Tumgik
#i hope everyone has been enjoying their february :) this month has been awesome to me
crescentfool · 3 months
Text
"completed" side order (got the credits roll and currently have four developer logs), some thoughts about the gameplay + lore under the cut 👍
i really enjoyed playing side order! i felt that a lot of my experiences in salmon run carried over with having to assess situations and maneuver around large mobs of enemy. so it's not much of a surprise to me that the gameplay structure really scratches an itch in my brain...!
i've played side order for around 10 hours so far (5 hour sessions each)... it wasn't intentional, but i really felt that each run taught me something about the chips/specials and i couldn't help but want to give another try again... (and i do appreciate that the game does allow for breaks between runs, even if i didn't utilize it this time around!)
the only thing i didn't like gameplay-wise (so far) was the weighted rates for certain chips depending on palette, i didn't particularly enjoy my run with charger (even though it's my favorite weapon class), but it could've just been bad rng giving me chips that weren't that fun/interesting...? there's some modifications that i want to explore, but it can be hard to do that with the weighted rates.
that said, i personally think the developers did an excellent job of blending together splatoon's mechanics/objectives with the rougelike style of games! i definitely want to play more sometime, there's still a lot of lore, chips, and palettes i've yet to see. i think it's a breath of fresh air from the other singleplayer parts, but i also recognize that it might not be for everyone (the structure of side order inherently requires a lot of patience and endurance).
as for the story and lore bits, i really liked the framework of the memverse! i do think that some of my affection for it stems from the fact that it has some parallels to persona games (i legit messaged a friend saying "omg it's like apathy syndrome but for splatoon"). but i think side order's a pretty fun follow up to octo expansion, i like that there's potential closure for sanitized octolings and whatever happens to the deepsea metro afterwards. i think it's a pretty cool basis for ocs which is nice!
the bits of character interaction were nice too, pearl and marina are endearing and lovely as always (they are so in love)! deep cut reporting on the side order things before/after the campaign was really funny too, i really liked it (especially after watching the nintendo live 2024 concert).
i think i found the story more satisfying than rotm- the stakes made... more sense to me, but also the setup was just, really interesting to me (persona fan moment). i'll need to check more of the dev logs when i unlock them and reread some things, but, overall, really enjoyable!
anyway, the short of it: side order was fun for me because the gameplay scratches the grinding itch in my brain (salmon run player moment), and also i just like the premise of the memverse because i'm a persona fan and it reminds me of that. LOL.
5 notes · View notes
kitchenisking · 2 months
Text
Tumblr media
February Fic Rec
Hey Guys, I'm sorry I'm so late this month that its already the next month😅 I went back to work this month and I have mixed feelings about it so there's that🫤 but at least there's faction - please don't tell my kindle, there's so many books on there that I got to read😓. anyway, happy readying everyone! enjoy the spring and remember to kudos and comment😘
Show Him The Love by scarlettletterr - (Rating: Mature, Words: 2,911, sterek)
Everyone realizes Stiles is awesome, and actually gives him the recognition he deserves! For all his research, for his constant loyalty, for having awful stuff happen to him and always coming back for more, for trying to do the right thing even when people don't listen when they should.
------
My gift for Meggplant, for the Glompfest. Hope you like it!
You feel like Home by Itsreallyjustforresearch83 - (Rating: Mature, Words: 24,300, sterek)
Five times Stiles gets abused by his boyfriend and and the one time everything falls into place, like it was always meant to be. 
Maybe it was. 
-------------------------------------------------------
"Are you really just leaving?" Stiles asked him. 
"Yeah? There's no point in me sticking around, we already did what we always do." His boyfriend said, fastening his belt and walking out of Stiles' room.
It Starts When You're Around by strobelighted - (Rating: Explicit, Words: 26,406, sterek)
"Earth to Derek. You okay, man?"
Derek's eyes are drawn back to the guy in front of him, who's starting to look more worried now.
"I --" he starts, then swallows against the dryness. "Who are you?"
--
or, Derek gets amnesia
eli's parents are so gross (read: in love) by ash_mcj - (Rating: T, Words: 1,195, sterek)
"I would’ve been here earlier, but nobody thought it would be smart to call the one person who’s intimately dealt with the Nogitsune before, so,” Stiles said bitterly as he threw his hands up. "Now I have a list of asses I gotta kick over this very avoidable fiasco. Scott’s first, since he’s the Alpha—I’m pretty sure that’s how that works. His responsibility, or whatever.”
The familiar sound of Derek’s car pulling into the driveway caught Eli's attention, and he grinned. “Is Dad on your list?”
“Hell yeah, Dad is on my list! Right under Scott.”
“Well, he just got home, so—”
Stiles didn’t wait to hear the rest of the sentence before stomping off in the direction of the living room—and Eli quickly scrambled to follow him, ready to eavesdrop on what was likely going to be a rather impressive and amusing lecture.
[or: eli is glad that stiles is home, since derek has nearly died several times in his absence, but he really wishes they were a little less glad to see each other] -- prompt | a reunion kiss
Hide by dr_girlfriend - (Rating: Explicit, Words: 12,419, sterek)
Stiles has been rejected so many times that it doesn't really surprise him when it happens again. Hurts, yeah, because dammit — he'd thought Derek was the one. Heartbreak sucks, and he's not so sure he's going to get over it this time.
Breaking A Rule by SinQueen69 - (Rating: Explicit, Words: 1,426, sterek)
Anon on tumblr wanted: Hiya! Please with sugar on top write a Sterek fic where derek is a business man and Stiles is a horny cockslut that sends Derek nudes while at work and Derek is pent up and punishes him when he gets home. Daddy Kink, Manhandling, Strength Kink, Bruises, Spanking, Rough Sex, Orgasm Denial, mentions of kittenplay?, verbal humiliation, gags! Tanks be safe and healthy
Soft Space by TuppingLiberty - (Rating: Mature, Words: 1,492,k sterek)
This time of year, Derek has to face too many bad anniversaries - the fire, the deaths. Stiles understands when Derek has to take a break from being alpha, when he just needs his daddy. 
Rated M for kink, but no explicit (or even mature) sex.
Kinktober day 4: Daddy (Starting Kinktober now so I can maybe finish in October this year)
How to Win an Argument Without Really Trying by sffan - (Rating: Explicit, Words: 2,288, sterek)
It started with a kiss.
Well, actually, it started with an argument.
no river, no rush by CoraRochester, ravenclawkward - (Rating: Explicit, Words: 5,351, sterek)
“You can’t marry me! I’m the worst choice. For one, there’s no strategic value to marrying a prince from Gajos—and if there were, I’d have been betrothed to you or Cora years ago. We have nothing to offer Beacon. I’m not even good at being a prince!”   …
On the eve of Derek’s coronation, he proposes to Stiles.
Are You Fucking Kidding Me? by Itsreallyjustforresearch83 - (Rating: Mature, Words: 2,893, sterek)
Derek has liked Stiles for a really long time, like embarrassingly long. But he swore to himself that he wouldn't make a move on Stiles until he knew for sure that his feeling were returned because he refuses to force something onto the Spark. 
OR
Derek likes Stiles, Stiles likes Derek, but the Alpha is convinced that Stiles is still in love with Lydia and can't see the obvious dofus Stiles is being around him. Lydia intervenes just because she's sick of watching the two dummys not be together.
157 notes · View notes
feline-evil · 4 months
Text
Its da freaking new year baby
I mean it turned new year like 13 hours and thirty minutes ago for me i was just busy and didn't post here at the time. Anyways.
2023 has been A Lot for me! On one hand my wrist issues finally fully caught up to me and it's one of the first years i've not been able to draw as much during which has been. Very hard. It's been a year of health issues and my body kinda failing me in a lotta regards so it's not been great on that front. But it's also the first year i got to meet my boyfriend in person, twice!!! And realise how much more beautiful and kind and loving life can be, and how much i wanna survive onwards and upwards and do wicked gay shit with that man in future years, it's the year that being so loved has given me the courage to make BIG FUCKING RISKS and plan for BIG FUCKING CHALLENGES in upcoming years, and thats awesome. I couldn't be the man i have been this year without him, i really couldn't. I'm so grateful to finally have a partner and friends and love and gentleness, it is something that was so sorely missing in my life and it is something that's keeping me going even in the darker months.
It's also the year i took risks in other stuff too, which i never could've done without my bf's support, and now i've been able to work on so many things for The Hotel Podcast and thats fucking AWESOME?? I GET TO MAKE STUFF FOR THE SHOW I LOVE?? I did the artbook and we got to do the second calendar which ruuuuled, i made a postcard, i've done some other stuff ;), i made a 3d background and learnt some video editing for it; i've accomplished so much even against my body and wrist failing and i feel so so proud of that, and no matter how things go i wanna keep trying to do more. I feel like i'm finally showing what i can do. I hope people can see how much effort and will goes into what i do, i hope it pays off and that you enjoy it!
I wish i could say i left this year on a high note due to all that good that's happened to me and i mostly am absolutely. But in all honesty i also went to sleep last night filled with a palpable dread, this past week i realised someone close to me has, without getting into it to a degree i'm not willing to share online, gone down a pipeline to become a person i'm not comfortable with while i've been busy elsewhere. I went to bed knowing that either 2024 would have to be a year of potentially risky confrontation, of running, or of begrudgingly resigning myself to making sure i isolate anyone i care about away from. This. So thats a shadow hanging over me at the moment, and is one that has soured my week a little. I don't know what 2024 holds in regards to sorting this, it's a little scary.
I am going to be 27 this year, in February! And as i get closer and closer to thirty i realise that (while time isn't running out for me, for any of us) i really would like to move on into thriving rather than just surviving the years, and that part of that thriving needs to be transitioning and becoming independent from my parents. Of course the former is complicated due to the fact i am not able to be out to everyone in my life and even just starting the path to transitioning would out me and potentially destroy a part of my life that has been there for 26 years. There's also of course the fact i live in the uk and transitioning here is going to be a ten year waiting list if i'm even lucky and they deem me trans enough to transition l o l. So as you can imagine, thats complex and hard to figure out! On one hand i should start the process asap BECAUSE its such a long process here, but on the other hand i don't know how to handle my own safety and comfort in regards to being out to those i currently am not, and i'm not sure how my mental (and honestly physical) health would handle the fallout. The latter is complicated of course due to being broke, uneducated, physically and mentally unwell and a myriad of other factors; we don't live in a world where you can afford a home or to feed yourself anymore! So! Yknow!! Unlikely i'll be moving out anytime soon!
What i am doing at least is trying to thrive where i can, like dandelions growing in cracks the pavement may be unyielding to me at this moment but i can find the soft dirt inbetween; transitioning and independence may not be possible right now but i can continue to do my work and try to succeed there, i can make my room better for me (which i have done with finally getting a new bed after the one i had since i was a child grew no good), i can spend more time doing what i love out the house (visiting places, seeing my boyfriend, ect ect), and i can take what i can when i can. Maybe i'll try to learn to drive this year! I'm not sure i trust myself on the roads, but maybe i can learn to. And all of this is progress towards those final goals, even if i can't so much as step on the first rungs of the ladder towards them yet. I also take solace in knowing that for every dark cloud over me that makes my life feel so uncertain and hard to make it through there is incredible sunshine too; that even if the year is hard and cruel as they so often are i will still be loved i will still have friends and i will still get to smile. And that even if i can't accomplish big goals, a lot of small goals accomplished over many many bad years will build up, and one day i'll be free. And that's something.
My first hope for 2024 is THAT MY HEALTH GIVES ME A BREAK, NO MORE HEALTH SCARES PLEASE, and that perhaps i'll be able to even get some answer's and help for my physical health. My second is that my courage pays off and i succeed at flying alone for the first time to the states to be with my love! My third is that the year is kinder, and that i can make more art, maybe even regain some of the independence i had when my wrist was ok enough to let me do art as a job. My fourth is that i laugh a lot, and smile and have joyous moments with loved ones and indulge in what i love with unabashed and unashamed joy! And my fifth is that i get to do good for others, because even if i can't get out, even if i have to survive instead of thrive a little longer, i can at least try and help when i can.
Happy 2024, my chest hurts, my joints ache, but i'm still kicking and i will continue on forever. Bastards aren't getting free of me yet, i'm persistent. I haven't even ridden every rollercoaster in the UK yet.
3 notes · View notes
fandom-sheep · 3 years
Text
Eret 11 MAY 21
Cat and DSMP Part 1/1
Cat! Goose!
Goose my beloved.
Eret’s streaming very late for me again. So I’m not staying the whole time.
Hello Elaina. Enjoy Goose.
Fundy! Kinda...
Fundy hearing the donations. LOL.
Fundy enters a stream and it starts to scuffed. Scuffed just follows Fundy wherever he goes.
A wild my beloved on the cube.
The Drista stairs.
Wait what. Why is the tower gone?
I have missed some lore.
Ah... it’s part of the nightmare thing.
Eret offering Fundy housing like a good almost adoptive parent.
Sneeze? OH WOW SNEEZE.
Sounds like Fundy about lost a lung. Good gracious.
The bargaining between these two.
Cat, Handsome, said cube was massive
You know what that works.
It’s hard to keep the audio right for Eret’s stream for my headphones. It’s either too quiet or the loudest my headphones can go and my family can hear it.
On stream explosions. Noice.
Wow youtooz. Not super cool. Permission is usually a good thing.
Eret keeps on sizzling.
Getting dirt for scaffolding. Going old fashioned Minecraft for this.
“Why is the Cube kinda hot” cue Eret losing faith in her chats sanity.
Cube go poof.
Oh. Red stone. That’s dangerous.
I like this song. Oh klahoma. Gorgeous song.
Love joy is such a fun band. I want to make a plushy of the cat.
It’s kinda sad that Eret can’t see themselves the way chat and their little fandom sees them. Most all of us think they look fabulous.
Not Arson. Just bombing. A bit of anarchy by the king.
Demolition. Now there’s the word.
Controlled ish demolition.
Ah I’ve almost saved enough channel points for water. Nice. I’m not going to redeem it I’m just going to keep hoarding the points.
Flame Arrow. Nice.
Eret cleaning up the SMP eye sours.
Watch me attempt to sleep to Eret here in an hour or so, but keep getting distracted.
Explosion time.
Someone get ready to clip it.
Bye Bye Cube. Let’s go.
Gotta get a song that fits the vibe.
Hayloft. Time to go poof.
Turning up my brightness just to watch this explosion in the best way possible.
Still wearing the red dress I see.
I hope the music isn’t too loud to get this part muted.
Drum roll...
Drum roll continues...
Drum roll still going...
THERE GOES THE CUBE!
That was so smooth and good looking!
Overall a very good explosion.
Just a little bit of a hole in the other building.
Twitch Pr-
Poor being’s so confused with his hair. Someone help them.
Twitch bleep.
Everyone attempting to give hair styling advice. Everyone’s trying to help the being.
That bird is majestic. I remember seeing that tiktok.
Animals just decided Eret was the animal whisperer.
Yes! Disney Princess Eret fanart! Someone make it, I shall reblog all of it.
Likes to hug cute animals and cute animals like being hugged by her. Nice.
It’s alright. Names are difficult. I have to like put name tags on people to learn who they are. That or name tags on their space (like on campers bunks and door decs on dorms)
It does feel very February. But I’m very ready for summer because that means I get to do my favorite job.
Hooray. I hit 15k points.
Eret trying to prove to us a ponytail won’t work. Like we aren’t going to hype them up no matter what.
Gotta heart in the chat. All Eret’s chat does is hearts and encourage. It’s a lovely place.
Oh Eret forgot his cat ear sub goal. It’s alright I know I forgot.
Pride is next month. Nice.
Oh. We’re almost halfway already. Why does the world spin so quickly?
We forgot a dirt tower. Whoops.
I would wear Eret merch. I like it when people release merch around Christmas. Then I can ask for it as a gift.
Oh it wasn’t a dirt tower.
Just looking at Elaina’s stream in the stream selection screen it like very cozy.
All the way up the Drista stairs.
Look it’s the museum!
Eret’s got most of the builds around there. The museum. The fortress. Nice.
Some things are too historical to remove. Somethings are historical because they are being removed.
Oh no. L’sandburg.
It’s taking over the summer home.
Ah the lore is coming. It just seemed to be too early.
Hello unofficial ranboo Raiders.
Foolish making the awesome tall thingy!
Foolish’s builds are so neat. I want to watch Foolish’s streams more. Maybe just in the background but I start wanting to delayed liveblog and that requires attention.
Oh the giant portal turned out well. Sorry that was the lady’s foolish stream I watched.
Shulkers. The forbidden mob.
Eret with just a pit in the desert filled with llamas. Bones. And discus.
The mansion has been finished?
Alright is better than bad. It’s alright to be alright.
Lucky being not getting tired. I got the Johnson and Johnson vaccine and I was so so tired. I also had just no appetite.
Eret doing an smp tour. And looking at foolish’s builds.
Flickering the switch on the rainbow beacons.
Eret just knowing where everything is.
Kinoko is super pretty. Just for the aesthetic value of the kingdom I appreciate it.
Yeet. Just defenestrated himself out the window.
Oh? Spectator fly over the smp?
That would be really neat to like. Watch in VR. I think I’ve only used VR maybe twice.
Pretty Rainbow beacons.
The nurse who gave me my vaccine hid the needle from me because I mentioned to her that I was afraid of needles. It wasn’t a big deal at all.
30 minutes till I attempt sleep. Woo.
Goose my beloved. Someone make the gif because I’m not quite sure how to make it.
Oh yeah. Goose in Marvel. I hear MCU and think Minecraft cinematic universe. Not marvel.
Ghibli is so nice. It really romanticize small moments of life.
Yeah the characters are all really supportive in Ghibli movies.
Someone subbed for nine months “that’s enough to make a child” -Eret
That mansion is like a maze. I’m so lost already.
Everyone encouraging Eret and telling her she looks pretty. Good.
Eret needs all the hype and encouragement.
Antarctic empties flag. Yeah it does have a similar color pallet.
Michelle! Hello!
Fortress work. Nice.
Do it. I’ll listen the Eret play other games.
I don’t usually watch game play for non Minecraft games. But I’ll listen to it all.
Hbomb and Eret living in the same city feels like two worlds that shouldn’t meet. But it’s awesome that they have.
TOS means against twitches terms of service. Nice. Glad to finally have an explanation of what that means.
Look at our handsome and pretty streamer. All the hype.
I keep turning down the stream to hear the show my mama has on because I’m curious about what happens.
Yeah. Backseat gaming can be annoying. That’s part of why I share my thoughts here just in case I do start backseat gaming.
Almost to the sub goal. Hooray!
Ooo food.
No no. I see where they are coming from. Eret does give a bit of cat bus vibes. I can’t explain it but the vibes are there.
Creeper causing issues at the fortress.
Ed Sheepran my beloved.
I should draw more ferrets. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe I’ll draw us doing stuffs.
Actually I kinda want to make a little animatic of some heels walking across the screen followed by a hoard of ferrets. I think it’ll look cool. But I need the artistic ability and the ability to not scream making that.
Woop. Ad time. Off to the void of where ever the ads game me.
OH THE NEW VOID LOOKS COOL!
Bread. Flowers. Ted. Crown. And of course Eret.
We V O I D and get our streamer bits.
Hush the chat is V O I D and the occasional emoji or emote.
The void being centered looks good. Maybe that’s just the symmetry speaking but it’s good.
Oh. We hear the being. The being in void mode. And spooky mode.
Chat just starts yelling corpse.
Hydration. I try to stay hydrated. But I fail often if I’m not doing something active.
Tree!
Casually makes and snags tree.
Eret does read chat often. It’s strange. And it is weird how often it ends up being you.
You can tell I’m a tumblr peep. I may say stuff in chat but I’m fully not expecting or wanting to be noticed by the streamer.
Others hitting darkness o’clock and saying goodnight.
It’s sleep to the stream hours y’all. Whoop.
I need to visit the parks out west. I’ve only really seen the eastern US ones. But I have been to the Great Smokey Mountain park which is gorgeous.
Eret thinking of his friends triggers when naming his cat.
Eret’s builds are so casually pretty. Not like Foolish’s which are intricately pretty. Not like Phil’s or Sam’s which are complicated pretty. All pretty. Just different breeds of pretty.
Alrighty. It’s sleepy hours for me. As much as I love Eret I want to read some fanfiction and daydream a bit before I head to sleep.
Have a good rest everyone and may all your coming meals be delicious.
Wait no is it our turn with goose?
OUR TURN WITH GOOSE!
Eret honey that’s the ceiling.
Cat stream. Cat stream.
Sleepy kitty. A cat cam would be good.
Yeah. That happens with cats. Especially strays.
Goose captured the computer mouse.
Goose straight up chose Eret and Elaina.
Goose really just chose not to leave.
Oh my stream connection is acting sad. But I want Goose content.
I want to draw Goose now.
Maybe I’ll do water color for Goose. I know I tried to do that with Boots (Fundy’s cat)
Hopefully there will be some Goose face screenshots I can see. Maybe I can see him well in the Tiktok.
Artists just violently refusing payment. Sounds about right. The MCYT artists just kinda go “yeah give credit and we cool”
Cowboy cat. Nice.
I want to paint Goose in the cowboy hat.
Hype train! That we are zooming.
Bucket sponge?
WATER BUCKET FROM WET SPONGE! Tiktok people giving all the cool info.
Go Goose. Catch the computer mouse and the screen mouse.
Just sitting here at 11:30 at night getting screen shots of Goose for painting purposes.
Goose please. Look at the camera babe.
My phone is dying. And I can’t charge it and type.
Alright the camera is off the cat. The cat is also blocking the screen.
But no cat on camera means I’m getting some sleep. If I do any of the projects I’ve mentioned I’ll let y’all know.
Have a good rest everyone.
15 notes · View notes
emzalot · 3 years
Text
What a Furry Ride
Tumblr media
Chapter 13 Set in Episode 9 (last chapter in this episode)
Authors Note(PLEASE READ): Hi everyone! I know it’s been a really long 9 months hiatus...*nervous laughter* I’ve written this chapter about 8 times over, finishing it, hating it, getting distracted from the plot entirely, then forgetting all about the fic for a while- IT’S BEEN CRAZY. But, I’ve finally finished it. It’s not very long, but it’s right along with the plot and I am finally happy with it. I’ve spent 9 months HATING it! I refuse to post something I am not happy with because that just doesn’t make sense to me at all. I hope you guys enjoy it. I can’t wait to start writing chapter 14 which will start in episode 10! We’re getting closer to the finale! I love y’all so much. Thanks for sticking with me this long! MWAH 💖
Warnings: Nothing I can really think of...
~~~~
Derek stands on the front porch of what used to be his home. He leans against the post, listening to Dani’s heartbeat pounding from down in the basement she’s trapped inside. He hates that she’s caught in the middle of all this. He couldn’t help but think that if he had just stayed away, she wouldn’t be in this mess. She could be sitting in the bleachers with her family right now, living a happier, normal life, not knowing him at all.
Derek remembers the moment when he first saw Dani. It was the night of Scott’s first full moon, at the party Lydia Martin hosted. Half the school was there that night. Derek was there to keep an eye on Scott, but this overwhelming sweet scent invaded his senses, distorting his focus. He curses under his breath as he brings his fist to his nose and that’s when he saw her, the source of the sweet aroma. Perched on top of a table by the pool, her legs crossed, and her posture relaxed, leaning back on her left hand that was planted on the table and a drink in her right hand. The light reflecting from the pool danced across her face and her body giving her this soft glow.  Derek’s stomach twists into a pretzel, enthralled by the young woman sitting on top of that table, her sweet scent sinking into him.
Derek remembers the last time he saw Dani. Peter was pushing her into the back seat of his nurse’s car. He remembers how deafeningly silent that drive was. How the scent of her fear and anxiety filled the cabin of the small vehicle. The guilt twisting in his stomach was almost unbearable. Derek quietly reached back, between the door and the seat, brushing his fingers against her calf. He felt her silently grip his hand with both of her own. He immediately noticed how badly she was trembling. He brushed his thumb back and forth against her trembling fingers, trying desperately to give her some form of comfort before they reached their destination.
Derek returns to the present, staring out into the trees surrounding the house with a vacant expression. Derek inhales deeply, trying to push down every emotion and every feeling he has. He’s done it before and he can do it well, but it’s always hard on him.  If he’s going to do this, if Dani is going to survive, if Scott and Stiles are going to pull through, he must be self-controlled. All their lives depend on it, but his own life isn’t his priority. Not when it means keeping them safe. 
Peter steps out onto the porch, inhaling the chilly, February night air. It was as if the world and everything in it was right as rain to him. It made Derek sick. “I think it’s time to pay Scott a visit,” Peter says, wearing a soft smile.
~~🌻~~
Back at Beacon Hills high school, the energy is high and almost electric. The bleachers are jam packed with screaming and cheering family members and friends. The Cyclones are all jumping, whooping, hollering, congratulating one another and shouting, “State!” over and over again. They won the game. Beacon Hill’s high school’s very own lacrosse team is going to the state championships.
Scott pulls his helmet on and frantically looks around for his best friend he hasn’t seen the entire night. “Stiles!” He calls. The Cyclones come barreling off the field and into the locker room, cheering and shouting. Scott pushes his way through his teammates calling for Stiles. “Stiles. Stiles! Has anybody seen Stiles?” Scott whirls around, finding himself standing face to face with his ex-girlfriend. Scott’s mouth falls open slightly, his stomach twisting into an even tighter knot at the sight of her adorable, nervous smile.
“Uh- you were pretty awesome out there,” Allison says, nodding with a sweet smile.
“Thanks, you too,” Scott answers, immediately wanting to punch himself in the face. “I mean, that’s not what I meant-”
“No, no, I- um, did some pretty awesome cheering.” Allison smiles at Scott again. “You can thank me.”
“You did?”
“Totally. I went from, ‘Go, team, go,’ to ‘Defense, defense,’ without a breath.” Allison nods affirming what she said. “I brought my A game.”
One of Scott’s teammates interrupts them, excitedly stepping between them shouting, “State, state, state, state, state, state…” He fades off registering the look on Scott’s face that just said, ‘Drop dead, moron,’ and quickly scurries away cheering with his more enthusiastic teammates. Scott shakes his head and looks forward, finding Allison no longer where she was just a moment ago. He frowns, looking over to the doors, seeing Mr. Argent guiding his daughter back outside.
“Isn’t that just heartbreaking,” Jackson laughs mockingly, walking up to Scott. “Gosh, I bet it causes a lot of sleepless nights.” Jackson continues, “You know what though, McCall? I actually sympathize, which is why I want to make this mutually beneficial. You give me what I want, and I’ll help you get her back.”
“What?” Scott asks in disbelief.
“Well, three days makes it just in time for the Winter Formal. Uh, think about you taking her instead of me. And also think about all the things you’re able to do to get her out of some tight little dress by the end of the night. See how this could work out for everybody?”
Scott glares at Jackson as he continues.
“Three days, McCall.” Jackson whispers, patting Scott’s cheek. “Have fun,” He finishes, disappearing into the locker room.
~~🌻~~
Mr. Argent guides Allison back to the busy bleachers, his mind somewhere else entirely. He barely remembers the game even though he sat through the entire thing. He barely remembers the drive down to the school from his house if he’s honest with himself. His mind has been preoccupied on and off throughout the day about the same thing. He’s worried about Dani.
He worries about her in general with her becoming friends with Derek Hale and encountering the alpha at the school and so on. She’s caught up in a very dangerous game whether she knows it or not and he doesn’t like it. But ever since this afternoon when they talked in the backseat of his car, he’s become even more worried for her. She’s been through a lot and he hates that someone else has walked out on her now.
He cares about Dani. She’s like an older sister to Allison. He catches himself treating her like his own daughter from time to time. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. She’s important to Allison therefore she is important to him and he’s become rather fond of her. She’s been through a lot and he hopes that she knows his home is a safe place for her.
“Dad!”
Chris is jolted from his thoughts by the sharp call for him by his daughter.
“You didn’t hear anything I just said, did you?” Allison asks.
“No, I’m sorry,” He admits with a sigh.
“You’ve been quiet all night. Is everything okay?”
“I’m fine, sweetheart. Here-” Chris digs the car keys out of his pocket and hands them to Allison. “How about you go start the car and get it warmed up.”
“Sure, okay.”
Chris smiles at his daughter as she heads off to the parking lot. He turns his attention to the busy bleachers, scanning all the enthusiastic faces for Dani. She’s come to every lacrosse game that he could tell, so she should be here. He just wants to check on her to see how she’s doing after this afternoon.
Chris spots Dani’s mother and makes his way through the crowd.
“Hello Ms. McCall,” He greets as he reaches her, noticing the various family members taking up most of an entire section of bleachers.
“Mr. Argent, hi.” Melissa stands to greet him properly. “Oh, this is my sister Maria.” Melissa gestures to the woman standing next to her. “Maria this is Christopher Argent, Allison’s father.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Maria,” Chris says with a smile, shaking Maria’s hand.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” Maria replies, returning his smile.
“Is your daughter with you? I was hoping I could talk to her.” Chris asks, turning to Melissa.
“You’re looking for her too?”
Chris frowns. “She’s not here?”
“We don’t know,” Maria says letting out a sigh.
“She’s going to be in serious trouble when I find her,” Melissa says. “I told her to be here.”
Chris lets out a sigh as well, pressing his lips into a thin line. “Probably somewhere with Derek Hale. Never mind that the police are after him.”
“Wait, Dani is hanging out with Derek Hale?” Melissa asks.
“You didn’t know they were friends…” Chris says carefully.
“No, I had no idea she was hanging around him again,” Melissa says. “I didn’t even know he was in town again until I saw his name plastered all over the news.”
“I thought it was mostly his sister she used to hang out with,” Maria says.
“Wait a minute…” Chris pauses.
The sister’s share a glance before turning to Mr. Argent.
“They’ve known each other longer?”
~~🌻~~
Most of the team stayed to shower and clean up before heading out to a celebratory team dinner at Goldie’s Diner. A lot the boys were dressed and packing their bags, getting ready to leave, when Scott walks over to his rack, a towel tied around his waist. He was one of the last of his teammates to shower.
“By the way, McCall… Apology accepted,” Danny calls from the opposite set of racks.
“I didn’t apologize,” Scott frowns.
“Every time you got the ball tonight, you passed it to me,” Danny explains, grabbing a clean shirt from his bag.
“Every time I passed the ball to you, you scored,” Scott chuckles.
Danny pulls the shirt on and slings his bookbag over his shoulder. “Apology accepted,” he says.
Danny walks out, leaving Scott alone in the locker room. Scott turns back around, grabbing his deodorant canister, shaking it up. The lights suddenly cut off and Scott pauses, frowning in confusion. Scott puts his deodorant back on the shelf of his rack and looks around the room. “Danny?” he calls. Scott is met with silence as he steps around the set of racks. Danny must’ve absentmindedly cut them off on his way out by accident.
Scott walks over to the wall and flips up the two light switches. The locker room remains dark. Scott looks up at the lights, flipping the switches a few more times; his curiosity growing with the slight touch of concern crawling around his stomach. Scott’s eye catches a ball rolling across the floor from the showers and bumping into a set of lockers with a tap. His curiosity and streak of concern growing to more mild levels as he walks toward the showers. Scotts stops in front of the ball, bending to pick it up. He frowns, turning to the side and he jumps, finding Derek standing in the middle of the open showers.
“Thank God! Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea what’s been going on?” Scott asks, walking towards Derek.
Derek silently averts his gaze from Scott to someone standing behind him. Scott frowns following his gaze and it meets a man, stepping out behind him. He looks older than Derek, mid to late thirties maybe, brown hear, leather jacket, button down shirt, and he’s holding a lacrosse stick. It’s Peter Hale.
“I really don’t get lacrosse,” Peter confesses.
Scott stares at Peter in shock realizing that he is the alpha , “It was you…”
“When I was in high school, we played basketball.” Peter continues, glancing over at Scott. “Now there’s a real sport.”
Scott, terribly in shock, looks back at Derek for some kind of explanation as Peter continues.
“Still, I read somewhere that lacrosse comes from Native American tribes and that they played it to resolve conflict.” Peter raises the lacrosse stick, setting the bar of it on his shoulder, glancing off to the side in thought. “Do I have that right?” He whispers to himself, shaking off the thought. He lowers the stick, spinning it in his hands as he observes the net for a moment before setting the stick to the side, focusing on Scott again.
“I have a little conflict of my own to resolve, Scott. But I need your help to do it.”
“I’m not helping you kill people.” Scott says in an even, firm tone.
Peter frowns, “Well I don’t want to kill all of them. Just the responsible ones. And I that doesn’t have to include…” Peter trails off, trying to remember the name. He looks to Derek.
“Allison,” Derek finishes for him.
Scott slowly turns to face Derek. “You’re on his side?” He asks.
Derek breaks Scott’s gaze, his expression stony and vacant as he silently reminds himself that Daniella’s life is on the line if he doesn’t play his part just right.
“Are you forgetting the part where he killed your sister?” Scott adds.
“It was a mistake,” Derek responds coolly.
“What?!” Scott stares at Derek like he’s out of his mind.
“It happens.”
“Scott…” Peter starts, grabbing the teenager’s attention. “I think you’re getting the wrong impression of us. We really just want to help you reach your full potential.”
“By killing my friends,” Scott says, reading between the lines.
“Sometimes the people closest to you… can be the ones holding you back the most.”
“If they’re holding me back from becoming a psychotic nut job like you… I’m okay with that.”
Peter begins to step closer to Scott. Becoming nervous, Scott shifts on his feet, looking back at Derek for any shred or assurance.
“Maybe you could try and see things…” Peter trails off, holding up his right hand, his claws coming out. “From my perspective,” Peter finishes.
~~🌻~~
Stiles wakes up on a cold hard tile floor, his head throbbing. He groans bringing his hands to his face as he becomes more and more conscious. He sits up with a groan, squinting at his dim surroundings, quickly remember that he’s in the hospital morgue.
“Right…”
Stiles grips the overturned metal examination table lying next to him and pushes himself to his feet. The last thing he remembers is sitting on top of the metal table pushed against the door watching Peter Hale rush he door. Next thing he remembers is waking up just a few moments ago.
“Alpha…Dani and Derek…no, no, no-”
Stiles turns to where he last saw Derek and Dani sitting in the floor against the opposite wall. They’re gone. Did the Alpha take them? What happened here? Stiles swallows the lump forming in his throat. He has to get out of the hospital. He has to find Scott.
“The game.”
~~🌻~~
Stiles tares into the school parking lot, tires screeching as he turns into an empty parking spot. He jumps out of the Jeep and runs as fast as he can to the back entrance of the locker rooms. Stiles yanks the doors open rushing down the hallway and turning into the locker rooms, finding Scott in a towel, sitting on a bench with his elbows resting on his knees.
“Dude, we got a huge problem!” He breathes out, winded from all his running.
“You have no idea…” Scott replies with a far off look in his eyes.
Stiles puts his hands on his head struggling to catch his breath. “Something tells me you already know.”
“That Peter Hale is the alpha and Derek is on his side now? Yeah! I figured it out already!”
“Derek’s what?”
“He’s taken the alpha’s side, Stiles! We’re screwed!”
Scott drops his head into his hands. He can’t handle anything else right now. The alpha has been revealed, Derek’s switched sides, Jackson’s breathing down his neck about the bite, there is no way this situation could get worse.
“Scott…” Stiles trails off, dropping his hands to his hips.
Scott lifts his head. “What?”
Stiles shifts his weight from foot to foot. There’s no easy way to tell him this. It’s going to crush him. Hell, the thought is crushing him too. The idea of that psychotic bastard having Dani makes his curl up inside a whole and pretend the world doesn’t exist. Dani is like an older sister to Stiles. He can’t handle the thought of her getting hurt. She means too much to him. She’s his family. Maybe that’s why Derek chose the alpha’s side. Maybe it wasn’t up to him. Maybe, just maybe, he’s trying to protect Dani and the only way to do that is to do whatever the alpha wants. Stiles lets out a sigh rubbing his face.
“Stiles, what is it?”
Stiles looks at his best friend with such a defeated look in his eyes. “I-” Stiles presses his lips together shaking his head. He’s not going to make it through this.
Scott stands up, walking over to Stiles with a worried frown. “What’s wrong?”
Stiles glances at him, tears forming in his eyes.
“It’s bad isn’t it?” Scott asks, his own voice starting to waver in reaction to Stiles’ broken fear radiating off of him.  
“Scott, he has Dani.”
Scott’s heart almost stops. “What?”
“The alpha, he has your sister.”
Scott holds Stiles’ defeated gaze, tears forming in his own eyes, mirroring Stiles.
“No…”
TAGS: @cutelittlepotatofry​ @realm-of-kearstenia​ @thisisparadisemylove​ @gollyderek​ @delacxurs​ @stillreadingfantasy​ @winchestergirl907​ @thebookisbtr​
If you want to be added or taken off this tag list, please let me know :)
20 notes · View notes
king-finnigan · 3 years
Text
top 5 of 2020
thanks for the tag @persony-pepper! (sorry it took me a while, i forgot lmao)(also let’s ignore the fact that it’s 2021 already)
Rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 (ish) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020. tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works! 
i can’t believe i’ve only started writing in, like, february and yet i also feel like i’ve been writing for ages? 2020 was a weird year time-wise, let’s just say that. anyways, i do really feel like my writings’ improved a lot since then (little egg me at the start of last year really thought i was amazing at english. turns out i was Not) and i can’t wait to see what’s going to happen to my writing next year.
also can i just,,, talk about the sheer quanitity of my writing? ao3 says i’ve posted 371,000 words and that’s not including the oneshots i’ve only posted on tumblr and the fics that are stuck in my drafts?? who is he and where does he get his energy, what the fuck. anyways, here’s my list.
All You Have Is Your Fire
I never ever thought that this would blow up as much as it did. I also never thought that I would write so much of it (it turned out to be 17 chapters instead of the planned 4) and I never thought I would enjoy it so much. Really, writing it was a lot of fun.
Beyond the Treeline
This one started as a oneshot on tumblr and now it’s *checks ao3* 30k words. It’s really become my Silly Zone Fic, which makes it very fun to write (and yes, I did put it on hold for like 5 months but it’s back on track so please don’t mention it lmao).
The Walls of Kaer Morhen
I wrote this one right after bingeing both of the Haunting series and uhhh.... you can tell. What can I say? I love a good ghost story.
And It Echoes When I Breathe
WHAT CAN I SAY? I LOVE A GOOD GHOST STORY.
To the Moon and Back
This fic sprouted from a prompt on tumblr and while it has a whopping 500 hits on ao3, it’s still one of my fav fics I’ve ever written and I regularly come back to reread it cause it just makes me so so happy. (even though i hate rereading my own writing once i’ve posted it)
Okay, so as far as I know literally everyone has done this thing already and also it’s 2021 so I’m not sure if it counts anymore? Idk. I’m definitely tagging @do-androids-dream-ao3acc and i guess everyone else who wants to do it! If you haven’t done it and want to, feel free to blame me because i love getting tagged in shit and also no one ever checks if you were really tagged so there’s no shame in just going ahead.
Anyways, happy new year and let’s hope 2021 is better than 2020 cause jesus, what the hell was that
10 notes · View notes
artificialqueens · 3 years
Text
You're All I Want (for Christmas), Final Part (Branjie) - Kiki
A/N: This story is complete! I want to wish every single one of you a happy holidays and I hope that 2021 is an amazing year for all of you! 2020 has been so bad and reading everyone’s submissions on AQ throughout the year has brought me so much joy and distraction so thank you to everyone for that. Hope you enjoy!
Summary: A classic Christmas past, present and future fic. Brooke deals with the aftermath of the breakup and Vanessa has to move back to New York. Will they reconnect? 
14th of January 2020
When Brooke was feeling upset, she usually turned to two things for comfort: her friends and food. That’s why as soon as Nina had suggested getting brunch that morning, Brooke jumped at the idea and was ready to have an afternoon of fun and laughter with her friends. It was just the kind of distraction that she was looking for and desperately needed.
Although as soon as she got there, she realised that she was not going to get what she wanted. The whole situation was just awkward. They were dancing around the topic of Vanessa and no one wanted to be the first one to bring her up. Brooke hadn’t seen Nina and Detox since before the breakup because of how much she had thrown herself into her work and now she was regretting saying yes to Nina’s invite.
Nina and Detox had no idea what to say to Brooke. Obviously they were both still friends with Vanessa and had kept in contact with her over the last month. They wanted to be there for Brooke but they didn’t know how they could do that or even how she was feeling since she refused to even talk about it.
Brooke could feel herself growing more and more frustrated with the entire situation. She had thought she was going to get a morning of distraction where she could stop thinking about Vanessa for a couple of hours. But no. All she was able to do in that restaurant was think about Vanessa. Eventually, Nina broke the silence.
“Maybe you should just text her, Brooke. Maybe if you two could stay friends then it wouldn’t have to be such of an uncomfortable situation for you both.” Nina said sympathetically and deep down, Brooke knew she was right. She should text Vanessa. Make sure she was okay…see how she was getting on in Chicago. But there was no point, Vanessa wouldn’t reply anyway. Brooke was confident that she wouldn’t reply. After all, she did tell Brooke that she hated her.
“Nina, shut the hell up. That’s the worst advice ever and you know it,” Detox stated before looking Brooke straight in her eyes. “You need to get your ass on a plane to Chicago and tell Vanessa how much you fucked up and that you made a mistake. What’s the point in sitting here miserable when you could go and get her back?” Brooke immediately rolled her eyes at her friend’s comment. Detox had no idea what was going on. Why they actually broke up. Brooke presumed she had only heard what Vanessa had told her.
“Detox, I just wanted one fucking day where I could not have to think about this, can we please just talk about something else?” Brooke tried to plead with Detox but she was having none of it.
“No, Brooke. I’m not just gonna sit here and watch you ruin your life! It’s stupid and it’s embarrassing!” Detox replied and Brooke had to take a few deep breaths to calm herself down.
“If you don’t stop fucking talking about her, I’m gonna leave.”
“Come on, Detox, just leave it for now, yeah?” Nina said calmly, trying to mediate the situation.
“No, Nina! Don’t act like you weren’t saying this was all a mistake too! You should be backing me up here.” With that, Brooke had heard enough. She took some cash out of her wallet and placed it on the table before storming out of the restaurant. All she had wanted was some pancakes, a nice conversation with her friends and maybe a few cocktails. But no. It seemed like Brooke couldn’t have anything she wanted these days…and she was just going to have to learn to live with that.
20th of February 2020
Vanessa was out in a club for the first time in almost three months. She was out with friends which was such a relief because she was starting to think she wouldn’t make any. Kameron and Aquaria were two girls who worked in the Chicago office alongside her. They were told to work on the same project together and the three of them hit it off immediately which made Vanessa very happy.
As Vanessa placed an order for another cocktail, she felt someone tap on her shoulder. As she turned around, she saw a beautiful girl with long black hair and gorgeous blue eyes. Any other time, Vanessa would have hit on her immediately. But she couldn’t right now. Not after everything that had happened with Brooke.
The girl asked Vanessa to dance with her and as much as Vanessa wished she could say yes, she had to say no. Kameron and Aquaria shared a confused look between them.
“Why the hell did you say no, Vanjie? She’s fucking stunning!” Kameron exclaimed and Aquaria nodded in agreement. Vanessa hadn’t told the girls anything about Brooke yet but she figured being drunk in a club was the perfect place to have that kind of conversation with her new friends.
“I guess I have this ex back in New York that I’m not really over yet,” Vanessa began with that which immediately interested the two girls so Vanessa ended up telling them the entire story: how they met, how they got engaged and how they broke up. When Vanessa finished her story, Aquaria had a mischievous look on her face. “What are you thinking, Aqua?” Vanessa was both intrigued and scared about what made her friend grin like that.
“Have you never wanted to make her jealous?” Aquaria asked with her eyebrow raised slightly. Vanessa shrugged and began to think about it. Did she want to make Brooke jealous? She did want to hurt her slightly just so she could see how much it hurt when she dumped her. But that would take a lot of effort and energy that she didn’t have. She came to Chicago to focus on her job, not to keep dragging up her past relationship.
“I mean I guess I would? But I dunno, I wouldn’t even know how do it. I’m here and she’s all the way in New York.” Vanessa explained, hoping that the topic of conversation would move on to something else but knowing Aquaria, she had a plan up her sleeve.
“Easy. Kameron’s your type, right?,” Aquaria asked while Vanessa blushed feeling slightly embarrassed. She guessed Kameron was kind of her type. She was tall, had blonde hair and was kind of quiet until you got to know her. She also had an awesome resting bitch face. Vanessa nodded and Kameron seemed happy to hear it. “I’ll take a few pictures of you two, you pose and make it look like you’re on a date or that you’re all loved up and post it to your Instagram. Then Brooke won’t be able to take her mind off of you for days.” Aquaria explained it all like it was easy and not a big deal but Vanessa felt like she was about to commit a crime. Needless to say, she said yes to Aquaria’s crazy idea and so did Kameron, so they began taking pictures.
Vanessa gave Aquaria her phone to take the pictures on and Aquaria turned into a full on photographer. She was telling them how to pose, where to look, where to put their hands. After a few minutes, they got the perfect shot: Kameron had her hands wrapped around Vanessa’s waist and was kissing her cheek while Vanessa grinned into the camera.
As soon as it was posted, Vanessa put her phone back down on the table and continued talking to her friends. Within two minutes, curiosity consumed her and she had to check if Brooke had seen it. Funnily enough, there were only a handful of people who had seen it, but Brooke was one of them. Vanessa wondered if she still had her notifications turned on for Vanessa’s posts. That would explain how she had seen it so fast. 
Vanessa smiled as soon as she saw that Brooke had seen the post but more than anything, she wished she could’ve seen Brooke’s reaction to it. To Vanessa, the fact that Brooke had seen it so quickly meant that maybe Brooke still cared about her. Or maybe she had just happened to be on Instagram when Vanessa uploaded it. Either way, she knew that Brooke wasn’t in love with her anymore, but the fact that Brooke had viewed it so quickly made her happier than she cared to admit.
12th March 2020
It’s crazy how things can change in a year. Last year, Detox’s birthday had been an amazing night of celebration for everyone involved. This year, Brooke had turned back into her past self: not wanting to go to her best friend’s party at all.
Thankfully, Detox had chosen a different club to go to this year so Brooke wouldn’t have to be reminded of meeting Vanessa for the first time. But let’s be honest, it had been on her mind all day and Brooke felt heartbroken about what this day in particular signified for her. She was trying her best to push it to the back of her mind and actually at least appear that she was paying attention to what was going on around her.
Brooke had finished a bottle of wine while she got ready so she was already kind of drunk when she turned up to the club. She wished that Vanessa would come to the party, after all, she was one of Detox’s closest friends. But Detox had already told everyone that Vanessa was too busy with work to fly back for it, much to everyone’s disappointment. Seemed like everyone loved and missed Vanessa.
After about forty-five minutes of everyone chatting and joking around with one another, a round of shots was brought to the table. Everyone was confused because no one had remembered ordering them but the waitress just pointed to a note on the tray. It had a phone number on it and said: For the hot blonde in the red dress, enjoy. Brooke didn’t want to deal with this right now. She just waved to the girl and said thanks awkwardly and took the shot.
“You should go talk to her, Brooke! Say thank you!” Nina suggested and the others agreed.
“I don’t really want to, Nina.” Brooke mumbled and Detox rolled her eyes.
“Why the hell not? She’s so hot!” Detox argued and Brooke could feel all the alcohol hit her at once. She hadn’t been this drunk in a long time.
“Because she’s not Vanessa, why would I waste my time on someone that isn’t Vanessa?” Brooke knew she was saying things she wouldn’t say if she was sober. But right now, she didn’t care. She was willing to talk to anyone who would listen.
“Then why won’t you go fucking talk to her? I swear to God, Brooke, I’ve said this a thousand fucking times, just go and talk to her!” Detox yelled and Brooke was starting to get emotional. Her drunken mind didn’t like people yelling at her.
“I can’t!” Brooke responded whilst trying not to appear sad but miserably failing.
“Why not?” Detox asked and Brooke looked at her like she was stupid and was missing something really obvious.
“She’s clearly moved on, D! Haven’t you seen her Instagram story with that girl?” Brooke said while she grabbed another glass of champagne from the table and started to drink it quickly. Detox looked at Nina and Nina just giggled, the two of them clearly knowing something that Brooke didn’t.
“Shut the fuck up, Brooke Lynn! She’s not dating anyone, that’s her new work friend who is straight, you absolute idiot!” Nina and Detox laughed and Brooke couldn’t help but smile. That picture had been burned into her brain for the last month and she was so happy that Vanessa was still single. She had no right to be happy about it, but she was. She just couldn’t help herself.
24th May 2020
Vanessa had been in her office for the last four hours finalising a new design for her company’s upcoming collection. She had been working on these designs with her team for the last six months and she was so proud of them, she really loved what she was doing. It was nice to be able to throw herself into her work, considering everything that had happened in New York. It was just an added bonus that she absolutely loved what she did. She was so in the zone that she didn’t even realise that her boss’s assistant knocked on the door and entered her office.
“Hey Vanessa, sorry to interrupt but Bianca wants to see you in her office. She said it’s important.” The assistant left the room immediately after saying that which made Vanessa’s heart rate increase. She had been working so hard recently. Her designs were amazing, everyone on her team was contributing to the best of their ability and she was sticking to the timeline she was given. What could possibly be the problem? She put down her pencil and left the office, walking to her boss’s office with a pit in her stomach.
“Hey Bianca,” she said as she knocked and opened the door to Bianca’s office. “What’s going on, is everything okay?” Bianca pointed at the chair opposite her own and Vanessa immediately took a seat and began to mentally prepare herself for the worst.
“Everything’s perfect, Vanessa. Actually, I’m really happy with the work that you’ve been doing recently.” Vanessa was waiting for the punchline after Bianca finished speaking. Usually, Bianca didn’t give compliments and when she did, you could almost guarantee that there would be about ten insults to follow after.
“Thank you, Bianca…” Vanessa responded and Bianca laughed at her confusion.
“The reason I called you in here is because I think that you can handle more responsibility within this job. I was talking to corporate and they were thinking that you should move back to the New York office to be the head of design there,” Vanessa was stunned. She had just gotten promoted to the top level of her company’s New York branch. If she had this job, she would be on the same level as Bianca. She would be the boss of everyone, including the people she used to work with. She would get to be back in her favourite city that she had missed so much…the same city as Brooke.
Vanessa’s mind was immediately made up the moment Bianca offered her the job. Chicago just hadn’t been the right fit for Vanessa. She missed her friends and she just missed the city in general. But she couldn’t help but notice the irony of having to move back to New York after only staying in Chicago for six months, considering it’s the entire reason that caused her relationship with Brooke to end. She couldn’t help feel a bit upset about how this had all happened. But in that moment, all she wanted to focus on was the fact that she was finally getting to go back home. Back to where she belonged.
12th of June 2020
Vanessa was finally back in her happy place. She was pleased to find out that New York hadn’t changed at all since she had been gone. All of her favourite restaurants were still there, the baristas in her favourite coffee place right by the office remembered her name and she was finally back in the same city as her sister and her friends.
Her new apartment wasn’t the best but she told herself she would find a new one once she settled back in to her work. It was, however, pretty close to where Detox lived which meant that they could hang out more outside of working hours, even though she was so happy to be working with her again.
She had gotten back to New York last week after wrapping everything up in Chicago and this was her first time hanging out with Detox outside of the workplace. They were going to get lunch in one of Vanessa’s favourite cafes and while she was excited, she was also full of dread as she knew that Brooke would undoubtedly be a topic of conversation. The only person she had spoken to about Brooke Lynn recently were Kameron, Aquaria and her mom and they were all on her side, even though there weren’t really any sides to take. She was interested to see how talking to Detox about it would be considering Brooke was one of her best friends.
She had to meet Detox in an hour which left Vanessa with a bit of time to do whatever she wanted. She decided to go to her favourite farmers market and stock up on some fruit and vegetables for the week ahead considering she probably wouldn’t have time during the week when she was working. She had been living off of takeout food and leftovers and knew she had to change that.
As she paid for some vegetables, she heard a familiar voice at the stall behind her asking for some strawberries. She turned around and to her surprise, it was Brooke Lynn…standing right in front of her. Vanessa didn’t know what to do. She was frozen. Should she go up to her and say hi? Should she walk away and pretend she never saw her? She couldn’t stop staring at her. Before she had a chance to make a decision, Brooke turned around and they immediately locked eyes. Brooke was also frozen in her spot and Vanessa decided to just bite the bullet and say hi to her ex-girlfriend.
“Hey Brooke!” Vanessa said awkwardly, not knowing if they should hug or not. She really didn’t know what the protocol was for accidentally running into your ex.
“Hey…what are you doing back in New York?” Brooke asked in what Vanessa could only describe as a nervous tone. Clearly their interaction was affecting Brooke as much as it was affecting Vanessa.
“I got another promotion so I had to move back…”
“Wow, congratulations V! That’s amazing!” Brooke said genuinely and Vanessa could feel her heart fluttering from Brooke’s compliment. They decided to catch up for a bit and walked around the market aimlessly. They talked about Chicago, their families, Thackery and Brooke’s job. It was then that Vanessa found herself thinking about unanswered questions and she was unable to hold back.
“Would you have broken up with me if I hadn’t been offered that job in Chicago?” Vanessa asked quietly and Brooke looked shocked that Vanessa had asked her that. She also looked extremely unprepared.
“I’m not sure.” Brooke replied slowly, unsure as to what direction the conversation was heading in.
“How long had you been wanting to break up with me for?” Vanessa knew that she didn’t want to know the answers to the questions she was asking but damn, it felt good to ask. It felt like a weight was being lifted off of her shoulders at the thought of finally getting some answers from Brooke Lynn.
“I never wanted to.” Brooke admitted quietly and Vanessa could feel her blood starting to boil.
“What do you mean you never wanted to? Then why did you do it?”
“I had to, V, you don’t understand.” Brooke looked like she was trying not to cry and Vanessa really wanted to feel bad for her but at that moment, she didn’t care.
“Yeah of course I don’t understand! How can I understand something if you don’t fucking explain it to me?” Vanessa stopped in her tracks and had her hand on her hip, demanding an answer from the blonde. But Brooke couldn’t handle seeing Vanessa and having her be angry like this. She had to get out of there. She was so overwhelmed.
“I’m so sorry Vanessa, I can’t do this right now.” Brooke walked out of that market with such a fast pace that Vanessa knew there was no way she would be able to catch up with her. All she knew was that Detox was going to get a big long rant about Brooke Lynn as soon as they sat down in that cafe.
14th of July 2020
Nina had just bought a new house around the same time as her birthday so she decided to put two celebrations into one and have a housewarming/birthday party. Both Brooke and Vanessa were of course invited, making both of the girls slightly nervous considering how their last interaction had ended.
When Vanessa arrived, Brooke was talking to Detox in the kitchen. To make sure things weren’t awkward, Vanessa said hi to both of them and used going to find Nina as an excuse to make a swift exit. It technically wasn’t a lie; she did have a gift to give to Nina after all. She found Nina in the living room with a bunch of her colleagues and they started talking as soon as Nina saw her.
“Are you gonna be okay, honey?” Nina’s maternal side was showing and Vanessa loved that about her.
“Yeah of course, I’ll be fine!” Vanessa tried to reassure her friend but Nina didn’t seem to be buying it.
“Okay but I’m here to talk if you’re not, okay? Just come and find me.”
“Shut the hell up, Nina, it’s your birthday! You don’t need to be worryin’ about me tonight!” Thankfully, Detox came over to them with two glasses of champagne and ended the awkward conversation that they were having.
There were a ton of people from Nina’s office there and Vanessa decided she might as well introduce herself to some of them so she had people to talk to who weren’t Brooke Lynn. She was just sitting around talking to a group of five people, joking around about Nina and how nice she was while they kept giving her glasses of wine and champagne and whatever else was in the house. Vanessa hadn’t even got off the couch in the last hour but had somehow finished six different drinks and it was definitely hitting her now.
As she looked out into the garden, she could see Brooke sitting alone on the garden furniture. She could tell that Brooke Lynn was quite tipsy herself from the way that she was swaying slightly and had taken her heels off. 
Vanessa’s drunken mind decided that it was the perfect time for her to go and talk to Brooke. She missed her so she might as well go talk to her, right? She plopped down on the sofa beside Brooke and they started talking as if nothing had ever happened between them. They were just talking like old friends. Vanessa swore that she hadn’t seen Brooke so carefree in such a long time, probably not since they got home from Mexico. It made her really happy to see Brooke relaxed for once.
Vanessa was absentmindedly stroking her ring finger where the engagement ring used to be. She had made that a habit when they were together: anytime she felt happy or loved, she would touch her engagement ring, kind of like a reminder that Brooke was going to be with her forever and how happy that made her. She started to feel strongly overwhelmed about her love for Brooke all at once and she longed for nothing more than having Brooke back in her life.
She looked at Brooke and was in awe of how beautiful she looked. She had cut her hair slightly since the last time she saw her. It wasn’t short, just mid length, but it really suited her. She was wearing a nude lip gloss instead of her usual matte red lipstick and overall, she just looked really good and put together. Vanessa had to tell her.
“You look really pretty tonight, B.” Vanessa said shyly and Brooke’s eyes widened in response to the compliment. She recovered quickly enough to reply to Vanessa.
“You always look beautiful, V. Every minute of every day.” Vanessa was grinning so much at this point that she was grateful for Detox interrupting them in case she accidentally said something about how much she loved Brooke in that moment. She would definitely regret that in the morning.
“Sorry to interrupt but I just found the hottest guy and I really wanna go back to his place, are you cool to make your own way home, B?” Detox asked, practically begging Brooke to say that it was okay for her to leave.
“I guess I should probably go too then, I do live a lot further away than you guys.” Brooke said sadly and Vanessa couldn’t bear this being the end of their conversation and their time together. She had to do something.
“You can stay in my apartment tonight, I don’t mind.” Vanessa offered, not thinking before she spoke, as usual.
“Really?” Brooke asked in shock and Vanessa couldn’t tell by Brooke’s reaction if she had fucked it up or not.
“That’s a fantastic idea, Vanessa! You’re so smart, thank you so much!” Detox said and immediately walked away, taking the hand of some random guy and leaving the party altogether.
“I mean if you don’t want to it’s completely fine, I just thought it might be easier for you—”
“No, it’s perfect. It’s really nice of you to offer, thanks Ness.” Vanessa breathed a sigh of relief that Brooke was okay with it and internally screamed that Brooke had called her ‘Ness’. She hadn’t heard that nickname in so long and she didn’t realise how much she had missed hearing it until now.
They spent the rest of the night outside talking and at around three in the morning, Nina started to kick people out so that she could go to bed. They were silent in the uber back to Vanessa’s apartment and when she opened the door, Thackery almost died of excitement as soon as he laid eyes on Brooke.
Brooke immediately picked Thackery up and cuddled him close to her and she started to cry. It reminded Vanessa of how she had reacted when Brooke had first surprised Vanessa with the cat, she was so overjoyed and fell in love with him so quickly. Vanessa couldn’t even dream of having to be away from him for as long as Brooke had.
After playing with Thackery for a while, Brooke started to yawn and Vanessa started to think about their sleeping situation. She apologised to Brooke because her guest room was currently occupied with unopened boxes so it wasn’t able to be slept in. Vanessa decided she would take the couch even though it was probably the most uncomfortable couch ever made.
“No, come on Vanessa, I’ll take the couch. It’s your bed, you deserve to sleep in it.” Brooke argued and Vanessa knew that realistically, neither one of them was going to be sleeping on the couch. Better to just admit it now and get that awkward bit of the night over with.
“We can just share my bed, B. it’s a lot comfier than that awful excuse for a couch, plus Thackery will be so happy to cuddle into you all night.” Vanessa added that little bit in about Thackery for good measure but in reality, Vanessa would love to be the one who could cuddle up with Brooke. Brooke agreed with Vanessa’s logic (of course she did) and they brought Thackery into Vanessa’s bedroom and laid down on the bed. Within minutes, Vanessa was asleep. Brooke was left watching her and Thackery, probably the two things she loved most in the world, while they slept. As she drifted off into a deep sleep, she realised she hadn’t felt this relaxed in a long time.
15th of July 2020
Vanessa woke up with Thackery lying on her legs and with Brooke’s arm around her waist, snuggled up into her from behind. For a moment, she genuinely forgot that they had broken up. Waking up like this felt totally normal to her and she really didn’t want it to end. She figured there was no harm in pretending to still be sleeping so that the cuddles could last for a longer time. No one would ever know.
After almost an hour, Brooke woke up and felt so peaceful. She woke Vanessa up (which didn’t take long considering she was completely faking it) and they said good morning to each other. Somehow, it wasn’t an awkward situation for them. Brooke figured waking up in your ex-girlfriend’s bed all cuddled up to her should be a bit of a weird experience, but it felt completely normal.
“I haven’t slept that well in a really long time.” Brooke said with a raspy voice, still not fully awake yet. She hadn’t attempted to move away from Vanessa, her arm was still wrapped around her and Vanessa was internally praying that she didn’t move it.
“Me too,” Vanessa said with a yawn and Thackery ran up the middle of the bed to push himself in between his two moms. “You know I really missed you, B.”
“I missed you two Ness…so much,” Brooke said in almost a whispering voice and began stroking Thackery. “We really should hang out more now that you’re back in the city, at least try and be friends, you know?” Vanessa nodded in agreement and they spent another thirty minutes just talking and playing with the cat. They made plans to get coffee in a couple days in a café they used to go to all the time and they were both really looking forward to it. After a while, Brooke decided that she had to get up.
“I should probably go to work.” She announced and Vanessa forgot all about that. It was already ten o’clock in the morning, Brooke should’ve been there almost two hours ago.
“Damn, aren’t you already super late?” Vanessa asked and Brooke nodded as she grabbed her belongings.
“Yeah…but it was worth it.” Brooke smiled to which Vanessa grinned in response. Brooke was actually prioritising Vanessa over her work and they weren’t even together. Brooke kissed Vanessa on the forehead and gave Thackery one last cuddle before she left and Vanessa swore to herself that she would be back together with the love of her life before the year ended.
29th August 2020
One month later, Brooke and Vanessa were back to being how they always used to be: inseparable. They weren’t in a relationship or anything (even though Vanessa had been manifesting it on a daily basis) but they had been hanging out multiple times during the week. They were either getting coffee, going to the movies or just hanging out in each other’s apartment…just friendly things. But recently, things had gotten to be more flirtatious between them.
Vanessa would catch herself flirting with Brooke out of habit. She slipped back into how she used to act as Brooke’s girlfriend whenever she was around her. Thankfully, Brooke always reciprocated it so it wasn’t one-sided. Vanessa also noticed that Brooke had been complimenting her a lot more recently. She was always saying that she liked Vanessa’s hair that day even when it was the same as how she always did it. Or that she liked her outfit when Vanessa was just wearing jeans and a t-shirt. She also talked about things that Vanessa loved a lot, like she would always pick movies to watch that she knew were some of Vanessa’s favourites and she would pick all of Vanessa’s favourite restaurants and cafes to go to. Vanessa figured that must be a sign that Brooke was still feeling the same way about her. Brooke must still want to be with her.
Brooke was coming over to Vanessa’s apartment that evening to hang out. They were probably just going to order Chinese food and watch a movie. Vanessa wanted to ask Brooke out tonight but she didn’t know how to do it. How do you ask your ex out on a date? She felt so unprepared. Brooke showed up exactly on time and as soon as they sat down on the couch, Brooke had something she wanted to say.
“Look, if I’m picking things up wrong and you’re not feeling the same way then I’m so sorry for making this awkward, but…I really wanna take you out.” Brooke said all at once and at first, Vanessa didn’t think she heard her correctly.
“What…like on a date?” Vanessa asked which made Brooke laugh in response.
“Yeah…like on a date.” Vanessa immediately accepted and Brooke told her to be free on Saturday night so she could take her out. Vanessa was so excited. She was already planning outfits in her mind, thinking about what colours are Brooke’s favourite and what outfits she had worn in the past that Brooke had loved.
They spent that evening watching The Notebook (another one of Vanessa’s favourites that Brooke suggested) and Vanessa ended up falling asleep in Brooke’s arms. Brooke didn’t have the heart to wake her up so she ended up staying the night, yet again.
15th September 2020
Brooke didn’t know how this had happened but somehow she had managed to go on six dates with Vanessa in the space of two weeks. They didn’t even go out that much when they were in a relationship. They’ve been for dinner twice, Brooke planned a picnic in the park for them, they’ve had a couple of movie nights and the most recent one was when Brooke asked Vanessa to come along to a work party as her date. It was weird for Brooke not being able to introduce Vanessa to people as her girlfriend, especially since some of the people knew Vanessa from when they were engaged.
She decided that waiting around wasn’t fun for either of them and she wanted to make it official with Vanessa as soon as possible. She invited her over for lunch that afternoon with the intention of asking her to be her girlfriend. When Vanessa arrived, she was wearing a sundress that she had worn on their vacation in Mexico and Brooke thought that she looked amazing, even better than she had back then. Brooke was overwhelmed with love for her again. She was taken back to how she felt when she proposed to her, which was only one year ago. As soon as Brooke placed their plates of food on the table, she asked her.
“Ness, I’ve been loving spending time with you recently and I know that we’re kind of in a strange situation here but…I really don’t want to lose you again. These past few months have really made it clear to me that my life is a million times better with you in it and breaking up with you was the worst decision I ever made. Will you please be my girlfriend again?”
Vanessa practically screamed in excitement and of course said yes. She had a feeling Brooke was going to ask her that today so she decided to wear a dress that Brooke had loved just to really seal the deal and make herself irresistible to Brooke. Vanessa ran over to kiss Brooke immediately and they spent the rest of the day together, relaxing and making up for lost time.
That night when Vanessa went home, Brooke went to the back of her closet and took out a jewellery box she had received as a gift last Christmas. She had put the promise ring Vanessa had gotten her back on the necklace and shoved it in the back of her closet to try and forget about it. But now she got to take it back out again. She couldn’t be happier.
She took it out of the box and put the necklace back on. She made a mental note to keep it under her clothes so that no one would see. She didn’t wanna freak Vanessa out by wearing it so soon but it just felt right. She was finally with the girl she loved again and all she wanted to do was be the love of Vanessa’s life forever.
25th December 2020
Christmas Day had come around again and the contrast from how the girls had spent their Christmas last year to this year was amazing. Last year, both of them had been alone and miserable. This year, they were back were they belonged: with each other.
Vanessa’s mom was flying into New York on the 26th and Vanessa was beyond excited about it. She couldn’t wait for her mom and Brooke to reconnect again. Vanessa had originally wanted her mom to be here for Christmas but Mrs Mateo insisted on flying out the day after so that the couple could spend Christmas together for the first time again.
They had already exchanged gifts and completed their usual traditions in the morning (Vanessa had woken Brooke up at 7am again) and after they had eaten some food, they decided to watch a Christmas movie.
“Before we watch this, I actually have one more surprise for you,” Brooke announced and Vanessa was immediately excited. There was nothing she loved more than surprises. Brooke walked into her bedroom and brought out a small gift bag. She sat back down beside Vanessa and took out a small box and handed it to her.  Vanessa opened the box and inside was a key. “I know you don’t like your apartment that much so I figured you might like living in mine a bit more.” Vanessa squealed in delight and hugged Brooke, saying she would love to move in with her. Vanessa loved Brooke’s apartment and she was so happy that she could call it her home now too.
“But wait, that’s not the only surprise I have for you,” Brooke took out another small box and Vanessa recognised it immediately. It was the box that her engagement ring came in. Vanessa couldn’t believe it. Brooke wanted to propose to her again. She couldn’t see what was happening because her vision was clouded by her tears. She was so happy. Brooke took her own necklace with her promise ring out of her sweater to show Vanessa that she had been wearing it all along. At that point, Vanessa was full on sobbing. Brooke tried her best to get Vanessa to stop crying to that she could actually propose to her properly and after a few minutes, she was successful. “Not having you in my life was the worst thing that has ever happened to me. I’m sorry that it took me so long to realise that, you deserve so much more than that and I promise to spend my entire life making it up to you. But there’s one thing I’m certain about, Ness. The love we have for each other is so strong and we will always find our way back to each other, no matter what. I don’t know how I thought that a job was more important than our relationship but I’ve now come to realise that my job means absolutely nothing to me. You are the only thing that matters to me in this world. I don’t care about dream jobs; my only dream is to have you as my wife. I know this isn’t as special as the first time I asked, but Vanessa, will you marry me?”
“Yes!” Vanessa said as she kissed her fiancé with tears streaming down both of their faces. “Nothing would make me happier.” They spent the rest of the day in their own little world, completely loved up and excited for the future. They talked about how they wanted their wedding to be, who they wanted to invite, where they wanted to live when they got older. Basically, all the conversations that Vanessa had wanted to have over a year ago when the only thing Brooke would focus on was work. Vanessa felt like her entire life was on track again. She had her dream job, she had Thackery and as of today, she had a gorgeous new apartment and a beautiful fiancé. Nothing could ruin that for her.
What they didn’t see was Thackery up on the kitchen counter knocking over all of the sugar cookies and food they had made for Vanessa’s mom coming tomorrow. But they could deal with that later. Right now, they were too loved up to care.
8 notes · View notes
soberqueerinthewild · 4 years
Text
I’m sad I wasn’t able to participate in RNM Creators Week this week. It’s such a great event, but life things got into the way. But today is the day to talk about cheerleaders in the fandom and I wanted to take the chance to talk about the positive experiences I’ve had with this fandom more from a personal perspective. It’s not quite in line with the purpose of the event, so I won’t put it in the event tags, but I’ve been planning to write this for a bit and this seemed like as good an opportunity to celebrate some awesome people and highlight some ways this fandom has helped me. It’s gonna get pretty personal under the cut, so definitely feel free to scroll on. 
I first watched RNM in late February 2019, but didn’t really start engaging in fandom until late March/early April 2019, shortly after I experienced my first chemical pregnancy. By that point, we’d been actively trying to get pregnant via IUI for about seven months unsuccessfully, and after the chemical pregnancy we were moving on from IUI to IVF. At that time, it felt like the only thing in my life I could really focus on. There were so many logistics to manage, with insurance, and traveling to the clinic I was using, and medications, and emotions to manage (my own, my wife’s, my mother’s). I was struggling to really talk about anything else, since this was taking over my life, and yet it was such a depressing topic to discuss, and I found conversations with my friends stalling out because of it. It was hard even to discuss fun things or plans without talking about it because so many of my plans were dependent on when my cycle was, how I could manage the next one, and what the logistics of that would be. As someone already prone to depression,  living rurally, working from home, and already isolated, it was kind of a recipe for disaster. 
RNM and this fandom came into my life at that time, when I desperately needed something to distract me and a creative outlet that didn’t depend on me being at a certain place at a certain time (I’d tried signing up for classes etc, but always had to cancel because I had to travel out of state for IVF). I started to write some, first meta, then some fic, and then got back into making some fanvids, and through this connected with really awesome, supportive, people. I found that friends I met in this fandom were often easier to talk to in some ways than friends I had outside of it. The friends I met in fandom let me talk about the struggles and disappointments when I wanted to, but always let me change the subject and go back to talking about fandom or fic, and wouldn’t press me if I wasn’t feeling up to talking more. Fandom kept me from feeling so isolated during this time. There are folks in this fandom that were with me through two egg retrievals, two failed transfers, another chemical pregnancy, and countless setbacks and delays in the process and I couldn’t be more grateful. 
Beyond the friends who supported me through DMs and chats, participating in the wider fandom has helped me immeasurably as well. For the IVF process I had to stay with my parents for 1-2 weeks at a time, while my wife was back home due to the location of the clinic. Those times were stressful and lonely. I wrote We both carry a switchblade in our sleeves before my first transfer. Comments and feedback on that fic kept me going through the anxiety of the transfer and disappointment of the failure. I wrote Bunker Confessionals right before my second transfer. It was nearly a year between my second and third transfer because I had to create more embryos, and fandom distracted me during that time, even while I wasn’t feeling creative enough to write much. When I was finally back at my parents before my third transfer, I wrote She’s listening through the airshaft, to see how long our swan song can last. The  feedback on that fic distracted me from how nervous I was to finally be transferring again, with new embryos and some renewed hope. 
A week later @bisexualalienblast and @seeaddywrite were some of the first people I sent pictures of positive pregnancy tests to. They kept me sane in the days before I was ready to tell many other people, worried that if this was another chemical pregnancy I’d be disappointed again. A few days later @lambourngb, @haloud, @el-gilliath, @ninswhimsy and @christchex kept me distracted all day while waiting for blood work results and later when I was anxious about attending ultrasounds. Infertility has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to go through, and sometimes it felt so isolating, but participating in fandom and the friends I met through here, kept me from feeling totally alone. 
I’m still anxious as hell, but I’m through the first trimester now and everything looks good so far, so I’m feeling hopeful, trying to enjoy pregnancy and start actually planning for a baby. I’m due in March, and I know @suzteel (another person whose support and friendship has been invaluable) will appreciate that, unlike the TWO different birth dates Rosa is given in RNM, the baby I’m carrying likely will ACTUALLY be a Pisces. 
So yeah, that was super personal, but I am so appreciative of the support this fandom has given me (the people mentioned here along with so many others, including everyone who has ever interacted with any of my fics, metas, or vids) and I wanted to acknowledge it. Thanks for helping me through such a tough time <3.
20 notes · View notes
Text
APRIL PICKS!
Tumblr media
And we’re back with new picks for the month!! Man, this has been some strange times we’re living in. I saw a post that said March felt like 300 days, while April feels like 3. I could not agree more. I’ve watched a lot this month, which isn’t a shocker due to our current circumstances. There’s a pretty big range, so there might be something here that you can check out during quarantine.
Here come the spoilers! 
Tumblr media
THE SOCIETY
I’m going to start with my latest watch from Netflix, The Society. Wow. I really enjoyed this one. Going into it I knew it would be like a Twilight Zone meets Lord of the Flies show, but there was so much unexpected stuff that occurred. Much like Degrassi the Next Generation, they went there. The students from New Ham, Connecticut go off on a field trip, but the buses don’t get too far due to the storm. This forces them back into town only (maybe) a couple hours from when they left. No one is home when they get back. No adults, kids, or others who were not on the school trip. The town is theirs and there is no way out. At first it’s all partying, but things take a dark turn fast and the teens must come up with laws for there to be some sort of order in this new world if they want to survive and find a way back to their real home. The 10 episodes go by really fast. It leaves a nice cliffhanger for season 2 (which is supposed to be in the works, but I don’t know if Corona affected that at all). This show definitely contains a lot of surprising twists including one very early on that is hard to predict. If you have watched this show previously or are interested in giving it a shot know one important thing. 
This is the BEST character on the show. 
Tumblr media
I have not met one person who doesn’t love Grizz. He is the greatest. (The fan love for him really reminds me of the love for Stiles in Teen Wolf.)
Tumblr media
DC’S TITANS- Season 2
At the start of April, I started the second season of Titans. As someone who does not have the DC streaming service I have to wait till the seasons are accessible on DVD. I watched the first season back in December and loved it, so I couldn’t wait to watch season 2. I was excited to see all the characters they were adding to the team. As someone who LOVES superheroes, but gets most of their knowledge through watching TV and movies rather than the comics, I went in not knowing a lot, which made it even more exciting. I would say my only main issue with this season was the staggering of plots. Because there were so many characters to follow and so much going on there were a lot of times when I was excited to start the next episode (because the previous one always ended on the BEST cliffhangers) only to have the episode involve a completely different story-line. While Deathstroke was the main villain for the season, sprinkling in CADMUS and finishing off Raven’s dad at the start felt like a lot for me. Most of the side conflicts added up to involving Slade, but looking back (because I did watch this at the beginning of April) it often felt like a lot in the moment. Some of the moments that were my favorite were finally getting the Nightwing reveal, seeing Bruce and Dick interact, being at Titans tower, hearing Hank sing and all of Connor. I think he was my favorite addition to the show. (I could be biased because I’m a Superman fan.) I’m upset with the ending and they better find a way to reverse it!! I would also like to see more of the team together next season because I really missed that too. 
On a lighter note....
Tumblr media
NAILED IT!
This is the PERFECT show for the crazy times we are in. It takes your mind off the repetitive news and is a great stress reliever, plus it is super funny and you will find yourself laughing uncontrollable. Maybe more in some episodes than others. Nailed it is the baking game show for people who strive to be better bakers in the kitchen, but are struggling when it comes to appearance (or taste...or both). In the half hour show there are two tasks for the three contestants to perform in order for a chance at the Nailed It trophy and $10,000. They are both often very difficult, with the second creation much harder than the first. Watching the contestants is hilarious as well as their reactions to baking and not having any clue what to do sometimes. I also love the judges. Nicole Byer is too funny and Jacques Torres is one of my new favorite people. 
Tumblr media
Plus Wes is just beautiful and I loved when Nicole called him the human form of Simba from the Lion King. 
Tumblr media
Continuing on with more comedy... 
Tumblr media
I know of several people who quote John Mulaney’s comedy specials on the regular, plus his gifs are EVERYWHERE. So it was about time I watched his specials and what better time than right now when I can use all the laughs I can get. I watched The Come Back Kid and New in Town and was laughing all the way through. If you’re already familiar with his stand-up you can enjoy some of these moments again below. If you aren’t then I HIGHLY suggest you check them out on Netflix or by simply YouTube-ing some of his best moments. (My computer cannot stop putting them in my suggested now.)  
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Returning to some of my past favorites this month....
(Some of these should not come as a shocker)
Tumblr media
ZOEY’S EXTRAORDINARY PLAYLIST
One of my February Picks is back (not that it ever really left). Zoey’s is the show that I can’t stop talking about and even if this past Sunday’s episode (not the one airing tonight because I obviously haven’t watched it yet-while he’s been bothering me I can’t wait to hear Max’s rendition of ‘Bye, Bye, Bye’) gave me issues because everyone was blowing up at each other and there were times I wanted to shout at the TV, I would still suggest this show to anyone. This dramedy has so much going on from captivating (and sometimes heartbreaking) plots, to realistic and lovable characters and songs you will quickly want to add to your personal playlist. It’s honestly just a feel good show that usually puts me in such a great mood (again, despite last week’s...) With only a few more to this season I cannot wait to see what happens next!! (If you enjoy the show check out my other posts on this page!) 
Tumblr media
NANCY DREW
The CW retelling of Nancy Drew is in the top 2 of shows that I currently cannot stop talking about. It’s still a little shocking to me that I have grown to like Nancy Drew SO MUCH. If you told me that at the start of the season I would have been like ‘really?’ But as this first season has progressed I really fell in love with the show and the characters. While we ended on an earlier cliffhanger than was intended it was still an AWESOME one that has left me with so many questions. I am so happy this show was renewed and I cannot wait till they can start filming the second season. Because I need more of these kinds of moments:
Tumblr media
I’m pretty sure I ended my last post this way too. But come on these two are the cutest and deserve to be endgame!
Just like with Zoey’s check out this page for more detailed reviews if you are also a Nancy Drew fan!
Tumblr media
I DIDN’T DO IT
I am SO HAPPY that this show is now on Disney Plus. I have talked about this show since it got canceled from Disney Channel far too soon (much like many of their great shows on that channel). But at least they had gotten 2 seasons and both are now available to watch on the streaming service as much as you’d like. (I think I already made it up to episode 12). In my personal opinion season 2 is stronger than season 1 mainly because it doesn’t follow the classic structure of the “I didn’t do it” episode. What I mean by this is starting the episode out with some sort of hi-jinks and having the 5 best friends exclaim they “didn’t do it” or this isn’t how they thought things would go. Then we flashback to events either earlier in the day or week, etc, leading up to the first scene’s events. This style can get very repetitious, but with funny plots and likable characters certain episodes work better than others. However, by season 2 this structure was gone completely and I think the show strongly benefited from it. I truly believe this group of friends felt like a teenage “Friends” sitcom. They had a hang out at a smoothie cafe, two of them were siblings (here twins) and each member of the group resembled a character from the classic NBC show. They even had the two that felt like Ross and Rachel like each other romantically. Who knows where the show would have gone if it wasn’t cancelled. Check it out and let me know if you find more comparisons.    
And Last But Not Least...
Tumblr media
WORLD ON FIRE
The most recent show I’ve started watching is currently airing on PBS after previously airing on the BBC. This drama throws us into the beginnings of WWII as we follow several characters from different parts of the globe, from England to Germany and Poland. I’m really loving the diverse cast and seeing through the eyes of so many characters during this turning point of history. While I have only watched 2 episodes so far, I already feel very invested in each of their lives and cannot wait to see what happens next. Already so many twists and turns have occurred in such a short amount of time. The episodes go by really fast and will have you thinking a lot after. If you are a fan of a lot of other Masterpiece’s Classics I would highly suggest checking it out. 
I hope everyone is staying safe and well! 
70 notes · View notes
capechicago · 3 years
Text
CAPE Network Forum Newsletter: West Chicago
In this issue of the CAPE Network Forum Newsletter, we are excited to celebrate the newest after-school partnership between CAPE and West Chicago School District 33. What began as an idea from CAPE teaching artist and resident of West Chicago, Anni Holm, has now blossomed into a robust inquiry-based arts integrated after-school program serving over 350 students and community members across four schools.
From early conversations beginning in the summer of 2020, to the navigation of complex federal and state grant management systems, to the kick-off of programming in January of 2021, this program is testament to the power of partnership in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic.
CAPE is grateful to Anni Holm for making the initial connection, District 33 leadership’s openness to expanding their after-school program, and Hannah Martin, CAPE’s West Chicago Program Coordinator, who is doing incredible work behind-the-scenes to make the whole program function. CAPE is also grateful for the incredible creativity and energies of all the West Chicago teachers, staffers, and the many new CAPE artists who have made this all possible and greatly expanded CAPE’s Network of Artist/Researchers.
Below you will find the perspectives of Joie Frankovich, District 33’s Coordinator of Partnerships, Yaritza, a fifth grade student at Currier Elementary, and documentation of in-process work from many of the online classes transpiring in West Chicago.
— Joseph Spilberg
Interview with Joie Frankovich, District 33’s Coordinator of Partnerships
Tell us the story of your relationship to CAPE and how this partnership came to fruition.
I'm the Coordinator of Partnerships with District 33. The district has had a 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant for eons, and for the last 10 years of that grant, we worked with a somewhat local partner, and they were always our applicant on it. With COVID-19, they felt that the program was no longer aligned with their mission and chose to step away from the grant. That left us needing to find a new co-applicant.
We reached out to a lot of different organizations and just tried to put feelers out there because it's a fairly hefty grant. I mean, there's a lot of red tape and a lot of requirements, and an organization needs to have capacity to do it. We actually had a lot of organizations turn us down because we were in the middle of a pandemic, and all these organizations are just doing their best to stay afloat, the same that the school district was.
Anni Holm, who I know is a CAPE teaching artist and a District 33 parent and staff member, had always raved about CAPE as an organization and the kind of the model that CAPE uses. She had sent a connecting email to Joseph and me just saying let's see if there's anything that can come from it.
So I reached out to Joseph. I just said, “You mentioned you're looking to expand your reach. You're looking to be in more suburbs. You’ve worked with 21st CCLC grants. Are you interested in being our co-applicant and seeing if we can figure something out?” And Joseph said yes immediately.
I think ISBE approved of the grant on January 18th. So in six months, we created a budget, and we put a program together. Then the program started running February 1st!
What does collaboration look like for District 33?
I think the relationship between District 33 and CAPE has already started with an intention to be collaborative from the very beginning. I remember when Joseph and I were first talking, one of the big things that I was focused on was the fact that the district still wants to work with other partners. How do we blend other organizations and people into this program?
It's just kind of this constant throwing ideas out there and saying, What makes sense? How can we work together? We've been working with a lot of our local partners to the park district, the library, some help from some of our local health partners, and finding ways to embed really collaborative family opportunities on top of the traditional kind of classroom stuff that's going to happen in the afternoon, spring, and summer programming. And it's been absolutely wonderful.
For the future, I just envision this continuing to expand and really grow, because we only really started in February with Joseph. I have been referring to this semester as our pilot, like, let's just go for it. Let's see how it goes. Let's learn lessons. And then for next year, we can really think about how we build this out even more, make it more robust.
And for us, when we talk about collaboration, a lot of times what we talk about is that often, whether it's education, nonprofit organizations, people are asked to do so much more than what they should have to do. And a lot of times it's beyond the scope of their position. Teachers are being asked to be counselors.
For us, these collaborations are really about bringing in everyone’s expertise and passions. Really work together so we can just do the things we're good at and let others do the things they're good at so that together we're really working towards those goals. CAPE has this beautiful model, inquiry based arts integration. So CAPE tells us how that looks, because you have that expertise. District 33 has some other expertise. How do we work together to create something really beautiful for students? I mean it's all about the students and families in the end. So how do we work together to create something that's really special for them? It’s been just incredible how open and ready everyone's been to just say, OK, let's figure this out. Let's be creative. Let's bounce ideas back and forth. And we just make it work. And it's pretty awesome to have a partner who's just has a bent towards wanting to operate that way.
Tumblr media
Family Night is where the community’s families come together and share out what they’ve been learning in CAPE programs. CAPE has hosted a few Family Night events over the spring semester. How does Family Night serve the district?
Students don't exist in isolation. They are a family unit in some way, shape, or form. It looks different for everyone, but you're a part of something larger. If you want to support students, our belief is you need to be supporting the guardians or the adults or whoever else is in that home with reaching their goals and removing barriers for those folks.
We do a lot of activities and events where we try and bring families together to do shared learning or just have shared experiences together. For example, we offer ESL classes for parents and guardians. And in the evenings we know that often child care could be a hindrance for them to be able to attend. We also offer a child development program for the children of parents and ESL class where the children are doing their own learning.
The other big thing we really focus on is this idea of doing things with families and communities, not doing them to families and communities, and really providing opportunity for families to say, this is what I want this to look like, or this is how I think you should be. And not just assuming we know better because we're, I don't know, an organization or professionals or whatever.
So the Family Nights that we've had so far, it was amazing. I mean, I think I shed tears a couple of times. So cool to see and particularly knowing everything's been virtual for us this whole time. Yeah, I still see the impact that's happened in the relationships that have been built has just been phenomenal. It really gives an opportunity for parents to be able to kind of get that insider view of the program, and also a chance for students to just show off, show their parents what they did, and ask, How cool is this? And I really enjoyed being able to see the teaching artists and our district staff show off, too, because they were doing a lot of the sharing. It's just so incredible.
I think down the road, what would be amazing is that when we have these events in person, hopefully in the near future, that they also are really embedded in the community, too. So people have an opportunity to really learn more about West Chicago and the community that they live in and contribute to. So it's really supporting a broader community engagement too, not just that inner family engagement.
Tumblr media
Student interview with Yaritza, a fifth grader at Currier Elementary School
Why did you join CAPE after school?
Because I like after school programs and theater. It's fun learning more stuff after school.
How is this after school like class and environment different than what you do during the school day?
It's different from the school day because I get to move around a lot more and play more and have more fun than just sitting there and writing notes.
Can you describe to me what kinds of things you've been doing in this class (Life Out Loud!)?
We play fun games. And we have time to spend quality time with other kids, and draw everyday. We do theater games and create stories and fun scenes. And we write some of our ideas down.
What is something that you hope to do with the class before the school year is over?
One thing that I like to do with the class before the class is over is do the puppet shows we’ve started. And learn more games.
If you were to tell someone of the kids at your school, a reason to join CAPE after school programs or this after school program, what would you say?
I like doing after school programs because it gives you more time to spend time with other kids and not be on the on your screen, and to create things on your own with artists.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
At Gary Elementary School, students show off their trolls before the mischievous creatures run away, led by artists Anni Holm and Buddy Plumlee and teacher Jacqueline Neidhardt.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Students at Leman Middle School share their Alebrijes and masks inspired by traditional Mexican art, led by artist Sarita Garcia and teacher Carlos Osorio.
Tumblr media
For the parent class at Leman Middle School, parents practice drawing still lifes using objects that represent their identity, led by artist Jessica Mueller and counselors Graciela Moreno, Lori Koch, and Melinda Ayala.
2 notes · View notes
spnfanficpond · 4 years
Text
February 2020 Angel Fish Awards
Tumblr media
Every month all of you fantastic writers work your asses off to post some truly incredible stories. Our Angel Fish Awards are the way for all of us, as a community of writers and readers, to lift each other up and give praise to those who have captured our attention and deserve a few kind words.
The monthly Angel Fish Awards are peer-nominated, meaning ANYONE IN THE POND CAN NOMINATE ANY POND MEMBER’S FIC. While the Pond was founded to support the Guppies, everyone in this community deserves to be showered with love and feedback, and we hope that by opening this up as a Pond wide system, we’ll be able to share the love as far as it can go.
NOTE: WE’VE BEEN HAVING OCCASIONAL PROBLEMS WITH ASKS GOING MISSING. Please use the Submit button when submitting your nominations and make sure you’re signed into Tumblr or your URL won’t show. (If the form asks for your name and email address, then you’re not signed in.) If you like, you can also send a message to Michelle @mrswhozeewhatsis or Mana @manawhaat to check and make sure we got your submission.
WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE ARE THIS MONTH’S ANGEL FISH AWARDS!
Tumblr media
There are NINE (9) stories this month with more than one nomination!! Be sure to check through all ninety (yeah, that’s 90!!!) nominations!!
Nominated by @flamencodiva 
Frat Boy (series) by @luci-in-trenchcoats 
This is one of my all time favorite stories by Michelle! It was one of the first ones I read when I joined Tumblr. it is a really good read and I recommend it highly! 
A River In Egypt (series) by @crashdevlin 
Holy crap this is another amazing fic by Cassie! I mean the way she writes Sam’s inner monologue is amazing! and the rest is yet to come! 
Darken (series) by @impala-dreamer 
I love Beka’s Stories! This one is my absolute favorite! and my god was it angsty as hell and I ate it all up! 
Nominated by @becs-bunker 
The Accidental Sexter (oneshot) by @scorpiongirl1 
OK, where to start with this one?! I honestly sweated my way through reading it. It was so hot and steamy and let’s be honest, even over 40, Dean can get it anytime. This just proves it!🔥🔥 Some accidents are so worth it, that one sure was!
Nominated by @erins-culinary-service 
Call of the Ocean (series) by @flamencodiva 
This is the first mermaid! Reader fic I’ve read but I’m loving it so much! It’s a collaboration fic, but the chapters go so well together you can’t even tell. It’s also a super slow burn and I know will be 100% worth the wait.
When You Fall (series) by @flamencodiva 
This is such an amazing and dark fic. READ THE WARNINGS THOUGH!! There are a lot of things that could trigger someone, but if you do read the story it will leave you wanting more are the end of every chapter.
Fighting For A Future (series) by @flamencodiva 
*Uncontrollable screaming noises* that’s the only way I can describe how much I love this and how excited I get when I see an update about this fic!
Running With Wolves (series) by @waywardrose13 
This series rips my heart out every single chapter and I always come back for more because how could I not?  It’s an angsty A/B/O fic and I can’t wait to find out how this ends since there’s still so much left in the fic to explore.
Nominated by @fictionalabyss 
Privacy (oneshot) by @evansrogerskitten 
Can I nominate this glorious piece of work for the AFA!? It gets right to the point and has you looking forwards to that climax at the end and what gets him there.
Porch Swing (oneshot) by @myinconnelly1 
omfg. The angst was almost subtle until it wasn’t.  Ripped my god damn heart out.
Unexpected (oneshot) by @tumbler-tidbits 
When I wrote Sleeping with the wrong Winchester, there was next to nothing for small dick Winchesters. You don’t know how happy I was to find this in the pond! I LOVEEEEEE small dick Winchester fics. WE NEED MORE!
Never In Fact Homeless (oneshot) by @slowdownsugar 
Perfect. It’s just perfect, that’s all that really needs to be said here. It’s short, and sweet, and utterly perfect.
You Can’t Save Them All (oneshot) by @sorenmarie87 
It’s an older fic that I had forgotten about until I stumbled on it again. Its easy to picture the scene, her playing the piano with a broken heart, and Dean just being there so she isn’t alone. still beautiful.
Meeting Mr. Smith (oneshot) by @evansrogerskitten 
Alpha!Dean Smith is just so.. *happy sigh*
Back to Him (oneshot) by @focusonspn 
That ending really made this fic for me. It’s such a Dean ending. The determination to put his pain aside and and get someone back.
One Night Lover (oneshot) by @thing-you-do-with-that-thing 
As always, I’m sucked in, and I can’t look away. By the end, I’m heartbroken and trying desperately to pick up the pieces and while begging to make it better.
Till the End of Time (oneshot) by @girl-next-door-writes 
This made me so happy you don’t even know. I loved this. I love the idea of this.  I just- I love this.
The New Sheriff (series) by @iflostreturntosteverogers
I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS TO START POSTING! Bad ass female main with a cowboy!Dean? Fuck yes! Get hyped, and get reading. *impatiently awaiting chapter 2*
Nominated by @thegirlwhorunswithwinchesters
We Know (oneshot) by @icequeen6666
Randomly came across this fic and, well, anyone who knows me won’t be surprised I couldn’t say no to a good dose of pure angst. I loved the pace in this oneshot. It was quick, but still managed to keep the suspense. And the ending broke my heart, as always.
Too Late, Now (oneshot) by @theholyfoxface
I don’t read many RPF’s but this one sucked me right in and there was nothing I could do about it. It was a beautiful combination of heartbreaking and heartwarming in a way I’m not sure how to describe properly. Yet, the author managed to do it absolutely perfectly.
You Scared Us (oneshot) by @theholyfoxface
Always love reading fics by fellow guppies and shining a well deserved spotlight on them through these nominations. This one I enjoyed very much. I loved the way Dean was portrayed as the more reasonable one while still being his stern self, trying to get things done his way.
You, Me & The Devil Makes Three (series) by @supersassyprobablysad
This series is very intriguing. I love the OC’s wit and the overall backstory of her and her siblings. Definitely going to keep an eye out for the next chapters to find out how this mystery will unravel.
Porch Swing (oneshot) by @myinconnelly1
Well, this sure broke me into a million pieces. I’m a sucker for angst and this piece of writing certainly delivered. It’s sad but it’s gorgeous and I’m in love.
A Day at the Cabin (oneshot) by @cloverhighfivewritestoo
All the fluff. This is so sweet, after reaching the end I went back and read it a second time right away. I would also like to say that Sam being the little spoon is something I can 100% get behind. Pun intended.
Let Me Go (oneshot) by @foreverwayward
Though the ‘Always keep fighting’ part definitely got me bad, I was an absolute fool thinking that would be the hardest part. This was so beautifully written, I don’t quite know what to say. I guess the heartbreak I’m feeling after reading this is all on me, since there was a fair warning given right at the top.
Notes (oneshot) by @kittenofdoomage
I stumbled across this fic and I just…… wow. Apart from the signature amazing writing from this author, which I keep getting blown away by, I just really loved the idea for the plot. The way it was set up with the secret blog and the notes while the brothers acted like they had no idea. I’ll say it again: Wow.
Nominated by @kittenofdoomage 
Control and Release (series) by @thecleverdame 
I lost five hours of my life to this beauty. It’s so perfect. I can’t even find the right words to describe how perfect this is. If you love Sam, and you’re into BDSM, or even if you just like really amazing smut, you need to read this.
The Oath (series) by @thecleverdame 
This story is dark, so heed the warnings, but it is another brilliant masterpiece. Absolutely fantastic.
Call Of The Ocean (series) by @flamencodiva and @anathewierdo 
There aren’t many mermaid AUs out there, so this is a rare gem. The story that these two are weaving is intriguing, angsty, funny, and just plain awesome. I’m really enjoying reading it and can’t wait to see what happens.
Just A Number (oneshot) by @crispychrissy 
I adored this oneshot for all the following reasons; the reader is a badass, Dean is spot-on, and the smut was h-h-hahmazing.
Bury It (series) by @crashdevlin 
Heed the warnings on this one, folks, it is not for the faint-hearted. It deals with some brutal themes, but it’s fucking awesome. I’m really enjoying seeing the journey from Dean’s perspective, despite how completely fucked up it is. lol
What Goes Bump In The Night (series) by @saxxxology 
If you haven’t heard of Saxxy, you are missing out, especially where it comes to her Sam A/B/Os. This series is no exception to her amazing level of work; it’s dark and twisty and just beautiful.
All Our Sins (oneshot) by @impala-dreamer 
It’s smutty, sinful, delicious - you just can’t go wrong.
Nominated by @impala-dreamer  
Cherry Red (oneshot) by @dontshootmespence 
I’m trying not to nominate you every month, but geezeus… HOLY HELL THIS IS MAGIC SMUT RIGHT HERE. ughhhh i’m a little … emotional about this.
Also, your writing is amazing in this. Like, it FELT like an old timey film and I dug that so much. Great, Great work.
‘He stares up with rapt attention, watching the curve of her body as she places herself over his knee; he’s pretty sure he’s died and gone to heaven, but he’s been to heaven before and it ain’t this fun.’
That line is magic. Mhm. Love it.
My Brother’s Keeper (oneshot) by @cleighwrites 
I don’t trust a lot of people to write Wincest with the respect and soul-level love that I believe it should be written with, as such, I don’t read a whole lot of it, except from certain people.
THIS IS PERFECT. It’s hurt/comfort Wincest, which is my absolute favorite, and then you somehow made Sam into the perfect needy sub, and it was so well written and respectful to the idea and the characters and just… it was really really well done. Bravo. Thank you.
Dutiful (oneshot) by @stusbunker 
Ya know that scene in Julie & Julia where Julie is trying to describe what eating an egg feels like for the first time and Amy Adams gets all like wide eyed and swoony and licking her lips and just…
Yeah, that was me reading this. God, that was good. Just… I can’t really explain it but I FELT it. Really Really good work.
Nominated by @sorenmarie87 
Roots (series) by @manawhaat 
I wish I could submit all three parts for a nomination because this mini series featuring JDM is so sweet and fluffy <3  Mana really knocked it out of the park.
More Than Anything (oneshot) by @iflostreturntosteverogers 
This fic in particular, I know that Carrie was gonna through a rough time and who doesn’t love a good comfort fic?  I know I do.  
The New Sheriff (series) by @iflostreturntosteverogers 
It’s no lie that I love AU’s and I was so excited when iflostreturntosteverogers said she was gonna write a Western AU.  The set up for the first part is perfect and Sara, the OC girl - I would do anything for.  
When You Fall (series) by @flamencodiva 
I had this particular fic on my list to read for such a long time, and I’m glad I finally read it. The plot is a little heavy but I highly recommend this one.   I can’t wait to see what she has in store for future parts.  
Nominated by @mrswhozeewhatsis 
Anything and Everything (oneshot) by @rockhoochie 
I said this in my reblog of this story, but I want to say it here, too: This is freaking BEAUTIFUL! I had to look up the song quoted, and this is just so perfect for that song, and the song is perfect for this story. *throws kudos at Sarah forever*
Nominated by @supersassyprobablysad 
Gods of Twilight (series) by @thecleverdame 
It was an excellently written and refreshing take on the ABO concept and I really enjoyed it!
Protector (oneshot) by @fictionalabyss 
It’s only 3 chapters in but I already can’t wait for the next one. I’m super excited to see where this goes and imagining Dean as a biker does all kinds of things to me lol
Lemon Drop (oneshot) by @impala-dreamer 
It’s basically PWP BUT it is amazing none the less. Who knew that a Hypno Kink could be so hot?
Nominated by @fangirlxwritesx67 
More in the Mortar Than the Pestle (oneshot) by @thoughtslikeaminefield 
This is one lush, sexy story featuring Dean and the always-gorgeous Rihanna. An absolute treat!
Seasons (series) by @thoughtslikeaminefield 
I don’t know how I missed this series but let me tell you, no one should miss it! I read the first chapter and wanted to wait, read the rest slowly, slowly. NOPE. I dropped everything, sat right down and read it ALL. It’s a beautiful Dean Winchester x OFC, told in an amazingly creative non-linear format, with chapters that follow the seasons of the year as well as the seasons of their relationship. It’s MJ, so of course I don’t have to tell you that her Dean is spot on, every detail is perfect, and the sex is mind blowing. Just - read it. But be aware that once you start, you may not be able to stop
Try (oneshot) by @there-must-be-a-lock 
Look, honestly, Winchester baby fanfics are a dime a dozen. Which makes this one stand out all the more for how good it is. Lou describes it as “flufftastic smut” and it is, it really is. The sex is smoking hot, of course, but there’s so much meaning and emotion to it. I’m a Sam girl anyway, so the whole thing is just *swoons* *cries*
Nominated by @princessmisery666 
Magnetic (oneshot) by @crashdevlin 
Only a few words yet gave me all the feels. Exactly how I imagine Sam would be *swoon*
Just A Number (oneshot) by @crispychrissy 
I am taking part in @beccaanne814 reblog challenge and it’s all about finding new authors and sharing each others works but I think this maybe the third fic of Chrissy’s I’ve recommended because she consistently writes stories I love and this was no exception. She gives me all the feels, laughing, crying, anger, sad. Basically I’m a huge fangirl and I don’t have to right words to express how much I love her work.
Nominated by @wingedcatninja 
Good Literature (series) by @peridottea91 
I don’t normally have the patience for a series, especially one that is still being updated. Thank goodness I signed up to beta this one because I would have missed out on some truly outstanding writing. The story is compelling, the characterization is on point, and the OC adds an intriguing layer. This could easily be a story arc on the actual show, and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys classic SPN.
Nominated by @thoughtslikeaminefield
Shackled (series) by @itmighthavebeenintentional
Valerie has long been one of my fave fic authors and one of my dearest friends. This was such an unexpected but welcome deluge of poetry and imagery. I was on the edge of my seat and breathless every time she sent me an updated Gdoc.
Please, if you read nothing else this month, READ THIS.
Nominated by @mummybear
Rules are Rules (oneshot) by @thoughtslikeaminefield
As soon as I read this fic i was hooked!! I have reread it at least four times at this point!! I freaking love it!! MJ is incredible and so is everything she writes! Since tumblr ate the stupid ask i sent her after reading, I figured I could do this at least :) Much love honey!!
Nominated by @supernatural-jackles​
The Fun Behind Conventions (oneshot) by @focusonspn​
I came across this bad boy while searching for something else and man was I excited to read this. This fic is hot as hell! Very very NSFW, but holy! There is nothing hotter than this kind of sandwich! It was so well written and the attention to detail left me… let’s just say I’ll be going back to reread this one! Amazing!!
The Accidental Sexter (oneshot) by @scorpiongirl1
This had everything I was looking for! Humor wrapped in a hot fic! Dean accidentally sending a naughty picture shouldn’t be this much of a turn on but this is - this is freakin’ awesome! Words can’t do this one justice! Please, just read this one and you’ll see exactly what I mean! Absolutely awesome story!
High School Bullshit (oneshot) by @fictionalabyss​
 I don’t know why this one struck me as much as it did. I read this one, then I lost it until I was thinking about it. I searched high and low trying to find it again so I could reread it! I really enjoyed this one because I could relate to it in some way. Never feeling like I could get the hot guy I had a crush on because of high school bullshit. I can definitely relate to this reader and it was nice to see something like this in a fic and have an outcome like it does! Awesome job!
Nominated by @thelittleredwhocould​
What Lurks Beneath the Surface (series) by @saxxxology​ 
I. Love. Soulless. Sam. So. Fucking. Much. Also there’s a line about Sam’s nose in the first chapter and I feel. Attacked. So rude.
What Goes Bump in the Night  (series) @saxxxology​ 
I love me some dark A/B /O and this series hits all the right buttons. Angst, a dark and gritty world, Alpha!Sam (*heart eyes*). It’s just ugh. So good.
About a Boy (series) by @percywinchester27​ 
I think this series is going to be in my Hall of Fame till the end of time. Ana’s plot pulled my in from the first chapter and I’m so excited to see where this series goes!
There’s Something Strange (series) by @alleiradayne​ 
I found this on AO3 by accident and immediately fell in love. The case is super interesting, the characters are well done, and over all I really enjoyed it.
Her Saviours (series) by @bamby0304​ 
Been doing a lil reread of this series and rediscovering how much I adore it.
I Know Your Wife (She Wouldn’t Mind) (series) by @teamfreewill-imagine​ 
I will forever recommend this fic to anyone who will listen. It’s the only RPF fic I’ll read and it’s just. SO GOOD.
Nominated by @myinconnelly1​
Tighter Harder Faster (oneshot) by @impala-dreamer​
Alright look this was just straight up dirty.  Ok, what else can I saw but that I needed a cold shower after this.The Girl I Knew 
The Girl I Knew (oneshot) by @emilyshurley​
Uh, what can I say here?  I have never been so honored to have fanfic written of my fanfics before, but emilyshurley has given me the highest medal, in the absolute cutest way imaginable.
Gods of Twilight (seires) by @thecleverdame​ 
This fic was binge worthy. I could put my phone down and I simply wanted to hurry onto the next chapter.  Seriously don’t read it if you need any time to adult.
The Private Invader (oneshot) by @negans-lucille-tblr​
This was some dirty below the belt cheating.  It was amazing, and I just was like *heart eyes* the entire way through. 
The Truth (series) by @negans-lucille-tblr​ 
While this type of fic is not normally my go to, it truly grips you and puts into the minds of the characters.  I was actually scared and ashamed of myself feeling like I had done something wrong, when it was the characters.
Nominated by @tumbler-tidbits
Everything (series) by @there-must-be-a-lock
Sweet Holy Effervescent Jesus this is the hottest thing I have read in a long time! Its raw and messy and desperate, and SO fucking delicious! Lou even managed to get some fluff in too! Do yourself a favor and binge this fic! (just make sure your alone and have spare panties)
Bottle Service (series) by @thoughtslikeaminefield
This is one of my longtime faves, and it never disappoints! My girl MJ captures the true intimacy between the characters and a smut  fic has never sparked such emotion in me. It’s beautiful, and passionate and there’s a sequel! It’s called Full Service and it is equally amazing!
Worthless (oneshot) by @maddiepants
This one just ugh *sobs*. Erica captures the struggle of self-harm in this fic very well. Its heartbreaking and soul shattering, but it also reminds you that you can’t trust those voices in your head, and that there is someone who cares about you. TW: thoughts of suicide and self harm.
Hard To Love (oneshot) by @maddiepants
I’m a sucker for a good song fic and Erica does this one justice! She really captures Dean’s self-hatred and really makes you want to wrap our favorite hunter in hugs. My bestie has a gift for the angst, but she gives you fluff too.
His Property (series) by @negans-lucille-tblr
This fic is glorious! There’s angst, fluff, and smut so hot you’ll be a melted puddle of arousal. Believe it or not Bee also managed to make me hate one of my favorite Supernatural characters! There is a definite twist in this one :)
Since You’ve Been Gone (series) by @negans-lucille-tblr
This series quickly captured my heart. I don’t remember what it was that captured me but the mix of fluff, angst, and smut certainly kept me around! The best part? There’s a sequel called “Now You’re Here” and in March she’s releasing Part three of the Trilogy!
Ask Me (oneshot) by @evansrogerskitten
This one is another favorite of mine by my girl Ash! This hits so many of my kinks there are not words to describe the hotness. In fact I’m pretty sure my reblog contained gifs and keyboard smashes lol. Read it! You’ll thank me!
With Wolves (series) by @bamby0304
This one is a classic favorite! This fic was my first foray into the A/B/O world AND series works. I was still somewhat new to the fandom and tumblr when I discovered it and I was immediately hooked! I love the way Amber has incorporated our favorite characters into this alternate universe while still maintaining their cannon personalities. It’s an emotional roller coaster, so buck up and enjoy the ride!
Spanner in the Works (series) by @bamby0304
This one has a special place in my heart! It makes me smile and squee and just overall make a fool of myself. It’s incomplete right now because Amb is on hiatus, but there are seventeen AMAZING chapters that you can read right now! I just love it, plain and simple.
Cupid Can Shove His Arrow Right Up His... (oneshot) by @bamby0304
Since it’s February, I thought it appropriate to share this yummy piece! Holy Fucking shit I LOVED THIS! The attitude, the sass, the fucking innuendos… THE FUCKING! Jesus Christ on a crumbled cracker, This one killed. Go beg Amber for MORE of this! And make sure you say PLEASE! We need to see ALL those scenarios played out… Read this one in privacy ladies and have a helper handy.
Wrecked (oneshot) by @thoughtslikeaminefield
JFC if this isn’t every Jensen girls fantasy! This one just ruined me! Wall sex, hand over your mouth, soft nips and kisses *shudders* give it a read!
Our Little Secret (series) by @sis-tafics
If you’ve got a kink then Jill’s got you covered 😏 This 25 chapter serious has it all! A little angst, a dash of fluff, and whole lot of smut! Each chapter explores a different kink between Dean and the Reader from the Readers point of view while Dean tries to show her how beautiful she is. I recommend you take the time and read the series in sequence, y’all will not regret it!
Midnight Blue (oneshot) by @rockhoochie
This Fic was so fucking amazing! Precise and descriptive words paint an amazingly vivid picture that fills all your senses! You can actually see, hear, smell, and feel the things going on between the reader and Sam! I could be biased since this fic hit nearly all my kinks *fans self* but indulge in this extremely passionate sensory experience for yourself and read it!!
Bruised (oneshot) by @wayward-and-worn
This is oddly sweet and fluffy with a hen pecking Dean, and absolutely fucking hilarious at the same time 😂😂 I love it!
Not Letting Go (oneshot) by @kittenofdoomage
Whoo! I love a good A/B/O fic and this one is delicious! Just enough smut to please you and leave you begging for more!
The Maddening Empty (oneshot) by @impala-dreamer
Whew. I don’t know if it’s my praise!kink or my dom!kink but this little number right here had me wishing I waited to read until after work! This ones a panty ruiner folks!
Notes (oneshot) by @kittenofdoomage
JFC this piece is a dream come true! What would you do if Sam and Dean discovered your smutty fanfiction? Well this hot little number lets you know exactly what they would do!
The Mirror (oneshot) by @wheresthekillswitch
This sweet little drabble speaks volumes for those of us who have insecurities (read: all of us!). Short, sweet, and to the point! Hold your head high.
Only One Woman I Trust (oneshot) by @georgialouisea
This is just absolutely precious! You think you know what’s going on but there’s a surprise! This one will rot your teeth ❤️
Inked Up (oneshot) by @evansrogerskitten
Ever want to know what goes on inside Dean’s head when he sees a hot girl? This fic is super hilarious and totally fluffy! I love Dean’s internal struggle to keep himself in check 😂 this one is fun!
Hunt Hard Play Harder (two parts - link is to Pt. 1) by @rockhoochie
HOLY FUCKING SHIT! This is…. this is just. WOW! Holy Hell I can barely breathe. This one gives you Dom!Dean AND Sub!Dean and both are equally sensual and erotic! There’s even a surprise ending! Which had my pulse racing… Whew 🔥 My bitches y’all will love this one!
Mr. Quackers (oneshot) by @impala-dreamer
They say that crack is whack, well in this case quack is whack 😂😂 This little drabble with have you laughing until you cry, it’s just that ducking funny! (See what I did there?)
Holding On (oneshot) by @idreamofplaid
This is so beautiful and so painful I was teary eyed! They never really show us how the boys deal with their inner demons on the show, but Robin does a phenomenal job of painting that picture!
Clear Your Mind  (oneshot) by @impala-dreamer
Oh sweet smiling sinner this was miraculous! So soft, so gentle, so loving… this was Sam making love to the reader and the way he takes care of her makes it that much more passionate! Ladies and gents THIS is how you take care of your lover! Fucking love you Beka!
Thunder Rolls (oneshot) by @amanda-teaches
This was intensely passionate! The sex is hot but the love behind it really makes it great! The authors use of super descriptive descriptions of your pleasure will have you clenching your thighs!
Tumblr media
Thank you all for the awesome work and great feedback!
These are not actual awards! This system is set up so everyone in the pond has a chance to share the love and promote a fic/author that has grabbed your attention. The more people that participate, and the more everyone remembers to submit their own fics after posting, the better this will be :D
THANK YOU ALL AGAIN, KEEP UP THE AMAZING WORK, AND AS ALWAYS, HAPPY WRITING!
112 notes · View notes
xseildnasterces · 3 years
Text
do or die.
As always, it’s Friday, and I’m exhausted. It’s been a long week and I am so unbelievably glad to have been off today. One thing I do really love at work is the option of flexible working hours. Essentially, we have a work arrangement that if we work 8 hours overtime in a two-week period, we can take a day off to recoup the hours. That is what I did today.
Cleary, I started writing yesterday and didn’t get very far. It’s now Saturday. I spent the whole of yesterday cleaning and tidying so that I didn’t need to do it over the weekend, which was certainly a good idea as now I feel so much more relaxed and don’t feel like I should be doing something that I am not.
Last night I decided to watch the first episode of ‘It’s a Sin’. I have been wanting to watch it since the minute it was released, but due to problems with my VPN and it not yet being available in the US I had been unable to do so. I had been so excited about it since it’s release, yet being fully aware that it was going to be heart wrenching and that I would end up in floods of tears. I watched the first episode and was hooked from the first few minutes. It was SO WELL done. Like incredibly well done, so gripping, emotional, and genuinely one of the best things that I have watched in so long. I had been told by several people that it was not something you should binge because it’s very hard going… but what did I do? I watched all five episodes one after the other last night and my god. I was a mess. My whole face was wet from tears and I was balling my eyes out for a good while before I could actually go to sleep. Regardless, it’s incredible. I urge anyone who has not seen it to watch it. It is SO good. I also hope it also makes people more aware of what actually happened in the 80s as I feel like it is something that a lot of people overlook and do not really understand. It’s important to understand, and it’s important to know – especially for our community. I have seen so many things making correlations with covid and HIV/AIDs during this whole pandemic, yet I feel like it is really important to mention and be aware that it cannot be compared in the same way for a number of reason, but mainly because right now we know how covid is passed and we know how to protect ourselves. At the time, no one even know anything about HIV/AIDs and they most certainly didn’t have any real understanding of how it spread or how to protect themselves at first. I think ‘It’s a Sin’ is something I would re-watch at some point. I am not really a re-watcher of anything, but this is something I certainly would. Watch it.
I have finally come to realise why I have been recently living in a phase of nostalgia and walking down memory lane. It seems ridiculous that I didn’t even realise this earlier. It’s all because of a memory app on my phone. Seven years ago, around this time there was a lot going on and I was really struggling with something. During that time, I posted a LOT of my feelings in Tweets and currently they are all coming back to haunt me. I don’t think memory apps that relate to your old social media posts are a great idea to be honest, but at the same time there is some kind of morbid curiosity to look at them. It is the same morbid curiosity that comes with looking up people on social media that you ‘used to know’ and miss greatly. The period in question I was incredibly depressed, and what was happening and how I was being made to feel (regardless of the circumstances that I was unaware of), was causing me a lot of anxiety and self-hate. My self-worth was probably at an all time low (up until that point) and I was struggling. After what had already happened the year before my weight was not what it should be and I was struggling with sleep, not eating and also collapsing (at one point knocking myself out in the shower – something that my app oh so kindly reminded me of last week). At the time it felt like I was going from one disaster to another and my mental health was certainly not coping. It was rough and re-reading the things I wrote and thinking about how I felt is certainly not nice reading. Regardless, a lot of this brought up a lot of things for me and R and I have been discussing a lot of these things recently. Friends, relationships, people that come and go from your life and my own fears and concerns with abandonment. R is lucky. She is one of these people who can just accept people leaving her life. She agrees that it is incredibly hard and that sometimes she misses people, but she believes that it is also a good thing. She is very much of the opinion and belief that if someone leaves your life you should just let them go because they clearly they are no longer a real friend and you should not waste your time trying to be their friend anymore. They have made the choice to leave and you should not run after them or cry tears for them when they have made that decision. She also thinks that people leaving also means they are making room for other people to come in – better people. I’m not so sure I agree, nor am I sure that I can change my way of thinking to this, although granted she suffers less because of it and doesn’t spend far too much time thinking about how much she misses people or wants them back in her life. I wonder if perhaps I only really create connections with people on a super deep level before calling them a friend, so when that relationship ends I am heartbroken, whereas some people have lots of friends on a surface level but not completely deep relationships. Maybe that’s it. Maybe it’s not. Maybe I am doing it wrong. Who knows? Talking to R on a daily basis really has been wonderful, and honestly the best thing to come out of this pandemic for me. I have no doubt in my mind that our friendship really is forever. Some of the things we have shared recently about our own relationship and how we feel about one another has been so reassuring. I love that girl so very much and do not believe I will ever meet someone who does not judge me for whatever I do and any mistakes that I make. She really is one in a million and I feel so incredibly lucky to have her.
Talking about mistakes I have been recently evaluating some of the things I have done in my life and I think I have quite a few regrets that I did not consider to be regrets before. I know everyone says you should not have regrets because at the time whatever you did or didn’t do is exactly what you wanted in that moment, but I’m not completely sure I agree. I mean, I do somewhat, but I also think it is normal to have regrets. I think there are some things that I have done in my life that I would now do differently should I have had the opportunity to do them again. As always, hindsight is a wonderful thing. There are actually a great number of things I think I would have done differently – some small, and some huge. Some things that would make a huge impact on where I am in my life right now, and some that wouldn’t change very much in my current day to day life but would ease my overthinking and my constant anxiety. I think this is one of the things I love so much about R. She said to me the other day, that she will never pass judgement on anything in my life because everyone makes mistakes. At the end of the day we are all human and there is not one person on this earth that can say they have never made a mistake or done something that they are not proud of. I resonated with this a lot, and as they say, "Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones". Life is a series of decisions that we make, some of which are good and some of which are bad, and although you may go through life with some regrets I guess the idea is to not dwell on them, to move past them and continue to be better. I think this is something I struggle with. I do dwell on them, and I struggle to move past them – but I guess that is something to work on.
I recently finished reading ‘Three Women’ by Lisa Taddeo, a book that I devoured in only a few days because it was so good and so hard to put down. I told R to read it because I think she would enjoy it, and she told me she had a book recommendation for me. We had been talking about anxiety and fear, and she told me to read ‘Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway’. Now I am not a reader of self-help books, nor am I really a fan of that sort of thing, but neither is she and I do trust in her recommendations so I’m going to give it a go. She told me that it has helped her with making some very big decisions and doing things she was initially scared to do, so I think it may be good for me. I will report back. I’ve been doing so well on my reading challenge so far this year. January started with reading ‘You’ by R. Yep, my best friend self-published a book and it is awesome! I am so proud of her and I love it so much. It’s poetry and I am really not a poetry fan, but this is so real. It reminds me a lot of Rupi Kaur’s work, and perhaps I am a little biased considering R is my best friend, but I found a lot of it much more relatable. February saw me read ‘Burlesque and the Art of the Teese/Fetish and the Art of the Teese’ by Dita Von Teese. It’s a huge coffee table book with beautiful photographs and a deep dive into vintage clothing, corsets, and of course burlesque and fetish. I loved it. Most recently I finished ‘Three Women’ which as mentioned had my glued. I’m unsure of what to start next, although I think I may wait until the book R recommended arrives and I will start on that. I don’t want to jump the gun, but I really hope I can read 12 books this year. I have wanted to complete the reading challenge of one book a month for the last few years and failed every single time. It’s frustrating as when I was younger, I could read 12 books in a month, never mind a year – but I guess adulthood has changed the time I have to read, but 2021 will be the year. I am hopeful and optimistic.
Next year R and I both turn 30. Yeah, I know. What the hell? Much conversation recently has revolved around how exactly we got here and how neither of us feel like 30-year-old women. Regardless of that we have decided to do something to celebrate together. We are not yet sure what we will do, but it will involve travel, possibly somewhere in either the US or the Caribbean. To be decided, but I am very excited about this. It has been quite a long time since R and I have travelled together – I think the last time was Australia! So, it will be nice to go somewhere to just chill and hang out without any pressure to be busy and constantly be on the go.
I am on a major ‘women in metal’ hype right now and I am absolutely LOVING it. It’s been a while but I am appreciating it greatly.
In other news, I tried to get a vaccine appointment yesterday, once again it was like the Hunger Games and I didn’t manage to get one.  This week DC are changing the system to a pre-register system which I hope will be much better. At least that way there will not be a weekly fight to get tickets (wait, I mean an appointment…) and instead you will just be contacted when an appointment is available to you. I hope it work, and I hope I can get some sometime soon. Having to go into work every single day just makes me feel uneasy, especially as more people want to start coming to the office. My immune system is not ready to mix with people.
Small side note, I REALLY miss the sea.
[Blog title: Do or Die - Amaranthe ft. Angela Gossow].
2 notes · View notes
molly2140 · 4 years
Text
I feel like showing off my vinyl collection, feel free to show me yours!
I'm an avid 70s/80s/90s collector, and deeply wish I could've been alive for all of that, most of my vinyls are 70s/80s, some older, some newer. Some are 100% vintage, others are newly made/released. My dad (who brought me up on literally everything 70s and 80s) got me a record player for Christmas and helped me start my collection, since then it's grown rapidly.
First I must show off my RDR2 vinyls, with Marty Robbins' "Gunfighter Ballads", his songs are perfect to listen to while playing RDR2, "Big Iron" being one of my favorites.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Dad got me all 3 of my Queen albums for Christmas, as he knows that Queen is perhaps my favorite band of all time, I've been trying to find vintage vinyls of their albums rather than the newly remade ones, haven't had much luck yet but we will get there. :)
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Did I mention that my dad and I are diehard Gordon Lightfoot fans? "Summertime Dream" and "Sundown" are perhaps my favorite albums. Lightfoot's song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" holds a special place in my heart. While the song is based off of a true story, about the tragic sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior, this song has a deeper connection with me. My dad, my Uncle Rob, and my Uncle Rodney, they loved this song so much, they would sit and listen to it on repeat for hours and hours mesmerized by the story that it told, along with Lightfoot's iconic voice, and the instruments itself. This was their group song essentially. Unfortunately, on July 25, 2019 (a year ago this coming Saturday), my Uncle Rodney lost his battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease), he was only 49 years old, a year younger than my dad. It was something we would never expect happen to any of us, let alone him. Uncle Rodney went out of his way for everyone, he'd help everyone whenever he could and would never ask for or expect anything in return. He put his family first, he loved and cared for his kids the best he could, he worked his ass off hand crafting furniture out of cedar wood, and adding onto his home and designing it just the way a true country boy could ever want it, he was dedicated to his job, his family, and his friends. Hard to believe it will be a whole year this weekend, not a day goes by where I don't think about him, he was like a second dad to me, and I greatly wished that I'd had more time with him, especially hugs, he gave the best hugs.
However he'd want me to carry on and continue to be happy, and it was hard the first few months after he passed, I went into a depression spell, and starting coming out of it in February, and then I met the man who is now my boyfriend. I don't know if it was just coincidence, or if Uncle Rodney had a hand in all of it, but I shit you not, my boyfriend reminds me so much of him, including my dad. My family absolutely loves him and has taken him in already, and I've never been this happy. But alas, this isn't supposed to be my life's story, but some of these records mean so much to me, and Lightfoot's records will forever hold a special place in my heart, for the very sole reason you just read about.
Tumblr media
Moving on! These are some great records I found on a clearance rack at a record store, all under $5 a piece! My grandpa is a huge John Denver fan, so he very much appreciates it when he stops by our house and hears me blasting that album from my room haha. My boyfriend loves The Oak Ridge Boys, and let me tell you, he can sing the oom poppa mow mows in the song "Elvira" perfectly, and I melt everytime haha. Rosanne Cash, her music gets played constantly whenever we are having a party at my Uncle Rob's house, so when I hear her voice, it makes me want to go down there and have a great time. The Outlaws, I only recently discovered them but I really enjoy this album in particular, "You Are the Show" is perhaps my favorite song on the album, I sing this one a lot no matter how terrible I may be at it, I can't help it lol.
Ah yes, more classics. My dad really enjoys when I decide to blast my CCR album (a birthday present from my boyfriend). "Fortunate Son" is probably my dad's favorite CCR song, and it is definitely his theme song. Boston and Molly Hatchet are two of my other favorites for sure, including Chicago, it has been awhile since I listened to them, but they sure are fun.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Oh these three here I love talking about. I mean, who doesn't love Footloose and Dirty Dancing? The Footloose record is vintage, the Dirty Dancing one is a newly released version, but I ended up buying it anyways as the record itself is that purple color of awesomeness. The Quiet Riot one I found at an antique store, my favorite album of theirs, and because it's a picture vinyl, I had to have it. It looks kickass watching it on the record player.
Tumblr media
Any Fleetwood Mac fans? My witchy sisters, this is our music. I can actually sing Stevie Nicks pretty decently, my boyfriend absolutely loves it when I do. "Tango in the Night" is my favorite Fleetwood Mac album, I listen to this record religiously. Once I listened to it on repeat for about 3 days straight, and my dad eventually had to tell me to switch to a different record because he was ready to hear some other great music 😂 The song "Twisted" which Stevie sang with Lindsey Buckingham, was part of the 1996 movie "Twister" with Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt. My favorite movie, and my favorite Stevie Nicks song, might I also mention that I'm a weather nut and also studying for a degree in meteorology? Yeah, I also chase tornadoes, hence why "Twister" is my favorite movie.
Tumblr media
And last but not least, these two little guys. Tiësto is perhaps my favorite DJ of all time, his classic hits and even the new ones, always give me such a vibe that is so enjoyable. My favorite mix of his? "Silence" by Delerium with Sarah Maclachlan, this was one of Tiësto's "In Search of Sunrise" mixes, and I still get absolute chills hearing it.
Tumblr media
Oh yes, I forgot to add, a bunch of the vintage vinyls I bought, I got at Guestroom Records in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma while I was there back in May. They have a giant clearance section with records under $5, and of course they have all the newly released music, and even full collection sets. My favorite part? They also have a beautiful kitty cat that lives at the store and he/she is such a lovely kitty. So if you're in OKC and wanna buy some vinyls? This is your place.
So that's all of my vinyls I have so far! I hope you enjoyed seeing my collection, and reading about why they mean so much to me, I hope I didn't bore you too much with them haha. Again, feel free to show me some of yours! Tell me why they mean so much to you! :)
3 notes · View notes
cyruliik-a · 4 years
Note
4. On your fandom.
spicy onions // accepting!disclaimer! opinions presented below are mine to keep & by no means are supposed to make anyone feel bad for what they’re doing. you do you, folks !
Uh oh. There’s a lot to unpack here. On one hand, I’ve never been involved in so much drama within barely 2 months of a stay in a new fandom, and that’s not cool. Everything happened so much, so fast. I was emotionally manipulated, accidentally befriended someone who turned out to be a bad and toxic person, I was sent anon hate for blocking another toxic person … and I made my blog at the beginning of February! I knew no one in the community, I’m still unfamiliar with a lot of past dramas, and I’m unfortunately easy to mold for manipulative individuals. I give people lots of benefit of the doubt and generously give out second chances, and I’m just hoping it won’t bite me in the butt in the future. I like to believe people change for the better, and if they really regret their misdeeds & own up to them, I’m willing to trust them.From a newbie’s POV, there’s too much unnecessary arguing over the superiority of one media over the other, just let people enjoy what they want. Not everyone has the mental capacity to read all the books in a long series, nor do they have the means to do so, just like not everyone has access to the games, so the show is what they base their ideas off. And this comes from a person who adores the books-based portrayals. It’s one thing to discuss the differences and try to find common ground, but just being unnecessary mean is another. Live & let live. Sapko isn’t the best writer, neither are the CDPR folk or Netflix crew, so keep that in mind.
On the other hand, I’ve met so many passionate and helpful people in the comm. As a Polish person, I’m extremely flattered and genuinely happy to see so many foreigners pick up a story from a country of my origin & delve deeper into the lore. There are so many takes and ideas I would have never considered myself, fantastic OCs, brilliant portrayals … this might be rich of me to say that, but I’m so proud of my mutuals writing in The Witcher community. You’re doing great, you’re a delight. And remember that at the end of the day you’re supposed to have fun and feel safe here. Stay awesome.
4 notes · View notes
lululawrence · 5 years
Photo
Tumblr media
lululawrence’s February 2019 Fic List
Click here for previous months’ fic lists
It has officially been a year of my making monthly fic lists and I’m so happy I decided to start doing this. I have so much fun sharing what I’ve been reading and how much I’ve enjoyed it. I’m so glad to keep going with it and hope you like it too! This month I continued my catch up on the Tomlinshaw exchange but also started reading a lot of fics I’d been holding out on for awhile. So, without further ado, here are the awesome fics that rocked my world this month!
play the game by @candybarrnerd / icarusinflight This one was sexy and filthy and I just...don’t have much more to say hahahahaha It’s Tomlinshaw and reading it had me pretty much dropped right into Nick’s emotions and I loved it.
Leave Your Mark On Me by @fullonlarrie / FullOnLarrie OMG okay so like. Omega Harry who doesn’t even think he’s interested in alphas quick bonds with Alpha Louis because otherwise he can’t get the job he wants. But there’s a massive twist! And then feelings! And realizations! And pining! And flirting! And it just grows so perfectly and I loved it very much a lot. I can’t even find the right words and I think I finished it a week ago as of writing this little thing but yeah. It’s amazing.
Owner of a Lonely Heart by @shiftylinguini / shiftylinguini It’s a kind of Tomlinshaw rash marriage in vegas kind of fic but also not? There’s so many more feelings to it than something as simple as that. But it’s defo strangers to lovers and honestly the non-cameo Liam makes might very well be my favorite part of it as well as the Neil/Niall fiasco just because it plays out SO PERFECTLY with Nick and Louis. hahahahaha Gosh this fic is hysterical and soft and painful and just so many things. It is a perfect little fic. I love love loved it.
oh, i just want you to come with me by @hiatusniall / weddingbells I’ll be honest hahahaha the bit with the sprinklers had me wanting to cry a little because I was just imagining everything being ruined BUT the bookends were beautiful and the pain and the miscommunication cause, let’s be real, Tomlinshaw would never just have easy and straightforward and good communication. They’d have to fight it out and be stupid boys first, and this really captures that. It was a super fun read, I really enjoyed it!
Come and Get Your Love by @rsadelle / rsadelle A five times Tomlinshaw Fic! Featuring awesome dads Nick and Louis! This was so sweet and soft and cute and there was a twist I wasn’t expecting! And little interludes that just added even more to what was already incredible. It was such a fun read, I adored it.
dead set on a getaway by EmmyLouWho EmmyLouWho strikes again! Seriously, their fics are ALWAYS gold. I don’t know how they do it. This time features Tomlinshaw in a BOOK STORE. OOOOOMMMMGGGGGG!!! And the way it all finally comes together is adorable and perfect. And Gemma is hysterical hehehe Gosh such a fun and fluffy fic.
happiness hits like a train on a track by leighbot New dad Louis meets his neighbors Harry and Liam and Lirry are fucking adorable, okay? And they try to play matchmaker and it all goes horribly wrong and is so funny and yet bad BUT THEN! Nick to the rescue! For real, in the same ways the previous set ups had been all wrong, Nick is so right and I LOVED IT. Also, Louis’ relationship with Penny’s mother is so fucking cute too. I just can’t handle it. I loved this one too.
Say It With Flowers by @reminiscingintherain / reminiscingintherain Back to Larry! For a bit, anyway hahaha Roni took the most hilarious prompt and made Louis so awkward and angry and forthright it was incredible. Meanwhile Harry’s just confused and yet it somehow all comes together and I so so so enjoyed reading this! It was the perfect read after a long day. hehe
The Sleepover by @homosociallyyours / homosociallyyours THIS GIRL DIRECTION FICLET IS THE MOST ADORABLE PERFECTION EVER?! It’s so pure! So soft! So sweet! Gosh I loved it very much a lot.
Charity Ficlets and Tumblr Drabbles by @becomeawendybird / QuickedWeen This collection of ficlets has such gems! Merm Louis, a magical curse au, AND a prompt I gave her that essentially takes Rachmaninoff and Stravinsky in Old Hollywood and makes them Harry and Louis. It’s all AMAZING and I LOVE IT.
One Touch Is Never Enough by @fullonlarrie / FullOnLarrie Werewolf Louis goes to get a massage and things do not go as planned. Gosh I was cackling at this so much, it’s so great. A super funny, super ridiculous read haha
London Rain by @writsgrimmyblog / Writcraft Basically canon compliant Tomlinshaw where Louis wants to finally explore possibilities with boys and takes to online dating to try it. Gosh this fic is such a great read. There was a lot of emotion and parts that made me laugh out loud, it was absolutely fab.
Brave Love by @angelichl / angelichl And they were roommates!!! For real, though. They were. And there’s SO MUCH PINING and omgosh it’s so beautiful and soft and sweet and Harry and Louis are just so precious in this, okay? It’s so so so amazing. A great valentine’s day read.
hold on for one more day by @disgruntledkittenface / disgruntledkittenface This fic had me rolling but also so worried and I might have cried just a little bit, but seriously the Tomlinshaw banter was so great and so were the soft feels! The careful watching after each other and there’s a part where Grimmy is just so worried and scared and Louis is so so so soft and sweet and I’ll leave it at that. so good.
time stopped then sped so fast by sarcasticfluentry I went through the Grouis tag on AO3 and found very few fics. I loved them all, and they’re coming now, hahaha This is...basically Greg James/Louis Tomlinson porn lollll most of them are, tbh. It’s got panties though hehehe and if size difference is a kink for you, then this definitely has that for ya. An oldie but a goodie!
Let me be your good night by @conscious--ramblings / Conscious_ramblings I apparently read this ages ago when it first was published and I don’t remember it which seems impossible I don’t know how that happened?!?! This is Harry/Louis, but they go to a swinger party and Greg and Nick get added into the mix. It’s such a great read, though, because Harry and Louis are exclusive and never really considered adding more into their relationship, but this night changes some things and the way Sheena goes through the emotions of it all is so beautiful. And hot. Like damn hot. So. If that’s your jam, I would defo recommend this one.
sugar, butter, flour by EmmyLouWho After two incredibly smutty fics, have an entirely pure and smut free goodie from emmylouwho! hehe It’s a Nailed It AU and is SO GOOD. It’s so funny the way Harry, Zayn, and Niall are all depicted and the way it all plays out had me giggling the entire way through. A super cute, super fun read.
Like An Anthem In My Heart by @goodmorningtoyouuniverse / GMTYUniverse This fic, y’all. I love footie fics, but I’m also super picky about them because I love footie myself. This one was written so so so well in all aspects, but the football aspects had me screaming in excitement in a football chat. It was sooooo good and it involves a forced outing and how it was all handled and it was so believable and beautiful and the emotions and the relationships and the cameos of real players and people had me flipping out in a good way and I just. It was so great. One of my favs of the month, easily.
Taste Too Good by sarcasticfluentry Okay this one is more PWP basically, but it’s kinda...well, it’s Grouis, but it’s also...Tomlinshames. Is that the ship name for Nick/Greg/Louis? It is now. lol Anyway, this fic was a lovely little read and the switching in POV gave you a little insight on everyone’s feelings and thoughts throughout so yeah. haha
'cause i like it dark and low by sarcasticfluentry What can I say? More filthy, filthy Grouis PWP. lollll But it was good! haha
The Post-War BP by @jaerie / jaerie As per usual, Jenna comes in and just takes A/B/O and makes it an entirely different beast. I have no idea how her brain works, but I’d love to see inside it hahaha This is a fic where it kind of holds to the more traditional omegas stay home, have children, etc but in this world an alpha is required to be a part of the relationship in order for an alpha to have a chance at being produced. Add in a war where alphas were shipped off to fight and not many returned, and suddenly a Breeding Plan is introduced. This fic is somewhat dark, quite twisted in parts, and does involve some unsavory content, so please beware of tags. I ADORED it though.
Tell Me Your Secrets by @dimpled-halo / dimpled_halo This was for the Popularry fest, which I’m doing horribly at keeping up with. It was based on the film For a Good Time Call and I’d never heard of that until I read this, but now I wanna watch it! haha Harry and Louis are pseudo enemies to friends to lovers as they move into an apartment together and start a sex line and It’s...amazing. hahaha Such a great fic!
And that’s it for this month! Happy reading, and don’t forget to leave the authors kudos and nice comments!!
189 notes · View notes
hoodie-at-the-bar · 4 years
Text
b side
These aren’t dates, but they’re something. Jensen was a friend of a friend couple, Andy and Kate. Actually the plot thickens in that Andy and Kate are best friends with Ben, the ex-boyfriend. In fact, Jensen looked like a thinner, more attractive version of Ben. I swear it’s not a bitter thing to say. It’s borderline fact.
I had posted on Facebook that I should open a business helping people with their Tinder profile since even simply picking six decent photos seemed to be so hard. That was when Jensen sent me a message.
I was confused. Jensen was married, what was he doing on Tinder? Ah… separation.  He had two kids, but lived in an apartment on his own. I helped him pick some photos and what to write for his Tinder profile. He said he was just dipping his toe and wasn’t ready to date.
Worth keeping, but not ready to be kept. Jensen wrote that in his profile.
I really liked that line - he wrote it, and I said he should keep it in his bio. Jensen and I started talking every day, and every night. It reminded me of John and Hugh. What is it about me, that has guys who are sad about ex-wives just want to talk to me? Is it because I’m open and listening or do I gravitate toward them? It’s not like I had an ad out, or updated my dating filters.
We started talking back in the fall of 2019, but things picked up in the beginning of the year. I even sent him Christmas cookies. He came down to Seattle for my big costume birthday party in February. He packed a bag, hoping I’d have an after party and he’d likely stay over. Unfortunately, I came down with a severe cold, probably flu, and he got drunk enough he stayed with Andy and Kate, 
I saw him once before the birthday party, at Andy’s work anniversary. Ben was there too - Jensen came as I was leaving and we hugged. It was the first time I had seen him since we started our forbidden pen-pal love. He told me later he just wanted to pick me up and spin me around and kiss me. Yes, we got to that level already.
After Andy’s work and my birthday party, I had to tell Kate. It felt wrong. I told her and her sister, Emily, and some friends that I had been messaging with Jensen everyday and I felt sorta guilty about it. Kate’s sister said she thought we had already slept together, and I let out a cackle of a laugh.
They were all for it, just wanted me to heed caution as he was messed up from the marriage and probably not ready to date. Fair enough
A few weeks after the birthday party,. I had tickets to a show and asked Jensen if he wanted to come. Jensen lived over an hour north, so if he did he would have to find a sister, and spend the night. I became that timid virgin in college again, the one who has a panic attack whenever a guy says, “should we go to the bedroom?” I was fine making out with boys on a couch, but with that “bedroom” suggestion, I immediately assumed it meant sex and I wasn’t ready. I still held sex in high regard back in college - though to be honest I lost my virginity when I was 23. Anyway, I digress,
We went to the Paramount Theater to watch Beirut, a European singer with brass instruments. We got drinks at the Carlile room after, Our conversation was very different. It was still good, but something felt off. I realized when I mentioned Ben, who Jensen knew, he didn’t react. I wasn’t sure if he knew of our history because he would be cavalier to say things like, “but he’s a cool guy.” When I found out Jensen did know aspects about  my relationship with Ben, about how Ben had cheated on me and wasn’t awesome afterwards, I was a bit turned off that Jensen remained so neutral. I’m not saying he should flip the table and say he’d want to murder Ben in the name of love, but at least make a face. Or pretend to.
Okay, no problem. Pack a bag. Jensen came over and we hugged, and It was very bizarre. He looked so much like my ex-boyfriend, the guy who haunted me for several years. Same best friends, same height. I shook it off and we went to the show. 
After the show we came back to my house and I got awkward again. We had been flirting, and messaging for months. But I didn’t want to be presumptuous. I showed him the guest room and he immediately said, “oh, I thought we would cuddle?”
“Sure” - do I know how to make a guy feel wanted or what? I’ll throw that onto my list of things to learn,
We did cuddle throughout the night,  He had motioned for us to sleep together and though I had a box of condoms in the bathroom, I didn’t feel like having sex with him. I lied and said I didn't have any protection, or rather, I didn’t have any in the room. I’m a terrible liar, but it was a half lie.
Something just told me that this didn't feel right. I was attracted to him, and enjoyed our conversations, but it was deja vu of Hugh: it felt like an attractive guy filling the void. We went to bed, and the morning was fairly normal.
He  messaged moments later. 
Tumblr media
As you can see, I have trouble flirting. I also have trouble taking a compliment. In fact, I have trouble letting a guy know I like him. Humor saves me, while also is my demise. 
But wait, it gets better.
Tumblr media
Like I said, making a guy feel wanted was something I needed to learn.  This is the kind of honest text any woman would dream of getting, and I shat all over it. An accidental asshole, with unknown intentions - I didn’t feel top of the class.
Shortly after I took a two week trip to China and Hong Kong was when our messages started tapering off, It may be a coincidence right after we spent the night together was it slowed down, or maybe I grew distance. I was also traveling, and maybe he thought I couldn’t be reached.
Several months later Jensen came to the adult summer camp I threw, and I was completely turned off. He became more and more like the old Ben. As some had called him, “Generic Drunk Guy”, he just came off slightly douchey. He was going around telling everyone about all of his Tinder conquests, offering mushrooms to people.  
He had told me about the other women he was dating before, but when we started talking it didn’t matter. But to tell me he liked me “a lot”, like really liked me - remember that text the day after? Was I had? I felt I dodged a bullet. Then again...there’s a song with interesting lyrics.
“And everyone thinks I dodged a bullet, but I think I shot the gun” - Greg Laswell.
youtube
Greg may be onto something. I’m not into the victim mentality - I want accountability. These guys who aren’t awesome, who I’m not into, or who end up not being into me: is it possible that somehow it can be circled back to me? Could I have prevented this? Or are my actions a self fulfilling prophecy? Maybe. Maybe I keep shooting the gun. I don’t think it was the case for Jensen, but my finger prints are all over it.
Hell if I know. I need a break.
-February 28, 2019
Date #1 w/ Jensen Suitors in 2019 YTD: 1 Dates in 2019 YTD: 1
1 note · View note