane. i need to waffle. they have this magic flying subway train in their sekai now. and it won't open. but then it opens for shiho but she won't board it until the others are there. because she only wants to go for her dreams if they're by her side. and then at the end of the event they all ride the train together. what the hell.

okay so saki's like. very implied lesbian. there's several indicators that she's into girls. tbh everyone in this game likes the same gender it's a japanese idol mobage they're all gay. fanservice or something. anyway is there a polycule implied in the funny miku taptap game.... i dunno? considering the industry, no, considering honami's self intro where she "sounds like she's confessing to them" and causes them all to blush, maybe. maybe the leoneed writers room is bad at writing friendship and thinks this is "girls hanging out" when it's actually "sapphic yearning off the scale". honami is also ship teased with another girl but i'm not going to put that in this already. ahem. very long ask.

Yuri #6 - Mizuena

okay now here's complex yuri. kanamafu is more yuri than them but alas i am not as invested in them and this ask is also a free pass for me to talk about my favourite prsk ships (minus the two yaois) and brainwash you with my agenda. okay so i've already explained the deal with mizuki and ena on that massive google doc i sent you. so despite their teasing, mizuki really does appreciate ena, and she thinks she's talented and values her art. while kanade is actually the one who saw true worth in ena and her art, mizuki still is supportive of ena.

ena->mizuki is about trust. ena sees that something is troubling mizuki. there's something on mizuki's mind and they won't spit it out. ena wants to know, she's not the most patient person alive, but she decides not to pressure mizuki and tells her she'll wait as long as she has to. but although ena puts her full trust in mizuki, they lie to her and tell her that they'll tell her eventually when they don't plan on it at all, still scared of what will happen when ena knows, and scared of losing ena (and n25), who they didn't even realise viewed them as a true friend until she said it in that moment. mizuki's second event still tears me up to this day it's definitely worth the read and i'm very excited for the anticipated mizuki comes out event in october.

oh yeah also it's implied they both like girls. you already know the deal with mizuki i used they/them here for the most part just out of clarity.

anyway those are my top 6 project sekai yuris. not in order i have all of them ranked equally except minoharu because some ships are more equal than others. if you have any other questions about project sekai shipping please ask me in my askbox or dms i need you to get invested in this game enough so i can ramble and you can comprehend it lmao

[luvsae]

kang saebyeok as your guitarist girlfriend | bullet point story [1] . . ♡

- kang saebyeok x gn!reader

note: this is just the intro so she isn't your girlfriend yet

- you actually met saebyeok at a show that she was playing at a bar

- the whole band was good but you couldn't keep your eyes off of her

- she noticed at one point and made eye contact with you, sending a cheeky smile your way

- you couldn't help but feel butterflies in your stomach - she was really pretty

- she had on a tux, but the blazer was off, leaving her with a messy bow tie and a white shirt - it was perfect

- after the show you stayed for a bit to have one more drink and hopefully see the guitarist (who you now knew as saebyeok since the whole band introduced themselves)

- as you took a sip of your drink, the seat beside you was suddenly filled

- looking over, you noticed saebyeok

- you almost spit out your drink because of how beautiful she was

- she noticed your stare and laughed. "hi"

- "hi," you replied back. "the show was really good"

- she grinned, taking a sip of her drink. "thank you. were you staying after the show just for me?" saebyeok teased

- you felt your cheeks heat up, not knowing what to say at first. "well, i did want to see you, but i didn't expect for you to sit next to me"

- saebyeok chuckled to herself before taking a napkin and a pen, then writing down her phone number

- "call me when you get home, okay?"

- you practically ran home after saebyeok gave you her number

- after waiting a bit, you decided to text her

you: hey its y/n :)

- a few minutes later, she texted you back

saebyeok: hey there, didn't think you'd text me haha

y/n: how could i not? you're really interesting

saebyeok: ohhhh you're interested in me?? ;)

- you couldn't help but smile like an idiot - why was this girl so interesting to you?

saebyeok: we should hangout soon. let's go to a coffee shop

y/n: im down

- the two of you actually followed through with the plans of going out, and today happened to be the day

- you changed your outfit three times before coming to a decision - it wasn't too casual, but not too fancy

- suddenly you heard a knock at your door. shit she was here a bit earlier than expected

- rushing over to the door, you opened it and saw saebyeok. she was in cargo pants and a loose top - she was beautiful

- "hey," you smiled sheepishly. "come in"

- she entered your home. "sorry im here a bit early. there's gonna be traffic soon so i thought that i should come here a bit earlier"

- "that's okay," you nodded. "i just need to get my bag and then we can go"

- as you went to get your bag you couldn't help but smile to yourself. you were so excited !!

- the two of you eventually left and drove over to the coffee shop. you learned some things about the girl

- she was the same age as you, her favorite color is blue, she's been playing guitar for a few years now

- you also told her some facts about yourself, it was nice

- the both of you talked and had some coffee, laughing at all the stupid and cheesy jokes that saebyeok told you

- she complimented you a few times too, and you couldn't help but blush because of that

- "you're really pretty" "you really light up the room" "your laugh is pretty too"

- the hangout didn't end after that because the two of you then went to the pet store

- you practically dragged saebyeok over to the section where the cats were, squealing over the little animals

- "this one is so cute i want to adopt them all"

- "that would be a lot of cat food"

- "but it's worth it!"

- saebyeok was more interested in the birds and frogs - she thought they were cool

- "these little guys would be great companions, don't you think?" "they are really cute. netflix frog!"

- "you're adorable"

- after that you would go to a video game store (this was for saebyeok as she played games on her days off)

- "what games do you like?" you asked her

- "i like survival games. i played one recently called the forest, you should play it with me one day"

- "that would be fun"

- saebyeok ended up buying a copy of minecraft for one of her consoles after you said you played that game often

- the day would soon end and saebyeok would bring you home. she made you stay a bit longer because the sunset was nice (others would argue she just wanted to spend more time with you)

- you would take a picture of the sunset before turning to saebyeok. "we should take a picture in front of the sunset, what do you say?"

- "of course"

- the two of you would huddle close and take a picture - saebyeok was stunning as she was drawn out by the sunlight

- saebyeok would walk you to your door and smile at you. "did you have fun?"

- "that was the most fun ive had in a while, thank you"

- "would you wanna do it again?" she asked, putting her hands in her pockets

- "if you have ideas on where to go, and if you plan to get me that cat, then yes" you teased

- she grinned and nodded. "alright, y/n. i don't know if i can get you that cat, though"

- you rolled your eyes playfully. "i'll see you again soon, saebyeok. text me when you get home"

- "will do"

- and with that, your first hangout with saebyeok was done

- you couldn't help but feel giddy and excited over spending the whole day with her

- you couldn't wait until your next adventure

[musical-shit-show]

isn't it delicate?

Pairing: Musical!Beetlejuice x Reader

Inspiration: Prompts #1 (“did…did you just kiss me?”) and #2 (“i didn’t mean to say that but yeah, i love you.”) from Prompt List 2, requested by @animetattoochick

Warnings: cursing, sexual innuendo, fluff

Word Count: 2,701

Author’s Note: Thank you for your patience on this one! I really haven’t been feeling very inspired lately, but I’m so glad I was able to finish this request. I have one more in my inbox currently but after that I think I may be able to get a couple other one shots out before the end of the year. I always love this time of year and I tend to feel more inspired around the holidays, so hopefully I’ll have the time to write more! As always check out my Masterlist, About Me page, or Prompt Lists if you’d like to submit an ask! Happy reading :)

“So…any men in your life I should know about while you’re up there?”

“Mom! That’s…no. Not…really, no.”

“Well, alright. That wasn’t very convincing, but I’ll take it,” your mother mused over the phone, only slightly teasing, “Just, tell me: are those people being good hosts? What were their names again—?”

You pinched the bridge of your nose. Your mom was always the forgetful type, “Charles and Delia. And their daughter, Lydia. She’s about sixteen, I think? Cute kid.”

You didn’t feel like you should mention the fact that your new teenage counterpart only wore black and was incredibly morbid, or that two ghosts occupied the attic, or that you were frequently plagued by a literal demon.

If you told your mom any of that, odds were that she’d drop dead from shock.

Ever since you started renting out the Deetz’ third bedroom in their Connecticut home, you tried to keep the details to a minimum when talking to your family. All they knew was that you had moved hundreds of miles away for your dream job, which was true; what they didn’t need to know what that you practically lived in a haunted house.

For the first few weeks you lived there, everything was relatively normal. Delia and Charles were in the city most days, and when you got home from work, Lydia was usually at the kitchen table doing her homework or in the attic. One day, you were headed to your room when you heard concerned whispers coming from the other side of the attic door.

“I just don’t know if now is the right time to tell her, you know?” you heard an older male’s voice say, his tone clearly distressed. You couldn’t help but wonder who Lydia was talking to given that Charles had been gone for a few days.

“Adam, it’s been weeks!” Lydia shot back, “Besides, I’m worried if we wait too long, you know who might show up and scare her away. You know how he gets.”

“She does have a point, hon,” this time, a sweeter woman’s voice spoke, “Besides, I think she’ll take it well. She gets along with Lydia just fine, doesn’t she?”

“Of course! If I just explain—”

“Okay, okay,” the voice now identified as Adam cut in, “I was getting a little sick of hiding up in the attic again.”

You heard the old door creaking open and bolted to your room, shutting your own door as quietly as you could. You stood at the foot of your bed, utterly confused.

Who were those people?

When did they manage to sneak into the attic?

And why the fuck was Lydia keeping some huge secret from you?

You thought you had a good rapport with her, given that you were several years her senior and were getting along with her alright. You maybe even could see yourself taking on an older sibling role, especially since she didn’t have any of her own and few friends at school.

Plus, you could tell she had a hard time opening up. As your mind slowed, you realized she would only come to you when she was ready. Whatever weird shit was going on would become your business when she finally told you.

It didn’t take long after your adventure in snooping.

A few days later, you heard a soft knock on your door and Lydia’s small frame peaked through the door. “Come on in,” you smiled, closing your laptop, “I was just checking out dinner options, how does pizza sound?”

“Oh, um, yeah,” she replied, uncharacteristically timid, “Pizza sounds great.” An awkward silence filled the air as she sat down on the edge of the bed, the buckles on her black chunky boots jangling slightly, “So…I have to tell you something.”

“I figured.”

“It’s just…I don’t want to freak you out or anything,” she began gingerly, “I haven’t told anyone about this, but since I like you and you’re living here, I thought it’s only fair—”

She was very sweet for beating around the bush, but you couldn’t keep it in anymore, “Is this about your two friends you’ve been sneaking in? Because honestly, Lydia, it’s completely fine if you have people over, you’re not bothering me—”

“What, no, I—” Lydia stared at your incredulously, “How did you—?”

“I heard you all talking the other day,” you confessed, finding her teenage antics a little endearing, “You aren’t exactly the quietest bunch, but like I said, I don’t mind.”

Lydia shook her head, not wanting anything about her situation to be misconstrued, “No, you don’t understand. Adam and Barbara, they aren’t friends from school or anything like that. They live here.”

You blink stupidly.

“Or, I guess lived here.”

You grew even more confused.

“I’m not sure I understand,” you said, a small laugh escaping your lips.

“They’re dead,” Lydia finally stated, unsure how to make herself any clearer, “Ghosts. They died here before me, my dad and Delia moved in. And…since you’ve been here, they’ve been staying in the attic.”

You laughed involuntarily. You couldn’t help it.

Surely this teenager was fucking with you.

But as silence once again permeated the room, Lydia stared at you earnestly, not breaking into a mischievous smile or shouting a good “gotcha!”.

“Oh,” you muttered, “Oh, you’re serious.”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Cool. Ghosts are real. I can handle that.”

“Yeah, you seem really calm right now. It’s kinda freaking me out.”

“I’m good,” you reassured her. Or maybe you were just reassuring yourself? “I am. Just…processing.”

The existence of ghosts didn’t surprise you that much, but you were obviously way off when it came to Lydia’s secret. In your defense, you were busy with the move and your job and everything else, how could you notice anything strange going on?

“There’s something else too,” Lydia said quietly, swinging her chunky black boots off the bed and landing on the floor with a thud, “Or, I guess, someone. His name is, well, I usually call him Beej. He’s like a super chaotic ghost or demon, I’m not really sure. It’s a long story…”

She shifted on the bed again. “Anyways, I met him pretty quickly after we moved here, and, well, he’s kind of…a lot. And he left for a bit, but he and I are actually friends. Real friends, not like before. Like I said, long story, but I just wanted to tell you in case he shows up here and—”

Before Lydia could finish, a flash of green light illuminated the room, and the figure that appeared before you was the strangest man you had ever seen.

He donned a hideous black and white striped suit that appeared to be falling apart at the seams, and his hair was a violent shade of green that actually made you wince. His skin was sickly pale, and the tattered overcoat he wore to round out the ensemble shed dust and dirt particles with every movement.

“Lyds!” he shouted, his voice grating and coarse, “My ears were burning; were you talking about me, oh best friend of mine?” He tousled the teen’s hair, much to her dismay. Before Lydia could answer, he turned his attention to you.

Eyeing you up and down, the man cocked his head to this side. You felt a light tingle on the back of your neck; why did you suddenly feel like you were being hunted?

“And who do we have here?” he purred, a Cheshire cat smile spreading across his face, “Babysitter?”

“I’m sixteen, asshole. I don’t need a babysitter,” Lydia chimed.

You told him your name, and considered extending your hand in formality. That idea quickly disintegrated when you saw how grimy his hands looked, fingers black at their tips in a clear indication of decay.

“I, uh, live in the guest bedroom,” you choked out, “And your name is…?”

“Wish I could tell, ya, babe,” he said with a chuckle, running his tongue across his slightly jagged teeth, “I like to say I’m the ghost with the most, but you can call me whatever you like—”

Lydia was quick to cut him off from the incessant attempts at flirting, and you learned his real name was Beetlejuice. He winced at the sound, and the more he and the younger girl told you about their escapades, the more enthralled you became.

Before you could fully process all the insane information the duo was throwing at you, Beetlejuice left, citing a bio-exorcism that needed attending to. You made a mental note to have Lydia explain that in greater detail later. With a *pop* and a puff of green smoke, he was gone.

But not for long.

Over the next few months, Beetlejuice’s visits became more and more frequent, much to the dismay of everyone else in the house, living and dead.

Except for you.

You found him utterly fascinating, despite his shocking outward appearance and often lascivious gaze. Yes, he was a dead guy, but he always made an effort to ask you about your life, even if it was followed up by a crude joke or bad pick-up line. When he wasn’t tormenting the other inhabitants of the Deetz residence, he was almost…sweet to you.

Of course, his sweetness was usually undercut with his sleazy tendencies; Though you knew he liked getting a rise out of you and you would often bicker with him on purpose. Even as you performed mundane tasks, you could tell he was leering at you, studying your every move.

You thought you were alone while on the phone with your mother, but Beetlejuice had become sneakier; this time he was listening outside your room, floating inches above the floor so his shadow couldn’t be seen under the doorframe.

“Anyways, no, there’s, uh, no guy,” you said sheepishly, your tone coming out more bitter than you intended. “You know I’d tell you, Ma.”

“I know, honey,” she said, her voice comforting you, “Just, try to make some friends, okay? We miss you and I don’t want you to be lonely.”

For some reason this made tears well up in your eyes. “I miss you too,” you choked, masking your sob with a cough, “And uh, I’ll try, don’t worry. I’ll talk to you later, okay?” There was a pause on the other end. Your mom knew you were crying, which made you want to cry even more.

“Okay,” she said, not wanting to upset you further. She knew you too well, “I love you.”

“Love you too.”

Your phone beeped and then returned to your home screen, and you let out a heavy sigh. A few tears dropped onto your jeans, the salt stinging your eyes.

“Who made you cry?”

You nearly jumped out of your skin as Beetlejuice materialized next to you, a few strands of his hair sprouting red at the roots. You shook your head in dispute.

“No, it was just my mom—”

“Oh, typical mothers. They really are the worst sometimes. Y’know, did I ever tell you how my mom—”

“Beej!” you cut him off before he went on another one of his rants, “I know. I’m sure you’ve told me. But no, she didn’t make me cry.” You wiped a stray tear away from your face and sniffled, feeling pathetic. “I guess I’m just a bit homesick.”

His hair instantly reverted back to its original state of vibrant green as he sat down on the bed next to you. “Oh…right,” he said, twiddling his thumbs, “You breathers can get so…sensitive sometimes, huh?”

You laughed dryly. “Yeah, I guess you could say that.” It didn’t take long at all for you to see that Beetlejuice was a big softy, even though he liked to tease and scare you on an almost daily basis.

You didn’t mind, not even a little bit. Because against your better judgement, you found yourself developing feelings for him. Weirdly strong feelings. And you weren’t sure what that meant with him, well, being dead and all.

That fact didn’t seem to matter when he took your hand in his, your warm palm contrasting with his almost frigid skin. You felt yourself shiver, and you weren’t sure if it was from the sudden temperature change or the physical contact.

“I’m uh, not really good with this shit,” he said indelicately, “But I like having you around. Usually, I spend all my time either in the Netherworld or scaring the life outta breathers but…I didn’t want to come back to this house that much until you showed up. So…thanks for that.”   

He ran his thumb across the back of your hand, the gesture making your insides churn.

“Plus, if you were gone, I’d lose my eye candy,” he added, making you instantly blush and let out a laugh, “Adam’s hot and all, but you might just have him beat—"

You couldn’t help it. You kissed him. Your eyes were still red from residual tears, and he was a demon, and you tasted the faintest earthy flavor on your lips, but you couldn’t bring yourself to care about any of those facts.

It was a fairly chaste kiss, only lasting a few moments before you pulled away. Instantly Beetlejuice’s hair started sprouting a light pink color.

“Did…did you just kiss me?” he asked in disbelief. He was usually the one doing the kissing, or groping, or endless propositioning.

A sheepish laugh escaped your throat, your palms instantly moistening with nervous sweat. “Uh, yeah?” you croaked, “Is that alright?” Beetlejuice looked utterly dumbfounded.

“Alright?” he laughed. If he were still alive, his heart would’ve fluttered. “Babe, more than alright, I loved it! Shit, I’ve loved every second you’ve been in this boring ass house…because I love you.”

The realization came to the demon as soon as the words left his lips. He didn’t even register what he had said until you muttered, “you love me?”

Fuck.

‘Well,’ the demon thought, ‘no going back now’. He couldn’t detect whether you were pleased or creeped out by the sudden escalation, but decided to trudge forward through the emotionally honest deep end he had unwittingly dove into.

“Erm…” now it was his turn to be sheepish, “I didn’t mean to say that but yeah, I love you. Sorry to one up you, babe, but if you wanna go back to making out, you won’t get any complaints outta me.”

Even as he cracked jokes, he could feel his anxiety rising to his hair, which was slowly turning a sickly shade of yellow that mixed with the pink strands. He held his nonexistent breath as a wide grin spread across your face.

“Oh Beej, I love you too,” you said, finally able to put words to the ache you’ve felt for him for weeks, “Even though you’re a complete perv who shouldn’t have been spying on me in the first place.”

He scoffed at the accusation. “Look babe, let’s not forget who kissed who first,” he reminded, tracing his fingers along your arm. His hair was now a vibrant pink. “Though I wouldn’t mind going in for round two—”

“Round two of what, exactly?!” Lydia burst through the door, causing the two of you to jump away from each other on the bed. “Or do I even want to know.” The young girl looked disgusted at the thought.

“Jesus Christ, Lyds, ever heard of knockin’?!” Beetlejuice admonished. It was so big brother of him it almost made you burst out laughing.

“Yeah, I wonder where she got the spying from,” you deadpanned, your gaze flickered between the both of them before landing on Lydia, “We’ll meet you downstairs in a minute to talk, alright?”

She crossed her arms across her chest before stomping down the steps, yelling out a “No funny business!” for good measure, utterly embarrassing you and tickling Beetlejuice all at once.

You made a mental note to banish him the next time you talk to your mom; the fact that you were now dating a literal dead guy would not be a topic of discussion on the next phone call, and you didn’t need Beetlejuice butting in to introduce himself as her future son-in-law.

----

thanks for reading! please like/comment/reblog if you enjoyed! :)

[angelsanarchy]

Glass Houses: Jack Thurlow x Y/N Series CH 18 -> CH 19

Tagging:@roryculkinluvr@thatsthewrongwallcraig@icarus-star@cc-luvr@madamemaximoff06@shady-the-simp@quicksilversg1rl@s-0lar@kristennero-wallacewellsver@ophelialaufey@mayathepsychic1999@x-prettyboy-x@rorylover71@auggiethecreator

TW: Mentions of molestation, SA, pedophilia

Jack couldn't shake the feeling he had when he got home. It wasn't a bad feeling but more of a curious feeling. Had his parents really talked about him the way Mrs. Fletcher had described? I wasn't like he kept in touch with them like that. He would call for holidays but he rarely visited. He never really felt like going back made much sense because of how independent they seemed. Once he left, it was like they had just started living again. He walked out of the kitchen with a mug of tea that Dr. Carty recommended to calm his nerves at night and sat it next to the piano.

He sat down on the bench and grazed his fingers over the keys, not applying enough pressure for sound. He remembered what it felt like hearing his father play the keys while his mother played her violin in the early evening hours during the weekends. It was hard to think about his childhood now that he knew the truth about his brother and what happened to him. It was hard to think about the things he had blocked out from being a kid that his father only brought to light in his own death.

His fingers started playing the keys without thinking and he almost felt hypnotized by the sound.

"Pick up your tempo Jack. You know this song isn't meant to sound depressing." His mother's voice crept into his head making his fingers stumble. He shook his head trying to clear her from his consciousness. She was the last one he wanted poking around in his brain. The more he played, the better it sounded. He didn't hear the door open but when the floorboard creaked, he looked over to see Y/n standing in the living room behind him.

"Sorry it was so pretty, I didn't want to interrupt." Y/n explained.

"It's fine." He gave her a soft smile and waved her closer. She sat down next to him on the bench and watched him continue to play.

"I just wanted to thank you for coming by and talking to my mom. You were all she could talk about until she went to sleep." Y/n smiled at him.

"Hopefully that's a good thing." Jack smirked.

"Oh it's a nice change from her trying to set me up with literally anyone that comes to the front door." Jack couldn't help but laugh at the thought of the very homosexual mailman being pressured to ask out Y/n by her well-meaning mother.

"I just hope she didn't say anything to upset you. I know we really haven't talked much about your parents but she did mention it was an accident." Y/n didn't give her condolences but she did put her hand on his leg which gave him comfort.

"Y-yeah. They were going on some sort of trip. They did that a lot. The accident report says something must have run out in the road to cause the wreck. I was pretty close with my dad, not so much my mom." Jack explained and watched Y/n's hand rub comforting circles into his leg.

"I kind of had a mental break when I came home last year to deal with it all. They said it was a fit of hysteria. Seeing hallucinations of my dead mother, I thought maybe she was the reason for all of the bad shit in my life and tried to murder her ghost. It was a real show." He tried to laugh it off and Y/n turned her body towards him. He let his hands fall to the tops of his jeans and she stroked his hand carefully.

"Apparently my father had a lot of demons he didn't feel like he wanted to share with me until after his death. Also explained a lot of my mother's resentment towards me too. A part of me wishes I never found any of it but I guess if I was going to find out I was molested by a neighbor and his brood of pedo friends, he didn't want to be the one to have to sit with me in therapy." Jack had never verbalized anything about his sexual assaults to anyone. Dr. Carty could barely get him to acknowledge that it was real when they first started doing sessions together but it made the local news so there was facts backing up what he tried to chalk up to delusions.

Jack waited for Y/n to stumble over herself apologizing or to pull away from him in disgust but she didn't. She couldn't to stroke his hand until he glanced over towards her, trying to meet her eyes.

"Linda is actually my adoptive mom. She was my case worker before she adopted me but my birth father would molest me until I was about nine. One of my babysitters actually called the police when she noticed all the bruising in places no child should have any. I got super lucky with her. She treated me like I was her own, never pushed or prodded when it came to treatment. I even still attend a lot of those sexual assault survivor groups." Y/n opened up to him and he hadn't noticed he had flipped his hand over to hold her hand while she spoke about her childhood trauma.

"I had no idea about that shit happening until I came back here. I still can't really remember it." Jack squinted like he was searching his brain.

"Sometimes its better not to search too hard for those memories. Our brains tries to protect us from shit we don't need to drag to the surface because it didn't make us who we are." Y/n gave his hand a squeeze and he finally met her gaze.

"And if you decide you want to try to figure it out, you aren't alone." Jack couldn't understand how freely she spoke about things that were so life altering with him. They've only been friends a few months and he barely wanted to talk to Shanda about it when he found out.

"How are you so...open about all this shit? I mean your mental health shit and your trauma? I'm still in the stage where I feel like a piece of shit psychopath every other day." Jack felt her grip tighten on his hand.

"There is freedom in knowing that bad shit has happened to you but it's not you. I wasn't always this well adjusted." She added with a laugh bringing his hand to her mouth and kissing the top of it.

"You're smart, Jack. You're capable of being free from the the things that happened to you. We all have bad shit but how we move through life is up to you." Y/n tucked his hair behind his ear and he leaned into her hand.

"Have I told you that you're probably the best thing I've discovered since coming back home?" Jack smile softly and Y/n rubbed his cheek.

"No but a girl doesn't hate compliments." She returned the smile. She didn't stay too much longer after their conversation because she said she had to work but Jack didn't feel overwhelmed when she left.

Typically when talking about the wounds in his life he felt like he would instantly retreat within himself and need to call Dr. Carty but not tonight.

Tonight, all he wanted to think about was the next time he would get to see Y/n. Talk to her. Be in her presence. Touch her. He just wanted something in his life that made him feel good and she was quickly becoming that for him.

[blackbutlerfandomnerddomain]

So I edited some of the Lost In The Book With Stitch event with some headcanons

I always headcanon Riddle being ftm transgender-nonbinary (he/they) and while his mother sucks and doesn't support she allowed him take top surgery just didn't give him the emotional support afterwards in a way of "If you're enough to make big decisions in your body than you're old enough to not ask for mummy's cuddles" kind of way

This event helped him the most finally find peace with himself, yeah he felt comfortable with himself after the surgery but for some reason he felt more free here with these people he wouldn't be on a vacation with in the start with this odd fluffy creature

I have a headcanon he has a tooth gap still growing from Ace's punch in chapter 1 that he secretly likes

He started collecting sea shells after this

Lots of freckles

Kind of realizes his crush on this trip, he had it for a while obviously but this made him realize "Oh shit-"

My sister says she can see Riddle's whole reaction to his crush on Floyd like Moana's poll to the ocean and I can see it

Ftm transgender (I grew with that headcanon) and got his top surgery right before attending Night Raven Collage

Lots of freckles

Kind of wishes he stayed just cause he adored the feeling of being there so much

Knows now he would be a good dad

After this his mood with his friends became different, he became more chill and nicer to those he isn't too, even Riddle after they kind of talked things over by the water

Has lots of scars over the years

Thanks to the Twitter @gay-salt-amber showed me, he had piercings and tattoos he hid for the sake of being a father and student, biggest tattoo is on the back of his thigh that was made in honor of one of the solders in his old Army who died

Nonbinary gremline

Sung with the ukulele during a beach campfire

He feels like he gets Stitch the most out of the whole cast

Vows to hopefully bring Silver and everyone else there

Lowkey wants more kids

Literally almost cried when leaving

I always think the Octa-Trio get some traces of their merform, so the Leech twins has a teal-greenish undertone under their skin when that becomes visible when exposed to water and if you look closely their toes get webby kind of

LOTS OF FRECKLES

Has a tongue piercing he sometimes takes out

Had the most fun being in his dream element, especially when Azul and Riddle there!

So I know I didn't edit their cards cause they honestly didn't strike editing art on them but I'll add Jack and Azul!

Really enjoyed the sudden change of pace and weather

Didn't like the beach life at first cause the salt water was knotting his furr and the sand did not help the idea, but he quickly grew adapting the idea of it and even enjoyed the knots and combing them out

After this he set up a vacation to the beach with his siblings

Fell in love with the scent of the beach

Was super self conscious about taking his shirt and being in the water and wouldn't have done either if it weren't for Floyd threatening to throw him into the ocean and Grim's teasing

Calmed down after a while and relaxed enough to just enjoy everything

Let his merform out during the night when it's too dark to see when Floyd joined in, did the same, and Riddle joined it but wasn't scared which amazed and calmed him more

Got inspired for profit but just inspired in general as he spend those days enjoying everything all together, swimming in the water, eating food, running and rolling in the sand

He also has freckles but they're small and light

Because of his bright mood after he was extra nice which freaked people out

He surprised the Leech twins with a dish of their favorite foods but didn't tell them how he managed to cook that stuff being he's, well, a octopus merman

Doesn't believe in gender but doesn't want to think about his own

Lowkey wants kids now

They all got closer after the whole thing

They all shared things of their pasts, with choices of being vague to some parts and areas for obvious reasons on Azul's and Lilia's part

As soon as Yuu mentioned a store that sold Stitch plushes, they got one right away

Lots of lowkey romantic tensions for whoever you want to say, Riddle x Floyd, your favorite ship, any of the cast with Yuu/You

They visit the Mostro Lounge every time they have free time or after a dorm head meeting, bring along people from their dorms as well

And in tradition of every Twst event so far, there's a playlist I made

[tmrwds]

Translation to 19.07. Eura gig stream under cut (10mins)

Banter starting from 01:40

You guy there, were you going skiiing? You have the glasses on your head, or did i see wrong? You're a good-looking crowd. (girl screaming JEREEE) what do you want? I'll give attention to you too. It's like a fucking kindergarten. Pikku Silja is there like (raises his arms) Are there underage ppl here? Hopefully not. You came with your dad's ID? Did it truly work?

You're wearing a Käärijä shirt, lovely. It's like kindergarteners, "look I have a new Gogo figurine" I don't even know what's a gogo-- Have you been eating sausage? The stall, full of sausage. How much is 3x3, sign it for me. How much is it? That doesn't make sense. I'm not going to become a teacher.

Hey, people on the back. Is there a reason you're over there and not on the front row? The man was like (nods) women. -- What do you have there? Your own [smuggled] drinks? No? Fuck, you drink a lot. Huh? For me? I don't drink. I'm an absolutist. Think about it, I've never touched that. Bess was performing today, right? Let's not tell her, but Bess was like "remember to drink water" no, just drink booze. At Käärijä's gig the rules are different, 2%/per mil at least when you're here. My show is so awful I don't want anyone to remember anything about it. Just kidding.

From 3:52 : I have this super fan here - am I allowed to tell? I will. You're not going to be offended? She has been on some 31 gigs this year. That's fucking sick, I don't understand why. But, she sent us an email, think about it, I have an email too, you don't- she sent that..what was it? That I shouldn't mock myself. Something like that. Think about it, how sympathetic. I'm mocking myself and she's like "don't do that! You're really a good, lovely person" I'm not! But I appreciate it, we talked this over with the band. Because of her, we've been going to therapy.

One thing that's fucking awesome about this place is that the internet isn't working. The guestion is, the TVs probably don't work either, so how the fuck did you watch Eurovision? How? Was there a shared TV? (points on the sky) "Oh, there's Käärijä". Do you guys even have phones?! Nokia 3510i, you look like you have that. Or do you? - You came from Tampere? You should've at least said you're from around here [Eura]. How many of you are from here? You know, one day- (dude shouts Urheilujätkä) Shut the fuck up. -when I have the money, I'll buy everyone who lives here a phone, I'll buy an internet here, some fucking tower right there. On the phone there will be apps, you can watch por-, Käärijä's instagram, it's an app too. -- Okay, let's continue, this thing doesn't make any sense.

Paidaton riehuja starts: How many will take off their shirt? -- (cute bit of the front row girls lol "It's coming off! For real? Yes, you're supposed to take it off! I didn't know that you have to take your shirt off!")

I'll do a little bit different speech because we have the superfan here. And sometimes I was like, I didn't compliment my own body. So do you know what I'll say now? Fuck, I'm in a good shape. Before the eurovision shit, I was like this (sucks belly in), but after eurovision when money started coming in… But the saddest thing is, I've drank all the money and I got nothing but the belly left. But at least I got some memory. Let's go.

After paidaton riehuja: Think about it, for the first time I saw boobs. I won't say if it was a man or woman's boobs, but I saw them anyway. And they were great!

[drownedbycoffee]

Okay I've got some Magnus Protocol speculations so

(SPOILERS)

Basically, I think that Augustus is going to be Jonah Magnus, but not necessarily Elias Bouchard mainly because of the trailer.

(this is a screenshot from it)

So obviously J.01 represents Jon in some capacity and M.01 represents Martin or some part of them (like how their voices are used for the TTS program).

But then there's J.02, which shows how it's a different thing to J.01. And which other character do we know begins with a J? JONAH MAGNUS! And whilst Elias was Jonah for the majority of TMA, Jonah has been mentioned to switch bodies. So it's probably Jonah in some other capacity. Also we have Gwens last name as Bouchard which sort of links him and the whole Eye to the OIAR.

(this part isn't my theory, someone else said it, can't remember who though, sorry, but I just wanted to repeat it on here as to me it makes a lot of sense)

Also I just noticed that if you look carefully at J.02, it's OK is written with a lower case 'k' instead of a captial like it is for J.01 and M.01. Maybe it shows how is less common as a voice in the TTS program and a smaller presence in the computer? I don't really know but it might be relevant, or just a computing thing I don't know about haha.

Also I feel like there is going to be some twisted parallel with Sam and the Redcanary story. Since Sam has already expressed interest into their world's Magnus Institute and started researching, I think at some point they will explore or find something out that will put them in danger and probably have really shit consequences. I mean, hopefully not, but it's the Magnus Archives Universe so probably...

Also Gwen is definitely going to take over Lena's job in some way at some point in the series. I think that Lena is going to outsource Gwen's job mainly because of how she was talking so much about Gwen leaving in her Performance Review meeting in Ep1. And since Gwen said she didn't want to leave, I feel like Lena would effectively make her redundant just to spite her.

Also the name of the whole thing is The Magnus PROTOCOL, which gives it a more vague meaning than what TMA had which was literally the archives of the Magnus Insistute. I feel like maybe Chester and Norris will turn out to be a protocol that sort of kicks in when the OIAR becomes more linked to the Fears and entwined in the Eye story like because so far I think the OIAR is really heavily linked to the Eye. Or when something happens that sort of wrecks the current status quo of that world. I feel like both of them and Augustus also have something to do with all the bugs Collins is facing though I haven't really thought that in depth about it yet, but I feel like they will definitely have something to do with it.

Also we have the whole thing of who created Freddy. It could be Gwen? But I can't remember if they declared her age or not so depending on that it could be quite unlikely. But if they haven't, then she is highly organised so maybe creating a whole program which picks out all these statement-like-things to send their way and isn't too farfetched?...

It probably is and I'm probably delusional with all of this but oh well

[factorialsotherfandoms]

So um I wrote about xcom!Chayanne yesterday and I don't have the energy to do his whole rescue and I'm not in the mood to hurt him as much as something before that would need, but also idk about you but **I** need some follow up from that. Get the baby a hug.

TW: badly injured child, referenced child abuse, hospital setting, talk about a child very nearly dying (in the past)

Philza knew it wasn't good - he'd seen the poor kid pass out, for fuck's sake - but he had not quite realised how bad it was. He hadn't been working with the sort of tech the infirmary has, too focused on keeping the two kids alive to think about the implications of their injuries.

The tablet Doctor Ruiz hands him, though... One kid - the one currently curled up with Roier as they both sleep off their injuries - he knew about. The broken bones about match what he predicted, looking at the poor sod. There's a worrying amount of head trauma, yes, but bar an inability to talk the kid had seemed alert and aware. Bit hard to tell with children, but he'll hopefully be fine.

It's the second he worries about; he had not even realised the kid was injured until he passed out in Missa's arms and, fuck, Philza doesn't think he'll ever be able to forgive himself for that. The scars, the cuts... the last of their splash potions hadn't woken him, but had at least closed up the wounds and bought some colour back to the kid's cheeks.

He'd known it was bad, he had, he swears, but this... The scar pattern, the slightly sticky marks on his chest, the breaks in his ribs... Not just current ones, either, but on the x-rays he can see evidence of them having been broken before. Similar places, too.

There are other scans, too, ones of a sort that Philza does not understand. They show the child's organs, presumably damage to them, but he really wouldn't know.

They still don't scare him as much as the x-rays of his ribs, if only because he only understands the latter; he flicks back to them, and stares in horror.

"Is that...?" he hands the tablet back to her - he isn't a doctor, he could be wrong, he just picks shit up here and there.

Her face is grim as she nods.

"Fucking hell," he breathes the word out; it makes a lot of sense, now, why she had insisted on this boy being on a bed alone, surrounded by wires and monitors instead of letting Missa hold him. "Do we know what happened?"

"I was hoping you could tell me," she says, folding her arms around the tablet and clinging to it. "If I had to guess, shock from one of the scarring injuries. His biology is... Strange, though - human blood is compatible, at least, and his vitals are stable. I have no idea if they are /good/, but they are stable."

"Will he be okay?" he asks.

"I..." it's never a good thing when the doctor fucking hesitates to answer that question. "If he heals like a human and my guess is correct? Yes. If not, it is outside my expertise."

Philza takes a deep breath, calms himself, and nods, "thanks for the update."

She nods, "I'll get started on the reports; I just thought you'd like to know."

"Oh I fucking hate it," he replies. "But it's better than not knowing; you handle the reports, I'll keep an eye on the kid."

She nods, and vanishes.

And, fuck, how is he going to tell Missa? The man's already attached, and it's not an easy thing to tell someone - 'oh, yeah, that kid we rescued? His heart stopped recently enough his ribs have barely started healing from being broken during CPR, and he still had gunk from a fucking heart monitor on him. Also? Not the first time it's happened'.

Philza runs his hands over his face and, fuck, he wishes he had made that bitch /suffer/. For all her talk of honour, she'd done her fucking best to murder a /child/.

It's too late now, already dead under Jaiden's knife, but fuck he wants her to suffer more. The kids are, what, ten? Something like that?

And don't try tell him that it wasn't the Assassin - Philza /knows/ swords, and hers are a perfect match for the scars and wounds littered all over the poor boy's skin.

Given the chance to fight her again, he'd rip her apart with his bare fucking hands. Or, let Cellbit do it at least. He does have more the talent for it these days.

But, there's not much to be done, not now. The Assassin is dead, and the kid is in an actual fucking infirmary. Jaiden and Roier both need to stay, to the concern and delight of the other little boy, while after getting patched up Missa and Philza elected to stay with this one. Cellbit's off somewhere - probably struggling to pull things from the archive with one arm in a cast - and Etoiles elected to get some fucking sleep.

It seems like a good idea.

Philza doesn't think he can, not without nightmares of a little boy bleeding to death, alone and scared, in a prison cell.

Or stabbed again - Missa did say both boys had tried to fight the Assassin; for all Philza admires their persistence, fighting back on the wounds they have, he's fucking terrified for them.

And, thinking of Missa, the man is waking up. Philza turns his attention there, watching him get up.

"Hey Missa," he smiles over, but he knows it looks thin.

He gets a smile back, as Missa scoots himself up to sitting.

The smile falls as soon as Missa lays eyes on the kid in the bed.

"How is he?"

"He had to be resuscitated."

Philza realises his mistake as he sees absolute terror consume Missa's features, and a terrified whine.

"Not today!" he clarifies, quickly, loudly. "Jesus fuck, I would have woken you if it was today. Sorry, sorry - recently, though, his ribs are still fucked up. Maybe a few days ago? Week at most?"

The whine turns from terror to heartbreak, Missa scrambling over with his too-long limbs. He picks up the boy's hand, clinging to it and muttering rapidly in Spanish.

Philza doesn't try to translate, not when the kid is obviously the one addressed - if anyone at all.

"Fuck, Missa, it wasn't even the first time either. Doc says he'll be fine so long as he heals like a human - and he's got human blood and human organs so we should be okay - but, fucking hell mate, I just..."

What does Philza even say? He permits the words to vanish into Missa's whine.

He reaches across, resting his hand atop Missa's. It takes the man a little bit to stop whining and ask "do we know why?"

"Not really," Philza feels his grimace. "We're hoping shock from the other injuries. It's bad, but now they're healed or healing... Easiest shit to fix, out of the options. Can't see anything else, doesn't mean there isn't."

There's another pained noise from Missa. Philza reaches up, absently wiping at his tears as he looks away to the boy's face. It takes a bit for Missa to collect himself up, clinging to the boy's hand and brushing his hair from his face.

"He's safe now?" Missa asks.

"He's safe," Philza confirms. "And once he's better, we'll find somewhere safe for him to stay."

It's a long shot, but they have some ideas of places safer than an airship full of the government's most wanted, at least.

Missa's fussing also seems to have awoken the boy; Missa startles, and turns to him, and when Philza's eyes follow he sees the little red flames in place of eyes watching them both.

Missa speaks something soothing in Spanish; Philza is still too furious to speak calmly enough for an injured and probably scared child.

The boy tries to sit up, only to flinch; Philza catches him, and helps him back down. Across the room he catches Doctor Ruiz's eye - she just gestures for him to go ahead and returns to her paperwork.

"Hey now," he tries to be gentle, but his voice is not really having it. "Lay back down. Your friend is just over there, see?"

The kid turns his head, and does relax a little when he spots the other boy. He still does not speak, glancing around but always returning to Philza and Missa.

"You're safe here," Missa promises. "Philza and I won't let anyone hurt you."

The kid glances between them; Philza tries to back Missa up with a nod.

He looks... confused, more than anything, glancing back at the other child, then at the adults. It takes a little bit, before he raises his arms and...

"Oh..." Philza whispers.

Missa leans down first, doing his best to avoid any of the wires or tubes surrounding the boy.

Philza follows a bit later, putting one arm across Missa's back and, with a lack of space, brushes a the child's hair with the other.

"We fucked her up," Philza promises. "She won't be hurting anyone again."

The boy does not stay awake long, his body brutalised and exhausted. Within moments of the hug starting he has fallen back asleep. Both Philza and Missa are reluctant to let go, but know that they must.

Missa sings lullabys, the music keeping Philza more to the present. He does not have much of a singing voice, so he fetches blankets instead, hoping the pressure will be comforting to the boy.

"He just wanted a hug," Missa's voice is broken. "Phil, Phil, he just- just a hug..."

Philza's own heart is a ruin, too; he opens his own arms up, and gestures Missa over. He wraps his friend in his arms, lets him cry into his shoulder.

If he also cries into Missa's hair, then it is his secret to tell.

[fiddlepickdouglas]

I just turned 30 and I wanted to hand down some things that'll hopefully help y'all in the future:

Eat what you want. Wear what you want. Like the media you want. You are allowed to like your things and show that you do.

Sometimes old friends come back and both of you have changed to somehow be even better friends than before and it's really beautiful.

Pace yourself. Slower. Sloowweeerrrr. SLOWER. It's okay to not always be going a mile a minute. It's okay, I promise. Say this aloud if necessary.

Drink water and brush your teeth

I have never regretted giving a big tip regardless of the quality of service

Every past version of you is both really cringe and an absolute marvel, that's just how it is

College is your choice, your time, and your money (debatable depending on how your tuition is funded but it's important to include). You can say no to it. You can start it, leave it, and come back later. You can do that multiple times. You can still find opportunities that pay well enough without having a single degree to your name. But do not waste a second making any of those decisions to please anyone else but you.

Asking is a virtue. So is admitting you don't know something.

Being unliked isn't the end of the world

You can't be blamed for what you did not know or fully understand in the past. Everyone has been problematic and it takes time to unlearn old things. You're not entitled to some wokeness award, but you can be proud of your progress.

I still have no idea how to make a fucking doctor/dentist appointment without feeling like a 5 year old who needs another adult to do it for me. Sometimes I talk to someone about it to hype me up.

If you have to consciously hide a side of yourself from someone you call a very good friend/partner/family member, please think it over. I'm not talking about being aware of what is appropriate to share at what times or actively keeping yourself safe - I mean if you cannot speak honestly about your own thoughts and feelings because you think someone who should care will suddenly hate you, that should be addressed.

BIG fan of leaving if things suck!

It's okay to do things alone. There are also some things better done with a group. You deserve to enjoy both.

Please keep at least one bank account with only yourself on it. Also learn how to do fucking online/mobile banking. I cannot stress this enough. Especially after you turn 18 and definitely before you get married.

It's okay to mourn dreams that you never achieved and even no longer want to achieve

Calling something or someone basic has done massive harm to society and there's really no good reason to describe anyone's hobbies or tastes as such, you're just being mean

Always question your assumptions of others. No one is fucking Personality Sherlock. Everyone is strange.

Listen to your body!!!!!!!!

Once you learn to recognize the many forms of ableism, you see it everywhere. Shut that shit down at every possible opportunity (keyword: possible. Choose your battles wisely)

Fandom only gets better from here, ignore anyone who thinks your presence is unwelcome by merely looking at your age

And most importantly:

STAY SILLY 😛🤓👻😽

[nellie-elizabeth]

Grey's Anatomy: Burn It Down (20x10)

Ughhhh. Wow. That was not a good finale for me, for a lot of reasons.

Cons:

Gosh, where to even start, my list of grievances is so long. I guess let's go with a couple of the smaller irritants first: Jo being pregnant is such a no from me. And her not telling Link about it? What? Yeesh. I guess I'm glad that her dramatic passing out was just exhaustion and that she's fine, just pregnant, but I'm also very grumbly about the whole thing. It does seem like this show prioritizes storylines that I'm less interested in, and pushes aside the things that would really compel me.

Case in point number two, Lucas and his future fate. I wanted to be moved by everyone showing up to plead his case in front of Catherine, and in a way I was: good on Bailey and the interns for standing up to Catherine Fox, she badly needs to be told she's overstepping, honestly. But Lucas is just so fundamentally uninteresting to me, that the idea that the cliffhanger of the whole season is "but what about Lucas's career" just... sucks, from an investment perspective. Yasuda and Kwan and Jules are at this point far more interesting to me, and I like Simone a lot when she's not tied up in Lucas's drama. I'm just bummed about where the story investment is going, is I guess what I'm saying.

There's been a lot of retreading familiar ground this season, as I think at least for some of the characters, this show is really showing its age. Never have I felt that more than with Richard. Holy shit, Richard's role in this episode pissed me off like you wouldn't believe. The wishy-washy way he's almost retired or stepped back from surgery over the years makes every story like this feel like the boy who cried wolf, but honestly? Fingers crossed he actually finally fucking retires. Why? Well, so we can stop hearing about it, for one, and also... he killed a man???

I was honestly flabbergasted by the handling of this patient's death in this episode. The fact that Richard can wax philosophical about his past and say "it might really be time for me to put down the scalpel" after he realizes he made a totally preventable mistake and it resulted in a patient's death is just... so off, tonally, to me. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Isn't this the kind of shit that should get Richard, and the hospital, into big, big trouble? Should we have seen the consequences through the reactions of this dead man's family or something? It just felt so flat! Someone tell Mika and Jules that they're not responsible for this man's death! And someone take Richard's badge away from him. Go on, Catherine, you're kicking every damn body else out of this joint, why not add your husband who clearly can't do his job anymore?

Before we get to Catherine, and oh boy are we getting to Catherine, let's talk about Bailey. I love Bailey, I love Ben, but this was another story that felt like such a retread of things we've seen a million times. Bailey being affected by Ben's job, worried about him constantly, it's nothing new - we see it all the time, whenever they want to amp up the potential drama here. Ben, evidently, survives the finale of Station 19, so I think hopefully we can put this to rest. I'm seeing rumblings that Ben might be coming back to surgery and thus jumping back over to Grey's. Wouldn't be mad about it, to be honest. Let's set this whole firefighter husband worry behind, for Bailey.

Then there's Nick and Meredith. Not much to say about this. I find them boring. I don't get why Meredith is invested in him. He is a nothing character with nothing interesting about him whatsoever. I hate that because of Meredith's part-time status on the show, we're probably just going to keep seeing the two of them go along in their boring relationship for the rest of however long this show goes. I wish Meredith could have been sunsetted off the show with a character I give a damn about.

And last but not least in my long list of complaints... yeah. Catherine Fox. You know, I've struggled to figure out my distaste for this character for a long time. Grey's is filled with brilliantly complicated characters, in particular it's filled with women who do bad things for good reasons, or even for bad ones, women who have egos and ambitions, women who refuse to fill a palatable role to make everyone comfortable. I'm fine with a flawed character, I'm fine with Catherine being in the wrong sometimes. But yowza! Her ego trip, her inflated sense of her own importance... I cannot with her! Do you know how much a character has to be pissing me off for me to take Owen's side on something? But when he snapped at her to let Teddy help with the surgery, I was cheering him on!

The pettiness of taking Meredith and Amelia's research away and giving it to Tom Koracick? Now, don't get me wrong, if this means we'll see Tom next season in some capacity, I'm all for it, but in terms of Catherine's actions here? It's aggravating beyond compare. Her playing politics with information that could actually save so many lives? Her complete lack of awareness that she's the one who fucked up by trying to silence Meredith in the first place? The absolutely petty move of cutting Owen's badge access off, along with Teddy's and Amelia's? Like, what the fuck did Owen do except snap at you a little bit for trying to stand in the way of a firefighter's life being saved? The audacity of her firing him too for that? Seemingly? Yeesh. Take several seats, Catherine Fox.

Pros:

Despite my many complaints about this episode, there were actually several moments I enjoyed just fine.

Catherine being annoying did allow for Owen to be a badass, and for Meredith to be even more of a badass. When Catherine says she's just like her mother, Meredith says "good, that means I'll win." Hell yeah, Mer. You tell her.

I also love Amelia so much, and I think the friendship between Amelia and Owen is honestly very charming and mature, so good for both of them there? I loved when Amelia asked him for advice and Owen said that she'd never taken his advice before, so why start now? He does eventually tell her that he personally wouldn't be giving the research to Tom Koracick, but that's just because he has extremely legitimate reasons to hate that dude.

I'm grieving hardcore for Yasuda not sticking around next season, and I hope there's a way for her contract to get renegotiated or something! Because that Yasuda and Jules almost kiss? Yes please? I haven't felt this invested in a romance that probably won't even happen in a long time on this show. But even without it being definitively a romantic thing, I love their friendship so much. I hope someone tells them right away that they aren't responsible for the death of that patient!

I'm still not "on board", exactly, for the Winston/Monica thing, but I suppose I can enjoy it for the drama for the time being? I do want Winston to be able to find happiness, honestly. I just hope Amelia/Monica is a thing we get to see in the future, too.

I'm also still in denial about Schmitt leaving next season, but I did like how annoying he was in this episode, honestly. He can be kind of a lot to handle, and I like that he's allowed to be a little more openly frustrating sometimes. Him being annoyed with Jo for not telling him she's pregnant was such a funny bit, as he realized what he had inadvertently done.

As boring as I find Lucas, I did like the little plot thread where he helps with the app to connect people who are trying to find each other. And I like that Dorian is finally discharged from the hospital - a happy ending for that patient was sorely needed after everything he's been through!

So... yeah. All in all, I'm annoyed with this episode. I'm annoyed with Catherine, I'm annoyed that Jo's pregnant, I'm annoyed that everyone's focused on Lucas, I'm bored by Nick. I'm happy that Dorian got discharged, and I'm happy that Meredith is standing up for herself, I guess? We'll be back for hopefully a bit longer of a season twenty-one. And we'll find out what the heck is going on with Kwan's amnesiac ex-fiancee... man, this show can be endearingly ridiculous sometimes.

6/10

[sandrayofsun]

What Just Happened Pt.3 (still going omg)

Alright I'm seriously hoping this is the last part but there is just so much content idk what to do. Hopefully if this finds you it's because you enjoy reading all this stuff while you wait for the next episode to come out LOL

This whole post will be dedicated to the River Scene!!

Let's continue!!

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

From last week's preview we already knew this was going to be an important conversation for this pair because this whole show we have been needing both of these to start communicating properly. I thought this setting was perfect honestly because there's something very relaxed and open about being in nature.

I think throughout this interaction it's interesting that Sand is really just calling stuff out, while Ray sort of tries to placate him. But at the end of the day, Sand isn't an idiot, and with the way Ray has been brought up, he needs clearer boundaries and open communication.

Ray is very capable of saying thank you, apologizing, and admitting when he is wrong, but he needs to be with someone who cares about him enough to keep him in check.

It's exactly this type of conversations that Ray needs in order to help process his feelings, and learn how to take care of the feelings of others. A lot of this show has been spent with Ray feeling like he owns Sand, but that is not the reality.

Look at Sand expressing his feelings and finally putting it out there that he likes Ray. I think both of them have been waiting for this, and it shows a lot of progress from Sand that he is able to set his boundaries while also expressing himself.

And Ray finally admits what we all knew from the beginning. People talk a lot about how much control Mew has over Ray but let's talk about how wrapped Sand has him around his finger. Ray never stopped chasing him and wanting to know him even when he was "chasing" Mew.

I think the ending of this scene was incredibly symbolic.

Sand saying he won't wait for him if he finds someone whose ready

Proceeds to start walking out of the river

Turns around to wait for Ray

Ray is wobbly and a little unstable in the water but moving forward nonetheless

Sand reaches his hand out to him to steady him

Ray takes it

They walk side-by-side

Like are you kidding me that was literally the most poetic shit ever.

Ok part four will be the last one I promise!! It's just there's so much to talk about from this episode hahaha (part four is here)

[amphiptere-art]

Heavy spoilers!

This is a barebone storyline for RBB. I am too fed up with keeping it down so we're posting it somewhere.

If you do want to read this, and afterwards want to talk about the events listed. That is completely fine. Even encouraged! But for others sake we are going to have to use code words if we are talking about it.

Start a ask with "The colorful mango" just those words! I will then answer the ask, and ask what you want to talk about. Of which then we can continue the conversation underneath read more blocks.

I will be tagging this for my convenience. Luckily though I will use code words. Which are going to be along the same light as the cherry incident wording. I will be listing these different code words next to each event.

Let's get started.

So. We have the generic storyline opening as everything else. Sun got taken over by the kill code. Moon was getting taken over by the kill code. Attempted to make some AI that failed. The computer merge those AIs together to create Blue Moon. Blue Moon lived for about a month alongside moon before they went kill code crazy. At some point meeting Golden in the process. The cube came a couple months later. Then blackstar. Then Earth.

That is a generic timeline everyone knows. This is what's happening after. What hopefully will happen during the ask series. Although the ask series is more of a tying of events. Plus almost a separate timeline. It's basically just a way for me to tie together events without having to think about the downtime.

But let's get started. Really.

So Black Star made a deal with Earth. Basically he caught her trying to mind control Blue Moon. Before he was able to get out of there he caught him. Forcing him to stay quiet under the preface that she will do the same to him. Black Star stays quiet then. If he doesn't mess with her she won't mess with him.

It's not until he starts feeling bad about it that he wants to do something new.

Do note that this listed string of events is really for the ask series. Probably going to steal things from there to fill up the story if I ever do write it down.

Basically blackstar and Blue Moon's relationship grows. Black Stars still a little shit, but he wants to care for Blue Moon. Which includes stopping the whole mess. Black Star doesn't know how to get into contact with Golden so he figures to go somewhere else. Roxanne.

(I don't watch the Roxanne and Gregory show on a daily basis. So yes her personality is very different from what it might be in the show. There's just a lot of things that are different in this.)

Unfortunately this idea is cut short. Blue Moon gets teleported to lost Lord. A place blackstar isn't familiar with. So Blue Moon has to defend him and themselves as they get attacked by the cursed spikes. Yada yada shenanigans. This is a more time filler space. Point is by the end of it Lost Lord's still hates Blue Moon. They're only going to hold back their fury because blackstar made a sort of an alliance.

When they get back Earth is lucky enough to find Black Star. Carefully leaning him back towards pizza plex. Much to his concealed disappointment. Set back up where sun and moon are angry at Blue Moon for getting teleported. Mainly because they teleported back on top of one of suns clean up supply piles. Which makes it so the black star has to attempt to calm them while Earth quietly threatens there life. She also makes sure Black Star realizes that getting help is to break their contract.

This is kind of the extent of what I have planned for the ask series as of now. So from here on it's bullet point events. Not a lot of stringing events together. I'm also regoing over some events that are in the ask series. Just because that's what they boiled down to in the basically ask series Canon.

Blue Moon is extremely tired with their life. Wanting something better that they've seen in all the other universes.

Worm in my apple.

Black Star gets introduced. Instantly knows something's wrong with Earth. Seeing her as an almost copy of him.

Blue Moon gets the taste of the virus.

The Cherry incident.

Blackstar gets caught and makes a deal with Earth to leave him alone.

Rambutan times.

Lost Lord. Blue Moon has to introduce blackstar to the first dangers He's probably ever seen. Black Star does something to help them survive through their stay.

Some good apples.

Eclipse Brothers world. worried about blackstar. Pissed but okay with blue moon.

Mutated carrot.

Beast maker world. Get to experience that nightmare.

Ripe raisins.

Old lunar getting worried. - visited?

A bunch of grapes.

Other wild world. -perhaps a lava world. -perhaps just CC -maybe filler.

Snapped celery.

Black Star feeling bad. It's getting out of hand.

They visit a world with an Earth. Blue Moon gets attached and unfortunately attacks a sun for her. Despite her not wanting them to.

Blue Moon deeply regrets and is extremely confused.

Rolling pickle.

Blackstar fleas to try and find help. Unfortunately leaving Blue Moon to get taken over by Earth's virus.

Black Star heads to EB to get help. Shy due to Earth's threaten but EB protects him.

Bell pepper.

Earth learns about the star from Blue Moon.

Black Star essentially gathers a mini army to stop Earth.

Smashed mangoes.

Earth heads to Golden and by pretending that Blue Moon is okay. Gaines access to the star.

The others try and stop her. Unfortunately Blue Moon taken over by the virus and fights for her.

Earth uses the star. It breaks. Blue Moon along with it.

Earth did not mean to hurt blue moon. In her sorrow, Golden gains back control of the situation.

Fruit basket.

Blue Moon is.. dead? Black Star kills Earth in revenge. He and Golden attempt to fix blue moon. Old lunar, The eclipse Brothers, anyone else, Go to try and get superior help.

The story is unfortunately stuck here. I struggle to link events together. There really should be a lot more downtime in RBB instead of just going to other universes. This is based on the most concrete story I've ever made. Which is correlated to a song. So there's definitely some creative biases.

If any of you want to talk about this stuff I'm happy to. My problem with the story is that there are no filler events. People asking questions about the story helps me think about how to fill those empty holes. It will help this story and the many events more complete. So please, I encourage questions.