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magenta-embers · 11 months

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Hi! Nice to read you.

I've been in Tumblr for years, and this is the first time I send a message. I mostly use this app to read, and I'm usually just a ghost because I don't comment or anything else besides read, lol.

Well, the reason I felt like I needed to send you a message is because this channel of yours is new and I have read all your posts so far and I am absolutely intrigued to read more from you in the future because you already made me laugh a few times plus you have a psychology degree and although I don't have one because funny enough, I hated reading so much when I took psychology classes that I couldn't fathom getting that degree.

I do have a way with humans that is not common with the bast majority. I'm very intuitive and empathic as well, which makes my interactions with people deeper than I sometimes would like it to be. But that's a different story... I digress...

I found BTS this year because of K-Dramas. All of a sudden, I don't know how my Instagram went from KDramas to BTS. They are all over my explore feed, lol.

(Well it's not that difficult for IG to full my feed with them since once you like KDrama stuff, the whole South Korea country shows up in the algorithm lol, I just find it funny, sorry again I digress...)

The way I got to "meet" BTS was with the Run Episodes mini Reels in IG. Again, they are all over my feed. So eventually I found out they sing, and found a song I liked, searched it up, found out it was from them, got obsessed with the song, and now I have a few more that I like a lot so far.

I do not consider myself an Army, and I don't think I ever will. I do think BTS is absolutely talented and great performers and I may like more songs in the future if I go over all the albums because so far their songs find me in reels and that's how I have come to like the ones I do. But I do think the fandom is very toxic in my opinion, I'm not saying that all the people in there are, but overall from all the experience I have so far from them, that's the feeling I get as of now from most of the fandom. so I don't see myself connecting that far.

I like all the members. They each have something that I like about them, but what I have come to find out is that Jimin is out of this word. I don't know what that man has, but for God's sake, he can get people obsessed if they are not careful.

Do I consider myself a PJM? No.

However, the man can convert me at any minute to be honest, and I won't notice.

Well, my main reason to write to you is because although I've known about them in more detail the past few months, I'm really new to them. The past month, I got to know what shipping means, and like you, the first thing I saw on Instagram was the JK and TH one. I did not understand what was the romantic side of the videos I was being shown because I couldn't see anything beyond a great friendship. Then, I don't know how, but a video of JM and JK showed up. It was a compilation of them staring at each other and another one of JK walking to any direction JM was going to, and let me tell you...

I felt like I was spying on a couple that were in their private room and I just happened to be in the closet looking through a small hole because I got trapped there before they showed up and shut the door and I could get out. I FELT SO INTRUSIVE THAT IT MADE ME TURN MY HEAD SIDEWAYS MORE THAN ONCE, like I shouldn't be watching such a intimacy without consent. JESUS!!!

The feelings were deep. Let me tell you that much.

So, I, as a romantic person that loves LOVE and anything related to that, such as movies, and again K-Drama, well... I came to Tumblr to investigate this situation, hahahaha... and let's just say that in the past 2 weeks, I have consumed an insane amount of BTS shipping posts than what I would be proud to admit. It's very bad, I need a break. But I'm a binge watcher, and the content seems infinite (WOW), I'm the type of person that watches a K-dramma in one sitting because I can't do it anyway else.

Well, I have told you too much irrelevant sh*t sorry lol

My reason for the message was because I would like to read more posts of JM and JK from the perspective of people that that have follow them for a while and watch original content and express their thoughts on what they see and why they think of them as they do because of what they see.

I am interested in reading how people evaluate what they see without my personal thoughts about what I see as bias. I have been finding the posts I have read like that entertaining. But unfortunately the past weeks as well most of the things I see is people asking bogglers why they think JM and JK are still together and a constant fighting about recent things like video leaks, JK meeting too much with his friends but no with JM, this or that, and it's getting boring seeing these bloggers intelligence wasted on those questions.

My opinion is this: I won't assume they are a couple unless they say so (highly unlikely) or when definite proof gets leaked or posted by Dispatch or something like that. (Which I really hope it never happens, they don't deserve an outing like that if they are not ready) but I find it very concerning that these so called fans, and shippers just want proof that they are together so bad, that they don't care how that proof gets to them, which may hurt their so called bias. That's honestly SICK behavior! And then they wonder why people joke that BTS fandom is full of 12 years old. Again, I digress...

So, as I was saying, I won't assume they are a couple because I respect people, and I don't want to assume their sexuality or relationship. But I don't judge those who assume in a respectful way, I just personally don't want to cross that line.

In my personal opinion, they make me feel like they have feelings for each other and that they are aware of them. Have they crossed the sex line yet? Maybe.

The vibe I get is that they are aware of their feelings towards each other and might be scared to cross that line for the sake of their friendship or the group. Though, that doesn't stop them from being as physical as they show to be on screen.

They're like, "we know we have feelings for each other, we won't cross the sex line, but we will play with fire." And one thing is for sure in this life, intimacy goes beyond the sex act.

They are probably more intimate than what sex could make them be. I don't even know how to explain it in a coherent way to those who just see sex as the way of being fully intimate.

Also, I don't know why people have to assume that they are gay if they are proven to be with each other. I can never get disappointed enough of humans and their limited intelligence, like sometimes two people have a connection so strong that even if they have been only in a heterosexual relationship their whole lives, and there was this one instace where they were in a homosexual one, it automatically doesn't mean the person is part of the LGBTQ+ community, it's just means that there was a person, possibly what they would consider their "soul mate" that happen to be their same sex. But otherwise they have only been attracted to the opposite sex and will find themselves only attracted to the opposite sex if that person no longer exist in the picture, because they will never feel somethig like that again.

I've seen it, that's why I get mad when people don't see that, in this world there's so much that can be possible without putting a pre-existing LGBTQ+ label on it, that's why there's a + in it I guess. But AGAIN, I digress...

Now, even if JM and JK come out saying that they never have had anything going on, that they are with other people in a relationship or whatever else. I won't ever doubt that they had feelings for each other up to 2023. That much I am sure of, no matter the outcome of their relationship. These two had a mini encounter on a live a few days ago, and they both malfunctioned at one point lol they don't know how to control themselves.

But I just wanted to say that I hope you share more of your thoughts of what you see and saw on content where they are part of, like the youtube video you shared, (which I will watch once I have almost 3 hours to spare because once I start that, I won't stop until it's done lol) so I hope to read your opinions on those contents, your thought process as you watch those things. That would be entertaining for me as a new person viewing this shipping world, and those new like me that want to read stuff like that as entertainment or to learn more about them.

People here write as if all the readers are old in the BTS world or, more specifically, the Jikook world and not all of us are. I caught you doing some comments like that too so far, like "if you know you know," or like "you know what I am talking about," and I'm like... "But I don't know, I want to know but don't know lol" so I'm left clueless lol

Please, I hope that if you are here for a long run, remember that people like me will always exist and we may find your blog in our way to discovery and won't know sh*t lol. Also, I hope you tag more words so your posts are easier to find for people like me. Like when a post is about Jikook, you can also tag JM and JK tags since it is about them anyway. I was just following the Jimin tag, and now I will follow the Jikook one because some posts don't make it to the Jimin tag even tho the post includes him. But you may have your reasons, so it's totally fine if you don't.

Sorry for the long message. It's my first one ever, and I took it seriously, apparently lol.

I'm a millennial, I use lol a lot...

Att: The LOL Millennial

P.S. Any possible grammar/spelling mistakes are expected for my old age lol, thank you :)

God, I love a good, long message. Hi! Hope you don't mind me sharing your story and thoughts. It was a good read! I've also been a lurker until recently.

I'll try to respond in order.

"But I do think the fandom is very toxic in my opinion, I'm not saying that all the people in there are, but overall from all the experience I have so far from them, that's the feeling I get as of now from most of the fandom. so I don't see myself connecting that far."

It is absolutely okay to be a casual fan. It's healthier even. About the fandom, it's big enough to be a country, and as we know, a country holds many perspectives, personalities, religions, opinions, factions, moral/political alignments, criminals, and creeps, but also mostly just regular folk trying to make it through the day. That's how I see ARMY. It's simply too massive for everyone to get along. I think the toxicity has gotten much worse since the solo era started and the fandom is more divided than ever.

However, I believe that once BTS returns as a group, all of the garbage that's happened or been said this year will be forgotten. Solo projects have rotted the fandom's brains and yet were absolutely vital to the artistic growth of each member. It's a necessary evil, and BTS will be way, way stronger for it. We, the regular folk here, just keep our heads down and weather the storm. Amazing things are coming.

"But unfortunately the past weeks as well most of the things I see is people asking bogglers why they think JM and JK are still together and a constant fighting about recent things like video leaks, JK meeting too much with his friends but no with JM, this or that, and it's getting boring seeing these bloggers intelligence wasted on those questions."

We're getting a lot more fan interaction from the members during this hiatus than I thought we would. So it was surprising to me to see people whining about Jimin and Jungkook not posting about each other enough. Some people seem to think those two need to communicate solely via public social media otherwise they hate each other. Some people have entire narratives on how/when/why jikook broke up based on the stupidest shit you can imagine. As I said, solo era has been painful. My brain cells are dropping like flies.

"but I find it very concerning that these so called fans, and shippers just want proof that they are together so bad, that they don't care how that proof gets to them, which may hurt their so called bias."

Because to them Jungkook and Jimin are dolls to smash together while making kissy sounds. They just want to "win" their little ship war. As far as I'm concerned, there is no war because jikook is an actual possibility and the others are not. End of story. Any explicit "proof" getting out would be disastrous for them at this point in time.

"In my personal opinion, they make me feel like they have feelings for each other and that they are aware of them. Have they crossed the sex line yet? Maybe.

I think this was pretty much my opinion too until I started my deep dive and observing the timeline. The "state" of them of being aware of their feelings for each other but hesitant was late 2015/first half of 2016, in my personal timeline, it's one of the big shifts I saw. Their relationship has several developments after that too. So if they're currently in a romantic/sexual relationship, they have been for years. If they're not, then it's not likely to happen.

"in this world there's so much that can be possible without putting a pre-existing LGBTQ+ label on it"

Sexuality is a spectrum and people shouldn't have to define themselves if there is no label that quite fits. The more labels and distinctions we make, the more we box people in and become less inclusive. Jimin could be bi, Jungkook could be gay, but we don't know. We can't know. What I do know is that they really find each other really, really attractive.

"But I just wanted to say that I hope you share more of your thoughts of what you see and saw on content where they are part of, like the youtube video you shared"

Thank you for your support! That's the plan! It was painful to be so undetailed in the intro post.

"People here write as if all the readers are old in the BTS world or, more specifically, the Jikook world and not all of us are. I caught you doing some comments like that too so far, like "if you know you know," or like "you know what I am talking about," and I'm like... "But I don't know, I want to know but don't know lol" so I'm left clueless lol"

I know that's annoying, it was for me as well when I was starting my journey. But the "if you know you know" stuff I'm referring to is pics/info that leaked and we weren't supposed to see. More "evidence' I suppose. Nothing that would ruin their lives, obviously, but far far more telling than any dumbass clip/pic we've gotten for their other dating "rumors." Maybe you've already seen them. I'm not going to gatekeep these things, since they're out there anyway and you can find them, but you can reach out to me if you'd like and I can tell you in private.

"Also, I hope you tag more words so your posts are easier to find for people like me. Like when a post is about Jikook, you can also tag JM and JK tags since it is about them anyway."

The reason I didn't tag them individually is because solos, akgaes, and taekookers (jk tag) lurk in those tags and they're eye-twitchingly annoying. Especially right now.

Nonny, thank you so much for listening to my story and sharing yours. It was lovely to wake up to. I appreciate the interest a lot. I hope to hear from you in the future!

#jikook

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godesssiri · 5 months

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Thrifting for the ⋆⭒˚.⋆Experience ⋆⭒˚.⋆

Today I saw a reel on Instagram of things that the OP likes to thrift for the experience. I’ve done lists of Décor items I am constantly looking for in thrift stores and Thrift First things I will always try to thrift before I buy new, but that reel got me thinking about the things I buy from thrift stores because the experience of looking for and finding them is so much better than just buying new.

Décor. Yeah, you can go to any number of stores and buy brand new décor items at just about any price point. And I used to do that, but the décor items I bought new in the past have gradually been donated to make space for thrifted treasures. Because the things I bought new had no meaning to me. The vast majority were just pretty things that sat on a shelf and had no emotion attached to them, so it meant nothing to me when I got sick of them and got rid of them. But almost all of my thrifted décor (and as a Maximalist I have A LOT) has memories attached. I could tell you what thrift store I got almost every piece at, if I had a friend or family member with me I could tell you who was with me and their reaction to the thing I picked up. Some of those shopping trips have become family legend which gets told over and over and every time I look at the item involved I experience a fond memory of either finding the item or my loved one telling the story of me finding the item. I remember the thrill of discovery, the triumph if it was a piece I’ve been looking out for, the excitement if it was something I’d never even imagined and now can’t imagine not owning. I’m constantly discovering things that I had no idea I needed in my life until the exact moment I laid eyes on them in a thrift store. I discover manufacturers and artists and art styles I would never have been exposed to otherwise and I have so much fun researching them and discovering more about them. When you buy new décor you rarely feel the need to research and discover who made it and when and why, but when you thrift something amazing it’s part of the fun to do a deep dive and discover something new.

The perfect piece to fit in a particular place or do a particular job. I looked for the right side table for next to my couch for over a year, I could have found one the exact size and shape I needed brand new, but I know I wouldn’t love it a fraction as much. I have so many pieces like that in my home and I just enjoy being able to use these perfect pieces. When you wait and watch and finally find something that just serves your purposes so so well, the whole hunt from beginning (deciding I need a thing to go here and do this) to end (positioning the thing and standing back to admire it) is an experience. You can get that experience buying new, but to me it always feels a bit like cheating – not to mention going the new route will cost a lot more, my solid oak side table was a whole 35 bucks and the fact I got such a high quality piece for so cheap is a part of the experience that still gives me a buzz every time I think of it.

Original art. I love thrift store art so much. Galleries feel inaccessible unless you’re above a certain income bracket. But anyone can have amazing original art if they’re willing to scour thrift stores and build up a collection of things that speak to them. The number of times I’ve stood in the art aisle in a thrift store and tried to talk myself out of buying a piece because I have so much art and I’m running out of walls. But I’ve never regretted a single piece of original art I’ve thrifted and I’ve never re-donated one. Because if I like it in the thrift store I looooove it my home. I can’t help but browse the art even though I know I’m running out of space because I never know when I’m going to come across something amazing that will be with me for the rest of my life.

Antiques. I love antiques so much. I love old things. They have a weight and gravitas. They feel like survivors, because so much of what humans create, we then destroy. Things that survive to become antique were treasured or lucky and I feel like if they survived because they were treasured by someone you can feel that, and if they survived because they were lucky then bring that luck into your home. Finding true antiques (things that are 100+ years old) in thrift stores requires patience and an eye and it’s always such a wonderful experience to stumble across something and know that it is old and precious, and it can be yours for thrift store prices.

Collections. I’m a collector, have been my whole life, I have so many different collections of things. I have a theory that if you have one of a thing then it’s just a thing you like, 2 is a coincidence, 3 or more is a collection. I often find myself going: Whoops I guess I collect that now. It’s such a thrill to spot something in a thrift store that fits one of my collections and to swoop on it. I even love to stand in a thrift store and hem and haw over a piece before ultimately deciding I don’t need to add it to my collection because it’s not the best example, or doesn’t quite fit, or I’ve got something too similar. That’s part of the experience. I have many vestigial collections, things I used to collect but I no longer get a thrill from so I’ve re-donated all but the pieces I couldn’t bear to part with. I love to imagine, when I send an old collection off to the thrift store, someone else discovering my treasures and adding them to their collection of that thing.

Really high-quality stuff that is very expensive new. Sometimes people buy something expensive as a gift and the recipient doesn’t want it and donates. Sometimes someone will drop a lot of money on something, then never actually use it and donate it. Sometimes someone will buy something expensive and they will use it for years, but because they’ve taken good care of it and it was such good quality to begin with, it will still have years and years of use in it when it gets donated. When you come across something in a thrift store that you know cost $$$ and you could never justify buying it new, then that my friends is an experience. Years later, every time I pull it out of the drawer, I still ride high on the thrill of my stupid expensive potato masher that was in its original packaging with its original $80 price tag. Who spends $80 on a damn potato masher? Sure as hell not me, but I own a $80 potato masher that I paid 3 bucks for.

#thrifting #thrift shopping #solarpunk #solarpunk tag #fuck capitalism #sustainability #eco home #reduce reuse recycle

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tothedarkdarkseas · 2 years

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Okay, now I'm genuinely curious to hear what ideas you'd have if you were in charge of making Stu TikToks. I'm prepared to be amused and also horrified in the best way possible.

I'm sorry for the delay! (It's been a hell of a weekend.) When I first wrote something about the character profiles they made for Tiktok during P6, I'd never used the app. Nowadays, every social media app has their own version of shorts/reels/et cetera, and my only exposure to Tiktok now is through reposted content on YouTube or Instagram. I've come away with two impressions: there are major trends that dominate the average experience but also thriving niche communities for anything, and I'll be hearing "A little context if you care to listen, I find myself in a shit position" on my deathbed.

That all being said, here's what Stu's Tiktok page would look like if it were up to me!

He's active, but not constantly so. Not enough to give the impression he's got a routine, not a one video per day sort of user. Still, he posts too much to be passive. Always featuring himself.

Football videos. I'm sorry, I'm playing the hits (assuming the audience is... mostly me, haha) but football videos. The phone's sticking up out of a cup on a metal table in the garden. The videos are all raw footage, no snappy edits or even music overlaid-- rather, he's got one Bose earbud in and the other down in the cup to amplify sound, the music now recorded secondhand just utterly garbled. He's occasionally got his Chelsea kit on, but not always. The videos are not concise. Three to seven minutes on average of him running around, no one playing opposite him, just showing off his footwork and kicking the ball into the unguarded net. The videos all begin and end with him way too close to the camera as he starts and stops recording.

I'm imagining a thirst trap that Murdoc's recorded of him returning to his bedroom after a shower, hair and chest wet with his towel on his shoulder. He asks "Are you filming?" and then proceeds to tepidly hem and haw, doing nothing to stop him. He captions the video cant believ he film this. geri attic geezer.. goin tp get him back. (He's clearly unbothered because he knows he's fit.)

Too-dark videos of himself in bed shot with the forward facing camera, usually high, looking like he's just woken from a 7-hour nap. These are usually cloudy-headed musings about nature, music, death, life. Occasionally he says something crass or unintentionally funny, but for the most part they're just on the other side of incomprehensible. There's an internal logic to his musings, you assume, but he'll eventually stray too far for someone outside his head to follow.

I wouldn't be mad if these sorts of videos were occasionally quite astute, quite depressing, wise in a sort of sour way. But if I were "directing" things, I think it'd be best to space those between videos he reckons are touching a raw, truthful nerve, but are mostly sort of aimless and shot up his nose.

He'll play piano, or melodica, or marimba, or experiment with singing bowls or finger cymbals. He'll occasionally sing Gorillaz songs acoustic, or cover The Human League, or try out new material. In the latter case, he is notably high or notably low, so to speak. He never comes across entirely clear or professional.

He probably records in studio at times, trying much too hard to look important while remaining casual. He'll record something quick at an award show, showing nothing impressive to the camera and instead filming from his crotch in the car or a dressing room. Stu really ricochets between glamorizing and deglamorizing celebrity, I think, and you're often left feeling uncertain whether that was or wasn't intentional.

I don't know if you're able to see other users' liked videos/if their "FYP" is visible at all, but Stu's is all fanmade Chelsea reels, official Chelsea reels from players or WAGs, borderline pornography, "long-distance reiki healing" sessions/generally grifty new age spiritualist videos, extremely technical mechanical repairs primarily on synthesizers or soundboards done in silence, world music played straight to camera with little fanfare, very local British food chain content, SpraypaintTok, fashion and sneakerhead videos that he's not sure he actually gets but he understands have a certain value to his image, and the occasional animal doing something funny. The algorithm strongly favors the Chelsea, the partial nudity, and the fiddly repairs.

Sadly I don't think I've delivered on much horrifying content here! Suspending disbelief that there is no social media manager patrolling what he can and cannot post: he is, of course, not above filming a touch of borderline pornography himself. Never with Murdoc, even if their fingerprints both linger in other ways, but certainly with women in short dresses, heads tucked to his neck to obscure their face, his hand firm enough on their thigh to leave white lines in their wake. There's nothing that would get him flagged-- they're clothed, if unbuttoned, but there's a sort of editorial sleaze to it. His own head rocks to the side, self-impressed. Sometimes he buries in touring or award show content and captions it berlin. thanx for the memmory. o might be munich.

That's all I have for now, sorry if it's less scummy than you'd hoped! My brain's a bit fried lately. I'm open to your suggestions as well!

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just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi · 2 years

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15 Questions

Thanks for the tag Moya!

1. Are you named for anyone?

Technically yes. My middle name is a biblical one, and also my…. Aunt?? Cousin? I’ve met her but I think she’s my dad’s first cousin and I don’t know what that means I am to her.

2. When was the last time you cried?

Like… what type of cry? Sobbed? End of December. Cried? About a week ago. From laughter? Sunday night. My brother was building a clearance gingerbread house and the icing said “made in a nut free facility” and my brother leaned over to me and said “so no men there?” And I lost it. Later he just fucking leaned over and started to hands free eat the house and I lost it again. Just little tears? Last night. I saw an instagram reel and I got misty eyed. I don’t remember what it was about.

3. Do you have kids?

Haha no. I’m not strictly opposed? But I’m not fucking doing that by myself and relationships are real low priority to me.

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot?

I used to more. Not so much anymore?

5. What’s the first thing you notice about people?

Mostly what they’re doing. And then if they seem happy or not.

6. What’s your eye color?

Blue

7. Scary movies or happy endings?

Honestly neither but I guess happy endings. But not inspiring movies. I fucking hate inspiring movies I spent enough time in church having my emotions manipulated I’m not fucking paying to sit and do it again. Miss me with that shit.

8. Any special talents?

Talent? Uh, I have super flexible shoulders? I guess I would consider my natural aptitude to figure shit out as a talent? Other things I would consider as skills cause I worked for them. So like crafts and my flexibility and writing.

9. Where were you born?

Florida.

10. What are your hobbies?

You don’t have the time to have me list them. And they rotate pretty frequently. But!! I just got a drop spindle and I’m currently obsessed with it. But crafts are definitely a constant. Any craft, I’ve probably tried it once. I’m really not kidding.

11. Have any pets?

Not at the moment. I want rats someday but I’m so busy I wouldn’t be able to give them a good life 😞

12. What sports have you played?

As a child: basketball, soccer, football (like American football lol), tennis, cheerleading.

As an adults I’m pretty active but not really in organized sports. Now I’m doing mostly running, gymnastics, and pole dancing.

13. How tall are you?

5 foot….. 5??? 6???

14. Favorite subject in school?

I honestly liked most of it. I hated geometry tho. One I always wanted to do was Linguistic but alas, FL state law kept me from doing it. 😭 (not that like linguistics specifically is illegal, google excess credit hour laws)

15. Dream job?

Hahahah i don’t even know. I don’t particularly want to work. However I wish I could do animal education at a zoo. I would love that. I would love just answering questions about iguanas.

Oh. Oh wait… my like, dream unbelievable never going to happen job would be an acrobat. Fuck. When I was younger interacting with circus related material like movies or books or even color palets would make my heart hurt. Like sometimes I couldn’t interact with it because it just hurt so much. It’s just so cool and fucking magical and mesmerizing. I loved it. And even at like 15 I thought it was too late for me to ever be a part of that world.

And then when I turned 22 and had a fucking life meltdown, I was watching fucking unus anus and heard Ethan talking about gymnastics and decided to just… try something. And I quickly found out it wasn’t too late?? That I still had a chance to learn and try and experience circus arts??? Now I’ve tried acrobatics and aerial silks and contortion and pole and got on a trapeze once. And now it’s my motivation for how I take care of myself. I have to eat food and move my body and take care of myself. I have to because if I don’t I’ll never be able to try lyra/aerial hoop. I gotta keep going because I’ve got pole on Wednesday and I’m so close to the body spiral.

When I get emotionally low I remind myself I gotta keep going so I can get back to my circus arts.

(Please note I know circus haven’t always been good and nice and happy places. I get it. I know. I’m not talking about that)

Tagging! @as-a-matter-of-whump @brutal-nemesis @cowboy-anon @i-can-even-burn-salad @jordanstrophe @just-a-silly-little-whumper @milk-carton-whump @poopraven @quietly-by-myself @redstainedsocks @susiequaz12 @thoughtsonhurtandcomfort @ziptiesnfries @tearyvictim @

#tag game #about the raccoon #I haven’t used that tag in so long!#I just forget it’s there!

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molosmojo · 6 months

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Rolling up your sleeves!

I was watching this reel on Instagram recently where someone was saying “if you have 10 years’ experience in the same job/role, it essentially means you are doing the same/similar job with 2 years’ experience multiplied by 5”.

It made me reflect on my own journey.

When I started my career, I was an audit clerk with a CA firm; then I joined the Resourcing team with no knowledge and played that role for 2+ years with a multinational company. Then I had a brainwave to start my own recruitment firm that tanked badly over 6 months. Then I joined back into the corporate world and moved into recruitment for a year. Then I joined a firm which offered me a larger HR role with no real HR experience outside of recruitment, I played that role for 3+ years.

I was re-hired by one of my employers to help with lateral hiring challenges and having streamlined that over a couple of years, I was then offered to start the HRBP role. While playing the HRBP role, I took the opportunity to travel to the US (for the very first time) and get trained on Qualtrics and be the first ever EX Certified consultant on Qualtrics. I was implementing Qualtrics for our clients for almost 2 years while I continued playing the HRBP role in parallel.

While doing the integration, I have helped put together business cases to move business from onshore to offshore, run knowledge transfer sessions.

When covid hit us, I set-up a team of “angels” to help employees and their families with essentials, with information, worked closely with the admin team to run vaccination drives, answered 1000+ questions for CEO townhalls – and these were all types of questions.

When there was a need to set-up the Resource Management team, I again accepted the challenge and rolled-up my sleeves!

In most of these experiences over the last twenty years, I have not had prior experience but that has actually excited me to take-up the new role/challenge and solve for it.

What has been your experience throughout your career – have you stepped out of your comfort zone? Have you rolled-up your sleeves and taken a dip!?

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internshipfolio · 7 months

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Entry 5: Achievements and milestones.

Its important during your personal and professional lives that you appreciate and acknowledge all your achievements and milestones so you know what a difference you are making in life and in your professional career (Van Yperen & Orehek, 2013). During both internships I definitely had achievements that I was really proud of that I will always remember and share when needed.

With Tennis Lab I had a few proud moments for myself and exciting opportunities. Although at the start of the internship I had doubts on how I would go with making unique content and how engaging it would be, I do have a few things to be proud of. My first ever reel I made for the company had 260,000 views which was a big achievement for me as I never had made a reel before let alone for a professional company. Creating those reels helped me gain more technical skills for content creation which helped me for later posts. When I first started at Tennis Lab there Instagram page had 5,000 followers and finishing in February the account had over 11,000 followers. That was a big achievement and milestone moment for me as I was the one responsible for growing Tennis Lab with engaging posts. Not only did I reach high engagement numbers I also got to do some work with the company during the Australian Open which involved shooting content and ball collection during each set from big courts such as Rod Laver Arena and Margret Court Arena.

Tennis Lab account reached over 11.5k followers

Although I had many achievements for Tennis Lab, I felt I had more professional and personal achievements at Max Events. Even receiving the internship was a big achievement for me as I knew there were a lot of applicants and they probably had more experience than me in the event management industry. During my internship my main role was to assist in running the chairman functions and sports presentation on game day for the Melbourne Victory Football Club and that itself was a professional and personal achievement as I never thought I would be involved in such a big sporting club and be apart of there success. With my work ethic being noticed I got offered other roles such as, a stage assisting the NBL presentation, sports presentation for the Matilda’s olympic qualifier game and the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Cycling event. These great opportunities and achievements led into the company offering me a part time job with them which I was honestly speechless about because I didn’t know what would come of this internship as it was small chance of securing a job once the internship was done. This is my biggest achievement to date and now I get to do something I love and get paid for it.

Working the Matildas game

These milestones and achievements wouldn’t be possible without Holmesglen and Simone providing the opportunities they do for there students. Through both of my internships I have learnt so much about myself professionally and personally and I cant wait to put my technical skills to in my new job.

References

Van Yperen, N., & Orehek, E. (2013). Achievement goals in the workplace: Conceptualization, prevalence, profiles, and outcomes. Journal of Economic Psychology, 38, 71–79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2012.08.013

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arnettethian · 2 years

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Is blogging still relevant in the age of TikToks and Instagram?

What is a blog?

Back in 1994, a personal journal known as a blog was first published online. Blog is defined as a website that serves as an online journal or informative resource. It presents content in reverse chronological order, with the most recent postings showing first (Minaev 2020). It provides a platform for people to express their opinions on specific topics.

Is blogging dead?

However, around 2014, there seem to be a decline in the number of active bloggers with the rise of Tiktok and Instagram. Tiktok is a 15-second video sharing app that enables users to make and share films on any subject. The most commonly seen content on tiktok are dance videos, dialogue re-enactments, cute animal videos, ASMR and comedy content. It is rare to see writing based content. On the other hand, Instagram is a photo and video sharing app. Instagram was designed from the beginning to be a platform for sharing routine stuff. A picture of your meal, a picture of you with the girls in the restroom of a club. Those kinds of things.

Some bloggers have entirely quit using their sites and switched over to social media platforms due to its convenience. If it's done well, a post has the potential to swiftly spread across large social networks and if it goes viral, it will have a larger readership and social influence (Melanie 2019).

Blogs VS Social media platforms

Although I enjoy reading blogs and seeing photos as a type of communication, they just do not have the same impact. Social media posts have a brief lifespan since everyone rapidly moves on to the next item (Melanie 2019). Around the world, millions of postings are made every day, yet they seldom provide material that is relevant in the long run. Compared to social network updates, blog posts provide websites with more timely content over time. Since social media posts are situational and event-driven, their content typically changes quickly. Blogging postings may be read independently as standalone experiences as long as the post's topic is still relevant. As a result, it becomes a trustworthy resource for readers to learn more about a certain topic.

Besides that, since blog entries are often lengthier, it is feasible to illustrate a topic with greater detail. Reels and TikTok videos can only represent a certain amount of information because to their strict time and length constraints. Blogs accept text, photographs, videos, and other forms, thus, blogs may be utilised to spread the word more effectively across a range of media. A blog post's ability to cover every aspect of a subject in one entry makes it a more comprehensive and helpful resource for readers (Melanie 2019). Additionally, media elites such as editors, publishers, and reporters rely and consume political blogs to write news. The fact that so many newspapers, networks, and magazines now have their own blogs shows that the industry is aware of the format (Farrell & Drezner 2008).

Not only that, if we posted something against the guidelines on Instagram and Tiktok these social media platforms, we might get shadow banned such as content being taken down completely or posts to be hidden and restricted (Thomas 2021) meanwhile, most blogs are self-hosted which indicates that a blogger has full control in owning and managing the blog (Aravindhan 2022). This prevents some sensitive topics being shadow banned as well as not getting the amount of attention it should get.

Conclusion

Therefore, in my opinion, blogging is still relevant in the age of Tiktok and Instagram as these platforms cannot entirely replace blogs. A Blog does play an important role in our life.

References:

Aravindhan 2022, ‘What is Self hosting Website? Advantages and Disadvantages’, Seekahost, 5 January, viewed 29 September 2022, <https://www.seekahost.in/self-hosting-website/>.

Corrine 2021, ‘Is Blogging Dead? The Rise Of Instagram And TikTok’, Skinnedcartree, 3 April, viewed 29 September 2022, <https://skinnedcartree.com/2021/04/is-blogging-dead-the-rise-of-instagram-and-tiktok.html>.

Farrell, H & Drezner, DW 2008, ‘The power and politics of blogs’, Public Choice, viewed 29 September 2022, <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/226771010_The_Power_and_Politics_of_Blogs>.

Minaev, A 2022, ‘What is a Blog? – Definition of Terms Blog, Blogging, and Blogger’, First Site Guide, 26 July, viewed 29 September 2022, <https://firstsiteguide.com/what-is-blog/>.

‘6 Reasons That Make Blogs Remain Relevant In The Age Of Reels And TikTok’ 2022, Beyond the Panorama, 5 August, viewed 29 September 2022, <https://skinnedcartree.com/2021/04/is-blogging-dead-the-rise-of-instagram-and-tiktok.html>.

Thomas, M 2021, ‘Does Instagram Shadowban Accounts?’, Later, 16 November, viewed 29 September 2022, <https://later.com/blog/instagram-shadowban/>.

#mda20009 #Is blogging still relevant in the age of TikToks and Instagram?

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amaliatheartist · 2 years

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b0rista · 4 years

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— 𝐀𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑 𝐀𝐔 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐍𝐒!

˚ ༘♡ ⋆

summary: if the storyline of attack on titan was a television show, and all of its characters were only acting.

author's notes: i just used the character's names as their actor/actress names djkfjf. also,, i got this idea from a tiktok and loved it sm 🥺

WARNINGS: language?? mostly comedy/fluffiness.

levi's actually very fucking affectionate and openly kindhearted; it's an out of body experience watching an episode of the show and then looking up an interview with him in it where he's like,, very different

hange and moblit share an instagram page, it's literally just them posting random bullshit as a joke. in a week, it gained half a million followers and was verified by instagram

jean has like, thirty scandals a year and they've debated kicking him off the show and replacing him with somebody else

^ however, he is very loved on set and connie has thRoaT punched a producer in that man's name. somehow, he wasn't immediately fired

[this was a headcanon on the tiktok i saw, i just LOVED it 😭 i didn't think of it!],, even after being written off of the show, marco's a beloved member of the set's camera crew!! so many people cried when he was killed off, he decided to stay 🥺 lowkey didn't have any tech experience doe, but he's so loved they let it slide and taught him everything he needs to know

although they don't ship their characters on the show, connie and sasha are engaged and it just explains their chemistry on set perfectly DJFJ

during that scene where levi impaled reiner with a sword and threw him down the wall, the two of them just couldn't stop laughing and there's a seven minute long blooper reel of JUST that single take

"JUST DIE-"

"I CAN'TDHJD-"

armin and eren share a trailer, and it's decked out from head to toe in mikasa merch as a jOke

whenever there's a major character death, people CRY

when erwin's character was killed off, hange literally burst into tears because not only was erwin written off during that arc, but moblit, too

ymir's instagram page only has a single post, and it's a really grainy selfie of her and historia kissing from like 2015

^ the fans have speculated ever since— ARE THEY IN LOVE???!;!;$

out of everyone on that show, jean is thirsted for the most

"have i ever had sex with a fan? wouldn't yOu??"

there's minor beef between levi and eren,, lowkey they don't like eachother and they're ALWAYS put side by side during press tours

bertholdt's literally the king of crashing scenes

he doesn't even have to be in them, he runs out onto set and does something stupid to make everyone lose their sHit laughing

marco had the biggest fucking crush on mikasa during the first season and he is bRutally honest about it

shawty didn't like him like that doe 😔✋

erwin is also a part time musician,, during the end of each and every season, they all get together and he plays a song for them all on his guitar 🥺 it's an annual thing, and it's very sentimental

hange is the PARENT of everyone on that set, they literally do nothing wrong ever

they, however, called jimmy fallon out once on his fake ass laughter JDJF

the video went viral, they regret absolutely nothing

the blooper reel is,, way too long

there's a blooper of connie and sasha pausing mid scene and just making out in front of the camera, it was funny

again, though, they are RELIGIOUSLY dedicated to keeping their characters' relationship platonic

mikasa and levi are best friends and they have their own podcast, it's just really philosophical LMAO

weirdly enough, ymir and jean are like, very close and they mess around a lot during press tours and whatnot

bertholdt and reiner joke about their characters getting married 😭

"yeah, they would definitely have children."

"but i'm dead."

"dude-"

floch is like, the nicest man to walk the earth and openly despises his character ✋

once marlo was written off and hitch wasn't given as much screentime, the two started a totally different sitcom and they star in it as a married couple 😭 it isn't really popular, but they're best friends and they have a hay day with it

some big, hotshot celebrity was nearly casted to play historia's part, but they fell in LOVE with her the moment she auditioned and they literally blew off an actress that could have made them so much more money in the long run

^ they regret nothing, historia was perfect for the part!! :)

#attack on titan #aot headcanons #aot scenario #eren jaeger #mikasa ackerman #levi ackerman #erwin smith #connie springer #sasha braus #jean kirschtien #hange zoe #marco bodt #reiner braun #bertholdt hoover #floch forster #armin arlert

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1ddotdhq · 4 years

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🐕 Sun 25 Oct ‘20 🌶

Well it sure is SUNday isn’t it? We woke up to a hidden Reels from HSHQ (that has since been taken down) that showed a *golden* retriever swimming in the blue blue sea with Golden playing in the background. HSHQ has made a Habit (that they can’t break) of hiding media and random phrases in their source code, the most recent one in circulation being: “Jewel-coat migration headed to Eroda!” within the Eroda site’s code. Fans quickly speculated that the dog in the video might be @/goldenloutriever on instagram, but I have no clue what brought that on, because there is no indication on the dog’s instagram nor on HSHQ’s instagram that would lead me to that conclusion. The best I can give you is that Harry seems to have taken a page out of Eleanor’s book and really embraced the dog content - he knows what we like! And THEN HSHQ dropped the official teaser AND the drop date of the music video! It drops tomorrow, 10/26? WHAT TIME asked Twitter with a worldwide trend. HSHQ ignored us all. The teaser trailer shows Harry running in a dark tunnel, I’m assuming chasing the sun. I would say that this time, he looks VERY ready to run!

But Harry isn’t the only one with content to debut! LIAM put out his newest “show which has no name” on YouTube, and went live on instagram (wearing a headband that rival’s 2013!Louis’) right before the premiere! He went live with a young fan who ran a 1D fan instagram account and gave her some tickets, talked about not having seen the Golden music video, yet (me: YEAH NEITHER HAVE I UR NOT SPECIAL) and mentioned that Iron Man was his favorite avenger (“...after the sacrifices he made - for us all” hmmm, yup yup, totally, I remember that time Thanos came and made us disappear). He was also told by the chat to “Call Louis”, to which he promptly responded, “Louis was meant to call me a couple of days ago and he hasn’t yet...Louis where are you?? If you’re creeping around my Instagram live again, just. Give me a call”. Twitter then took it upon themselves to remind Louis and trended LOUIS CALL LIAM. Louis, always knowing what’s being said about him, took to twitter to say, “Answer your phone then dickhead @/LiamPayne”. Soooo...does this mean they’ve been playing phone tag?? Could timezone differences have anything to do with this? *Corneilus voice* whoooooo knooooowwwwssss….

And! In the roundup we got to hear a bit more about Cornelius! It started as an idea that he and Conor had “coming home after work one night” (if you’re counting - and I am - this is the second time he’s mentioned living with Conor) and that he thought it would be funny if there were a ghost haunting the place asking about the show. They tried out different names (first Peter), but settled on Cornelius as it tied back into an old 1D joke where Louis dared Niall to thank "Cornelius the Trombone player" but there never was a trombone player. So he was a ghost, Get It? Sigh, I love Liam’s sense of humor. In other round-up news, opener Carly Gibert will be zooming in from LA, though Tom Felton (“love ya, Big T!”) will be there live. He talked about how he’s known Tom for years, meeting at one of the HP premiers, though he wasn’t a big fan at the time, “I wasn't a massive fan then, it's just as I went along - you know how it goes - that I became a MASSIVE fan, but I already knew all of them". Okay, no need to rub it in Liam! But, speaking of fans, he thanked one on his live (twitter handle @/modeftziam), calling them “a good friend of mine”, and praising the awesome instagram filter that they made! He says that he sees their content on his timeline often, and loves it, and to go follow them. I ADORE (a door haha) how Liam treats his fans, it’s always so kind. Kinder, even, than he treats himself sometimes: he went in a bit on the behind the scenes video that Hugo put on their Instagram story about last month’s Esquire shoot, saying he was "super super hungover I’d partied all night the night before...you can see the drunkness on my face there". I mean, I hadn’t noticed it BEFORE he pointed it out, but, um...yeah he’s not wrong. I hope that, going forward, he treats himself more gently, because, as we all know HE’S GOLDEN TOO!

And was Louis done tweeting after he told Liam off? No! He wasn’t! He went on to answer a fan about a child who really liked Louis’ music. Louis told the fan, “This is a beautiful story. Send my love to your gorgeous little lad. You’re both welcome to any show. Would love to meet the little lad. You’re an incredible mother, keep your head up!�� The fan he replied to was NOT the mother of the child, but instead a 17 year old who had translated the story, which she had explained, but he clearly missed. Who’s gonna take him up on the free ticket, d’you think? He also - once again - recommended the Red Hot Chili Peppers, once in a reply, and then went nah, I gotta put this on main, and posted a tweet with a link to the same liveshow, saying, “Anyone who’s missing live music. Watch this top to bottom...Incredible.” And he answered a question about the Social Dilemma, a documentary about the effects of social media, saying, “...Anyone who hasn’t seen it should watch it. Food for thought.”

Niall described his COVID experience as “a lot of finger pointing, ankle injuries, and naked Instagram”. This time, can we please trend #DONTstripitdownNiall? They chatted a bit about the song (“ a delicate song...about divorce”) and Niall’s involvement (“I wouldn’t have been upset if she’d had said no [to having him on the song”), and they urged young US voters to get out the vote! Which, yeah! Please! And Zayn joined in the fun, tweeting “@UFC mashallah Khabib 🙌🏽”. The word mashallah is an Arabic phrase that means “what God has willed” and expresses appreciation, joy, praise, or thankfulness. Khabib is a boxer who has just announced his retirement. So, in the way that we often thank the guys for their hard work, Zayn was just showing off his fandom appreciation! And, in Z’s extended universe Gigi also joined the Get Out Vote efforts by saying, “I voted absentee last week with my daughter next to me for an America I wanted her to see...”. Did it tell us anything about her daughter? Nope! Not even her name!

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halebaccari · 4 years

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multiamory may 28/? --> kira/scott/stiles

“No one says viral anymore,” Stiles complains. The headline of the article he’s been pulling faces at over breakfast says otherwise. Someone’s made a half dozen gifs of their favorite moments in Kira’s nearly fifteen minutes long highlight reel of night vision embarrassing moments, peppering the page with Stiles’s too-wide mouth and stumbling feet. “All these new subscribers are tainted! Every one of them.”

“Might get some decent tips out of them,” Scott tries, playing diplomat as he often is. Kira and Stiles got along like a house on fire from day one, but two chaotic partners under one roof has been trying at times. “Last time we got arrested and Isaac shared it around Facebook, we found two new locations close enough to drive to. Close enough to break down on the way to, at least.” He only grins when Stiles flaps a hand at him, rattling the spoon still resting in his cereal bowl.

Probably they’ll lose most of the twenty thousand followers they’ve picked up since someone started sending around the gag reel. “World’s Wimpiest Ghost Hunter” may be funny the first few times, but anyone who navigates around the rest of the channel is going to quickly realize that Stiles is more often talking shit to locals and cops than he is screaming and running. Sure, he’s jumpy, but the fact that none of them has ever ended up with more than a small fine or community service for all the shit they get into is a testament to his general badass status. Or maybe that most of their crimes were committed before they ever moved away to college, when Stiles was still wheedling his father into not punishing them too harshly.

Scott’s pretty sure Kira isn’t going to come shuffling into the kitchen until at least the afternoon, considering the night she had handling all of their social media. Scott’s “Leave Bigfoot Alone” blog header, long ago edited from ‘Britney’ to ‘Bigfoot’, has been shopped again to defend their boyfriend. Overnight, they somehow have an Instagram presence. The only thing she hadn’t been able to get at was Stiles’s Twitter, after he shoved his phone under his stomach and crashed face down in bed with the promise of flailing limbs for anyone who tried to reach in and grab for it. Instead, she’d linked to footage of him repeatedly from the other accounts, including a few more flattering videos of him excitedly explaining phenomenon they’d be looking for....before arriving at the supposedly haunted sites.

“Look,” he tries again, turning the laptop around to show Stiles all of Kira’s mentions. “It’s not like they’re only making fun of you. They put her head on the ‘aliens!’ guy.”

“Kira is the aliens guy!”

Well. Stiles has him there. He’s pretty sure Kira’s spiel about extraterrestrials had gone over about as well and as plausibly with his mom as anything Giorgio has ever said on television, at least the first time. Even switching tacks to near-death experiences hadn’t saved that first dinner with the parent, but it still had nothing on the second, more awkward evening once they had to add the sheriff to the invite list. It wasn’t like they could’ve anticipated Kira and Stiles enthusiastically making out on what was supposed to be a serious camping trip to investigate claims about a local cryptid. Any hope that a cute girlfriend with respectable academic parents would settle their boys down had gone out the window when Kira’s face lit up over the topic of death and destruction, pigtails whipping against her shoulders as she turned to each side of the table.

There’s not going to be any cheering Stiles up this morning, it seems. Scott sighs and pulls up their YouTube, grabbing the link to Stiles rambling about force ghosts and the influence of Star Wars on his childhood interest in the paranormal. Maybe he can bait a cast member into retweeting and make it clear that this attention is a good thing, after all.

#multimay20 #twpolyamory #twrarepair #kira x scott x stiles #twedit #multiamory may #scilira #sciriles #????#picspam #fic #ot3: partners in crime #long post

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jeonggukingdom · 5 years

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your every wish is my command (m)

▽ Pairing: Jeongguk x Reader

▽ Genre: genie!AU, smut, fluff, crack

▽ Summary: It’s Friday night and everyone you know in a 12 miles radius seems to be out and about dancing or drinking their lives away. Bored out of your mind you decide to call out the Genie that happened to fell in your hands a month prior to this very night. You just want some company, somebody to talk to and entertain you but things take a spicy turn when you accidentally make your very first wish and it’s a rather impious one.

▽ Word Count: 13.690 words

▽ WARNINGS: Graphic depictions of sexual intercourse, unprotected sex, slight sub/dom dynamics, very light breathplay, rough sex, oral sex, thigh riding, tit fucking, swear words.

▽ AN: I’m going to take a moment to thank all the writers that participated in this collab, you guys are amazing and I love every single one of you! ♥ You were so supportive of each other, understanding when we ran into a few problems and honestly, I couldn’t have asked for a better bunch to share my very first collab experience with. Thank you, for everything ♥ @hobiwonder - @couture-kookie - @btsflufflysmut - @jimintykookies - @btssmutflufflove - @whichwaytowonderlandep

"Uuuugh, I'm bored out of my goddamn mind!" You huff in annoyance, sprawling on your bed with a prominent pout on your face as the deafening silence of your room welcomes your words.

You roll your eyes to the ceiling, your feet dangling out the edge of your mattress in a perfect imitation of a kid throwing a tantrum.

It is Friday night and normally you'd be out and about having fun, quite possibly drinking your brains out along with your friends, only to regret all your life's decisions in the morning.

But you are regretting this one decision tonight after all so, either way, lots of regrets seems to be headed your way tomorrow morning. Usually, they would come in the form of an incessant headache and the shame for your actions the previous night but, tomorrow seems more like it would be in the form of your friends' tales about the night and all the good—and bad—things you have missed.

Your phone chimes then, right on cue, and you ungracefully roll on your stomach to stretch your left arm forward and fish the device from under the little colorful pillows and covers on your still unmade bed.

In bold black letters shines Doyeon's name, your friend since junior year in high school with whom you have the misfortune—or fortune, depends on who you ask it to—of sharing your college experience with.

The text she has sent you is akin to a cryptic secret message from the stone age and you do not have the patience nor the will to try and understand what it means aside from the fact that she is, clearly, already too intoxicated to even know how to type down actual words.

Your suspicions are confirmed in the matter of a few seconds when your phone rings again, this time with a notification from SnapChat. Dreading what awaits you, you still tap it open and are instantly met with the loud ass music and the glorious unfocused shot of people dancing around your pretty friend.

You can hear Doyeon screaming her lungs out along with the music and, rolling your eyes, you lock your phone again.

Your lips purse into another pout as you scan your surroundings in the desperate search of something at least a little entertaining to do.

You have spent the last hour scrolling through your entire timeline on Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat, and you have reached that bottom point where nothing new is up anymore for you to consume.

You let out a strangled moan of irritation towards yourself and turn flat on your back again, staring at the ceiling in dismay.

With the semester coming to an end and your grades not being as stellar as your parents' would like them to be, you have found yourself on the verge of constant panic every waking hour of the past few weeks and it is that dread that has pushed you to make a responsible decision tonight, for once.

Staying in to study for your impendent exam seemed only rational; finishing up the assignment due on Monday instead of rushing it in panic tomorrow night for the hundredth time seemed smart and, ultimately, getting a little ahead with your mandatory literature reads—like the perfect student your parents would love for you to be—seemed absolutely genius and something you would thank yourself for in the long run. Clearly, a farfetched assumption that has been discarded a long time ago in favor of resentment towards your own line of thoughts.

When you had planned out your evening, it hadn't occurred to you that in the silence of the dorm and with the absence of Doyeon's intrusions in your room, you could be productive and finish up all of these tasks in the few hours between the late afternoon and the early evening.

So now, at barely 10 PM in the evening, you are left with no company and absolutely nothing else to do beside pathetically stare at your white naked walls.

Your phone rings again and you roll your eyes to the ceiling, already sure of the identity of the person behind the receiver.

Without a fault, it is your best friend trying to contact you again in her riled-up state and you do consider ignoring the call but then again, it's not like you have anything better to do anyway.

You barely have the time to accept the call and move the phone to your ear before Doyeon's scream in the form of your name reverberates in your skull.

"Ya'llneverbelievewhadhappend!"

Doyeon's slurs her words out in a screech that hurts both your brain and your acoustic walls, ultimately forcing you to put her on speaker and drop the phone on the bed to avoid permanent damage to your neurotic cells.

Not so surprisingly, though, you still understand the words that are thrown your way and that is because you've had this conversation quite many times before, especially in person with your brain lost in an intoxicated haze and the lack of comprehension skills.

"What happened?" You ask back, honestly just to humor her and see what she'll come up with.

Doyeon tries, she really does, but she can't really describe the picture in her head clearly and even though you give her your undivided attention, the only things you can make-out out of her rant are the words 'kiss', 'Hoseok', 'gottagoBYE'.

Before you even get the chance to utter a single word in response, you're met with the sound of the line getting caught off and the consequential silence that comes right after.

"Really..." you whisper to yourself in annoyance, glaring at your phone as if Doyeon could even see you through the locked screen.

Curiosity has your mind reeling on the infinite scenarios that could link those few words together and your eternal romantic side hooks on the possibility of Hoseok finally confessing his feelings for your best friend.

It is not a secret that both of them have been pining over each other ever since the end of last semester. Well, not a secret for anybody except them. Those two fools have been going around for literal months believing their crush was very one-sided.

"Ugh, why tonight of all nights?!" You ask at the blank wall in front of you, your hands fisting the covers in utter frustration.

You turn on your back, ungracefully landing on the bed, your face flat on the mattress.

"I wish I could turn back time," you whisper to yourself, tilting your head to the side to fix your gaze on the right wall.

Your eyes comically enlarge as the realization comes to you, the solution to your loneliness and boredom shining like a beacon in the night.

Your gaze fixes on your most precious possession lying between your textbooks in your own rendition of a library: a genie lamp.

Looking quite tacky and straight-out of a cartoon for children, the lamp that has changed your whole perception of what is real and what isn't, shines under the lights.

You jump on your feet with the excitement of a kid who has just arrived at Disneyland and with a big smile plastered on your face, you reach for the golden object.

It still feels weird to hold the ancient lamp in your hands, feel it under your digits and trace the outline of the golden decorations embossed atop the teal surface.

The lamp feels absolutely weightless in your hands and even though you're sort of accustomed to magic by now, it still seems impossible for something so light to be able to contain so many things all at once, let alone a living person.

It has been a few months since you have found the object, placidly waiting to be picked up on a deserted beach in your hometown.

It was the crack of dawn and you had been walking the long way home, enjoying the summer breeze and the nice smell of saltiness—the smell of home and good memories and peace and safety, something you miss with your entire heart when you're back in the city, living the college life.

You had picked it up because it looked like a toy, something a child would have lost and also because growing up, Aladdin had been your favorite Disney movie and oh well, even as an adult you still held a soft spot for it. It was, after all, the cartoon that sparked up your fantasy and imagination. Little did you know though that, when growing up, you'd find out that Aladdin's fairytale wasn't so farfetched as you initially believed.

You will never forget the moment you blew air out your mouth to clean up the lamp, in an attempt to make it shine bright again, and watched it spark up to life. You will also never forget the scream of utter terror that erupted from your mouth once a thick teal fog erupted from it and engulfed you whole.

In the span of a few seconds, you considered the idea of being way more drunk than you initially thought; having gone completely insane; having fallen down somewhere, banged your head and ended up in a weird-dream inducing coma.

The quick escalation of panicked thoughts had made your head spin and your heart rate spike up in your chest.

As the fog seemed to clear all around you, you had found yourself breathing in almost normally again, the thought of having experienced a seizure wildly present in the recess of your mind as you took in the scenery anew.

You expected the beach to be in the same state you had left it before you picked up that goddamned thing but, instead, you were met with two doe eyes, staring right at you.

How you didn't faint right then and there it is still a question you have no answer to but you did scream, oh God if you screamed and ran on the beach like a maniac, scared for your own life.

"Why do you scream so much?"

It had the voice of a boy, damn, he looked like a boy but he couldn't be one, because he came from that thing and if you weren't hallucinating, dreaming or, worse, stuck in a fantasy world of your own creation as your body lied peacefully in a hospital bed, that meant he wasn't human.

"Wha-w-what are you?!" The screech that came out of your mouth made him flinch and scrunch up his nose in distaste as he took a step forward, trying to reduce the distance you had put between the two of you.

"Well, if you had given me the time to speak, you would've known by now that I'm a genie and I'm here to serve you." The 'boy' bowed before you, his head hanging low and his back at a perfect ninety degrees angle to show you the respect you were supposedly due.

Terror seemed to dissipate in your chest, suppressed by a fit of laughter that you had no idea whether it actually came from hilarity or absolute insanity. Still, you laughed until your stomach ached, until your eyes got teary and your cheeks hurt.

"What's so funny?" He asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion, his lips slightly protruding forward in an adorable pout.

"You-you said you're a genie!" You could barely get the words out before you were thrown into another fit of laughter, unable to control yourself over the absurdity of the whole situation.

"Is my species something to laugh about?" His thick eyebrows narrowed as he studied you and your scrunched-up form, still giggling uncontrollably before him.

The smile slowly disappeared from your lips as you took him in completely for the first time. His eyes had turned cold, his mouth was held in a tight line, his arms crossed over his chest in defense, his stance rigid and mildly uncomfortable.

"Wait, you're being serious?!" Your mouth opened in astonishment as you stared down at him, "You aren't shitting me, right now?"

"Why would I joke about this?" He looked at you, clearly confused by both your initial reaction and your current string of questions.

"Is this some kind of candid camera?" You looked around trying to pick up on the hidden crew or a camera perfectly concealed somewhere up the road.

"What's a candid camera?"

"What's a can-really?!" You looked at him with your mouth open, your eyebrows knitted together in astonishment. Honestly, who doesn’t know what a candid camera is?

"Oh my God, I'm dealing with a crazy person!" You exclaimed, raising your arms to the sky in an over-dramatic motion of incredulity.

"You screamed at me, laughed at me and tried to run away from me and I'm the crazy person here?!" He pointed at himself, his eyes shining with both disbelief and exasperation over your refusal to believe him.

"You are the one that came out from the freaking lamp! Wait-" You stopped on your tracks, suddenly reminded of why you had been scared out of your skin in the first place.

In response, the self-proclaimed genie pointedly looked at you, his eyebrows rising up to his forehead, his hands resting on his hips as he waited for you to finally connect the dots.

It didn't make sense. Genies aren't real, that's what you kept saying to yourself because, honestly, who would have believed him right away? Who in their right mind would have?

"Prove it." You crossed your arms on your chest and looked up at him, fierceness in your gaze and defiance in your stance.

"Because clearly coming out from a lamp is not enough," he muttered to himself, shaking his head a little before relaxing his posture to lift himself up from the ground.

Your chin dropped alongside with your heart, your mind reeling in the attempt to grasp what you were staring at. He was flying. Like, actually flying and that meant either this was very real or there was something really wrong with you.

You felt the blood drain from your face as he gracefully landed before you, his lips twisted into a satisfied smirk whilst panic raged back on inside of you.

You gulped down heavily, unable to tear your gaze away from him in fear the moment you'd look away, he'd kill you. Which is dumb, of course, in retrospective it is but there was alcohol in your system and fear and panic which aren't the nicest combination, to be fair to yourself.

You blow hot air on the lamp and rub on the fogged up surface with your sleeve, cooing him out of the lamp with the same sounds you would use for a cat—something he utterly despises but that you still do just to spite him.

Nine months have passed since you picked up his lamp by accident and you have been through your ups and downs together, so much so you have started thinking about him as a friend. Of course, he doesn't know this and he cannot know this because you are aware it is dangerous territory.

Genies aren't meant to spend a lifetime with a human, they are meant to grant wishes and move on and once they do, they'll never meet their previous owners ever again.

You know this, he has explained it to you on that very first day and even though you understand the rules very well, there is this part of you that refuses the idea of ever letting him go. It's silly, but the feeling is there and it seems as unshakable as a whole huge-ass-mountain.

The familiar teal fog engulfs you, warming up your body as it enlarges in the air, moving around until it thickens into a living human-like creature.

"How many times do I have to tell you I'm a genie, not a freaking cat?"

"Good evening to you too, Jeongguk."

He rolls his eyes at you, his hands resting on his hips as he taps his foot to the floor, annoyance written all over his face.

"Fine, fine, I won't do it anymore." You peel off your gaze from his little pout, turning your back on him so you can sprawl yourself on the bed again.

"You said that last time, as well." He takes a step forward, following you to the center of the room to look down at you, his eyes shining with judgment and a little bit of mistrust.

You giggle as you sit up crossing your legs whilst you reach out a hand for him, sticking up your pinkie for him to catch.

"Pinky promise?" You offer, batting your lashes in feigned innocence.

"I'm not a kid," he grumbles under his breath but still joins your fingers together, side-eyeing you as you burst into giggles at his antics.

That's the thing with Jeongguk: he'd mumble, he'd throw a tantrum like a kid and look at you with ice-cold eyes but he'll always humor you. You don't know if it's because it's in his nature or that is just the way it is but you love it, either way.

"So, what am I doing here?" He asks, tilting his head to the side, his eyes turning into slits as he studies you, "No, scratch that. What are you doing here?"

You sigh loudly, suddenly reminded of your pathetic Friday night at the dorm.

"I'm here because I had to study, you are here because I want entertainment."

"Is that your first wish?"

It has been nine months since you have met him and not a single day has passed without him asking you about your first wish. At first, you just wanted to consider your options before wasting three wishes on trivial things.

Now, you just don't want to watch him disappear into thin air and forget all about you.

"No, dummy, I'm just bored out of my mind."

Your reply sounds lighthearted but you can't really stop the sadness creeping up in your heart at the thought of ever letting him go. You wish you could speak about this with him or with anybody else but you can't. How exactly would you explain genies to other people without making them think you need some serious help? Also, the most egoistic part of you doesn't even want anyone else to know about the existence of Jeongguk and the rest of his lot.

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?"

"Ah! You won't trick me into making a wish, I'm not that clueless!"

He shakes his head lightly, trapping his bottom lip under his teeth before sighing loudly.

"That's what I don't understand," he says, his gaze so intense it almost makes you squirm on your seat. These days it almost feels like he can read past your defense and it scares you to no end because you know what he will say. He would be right, too, in saying it but you don't want a wake-up call, not just yet.

"Why don't you?" He asks, narrowing his eyebrows as you promptly look away, avoiding his gaze with all your might.

"I just want to make sure I don't waste them up," your voice says. I enjoy your company far too much to let you go, your heart secretly whispers.

Silence welcomes your words and you let your body fall down on the mattress again, your eyes fixing up on the ceiling anew while your heart feels even heavier than it did before.

Your mind drifts off to your call with Doyeon, how happy she sounded in her messy-ass state. The likelihood of her and Hoseok being together right now is pretty high and yes, you are happy for her but also yes, you do envy her. It has been months since you've last been with a guy and it has been even longer since you even felt something for one.

With a pout on your lips you turn towards your genie, still standing at the edge of the bed with his eyes fixed on you.

This is another thing Jeongguk does: he looks at you all the time. He never lets you out of his sight and at first, you found it odd, unnerving and almost creepy but now, after so many months together, you've grown to like it because it makes you feel special, almost cherished. Of course, it is all based on a lie because it is probably in his nature to keep his eyes on his master but, even so, the heart feels and believes what it wants to.

"You know what would make me feel really better?"

You ask after a few seconds, a wicked smile spreading on your lips as you study your next words. Usually, you wouldn't talk about this stuff with him, maybe not even with Doyeon to be completely honest, but the idea of making him all flustered is too tempting to resist it.

"What?" He asks, his eyes shining with the prospect of you finally using up your very first wish. You swear to God, if he had a tail he'd be wagging it like a dog now, looking so expectantly at you.

You almost bite back the words before they can leave your mouth but then, you don't, and before you realize it, they are hanging in the hair.

"A good dickdown."

He looks at you with his eyes big as saucers, his cheeks the color of rose petals and his mouth slightly parted in a silence reply to your words.

You giggle at his response—or lack thereof—basking in the way he looks so utterly bewildered with your sudden confession.

"Well, I'm-uhm-pretty sure you won't have any problems finding someone willing to...?"

Jeongguk scratches the back of his head, his eyes drifting a little away from your face as he tries to get his composure back after you have thrown him so off with your words.

You take this chance to look at him, truly look at him without the fear of being caught staring, for once.

His black hair shines particularly bright tonight, soft and fluffy locks slightly covering his sharp eyebrows in a way that makes him look young and dainty.

His eyes are your favorite thing to look at. They are black as coal but still shimmer as if stars are trapped behind them, they are big and kind and puppy-like and they make your heart hurt whenever they fix on you.

His nose is round and a little pointed at the end, an adorable freckle is almost hidden under his right nostril and you may or may not have dreamed of kissing it before.

He has a little scar on his left cheek, almost looking like a cut and you have tried asking him about it but an answer has never come your way, no matter how much you insisted on your pursuit. You imagined a lot how it would feel under your digits. The rest of his skin looks so soft to the touch you truly wonder if it would really seem like stroking peaches if you'd reach your hand and simply touch it.

His mouth is a nice shade of coral, small but pouty and honestly so kissable it hurts to look at it for more than a few seconds. But then, if you move your gaze you find another freckle under his bottom lip and that is dangerous territory because you'd love to kiss that one too.

Everything about Jeongguk's face is soft and delicate until he turns a little to the side, or inches his head backward and you can clearly see the sharpness of his jawline; the manly cut that makes your mouth water and your heart beat faster. Yes, maybe you have developed a crush for your genie and it would definitely not be a wise decision but then again, how do you stop your heart from desiring something?

Your eyes travel a little southern, landing on his open white vest with teal and golden details on his shoulders.

Where his face is soft and gentle, his body is strong and powerful and he makes absolutely no effort to conceal it.

His arms are all muscles and veins that lead to pretty hands—have you ever even looked at hands before you met him?—his shoulders are big and look like the safest place to be held in, his chest is broad and defined and surely the most comfortable pillow to rest your head on.

Your eyes drift towards his firm abdomen, your gaze lingering there as you unconsciously lick your lips, incapable of keeping your thoughts at bay as you are presented, once again, with a body chiseled by the gods.

Whereas his pecs aren't the most defined and sculpted once you've ever seen, he makes up greatly for it when it comes down to his abs.

Before you met Jeongguk, you had never seen abdominal muscles that reached the upper torso in such a precise and perfect definition in real life.

The lines that delineate his muscles almost seem to have been airbrushed in Photoshop and, if he weren't standing before you right now and you were seeing him for the first time in a photo, you would easily bet a hundred bucks on them being absolutely fake and post-produced.

You love the little curve of his stomach, the way it looks a little bit softer compared to the rock-hard muscles above it and, to be honest, that's the part you prefer the most: his cute belly button, the way those muscles tense inward whenever he laughs too hard at one of your jokes and, further down, the truly mouth-watering little happy trail of fine hair that leads to the golden waistband of his white pants.

You can almost see the curve of his hipbones peeking through the fair fabric and you have to gulp down heavily in order to stop your thoughts from going there.

You abruptly peel off your gaze from him and redirect it towards his face, a mistake you wish you hadn't done because you find him staring right at you, a little questioning look drawn on his face.

You feel the blood quickly rush to your face, turning your skin so uncomfortably hot you almost fan yourself with your hands.

"W-well, it's not as easy as you think," you finally reply, your gaze fixed on anywhere but him, as you try to will your heart rate to slow down a little and your lungs to breathe in some more air.

"Isn't it?" Jeongguk tilts his head to the side, undoubtedly trying to catch your gaze with his own but failing when you refuse to even glance in his general direction.

"Well no because thanks to you I, unfortunately, doubled my freaking standards on males!"

There must be some kind of magical force acting here because not in a million years you would have said that out loud otherwise. The thought that had been ringing in your head ever since he had pronounced his words magically appeared on your tongue and, before you could stop yourself, there it was, hanging in the air like the freaking sword of Damocles.

Jeongguk sports a little grin on his face, clearly not so oblivious to the way he looks and how it affects people around him and, truth be told, you would give anything just to wipe it off from his mouth.

"Have I, now?" He inquires, his voice sickeningly sweet and thick with something that is not curiosity, like his words may suggest, but, rather taunting.

“Oh, please, don’t act like you don’t know how you look like,” you roll your eyes in response to his mocking behavior, gesturing at his whole lean figure for good measure, “I mean, who even has an eight-pack?!”

Jeongguk is fully giggling at your outburst, his cheeks painted in a nice pinkish tone that suggests he appreciates the implied compliment he was given far more than he’s bend to admit.

He’s shaking his head as if he can’t believe what is coming out of your mouth right now, and to be fair, neither do you, especially considering the fact that you are one hundred percent sober.

Your lips protrude forward in a little pout, your eyes glancing at the door to your bedroom without truly seeing it. You are lost in your thoughts again, the desires that have been repressed for long months burning you from the inside out, fighting to be expressed out loud, at last.

"I just wish I could have sex with someone as good looking as you, that’s all... Is that too much to ask?"

You sprawl your body on the bed, your eyes fixing on the ceiling yet again but, this time, it is to avoid the inevitable eye contact with your genie. It may also be to hide the way you are biting down your battered bottom lip in nervousness, and the way little droplets of sweat have gathered around your hairline, the result of blood rushing to your face uncomfortably so.

There is dead silence in the room for a couple of seconds before you hear the sound of clothes rustling, drawing your gaze to the side to fix on him again.

It is with utter horror that you watch him bow before you, a little smirk on his awfully kissable mouth.

"Your every wish my command."

Your heart plummets in your chest, your legs flying to the ground as you stand up in the span of a millisecond, ready to smash him down to a bloody pulp.

“Wait what?! That wasn’t a wish, you ass!”

Jeongguk rises back tall before you, his eyes glinting with mischief and absolutely no sympathy over the fact that you may just have thrown to literal shit one of your three wishes.

"I’m sorry but you can’t take back your wishes.”

"What do you mean I can't take back my wishes?! I didn't even make a fucking wish!"

You are boiling with anger at the way he so clearly took advantage of your little slip of the tongue, completely disregarding the fact that you weren't actually expressing a wish for him to fulfill in the first place.

"I don't make the rules, _______. You made a wish and now I'm going to grant it to you."

He wouldn't be able to hide the amusement glinting in his eyes even if he tried to and a part of you really wants to punch that smirk away from his face, the evident taunt in his features driving you absolutely mad.

Your mind races with thoughts and plans to get you out of this but after a few minutes it is clear that there is no way out, no matter how hard you try to work around it.

"Well...” You say, your voice quivering a little as you weigh down your options in an attempt to get the best out of what you were given, “Can I make it more specific, then? Or does that require another wish to be expressed?”

Your voice is filled with all the insecurity lodged within you, your poor bottom lip getting trapped under the vise of your teeth anew as you stare up to him, butterflies dancing in your stomach and heart spiking up its rate in your chest.

"I will allow it," Jeongguk says, tilting his head a little to the side like puppies do when they don’t understand well what has been said to them. It would be adorable if it weren’t for his eyes shining with cunning curiosity.

“What about someone that resembles you?” Your voices comes out much smaller than you initially anticipated but there is no doubt he has heard you loud and clear.

His eyes are fixed on you, his lips tightly closed in thought as silence hangs between the two of you.

The more he stands perfectly still, without uttering a single word, the more your proximity seems to become uncomfortable, unbearable even.

With all the cards laid out so nicely before him, there is no doubt Jeongguk has picked up on the fact that you have obviously developed a crush on him.

But even if he did, he decides to not address this but, rather, scratching his head a little he utter his next words:

“I’m sorry, but I can’t create someone from thin air. Genies cannot create humans nor kill them or revive them after death.”

You inhale loudly, your eyes drifting to the wall behind him as holding his gaze seems to become an impossible task from here on forward.

It almost feels like the walls around you are crumbling down, allowing him to see the most private and not-so-pretty parts of your soul. Something you never wanted him to see.

“So... if you can’t create someone are you going to summon a real person?”

You are playing with your hands as you say so, trying to wrap up your mind around genie magic and its infinite set of rules that you can’t even begin to comprehend.

“Not exactly,” Jeongguk seems hesitant as he speaks those words, his feet fidgeting as he clicks his tongue, a habit you know means he’s in deep thought—in this case probably trying to figure out the best way to explain to you how his magic works.

“Well... there must be some human being somewhere in this vast world that even remotely resembles...” your words get caught in your throat as you dare to lift your eyes up to meet his. It feels so humiliating to be saying this, finally admitting out loud the grandness of your feelings for him but at the same time, it is not lack of fine male specimen that has stopped you from fucking around in the past few months. It’s the fact that your platonic crush for your genie has made it impossible for every single human to stand a chance against him.

“I am no human being so, no, there is nobody else like me.”

His voice is deep as he stares down at you, all hilarity gone from his gaze as he takes you down, evidently studying you to the point it makes you squirm on the spot. You have never desired to disappear inside the ground as much as you do now. Would that be an acceptable wish to express?

“I see,” your voice is small, your eyes unable to peel off of him now even though you desperately want to, his gaze locking you in place, entrancing with the stars shining like beacons behind them.

“But I guess there is a way for you to have sex with someone like me.” He says after a few seconds, wetting his lips quickly as he scratches his head in uncertainty.

“What do you mean?”

“Well... you could have sex with me.” He bites his bottom lip, his eyes shining with a hint of doubt you have never seen reflected inside of them and it makes your heart stutter in your chest and traps your voice inside your throat whilst you try to process what he has just said.

“Come again?” You whisper after a few seconds, the words rolling off of your tongue feeling like rocks in your mouth as you try to push them out, all heavy and rough around the edges.

Jeongguk gulps down heavily in front of you, his eyes glued on yours as he takes a step forward, forcing you to lift your head up a little to stare back at him.

“Tell me you have never thought about it.” He says, licking his lips as he steadies himself, boldness firing up his words as he slowly musters up the courage to freely speak his mind.

“Tell me you have never dreamed about me and all the things I would do to you.”

His voice seems to drop an entire octave as he presses onward, his words thick with lustiness as if he were trying to seduce you.

Your silence and the way your mouth parts to breathe in loudly seem only to fuel him forward, prompting him to take another step forward.

You can feel the heat radiating from his body, the sweet hint of cinnamon he’s embodied with engulfing you whole and your brain starting to get fuzzy with wanton desire.

“Tell me you have never touched yourself thinking about me, about my tongue teasing your sex, about my fingers moving in and out of you.” His voice is rough and husky and it makes your legs tremble with the tantalizing fantasies his words depict in your head.

When he takes the final step forward, all you can think about is his mouth on top of yours, his hands roaming all over you and as he takes your chin with one hand, caressing your skin as he tips your face forward, your heart drops in your chest.

“Tell me you haven’t imagined how my cock would feel like inside of you and I’ll take back my offer.”

Your mouth suddenly feels as dry as a desert, your mind reeling with the infinite possibilities nicely laid out before you—if nine months worth of wet dreams is anything to go by.

You should jump at the offer, don’t even stop for a whole second to consider it and just take it but there is that little drop of doubt squeezing your heart, making it impossible for you to blindly follow your desires.

“Do you really mean it?” You ask in a whisper, wetting your lips as you search his eyes for any hint of doubt hidden inside them, “I don’t want this unless you truly want it too.”

Jeongguk tips his head a little to the side, inhaling deeply before sighing out loud, his eyes closing for a brief second.

“I thought I had made it clear enough with my words,” he says after a moment, his hands traveling down your body to rest on your hips, slightly guiding them forward until they meet his.

You gasp out loud as you are met with his semi-erection, pressing slightly over your core so to not leave any doubts he desires you just as much as you want him.

“I don’t have to have sex with you,” he whispers, his face moving forward until your noses meet, your lips so close they almost brush against each other, “I want to.”

His warm breath caresses your face as he confesses his own desires out loud, leaving you completely speechless.

In the span of a few seconds, your whole world has been turned upside down by Jeongguk again but you do not stop wondering, you do not waste time asking yourself questions you can always get back to later on. No, as soon as the words are out, your lips are on top of his, claiming his mouth like you desperately desired to do so many times.

He gasps loudly as your hands fly to his hair to pull him down towards you, your fingers getting lost in his locks as you tug on them, forcing him to bend a little forward and welcome the intrusion of your tongue.

Jeongguk tastes like a summer drink: refreshing and sweet and so much more than you ever imagined or wished for.

His lips are as soft as cotton and they feel like heaven against your own, pressing and pulling on the supple flesh until you’re sighing for him, relishing in how amazing it feels to finally have him like this.

His hands slide down from your hips to reach behind your back and tightly clasp around the curve of your bottom cheeks.

“Jeongguk,” you whisper atop his mouth, opening your eyes to fix your gaze in his shining ones.

His lips are all red, slick with your saliva and so incredibly inviting you fear you may never want to stop kissing him for as long as you are breathing.

He touches your nose with the tip of his own, his hands engulfing your butt cheeks a little roughly, making you whimper in return.

His palms come to rest under your ass, pushing you upwards until your legs are encircling his waist and your arms are clasped behind his neck.

In this position he is the one that has to look up to you, his head bent a little to the side so he can still gaze inside your eyes.

If you thought the way Jeongguk looked at you before was heartwarming, now you are met with the raging fire summoned by his love-struck-like gaze.

He inches his chin forward, flicking your nose a little with his own, a shy smile on his lips as he silently asks the permission to claim your lips anew.

You nod your head yes, holding your breath as your eyes close for him, waiting for his mouth.

Jeongguk’s kiss is slow and delicate at first, it’s drawn out in a way that makes you want more, so much more, and at the same time, it’s precious and laced with not only the passion of the moment but also the tenderness of a first time together.

It makes your insides twitch and your heart hurt and it fogs up all of your thoughts to the point you feel yourself drowning in the sensation of his lips, pressed tightly on your own.

It’s maddening and exciting and a little bit scary because how will you go about your life now that you actually know what it feels like to be kissed by him, held by him so tight your bodies may even merge together.

Your heart is beating like a maniac in your chest and you pull him even closer, so tight your chests have no choice but heave against each other with every single breath you take. You don’t want to let him go, ever.

And these thoughts turn you desperate, they force you to make the kiss deeper, to lick his lips and bite them down, to gulp down every sigh and whimper that comes out of him and make them your own.

“I want you so much,” you whisper and in those words, there is much more than the initial layer. You want to feel him inside of you, on top of you, all around you but most importantly you want him for yourself and not just for one single night.

But you do not dare say it out loud, you do not dare taint this moment with the depth of your emotions in fear of ruining it, of shying him away. It may hurt in the long run but at least, you will have one memory you share together to go by.

Right now, he wants you just as much as you want him and maybe it’s not the same kind of desire but you’d still take everything he has to offer.

“Then take me,” he purrs out in your ear, kissing lightly the soft skin of your neck as he slowly puts you down on your own two feet again.

You wet your lips quickly, your breath coming out in hot puffs of air as your hands immediately fly to his vest, roughly pushing it past his shoulders and then down his arms. You are completely blinded by the passion burning inside of you, your hands eager to explore and touch every expanse of his golden skin. No, not just that. You want to taste him.

Your lips attack his neck, all rough and passionate on the tender skin, blooming purple roses against it until he’s softly moaning out your name, his hands pulling you closer so that you won’t stop torturing his flesh in the best ways possible.

Jeongguk emits the most beautiful sounds your ears have ever heard. He whines and sighs and grunts for you, he closes his eyes as he parts his lips to whimper out your name with every new thing you find that excites him and it drives you absolutely insane. You can’t stop wondering how he would sound like as you fuck him hard, rock on his cock to milk his orgasm, make him beg not to stop. God, you desperately want to break him and draw all these nice sounds out of him.

Your lips are scorching hot against his naked skin and he shivers as you start kissing him along the line of his clavicles, slowly moving south to his pecks and even further, to the object of your current desire: his muscular abs.

Your tongue darts out of your mouth to taste the tight and firm skin and he whimpers again at the sensation, throwing his head a little backward as his fingers grasp your hair.

It feels like breaking him little by little and you can only imagine how good he will sound once your undivided attention is finally on his cock.

A wicked smile spreads on your lips as you keep kissing and licking the expanse of his abs, particularly focusing on the supple flesh around his belly button.

Your once rough kisses turn gentler as you keep inching downwards, exploring the trail of hair that leads to the treasure still concealed by his white pants. Goosebumps gather on his skin as your lips turn even softer, barely pressing over the flesh whilst your nose nuzzles forward, teasing him a little with the briefest of contacts.

You lift your gaze upwards, smiling when you find his eyes trained on you, focused on your every movement. His pupils are blown out and his hair disheveled with your previous kissing session making him look already well-fucked while you haven’t even started yet.

Keeping your gaze locked on his, you move your hands behind his back, reaching for the firm curve of his ass only to grasp the golden waistband of his pants.

You slide them down slowly, your eyes taunting him as you keep studying his face, the way he bites his lips in anticipation or gulps down heavily at the prospect ahead of him.

As the soft fabric of his pants moves past the curve of his ass, consequently sliding down his legs, you watch him shudder and bite his bottom lip in foretaste and it is that sight that prompts you to look down again, seeking a glimpse at the treasure hidden between his legs.

Your breath trembles as you exhale loudly at the vision laid before your very eyes. Jeongguk's cock stands almost fully erected before you in all its glory—his underwear nowhere to be seen—ready to receive the attention it so desperately seeks.

As you stand up before him again, mouth watering with the prospect of finally having him all for your self, you offer a hand for him to grab. His fingers intertwine with your own effortlessly and it is a simple touch really, nothing to compare with the activities you have been sharing thus far but still, it makes your heart leap in your chest and a smile spread on your lips.

Without uttering a single word you slowly guide him to your bed to make him sit on the edge of your soft mattress.

His legs automatically spread nicely for you as he tilts his head upwards, looking up at you expectantly.

With a soft smile you inch forward, quickly capturing his lips with your own yet again while your left hand slides down from his neck to his pecks, your fingers slightly grazing his skin as you move southward, taunting him with your slow movements and relishing in the way his muscles start to tense more the closer you get to his sex.

He whimpers on your mouth as soon as your fingers graze the surface of his length with the softest of touches and you smirk atop his lips, rejoicing in the way he so easily reacts to your every movement.

“Someone’s a little eager,” you whisper, searching for his eyes with a little taunting smile on your lips.

“Don’t tease, please.” His voice is thick, his eyes big and staring at you in a puppy-like fashion that makes your heart hurt. How can someone be this hot and cute at the same damn time? In an instant, you want to devour him whole, make him beg you to let him cum inside of you and then let him ruin you completely in return.

You take a step forward to sit on top of his muscular right thigh, your lips so close to his mouth that your breaths start to mingle whilst you slowly rock your hips forward on top of him.

Your fingers wrap around the base of his cock, slowly gliding upwards in delicate and tentative strokes that will bring him a little pleasure without the risk of you chafing him in the process.

“I want to touch you,” he whimpers out, his eyes pleading as he looks up at you.

You watch him gulp down heavily as your hips roll a little faster over his thigh, you watch his pupils dilate as your mouth opens in a sigh of pleasure given by the nice friction his toned muscles provide on your fully clothed core.

You nod your head yes in response, your breath quickened by the excitement coiling nicely in your belly and he jumps at the chance of finally putting his hands all over you.

It is such a juxtaposition for him to act this way—all needy and submitted to your desires—when only a few instants ago he was being all confident and cocky but it is also utterly endearing and new for you, at the same time.

His fingers are timid as they approach your skin, slowly infiltrating under your shirt to finally caress your flesh and burn it with his digits, imprint his passage on every inch of your body.

His touch is soft at first as he scans your entire upper body with his hands but as soon as he finds the supple curve of your uncovered tits, he turns rougher, needier.

Your hand is still taunting his cock, your thumb teasing his head ever so slightly to draw out unsteady breaths and little whimpers out of him.

You catch up the glint in his eyes as he keeps tugging on your shirt, hoping to make it ride a little higher and expose your entire chest to him, and with a silent grin, you help him get the garment off of you and give him the treat he so desperately desired to receive.

His mouth is on your chest in the span of a few seconds, his tongue playing with your nipples with the same rhythm of your hand around is now fully erected cock.

Your back arches a little for him, your mouth opening in a silent moan as the wetness of your underwear begins to uncomfortably stick to your slick sex.

You gulp down heavily as you still your hips on top of him, your tongue daring out of your mouth to lick your dry lips and slow down the rampant beating of your heart.

He looks up at you ardently as you rise on your feet again, releasing your hold on his cock just long enough for you to get rid of your sweat pants and stand before him in nothing but your very flimsy pair of white panties.

He bites down his bottom lip as he stares up at you, his arms inching forward to grasp your hips and guide you back to him so he can keep studying and mapping every crevice of your body.

He kisses your stomach, nuzzles his nose between your tits to inhale loudly the sweet scent of your skin and you shiver under him, sighing in pleasure at the simplest of touches.

“Can I ride your dick?” You ask in a breath, your eyes searching for his to gauge his response to your lewd question.

“Fuck,” he whimpers out, his eyes almost rolling back inside his head just at the thought of having you above him, fucking him to completion, “Please do.”

You push him down the mattress with your hands to quickly climb on top of him, your legs straddling his hips as you inch a little forward to capture his lips.

His hands are firm around the curve of your ass, guiding your hips up and down to create a little friction between his hard cock and your clothed sex.

The sensation of his girth between your slick lips is already enough to make you sigh for him and as you do he takes the chance to slip his tongue past your teeth and inside your mouth. The kiss is scorching hot, it leaves you breathless and desperate to finally feel him inside of you and as soon as one of his hands is between your legs, you turn a whimpering mess for him.

He pushes your panties to the side and if the lewd sound your underwear emits as he pushes it away from your sex is anything to go by, you must be soaking wet at this point.

He inhales sharply atop your lips, cutting the kiss short so that he can focus on the little bundle of nerves between your legs.

You have been dreaming about his hands for literal months and yet they feel like nothing you have experienced before.

His little circular motions are slow and deep and they make your stomach contract in waves of pleasure.

“Oh, Jeongguk,” you moan his name and he attaches his mouth to the base of your neck to suck on the tender flesh and tint it a dark shade of purple.

A sob escapes your mouth as he pushes a finger inside of you, stretching your walls with its dragged out circular motions in and out of your core.

Jeongguk may have looked like a needy sub up to this point but there is no doubt he really knows what he is doing.

He finds your pleasure spots with utter ease and he is not afraid to hit on them with sheer precision to draw all the beautiful sounds out of your mouth.

“I want to fuck you,” you whimper out after a while and he chuckles a little, quickly retrieving his exploring fingers from inside of you.

As he pushes his back on the mattress again his expectant eyes focus on you anew, a little smirk on his mouth.

You visibly shiver as he brings his coated finger to his lips and sucks on the slick digit.

You lick your lips a few times as you watch his tongue dart out of his mouth to keep licking his finger in a lewd depiction of what he would do if that were to be your sex instead of his own digit.

Fire seems to be burning inside of you as you hastily remove your underwear and align your core to his turgid cock, eager to finally feel him inside of you.

Your hand grips his shaft by the balls, keeping it perfectly still as you gradually sink onto him, welcoming him past your slick walls.

He inhales loudly, closing his eyes as you slowly keep pushing yourself down, meeting his cock to its fullest potential until he is completely lodged inside of you, stretching your walls in a blissful way that makes you sigh in pleasure.

You stay perfectly still for a few second, willing your core to relax and adjust to the intrusion of his girth while your left hand reaches behind your back to squeeze his balls and add pleasure to the feeling of your walls slightly contracting all around him.

He hisses at the new sensation, biting his bottom lip to gulp down the heavenly sounds you love to hear from him and you retaliate by squeezing him harder, almost painfully so, until he is forced to cry out loud.

“Don’t hold back,” you whisper into his ear as you lean forward to steal another kiss from him, “I want to hear you scream.”

Jeongguk whines at your words, his bottom lip protruding forward into a little pout as he stares right inside your eyes.

“Fuck me,” he whimpers out, his hips slightly rotating against your own in his desperate search for some friction, “Please.”

Your eyes almost roll back inside your head at the needy tone his words are laced with. All the power he has bestowed upon you is making you dizzy, mad with the desire of taunting him until he breaks and begs for more.

You lift your hips a little and then roughly sink onto him again, relishing in the sound of your ass cheeks smacking his thighs and balls in the process.

Tilting your head a little backward you start rolling your hips forward for him, your bottom lip trapped under your teeth and your hands roughly grasping the soft skin of your breasts.

“Fuck you’re so hot,” he whispers as he looks up at you and the way you keep taunting him with your hands roaming all over your own body, with the little sighs of ecstasy you emit every time he exhales loudly in pleasure.

Resting your palms onto his pecs to keep yourself balanced, you readjust your pace to a rather rough and bruising one that has you whimpering and sighing for his heavenly cock, for the way it seems to be getting even bigger as time progresses and pleasure arises inside both of you.

Soon enough your room is filled with the lewd sounds of skin smacking on skin, of deep moans and low grunts, of lips desperately searching and finding each other in the blindness of desire.

“Ugh, you take my cock so well.”

Jeongguk is breathing fast beneath you, his sighs turning into full out high-pitched moans that make your insides clench with arousal. Every single one of his words or needy sounds works as fuel for the fire burning between your legs and it makes you even more eager to make him burst inside of you and come all over him in return.

“Am I living up to your dreams?” He asks after a few seconds, his eyebrows furrowed as he searches the answer inside your eyes.

“Yes, you are, ugh, you feel so good Gukie.”

The little nickname seems to work wonders on him as he grunts in response, his hands almost turning bruising around your hips as he starts guiding them down, forcing you to pick up your pace a little more.

“Harder, fuck me harder.” He pleads, closing his eyes while his mouth opens to form a silent ‘O’, the only inkling of the deep pleasure you are giving him he seems capable of showing right now.

You lift yourself up a little higher to plant your feet on the mattress and sink into him harder just like he asked for, desperate to please him and be pleased at the same time.

Jeongguk’s breaths turn even louder—his diaphragm contracting madly beneath you— his sobs a little bit more desperate as his orgasm draws nearer and nearer by the second.

“Aww, faster baby, please.”

His nails start digging the soft flesh of your ass and you whimper at both the pain and the pleasure the roughness provides, his hips start rocking upwards to try and fasten up your pace by meeting you halfway and bring himself over the edge.

The battering speed inside your pussy is heart-stopping, the head of his cock reaching your G spot with utter precision is absolutely devastating and it has you whimpering for him in a matter of seconds.

Your walls madly contract around him, squeezing him even tighter and making it almost impossible for him to resist any longer.

“Are you going to soil my pretty cock, uh?” He asks in a whine, his eyes searching for yours as he realizes your orgasm is as close as his very own.

“Yeah, oh-shit, I’m-I’m gonna cum all over you, Gukie.”

He growls at your words and you roll your hips even faster in response, chasing your release so desperately it almost hurts.

“Are you going to fill my pussy up?” You ask in a breath, mirroring his own question as you feel the wave of pleasure rushing from your head down to your core.

As your walls start to spasmodically contract all around him you feel him getting stiff beneath you, his breath getting caught in his lungs with the depth of his pleasure finally exploding in and out of him.

“Aww, fuck, fuck, fuuuuck.” His deep moan is followed by the sensation of his cock pulsing inside of you in unison to the spasms of your core and the one of his release milking your insides with generous spurts of white nectar.

By the time you both come down from your highs you are sprawled all over his body, his soft cock lying between your stomachs as you rest your head above his heaving chest, your legs nicely mingled together.

“That was mind-blowing,” you whisper making him chuckle as he encircles your frame with his strong arms.

His gaze is warm now, softer, and it makes you wish to stay like this for the rest of your lifetimes.

“Jeonggukie?” You ask in a whisper, making him tilt his head to the side with a questioning look on his face.

“I want to make another wish,” you confess, blood rushing all to your head as you tilt it upwards to stare back at him.

“Tell me,” his right hand comes to rest on your cheek, slightly guiding your face forward to place a tender kiss atop your lips.

“I want to have sex with you again.”

“When?” He breaths out, not a single hint of hesitation in his voice, signaling you he wants it just as much as you do.

“Now.”

“Your every wish is my command,” he replies, a playful smirk tugging on his lips as you lift yourself up and slowly make your descent towards his soft cock.

There has been this desire stuck in your mind ever since you undressed him and as you come to a halt between his legs, Jeongguk is made aware of your lewd intentions rather quickly.

His sex is covered in both your juices and a few drops of his own cum. To you, it looks like an absolute feast.

You lick your lips expectantly, pointing your eyes on his face as you open up your mouth to let your tongue do the trick.

You lap at his warm skin to gather up all the spilled remnants of your orgasms and he visibly shudders at the sensation of your scratchy muscle working on his flesh.

Jeongguk closes his eyes as you come closer and closer to his cock, already foretasting the moment your lips will close around it and work it to hardness anew.

You take your long-ass-time though, opting for a rather teasing pace and kitten licks that make him tremble and whine in annoyance when you keep getting so close to his sex while remaining so impossibly away from it.

“You really are a tease,” he mumbles under his breath, his head tilted forward so he can stare at you as you giggle in response.

“And you really are impatient, Gukie.” He shivers at your words and you tilt your head to the side, a playful smile tugging on your lips as you study his features.

“Do you like that? Me calling you Gukie?”

He hums in response, biting his bottom lip as if in deep thought and maybe he is, trying to decide whether he should elaborate on the reason why or not.

Either way, he doesn’t really get a chance to add on it because your mouth is all around him in an instant and he has a hard time breathing all of a sudden.

He whimpers a little as you suck on his soft flesh, your mouth slurping him loudly as if you were sucking on a candy.

“Ah! Damn.”

His abs contract as you suck on him a little bit harder, coaxing his dick to a new erection.

Your tongue darts out of your mouth to swiftly lick his head as you pointedly look up at him to study all the little twists on his features, learning what he likes and what he doesn’t.

Your left hand reaches between his legs to squeeze his balls and he whines as you do so, his eyes rolling back inside his head.

You can feel his cock hardening as you lick a long stripe from the base of his length up to his head again.

“You taste so good, Gukie.”

You mumble on top of his reddened flesh before engulfing him completely in your mouth again. Your jaw is slack and your cheeks are hollowed as you suck on him as hard as you can, closing your eyes to hum as his flavor invades your taste buds.

His hands come to grasp your hair, locking you in place above his cock, begging you to not stop anytime soon.

You let him guide your head, adjust your bobbing to his preferred pace and bask in the sighs of ecstasy that come out from his mouth, especially the ones that sound a lot like your name.

“Wait-” he whines after a while, his hands leaving your head to grasp the bed sheets, his chest heaving with the effort of keeping his orgasm at bay, “Wait or I’ll come in your mouth.”

You consider pushing forward, bring him to his knees and let him fill up your mouth, feeling his essence coil down your throat and invade your belly but, in the end, you lift your head up and with a lewd pop, you leave his cock alone to stand perfectly tall before you, glistening with your saliva.

“How are you so good at sucking cocks?” He mumbles, more to himself than to you but you still giggle in response, quirking your eyebrows at him.

“I’m a natural talent,” you reply before tauntingly licking your lips. ‘Talent and lots of experience here at college, actually,’ but he doesn’t really need to know that, does he?

“Can I try something, though?” You ask biting your bottom lip in uncertainty. There are plenty of things you have never tried before but have been dying to for a while now and Jeongguk makes you want to explore all of them, all at the same time.

“Anything,” he promptly replies, his eagerness so endearing you can’t help but giggle again. Who knew Jeongguk had this much cuteness in him? Surely you had no idea prior to this very night.

You slowly roll off the bed, your knees hitting the ground as you drag him with you to the edge of the mattress again.

Jeongguk’s gaze is fixed on you, curiosity shining in his pupils as he studies your every movement, eager to discover what exactly you have in store for him.

You arch your back a little to align your chest to his erected cock standing tall in front of you, ready to be the center of your undivided attention again.

Your hands start caressing your breasts, bringing them together to squeeze his sex between them and give it a nice deep stroke.

Jeongguk’s breath trembles, his body shuddering at the new sensation and you look up at him earnestly, trying to adjust your pace to something that will bring him real pleasure.

You tilt your head a little forward as you gather some saliva in your mouth to coat his cock with in the absence of lube.

Jeongguk seems to find the visual particularly exciting as he grunts at the image depicted before him.

A smile spreads on your lips as a new idea surfaces in your mind, then.

You spread your legs a little further to stabilize yourself on the ground while bending your neck all the way forward, ready to welcome the head of his cock inside your mouth with each passing stroke of your tits.

"Oh, fuck." Jeongguk's high-pitched whine encourages you further, prompting you to set on a pace that is bound to make him crumble in the span of a few minutes.

Maybe it's because you told him not to hold back earlier or maybe he is just incapable of gulping down all of his lovely sounds but, yet again, Jeongguk is turned into a whimpering and moaning mess and each one of his little mewls makes your walls contract on thin air.

You unconsciously start bringing your legs closer to rub your thighs against each other, hopelessly seeking for a little friction on your neglected core.

Your arousal is dripping down your sex, coiling in big rivulets on your inner thighs, making them slick and slippery.

"I'm-" Jeongguk wets his dry lips, his pants already giving away what he is trying to say but you do play innocent, pretending not to know what exactly you are doing to him.

"Do you want me to come like this?" He asks in a breath, his hands fisting the covers while the muscles of his thighs contract in the effort of keeping himself steady.

Your mouth turns a little rougher on the head of his cock, your silence perfectly proving your point.

"I-ah! I want to make one of your wet dreams r-real" He confesses in a whine, his eyes closing and eyebrows furrowing with the incessant waves of pleasure that keep rushing over his body, menacing to bring him down.

"Is this what you dreamt of? Me coming in your mouth like this?"

You slow down your movements, your mouth leaving his cock again as you ponder his words. The answer would be no, actually. You had never dreamed about doing this with him and despite the excitement of the act, you do have to admit that what he is offering right now sounds far more tempting.

"Not exactly," you confess, your voice a little hoarse.

"Tell me," his voice suddenly turns sharp, losing all the needy and sweet tone he stuck with for the rest of the night and transforming into something more demanding.

You can't help but shiver at his sudden character switch and he is quick to catch up on it, to the way you instantly start biting down your bottom lip at his words.

His once gentle hands turn hard on your body as he lifts you up only to roughly throw you on the bed.

He climbs on top of you with no hesitation, fire burning in his eyes as he kisses your lips with a new-found fervor.

You whimper in the kiss, your fingers grasping his sweaty locks of hair to pull him even closer and feel his erection pressed atop your core.

"You like it a little rough, don't you?" He asks, his voice husky as he puts a hand around your neck, slightly pressing over your carotid to cut down the oxygen income.

"I-I do," you reply, your bottom lip trembling with excitement as he rolls his hips on top of yours.

This Jeongguk is the one that has been haunting your dreams ever since you met him but, after discovering his other side too you find yourself unable to decide which side you actually prefer: the one that likes to be teased, tortured and submitted or the one that loves to be rough, dominate and break his partner.

He pries your legs open with his hands, his mouth sliding down your neck so he can bite the tender flesh and leave his mark there, in plain sight.

The pain is sharp for a second, making you yelp, but as warmth spreads over your skin it is quickly subdued by pleasure and the feeling of his tongue lapping the battered skin.

Jeongguk slides his cock inside of you with one swift movement right in that moment and you whimper at the sudden feeling of being filled again by his rock-hard length.

Your eyes close as he keeps pushing deeper inside of you, seemingly only satisfied when he is completely lodged inside of you and ready to fuck your brains out.

Jeongguk's strokes are slow, dragged out to the point it makes you want to scream in frustration. He almost slides his cock completely out of you and then slams it right back in with one single stroke, making you jump as he hits the perfect spot with maddening precision.

You know he is doing this on purpose to get back to you and make you beg for it just like you did with him. Still, you don't give him the satisfaction of bringing you over the edge this easily, this quickly.

You endure it, closing your eyes and grasping the crumpled bed covers, biting your bottom lip to hide any sign of both pleasure and frustration.

"You want to play though, uh?" He asks as he fists your hair, forcing your head to lift off the bed and directly face him, "Two can play this game, baby."

A wicked smirk appears on his features making you shiver in anticipation, his eyes glinting with mischief as he lets go of your head only to focus on his cock, slowly moving in and out of your slick core.

His hands find purchase under your ribs, guiding you forward until your legs are resting on his shoulders and he has complete access to your sex.

With the new position, he wastes absolutely no time to slam inside of you with all the strength he is capable of, instantly making you mewl in pleasure.

You try to bite your bottom lip again, you try to gulp down all the sounds you want to emit out loud but as he starts pounding inside of you, it proves to be an impossible task.

The taste of blood fills your mouth as the tender flesh breaks under the vise of your own teeth and you are forced to let go of the poor battered flesh, consequently giving up your resolve of not showing him how much you are enjoying this change of scenario.

Without a force helping you contain your moans, they flood out of you like water from a broken dike and they quickly fill the room alongside his grunts and the heavy sounds of skin slapping on skin.

He pushes himself forward, bringing your legs with him so that you are almost folded in half, unable to escape his bruising pace inside of you.

"Jeongguk," you whimper out for him, your eyes searching his dark pools as your chest starts to heave with your panting breaths.

He rolls his hips harder into you in response, making your eyes roll back inside your head, your jaw turning slack as your mouth opens in a silent moan of pleasure.

You feel your walls starting to spasm, your legs quivering a little with your incumbent release and you start to fear he might retreat, edge you and denial your orgasm in order to make you cry out loud and beg him to let you come but what he does, instead, is roll his hips faster and throw you over that edge completely.

Your ears start ringing as the orgasm fully takes over your thoughts, blanketing them with white cotton.

His cock still hammers inside of you, milking your orgasm incessantly, ready to throw you back into it as soon as it seems like it has washed out of you.

It almost feels like too much having him still inside you like this, battering your pleasure spot so tirelessly but the slight discomfort gets washed away by bliss again in the span of a few seconds.

"Fuuuck," you whimper out, the word dragged out by your ragged breath.

His mouth finds yours again at this moment, ready to completely steal your breath away and leave you absolutely breathless.

Slowly, he draws a little backward, allowing your legs to fall on top of his as he repositions himself, turning you a little to the side so that he can rest right behind you.

You immediately turn your head behind your back, eager to keep your eyes on him and watch him come inside of you for the second time tonight. You do not want to miss a single twist in his features as he keeps fucking you like this.

His hands keep you firmly in place as he resumes his pace inside of you, effort and arousal painted all over his features as he chases his own release.

Even when he is being rough like this, bent on breaking you into pieces, he is letting out those heavenly sounds that captivated you in the first place tonight.

They are absolutely intoxicating, they ring like music to your ears and if you could hear a single sound for the rest of your life it would be exactly this: his moans and the sound of your name on his lips.

You can sense his orgasm nearing by the way his hips start losing their perfect pattern, by the way his breath is hitting your ear more rapidly and by how more high-pitched his moans are turning as time progress.

You purposefully contract your walls around him, making him grunt at the sensation, giving him that slight more push towards the verge of his release.

One of his hands lets go of your hip to travel forward, his fingers quickly finding your clit to draw large and deep circles over the bundle of nerves to bring you over the finish line in unison with him again.

The arousing sensation makes it hard for you to stop your hips from eagerly rolling onto his, following the movement of both his hand on your sex and his cock inside of you.

He comes inside of you with a low and deep moan that makes your walls contract and your mouth moan loudly for him in return.

Your body quivers for the third time tonight before turning into absolute jelly, shutting down in defeat.

Silence engulfs you whole and for a moment you think you may actually drift off to sleep like this, with the warmth of Jeongguk's body behind you and the reassurance of his presence by your side.

It is actually him that stirs you back into consciousness, bringing you closer to his chest so that his lips can brush against your ear.

"Was that how dream-Jeongguk did it?" He asks, chuckling a little over his own question.

You turn inside his embrace so that you can face him and shake your head no with a little smile on your lips.

"No, this Jeongguk is actually better."

His smile is full of pride as he steals a quick kiss from your mouth.

It is so endearing to watch him get back to his more cute side but again, it makes your heart hurt. As you rest like this, looking up at him, the misery of your situation awakens back inside of you.

There is no doubt by now that you have feelings for this boy right here, very big ones at that, and it is something clearly impossible, something you have to forget and pretend like it never existed.

It is with that fear of tomorrow in mind that you open up your mouth again, your eyes shining with the menace of tears.

Jeongguk seems to read your mind again tonight as he quickly presses his finger on top of your mouth.

"Don't. Don't say it."

His eyes turn serious as he stares down at you, all warmth and banter quickly disappearing from his features.

"Don't waste your last wish on me." He adds, his voice thick with emotion as he gulps down heavily, almost as if he were fighting against tears himself.

"Once your last wish is fulfilled I'll have to go back inside the lamp and we will never get to see each other again."

You nod your head a little because he has already explained this to you, yet, you still want to make another wish, extend this moment for as long as possible, rejoice in it while it lasts.

Jeongguk shakes his head no a few times, hugging you closer as if afraid you'd disappear in front of him when, actually, it would be him turning into a teal fog before your very eyes, leaving you alone to deal with a broken heart.

"There is no need to make a wish when I'd gladly stay here with you for as long as you'll want me to."

His left hand caresses your head lovingly, his eyes pleading you to let him finish, to not shatter this moment and turn it into your last one together.

"And I'll gladly make love to you whenever you want to and not because a wish binds us together, but because I want it too."

Before you know it, there are tears falling on your cheeks, turning your vision hazy as the real meaning behind his words finally hits you.

All this time, you had no idea. You didn't know that his eyes were always on you because he couldn't look away; you didn't know that he kept asking about your wishes not because he wanted to move on but because he was afraid of doing so; you didn't know that when he was granting you that first wish he was actually granting himself his own.

"Don't cry," he whispers on your lips, his thumbs drying your hot skin as a smile finally spreads on your lips.

It is happy tears that keep flooding from your eyes because it feels like a dream, a fantasy you'll have to wake up from eventually but it is not. Not this time.

And tonight, Jeongguk makes you his again but this time it is slow, gentle and sweet; this time he keeps whispering loving words inside your ears and kissing your lips to steal away all your beautiful whimpers and make them his own. This time, as you come together in each other's embrace, there is more than passion shining in your eyes. There is love.

#btssmutclub #btswritersguild #kwordsmiths #bangtanbookclub #jungkook smut #jeongguk smut #jungkook x reader #jeongguk x reader

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rylredrants · 4 years

Text

The New Normal

The pandemic has changed everything and lately I’ve been asking myself, “When did this become normal? At what point of the last 10 months did the idea of the ‘new normal’ fade into a new reality?”

I recently watched the 90 Day Fiancée season that they filmed during the initial “lockdown” period last spring. People were just starting to wear masks because we had just been told they would help “flatten the curve” while learning to bake, and binging ‘Tiger King.’

I had already been doing curbside pickup because I was afraid of running into *Beetlejuice* at the grocery store. (I’ve decided to not say the name of that ex because that seems to be how I summon more “attention” from him.) I had just decided I was ready to start dating again, going on my first ‘first date’ in years right before restaurants started closing.

My first date with Pirate on April 29th consisted of slushies in the park with a bit of distance between us while we felt out whether or not the other was truly worth breaking quarantine to get physical with.

Spoiler alert! Things are just as great in our everyday life as they were in that initial NRE phase last spring.

I’ve been working from home for the same company for 3 and a half years, so that was no change for me. The daily press briefings from the tRump interrupted my work day but I just had to watch live because I wouldn’t believe the things I was hearing if I hadn’t seen and heard it live… the look on Dr. Birx face when he suggested “hitting the body with UV light” and rambled into the suggestion that doctors inject disinfectant to cure COVID…. The day that a reporter flat out asked him if he regretted “all the lying, all the dishonesty” during his presidency, and all of the other times he discredited the media and rambled about his ‘ratings’ while lying about the severity of the virus.

I posted articles and tweets about the pandemic so much that I lost one friend early on because I wasn’t my usual sunny self anymore. That was after she messaged me talking about how harmful masks were.

And then the election started creeping up while the Quazy Anons got progressively louder and louder.

My best friend laid a guilt trip on me for going on a road trip to Mexico for my birthday where people were masked more than anywhere locally, while she cited local COVID numbers from her hotel room in Las Vegas… where she had flown… through Phoenix. I ended that relationship a couple weeks later.

It’s been a blur of one historical event after another while the death tolls climb, surpassing the numbers of lives lost in 9-11 on a daily basis.

2,977 deaths on 9-11 and a record 4,383 reported deaths on Jan 20th

But somewhere along the way, the pandemic fatigue set in and rather than adapting to the reality of masks, curbside pickup, remote learning and true physical distancing people gave up. They started pushing to get kids back in school, despite teachers not being priority on the vaccine schedule. They went back to browsing the aisles with their masks down under their chins and shrugged off repeated requests by the CDC to not travel for the holidays.

Some complied with the mask requirements in public, only to host family gatherings at home. Others decided that “my body, my choice” meant they have the right to not wear a mask and go around asymptomatic and spreading COVID because of their free-dumbs.

The political discourse devolved into a full-scale insurrection at the Capitol only 4 weeks ago.

Today Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez went live on Instagram detailing her experience that day. She hid in Rep. Katie Porter’s office, and borrowed casual clothes and sneakers from a staffer so that she would be better prepared should she need to run for her life... again.

And the sidebar story on that article is about Marilyn Manson’s response to Evan Rachel Wood’s naming him as her abuser. I almost got into it with a stranger on Facebook over that today but gave up after my 2nd response including video of her testimony to congress about sexual and domestic abuse in an effort to extend the statute of limitations on prosecuting abusers like Manson.

Every day there is another trauma, another loss...

Another reminder that the country has unraveled ways that none of us could have possibly imagined on November 8th, 2016- a statement I made on Facebook today in a post that read, “A heartfelt ‘fuck you’ to everyone who told me I was overacting in November 2016.”

My mother, who has gone full Quazy down the rabbit hole of conspiracies, echoing calls that the election was “stolen” by President Biden, unironically replied that ‘nobody messes with her woman-child” with a gif of a woman rolling her eyes and sticking her tongue out. Her insanity hit a place a couple weeks ago that was so bad my brother reached out asking for help dealing with her and agreeing with my suggestion that she be committed to a psych ward.

I can’t wrap my head around this new reality.

But I keep coming back to asking, when did this become normal? When did people decide that this was okay and life had to just ‘go on’ while ignoring facts, science, and logic?

One year ago today I was waking up in my own apartment for the first time in my life, at 41 years old. I’d never lived alone and was reeling from loss after loss from the quad to my marriage and home, to the ‘false spring’ that ended up being the bridge between dependence and independence in a way I’d never imagined possible.

Today I woke up surrounded by boxes again.

My personal reality is full of uncertainties… When will Pirate’s ex stop fighting the divorce and sign the quit claim on the ranch? Even if she does, will the bank work with us to modify the loan? Or will we just have to pack again after a few months living rent and mortgage free?

Or the more important questions… am I ever be able to fit into my pants? Will there ever be another event to go to that will warrant dusting off my high heels and putting on lipstick? Is this just what life will be forever? Masked, socially-distanced outdoor dining for those who have abandoned their sourdough bread recipes and grown tire of Door Dashed take out while Pirate and I literally mask up before walking out the door because we heard the neighbor coughing and it didn’t sound like his usual weed cough. Seriously.

A week from today I’ll be waking up at the ranch with 2 new husky puppies in addition to the 2 Great Danes, 2 rescue dogs, dozen chickens, and a single sheep in a place where Door Dash doesn’t deliver. We will get the workout and eating on track again and find yet another new normal on the ranch together.

#newnormal #pandemic pounds #its a dogs life #ranch life #COVIDiots #Q-Crazies

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cindylouwho-2 · 4 years

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RECENT NEWS, RESOURCES & STUDIES, August 19, 2020

Welcome to my latest summary of recent ecommerce news, resources & studies including search, analytics, content marketing, social media & Etsy! This covers articles, podcasts, videos and infographics I came across since the late July report, although some may be older than that.

Please note I am taking the next week off, starting tomorrow (Aug. 19), so I might be a little slow in replying to any comments.

TOP NEWS & ARTICLES

USPS has become the focus of investigations due to reported mail slowdowns. Some small businesses who rely on USPS to deliver are suffering. “The longer the policy has been in effect, the worse the backlog gets.” As of today (August 18), the postmaster says they will rollback the changes until after the election in November. This is a rapidly-moving story in part due to the push for voting by mail, and should concern anyone who ships to US customers using regular mail (as opposed to couriers). Meanwhile, they plan to temporarily raise commercial rates during the holiday shopping season, but retail rates will not change.

Ecommerce sales are still up year over year. "Before Covid-19 hit the US in March, e-commerce made up roughly 12% of retail sales in the country. That figure grew as states issued shelter-in-place orders that shut stores and kept shoppers at home, creating tailwinds for a company like Amazon. But even as states have begun to reopen, e-commerce has remained elevated, according to Bank of America data."..."The Economist used Google search traffic for hints of how lifestyles are changing and found users are still searching terms related to cooking, crafts, and exercise above pre-pandemic rates. There has been a noticeable spike in interest around such products as gardening supplies, baking flour, and Crocs." The UK is still seeing a good increase despite the ease in reduction in lockdown restrictions. The growth is slowing a bit in the US, though.

Half of US small businesses fail in the first year (and other stats on small business).

It’s been second quarter report season, covering company performance from April to June 2020. Here are results for major companies involved in ecommerce in some way (comparisons are year-over-year):

Amazon US: sales up 40%

eBay: sales up 26%

Etsy: sales up $146% [click the link to read my summary]

Facebook: revenue up 11%

Google: revenue down 2%

PayPal: revenue up 22%

Pinterest: revenue up 4%; active users up 39%

Shopify: revenue up 97%

Walmart [2nd quarter ran May to July]: ecommerce sales up 97%, same-store sales up 9.3%

ETSY NEWS

Admin are now posting a monthly update thread, in case you fear you have missed anything. This is how they chose to announce that non-seller accounts can no longer post in the forum. Since those account owners can still read the forum, that doesn’t mean you can call out your customers now.

Sadly, there wasn’t much media coverage of Etsy’s nearly-annual billing screw up, but this one did get some attention.

Etsy continues to get good media coverage for masks, including masks for your dolls. They also apparently got a decent slice of Google ranking for various pandemic-related searches in May [scroll down to the “Protection and Prevention” section].

However, Etsy is getting some bad press (along with Amazon), for allowing QAnon merchandise, because “the FBI has warned of the movement's potential to incite domestic terrorism.” Etsy replied to a request for comment saying that “that product listings associated with certain movements are allowed as long as they don't violate the company's seller or prohibited items policies, which ban items that promote hate or that could incite violence. The company said it is continually reviewing items on the site and could remove items in the future if they're found to violate Etsy's policies.”

More search trends on Etsy, this time kids’ items. I love how they think tie-dye was a ‘90s thing and not a ‘60-70s thing LOL. “a 318% increase in searches for kids tie-dye items...71% increase in searches for dinosaur wall art or decor*, and a 37% increase in searches for school of fish items….we’ve seen kid-friendly crafts spike in popularity, with searches for DIY kits for kids up 336%.”

Also, the holiday trends guide is out. “With the holidays approaching, and most shopping happening online, more shoppers will be looking for your help to make the season feel special.” The report is lengthy, covering Halloween to New Year’s, and most listing categories, while pointing out the possible pandemic changes to the usual trends. There is also an accompanying podcast with transcript.

Speaking of the holiday season, here are Etsy’s tips for shops. Note that it is a bit late, as businesses need to have their holiday items posted no later than July if they want to be eligible for most fall media coverage. Almost every point refers to an Etsy tool or feature, some of them costing you money, so use this as a very broad guideline & be careful to read between the lines.

They are still rolling out Etsy Payments to more countries: Morocco & Israel are the most recent. Note that Etsy Payments is not yet compulsory in these new countries.

Etsy Ads once again has graphs. Do you find them useful? (I haven’t run ads at all this year, so I can’t check.)

Sendle is the latest shipping company to have a label integration with Etsy shops.

Etsy asked US sellers to lobby their reps for more support for small business and other initiatives in the pandemic aid package.

SEO: GOOGLE & OTHER SEARCH ENGINES

Google has stated that content on tabs is indexed and contributes to ranking as if it were on the page instead, but yet another test demonstrates that tabs may limit you.

Due to the pandemic, Google has delayed finalizing mobile-first indexing until March 2021. (They originally announced it would be finished this September.) That means you have more time to update your website’s mobile version, ideally with responsive design.

Site speed does matter to SEO, and Google is now asking some searchers how fast certain sites loaded for them.

User comments on your products, blog posts and website can help you improve your SEO. The article suggests ways of getting that feedback, and ways to use it. [I’ve even had buyers give me new keywords to describe my items, in their messages and reviews.]

Getting links back to your site is important to SEO, but don’t annoy people while doing it. [sort of humour & sort of a rant, but does give some useful background on why backlinks matter.] Internal links also matter.

There are some special tricks for food/recipe SEO, including structured data and even a WordPress plugin.

Another WordPress plugin: submit any new or updated pages to Bing to be automatically re/indexed.

Do your keyword research before setting up your website’s sections and sub-sections, as they should serve the buyer experience, not your perception of it. Same with choosing which pages link to each other.

SEOs are still trying to work out what happened with recent Google algorithm changes. Search Engine Journal claims that the May update was at least in part about demoting sites that had out-of-date or inaccurate information, so they suggest getting rid of the bad content on your site, or at least updating it. “Content pruning” has some advocates, but I wouldn’t worry about investing tons of time in this unless you have tons of time to spend. Just get rid of the blog posts that were wildly wrong, and the out-of-date filler. If you have a lot of sold out products, redirect those to relevant active pages.

Meanwhile, a “glitch” on August 10 led people to think there was a massive Google algorithm update happening, but it all got fixed in less than a day.

If you are behind on Google search news, here is a 7 minute video [with time stamped subtopics & resources links listed below], direct from Google.

(CONTENT) MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA (includes blogging & emails)

It’s tough to get started in social media if you don’t know the terminology, so here’s a list of the basic definitions you can consult if you get lost when reading.

Don’t know how to blog? There are formulas you can use; here are eight options, nicely laid out, with downloadable templates. Don’t forget to figure out what your audience wants to read. And make sure you avoid these common blogging mistakes.

If you have an email list but do not know how to take advantage of all the bells & whistles the companies (MailChimp, Constant Contact etc.) offer you, here are 4 ways to segment your lists. You can then send different offers or newsletters to different segments.

You can optimize your social posts for people with visual impairments; excellent tips here.

By the time you read this, the TikTok mess will likely have changed again, but here is an article on Trump’s order to prohibit US companies from doing business with TikTok owner ByteDance if the platform is not sold by September 15.

Instagram has released its TikTok challenger, Reels, in more countries.

Instagram is now offering a fundraising option, although it is a slow launch with some beta testing in the US, UK & Ireland to start.

Here are step-by-step instructions on setting up your “Shop on Instagram.”

Pinterest says that searches around self-care & wellness have spiked during the pandemic lockdowns. “Pinterest has recently seen the highest searches ever around mental wellness ideas including meditation (+44%), gratitude (+60%) and positivity (+42%) that jumped from February to May….Pinterest says that searches for ‘starting a new business’ are up 35% on average, as are searches for ‘future life goals’ (2x), ‘life bucket list’ (+65%), ‘family goals future’ (+30%) and ‘future house goals’ (+78%).” There were also some searches clearly about spending more time at home: “Productive morning routine (up 6x), Exercise routine at home (up 12x), Self care night routine (up 7x)”

LinkedIn has a new algorithm; here’s how to make it work for you. [Many of these tips also apply to social media in general.]

Spotify is now doing “video podcasts”. Apparently a lot of their podcasters already did a video version of the Spotify podcasts, but had to publish it elsewhere up until now.

Twitter now admits it is considering offering subscriptions to shore up its revenue numbers. “Shares of Twitter rose 4% in early trading Thursday following the earnings results....Twitter's growth plans are under close scrutiny as many advertisers pull back due to the pandemic. On Thursday, Twitter reported second-quarter ad revenues of $562 million, a 23% decrease compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has also been hit by advertisers participating in an ad boycott of social media, linked to the nationwide racial justice protests.” Also, the recent hack is not helping them.

That said, it is still possible to market using Twitter, and here are some of the basics.

YouTube is no longer sending email updates when a channel you follow posts new content.

ONLINE ADVERTISING (SEARCH ENGINES, SOCIAL MEDIA, & OTHERS)

Ad spend has increased again as lockdowns end, in some cases beating last year by a decent margin.

The Buy on Google program is ending its commission fees. Participants will also be able to integrate their PayPal and/or Shopify payment options. As often is the case, they are starting with the US first, but plan on rolling it out to more countries in the future. There are more details here, and a review here (with some of the drawbacks).

Google Product Ads are now showing the item’s “material” on the listing card (before you click). If you are doing your own feed for your website, you may have the ability to add the attributes needed for the details to show up.

If you find Google Ads too expensive, consider buying search ads on Bing.

eBay is experimenting with showing ads mixed in with unpaid listings; placement would depend on the same algorithm.

Here’s a new guide to Facebook Ads [videos & text]

STATS, DATA, OTHER TRACKING

Bing has launched a new version of Webmaster Tools.

There are ways to reduce the amount of traffic that Google Analytics designates as “direct traffic”; here are 15 of them.

Currently in closed beta testing, the Google Search Console now has an “Insights” function, just like Google Analytics. I’ve found the GA one useful for telling me things I don’t always look at, so crossing my fingers that they release this to everyone soon.

ECOMMERCE NEWS, IDEAS, TRENDS

Shopify helped many businesses stay open during pandemic lockdowns, giving it the boost to start competing with the likes of Amazon in ecommerce. “Shopify merchants that had previously or entirely relied on brick-and-mortar sales would later report they were able revive nearly 95% of that revenue online.”

eBay started rolling out its Managed Payments system to more sellers worldwide on July 20th. Things seem to be going slowly, with some confusion.

But eBay is also having a 25th anniversary party for sellers on September 25th; don’t forget to register.

Walmart is still delaying its new subscription model to challenge Amazon Prime, Walmart+.

Amazon in the UK has launched a “Face mask store” part of the website. I haven’t seen this on other versions of Amazon. They’ve also increased some fees for some UK sellers, based on the new UK digital tax. And they are launching a site & presence in Sweden.

The Competition Bureau of Canada has launched an investigation of Amazon’s treatment of third-party sellers. “The bureau is asking any person or business that has conducted sales via Amazon.ca to contact them if they have any insights into the issues it is investigating.“

Amazon Prime Day has been postponed to later dates this year, starting with India on August 6-7. The remaining countries will apparently be announced soon.

If you use WooCommerce, here are a bunch of free plugins, with brief descriptions.

BUSINESS & CONSUMER STUDIES, STATS & REPORTS; SOCIOLOGY & PSYCHOLOGY, CUSTOMER SERVICE

Buyers do not all make purchase decisions the same way; Google uses its massive collection of data and some new studies to provide some examples. “Worldwide, search interest for “best” has far outpaced search interest for “cheap.”

It’s cheaper to keep repeat buyers than it is to find new ones; here are 16 ways to do that. One of my favourites is ““proactively providing information on how to avoid problems or get more out of your product” creates a 32% average lift to repurchase or recommend.”

It seems that researchers can never produce enough marketing guides on Gen Z and millennials.

MISCELLANEOUS (including humour)

I see a lot of new sellers, and some older sellers, confused about the idea of a business plan. HubSpot not only explains them, but also provides a downloadable template.

If you are thinking of changing careers, or just want to add skills to better run your current business, Google has many different courses, some of which they offer for free.

There are ways you can increase your productivity without (usually) working more hours. “A study published by John Pencavel of Standford University found that how much employees get done takes a sharp drop after 50 hours of work in a week, and even more drastically after 55 hours. The study found that employees working 70 hours per week actually produce nothing more in those extra 15 hours...taking a power nap in the middle of the day can help you process new information and even learn new skills.”

#SEO #seo tips #etsy #contentmarketing #ecommerce #smallbiz #ecommercetips #social media

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dylshoney · 6 years

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just a crush｛part two｝

a/n: I got so many requests to do a part two, thank you so much to everyone that enjoyed the first one! more to come soon, if you want to be added to the tag list, to be notified whenever a new part comes out, lmk!

warnings: none

You ran through the crowd, your heart beating out of your chest as you grinned widely. You rushed to the platform Andrew had pointed out to you, showing the security guard your pass and climbing down the steps into the pit right in front of the stage.

Your eyes widened at how well you could see everything, your hands shaking slightly as you adjusted the settings on your camera, ensuring that everything was perfect for ShowTime.

You gripped your camera tighter, bringing it up to your eyes and beginning to move around as you looked for the best possible angles. You smiled, you were going to take the best damn pictures that boy had seen in his life and prove to him that you deserved this job.

The lights began to flash, your smile widening as the entire stadium began to scream. You adjusted your lens for a second – your breath catching in your throat as you watched the gorgeous laughing boy run on stage.

You couldn’t resist watching him for a second – almost forgetting what you were supposed to do – the smile on his face capturing your attention. You blinked, immediately straightening up, trying to snap the best possible shots of his entrance.

You felt shivers form all over your skin as he began strumming his guitar, the opening notes to ‘There’s nothing holding me back’ filling the room. You couldn’t resist lightly humming along as you moved about in the free space.

The songs seemed to change rapidly, the concert flying by in a whirlwind of emotions, stunning performances and endless clicks of your camera.

You were covered in sweat by the end of it, your feet hurting and your throat sore – but you didn’t mind it one bit, you enjoyed every second.

Watching Shawn get off the stage was a revolutionary experience for you, your heart pounding as you realized that this was now your reality. You would get to see him do this every night.

“Y/n!” Andrew’s excited shout snapped you out of your thoughts as he beckoned you closer. You tried to ignore the overwhelming shouts of the fans, mostly asking who you were and where Adam, the previous photographer, was.

“Hey,” you smiled once you reached him.

“Such a thrill huh?” He asked, noticing the star-struck look on your face. You couldn’t help but nod, your mind still reeling from the adrenaline of watching one of your idols perform.

“Come on backstage – I’d like it if you got a few pictures during the meet and greets.”

You followed him through the dark passages, your fingers tightly wrapped around your camera, your ears still pounding from the aftershock of being so close to the speakers.

“You can wait in here if you want,” Andrew said, taking you into a large area where you recognized some of the crew setting up, “Shawn should be out in a half hour.”

“Okay, thank you,” you smiled, walking over to one of the couches where you saw Annie, Shawn’s hairstylist, sitting.

“Hi,” you sat next to her, your camera placed in your lap as she faced you with a smile, “Don’t you look pretty,” she winked, her eyes trailing over your form.

You blushed, averting your gaze, “I’m sweating like a pig.”

She laughed loudly, “Perks of chasing Shawn.”

You nodded, “He just – has so much energy.”

“You should see him before shows though,” she smiled, “Bit of an emotional wreck.”

“Huh?” You tilted your head, staring at her in confusion.

“He just has a bit of anxiety before every performance, something about wanting to make it memorable for people.”

You were silent as she continued, “If you ask me, he’s putting way too much pressure on himself. People are going to love him no matter what – it’s inevitable.”

You couldn’t help but agree. There was something about Shawn that made everyone naturally flock to him – his presence was addicting to be around, you realized – your mind replaying some key moments from the show.

“Hey,” a friendly voice spoke, your head turning to the left to see Charlie, Shawn’s opening act smiling down at you.

“H – Hi – ”you spluttered, immediately standing up and taking his outstretched hand.

“I’m Charlie,” he nodded once you pulled away.

“Y/n. It’s great to meet you.”

He smiled, “You as well. It’s nice to finally see the young photographer in person.”

You bit your lip, “Uh – ”

“Don’t take it the wrong way,” his grin was genuine, “You’re just a lot younger than Adam.”

“Yeah,” you blushed, suddenly very interested in your shoes.

“Shawn said you were eighteen,” he asked, your head perking up at his words. Shawn mentioned you? Your gut plummeted as fast as it rose – what if he talked about how awkward your first interaction was?

You could feel your cheeks heat up involuntarily, “Unfortunately.”

He smiled, confusion lacing his features, “Unfortunately?”

“I’m only legal to drink in Europe,” you shrugged, “And I only happened to miss that part of the tour.”

You grinned as he began laughing, a pretty smile coating his features, “You’re a big partier, I take it?”

You shook your head, “No idea. Would have been nice to figure it out though.”

That only made him laugh harder, your chest swelling in happiness as you realized you might have just made your first friend on tour.

“You excited for the meet and greet?” You asked as the two of you adjusted your positions, moving to sit down on the couch.

He nodded, his smile fading a bit as he whispered, “Bit nervous, to be honest.”

“How come?”

Charlie shrugged, “Don’t get me wrong, fans are like the best thing in my life,” you silently melted at his words, “But it’s just so nerve-wracking to actually see them all in person. I’m worried I’m going to make a fool of myself.”

You shook your head, “That’s literally impossible. And even if you do – it’ll only make them love you more.”

He smiled making you continue, “Seriously! They’ll probably find the whole flustered nervous thing cute. Girls are digging the soft boy look these days.”

He snorted, “Soft boy?”

“What?” You look back at him in shock, “Have you opened twitter recently? It’s all people are talking about.

“I’ve never heard of it.”

“I’m shocked – Shawn’s basically the epitome of soft.”

“What would it take to make someone hard?”

You paused for a moment, a teasing grin on your face as he began to realize his words, “I – uh – I meant –”

“I know what you meant,” you covered your mouth to hide the laughter that was threatening to burst out of you, “Don’t worry.”

“See!” He groaned, “I just made a fool of myself now!”

“No, you made me laugh - there’s a difference,” you smiled, trying to control your giggle.

“Maybe I should rehearse what I’m going to say?”

You shook your head, “They’re going to see right through that, you need to be genuine. Don’t worry, it’ll be amazing, I promise.”

He nodded, still unconvinced, his eyes traveling to look at something behind you. His gaze returned to you abruptly, “I gotta go – fans are about to start coming in – I’ll talk to you later?”

You nodded, smiling at him and sending a thumbs up, “Relax, you’ll do great!”

He placed a hand on his heart teasingly before mouthing a quick thank you and disappearing from behind one of the black curtains – which you guessed would provide the backdrop for the photos.

You watched the camera crew enter the space – setting up their equipment in record time. They were the real photographer’s whose photos were meant to all look the same – clean-cut and professional. It was their website that would be selling all the meet and greet photos later.

You were almost jealous of them for a second – their job seemed almost perfect. All they had to do was set up the tripod in a position and tell Shawn and the fans how to pose. You, on the other hand, were tasked with a bit more creative task. It was your job to take pictures of the photo- ops from different angles, playing around with the lighting and posing to make everything look candid yet professional. You knew that you would definitely be up half the night editing whatever photos Andrew approved – which would later get sent to Shawn – giving him something to post on his Instagram.

He seemed to enjoy the aesthetic shots, you noticed once when you were stalking his profile, before you had even gotten the job. He loved black and white – the backstage pictures – the ones with raw emotion, unaware that a camera was on him.

That was probably why you were chosen to be his photographer; it was your exceptional skill to catch people in their most raw, beautiful, unfiltered form. It was your favorite thing to see someone through the lens and snap a photo – capturing the essence of a special moment, and saving it forever.

You snapped out of your thoughts as Annie tapped you on the arm. You were quick to stand up and follow the older girl to the middle of the room, where the barricade was set up.

“Annie!” You spun around at the sound of the breathless voice, your eyes practically jumping out of their sockets as Shawn walked over to her, his cheeks red and hair still wet – presumably from the shower he had just taken.

“Sit,” Annie’s voice was rushed as she led him to the table where some of her products were scattered, “You should have been here fifteen minutes ago.”

He coughed, his eyes trailing up to look at you through the mirror. You blushed at the intensity of his gaze, immediately looking away from him and to your feet.

“Shawn,” Annie groaned, not happy that he was ignoring her.

“Sorry,” his voice was hoarse.

“You can’t keep doing this, people have been waiting for over an hour,” Annie’s voice was lost as she turned on the hairdryer, beginning to style Shawn’s hair. You sighed before looking back up to see Shawn already focused on you, he didn’t seem embarrassed to be caught staring – in fact, a small smile adorned his lips.

You could feel your cheeks catch fire as you attempted to smile back, before stepping away and turning around, as you pretended to fiddle with your camera.

“Shawn!” Andrew’s hurried tone snapped everyone’s attention to him, “We’re letting everyone in – in ten minutes.”

Shawn nodded in response, shutting his eyes as he slowly ran a hand through his freshly dried hair. You could feel your breath catch in your throat as you watched him, transfixed on the way his long fingers moved through the locks. You found yourself wondering how soft his hair was, what it would feel like to run your fingers through it.

“Y/n,” you felt a hand lightly touch your back as you turned to face the sound, Charlie’s grinning face staring down at you, “Could you snap a picture of me with these roses?”

You didn’t hesitate to nod, “Course, where do you wanna do it?”

You were happy for the distraction, your mind momentarily forgetting Shawn and the way his eyes on you made you feel.

“Place them to your nose,” you giggled as you watched Charlie mess around in front of the painted brick wall you had chosen for your backdrop.

You watched him obey you, his face growing serious as he posed, in what you assumed was supposed to be sexy.

“You look like you want to eat the camera,” you laughed, as you began snapping pictures, your words brought a small chuckle out of him – his eyes shutting and a wide grin adorning his face. You snapped the picture without a second thought, bringing your camera away from your face to look at the finished product.

You smiled as your eyes settled on the last picture, he looked genuinely happy, “This one’s –”

“Perfect.”

Your words caught in your throat, your body tensing as you recognized the voice that had spoken behind you. You were quick to turn around, your eyes widening as they focused on the larger figure, “I – thank you.”

He smiled, his eyes not leaving yours as he extended his hand, taking your camera.

“I have to say I’m a bit jealous,” he spoke, beginning to look through the photos you had snapped of Charlie, “I thought you were my photographer.”

You swallowed, “I – uh,”

“C’mon Mendes,” Charlie laughed, walking up to stand next to you, “I had to take advantage of all this talent.”

You blushed as he turned his head to wink at you, before walking away – presumably to place the roses back where he found them. Shawn seemed to not have heard his words, either that or he was ignoring them – his mouth was opened slightly, eyes narrowed as he brought the camera closer to examine whatever photo he was looking at.

You could feel your heart drop into your stomach at the look on his face, you couldn’t recognize if it was good or bad, “I uh – didn’t know what kind of angles you like – so I kinda tried all of them. If you don’t like it I can –”

You cut yourself off as his gaze snapped up to yours, an unreadable expression on his face, “These pictures are stunning.”

You blinked, your mind registering his words as an involuntarily grin escaped you, “Thank you.”

He stepped closer to you, coming to stand to your left. He brought the camera between you, leaning closer so he could show you, “This one – it’s – just wow.”

He stuttered for a moment, your mind blanking as his arm grazed yours, “H –how did you do this?”

“The highlight on you?” You tilted your head as your eyes left the camera and traveled to his face. He nodded, running his tongue over his lips as he looked back at you.

“I – I,” you swallowed, trying to calm your breaths, “I followed the pattern of lights, waiting for the right one.”

He chuckled, “You make it sound easy.”

“It was,” you shrugged, a surge of confidence waving through you at the sensation of his eyes trained solely on you, “I had a good subject.”

He laughed again, his eyes crinkling as he straightened up, leaning away from you, “I suppose you did,” his eyes traveled behind you, nodding at something, “I should go.”

You nodded, taking your camera back. He turned back to you for a second, “I wanted to apologize again, I’m sorry for mistaking you as a fan.”

“No worries,” you shook your head, “And I didn’t lie. I am a fan – you weren’t too far off.”

You bit your lip at the look on his face, his head tilted down as a sheepish expression spread over him, color filling his already rosy cheeks.

“That – uh- means a lot, thank you.” He said, eyes not meeting yours. You tilted your head with a smile, confused at his sudden shyness. You were tempted to ask him about it, but when your eyes locked on a frazzled Andrew you sighed, “You should head to the curtain – Andrew doesn’t look too pleased.”

He nodded, turning his head to look at Andrew before quickly looking back at you, “Where will you be?”

You blinked, taken aback by the question, a small smile spreading over you, “Around,” you winked, bringing up your camera, “Now go have fun – I like pictures with you smiling in them.”

He smiled, dipping his head; “I’ll see you later?”

You nodded, “Later.”

You watched him walk away, his body disappearing behind the black curtain. Holy shit. You released a shaky breath, why the hell would you tell him you liked pictures of him smiling? You shut your eyes for a moment, you probably sounded like a psycho. He didn’t care what kind of pictures you liked, only that you took them.

You bit your lip as you walked to stand behind the large camera, you adjusted your camera for a moment – trying to forget your embarrassment and calm your breathing.

“Y/n?” You looked over at Andrew, “Don’t worry about taking pictures of everyone he meets, just try to find a few good angles and then you can go get food – you’ve done amazing today.”

You couldn’t resist the smile, “Thank you, Andrew.”

“Anytime,” he nodded, “Shawn just told me about the pictures he saw. I’ve never seen him that impressed with anything.”

You tiled your head, your eyes widening, as Andrew continued, “He seems really happy with you, you don’t know how much that means to me – after Adam … ”

You were tempted to ask what had happened with the mysterious Adam, but you knew better than to pry in things that didn’t concern you.

“That’s – I’m – That means a lot,” you finally managed to say.

He smiled, his eyes traveling to the opening doors to your left, a line of screaming on the outside as the first one walked inside. You smiled at the crying girl, she looked to be a lot younger than you, her wide eyes taking everything in.

You brought your camera up to your eyes, the lens trained on her. Your breath caught in your throat at the expression on her face as she laid her eyes on Shawn for the first time as he walked out from behind the curtain.

You snapped the picture, watching her walk up and practically jump in his arms, shaking as he hugged her. He said something in her ear that made her cry harder, your camera snapping another picture of the emotional exchange.

She separated from him, his face flushed as they stood side by side. He put a hand over her shoulder as they both put up a peace sign. You narrowed your eyes at his close-mouthed smile – a guarded look on his face, bringing your camera down to get a closer look at him.

The second your camera was no longer obstructing your face, his eyes found yours, widening as he saw how close you were. He looked at your camera for a second, before a wide – exaggerated grin spread over his face, winking at the change in your expression.

You rolled your eyes with a grin, bringing your camera up to snap another picture, happy that this time he was smiling – even if it was only for your sake.

Later that night you were up past two am, which was strictly against Andrew’s orders. He had informed everyone that you were to get up early the next morning so that Shawn could participate in some of the interviews in Vancouver, the next stop on the tour.

You rubbed your eyes as you shut your laptop and took it off your lap. You had been editing for the past few hours, even though Andrew told you that the pictures didn’t need to be done so soon.

You were a perfectionist, however, and wanted Shawn to post the pictures of Portland while still in Portland. There was something about seeing your images lining his feed that made you work harder than ever.

You yawned, sitting up in your bunk before quietly jumping out of it. You hazily walked through the bunks, heading toward the kitchen.

You looked up at the curtain that separated the bunks from the living area, your eyes widening at the flashing lights that peaked through. You were tempted to turn back and head to your bunk, but your throat was far too dry to go to bed.

Your hand grabbed the curtain before you could talk yourself out of leaving and opened it, your eyes flickering as they tried to adjust to the brightness of the room.

Your gaze focused on a figure that was lying on the couch, watching what you recognized as ‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets’.

“Shawn?” You said softly.

He flinched at the sound of your voice, “Y/n?” He sat up quickly on the sofa, turning so he could look at you, a small smile on his face, “What are you doing up?”

You grabbed a glass out of one of the cupboards, filling it with water and leaning on the counter as you watched him, “Was editing some pictures, you?”

“Couldn’t sleep,” He shrugged, his smile fading as he looked down.

“Everything okay?”

He cleared his throat, “Yeah – I just – I miss home, I guess.”

You felt an unrecognizable emotion rock through you as you listened to him, “I love touring, don’t get me wrong, I just – ” He trailed off, fidgeting with the frayed edges of his blanket.

You bit your lip, trying to think of something to say, “I understand. I’ve been gone for barely two days and I’m already homesick.”

He chuckled, the sound surprising him as he swung his feet off the bed, moving the blanket as he looked at you with a smile, “You wanna sit?”

“Sure, thanks,” you sat on the couch, placing your cup on the coffee table as you faced the TV, unsure what to say next.

“Harry Potter huh?” You regretted the words as soon as they left your mouth, but Shawn didn’t seem to notice, his face lighting up, “Yeah – have you seen it?”

“I went through a pretty intense Harry Potter phase, I think I’ve seen all the movies about fifty times each.”

He began to smile even wider, “Which one’s your favorite?”

“Oh my God.” You groaned, “There’s no way I can choose.”

“Good answer.”

You grinned, turning your body so you were facing him completely, “What’s your house?”

“Gryffindor,” he said without hesitation.

“Really? I would have guessed Hufflepuff.”

He groaned, “Oh God, that’s what everyone says.”

“What’s wrong with Hufflepuff?”

“Nothing – just a bit boring is all.”

Your smile faded as you gasped, “You did not just say that.”

“What are you gonna do about it, eh?” He winked, but you were far too insulted to think about it right then, “Don’t tell me you’re also one of those people that thinks all Slytherins are evil.”

“Guilty,” he shrugged.

“That’s the worst kind of fan!”

“What do you mean?”

“You only like Gryffindor cause that’s the main character’s house.”

“What’s your house then?” Shawn smirked, leaning closer to you, his leg brushing yours.

“Hufflepuff.”

He blinked, straightening up, as he looked over at you, “No way.”

“What?” You smiled, brushing your hair behind your ear.

“Didn’t peg you as the type.”

You smirked, “Not boring enough for you?”

“W- What? No!” He shook his head, “Now you’re making me sound like an asshole!”

“Hufflepuff haters are assholes.”

“I’m not a Hufflepuff hater!” He gasped, placing his hand on his heart in mock hurt.

You hummed, a teasing smile on your face as he pouted next to you.

“I’m not,” he mumbled again, making you start giggling softly, covering your face as you turned away from him.

You heard him huff, before the sofa dipped as he began adjusting himself, stretching his legs until they were practically on your lap.

“Excuse me,” you gestured to his legs, your eyebrows raised.

“I’m not gonna sit here and let you call me a Hufflepuff hater – that’s – it’s unacceptable.”

“So why – ?” You laughed, pointing to his legs as a cheeky smile spread across his face.

“I’m going to pretend you’re not here and enjoy my movie.”

You gasped – it sounded like a mix between a laugh and like you were chocking – and lightly nudged his shoulder. This only made him laugh, and begin moving around until his legs were completely on your lap.

“Wow,” you crossed your arms, sinking back into the couch, but making no move to remove his legs from you.

You were both silent for a few minutes – your mind focused on Hermione getting petrified, until you felt a nudge on your shoulder again, making you turn and face Shawn.

“Why are you a Hufflepuff?”

You opened your mouth, confusion lacing your features, “What?”

“Like – what characteristics make you a Hufflepuff?”

“Oh,” you paused for a moment, never before answering that question, “I guess I’m loyal and friendly – that’s probably it, but my friends say that I could be a Slytherin as well, so I guess it depends.”

He didn’t respond, processing your words for a few moments before a small smile spread over his face, “So you’re kind but evil?”

You groaned again, “Stop saying that they’re evil!”

He raised his hands in mock surrender, “They all served Voldemort!”

“Most of them were too young to know better!”

He shook his head with a smile, obviously enjoying getting a rise out of you, “Not too sure about that.”

You rolled your eyes, “They’re cunning and ambitious – doesn’t sound evil to me.”

“You don’t need to defend the fact that you’re half evil, y/n.” He laughed, throwing his head back, “I’m not going to fire you.”

“You don’t get to decide that,” you winked, “I technically work for Andrew.”

He gasped, his face immediately serious, as he pretended to be offended, “Ouch.”

“Shush,” you nudged his shoulder, “You thought I was a fan – I’m glad you don’t control my paycheck.”

“Hey,” he groaned, “I thought we were over that.”

You laughed, “We are, doesn’t change the fact that Andrew treats me better.”

“I’m letting you watch Harry Potter with me!”

“You’re insulting my house!” Your laughter was growing, and soon it was getting hard to breath, you were practically hiccupping as you tried to contain your breaths.

It took you a minute to realize that Shawn was no longer laughing but was instead watching you with a small smile on his face.

You tried to contain your giggles, holding your stomach as it was beginning to cramp, “What?”

“Nothing,” He shook his head, the grin never leaving his face, “Just good to have a friend I can talk to about Harry Potter.”

You calmed down at his words, your mouth set in a small o, “I agree.”

You turned back to the TV screen, hoping that he didn’t recognize the color in your cheeks, pretending to watch the movie.

“Y/n?” He asked after a few seconds, making you hum in response.

“Our next show is in Vancouver and I haven’t been skating in forever.”

You nodded, looking at him, a bit confused as to where he was going with this, “And I really want to go – but Andrew isn’t going to let me without a reason, so – uh – could you please tell him you think a few shots of me skating would be beneficial …” He trailed off.

You bit your lip, “Yeah – uh – Andrew told me it’d be good to get a few pictures of you enjoying the cities.”

“Thank you,” his smile was so wide that you felt like you were going to melt, “You’re slowly becoming one of my favorite people on this tour.”

You rolled your eyes with a smile; “I already said yes, you don’t need to butter me up more.”

He laughed, “I’m not! It’s good to have someone my age around.”

You were tempted to ask about Geoff since you hadn’t seen him around, but knew it was probably creepy to know about Shawn’s best friends.

“You’re different than I expected,” you said instead.

“Really?” He smiled, making you nod in response, “Yeah – to be completely honest I thought you’d never talk to me – that I’d just take pictures and then edit them alone, Mason was worried I wouldn’t make any friends.”

“Mason?” He tilted his head.

“My brother,” you smiled.

“Oh,” he nodded, “Well I’m glad to be different than you thought.”

You nodded, biting your lip as you turned back to face the TV, the intensity of his gaze hard for you to concentrate.

“It’s 3am,” he mumbled, making you look up at the clock on the wall.

“Should probably get to bed then,” you nodded.

Shawn coughed, slowly removing his legs from your lap, and sitting up. You stood, stretching your back for a moment before looking up at him as he stood as well.

“Night Shawn,” you smiled, taking your glass and placing it in the sink.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he nodded, stretching his arms behind his back – his t-shirt riding up to uncover a small section of his lower stomach, your eyes immediately shutting as you turned away, so he wouldn’t catch the blush coating your cheeks.

“See you,” you mumbled, disappearing behind the curtain before he could say anything else that could make your heart beat faster.

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