#i really like this one? idk

[demobats]

“You ever thought you’d die like this?” 

Steve takes a long time to answer. Long enough that Billy wonders if maybe he fell asleep, even though it’s supposed to be his turn keeping watch. But he does reply, a good thirty seconds later, a drawn out sentence, annoyed but mostly unsure, “We’re not going to die.”

Billy snorts. “Hate to break it to you, pal, but they’re going to kill us as soon as they find us.” 

They , being a bunch of Russians or whatever the hell. Burly men with guns, screaming nonsense two inches from their face, making sure they know hell before they put a bullet through each of their brains. That’s what Billy gets for following Steve around like some lovesick kid, though. He’s really gotta stop letting his stupid crushes dictate the course of his life. 

“We’re going to be fine,” Steve says, in that bitchy tone of his. “They’re going to notice we’re gone and they’ll send someone to find us. We just have to hold on until they get here.” 

“Mmm. You tell anyone about the Russian elevator before we got in?” 

“I—uh, no? But—” 

Billy snorts. Again. “There you go.” 

What really gets him is the kid. Sinclair’s sister. She’s way too young for the shit that’ll go down once the doors snap open and the Russians find them squatting here. Even Henderson—Billy was way younger than him the very first time his dad really smacked him around, but still—he doesn’t like the idea of him bloody and bruised. 

Neither Robin or Steve for that matter. 

Steve huffs, but he shuffles closer to him. They’re sitting side by side, almost shoulder to shoulder now, on top of the damn elevator. The others are down in the actual box. 

“You don’t know that they won’t find us,” Steve says. “Dustin and I, we have friends like, in high places.” 

“Yeah? Like who?” 

“Like the Chief of Police. And his daughter.” 

Billy narrows his eyes, turns to look at him. The sailor uniform keeps distracting him, his brain unable to decide if it’s hot as fuck or plain stupid, but he makes an effort to push the thought aside for now. “His daughter?” 

“Yeah. Yeah, she’s good at finding people. She’ll find us.” 

Billy knows the Chief. Grumpy old dude that keeps giving him speeding tickets. And he knows his daughter too, Max’s friend, this kid with a perpetual wide eyed look. No way that kid can do anything about their situation, and no way a small town cop can do anything either. They’re dead. They’re dead. They’re as good as dead. In fact, Billy will count himself lucky if they kill them fast and painless. He of all people knows there are fates fucking worse than death. 

Still, Steve looks so certain at that moment. Or—maybe certain is not the right word. He looks hopeful. Expectant. Desperate to believe. Billy can’t bring himself to pop his bubble. 

He rolls his eyes instead, looks away. “Someone has to notice we’re missing first.” 

And Steve sags beside him, sighing. Their shoulders brush. “No, yeah,” he says. “Erica has that birthday party thing tomorrow, right? I guess she’s our safest bet because Robin and Dustin both told their parents they were going to be with friends, and mine aren’t even in Hawkins.” 

Then:  “You think yours will notice any sooner?”

And, Billy didn’t tell anyone he was going out. He just took his keys and drove away and ended up in the mall and ran into Steve doing god knows what with a bunch of children and a Russian code. He didn’t exactly ask for permission before going out. His dad will notice he’s gone. There’s no doubt about it in his mind. It’s really not what Steve’s looking for, though. 

Neil will not throw a search party for him. Won’t call hospitals and morgues and other parents, won’t search heaven and hell for him. All he’s going to do is wait. Wait and wait and wait for the moment Billy steps foot back in the house, the moment he can yank his hair, slap him, ask where in the hell he was that he left without asking. 

It’s kind of thrilling, in a way. The thought that he’s going to die down here and Neil will have to live knowing he didn’t do the bare fucking minimimun of reporting his kid as missing. 

“Uh, no,” he mutters. “I guess my old man’s going to assume I went out somewhere.” 

But he took a little too long to respond, his tone too—hesitant, or something. Something . His heart wrenching in ways he’d rather not think all too closely about.

Steve looks at him, doe eyes wide with something that almost feels like sympathy, understanding. 

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[littlelightfish]

Funny things I found out playing with language setting in Netflix while looking episode 15:

Chilchuck's scream sounds HAUNTED in brazilian portuguese. Give it a try if you can.

(You can hear it here)

In spanish dub, Senshi says: "tocó mis senos de hombre", which means "he touched my man boobs" in Spanish. And I think that's the best dub line one so far.

[inkskinned]

because sometimes there are invisible tests and invisible rules and you're just supposed to ... know the rule. someone you thought of as a friend asks you for book recommendations, so you give her a list of like 30 books, each with a brief blurb and why you like it. later, you find out she screenshotted the list and send it out to a group chat with the note: what an absolute freak can you believe this. you saw the responses: emojis where people are rolling over laughing. too much and obsessive and actually kind of creepy in the comments. you thought you'd been doing the right thing. she'd asked, right? an invisible rule: this is what happens when you get too excited.

you aren't supposed to laugh at your own jokes, so you don't, but then you're too serious. you're not supposed to be too loud, but then people say you're too quiet. you aren't supposed to get passionate about things, but then you're shy, boring. you aren't supposed to talk too much, but then people are mad when you're not good at replying.

you fold yourself into a prettier paper crane. since you never know what is "selfish" and what is "charity," you give yourself over, fully. you'd rather be empty and over-generous - you'd rather eat your own boundaries than have even one person believe that you're mean. since you don't know what the thing is that will make them hate you, you simply scrub yourself clean of any form of roughness. if you are perfect and smiling and funny, they can love you. if you are always there for them and never admit what's happening and never mention your past and never make them uncomfortable - you can make up for it. you can earn it.

don't fuck up. they're all testing you, always. they're tolerating you. whatever secret club happened, over a summer somewhere - during some activity you didn't get to attend - everyone else just... figured it out. like they got some kind of award or examination that allowed them to know how-to-be-normal. how to fit. and for the rest of your life, you've been playing catch-up. you've been trying to prove that - haha! you get it! that the joke they're telling, the people they are, the manual they got- yeah, you've totally read it.

if you can just divide yourself in two - the lovable one, and the one that is you - you can do this. you can walk the line. they can laugh and accept you. if you are always-balanced, never burdensome, a delight to have in class, champagne and glittering and never gawky or florescent or god-forbid cringe: you can get away with it.

you stare at your therapist, whom you can make jokes with, and who laughs at your jokes, because you are so fucking good at people-pleasing. you smile at her, and she asks you how you're doing, and you automatically say i'm good, thanks, how are you? while the answer swims somewhere in your little lizard brain:

how long have you been doing this now? mastering the art of your body and mind like you're piloting a puppet. has it worked? what do you mean that all you feel is... just exhausted. pick yourself up, the tightrope has no net. after all, you're cheating, somehow, but nobody seems to know you actually flunked the test. it's working!

aren't you happy yet?

[adriles]

when we’re done with our overwhelming grief we’ll eat i guess

[beybuniki]

they should go on a fishing trip pt.1

[halogalopaghost]

TIL that you can assign an AO3 next of kin to control your account in case of your death???

[hell0mega]

it's incredible that tumblr fandom went from DESPERATELY trying to see ANY sort of queer love in the shows we liked, to having shows—high budget, well-made, interesting, mainstream shows staring known actors—that are ABOUT queer love. explicitly, without argument. and just ten years later.

i saw (and reblogged) a post about how GO, ofmd, and wwdits are the new superwholock and i havent stopped thinking about it. cuz i was there, i was in the trenches back in the day. i was there when the writers and actors made fun of us for seeing on screen chemistry and perfect stories to set up romances. they all humored us then shat on us and saw us as a joke. a bunch of weirdo faggy teens that don't think two men can just be friends.

and now look at us. we're seeing the on screen chemistry and it's REAL. it's ON PURPOSE. these ARE romantic stories about queer people. we're not projecting or have wishful thinking... it's TRUE!! it was written and directed and edited and acted that way in earnest. i will take NO SHIT regarding these shows and people's love for them.

and do you know WHY these shows are being made now? these well thought out, feels-real, non-pandering queer stories? it's BECAUSE OF WHAT WE DID ten+ years ago. a lot of queer media never got the green light to be made because execs don't think there's enough of an audience. that more people will dislike the gays than like them. and we've shown them that that's unequivocally untrue. the outcry we had for all those years, the reviews we left, the statements we made, the backlash, it gave show runners ammunition to say "hey. people will watch this. they will like it. let us make it."

[the-midnight-sugar1]

I don’t think he hears genuine laughter very often

[wasyago]

various tango doodles

[zosanbrainrot]

fanarts for the cute fic by Hazel_Athena where Sanji gets turned into a cat and Zoro is very much a cat person

[aenslem]

Leverage (2008–2012) & Leverage: Redemption (2021–) x DOCTOR WHO

[ruporas]

captain's warm hugs! (id in alt)

[puppyeared]

basement guys

[sisaloofafump]

In case it seems like every third comic has Batman in it... you're not wrong. He's been in 38.6% of DC issues since 2020, with a stark increase of 8% each decade since the 90s and surpassing Superman in popularity. Despite this, there's been a massive drop off of comics where he is teamed up with Superman or a Robin (although the amount of group team ups between Batman Family members has increased, as well as Nightwing solos).

[arsenicflame]

Bonus round! Do you use a queue tag?

[inkskinned]

he says i hate everyone except you and that is addictive and that is kind of romantic and beautiful because you're young and you're kind of a sarcastic asshole too and you don't like bad boys, per say, but you don't really like good ones either. and you like that you were the exception, it felt like winning.

except life is not a romance book, and he was kind of being honest. he doesn't learn to be nice to your friends. he only tolerates your family. you have to beg him to come with you to birthday parties, he complains the whole time. you want to go on a date but - people are often there, wherever you're going. he's just so angry. about everything, is the thing. in the romance book, doesn't he eventually soften? can't you teach him, through your own sense of whimsy and comfort?

at first - you know introverts often need smaller friend groups, and honestly, you're fine staying at home too. you like the small, tidy life you occupy. you're not going to punish him for his personality type.

except: he really does hate everyone but you. which means he doesn't get along with his therapist. which means he has no one to talk to except for you. which means you take care of him constantly, since he otherwise has no one. which means you sometimes have to apologize for him. which means he keeps you home from seeing your friends because he hates them. you're the single exception.

about a decade from this experience, you'll type into google: how to know if a relationship is codependent.

he wraps an arm around you. i hate everyone except you. these days, you're learning what he's actually confessing is i have very little practice being kind.