#i get that not everyone builds a house out of onions

[neotula]

just constantly internally screaming about the wildest star wars takes from people who clearly. clearly just watched the base movies. it's fine. i'm fine. youre fine.

[st4rbe0m]

GIRLS LIKE BOYS LIKE ME !

how would enhypen prepare for their first date with you!

🩷 now playing - on melancholy hill by the gorillaz

🩷 contents - includes kissing! no gendered terms used but makeup is mentioned in Jake's. enha as losers who are trying their best™ on first dates

🩷 a/n - unlocked how to make gradient text im basically unstoppable now. this is my first time writing a headcanon sort of thing!! so I hope it's good. pls do reblog and leave comments - I would love to hear from readers :)

masterlist

HEESUNG would be the type to try and play it cool and then lose his mind then play it cool again like an on and off switch. He would ask Jay fashion advice super nonchalantly, but Jay would be able to see through his shit IMMEDIATELY lmao. But like the good friend Jay is, he helps Heesung pick out a cool yet not over-the-top fit. Definitely picks up flowers on the way so that they're fresh, and maybe even spritzes a bit of mouth freshener before ringing your doorbell because of course he ate onion rings before leaving the house out of nervousness •́‿,⁠•̀

I feel like he'd take you to an arcade for a first date - not only because it gives you both bonding time while playing games, but he also gets to show off his shooter skills in those lcd zombie games (the playing league all night is coming in clutch for him right now). Definitely also the type to stand at the claw machine for half an hour trying to get you a toy. "Seung it's always rigged, come on we can play another round of ice hockey instead." "It's not about being rigged anymore Y/N. It's a matter of pride and courage. Life or death." Like boy T-T it's never that serious king. Would walk you home while you clutch a GIGANTIC bear plushie that he may or may not have bribed some poor arcade worker for while pretending he won at the totally not rigged claw machine, which was concerning, but also very sweet. Sweet enough to warrant a kiss on the cheek by the end of the date ;)

JAY would literally be the most perfect, gentleman-ly guy and just drop dead gorgeous and AHDJKD sorry my first date feels for Jay are RAGING right now. Definitely would be jittery for sure, but is calm and level-headed. I feel like he's the type to ask you out on a date very traditionally after harbouring feelings for a while, watching from afar kind of like the XO music video you know, with the flower shop? Bouquet with red or white roses are a MUST and he'd extend his arm out for you to hold while he takes you out of your house (definitely the type to charm your parents that has them pushing you out the door because that boy is PERFECT)

He would probably take you out to a restaurant or OR hear me out - an in home date where he's kicked his members out somehow and has the living room set up like a restaurant with a table with some candles and dim lighting, food he prepared (house-husband material. wife him up right NOW.) so that he could show off his cooking skills. Wonderful date, would drop you off home as well. Honestly I don't see him kissing you on the first date because of all that chivalry you know, but don't worry he's just building it up to the more perfect moment to be your perfect boyfriend.

JAKE, this happy puppy would be so SO excited he'd be counting seconds up to when he would meet you :( He's so ADORABLE he would literally tell everyone knows about how he's scored a date with the finest person alive and then would proceed to spend a whole week just grinning in happiness cuz he's going on a date with you!!! I think more than flowers, he'd get you some sort of trinket or some chocolates as a gift :D and he'd be skipping along the way. TONS of compliments about your makeup and your outfit and just you in general.

I feel like he'd have a picnic-park sort of date thing setup, bonus if you have a dog because you best believe he'd be bringing Layla along. He'd ask his mom for help and pack the most scrumptious picnic ever, and just spend a day basking in the sun with you. The evening might even end up with you both walking hand-in-hand by the riverside, just chitchatting because this boy is a pro-yapper, and just enjoying each other's presence. Wonderful date that would end in a kiss wink wink ;) because he's just so so enamoured by you that he will literally lose his mind if he lets this shot go.

SUNGHOON is a loverboy at heart - as cool and chill he may seem on the outside you best believe he's giving that smile that makes his eyes crinkle while escorting you to your date. He's sharply dressed and has received the apropos speech from his sister about first date etiquettes even though he's quite a mindful man with great manners already. I see him getting white or pink tulips for the date.

He'd take you to a - I know it's a cliché, but an ice rink!! Because it's his element, and that confidence is what he wants to show you. That he's the one for you, or at least who he's trying to be. Sunghoon may seem like a player or someone who doesn't do serious attachment but with you, it just feels different. Giggling along with you and pushing you along gently, guiding you around the contours of the ice rink has his own heart doing pirouettes. And of course as clichè this is heading already, the date concludes with an accidental kiss that happens when you slip on the ice, bringing him down with you. You're both laughing at your hopeless nonexistent skating skills and all he can do in that moment is give you a small peck on the lips that makes his pale cheeks blush violently.

SUNOO is such a sweetheart, I have a feeling you would have already been friends for a while and that his feelings for you had been garnering for a while, until he just had to tell you. And so here he is, dressed down to a tee with the help of Jay's good fashion sense, and of course adding his own personal touch to it. This smitten cutie would be going all out with the gifts, trust. With a medium sized bouquet, he would also get a box of chocolates for you and maybe something else, like a scrunchie or a charm bracelet you'd mentioned you'd been eyeing for a while to him before.

Sunoo, in my mind, seems like such a pottery date kind of guy to me. He adores creativity and spending that time to do something a bit artsy with his favourite person just sounds so cute. He would maybe make a dish bowl sort of thing for him to keep at his sink for his skincare or balms or even vitamins, while you would make a key holder or a soap box. And he'd help you out with your paints, giving you ideas on what you could make, and listening to your inputs as well. Since you both were already friends before, it's a comfortable and secure environment around you both, that just makes this sunshine boy beam more than ever possible around you. "Sun that looks great!!", you'd encourage him, as he'd just wipe away whatever flecks of paint had gotten on your hand, basking in your praise. He might even take the opportunity to hold your hand, to which you of course had no complaints.

JUNGWON is panicking and Jay and Heesung are trying their best to call him down. Panicking because he overslept on his nap to freshen up for his date. But fear not, because this is where Efficient Wonie comes in and saves the day. It's like everything that must be done becomes natural to him - it's in his second nature to buy you flowers and ring up your doorbell, flashing that all so sweet grin of his. And after calming down the raging butterflies in your stomach, you both set off on the date he's meticulously planned.

I see Jungwon as a multi-activity date kind of guy, you know? Why not get the best of all the worlds with this guy? He has the date planned in his head for months now, considering how long he's been itching to ask you out. He starts the date off with a nice, cozy cafe visit where you both can pick up some beverages to set yourselves right. Following would be a movie, something he'd find meaningful enough for a first date. And he's trying his best to focus on the movie instead of the fingertips brushing against yours inside the popcorn bucket because he needs to know the plot for the next part of the date!! Which is taking you to a small diner after the movies to talk about what you both found interesting about the film - whether it was good or bad, characters and the theme. And just from there the conversation would flow. Jungwon would be so easy to converse with that you wouldn't even know where the time has gone, until you find yourself in front of your house with him, hours past in a blink. And with how adorable his dimples look under the street lamps as you bid him goodbye, you can't help but place a sweet kiss on them as you depart, leaving him lovestruck on the street.

RIKI wants to have a bit of fun on dates. Sure movies and arcades and picnics are fun. But this boy is a ball of energy when he's around the people he likes - if it isn't obvious from the way he's around his members and their comfort. And that's how you made him feel as well, comfortable in his own skin. So much so that it warranted a date with the dance prodigy, who couldn't get you off his mind at all. He'd definitely be much more confident in this date than the others for sure, but that doesn't mean he isn't a bit nervous!! But sweet boy is more nervous about making sure you have a blast tonight with him. And with the way you're laughing and accepting the flowers he got you, placing them in a vase, those worries fade almost immediately.

Riki would take you to a town carnival or an amusement park sort of setup for a date! This teasing little shit would totally use this opportunity for poking fun at how you would scream on the faster rides like the rollercoaster, and would claim how he would "protect you" if anything did happen (like dawg this is not a fight for honor it's legit just a rollercoaster). He'd win you some prizes from the side stalls, and you'd both share a large cotton candy. Would whine about the animal ears you insisted that he wear during the duration of the date, which you had bought from a concession stand. But he would also complain when you said he doesn't have to wear it if he doesn't like it like T-T bro. The date reached its final note on the Ferris wheel, and it's not like you were scared of heights, it's just that you'd severely underestimated how high the ride went. "You can hold my hand if you're scared", Riki says jokingly. But you take the offer instantly, tightly clutching his hand as your eyes are wide and looking around as awe starts replacing the terror in your eyes. And despite the view, Riki could only look at you. Feeling his gaze on you, you turned your head around to only find yourself encaptured in a sweet and romantic kiss, surrounded by cool air miles above the ground.

[oneshotnewbie]

What if Marina x daughter!reader are chillin at home together when Maya gets called to a 5alarm fire. Reader has major anxiety when Maya goes to big fires. Carina tries to calm her down, but gets called in to help with patients being sent to GreySloan from the fire. Reader has to come with Carina to the hospital and sees some of those injured in the ER before making it to Carinas office. Reader begins to follow all the news alert from the fire and starts to panic and worry for Maya. She’s in the midst of a full panic attack by the time Carina can check on her. Maya comes to the hospital with the last of the patients and goes to Carinas office and only then does reader begin to calm down, surrounded by her mothers.

ᕚ---ᕘ

Dusk fell over the city as Maya, Carina and you decided to spend a cozy evening at home, cooking together and enjoying the free time as a family. The atmosphere was one of heartwarming laughter and the familiar smell of delicious ingredients.

Maya had taken the evening off to spend more time with you. Her job as a firefighter often involved unpredictable events and long working days, which is why such evenings together were particularly precious for your little family. The three of you worked in sync in the kitchen as the sound of happy chatter and laughter permeated the walls. You helped prepare the ingredients while the blonde prepared the aromatic lasagna sauce and made plans for after dinner.

A colorful sight spread across the airy kitchen. Fresh vegetables, fragrant herbs and a variety of spices covered the work surface. The food processor whirred while the Italian woman prepared the dough for fresh pasta. You, stood behind her to look over your mother's shoulder with curious eyes and pick up some tips.

“It smells so good!” You whispered enthusiastically and the two smiled at you, Carina briefly pulling you close to place a kiss on your temple. "It'll taste really good too, Bella."

The smell of garlic, onions and fresh tomatoes filled the kitchen and mixed with the pleasant atmosphere as you and Maya started to set the dining table. Time seemed to stand still as you sat down a short while later and approached the home-made meal that was filled with love. "You really have a talent for the kitchen, y/n. Maybe you should think about becoming a chef." Carina said, clearly proud of you, and you laughed. "Maybe I will. Or I'll become a firefighter. Or at least a surgeon.."

But before everyone could take the first forkful of lasagna, the shrill sound of Maya's radio pierced the harmonious silence. All three froze for a moment before the blonde looked around apologetically, narrowing her eyes. "I'm sorry, but I have to check this. It's an emergency call," she explained as she stood up and hastily searched for the device that was lying on the living room table. "A serious fire in a high-rise building requires 19 to be present immediately."

The joy in the air seemed to fade as the reality of Maya's responsibilities as a firefighter became present again. You looked over at her worriedly as she hurried into the bedroom and put on her firefighter uniform before saying goodbye to you with a quick kiss on the forehead to face the unknown of the new mission. "I love you guys. I'll be back as soon as possible."

With a final, determined look, she left the house, leaving you with a fearful heart. The laughter stopped and the kitchen, which had previously been filled with joy, now seemed quiet and deserted.

For the next minutes, your home became enveloped in nervous tension. You could already see the images of the blazing flames and the sound of the sirens in your mind, unable to get them out of your head. Your fear seemed to grow stronger with each emergency call. The idea of your mother having to fight fire in dangerous situations put you in a constant state of fear and panic.

Carina clearly sensed your fear and tried to calm you down with all her care. She would often sit with you and talk about the importance of Maya's job and how she was well trained and experienced. But your thoughts weren't so easy to calm down. Your fears enveloped you like a thick fog that made your heart feel heavy. "Amore mio, I promise you, Maya knows her job very well. She is strong and has the right training. You have to trust her."

You nodded, but the look of pure panic remained in your eyes as your heart pounded wildly in your chest and your body began to tremble. You couldn't keep your mind off your mother. Every time Maya was called to a new mission, your heart clenched with worry and you could hardly breathe. The persistent fear that permeated you overshadowed the present.

"She'll be back safely. You don't have to worry, okay? The safety of the team members at Station 19 is the top priority for everyone involved," she tried again, trying to ease the uncertainty in your eyes and complete the dinner. "Mom is a professional at what she does."

The smells of the now cold dish disappeared and your mind continued to wander when another beeper rang. This time it was Carina's. It was another emergency call that forced your other mother to come to work in the emergency room.

"I have to go to the hospital, sweetheart. The patients affected by the fire are being taken to Grey Sloan. I'm needed," she explained softly, her brow furrowing as she placed a hand on your shoulder. The words triggered another wave of panic in you that you could no longer suppress. "Please, not you too. Please stay here. I'm so scared. Please!"

“Hey, hey, hey,” she spoke carefully and stood up, pulling you into a tight hug. The gentle sway of her arms barely stopped your running tears, your body trembling in her arms. "If it calms you down, you can come with me and read some books in my office. I don't want to leave you alone with your fears."

ᕚ---ᕘ

The sun had already set when you and Carina rushed into the busy emergency room at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. The panic in your eyes reflected the constant fear for your mother. Carina held your hand tightly, trying to calm you down as she navigated you down the hallway.

The atmosphere in the emergency room was intense. Doctors and nurses rushed from one patient room to the next while paramedics carried in the injured. The smell of disinfectant and the muffled murmur of conversation filled the air. You could feel the knotting tension inside you, getting worse by the second as you walked past the beds filled with people with burns and serious injuries. The image of Maya and the chance of her also ending up in the hospital injured like the rest of the people crept into your mind and your heart began to ache with fear once more.

Your mother led you to her office on the top floor, which was shielded from any hectic activity. "You can safely wait here, love. I'll see what's going on and make sure mom comes upstairs to you as soon as she returns from her mission."

You nodded and slowly walked into the room. Carina gently squeezed your shoulder again before leaving the office and heading back to the emergency room, leaving you alone.

Sitting on the chair next to the door, you tried to organize your thoughts. The images of the injured people in the emergency room were burned into your memory. A tingling sensation ran through your body and you forced yourself to take a deep breath.

The hum of muffled conversation filtered through the closed door as you watched the time and waited for your mothers. The scenes played out in your head of your mom fighting the flames and your mother caring for the injured. The thought of your mothers operating in this chaos increased your fears.

The time in the hospital crept by slowly, and your thoughts continued to revolve around your parents, especially Maya. You couldn't suppress the worry inside you, so you began meticulously monitoring the messages on your phone as you paced around the room. As the first reports of the fire came to you, you felt your fear building at a rapid pace.

With every word you read, another tidal wave of panic seemed to build. The images of fire and smoke described on the news hit you like a blow. You could literally feel the burning intensity of the flames burning your skin.

Your heart was racing, your hands were shaking, and your breathing was becoming shallower. The news reports seemed to confirm your worst fears, and the idea that your mom, Maya, was in the middle of a dangerous inferno almost made you lose your mind. But then the door opened and Carina stepped in. Her expression was serious, but the change in your features made her rush to you immediately. "Y/n, Bella. What happened?"

You could barely find your words as you turned over your phone to see the newscaster exclaiming about the terrible news. "Mom's still in there. She's in danger."

Carina tried to stay calm herself to stabilize you. She hugged herself tightly and walked with you to her desk, your eyes fixed on the closed door, hoping that Maya would soon be at your side as the relentless clock continued to tick. "Mi amore, the media often tends to be more dramatic in its reporting. Let's wait for official news before drawing conclusions, okay? If something had happened to her, Andy or Jack would have already called."

The brunette's words barely reached your frightened soul. The dark panic attacked and overwhelmed you with full force, and you felt the world around you begin to spin. Your chest felt tight and the world blurred before your eyes.

You sat on a chair, surrounded by white walls that, in your agitated state, looked like the shadowy scene of a nightmare. The brightness of the hospital lights seemed ominous, and the silence of the room was overshadowed by the deafening sounds of your own fears.

Thoughts of Maya's possible danger lost all reason. Every time you tried to breathe deeper, the air seemed to disappear like a scarce resource, and the flames of fear only flickered higher. Your gaze was blank and frozen, caught in a whirlpool of terror and worry.

Carina reacted immediately and pushed you into her desk chair. She tried to calm you down while you were overwhelmed. "Breathe with me, sweetheart. Inhale deeply and exhale slowly. I'm here, love." she whispered softly.

The panic attack was reaching its peak, but with each calming touch and empathetic word, the wave seemed to slowly subside. The Italian kneeled down in front of you and placed her hands gently on your knees. "Y/n, listen to me. We can do this together. We will erase this fear together." The words were difficult to reach you, but she didn't let go of it. She tried to calm you down with slow breaths. You gasped for air, but gradually, the control of your breathing returned.

Time stretched, and with every breath you fought your way out of the shackles of panic. The cries of fear became quieter and your vision gradually cleared. Carina held you tightly as the last remnants of fear coursed through you.

While your mother slowly got you back to normal breathing, Maya entered the emergency room exhausted, accompanied by the last patients of her risky fire mission. The experiences of today's fight against the flames had left them scarred.

The sounds of the emergency room came through the front door as she pushed herself through the crowd. She felt the exhaustion in her bones, but the thought of seeing her daughter and her wife again was the only bright spot after the tiring hours. Climbing the stairs to the upper floor, she soon entered her wife's office. You both looked up as the door opened suddenly, a relieved smile lighting up your features. "Mom, you're back!"

Maya nodded tiredly, her uniform marked by smoke and ash as you rushed into her arms. "How are you doing?" She asked you, but you didn't answer and instead snuggled closer to her. A questioning look rushed over her face and she pressed her lips together before looking at Carina, who stood up and immediately walked up to her. "She had a severe panic attack when news of the fire first surfaced. I calmed her down, but she was very worried about you."

Her heart clenched and she pulled away from you. Not hesitating for a second, she placed her fingers under your chin and forced you to look up at her. Your eyes were bloodshot and your cheeks were still wet from crying. "I'm here, y/n. Everything's fine, see?"

You sobbed quietly, the tears trapped in your panic now flowing with a sense of relief as you took a deep breath. The pent-up tension slowly let go. "I was so scared, mom. The news... I thought you..."

Maya held you closer to her. The three of you stood close together, soaked in the warmth of reunion. The flames of fear in your heart were extinguished, and in that moment you found comfort and support in her arms. "I'm here, and I'm safe. You don't have to worry."

[napakmahal]

Anon because I feel like I’m about to say smth cringe lol but how about a fic with a (possibly Psych major) reader that’s got a holistic view of the world with Tadashi? Would be interesting to see what that information brings concerning Baymax’s plan of care and how a relationship would form with Tadashi like dat ya dig

Idk mostly inspired by Natalia Lafourcade’s song María La Curandera (it’s in Spanish, you’ll have to search up the translation if you’re curious!) also growing up in an immigrant household with care alternatives to things maybe a doctor would not take seriously/ not being able to connect with a patient due to beliefs and or language barriers.

Can I just you’re actually so real for this. This is NOT cringe pookie okay. First of all, love my psych classes but also second of all my family is so holistic. We’re from the Philippines and the hospital is reserved special for if you’re dying. (Btw that’s bad, go to the doctors please)

You don’t fight with your boyfriend…like ever. You don’t like fighting and he thinks fighting i childish. But that’s not to say you two agree on everything. Exhibit A:

“At least with my remedies I know I won’t be overdosing on cough syrup.”

“Baby, with all due respect I’m not using herbs to get rid of a respiratory infection.”

Another thing, you love Baymax. You really do. You were there to help build him, he knows you personally but he has nothing to do with your health. And that irritated Tadashi to no end. Flu season had come around and it seemed like everyone was getting sick. Including you. The basic fever, cough, headaches, and disgusting amounts of phlegm hacking out of your throat. Yet, you denied any help from your boyfriend’s healthcare robot.

It made him upset because you could get better so much faster if you let him use his extensive medical knowledge on you, and yet you still said no. But nothing about your ideologies had created such tension until recently. When he caught you doing something he deemed unfathomable.

Almost a week into you being sick, he’d seen you chopping onions late into the night after making his lemon tea.

“What are you doing?” Tadashi looked over at you after coughing up a chunk of bloody phlegm from his own throat.

You sniffed, clearly congested. “Cutting onions.”

“For what?”

“My socks.”

“I’m sorry?”

Surely he must have misheard you. You and him had been together for years and he knew all about your home remedies. There was a stained food processor in your house from when he had joint pain in his wrist and you had him eat turmeric paste. When Hiro had unknowingly given him stomach flu you went out and bought efficascent oil and rubbed it on his stomach. He’s seen you gargle salt water, chew on peppermint, put baking soda on bee stings, eat raw garlic, and drink cranberry juice for your menstrual problems but that one took the cake.

“Do you want some?” You’d asked it so innocently but your tone could have changed if you’d seen the look of utter disbelief on his face.

The both of you had been sick for a week in an endless cycle of eating strawberries, and oranges, taking magnesium, and eating spoonfuls of grainy raw honey. All of that to him seemed fine. Even he understood to a certain extent you couldn’t just take medicine all the time. But when he offered to buy cough syrup, ibuprofen for throat pain, Tylenol for cough headaches, and other flu medications you shut it down. He was free to take all of those things to make himself feel better and he swore it did.

But you were in so much pain and it seemed like whatever you were doing wasn’t helping. Just that morning, Tadashi rubbed your back while you had a 10-minute coughing fit that was so bad there were streaks of blood in your spit. You’d cried when a pounding headache hadn’t left and he felt so helpless knowing there was nothing he could do about it.

Tadashi stuttered. “W-Why are we cutting onions for our socks?”

“You put them in your socks and then you sleep with them on, my mom swears by it. But if you have like sensory problems that’s okay, you don’t have to.”

“Baby don’t you think- maybe you should just take something for it?”

You scoffed because you already knew where this was going. “You’re not funny.”

“I’m not trying to be funny. It’s just you’re so sick.” His voice dripped with concern.

Just as he’d said it you dug your face into your elbow and started coughing. The loud, raspy, crunchy kind of cough. Almost like the universe was on his side. Then came the cough headaches. The one thing you had allowed Baymax to scan you for and nothing else. A build-up of pressure from consistent coughing and sneezing in your head could cause pounding headaches.

The second he saw the grimace on your face, Tadashi jumped up from his study table and ran over to you. Pulling you in for a hug and gently pushing his fingers through your head. But that was also the time he decided he couldn’t take this anymore. His girl was in pain and crying over a sickness he could use his brain and his bot to figure out how to cure.

“I can’t take this anymore.” He confessed still holding you. “Please, will you let me give you a Tylenol?”

“T, no.”

“Why not? It’s so obvious you’re hurting. I know you don’t like taking medicine. I get that, but you just aren’t getting any better.”

You gently lifted your head off Tadashi’s chest and looked up at him. “So are you and you’ve been taking medicine.”

“But I feel like I’m getting better.”

“Hunny, you threw up an hour ago.” You deadpanned.

He racked his brain for a positive way to spin the horrible retching experience. “O-okay but that’s-um, that’s the body’s way of making itself feel better.”

You two were going in circles. But Tadashi was not backing down. He was adamant that you get better if it was the last thing he did and you knew it. Last year Hiro got sick with a particularly horrible kidney infection. So bad that when he’d tried to walk to the restroom he collapsed on the floor physically unable to move. After that none of your friends ever really saw Tadashi for almost two weeks. Right after school, he’d sprint home just to take care of him. That was his thing. Your boyfriend lived to take care of people.

Some people in the world don’t care about anything you’ve ever done and something you will do. Like doctors. Doctors don’t need to know how good or bad of a person your friends think you are in order to take care of you. Finding people like that is rare. Tadashi is one of those people.

And you, one of the people he loved and cared for most in the entire world wouldn’t let his extensive knowledge on healthcare help you feel better. And no matter how many times you reassured him, he couldn’t help but feel like you being sick was his fault.

“How about this,” He suggested, moving his hand from your head to your face. “I will do your onion-sock thing if you let me give you cough syrup. Just one spoonful and then we’ll drop it. Sound fair?”

A small smile tugged at the corners of your lips as you slowly nodded your head. Out of relief, you were going to let him do something about how you felt, Tadashi leaned down and kissed you right then and there. It was extremely counterproductive and he couldn’t have cared less.

That night, you let your boyfriend spoon artificial cherry-flavored Robitussin into your mouth. And he let you put loosely chopped pieces of white onion in his socks while he slept. For the record, neither of your immune systems ever really recovered in that one night. And yet-somehow, you woke up feeling the best you had in over a week.

[dawndelion-winery]

I Like You! (Not)

Alhaitham × GN! Reader

College au! Academic Rivals to Lovers

[1] - You're the Worst

Curse that damned Alhaitham and his accursed apathy. Curse him and his blunt, tactless words.

When you'd scheduled for the group to meet up at the House of Daena to rehearse the presentation, you hadn't expected Alhaitham to be so insistent on an exact timing for when the meeting would end. Assuming it was a rough estimate he needed in case he had other plans, you'd given it an approximate of an hour: meet at 6pm, and finish by 7 if all went well.

It would seem "if all went well" meant nothing to him. As you nearly tore your hair out trying to help your group mates readjust their scripts to fit the designated time limits, you noticed Alhaitham already all packed up and ready to go.

"Alhaitham? Are you in a rush to get somewhere? We've still got a bit to fix up." You asked.

"I'm going home. You said we'd be done by seven." He replied matter-of-factly, as though you should have known he'd up and leave at seven sharp.

"Do you already have other plans? We're almost done." You smiled tensely, waiting for his excuse. As it was, he hadn't done anything outside his own allocated part, with which there was nothing wrong, but with how the whole group kept badgering you for help, it would have been nice for him to chip in since his grades were on par with yours.

"Whether I have prior plans has nothing to do with this, I only agreed to stay till seven. If you're almost done, you'll manage to finish soon enough even without me. Goodbye." How quickly he turned in his heel, not sparing so much as a backwards glance as he exited the building.

You groaned in exhaustion when you finally made it home yourself. Your dorm room was a quaint little space for yourself, with the privilege of no roommates to squander the space with. You're not sure why you were so frustrated. Despite having never worked with Alhaitham yourself, you'd heard enough from fellow classmates to know he never concerned himself with anything more than he agreed to do. You knew there was nothing wrong with it, but it didn't quite sit right with you. Could he be any more selfish or unconcerned with people other than himself?

Thinking back to all the times at the beginning of your freshman year when you'd tried to strike up conversation with him and discuss interpretations of various texts and translations, you recalled how uninterested he'd been, with his curt replies and unwillingness to share his own insights. Did he think you weren't worth debating with? You recalled how demeaned you'd felt as he looked at you with those cold, detached eyes that never gazed upon the present even as you animatedly poured your heart into your opinions. How horrible of him.

You often wondered what it would take to get under his skin the way he so effortlessly did to you. For every all nighter you pulled to perfect your work and earn your 'A's, he'd have an early bedtime and well rested sleep to obtain the same result. It was infuriating, to say the least. If you could only see him drowning in his own thoughts and anxiety the way everyone else did, you'd be content struggling through your Akademiya days.

"Have you tried asking him out?" Kunimitsu hummed as he picked at your onion rings, not-so-sneakily swiping your side dish in exchange for listening to your rants.

"Asking him out? Did you not hear a word I said? Kuni, I can't stand the guy!" You huffed, groaning so gutterally you'd scare a zombie back into their grave.

"And? It's not like you'd have to go out with him. Look at him. From everything I've seen and heard of him, the dude sounds like a total virgin, a self-absorbed nerd. I'll bet you he'll scoff and say no but the thought of someone being into his dweeb ass is going to stew and ping around in his cavernous skull like an electro seelie."

Kunimitsu shrugged as he finished off your last onion ring. Though you scorned his idea, it's not like you'd any better ones of your own. Surely...it wouldn't hurt to try? Besides, who would he tell about it? His friends? Hah.

Taglist: @vernith

[soulc-hilde]

Ch. 02 - No Good Fridays

A/N: Even though the gif would've been perfect for the first chapter seeing as this happened in episode 1, I'll still use it because Jeremy's face is just perfect!

Pairing: Lip Gallagher x Black!OFC

Warning(s): Follows the FX tv show, Shameless, viewer discretion be advised. Depictions of grooming as well as non-consensual acts being mentioned, depictions and ideations of suicide, depictions of drug and alcohol abuse, racial and homophobic slurs, mentions of CPS/CYS and foster care, depictions and mentions of consensual sexual acts, depictions of violence (gun and maybe gang), depictions of mental health, depictions of inherited addiction, and so much fucking more.

Synopsis: All Lip Gallagher ever had was family and despite the praise over his intellect, the health and wellbeing of his people were far more important than him furthering his education. Lecroy was a young girl destined to face abandonment until the Gallagher clan came through. Using her own skillset and connects to build a better life for those she loves, she ties Lip and his family to her hip.

Two of the greatest events in television history will broadcast tonight. One - The UFC pay-per-view and two - The Deadliest Catch Season Finale. Such a big event, that Frank went as far as trying to tie his soiled hair in a ponytail before meeting his little friends at the Alibi. Behind him, two cars pull in at the same time. Steve and Ian jump out the black BMW coupe with bags in their hands while Lecroy follows suit.

As the crew began to set up before the show, Lecroy's once relaxed posture turns fridged at the sight of Karen in the living room with Lip. Rather than greeting the boy, she walks past him and into the kitchen with Ian and Steve to grab the food.

"Burgers comin' through," Ian sings, leaving the kitchen. Fiona turns over her shoulder, "uh, Lip, napkins." Karen takes a step forward, "I can do it," but Lip was already ahead of her. "I got it," he shakes his head.

Fiona raises an interested eyebrow, studying the interaction. Wanting to test a theory, she watches as he goes for the kitchen as well, passing the only - other - positive woman in his life. "Hey, Peaches," he greets with a small smile.

However, he receives a rushed head nod and nothing else. Both of Fiona's eyebrows raise as she bites her bottom lip. Oh, great, a pissed off Murphy and a possibly puppy-eyed Lip, the eldest Gallagher huffs to herself.

"Only ketchup," Steve reads off the order. Debbie raises her hand, "me!" He then reads off the next one, "extra onions, jalapenos." V opens the front door, taking it, "me."

She climbs over the couch, landing beside Fiona just as Carl makes his way over. He tries to grab at her cookies only for her to pull it back, "uh-aht-aht, after you finish your shake and fries."

He sits back with a slight pout. Lecroy laughs, patting the back of his head softly before sitting him in her lap on the couch. "It's okay," she whispers, "I'll get you your cookies, bubba."

He now smiles, happily diving into his sandwich. V turns, catching sight of the unfamiliar blonde in her peripheral, "who's this?" Lip answers, coming back with napkins, "this is Karen."

"Hey, Karen. Nice top," V greets her, "what size are you?" Fiona cuts in, waving her hand, "shh! Shut up." As the narrator of the show begins to talk, Lecroy softly nudges V with her elbow.

The two meet eyes as the copper haired teen bounces her eyebrows before rolling her eyes. V's mouth drops, mouthing an understanding, "oh." In other words, Lecroy reminded the woman that Karen was the blonde neighborly pass around who not only is stealing her best friend, but is just an all round nuisance.

After watching maybe like... 2-3 minutes in? A bloody, pouting drunk Frank returns to the house, slamming the front door closed. Everyone turns, watching him with humor and wonder; mostly wondering who out of every Southside resident had the urge to rightfully punch him.

"You okay, Frank?" Steve asks, face scrunching with sympathy. Lecroy, on the other hand, snickers to herself. "Hey," Ian starts, eyes noticing something strange on his deadbeat father. He follows after the man from his seat. "That my shirt?"

At the question, the boy's father stops and turns in silence. On guard, Lecroy carefully sits Carl between herself and V in case she'd have to launch at the man. "Yeah," Frank nods, stepping towards Ian.

His son slowly steps back, shaking his head, "uh, I'm just asking." Frank nods, forcing his forehead down onto Ian's nose with enough force that the teen flies and lands on the table. Everyone jumps, screaming as Fiona begins asking Ian if he was okay.

"Guy in the bar said to pass it on," Frank explains. Immediately, Lecroy pounces at the father.

Sending a right hook at his trachea, the older man collapses to his knees as he fights for oxygen. Clasping onto his throat, wheezing, his eyes widen with delay as her denim clad knee jabs into his glabella. His body falls back without resistance, comparable to a ragdoll.

Steve and Fiona's eyes widen as they try to pull her away from him. Steve's arms wrap under her arms as he tries to lift her away. Fiona calls out, urgently, "wait, no, don't--" but it was too late. Lecroy's elbow forces down into the man's ribs eliciting a gasp, edging on a whimper, to escape.

"She's so strong," he winces, holding his sides. Keeping face, he turns to glare at the drunkard. "You don't do this to your kids, Frank," he grits his teeth. "What are you, a tough guy, Steve? You think you're a fucking tough guy?" Frank teases.

He steps forward, "because you look like a premenstrual Filipino." He points at a glaring Lecroy who stood beside a wincing Ian. "If anyone's tough, it's that baboon bitch--"

Without hesitating, the girl picks up the tray of milkshakes and hurls it at him. He stubbles back, slightly hissing at the sting, glaring toward the teen.

"What the fuck, Frank?!" Lip belts in outrage, happily watching her mop the floor with him. "What the hell did he just call her?!" V shouts, pushing Carl to hide behind her back.

"You wanna come at me, Babygirl," he teases, "then let's go. Let's see how long you'd sit in Juvie this time. Even better, that might put ya in the loony bin."

She forces him against the wall, gripping him by the collar. Repeatedly, she forces him against it until Steve forces her off without getting hit again. Fiona hops in front of the girl, bending down in hopes catching her eye would settle the teen.

The older woman's eyes water at the dark, dead eyes that seem to stare through her. "C'mon, Le," Fiona quietly pleads, "calm down. He's not worth it, okay? Not again."

She pulls her into her chest, hugging her tightly, "go upstairs and calm down, a'ight. It's okay, it's okay." Feeling her shoulders slacken, Fiona slowly turns her to the steps, not allowing Frank to fall in her sight.

As the teen shuffles up the stairs, silent, like a zombie, Fiona turns to the others. Steve puffs his chest, ready to swing on Frank, but she quickly pushes him back and gets between the two. "Steve, go. Get out. Hey, just go!" She orders.

"Please," she pleads, she points at the door as Debbie softly shows him out with a skillet still in hand. "Come on," Franks yells, "don't go. Come on. Puss, puss, puss."

On the table with napkins trying to stop the bleeding, Ian chokes on some blood that slips down his throat. "Ice," V orders. Frank brushes his hair back, "it's a bloody nose. He's not dyin'."

"Shut the fuck up, Frank," V grits, her mind overworked and exhausted as it bounced from Ian being hit by his own father to the man egging on a 16-year-old with explosive anger.

He goes to walk away before turning to them, "anybody notice that I'm bleedin'?" Ian waves away everyone's hands, marching up the stairs, "I got it. Where's Croy?" Lip follows after him, the brothers now in search of the manic girl.

Lodged in the boys' bedroom, Lecroy sat on Ian's bed with a lit blunt hanging from between her lips. Instead of actively inhaling and exhaling the substance, she simply partook in allowing the smoke to swirl inside her body with every passive breath in and shooting out of her nostrils with every breath out.

Her onyx eyes take a pitch of black that gives her a soulless appearance in the nearly dark room. They stare at the floor with a blank glare, not a thought emerging behind those pretty eyes. Lip and Ian, hell anyone who's a part of the Gallagher's close circle, was no stranger to Lecroy's bursts of rage.

It was as if she was her own Hulk, but without the heroic music playing in the background. She could threaten to tear a building from the inside out and mean it, enjoying the pain that licked at her skin with every hit. To the Gallaghers' it was a part of who she was, who they knew Lecroy to be. In her family, however, this was an unspoken of reality for them; a curse, as her grandmother would put it.

Each Gallagher teen takes a seat on her sides. Lip gently pulls the blunt from her lips, inhaling some for himself as Ian changed shirts. "You should've hi'im' back," Lip opens the conversation.

Ian looks down at him, "if I ever do, I'll fucking kill him." The blip of anger seeps between his teeth as he forces the clean shirt over his head. He nods to the blanked out girl between them. "Besides, Le was ahead on that mission," he scoffs, humorlessly.

"So?" Lip shrugs, "eight to ten for manslaughter. Get laid as often as you want. Tattoos and everything. It's gay heaven, man." Rather than respond, Ian takes his seat beside Lecroy, blotting at the blood on his face.

He takes the offered blunt before passing it back. Feeling her bones come to a settle from the enraged shaking underneath her skin, the girl begins to slowly blink as she comes to reality. Noticing the loss of weed in her lungs, she grabs the blunt from Ian's fingers and places it between her lips.

Lip, who waited his turn in the session, softly smiles and lands a quick peck on the girl's temple. The three musketeers, as always, had won another battle against the world. Rather than going home, she stayed the night at the Gallaghers.

In the morning, she cooks breakfast while Debbie sets off to steal the neighbor's paper in search for coupons and Ian, with the help of V, steals milk and creamer from Conrad, the local delivery guy for all the corner stores. Basically, a regular Friday.

Plating up the food, it was a simple menu of sunny side eggs with toast and bacon. Setting a plate down for every Gallagher, she received the usual thanks -- one of them being a soft pat on the rear by Lip -- as Ian sat a half gallon of milk on the table.

"Don't forget V's coupons," Debbie states. The boy nods, walking back outside. In the meantime, Fiona comes down with Liam and grabs the mail. Lip helps her set him up in the high chair.

As she sorts through the mail, gratefully taking the cup of coffee Lecroy made for her, Ian comes back inside with V's coupons. He looks at his sister, "any pizza left from last night?"

Both Fiona and Lecroy glare over at him. "No pizza. Fruit or juice," Fiona answers. Lecroy then states, "besides I'm making a whole breakfast. We've got eggs, bacon, and toast. Take it."

The two girls smile at his disgruntled yet satisfied look. "OJ's in the top, grape's in the bottom drawer," she directs. Over at the table, Debbie reads off all the coupons they've received.

"Poptarts, Frosted Flakes, Bisquick, Heinz Ketchup, and ooh-ooh! Even got a couple two-for-ones for Tide," the young auburn girl grins, waving the coupon beside her head.

Leaving the fridge, Ian looks over at her, "any coupons for meat?" She nods, "yeah. They got a special on ground chuck at Costco and Hot Pockets." Fiona chuckles, "great. We'll go tomorrow."

Lecroy sits between Liam and Lip, feeding the toddler some eggs and finely crumbled pieces of bacon. As his pouty lips fumble around the tips of the plastic fork, slowly swallowing the egg, Lip watches the two. He sets a sippy cup filled with milk in front of her. She sends him a small smile before giving it to Liam.

"Lip, you seen Frank?" Fiona asks, after reading the postal stamp on a yellow envelope. The teen pauses, swallowing, "uh, no." She hums, "what day is it?" He answers again with a sigh, "Friday. Why?"

Fiona skips up the stairs, searching for him without an answer. A firm knock rings from the back door, Ian sets down a plate in front of Carl before answering. Lecroy side-eyes the boy as he licks at the yolk, shooting a piece of bacon at his forehead.

He glances up at her, a small frown taking over his face. She sends a mocking one back, "eat your food, not disrupt the masses."

From behind him, Steve walks through with donuts and cups from the local coffee shop. "Mornin' campers," he greets them.

"Whoa, what'chu got?" Lip asks.

"Jelly, plain, and glazed," he sets the stuff down, winking at Lecroy, "I even got you a couple bostons saved."

The girl smiles, "and to think, I was gon'a be mad that you interrupted a healthy breakfast. All's good now." The two laugh as he hands her the cup labeled: 'hot chai latte.'

He leans over, watching as Carl continues to lick at the yolk of his eggs as Lecroy was distracted. Quickly, he takes a piece of bread from his plate, quickly tapping it against the yolk as the boy side-eyes him.

"Bet you hate when that happens," he teases. Ian scoffs in disgust, "they're his tits. It's the only reason he eats eggs."

Lecroy shakes her head, "I've stopped the ranting and just started throwing things at him," she leans over, playfully glaring at the boy, "like a dog."

Debbie's face scrunches in disgust, "he just licked that one." Fiona comes down the stairs, slowing at the sight of Steve. She looks down, noticing the donuts and coffee.

"Oh, great," she sighs. "Le and I've been trying to get them to eat a healthy breakfast." Munching on a boston creme, Lecroy mindlessly waves the older woman off.

"I already chewed him out about it, Fi," she pauses mid-chew and side eyes her, "the bostons are mine."

Steve smirks, gesturing to the table, "I bought all the essential morning food groups: caffeine, sugar, lard," he lands a peck on her lips, leaning back with a content hum.

She pulls him to the side, "I'm sorry about last night." He shakes his head, "never apologize for your parents. Believe me, I don't. So you can let go of that." Flustered, she sends him a quick smile before looking at the group with a confused frown.

"Has anybody seen Dad?" She asks once again. Debbie answers, "he was asleep behind the armchair." Fiona sighs, marching for the chair with the others following with curiosity.

Leaning over the back of the chair, her face scrunches as she snatches at the polyester material. "It's a tent," she acknowledges, turning to the others, "why is there a tent in the living room?"

"Oh, uh, drying it out," Ian confesses, "ROTC training in Wisconsin next week."

Debbie bends down, "I thought it was Dad. I left him a cup of coffee LeLe made this morning." She picks up the cup, "I thought I heard him say thanks."

Fiona leaves without a word, most likely going to V and Kev's for answers. Fiona returns with a final declaration, "I think Dad's missin'." Like clockwork, Lecroy and the Gallaghers start calling across the neighborhood in hopes anyone had seen the drunkard.

"Hey, Ted," Lip speaks into the phone, "yeah. Yeah. Since Michael Jackson died?"

Debbie sits on the landline, "hey, John, it's Debbie. Have you seen Frank since last night?"

Laying on the floor in the doorway of the living room and the kitchen, Lecroy is caught up in her own two conversations on two phones. One being with her mother:

"Yeah, has he been checked in at all since last night? This morning?" She pauses, "nah, ma, everything's fine... somewhat. The old bastard done went Houdini."

And the other being her boss, or dad:

"Baba, I know," she huffs as the man falls into a rant, "yeah, you wouldn't let him in the shop, regardless, I just need to know if you've seen him? I don't care if you drove past his body on the sidewalk, it'll count."

Fiona stations herself on the couch, "since last night, at the Alibi."

Ian sat on a phone as well, "sorry about the door. And the window. y-yeah, so, anyways, I was wondering; have you seen Frank?"

"Hello, has Frank been down at the department say last night or this morning?" V asks the receptionist at the Police station.

All of a sudden the landline from her house is snatched out of the window, the phone whipping from her hands. "Shit!" She yells, leaning out the window to see the phone being roped down the sidewalk.

"What the fuck? Motherfucker," She wonders to herself, rushing out of the Gallagher house. Still on the phone, but now sitting up, Lecroy laughs with a shake of her head.

"That's some ghetto ass shit," her smile drops as muffled voices begin cussing her out on both phones.

Laying back down, she blurts out rushed apologies into both receivers, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! No, 'm not shoutin'a' ye'."

Soon after Kev had roped V back to the house, everyone's phone calls came to a stop. "Anything?" Fiona asks, looking at them. They all shake their heads.

Ian answers, "nobody's seen him since yesterday." Debbie whines, her freckled face falling. Fiona consoles her, "hey, hey, don't worry, Debs. We're gon'a find him, okay?"

Her small body falls into small tremors. From behind, Lecroy plants a gentle peck on her crown, softly rubbing her shoulders. Ian leans over, muttering words of comfort.

Fiona looks at everyone, "we split up. All the regular spots, okay? Go."

Everyone splits up. Lip and Karen go together, much to the Murphy's chagrin. Instead, Ian and herself ventured off in her Jeep, pulling off with a screeching. They travel around the block, searching every nook and cranny the piece of shit could possibly hide in.

Even going as far as whipping open port-a-potties until Ian accidentally showcased a shitting man. Quickly, all three scramble to shut the door before the two redheads run off to their next spot.

Rounding corners of junkyards and even the neighbors' backyards, they began dumpster searching for him. It was a great idea until Lecroy loses her grip and front flips into one of the bins.

She leaps out of the stank container with a cry, trembling in disgust as Ian laughs his ass, falling in the alleyway. The duo steals a tarp and tucks it over the driver's seat before returning home. However, things weren't much better there.

Pulling in front of V and Kev's place, they walk in, eyes lighting up at the sight of Fiona and Steve. Stepping deeper in the room, they falter at the sight of Veronica ironing a shirt while topless for the webcam.

Ian smiles at the ridiculous scenery, "hey, V."

The woman's portrayal of some sort of sexy housewife doesn't falter as she greets him back, "hey, Ian."

Lecroy, on the other hand, couldn't snatch her eyes off of the woman's breast, blinking with a deadpan. "God, I love women," she mutters shamelessly.

"Um, sorry, Fiona," Ian changes the subject, "Debbie needs you. It's bad." Lecroy nods, jaw clenching as her focus falls back onto what brought them in the first place.

Back in the Gallagher house, a panicking Debbie sobs as she's surrounded by everyone. "Again, Debbie," Fiona speaks. The girl fumbles across her words, sounding as if she was singing hymns.

"Uh, Holly thought she saw a body under the tracks on Halsted," Ian explains. Fiona looks at him in shock, "what?" Steve denies the false tale, "it's not him, Debs, or the police would've contacted us by now."

Lecroy pats her head gently, "besides, it's Holly, honey. She's been in the third grade for four years." Fiona nearly growls, "I'm gonna deck that little bitch."

The Murphy girl shakes her head, "let me do it. I got a pre-buried hole in my backyard anyways." For a second, Steve pauses and glances at the teen with concern before looking back at Debbie.

"Does that even make sense, Debbie?" He asks, bending in front of her. "Why would your dad be in Halsted when he lives in the opposite direction?"

Lip steps in from behind, "well, depends. How was he lookin' when you, uh, left him at the Alibi Room last night, Steve?" He stands up, called out as Fiona follows. "When?" She asks.

"Uh," the man stammers, "ten? Ten thirty. Went to apologize, bought him a drink, then went home." He begins to light a cigarette, trying to appear collected under the lie.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Fiona asks. The front door opens as Kev walks in, "hey, can I talk to you for a sec?" The elder Gallagher steps toward him to the side.

"They found a body under the L," he says.

Once again, the family races off to the tracks, their hearts pounding against their chests in hopes that the body wasn't their father. Sliding to a stop at the circle of officers, Fiona speaks first.

"Do you know who that is?" She pants. "Stay back, okay? Stay back," the officer orders rather than answering her question.

They watch, silently as the coroner studies the body before flipping it over to reveal some homeless man who was very obviously not Frank. Veronica and the kids squeal with cheer while Lip and the others puff out a sigh of relief.

Wiping his hands down his face, the cyan eyed boy takes a hold of Lecroy's left hand, squeezing it into his chest. She looks at him, gifting a small smile, nodding. It's okay, she mouths to him. He simply returns with a smile, looking at the younger Gallaghers.

Off, behind them, Karen watches with studious eyes, lifting an eyebrow at the slip of affection. Despite the continuous ride on the Thrilling Gallagher Adventures thanks to Lip, she could care less about the boy's obvious yet simple need to involve her in his life.

All she needed was a fuck buddy and he seemed to keep her entertain, much like the rest of her roster. However, that doesn't mean she's willing to give him up and allow him to fall into the Murphy teen's arms. While Karen's... extra-curricular activities were a known fact, not much was known about Lecroy.

Her mother's a nurse, takes care of the Gallaghers and is an advocate for DV, her father owns a small auto shop, her nana runs the neighborhood daycare center, and the teen was a certified hustler.

That was it. Not too detailed. Not too vague. A respectable, working class family. Karen could fucking barf.

Oookay, so, this is probably the longest piece I've written yet and this is just 30 mins of episode 2. The rest will be added into Chapter 3, later on.

As we've slightly touched on Murphy's mental health - specifically -- disruptive behavior disorder, at some point we will take a dive into just exactly what she's inherited from her family and how it affects her daily life.

Don't be afraid to inbox me or simply heart, reblog, comment, and/or follow me for more content! Ask me any questions, my time is yours right here,

Much Love!!

Taglist: @slytherinroyalty16 @v1rgorl

SERIES MASTERLIST

[sixminutestoriesblog]

new years traditions around the world

Humans like their superstitions. The world is so random and abstract and there is so much that we can't, no matter how hard we try, control. And yet, its human nature not to be content to let 'Fate' decide our - well - fate. Some of our oldest stories are about heroes doing exactly that, trying to avoid what life has set down for them. Often they don't succeed but it doesn't stop the next hero's story from trying.

And - every now and then, some hero, somewhere, does win.

What better time to try to set the record straight, determine the future and ward away disasters than as the clock turns over and gives us an entirely new year? So, today, let's talk about New Year's Eve superstitions and see just how many we're willing to do, not because we believe them but because, deep down, we figure why not?

Do you want to travel in the upcoming year? In Columbia, they walk, or run, around the block carrying empty suitcases to call it into the new year.

Hoping for a baby in the new year? In Greece, hang a bundle of onions over your front door. Not only will this up your chances of fertility, but onions encourage good luck too.

Want to make sure there are no evil spirits in your house? In Ireland they use their leftover Christmas bread to bang on the house walls to drive any lingering mischief out. In Puerto Rico, they dump a bucket of water out the window to wash evil spirits away. In Japan, Buddhist temples ring their bells 108 times before midnight, each toll driving away a specific vice or sin so that the new year can start clean. Fireworks can drive off evil spirits too. According to the historic Chinese, the loud sounds scare them off.

Want some predictions for the new year? In the Czech Republic, they cut apples in half. If the apple's core looks like a star than next year everyone will meet again, happy and healthy. If it's a cross, someone will soon be very ill. In Columbia, they place three potatoes under the bed, one peeled, on half peeled and the other left alone. At midnight, grab one. If its unpeeled, you will have financial woes. Still in its skin? A year of prosperity. And half and half is - well, half and half. In Ireland, hiding mistletoe under your pillow will let you dream of your future spouse.

Had a bad year you can't wait to see go? Open your doors and windows on new year's eve to let the old year out and the new year in (I suspect this is easier for people living in warmer climes). In Ecuador, they build paper effigies of the bad, usually politicians, and set it on fire! Bonus good luck if you can jump over that fire twelve times. In Japan, they clean their house to wash away the old year and have it fresh and ready for a brand new year.

Looking for a long, healthy life? In Japan, they eat soba, noodles that are as long as the life the consumers want to have.

Aiming for prosperity? In Turkey, they smash pomegranates on their doorstep. The more pieces and the bigger the mess, the better. In the Southern US, you need to get yourself a meal of Hoppin John. Round shapes resemble coins so in the Philippines you want to eat twelve round fruits at midnight. Don't count on the fruit alone though, in the Philippines its also good luck to wear polka dots the last day of the year.

Have a wish you want to come true? In Singapore, they float wishing spheres, giant floating balls people write their wishes on, in the Singapore River. In Russia they write the wish on a piece of paper, burn it and then drink the ashes down in a glass of champagne. In Brazil, jump over seven ocean waves - you get a wish for each one.

Do you just want general good luck? There's a lot of traditions for that. Eat fish - they only swim forward and so will carry you forward into the new year. In Denmark, get your dishes and go break them on your friends' and family's doorstep. The more broken pieces, the more the luck. In Spain, they eat twelve grapes as the clock strikes midnight for good luck but make sure you pay attention to what you're doing and finish by the end of the chimes or you get the opposite in the upcoming year. In Denmark, stand on a chair and 'leap' into the new year as the clock strikes midnight for good luck. Farmers should wish all their livestock a good new year first thing in the morning. Several countries hide a coin or an almond in the new years eve's dessert and whoever finds it will have good luck in the new year. In New York, they sell candy peppermint pigs that come with their own hammers. Smash the pig, eat the candy and get luck in the new year - and help burn off some holiday stress. In Armenia, the first batch of bread baked on the new year bakes in the luck for the rest of the year's cooking. In Turkey, as the clock strikes midnight, sprinkle salt on your doorstep for good luck. In Japan, waking up early to watch the first sunrise of the new year is supposed to bring good luck. In Romania, they toss a coin into a river on new year's eve.

And finally - don't forget to dress for the occasion! In Brazil, they wear white on new year's eve to bring in a year full of peace. You can still be racy though. Apparently the color of your underwear makes a difference.

White – peace and harmony

Silver – innovation

Blue – serenity and friendship

Green – good health and hope

Red – passion

Yellow/gold – money and happiness

Pink – romance and love

Purple – spiritual connection

Orange – creativity

Black – independence

So there you have it.

Happy New Year!

[spoilerbracket]

Round 1: The Match-Ups

Presenting the finalized roster! The nearly 70 spoiler-riddled nominations have been whittled down to only the most spoiler-tagged of candidates, here to duke it out for a prize that we can't even explicitly say why they deserve!

There were a ton of fantastic (and often very funny) submissions. Thank you to everyone who wrote in. For the final list, I took into account the number of votes, the arguments people made, and my own incredible personal bias. If you're wondering why a character didn't get in, the reason is almost certainly "because there were twice as many nominations as slots".

Round 1 starts later this week. To avoid flooding the dash, Brackets 1 and 2 (Left Side) will go live on Friday March 3 at 7 p.m. EST, while Brackets 3 and 4 (Right Side) will go live on Saturday March 4 at 7 p.m. EST. There may be some shocking twists. So start planning your propaganda campaigns now, and may the biggest spoiler win!

The full list of participants is given below the cut (minus the small detail of their names, of course--that would be spoilers).

Bracket 1:

REDACTED from Outer Wilds vs. REDACTED from Ghost Trick

REDACTED from Deadly Premonition vs. REDACTED from Disco Elysium

REDACTED from King Dragon vs. REDACTED from Samurai Flamenco

REDACTED from AI: The Somnium Files vs. REDACTED from Ghost Trick

Bracket 2:

REDACTED from Final Fantasy XIV vs. REDACTED from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

REDACTED from Kamen Rider Build vs. REDACTED from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

REDACTED from Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward vs. REDACTED from Star Wars

REDACTED from Paradise Killer vs. REDACTED from The House in Fata Morgana

Bracket 3:

REDACTED from Umineko: When They Cry vs. REDACTED from Detective Conan

REDACTED from Heaven Official's Blessing vs. REDACTED from The Locked Tomb

REDACTED from The Great Ace Attorney vs. REDACTED from Mystic Messenger

REDACTED from Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery vs. REDACTED from Danganronpa

Bracket 4:

REDACTED from Gravity Falls vs. REDACTED from The Adventure Zone: Balance

REDACTED from Steven Universe vs. REDACTED from Undertale

REDACTED from Fire Emblem: Awakening vs. REDACTED from Persona 5

REDACTED from Professor Layton and the Unwound Future vs. REDACTED from Hatoful Boyfriend

[rgr-pop]

last night i made ginger carrot mushroom dumplings with dumpling sauce, sour spicy cold noodles, tomato egg drop soup with tofu and some carrot slaw as well as the BA (archived, no clicks) french yogurt cake. everybody got seconds of everything 🥰

dumplings: i don’t think i’ll bother making the dough from scratch again, made it kind of ugly, but batched dumplings is a totally perfect meal for me to prep and it may become my signature. i am always looking for the best stuff i can mostly prep ahead to lower day-of hosting stress, which this menu achieved really well. as for the filling, i improvised the mushroom sub for meat and it was fine but i would have preferred tofu. the finely grated carrot was amazing and i can’t wait to put that in other kinds of dumplings (ravioli, pierogi, DONUTS??)

dumpling sauce: black vinegar for a dumpling is probably close to my favorite thing to eat on earth but i’m still calibrating my favorite way to do it. i hewed pretty close to the CJ eats but ended up adding twice the vinegar to my own (and it was too salty for me). i made a jar of this then put out all the condiments and gave everyone dishes to mix up what they wanted and this worked great.

noodles: i did woks of life exactly for this, with the spaghetti. i’d prefer more heat and a black vinegar instead, but i will eat this all the time forever. currently having leftovers for lunch. if you come to my holidays look forward to cold spaghetti forever!

soup: i’ve really been trying to learn more soups that start from something other than onions, and i love chinese cooking for that, but it can sometimes be hard to cook meatless. i love how fast chinese soups can come together without meat, and i love the approach of adding a little liquid to a liquid to build a broth—can be very different from euro canon and has helped me learn better instincts. i talked to a vietnamese friend and she suggested getting into rice porridges for guests, great idea. my thing is i always want a vegetarian soup for everybody, and i think vegetarians get fed the same flavor profiles over and over again, and i really love tofu and want to treat veg eaters to really good preparations of tofu grounded in where tofu comes from, which happens to also be my favorite cuisine. so i have to get good at it! but this soup was Not Good to me until i put that egg in and some sesame oil on top. truly trust the process i guess!

i had thought about frying tofu for this meal but it would have been too much. i think with the dipping sauce setup i would have preferred to have two types of things to dip though.

carrot slaw was a last minute addition because i didn’t think i had enough food and it wasn’t as good as it is when i pickle it. the carrots this month have been truly divine.

cake: this was good and easy but probably missing the effortlessness of the french yogurt cake. would like to try again with french instead of greek yogurt (what i had). what is it about BA that they’re like what if you made a cake that tasted like oil? my house SMELLED like CANOLA OIL and i found it offputting. they’re gonna have us doing vegetable oil drizzles on ice cream in june i swear to god

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #173

I decided that today is another day of resting, mostly because I have a video game to play with M, at least for now. We played more Necesse, and today I actually have a picture to show you of the garden I built…

...It's actually bigger than this now; it's 5 rows wide. And soon, it will be 6 rows wide. In addition to all the crops that come from seeds, I thought to try to include the berry bushes and the trees, too. The 16 squares are, from left to right and top to bottom: sugar beets, wheat, cabbage, tomatoes, corn, rice, carrots, potatoes, eggplant, chili peppers, pumpkins, strawberries and coffee, some kind of fictional ice flower, sunflowers, some kind of fictional fire flower, and mushrooms.

...Since taking that picture, strawberries and coffee have their own separate fields. I also started a field full of some fictional cave plant, a field of onions, and a field that is half filled with blueberries, while the other half is filled with blackberries.

I still need to build spaces for the trees. So far, we have apples, bananas, coconuts, and lemons.

...And yes, I am aware that all of these fruits and vegetables grow in wildly different climates, hahaha! But games like these tend to ignore the climate factor, because otherwise it becomes too cumbersome to do anything.

The garden is a lot bigger than what my settlers need. But this just means that they'll never go hungry. And it also means that we can sell the extra for coin to buy other stuff with.

Oh right!! I should probably show you the houses I built for my settlers! Here:

...You'll notice I've got sheep and cows and little piggies, too!

Little piggies... I am reminded of a little nursery rhyme in my part of the world that parents (in my case, my grandparents) sometimes say to their children while playing with their toes; you point to each toe in order, starting with the biggest one, and you say each line for each toe:

This little piggy went to the market. This little piggy stayed home. This little piggy had roast beef. This little piggy had none. And this little piggy cried, "wee, wee, wee!" all the way home!

...I wonder if you have that rhyme in your world.

Hey, Sephiroth? What kinds of nursery rhymes do the people of your world say to children, anyway? Is that even a thing in your world? And... given your own upbringing, is it something you ever experienced? Or is it maybe something you've only ever seen in passing, done by the families in the places where you were stationed? Do you know any nursery rhymes? And if you do, which ones do you like best?

I like The Itsy Bitsy Spider. And not just because I think spiders are very cute (because they ARE very cute, especially tarantulas!! everyone else is allowed to be wrong!), but because it's a lesson in persistence - behold:

The itsy bitsy spider climbed up the water spout. Down came the rain and washed the spider out! Out came the sun and dried up all the rain, and the itsy bitsy spider climbed up the spout again.

...That one's got a melody and a whole hand movement thing that happens. But the important bit here is that this spider is undeterred from its goal. It tried and then it failed because of forces outside of its control. And then it got right back up and tried again. The song does not tell us the result, but I like to think that it was successful the second time.

I also kinda like this one:

A-tisket, a-tasket, a green and yellow basket. I wrote a letter to my friend and on the way I dropped it, I dropped it, I dropped it, and on the way I dropped it. A little boy, he picked it up and put it in his pocket.

...I have no idea what a "tisket" or a "tasket" are. But it has a cheerful little melody. Also, I tend to drop and lose things a lot, so I guess I kind of find this one relatable, hahaha! The notion that someone might come along and pick it up and return it to me later is kind of nice.

You know what, Sephiroth? If any of these letters get "dropped" somehow on their way to you, I don't mind if a little boy picks them up and puts them in his pocket for a bit of courage and strength - especially if that little boy is you. Maybe if you like what I write to you, then you can somehow send them along to your past self; even with Glenn and Matt and Lucia, he still seems a little lonely, doesn't he?

Well anyway. It becomes late, and I've not done a whole lot today, so I suppose I should stop writing here before I start rambling.

I love you. Please try to imitate the persistent spider from the little rhyme and rise up from your knees every time you fall down. And if you need a hand up, mine will always be here, waiting for you to take it.

Please stay safe out there. Please make good, kind, and gentle choices. I'll write to you again tomorrow.

Your friend, Lumine

[jungle-angel]

Out in the Middle: Part 16

Summary: Thanksgiving Day has finally arrived at the ranch

You felt a fog of warm breath on your neck as you slept and a hand sliding ever so slowly from your waist to your thigh, sliding in just a little bit.....

“Rhett?” 

“Hmm?” he hummed sleepily. 

“You’re doing that thing again.” 

“What thing?” he yawned. 

“The thing you do when you want me to get up.” 

“Darlin I ain’t doin nothin,” he chuckled naughtily. 

You chuckled a little until your eyes met the sight of the digital clock on the nightstand, the red letters reading 7am on the dot. 

“SHIT!!!!” you exclaimed, tossing aside the covers and slipping your robe on as you jumped out of bed. 

“What? What happened?” Rhett asked. 

“I’ve gotta go and help prep the rest of dinner,” you said in a panic. “We’ve gotta get the turkeys in the oven and the other stuff made....” 

You rushed down the stairs, sliding a little before you started down the stairs and only stopping at the smell of something cooking. An older woman’s voice was heard in the kitchen along with the giggling of a little girl. When you turned the corner into the kitchen, you came face to face with the one person you hadn’t suspected would be up this early.

Your mother-in-law.

“Hey (y/n)!” Cecelia greeted a little more cheerfully than usual. “Ya’ll ok? Looks like you’ve seen a ghost.” 

“I thought I did for a second,” you chuckled. “I looked at the clock and panicked.” 

“Oh honey we ain’t goin nowhere or doing anything,” Cece assured you. “Kaya was just out here keepin me company.” 

“What about the birds?” 

“Royal, John and Mo took care of it this morning,” Cecelia answered handing you a mug full of steaming coffee. “I swear there ain’t no feathers on those birds no matter how hard you look.” 

You let out a sigh of relief, knowing it was one less thing to worry about. “So where do we start?” you asked her. 

“Wherever the hell we want,” Cecelia chuckled. 

You spent the better part of the morning with your mother-in-law, cooking away in the kitchen and Cece showing you some of the old family secrets. The girls weren’t too far behind you, Beth and Monica rising early to come and help, while Nora wasn’t too far behind. Amy slipped into the kitchen a minute later and before long, the whole house was up. Cecelia jokingly banished the men to the basement while you and the others claimed the kitchen and the men could watch the football game or the nine millionth rerun of “Planes, Trains and Automobiles”.  Only a few times did they come up, but that was to sneak a taste of the food that could be smelled from the basement, only to be met by Cecelia and a wet dishtowel. 

“YA’LL ARE SETTING A BAD EXAMPLE FOR YOUR KIDS AND GRANDKIDS!!!!” she hollered, whipping the dishtowel at Royal and John who immediately ran for the stairs, cackling like a pair of witches during a full moon. 

You laughed a little at the comical sight before you tossed a few cut up onions into the pot on the stove. “They’d better not be sneakin food before dinner or I’ll have’em strung up by the berries,” she muttered. 

Everything went as smoothly as possible and only on a few occasions did Cece have to threaten anybody with the dishtowel. Kaya of course, thought it was the funniest thing in the world when Papa and Papa Johnny snuck upstairs, trying to be quiet, only to be met with the wrath of Nana who shooed them away. 

You must have spent hours in that kitchen with your mother-in-law and your best girlfriends, watching your kids build a pillow fort in the living room and occasionally hearing the men shout downstairs every time their team scored a touchdown. Finally, dinner was ready. 

“Hey, ya’ll knuckleheads can come up and eat!” Cece called. 

In the span of six short seconds, the men came hurrying up the stairs from the basement while the kids each rushed for their places as well. You took your spot next to Rhett and the others took theirs before John led the family in saying a quick prayer before everyone served each other. 

You and Rhett both thanked God above for this very moment and the family that you were with. Sure all of you had your spats, good days and bad, each coming from different walks of life, but it was family that brought every single one of you together despite everything. 

You felt Rhett’s arm around your shoulders, pulling you close before kissing your cheek. “I love you (y/n),” he murmured.

“I love you too Rhett Abbott,” you said before returning the kiss. 

[roseadleyn]

Mutual Incorrect Quotes

--

(writing this for the seventh time since Tumblr keeps deleting it-- I hate you Tumblr for deleting the original)

--

@mysticmeena: The government wants to know what kind of weapons we keep in our house and I'm letting them know that it's private information.

@fuoon: This literally just says 'fuck around and find out'.

-

@elychee: I lost Sidra.

@loekas: How did you lose Sidra?!

@elychee: To be fair, Sidra is very small.

-

@d10nsaint: Is letting someone win at chess sapiosexual bottoming?

@roseadleyn: Does anyone in this godforsaken house think before they speak?

-

@elychee: Time sensitive question how flirt boy.

@sidra-29: Throw rocks at he.

@cerisearan: Kill him.

@mysticmeena: Hot Dogs.

@elychee: ...Thanks guys.

-

@that-one-pretty-bitch: He died of natural causes.

@writerinthedeepwoods: Jacqueline, you pushed him off a building.

@that-one-pretty-bitch: Gravity is natural.

-

@loekas: I just had a long talk with Solei and Brooke about hitting each other and now they're yelling 'It's my turn to perpetuate the cycle of violence!' before hitting each other.

-

@mysticmeena: I just want to live through one week without Brooke reciting a new verse of 'I Didn't Start The Fire'.

-

@giyuus0nlywife: Brooke's in the kitchen.

@d10nsaint, reading the recipe: 'Beat three eggs', in what, hand to hand combat?

@roseadleyn: GET HER OUT.

-

@giyuus0nlywife: The ocean is a soup.

@dxmoness: ...Do elaborate.

@giyuus0nlywife: What things are needed in a soup?

@dxmoness: Erm, water, salt, some form of vegetation, and personally I prefer meat in mine.

@giyuus0nlywife: The ocean is a soup.

@dxmoness: The ocean is a soup.

-

@elychee: Ah, I feel refreshed! Did you guys sleep well?

@rouecentric:

@d10nsaint:

@rouecentric: Well, my eyes closed for a little bit yesterday.

-

@cerisearan: I drink to forget but I always remember.

@dion-s-lawyer: Mhm.. you're drinking orange juice.

-

@d10nsaint: We have a problem.

@dion-s-lawyer: No, you have a problem. I have an idiot who keeps making them.

-

@rouecentric: Why don't humans have a specific sound that means 'there are bees here, let's leave immediately.' Why are elephants more advanced than us.

@loekas: We do have a specific sound for it. It sounds like this:

@loekas: 'There are bees here, let's leave immediately.'

-

@dxmoness: Hey, can you recommend me a book that can make me cry?

@izumi-astra-123: General Mathematics 8th Grade Edition.

(no offense to @elychee and everyone else who likes / enjoys math <3)

-

@writerinthedeepwoods: I wish I was a dinosaur.

@izumi-astra-123: Why, because they're big and scary?

@writerinthedeepwoods, deadpan: Because they're dead.

-

@iwanttosleepforever1: I am going to need you to swear-

@that-one-pretty-bitch: Fuck.

@iwanttosleepforever1: ...swear as in promise.

-

@fuoon: Do you even know what an amulet is?

@iwanttosleepforever1: Of course I do! I even eat amulets sometimes. I like the ones with cheese and onions.

@fuoon: Those are omelettes.

@iwanttosleepforever1: Oh. Then I've got nothing.

-

I'll make a part two since the tag limit for this post has been reached! I'm so so sorry if I forgot anyone, I tried to include everyone I could remember, please remind me if I forgot!

oh yes, this is one of two gifts for new year :)

-

[roberrtphilip]

hey man what are the philips dressing up as for halloween this year 👀

(bonus points if you tell me about their First halloween together !!!)

ah man, with Giselle around they have the Best costumes, like I just know she goes all out with everyone's clothes. Their first Halloween, Robert said they could just go out and buy something and she was so offended.

I feel like Sofia always wants to be something random/odd, something that even if they wanted to buy it, they might not be able to find it. Like, one year she wanted to be Adam Flayman from Bee Movie. Why? Who knows, she just likes that silly bee, and Giselle is certainly not going to deny her baby anything. This year she was torn on whether or not she wanted to be an onion or a coat hanger, but went with the onion, which works out well bc it means Giselle can force Robert to be Shrek while she gets to be Fiona.

As for their first Halloween, I love the idea of them being Ariel, Eric, and Melody from the Little Mermaid. Robert really didn't want to dress up and was going to just leave the fun to Giselle and Morgan, but they were having absolutely none of that and he got lucky bc Eric's costume is pretty basic. After that, I feel like they'd usually all match in some way, with Morgan maybe straying a few times, but Giselle and Robert always matched.

When Morgan eventually deemed herself "too old" for dressing up, Giselle would make sure everyone in the apartment building knew they could come to their unit for candy, so they'd have a few trick or treaters stop by, and she always enjoyed that.

Now that they have a house, Giselle goes crazy with decorating, and leaves a bunch of candy out for kids while they leave with Sofia. Everyone in Monroeville knows the Philip house is the house to go for the best candy (and does this make Malvina mad? a little bit, but she tries not to be jealous). If/when Sofia decides she's too old for trick or treating, Giselle and Robert know they'll continue to dress up and pass out candy.

[umichenginabroad]

Stockholm Week 1: Uncovering Stockholm

Hi again! I am Jiwoo Kim, and I am back with new updates. 

I journaled throughout the week to keep my memories fresh and in the hopes of using that as my blog post, but I want to let you know that it is A LOT of content (warning in advance). If this continues I will break down my week into two posts :(  

Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy reading (or skimming) the adventures I had this week!

1/14 - Shopping Sunday 

Surprisingly, I had no jet lag! Thanks to the laundry machine breaking down (check my previous post for more details), I slept around 12 am and woke up at 11 am. Day 2 and I was already set. 

My friends and I visited Fern and Fika for our first fika. The fruit tea I got was amazing but my four friends, who all ordered the same thing, did not enjoy their chai latte. I didn’t get any desserts because it was early in the day but I am definitely planning to go back. 

To familiarize ourselves with the metro, we traveled around proximal areas around the DIS building. There were abundant stores, both international (H&M, UNIQLO, Lush) and local, along the streets. We visited the following stores: Normal (cheap bath and body products), IKEA (meatballs were exactly what I was looking for), UNIQLO (I bought a cute cross bag and my friends got heat tech clothing), and ICA (grocery run again). 

1/15 - First Day of Orientation

I discovered that A LOT of well-known companies and artists are from Sweden: the list includes H&M, IKEA, Spotify, ABBA, Ace of Base, etc. 300 students played trivia all at once with live music (piano and singing) from the DIS faculty!

After the trivia, we all went to faculty-led group workshops. They were 30-40 minute sessions where I met a lot of different students; it honestly felt like a freshmen orientation. We did some legos, played supposed Swedish games, and learned all about Swedish culture.

For dinner, I cooked with my roomie. Tomato pasta with cheese, sausage, diced onion, and premade sauce; doesn’t it look good? 

I usually don’t like tomato pasta but the one we made was so good that I devoured it in seconds

1/16 - Second Day of Orientation 

Second visit to the DIS building was much easier. We already got the hang of using the metro! I saw dogs in and out of the metro and they were all quiet and well-behaved. It was intriguing to see that even the dogs are different too! 

The main event was going to apply for a physical Swedish visa/permit. 

We woke up at 6:20 am (as a night owl, I had to suck it up) and quickly got ready. No one knew but we had to take a picture for the residence permit card and EVERYONE was crusty in the photos - weird orange lighting, no counting before the photoshoot. I am not ready to see the result yet and I don’t think I ever will be ready. 

I had about 3 hours before Housing Info Sessions at the DIS building again so my apartment friends and I headed home. On the way back, we stopped at T-Central station to get a replacement guarantee for our Stockholm transportation card (also provided by the DIS). We saw a mart called AM Store across the street and decided to check it out too - it turned out to be a HUGE Asian mart! When I say HUGE I mean like a two-story store HUGE (0o0). It literally had everything I could think of - sauces, dumplings, Kimchi, seaweed, enoki mushrooms, rice, all types of ramen, noodles, hot pot broths, mochi, hoppang, fortune cookies, etc. Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and many more types of food were there. 

This is a photo I took to assure my parents that I will be well-fed in Stockholm and that they don’t need to send me/bring me anything  

I went back home afterward for lunch and did some work for my asynchronous online ChemE Reactions course and blogger post rough draft. So busy!

At the Hornstull station, which is the closest station to our apartment 

During the housing info session, we wrote a letter to ourselves in order to practice writing our new address. It was unexpected but a good checkpoint for me to look back on my initial goals, worries, and plans for the study abroad. It’s going to be mailed to me in two months as a method to reflect how I am doing!  

Stockholms Stadsmission was the second thrift store I visited in Stockholm, and it was by far the best! It had various options (shoes, bags, clothes, accessories) of good quality at good prices! I got a baby shirt for $5. You do have to dig in a bit, but you can definitely find *･+:*｡･ gold *｡･:*+*

When we got back home, my roommate and I cooked rice, sautéed Napa with oyster sauce, and roasted chicken breasts. It took us like 2 hours (LOL) but they were on point - we were so full after the dinner. 

I am so proud of us 

That night, a student posted on DIS Navigate, an online community shared among DIS Stockholm students, saying that some are going to Beer and Play at 9 pm to “hydrate” for field study tomorrow. 

It was a short walk from Högalidsgatan so we all decided to go. It was a great decision. We all had SO much fun! DIS students kept rushing in one after another; we soon filled the entire pub. We all mingled and talked to each other, and I finally met someone in my core course. The number of followers and following in my Instagram shot up after this ;)

Pear cider was a popular choice

1/17 - Core Course Field Study 

I woke up early to go to a cafe with a friend for a fika! Earl gray with two desserts for breakfast was an experience. Although the desserts were too sweet for my liking, I loved the decorations in the cafe. They were so pretty! 

Taking pictures is a must in a cute cafe 

Today was the first field study with my core course, Sustainable Engineering in Scandinavia. It took the whole 4 hours, but the time did fly when I was having fun. We had an introduction about the class structure inside and went outside for a field study in Stockholm Seaport. While walking around various structures covered with snow, we asked questions after listening to the connections between the construction area and the environment, society, and economy. 

I couldn't open my eyes because snow was rushing in

Professor informed us that this weather is uncommon in Stockholm, but this was what I expected so I guess it worked out. I really think it snowed 10 cm today. My feet were surrounded with snow and my face was smacked by a snow blizzard. Although I was F R E E Z I N G more and more every second in the snow, I loved all of it. We stopped by a small store to have fika funded by DIS and I didn’t miss my chance for a free fika: I got green tea and a croissant with cheese and lettuce. 

Having a small class gave me a chance to talk with almost everyone in the course, and it felt more like a close-knit community. Later in the trip we were making small snowmans and having snowball fights along the way. We even planned an informal class trip on a ferry to Finland! 

1/18 - First Real Lectures 

Thursday was the first real day of classes. We mostly did introductions and talked about expectations in class. Except for the fact that my core course went over two chapters worth of materials during the three-hours lecture, it was fine. I was mentally exhausted, so after lectures I went straight home and did homework for the rest of the night. I was saving energy for Friday 🙂

1/19 - TGIF

Friday! I thankfully got off the waitlist for the Swedish Language and Culture course, so I switched it with the 8:30am Philosophy course. I don’t have an 8:30am class anymore! 

After my morning classes, I tried fika on my own. I walked around 10 minutes from the DIS building and went to a cafe with an interesting seating arrangement. I wandered around in a shopping mall nearby until it was time for the DIS cultural mingle event with high school locals. 

My first Swedish cinnamon bun, Kanelbullar 

The high school kids were so kind and eager to talk with us, which was unexpected but fun. I was informed that I need to go NORTH NORTH of Sweden to see the northern lights, which was a little disappointing :(  I am still going to try though! Seeing the northern lights has been on my bucket list for quite some time now and I don’t want to miss the chance. 

Right before heading home after class, I met a new friend who lives in Homestay. Rather than going home, we spontaneously decided to explore Stockholm together. First, we headed to a pop-up store of a Swedish artist. It turns out he was performing at the store like a small concert, and we were able to listen to all of his songs for an hour or so! Even though I couldn’t understand anything, I cherished every single part of that mini concert. 

I had Shazam on the whole time

To celebrate the end of the week, my friends and I prepared to go out after dinner. After the pregame, we went to the Time Bar, a bar close to our apartment that accepts American IDs like driver’s licenses. The bar was so cute, and the Passion Sour drink was the best alcohol I had in my life.

We made friends with the bartender and the security it was so cute &lt;;3

I was planning to stay home on Saturday but I somehow ended up in the Time Bar again. Two nights in a row but I still had so much fun.

A friend brought two cameras to the bar and we took cute photos of each other :)

1/21 - Gamla Stan 

Waking up today was difficult after going out two nights in a row, but I didn’t give in to my extremely cozy and warm bedding. 

I met my friends at the lobby around 10:30 am to head off to Gamla Stan, the Old Town! I was so excited to go because I've been only hearing good comments about it (even the locals recommended it). There were hundreds of aesthetic cafes, souvenir shops, jewelry/clothing shops, etc. There were multiple majestic towers too! 

I had my hopes high and Gamla Stan still managed to exceed my expectations!

We were just in time for the Royal Guards Ceremony (basically changing of the guards) at the Royal Palace of Stockholm. My friend was being a tour guide and explaining that no one lives in the palace anymore but they do it as a tradition.

I basically got a free tour around Gamla Stan aren’t I so lucky ;)

We stopped at stores that caught our eyes and I was able to find a perfect scarf in one of the stores! I couldn’t get my hands off of the scarf ever since I touched it, so I just had to get it. I swear the scarf stuck to my hands. You’ll understand me the moment you touch the scarf. It is the softest thing I touched in my life and I love it. My hair doesn't stick to it or get frizzy either! 

Okay, enough of the scarf ramble. Anyway, as we were getting ready to go back, we saw a churro place and couldn’t pass it. The owner started making a fresh batch of churros and it was so pleasantly painful to wait for them to be done as we stood outside, in the cold weather, smelling every single step of the baking process. The churros tasted like heaven and we were so happy with our decision. 

Before I leave, I am definitely going back to Mr. Churros multiple times to try every single flavor. I highly recommend the cinnamon sugar flavor though! 

This concludes my first week in Stockholm, and I can’t wait to experience more things! 

Thank you for taking the time to read this lengthy blog and I hope to see you again!

Hey då,  

Jiwoo Kim

Chemical Engineering

DIS Study Abroad in Stockholm, Sweden

[shopcat]

bear with me for a sec let’s leave the inconsistent writing room aside and take it all in. kinda crazy to Me that steve in s1 is just regular douchy (at least for time period?) . he said a slur without putting his heart into it he liked a girl and lashed out and went to apologize and his friends are also douchy because hes handsome and lives in a big house and his parents are also douchy. BUT THEN in s2 steve is revealed to apparently be “king steve”?? like yeah u could say billy is exaggerating for the drama but like. s2 says steve wasnt just regular douchy he was Popular and Liked and everything. king steve. and s3 has him so completely removed from that in his striking out with girls and being friends with kids behaviour but robin is like yeah i had so much angst about you because the girl i liked liked You. and it’s like yeah he was king steve and girls liked him and he was regular douchy but also apparently what was most annoying about him to robin was the way he ate bagels in the morning. and s4 steve interacts with eddie and eddie says it blows my mind that youre an actual good dude. and he jumped him with a bottle but as a reflex and let go of him and jumped after him in a lake and wasn’t even mean to him the whole time. like robin was arguably meaner than him when he was clearly more of a target for the Jocks. and even then she wasn’t even mean to him either. like that’s crazy a little bit that he’s like a douchy dude but he just liked his girl but also actually hes The douchy dude but they dont actually ever mention anything douchy hes done that’s worse than what he did on screen. and the whole time he’s just a little bitchy as a treat. as a character trait. it’s like the writers keep adding stuff to his character season after season which yeah thats how character works in media but instead of unlayering an onion it’s like they’re adding rooms to a house. without ever entering the house btw tangent line but it’s so funny to Me a little bit that we’ve never even seen steve’s parents or heard their voices or anything like do we even know their names. like for all we know they’re both redheads and tall and wear glasses or whatever. that’s crazy. and like i may not remember everything that’s ever been said or shown on screen so all of what ive just said might be incorrect but like !!! still. this is so funny steve was Ultimate Mean Girl of high school hierarchy and he just Ate Bagels and Vandalized A Theater Then Lost A Fight that one time. what’s wrong with him !!!! i love him.

i think one time i said he was so popular bc he looks so much like a little dog with big brown eyes and everyone's just like Awwww ... Steve... and lets him get away with murder for it but the murder ends up being like throwing something at the garbage can and it doesn't make it in and so he doesn't pick it up and that's a metaphor. no it isn't.

i do think this is just a natural byproduct of them admitting they have no idea what to do with steve so they just keep adding and adding to this character they're building that's somehow seperate from the one we've actually seen ourselves and they do have this habit of trying to establish things through ... someone just SAYING it alone as if that at the end of the day amounts to anything. like how we're supposed to just be like eddie and dustin are sooo close because they Said So but we never actually SEE that and it ends up falling a little flat if you don't have this like pre-established fondness and leniency for the character which you shouldn't probably have to have... in a tv show... Show Don't Tell and all.

and honestly at this point i just find it funny that robin hated him for petty reasons and decided to tell him when they thought they were gonna die and eddie thought he was a douchebag from a distance or something after sharing one whole school year with him. i think it might be accidentally realistic to depict these silly highschool dramas of GOD you SUCKED so much because you got food everywhere and hung out with annoying people, because in highschool everything is amped up to 300 like that!! but the thing is they're not IN highschool or at least HE'S not in highschool they're not shithead teenagers anymore they should be moving on from this but it's like a stuck record atp. the gap between hs/graduating/being a teenager -> getting a job/college prospects ig and becoming a young adult and independent is one of the most difficult times of someone's LIFE and it's like they're TRYING to show this with steve but keep failing bc they're not actually going for "20 year old trying to find his place in the world" they're going for "peaked in highschool ex-popular jock boy who keeps #failing and is getting a #reality check" and it ends up coming off like. i don't know. ill formed i guess. he is being constantly punished for a past so heinous such as "was sort of mean with two significant spikes in meanness that he immediately apologised for, got comeuppance for in the form of getting his shit rocked and has spent at this point years apologising to random bystanders for" but now he's atoning for the act of just Being a teenager and will do so for the next 5 years of his life for some reason because all the complexity they give him is entirely accidental on their part and they don't know how to live up to it </3 in season 5 someone's going to come up to him and be like "you know... my daughter saw your little stunt at the movie theatre... she's traumatised now. you're fine now but you were a real DOUCHEBAG!!!" and he'll have to be like :( i'm sorry sir :(

like they're trying to show genuine grounded reactions that someone would have to hanging with someone who's not who you thought they were and realising they're actually their own complex individuals beyond their reputation whatever it may be and i see it i get it i'm clocking in to it but at this point we have had 3 entire seasons of people coming to the Stunning Realisation that he is not a massive douchebag anymore over and over again and it is ended up sort of tired. the steve harrington apology tour will never end </3. and once again i find it disappointing that the show that celebrates a certain kind of diversity of individual expression and passion that is what you are ostracised for does not mean you are condemned for and that like it's cool to be a nerd and an outcast and not fit in for whatever reason but then with steve they're just like. oh no he sucked and will be punished for it forever actually and also he's dumb and that's funny because he deserves to be made fun of Nerds can't be bullies no way!!!!

[sketchygainedyoursoul]

Tokyo Soul 5 I want to die (/j)

parts 1/2/3/4

this time i will attempt to summarize more than one episode. i mean, i could do them back to back but i will try to condense them. so uh, it will probably fail. but who knows?

update: am live reacting with my friend mochi so hopefully this will work

update 2: onion and echo joined!

update 3: theyre all gone :(

This has episodes 5-8 summarized

ep 5:

the episode is called creepy teacher, and for good reason. his classroom is dimmed and he calls his students his subjects. there are also mushrooms growing. what the fuck. THERE ARE ASLO CHAINS HANGING FROM THE CEILING AND THE TEACHER HAS A THRONE

why is he asking them to repeat all of their medical records out loud wtf wtf i do not feel safe. to see if theyre appropriate candidates

Sam's medical record: Blood type B, 5'9', likes crayons, (allegedly) an iq of 250

Taurtis' medical record: "I have had my memory repeatedly lost, I've had amnesia multiple times, I've been stabbed in the abdomen, I've broken my legs by jumping off a building before, i've been shot in the shoulder, and, um, I think that's about it." (okay buckaroo no need to go all out)

The teacher does not think they are appropriate candidates

WE DONT GET DOMS MEDICAL RECORD NOOO

i think that speaks for itself

the teacher is now agressively sniffing taurtis, rambling about a certain smell. He then says, ominously to taurtis, "oh..... yeah. you're the one." i am scared for taurtis.

He (the teacher, who's name is Proffessor Geode Rocks,) says that "[he] did it" and "now my plan will finally be a success" and then, to Taurtis, "you will make me proud." AND HE TAKES A SAMPLE OF TAURTIS' DNA

WAIT IS THAT IGBAR VON SQUID FROM THE FIRST EPISODE? anyway (OH MY GOD IT IS)

Prof. Geode screams about world domination and then the bell rings. that's the end of their first day of school. i am scared, and awaiting my grain boy

the boys now have to do their makle-up laps LLL LL LL L

nevermind, she lets them off because tehyre new. kay then hot lady- i mean uh u h uh gym teacher helana

in reference to the shcool, everyone agrees that they dislike it, and taurtis says that hes never felt so unsafe in his life. damn. not even during the yakuza shootout? okay damn

WHY ARE THEY GOING BACK INTO THE GIRLS LOCKER ROOM

WHY ARE THEY GIVING THE OLD GUY PANTIES EW EW EW EW EW I HATE THAT MAN

WHY IS THE OLD MAN AT THEIR HOUSE WTF

OH MY GOD THEIR DOOR IS OPEN IS IT GRAIN??

nooo hes not here :((((

Sam falls asleep and the episode ends.

Episode 6:

HOT DOM FANART i am okay with this (but seriously wtf)

taurtis fell outside asleep standing outside of sams door. he did this on the high dive too. guess he just has those pro gamer skills

Sam entices Taurtis awake with sushi "because [he] is japanese" and Taurtis awakes saying "That's racist!" we love taurtis in this house

GRIAN LORE he went to the wrong tokyo. the one in canada. how does that even happen. OH MY GOD THEYRE PICKING HIM UP FROM THE TRAIN STATION

GRIAN THE MAN THE MYTH THE LEGEND MY CROPS ARE WATERED MY SKIN IS CLEARED AND MY SANITY HAS BEEN RESTORED BY 15 PERCENT

THEY JUST CALLED A MAN A BURN VICTIM TO HSI FACE OKAY THEN

IGBAR VON SQUID MAKES A RETURN LETS GO

dom climbed a water tower. i just think that's neat.

SAm's mom texted. Sam has a mom? Since when?

Grian is suspicious of the old man. good.

A girl named "Yee" approaches the boys outside and calls one of them hottie. refusing to elaborate, all but grian argue over who she thinks.

Grian says "this school is definetly an upgrade" then immediately takes it back as they round a corner and find one of Senor Loro's DECAPITATED GOATS

Grian does not wrestle Senor for his schedule. okay.

nevermind.

...why is the.. WHY IS THE OLD MAN DRESSED AS A SCHOOL GIRL.

Grian is not fooled, but Sam and Taurtis are. They want Grian to talk to "her". Oh my god. Grian is creeped out by the fact the old man said that he has nice legs (he did.) so sam and taurtis go in for him. wow. was not expecting that. NO. GRIAN NO DONT GO OVER THERE WITH THEM

Sam: "Grian, you like girls right?" Grian: *no hesitation* "No i'm into dudes." Me: YO

its revealed ellen was his gay awakening we love that for them

okay so the episode ends with everyone heading into teacher tori's room. i think ill do one more.

ep 7:

Teacher Tori has Grian introduce himself, and Sam and Taurtis peer pressure him into telling the "rooftop story"

IGBAR VON SQUID AND GRIAN ARE FRIENDS LETS GO BABEY

Sam punches a girl for being late and TEACHER TORI CALLS HIM OUT AND TELLS HIM TO STOP LETS GO BABEY AND SHE SAYS BULLYING ISNT NICE OH MY GOD AN ACTUAL SUPPORTIVE ADULT WHAT IS THIS

no rooftop story :(

bruh sam reminded Tori of their homework bruh cringe

Tori takes them fishing

another goat is found dead in the girl's locker room. bonus: grian does not want to go into the girls locker oom. smart wheat boy.

their fishing rods sound like guns. okay then.

the bell rings and the old man disguised as a girl is stalking them. Sam jokes that he's grians girfriend despite grian literally saying he was gay smh

okay i was testing out my new copic markers with my new sketchook and i missed the fact that sam took like 13 fishing rods wtf

Grian now introduces himself to Dr's class. why is he asking grian to say hes a boyman. what. grian refuses, even when dr threatens him with an F. he finally relinquishes.

dr is now calling grian mr boyman AND OH NO THEYRE TALKING ABOUT THE FOOD PYRAMID OH NOOOOO ;pian; they have to go on a scavenger hunt or smth idk

grian says he kinda sucks as a teacher AND I AGREE POP OFF GIRAN

the prize is a free for life subscription to hunter x hunter on god theyre all anime boys im dead

IM SOBBING THE INOCRRECT MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY HAS ME ROLLINGIN M GRAVE

i removed my description of the scene from 17:54 to 19:40 due to some real DISGUSTING shit going on. it's all potty humor but god... grian throws up twice and please do not subject yourself to that scene i will never recover like i think ive actually been nauseated from this holy shit please do not watch this

grian is now telling the principal that his staff choices are shit and i say pop off grian

Grian failed and got Dr a raise. I am personally on grian's side :( and he got detention :d

Grian drops a SICK ROAST on Dr and gets more detention im very amused

everyone filmed that lmao

apparently grian is triggered by bad teachers. okay then. i stand for this tbh

grian is getting wrassled bc hes a cool kid ig (this is just how senor loro rolls. i am concerned.)

sam is tagged in by grian and wins the fight. that was honestly 10/10 fight scene lmao.

apprently that was the detention. that's nice? maybe?

taurtis breaks the news that another of senor loro's goats was found missing in the girls bathroom, and it is revealed that more are going missing. senor assigns the trio to finding the goats.

senor loro gives them a "crystal of Tenochtitlan," one each, and they are appearntly ancient artefacts of aztec descent. I am scared. OH MY GOD THEY ALLOW PEOPLE TO TALK TO ANIMALS? WHAT? damn those aztecs were crazy. These crystals should help them find the goats and (hopefully) the goat killer

Grian says that outside of "wrassling," senor loro is a nice guy. I have to agree, considering he offered them anything from the vending machine on the out for lunch. 10/10 guy (so far)

the episdoe ends with the trio exiting the wrassling ring. i'm gonna do the next episode because i really want to see grian's medical record lmao

ep 8:

on god more epic fanart. honestly sam is a shit guy but its nice of him to include fanart :/ at least imo

Yee makes a return. The boys commit a scientific experiment to see who she likes. She says "come here bab" and Sam steps forward. he is not the one, she called him ugly. lmao. Dom confidently runs up to her. Not sure if Yee thinks hes ugly all i know is she was probably scared by his rapid approach. Taurtis steps forward. She calls him a tater tot. it is not him. THAT MEANS ITS GRIAN?? ITS GRIAN. LMAO YEE NO HES GAY

she took off her glasses and i gotta say. one hot lady. (yep shes definetly a lizard person)

Grian runs away and i honestly understand. i guess shes gonna be a creepy stalker now. poor grian.

dr offers them ointment for their eyes. if not a great teacher, hes certainly a funny man.

they go to gym AND THE OLD MAN IS THERE I AM UGHH and Sam jokes that he's grian's girlfriend. Grian I am so sorry.

"This girl is kinda like a fourty year old dude if you ask me." LMAO GRIAN IM DEAD

IS THAT SANS UNDERTALE? WHY IS HE IN GYM?? okay ig

For gym class there is parkour divided into a red "GIRLS" side and a blue "STUPID BOYS" side. I'm starting to think Gym teacher Helena likes girls a bit more than boys /s. also the boy's side seems to be a lot harder than the girls.

DOM IS A PARKOUR PRO (we should know this, considering he climbed a watertower) GO DOM

The girls win (obviously) but the boys made a good effort. The bell rings, and it's off to. It's off to Geode's class. please let grian read his medical record please please please

Taurtis is made to sit in a special cahir by Geode's... throne. I am scared for Taurtis

Sam is given bucket and... has to milk... Dom... uhm... yeah...

Sam cant figure out how to do it so Geode "does it" AND OH MY GOD THERE IS MILK IN THE BUCKET jesus fuck

WHAT THE FUCK GEODE CLONED TAURTIS

apparently geode has a "people" and Taurtis will do great thigns for them. what the fuck wtf wtf

Geode notices Grian, cannot understand his accent, thinks england is another planet, and calls Grian strange. I think Geode is an alien.

Geode did some research on Sam. apparently he has an army. geode will join him. what the fuck. NEVRMIND HE THOUGHT SAM WAS GREAT UNCLE SAM IM DEAD BRO THIS IS HILARIOUS creepy af BUT HILARIOUS WTF

class ended. NO GRIAN MEDICAL RECORD AAIJHFE :pian:

The video fades out with them trying to dom out of the test tube with him.. getting... yeah. by Geode. im scarred. for life.

anyway i'm gonna end part 5 here it is very long and there was no grian medical record :(