#maybe their vibe for this one is actually more Softball Gay now that I think about it.

[thats-a-lot-of-cortisol]

My tablet's almost out of battery so I can't keep working on my Solace sketch page so here's the only drawing that's cooperated with me so far ft. a pinterest t-shirt

[autisticempathydaemon]

I'm obsessed with this song called Hello Euphoria by Turnover. I 10/10 recommend it!

I love super long videos when they're about literature and books, I could listen to those all fucking day! Also, ones of video game playthroughs and analysis hehe

My go to way to fall asleep is the classic way of finding a good ass sleep aid and zonking out to that. I tend to prefer if they're the kind that have an extended period of time that is either silence or like light breathing so that I can relax to it lol.

My all time favorite audio has got to be David's storm comfort audio, cause I hardly ever make it to the end of that audio before passing out lmao

I can recite the entirety of "10 Things I Hate About You" from start to finish <3

I would love love love to be besties with Huxley. He'd help me meet all my fitness goals and I love him for that

Go-to gas station combo is a bag of Dill Pickle sunflower seeds and a bottle of Dr. Pepper to spit them into once I drink it all :) (that's thank to all my years playing softball lol)

My favorite playlist right now is actually an EDM playlist that a friend sent me the other week! It's been great for productivity haha

Can't wait to see the results of this!

I don’t have a big, overarching, destined by fate reason for my pick, and yet there was no contest in my head. I can’t think of a cuter match for you than Hudson.

There’s so many little things that work here that I love. Hudson is almost definitely an EDM, raver boy, so he would have all the amazing playlists to share with you. He also strikes me as an active dude, someone that’s not unfamiliar with fitness. (Maybe he goes before and after radio shifts to take advantage of those 24 hour gyms?) Also, because he presumably has good taste in movies, he also loves the 90’s Heath Ledger classic romcom (and Heath Ledger in general. Like I said, Hudson has good taste.)

In general, he’d be a really cute, supportive, fun boyfriend to have. Hudson would show up to any and all softball games he can, threatening to serenade you from the seats/bleachers like a cheeseball. If he can’t be there, he’s regaling his listeners with play by play updates between songs, because goddamn, Hudson would be the best hype man.

Song:

I confess, I messed up/ Dropping "I'm sorry" like you're still around/ And I know you're dressed up/ Hey kid you'll never live this down/ You're just the girl all the boys want to dance with/ And I'm just the boy who's had too many chances

Not every but almost all of the Redacted Bois are Fall Out Boy girlies in my head, and Hudson is no exception. I love the 80’s, 90 teen movie vibes of this song, and I think he would too. He strikes me as the type to galavant around your shared apartment, belting this out to you like y’all are in a music video.

Runner-Ups:

I like Damien for you because he’s also a productive babe with fitness goals- we all love a hot gym couple! Vincent, I like as a runner up for a couple of silly reasons. One, he’s of the perfect age and generation to appreciate 10 Things I Hate About You and related movies. Two, I’m imagining him and his family playing softball like the vampires in Twilight play baseball, and I can’t stop laughing.

note: I hope comparing softball to baseball isn’t a huge faux pas I was never a sporty gay (affectionate)

Read this post and send me an ask if you’d like a match-up of your own! 💌

[missnewtuti]

Ok Woso fam, I feel like a lot of uswnt fans should get into softball.

The quick run down:

Softballs back for the first time since 2008. The US lost to Japan in the final gold medal game, and two of those players are on this roster (and this year will probs be a rematch)

Softball is basically faster, more fun to watch baseball. For the Olympics they have a bunch of “pace of play” rules that make sure the games average ~2 hours

A+ uniforms. Some have shorts! Some have pants and belts! Hats, visors, headbands, and braids galore.

Tall Amazon ladys throw ball real good

No fans means you get to hear the teams cheer for their batters and that’s real fun too

The US plays Japan in their final opening round game tonight at 9pm ET / 6pm PT. The gold medal game is 7am ET on Tuesday morning.

Ok, you in? Here’s the full scoop

The History

Softball hasn’t been in the Olympics since 2008, but it’s back this year. It probably won’t be in London in 2024, but it’s likely to be back in LA 2028 (LA has some great softball stadiums and has some of the best college programs).

The US won gold 🥇 in 2004 and were favorites to defend their title, but were upset by Japan 🇯🇵 in the gold medal match, walking away with silver 🥈

The US has two olympians from 2008, Canada has four, and Japan also has two. You can read more about them here.

The Format

6 countries are in this years tournament. They all played each other once, and the top 2 will play for gold. 3 and 4 will play for bronze.

So far, most teams have played 4/5 games. And with US and Japan both undefeated, they’re locked in for the gold medal game.

The Rivalry

So now the script is flipped from 2008. Japan - the host nation - is defending their gold. Japan has a professional softball league too, so a lot of folks play over there.

Two of the Americans from that 2008 team are back (more on them coming up next), looking to get some redemption.

Like c’mon this is one of those times we can root for the USA with some underdog vibes. Well ok maybe not full underdog, but at least we don’t have to do insane mental gymnastics to have a chip on our shoulder for this one.

The Amazons

Cat Osterman and Monica Abbott are both 6’3” pitchers who have been racking up strikeouts, and are looking to come away with gold after being upset in 2008. Osterman actually unretired when softball was announced for the Tokyo games.

They both still have a ton of impressive college records and some of the current team grew up watching them so that’s fun too. Apparently their coach calls them Fire and Ice.

Here’s an article about the fantasy draft new team every week league Osterman was a player/coach in. She always looks like she won’t take any of your shit and I dig that vibe. Apparently some of the team calls her Momma Cat which is adorbs.

I guess softball is less terrible for human bodies than baseball so these two ladies start every game, and so far Abbott has pitched 2 complete games and was the closer in Osterman’s two starts.

Softball is fun

So, first off, softball is a lot of fun to watch. You get all of the good stuff from baseball - hits and running and stealing bases and strike outs - but it doesn’t feel like watching paint dry.

It’s seven innings, and there’s a ton of rules to make sure the game doesn’t drag on. Pitching changes are quick, and they move between innings so quickly they don’t need to cut to commercial.

The pitchers all have their own little pitch dance they do, like I have no idea what’s going on but it looks cool.

Oh also, this is neat. They don’t make you throw the four balls for an intentional walk. You can literally just say nah, I’m not pitching you, just head over to first.

Some pitchers even hit, which is super neat. This post is gonna be mostly US focused, but here’s Sara Groenewegen, a Canadian pitcher who also hits (she’s usually their DP when she’s not pitching).

The Fashion

Ok, so not to be gay (don’t worry, that’s coming up in the next section) but holy shit softball uniforms are great. So much variety but all just really work (baseball should be taking notes).

I’m biased, but the US has some of the best uniforms. They can go full red, white, or blue, or they can mix and match. The USA on the pants is a nice touch, and I’m a sucker for a good belt.

But there’s a ton of variety. Japan wears shorts! And long sleeves. And hats. I couldn’t find any great pics but here’s one.

And the headwear - the glasses, the visors, the hats, the hairstyles. In my very scientific observations, softball seems to have the highest braid to player ratio of any sport. I guess soccer has buns and softball has braids.

Personally, I’m a fan of some good headband game, I’m sure JJ fans feel me. Some ppl wear face masks and others don’t and there seem to be a bunch of different helmet shapes and styles. Most teams seem to go with visors (I’m thinking so they have more real estate for the braid designs) but some teams go with hats.

Go Gays

As Pinoe once said, you can’t win a championship without gays. It’s just science. All three of US softballs gays (at least based on my cursory Instagram search 🕵️‍♀️) were involved in the US’s extra innings walk off win against Australia. (Chiddy hit the walk off, scoring Haylie and Ally).

Haylie McCleney

She’s the US lead off hitter and has an absolutely insane .727 batting average so far. She also recently got engaged, so that’s cute. Every team has that insane iron man - and apparently McCleney is that for the US. The center fielder leads a bunch of the teams trainings and workout stuff.

Ally Carda

First baseman Ally Carda has also been having a good tournament and is (dating? Engaged? Married? Idk it wasn’t in the Instagram caption and I didn’t feel like digging in) to a former US Softball Olympian (2004, 2008).

Amanda Chidester

Finally, we have Amanda Chidester, an outfielder (and sometimes DP). She secured the US spot in the gold medal match with her eighth inning walk off, earning the US a 2-1 victory over Australia.

She also has the arguably funnest Olympics storyline because she actually played a game against her fiancée, who plays shortstop for Mexico. (She had a sweet Instagram post about it).

The chaos

Softball gets rid of a lot of boring stuffy baseball rules. Rosters are smaller and players can re enter the game under certain circumstances so there can be fun shenanigans with pinch runners.

Also if there’s 2 outs and a catcher up on base, someone comes and runs for them so they can go put on their catcher outfit. Softball appreciates an efficient costume change.

In CAN vs JPN, the umpires messed something up and weren’t gonna let a Canadian pitcher re enter the game and the whole Canadian team just walked off the field like we’re not gonna play til you get your shit together.

So, in conclusion, women’s sports are fun to watch and softball is neat. Hopefully they get some hype these Olympics and we see some investment in professional leagues.

[seven-oomen]

Okay, I’ve managed to scrape back up some of the thoughts that were drifting in and out yesterday.  I was trying to think of stuff I remembered from high school (what hasn’t been lost to an ADD haze at this point anyway) that might be interesting/cute to see crop up in the prequel.  For example; we know Peter played basketball, but did he or anyone else participate in any other extracurriculars or sports?  Student council?  Debate team?  Academic team?  French club?  Band/orchestra/choir?  Cross country/Track?  Ecology club?  Gay/Straight Alliance?  Martial arts?  Science club?  Softball?  Pagan Student Union (I think that might have been a college thing, but whatever)?  Art club?  Cheer/gymnastics?  Other things I’m forgetting right now?

Speaking of Peter and basketball- Did the gang ever go to his games?  Did he have supportive sports boyfriends; did they make cute signs or run to hug him if Beacon Hills won?  (Did we ever find out Peter’s jersey number?  I legit can’t remember.)  Did he bother to get a letterman jacket?  If so, did he give it to either of the boys?  (Or did he just get two?  I forget how/when you got patches, I wasn’t much for that sort of thing.  I think maybe I got one for softball at some point?)  I love him with the leather jacket, I just thought it was a cute image.  Did they get class rings (and exchange them)?

Also, yearbooks.  Who all actually had their picture in the yearbook?  Did Peter shake his hair over his eyes to block the weird reflective thing (and would that work)?  Did they pop up in any group shots or candid pics?  I had a mental image of a shot from some sort of home game, maybe for football, or girl’s basketball, or something, of the group of them clustered on the bleachers; Peter between Chris and Noah, with an arm thrown around each’s shoulders, his smiling face pressed into one of them’s hair (I can’t decide which) partially to prevent any reflection, partially just because; Chris holding the hand Peter has wrapped around him with one hand and with the other stretched across to rest on Noah’s knee, smiling in the genuine yet vaguely stilted way of someone who’s not used to being this happy yet; Noah with one arm wrapped around Peter’s waist, his other hand resting on the one Chris has on his knee, staring at the camera with an amused grin that’s flirting right on the edge of a smirk; Claudia cuddled up to Noah’s side, both hands wrapped around the top his nearest arm, head leaning against his shoulder, grin clear and bright and open; Melissa next to her, arms enveloping Claudia in a loose hug, camera catching her mid-laugh.  (God, I really wish I had something approaching passable art skills at times like these.)  Maybe the kids find a copy of that yearbook in the school library, and make framed copies of the picture for Melissa and their dads for a gift.

Do you have any plans to cover Prom?  Or any school dance (Homecoming, maybe?), really, Prom is just the big one.  Because part of me with never be over the ridiculousness of that scene with Peter and Allison at Macy’s (as cute as it is).  Random middle-aged dude walks up to teenage girl and starts offering her unsolicited fashion advice (as part of an intimidation tactic against her boyfriend, no less), and she not only is not worried or weirded out in the slightest, but she actively takes his advice and buys the dress he suggests.  (I legit laughed so hard I snorted when I realized it was the same dress.)  (Momentary segue: Do you think she ever described the encounter to Chris?  Peter just gets a random angry text one day from an unknown number that just says “Stay the hell away from my daughter!” and he just knows, so he sends back “Don’t blame me, her selections were utterly abysmal.  Didn’t your wife run a boutique or something?  You’d think she’d have taught her better."  Chris never does answer back.)  But anyway, yes, school dances with that group could be entertaining.  Sneaking off (for various reasons), special song dedications, spiking the punch with assorted substances, inappropriate dancing under the cover of semi-darkness.  Lots of potential shenanigans.

Also can’t wait to find out more about how everybody met.  One of the things I love about long-running series is being able to go back and compare where characters began their relationships versus where they end up.  We’ve seen how Chris met the boys, but not Claudia or Melissa.  (Did he already know Melissa?  Was she still a hunter at that point?)  We know how Noah and Claudia met, but not how Peter and Noah met, or Peter and Claudia, or how any of them met Melissa.  Plus all the potential bonus drama because of the supernatural issues involved.  When did Claudia and Peter realize what Elias was really like?  (Did Claudia ever give either of the other boys a "shovel talk”?)  How did Melissa’s relationship with Rafael develop?  How did the rest of the gang get along with the assorted Hales (or did they know them at all)?  And re: the preview for it you posted - what kind of car does Peter have, and can you comfortably fit three growing boys in the back seat?  (I do occasionally remember to ask the important questions, lol.)  Is the Jeep still Claudia’s here?  What kinds of vehicles, if any, do the others have?  (Can you tell I’m excited about the prequel?)

Bonus thought from last night -  

Me: *trying desperately to fall asleep so the day can just be over*

My brain:  So what about a vaguely, very loosely Breakfast Club inspired Chris/Noah/Peter fic?  Like, Chris could be Emilio Estevez’s character, and Noah could be Judd Nelson’s, because Andrew’s damage is more internally focused (I can’t live up to my father’s expectations because I’m not good enough), where as Bender’s is more externally focused (I’m pissed that my dad treats me this way because he’s an asshole, but also secretly worry I actually deserve it).  Peter could be Claire; popular, charming, probably more intelligent than they let on, emotionally distant and neglected.  Claudia’s probably the best fit for Allison, although you could maybe make Melissa work.  Finstock is totally Brian.  Could we shove Harris back in time to make him Dean Vernon?  It’s fic, you can totally do that sort of thing, right?  I mean, you’re already planning to completely redo the relationships, so who cares, right?  Who would be Carl, though?

Me:  FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, BRAIN, NOT NOW!!!  PLEASE JUST SHUT UP AND GO TO SLEEP ALREADY, I’M BEGGING YOU!!  NOW IS NOT THE TIME!  WE CAN THINK ABOUT THIS TOMORROW!

My brain:  …okay but seriously; Peter in a peach colored v-neck and overly snug khakis, Chris in that wrestling top, Noah in the trenchcoat and plaid…  Do you think Peter could do that lipstick trick with a chapstick?…

Me:  AAAAUUUUGGHH!!!

(Thankfully, sleep was at least eventually had.)

I’m glad you’re feeling better today, and hope that work was busy enough to pass the time quickly without being overwhelming, and blissfully free of excessive stupid people.  As someone else stuck in the world of heat, storms, and humidity, you have my sympathy.  Sending hugs and cooling vibes!

Alright so I finally got some time to sit down (or lie down technically) for this and go through it. I’m excited!

we know Peter played basketball, but did he or anyone else participate in any other extracurriculars or sports?  Student council?  Debate team?  Academic team?  French club?  Band/orchestra/choir?  Cross country/Track?  Ecology club?  Gay/Straight Alliance?  Martial arts?  Science club?  Softball?  Pagan Student Union (I think that might have been a college thing, but whatever)?  Art club?  Cheer/gymnastics?  Other things I’m forgetting right now?

Speaking of Peter and basketball- Did the gang ever go to his games?  Did he have supportive sports boyfriends; did they make cute signs or run to hug him if Beacon Hills won?  (Did we ever find out Peter’s jersey number?  I legit can’t remember.)  Did he bother to get a letterman jacket?  If so, did he give it to either of the boys?  (Or did he just get two?  I forget how/when you got patches, I wasn’t much for that sort of thing.  I think maybe I got one for softball at some point?)  I love him with the leather jacket, I just thought it was a cute image.  Did they get class rings (and exchange them)?

I think Chris was a cheerleader at some point. He wanted to join gymnastics like in his old school, but BH didn’t have a separate gymnastics team, so he joined the cheerleaders instead. His dancing skills are abysmal, but he makes up for it with gymnastic skills, strength, and agility.

Peter’s on the student council I like to think he would do well as the secretary but I also feel like he’d definitely try to run for president.

Noah’s on the Martial Arts team (couldn’t resist) and I like to think he’d participate in the  ROTC, as he served in the military in canon. (Obviously due to having children at 17, he never enlisted in this Au.) But the prepping definitely happened.

Chris would also join the swim team, which is a nod to Jackson joining later in Once Upon a Time.

And oh yeah, they went to every game. Chris as a cheerleader and Noah was up in the stands with signs for every single game. Claudia and Melissa often came with. Whenever BH won, Chris would run out and ‘cheer’ the star player, which was almost always Peter, and lift him up on his shoulders.

I don’t think there’s a canon answer for Peter’s Jersey Number. I’ve seen some places sell a shirt with 01 on it, but I kinda wanna say it’s 15. Due to his birthday being May 15 in this au. (Chris’s is July 22nd, Noah’s is September 14th.)

I feel like Peter got a class ring, maybe Noah, but Chris didn’t bother. It would just be one more thing his father could potentially take from him and he wouldn’t need something like that to remember the other two by. He already has the Triskelion necklace. As for the letterman jacket, I think Peter definitely got one, as did Noah. Chris once again skipped it, probably because he still felt like they might move at a moment's notice and he didn’t want to bother with all of these things.

Also, yearbooks.  Who all actually had their picture in the yearbook?  Did Peter shake his hair over his eyes to block the weird reflective thing (and would that work)?  Did they pop up in any group shots or candid pics?  I had a mental image of a shot from some sort of home game, maybe for football, or girl’s basketball, or something, of the group of them clustered on the bleachers; Peter between Chris and Noah, with an arm thrown around each’s shoulders, his smiling face pressed into one of them’s hair (I can’t decide which) partially to prevent any reflection, partially just because; Chris holding the hand Peter has wrapped around him with one hand and with the other stretched across to rest on Noah’s knee, smiling in the genuine yet vaguely stilted way of someone who’s not used to being this happy yet; Noah with one arm wrapped around Peter’s waist, his other hand resting on the one Chris has on his knee, staring at the camera with an amused grin that’s flirting right on the edge of a smirk; Claudia cuddled up to Noah’s side, both hands wrapped around the top his nearest arm, head leaning against his shoulder, grin clear and bright and open; Melissa next to her, arms enveloping Claudia in a loose hug, camera catching her mid-laugh.  (God, I really wish I had something approaching passable art skills at times like these.)  Maybe the kids find a copy of that yearbook in the school library, and make framed copies of the picture for Melissa and their dads for a gift.

Omg, my heart...

yes to all of this. Seriously <3

Do you have any plans to cover Prom?  Or any school dance (Homecoming, maybe?),

I do. In both stories. The canon school dance in Once Upon a Time. And the prequel will feature either a homecoming dance or prom. The potential for drama there is too good to pass up on.

Also, Peter giving fashion advice to the girls is way too funny because of course, he would. And to some of the guys as well. Seriously McCall... that’s what you’re going with?? Wear a fucking tux for Mel, jfc...

I feel really bad, but I actually never saw the Breakfast club, though it sounds like a really dope movie. And those visuals are very nice visuals ^^

I’m also writing all of these questions down for the prequel. XD This is awesome writing fuel <3

No but seriously, I don’t say this often enough, but you are awesome and I adore you <3 

Thanks for sticking with me and this au for so long already, I love talking to you.