#lovestruck loser /j

[sharedtrauma]

L with reddie please 🙏🏻

Eddie shifted out from under his sleeping boyfriend’s arm and shuffled out of Bill’s room where the losers had decided to host this weekend’s sleepover. Still relatively groggy and tired but too intrigued by the welcoming glow and quiet hum coming from the living room TV.

“Can’t sleep?” he asks Bill who was splayed out on the couch, eyes fixated on the TV.

The taller boy nodded and adjusted his position on the couch so Eddie could sit beside him.

“I-is Richie still as-sleep?” Bill enquired.

Eddie smiled to himself, “Yeah, he’s a pretty light sleeper but he was passed out when I left,” he replied,”I would suggest getting out those permanent markers but Bev’s right next to him and she told me she’s had trouble sleeping this week and I don’t want to wake her.”

Bill chuckled to himself.

“Y-you used to get s-so j-jealous when those two used to fall as-sleep next to each other.”

Eddie blushed 

“Did not!” he scoffed.

“Y-you went th-through a phase o-of trying t-to split them up as m-much as possible b-before Richie first asked you out,” teased Bill.

“Hey, I was the one who made the first move, remember,” Eddie retorted, elbowing Bill playfully.

Y-you reeeaally l-like him don’t you,” Bill smirked.

Eddie sighed, “To be honest, yeah I do. He’s so fucking annoying but in a cute way sometimes. This might be the sleep deprivation talking but I think I love him….Almost as much as I hate him, I mean,” he added on at the last second. 

“Y-you guys a-are like soulmates, S-seriously it’s weird y-you’re l-like made f-for each other,”

Eddie’s face was almost as red as Beverly’s hair, “Yeah I guess we kind of are,” he replied smiling wildly and staring at the floor,

“If you ever tell him or anyone I said that I’ll fucking kill you by the way,” he snapped quickly, attempting to put up his usual fiery exterior.

“Too late for that, Spaghetti,” came a familiar voice from the corridor.

Eddie buried his face in his hands as a beaming, lovestruck Richie jumped onto the couch and wrapped his arms tightly around his boyfriend.

“Of course you would be eavesdrop you fucking asshole! How long were you listening?” 

“Long enough, soulmate!” Richie teased.

“Oh my god I fucking hate you, you’re such a dick!” Eddie said wriggling out from between Richie’s arms and swatting his hands away,

“Best in town, baby!” Richie replied, gesturing to his lower half.

“You’re fucking disgusting,” Eddie said rolling his eyes but unable to hold back the urge to smile, “Let’s just pretend this never happened.”

“No can do, Eddie Bear! I even have a witness,” Richie replied before attacking Eddie’s face with kisses.

“I can t-testify that this did in f-fact happen,” said Bill raising his hand.

“What the fuck is going on?” came the voice of a disturbed Beverly Marsh, shielding the light from the TV with one hand while the other was wrapped around a very tired Ben Hanscom.

“Lover’s q-quarrel,” replied Bill.

[worldslover]

The Underground- Part Seventeen- YoonMin AU

Drunk on Jealousy 

I smile when he walks in.

When he smiles at the man with him, my own starts to fade. What? 

I frown when the stranger pulls him to the dance floor. I think he didn't like to dance. 

My heart stops when their lips clash. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. 

I have no right. I have no right to crush the glass that I'm gripping tightly. No right to the jealousy that rips through me or the betrayal that I feel.

“Chim? You okay?” 

“I’m fine,” I mutter, not taking my eyes from Yoongi and his ‘date’.

Yura shifts beside me to follow my gaze.

“Isn’t that Josie’s Uncle?”

“Holy Frick Frack!” Exclaims Jungkook. “Someone thinks Yoongi is a snick snack!” He snickers.

My jaw tightens, I really can't stop the betrayal from showing when he looks up. Straight at me. 

His eyes widen.

Yoongi says something that has the stranger stopping. 

The stranger looks over at me, interested. There's no ire in his gaze, only genuine curiosity. He smiles as he replies to Yoongi, who frowns and shakes his head vigorously. The stranger starts pulling Yoongi closer to the table. Someone steps into their path. Actually, two people. 

I feel Yura tense beside me. They're close enough for us to hear.

“What the hell?” Yoongi slurs. “What are you two doing here?”

“Would you believe us if we said we just wanted a drink? Hey J.” Hoseok smiles. 

So the stranger's name is J? What the fuck is a name like that?

“Hey, Hope,” J smiles at Hoseok.

Hope? What the hell is happening?

“I know we're supposed to be, like, firm and all right now but oh my god I’m such a big fan,” the other intruder butts in. 

“How’s business?” J grins as he holds up...a peace sign?

Taehyung was practically shrieking as he tugged on Hoseok’s arm. “Did you hear that?” he hisses.

“Why are you here?” Yoongi growls again.

“Um…” Hoseok looks back at our silent group. We're obviously listening to their exchange. 

Yoongi’s eyes follow Hoseok's but they instantly rest on me. 

Is that regret in his eyes? Is that defeat in his posture? Did he feel the same as I do now when he watched Yura and I kiss? 

No, of course not. I’m being ridiculous. 

I look away as I clear my throat. I sling my arm on the back of Yura’s chair.

Yura. 

YuraYuraYuraYura.

My girlfriend. 

NOT Yoongi.

I down the rest of my drink in seconds. It burns.

“Why don't we all have a drink?” Hoseok suggests

Now that everyone is sitting, the air is absolutely tense.

That is until...

“Aren’t you…?” Jungkook looks at J quizzingly.

J smiles smugly. “JPearl, yeah.”

JPearl? The rapper? Second only to AgustD himself? Holy shit…

I gap at Yoongi’s date.

“Jpearl,” Jungkook whispers in awe. “Is it true you and AgustD are friends?”

My head whips to J. He's close to AgustD?

“AgustD?” J raises his eyebrow in amusement before smirking at Yoongi, who is glaring at the table. J shrugs a shoulder nonchalantly before turning back to the fanboy. “He’s kind of a major dick. Don’t believe all the high and mighty stuff about him,” he chuckles. “He’s a major loser.”

Jungkook frowns as Tae and Hoseok start snickering.

Yoongi’s ears are red as he takes a random glass of alcohol from the table.

My glass. 

When he looks up at me I pout. “That was my cup.”

“I guess I’ll just have to get you another.” The tension loosens as he gives me a small, teasing smile.

“We do need more,” Taehyung looks disapproving at our collection of drinks.

“Jimin and I will grab some,” Yoongi unexpectedly shoves away from the table and gives me a look.

I blink up at him with surprise before following him to the bar. I can feel my heartbeat rising. Great.

He orders multiple things to the bartender before he leans against the bar and looks at me. I lean beside him with my arms tucked in close as I rest my chin on my fist.

Is J going to stay the rest of the night? I'm not sure I could stand watching them be all over each-

“Jimin. I-,” Yoongi instantly stops himself. He glares down at his hands. He looks as if it pains him to be in this moment... with me.

“J and I-.”

J... I see.

‘J and I.’

“J and I are just friends...” Yoongi finally says softly.

“Friends?” I huff out a laugh.

“I mean,” Yoongi frowns. “He’s...We’re not together.” Yoongi looks at me. Is... he pleading? Wanting me to understand that he is not in a relationship and yet...The events from earlier flash through my mind. I turn away to look down at my own hands.

“You don't have to explain yourself to me Yoongi Hyung.”

I feel his gaze on me... his eyes burning into the side of my face.

“But I do Jimin…”

I cut my eyes to him.

“Why?” My voice is soft when I meet his eyes.

“Because I-”

“Hey!” Jungkook throws an arm around each of our necks. “Are you getting drinks or what?” He leans in between us to wave at the bartender who just finished our drink order. Yoongi’s eyes never leave mine.

What was he going to say?

When I'm sitting beside Yura once again I saw Hoseok whispering furiously to Jpearl as the latter frowned. Yoongi sits down beside JPearl and he leans over and punches him in the arm in anger. 

“What the fuck, man, you didn’t tell me everything!” JPearl hisses.

Yoongi rolls his eyes and shakes his head at me.

‘You okay?’ I mouth to him, concerned.

‘Jo hits harder’ he mouths back with a smile.

His reply had me giggling into my hand. 

Yura looks at me in confusion before looking towards Yoongi who is chuckling. 

“I should go now,” Yura stands. 

“What? Why?” I stop my laughter to look up at her. I grab her hand before she can put on her jacket. She looks at me for a second and then glances over at Yoongi and then Hoseok. “I have an early private lesson tomorrow. I don’t want to be out too late.” 

“Oh, okay,” I let go of her hand and she is gone in a few seconds.

“I should go too.” Jpearl stands. “I’ll see you,” he glares at Yoongi and pointing at him, “tomorrow night". 

“Bye, Hope,” J waves and then does a peace sign to Taehyung who practically falls out of his seat with happiness. 

Who knew Taehyung was such a huge fan of rap that a single gesture would have him turn into a huge fanboy?

The drinks flow heavily after that. A constant stream of alcohol until I can no longer think straight. 

Hoseok shuffles us all to his car a few hours later. Poor Hoseok.

“He’s just...,” Jungkook sniffles. “He’s just so perfect... and-and his mouth... gah... and,” sniff, ‘he,” sniff “likes,” sniff, “kids!” 

“You’re a pitiful drunk Kook,” Hoseok grunts as he shoves the crying lovestruck in the backseat. 

Yoongi stands quietly, a grumpy expression painted across his face. Taehyung falls over him, causing jealousy to well up in me one more time. Before I could move to pull him off Yoongi takes action. 

“Get off me,” he barks at the giggling boy. 

“Aw, Hyyyuuunnngg,” Taehyung pokes his cheek.

“No,” Yoongi grumbles and pushes Taehyung away, causing him to stumble. 

I smile, stalking towards Yoongi. He pushes Taehyung away again. “Good boy,” I purr as I get closer. Yoongi notices my approach, he watches me with intense, hungry eyes. 

I yelp as I'm pulled back by my collar. 

“Oh no, pink boy, come here” Hoseok tsks as he tugs me by my shirt to the back seat. Kookie was still gushing about AgustD. 

Love. Love? How can someone fall out of love and into love with two different people at the same time? Could that love survive? 

“Why does it all have to be so difficult?” I whine as I fall over Jungkook’s lap. Taehyung gets in the car with a smile. 

I see Hoseok motion to the front seat. Yoongi nods and crawls in. Hoseok gets behind the wheel with a deep sigh. 

“Why the fuck do I put up with this again?” he mutters as he pulls away. 

“Because you looove us,” Taehyung grins cheekily at his friends.

We reach an unfamiliar house. I honestly don't want to think too much.

I don't remember the trek into the house or know where I'm collapsing into a deep sleep.

I can feel something warm against my back and then finally darkness.

🌸Part 17/?

[trashunlimited]

hope you guys like this one :) it came out slightly later than i expected, but oh well.

chapter 1

chapter 2

chapter 3

chapter 4

chapter 5

chapter 6

chapter 7

chapter 8

chapter 9

chapter 10

chapter 11

tagging: @nightshade1994, @glampyra

When Cyn woke up, he found that Rick was gone, much to his dismay, and to make things worse, the guards were all dead and blood was everywhere.

It wasn’t hard for him to deduce that Rick had killed all the guards and escaped, and it angered and devastated him beyond belief. His plan had failed, and now he would be discharged, after all his hard work and planning too! It would be for nothing in the end.

Cyn returned to where Pyri was, and when he arrived, the look on her face showed nothing but pure rage.

“I gave you three chances, and you wasted them all!’ She yelled. “You are discharged from now on. It’s far too late anyways, nothing can be done.”

Cyn was baffled. “Your Imperial Highness...you’re just...giving up...after everything? This empire has been going on for thousands of years! You can’t just-”

“I can and I will!” Pyri interrupted. “Panic and chaos have ensued here for far too long, the planet has become a mess. Our empire was already failing anyways..” She sighed. “I have given away the remainder of our planets to the newly rising Galactic Federation, and sending off remaining citizens to other parts of the galaxy.”

“But-”

“Enough! I want you to leave immediately! Get out!”

Cyn hung his head, and obeyed one final time to his empress. He walked out, feeling dejected, and observed outside to see ruin and destroyed buildings everywhere.

He clenched his fist angrily, this was all Sanchez’s fault! If he hadn’t stolen that chunk, none of this would’ve ever happened. Cyn looked up into the sky, and knew what he had to do: take revenge.

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

The next day, Julie found her thoughts returning to Rick again, and the torture he suffered at the hands of the fyralogins. It must’ve been traumatic for him, she couldn’t stop worrying about it.

After breakfast, she decided to ask him about it, but Rick just scoffed it off. “Y-You worry too much Julie, I'm fine, everything's fine.”

“I worry about you because I love and care for you. Just talk to me okay? There's no need to hide things from me.” She replied.

“Says you, you've never told me what happened to your family. If anything, you're the one keeping secrets from me.”

She sighed. “No, you’re right. It was hypocritical of me to want you to not keep secrets, while I’ve been...keeping some myself.”

Julie looked away, and Rick seemed a bit remorseful for acting harsh towards her. “I’m...I’m sorry...j-j-just..y-you can tell me what h-happened, I’m h-here for y-you.”

She turned her head up and smiled weakly, finally deciding he needed to know the truth.

Taking a deep breath, Julie began to explain what happened. “It was...a couple of years ago..back in ‘75...my parents had been saving up money to buy me a house, the same one we’re in right now. After graduating from university, I returned home, and that’s when they showed me this house. I was so excited, I moved in as soon as possible. But…” She started to tear up, which worried Rick. “My parents...were going to come visit me after I finished moving in, but on their way there...the weather..” She sniffled. “It got really bad..and they...they got into an accident...and..” Julie broke down into sobs, unable to finish.

Rick wiped a few of tears away and held her close, letting her sob against him. “Let me guess….they died?” He asked.

“Yeah..” Julie muttered through her tears.

Rick gently rubbed her back, not saying a word afterwards. He didn’t really know how to comfort her, but he figured that what he was doing should be enough. He didn’t understand her pain, due to how different their relationships with their parents had been, but he tried to be there for her regardless. Rick hadn’t lost anyone particularly close to him, in part because he usually didn’t let people get close to him to begin with, Julie was one of the few exceptions.

Rick decided the best thing he could do right now was find a way to cheer her up, and see her smile and laugh again, he hated seeing her so sad.

He pulled her away and gave her a big smile. “I have an idea to make you feel better, do you like video games?”

A small smile formed on Julie’s face. “I do.”

“Then I got something to show you!”

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

Rick brought Julie over to an intergalactic arcade called “Blips and Chitz”, it was one of his favourite places to visit, and he was sure, since Julie liked video games too, that she would enjoy it as well.

As soon as the two stepped inside, Julie’s eyes widened in awe and wonder, taking in the sights. It looked a tiny bit like a normal arcade on Earth, but far bigger and with a far wide selection of games to play. Not only that, but she could see screens displaying information relating to the arcade, various floors to visit, and in the center, there was a planet-like object with the words “Blips and Chitz” around it.

“I’ve been managing to save up enough flurbos for the two of us to use. I even started selling weapons to an assassin I met not too long ago.” Rick mentioned. “I...actually was planning to spend an entire afternoon here on my own for a bit, but now that you’re here, we can do it together.”

Julie grinned at him. “So..is this like our first date?”

He blushed. “Yeah...I-I g-guess ssso..”

She giggled, and took his hand in hers, then they started walking together. Rick smirked, he could only imagine Julie’s reaction to one of the games here. Video games on Earth were extremely primitive, so this would be completely different for her. As to not freak her out too much, he decided on starting her off with something simple.

Rick led her to one of the arcade cabinets, and pointed to it. “Here’s one I think you’ll like. The objective is simple, all you have to do is fly the spaceship while avoiding obstacles and shooting at enemies.”

She went and sat down in front of it, her curiosity peaked. “Sounds easy enough, this should be fun!”

As soon as she pressed the button to start it up, the extremely high-tech graphics amazed her beyond belief, and she was at a loss for words.

Rick laughed and tapped her shoulder to get her attention, snapping her out of her amazed state. “Sorry!” Julie apologized. “It’s just...I’ve never seen anything like this…”

“Don’t worry about it, just try it out.” He grinned.

Julie smiled at him, then turned back over to the game and attempted to play. He watched as she played and was a bit impressed at how well she was doing, it seemed she had managed to pick up on things pretty quickly.

When she finished, Rick gave her a thumbs up, then went over to play the game himself.

It was Julie's turn to watch him, and she found herself in awe about how amazing he was, he drove the spaceship very smoothly and with ease, and was able to shoot tons of obstacles quickly.

When he finished, Julie went up to him in excitement. “Wow Ricardo! You were amazing!” She beamed. “What are we gonna play next?”

Rick smiled at her use of his full name, and took out the tickets from the machine to get prizes, before looking around and seeing what else they could play together. When he found something he thought she’d like, he took her over there and they began playing the game together.

“Good luck trying to beat me Julie! I’m the master at this game!” Rick boasted. “Y-You’ll never even come cl-close!”

Julie giggled. “We’ll see about that!”

She was again, able to pick up on things pretty fast, and much to Rick’s surprise, she was managing to do really well, and he was getting nervous that she might beat him. He hated losing, being very competitive when it came to games, and wasn’t even going to let Julie win. He made the move to try and use tricks in order to win, but Julie caught on and was able to get the upper hand, causing her to win.

“Yay! I won!” She exclaimed happily. “Guess I'm the new master at this game huh?”

Rick just ‘hmphed’ and appeared grumpy and annoyed, crossing his arms together and looking away.

“Aw don’t be such a sore loser, Mr. Grumpypants!” She laughed.

Rick didn’t respond, and Julie got a devious idea. She grabbed onto his face and pulled him in for a kiss, making him blush madly. He was surprised, but quickly found himself enjoying it.

“All better now?” Julie asked.

“Yep..” Rick said, still in a bit of a lovestruck haze, before realizing he was in one and shaking his head, snapping him out of it. She laughed, and watched as Rick took out the tickets from the machine, before glimpsing back at her. “You wanna help me get more of these? If we win enough...well..there are some prizes I really wanna g-get..” He winked.

“Of course! Let’s get going!” Julie agreed.

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

The two went to play more games together, having fun and of course, collecting the tickets. Julie continuously found herself amazed with every game they played, and she wasn’t sure if she could ever play a simple game like Breakout or Pong ever again, but to her, it was worth it.

When they’d managed to collect enough tickets, they went over to the prize booth where Rick traded some tickets in for...a scooter? She was surprised, but not complaining.

“Rick! Why did you get a scooter?” She asked playfully.

“Why wouldn’t I get a scooter? These things are amazing!” He retorted, and Julie watched as he went on it, and he started to zoom around in pure glee.

Julie was glad to see him doing so well, and realized that this showed Rick clearly has a more childish side to his personality, not that she minded. If she was being completely honest, she found it rather...cute, and it further showed how Rick wasn’t afraid to be himself.

She was still concerned about how the torture he’d suffered had affected him, but decided that maybe he just wouldn’t want to talk about it, and that was okay with her. Besides, she’d rather see him like this than in any misery or pain.

At the same time, Julie thought about how it must be the same for Rick too, that he didn’t like seeing her miserable either, and that this must be his way of making her feel better. She had to admit, it worked. Her pain was still there deep down, but the fact alone Rick did this for her, was enough to show that he cared, and that meant the world to her.

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

When they were finished, they returned home, only to see that it was dark out.

“Oh goodness!” Julie exclaimed. “We were there for a pretty long time huh?”

“Heh heh...y-yeah..” He chuckled. “But it was worth it right?”

“Totally.”

They headed back inside, where  Julie decided to thank Rick for taking her to the arcade.

“Thank you by the way...for taking me to Blips and Chitz. It was a lot of fun...and...I’d love to go back someday.” She smiled. “By the way...did you take me there to cheer me up after I told you about...you know..”

Rick nodded. “I didn’t know what else to do...I-I’ve never had to comfort someone b-before...s-sorry..”

“Oh don’t worry about it.” Julie assured him. “The fact alone you wanted to cheer me up is all that matters to me, it shows me that you care for me and want me to be happy.”

Rick blushed shyly at her words. “Ah..i-it’s...n-nothing r-really..”

“No, it’s not nothing, it means the world to me.” She replied before kissing his cheek, making him blush more.

He was speechless, unsure what to say, making Julie giggle softly. “I guess I’ll be off to bed now, see you tomorrow..”

Rick smiled at her, and they shared a kiss before he left back for his apartment.

While there, his mind kept thinking about Julie, how much fun they’d had at Blips and Chitz, how lucky he was to be with her. That had been the most fun he’d ever had there, and he knew it had to do with Julie, she brought out so much joy and excitement in him, and he never had to hide any part of who he was with her.

Rick had never been in a serious relationship, just casual ones, so he didn’t know exactly what he was doing, but he hoped he would learn what to do through Julie. She was always there for him, and he knew he would always be there for her.

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

In the morning, Julie decided to talk to Mark and Vivian again, especially Vivian. She wanted to apologize with her, and of course, they also had to know she was with Rick too.

Julie picked up her phone and dialed Mark’s number, before hearing his surfer dude-like voice on the other end. “What’s up? Whose this?”

“It’s me, Julie..” She answered.

“Oh..everything going okay?” He asked worriedly.

“Yes, everything’s fine, no need to worry, I’m doing better now.” Julie replied. “I also wanted to let you know, that I want you and Vivian to come over, I have so much to tell you!”

Mark smiled, already being able to tell from her voice that she was indeed doing better now. He was a little nervous about bringing Vivian over, but knew it was for the best. “Alrighty then, see ya soon!” Then he hung up.

Julie put the phone back, and then waited for her friend’s arrival. She’d been hoping to reconcile with Vivian, and apologize for yelling at her, it had been her mind last night while she tried to sleep, and she knew she needed to do something about it.

-----------

When they arrived, Julie greeted Mark with a hug, and when she saw Vivian, she gave her a gentle smile. “It’s great to see you again Vivian.” She greeted.

Vivian sighed. “Julie...look...I’m sorry...I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”

“Thank you..and I’m sorry for yelling too..”

“What? No! You don’t need to apologize, I was the one who yelled at you initially.”

“But-”

“Ladies please!” Mark interrupted.  “Can you all agree neither of you meant to yell and you both wanna just get along again?”

They both looked at him, and Julie nodded her head in agreement, with Vivian following soon after, looking a bit annoyed that Mark interrupted them.

Now that that was resolved, Julie had something she wanted to bring up to them. “Well, I do have some great news!”

“What is it?” Mark asked curiously.

“Rick and I are officially together now!” She revealed happily. “A lot happened recently, I got kidnapped by an alien, but Rick saved and protected me, and now well...we’re a couple..”

Vivian had a befuddled look on her face, “Hold on, what is this about you getting kidnapped by an alien?”

“And just yesterday Rick took me an intergalactic arcade! It was so much fun!” Julie eagerly continued, completing ignoring her question.

Mark’s eyes widened. “You went to an intergalactic arcade?! What were the games like?”

“Really high tech and so advanced!” Julie answered. “It was so amazing it nearly blew my mind!”

“Cool! Do you think I could go sometime?”

She giggled. “Maybe, if Rick would let you.”

Vivian watched as Mark got all excited, and to her surprise, he went over and hugged her, making her blush, before pulling away. She was a little surprised, but shook it off, and her gaze focused on Julie. She wasn’t exactly thrilled to hear that Julie and Rick were a couple now, considering Rick was a murderer and all, but at least she seemed happy.

“So, you and Rick are a couple now huh?” Vivian asked, raising a brow.

Julie’s glee was replaced with nervousness. “Umm...yes...are you..okay with that?”

“Why would I be? He kills people for God’s sake..”

Mark went in between them, laughing nervously. “Ha ha...let’s not start this again..”

“No, he’s right.” Julie agreed. “Vivian, can you at least be happy for me?”

Vivian bit her lip, and sighed. “Whatever.”

“Thank you so much!” Julie exclaimed and hugged her, making her blush once again.

They spent a bit more time together, before Vivian and Mark said their goodbyes to Julie, and were on their way home.

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

Now alone again, Julie thought about Rick and seeing him again, wondering how he was doing.

She was so grateful to be with him, and she thought again about how he’d comforted her about her parents deaths.

Since the day they died, Julie hadn’t been the same, it had been a long time since she’d felt genuinely happy, but Rick had made her feel that way again. Thinking back, Julie wondered if she could finally come to terms with their deaths. As she thought, a flashback to her childhood formed in her mind.

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

Julie was sitting in front of the mirror in her room, while her mother brushed her hair, before tying it into a single braid and topping it with a white bow.

“Turn around Juliana, let’s see how you look.” Her mother told her. Julie did just that,  and her mother gasped in awe. “Oh sweetie, you look so beautiful!’

Julie smiled, but it quickly faded. “No one else seems to think so..” She sighed. “I think they’re right..”

“Just because a lot of people say something about you, doesn’t make it true. You are a beautiful girl, you just don’t realize it, but you will in time, I’m sure. Maybe it’ll take someone very special to help you see that you are.” Her mother grinned.

“Like my true love?” Julie beamed.

Her mother laughed. “Your true love will be able to not only see how beautiful how truly are, and help you realize that, but they’ll love you for you. That’s how you’ll know he’s the one.”

“When will I meet him?” She asked.

“Someday...maybe when you’re all grown up..maybe one day you’ll just bump into him by accident, or he’ll bump into you!” Her mother giggled, booping her nose.

Julie giggled too. “Is that how you knew Daddy was your true love?”

“Yep.” She confirmed. “I was just a waitress at a diner, taking orders and feeling bored out of my mind. Then one day Daddy popped in and I just felt this connection with him. We started talking a hit it off so well! Vivian’s Mommy would tease me all the time about it, asking when I was going to marry him, and I did, then you came around.”

Julie’s mother hugged her tightly, and she hugged back. Her words had comforted her, and she did feel a bit better now.

They then the doorbell ring, and the door opening, alerting her mother. “Daddy’s home!” She exclaimed. “We have to go give him the casserole we made together!”

She started walking out of her room, and Julie followed happily, now feeling like she didn’t have any worries anymore,

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

Julie shed a few tears, thinking about the happy memory with her mother. It seemed she’d guessed correctly somehow that Rick would end up bumping into her, or more like he’d rammed into her, but still! It was close enough for her. Everything her mother had said about her true love was right on the nose.

She smiled, thinking about her future with Rick.

ok i know the dead parents thing is cliche but i feel like i have a good reason for including it okay! hear me out!

answer me this, would you want your daughter dating some highly dangerous criminal? and not just any criminal either, but one of the most wanted and dangerous in the entire galaxy? no! you wouldn’t! we already had enough drama as it is with vivian, we didn’t need anymore with julie’s parents.

okay...with that out of the way, this is blips and chiptz 

it was from the episode “mortynight run”, and i wanted to include it because i wanted to show that both rick and julie like video games. i mean this is the stuff julie is used to:

and then she sees amazing high tech advanced graphics, and of course she almost loses her god damn mind.

i got the idea for rick’s more “childish” interests from here:

i wanted to make their banter and teasing feel believable...hope it is!

[imultifandomstuff]

A/N sooo, this is my second IT imagine and I hope you guys like it, especially the anon who requested it!! I think Stan is up next, but I may be wrong. I really want to write for Mike, he needs more love!!

Summary: Reader is 16 and dating Billy, and some of the Losers don't like it.

Warnings: just an age difference, if that needs a warning. Some light swearing (from Richie, of course).

Bill Denbrough

You walked out of school with a grin on your face as you let out a laugh at something your friend had said, the both of you overjoyed at the thought of summer beginning. You glanced to your left for no apparent reason as she said something you didn't hear, seeing Henry Bowers speaking to the Losers' club – as they called themselves. You frowned, and told your friend you'd see her around.

She followed your gaze as you began walking off, and sighed,"One day, you're gonna get yourself hurt!"

You looked back at her with a small smile,"And when that day comes, I'll get my brother on him!" She rolled her eyes with a laugh and began walking off in the opposite direction, knowing what you were saying was true and that you'd be alright. Your brother was nineteen, and all of the boys at school were scared of him because of how strong and protective of you he was.

"Oh, Henry," you drawled as you got closer, seeing Henry now in Billy Denbrough's face, causing them all to look over at you. "Please don't tell me you're picking on these boys again?" You gently grabbed onto Billy's arm and pulled him away from Henry and his gang, looking over the four of them. Henry gritted his teeth in annoyance,"Nope, just having a word with our friend, Billy, here."

You clicked your tongue against your teeth, stepping closer to Henry,"Do you not have anything better to do than pick on kids who've done nothing to you? You're a prick, Bowers. I may just have to get my brother and his friends on you four, just to show you how it feels to be bullied by people bigger than you."

Henry and his gang stiffened, and his eyes locked on yours in a staring match. When you didn't cower down, he scoffed and walked off, his friends quickly following behind him. Eddie sighed loudly in relief,"Gee, thanks, Y/N." You turned to face the boys two years younger than you, flashing them a smile and a small shrug,"Don't worry about it, I hate bullies."

"Y-y-you didn't huh-have to do that," Billy said, looking anywhere but your eyes out of embarrassment. You looked to him,"It's alright, he won't do anything to me. Trust me." He finally looked at you, and nodded lightly.

"Well, I've got to get home. I'll see you guys around," you smiled, pulling out your bike and riding off. Billy watched you go, a lovestruck expression on his face. Richie clapped a hand onto his shoulder,"Sucks being in love with a sophomore, huh?" Billy shoved him off,"I'm not in love with her."

"I don't trust her. No one is that nice," Stan said, shaking his head as they all watched you ride off. Billy sent him a look,"Suh-some people are."

Bill glanced over at you, feeling your gaze on him every few seconds or so as you scribbled in your notebook that you'd brought with you to the field you two were sitting at. The two of you had gotten quite close over the last few weeks, your friendship beginning a few days after he and his friends had gotten into a quarrel.

You asked where they were when you ran into him in town one day, but he didn't go into much detail. You didn't press on it, though. You only asked if he wanted to get an ice cream cone with you; your treat. Hesitantly, he said yes, slightly afraid that you were pulling a prank on him. He didn't believe you actually cared about him until you offered to go with him and his friends to save Beverly in It's lair, as you had also had a run in with the clown.

Now, only a week or so after it had all happened, the two of you were an item. You'd kissed him, much to his and everyone else's surprise. Sure, Bill was younger than you, but you didn't mind too much. You liked him a lot, even if his friends or family didn't approve of it.

"Will you stay still?" You asked Bill with a small smile, glancing up from your notebook once more. He looked back at you, a small blush on his cheeks,"W-Why? What're you duh-doing?"

"I'm drawing you," you'd answered simply, looking back down at your artwork and continuing to shade in places that needed it. Bill was confused, why would you draw him? Out of everything? There wasn't anything special about him. He voiced these thoughts to you, and your eyebrows immediately furrowed in confusion and slightly annoyance,"Are you kidding?"

Bill shook his head, watching as you set your notebook and pencil to the side and moved so that you were sitting in front of him. You moved a piece of hair out of his eye, moving to grab ahold of one of his hands,"Billy, you're the sweetest and cutest guy in the whole world. What isn't special about you?"

He blushed, his mind going back to what his friends had said to him just the day before.

"Billy, Y/N's too old for you! She's a sophomore!" Eddie exclaimed in a panic. Billy had just told them that you and him had kissed, and that you both confessed your feelings for the other. Richie nodded,"I know we joked about you being in love with her, and usually I'd say you should bone her, but he's right, man. There's no fuckin' way she's not using you."

Billy huffed in anger,"Shut u-up, Ri-Richie. Y/N isn't luh-like that."

Mike looked at his friends,"I don't really know her, but she helped us save Bev, guys. Maybe she's not so bad?" Ben nodded in agreement,"Yeah, Y/N was always really nice to me at school. She was one of the only people who actually bothered to learn my name."

Richie let out a loud groan as Beverly nodded,"She was always nice to me, too."

Stan was the only one who hadn't said anything, and they all looked to him for his opinion. The boy fidgeted uncomfortably,"I- uh, I don't know. She is really nice, but people lie. We just don't want you to get hurt, Bill."

Billie shook his head as he climbed into his bike,"S-She isn't going to hu-hurt me. You g-guys are id-id-idiots." Billy began to ride off on silver, his bicycle, heading Richie call after him,"Fine, but don't come crying to us when she reveals her true colors!"

"Bill?" You spoke, knocking him out of his thoughts. He shook his head lightly, looking up at you,"Sorry, I wuh-was just th-thinking."

"About what?" You asked him, watching as he looked anywhere but your face. "I j-just- Richie, Ed-Eddie, and Stan think you're l-lying. About l-liking me, I-I mean."

A look of hurt flashed over your face, and you gently unraveled your fingers from his. Bill's face fell, unhappy that he made you upset. "Oh," you muttered,"and what do you think?"

Bill glanced over and saw your open notebook, seeing the side of his face drawn beautifully with the field drawn in the background. His heart swelled, and for some reason he just knew that you weren't lying. He knew that you were genuine. Billy grabbed ahold of your face and made you look up at him,"I don't think you'd do that."

“M-maybe we shouldn’t.. I don’t want you and your friends to fight because of me,” you said. “I mean, maybe they’re right. Maybe I am too old for you.” Billy shook his head,”I don’t c-care how old y-you are. I like you. They’ll s-see how great of a puh-person you are, and g-g-get over it.” You hesitated, before nodding lightly. 

Billy leaned in, placing his soft lips gently against yours. One of your hands moved to cup one of his that held your face as he pulled back, and you wrapped your arms around his chest and leaned into him, hugging him tightly.

"I wouldn’t ever lie about that, especially not to you. You’re too special.”

[smilexcaptainx]

Steve Rogers Imagine

Requested: Anonymous

Imagine: High school AU Where popular Steve really likes a quiet s/o, he just keeps constantly admiring them from afar He asks Bucky and Nat to be their friends so he can have a connection or something- idk I just have had a high school AU in my mind forever

A/N: it’s long ;3

Warning: None

''Good morning students! I hope you have a fabulous Monday-''

Everybody in the classroom lets out a humongous groan, all in unison. Students crumple up pieces of paper and chuck them at the speaker, the principle isn't the kind of person people would enjoy having around. He's never really been nice to any of his students and he's extremely rude to guests, which confuses everybody so much. As you sat there in silence, the teacher yells at the students who threw the paper balls, the principle atleast paid the teachers, which makes them respect him so much.

''Why is our principle such a douche.'' the most popular kid in the whole school commented.

Steve Rogers.

''Steven Grant Rogers!'' the teacher bellows, slamming her fists on the desk.

The classroom snickers at the comment that Steve just gave back, as for you, you just sat there quietly staring at him. He was surrounded by so many girls, it almost seemed that half the girls didn't even go to your school. He probably just wondered off somewhere, he caught the eye of a few girls and those girls never left his side ever since.

''Why can't you guys be quiet and silent like Y/N? Hmm?'' the teacher asks, pointing at you.

Everybody in the classroom turns their heads and faces you, your face suddenly heats up. You didn't even look at anybody and sank down deeper into your chair, you felt so embarrassed, you hated being the center of attention. Everybody just murmured towards eachother and turned back around, you glance at Steve who was still staring at you. You blush and look down, the crowd of girls soon swallow him back up and the announcements finally ended.

''Okay class, let's get started, Y/N, would you like to come up and answer this question on the board?'' the teacher asks.

''Sure.'' you say silently, hoping not to draw to much attention.

You scoot out from your chair and start to make your way up to the front, your left hand was rubbing your right elbow as you felt the eyes follow you. You finally made it to the front of the classroom and you turned to face the crowd. The group of girls guarding Steve were staring you down, some were gossiping about you. You looked at Steve who just had his eyes locked onto yours, it actually looked like he was interested.

''Well, Y/N? What's the answer?'' the teacher snaps you back into reality.

You turn around and look at the problem, you smirk because you knew the answer was really simple to get. You pick up the marker and go up to the board, as you raised your hand to write, you got interrupted by some girls voice.

''She's a lefty?! Ha! LOSER!'' she snorts.

Everybody in the classroom bursts into laughter, you gasp and drop the marker. You turn around and saw that it was a girl next to Steve. Every girl in that group was laughing, you look at Steve who was still eyes glued on you. He soon realizes what happened and turns around towards the girls, they all stopped talking and leaned in towards him. After he spoke, they all shut up, the girl who made the comment stares at you.

''I-I.. I can't do this.'' you say, shuffling your way out the door.

The door closes and the girls start to snicker again, the girl starts to play with Steve's hair but he shoves her hand off his head. He gives her a nasty look and she looks at him like she was all innocent.

''What is it bunny boo?'' she says, popping her bottom lip out.

''I can't believe that you just did that to Y/N!'' steve shouts, standing up.

''Honey, she's not popular like you are.. She's.. Quiet.. Shy.. A loser.'' she states.

''Maybe I like quiet people, slut.'' steve spat.

The girl gasps at his remark and the lunch bell suddenly rang, Steve pushes his way out of the crowd of girls surrounding him. He picks his backpack up and walks out of the classroom in anger, he brought home lunch in his backpack so he didn't have to worry about school lunch. As he made his way to cafeteria, he sees that you were already on a table eating all alone. Steve straightens his back and puffs his chest out, he was going to go sit next to you, but as he walked towards your way, some other students already beat him to the seats. Steve sighs in defeat and goes to a table not to far away, but a perfect view of your face.

As he sat down, he gets the lunchbox out and places it on the table, his eyes were glued on you. You laughed with the friends you were sitting with, Steve smiled as you smiled, he didn't even know why, but you smiling made him smile.

''Who are you starin at?'' bucky says, startling steve.

''Staring? I'm not staring at anybody!'' steve replies, sticking his PB&J in his mouth.

''Well, you were just smiling, so it must be somebody super beautiful.'' natasha somehow appeared into the conversation now.

Bucky and Natasha put themselves on the table with Steve, Natasha and Bucky started to talk to Steve but he was to distracted by you.

''See? He's not even paying attention.'' bucky says to natasha.

''Hmm. I wonder who it could be.'' natasha says, turning around.

Bucky and Natasha try to follow his eyes, and as they do, they saw that he was staring at you!

''You're staring at Y/N!'' bucky and natasha shout, turning back around towards Steve.

Steve shakes his head, snapping back into reality. He gives Bucky and Natasha a blank stare and than starts to blush.

''You like Y/N don't you!'' natasha squeals.

''Oh my- Do you guys even know how to be quiet?! Shut up and stop being so loud!'' steve shushes, covering natasha's mouth.

''I never would've guessed! She's the quietest person in class, you do know that right? Every single class I have with her, she says absolutely nothing. It's like she's not even there.'' bucky shrugs.

''That's what I like so much about her. She's quiet, yet so attractive.'' steve smiles.

''Well good luck getting to her, mostly if you're the most popular guy in school, all the girls are already over you.'' bucky states.

''You haven't heard?'' natasha says, looking at bucky.

''Heard what?''

''Steve isn't the most popular guy anymore. He's just.. Popular.''

''Why? What happened?''

''Steve called Tabatha a slut in class.'' natasha whispers.

''That already spread?!'' steve shouts, his arms flying in the air.

''Well if you were the most popular guy in the school, gossip goes around pretty dang fast. One mistake. Everybody knows.'' natasha states.

''That explains the fact that there are no girls around you right now, and I just barely noticed that.'' bucky says, looking around.

Steve rolls his eyes and looks back over at you, you started to pack your lunch up because you were finished. He gasps and looks at Bucky and Natasha who were speaking about the whole incident that happened in class.

''Bucky and Nat, I need you two to do me a favor,'' steve says, pulling them into a huddle.

''What is it?'' they ask in unison.

''I need you two to become friends with Y/N so one day you can take her to my house and we'll have a study date.'' steve explains.

''Why don't you just make friends with her yourself?'' bucky asks.

''No way! I'm a stuttering mess whenever I'm around her.'' steve says, pulling out of the huddle.

''Weirdo.'' natasha smirks.

The bell rings and Steve shoves Bucky and Natasha towards your way, as you throw your stuff away you turn around and bump into Bucky. You stumble back but Bucky grabs your hand, making you regain balance.

''Sorry about that!'' bucky apologizes.

''It's fine.'' you blush, avoiding eye contact.

''I'm Bucky.'' he says, putting his hand out.

''Y/N.'' you reply, ignoring his hand shake.

You turn around and make your way from them, but Bucky wouldn't give up just than. He catches up to you with Natasha, he walks beside you and Natasha walks on the other side. You glance at Bucky who was smiling at you, you give Natasha a glance who was smiling as well. You felt a little creeped out but it seemed that they wanted to be friendly, so you gave it to them.

''What do you two want?'' you ask, stopping.

''We want to become your friends.'' natasha says.

''Umm.. Okay?'' you say in more of a question than a reply.

''Great! So, you want to come over to my house after school?'' bucky asks.

''I don't know where you live.''

''I'll drive you.'' bucky replies.

''Yeah! Let's do it!'' natasha shouts.

''Okay, see you after school Bubbly.'' you say, leaving.

''Did she just call you bubbly?'' natasha snickers.

''Shut up Nat. Atleast she knows my name.'' bucky sticks his tongue out at her.

''I'm not the one who got rejected with a handshake!'' natasha laughs.

She got the last words and ran off, Bucky chases after her making her laugh even more.

***

''Well, here we are.'' bucky says, unbuckling his seatbelt.

You unbuckle and get out of the car, you follow Bucky towards the house and when you entered you smelled cookies. You smiled because you loved the smell of cookies, they were your favorite.

''Bucky? Nat? Is that you?'' you hear that familiar voice ring into your ears.

You look at the kitchen door and comes out Steve Rogers with an apron on and oven mits on. You gasp as you see him, you stand there and blush even harder, looking down.

''Oh hey Y/N!'' steve exclaims, throwing his mits off.

''H-Hey Steve.'' you stammer.

He unties his apron and comes up to you, he puts his hand out and you shake it. Bucky rolls his eyes because you rejected his handshake but did it to Steve. As you shook Steve's hand you made eye contact with his beautiful blue eyes.

''This is the longest conversation I've ever had with you.'' you chuckle.

''Well, let's make it longer shall we?'' steve smirks.

''I would love to.'' you blush.

You and Steve hit it off very well and than you didn't even realize it was night time, but after you left, you left his lovestruck. Steve thanks Bucky and Natasha for fulfilling his desire, and than later on, word spread that you and Steve were together. And that bumped Steve back up to the most popular guy in the entire school again. Except this time, he had you by his side the whole time.

The End

-

Send me an imagine, and I will write it. x

-

I do not own this gif.

Credit goes to the owner.

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 9th September 2018

Okay, so, when I put this show in the Wednesday slot, I expect to have a calmer week, but that is far from what I got here. We have seven new arrivals, three of which are one of our occasional mini-album bombs. Usually, we get the three most popular songs from an album which had nearly all of his songs chart on the Hot 100 – for example, here, the whole album charted in the US (excluding the skits) but we only get the lead single, first or so song on the album and the surprise breakout hit, as usual with album bombs. However, expect me to not be looking forward to reviewing each song here. When I have one of these mini-bombs to cover, usually either the album is pretty decent (Kanye West’s ye and Travis Scott’s ASTROWORLD) or at least some of the better songs actually chart high so I don’t need to be as cynical towards the artist and the record as a whole while covering the individual hits (Drake’s Scorpion). We have a 4/10 album on our hands, folks, and the three songs that charted... well, we’ll get to them in a second, and you know what album it is already... if you don’t, well, here’s the top 10 to remind you.

Top 10

We start with a new #1... seriously, guys? Alright, well, Calvin Harris, now the man with the most #1s this decade, has added a new entry to the list, “Promises” with Sam Smith, up a spot from last week’s placing.

Next, we have last week’s #1 at the runner-up spot, “Eastside” by benny blanco, Khalid and Halsey. I told you this wouldn’t last long at the tip.

Meanwhile, “Shotgun” by George Ezra is still at number-three, proving its surprising amount of longevity in the top 10 at its 24th week on the chart.

We now have the first of three new arrivals in the top 10 from Eminem’s new album Kamikaze at number-four, with the spot taken by intro track, “The Ringer”.

Oh, and “Body” by Loud Luxury and brando is still at number-five. I’m surprised by how much stability it has.

The second new arrival from Eminem is at number-six, and that would be “Lucky You” featuring rapper Joyner Lucas, making his UK top 40 debut, and, damn, if he doesn’t finally deserve it, 11 years into his career.

Down three spots and slowly collapsing is “In My Feelings” by Drake featuring City Girls at number-seven. The faster this goes, the better.

“Taste”, however, by Tyga and Offset, is up a spot to number-eight, which doesn’t exactly shock me too much but I’m surprised it took this long, if anything.

Finally, our third and final (thankfully) new arrival from Eminem is “Fall” featuring uncredited (and fortunately so) vocals from Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, debuting at number-nine.

Rounding off the top 10 is “Girls Like You” by Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B down three spaces to number-ten.

Climbers

I’ll try and keep everything before the new arrivals brief, especially since we have seven of them, so let’s go past the climbers, fallers and such in pretty much rapid-fire speed.

The only really notable climbers here are “Lost Without You” by Freya Ridings fortunately jumping up seven spaces to #29, as well as “Baby Shark” by Pinkfong unfortunately taking a five-space increase to #32. Again, it shouldn’t be charting – it’s not even two minutes! I’m not saying short songs shouldn’t enter the charts, hell, I root for Lil Pump’s success, but this is only six seconds over of what I’d call an interlude track. Come on, guys, pull it together.

Fallers

Now the fallers are a different story... let’s go by genre.

For pop and... “rock”, we have “God is a woman” and “breathin’” by Ariana Grande both down six positions to #12 and #17 respectively, while “Youngblood” by 5 Seconds of Summer is down seven spaces to #25.

EDM suffered a lot this week, for some reason, with “Rise” by Jonas Blue and Jack & Jack taking a five-spot blow to #24, and six-space losses for both “Solo” by Clean Bandit and Demi Lovato and “Jackie Chan” by Tiesto and Dzeko featuring Preme and Post Malone to #28 and #33, as well as a whopping 23-space droop down to #37 for “Ring Ring” by Jax Jones featuring Mabel and Rich the Kid, alongside milder drops for Calvin Harris and David Guetta.

Hip-hop and R&B on the other hand just had one interesting enough loss, surprisingly, and that was the five-space drop for “SICKO MODE” by Travis Scott featuring Drake and Swae Lee. Now, drop-outs!

Dropouts

So, yeah, Drake had a rough week. As well as a drop for “In My Feelings” discussed earlier, both “Don’t Matter to Me” with Michael Jackson and “Nonstop” dropped out from #29 and #30, assumingly because of Eminem getting much more streams this week. Hopefully they’ll then go for good. Other than that, we had quite a few notable drops... genres again.

For pop, we have “IDOL” by BTS – kind of featuring Nicki Minaj – out from #21, “2002” by Anne-Marie out from #34, finally, “no tears left to cry” by Ariana Grande out from #35 straight off the re-entry and “This is Me” by Keala Settle and the Greatest Showman Ensemble out once again from #38.

For hip-hop and R&B, we just have a few little drop outs that were expected like “Fine Girl” by ZieZie out from #31 and “I Like It” by Cardi B featuring Bad Bunny and J Balvin out from #39.

Returning Entries

“TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME” by the 1975 is back to #40... please go back to #46, trust me, guys, you were better there. Now, since the Ed Sheeran Update is somewhat redundant, I’m scrapping that feature, so, we’re just going straight into the new arrivals...joy.

NEW ARRIVALS

I’m splitting this set of new arrivals into two parts: Eminem and non-Eminem. It won’t be a different blog, and they’ll still be in descending order of where they entered the charts at, but it’s just easier to separate this way, especially since seven new arrivals and their reviews could look very messy when there’s loads of them, so I thought why not separate them into halves. Let’s start.

#38 – “LO(V/S)ER” – AJ Tracey

We’ve talked about AJ Tracey before and I wasn’t impressed by his breakout hit, but his follow-up, with a quirky title showing how it has the potential to be an introspective look into how he trusts partners too easily or something related to that interesting “loser”/”lover” combination, could be much better, after all, he had Not3s to weigh him down last time, so how does he do solo, without the pop audience to please?

Well, first of all, it’s a trap beat with a sample that I’m pretty sure is out-of-tune for the neverending melody, hence it transcends monotonous and becomes pretty grating, especially with that repetitive hook and the simplistic flow... but what about the lyrics? Do they exceed or at least meet my expectations? Well, I was kidding myself, really, wasn’t I? It’s about how he’s a lover for “a pretty Latina” and how you, the listener, are a loser because you’re going to get hit with the strap while he’s chilling in Cuba sipping Hennessey and... running away from the police. Surely you shouldn’t mention that in your hit song, right? It just makes you more of a target. At least it’s more of a lust song for a pretty Latina, at least he’s not taking MY girl or anything.

I’m with your girl, she got blow on her nose (oh)

Well, damn, nevermind.

#36 – “Beautiful” – Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello

Sigh, Bazzi. I was so disappointed in this guy’s debut record after loving “Mine”, it was mostly just mediocre trite – and way too much of it, may I add. Camila Cabello’s hopped on a remix of one of the least tolerable songs on COSMIC, and knowing her tendency to have very squeaky, borderline unbearable vocals on a lot of her hits, it shouldn’t be too much of a surprise that she made an already trash song... a tad MORE listenable? Bazzi sounds out-of-breath and desperate, fitting for the pretty thirsty lyrics here, with the lines about the Gucci and how she looks better naked not exactly fitting with the lovestruck angelic theme he’s going for. The production is typical Bazzi fare, with “pretty” synths clouding the non-presence of the deeper 808s, however Camila Cabello’s performance is actually pretty song, and she goes for a more seductive vibe that I really like here, although the autotuned belting could really have been rid of. It’s not as awful as it was on the album, but it’s not like it’s any good either.

#35 – “Be Alright” – Dean Lewis

Dean Lewis, up-and-coming singer-songwriter and Australian chart-topper, who I initially confused with Dennis Lloyd, who recorded one of the worst songs I’ve heard on this show a few weeks or months back, has finally landed his first song in the UK top 40, and it’s quite fittingly, “alright”. Dean Lewis’ voice is actually pretty endearing, and the Ed Sheeran-ish brand of folk pop is much more effective when it’s slow and indie-infused like this. Sure, Lewis may appear somewhat whiny in the lyrics and overall performance, but there’s enough genuine charisma and strength here for me to forgive that, with the choir of Dean Lewis backing him up well enough. It’s not fantastic by any means, but for a short little simplistic track, it gets a pass. Not much to say about this one, and it’s not going to be one I go back to, but I hope this goes somewhere because I’m personally interested in how Lewis will follow this up.

#22 – “Thunderclouds” – LSD

This is the first top 40 entry for the group “LSD”, however this is the umpteenth time the artists involved have made the list, as LSD stands for Labrinth, Sia and Diplo. Labrinth is an R&B singer who I personally loved in his heyday in the early 2010s, but he seems to have faded away, despite some great hits like “Express Yourself” and “Let the Sun Shine”, which I still come back to today. Sia is more hit-and-miss for me, but I’ve never been amazed or appalled by any of her stuff, excluding maybe her Christmas album, which for the sake of shortening this review, I will not go any further into. Diplo is the artist I’m most familiar with here, mostly because he makes so much fun dance music under groups like Major Lazer and Jack U, as well as venturing into more alternative territory on his latest EP California, where he’s somehow made Lil Xan listenable. “Wish” featuring Trippie Redd and “Look Back” featuring D.R.A.M. are strong contenders for my favourite songs of the year so far, and that’s not to forget about his work with countless other people from No Doubt and Snoop Dogg to Lil Pump and G-Dragon to M.I.A. and even Die Antwoord. Diplo has a habit of making artists sound so much better than they actually are in their solo work, there’s something magic about him, I swear. So, what happens when a British R&B singer and rapper of fluctuating popularity, an eccentric Australian electropop singer-songwriter and an eclectic American EDM DJ come together to form a supergroup and make a song for the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 promotional campaign?

Retro 50’s/60’s soul infused with elements of funky doo-wop, apparently. Don’t worry, I’m not necessarily complaining – the bass guitar groove is tight as hell, Sia’s as-usual intelligible vocals ride well on the Summery shimmer of the intro, especially with those surf rock guitars, and the powerful vocals from Labrinth in that strong hook, which is intertwined with choppy vocal snippets from Sia. Labrinth’s verse is somehow worse, however, due to the incredible lack of chemistry as they both trade lines as a faulty build-up, and that problem remains true for the rest of the song. No matter how much I love the horns and how it sounds like two (or three) worlds combining to make something so much more interesting and different than what they’ve made before, the chemistry is not there, Sia and Labrinth are even somewhat sloppy throughout, especially when they’re against some pretty rough vocal mixing. Speaking of, the horns should not be that back into the mix, they feel wasted... much like the talent on this song which could be summed up in an absolute mess of good musical ideas that start to mesh together and just fall apart and collapse before the abrupt ending. I feel bad for saying this since I like the artists involved, but I’m not excited for the album yet if this group keeps on making songs that just don’t work as well as they want them to be. It’s a decent listen and they shouldn’t go back to the drawing board conceptually if they go for this sound, but it really needs some polishing, guys.

So, what’s the next song? Oh... Oh, no.

EMINEM

#9 – “Fall” – Eminem featuring Justin Vernon

Let’s get through this as quickly as I can, because I can’t be talking about Eminem for too long here, so I’ll just give you some info on the track and then go straight into it, sparing no punches. You got it? Okay.

“Fall” is the tenth track on the album, and is being pushed as the lead single with a recently-released video. It features uncredited vocals from Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, who soon distanced himself from the lyrics of the song, saying he wasn’t a big fan of the message. It was produced by Eminem himself with Mike WiLL Made-It... and it’s awful. Let’s ignore the lyrics for a second and just talk about the cookie-cutter trap beat with a fast yet pretty uneventful synth melody. I like Vernon’s autotuned falsetto hook quite a lot, actually, and Eminem’s flow is pretty great throughout the verses, as he says, his rapid Slim Shady flow is back... and so is his sense of humour, for better or for worse. I appreciate that Marshall Mathers plays a character and he is a charismatic performer, but, man, these disses just feel unnecessary. I’m not a fan of DJ Akademiks, Joe Budden, Charlemagne or any of the hip-hop reporting crowd for that matter, but criticising a trash album you admit is terrible is not something to take personally, especially when you have admitted you don’t like the record either, so why should you defend yourself against critics that you think are reasonable in not liking your album? He doesn’t go in depth to why, he just kind of ignores them and says the hate is because of “Walk on Water”... which it isn’t, it’s probably one of the songs people actually tolerated on that trainwreck. He also starts dissing the mumble-rappers, and yes, of course, I’m quick to defend them, but they are not mocking JAY-Z... ever. I have never seen a trap-rapper try and be JAY-Z. In fact, JAY-Z imitates Migos more than Migos imitates JAY-Z. If you meant mumble-rappers mock classic hip-hop, why JAY-Z? It’s typically legends like 2Pac who are seen as being disrespected, while JAY-Z is fitting into the mainstream rap crowd pretty nicely decades into his career, and making music with modern artists like Frank Ocean, Drake and even Quavo and Offset of the Migos. There’s some speculation that this line is instead about J. Cole and Lil Pump’s beef, but, yeah, I doubt that even Eminem would think that the “beef” is anything but petty and silly publicity. He threatens to kill Joe Budden, whilst criticising his domestic abuse charges... I’d argue Eminem isn’t exactly one to talk on things like this, but, hey, I’m probably not either, but I am one to talk on how Eminem, hiding in character as Slim Shady, throws petty shots at Tyler, the Creator and Earl Sweatshirt, to the point of calling Tyler, a pretty openly bisexual man, the f-word... you know what it is, I’m not going to say it (oh, and he wants to have sexual intercourse with the Pitchfork writers using a corkscrew for some reason). This is all because of criticism of his album – now, Slim Shady, naturally, would feel this way, right? But Slim Shady wasn’t on Revival, and he made it a point to be as personal on that album as he could, so when people criticised it, it’s blatant that the shots he throws are only using Slim Shady as an excuse for his immature, ignorant and loudly homophobic (and on other tracks during the album, borderline misogynistic) behaviour that he portrays here. He took the criticism to his work personally, and it’s obvious, no matter how much he tries to hide it. We can see your face through the veil, Marshall, and that face is of a legend falling from grace... unless he already has, which is probably the answer to all of this. However, Eminem is still a big of a name to get away with bull like this and get it to chart in the top 10 of the UK, and get to perform at Reading Festival, while Tyler’s still banned from Britain entirely. Oh, and critiquing the Grammys for being leeches to the biggest artists... like you, who has won 15 of the worthless awards. Nice one, you pathetic douche. Oh, and inspiring Hopsin is not anything to be proud of, my guy.

Now, there are many things about newer Eminem that just generally annoy me all the time, like his overall attitude and choppy staccato flow paired with the nasal voice he puts on, but he can still make banging hip-hop tracks when he wants to. He just needs someone fresh to light a fire up in him and let him explode. Who better to do that than the feature on the next track?

#6 – “Lucky You” – Eminem featuring Joyner Lucas

On Kamikaze, there are Tokyo Ghoul samples, Tay Keith giving Em a lazy beat that is literally “Look Alive” pitched down, a bloody hilarious outro track, skits about pulling up to Joe Budden’s house, interpolations of “Fack”, two interesting and funny collaborations with Jessie Reyez, an apology track to D12, a misogynistic rant and... an unironically great song. That song is the third track, produced by Boi-1da, “Lucky You”, featuring Joyner Lucas on his first ever UK Top 40 chart entry.

Now this song bangs hard. The beat is made up out of a maddening bell chiming incessantly that provide a minimalistic bass for Joyner Lucas to yell his freaking guts out, before transitioning to a rapid flow with on-point flexing, charismatic barking ad-libs like Lucas is on his DMX and a lot of catchy and memorable quotables... but somehow Marshall is even better, where he admits he took an L on his last album (rather hypocritical considering the content of the album) and gives out a lot of criticisms torwards trap-rap that even I believe, whilst reasoning with the Lils by saying it’s just not his taste and that he needs that diss so he can reload and aim back like he used to do, and Goddamn, he proves it, with one of his best verses from this decade and maybe ever, right before handing it back to Joyner Lucas for a brief repetition of the catchy hook. This is fantastic, and proves that Eminem still has it and he SHOULD be making more of this. However...

#4 – “The Ringer” – Eminem

This is the opening track of the album, produced by Illa and Ronny J, and I’ve already ranted in way too much length than I planned to on “Fall” and praised the hell out of “Lucky You”, so can I let the criticism take the backseat here and just make fun of this piece of hot garbage?

It starts with a plane crash and it’s getting intense. Eminem, in his unbearably nasal voice, may I add, is saying he wants to just “punch the world in its f***ing face”. He’s getting heated up. What’s he gonna say? What fire bars is he going to spit? Well, he’s gonna... “rape the alphabet”. This dude just said he’s going to molest the alphabet... I’m glad I’m not taking this seriously, and I don’t think he exactly wants us to, but he does try and make points he actually believes in like how Lil Pump and Lil Xan supposedly imitate Lil Wayne, even though they have barely anything in common stylistically other than the vague description of “rappers with Lil in their name who have tattoos and make brag-rap”. Lil Wayne wasn’t even the first guy to do that, and I’d argue Lil Pump is more energetic than Wayne has ever been or will again, and Lil Xan, although I hate the dude to death, has more of a lethargic, trippy style that borders on ambient. Although Xanny and Wayne do both have the questionable sex-related puns in check at seemingly all times. Eminem also talks about how if he mentions these rappers, they’re winning and he’s losing, so why even bother?

He then complains about the bad reviews – this isn’t Slim Shady either – before asking if I get his own joke, discusses how he should “eat” a pill and how supposedly the old Eminem was killed, although this side of Eminem is incredibly prevalent on Kamikaze. He also mentions his bad habits, like, flicking his scrotum like a light switch, supposedly similarly to Mike Pence, complains about how trap-rappers always take YOUR girl (okay, maybe that’s something I can agree with) and disses NF (again, I can agree with NF being worthless). The “chorus”-like bar is just a stream of consciousness-type lyric to the flow of “Gucci Gang” by Lil Pump, which rattles off a few notable names without much added context or reasoning.

So finger-bang, chicken wang, MGK, Igg’ Azae’ / Lil Pump, Lil Xan, imitate Lil Wayne

He does know Iggy Azalea isn’t relevant at all anymore, right? Is he that out of touch? Oh, and all you other rappers are “goners” because you’re not conscious and lyrical like J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar and... Big Sean? Do you want to play odd one out with me, Marshall?

“Maybe if the vocals were autotuned on Revival, people would have bought it,” he claims, seemingly oblivious to the fact that that was one of the problems to begin with, oh, and finger-banging again:

So finger-bang, Pootie-Tang, Burger King, Gucci gang / Dookie-dang, Charlemagne gonna hate anyway

There’s more, like when he specifies he DOES mean “eating a penis” when he says critics should get a mouthful of flesh, but I’m done for the day on Eminem. I’ve written nearly 2,000 words on this trash-heap so let’s just conclude before I go insane.

Conclusion

This is already way too long and they should be obvious, so here it goes: Worst of the Week and Dishonourable Mention both go to Eminem. WOTW is shared with Justin Vernon for “Fall” and Dishonourable Mention is for “The Ringer”. Best of the Week obviously goes to Eminem and Joyner Lucas for “Lucky You”, with Honourable Mention, I guess, going to Dean Lewis for “Be Alright”. Next week, hopefully we’ll get some Mac Miller? I don’t know, but what I do know is the new schedule which I want to make clear. REVIEWING THE CHARTS will alternate sporadically between Sundays and Wednesdays, but there will be a monthly show called BLAST TO THE PAST, which instead of just covering an old chart, will cover a lot of older pop music, and will basically be a fun time for me to do whatever I want, honestly. There’ll be more down the pipeline but stay tuned for that either this week or next week, where I rank all of Snoop Dogg and Pharrell Williams’ collaborations that ever charted on the Hot 100. See you then.