#i draw them both different for like... each day

[alluraxo]

Trust | Kang Dae-ho [||]

pairing: Dae-ho x pregnant! reader summary: Pregnant and caught in a deadly game, survival was your only focus - until you saw the one person you never expected: the father of your child. The same man who vanished without a word, leaving only a note on your kitchen table. Note: Mature content. Minors dni. (Player 416 is gone, that’s your number now.)

Part I | Part II

You didn’t know what to expect when you took that strange card marked with three cyptic shapes from a complete stranger you had just played ddakji with.

You didn’t know what to expect when you called the number and were asked, without explanation to give your full name and birth date.

There were many things you didn’t expect when agreeing to play.

But being kidnapped, shoved into a truck, gassed into unconsciousness and waking up to the sound of classical music blaring in your ears, searing lights stabbing at your eyes in an unfamiliar room? That was beyond anything you could’ve imagined.

You rubbed your eyes and blinked against the glare. The adjustment period to the sudden brightness taking quite a bit. It wasn’t sun blinding but more so cloud blinding. Like when you step out of your house and the sky is just all overcast, forcing you to squint much harder.

When you could finally see, you looked around.

Bunk beds stacked on each other, against the walls and people. A ton of people in green jackets and green pants with numbers on the left side, right above the heart. Some already up and gathering in the middle, others still in their bed, but one thing was sure. Almost everyone had a confused look on their face as they looked around the white room with strange drawing on the walls.

Stick figures.

Two doors- no, 4 doors. One on the left, one on the right, and two right in the middle with steps leading up to it.

It was strange, having never seen a room that looked like what was presented in front of you.

"Hey, 416."

You were placed right at the top of the bunk beds and you couldn’t help but resent the idea of them making a pregnant woman climb down. Granted, there were stairs once you got down but you’d still have to climb. Hopefully the beds weren’t assigned to each person.

"416! Up there on the bed!"

Wait- were they talking to you? You glanced down. Three white numbers stared back at you from your chest: 416. Sure enough, they were definitely talking to you.

You shifted your eyes back towards where the voice came from. A guy with bright purple hair, spiky and messily meeting the darker shade of shorter hair near his ears. The number on his chest read: 230. He stood on the stairs, leaning against the metal bars and one hand extended out to you.

"Take my hand, beautiful. I, the amazing Thanos can escort you down."

You lifted your eyebrow at him. His voice laced with cockiness and a failed attempt at charm. It might’ve worked on other people but you had Dae-ho.

Had. Past tense.

"No thanks," Your voice came out smoothly as you proceeded to climb out the bed.

Although you hated the idea of doing so while pregnant, what you hated more was being dependent on someone. Everyone you depended on left you disappointed and as much as you thought Dae-ho would be different, he wasn’t.

The trust you had in him faded away slowly and you hated yourself that it wasn’t instant.

You wanted to hate him, absolutely despise his very being, his existence for leaving you pregnant and alone. You wanted to build your walls up and shut him out permanently but you knew he was your weakness. Between the lies and disappointment, you saw him. Him, smiling at you every morning. Him, holding your hand through the worst days. Him, whispering promises during the night that you clung to like a lifeline. Dae-ho was your safety.

It was every moment you both had that made it worse.

Because no matter how hard you tried to hate him, to erase his name and the love you felt for him from your heart, you knew you couldn’t.

Your chest ached with every memory but you knew you had to be stronger now. Not just for yourself but for your baby.

You proceeded to walk down the steps, only stopping halfway once you heard a buzzer.

Looking ahead, you saw people walk in through the doors in the middle. They dressed in pink jumpsuits, wore masks with shapes printed on it, and talked in a deep voice which made you wonder if the mask held a voice changing device.

Their muffled words were pushed to the back of your mind, only really retaining information you deemed important.

Sign the consent form.

Play the game.

Win the money.

"Please look into the camera," The robotic voice spoke as you straightened yourself out and looked straight at the smiley face on the screen. "Smile."

You kept the same neutral facial expression, the shutter of the camera going off indicating that your picture had been taken. With that, you kept moving through the colorful maze-like room with multiple staircases that intersected.

It was mostly quiet as you walked up the stairs, except for the one person behind you that attempted to initiate a conversation by using a pickup line. You paid no mind to them, only throwing back a glare that seemed to shut them up.

After a minute or two of walking, you finally reached the location and walked through the two huge green doors. Four walls encased you, painted with trees, yellow grass, and the sky, giving the illusion that you weren’t trapped inside those walls. The ground under your white shoes crunched as you walked further out. Ahead of you were two of the pink jumpsuit guys and a huge robot standing in front of a tree, which you assumed was fake.

The wind blew and seagulls squawked as they flew by. The sky was overtaken by stray white clouds roaming by, thin enough to see the blue sky right through.

You closed your eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling through your nose and parting your lips to let it out. It was peaceful, almost.

You heard the same robotic voice call out what the first game was.

Red light. Green light. Cross the line in 5 minutes.

It seemed simple enough. You had played games like this when you were a kid. Although you did expect something else, you preferred not to complain about it.

Not everyone felt the same way it seemed. The groans of disappointment and mutters under their breath giving it away. Soon being silenced by the rough yelling of player 456, going on about how you’ll die if you move.

It fell on confused faces, some calling him crazy— saying he just wanted money, others actually being scared.

You were on edge. Could he be telling the truth?

The game started and you began to walk, aiming to stay as still as possible. You didn’t know if he was or not, but you weren’t about to be the one to find out.

Before you knew it, chaos ensued.

Started with a scream, a gunshot, and a thud of a body falling to the ground. Then like dominoes, everyone started falling. Tipping one after the other as player 456’s screams to stay still and not move fell on deaf ears.

Your breath became shaky as someone’s body landed right beside you. The gurgle of blood spewing out their mouth as they took their last breaths almost made you cringe in pity. You stood completely still, fear clawing its way up your veins, leaving every sound muffled once it reached your ears.

You snapped out of it as soon as you heard the shuffle of shoes scraping against the gravel like ground, inclining you to move and so you did.

You stood behind someone, everyone moving like clockwork to get past the line and ignoring the amount of people that got shot… or pushed.

The line was just in eye’s view as you saw majority of the people cross it, and you were almost there. Every step lifting the fear you felt, relief overtaking it.

But it all came crashing down once you felt a sharp contraction shoot through you, bringing you down to your knees. Your arms cradled your belly, the feeling making you shut your eyes tight as you stayed still, hoping it would go away.

"Green light."

You heard but you didn’t move.

"Come on," A voice spoke next to you, leaning down and grabbing your arm, hooking it over their shoulder, "If you don’t cross you die."

You nodded, wincing slightly as you looked over.

'Player 120.'

"Thank you," Your voice came out barely above a whisper, and they only nodded in response. Whilst dragging your feet across the ground, you looked ahead at everyone that watched you, scanning their faces. Some looking in worry, others turned away from the brutal sight of people that had been previously shot.

Dae-hoe held the collar of his jacket up to his lips, his labored breathing calming down once he stepped past the line.

He didn't expect to be caught up in a death game. Regret and guilt crept in his heart, now knowing he put his life at risk for some money. Why did he leave you? Why did he think this was a good idea? Perhaps job hunting a little longer would have paid off.. or perhaps not.

He ran his hands through his hair, a frustrated groan leaving his lips.

Dae-ho missed you. A lot. He missed feeling your lips on his, he missed touching your belly, feeling every kick of the tiny life growing and he especially missed the comfort he felt in your arms. He wanted to see you again, touch you again, run away from the place he was at to go back to your shared shabby apartment.

Because even in a room full of people, he felt lonely.

Whispered mutters of other players reached his ears, going on about how some players were probably not going to reach the finish line.

Dae-ho's eyes followed who they were looking at..

The moment he caught sight of you, his heart stopped so violently that it felt like the world came crashing down on him, keeping him frozen in time.

Dae-ho took a couple of steps towards the line, his heart aching-- no, yearning for you. You, who amidst the chaos that happened all around, still took the spotlight in his eyes. He wanted to run to you, call out your name, hold you and tell you how sorry he was for leaving. He wanted to risk his life- getting shot just to be able to reach you.

But this wasn't the place to do so.

Dae-ho didn't really know how to feel, he felt conflicted. He was beyond happy to see you, yes but almost instantly, worry crashed over him like a wave.

You were here.

You were here and you shouldn't be. You were never supposed to be anywhere near this danger, this absolute nightmare. You should've been at home, curled up in the blanket and sleeping peacefully just like how you were when he left.

He watched as you crossed the line, his feet automatically walking towards you as if you pulled the invisible string to his heart. His heart that was undoubtedly tethered to yours.

Your name left his lips in a cracked whisper, letting the wind carry it away towards you.

When you finally met his gaze- carrying more emotion than words could tell- his breath hitched.

Even with the hurt look in your eyes. You were ethereal.

And he was sorry.

As always, feel free to lmk how you guys feel about this part! <3 Taglist: @inotaku-talkz @ynniksslirg @pinkpunkdynamite @smokingblossoms @xlittlebugx-blog @moonshuul @raynamorono23 @hopelessdisasterr @laitifly @jordanswwe @melanatedhorrorqueen @memorylanee @pepsicolapussi @twilighsstuff @laurenluvss

[m1ssunderstanding]

The John Lennon Owner's Manual By Paul McCartney

1. Make him food. I mean actually cook for him. Don't just take him out. He needs to feel loved and settled. John had a bit of a difficult childhood. He won't say it, but he craves security, and a good home-cooked meal can give that to him if only momentarily. Steak and potatoes is his favorite for dinner. Black pudding for breakfast. He also recently got a taste for a good American picnic lunch. Just real, hearty food. Hopefully you know what I mean.

2. On the other hand, you can't fall for his ‘i just want to stay home on the couch all the time’ routine. That's bullshit. He'll kick and scream on the way out, but the minute he's out of the house, he's like a dog at the park, or a bird headed South. Take him to the water. Boating, swimming, just staring at crashing waves or ships in the harbor. Take him to those rotating art galleries with different exhibits each month. Clubs, but it's got to be the good kind. You won't know what I'm talking about. Ask Brian or Mal. When you're dancing, ignore John's tough guy act. Twirl him, dip him, show him off. While we're treating John like a woman, John loves shopping more than any bleeding bird (girl) you ever went with. Clothes, books, sweets, gadgets. Take him. And you can't worry about all the money he's spending. Just be very excited about whatever it is he's spending it on.

3. Speaking of money. I assume you've taken over all my assets with my identity. I actually am terrified of John spending everything he owns and ending up completely broke, and it's not because I'm crazy. It's a legitimate possibility. So what you have to do, if you actually care about John, is be very very VERY careful with my money so he's always got a safety net.

4. Listen to him. This one is important. Every joke is a fucking tear-jerking rib cracker. Every snide comment is a scripture you're going to memorize and carve into the mountainside. He is an actual genius. I'm not being funny. I'm not being in love. Or obsessive as you'd call it. John’s brain operates on a level that's beyond even me. Quicker, deeper. All of it. So to you, he's basically a god. Anyway, my point is, treat him like a gift to the world, because he is one. Back up his plans. Draw attention to his wildness. Explain away the behaviors that to smaller minds might seem cruel or immature etc. File away little details of things he tells you for future use. I would usually answer them in a song, which you can't do. But you could call back to them with a public private joke. Or if it's some insecurity he's confessed, bring up how insane that thought is when he's had some minor success. Mention some random fact he taught you when you're bragging about him to strangers. Buy him that thing he once pointed out in passing at the shops.

5. Keep him working. I think all people experience this one, really, so this is probably self-explanatory, but just in case. If a person is feeling sorry for themselves, they might lose the motivation they need for the projects that make them happy. So they might stop working on those projects, which means they lose both the joy they get from the actual work, and the satisfaction and pride they get from a job well done. Think about how this cycle works in you, multiply it by fifty, and you've got John on a good day. He needs to be pushed. But he can't think you're telling him what to do, and he can't think you don't believe he can do it alone. You've got to be a bit sneaky with it.

6. Touch him. You were right. This is where – well part of where – I know I let him down. He loves to be touched. Anywhere. All the time. Even stupid shit like an ankle kick under the table or a shoulder nudge in the hallway will get you the most rewarding beaming beautiful smile. I guess you must know all about John and sex, so I won't go into detail here, but again. Just in case. You probably know his m.o. with sex is tender, romantic, passionate. Kissing your neck and running soft fingers up your leg before he takes you in hand. Arching his back and throwing his head back with reckless grace when you grind into him. Staring into your eyes and holding you in him deep as you come. Cuddles and heart-to-hearts after. But he also loves it when you mix it up a bit, you know? He's open to quite literally anything and he needs variety here as in every area of his life. But really. The point is, he needs to be touched. Probably goes back to the difficult upbringing thing, I don't know. He’s a bloody good hugger. He needs more of that. I should've done more of that with him. A lot more.

7. You will never be able to make him truly happy. Not the way that I can. So until you give him up, you're lying to yourself about loving him and doing what's best and all of that. I'm not helping you because I'm scared for me but because I'm scared for John. Try not to fuck this up for him.

8. Which reminds me. If you're ever out walking with John, especially in London. Say you're walking to the studio or something. Make sure John's on the side of the sidewalk close to all the houses and shops etc. You stay on the side of the road. The streets get busy. He doesn't see well. It's your job now to keep him safe. Take it seriously.

[ingravinoveritas]

I don't know if you seen on xitter about a person who tweeted about the age gap between michael and anna and how that person don't agree with it etc etc . Then the fans who literally obsessed with anna or blind too see what really happening in the relationship and always come up defensive when people have an opinion like they go in for the attack. But they seem to have forgotten that anna was pregnant and that why they got into a relationship. It wasn't cos they was in love or wanted to be together they decided to make it work cos of the situation anna was in. And 6 years on the relationship still looks like it not working out michael still has the awarkness and sad face when he pictured with anna, when michael is pictured or with his daughters or other ppl his face is beaming, happy, smiling.

I honestly wish these fans would stop giving out misformation out to new fans or just ppl cos that is not what happened.

Hi, Anon. I've been at a conference all day, but I have had people DMing me and letting me know what has happened.

To summarize: A teenager wrote a tweet about being uncomfortable with age gap relationships and mentioned Michael and Anna specifically (though they stated they did not have a problem with David and Georgia). This then led to a number of Michael's fans--adults, mind you--piling on and attacking this girl. All of this started yesterday, continued into today, and has now culminated in that teenager having messages sent to her DMs telling her to kill herself.

I am not going to link to any of the tweets publicly, as I have no desire to add any fuel to the fire. But to say that the behavior in the fandom today has been appalling is a massive understatement. It is NEVER, ever okay to send someone death threats or tell someone to kill themselves for any reason, least of all in the name of defending a relationship between two complete strangers.

Again, this person was not calling Michael or Anna names. She did not tag either one of them in her tweets or engage in harassment of any kind (and if she had, that would absolutely not have been acceptable and I would have no problem calling it out). The only thing she did was to say how she felt uncomfortable, and explain why. She had an opinion that people didn't like. And this was enough to set the fandom alight and tear apart a teenager with an account that has barely a hundred followers.

The other thing, too, is that in the past, Michael has made no secret of how he feels about people using him as an excuse to attack others:

It stands to reason, then, that if Michael thought he needed to defend Anna or their relationship, that he would very readily do it himself. It's likely he would not even have any idea of this teenager's tweets had it not been for the fandom drawing so much attention to it in the first place, so the odds of him even knowing about it went up substantially just because of all this uproar.

I'm also wondering why anyone would want to be a fan of someone who would be okay with or even encourage their fans defending them by telling people to kill themselves. Is that who they think Michael is? (Or, Anna, for that matter?) Because I truly do not think Michael would be the person we all admire so greatly if he was okay with that.

It's also not lost on me that some fans are in effect rewriting history by talking about Michael and Anna's relationship as if we know how they met, when neither one of them have ever actually mentioned it. To be clear, this is not saying that they owe anyone an explanation of when/how they met, but the automatic assumptions fans are making do not necessarily have a basis in reality, and could possibly even be hurtful to Michael or Anna if they do not accurately represent their relationship. Especially when Michael himself has said that her pregnancy was a surprise, and they both decided to try to make it work (which suggests a very different narrative to "They met and fell in love and chose each other, the end").

All that said, the point underscoring everything that has happened in the last day is that if--as many folks have insisted--Michael and Anna's relationship is perfect and they are madly in love, why do they need to be defended? Shouldn't the truth already be obvious, without having to be stated? And why should one random teenager on Twitter not liking the relationship be such a threat to their relationship?

In any case, today was a perfect example of what happens when people escalate instead of de-escalate, and how dangerous that "hive mind" fandom mentality can truly be. Yet given the blind item yesterday and then this person writing what they did, it seems like a lot of the knee-jerk reactions are belying what some fans may actually be feeling...

[mar64ds]

Aspec analysis of Sam&Max

I often see posts about characters that could be read as aspec even if it’s not the writers’ intention. I often make posts about Sam and Max being incredibly aspec but never a full analysis. Well, how about we make the long Sam and Max aspec post today.

For those unfamiliar, Sam&Max is a comedic franchise of a detective duo, both absolutely insane. Sam, the dog, appears to be more normal and tends to be the voice of reason, but he has a casual insanity to him. Max, the rabbit, is just insane without hiding any insanity. The two of them solve strange cases that nobody normal would ever try or would be able to solve. The franchise has comics, a TV show, a lucasart game, three seasons of telltale games (now completely remastered) and a VR game. They are included in two poker games too.

Sam and Max is a comedic franchise, it relies on humor more than anything else, but the heart of the series relies on the relationship of the duo. Despite it all, it is stated and shown again and again that the one thing Sam and Max care about and take somewhat seriously is their relationship. The two of them have been friends since they were kids and have never been apart ever since.

Let’s start with the obvious: Are Sam and Max gay? Short answer: yes. Long answer: I made a whole video about why yes, they are.

‘I thought this post was about them being aspec?’ Good news, aroallos and aceallos exist! You can be aroace and gay too! Amazing, I know. I am here to talk about how Sam and Max are both.

Sam and Max have a very unconventional relationship that breaks a lot amatonormative and hetenormative expectations. Let’s focus first on the idea that the duo are best friends first, then we’ll talk about them being a couple.

Like I said before, Sam and Max have been friends since they were kids. Ever since then, their friendship has always been their most important relationship. Sam has been implied to have dated before, but those relationships never really went anywhere and were never truly his focus, living crazy adventures with Max is what he seems to truly find entertaining.

Max is gay, often forgets he is gay and Sam has to remind him. The writers are always however not very willing to imply he has been in relationships with men before, maybe one time for a little joke, but unfortunately this being a bit of an old franchise means you’re not getting the best handling of a gay character (that they don’t even want to admit IS gay at all). While I do think Max probably has flirted with men, maybe dated one or two, Max is even less interested in dating than Sam is.

It is very obvious as to why that is because it is very easy to read Max as aromantic.

Out of the two of them, Max is the one that talks about his annoyance and disgust of romance in general the most. Sam has definitely made his share of comments, which makes it a possibility that he might be in the aro spectrum too.

There is a valentine’s day episode on the cartoon, and Sam and Max absolutely DESPISE valentine’s day, it is the running joke of the episode, they just can not stand it.

Sam’s distaste is more casual, but Max’s is complete repulsion to it. He panics, he screams, he throws up. They were not kidding about romance repulsion with this guy.

Throughout the franchise, Max makes comments from time to time about his distaste for romance, claiming he doesn’t see a difference between horror and romance, calling love ‘icky’, etc. I will go back to that last point later, but let’s focus on Sam now.

As I said before, Sam has been stated to have tried to date before, but it never goes right for him. Romance is not a focus on the franchise, it is often that a duo of cartoon characters will lead to one of them getting a love interest, but aside from one random valentine’s day drawing from the creator of the show, Sam and Max have never really had any love interest in their stories (aside from each other lol)

It’s sadly clear why they wouldn’t try a love interest for Max, but if Sam was in any other franchise he would have a love interest. Thankfully, he is Sam from Sam&Max, so he doesn’t.

Sam has made comments about trying to date, but it never really goes anywhere because frankly, it’s not like the guy is making any effort. Sam goes through strange cases every week of his life, his work is his life and that’s because his work is pretty much just spending his time with Max making each other laugh. Sam doesn’t want to change his life whatsoever, I really do not think he would be happy if he did, he has stated that before. Sam just seems overall very disinterest in romance, I don’t think he finds it disgusting, maybe unappealing, but I think mostly he finds it BORING.

The closest to Sam being in a relationship with someone that isn’t Max is with the random dog lady the creator drew a second time, where she joins BOTH Sam and Max’s families for Thanksgiving. Basically if Sam were ever in a relationship, it would only work if Max is included.

We are still talking about the best friend context, so let’s analyze that. The writers’ are never going to actually make Sam and Max a canon couple. However, even if Sam and Max are best friends and nothing else, they ALWAYS remain as each other’s main priority. Sam cares more about his friendship with Max than any other possible relationship, Max cares about his friendship with Sam more than any other crazy adventure. They would ALWAYS choose each other before anything else, before a possible love interest, before personal gain, before their own lives, before ANYTHING. We even see a future version of them once, and they still stay together until their last years alive.

I don’t think people realize that all of this is not just ‘power of friendship’, this genuinely is challenging amatonormativity and hetenormativity. This is looking at the idea that your priority should always be to get married to the opposite gender and have kids, and instead deciding ‘actually, my best friend is more important, im going to spend my life with him’. Even if you see Sam and Max as best friends and not a couple, that’s still confronting heteronormative and amatonormative expectations. Sam and Max is inherently just not cishetallo media. (Wait it’s not cis either? Have you look at Max, do you think he wouldn’t use every pronoun? Also Sam is a trans man, he told me.)

However, the devs also don’t want to discourage fans from seeing the duo as a couple. Because of this, when the question has been asked, we receive some really good answers. My favorites are the ones that describe their relationship as being beyond the concepts of dating and relationships. Which um… I don’t think they realize that with that answer you are making them gay AND aspec.

Sam and Max being in a committed relationship with each other, without any label to describe it, with both of them being either very disgusted by romance or very disinterested in it, while at the same time also being very gay and very bi respectively… You are writing aroallo characters, you know that, right?

There is also an asexual reading to the characters. One of the primordial rules of the series, stated by the creator in the series bible, is that Sam and Max do NOT care if someone is attractive. A pretty face will not work on them. When Steve Purcell decided it would not be funny if the duo went cartoon crazy stupid for pretty ladies and instead it would be way funnier that they did not give a crap he 1) Made the best funniest decision I’ve ever seen in a cartoon franchise and 2) Accidentally made the characters even more aspec.

I don’t think I need to explain why Sam and Max not actually caring about someone being attractive works very well through an asexual analysis.

Max hates the idea of being held, or his hands being held, etc. Just get away from him. Not a big fan of kisses either

Sam is the one exception however, he usually is with everything.

I like giving Sam the ace headcanon just cause in Poker Night 2 his card is the Ace, and because I like the aroallo and aceallo duo concept. Aside from the series bible, the only other proof Sam can be read as ace is that in one easy to miss dialogue from season 3 episode 4 of the telltale games, where Max says that Sam has told him making babies is ‘icky and expensive’ before, which is funny but also I know what you are Sam.

Now, when it comes to seeing Sam and Max as a couple, that’s just how I’ve always seen the characters. Sam and Max are definitely dating, well actually, they have gotten married a few times. Believe it or not, this does not eliminate their aspec reading, I think people forget about the ‘aspec can date’ when it comes to characters that have not been confirmed to be aspec on twitter, aspec interpretations of married characters would kill them.

But Sam and Max’s relationship is unconventional, they aren’t all lovey dovey, they aren’t romantic. They’re two insane grown men that showcase their love and care for each other by being funny together and almost dying in insane adventures. I always joke that if relationships in media were written like Sam and Max’s I would actually not mind romantic sideplots, but I guess I’m just asking to make everyone aromantic.

But speaking of love… I do have one last interpretation for one of them. As a loveless aro myself, it is very easy for me to see Max a loveless aro, hell, Sam can be a bit on the spectrum too.

Even if it’s played as a joke, Max is often demonized for his ‘lack of care for others’ and for some of his very clear neurodivergency. Don’t get me wrong, both Sam and Max are jerks and can do terrible things, but Max having low empathy or not expressing his care for others the same way as everyone does not make him a bad person. I’m not saying every loveless person is loveless because of low empathy or neurodivergency, but sometimes these topics do intertwine, I myself am neurodivergent and loveless, and I like analyzing this theme through Max.

Max can be seen as uncaring by everyone, even to himself, to the point that, without getting into spoilers, he believes his own life isn’t really worth it. It is only when he saves another person’s life that his brain believes his life is ‘worth saving’. His brain really believed that because he doesn’t show his care for others like everyone else then it must mean there is something wrong with him, and only through an extreme life or death scenario he can proof to himself that that’s not the case.

I know the demonization of your own lovelessness way too well, and Max showcases some signs that the way people view him does actually affect him. Him thinking so little of himself IS a problem, not a joke and not a ‘he learned how to love!’ character arc. You know why? Because at no moment Sam thinks his life is not worth saving.

He already knows Max cares, he doesn’t have to be like everyone else. He doesn’t need to love like everyone else, he doesn’t have to be affectionate like everyone else, Sam likes him either way. This reading of the character makes me so emotional I want to explode.

As silly as it might sound, Sam and Max have been a great source of comfort for a lot of people in the lgbtqia+ community. I have seen plenty of people talk about how these two characters being gay means to them, so I wanted to also be thankful through an aspec perspective. I have said this before, but Max himself is the reason why I started using the aro label for myself, because he WAS the first romance repulsed character that felt genuine that I had ever seen. I gave him the aro headcanon, projected a lot and decided to use the label myself.

I often see characters that are widely headcanoned as aspec, but I barely see Sam and Max included in that, so I thought it would be neat to write a long essay analyzing the franchise through aspec lenses. Thanks for reading everyone :)

[meamiki]

mira !!! :]

[nexahexagon]

Hermit a Day May!! TangoTek my fav, and the fav alt hermits!!

ok so one isn't a "canon" alt hermit but it's my birthday i wanted to draw him. He also fits with my faves anyways! im also posting real late, sorry!!

[myokk]

🥺

[quirinah]

aether/earth

[spiderin-space]

Yeehaw‼️

[mysticalcats]

Could you give us two different style skimbles from two different productions talking about their fav topic? (Trains ofc)

us tour 5 and moscow 2005 skimble!! 🚂

[tears-of-xion]

Can you do Clefairy with #5 or Shadybug with #115 or both? Thank you!

Here ya go!! A Clefairy with palette #5 (Mars), and a Shadybug with #115 (His Name Was King)!

I hope you like them <3

Color palettes used are from this post !

-

Please do not use or re-post my artwork without my permission. Thank you!   (reblogs, however, are welcome and appreciated)

I do not own Pokemon, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir, nor their characters. All rights to their owners.

[icewindandboringhorror]

Pictures and things

[arolesbianism]

Been working on redesigning Raiden

[rokurookajima]

the actual funniest part of writing metalbanders in this the year of our lord 2024 is that my partner of five and a half years is…… a musician. a punk/metal/whatever drummer specifically lmao so now i’m like ok … harmonic convergence’s music would all sound like my partner’s deranged bands (like the ones ed plays in not just what he listens to) ✔️ delusions of grandeur ✔️ dress wan like ed for the most part (the jacket… the source for why i know u should never lean ur head on that spiky shoulder) ✔️ i know the exact amount of ANNOYING this type of musician is to be intimately linked with ✔️

[alex51324]

So, the NDA signed by producers of The Apprentice just expired, and one of them has published a tell-all article. Most of the article is about how they used standard reality-TV tricks to portray Trump as being wealthy and intelligent, when in reality he was, and is, a deeply indebted buffoon.

The money shot, however, comes when Trump and the producers are preparing for climax of the final episode, when the winner will be decided.

Per the FCC's rules for game shows, producers could not be involved in deciding who would be fired each week, or who would ultimately win: it had to be Trump's decision alone, like contestants and viewers were told it was. The producers could, and did, give him a presentation about the strengths and weaknesses of the contestants each time he had to make a decision. These were recorded, in case questions ever arose about whether the producers had crossed the line.

So, for the final episode, there were two contestants remaining. Both were men, one white, the other Black. They'd both done well in the final challenge of the competition. As the producers were summarizing the points for an against each candidate, this happened:

“Yeah,” he says to no one in particular, “but, I mean, would America buy a n— winning?” Kepcher’s pale skin goes bright red. I turn my gaze toward Trump. He continues to wince. He is serious, and he is adamant about not hiring Jackson.

In the finished program, Trump chose the white contestant as the winner.

(Four years later, Trump would propagate the baseless conspiracy theory that Barack Obama was not a native-born US citizen and therefore had not legitimately won the presidency.)

The article also describes how women working on the production faced discrimination based on whether or not Trump wanted to look at them while they did their jobs:

While leering at a female camera assistant or assessing the physical attributes of a female contestant for whoever is listening, he orders a female camera operator off an elevator on which she is about to film him. “She’s too heavy,” I hear him say. Another female camera operator, who happens to have blond hair and blue eyes, draws from Trump comparisons to his own Ivanka Trump. “There’s a beautiful woman behind that camera,” he says toward a line of 10 different operators set up in the foyer of Trump Tower one day. “That’s all I want to look at.”

And there's a third anecdote where he pressures a woman producer to break the FCC rules, while being casually misogynistic toward a contestant:

Trump corners a female producer and asks her whom he should fire. She demurs, saying something about how one of the contestants blamed another for their team losing. Trump then raises his hands, cupping them to his chest: “You mean the one with the …?” He doesn’t know the contestant’s name. Trump eventually fires her.

This information is pretty unlikely to persuade anyone who wasn't already persuaded by any of the other things Trump has done and said, which would for anyone else be a career-defining scandal. But it is a useful reminder of who we're dealing with.

(Link is to Slate, an x-number-of-free-articles-a-month site, but the incognito window trick works.)

[bananastarlo]

I see you

childhood friend yandere x shy reader

You two are in the same daycare. He is the complete opposite of you — a loud, confident boy who charms both the adults and the other kids with the big grin he always enters the room with.

You, on the other hand, didn’t stick out too much. Always a bit more hesitant and shy around new people.

One of the things on the agenda today was a field trip.

Having arrived at the destination, the caretakers gave you instructions:

“Okay, little stars. Today is a wonderful day to play a game, don’t you agree?“

The others cheered in agreement.

“We hid clues that you’ll be able to find in this area! So get in pairs, if possible with someone new!“

As the childcare worker claps in her hands, the children scatter around, most of them sticking with their usual friend groups.

However, you stayed back. Nobody came up to you, and you were too anxious to approach the others, fidgeting with the sleeves of your shirt while focusing on the ground with your head low.

The caretaker took notice of your little form and exchanged worried glances with the other adults, slowly drawing near and crouching down to your level.

“Hey, have you found a partner yet?“

You shook your head no.

Reaching out her hand, she kindly offered to find a partner for you.

Yet, before you could take her hand, he appears in front of you — scraped knees, a backwards cap and messy hair — flashing you a boyish grin.

“Come on, let’s go together!“ he chirped, eyes glistening with fondness while yours lit up with happiness.

He took your hand and led you to where his friends were. They couldn’t understand why he refused their offer to pair up, until you showed up, shielded by his body.

As you both were hunting for clues, you felt yourself growing more and more relaxed in his presence.

He always protected you from slimy bugs and held your hand so that you wouldn’t get lost without him.

“You’re now my best friend.”

It wasn’t phrased as a question, because he wouldn’t accept you saying no.

And you smiled.

“I like that.”

And the smile you gave him was so genuine, he felt his own heart beating a little more than usual.

You spent the rest of your childhood years sticking to him like glue. You admired him and his presence.

One day, when you were older, you spent time at his house. It was basically yours as well, with how much time you spent there.

Lying next to each other, you faced away from him while he stared at your back, too scared to move.

At times, he could be quiet. He could be soft. But only you were allowed to see this side of him. Only you deserved it.

As he listened to your slow, rhythmic breathing, you turned around.

You weren’t expecting him to be so close — your noses almost touched.

And your stomach flipped at the sight of his half-opened eyes that now widened as much as your own.

He saw it — your pupils, dilated.

His heart began hammering against his ribcage, and he pressed his face into the mattress.

“What?“ you murmured softly.

“N-nothing! You just threw me off guard.”

His response made you chuckle. It was cute to see him without his usual confident tone.

As older teenagers, you both started to see each other differently.

Behind his golden-boy personality and sheepishly handsome face, there was something deeper, a protectiveness directed at you.

He saw you as a woman now. And you, well—

You planned a movie night. Just the two of you.

You’d both been so busy lately, you started to miss his annoying voice and the way he always made you feel right.

As the movie played, you became bored and decided to mess with him a little, just enough to get a reaction.

“Heeey,” you utter, laying your leg on his.

He grinned, showing the dimples you adored so much on him.

But as you started to snuggle up even more and chose to playfully ruffle his messy hair, he became serious.

His hand gently gripped your wrist halfway, and your smile dropped.

“Do you not realize what you’re doing to me? That’s not fair,” his voice croaked — low, with a dangerous hint.

You became nervous and replied, laughing the awkwardness off.

“What do you mean? I’m just playing with you.”

He sighed, propping himself up on top of you, which knocked the breath out of your lungs.

“I’m not the little boy anymore who took these things as innocent gestures. Please acknowledge me as a man. And if you were to do that with every man while being so oblivious… I would rather keep you locked up. Do you understand?”

You couldn’t deny the way that made you feel — more than it should.