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its-not-a-phase-mom-i-d8-demons · 4 years

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MC’s Reaction to the Brothers Turned into Babies

Word Count: 3.5k (um ok)

Warnings: Satan is a mini bitch, some swearing i believe, cute overload, pretty sure it’s a gn!mc it is possible i wrote smth about tiddies but idk

AN: when I was writing lucifer’s, i considered a “boss baby” situation, a man’s (a demon in this case) mind and voice were trapped in a baby’s body and i wheeze every time I think about a baby lucifer with a deep voice lmao

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Lucifer

“MC? Oh good, you’re home.” Satan sounded relieved as he opened the door for you and lead you into the House of Lamentation, “Hold on, where’s Mammon?”

You had just come from your shift at Hell’s Kitchen. Mammon worked with you and you usually walked home together, but today he’d broken several dishes and the owner made him stay and peel lamentatoes (devildom potatoes that shriek when cut) for the next day.

“He broke some dishes today so cook is making him peel lamentatoes until his fingers bleed.” You reply, kicking your shoes off. It was then that you got a good look at Satan. He looked rather frazzled and a little green, plus he was nervously fidgeting with the sleeve of his sweater.

“Hey, is there something wrong?”

“YES! I’m sorry for yelling but follow me, it’s Lucifer!”

“Wha-”

The blonde demon grabbed your wrist and broke into a run, dragging you up several flights of stairs until you reached the eldest’s room. Satan opened the door and shoved you inside, slamming the door shut behind you.

“S-Satan, what’s goi-... Asmo, is that Lucifer?!”

A small child was lying on Lucifer’s bed, giggling happily as the fifth eldest played peek-a-boo with it.

“A-Asmo?”

“MC!!” Asmodeus rushed over to you and wrapped his arms around you in a tight hug, squishing your cheeks together as both of you watched Levi let Lucifer grab his tail and taste it with his lil baby fangs.

“I never knew Luci Goosey was such a happy baby.” The Avatar of Lust sighed, pulling you closer to the four-poster bed to see the baby more closely, “He always acts like there’s a stick up his ass. And here I thought he was born with it.”

You giggled and reached out a hand to baby Lucifer, who immediately stopped giggling when he noticed you were there. His vermilion eyes were as big as saucers as you placed a warmish hand on his forehead and pushed it through his soft black locks.

You pulled back a little bit when he made a grab for your hand, but that only made him whine so you let him hold it.

With his eyes on you, he began playing with your fingers; gently bending them back and forth, squeezing them, putting them in his mouth, etc.

They were very soft.

You smiled gently, pulling you hand away and carefully picking him up.

“Wait MC! He does-”

“Aww! Levi! Asmo! I made him smile!” You giggled, pulling him to your chest and cuddled him up under your chin.

Lucifer made happy baby noises, bouncing in your lap and taking fistfulls of your shirt.

“He didn’t like it when Beel and Asmo tried to pick him up.” Came a quiet voice from the corner of the room.

Asmodeus nodded, “He was kicking and screaming and guess what? He pulled my hair!”

“He bit my finger too.” Murmured Beel who was sitting in the corner with Belphie, nursing his pinky finger with a blood stained kleenex, “See?”

You looked down at the baby to confirm these accusations, but the big goofy grin you received in reply melted your heart.

“Satan! Your dad is so adorable!”

Lucifer won’t let anyone hold him except for you

Diavolo made an attempt to do so but narrowly missed Lucifer’s tiny fist swinging up to bop him on the nose because you snatched him away at the last possible moment

Mammon, ever the trouble maker, wil simply mess with him by tugging on his hair, poking his chunky lil baby tummy, pinching him, teasing him, tripping him, etc because he knows Lucifer can’t hang him upside down

Diavolo has taken several selfies of him playing with baby lucifer

He doesn’t sleep

He may be a happy baby but he is not a good sleeper. Lucifer cries all night because it’s dark and MC is far away so you have to hold him if you want to get some shuteye

Sneeze = Demon form

Cried the first time he saw the reflection of his demon form in the mirror

You and Asmo have an arsenal of baby photos to use as blackmail now

Mammon

Lucifer

MC You need to come back to the House of Lamentation immediately

You

But I just got to Purgatory Hall!

Lucifer

Your presence is a necessity. Something happened to Mammon but I can’t hang him upside down like I usually would. His feet are too small

You

What?!

Lucifer

You will understand when you see him. Be here in a timely fashion or I will come and get you myself

You

What did Mammon do this time??

Read 3 minutes ago

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If Lucifer physically can’t hang Mammon upside down, there must be a real problem. Why would his feet be too small all of a sudden? That didn’t make any sense, You thought as you hurried up the driveway and opened the doors to let yourself inside.

A loud wail met your ears and you cringed, throwing your bag and shoes at the wall and running toward the awful noise.

It… It sounded like a child throwing a tantrum.

It… Wait. Hold on a sec.

“Mammon?!”

A very exasperated-looking Lucifer carrying a small, tan, white-haired child in his arms was walking toward you. Mammon was crying loudly, beating his brother’s chest with his tiny fists, and yelling about something… you couldn’t exactly make it out through his blubbering.

“Yes, Mammon.” Luficer sighed, adjusting the Avatar of Greed on his hip, “I said he couldn’t have any more cookies and he threw a coniption and I’m afraid to say I can’t pacify him. Maybe he’ll listen to you.”

Then to Mammon, “Mammon, calm down, MC’s here.” while gently stroking his head.

That seemed to calm him a little bit. He stopped screaming and punching so he could turn around.

His bottom lip still trembled a little bit, but he made grabby hands to you and you carefully took him into your arms.

At first, you were afraid his little fist would come out of nowhere, but when it never did and he lay his head on your chest, you were pleasantly surprised. He accepted your fingers gently running through his hair, gave a breathy little sigh, and closed his eyes.

You smiled gently and pressed a kiss to the crown of his sweet head, causing Lucifer to snort.

“I trust you can handle him if he wakes up?”

“M-hm.”

Huge brat

If you don’t do exactly as he says right now, he’ll throw a massive tantrum, kicking and screaming and crying, telling you you’re the worst and how much he hates you and his brothers, etc

But then when you say you won’t play with him anymore he starts crying again and apologizing and pressing his face into your stomach as he begs you to hold him because he’s weally weally sowwy :(

His thumb is his favorite food or something bc it is ALWAYS in his mouth

He likes to nap on your shoulder, Lucifer’s shoulder will work but he’d rather have his arms around your neck and your scent all around him

Levi thought he could push Mammon around now that he was tiny, but nah

Mammon is ready to fite at all times

Leviathan

“Waaaaaah! MC!”

You turned around, a soup spoon still clutched in your hand as Leviathan ran up to you with Mammon in hot pursuit. His arms were outstretched, his pretty hair flopping on his forehead as he ran until he made it to you, where he was scooped up and held tightly against your chest.

Safe from mean old Mammon.

You let Levi dry his tears on your shirt while you gave the white-haired demon a dirty look.

“What?? We used to do this all the time when we were little!”

“But that was back when you were the same height! Now you’re four times his size!”

“Hey! I was taller than him back then! By 1.34 inches thank you very much!”

You sighed and looked down at Levi. He’d pulled the orange hood over his face, his tear-stained cheek resting on your sternum. His pretty orangeish-hazel eyes were still pretty watery but he seemed ok now. He gave a little shivering sigh and pressed his face into your soft mounds.

Lucifer chose that moment to step into the kitchen.

“What is all the commotion?” He asked, eyes fixed on the cowering Avatar of Greed.

“Mammon was chasing me!” Levi cried, raising his head to look at his big brother.

Piercing ruby orbs flicked to where Mammon was now cowering behind you.

“MAMOOOOOON?”

Quiet bby

But he must have ALL of your attention or else

He will throw his Gameboy and/or 3DS at you if you even DARE to taste test something for Beel, open your mouth to talk to Mammon or Satan, etc

If Lucifer tries to pick him up, WHACK

If Mammon tries to pull his hair, BAM

If Satan attempts to feed him, SPLAT and you might have to save the little purple-haired demon from being yeeted out the kitchen window

Mammon is CONSTANTLY messing with poor Levi, knocking him over, snatching his 3DS and holding it just above where his little hands can reach, tugging his hair, etc

In other words Levi is always running to you in his lil fish onesie with tears rolling down his chubby cheeks, begging you to help him because one or all of his “big bwovers” are being mean

Also one of the fattest chubbiest babies

Next to Beel of course

So Mammon and/or Asmodeus take a bunch of embarrassing pictures of him to use as blackmail

Satan

“But I don’t WANNA!”

“I DON’T CARE WHAT YOU WANT, GO UPSTAIRS TO YOUR ROOM THIS INSTANT!”

A scream that shook the poor house (and was probably the reason it earned its name) and then a tiny yellow, black, and green blur rushed past you and up the stairs.

A slam of a door that made you cringe and then silence.

Fearing the worst, you peeked into the common area.

Lucifer collapsed into an armchair, Asmodeus and Levi were huddled in a corner with their hands over their ears, Beel was shivering and making his way to the kitchen, Belphegor was laying in one of the nooks of the bookcase, eyes open and looking like he wanted to retract his head into his body and Mammon had flattened himself against the wall next to the bookcase except for the phone he’d been recording with.

“Um guys, what was that?”

That shriek had chilled you to the bone and now you were looking around warily for the tiny Avatar of wrath.

That morning, Satan had been in the library before heading to school. He’d opened an old book the moment you peeked into the room and with a flash of light he was a baby sitting stunned on the floor.

This was only day 2 and Lucifer was already at his wits end. Satan wasn’t helping either. You had asked Lucifer several times if you could talk a little sense into Satan several times, but he’d refused. He ‘didn’t want you to have to deal with such a stubborn little brat’ and ‘you should worry about your studies’ because he can ‘handle it just fine by himself.’

Prideful bastard.

“Satan.” Beel shuddered, spooning yogurt into his mouth, “It’s been a really long time since he was a baby, we forgot how scary he was.”

You sigh, “Lucifer, this is the last time I’m offering. Do you want me to go talk to him?”

There was a pause.

Then the brunet finally nodded with an exasperated huff and went to make tea.

Satan heard a soft knock on his door.

“Go away.”

“Satan, it’s me.”

“Oh.”

The door opened to reveal a little blond toddler holding a book in his little hands.

“What do you want?” He asked, eyes averted.

“Can I come in? I want to talk to you.”

“Hmmm…” Seemingly conflicted, the demon weighed his options and then opened the door a little wider for you to enter.

You closed the door behind you and knelt down in front of him. “What’s the matter Satan?”

“Nufing.”

“Can I hold you?”

“... Yes.”

You scooped him gently into your arms and sat down on his bed.

“Can you tell me why you’re crying?”

“I-I’m not!” He pouted, rubbing his eyes with his sleeves, “I’m not scared!”

You tilt your head in confusion, “Scared? Satan, what are you talking about?”

No relpy, Satan just buried his sweet little face in your chest.

He begrudgingly accepted you combing your fingers through his golden locks and soon enough he relaxed into your chest, eyelids drooping with exhaustion.

“You wanna tell me why you were so angry?” You ask, never ceasing your ministrations.

“Well…” He paused, chewing on his lip, “L-Lucifer told me to put my books away and I wasn’t done reading so I said no. Then he asked me why and I… I said…” He looked down and played with his hands nervously.

“Um, I told Lucifer he was a fucking idiot!”

You blinked.

“S-Satan, where the heck did you learn that?” You ask, trying not to giggle.

“Levi was mad at Mammon earlier and that’s what he said. So I told Lucifer that because Lucifer is a meanie and he’s stupid.” Satan crossed his arms.

“Satan, Lucifer is your… your dad. You shouldn’t speak to him like that. It’s not nice to talk to anyone like that, especially Lucifer. He just didn’t want them to get stepped on, stolen, sold, or ripped so he asked you to pick them up.” You soothe, stroking his hair, “Can you come with me to tell him you’re sorry?”

“I’m not sorry.”

“Oh.”

It was quiet for a few moments and the little blonde boy laid his head in it’s rightful place on your chest, tracing little circles into the flesh of your arm.

“MC?”

“Yes?”

“Can… Can you read to me?”

“Of course.”

His usual wrathful self but 12 times worse and 4 years old

Here’s how it went: Lucifer asked satan to do something, Satan said no, lucifer asked why, and satan said “because you’re a fucking idiot”

Yes, i came up with that myself and i think it’s fucking hilarious

Anyway, Satan is a very sweet little boy despite his deadly sin and the fact that he will tear the house down with a simple tantrum if someone dares to tell him no

But he’ll listen to you

If you scoop him up and calm him down before he can even start spitting flames at lucifer, the Devildom fire department can avoid the House of Lamentation and no construction and/or hospital bills for Lucifer

You have this way of comforting him like no one ever could and he feels safe in your arms

Not a fat baby, long baby

Always has one hand fisting your shirt so if you try to put him down, you can’t

Beelzebub

Fast

Asmodeus

"We've tried everything MC and Asmo won't shut up!" Beel peeked into your room, eyes round with a mixture of worry and exasperation, "Can you come help?"

You slid out of bed and followed beel to Asmo's room. The baby's loud, distressed cries could be heard from just about anywhere in the house.

Beel led you in and you saw Satan and Leviathan trying to calm him down. Satan was pacing next to the tub and Levi was offering him various distractions such as toys, stuffies, and glitter, but all attempts made things worse. Even trying to touch the bot made him scream impossibly louder.

You studied Asmo, aside from his snotty nose and skin puffy and red from the tears he seemed... oh wait.

"What did you give him for breakfast?" You asked Satan, shouting to be heard over his brother's cries.

"Oatmeal with spider syrup!" He replied, fingers tapping nervously on his thigh.

"I knew it..." You murmured, and approached Asmodeus.

"Heyy hun, ssssshhh, it's alright-"

He shrieked and dug his manicured nails into your arm to deter you from touching him, but to no avail.

You started undressing him and he immediately calmed down, screams reduced to small hiccups and sniffles.

"Its okay Asmo, honey, yeah you're okay..." You swaddled him up in a blanket and held him to your chest.

"Satan, look. You or whoever fed him got oatmeal and sticky syrup on his clothes! No wonder he was so upset!" You scolded, rocking the baby against your chest.

"Well I-"

"Are ya kidding me?"

"I get it, Asmo likes being perfect and he didn't feel right being all messy. Thanks MC!" Beel grinned and hugged you and Asmo gently.

Fashionista

He loves sitting with you and watching you do your morning routine

He loves being complimented too

He can still help you pick out an outfit so you can still slay the day

He loves when you put a little bit of makeup on him before school even tho he doesn't need it, it just makes him feel included

He loves having you hold and sing to him

Asmo is a generally happy baby, but he really needed this time to relax because he's the cutest baby in the world without trying AND there's so much less pressure on him as a baby

He doesn't chew on you or your jewelry, he just stares at you as reverently as he did before he transformed

Do not touch his hair tho

It's perfect and he doesn't want it messed with

“More!”

You sighed, looking down at the now empty jar of applesauce, the other three jars sitting empty by your feet.

This kid was, if anything, a bottomless pit. So far, he’d finished 4 jars of applesauce, 3 40-jar cases of baby food, 6 bottles of fruit-flavored puffs, a bag of avocados, learned the words “more” and “MC”, and he was still asking for more food??

“But Beel, you ate it a-”

“*sniffle* M-More?” He asked, tears welling up in those sweet amethyst eyes. When his bottom lip started trembling, you were done for. No living human or demon could take this much childish purity and survive.

He was too cute.

After digging through the pantry for a few minutes you found another jar of applesauce for him to eat and the joyous baby noise he made upon having the food set in front of him made your heart skip a beat and fall on the floor.

Lucifer chose that moment to enter the kitchen carrying several boxes of food and broth, Mammon and Satan following closely behind.

“MC? Are you unwell?” He asked, kneeling down and pushing the hair out your face.

You shook your head.

“He’s too cute Lucifer, I can’t.”

Quirking a brow, the Avatar of Pride raised his eyes to the ginger-haired baby slurping happily at an applesauce jar bigger than its head and looked back at you.

“Really?”

You nodded enthusiastically and jumped to your feet, then you gently pulled the jar away from Beel.

You looked at them with the biggest smile on your features, “Watch, watch!” You giggled.

“Ok ok, do the face,”

“🥺”

“Now what’s my name?”

“MC!”

“What do you say when you want food?”

“More!”

“Be polite.”

“More pwease!!”

“Who’s that?” You pointed to the black-haired demon.

“Wucifer!”

“And that?” You motioned to Mammon.

“Mammon!”

“And him?”

“Salmon!”

“Hold on,” You fed Beel a spoonful of applesauce, waited for him to swallow and said, “Ok, what’s his name? Not Salmon but…”

“Um… 🥺🥺 Satan?”

“Good job!” You cheered, scooping him up and hugging him tightly.

The small demon giggled happily and wrapped his arms around your neck.

Unbeknownst to you, Mammon was grinding his teeth, wishing he was the squishy child wrapped in your embrace. The same could be said for Lucifer and Satan, not that they’d ever admit it…

Literally the sweetest lil cutie pie to exist

No cap

All you wanna do is just snuggle with him all day because he’s so warm and comfy but yenno a baby boy gotta eat

He only sleeps when you sleep or if he’s snuggled up with belphie though, no naps

If you even leave the room for a minute and he will just know, wake up and cry until you come back

Absentmindedly chews on things; toys, you, Mammon’s wallet, your fingers, the end of Luci’s cloak thingy, Levi’s controllers, you, Satan’s books, Asmo’s shoes, you, ANYTHING that isn’t being used or moving right then

Call him “Beely” please

Doesn’t need your attention 24/7, but it is prefered over all of his brothers including Belphie

Belphegor

“Oi, you sure he’s alive MC? He hasn’t moved in 3 hours…” Mammon said softly, standing next to the bed with you at his side as you looked down at the snoozing baby in the nest of pillows and blankets.

“No, he isn’t dead. I can hear him snoring a little bit. But you’re right. Maybe we should wake him up?”

“Nah, not a good idea. He’ll punch yer nose back into yer skull.”

“Oh. Good to know. Was he always like this?”

“Nuh-uh. Lilith… Lilith kept him ‘n Beel busy. Then at the end of the day they’d sleep in a pile on Belphie’s bed. It was pretty cute, ‘specially when Beel’d hold both of them in his sleep.”

“Aww.” You murmured gently, reaching out to brush the dual-colored bangs out of the little demon’s eyes. He looked so peaceful; his cheeks had that child-like pudge to them, accentuated by the pillow he was nuzzling, his lashes were extremely long from this angle, and there was a little angelic smile on his lips to top it off.

At that moment, you watched his eyelids flutter open and he locked eyes with you, lifting his hands and making a grabby motion to let you know he wanted to be picked up and you complied, setting the sweet boy on your hip.

The moment his cheek hit your chest he was sleeping again, but not without a contemptive smirk at Mammon first.

You didn’t notice of course (because if I didn’t know any better, the MC is blind, deaf, emotionally constipated, and downright insensitive and stupid💀)and continued your descent down to the common area where everyone was watching some demon reality show and settled down on the couch between Mammon and Beelzebub.

After making yourself comfy, you too fell into a restful slumber.

Best napper of the seven, but your full attention or Beel’s full attention is required during the hour he chooses to be awake

If you take him anywhere Lucifer, he’l start crying

You probably lost him for a day or two because he fell asleep under the stairs or somewhere else weird and couldnt find him

You never let him out of your sight after that

Prefers to sleep on you rather than next to you because he nearly suffocated himself with the cow-print pillow so you took that away as well

Will never admit it, but he likes it when you touch his hair

Enjoys being rocked to sleep

You will never find him if you make a blanket fort

Likes to cling to things that will fall over to cause havoc

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Hiii! This was my first Obey Me! Fanfic so i hope it isn’t too bad haha lmao. I was thinking about doing the undateables as babies as well and then mc with all of the brothers turned into babies at once (bc we need the chaos) but idk let me know if you would be interested!

Thank you for reading!

MC's Reaction to the Dateables as Babies

MASTERLIST

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smokingangelhoe · 3 years

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Prompt: Two people from two different worlds collide and end up falling in love, but is it ever that simple. Trevor a famous actor and a young film student. Their worlds collide when they find themselves working together on a film.

Requested

Trevor Jackson x Amricale

________________________________

Amricale's POV

5:30 am

I reached over and shut off my alarm with a loud groan "I was having a great dream" I mumbled angrily

I put on my glasses and turned on my led lights to a calm sunset setting before shuffling my music playlist. I twirled my hips as Rihanna's voice played throughout my room. "Kiss it better baby" I sang along

I surfed through my closet deciding on some classy but comfortable at the same time. I walked to my bathroom and started my morning routine off with my curology and then brushed my teeth. I then took a shower and made sure I shaved before getting out.

"CUZ I'M REAL ASS, RICH ASS BITCH FROM THE SOUTH" I yelled as I twerked in the mirror

I shook my head with a giggle as I got dressed. I made sure my hair and makeup looked ok before grabbing my bag and some other stuff I needed. I walked out of my apartment while being sure to set up my security system and lock my door. I walked to my car and unlocked it before getting in. I bopped my head and rapped along to my music while driving towards my favorite breakfast spot.

_________________

"Hey so remember you have the audition at 5:30 so make sure you're studying your lines" my manager James said

I nodded and took a sip of my coffee "Ok, do you know who the love interest is?" I asked finishing off my breakfast burrito

"Actually it's Trevor Jackson" he said making me choke on my coffee

"Holy shit...and you're sure he asked for me?" I questioned earning a laugh from him

"Yes, don't let this cloud your mind Mricale. You need to be on your best game with this. Since this is your first big big audition you need to stay focused" he said

"I know, I know" I said as I wrote down some notes from my class "Alright, I'm gonna talk later" I said as I finished off my coffee

"Alright good luck boo and make sure you call me afterward" he said

I agreed and we hung up. I finished my notes and started looking over my script. I knew they chose a fight scene to try and see my full potential which is great because I love fighting...jk...unless.

___________________

5:20

Audition Center

I parked my car in front of the small building and took a deep breath "You got this Amricale" I said to myself. I grabbed my script and slipped my phone in my pocket before turning my car off. I got out and locked it. I took another deep breath before holding my head high and walking into the building. I saw a few other girls in here making me quietly groan since I knew I was gonna have to wait.

"Amricale Davis?" I looked over and saw a man standing with a clipboard

I smiled and walked forward "That's me" I said holding out my hand

He returned the gesture with a smile "Well come right on in" He said moving to the side to let me in

I thanked him and walked into the room. I was greeted by two other females and another male "Ok you know this scene is the fight scene, so we need all the emotion and anger you can give us" he said making me nod

"Hey yall sorry I had a flat tire" my heard turned as Trevor walked into the room through a different door

M"No problem, you're just in time actually. Trevor meet Amricale" he said

I smiled and shook Trevor's hand "It's an honor to meet you" I said earning a smile from him

"I can say the same, your short films are impeccable and extremely professional" he said making me internally squeal

"Thank you so much" I responded

"Alright now let's get to the scene" the guy from earlier said

I cleared my throat and let myself slip into the character. I could see the impressed look on Trevors face as I slipped into that mindset.

Trevor- Malcolm

Mricale- Michelle

"Come on baby, you're acting like it was my fault" Malcolm sighed

Michelle laughed but you can tell there was no amusement behind it "No you just let your ex-wife touch and openly flirt on you. Even had the damn balls do it at MY OPENING EVENT" she yelled

Malcolm clenched his jaw as he exhaled heavily "I don't know what you want from me" he said

"HOW?!?!?! I tell you all the damn time about what I want and deserve, but it seems like you don't listen to a word I say hmm? Maybe it's my fault, dating an older guy who doesn't seem to care about a young girl's feelings" Michelle said as tears clouded her big brown doe eyes

Malcolm felt a ping in his heart at her words and the pained look on her face "Baby that's not true. I care about you and everything you say, but we need to take things slow. Like you said the age gap will be judged by a lot of people so just relax" he said rubbing her arm

Michelle's sadness soon turned to anger at his words "You know you're right" she started off taking Malcolm for a spin "We shouldn't even do this at all. The age gap will never work, and you not trying to make it work doesn't sit right with me. So until you have the balls to man up and accept what we have, we're done" she ranted

Malcolm's heart dropped at her words "Michelle hold on-" he tried to get closer to her but she shook her head and pushed him away

"No, if you want me EARN ME. Until then we are done Malcolm, goodnight" she said before walking out of the older man's condo

"FUCK" Malcolm screamed

End of scene

"Wow I have to say, you might be the best one we've had today so far" he said as everyone clapped at our performance

I smiled and wiped my face while also thanking the lord I chose waterproof makeup "You should expect a call soon to see if you got the role or not. Thank you for coming in" he said shaking my hand

I nodded and said a quick bye to trevor before leaving the building. I unlocked my car and got in then turned it on once I got situated. Before I could pull off a voice called my name.

"Amricale wait up" I looked over and saw trevor leaning on my car with a smile

I smiled back and slipped my glasses off "What's up Tre?" I said making him chuckle

"You already got a nickname for yuh boy" he said causing me to playfully roll my eyes

"I take it back" I said

He laughed and shook his head "But uh I wanted to compliment you on your performance in there. I have to say if you don't get the part they're crazy" he said flashing his amazing smile

I felt myself blush "Thank you so much, I really appreciate that" I said

He nodded and backed off my car "No problem, but I'll let you get outta here and hopefully I'll see you on set" he said winking at me

I bit my lip to contain my smile as he jogged back into the building "Just mm..delicious" I said sighing

___________________

A few days later

I was sitting on my couch eating some ramen while watching 'Scandal' when my phone rang. My eyes widened as I recognized the number. I swallowed the food I had in my mouth before answering the call "Good afternoon, Amricale speaking" I said

"Good afternoon, I wanted to make this call myself and congratulate you on getting the role" the lady said

I smiled brightly "Oh my god, thank you so much Ms. Duvermay" I said hearing her lightly chuckle

"You're welcome sweety, my assistant will text you all the information." she said

I did a lil dance in my seat as I smiled "Ok, thank you again for this opportunity" I said excitedly

"Thank you for giving us your all, can't wait to see you on set" she said

We said our goodbyes before hanging up "OH MY GOD" I screamed as I felt tears come to my eyes "I got my first gig" I cried

trevorjackson5 started following you

_____________________

Part 2?

#trevor jackson #fluff fic #smut writing #original character #black men #black oc #trevor jackson x black reader #black!reader #black love

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gumballavocadoharry · 3 years

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All better:

Ian was running around playing outside while Harry was outside sitting in the shade watching Ian play while looking at his phone too. "Look at me daddy!" Ian said swinging really high on the swings. "I'm gonna jump real high!"

"Be careful Ian! I don't want you-" Ian flew up off the swings and landed on his knees. "Getting hurt." Harry finished waiting for a upcoming cry from Ian. His cringe was correct as Ian's lip quivered before a cry was delivered. "Daddy!" He sobbed. Harry flew up from the table and like a superhero running at the speed of light, Harry was quick to grab his wailing little boy off the ground. "Oh buddy it's okay. It's okay." He reassured in his baby voice. "Daddy's gonna fix you up and you're gonna feel all better little one." He gave Ian a big hug before carrying him inside.

He took him to the bathroom where Harry examined his scraped knees. "Poor baby." He muttured softly. He set him down on the toilet and kneeled down to look at his knees. "Nothing too bad just a little scrape." Ian sniffled. As Harry went to the medicine cabinet and took out some alcohol wipes, ointment and bandages. Harry wiped Ian's face with a rag and kissed his forehead. "You're okay baby." He said softly. Harry gently pressed the alcohol wipe to his knee gently but Ian yelped. "It's okay Ian, look, it only hurts for a second. But I know what'll make you feel better."

Harry grabbed a toy from Ian's room and handed to him. "There, now you can cuddle Mr T-Rex while I clean your knees." Ian snuggled his stuffed toy while Harry finished up. "Now we put a little cream to make the boo boo go away. And now a bandage. You can pick any bandage you want."

Ian looked at the different choices his daddy picked out for him. "The teddy bear one please daddy." "Good choice tiger." Harry applied the bandaids to Ian's knees. "And now there's just one more thing to do." Harry said bopping his son's nose. Ian tilted his head slightly. "A big special kissy to make it go away faster." Harry puckered his lips to Ian's knees before kissing them. "Muah! All better baby." Harry held out his hand for Ian to high-five which he did before Harry gave Ian a big bear hug that only daddies were capable of giving. "All better." Ian said.

#dad!harry #dadrry #harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles son #boo boo #daddysboy #single dad harry #dads love #daddyskitten

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aestheticvoyage2022 · 2 years

Photo

Day 211: Saturday July 30, 2022 - “Wild-ish Wedding”

On a beautiful Bend bluff, covered in Black Eyed Susans and green grass, in their own backyard, looking out Westward to Coastal Cascades, and a setting sun in a grey Pacific Northwest sky (and beside their homemade pool), Little Jess (beautiful in her dress) said “I do” to her partner Rick after some incredible vows, and eccentric authentic Italian officiating. Its was a beautiful scene, taken in as I bopped a sleepy teething William from afar. He observed most of his first wedding from the onsite vegetable garden, and cried when the Bride wouldnt hand over her bouquet. He was fascinated by the scene before the post ceremony nap that he enjoyed from the newlyweds couch, and we enjoyed on facetime from our reception dining table; all three of us coordinated in Green.

This homemade wedding, was the most incredibly well done and classy event. So memorable to be here and see this special place, and experience a truly festival styled wedding. The birth of great event venue! The most unique we’ve ever seen - which fits this adventurous couple to a perfect T. We shared our dinner table with the Cordovas and the Solbergs. Mojitos and Margs were served for the pre-ceremony bar, but the reception dinner was all about the French Wine and my little fancy tasting parlor glass! Hard to beat a wedding meal thats being prepared in Grandma’s Kitchen steps away from where its served! We ate all weekend (Enchiladas and Pig Roast) but tonight’s meal of meats and desserts was the best meal of the year. And of course, right on que as the sunset behind them we had a good range of toasts, itinerant stories of the world working, and finally sunset tequila shots as the sun dipped behind The Sisters. Let the party begin!

Oh but wait - not only is it William’s first wedding....it is also our first wedding as parents! We’re grown up now! As darkness set on us, and the live band and lights lit up the dance floor, I realized that someone sometime soon was going to have to go to bed with the baby and that someone should be me so that AC could enjoy this special night with her special friends. After letting Boo Boo off the hook, with his ear protection to match his shirt, it was time to take this bow-tie clad baby boy to bed. I laid next time in our RV as he snoozed, and he cuddled up to me. It was the sweetest feeling - I laid there in bed awake enjoying the (finally) cool Oregon air, hearing the band play across the way like a radio playing off in the background of my thoughts. I thought about love and marriage and ever after - about the beauty of this sleeping boy finding comfort in me after a big day; about how much nicer all of that is than simply being out there drinking the night away without a care or a responsibility. A shift. This opportunity to choose love over a good time- Im growing up - becoming a Dad. Weddings are special, and I appreciated this one more, for the opportunity to look at myself in that mirror on what will no doubt be a memorable day.

Song: Restless Road - Growing Old With You

Quote: Anyone who’s a chef, who loves food, ultimately knows that all that matters is: ‘Is it good? Does it give pleasure? –Anthony Bourdain

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kaistarus · 4 years

Text

Inevitable

Pairing: NishinoyaX(OC)-Kaede Mizuki

Words:6.2K

Summary: Kaede and Nishinoya get along great, but when it comes to dating she’d consider them the least compatible people on the entire planet. So, when her heart starts acting up around him she figures it’s best to ignore it for as long as possible

A/N: This is my favorite thing I’ve written so far and honestly I think it's my highest quality work. I’m very proud of this one, so enjoy :) *artwork commissioned @Kurushima_Kaito on Twitter*

Masterlist

“I’m starving.”

Kaede tried her best to ignore the boy obnoxiously leaning his entire body weight on her as she finalized the week’s task list. She ticked off the final box of ‘wash practice jerseys’ she and Yachi spent half the afternoon on saying, “you’re always hungry. I told you to start bringing snacks.”

“But that’s so much work,” Nishinoya whined, resting his chin on her shoulder. He began twirling her half-ponytail around his finger while wiggling his eyebrows. “Hey, what if you started-”

“I don’t have enough time to start babying you, Noya.” She said, ignoring his pout while securing the pen at the top of the clipboard. “I have to give this Kiyoko so you should-.”

He hummed happily, “Kiyoko.”

She gave him a quick glare before shaking him off her shoulder, “can you go bother someone else?”

“Nah, everyone’s busy,” he said, skipping after her. She glanced around to the team of boys standing around and very clearly not busy. Kiyoko stood beside a flushed Yachi as they flipped through pages of a small notebook, going over a few minor details before tomorrow’s match against Shiratorizawa.

“Hey Kiyoko, I’m finished with the-”

“Don’t worry, I got this.” Nishinoya plucked the clipboard out of her hands. “Hello, beautiful. We completed stuff. Obviously, I offered my assistance because of how thoughtful and handsome I am.”

“Sure,” Kiyoko accepted it, flipping through the pages before nodding to Kaede. “Thank you.”

Kaede opened her mouth, but Nishinoya cut her off. “You’re welcome, gorgeous.” He placed his elbow on Kaede’s shoulder. “Anyway, Kiyoko. You come here often?”

“She’s a manager.” Kaede deadpanned.

“It wasn’t literal, Mizuki. It’s a conversation starter.”

“That’s what you went with?” Kaede pinched the bridge of her nose. “‘Kiyoko, how’s your day?’, ‘Kiyoko, are you ready for tomorrow?’, ‘Kiyoko, I like your hair.’”

Nishinoya cocked his head to the side. “Hair?”

“She got a haircut.”

“Oh shit, really?” Nishinoya looked back to where Kiyoko was and his shoulders slumped. “She’s gone.”

“This is why you’ll die alone,” Kaede brushed his arm off her so she could walk to her backpack.

“You’re so mean to me.” His pout turned into a sly smirk. “I kind of like it.”

Kaede rolled her eyes, ignoring everything else that came out of his mouth as she switched out of her gym shoes to finally go home. The sound of volleyballs smacking the court drew her attention and she was hardly surprised to see Hinata and Kageyama still practicing with Yachi’s assistance.

“How come they never ask me to help?” Kaede wondered aloud, swinging on her worn backpack.

“‘Cause you’re really bad at volleyball.” Nishinoya snorted.

“That was rhetorical.”

“I don’t know what that means.”

She purposely bumped his shoulder as she walked past him to the gym doors and he over exaggeratedly grabbed it with a hiss, “are you trying to injure me before finals?”

“Shut up,” She snorted.

“You think you can just replace me as libero?”

“I think I can roll around on the floor, yeah.” Kaede slid on her outdoor shoes and jumped onto the sidewalk. He narrowed his eyes at her, but before he could rant about Rolling Thunder Ennoshita called out a few yards away.

“The second years are all going out to eat. Are you both coming or what?” He shouted while Tanaka waved both his arms in a ‘get over here’ motion.

“You should come,” Nishinoya hurriedly shoved his feet into his outdoor shoes and leapt beside her. His smile softened as he nudged her hand hanging loosely by her side. “It’ll be fun.”

Her mouth twisted while she contemplated. It would be fun, sure, but with how early they were meeting at the school she wasn’t sure she could manage. Kaede bumped his hand back before giving a half-smile that made his expression drop.

“I have an exam to study for and we’re getting up too early.” She shrugged loosely, “Next time, okay?”

“Nerd.” He pouted.

“Probably,” she poked him in the forehead. “You better not send me a stupid video at three in the morning. You need to sleep too.”

“Yes, mom.” He rolled his eyes, but his lips were curved into a smile. He grabbed her hand off his forehead and squeezed it once before pivoting around to the waiting group. “Now go be lame somewhere else before you wear off on me.”

Kaede rolled her eyes. She waved goodbye to the other boys who booed at her unwillingness to attend. She glanced down at the hand that Nishinoya had squeezed before leaving, wondering why it was still so warm regardless of the chilled night.

She figured she was overthinking and waited for her racing heart to calm down. She just needed some sleep.

*******************************************************************************************

Kaede yawned, rubbing her sleep-filled eyes and snuggling against Kiyoko’s shoulder. Her eyelids hung heavy as she watched rather than listened to Coach Ukai and Coach Takeda give instructions before allowing them on the warm bus.

“It’s too early to be alive,” she whined when they finally finished, wrapping her arms around Kiyoko for protection against the morning’s frigid air.

Kiyoko patted her head, “it’s already seven, Kaede.”

Kaede whined pitifully again at the mere mention of the time. Sure, it had been seven at that moment, but they’d met at six-thirty which meant by herself she’d woken up before the sun had risen. Nobody should have to wake up before the sun.

Her eyes scanned the boys lined up along the bus to find most of them were in a similar state as her-leaning against each other and half-asleep. She locked eyes with Tanaka and Nishinoya who were glaring and she lifted a lazy brow before realizing her arms were still wrapped around Kiyoko.

Like the bigger person Kaede was, she nuzzled her cheek on Kiyoko and tightened the hug. They looked like they were about to pop a blood vessel until Daichi dragged them away by the back of their shirts.

Kaede snickered evilly until a shadow loomed over her.

“Are you seriously still tired?” Tsukishima asked condescendingly. “Is that going to be your new excuse for doing nothing?”

Kaede straightened up with her fists clenched. “Well, you’re-you look-you’re dumb.”

She cringed as Tsukishima cackled, walking triumphantly back to the bus. Yamaguchi trailed after him giving an apologetic smile that didn’t make her feel any better.

“I thought it was good.” Yachi smiled cheerfully.

Kaede patted her head half-smiling. “That’s all that matters then.” She lied, the burning sense of revenge coursing through her veins.

Kiyoko lightly pushed the small of Kaede’s back when they were letting people on the bus because managers got special privileges, such as, firsts. She hurriedly plopped down beside Yachi, excited to tune out the noisy team and hopefully fall back asleep.

She unzipped her jacket pocket and shoved her hand inside, digging for her headphones. She furrowed her brow and swiped her fingers around in a panic when she felt nothing but fabric. They had been there when she left her house...

“Is something wrong?” Yachi asked with a concerned crease in her brow.

“No, I…” Kaede slumped back in defeat. “I think I lost my headphones.”

“Oh no,” Yachi’s eyes widened. “Do you want to use mine?”

“No,” Kaede waved her off. “You were talking about that book you wanted to finish listening to. I don’t want to-”

There was a quick bop on her head and she whipped around to find Nishinoya smirking mischievously. Kaede’s sneer must have been more vicious than usual because the way his eyes widened in fear made her feel slight guilt. She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes, hoping that she could tune out the obnoxiousness on her own.

Not even five minutes after the bus left Kaede felt a nervous tapping on her shoulder. She opened her eyes to Nishinoya leaning beside her backrest smiling apologetically.

She sighed, “what.”

He held out his palm to show a pair of tangled earbuds. She looked between them and his hesitant expression before just raising a brow. “They’re very nice, Noya. I’m not sure what you-”

“You lost yours, right?” He dropped them onto her lap. “I’m giving them to you.”

“What?” She picked them up and flipped them over in her palm. “Why?”

“I’m not using them and you looked upset,” his nose wrinkled. “You get really cranky when you’re upset.”

“Thanks,” she said monotone, beginning to untangle the pair. “Are you sure this is-”

“Do you want my jacket, too?”

She blinked a few times before turning to him. “Why would I need that?”

He rested his head against the side of her seat. “Well, aren’t you tired? It could be a pillow or something.”

“Oh,” she paused, furrowing her brow in thought. “I guess, but I’m not sure that’s necessar-”

He dropped the material on her head and created a static mess of her hair.

“Okay, feel better,” he said before hopping his way to the back of the bus. She sat in disbelief before turning to Yachi who was hiding a smile behind her hand.

“Don’t,” Kaede said, bundling the jacket and placing it behind her head. “He’s just an idiot with no concept of personal space.”

Kaede could finally tune out the rambunctious guys and leaned comfortably against her makeshift pillow, finding herself drifting to much needed sleep. She definitely didn’t find the way Nishinoya’s jacket smelled comforting-it just happened to be nicer than the musty bus. And if she snuggled up to it a few times that was purely because it was softer than the bus seat.

When she woke up it was for the bus pulling into the parking lot and everyone pushing their faces against the windows in awe of the stadium before them.

“Holy shit,” Tanaka breathed. “It’s even bigger in person.”

They piled out of the bus, shoving and pulling each other in a rush to get out of the cramped space. The boys stared at the building with their jaws slack.

“I feel sick again,” Hinata covered his mouth and Kageyama shoved him toward Tanaka who side-stepped him, leaving Hinata to fall flat on the concrete.

“Alright, everyone,” Coach Ukai clapped to garner attention. “I want best behavior. There’s a lot of people here, so don’t go embarrassing-”

“I bet I can get there first.” Hinata said, taking off for the front doors.

“You got a head start idiot. This doesn’t count.” Kageyama said, sprinting after him.

“Do you think they have food vendors?” Nishinoya tugged Tanaka’s sleeve and they both took off. Everyone stood there watching them before glancing awkwardly at the coaches.

“-me. Oh my god.” Coach Ukai palmed his eyes.

“Yeah, good luck with that.” Tsukishima snorted as he and Yamaguchi left the group. Kaede shrugged because this was Karasuno; chaotic as hell, but somehow they made it work.

The arena was as massive inside as it was outside, but it didn’t talk long to track down their missing morons. Hinata and Kageyama hadn’t left the main vestibule, and although Nishinoya and Tanaka had found food stands neither had actually brought money. Kaede wasn’t interested in donations either, regardless how good Nishinoya’s puppy-dog eyes were.

Since the court was reserved for the teams, coaches, and a single manager Kaede and Yachi would be watching the game from the stands. They said their goodbyes outside the locker room-ruffling Hinata’s hair, patting Asahi’s back, fist bumping Tanaka, and even forcing a good luck to Tsukishima-when she turned to Nishinoya she was thrown off by his lifted hands.

“You won’t be there when my name is called,” he pushed them forward. “So I need you to high-five me now.”

“That’s adorable,” Daichi said slyly behind him.

“It’s not adorable,” Nishinoya sneered at him, and a snickering Tanaka, with a red tint to his cheeks. “It’s just for luck. That’s all.”

“It’s a little adorable,” Kaede tried to force down her smile.

“Just high-five me, okay?” He mumbled, tensely pushing his hands further out. Kaede rolled her eyes before lightly patting her hands against his. He furrowed his brow and looked down at his palms. “That high-five sucked.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers,” she shrugged, grabbing Yachi’s hand to pull her toward the bleacher doors. “You can have a better one after you win the game.”

Kaede left him there pouting as her and Yachi pushed their way through metal doors that took them to Karasuno’s cheer section. Kaede was in awe at how many people were in attendance. They had somehow managed to go from a few people to a packed stand in only a few months.

“There’s our girls,” Saeko cheered, waving Kaede and Yachi toward the front of the bleachers. “Does this mean the boys are coming out soon?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Yachi nodded.

“Ugh, please don’t say that. Ma’am makes me feel ancient.” Saeko grimaced, leaning her forearms against the railing.

Yachi apologized profusely and Kaede laughed lightly at her meekness. That’s when Karasuno came out of the locker room for warm-ups-Saeko immediately dialing in on Tanaka, hollering her praises the moment he was in sight. While he was covering his face in embarrassment Hinata and Nishinoya were waving like madmen in hopes of gaining her attention.

Hinata cheerfully waved to Kaede and Yachi when he spotted them while Nishinoya smirked mischievously, making a heart shape at Kaede with his hands. She groaned, creating one herself before snapping it half to which Nishinoya dramatically dropped his jaw, flinging a hand against his chest in mock horror.

She giggled at his ridiculous performance which seemingly was enough to please him because he went back to focusing on warm-ups.

“So you and Noya got a little something-something going on?” Saeko gave her a once-over and nodded approvingly. “I never imagined he could bag a cutie like you, but I’ll give credit where credit is due.”

“What? No, that’s-” Kaede felt a shudder run down her spine. “I would never date, Noya. My standards aren’t that low.”

Saeko hummed, thrumming her fingers along the railing. “Noya’s a good kid with a lot of love to give, but I think you’ll figure that out.” Saeko ruffled Kaede’s hair, effectively messing up her half-ponytail.

Kaede narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but for her safety didn’t press the matter further. She leaned on the railing, watching Nishinoya carefully as he received with his classic Rolling Thunder-the team erupting in laughter around him.

If Kaede could describe Nishinoya in two words it would be simple-minded and clingy. The exact opposite of anyone she ever pictured herself in a relationship with. Did she think he was attractive? Sometimes. When he was smiling or laughing or focusing really hard on something or zoning out or pouting or… Well that wasn’t the point. The point was they weren’t compatible at all and Saeko had no clue what she was talking about.

Kaede felt a warmth creep up her neck as Nishinoya wrapped his arm around Hinata’s shoulders, a bright smile spread across his lips. She shrank into her shoulders. Right, no clue what she was talking about.

When the match finally began she found her confident facade fading as she clutched Yachi’s hand tightly, her heart pounding at the fast pace of the game. Kaede’s heart swelled with pride when Nishinoya adjusted to their powerful spiker, and ignored Saeko’s knowing glances when she bounced with excitement. The same feeling coursed through her as Hinata’s bright smile overtook his face and as she leaned over to celebrate with the convenience store guy for Yamaguchi’s service ace-she even hugged Yachi with all her might when Tsukishima made an amazing block.

As the ball took its final fall there was a lull in the air before the crowd erupted into cheer. Kaede and Yachi clutched each other tightly, jumping and shouting at their team’s well deserved victory. She felt tears pricking her eyes as she watched the boys dogpile in the center of the court-the third years a tearful mess in disbelief, unable to process they were actually going to nationals.

Kaede grabbed Yachi’s wrist with a final wistful look at the guys before tugging her into the hall so they could congratulate their team. She waited impatiently, bouncing on the balls of her feet, for the doors of the gym to swing open. At the first sign of them opening her and Yachi immediately jumped onto the still smiling team.

“You guys were amazing,” she turned to Hinata, waving her fist in the air. “Your spikes were insane Hinata!”

“Did you see my last one?” He swung his arm downward. “It was totally ‘shabam’, right?”

She nodded her head without a clue what he meant, turning to Yamaguchi to ruffle his hair, “and let’s not forget about you mr. service ace.”

“Stop,” he whined, swatting her hands away with a blush lighting up his freckled cheeks.

Kaede’s excitement grew as everyone raved about each other’s performances and began talking about nationals. Her emotions were near bursting when she spotted Nishinoya wearing a lopsided grin with both hands raised for the high-five she’d promised him.

Kaede rolled her eyes, completely bypassing his hands and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He tensed up momentarily before encircling his arms around her waist.

She squeezed him before pulling back. “You were insane,” she smiled excitedly. “The setting thingy worked and your receives were amazing even though he was left-handed or whatever and everything was great-you were great!”

He stared at her seemingly frozen and she looked around awkwardly at his lengthy pause. Suddenly a cocky smirk made its way onto his lips and Kaede regretted her every decision.

“Setting thingy?” His eyes scanned her face. “Left-handed or whatever?”

“You try to compliment a guy and this is the thanks you-”

“I’m kidding. I’m kidding.” He smiled fondly before pulling her back to his chest, burying his face into the crook of her neck. “Thank you.”

Kaede blinked, loosely replacing her arms around his neck. Saeko’s teasing comments popped into her mind and her heart started beating at an irregular pace. She leaned her head against Nishinoya’s for a brief moment as her chest filled with an unfamiliar warmth.

She supposed Nishinoya wasn’t always terrible. He made her laugh sometimes and he genuinely cared about people and he never seemed to get nervous… she could admit those were decent qualities in a person. Kaede chewed the inside of her cheek as she let herself relax in his hold.

“Are you guys almost finished?” Suga called over,” we’re trying to pick a place to eat. Coaches are paying which means-”

“It’s free?” Nishinoya released her, nearly shoving her aside to get to the group. “We need to find the most expensive meat in the area guys. I’m starving, so maybe a buffet actually.”

Kaede glared at him as he attempted to use Asahi to assist him in bouncing high enough to see the center of the circle. She took a calming breath before joining Kiyoko on the far wall, slouching back with crossed arms. Kaede couldn’t fathom how she almost believed Nishinoya could be anything but obnoxious.

She knew she was right. Saeko had no clue what she was talking about.

*******************************************************************************************

Kaede grumbled as she slumped into the gymnasium after a grueling day of school. She toed off her shoes with an exaggerated sigh, lazily tossing her bag against the wall and sliding down beside it like a ton of bricks rested on her shoulders.

“What’s wrong with you?” Tanaka stood over her while she sluggishly dug out her gym shoes.

“I failed my exam,” she pouted, “couldn’t even answer all the questions.”

Tanaka snorted, “that sucks.”

She groaned, letting her head hang forward and hearing another unwanted set of footsteps approach.

“What’s wrong with her?” Nishinoya asked after a quick once-over.

“She failed an exam.”

“The Calc one?” Nishinoya crouched in front of her, pinching her cheeks to lift her face. “I thought you studied all weekend?”

“I did,” she deadpanned.

He grimaced, “well, if it makes you feel better I fail all the time.”

“Well, you’re an idiot.”

Nishinoya rolled his eyes, switching the pinch to a gentle cradle and leaning forward. “It’s only one exam.”

She started to argue, but he lightly bumped his forehead against hers.

“You’ll be fine,” he smirked. “You’re annoyingly smart, and there’s ways for you to make up the points, right?”

Kaede’s heart was in a frenzy as she nodded.

“See? Nothing to stress about then.”

“Whatever,” she mumbled, avoiding his eyes.

Nishinoya snorted, standing up and turning to the court. “Kinnoshita, send your practice serves to me, okay?”

She watched him run off before turning to Tanaka. “That was weird, right?”

“I honestly can’t tell with you two.”

She narrowed her gaze at Nishinoya, carefully fixing the bangs he’d messed up. She was probably just overanalyzing things because Saeko was still lurking somewhere in her mind and it was best not to think about it. Kaede finished putting her gym shoes on and decided she’d confidently continue on like nothing had happened.

A few days later Kaede was sitting cross-legged against the wall, searching for the phone numbers of coaches for possible practice matches-her first legit manager assignment. Nishinoya had joined her during the team’s allotted break, sitting down and tugging her non-dominant hand in his lap. He played with her fingers and languidly drew patterns against her palm, leaving a tingle blazing up her forearm.

“What are you doing?” She eventually asked when the goose bumps were too strong to ignore.

“It’s too bad you suck at volleyball,” he said, lifting her hand, “cause you have really nice hands.”

She pulled her hand back. “That was the weirdest backhanded compliment I’ve ever gotten.”

“What? I don’t even know what that is.” he whined, reaching for her hand.

She tucked her under her butt and he pouted. “It’s like a hidden insult.” She put the end of her pen on her lip in thought, ignoring how he tugged her arm in an attempt to free her hand from her butt. “It’s like if I told you, ‘too bad you’re so annoying because otherwise you’d be really cute’ or something.”

“You think I’m cute?” He asked with a sly smirk.

Her face flushed red. “What? No, it was an example. I said if I-”

“That’s okay,” he flicked the orange ribbon she used to keep her hair half-up. “I think you’re cute too.”

“I’m not cute.”

“You are,” he stated, standing and stretching to prepare for Daichi calling everyone back to the court. “Now if you’ll excuse me. The most attractive person you’ve ever seen has to get back to practice.”

“That’s not even close to what I-,” she started, but he was already waving her off. Kaede sneered, writing the phone numbers with more force than necessary.

That boy had a death wish and one day she would grant it...

Kaede paced around the next practice staring down at her notebook she’d been studying. She furrowed her brow as she tried to remember terms that Kiyoko had given her, but something felt off.

“I’m starving.”

Her muscles tensed as a familiar whine reached her ears, but unlike usual arms wrapped around her midsection and a chin rested on her shoulder. Kaede side-eyed Nishinoya who was observing the notebook in her hands with a raised brow.

“You’ve been pretty clingy lately,” she pointed out.

“In a good mood,” he reached forward to grab her notebook. “What’s this?”

“None of your business.” She said, moving it out of reach. “Aren’t you worried Kiyoko’s going to get the wrong idea?”

“Nah, I’m stepping down. Giving Tanaka a better chance, ya know?” Nishinoya made a grabbing motion. “I wanna see the book.”

She grumbled, but opened it back up, revealing volleyball terms and definitions along with really poorly drawn stick figures. Nishinoya straightened up, tugging it from her hands. “What is it?”

“I’m trying to learn everything for when Kiyoko leaves.” Kaede mumbled while her face grew red.

He fought back a smile while flipping through pages, “is there a section for liberos?”

Her eyes widened and she reached for the book, “no.”

“So, there is!”

“Stop. Give it back.”

His eyes scanned the pages while she attempted to reach over his shoulder. Eventually he landed on one before turning around with a wicked grin.

“Noya, I swear if you don’t-”

“‘Libero-my favorite position!’,” he read as he dodged her swipes. He flipped it around with an amused smirk, pointing to a stick figure with spiky hair. “Is this supposed to be me?”

“Obviously,” she crossed her arms. “It looks just like you.”

“What’s wrong with my legs?”

“Those are your knee pads!”

He cocked his head to the side, mulling that over. “I guess… I see it?” He scanned both his pages with a furrowed brow before holding out his hand. “A lot of stuff is missing. Do you have a pencil or something?”

Kaede offered him the pen from her track pants and he began writing notes all over the pages. She tried peeking over his shoulder, but he turned away.

“Noya, what are you-”

“Done!” Nishinoya snapped the notebook shut with the pen tucked between the pages. He bopped her on the forehead with it, wearing a fond smile. “Now you can really nerd out.”

Kaede’s cheeks warmed as she took the book back, but before she could thank him Coach Ukai was calling everyone to the court. He ruffled her hair before running off, which annoyingly sent a thrum through her heart.

Kaede chewed the inside of her cheek, opening her notebook to the section that Nishinoya had helped fill out before her expression immediately dropped. He had written majority useful notes, but most noticeable were comments about how libero was the best position and how ‘only attractive people play it’. He even gave his stick figure muscles and encased it in a giant heart.

No matter how hard Kaede tried to muster her usual frustration-nothing came. Instead she smiled fondly, her fingers trailing across the stupid words, ‘love of my life’ he’d written in the bottom corner with an arrow pointed to his stick figure. She closed her eyes as her stomach rolled with an unfamiliar feeling she didn’t know what to do with.

But Kaede knew one thing… She was screwed.

*******************************************************************************************

Kaede attempted to get through the rest of the week as if nothing had changed. She pretended her eyes weren’t lingering on Nishinoya longer than usual, that her heart wasn’t an uncontrollable mess when he laughed, or that she didn’t light up when he clung to her. Unfortunately, pretending wasn’t good enough and people were beginning to notice-even Nishinoya was giving her weird looks.

Honestly, she was just looking forward to their break since holidays were finally here. She needed time away from everyone to overthink her life choices.

Coach Ukai’s abrupt clap brought her back to reality where Nishinoya had been running his fingers through her hair while they stood in an end of practice huddle. Everyone was dispersing and Kaede looked around panicked, having zoned out and missing everything he said.

“He assigned daily work-outs for over break,” she heard Nishinoya begin, turning around confused, “he said Kiyoko should’ve given you tasks if you had any, and Kinnoshita, Suga, and Yamaguchi were assigned cleaning tonight.” Nishinoya smiled affectionately.

“Oh-I-uh-thank you.” She cringed at herself, but Nishinoya just saluted and left for his duffel bag.

“Th-th-thank you, Nishinoya…” Tanaka came up beside her with his hands clasped. “You’re so cute and funny and I loooooovvve-ow!”

She punched his arm as warmth crept up her neck. “I don’t sound like that!”

“You definitely do.”

She glanced at Nishinoya, then covered her mouth from his sight before saying, “do I really?”

“Don’t worry. Nishinoya’s as dumb as you.” Tanaka rolled his eyes before walking toward the other’s. “You could wear an ‘I love Nishinoya’ t-shirt and he still wouldn’t get it.”

She pouted at the insult, but was reassured by Nishinoya’s apparent obliviousness. Kaede followed Tanaka to the benches and plopped down beside Nishinoya who’d put his stuff by hers at the start of practice. It took all of her focus to not look at him, especially when she could see him sneaking peeks at her.

“Does anyone have plans for Christmas?” Daichi questioned further down the bench.

“Saeko’s forcing me to look at lights with her,” Tanaka’s shoulders slumped. “If I could just get a date I wouldn’t have to deal with her dragging me around.”

“I’m taking Natsu to see lights, too.” Hinata said, tossing a volleyball between his hands. “I don’t mind hanging out with her though.”

“That’s because the only thing you think about is volleyball, Hinata.” Ennoshita ruffled his hair and Hinata’s face turned red.

“Not true!”

“Nishinoya and Kaede are probably the only ones with actual plans.” Asahi chuckled, causing Nishinoya to choke on the water he’d been guzzling.

“Yeah, what are you guys doing?” Daichi asked.

Kaede looked over, surprised that so many of them were curious about her plans. “Um, I haven’t really thought about it yet. Lights are cool. Maybe food, who knows.”

“Seriously? You haven’t planned anything?” Asahi crossed his arms. “That doesn’t sound like Noya.”

Nishinoya looked between everyone panicked while Kaede’s eyes flickered toward a snickering Tanaka. “I mean, I don’t know what Noya’s doing. So, maybe he has plans?”

“I’m confused,” Hinata frowned. “Are you guys not hanging out on Christmas?”

“No,” Kaede felt warmth spreading across her cheeks. “Why would we-”

“Heh, good jokes guys.” Nishinoya grabbed her hand and pulled her off the bench. “We gotta go though, so I think that’s-”

“You’re dating though...” Hinata looked at Kageyama. “People hang out on Christmas when they’re dating, right?”

“Obviously, idiot.” He turned to Daichi and whispered. “They do, right?”

Daichi nodded.

Kaede’s jaw went slack at the accusation as Nishinoya continued to yank her toward the exit. “What? We’re not dating!” She tried to remain in place, but Nishinoya tugged harder. “Why would you think that?”

“Well, Nishinoya said you guys were in-”

“Wow, this has been a great time,” Nishinoya cut him off as they reached the door. “I really appreciate this guys. Unfortunately, we’re leaving. Have a good break or something...”

After he dragged her a good distance from the gymnasium she tugged her hand out of his strong grasp. “What the hell was that?”

“Not sure what you're talking about…”

“That!” She gestured wildly in the direction of the gym behind them. “They’re going to think we’re dating.”

Nishinoya facepalmed, “I promise you that doesn’t bother me.”

“What do you mean it doesn’t-” Kaede’s fists clenched as he continued walking without her. “Get back here!”

She caught up quickly and grabbed his hand, pulling him around to face her. He observed her scowl and furrowed his brow in frustration, attempting to pull his hand out of her grip.

“It doesn’t matter,” he claimed, avoiding her eyes, but Kaede knew that was bull shit. She tried to take a step closer, but he kept awkwardly stepping back until he hit a wall and a blush spread to his cheeks.

Kaede’s heart was in a frenzy at their position, but she wasn’t going to flake out now. She dropped his hand to place her’s beside his head so he couldn’t walk away from her anymore.

“Explain.” She demanded.

“Mizuki, it’s really hard to think when you’re pinning me against-”

“Try,” she narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re being weird.”

“I’m being weird?” His eyebrows rose in disbelief. “You've been acting weird all week!”

Kaede felt her cheeks warming as her confident facade wavered. “Well, that’s not what this is about. We’re talking about you here.”

He dragged a hand down his face before giving her a once-over, “do you actually not know?”

“Not know what?”

He glanced down nervously, “I like you, Mizuki.”

She blinked once. Twice. Then her arm fell limp to her side. “Oh,” she breathed out.

“Yeah, like, I really really really like you.”

“I-uh-heard the first time, Noya.” She said, staring at his feet. She supposed this had been what Tanaka meant by Noya was as stupid as she was.

“Right, sorry, it just felt really good to say.”

Kaede’s heart was pounding and she was surprised Nishinoya hadn’t pointed out the noise. It was so loud she couldn’t focus. Her stomach was rolling in that weird way again that she couldn’t tell was nausea or butterflies-maybe both.

“When did-”

“Shiratorizawa I guess...” His face scrunched in thought. “I mean, maybe before that. I don’t know, it feels so weird... “ He rubbed his chest. “A good weird. Just a different weird.”

She nodded understandingly. Nishinoya also made her feel all sorts of weird. He lifted his hand toward her face, but hesitated when he neared her cheek, dropping it back to his side.

Kaede frowned, staring longingly at the hand that normally wouldn’t have hesitated to hold her. She chewed the inside of her cheek before mustering up the courage to lace her fingers with his. Nishinoya’s eyes had watched her gaze carefully, tracking her intense stare with hopeful eyes.

He lightly swung their hands with a dopey smile. “You’re cute.”

“I’m not,” she furrowed her brow, a light blush painting her cheeks.

He pressed his forehead against hers with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “You are.”

Kaede pouted at how out of control her heart was at him simply squeezing her hand and from the almost cocky look in his eyes he could probably tell. Her eyes flickered down briefly and she raised her brow contemplatively.

“I feel like someone who wears a ribbon everyday has no right to claim that they aren’t-”

“Noya, I’m going to kiss you,” she interrupted.

His jaw went slack and he froze in disbelief. Kaede smirked slyly at the reaction she’d been hoping for as she guided his face closer, holding him a breath away.

He blinked back to reality, “are you sure? I mean I would love that so much, but are you absolutely sure? Because that’s like an actual thing that-”

Kaede closed the gap, pressing her lips against his to stop his rambling-whatever he’d been saying getting lost in their kiss. They had an awkward position at first, but once realization struck Nishinoya he quickly adjusted, sliding his hand up and tangling his fingers in her hair. She tried to remain focused, but as Nishinoya wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close she couldn’t help the bubble of laughter that escaped her.

Nishinoya pulled back, embarrassment striking his face as he searched her eyes.

“You’re laughing,” he stated, slightly out of breath. “Was it bad? I’ve never kissed someone. It was bad, wasn’t it?

“No, it wasn’t-I just-,” she giggled, leaning forward hiding her face in his chest. It hadn’t been bad. The kiss had just been so Nishinoya-diving head first, putting everything into it with no experience. Kaede couldn’t help it.

Nishinoya cradled the side of her face and lifted her to face him, smiling at her with more affection than she’d ever thought capable. He ran his thumb along her bottom lip before leaning forward to capture her lips again. This time he went slowly, from pulling her close to the press of his lips everything felt thought out.

When he pulled back, rubbing his nose against hers he whispered, “better?”

“Uh-huh,” she squeaked, face a brilliant shade of pink.

“This is good, right?” He furrowed his brow in question. “Kissing is usually a good sign.”

Kaede’s lips quirked into a small smile as she pressed her forehead against his, eyes soft as they scoured his face. “Yeah,” she rubbed her thumb along his cheek. “It’s a really good sign.”

“Cool,” he smiled dopily, leaning against her touch. “So, wanna go out this weekend?”

Kaede rolled her eyes, giving him a quick peck.

“Is that a yes?”

“Nope,” she said, stepping back and walking away backward. He blinked a few times before following her.

“What do you mean no?” Nishinoya pouted.

She stuck her tongue out and pivoted around a smile forcing its way on her face when Nishinoya caught up, interlocking their hands together. “I guess I’ll think about it.”

“Think about it!?”

Kaede swung their hands happily as Nishinoya ranted to her about her audacity while she unknowingly walked him to the nearest ramen shop. She was hungry, so why wait for the weekend when they could just go out now?

She glanced over to Nishinoya’s pouting face as he listed off reasons he should be allowed a date and rolled her eyes. Kaede relished in the warmth consuming her chest as she listened to him, allowing herself the happiness she’d been pushing back for so long. This was nice.

Being with him like this… She liked this. She liked him.

And she was happy she had finally figured that out.

#nishinoya yuu #nishinoya yu #nishinoya x reader #nishinoya yu x reader #nishinoya yū #hq nishinoya #nishinoya #nishinoya oneshot #haikyuu!!#hiakyuu #haikyū!!#haikyuu x reader #haikyu!!#nishinoya yuu x reader

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jobrookekarev · 3 years

Text

New Hair, but No New Engagements

Chapter One of One

Words: 3256

Summary: Link tries to fix Jo’s hair while the two of them talk. Link comforts her about her worries for leaving Luna in daycare, and Jo tells him not to keep pushing Amelia to marry him.

Fandom: Grey’s Anatomy.

Relationship: Jo Wilson & Atticus Lincoln, Alex Karev/Jo Wilson (Mentioned), and Atticus Lincoln/Amelia Shepherd (Mentioned).

Characters: Jo Wilson, Atticus Lincoln, and Luna Ashton Wilson.

Rating: General Audiences.

Additional Tags: Fluff, Angst, Haircuts, Babies, Serious Conversations, Relationship Advice, and Friendship.

Read at AO3

Read at FFN

AN: There wasn't nearly enough of Jo and Link in last night's episode.

……………………………………………………………………

“Are you sure about this?” Jo asked, holding up the mirror looking to where Link was holding a strand of her hair, getting ready to make the first cut.

“Yes, trust me. I'm much better at cutting hair than you are,” Link said as Jo scoffed, remembering the time she tried to cut his hair. “Besides, you've seen how I keep up this beautiful hair.”

Jo rolled her eyes but pinned the towel around her shoulders and let him continue. After they deep conditioned her hair in the kitchen sink and worked out most of the tangles, Jo decided that although some of it could be saved, the majority of her ends were completely unsalvageable. So she put Luna on a play mat on the floor as Link grabbed the scissors.

Jo closed her eyes as he made the first cut. As soon as she heard the snip of the scissors, she opened one eye and looked at it in the mirror she was holding. She let out a sigh of relief as, thankfully, it didn't look too bad. As Link continued to cut, Jo looked down at Luna, she was supposed to be doing tummy time, but she had rolled over onto her back and was currently staring up at the suspended animals while playing with her toes.

“Does Lana have object permanence yet?” Link asked, catching Jo's attention as she looked at him in the mirror.

“Yeah, she’s really good at not fussing when I lose her favorite blanket. We still play peek-a-boo all the time and it's her favorite,” Jo said, looking down at Luna again as she glanced at her, and Jo put her hands over her face before pulling them back and saying peekaboo to her as Luna laughed.

“So Luna knows that just because she can't see something doesn't mean it's not there. The same thing applies to you when you drop her off at daycare. She knows that you love her, Jo. I've seen the way she looks at you, and just because you drop her off at daycare doesn't mean that Luna doesn't know that you love her.”

“Thanks,” Jo said with a sigh, looking down at Luna, who was fixated on her and smiled down at her little girl.

Luna looked over at her with a wide smile as Jo waved at her, and Luna waved her arms as well before looking back up at her toys. Jo couldn't help but smile as she stared at her daughter. Her perfect little girl was so happy. She never wanted Luna to worry about if Jo was going to pick her up from daycare. All Jo wanted was to let her daughter know that she was always loved and wanted.

“I know it's not as easy as I say it is. I’m still terrified that Scout is going to get cancer,” Link said, letting out a sigh as he picked up another strand of her hair.

“Even though I've told you a dozen times that the likelihood of that is pretty small?” Jo said, looking up at him. “By the way, how was his 1-year appointment? “

“It was great, except for the fact that we over shared with the doctor, but Scout is doing fine. He's, he's perfect,” Link said, with a smile as Jo looked back at him, but it quickly disappeared before he shook his head and picked up another strand to cut. “But I still worry, you know, I don't think that I'll ever not worry.”

“I don't think I'll ever not worry either,” Jo said, staring at Luna before looking back at him in the mirror. “And Link, you gotta stop proposing to Amelia.”

“I just want to marry her. Is that so wrong?” Link asked with a sigh, running a comb through her hair and holding up the ends before he trimmed them.

“You're pushing her to do something that she's not ready to do. Amelia has a really good reason for not wanting to marry you. She's been married before, and she loves you, and I can tell that she doesn’t want to rush into a marriage she's not ready for. I was in her position and do you know how many times I turned down Alex’s proposal? He asked me like three or four times before he decided it wasn't enough for him and we broke up for six months.”

“Didn't he also punch DeLuca and almost go to jail at the start of those six months?” Link asked, pausing to turn his head and look at her. “Also, weren't you still married to Paul and you hadn't told him yet, so technically, you couldn't have accepted the proposal even if you wanted to.”

“Yes, but that's not the point,” Jo said, waving him off with her hand as he went back to cutting her hair. “Alex was pushing me to do something I didn't want to do. Both in terms of accepting his proposal and telling him about Paul. We were only able to work things out when he accepted that. Then down the road, I realized that I wanted to marry him, and so I proposed, and we got married. I mean, he still left, but...”

Jo trailed off, she wanted to say that they were happy together, but she questioned how much of that happiness was real. She knew that Link and Amelia were different, but given her failed marriages, sometimes she felt like she had no right to be giving relationship advice. Still, she clung to what was true for her and Alex and what she saw that Link was doing with Amelia.

“Look, it doesn't matter. I still wasn't ready to marry him, but Alex decided that being with me was more important than marrying me!” Jo said, and she waited until he pulled the scissors for her to turn around and look at him. “You have the option to choose to love her and you're throwing it away! Do you think I would do that if Alex was standing in front of me right now? I wouldn't care if he brought an ex-wife and two kids with him. So long as I could have him, I would be happy. Are you telling me that so long as you have Amelia and Scout, you wouldn't be happy?”

Link looked down and away from her. She knew he wasn't quite ready to hear her words. He was still hung up on the fact that Amelia wouldn't marry him. She hoped that he would truly listen to her and Amelia, and they could work things out. Link looked back up and caught her eye again. He didn't say anything as he picked up a strand of hair by her face, measuring it out before he started cutting again.

Jo turned back around and looked down at Luna, who had rolled over onto her stomach. Luna got up on her hands and knees, she wasn't quite crawling yet, but she would hold herself up and wiggle. Jo smiled and held her hands out to encourage her to crawl. Luna got the most adorable, determined look on her face as she moved back and forth, not quite crawling. After a few minutes, she got frustrated and started to cry out, sitting back and holding out her arms for Jo to pick her up. Link let go of her hair, and Jo reached down to pick up Luna before she sat back in the chair and held Luna on her lap.

“You almost did it, Luna, you're going to be crawling before Mama knows it,” Jo said, reaching out and bopping her finger on Luna's nose as Luna almost went cross-eyed trying to watch her finger.

“She is certainly getting close. You'll have to learn how to whip your phone in time to capture it,” Link said as he ran a brush through her hair before he started cutting it again.

“What if she crawls for the first time at daycare and I don't get to see it?” Jo said, her eyes widening as she looked at Luna.

“She's not going to crawl for the first time at daycare. Nothing ever happens for the first time at daycare,” Link said with a little laugh, and she felt another chunk of her hair fall off her shoulders. “The first time she crawls for you is still the first time and she's going to remember if you were there for the real first time or not. You're still going to get to watch her grow up and do so many first, Jo. You have a whole lifetime with her. A few hours in daycare is just nothing compared to that.”

“I know,” Jo said, picking up Luna’s little pacifier with a small brown bear stuffed animal attached to it and waving it around before Luna reached out for it and Jo put the pacifier in her mouth. “It feels so different than when she was in the NICU. Back then, I would visit her whenever I could, and that felt like it was enough. I never felt like I missed anything or like I was abandoning her. Now that she's home with me, it's different, and I don't know why.”

“It's different because she's home,” Link said, pausing to hold a strand of her hair and making sure his cuts were straight.

“I've been home with her for 12 weeks and I still feel like I did the first day I got her. I've barely even unpacked. I've just been living out of boxes for three months,” Jo said as she glared over at the stack of boxes that she hadn’t unpacked yet.

“You've got a 10-month-old baby, a preemie 10-month-old baby girl, and you're doing everything on your own. So long as you keep yourself and her alive, I think you're doing pretty good,” Link said, putting a hand on her shoulder and giving it a squeeze.

“Thanks,” Jo said, looking back at him.

Jo let out a sigh as she looked around the room again. She never imagined her life turning out like this. Even with Luna, the penthouse felt big and empty at times. She was glad that Link was staying with her now. This was the first time that she had lived on her own in six years. She had never gone more than a few months without a roommate or without Alex. As she looked down at Luna, she smiled. Jo could tell she was getting sleepy as she ran her finger over her forehead and down the bridge of her little nose, and her eyes fluttered. It was a trick that Alex had taught her to get the NICU babies to sleep. She knew that even if they were still together, she would have still adopted Luna, but she always thought that Alex would be the one to make her mother or at least be with her through all of this.

“I never thought I'd be doing this alone. I thought that I'd have him with me,” Jo said, looking down at Luna. She had settled in Jo's arms, her eyes were growing heavy, and she struggled to keep them open and soon closed as she fell asleep.

“I know,” Link whispered as they both fell silent, save for the sound of the scissors cutting her hair.

“Whenever we talked about kids, he always got this big smile on his face. He made all these promises to me. He promised me that we would move into a good house in a good school district and that we would go on all of the vacations that we never got to take his kids. Disneyland, and the beach, and roller coasters, and water parks. He promised me that he would change all of the diapers after I gave birth, and I would roll my eyes, but I knew that he would do his best to keep his promises.”

Jo couldn't help but get choked up even a year later. She still grieved for the things that she lost when he left as tears collected in her eyes and a lump formed in her throat. “I adopted Lena alone, and I knew that I was going to be a single mother, but I never thought I'd do this alone.”

“You're not alone, Jo. You have me,” Link said, although he still had the left side of her hair to do. He dropped the scissors and wrapped his arms around her, putting his head on your shoulder. She leaned her head against his, letting a few tears slip out of her eyes. “I never thought I'd find the love of my life and that she wouldn't want to marry me. I never thought that I would be raising my son half the time. I don't want to be alone either, so why don't we stick together? Then we’ll never be alone.”

Jo could only nod as she closed her eyes and shuffled Luna into one arm so she could put her arm around Link as he hugged her. Jo let out a sigh as she let out her tears, although it was just a few. Every time she cried about Alex, she cried less and less. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but it was what it was. Once she pulled away from him, Link let go of her and gave her a tissue to wipe her face. He double-checked that she was okay before he went back to cutting her hair.

“So if I'm going to move in, we should probably move you and Luna into one of the bedrooms, otherwise it's just awkward,” Link said, as Jo let out a little laugh and tried not to jostle Luna too much.

“Okay, so do you want the bedroom with the fireplace or without the fireplace?”

“The guest bedroom has a fireplace?” Link paused, moving his head around to look at her as Jo nodded. “Yep, and the master bedroom has both a fireplace and this huge jacuzzi tub that can fit like two people.”

“Wow,” Link said with a shake of his head. “It's so weird that you're rich now.”

“It's super weird,” Jo said as she looked around the penthouse a little bit while trying not to move her head. She still wasn't used to it and didn't think she would ever get used to it.

“Alright, I'm all done. What do you think?” Link said as he ran a brush through their hair one last time before Jo held up the mirror to look at her hair.

It was shorter and blond, and she didn't look anything like herself, but she was happy with it. “It looks great. Thank you”

“Don't act so surprised. I told you I know how to cut hair,” Link said as he took the scissors and went to grab the broom.

“It is kind of a little surprising, though,” Jo said as she got up to go put Luna in her crib. When she put her down, Jo lingered there. She held onto the side of the crib and just watched her for an extra second.

“Hey, come help me with this?” Link said, holding out the dustpan to her, and Jo knew that he was trying to pull her away, but she let him and grabbed the dustpan to help him sweep up her hair.

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

Later that night, Jo laid in bed staring at Luna in her crib. She just got on her back down and was just watching to make sure she didn't wake up again. As Luna slept peacefully Jo found that she couldn't close her eyes. Some Nights the bed still felt too big and empty, no matter how many pillows she squished up against her back. Every time she reached out to feel the cold space next to her, it was just another reminder of the person who should be there.

Jo let out a huff as she reached out to her nightstand. She sat up just a little bit as she opened the drawer and pulled out the photo that she kept hidden away. It wasn't even her photo and frame. It was the one that Alex kept on his nightstand. The glass of the frame was gone and it was now held together with a little bit of duct tape after she threw across the loft, breaking it. The second she tossed it, she ran to get it and put it back together. Jo looked at the photo, it was them on their wedding day. They looked so happy and he looked so in love with her. She ran her fingers over his face, tracing the lines of his hair and the little curls in his hair. She still didn't know when that love stopped.

“I wish you were here. I wish I would have given you a baby earlier. I wish you would know and love Luna like I do,” Jo said as she let herself whisper aloud. S

She could feel the tears that came up earlier in her eyes again. She took in a deep breath, and she closed her eyes as she settled, and the tears disappeared. Whenever she did that, she didn't know if she was holding in her tears or letting them go, sometimes it felt like doing a little bit of both.

She heard Luna stir and move around and saw her kick in her crib. Jo put the photo down and got up to glance at her, letting out a sigh of relief as she saw Luna was still asleep. She smiled too as she watched her little girl move in her sleep, dreaming of happy things. Her peaceful watching was interrupted by a loud snore from Link as she looked over at him. He was asleep on the couch and spread out with one leg up on the armrest and the other dangling off as he was too big for the couch.

As much as she wished that she had Alex with her, she acknowledged that her life was pretty good right now. She was surrounded by people who loved her. She had a family and a daughter whom she loved more than anything. She was pursuing a new career that she was passionate about. If she had left with him and gone to Kansas, she wouldn't have any of this. She looked back at Luna and reached out, tracing her fingers across her arm down to her hand as her little hand wrapped around Jo’s fingers.

“You are worth the heartbreak a thousand times over,” Jo said, although the tears welled up in her eyes again and this time, she let them fall on her cheeks. “I hope you hear me and I hope you know that. I love you so much, my Little Moon.”

Luna smiled in her sleep and Jo shared her smile. She squeezed Luna's hand one last time before she let her finger slip out of her grasp and went to crawl back into bed. She put the photograph away in her nightstand and moved the pillows up against her back again as she tried not to miss Alex. Instead, she watched Luna in her crib just for a moment. Her daughter would be okay in daycare and she would know that she was loved even if Jo wasn't with her all the time. Then she closed her eyes and she smiled as she fell asleep.

#jo wilson #jolex #alex karev #atticus lincoln #amelink #amelia shepherd #grey's anatomy #spoilers #otp: home and heart #grey's anatomy fanfic #my work #my writing #my fanfiction

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domesticmail · 4 years

Text

a/n: i am IN MY PLD FEELS. also!! for my purposes, you & pld have a baby daughter named Leah Leah Josephine Dubois is the cutest name ever don’t clown on me

summary: a teammate asks pierre, while they’re talking about you, “What did you see in her?” at a team barbecue. pierre reflects.

warnings: this is just pure fluff, okay? y’all know i can’t resist pierre being a softie

“What did you see in her?”

As if it was that easy. As if Pierre could just rattle off a list of attributes like he believed all you were was a collection of descriptive words, words that he could use to flatter any woman he liked. As if he looked at you and could pinpoint exactly what it was that drew him to you like a honeybee to a blossom, needy. As if he didn’t look at you like you were the world to him, like you were everything and everyone he would ever need.

Leah twisted in your arms, giggling at you as you played Peek-A-Boo with her.

“What did you see in her?”

As if he was the only one who saw you. As if he was the only person in the room who knew you the way he did, knew the secrets and the inside jokes and the specific way you’d wrinkle your nose at your daughter when she’d done something careless (“We can’t blame her, honey, she’s just a baby,” you’d say, furrowing your brows together, struggling. “How do we teach her without making her feel bad?”). As if you weren’t the brightest girl in the room, save only for your daughter.

Your smile reached your ears as you pressed your lips to Leah’s nose. She laughed, a bright, high noise, attracting a few “awe”s from the crowd at the barbecue.

“What did you see in her?”

As if you hadn’t been the only person there for him at home when he’d come back with an especially painful injury, running a bath and holding him, letting him lay against your chest, your arms and hands cleaning him, relaxing every muscle one by one. As if you hadn’t told him you’d be with him no matter what, that even if his hockey career went bust (not that you believed it would; but in the case that it did) you’d stay with him, for him, because you loved him. As if you hadn’t told him you loved him in millions of little ways every day, from the way you washed his jerseys and spent your nights scrubbing the blood out of his clothes to the smile you wore when you brought Leah to his games dressed to the nines in Dubois gear, showing off for the cameras and the crowd.

He caught his daughter’s eye, did a little wave with his fingers. Leah turned bashful, bringing her hands to her mouth, smiling. You laughed and leaned down to tuck your face next to hers - “Wanna say hi to Daddy? Say hi, Daddy! Say hi!” You waved at him and giggled as Leah mimicked you with her own tiny little hand and smile.

She looked so much like you it was crazy. The way she was walking, now, her confident little bopping from side to side, was so reminiscent of the way you walked down the hall while listening to music, mindlessly mouthing along to the words. Her nose was definitely Pierre’s, but her happy face, her rainbow-ed eyes, her larger-than-life smile, her whole head leaning up and back, nearly tipping herself over - that was all you.

“What did you see in her?”

Pierre nearly socked his teammate in the face. “You mean what didn’t I see in her.”

@cartrshart @kaceyjost @fav-imagines for y’alls feels!!!!!!! this reads best if u read it while listening to either “shut up” by greyson chance, “favorite t-shirt” by jake scott, or “painkiller” by ruel !! i love u guys <3 (also @starkeybabie for our soft pld obsession)

#pld #fridge husband #CUTE #I LOVE THIS MAN SO MUCH OKAY #i couldn't help myself

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freebooter4ever · 4 years

Text

Kangaroos

You can blame my roommates' friends in Australia for this. Short fluff with Eugene and Snafu being cute:

Snafu and Eugene arrive in Texas three days prior to the wedding. Coming all the way from Oregon, they travel the farthest of Burgie's guests (Florence's relatives don't count, nowhere is as far away as Australia), and Eugene is having fits worrying about whether they'll make it across the mountains in time or be delayed due to snow. No matter how many times Snafu reminds Eugene of his skills as a mechanic should they experience car trouble, Eugene's typical southern boy fear of snow persists and eventually Snafu gives in and books the motel for an extra few days.

Once they’re in Texas, Eugene proves to be equally nervous about meeting Burgie's family, as well as seeing Burgie himself for the first time in two years.

"Calm your ass down, Sledge," Snafu grumps as he desperately tries to figure out the proper configuration of the damned sweater vest Eugene bought him for the occasion.

"You put your head through an armhole again," Eugene points out as he twists his ring on and off his finger anxiously.

"Fuck," Snafu grumbles, "Fucking, fuck." He rips the thing off his head and tries again.

“Backwards,” Eugene corrects him. The asshole offers no help beyond his words of direction.

Snafu keeps the sweater bunched around his neck as he rotates it, so he knows he got at least one hole right.

"We need to look respectable," Eugene says and hands Snafu his tie.

"I think they'd treat me the same whether I was wearing a sweater with sleeves or without," Snafu says. He eyes Eugene's fingers which won't leave the ring be. "You're not gonna take it off, are you?"

Eugene immediately drops his hands to his sides and looks guilty, "No..."

"Gene, we're in farm country Texas," Snafu pulls him close and gives him a kiss, "Burgie already knows and no one else is gonna even notice, I promise."

"They're gonna notice if you go around doing that all day," Eugene says and wipes Snafu's sweet tasting chapstick off his lips. Eugene bends down to retie his shoelaces because one string is longer than the other.

"No more kisses, I promise," Snafu swears and crosses his heart.

Eugene straightens with a slightly alarmed look, "I mean...not...not ever again...right?"

"Never again," Snafu sing-songs obnoxiously, "Never ever ever..."

Eugene grabs Snafu’s crooked tie, drags him into a kiss, and makes sure to get all his lustful urges out of the way before they drive to the ranch.

Burgie's ranch is somewhere in the countryside where the closest town is too small to even have a motel. They have to drive two hours just to get there. Snafu sings ‘These Wedding Bells Are Busting Up This Old Gang of Mine’ the whole way. And everytime they fill up, Snafu complains about having to stop at watered down podunk gas stations.

"We own a podunk gas station, Snaf," Eugene comments.

"Yeah but we don't dilute our gas," Snafu states proudly, "Look at the mileage I'm getting right now. Ain't no way that was high quality gasoline back there. I know my car, Gene."

By the time they do reach Burgie's ranch, Eugene is already exhausted. He is not prepared for how calm and collected Burgie is.

"We've actually been married for the past nine months," Burgie shrugs as he sits in his parlor while the rest of the house is chaos around him, "This is just a party, really. Went down to the courthouse and made it official the minute Florence arrived in Los Angeles." He raises his hand and wiggles his fingers to show off his ring.

Eugene puts his own hands in his pants pockets.

Snafu, meanwhile, can't pay attention to a word Burgie is saying. All he can focus on is the baby kangaroo happily playing in Burgie's lap, as if it's the most normal thing in the world. Snafu waves at it and tries to get it's attention, but the baby kangaroo does not care.

"Sorry," Burgie says to Snafu as the kangaroo bops it's head against Burgie's shoulder, "He only has eyes for me. The other kangaroos couldn't care less, but Joey's gotten attached."

Florence pokes her head into the parlor while on her way to the kitchen and tsks, "Had I known, when I asked to bring some of my family's kangaroos with me from Australia and you said yes, that you would turn into a big softie and let them in the house, I would never have brought them." Burgie grins at his bride, and they share a quick moment of fond eye contact before she's called away for a flour emergency.

"She's lying, she's the one who feeds baby Joey at the table with a bottle," Burgie tells Snafu.

"Can they be trained?" Snafu asks curiously.

"Not really," Burgie laughs, "The only ones we let into the house are the babies that we hand rear. And even then only till they are old enough to eat solid foods. I swear half my life is cleaning up mess..."

"Huh, maybe I want one," Snafu says. He reaches his hand out tentatively to the kangaroo and smiles. The kangaroo shows mild interest in the shiny ring on Snaf’s finger. Burgie shows interest in it too, but he’s too polite to comment.

"No," Eugene says flatly.

"Yeah. You’re probably right," Snafu drawls and leans back in his chair to look at his own blushing husband, "What do I need a kangaroo for when I've got my Gene-Boo right here."

Eugene is turning beet red.

Snafu gestures for Eugene to come closer, "Take your coat off and sit down, Sledgehammer. Stop holding up the wall over there, Burgie'll think you don't want to be here."

Burgie snorts and watches with amusement.

Eugene takes a few steps closer to Snafu, eyeing him warily.

Snafu reaches his hand out and gestures again.

Eugene entwines their fingers together and stands next to Snafu's chair so he can hold his hand.

But that's not enough for Snafu - he knows exactly what he wants. He twirls Eugene around to the front of the chair and tugs him down till Eugene plops into his lap.

"Yup, no kangaroo necessary," Snafu announces, “My lap’s full up.” He loosely closes his arms around Eugene's waist and leans his chin against Eugene's shoulder. Eugene crosses his own arms so he can hold onto both of Snafu's hands. Their wedding bands clink together. Snafu couldn't grin any harder if he tried. They never had a wedding - they did it the old fashioned way, just an extra name in a bible and a vow. The memory still makes Snafu the happiest he’s ever been in his entire life.

Burgie, on the other hand, is trying very hard not to laugh.

Eugene sighs and thinks about what succulents he needs to purchase for his garden back home before they leave the southwest.

Florence pops back into the parlor, peeling her flour covered apron off and brushing her hands clean. "I apologize for the chaos - had everything gone as planned we would have been all set days ago..." She falls silent when she sees her husband sitting with a baby kangaroo on his lap and her husband's old war buddy sitting across the room with a Eugene on his lap.

Without missing a beat, and with comedic effect almost as flawless as Eugene’s, Florence turns to Snafu and asks, "Would you like a bottle?"

Snafu cracks up laughing. Eugene jumps to his feet like someone lit a fire under his ass. His face glows a lovely fire engine red.

"Only if you can fill it with whiskey," Snafu jokes to Florence in response.

"I certainly can," Florence says.

And Eugene makes sure Snafu only drinks from his whiskey-bottle for the rest of the night as penance.

#sledgefu

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l8rhader · 3 years

Text

Post (well, sometime before the time jump to the airport before their wedding which I would argue still hasn’t happened even though it WAS SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE 6 MONTHS AGO BUT LET'S JUST IGNORE THAT PART LOLOLOL so let’s call this October in the timeline of-) come out of the things unsaid my Adult Reddie, quarantine, Tik Tok AU.

Addition based on this video!!

Eddie sat curled in the corner of the couch, a glass of wine curled between his fingers. He stared at the phone in his other hand as though it offended 6 lines of his lineage. Well, no, like it had offended 6 of his closest friends. He kept trying to type out witty responses, but after looking at the profile attached to the laundry list of degrading comments, it was clear that the user was... young. Very young. Like, younger than the T&C's young but, come to think of it, he wasn't sure they'd mentioned an age. But after an hour of comment after comment on his videos, the latest series being him teaching Richie how to play piano (despite how rusty his skill set had been) and Richie teaching him how to play guitar (even if most of those videos were cut short because Eddie couldn't keep his hands to himself). Most people thought it was cute.

Except 69LonnyTheLiger420.

By the time Richie came out of the bedroom, he was in the worst mood. "What it do, baby boo?" he said, dropping into the couch beside him and wrapping his arm around Eddie’s back. No response. Dejected, Richie leaned in closer and tried again. "What's the hap, cap?" He nudged Eddie’s cheek with his nose, finally startling him into reality with a high pitched hum. "I said, What's the tea, sweet pea?" Eddie crinkled his nose and shook his head, dismissing yet another nickname. "Do you not love me anymore?" he laughed, knowing that clearly wasn't the case, but something was definitely off. "Eds, what's up?" His eyes searched Eddie's for a moment before the notification noise for Tik Tok went off. Richie snatched the phone and opened it, frowning at Eddie’s notifications.

"Give it back. It's nothing. It's-"

Eyes wide, Richie fought down the decades old urge to flee. Instead, he hissed out, "Christ, babe. Does this happen a lot?"

Eddie shrugged. He supposed it happened fairly often. They were gay and happy and unapologetic and rubbing their new love in the face of millions of followers. It made sense, to an extent. This particular batch was just a lot.

Shaking his head, Richie tugged Eddie up by the hand. "No more phone,” he said, guiding him up the hallway toward their bedroom. Eddie made an exaggerated reach for it and Richie, instead leaned over, sweeping him into a fireman’s carry. “No more phone.” He shoved the device down into his pocket before slapping Eddie’s ass and eliciting a yelp in response.

“Put me down, jackass. I’m a grown man. I can wa-”

“Grown is an exaggerated term, toots,” he joked, navigating the hall with ease, despite his fiance kicking his feet and pounding his fists, calling him all sorts of creative names that thirteen year old never could have come up with. He tossed Eddie down on the bed and pounced on him. “I don’t know if you remember, but we literally bullied a space oddity to death. I think we are uniquely qualified for a response to this little shithead.”

With his hands on either side of Richie’s neck and his bony knees dug in just above his hips, he dumped Richie on to his side. “I think that it’s a little kid and it’s not worth, I don’t know, screaming at him in the middle of a Chinese restaurant.”

Feigning offense, Richie whimpered “That was ONE time, and,” he pushed his glasses back up onto his nose, adding “AND that’s something I only reserve for fans when I’m under emotional duress. This wretched little crotch goblin is clearly not a fan of either of ours so an emotional outburst is far above them.”

Eddie closed his eyes and shook his head, pulling Richie in for a kiss. “I love you, but just let it go. It’s not worth it.”

“You’re upset, babe,” he said, landing on the one nickname that Eddie never fought him on because he was too busy fighting off the butterflies swarming in his belly when he said it to actually argue. “That means it’s worth it to me.” The corner of his mouth twitched up into a smile seeing Eddie’s resolve falter. “You’re worth it all.”

The next morning, the video Eddie posted didn’t feature him at all. Instead, it was five of 69LonnyTheLiger420′s least creative jabs, mainly mentioning their ages and their sexuality, floating around Richie’s head as he sat at the keyboard in the room that belonged to Eddie months and months of quarantine prior. “You’re prob’ly just a kid in middle school and I don’t wanna fight a kid in middle school,” he crooned, accompanying himself with easy chords. “Instead of fighting kids in middle school,” he leaned into the camera like he had a secret, then smiled. “I’m gonna fuck your mom! I’m gonna fuck your mom. I’m gonna fuck your mom.” He bopped back and forth, looking slightly reminiscent of a character from Peanuts. “Don’t be such a saddie ‘cuz you got a new Daddy,” he added with a cheeky wink, “I’ll help you find a suit to prom.” He dragged his middle finger up the keys dramatically in a fairly effective glissando. “But, fuck with me and I will fuck your mom.” He raised his eyebrows and gave a little half-hearted salute.

Eddie swung the door open, then leaned against the doorframe looking at his fiance. “Please don’t go the Burnham route. I’m already sick of the people who compare you to Mulaney.”

“Why? They’re good guys. I don’t min-”

With a pointed stare, Eddie folded his arms. “But you’re Richie Tozier. You’re funny on your own. You don’t need anyone else’s schtick.”

Richie batted his eyes and smiled through pursed lips. “You think I’m funny?” he cooed. He may have played it up for Eddie’s consumption, but it still made him flutter when he actually admitted it.

Sticking his hand out and grabbing his phone to edit the video, “Come on, they put the final season of Schitt’s Creek up early so I am down for a rewatch,” he called from the hallway. “At least I didn’t make you propose to yourself. I love Patrick and all, but-”

”I proposed to you! Twice!” he said, still blushing as he stood from the tiny collapsible piano bench. “And does that mean you think you’re Patrick in this equation? Because, baby,” he said, finally bounding into the living room, “apart from my eyebrow game, the kinship to the drinking of all wines, your startlingly similar boring fashion and comparative petite-ness,” Richie wagged his finger then swiped the remote from under the TV, “you are judgy, neurotic and,” he added quickly, “simply the best.” He plopped down next to Eddie and wrapped him in his arms, kissing his neck. “You are 100% the David here.”

They settled in for their binge watching. Eddie’s phone dinged a few times, notifying them that the Losers were on the case, now. Bill and Mike responded with a video of their own using the Pas de Deux from Us sporting matching unimpressed looks as they both tossed rocks from their garden idly in time with the music with the caption “Sticks and stones...” It was basically nonthreatening, if maybe a little ominous, unless anyone seeing the video knew the Losers and their history with bullies, which they surely doubted. A duet from Bev and Ben, flatly responding Beep Beep came next. Finally, Stan’s response was of himself and Patty on the couch. She was looking at her phone confused, Richie’s song audible in the background, finishing the loop and restarting. “I think at this point the Mom jokes should be retired, Rich. Eddie’s going to start getting jealous if all these little assholes start calling you Daddy, too,” he said, smirking at the screen as Patty chastised him from off-camera.

Richie smiled, watching the responses over Eddie’s shoulder between episodes. Even though momentary clips of the Losers were nice- it was better than nothing- Eddie really fucking missed them. At least he knew that they’d always have his back.

#reddie #richie tozier #eddie kaspbrak #bill hader #james ransone #finn wolfhard #jack dylan grazer #it chapter 2 #it chapter two #it 2019 #quarantine au #tik tok au #smau #gay clown movie #stephen king's it

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imakeficrequestsandthendisappear · 5 years

Text

A list of the best and worst Disney kids

my roommate and i were talking about this and i hyperfixated. I included child characters which had speaking rolls and were at least side characters. If I left one out I don’t care. Also i didn’t include teenagers/princesses/love interests. Just the kids

It’s all subjective but i am right.

Pinocchio: disgusting puppet homunculi. I hate his weird knees. But I do like that he escapes a whale, it shows a will to live. I both respect and fear him. 4/10

Dumbo: Sweet and beautiful. Tragic backstory. Defies physics. Got Drunk. Love him with all my heart. But that CGI remake was gross so i subtracted 2 points. 8/10

Bambi: Beautiful and bland. would be a good instagram model. 5/10

Alice: embodies the “I just came out to have a good time and i’m honestly feeling very attacked right now” meme. enjoyable protagonist. 8/10

Peter Pan: kidnaps children. But seems fun. kind of a fuckboi. 6/10

Wendy: The mom friend that stands up for herself. deserved better. when she walks off that plank, fuckin iconic. 9/10

101+ dalmation puppies: Are puppies. but i can’t remember a single one of them. also can just multiply? themselves? 3/10 for magic

Arthur: complained to much. I liked him better as a squirrel. 1/10

Mogli: had fun on road trip with his 2 dads. easily sidetracked and hypnotized. 6/10 for jungle ADHD

Aristocats Kittens: Annoying but passable. A+ mom and stepdad parents. Overall 3/10

The little girl from The Rescuers: Apparently her name is penny. I hate her stupid voice. If there wasn’t boobs in this movie we would have all forgotten it. 1/10

The little boy from The Rescuers 2: Apparently his name is cody. He’s dumb but wonderful. a Himbo in training. 7/10 for australian

Oliver: The worst cat. Also apparently there is a human child in this too. Both have empty, soulless eyes. 3/10

Huey Dewey and Louie: Imagine donald duck but worse and 3. Disney will pay for their crimes. -3/10

The scary kids from Nightmare before Christmas: I hate them. -5/10

Baby Simba: Confidence is key. “Dad... we gotta go home” makes me cry everytime. Adopted by gay dads. 7/10 for lion hamlet

Max: I know he’s a teenager but i want everyone to know how wonderful he is. Such a dork, I love him. 8/10 after today is a bop

Andy: honestly horrifying in Toy Story 1. could not care less about him. 10/10 glow up but 2/10 character.

Sid: The worst thing ever shown in theaters. Millions went blind. I would kill him in cold blood. -11/10

James: claymation is gross. 2/10 for being british tho

Baby Tarzan: A+ mom. Daddy issues. Probably indestructible? 6/10

The kids from Emperor’s New Groove: Annoying but useful. Double dutch legends. John Goodman is their dad. 4/10

Boo: Perfect. I’ve never loved a child more. Deserved an Oscar. her dad is also John Goodman. 10/10

Lilo: In all seriousness the best depiction of a young child (especially a girl) in media. Emotional depth and intuitive, but also unique and authentic to her age and maturity, 11/10

Nemo: Kinda a dumb, but tries his best. gains independence but almost dies. Probably shouldn’t have touched that boat. 7/10

Darla: Sid but girl. actual serial killer? -11/10

Incredible’s kids: all unique and well written. I’ve lumped them together for convenience. 8/10 across the board

Chicken Little: Fuck this movie. 0/10

Lewis and Wilbur: Honestly meet the robinsons is underrated and i just want to talk about it some more. 10/10 for two good boys

Miley Cyrus in Bolt: ....Was her name also penny? Chose her dog over career. I can respect that. 3/10 for being unmemorable

Russell: A sweet good boy doing his best. 9/10

Bonnie: I hate that fork thing. somehow worse than Andy. 1/10

Venellope: I didn;t see wreck it ralph and probably will not. I’ve been told she’s good but i have my doubts. 5/10 for mystery

Riley: doesn’t make any of her own decisions. Really needs to see a doctor? honestly don’t know anything about her but hokey. Strong bisexual energy. 5/10

The kid from the Good Dinosaur: who cares? 0/10

Miguel: The Best Boy (TM). Follows his dreams, reunites his family, hANGS OUT WITH HIS GREAT GRANDMA BECAUSE HE LOVES HER. music is a metaphor for gay 11/10

#Disney #pixar #disney+#coco #inside out #wreck it ralph #toy story #the incredibles #monsters inc #lilo and stitch #tarzan #the nightmare before xmas #peter pan #alice in wonderland #bambi #pinocchio

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kaiparker-avengerssmut · 4 years

Text

CURSED: CHAPTER EIGHT

"Keep you huntin' for my lovin'"

Kai Parker x OC!Mack Grace

Series synopsis: "We're both cursed, in a way."

We all know the story of Kai Parker, but he once lived in a very different life. Do you ever wonder what that life looked like?

Chapter summary: Kai and Mack go to a party

Warnings: smut

Masterlist | Series Masterlist

"Why the long face?" Kai taunted, making Mack scoff and roll her eyes. Ever since Halloween, Kai has constantly been hanging around Mack, meeting her at her locker, bothering her and Jo at lunch, insisting on driving her to and from school. He claimed it was to 'prevent anything happening with Ben' and to 'keep that son of a bitch's wandering hands' far, far away from her. She hated it at first, finding it way too constricting and suffocating. But now she was used to it, a month down the line and she started to like his little visits.

"I don't have a long face." She snapped, shutting her locker with a bang. Kai scoffed.

"Yeah, it's just been replaced with a snappy attitude. "He muttered, following Mack down the busy hallway. "Anyway, you'll be happy to know I'm taking you on a date tonight." Mack's eyes widened but Kai couldn't see that.

"A date? I'm not your girlfriend." Mack shot back, keeping walking.

"Yet." Kai mused, before chuckling and continuing. "Well, I thought since you never have fun anymore,"

"I do!"

"As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, since you never have fun anymore, I thought I would take you out on a date."

"Why?"

"Because we're gonna make your ex boo a little jealous." Kai said, strutting in front of Mack and bopping her on the nose. Mack scoffed, rolling her eyes and keeping walking, Kai falling into stride beside her. "So I was thinking, there's this party-"

"Party?! Kai what happened at the last party you went to?!" She cut him off instantly, horrified at his suggestion.

"If he keeps his grimy hands off you there won't be a problem. Anyway, so we'll go to the party, make sure Ben can see us, do a little dirty dancing," he winked at her, "maybe make out a little-"

"I am not making out with you, dick." Mack retorted.

"Okay, whatever you say Kenz." He whistled, throwing his arm over her shoulders, a smirk prominent on his lips.

"Fine." She finally agreed. Kai opened his mouth to say something but Mack was already talking again. "But no fights, no getting drunk and no going back to your house alone. Got it?" She pointed a finger at him, a stern expression on her face. He nodded.

"So no having fun? Cool." Kai mused, dragging her down the hall with him.

"This is me." Mack announced as they reached her class.

"See you later babe." Kai grinned, leaning to kiss her cheek and Mack shoved him away with her hand, muttering a 'get outta here' before shaking her head and biting her lip to hide a smile. Kai left grinning, waving goodbye as he continued down the corridor.

...

Staring at herself in the mirror, Mack ran her hands over her hips, tugging her dress down her thighs further - feeling too exposed. She sighed, turning to her bed and snatching up her jacket and a purse before walking out. A knock sounded as she walked down the stairs, she shouted 'coming!' Before she reached the bottom, pulling the door open. Kai smiled at her.

"Hey." She smiled.

"Hey babe," he greeted, making Mack roll her eyes, "you won't be needing that." He said, pointing to her jacket.

"What if I get cold?" She asked, frowning as he grabbed the fabric out of her hand and deposited it on the back of the sofa.

"Then you'll wear mine." He smirked, winking at her.

"No way!"

"Operation make Ben jealous, remember." He remarked, tapping his temple with his index finger. Mack rolled her eyes, muttering a 'whatever' before walking out the door. "You look gorgeous, by the way," Kai added as they wandered to his car, "that dress? Oooooh baby! So sexy and so..." he trailed off, surveying Mack while biting his bottom lip. Mack shook her head, opening the car door and jumping in.

"So where's this party?" Mack questioned once they were both in, already driving to where the party would be.

"It's a surprise."

"I hate surprises."

"I know."

...

"Look who's here!" The guys cheered, clapping Kai on the back and shoulders as they walked through the door. A few of them said hi to Mack too, but she was mostly ignored. Mack's eyes widened with shock when she felt Kai's fingers intertwine with hers, pulling the girl so she was stood next to him.

"I don't want you leaving my sight, okay?" He said lowly, looking into Mack's eyes with what looked like concern. Mack's brows knitted together.

"I'm not your property, I'll do whatever the hell I like." She snapped, giving him a look of disbelief. Kai rolled his eyes.

"I know that, I only meant so that if Ben shows up I can keep the fucker away from you." He reasoned, letting her hand go and his face brightening again. "What do you wanna drink?" He asked, turning to the table beside them and grabbing himself a beer.

"I'll have one of those too." His eyebrows shot up, mock surprise slapped over Kai's face.

"You drink? Whatever happened to the innocent little girl I terrorised on my first day?" Kai teased, handing Mack a red cup filled with the shitty beer, which she knocked half of back in one gulp. "Someone's trying to forget something. Or loosen up, you know - I can never tell." He mused, tilting his head and she finished the drink and handed the cup back to him.

Kai chuckled, handing a refilled cup of beer to Mack and leaning against the table, taking a much smaller sip of his own.

Mack stiffened at the sight of Ben, laughing and chatting with his mates, like he hadn't raped a girl or beaten his own girlfriend. Even the sight of him repulsed her, and she was quick to set her cup down next to Kai. Noticing this, Kai stood up straight, discarding his now-empty cup and grabbing Mack's hand. He pulled her to the centre of the room, yet her gaze never left Ben.

Mack became aware of the loud music, the clashing bodies and the heat as people danced when Kai's hands found her waist. He guided her hips to sway to the music, moving her hands to loop around his neck. His mouth dipped to her ear, trying to pull her out of the trance over the loudness of the music.

"Just relax. Focus on me, sweetheart." He encouraged, pulling back enough to look the anxious girl in the eye. Mack gave him a quick nod, slowly letting her body loosen and move, side to side.

All her worry seemed to melt away, her body spinning so her back pressed to Kai's solid front, his hands still holding her waist possessively. One of her arms reached back, wrapping back around his neck and her head turned to the side, catching a glimpse of him over her shoulder before she closed her eyes - getting completely lost in the music. Kai's fingertips hovered over her curves, sending a welcome shiver down her spine before they rested on her hips, showing Mack how to grind back against him.

Kai caught Ben's eye, giving the fuming boy a sly smirk before dipping his head down to Mack's neck. Now he knew Ben was watching, Kai was going to put on a show. He nudged her head to the side with his nose, leaving open-mouthed kisses over the exposed flesh of the girls neck. Mack let out a sigh, her fingers scratching at the base of his neck and she grinned against him harder.

Mack's eyes finally opened, she twisted herself around enough to look into Kai's eyes and hers instantly flicked to his lips, before going back up again. She noticed his doing the same, and all her morals and thoughts went out the window as she leaned in and kissed him.

Kai's lips were surprisingly soft against hers, and Mack found herself twisting so she was facing him completely again. His hands stayed on her waist, while hers went around his neck and played with the hairs at the base of his neck. His tongue rolled over her bottom lip, entering her mouth when she parted her lips. It moved over hers in languid strokes, his pressure changing every now-and-then, making the kiss one of the best she'd ever had. When she finally pulled away they were breathless, Mack resting her forehead against Kai's.

"I thought you said there'd be no making out." Kai panted, his smirk creeping back into his plump lips.

"I did." Mack whispered, leaning up to kiss him again. It was Kai to pull away this time, staring into Mack's eyes which only seemed to keep his prisoner. That was until he spotted a red-faced Ben shooting daggers at them over Mack's shoulder and his lips quirked upwards.

"Do you wanna go home?" He asked, still catching his breath.

"Yes." Mack breathed, interlocking their fingers and dragging Kai out to his car.

Reaching the vehicle, Kai eagerly jumped into the drivers seat after helping Mack into the passenger's side. Kai fumbled with his keys, but was cut off when Mack slapped them out his hands. She lifted her leg over the middle console, resting her thighs against his and straddling Kai. He smirked up at her, his hands settling at the tops of her thighs.

"I thought you wanted to go home."

"I couldn't wait that long." Mack decided, crashing her lips to his and rocking her hips over Kai's. He moaned into the kiss, running a hand up her back and fiddling with the zip of her dress, before pulling it down the train and letting the fabric loosen around her. Mack shrugged the straps over her shoulders, letting the dress bunch around her waist as it had ridden up her thighs when she sat down over him too. Kai stared at her chest with awe, before muttering:

"Beautiful." And diving down, leaving wet kisses over the swell of her breasts where they willed out of her bra. Mack's head rolled back in pleasure, her fingers running through Kai's hair and tugging. His hand reached round, unclasping her bra with a small bit of struggle and letting the material fall over her shoulder and onto the floor of his car.

Kai was quick to suck one of her nipples into his mouth, bringing his hand from her thigh to palm at the neglected one.

"Fuck, Kai." Mack moaned, rocking her hips even faster against his, her clit digging into the rough denim of his jeans making her groan. She could feel how hard he was under the fabric and it turned her on even more, the feeling of wetness flooding her panties. "You're wearing too many clothes." She complained, tugging at the hem of Kai's shirt.

He pulled back from he nipple with a pop, before hastily removing his top and reconnecting their lips in a lustful, passionate kiss. His hands trailed up and down her thighs, before one bentured between her legs. He ran a finger over her soaked panties, groaning at how wet she was. He pulled the sodden fabric to the side, running his fingers through her folds and collecting some of her juices.

She made quick work of his belt, pulling his member out of his jeans and Mack slowly sunk down on his and he held her hips to support her.

"Fuck." They both moaned, Mack's eyes rolling back as she collapsed against his chest.

#smut #elena gilbert #image #images #stefan salvatore #the vampire diaries #chris wood #damon salvatore #kol mikaelson #tvd #kai parker fanfic #kai parker image #kai parker x reader #kai parker smut #Kai Parker #tvd fanfic

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ahouseoflies · 4 years

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The Best Films of 2020

I can’t tell you anything novel or insightful about this year that has been stolen from our lives. I watched zero of these films in a theater, and I watched most of them half-asleep in moments that I stole from my children. Don’t worry, there are some jokes below.

GARBAGE

93. Capone (Josh Trank)- What is the point of this dinner theater trash? It takes place in the last year of Capone's life, when he was released from prison due to failing health and suffered a stroke in his Florida home. So it covers...none of the things that make Al Capone interesting? It's not historically accurate, which I have no problem with, but if you steer away from accuracy, then do something daring and exciting. Don't give me endless scenes of "Phonse"--as if the movie is running from the very person it's about--drawing bags of money that promise intrigue, then deliver nothing in return.

That being said, best "titular character shits himself" scene since The Judge.

92. Ammonite (Francis Lee)- I would say that this is the Antz to Portrait of a Lady on Fire's A Bug's Life, but it's actually more like the Cars 3 to Portrait of a Lady on Fire's Toy Story 1.

91. Ava (Tate Taylor)- Despite the mystery and inscrutability that usually surround assassins, what if we made a hitman movie but cared a lot about her personal life? Except neither the assassin stuff nor the family stuff is interesting?

90. Wonder Woman 1984 (Patty Jenkins)- What a miscalculation of what audiences loved about the first and wanted from the sequel. WW84 is silly and weightless in all of the ways that the first was elegant and confident. If the return of Pine is just a sort of phantom representation of Diana's desires, then why can he fly a real plane? If he is taking over another man's soul, then, uh, what ends up happening to that guy? For that matter, why is it not 1984 enough for Ronald Reagan to be president, but it is 1984 enough for the president to have so many Ronald Reagan signifiers that it's confusing? Why not just make a decision?

On paper, the me-first values of the '80s lend themselves to the monkey's paw wish logic of this plot. You could actually do something with the Star Wars program or the oil crisis. But not if the setting is played for only laughs and the screenplay explains only what it feels like.

89. Babyteeth (Shannon Murphy)- In this type of movie, there has to be a period of the Ben Mendelsohn character looking around befuddled about the new arrangement and going, "What's this now--he's going to be...living with us? The guy who tried to steal our medication? This is crazy!" But that's usually ten minutes, and in this movie it's an hour. I was so worn out by the end.

88. You Should Have Left (David Koepp)- David Koepp wrote Jurassic Park, so he's never going to hell, but how dare he start caring about his own mystery at the hour mark. There's a forty-five minute version of this movie that could get an extra star from me, and there's a three-hour version of Amanda Seyfried walking around in athleisure that would get four stars from me. What we actually get? No thanks.

87. Black Is King (Beyonce, et al.)- End your association with The Lion King, Bey. It has resulted in zero bops.

ADMIRABLE FAILURES

86. Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) (Cathy Yan)- There's nothing too dysfunctional in the storytelling or performances, but Birds of Prey also doesn't do a single thing well. I would prefer something alive and wild, even if it were flawed, to whatever tame belt-level formula this is.

85. The Turning (Floria Sigismondi)- This update of The Turn of the Screw pumps the age of Miles up to high school, which creates some horny creepiness that I liked. But the age of the character also prevents the ending of the novel from happening in favor of a truly terrible shrug. I began to think that all of the patience that the film showed earlier was just hesitance for its own awful ending.

I watched The Turning as a Mackenzie Davis Movie Star heat check, and while I'm not sure she has the magnetism I was looking for, she does have a great teacher voice, chastening but maternal.

84. Bloodshot (David Wilson)- A whole lot of Vin Diesel saying he's going to get revenge and kill a bunch of dudes; not a whole lot of Vin Diesel actually getting revenge and killing a bunch of dudes.

83. Downhill (Nat Faxon and Jim Rash)- I was an English major in college, which means I ended up locking myself into literary theories that, halfway through the writing of an essay, I realized were flawed. But rather than throw out the work that I had already proposed, I would just keep going and see if I could will the idea to success.

So let's say you have a theory that you can take Force Majeure by Ruben Ostlund, one of the best films of its year, and remake it so that its statement about familial anxiety could apply to Americans of the same age and class too...if it hadn't already. And maybe in the first paragraph you mess up by casting Will Ferrell and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, people we are conditioned to laugh at, when maybe this isn't that kind of comedy at all. Well, don't throw it away. You can quote more--fill up the pages that way--take an exact shot or scene from the original. Does that help? Maybe you can make the writing more vigorous and distinctive by adding a character. Is that going to make this baby stand out? Maybe you could make it more personal by adding a conclusion that is slightly more clever than the rest of the paper?

Or perhaps this is one you're just not going to get an A on.

82. Hillbilly Elegy (Ron Howard)- I watched this melodrama at my mother's encouragement, and, though I have been trying to pin down her taste for decades, I think her idea of a successful film just boils down to "a lot of stuff happens." So in that way, Ron Howard's loss is my gain, I guess.

There is no such thing as a "neutral Terminator."

81. Relic (Natalie Erika James)- The star of the film is Vanessa Cerne's set decoration, but the inert music and slow pace cancel out a house that seems neglected slowly over decades.

80. Buffaloed (Tanya Wexler)- Despite a breathless pace, Buffaloed can't quite congeal. In trying to split the difference between local color hijinks and Moneyballed treatise on debt collection, it doesn't commit enough to either one.

Especially since Zoey Deutch produced this one in addition to starring, I'm getting kind of worried about boo's taste. Lot of Two If by Seas; not enough While You Were Sleepings.

79. Like a Boss (Miguel Arteta)- I chuckled a few times at a game supporting cast that is doing heavy lifting. But Like a Boss is contrived from the premise itself--Yeah, what if people in their thirties fell out of friendship? Do y'all need a creative consultant?--to the escalation of most scenes--Why did they have to hide on the roof? Why do they have to jump into the pool?

The movie is lean, but that brevity hurts just as much as it helps. The screenplay knows which scenes are crucial to the development of the friendship, but all of those feel perfunctory, in a different gear from the setpieces.

To pile on a bit: Studio comedies are so bare bones now that they look like Lifetime movies. Arteta brought Chuck & Buck to Sundance twenty years ago, and, shot on Mini-DV for $250,000, it was seen as a DIY call-to-bootstraps. I guarantee that has more setups and locations and shooting days than this.

78. Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (David Dobkin)- Add Dan Stevens to the list of supporting players who have bodied Will Ferrell in his own movie--one that he cared enough to write himself.

Like Downhill, Ferrell's other 2020 release, this isn't exactly bad. It's just workmanlike and, aside from the joke about Demi Lovato's "uninformed" ghost, frustratingly conventional.

77. The Traitor (Marco Bellochio)- Played with weary commitment by Pierfrancesco Favino, Tomasso Buscetta is "credited" as the first informant of La Cosa Nostra. And that sounds like an interesting subject for a "based on a true story" crime epic, right? Especially when you find out that Buscetta became a rat out of principle: He believed that the mafia to which he had pledged his life had lost its code to the point that it was a different organization altogether.

At no point does Buscetta waver or even seem to struggle with his decision though, so what we get is less conflicted than that description might suggest. None of these Italian mob movies glorify the lifestyle, so I wasn't expecting that. But if the crime doesn't seem enticing, and snitching on the crime seems like forlorn duty, and everything is pitched with such underhanded matter-of-factness that you can't even be sure when Buscetta has flipped, then what are we left with? It was interesting seeing how Italian courts work, I guess?

76. Kajillionaire (Miranda July)- This is another movie so intent on building atmosphere and lore that it takes too long to declare what it is. When the protagonist hits a breaking point and has to act, she has only a third of a film to grow. So whispery too.

Gina Rodriguez is the one to inject life into it. As soon as her motormouth winds up, the film slips into a different gear. The atmosphere and lore that I mentioned reeks of artifice, but her character is believably specific. Beneath a basic exterior is someone who is authentically caring but still morally compromised, beholden to the world that the other characters are suspicious of.

75. Scoob! (Tony Cervone)- The first half is sometimes clever, but it hammers home the importance of friendship while separating the friends.

The second half has some positive messaging, but your kids' movie might have a problem with scale if it involves Alexander the Great unlocking the gates of the Underworld.

My daughter loved it.

74. The Lovebirds (Michael Showalter)- If I start talking too much about this perfectly fine movie, I end up in that unfair stance of reviewing the movie I wanted, not what is actually there.* As a fan of hang-out comedies, I kind of resent that any comedy being made now has to be rolled into something more "exciting," whether it's a wrongfully accused or mistaken identity thriller or some other genre. Such is the post-Game Night world. There's a purposefully anti-climactic note that I wish The Lovebirds had ended on, but of course we have another stretch of hiding behind boats and shooting guns. Nanjiani and Rae are really charming leads though.

*- As a New Orleanian, I was totally distracted by the fake aspects of the setting too. "Oh, they walked to Jefferson from downtown? Really?" You probably won't be bothered by the locations.

73. Sonic the Hedgehog (Jeff Fowler)- In some ways the storytelling is ambitious. (I'm speaking for only myself, but I'm fine with "He's a hedgehog, and he's really fast" instead of the owl mother, teleportation backstory. Not everything has to be Tolkien.) But that ambition doesn't match the lack of ambition in the comedy, which depends upon really hackneyed setups and structures. Guiding Jim Carrey to full alrighty-then mode was the best choice anyone made.

72. Malcolm & Marie (Sam Levinson)- The stars move through these long scenes with agility and charisma, but the degree of difficulty is just too high for this movie to reach what it's going for.

Levinson is trying to capture an epic fight between a couple, and he can harness the theatrical intensity of such a thing, but he sacrifices almost all of the nuance. In real life, these knock-down-drag-outs can be circular and indirect and sad in a way that this couple's manipulation rarely is. If that emotional truth is all this movie is trying to achieve, I feel okay about being harsh in my judgment of how well it does that.

71. Beanpole (Kantemir Balagov)- Elusive in how it refuses to declare itself, forthright in how punishing it is. The whole thing might be worth it for a late dinner scene, but I'm getting a bit old to put myself through this kind of misery.

70. The Burnt Orange Heresy (Giuseppe Capotondi)- Silly in good ways until it's silly in bad ways. Elizabeth Debicki remains 6'3".

69. Everybody’s Everything (Sebastian Jones and Ramez Silyan)- As a person who listened to Lil Peep's music, I can confidently say that this documentary is overstating his greatness. His death was a significant loss, as the interview subjects will all acknowledge, but the documentary is more useful as a portrait of a certain unfocused, rapacious segment of a generation that is high and online at all times.

68. The Witches (Robert Zemeckis)- Robert Zemeckis, Kenya Barris, and Guillermo Del Toro are the credited screenwriters, and in a fascinating way, you can see the imprint of each figure on the final product. Adapting a very European story to the old wives' tales of the American South is an interesting choice. Like the Nicolas Roeg try at this material, Zemeckis is not afraid to veer into the terrifying, and Octavia Spencer's pseudo witch doctor character only sells the supernatural. From a storytelling standpoint though, it seems as if the obstacles are overcome too easily, as if there's a whole leg of the film that has been excised. The framing device and the careful myth-making of the flashback make promises that the hotel half of the film, including the abrupt ending, can't live up to.

If nothing else, Anne Hathaway is a real contender for Most On-One Performance of the year.

67. Irresistible (Jon Stewart)- Despite a sort of imaginative ending, Jon Stewart's screenplay feels more like the declarative screenplay that would get you hired for a good movie, not a good screenplay itself. It's provocative enough, but it's clumsy in some basic ways and never evades the easy joke.

For example, the Topher Grace character is introduced as a sort of assistant, then is re-introduced an hour later as a polling expert, then is shown coaching the candidate on presentation a few scenes later. At some point, Stewart combined characters into one role, but nothing got smoothed out.

ENDEARING CURIOSITIES WITH BIG FLAWS

66. Yes, God, Yes (Karen Maine)- Most people who are Catholic, including me, are conflicted about it. Most people who make movies about being Catholic hate it and have an axe to grind. This film is capable of such knowing wit and nuance when it comes to the lived-in details of attending a high school retreat, but it's more concerned with taking aim at hypocrisy in the broad way that we've seen a million times. By the end, the film is surprisingly all-or-nothing when Christian teenagers actually contain multitudes.

Part of the problem is that Karen Maine's screenplay doesn't know how naive to make the Alice character. Sometimes she's reasonably naive for a high school senior in 2001; sometimes she's comically naive so that the plot can work; and sometimes she's stupid, which isn't the same as naive.

65. Bad Boys for Life (Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah)- This might be the first buddy cop movie in which the vets make peace with the tech-comm youngs who use new techniques. If that's the only novelty on display here--and it is--then maybe that's enough. I laughed maybe once. Not that the mistaken identity subplot of Bad Boys 1 is genius or anything, but this entry felt like it needed just one more layer to keep it from feeling as basic as it does. Speaking of layers though, it's almost impossible to watch any Will Smith movie now without viewing it through the meta-narrative of "What is Will Smith actually saying about his own status at this point in his career?" He's serving it up to us.

I derived an inordinate amount of pleasure from seeing the old school Simpson/Bruckheimer logo.

64. The Gentlemen (Guy Ritchie)- Look, I'm not going to be too negative on a movie whose crime slang is so byzantine that it has to be explained with subtitles. That's just me. I'm a simple man. But I can tell you that I tuned out pretty hard after seven or eight double-crosses.

The bloom is off the rose a bit for Ritchie, but he can still nail a music cue. I've been waiting for someone to hit "That's Entertainment" the way he does on the end credits.

63. Bad Hair (Justin Simien)- In Bad Hair, an African-American woman is told by her boss at a music video channel in 1989 that straightening her hair is the way to get ahead; however, her weave ends up having a murderous mind of its own. Compared to that charged, witty logline, the execution of the plot itself feels like a laborious, foregone conclusion. I'm glad that Simien, a genuinely talented writer, is making movies again though. Drop the skin-care routine, Van Der Beek!

62. Greyhound (Aaron Schneider)- "If this is the type of role that Tom Hanks writes for himself, then he understands his status as America's dad--'wise as the serpent, harmless as the dove'--even better than I thought." "America's Dad! Aye aye, sir!" "At least half of the dialogue is there for texture and authenticity, not there to be understood by the audience." "Fifty percent, Captain!" "The environment looks as fake as possible, but I eventually came around to the idea that the movie is completely devoid of subtext." "No subtext to be found, sir!"

61. Mank (David Fincher)- About ten years ago, the Creative Screenwriting podcast spent an hour or so with James Vanderbilt, the writer of Zodiac and nothing else that comes close, as he relayed the creative paces that David Fincher pushed him through. Hundreds of drafts and years of collaborative work eventuated in the blueprint for Fincher's most exacting, personal film, which he didn't get a writing credit on only because he didn't seek one.

Something tells me that Fincher didn't ask for rewrites from his dead father. No matter what visuals and performances the director can coax from the script--and, to be clear, these are the worst visuals and performances of his career--they are limited by the muddy lightweight pages. There are plenty of pleasures, like the slippery election night montage or the shakily platonic relationship between Mank and Marion. But Fincher hadn't made a film in six years, and he came back serving someone else's master.

60. Tesla (Michael Almereyda)- "You live inside your head." "Doesn't everybody?"

As usual, Almereyda's deconstructions are invigorating. (No other moment can match the first time Eve Hewson's Anne fact-checks something with her anachronistic laptop.) But they don't add up to anything satisfying because Tesla himself is such an opaque figure. Driven by the whims of his curiosity without a clear finish line, the character gives Hawke something enigmatic to play as he reaches deep into a baritone. But he's too inward to lend himself to drama. Tesla feels of a piece with Almereyda's The Experimenter, and that's the one I would recommend.

59. Vitalina Varela (Pedro Costa)- I can't oversell how delicately beautiful this film is visually. There's a scene in which Vitalina lugs a lantern into a church, but we get several seconds of total darkness before that one light source carves through it and takes over part of the frame. Each composition is as intricate as it is overpowering, achieving a balance between stark and mannered.

That being said, most of the film is people entering or exiting doors. I felt very little of the haunting loss that I think I was supposed to.

58. The Rhythm Section (Reed Morano)- Call it the Timothy Hutton in The General's Daughter Corollary: If a name-actor isn't in the movie much but gets third billing, then, despite whom he sends the protagonist to kill, he is the Actual Bad Guy.

Even if the movie serves up a lot of cliche, the action and sound design are visceral. I would like to see more from Morano.

57. Red, White and Blue (Steve McQueen)- Well-made and heartfelt even if it goes step-for-step where you think it will.

Here's what I want to know though: In the academy training sequence, the police cadets have to subdue a "berserker"; that is, a wildman who swings at their riot gear with a sledgehammer. Then they get him under control, and he shakes their hands, like, "Good angle you took on me there, mate." Who is that guy and where is his movie? Is this full-time work? Is he a police officer or an independent contractor? What would happen if this exercise didn't go exactly as planned?

56. Wolfwalkers (Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart)- The visuals have an unfinished quality that reminded me of The Tale of Princess Kaguya--the center of a flame is undrawn white, and fog is just negative space. There's an underlying symmetry to the film, and its color palette changes with mood.

Narratively, it's pro forma and drawn-out. Was Riley in Inside Out the last animated protagonist to get two parents? My daughter stuck with it, but she needed a lot of context for the religious atmosphere of 17th century Ireland.

55. What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael (Rob Garver)- The film does little more than one might expect; it's limited in the way that any visual medium is when trying to sum up a woman of letters. But as far as education for Kael's partnership with Warren Beatty or the idea of The New Yorker paying her for only six months out of the year, it was useful for me.

Although Garver isn't afraid to point to the work that made Kael divisive, it would have been nice to have one or two interview subjects who questioned her greatness, rather than the crew of Paulettes who, even when they do say something like, "Sometimes I radically disagreed with her," do it without being able to point to any specifics.

54. Beastie Boys Story (Spike Jonze)- As far as this Spike Jonze completist is concerned, this is more of a Powerpoint presentation than a movie, Beastie Boys Story still warmed my heart, making me want to fire up Paul's Boutique again and take more pictures of my buddies.

53. Tenet (Christopher Nolan)- Cool and cold, tantalizing and frustrating, loud and indistinct, Tenet comes close to Nolan self-parody, right down to the brutalist architecture and multiple characters styled like him. The setpieces grabbed me, I'll admit.

Nolan's previous film, which is maybe his best, was "about" a lot and just happened to play with time; Tenet is only about playing with time.

PRETTY GOOD MOVIES

52. Shithouse (Cooper Raiff)- "Death is ass."

There's such a thing as too naturalistic. If I wanted to hear how college freshmen really talked, I would hang out with college freshmen. But you have to take the good verisimilitude with the bad, and good verisimilitude is the mother's Pod Save America t-shirt.

There are some poignant moments (and a gonzo performance from Logan Miller) in this auspicious debut from Cooper Raiff, the writer/director/editor/star. But the second party sequence kills some of the momentum, and at a crucial point, the characters spell out some motivation that should have stayed implied.

51. Totally Under Control (Alex Gibney, Ophelia Harutyunyan, Suzanne Hillinger)- As dense and informative as any other Gibney documentary with the added flex of making it during the pandemic it is investigating.

But yeah, why am I watching this right now? I don't need more reasons to be angry with Trump, whom this film calmly eviscerates. The directors analyze Trump's narcissism first through his contradictions of medical expertise in order to protect the economy that could win him re-election. Then it takes aim at his hiring based on loyalty instead of experience. But you already knew that, which is the problem with the film, at least for now.

50. Happiest Season (Clea Duvall)- I was in the perfect mood to watch something this frothy and bouncy. Every secondary character receives a moment in the sun, and Daniel Levy gets a speech that kind of saves the film at a tipping point.

I must say though: I wanted to punch Harper in her stupid face. She is a terrible romantic partner, abandoning or betraying Abby throughout the film and dissembling her entire identity to everyone else in a way that seems absurd for a grown woman in 2020. Run away, Kristen. Perhaps with Aubrey Plaza, whom you have more chemistry with. But there I go shipping and aligning myself with characters, which only proves that this is an effective romantic comedy.

49. The Way Back (Gavin O’Connor)- Patient but misshapen, The Way Back does just enough to overcome the cliches that are sort of unavoidable considering the genre. (I can't get enough of the parent character who, for no good reason, doesn't take his son's success seriously. "Scholarship? What he's gotta do is put his nose in them books! That's why I don't go to his games. [continues moving boxes while not looking at the other character] Now if you'll excuse me while I wait four scenes before showing up at a game to prove that I'm proud of him after all...")

What the movie gets really right or really wrong in the details about coaching and addiction is a total crap-shoot. But maybe I've said too much already.

48. The Whistlers (Corneliu Porumboiu)- Porumboiu is a real artist who seems to be interpreting how much surveillance we're willing to acknowledge and accept, but I won't pretend to have understood much of the plot, the chapters or which are told out of order. Sometimes the structure works--the beguiling, contextless "high-class hooker" sequence--but I often wondered if the film was impenetrable in the way that Porumboiu wanted it to be or impenetrable in the way he didn't.

To tell you the truth, the experience kind of depressed me because I know that, in my younger days, this film is the type of thing that I would re-watch, possibly with the chronology righted, knowing that it is worth understanding fully. But I have two small children, and I'm exhausted all the time, and I kind of thought I should get some credit for still trying to catch up with Romanian crime movies in the first place.

47. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (Jason Woliner)- I laughed too much to get overly critical, but the film is so episodic and contrived that it's kind of exhausting by the end--even though it's achieving most of its goals. Maybe Borat hasn't changed, but the way our citizens own their ugliness has.

46. First Cow (Kelly Reichardt)- Despite how little happens in the first forty minutes, First Cow is a thoughtful capitalism parable. Even though it takes about forty minutes to get going, the friendship between Cookie and King-Lu is natural and incisive. Like Reichardt's other work, the film's modest premise unfolds quite gracefully, except for in the first forty minutes, which are uneventful.

45. Les Miserables (Ladj Ly)- I loved parts of the film--the disorienting, claustrophobic opening or the quick look at the police officers' home lives, for example. But I'm not sure that it does anything very well. The needle the film tries to thread between realism and theater didn't gel for me. The ending, which is ambiguous in all of the wrong ways, chooses the theatrical. (If I'm being honest, my expectations were built up by Les Miserables' Jury Prize at Cannes, and it's a bit superficial to be in that company.)

If nothing else, it's always helpful to see how another country's worst case scenario in law enforcement would look pretty good over here.

44. Bad Education (Cory Finley)- The film feels too locked-down and small at the beginning, so intent on developing the protagonist neutrally that even the audience isn't aware of his secrets. So when he faces consequences for those secrets, there's a disconnect. Part of tragedy is seeing the doom coming, right?

When it opens up, however, it's empathetic and subtle, full of a dry irony that Finley is already specializing in after only one other feature. Geraldine Viswanathan and Allison Janney get across a lot of interiority that is not on the page.

43. The Trip to Greece (Michael Winterbottom)- By the fourth installment, you know whether you're on board with the franchise. If you're asking "Is this all there is?" to Coogan and Brydon's bickering and impressions as they're served exotic food in picturesque settings, then this one won't sway you. If you're asking "Is this all there is?" about life, like they are, then I don't need to convince you.

I will say that The Trip to Spain seemed like an enervated inflection point, at which the squad could have packed it in. The Trip to Greece proves that they probably need to keep doing this until one of them dies, which has been the subtext all along.

42. Feels Good Man (Arthur Jones)- This documentary centers on innocent artist Matt Furie's helplessness as his Pepe the Frog character gets hijacked by the alt-right. It gets the hard things right. It's able to, quite comprehensively, trace a connection from 4Chan's use of Pepe the Frog to Donald Trump's near-assuming of Pepe's ironic deniability. Director Arthur Jones seems to understand the machinations of the alt-right, and he articulates them chillingly.

The easy thing, making us connect to Furie, is less successful. The film spends way too much time setting up his story, and it makes him look naive as it pits him against Alex Jones in the final third. Still, the film is a quick ninety-two minutes, and the highs are pretty high.

41. The Old Guard (Gina Prince-Bythewood)- Some of the world-building and backstory are handled quite elegantly. The relationships actually do feel centuries old through specific details, and the immortal conceit comes together for an innovative final action sequence.

Visually and musically though, the film feels flat in a way that Prince-Bythewood's other films do not. I blame Netflix specs. KiKi Layne, who tanked If Beale Street Could Talk for me, nearly ruins this too with the child-actory way that she stresses one word per line. Especially in relief with one of our more effortless actresses, Layne is distracting.

40. The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Aaron Sorkin)- Whenever Sacha Baron Cohen's Abbie Hoffman opens his mouth, the other defendants brace themselves for his dismissive vulgarity. Even when it's going to hurt him, he can't help but shoot off at the mouth. Of course, he reveals his passionate and intelligent depths as the trial goes on. The character is the one that Sorkin's screenplay seems the most endeared to: In the same way that Hoffman can't help but be Hoffman, Sorkin can't help but be Sorkin. Maybe we don't need a speech there; maybe we don't have to stretch past two hours; maybe a bon mot diffuses the tension. But we know exactly what to expect by now. The film is relevant, astute, witty, benevolent, and, of course, in love with itself. There are a handful of scenes here that are perfect, so I feel bad for qualifying so much.

A smaller point: Daniel Pemberton has done great work in the past (Motherless Brooklyn, King Arthur, The Man from U.N.C.L.E.), but the first sequence is especially marred by his sterile soft-rock approach.

GOOD MOVIES

39. Time (Garrett Bradley)- The key to Time is that it provides very little context. Why the patriarch of this family is serving sixty years in prison is sort of besides the point philosophically. His wife and sons have to move on without him, and the tragedy baked into that fact eclipses any notion of what he "deserved." Feeling the weight of time as we switch back and forth between a kid talking about his first day of kindergarten and that same kid graduating from dentistry school is all the context we need. Time's presentation can be quite sumptuous: The drone shot of Angola makes its buildings look like crosses. Or is it X's?

At the same time, I need some context. When director Garrett Bradley withholds the reason Robert's in prison, and when she really withholds that Fox took a plea and served twelve years, you start to see the strings a bit. You could argue that knowing so little about why, all of a sudden, Robert can be on parole puts you into the same confused shoes as the family, but it feels manipulative to me. The film is preaching to the choir as far as criminal justice goes, which is fine, but I want it to have the confidence to tell its story above board.

38. Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets (Turner Ross and Bill Ross IV)- I have a barfly friend whom I see maybe once a year. When we first set up a time to meet, I kind of dread it and wonder what we'll have to talk about. Once we do get together, we trip on each other's words a bit, fumbling around with the rhythm of conversation that we mastered decades ago. He makes some kind of joke that could have been appropriate then but isn't now.

By the end of the day, hours later, we're hugging and maybe crying as we promise each other that we won't wait as long next time.

That's the exact same journey that I went on with this film.

37. Underwater (William Eubank)- Underwater is a story that you've seen before, but it's told with great confidence and economy. I looked up at twelve minutes and couldn't believe the whole table had been set. Kristen plays Ripley and projects a smart, benevolent poise.

36. The Lodge (Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala)- I prefer the grounded, manicured first half to the more fantastic second half. The craziness of the latter is only possible through the hard work of the former though. As with Fiala and Franz's previous feature, the visual rhymes and motifs get incorporated into the soup so carefully that you don't realize it until they overwhelm you in their bleak glory.

Small note: Alicia Silverstone, the male lead's first wife, and Riley Keough, his new partner, look sort of similar. I always think that's a nice note: "I could see how he would go for her."

35. Miss Americana (Lana Wilson)- I liked it when I saw it as a portrait of a person whose life is largely decided for her but is trying to carve out personal spaces within that hamster wheel. I loved it when I realized that describes most successful people in their twenties.

34. Sound of Metal (Darius Marder)- Riz Ahmed is showing up on all of the best performances of the year lists, but Sound of Metal isn't in anyone's top ten films of the year. That's about right. Ahmed's is a quiet, stubborn performance that I wish was in service of more than the straight line that we've seen before.

In two big scenes, there's this trick that Ahmed does, a piecing together of consequences with his eyes, as if he's moving through a flow chart in real time. In both cases, the character seems locked out and a little slower than he should be, which is, of course, why he's facing the consequences in the first place. To be charitable to a film that was a bit of a grind, it did make me notice a thing a guy did with his eyes.

33. Pieces of a Woman (Kornel Mundruczo)- Usually when I leave acting showcases like this, I imagine the film without the Oscar-baiting speeches, but this is a movie that specializes in speeches. Pieces of a Woman is being judged, deservedly so, by the harrowing twenty-minute take that opens the film, which is as indulgent as it is necessary. But if the unbroken take provides the "what," then the speeches provide the "why."

This is a film about reclaiming one's body when it rebels against you and when other people seek ownership of it. Without the Ellen Burstyn "lift your head" speech or the Vanessa Kirby show-stopper in the courtroom, I'm not sure any of that comes across.

I do think the film lets us off the hook a bit with the LaBoeuf character, in the sense that it gives us reasons to dislike him when it would be more compelling if he had done nothing wrong. Does his half-remembering of the White Stripes count as a speech?

32. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (George C. Wolfe)- This is such a play, not only in the locked-down location but also through nearly every storytelling convention: "Where are the two most interesting characters? Oh, running late? They'll enter separately in animated fashion?" But, to use the type of phrase that the characters might, "Don't hate the player; hate the game."

Perhaps the most theatrical note in this treatise on the commodification of expression is the way that, two or three times, the proceedings stop in their tracks for the piece to declare loudly what it's about. In one of those clear-outs, Boseman, who looks distractingly sick, delivers an unforgettable monologue that transports the audience into his character's fragile, haunted mind. He and Viola Davis are so good that the film sort of buckles under their weight, unsure of how to transition out of those spotlight moments and pretend that the story can start back up. Whatever they're doing is more interesting than what's being achieved overall.

31. Another Round (Thomas Vinterberg)- It's definitely the film that Vinterberg wanted to make, but despite what I think is a quietly shattering performance from Mikkelsen, Another Round moves in a bit too much of a straight line to grab me fully. The joyous final minutes hint at where it could have gone, as do pockets of Vinterberg's filmography, which seems newly tethered to realism in a way that I don't like. The best sequences are the wildest ones, like the uproarious trip to the grocery store for fresh cod, so I don't know why so much of it takes place in tiny hallways at magic hour. I give the inevitable American remake* permission to use these notes.

*- Just spitballing here. Martin: Will Ferrell, Nikolaj (Nick): Ben Stiller, Tommy: Owen Wilson, Peter: Craig Robinson

30. The Invisible Man (Leigh Whannell)- Exactly what I wanted. Exactly what I needed.

I think a less conclusive finale would have been better, but what a model of high-concept escalation. This is the movie people convinced me Whannell's Upgrade was.

29. On the Rocks (Sofia Coppola)- Slight until the Mexican sojourn, which expands the scope and makes the film even more psychosexual than before. At times it feels as if Coppola is actively simplifying, rather than diving into the race and privilege questions that the Murray character all but demands.

As for Murray, is the film 50% worse without him? 70%? I don't know if you can run in supporting categories if you're the whole reason the film exists.

28. Mangrove (Steve McQueen)- The first part of the film seemed repetitive and broad to me. But once it settled in as a courtroom drama, the characterization became more shaded, and the filmmaking itself seemed more fluid. I ended up being quite outraged and inspired.

27. Shirley (Josephine Decker)- Josephine Decker emerges as a real stylist here, changing her foggy, impressionistic approach not one bit with a little more budget. Period piece and established actors be damned--this is still as much of a reeling fever dream as Madeline's Madeline. Both pieces are a bit too repetitive and nasty for my taste, but I respect the technique.

Here's my mandatory "Elisabeth Moss is the best" paragraph. While watching her performance as Shirley Jackson, I thought about her most famous role as Peggy on Mad Men, whose inertia and need to prove herself tied her into confidence knots. Shirley is almost the opposite: paralyzed by her worldview, certain of her talent, rejecting any empathy. If Moss can inhabit both characters so convincingly, she can do anything.

26. An American Pickle (Brandon Trost)- An American Pickle is the rare comedy that could actually use five or ten extra minutes, but it's a surprisingly heartfelt and wholesome stretch for Rogen, who is earnest in the lead roles.

25. The King of Staten Island (Judd Apatow)- At two hours and fifteen minutes, The King of Staten Island is probably the first Judd Apatow film that feels like the exact right length. For example, the baggy date scene between a gracious Bill Burr and a faux-dowdy Marisa Tomei is essential, the sort of widening of perspective that something like Trainwreck was missing.

It's Pete Davidson's movie, however, and though he has never been my cup of tea, I think he's actually quite powerful in his quiet moments. The movie probes some rare territory--a mentally ill man's suspicion that he is unlovable, a family's strategic myth-making out of respect for the dead. And when Davidson shows up at the firehouse an hour and fifteen minutes in, it feels as if we've built to a last resort.

24. Swallow (Carlo Mirabella-Davis)- The tricky part of this film is communicating Hunter's despair, letting her isolation mount, but still keeping her opaque. It takes a lot of visual discipline to do that, and Claudio Mirabella-Davis is up to the task. This ends up being a much more sympathetic, expressive movie than the plot description might suggest.

(In the tie dispute, Hunter and Richie are both wrong. That type of silk--I couldn't tell how pebbled it was, but it's probably a barathea weave-- shouldn't be ironed directly, but it doesn't have to be steamed. On a low setting, you could iron the back of the tie and be fine.)

23. The Vast of Night (Andrew Patterson)- I wanted a bit more "there" there; The film goes exactly where I thought it would, and there isn't enough humor for my taste. (The predictability might be a feature, not a bug, since the film is positioned as an episode of a well-worn Twilight Zone-esque show.)

But from a directorial standpoint, this is quite a promising debut. Patterson knows when to lock down or use silence--he even cuts to black to force us to listen more closely to a monologue. But he also knows when to fill the silence. There's a minute or so when Everett is spooling tape, and he and Fay make small talk about their hopes for the future, developing the characters' personalities in what could have been just mechanics. It's also a refreshingly earnest film. No one is winking at the '50s setting.

I'm tempted to write, "If Andrew Patterson can make this with $1 million, just imagine what he can do with $30 million." But maybe people like Shane Carruth have taught us that Patterson is better off pinching pennies in Texas and following his own muse.

22. Martin Eden (Pietro Marcello)- At first this film, adapted from a picaresque novel by Jack London, seemed as if it was hitting the marks of the genre. "He's going from job to job and meeting dudes who are shaping his worldview now." But the film, shot in lustrous Super 16, won me over as it owned the trappings of this type of story, forming a character who is a product of his environment even as he transcends it. By the end, I really felt the weight of time.

You want to talk about something that works better in novels than films though? When a passionate, independent protagonist insists that a woman is the love of his life, despite the fact that she's whatever Italians call a wet blanket. She's rich, but Martin doesn't care about her money. He hates her family and friends, and she refuses to accept him or his life pursuits. She's pretty but not even as pretty as the waitress they discuss. Tell me what I'm missing here. There's archetype, and there's incoherence.

21. Bacurau (Kleber Mendonca Filho and Juliano Dornelles)- Certain images from this adventurous film will stick with me, but I got worn out after the hard reset halfway through. As entranced as I was by the mystery of the first half, I think this blood-soaked ensemble is better at asking questions than it is at answering them.

20. Let Them All Talk (Steven Soderbergh)- The initial appeal of this movie might be "Look at these wonderful actresses in their seventies getting a movie all to themselves." And the film is an interesting portrait of ladies taking stock of relationships that have spanned decades. But Soderbergh and Eisenberg handle the twentysomething Lucas Hedges character with the same openness and empathy. His early reasoning for going on the trip is that he wants to learn from older women, and Hedges nails the puppy-dog quality of a young man who would believe that. Especially in the scenes of aspirational romance, he's sweet and earnest as he brushes his hair out of his face.

Streep plays Alice Hughes, a serious author of literary fiction, and she crosses paths with Kelvin Kranz, a grinder of airport thrillers. In all of the right ways, Let Them All Talk toes the line between those two stances as an entertaining, jaunty experiment that also shoulders subtextual weight. If nothing else, it's easy to see why a cruise ship's counterfeit opulence, its straight lines at a lean, would be visually engaging to Soderbergh. You can't have a return to form if your form is constantly evolving.

19. Dick Johnson Is Dead (Kirsten Johnson)- Understandably, I don't find the subject as interesting as his own daughter does, and large swaths of this film are unsure of what they're trying to say. But that's sort of the point, and the active wrestling that the film engages in with death ultimately pays off in a transcendent moment. The jaw-dropping ending is something that only non-fiction film can achieve, and Johnson's whole career is about the search for that sort of serendipity.

18. Da 5 Bloods (Spike Lee)- Delroy Lindo is a live-wire, but his character is the only one of the principals who is examined with the psychological depth I was hoping for. The first half, with all of its present-tense flourishes, promises more than the gunfights of the second half can deliver. When the film is cooking though, it's chock full of surprises, provocations, and pride.

17. Never Rarely Sometimes Always (Eliza Hittmann)- Very quickly, Eliza Hittmann has established herself as an astute, empathetic director with an eye for discovering new talent. I hope that she gets to make fifty more movies in which she objectively follows laconic young people. But I wanted to like this one more than I did. The approach is so neutral that it's almost flat to me, lacking the arc and catharsis of her previous film, Beach Rats. I still appreciate her restraint though.

GREAT MOVIES

16. Young Ahmed (Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne)- I don't think the Dardennes have made a bad movie yet, and I'm glad they turned away from the slight genre dipping of The Unknown Girl, the closest to bad that they got. Young Ahmed is a lean, daring return to form.

Instead of following an average person, as they normally do, the Dardenne Brothers follow an extremist, and the objectivity that usually generates pathos now serves to present ambiguity. Ahmed says that he is changing, that he regrets his actions, but we never know how much of his stance is a put-on. I found myself wanting him to reform, more involved than I usually am in these slices of life. Part of it is that Idir Ben Addi looks like such a normal, young kid, and the Ahmed character has most of the qualities that we say we want in young people: principles, commitment, self-worth, reflection. So it's that much more destructive when those qualities are used against him and against his fellow man.

15. World of Tomorrow Episode Three: The Absent Destinations of David Prime (Don Hertzfeldt)- My dad, a man whom I love but will never understand, has dismissed modern music before by claiming that there are only so many combinations of chords. To him, it's almost impossible to do something new. Of course, this is the type of thing that an uncreative person would say--a person not only incapable of hearing the chords that combine notes but also unwilling to hear the space between the notes. (And obviously, that's the take of a person who doesn't understand that, originality be damned, some people just have to create.)

Anyway, that attitude creeps into my own thinking more than I would like, but then I watch something as wholly original as World of Tomorrow Episode Three. The series has always been a way to pile sci-fi ideas on top of each other to prove the essential truths of being and loving. And this one, even though it achieves less of a sense of yearning than its predecessor, offers even more devices to chew on. Take, for example, the idea that Emily sends her message from the future, so David's primitive technology can barely handle it. In order to move forward with its sophistication, he has to delete any extraneous skills for the sake of computer memory. So out of trust for this person who loves him, he has to weigh whether his own breathing or walking can be uninstalled as a sacrifice for her. I thought that we might have been done describing love, but there it is, a new metaphor. Mixing futurism with stick figures to get at the most pure drive possible gave us something new. It's called art, Dad.

14. On the Record (Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering)- We don't call subjects of documentaries "stars" for obvious reasons, but Drew Dixon kind of is one. Her honesty and wisdom tell a complete story of the #MeToo movement. Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering take their time developing her background at first, not because we need to "gain sympathy" or "establish credibility" for a victim of sexual abuse, but because showing her talent and enthusiasm for hip-hop A&R makes it that much more tragic when her passion is extinguished. Hell, I just like the woman, so spending a half-hour on her rise was pleasurable in and of itself.

This is a gut-wrenching, fearless entry in what is becoming Dick and Ziering's raison d'etre, but its greatest quality is Dixon's composed reflection. She helped to establish a pattern of Russell Simmons's behavior, but she explains what happened to her in ways I had never heard before.

13. David Byrne’s American Utopia (Spike Lee)- I'm often impressed by the achievements that puzzle me: How did they pull that off? But I know exactly how David Byrne pulled off the impish but direct precision of American Utopia: a lot of hard work.

I can't blame Spike Lee for stealing a page from Demme's Stop Making Sense: He denies us a close-up of any audience members until two-thirds of the way through, when we get someone in absolute rapture.

12. One Night in Miami... (Regina King)- We've all cringed when a person of color is put into the position of speaking on behalf of his or her entire race. But the characters in One Night in Miami... live in that condition all the time and are constantly negotiating it. As Black public figures in 1964, they know that the consequences of their actions are different, bigger, than everyone else's. The charged conversations between Malcolm X and Sam Cooke are not about whether they can live normal lives. They're way past that. The stakes are closer to Sam Cooke arguing that his life's purpose aligns with the protection and elevation of African-Americans while Malcolm X argues that those pursuits should be the same thing. Late in the movie, Cassius Clay leaves the other men, a private conversation, to talk to reporters, a public conversation. But the film argues that everything these men do is always already public. They're the most powerful African-Americans in the country, but their lives are not their own. Or not only their own.

It's true that the first act has the clunkiness and artifice of a TV movie, but once the film settles into the motel room location and lets the characters feed off one another, it's gripping. It's kind of unfair for a movie to get this many scenes of Leslie Odom Jr. singing, but I'll take it.

11. Saint Frances (Alex Thompson)- Rilke wrote, "Perhaps everything terrible is in its deepest being something helpless that wants help from us." The characters' behavior in Saint Frances--all of these fully formed characters' behavior--made me think of that quotation. When they lash out at one another, even at their nastiest, the viewer has a window into how they're expressing pain they can't verbalize. The film is uneven in its subtlety, but it's a real showcase for screenwriter and star Kelly O'Sullivan, who is unflinching and dynamic in one of the best performances of the year. Somebody give her some of the attention we gave to Zach Braff for God's sake.

10. Boys State (Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine)- This documentary is kind of a miracle from a logistical standpoint. From casting interviews beforehand, lots of editing afterwards, or sly note-taking once the conference began, McBaine and Moss happened to select the four principals who mattered the most at the convention, then found them in rooms full of dudes wearing the same tucked-in t-shirt. By the way, all of the action took place over the course of one week, and by definition, the important events are carved in half.

To call Boys State a microcosm of American politics is incorrect. These guys are forming platforms and voting in elections. What they're doing is American politics, so when they make the same compromises and mistakes that active politicians do, it produces dread and disappointment. So many of the boys are mimicking the political theater that they see on TV, and that sweaty sort of performance is going to make a Billy Mitchell out of this kid Ben Feinstein, and we'll be forced to reckon with how much we allow him to evolve as a person. This film is so precise, but what it proves is undeniably messy. Luckily, some of these seventeen-year-olds usher in hope for us all.

If nothing else, the film reveals the level to which we're all speaking in code.

9. The Nest (Sean Durkin)- In the first ten minutes or so of The Nest, the only real happy minutes, father and son are playing soccer in their quaint backyard, and the father cheats to score on a children's net before sliding on the grass to rub in his victory. An hour later, the son kicks the ball around by himself near a regulation goal on the family's massive property. The contrast is stark and obvious, as is the symbolism of the dead horse, but that doesn't mean it's not visually powerful or resonant.

Like Sean Durkin's earlier film, Martha Marcy May Marlene, the whole of The Nest is told with detail of novelistic scope and an elevation of the moment. A snippet of radio that mentions Ronald Reagan sets the time period, rather than a dateline. One kid saying "Thanks, Dad" and another kid saying, "Thanks, Rory" establishes a stepchild more elegantly than any other exposition might.

But this is also a movie that does not hide what it means. Characters usually say exactly what is on their minds, and motivations are always clear. For example, Allison smokes like a chimney, so her daughter's way of acting out is leaving butts on the window sill for her mother to find. (And mother and daughter both definitely "act out" their feelings.) On the other hand, Ben, Rory's biological son, is the character least like him, so these relationships aren't too directly parallel. Regardless, Durkin uses these trajectories to cast a pall of familial doom.

8. Sorry We Missed You (Sean Durkin)- Another precisely calibrated empathy machine from Ken Loach. The overwhelmed matriarch, Abby, is a caretaker, and she has to break up a Saturday dinner to rescue one of her clients, who wet herself because no one came to help her to the bathroom. The lady is embarrassed, and Abby calms her down by saying, "You mean more to me than you know." We know enough about Abby's circumstances to realize that it's sort of a lie, but it's a beautiful lie, told by a person who cares deeply but is not cared for.

Loach's central point is that the health of a family, something we think of as immutable and timeless, is directly dependent upon the modern industry that we use to destroy ourselves. He doesn't have to be "proven" relevant, and he didn't plan for Covid-19 to point to the fragility of the gig economy, but when you're right, you're right.

7. Lovers Rock (Steve McQueen)- swear to you I thought: "This is an impeccable depiction of a great house party. The only thing it's missing is the volatile dude who scares away all the girls." And then the volatile dude who scares away all the girls shows up.

In a year short on magic, there are two or three transcendent moments, but none of them can equal the whole crowd singing along to "Silly Games" way after the song has ended. Nothing else crystallizes the film's note of celebration: of music, of community, of safe spaces, of Black skin. I remember moments like that at house parties, and like all celebrations, they eventually make me sad.

6. Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (Nicole Newnham and James Lebrecht)- I held off on this movie because I thought that I knew what it was. The setup was what I expected: A summer camp for the disabled in the late '60s takes on the spirit of the time and becomes a haven for people who have not felt agency, self-worth, or community anywhere else. But that's the right-place-right-time start of a story that takes these figures into the '80s as they fight for their rights.

If you're anything like my dumb ass, you know about 504 accommodations from the line on a college syllabus that promises equal treatment. If 2020 has taught us anything though, it's that rights are seized, not given, and this is the inspiring story of people who unified to demand what they deserved. Judy Heumann is a civil rights giant, but I'm ashamed to say I didn't know who she was before this film. If it were just a history lesson that wasn't taught in school, Crip Camp would still be valuable, but it's way more than that.

5. Palm Springs (Max Barbakow)- When explaining what is happening to them, Andy Samberg's Nyles twirls his hand at Cristin Milioti's Sara and says, "It's one of those infinite time-loop scenarios." Yeah, one of those. Armed with only a handful of fictional examples, she and the audience know exactly what he means, and the continually inventive screenplay by Andy Siara doesn't have to do any more explaining. In record time, the film accelerates into its premise, involves her, and sets up the conflict while avoiding the claustrophobia of even Groundhog Day. That economy is the strength that allows it to be as funny as it is. By being thrifty with the setup, the savings can go to, say, the couple crashing a plane into a fiery heap with no consequences.

In some accidental ways, this is, of course, a quarantine romance as well. Nyles and Sara frustratingly navigate the tedious wedding as if they are play-acting--which they sort of are--then they push through that sameness to grow for each other, realizing that dependency is not weakness. The best relationships are doing the same thing right now.

Although pointedly superficial--part of the point of why the couple is such a match--and secular--I think the notion of an afterlife would come up at least once--Palm Springs earns the sincerity that it gets around to. And for a movie ironic enough to have a character beg to be impaled so that he doesn't have to sit in traffic, that's no small feat.

4. The Assistant (Kitty Green)- A wonder of Bressonian objectivity and rich observation, The Assistant is the rare film that deals exclusively with emotional depth while not once explaining any emotions. One at a time, the scrape of the Kleenex box might not be so grating, the long hallway trek to the delivery guy might not be so tiring, but this movie gets at the details of how a job can destroy you in ways that add up until you can't even explain them.

3. Promising Young Woman (Emerald Fennell)- In her most incendiary and modern role, Carey Mulligan plays Cassie, which is short for Cassandra, that figure doomed to tell truths that no one else believes. The web-belted boogeyman who ruined her life is Al, short for Alexander, another Greek who is known for his conquests. The revenge story being told here--funny in its darkest moments, dark in its funniest moments--is tight on its surface levels, but it feels as if it's telling a story more archetypal and expansive than that too.

An exciting feature debut for its writer-director Emerald Fennell, the film goes wherever it dares. Its hero has a clear purpose, and it's not surprising that the script is willing to extinguish her anger halfway through. What is surprising is the way it renews and muddies her purpose as she comes into contact with half-a-dozen brilliant one- or two-scene performances. (Do you think Alfred Molina can pull off a lawyer who hates himself so much that he can't sleep? You would be right.)

Promising Young Woman delivers as an interrogation of double standards and rape culture, but in quiet ways it's also about our outsized trust in professionals and the notion that some trauma cannot be overcome.

INSTANT CLASSICS

2. Soul (Pete Docter)- When Pete Docter's Up came out, it represented a sort of coronation for Pixar: This was the one that adults could like unabashedly. The one with wordless sequences and dead children and Ed Asner in the lead. But watching it again this week with my daughter, I was surprised by how high-concept and cloying it could be. We choose not to remember the middle part with the goofy dog stuff.

Soul is what Up was supposed to be: honest, mature, stirring. And I don't mean to imply that a family film shouldn't make any concessions to children. But Soul, down to the title, never compromises its own ambition. Besides Coco, it's probably the most credible character study that Pixar has ever made, with all of Joe's growth earned the hard way. Besides Inside Out, it's probably the wittiest comedy that Pixar has ever made, bursting with unforced energy.

There's a twitter fascination going around about Dez, the pigeon-figured barber character whose scene has people gushing, "Crush my windpipe, king" or whatever. Maybe that's what twitter does now, but no one fantasized about any characters in Up. And I count that as progress.

1. I’m Thinking of Ending Things (Charlie Kaufman)- After hearing that our name-shifting protagonist moonlights as an artist, a no-nonsense David Thewlis offers, "I hope you're not an abstract artist." He prefers "paintings that look like photographs" over non-representational mumbo-jumbo. And as Jessie Buckley squirms to try to think of a polite way to talk back, you can tell that Charlie Kaufman has been in the crosshairs of this same conversation. This morose, scary, inscrutable, expressionist rumination is not what the Netflix description says it is at all, and it's going to bother nice people looking for a fun night in. Thank God.

The story goes that Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, when constructing Raiders of the Lost Ark, sought to craft a movie that was "only the good parts" with little of the clunky setup that distracted from action. What we have here is a Charlie Kaufman movie with only the Charlie Kaufman moments, less interested than ever before at holding one's hand. The biting humor is here, sometimes aimed at philistines like the David Thewlis character above, sometimes at the niceties that we insist upon. The lonely horror of everyday life is here, in the form of missed calls from oneself or the interruption of an inner monologue. Of course, communicating the overwhelming crush of time, both unknowable and familiar, is the raison d'etre.

A new pet motif seems to be the way that we don't even own our own knowledge. The Young Woman recites "Bonedog" by Eva H.D., which she claims/thinks she wrote, only to find Jake's book open to that page, next to a Pauline Kael book that contains a Woman Under the Influence review that she seems to have internalized later. When Jake muses about Wordsworth's "Lucy Poems," it starts as a way to pass the time, then it becomes a way to lord his education over her, then it becomes a compliment because the subject resembles her, then it becomes a way to let her know that, in the grand scheme of things, she isn't that special at all. This film jerks the viewer through a similar wintry cycle and leaves him with his own thoughts. It's not a pretty picture, but it doesn't look like anything else.

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