#it was so much fun to write and i always want to be able to go back to it without having to search

[stolenbuckets]

    ⋆⭒˚.⋆ PINEAPPLE ON PIZZA !  

   ❪ AKA12 ❫   ──   FANFIC.

track   ✷   on a cruise vacation, kimi antonelli crosses paths with the same girl over and over again during lunch or dinner time ─ a girl who always has two slices of pineapple pizza on her plate. only on the 4th day of the 2 weeks vacation, he decides to approach her about her horrible pizza taste.

tags   ✷   strong language. fluff, social media & imessages. strangers to friends to ?. cruise vacation buddies. kimi is a little pathetic & stupid, but that's ok 'cause he's in love. don't witch hunt me for messing up the ships layout. i don't travel msc. i am not planning on doing. i refuse to care about them.

disclaimers   ✷   au. f1!kimi on vacation x reader (she/her pronouns used / no mention of yn). sets in summer of 2025. cruise ship: msc world america. writer is not fluent in english.

august note   ✷   as cruise vacation maker (who's also on cruise again ahh!!) i wanted to write a oneshot like that for months now 😭 so here it is. also, it's kinda rushed towards the end cause i dunno what the word limit on tumblr is 😔. yes i know i promised this one already in april, but i had always planned to post it around my own cruise vacation to like get in the vibe for it 🥲 here it is now !! not proof read at all !! i was in a rush so sorry !!

❪   MASTERLIST   ╱   INFO POST   ❫

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     KIMI ANTONELLI had begun to count all the times he came across a specific, eye catching Girl around his Age while on Cruise Vacation ─ and it had only been 4 Days since he and his Family stepped onto the Ocean Giant, cruising and exploring the Waters and Culture of North America.

He had fun ─ sure, it has been 4 Days so far yet, and ever since the sail away in the Port of Miami, not much had occurred so far apart from a relaxing Day 2 on Sea, the first Destination, Puerto Plata, where he and his Family left the swimming Hotel to explore the City, grouped with a few other Guests, and now the 4th Day in San Juan.

The F1 Driver decided against joining his Parents and younger Sister to explore the Destination ─ he wanted to use the Hours he had alone on the Ship with exploring Corners and Edges he hadn't been able to see yet; he had seen a lot of the Ship's Layout on the Lines' Website, yet couldn't fully believe the SportsPlex would feature Bumper Cars, or that the Ship had it's own Ice Cream Bar on lower Decks. He already saw the Cliffhanger Swing, or the Waterpark on the Sun Deck ─ and to say he wasn't fully blown away would be a lie; even if he hasn't explored it fully yet, having only watched over his younger Sister having fun in the Park Resort during Sea Day.

Kimi's first Stop was at the Ship's own Theater Place ─ even though he wasn't able to get inside due the strict Schedules, he could take a peek inside and spot a large Room which looked rich and attractive, perfectly fitting into the Vibe of the Cruise Ship.

After that, the young F1 Prodigy found himself walking through the lower Decks, through some of the Buffet Restaurants which were still closed until Lunch time ─ empty, the Ship felt almost frighting; if it wasn't for the rich and attractive Interior of it. He only knew the Buffet Restaurants when they were filled up and busy from Entrance to the last Table ─ when every Guest squeeze through Crowds to get their Breakfast; the early Hours were the only time his Family would visit the Buffet Restaurants, Dinner being eaten in À la carte Restaurants, and Lunch mostly pulled the Antonelli Family to Grab and Go Miles on the Top Decks. He was the only one who'd pay a Visit in the Buffet afterwards due the amount, or less of, Meal you'd get in the specialized Restaurants on board.

By the end of his Explorations, Kimi ended on the Sun Deck, strolling around like a lost Puppy ─ apart from a few Lounges and Restaurants, he had seen most of the Ship by now; and also met a few People who recognized him as F1 Prodigy, Mercedes Driver Kimi Antonelli, and therefore asked for Pictures or his Autograph.

He walked along the Railing, Head turned to the Side as his Eyes scanned the solid Ground from the Ocean Giant ─ a couple of Groups occasionally walking off the Ship, or back onto it, the piercing Noises of the City and Port echoing through his Ears. As he lazily carried himself, he wondered when his Parents and Sister would be back ─ he knew they'd sail off by 11 PM and currently it wasn't a Minute later than 12:30 PM, yet he couldn't help but wonder if he had to grab Lunch alone today.

The F1 Driver was too deep in Thoughts about his stupid concerns, not noticing that despite half the Guests being on solid Ground to explore and adventure, there were still a bunch of People left on the Ship ─ he noticed when he felt someone's Shoulder bumping against his own, followed by a sounded Noise hitting the Ground underneath.

His Head snapped straight forward, Eyes widened as he looked at the Person he just bumped into ─ he felt his Heart starting to pace, a little scared he'd might get one for the History Book by the Person for being so carelessly. However, his concerns were vanished and replaced by surprise when he met the Appearance of the Person in front of him ─ she looked similar, too similar even; he could swear to have seen her among over six thousand Guests.

He shook his Head, Eyes going down before he mirrored the Action with his Body, kneeling to grab the Cup of Ice Cream the Girl had dropped after bumping against him, "I'm sorry! I should've looked where I'm going!" he quickly apologized, picking the Cup up, even when it left one of the three Ice Cream Scoops on the Ground ─ his Posture straightened again, sheepishly looking at the Girl as he held the Cup of Ice Cream out to her. "Sorry. . . the Ice Cream looked good." he repeated another Apology.

Surprisingly, the Girl just shrugged her Shoulders with a pleasant Expression ─ she didn't seem mad or frustrated, though neither she carried a happy and joyful look, "Don't worry ─ it was for free, anyway." she replied to his Apology, a light Accent coming through her Voice ─ Kimi noticed it, however couldn't really tell where she could possibly be from. "Do you have Tissues, though? I wouldn't wanna give the Staff any more work." she added, her Eyes downed at the Scoop of Ice Cream which slowly melted away.

The Italian understood the Message, pulling out a Package of Tissues from his Shorts, "Oh yeah, I do." he nodded as he pulled one white Tissue out, kneeling back down to clean up the mess on the Ground ─ she was right; the Staff really didn't need more work to do than they already have with over six thousand People on Vacation who are probably much more carelessly than Kimi was.

He used a couple of Tissues to wipe off as much Ice Cream as possible before he straightened up again, squeezing the dirty Tissues with a small Smile on his Lips, "Sorry again ─ usually im not that carelessly. . . I think." he meant, not meaning to be unintentionally funny ─ yet, the Girl's Lips left a chuckle as her Hand made a waving Gesture, proving no bad blood between the Strangers for a Incident like that.

"It's forgiven and forgotten." she gave back, giving him her best Smile. "Just, watch out ─ next time you might fall off the Ship!" she continued, humored as she made her way past the brunet curly Head, leaving this one standing laughing at the Image of this happening.

"Yeah, I guess that wouldn't be nice!" he called after her, amused, his Words being answered by her laughing and her Hand lifting to give him a short Wave.

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     AT 2PM, Kimi found himself all alone walking through the Ship towards the Entrance of one of the Buffet Restaurants ─ his Father had informed him they'd be eating Lunch on Ground together with a few other Guests from Italy and their Kids they befriended while exploring San Juan. He had switched his Clothes off to something more attire (a black Tee Shirt without print) before he went down a few Decks to check out a Restaurant which he hoped wouldn't be all too run by the maybe one to two thousand Guests still on board.

Among a Group of British Guests who were blocking the way to the Restaurant while making Pictures of the Ships Interior, the Italian squeezed himself through, popping out at the Sanitizer in front of the Restaurant ─ he peeked inside, noticing not many People walking around with Plates, or already sitting on Tables with Food and something to drink. So after, sanitizing his Hands to prevent any kind of Virus to storm the Ship in the next few Days, he went inside, walking past the Buffets ─ the cold and warm, the Meat and Veggies, Dessert and Fruits.

Half the Restaurant was empty which resulted in Kimi following the Tactic of first getting his Food and then searching for a Place to eat ─ he spotted a couple of Things he'd like to try, some of them being almost already completely out of stock; which is exactly why he grabbed a Plate before a Table.

Once he got everything he wanted to try out, he squeezed himself once again through everyone else ─ compared to most Guests, Kimi seemed pretty short, only standing a few Centimeters above 170 tall while he could swear most others here were above 180.

Once squeezed through, he stood in front of the Entrance to the Tables ─ his Eyes flew around, spotting a tons of Tables for more than two People; which was unfortunate because a small Table which just fitted two People across each other was what he needed. He had great Manners, knowing that taking a Table with more Seats would probably rob a Family of four later on a Opportunity to eat Lunch ─ (he was surprised by himself for how far ahead he thought).

His Eyes scanned the Area for a few Moments before he noticed an empty two chaired Table by the End of the Space, right next to the Windows with a great View onto the Port ─ he let his Eyes wander around for a bit longer before he started to walk towards that specific Table.

A few Steps later, he stopped in his Tracks after his Eyes caught a too familiar look ─ eventually, they narrowed slightly, focusing on a specific Person on a Table with a specific Taste of Pizza on her neat white Plate in front of her.

He recognized the Girl ─ not only as the, what he decided to call her due not knowing her actual Name, the Pineapple Girl, but also as the Girl he had bumped into a Hour or so ago; (and dumped her Ice Cream to the Ground). He stood there for a few Moments, memorizing her Features, watching as she bite into the Slice of Pineapple Pizza ─ what may formed a small Grimace on his Face for a few Seconds before he shook himself and followed his impulsive and idiotic Thoughts.

"Hey! Is that Seat free?" his overenthusiastic Voice questioned as he took a Step next to her two chaired Table ─ he didn't know what gotten into him to just walk up to a Stranger and ask her that; now she will think he's a creep who stalks her, he was sure of that.

And to seem as peaceful as possible, the Italian formed a crooked Smile on his Lips, probably looking even crazier right now ─ but well, the Damage was done now so he couldn't rewind it even if he wanted.

The Girl looked up once her Ears had been graced with a familiar sound ─ and as she recognized the brunet curly Head Boy, a genuine Smile had already started to spread on her Lips. A nod of her Head followed, "Oh yeah! Take a Seat, no Problem!" she responded, pointing with her Hand towards the left free Seat at the Table for two, inviting him to join her for Lunch. "My Family's not here anyway ─ exploring the Town." she added as her Eyes watched the Boy, and how he carefully pulled the Chair out, placing his Plate of Lunch down while make it himself comfortable in the wooden Chair.

"Oh yeah? So are mine, to be honest." Kimi told her as he slide a little closer to the Edge of the Table. His Eyes went over to her Plate again, eyeing the Pineapple Pizza with a look of hidden disgust ─ he didn't want to outburst about it in the middle of an Restaurant; but deep down he already cursed and cried in Italian. "So . . . you like Pineapple Pizza?" he decided to start bringing it slowly up ─ he thought of Pineapple Pizza as Disgrace to actual Pizza; all those different Flavors, Pepperoni, just Cheese, Fungi and so many more.

And she chose Pineapple.

The Girl opposite of him nodded, the Smile remaining on her Lips, "Oh definitely!" she confirmed his ugliest Fears ─ a small unnoticeable Shiver even going through Kimi's System at her joyful Tone. "I mean, I also like a typical Pepperoni Pizza, or Tuna ─ but Pineapple is my Go To!" she added, making Things a little bit harder for the Italian ─ he didn't exaggerated, or well he actually did, but it just shot a Arrow through his Heart hearing someone as beautiful as her, praise something as disgusting as a Pineapple Pizza. It was a shame.

"Oh, that's . . . that's . . . yeah." he meant to start, but failed with his stutters ─ he wanted to lie so badly, but assumed that his Italian Accent would be a dead giveaway to his truest Opinion about Pineapple on Pizza. He sighed. "I'm so sorry, but why? Why Pineapple?" he just needed to know ─ he wanted to understand why someone would voluntarily eat this.

Instead of being offended, just what Kimi expected her Reaction to be, the Girl started to laugh ─ and wow, her laugh blew the Italian away; the full and brightness of her Smile in addition with the sound that echoed through his Ears. It was to die for ─ or at least to try more often to make her laugh, "I was expecting you to ask that!" she told him, her full laughters dying slowly down again. "And to answer it shortly: I just really love the Taste of Pineapple on Pizza."

"No! Please no!" Kimi exclaimed as quietly as possible, trying to sound soul deep offended by her Statement ─ when in Reality, he couldn't help the Smile that formed on his Lips. His Mind was occupied with the Fact of how easy it was to talk to her ─ she was basically still a Stranger, yet he sat here and joked and laughed around with her. "You don't understand how much that hurt my Italian Heart!" he added, holding his Hand over his Chest in simulated pain.

She started to laugh again, trying to hide the Plate of Pineapple Pizza with her Hands, "I'm so sorry for paining your poor Italian Heart!" she played along, watching as the curly Head leaned back in his Chair, joining in on her laughters. "How about I make it good to you? We could grab Ice Cream tomorrow!" she suggested to him, her Head titling to her Shoulder as she waited for his response.

Kimi needed a Moment ─ it caught him off guard how quickly this silly idiotic Conversation turned into her genuinely suggesting a kind Gesture; grabbing Ice Cream together? Well, not that he didn't mind ─ now that he actually wasted a Thought about it, he would've asked her out as Payback eventually, too; just that he actually had a Reason to do so, the Thought of her poor Ice Cream wasted like that by a Bump of his Shoulder lingering still in his Head.

But finally, his Head gave a confirming nod to her, "I mean, why not? But under a Provision ─ I'm paying for our Ice Cream." he offered, or well, he had actually already decided ─ it was just fair in his Eyes; even though she told him the Ice Cream from pervious was for free, he still insisted on paying for her.

"But I suggested it─"

"Doesn't matter ─ it's a Payback for earlier!" he had immediately cut her off, giving her a genuine Smile. "I still feel bad about bumping your Ice Cream to the Ground ─ even if it's less guilt now because you're a Pineapple Pizza Lover." he continued, snickering as he aw her very visible Eye Roller after the small Joke he added.

"Fine." she agreed, nodding her Head at him. "But I hope you know how expensive a single Scoop of Ice Cream is already." she continued, watching Kimi's Face turning from a smiley and happy one into a confused frown.

"No, I actually don't . . ." he admitted, looking down to his Plate, conflicted whether he should ask or not ─ right now, he was doing just fine imagining the Ice Cream to be not over $2. "And I'm too scared to ask now."

She smiled, amused, "You'll see."

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���    "FIVE DOLLARS for a single Scoop of Ice Cream?!" Kimi let a pained Exclaim out as the Display showed the Prices of his and her's Ice Cream Cone ─ his deep brown Eyes almost popped out when he saw the final sum; $20.75 for four Scoops of Ice Cream without whipped Cream, Sprinkles or any other fancy Charms.

"Told you." she bumped his Shoulder slightly, amused by how slowly and pained he put his Board Card onto the Scanner to pay for their Dessert. Kimi felt like being robbed of his entire Wealth, looking down at his own Ice Cream Cone with a bittersweet Taste ─ it looked no different to Ice Cream on solid Ground; so why the hell do they charge five Dollars for a single Scoop on here?!

"Why is it so expensive?" he eventually asked as they walked their way out of the Ice Cream Bar, bringing the Ice Cream up to his Mouth. "I mean . . . it does taste good, but five Dollars? That's a lot." he added, melting the Vanilla Ice Cream with the Tip of his Tongue.

"We're on a Cruise Ship, Kimi." she responded, suckling on her own Ice Cream. "Everything is, at least, two Dollars more expensive than on solid Ground ─ I dunno why, but my Parents said it's normal on Cruise Ships due some Ocean Law." she continued, shrugging her Shoulders as Kimi raised both his Eyebrows.

"Ocean Law? So Poseidon decided to make Ice Cream so expensive?" he joked, trying to get her to laugh again ─ something about her laughing whenever he said or did something funny made his Heart flutter. And he managed ─ she started to laugh, loud enough to pull the Attention from a few others around them.

"You know what? I think that sounds just right!" she meant, bumping his Shoulder a little. Kimi started to chuckle along, bumping her Shoulder back as they walked along the Promenade District of the Ship ─ a dry slide, a Coffee Shop and a few more Things that blew the Italian's Mind completely away; how? How does all that fit on a swimming mega sized Boat?

He sighed and looked back at her and her Ice Cream Cone, "I'm surprised you didn't choose Pineapple Ice Cream." he decided to tease her a little, succeeding when she rolled her Eyes and lightly punched him. He started to snicker, hiding his Face behind his Ice Cream. "But they also didn't have Pineapple Ice Cream so . . . are you occasionally also eating Strawberry on Pizza?" he continued, eyeing her Strawberry Ice Cream. He was handed another light punch against his Shoulder which caused another snicker to roll from his Lips.

"You're an Idiot." she insulted him, jokingly. "I doubt that something like that even exists ─ I mean, who would eat Strawberry Pizza? That sounds disgusting." she grimaced at the Thought of a crispy Pizza with Strawberry spread over the Tomato Sauce and Cheese.

Kimi thought about another teasing Remark, mentally, before he looked back at her with a cheeky Grin, "Probably the same People that think Pineapple can and should be put on Pizza."

"Oh come on!" she groaned, attempting to push her Ice Cream against the Tip of his Nose ─ Kimi leaned away, quickly, pretending to bump his Ice Cream against her Nose as Payback. The two Teenagers giggled, carelessly goofing around without noticing the Glances they received from some of the elder Passengers on Board ─ who all, apparently, didn't have to see two young Souls playing around, living their Life. Kimi ditched her Attempts to bump the Strawberry red Gelato against his Nose while he managed to land a hit, the Vanilla Cream bumping against the Tip of her Nose.

After a few Minutes, the two slowly stopped to goof around and pull Attention to them ─ instead, they walked through the lower Decks of the Ship, talking about their Lives, occasionally pointing at something they couldn't believe to fit on a Cruise Ship; they enjoyed spending time together, even if they had only known each other for roughly 24 Hours.

The time flew fast, soon enough Kimi's Phone started to buzz with a Message from the Family Groupchat ─ his Mother texted him, asking where he is and if he could finally come back to their Room. He sighed, letting the Phone slide back into his Pocket, "I have to go ─ my Mama wants me to come back to our Room." he told her, pouting a little bit; he wished to have spent a bit more time together with her, getting to know her even better.

"Then you should probably get going," she responded. "How about we'll hangout tomorrow again? Or maybe we go down together? You could ask your Parents and I'm gonna ask mine!" she suggested, looking at him with a tad of hope in her Eyes ─ Kimi thought about it, his Eyes widened; this wasn't a bad Idea. If his Parents wanted to explore the Destination again, he could ask if they'd be fine to do it together with her Family.

He nodded, eventually, "I will ─ let's meet at . . . Esagono Restaurant for Breakfast tomorrow, okay?" he added, giving her a Smile. "I'd recognize you even between hundreds of Guests." Kimi had no Idea where those Words suddenly came from ─ he had no clue why he said that; did it sound smooth? Kind of. But he was still embarrassed that he even loudly admitted that ─ it wasn't wrong; he'd definitely recognize her, even among Crowds.

She just nodded with a bright Smile ( and a weird Feeling inside her Stomach which she couldn't pin point what it was ), "See you at Breakfast."

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    KIMI'S PARENTS were happy to see their Son thriving the past few Days on Vacation ─ in Comparison to his laziness on the first Sea Day, or how bored and tired he looked while exploring Puerto Plata, Kimi was looking a lot more energetic every time they got to see their Teenage Son; which was surprisingly not often anymore. Two Sea Days after another, the brunet curly Head had spent with her, further exploring the Ship, getting Ice Cream at the Ice Cream Bar as Apology for bumping hers out of her Hand in San Juan, or paying a Visit to the SportsPlex and watching a bunch of Kids driving Bumper Cars into each other ─ when she eventually managed to get Kimi to try it, too, for once; and they ended up in a fit of laughters instead of fulfilling the Cars Purpose of bumping against each other.

Eventually, Kimi introduced her to his Family which led to her introduced her Family to him and his ─ and the two Families coming together for every Breakfast and Dinner time from then on; while their Parents happily chatted about everything they did so far, their younger Siblings slowly becoming Friends, the two Teenagers got to know each other a lot more, too. He told her about his F1 Career, she told him about her Studies ─ he shared his Hobbies and some Stories from Friends with her, she did the same before they'd both catch themselves laughing a little too loud.

Time flew ─ their Families, including them, enjoyed the Bahamas and eventually a last Sea Day before they'd return to Miami for the Ship to gather new Passengers; Kimi caught himself worried that she might be one to check out after eight Days, but was lucky when she had appeared next to him on the Sun Deck, watching other Guests checking out, walking off the Gangway back into their Reality.

"Hey, are you and your Family going down in Costa Maya?" he asked as they watched a Family of five leaving the Ship behind ─ his Eyes went over to her for a Moment, watching her neutral, almost bored Expression as her Eyes laid down the Ocean Giant.

She shrugged her Shoulders in response, sighing, "I don't know ─ but you know my Parents by now." she meant, a lazy Smile forming on her Lips as a chuckle left his Lips ─ he nodded, in fact knowing her Parents by now; as much as she knew his.

"'Are we paying for the Ship, or the Destinations?'" the Italian imitated their Quartet of Parents, laughing heartedly ─ she joined him, not paying Attention to the few weird looks they got from the elder Passengers who laid on their Leans, sun tanking or taking a Nap.

"The Ship's huge ─ personally, I could spend 14 Days just on Water." she said, nodding her Head as she pushed herself off the Railing ─ Kimi mirrored her Actions, pushing himself off before they started to walk towards the Rear of Ship, passing a few Staff Members and Guests. "We should try the Skate Course in Costa Maya!" she added, excitedly.

"Why not tomorrow?" he asked her, confused.

"Tomorrow we're on Sea therefore it'll be full of People." she gave back, having a solid Point ─ with over six thousand Passengers, a bunch of them probably shared the same Idea of spending a Day on Sea with skating and having fun. "We should do it on Monday when everyone's busy exploring Costa Maya."

Kimi hummed, pretending to think about it ─ he already knew he'd agree to her Offer; after all, this sounded in his Ears (and delusional Mind) lowkey like a Date. . . but maybe he was really just starting to imagine Things after the past captivating Days with her together.

"Okay ─ let's go rollerskating on Monday!"

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     "WHAT ARE you doing?" she asked, bursting out in laughters as she watched the curly Head almost dropping to the polished Floor, barely holding up by ending up doing a 360° on the Spot before he stopped, frozen like a Deer in Headlights. Kimi sheepishly chuckled as he tried to slide over to the Railing, not even rolling his rented Rollerskates as he just hoped to grab the Railing before he'd completely clown out in front of the most beautiful and funniest Girl he has ever met ─ even though he loved the sound of her laughing or even just chuckles, he didn't necessarily wanted to fool around in between a couple of other Passengers, especially since the Chances were high that a few of them knew him.

"I didn't know it was this hard!" he gave back, Hands holding onto the Railing with a almost rough Grip ─ he was still slipping a little bit, shaking in his Legs as he remained in a constant State of fear; he really didn't think it'd be that hard, maybe a little bit, but not harder than driving an F1 Car! He looked over his Shoulder to her, seeing how she skate on the Spot, back and forth, with ease ─ so he really was making a Fool of himself in front of her? Great. Just great.

"Like that, you'll never manage a Lap." she said, rolling over to him, leaning forward against the metal Railing ─ she had a soft Smile on her Lips as she let her Eyes go between his Face and his Hands, mentally making her Mind up on just taking his Hands in hers to help him do at least one Round. "Come on, give me your Hands!" her Hands were stuck out for him to take as she spoke.

Kimi's Eyes widened a little bit, surprised as he started to stutter a "ah" over and over again ─ he chose to not respond, instead lifting one Hand after another to grab after her Hands; and God, they were so soft, the opposite of his sweaty palms. He felt his Head heating up as he held her Hands, slowly and carefully being led away from the Railing by her, back onto the actual Skate Course. He didn't even dare to look at her, his Eyes remaining like a deadlock on the Floor, watching his shaky Knees and his Feet doing whatever they wanted to do.

"It works better if you don't look and just do." her Voice was soft, but the Italian registered them nevertheless, even over the screams and laughters of the other People around them ─ he didn't understand, or well, actually he did; he fell hard, love at first sight might be true, after all. Because he could hardly imagine ever moving on from this Vacation, and her.

"Really? I feel like I'd just fall again if I don't watch my Feet." he replied, awkwardly chuckling as he almost slipped off his Feet, again. His Body could handle 5 to 8 Gs in one of the fastest Machineries in the World, but refused to stand and roll on Rollerskates. "This is harder than driving an F1 Car."

"I doubt that." she chuckled, amused ─ her Hands were still clutching his, pulling him closer to her so he'd sped a little bit up; if only he'd stop looking down, he might actually he able to skate a little more freely. "Come on, Kimi. Don't think, just do."

His Eyes actually went up to her after that, a Eyebrow raised, "Did you just quote Maverick from Top Gun?" he asked, knowingly ─ she proudly nodded, one of her Hands letting off his as she noticed his Legs becoming more stable on the Rolls. Kimi didn't even notice yet, his Focus too caught up with her ─ he could look into her Face forever; into her Eyes and the contagious Smile on her Lips. She was so effortlessly beautiful, it almost pained his Heart that they'd probably never see each other again after this Vacation.

"Look at you!" her cheery Voice pulled him out of his Trance, his Mind coming up with the Fact that she has now entirely let off his Hands, and he actually kept himself up without shaky Legs and Instability ─ he looked down for a short Moment before he snapped back up to her, his Smile growing a little more proud; he did it, he managed to not fool himself out, for once!

"I did it!" he exclaimed, happily, as he followed her on the Skate Lane. His Smile widened a tad as he saw her excited Expression, the way her Hands clapped like a proud Mom that just witnessed her Child's first Steps.

"What did I say? It's easier when you don't look at your Feet!" he nodded at her Words, following her, his Hands still a little shaky and unsure hanging in the Air ─ but he was skating, without falling or rolling off. He was holding himself until he wasn't ─ but who would've expected a little Kid to drop their Board Card right on the Course, right in Kimi's Skate Line which almost ( almost !! ) knocked him entirely over if it wasn't for the most perfect Girl in front of him. Her Hands reached out for his again, grabbing onto them like they were fighting for their Lives, pulling him a tad too far forward ─ Kimi almost lost control, but eventually he collapsed onto her, dragging her with him to the Floor.

God, this was embarrassing, he wished to vanish into thin Air ─ but instead he landed with half his Body on her, their Legs tangled, her Hands suddenly on his Waist while his propped himself up so he wouldn't fall entirely onto her. Silence between them followed ─ Kimi just looked at her as his Face slowly turned a dangerous shade of red; maybe out of shyness, but mostly out of Embarrassment.

The first of many "I'm so sorry!" nearly left his Lips when she suddenly started to laugh, throwing her Head back while her Eyes squinted ─ unlike him, she found this Situation hilarious; them laying on the Floor, tangled together while others skated around them, simply refusing to care or help the two Teenagers up. The red Shade of his Face grew deeper as she started to laugh underneath him, his own Lips forming a small Smile. He memorized her, watching her laugh in awe ─ he never in his entire Life had felt with a Girl the way he felt around her. It was like he was in a real life Romcom Movie.

Eventually, they slowly got up from the Floor again ─ she helped him, holding his Hands as Kimi tried to remain still on the Rollerskates. "I think, Rollerskating isn't for me." he concluded, sheepishly chuckling as they slowly skated back to the Railing, leaving the Course again ─ it was close to Lunch Time, anyway; and Kimi's Stomach started to roar some unpleasant sounds.

"You did alright, though ─ promise, it wasn't as bad as it probably felt for you." she responded, stepping out of the Rollerskate Track. "I've seen People do worse ─ like my Dad, who knocked over a small Kid once." she told her new Friend. The Italian didn't know whether he should ask for the full Story or if he should leave it at that ─ but from the tiny Information he got, he was convinced enough that it could be worse than his Performance.

"Maybe I manage one day." Kimi replied, making his way slowly over to a Bench to sit down and get the Skates off his Feet ─ he watched her as she sat down next to him, starting to untie the rented Rollerskates. "Should we Burgers? Or maybe Hotdogs?" he asked her, starting to undo his Skates as well ─ she hummed, nodding I'm Agreement to his Suggestion about Lunch; who needs fancy Food anyway when you cam eat a customized Hotdog? She wouldn't say No ─ especially not to the curly Head Boy she had just met a few Days ago, but was already utterly enchanted by.

"A Hotdog Lunch Date with you sounds great." Kimi would've fainted right on the Spot if this was a Cartoon Movie ─ in Reality, he just blinked at her, his Face growing entirely red again; he just got rid of the embarrassing shade in his Face, and it only took one Sentence from her and boom! His Face was drowned in Ferrari red again.

"O-Oh yeah!" he stuttered in response ─ why did he stutter?! Oh my, he was acting like a Teenager with a Crush!

. . . Actually, he was exactly that ─ a Teenager with a Crush. Head over Heels, in love with a Girl he only knew because of her outrageous Pizza taste, or the lack of.

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     KIMI WENT into the Cruise Vacation with not much Expectations for the Summer Break ─ apart from the little few Facts he has been caught from his Parents about the newest MSC Ship, he went into his Vacation with nothing much on his Mind. He didn't expect the Ship to be that big, include so much to attract Kids and Teenagers of all Ages, Restaurants with Food he hasn't ever seen on solid Ground, and so much more.

And now, thirteen Days later, he'd pack his Suitcases and Bags with bittersweet Taste on his Tongue ─ oh, and a Crush on a Girl that caused this bittersweet Taste because he still has not asked for her Number. No matter how much he swallowed, or tried to die down the Feeling, eventually his Mind drifted back to the last Day on his Summer Vacation ─ the last few Hours he would have with her, the Breakfast with her and her Family, laughters surrounding their Table in the Restaurant before they'd waved Goodbyes and most likely never see each other again.

His Parents noticed how absent their Son had been on the second to last Day ─ they noticed how he dreaded to pack his Suitcases and Bags, not because he didn't want to leave this Ship, but because he was frustrated with himself for being such a Loser; they knew he was yet to ask her for her Number.

But it reached a Point where his Parents couldn't just watch anymore and mentally be amused by his Behavior ─ the way he held the Teddy Bear Plush with Cruise Captain's Uniform, a Gift from her when they were exploring the Shopping Mile on the second last Sea Day, and letting the most Room filling and saddened sigh out ever. His Parents felt bad for him ─ still a tiny bit amused.

Some might say he'd overreact ─ eventually, his Parents probably exchanged Numbers with her Parents, right? Just that he blurred that Fact out, his entire Focus being on the Fact that not even Ollie was able to help him come up with a smooth way to ask a Girl for her Number WITHOUT making it seem like he's a Creep.

But no matter how much he dreaded the final Day, Miami eventually arrived again and with that also the end of the Cruise.

He stood leaned against the Railing of the Ship on the highest Deck, Backpack settled on back and Shoulders as he just waited for his Parents to be done with whatever they claimed to need to do before leaving the Ship ─ his little Sister went with them, leaving Kimi on his own for a last few Minutes before they'd checkout and drive to the Airport to fly back to Italy.

His Eyes flew over the City of Miami ─ or at least that what you could see from a Cruise Ship that was docked to it's own Terminal in PortMiami. He was deep in Thoughts, still thinking about his missed Opportunity to ask her for her Number ─ he assumed her to have already left the Ship after they finished Breakfast together, the endless Goodbyes and see you again"s of their Parents before their ways parted.

"Kimi!" a familiar Voice echoed through his Ears, the exclaimed sound voicing from a fair Distance to his current Position ─ his Head snapped around, Eyes being as wide opened as they could when he saw her jogging towards him. She wore her Backpack on Shoulders, a Baseball Cap on top of her Head and had as well a smaller Toten Bag slung around her Body ─ she looked equally ready to leave the Ship.

"Hey." the Italian turned away from the Railing, facing towards her as she came to a stop, a little bit out of breath as she held herself up on her Knees. "Did you run through 18 Decks up?" he asked, snickering slightly.

She shook her Head, straightening her Posture a little bit to look at him, "No, I did not ─ not 18 Decks, but probably 6 or 7." she gave back, leaning sideways against the Railing. "But it was worth it."

The curly Head hummed, raising an Eyebrow, "And why? Did you forget something?" he asked her, mirroring her Actions to lean a little bit against the Ship's Railing.

She chuckled a little, shaking her Head, "Not how you probably mean it, but I did forget something!" she told him, her Hand vanishing in the Pockets of her Pants to search for something. While she tried to grasp the something inside her Pocket, Kimi just looked confused at her, not being able to tell what she seemingly forgot before leaving the Ship ─ what probably had something to do with him, too; unless she wouldn't have come to him, right?

He wished it to be a piece of Paper with her Number on it ─ but he didn't allow himself to believe that this was it. But it would make the most Sense ─ her Family was supposed to check out, she forgot something and run up the Decks to him so she can give him his Number. He noticed how Romcomish that sounded ─ but so did the past eleven Days he spent with her.

"There it is!" she announced, pulling something folded out of her Pocket ─ for a second, Kimi allowed himself to dream and hope; but this was pretty quick smashed down when his Eyes caught the $20 Bill in her Hand. "For the Ice Cream you gave out in San Juan." she told him with a small Smile.

He looked confused, his Eyes switching between her Face and the $20 Bill in her Hand, "But I told you it's a Payback for bumping your Ice Cream to the Ground? You don't need to pay me back . . ." he eventually said back to her, shaking his Head slightly ─ it was amusing, how he has only known her for eleven Days and yet could say "that's so her" about the current Situation.

"Okay, but this is . . . a Payback for making you see me eat Pineapple Pizza! she replied, nodding her Head, proudly. Her Words caused a small Smile to form on his Lips, his Hand slowly lifting to just take the $20 Bill ─ he knew arguing wouldn't lead to anything here, so he voluntarily gave in; even if he'd much rather wanted her to keep the Money.

He took the Money Bill from her, squeezing it in his Fist as his Smile turned bittersweet ─ maybe this wasn't even a "goodbye", but rather a "see you again"; nevertheless, he actually did not want to leave this Cruise Ship. Even if they'd stay in Contact, she lived Hours away from him and with their Schedules, her starting College soon while he's almost every Week away for Races all around the World, he doubt he'd actually be able to meet up with her more than once all two Months, if even.

Maybe they were meant to be just Friends for the Summer ─ like in every cliché bittersweet Novel where two People just got a Summer to spend before their ways would forever part.

"So. . ." she started, shifting on her Feet from left to right, Hands folded behind her back. "See you again?" she asked, titling her Head a little bit as she watched his Reaction. Kimi parted his Lips to say something, but stayed quiet ─ in response, he just nodded his Head.

"See you again, yeah." he confirmed, quietly. He turned around, leaning further against the Railing when he felt her stepping a little bit closer to him ─ yet, before he could say anything, she pressed her Lips against his right Cheek, a soft Kiss being left on his Skin, and a tingling Feeling spread through his entire Body.

He was frozen, not having expected her to give him a Kiss as Farewell ─ despite the frozen Muscles, his Mind went insane, his Body Heat shooting up within a Second. For him, it felt like the Kiss on the Cheek lasted Minutes ─ he was drunk of the Feeling from her soft Lips against his clean Skin. In Reality, the Cheek Kiss lasted strong eight Seconds before she pulled away again, stumbling backwards.

"My Family's waiting for me," she started, slowly turning around on her Heel. "I'll see you again, Kimi!" were her last Words before she fully turned around, jogging away before he could say anything in response. He was left standing there, still a little caught by the Kiss on the Cheek.

It took him a Minute or so until he'd snap back into Reality ─ mostly due his younger Sister nudging his Arm slightly with a giggle. He turned his Head around, seeing his Parents walking their way towards him and his Sister, "We're done ─ we can check out!" his Father informed him, patting his Son's Shoulder before continuing to head towards the Doors which lead back inside the Cruise Ship.

Kimi nodded, watching his Family walking ahead before he slowly began to follow them ─ he unclenched his Fist as they stood in the Staircase, unwrapping the $20 Bill to put it into the Pocket of his Shorts instead.

But he stopped as he had it unwrapped ─ in the middle of the Stairs down to Deck fifteen, he stood looking with wide Eyes onto the supposed $20 Bill in his Fingers; though, it wasn't a $20 Bill. It wasn't a Bill, at all.

It was a Piece of Paper with the Design of a $20 Bill ─ and something delicate written on the white Side of it.

It didn't necessarily take a Genius to figure out what was written on the opposite of the Paper.

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final august note   ✷   i had sososo much fun writing this ahh!!! i have a lot of done/half finished oneshots in my drafts, but this one is my favorite by far ! 🥹 also yeah this lowkey sucks, but the idea eats and that's all that matters to me (i'ill proofread and edit it eventually anyway so).

for anyone that thinks it's unrealistic to make friends so quick, you definitely haven't been on a cruise vacation before 😭😭 it goes so fast and easy, mainly because you know it's only for a few days anyway so fuck it.

PINEAPPLE ICE CREAM    coming soon.

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©    STOLENBUCKETS 2025    ╱    All Rights Reserved. Do not Copy Or Both Sides Of Your Pillow Will Forever Be Warm.

[jollyhunter]

I'm so glad my sarcasm didn't fall flat 😂 I'm always a bit hesitant to use it in my writing, afraid I might not be able to deliver it the way it sounds in my head LOL

Throwing it back at his head - nice shot! 😂 he needs a bit of a whack sometimes, especially to be so stand off-ish to his damn soulmate.

HA! The idea of how the ocean's 'alive' in Moana did pop into my head when writing this! Glad you liked it as well 😂

I guess this makes up for it 👆 I wonder if she didn’t believe it either? Although that line about him taking long enough has me wondering, and I want to know her thoughts - care to make another?? lol - I really want to know if she was already there or if he poofed her when he picked up the stone, because that would be so funny. You’re sitting there doing whatever, maybe you’re at work, and then poof, you’re back at a beach, and there’s your soulmate - finally.

"poofed her" - I'M DEAD. 💀

I'll be honest, I didn't even consider the possibility of her literally being summoned there just by her soulmate's stone. That image is hilarious and I spent a good 5 minutes imagining all sorts of awkward and funny scenes after reading that 🤣 Not sure yet whether I'll find the inspiration to write a second part / reader pov version. We'll see 😏

Dean’s got a lot of making up to do! ❤️

Oh absolutely. Poor reader's probably been waiting for years for her soulmate since he avoided the beach like the pest.

Also! I never told you how amazing your header was for the challenge!! I’m in awe of your skills!!

Thank you so so much, Beth!! 🧡🧡🧡 It was a lot of fun and I'm quite happy how it turned out ☺️ (seeing as there wasn't really any canon 'beach' material to work with ��)

SOUL GEMS

⋆ ˚｡⋆ PAIRING Dean Winchester x gn!Reader

⋆ ˚｡⋆ SUMMARY There's only one soul gem for each - a gift of the sea; a window into the soul of your soulmate's and the compass to your missing piece.

WARNINGS / TAGS Soulmate AU (but with a beach-themed twist), Dean's usual denial, a bit of Angst when you squint your eyes, canon Swearing, Fluff, Told from Dean's pov. No use of Y/N.

⋆ ˚｡⋆ WORDS 1000. Woop I did it! 😂

⋆ ˚｡⋆ J / NOTES My first entry for this super fun challenge of @ambiguous-avery! AND my first time writing for a soulmate trope!? I hope it checked all the boxes? :D

Dean didn't do beaches.

He didn't do fatewalks along the shores. Or bond-diving in the ocean. And he most certainly didn't search the sand for ‘his’ stupid rock.

And yet, Dean Winchester's standing nowhere less than smack in the middle of the California beaches right now.

You gotta be kiddin’ me.

Dean shakes his head. Rolls his eyes in exageration as a swooning couple walks past him. He can only scoff at their newfound love that's radiating off of them in waves. Fingers tightly entangled, their free hands showing off a stone each as they hold it up into the sun - their sparkling colors mirroring their eyes’.

Who the hell even believes this crap?

Dean goes on with an internal monologue about this old movie and that song which all would’ve made the perfect snarky comment right now, if he wasn’t roaming the shores all by himself.

He’s momentarily thrown off when something shiny passes by his shoes.

He stops. Turns and bends down. Picks up the small rock when a jolt of energy passes through him.

For a split second, the entire universe seems to have come to a halt.

The next second, Dean scoffs and hurls it into the ocean.

It was almost as if he was taunting fate, laughing at her dumbfounded expression as if it was all a joke to him. Because it is. It's a joke, and he's not going to play along.

He turns and steps away from the shore, kicking the sand as if it's personally offending him, like it’s the culprit who lured him down here in the first place when out of nowhere – SMACK

He whips around. Facing the empty beach that stretches left and right.

“What the hell…” he mutters, eyes narrowed at the line of bubbles fading into the sand after the waves rolled across it. His free hand comes up to rub his throbbing back head from whatever had hit him. His eyes dart around until his focus shifts to his feet - and his hand freezes in mid motion.

“No friggin’way.”

Wet and shiny. The very same stone he had just tossed into the ocean.

The stone which glittered in ways that made him wonder whether it had stardust molded within it.

The stone which had sent a shiver down his spine the moment his fingers brushed its surface.

Tilted his inner world. Melted his believes as its sweet poison poured down over his soul, all within a blink of an eye. Made his mind cloudy and reeling at the same time. While something was pulsing within his heart – something hot and heavy and sticky; Emotions he couldn’t pin point, blurry thoughts and fractures of memories he didn’t recognize as his own. But the feeling like he should. Like he wants to know. Has to. Like his inner compass has just locked onto a target and won’t waver until he has found the missing piece which will finally complete him. Perhaps even-

Bullshit. He mentally punches himself. ‘Soulmates’ - What complete bullshit.

Dean’s face hardens. Twists into a scowl.

Bending down, he picks the damn thing up once again. Nose wrinkled and half-heartedly pinched between his fingertips as if it was a piece of hexed bunny droppings. His inner defences raised high as the stone begins to pester his mind once more. Good thing he’s Dean friggin’ Winchester who’s got walls higher than the damn wall of China, fighting off any mind-bending magic or whatever’s going on here.

Because one thing’s for sure. Soulmates don’t exist. Not in his world.

The sand gives in under his aggressive steps as he stomps back to the same spot as before.

“Hey, you bitch!” he shouts at the ocean in annoyance, “I’m not playing your stupid game-” he raises the stone high and waves it pointedly at the horizon “- so keep your crap to yourself!”

“Don’t like what the universe handed you?” a voice says next to him, “Or just fed up with your soulmate never showing up?”

Dean spins around, eyes wide in surprise.

“I – don’t believe in that crap,” he stammers but his voice dies down as your eyes lock.

Your breath hitches. His gets stuck in his throat.

The low sun on the horizon freckled his emerald eyes with golden speckles. The colors glint and flicker, mirroring the ones of the stone held in your hand.

At the same time Dean watches in stunned silence how your eyes reflect the pattern of his stone.

“No. Nope – nu-uh,” he sputters, averts his eyes as he violently shakes his head, “This is a joke – it can’t be – I can’t -”

“Have a soulmate?” you finish for him. His eyes snap up to meet yours and his stomach does a somersault.

“Uh, yeah. Yeah that,” he rasps out. You tilt your head, and damnit – the way you look at him, really look at him, it has his heart hammer against his ribs.

Your eyes are intense and soft at the same time, and he can’t help but feel utterly exposed. Deep down, it has him wonder how much you know of him. How much that damn stone revealed to you.

The thought has him go rigid. Hands balled into fists at his side.

My soulmate. He repeats to himself over and over. At first hesitant – no – fucking terrified.

But then his focus returns to yours and the panic induced adrenaline rush takes an unexpected turn.

Excitement.

“You sure took your time,” you smirk knowingly. Sweet. Cheeky. And everything Dean didn’t understand yet but swore to himself that very moment that he would spend the rest of his life to figure out.

“Yeah, I… I did,” he chuckles, then pulls his lips into that charming smirk of his as he holds out his hand for you, “Care for a beach walk?”

You giggle, then nod. And Dean suddenly feels like he has to physically hold himself back from scooping you up and never letting you go again...

My soulmate.

Dean Tag List:

@aylacavebear @jc-winchester @ambiguous-avery @bettystonewell @lyarr24 @ladysparkles78 @v1v1-3 @maddie0101 @livya99 @supernotnatural2005 @Ms-kayla-readinglover @youdontknowe @zepskies @waynes-multiverse @123passwort @lamentationsofalonelypotato @my-stories-vault

@champagnepoets @salemslostwitch @chevroletdean @multiversefanfics @toxicfataldestiny @sunnys-struggles @kimxwinchester @nesnejwritings @carliebear23 @alexxavicry @ladykitana90 @Magic-sprinkled-daydreams @woaheasytig3r

❀ꗥ Want to join my TAG LIST? Fill out this form!

[number1ladsboykisser]

changes don’t make differences in my love for you.

sylus x youuuu!!

this story was requested by @revenlian :

“Dunno if you do this but oafjshv, but I wanted to ask if you could write a scenario where you (mc or reader i dunno) have a pretty long hair, and you'r not very feminine but still liked it long, but due to an accident had to cut it reaaaally short– You still love the way you look with that really short haircut, and your head feels so free, so you r happy about it🥺 soo based on this how would Sylus react? Like yesterday you two just had a pretty fun date and you still had your hair, how would he feel to a so abrupt change?”

thanks for the request bb! - me

(btw sylus reminds me of this song, so feel free to listen as you read.)

here’s a fluffy fluffy story that i hope you enjoy my lovelies!!

you knew sylus wasn’t one to get used to change easily, especially when it was abrupt

so how would he react when he saw your hair this short?

it all began when you were standing on a bus (public transportation) and a little kid decided to wrap your silky hair around a giant glob of chewed gum. it just created mats of ragged hair, which only fueled your desire to cut your hair.

you knew you weren’t very feminine anyways, so maybe it was for the best?

you were very happy about your short hair, getting bursts of joy each time you looked in the mirror at yourself, you looked so amazing! not only that, but your head felt lighter, whenever you had your long hair, it felt like there was a giant rock sitting on top of your head, but now, your head felt lighter, and your thoughts cleared quicker.

but soon enough your thoughts became shrouded in questions and confusion.

what will sylus think of me?

i had my long hair yesterday so it’s a pretty quick change, i dont think sylus will be able to get used to it easily…

you know what? i’m just gonna reveal it to him and see what he thinks. i don’t care if he doesn’t like it! what matters is that i do!

you thought, finally coming up with a conclusion.

you picked up your phone, quickly tapping the messages app and texting sylus.

“hey sy..! i have a surprise for you!!”

“did you beat a wanderer without my assistance?”

“everyone knows i can do that.. but anyways, no it has to do with my appearance.”

“kitten, you know i will love you the same way i always do, even if you change your appearance.”

“and how do you love me now?” you responded with curiosity

“infinitely.”

that response was enough to make you want to tattoo it on your inner eyelids.

“ok shall i send a pic?” you texted.

“no, i want to see you in person.”

this message made your heart beat abnormally fast, just go with the flow, you thought

you responded with an “okay!” and an “on my way!” whenever you started up your motorcycle.

when you arrived, you didn’t even have to knock at sylus’ door, it just swung open as soon as you stood on his marble porch, like he sensed you were here.

your heart rate grew faster as you moved closer to where sylus surely was.

you stood at his bedroom door, knocking quickly but quietly.

“come in.” you heard sylus’ deep voice ring from inside the room, so you walked in after you fixed your hair.

you stood at the doorway and waited for a reaction.

his mouth didn’t gape in horror, and he didn’t shriek.

so you looked up at him with a questioning look.

and his once hard eyes softened as he looked at you with utter, raw love in his eyes and encoded in his body language.

he chuckled when you smiled at his reaction, “i love it, kitten, i love it so much” he purred

he stood and walked up to you, his hand reaching out to make a mess of your once maintained hair.

“hey!!” you giggled out as his hand ruffled your hair, reaching up to grab his wrist.

he peppered your head with aggressive kisses

“i”

a kiss

“might”

another

“have cuteness aggression right now”

and another.

sylus was undoubtedly in love with you, no matter what you looked like, so you learned that there was no room for being insecure around him.

and you loved him for that and so many other reasons.

please alert me of any grammatical errors, as i did not revise and edit this story as much as i usually do!!

really hope you enjoyed this one and thank you thank you thank you for the requests.

speaking of requests, please feel free to leave some, but none that are heavily smut based, thanks!!

if you read all the way through, please leave some support!

[ohburgee]

Hello, my stars.

I have something to announce. I’m going on Hiatus, which is probably a long one, from this blog.

My second year of college hasn’t started yet, but I want to take this time to focus on something truly close to my heart, a dream I deeply want to bring to life. We all have dreams we hope to achieve, and now, I’m choosing to chase mine.

This blog, this fanfic, it’s been such a joyful part of my life. A hobby I’ve loved, a place where I’ve shared my stories just for fun. But right now, I need to step away and pour my energy into what truly matters to me.

I also know that if I keep writing fanfics on the side, I might end up distracting myself from my goals. I feel bad, I opened my requests, and someone kindly sent one in, but I won’t be able to write it. I understand if that’s disappointing. I truly wish I could do more, but I can’t force myself to write when my mind is already so full.

This decision came to me suddenly, and I didn’t plan it out as much as I should have. I’m very sorry to those who were looking forward to something from me. I won’t be able to take on any more requests, but I hope you’ll find other amazing writers out there who are active and passionate, those who truly care about their followers.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all the support and love you’ve given my fics. I appreciate it more than words can say, and I’ll always carry it with me.

Now, it’s time for me to step away and follow the dream I hold dear. Thank you, deeply. I’ll always be here, your humble, starry writer.

See you, my stars…

[k-sunstar]

Heya I saw your requests were open

Can you write a hc for Joaquin Torres, Alex Summers and Bucky Barnes training younger reader (18-24) pls? Thx 😊

Hiii! This is my first request and I was so excited to write it!!

I am still relatively new to the different writing styles outside of one-shots, so I did my best with it - they might be a bit long (I’m a big backstory person)💀. The Alex Summers love is so high for me rn so I made reader as close to his age as possible for some light flirting…👀 (he’s so fine😫😭).

Training Headcanons

All pictures that I use I’ve found randomly on the internet - if I’m using something someone has created, please let me know and I’ll tag them! I never want to steal someone’s work and I would never want mine stolen.

Warnings: mentions of fighting and getting injured, brief mention of death, brief mention of foster care.

Joaquin Torres

Okay, so, I would think that Joaquin - working with Sam for the government and everything - would probably be training with someone that is new to the team.

That being said, I’m thinking you would probably be around 21-22.

You’re brand new in the D.C. political setting and are a basic bodyguard to a mid-ranking politician but have a desirable skill set in combat that makes Sam seek you out to join his team (I’m thinking maybe you were raised young in Hydra or the Red Room and had been on Steve’s radar for a while as a potential recruit for the Avengers…but then everything went to shit…and when Sam stepped up as the new Cap, he did some digging into Steve’s old files and found you - such a coincidence that you’re now in D.C., right?…👀)

Instead of recruiting you himself, Sam send Joaquin to talk to you; he figured you were close enough in age, you’ll respond better to him.

That could not be further from the truth.

Joaquin followed you to a local coffee shop near your apartment and came up behind you. Before he could even realize, he was on the ground with your foot against his throat.

But it turned out okay in the end and Joaquin was able to convince you to at least take Sam’s contact info🤗. And you eventually contact Sam.

Now you’re a part of this little team that they’ve put together - due to your past you’ve always been very closed off and remained to yourself - but now Joaquin is bothering you every chance he gets for you to spar and train with him (he thinks he can get you back from your first meeting, newsflash, he can’t).

After nearly two weeks of Joaquin bothering you (through texts, phone calls, voice memos, little post-it notes he sticks everywhere he can, and straight up coming to whisper in your ear and run away), you finally agree.

It starts out light. You let him get a couple hits in, but you’re not really phased or hurt by them. Then he starts getting cocky and starts saying things like “c’mon you can do better than that, unless I’m just too strong for you to take down a second time” and “is this training too much? We can slow down a bit so you can try and catch up to me”.

After a quick water break, you’re knocking him onto his ass in like 13 seconds; he doesn’t even stand a chance and you’re barely breaking a sweat.

This continues for the next hour.

And you’re taking it easy on him.

By the end, he’s bruised, in pain, panting and gasping for air, and you just sling your towel over you shoulder and his his back in a hard pat on the way out of the room.

“Better luck next time, Torres” you say with a smirk and an evil little glint in your eye, knowing that next time you’d stop taking it easy on him.

Your dynamic is very much best friends who act like siblings when they fight (and Joaquin is usually the one sulking in the corner at the end of all of your training sessions). It’s all fun and games though, neither of you actually do anything to severely hurt the other.

Alex Summers

For Alex, you guys have known each other since Charles and Erik went around recruiting members to join the X-Men (there’s still a couple years of an age gap here though; I’m picturing Alex to be around 27-28 right now, you around 24). Your mutant ability is one of the more interesting ones; you can manipulate the elements.

It started off as like, young teenage infatuation, and kinda just grew from there, getting closer and knowing each other better and better. For years the two of you had been on-and-off flirting, tossing comments each others way, brushing hands in the hallways and during lessons, but never actually acting on anything.

One afternoon, shit just went down and Alex flipped out, destroying whatever was in his way. You went to go talk to him and try to help him calm down, but he accidentally hurt you. You were unconscious for almost a week, and when you finally woke up, he wouldn’t be anywhere near you again.

He sees you in the hallway? Walks the other way. Sits next to you in classes? Either doesn’t look at or respond to you or moves to the other side of the classroom entirely. Charles needs to two of you to go into town to get stuff for the house? Suddenly he’s super busy and you go alone. This goes on for 2 weeks.

It hurts you after a while, and after the initial hurt, it turns into a festering anger.

One day, Charles forces the two of you to make up - you agree to do so in the form of training.

You guys are under the mansion, in the training room, the doors are locked by Charles from the outside (you think that this could be a huge mistake, but Charles knows best🤷‍♀️).

It starts off simple, no talking, just warming up and weight training.

Then you break the silence, “are we actually gonna train? Or just sit around doing nothing but avoiding each other?”, to which Alex responds with a shrug and turns away from you.

That got you mad; best friends for years and all of a sudden he doesn’t even want to be in the same room as you to figure out what is going on between you??

You created a water ball from the water in Alex’s water bottle and threw it at him, hitting him in the head, knocking him to the floor. He stood up and if looks could kill, you’d be moderately injured.

“I’m not gonna fight with you!” he yelled, speaking his first words to you in over 2 weeks.

You were angry, and you knew the only way to get him to talk was to make him angry as well. “Why are you being such a damn coward? Just fight me already, Summers!” you threw a wind tunnel at him, spinning him in the air and knocking him against the wall.

His eyes sparked with anger and he finally shed the hoodie he was wearing and aimed a blast your way, which you quickly deflected, sending a fire ball back in his direction.

This went on for a while, the two of you yelling at each other and fighting with your abilities, then, one of Alex’s plasma rings hit you and knocked you to the ground.

He stopped everything and ran over to you, remembering the incident from now 3 weeks ago. But as he’s coming over to you, you’re standing up, groaning in pain.

He quickly checks you over and makes sure that you’re not super hurt (you’re not, just your ego is). This is the first time in 2 weeks that he’s been this close to you, let alone given any form of physical contact.

You make him look at you to talk and wind up sitting down together, having a whole “I hurt you and I never wanted to do it again” “You were mad and I didn’t give you space, you know I trust you with my life” talk for nearly an hour.

There was no more training after that🤗.

Charles came back and found the two of you sitting on the floor of the training room laughing and talking and left you alone (he unlocked the door ofc).

Alex still wouldn’t speak about his feelings for you (and to be fair, you’re too stubborn to tell him your feelings for him), so it all was left unsaid, to be talked about another day.

Bucky Barnes

With Bucky, you both have such a sibling relationship. Part of that is due to the facts that you were recruited and raised with the Avengers under Steve’s supervision (so Bucky automatically feels like he has to protect you in some way). The other part is due to the fact that you’re 18 and probably one of the most annoying teenagers Bucky has ever met (but that’s his opinion, everyone else thinks you’re hilarious and amazing).

Like I said, you were definitely recruited young to be a part of the Avengers (like, you were a literal child - 7 years old; you were probably rescued from a Hydra base and since you had powers, the Avengers took you in), but due to the civil war between Tony and Steve, you were placed in the foster care system.

Before Steve left Bucky and Sam, he told Bucky about you and asked him to find you and help you in the ways that he never could.

Come to 2027, Manhattan is overcome by shadows and darkness, people disappearing into a black void. You’re living in Manhattan, now 18 and on your own, and see a group of people (heroes?) helping people….you decide to join in.

That doesn’t end very well.

You wind up getting trapped in your shame rooms (a bunch of Hydra stuff and not being around for Nat and Tony’s deaths🙂), but when you come out, Bucky spots you and comes over to you.

Somehow you become a Thunderbolt New Avenger, and Bucky is being a pain in your ass with how much he wants you to train.

“Come on! You haven’t properly trained in years, we gotta get you ready!”, “You can do better than that!”, “Push yourself!”, “Stop being a kid and actually put in the work!”

You make it just as annoying for him during these brining sessions though; calling him names, stealing his arm, turning invisible and just tapping him on the shoulder when you get bored, sometimes you even knock him on his ass with your powers (but that last one only works to get him annoyed some of the time, other times he’s actually glad you’re doing something with your powers).

When you actually want to train and spar, you’re on the same level of skill as Yelena and Bucky themselves; you know your shit, you just like to act like you don’t.

Either way, Bucky gets annoyed (but that’s just because he’s an old man - your words).

At the end of every training session Bucky leaves the room grumbling and bothered (not actually though, he cares about you), and you leave with a satisfied grin on your face.

Sometimes the shit you pull in training enters the daily flow of life in the Watchtower - you’ll pull small, harmless pranks on Bucky; you’ve taken his arm out of the dishwasher and put it somewhere else, you’ve placed small magnets on his arm, and you just casually call him “gramps” or “old man” when you want to get a rise out of him.

In the end, Bucky sees you like a sibling to him and will put up with your “teenage bullshit” as long as you’re taking care of yourself and being happy.

[faerghusfucker]

Hey how are you doing?

If you still feel like doing this ask meme and have the time and energy for it then I'd like to ask 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 and 23 for Sylvain.

hellooooo i’m currently at a family thing that SUCKS and so im clearing my askbox of the stuff i missed while i was rotting in academia!!!! whether i post this on the night i wrote it or not is entirely up to my whims.

im always down for ask memes and im ESPECIALLY DOWN for sylvain. pretend that im responding to this on the day you sent it to me and its still his birthday.

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

so this may come as news to you guys. you may not know this about me. but I LOVE SYLVAIN!!!!! i always end up being charmed by the characters who come off the nastiest and i DONT KNOW WHY. i meet a fuckass man like sylvain and im just like i HAVE to know what’s going on here. this results in catastrophe in my personal life but makes my consumption of fiction really fun. i was enamored with him when i knew him as the silly loser flirt, and i was even MORE enamored when i got to know him better and found out that we actually have an unfortunate amount in common and that his behavior is a rlly funky trauma response. he also reminds me a lot of josuke from jjba but like. a worse version. so i like him a lot.

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

i love that he’s a secret nerd!!!! i think his support chain with bernadetta was one of the first things that really endeared me to him. he’s so genuinely sweet about her book and i love that he’s so determined to find a way to tell her how much he loves it without scaring her (even though he DOES end up scaring her in the end bc she’s bernie.)

not only is he a secret artsy guy, but he’s also insanely smart in ways that people do not give him credit for. in his supports with dedue he just casually predicts THE ENTIRE TRUTH TO THE TRAGEDY OF DUSCUR!!!! and just laughs it off!!! like, yeah, anyone with brain cells could figure that out probably, but being in the shitass cultural climate he’s in and still being able to think objectively about the situation and not, i dunno, blame an entire people for things that they didn’t do (ahem) is kind of awesome to me. there’s also the whole ENDING CRESTS WITH ORATION ALONE THING!!!! i feel like that’s dramatically understated. SYLVAIN. ENDED. CRESTS. WITH. ORATION. ALONE. no war no conquest no dead. either he’s just that good of a politician or edelgard was just an especially shitty one 😭😭😭 it could go either way i feel.

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

idk man the whole “using women as objects of entertainment” thing is rlly ew yucky nasty. i am not blind to the sins of my faves, the misogyny that he displays throughout the story through his objectification, generalization, and general heinous behavior towards women is just not okay and it’s the reason why a lot of people don’t appreciate all the good he has to offer in terms of analysis of faerghus’ culture, his arc, etc. and that’s okay!!!! i’m not gonna defend a misogynist on the internet lmao that’s. just not the business i want to be involved in. i find sylvain to be compelling to think about and one of my favorite characters to write about, but so many of his C supports just have me grimacing at the screen. get your shit together you dumbass ginger!!!!!

7. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

i love it when we peel back all the layers to this disgusting onion boy and get to the REAL MEAT of his motivations and his identity!!!! i’ve read so much good fic recently and a lot of good analysis where the most intelligent and eloquent people in the universe are just getting straight to the meat of this stupid man and exposing his raw beating heart to the open air. dissecting sylvain is so fun and there’s just so much in there.

8. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

moralizing personal taste. this by no means is a sylvain exclusive issue, but i’ve seen people say that to enjoy sylvain as a character is to be okay with his shitty behavior which is. not the case at all lol. i tend to not care too much about character criticism on here (i actually usually AGREE with most of it) but what grinds my gears is when people try to make statements about how people should feel about characters, or trying to assign a moral value to a certain opinion on him. whether you like or dislike a character is up to NOTHING except your personal taste. this especially applies to my boy sylvain. okay didn’t mean to get on my soapbox lmao, i have a lot to say on this apparently.

23. Favorite picture of this character?

i have a few lol. sorry in advance

first we have this expedition screenshot that i took while i was forcing my irls to watch me play three hopes. they laughed at me and asked me why i like this guy so much bc he looks at me like a predator. and they were right!!!! look at his stupid face and hair. i hate this little shit /pos

next we have these two pics from my fe3h tomodachi life game. i’m giving him gender dysphoria on purpose. tomodachi life is the best bc i just have a tiny sylvain in a torture box to feed and clothe with things he hates.

mwah mwah mwah thanks for the ask and thanks for your patience. i’m always down for this ask game.

[baldieboi]

I found it and for now it is saved for later reading. But I think the idea is already interesting and saving it like that is better than always searching back in the conversation. Easier to see through and find bits of informations. And upon reading a bit into it I remember I saw it earlier, maybe here or maybe not, but the idea itself was something that definitely came up on my feed. Probably here, yes. Probably by you or mellennia, I truly am unable to exactly recall.

It's pretty easy to forget perpetuals exist since the majority of the characters are not perpetuals and while the Emperor's presence looms in the background... I often tend to forget about them and just occasionally recall they exist.

More about Jaros, hm. He wasn't the main part of my thoughts in the past few weeks, however I headcanon that since he is a very young perpetual without knowing it... about wounds, those remain because he feels/believes it to be a part of him. So, unknowingly he wills those wounds to stay on his body. His enhanted healing is thought of as the enchanted Astartes healing.

I like your pet theory, I never considered the Astartes aspect. I headcanon Primarchs being warp beings (or is it canon? I can't tell right now) but I never wondered how it affects the Astartes. And it's a pretty good thought because they have their gene-seed so it would make sense. And it raises some potential questions to which the answers could be fascinating.

I didn't know Twilight handles their vampires like that. Never have watched the movies, never have read the books and I have very limited knowledge of it (if we don't count those tiktok videos which make fun of the movies). But if that's the case then indeed they are similar on this matter. Mentally a child while physically... well, an Astartes. Him being a perpetual of course complicates the matter, he probably could grow in mind once aware of what he can do and with proper guidance he would know. He has neither the knowledge nor the guidance.

I didn't decide yet whether he died or not, probably not yet. His first confirmed death would be during Isstvan V and at least there it takes a while to come back to life for him. But these are only ideas that I don't plan to write down, to leave it a really unknown background detail since it isn't important until it has an impact. In a way it doesn't affect the story, because regardless of his status he and Maras would have been chosen to become Astartes and his everydays are as simple as an Astartes' life can be. Which is why I really felt okay sharing this detail with you.

I don't plan on having his first death change so much personality wise. He would stay himself, probably not exactly understanding what happened and choosing to ignore it. It would, in my headcanon, take several death to have him truly realize he died (depending on the kind of deaths).

Huh, an organ being able to cause coma? I really have to dive deep into this matter. But it sounds pretty interesting and something that can be played with. Thanks for the heads up.

Jaros is in Horus' legion, and I personally like the headcanon that Horus knew most of the things that happened within his own legion. There were very little matters he wasn't aware of. And during the screening (I think that's the right word when they check the dna, genes etc of potential recruits) it was found that that one kid has something different with his genes.

One way or other it was found out and Horus wanted to keep him. And he was allowed to. Perhaps Jaros is truly a test subject, to see how gene-seed and the whole procedure affects a perpetual. It gives also a secret hidden advantage to Horus, after all. One that none other legions have. That's worth all kind of trouble Jaros may cause, and most of the time he is harmless.

Annoying to the point of being amusing but harmless towards fellow Imperials.

I don't know how common perpetuals are, but considering that most of them either stay hidden or undiscovered, we probably will ever truly know. But I also have heard the theory of humanity slowly becoming a more psychic species. About this matter I have heard that human souls while having little presence in the Warp (like 99% disappears or something like that) but it's still much much more than the T'au soul presence in the Warp.

I am not sure about the wording or the % but it was something like this.

Also, I forgot I started answering your reblog, it sat in the drafts for sooo long and I feel guilty about forgetting it. My apologies. 😅

Anyway, next I plan to post either another part about Jaros or Tyler and Jamal. Hmm, maybe Jaros. It's been a while since I made a post about him (and also I should continue the story with Erebus and the Night Lord).

Same with me, seriously. I am kind of shy when it comes to interacting, both in real life and online. I tend to get worried sounding rude without meaning to. Same about posting. It took a lot of courage to start posting but since then I eased up enough to post many things. But if it was any other fandom than warhammer... I am not sure. No fandom ever kept my attention for this long.

I will draw them. Not necessarily by the time their basic informations are posted, of course, but probably when I am done with the art. Or when I feel like posting.

Shadows Within Shadows

Seventeen | part 1 part 2 part 3

@w-40-k @ghrgrsfdesfrfg

Cassian¹ withdrew deeper into the shadow of the maintenance alcove, his midnight blue armor adjusted to absorb rather than reflect the dim light of the corridor. His breathing slowed to an imperceptible rhythm, a technique learned from his youth on Nostramo.

The Word Bearer had noticed something. Not him specifically but something.

Interesting.

The chaplain had changed his path, chosen an unexpected corridor. A test? A coincidence? Either way Cassian had nearly been caught flat footed which was an unforgivable error for one trained in the art of terror.

He watched Erebus disappear around a corner then waited seventeen heartbeats before moving. Seventeen. A number of ill-omen on Nostramo.² Appropriate given how many days remained until the Word Bearers departed.

The soft hiss of his armor's joints was dampened by the modifications his Legion's tech-marines had implemented before this self-assigned mission. The sound suppression wasn't perfect, nothing was, but it was sufficient to fool most ears. Even transhuman ones.

But the First Chaplain wasn't most ears. That was becoming increasingly apparent.

Cassian slipped between maintenance shafts, following a route that bypassed the main corridors. His knowledge of the Vengeful Spirit's layout had become intimate over the months of his stay. It was probably better, he suspected, than many who had served on her for years.

"Sixteen junctions," he whispered to himself, counting down as he moved. "Fifteen. Fourteen." The habit kept his mind focused, prevented the whispers that sometimes came when he was too long in darkness.

His purpose here had evolved since its inception. What began as a challenge, could a Night Lord remain undetected aboard the flagship of the Emperor's favored son?, had become something more complex. He'd gathered intelligence as expected of him but he'd also found something unexpectedly satisfying in becoming the ship's ghost.

Cassian always watches. The phrase brought a cold smile to his lips. The mortal crew's fear was a soft thing, not the sharp terror his Legion typically cultivated. A ghost story rather than a horror.

Until now it had been merely amusing to watch how the myth spread. Now it might prove problematic.

He paused at a junction, head tilted, listening for the faint sounds of ship's operations. His helm's autosenses picked up the elevated heartbeats of a maintenance crew three corridors over, nothing unusual. But something else lingered in the air. A scent that didn't belong.

Incense.

Faint but distinctive. The kind used in Word Bearer rituals.

Cassian's eyes narrowed behind his helm. Erebus was laying groundwork already. Marking territories perhaps. Or simply creating sensory traps to detect intruders.

Clever.

He backtracked, choosing an alternate route. Tonight called for observation, not confrontation. The First Chaplain was up to something beyond the official reasons for his visit. Cassian had witnessed enough meetings and secretive data transfers to be certain of that.

And now Erebus was aware that someone was watching. This complicated matters.

Cassian reached a maintenance shaft that would take him to the lower decks where he'd established one of several hidden niches. As he climbed down, his thoughts turned tactical.

The Word Bearer would seek information first. Logical. Methodical. He would mine the human crew for rumors, perhaps seek access to security logs. Cassian had measures in place to counter the latter, phantom data trails, false sightings in impossible sequences. The confusion would buy time.

But the former... The humans talked. Always talked. Their fear of 'Cassian' was controlled, predictable. They used it to police themselves. If Erebus began asking questions...

A cold spark of anticipation ignited in Cassian's chest. This could be the true test he'd been seeking.

He reached his hidden alcove, a maintenance bay supposedly decommissioned due to radiation leakage. The warning runes kept the curious away and his own modifications ensured no actual radiation signatures registered on scans.

Inside he removed his helm and set it on the small workbench. The recycled air felt stale against his pale skin. His eyes, naturally adapted to Nostramo's eternal night, had no need for the dim illumination he permitted himself but light helped organize thoughts.

"Seventeen days," he murmured, voice hoarse from disuse.

He began cataloging what he knew of Erebus, both from observation and Legion intelligence. The Word Bearer was more than it appeared to the casual viewers. Cassian wasn't sure if it was danger or something else but since the specifics of that possible danger remained elusive. He operated through layers of meaning and suggestion. Even his words of friendship carried hidden barbs.

A worthy opponent, then.

Cassian felt the corner of his mouth twitch upward. He wouldn't just hide from the First Chaplain. That would be... inefficient. Better to control what Erebus discovered. Feed him half-truths. Lead him down carefully constructed paths.

After all sometimes the best way to stay hidden was to be seen exactly where and when you chose.

He began preparing for tomorrow. The hunt had begun.

And night was his domain.

Note: I admit that a Night Lord is probably a bit way too predictable, however his reasons to be there shouldn't be outlandish. Or probably it is. I kind of liked the idea and had to go through with it.

¹His real name is unknown to you. For now. He is an oc, of course, so it is perhaps irrelevant.

²I just made it up to fit the title and everything. Erebus is of the XVIIth legion, seventeen days... I had to.

[paranormal-taters]

Love and Attraction in My Adventures with Superman

As someone who has never been particularly drawn by superhero media, I wasn't really sure what to expect when I first started watching My Adventures with Superman about a week ago. I had seen a few posts here on Tumblr that had piqued my interest, but all I really knew about it was that it was well-loved and had an art style that I knew I liked.

I absolutely did not expect to fall head over heels for the show entirely, or to be moved to tears multiple times by the wildly sweet, revolutionary relationship between this adaptation's Clark Kent and Lois Lane.

I say "revolutionary" because this romance touches on a lot of things that I feel are lacking in most modern portrayals of romance, and it handles them masterfully.

Most of what I reference/talk about in this post will focus on the first four episodes of season one (with a particular focus on the fourth episode, Let's Go to Ivo Tower, You Say) , because they are my favorite episodes and I think I can communicate what I want to by pulling mainly from those episodes. But I will be pulling bits and pieces from the whole series so consider yourself spoiler-warned.

The main point is this: I absolutely adore the way that physical attraction and emotional attraction are balanced between Clark and Lois.

The fact that this is possible comes from how well-crafted the dynamic is between the two of them; Lois' raw passion and energy inspires confidence and a mutual passion in Clark, and Clark's gentleness and kind heart inspire a tenderness in Lois that she was never given an outlet to show or receive. From this dynamic, a wealth of physical and emotional intimacy is naturally born. But never in the series do the two aspects of attraction feel out of balance; rather, they play off each other effortlessly. When one is brought into focus, the other quickly follows.

From the first episode and onward, it's obvious that Clark and Lois are awed by each other's physical appearance. Lois outright describes Clark as "beautiful" (which, if you saw one of my earlier posts from not too long ago, is something that makes me so incredibly happy to see in mainstream media).

To be fair, she doesn't say that to his face and says it in a moment of extreme frustration. But I still count it.

Anyways.

Upon seeing Lois for the first time, Clark is practically frozen in wonder for a good few seconds.

Lois, too, experiences this initial moment of attraction and almost immediately makes contact, with a playful punch to Clark's chest as he holds the door open for her.

This is a detail I really love, because first of all wow, I aspire to have her level of confidence. But also, it becomes clear early on in the series that Lois expresses herself very physically. She has no qualms regarding physical affection. Clark, on the other hand, is much more reserved and, at first, generally only initiates contact after an invitation from Lois, or after enough time has passed in their friendship for him to know that Lois is very physical and wouldn't have a problem with it.

There is also an immediate emphasis on Clark's concern for Lois' physical well-being. Take a sip of water every time Clark asks Lois if she's okay just in the first episode alone and you will be well hydrated.

Later on in this first episode, while trying to infiltrate a warehouse, Lois confidently asks Clark to boost her up to a window so she can get inside the building. Clark is immediately flustered, showing how much he feels out of his depth even with physical contact that, on the surface, would have no romantic connotations. (But to be fair, Lois is asking him to put his hands around her waist and lift her up when they literally just met like maybe six hours ago. I would be flustered too.)

And when Lois loses her balance and Clark effortlessly catches her, his first response (after blushing, of course) is to ask her:

Even in moments where the romantic tension is thick enough to cut with a knife and Clark clearly knows it, his first priority is to make sure she's okay.

And thus begins one of the strongest underlying themes throughout the whole building-up of their relationship, which is trust.

I'm gonna jump ahead now to the scene that inspired this whole post: the stairwell scene in episode four.

A basic rundown: Clark, Lois, and Jimmy are given an assignment to attend a tech unveiling for the city's top investors at Amazotech headquarters. Lois, naturally, ignores the parameters of the assignment and tries to use it as an opportunity to expose corruption in the city and get her stop-the-presses story. Clark very reluctantly follows her lead, believing that she will get herself into trouble . . . until Dr. Ivo, head of Amazotech, makes a few rude comments about Lois' appearance (Lois doesn't hear these, only Clark). This deeply irritates Clark and prompts him into revealing how much he knows about Dr. Ivo's corrupt business dealings, in an attempt to intimidate the truth out of Dr. Ivo, who responds by having Clark thrown out of the building and into a pile of garbage in an adjacent alleyway. Lois comes to find Clark (who is unhurt) and teases him about whether or not she should let him back in the building, since he didn't follow the assignment. Clark jokes that he doesn't even meet the dress code anymore, revealing that his suit jacket was torn as he was tossed out of the building.

Lois then reveals that she came prepared for this, and tells Clark to "take it off."

Clark immediately becomes flustered again and begins stammering as Lois pulls him back into the building by his jacket, continuing to tease him.

It's in these moments, as you can see, that the lighting of the scene changes. As soon as Lois says "take it off", everything is bathed in a rosy light. This happens frequently between these two; often, when we the audience are seeing one of these characters through the perspective of the other, the lighting takes on a very dreamy quality. This will come up again momentarily.

As Lois and Clark ascend the stairs, Lois removes her jacket and pulls a sewing kit from her pocket, admitting that she carries one on her because she herself has torn a lot of her clothing on her escapades.

The two then sit down on the stairs, and Clark removes his jacket. The lighting changes again, and we see Clark from Lois' eyes. It's clear by the dreamy lighting and the way that Lois blushes and involuntarily chokes out a "Wow . . ." that she is once again awed by him and deeply attracted to him on a physical level.

And this scene represents so much about their growing dynamic. It honestly has me floored.

But before I explain fully, I have to go on a tangent about my beloved Clark.

Throughout the beginning of the series, I believe Clark shows several signs that indicate that he is insecure about his physical appearance. Which you wouldn't expect, right? I mean, look at him. He's objectively a dreamboat. He was designed to be that way.

But at this stage of knowing so little about where he really came from or who he is, I think Clark struggles with not having a way to explain his physique. He admits that he wasn't an athlete in school; he was in the chess club. He doesn't work out as an adult. And yet he has the muscles of a bodybuilder. But, like so many other aspects of himself, he doesn't have a way to explain it. This causes a disconnect in how he sees himself physically; he likely feels as though he doesn't deserve his naturally impressive physique. And you could argue that he even does his best to hide it. As a civilian, he generally wears bulky, layered clothing like sweatshirts and sweaters. He slouches and carries himself in a very inward direction; his shoulders are often forward and his arms close to his sides, as if he is habitually attempting to make himself smaller.

This is one thing that brought me to tears when I saw it. The idea that a person can feel insecure about having physical attributes that would normally be seen as positive (and that they can't explain and/or feel that they don't deserve) is not very well-explored in media, but it is experienced by quite a few people, myself being one of them. But often in the real world when someone attempts to express this kind of insecurity, they are shut down and mocked and told to "be grateful" for what they have because others would envy them. Which I can say from personal experience is unbelievably damaging to a person's self image. So seeing this possibly be represented in Clark Kent himself was incredibly moving to me.

But back to the scene itself.

In the most recent gif above, this is the most vulnerable Lois has seen Clark thus far. What I think is so beautiful is the way that she invites him into this vulnerability by making herself vulnerable first.

Rewind a bit. Outside the building, Lois tells Clark to take his jacket off. Not a big deal, right? It's not like he's not wearing an undershirt. But Clark becomes flustered, not outright expressing that he's uncomfortable with this, but certainly indicating that he's not exactly at ease with it either.

Next we see them climbing up the stairs, and as they do so, Lois removes her own jacket and reveals her bare back to Clark in the process.

I believe this was incredibly intentional. This scene would have carried a very different tone if Lois' outfit was revealing in any other way. But the fact that her back is exposed symbolizes that she trusts him, in a physical and emotional sense. It's like when my cat Penny rolls on her back and exposes her fluffy tummy. Lois revealing this part of herself was her saying "I trust you, I feel safe with you, and I'll be vulnerable with you if you'll be vulnerable with me."

And only after that does Clark remove his jacket.

Because there is the factor of attraction at play, there is a lot of blushing and stammering going on in the beginning of this scene. These are two incredibly attractive people who are incredibly attracted to each other, after all. But immediately after the initial romantic tension, there is emotional vulnerability as well. Lois confides in Clark about her relationship with her dad, and the crippling self-doubt that she has kept very close to her chest. Clark jumps to reassure her in earnest, telling her that she has "changed his life for the better, in every possible way."

And that is what I meant at the beginning of the post when I mentioned balance.

Every moment of physical attraction in this series is followed by or harmonized with a moment of emotional vulnerability. Clark and Lois both invite each other deeper into each aspect of connection, and thus their relationship builds in an incredibly natural and beautiful way.

At this point, I think this post is about five miles long as the crow scrolls and I should probably stop now before all my thoughts run away with me. I could go on forever about the impact that this series and these characters have had on me, though. I will forever be grateful to the creators for giving us such an incredible series, and such a beautiful romance.

[kodokberjamur]

Uhh so I blacked out, and—

[hide-your-bugs-away]

A Hurdy Gurdy Man-related drawing that I did for school 🍃 HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DONOVAN!!

(Donovan's record producer being dramatic under the cut teehee)

[spacedlexi]

idk what people expect when they comment "other ship better" on my art. like ok? youre blocked now and im laughing at you

[adudelol-reblogs]

i wanna make an arg

[microwaving-tesilid-argente]

head in my hands im trying to come up w prinzhes headcanons but i literally cannot because prinz is like. a pink and less tragic and less headache-inducing version of tesilid.

they're both very gentlemanly, they both can fight, if someone is unfair to them they're more likely to smile and try to smooth it over than to fight back. if hestio is going to find prinz attractive then he'd have found tesilid attractive too, but if he isn't nursing a massive crush on tesilid by the time he meets prinz then it means that tesilid gave him so much blood pressure problems that they're no longer his type.

so anyway in conclusion teshes solos- wait what? how did this turn into teshes propaganda

[whysamwhy123]

HALLEJUAH!! I REMEMBERED HOW TO ACTUALLY FINISH WRITING SOMETHING FOR A CHANGE!!

Of course, it's not any of the fics I wanted to finish. I went back to what is essentially my bread-and-butter now and wrote a short-ish, random OrangeHook fluff. But considering how much writing's been a struggle as of late, I'm just glad that I successfully finished something. I was back in one of those stretches where I couldn't seem to write much of anything. And this fic isn't about their age difference or Hook being a cuddlebug, so...progress?

Unless I decide I completely hate it (which is always a possibility) expect something to drop on Valentine's Day, tis the season, after all.

[medicinemane]

Ah... I've figured it out!

My brain's been treating Caucasus and Carpathian as the same word and that's why it's been so confusing why this mountain range seems to jump around by a pretty wide margin

Dyslexia did the same thing with Austria and Australia where just like here I knew they were different, but just didn't quite process it, which ended up with me thinking things like "Wow, I wonder why Falco's German is so spot on, like that's pretty impressive for an Australian"

Like my dyslexia just says "These two words are similar size and shape... I think they're probably more or less the same word, I'll file them away in the same spot, especially cause they're the same type of thing"

But I finally caught it seeing Carpathians mentioned being in Ukraine, and me being like "I really did think they were more over towards Georgia... maybe they go under the black se... wait a minute, I finally figured out why I'm confused"

Also see the Balkans and the Baltic where I 100% know the difference and know which one I'm talking about but very much may say the wrong one (and my dad's been like "oh you see, you just need to remember that..." and it's like dude it's dyslexia... also with GK Chesterton I'll often say "J" and my dad'll say similar stuff and it's like dude... there's no mnemonic here, J and G just sound and look similar enough my brain sometimes swaps them in behind my back)

Anyway, finally caught it in the act, finally understand why it seemed like these mountains jumped across a large body of water and no one ever commented on it... it's cause it was my dyslexia filing them away as both mountain ranges starting with C so... basically the same thing... yeah... yeah that's the same thing

[narugen]

feeling bad again 😧