#obviously gave some to Arlo

[prince-peachie]

He’s a little confused but he’s got spirit

[idontplaytrack]

Shotgun

Jos Cleary-Lopez x fem! reader

Warnings: coarse language, fluff, smoking/weed

In which reader catches Jos smoking for the first time since they’ve started dating.

Fall was approaching— your favourite time of the year. The weather was starting to get chilly, you loved it. Lesser hot weather, lesser sweating. It was all around a better time. Anyway, Jos had been dealing with a cold for the last couple days so while the rest of her family were all out doing some shopping, she obviously stayed home. You decided it was a good time to go visit her. Once you got to her house, you let yourself in since Margot had given you a spare key— you and Jos had been together for over six months at this point.

With a plastic bag filled with her favourite snacks and drink in hand, you gave her bedroom door a knock. “Jos? It’s me.”

There was a few seconds of silence before the reply came, “Come on in.”

She looked a little flustered, you laughed lightly, “Hey, babe. You okay? Feeling any better?”

“Mhm.” She nodded, brows raised for a moment.

“What were you doing?” You narrowed your eyes at her, curious.

“Nothing.”

“Oh, so you mean to tell me you’ve been sitting here all day, doing absolutely nothing.” You sat down, “Brought you your favourite brownie and smoothie.”

“That’s sweet of you, thank you.” She smiled.

“Don’t mention it, it’s nothing.” You told her, “Okay, you do know I can smell that, right?”

Jos’ eyes widened, “Sorry.” Smiling sheepishly, she continued, “I kind of smoke sometimes when I’m stressed out or just having a bad day.”

“That’s okay.” You assured.

“Do you smoke?” She asked directly.

“No.” You answered.

“Weed?” She chuckles.

“No, but I’ve tried it.” You shrug, snuggling up against her. “I’ve missed you.”

She leaned her head on yours, hand reaching over to cup your cheek, “It’s been two days, babe.”

“I know, still missed you though.”

“This— isn’t such a good idea. You might get sick.”

“I don’t care.” You muttered. Despite her mouth disagreeing with you snuggling with her, she ultimately still couldn’t say no to you when you wanted to snuggle.

“Do you mind if I smoke it right now?” She asks, glancing at you.

“No.” You laid your head on her lap, she runs her hand through your hair.

“Okay.” She grins, leaning over to grab it from her nightstand. While she smoked it, you just laid there and enjoyed her company.

“You wanna try it again?” She asks suggestively.

You squinted at her, “Sure.” Reaching out to grab it from her hand.

“Ah, no. Had something else in mind.” She chuckles.

“What?” You ask, a smile tugging at your lips.

“You sure you don’t mind trying it again?” Jos asked.

You nodded, “Yep.”

Jos leaned in, exhaling the smoke into your mouth that was left slightly agape. Then, she kisses you, smiling into it.

Though a little taken aback, you kissed her back before she could pull away that quickly. “And you were the one who said you didn’t want me to get too close.” You gasped, feigning shock.

She giggled, “Well, I missed you too.”

“You’re forgiven.” You joked, “But you’re taking care of me if I get your cold.”

“Gladly.” She squished your cheeks, pecking you on the lips again making you giggle. “You need a break.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nothing. Just that you’ve been really stressed for the past few weeks with your part-time job, maybe a day of or two will do you some good, you know, babe?”

“Ugh.” You groaned. “Don’t remind me.”

“Exactly. You need a bit of time off.” She tells you while you played with the rings on her fingers.

“I don’t have the time.”

“If you gotta get a cold for you to finally rest, then that’s what it’s gonna take.” She teased.

“Hey! That’s not funny.” You pouted.

“I didn’t say it was.” Jos squints, “But you need to chill on the number of shifts you’re taking on in a week. Please?”

You exhaled harshly, “Fine. I’ll try.”

🏷️Tag list:

@ashecampos @auliisflower @cheesysoup-arlo @frogs00 @ludoesartandstuff @pda128

💭A/N:

2 fics in a day? Who am I😗

[exquisitexagony]

MULTIMUSE QUESTIONAIRE !!

RULES: Answer the questions with the Muses that would best fit the answers. Bonus if you give details why.

TAGGED BY: @ask-thedepressedkidatthetable

TAGGING: @miidnighters @heartxshaped-bruises, @dramatiique, @starrymused, whoever wants to really!

Answering this based on all of my muses between all 4 of my blogs since this blog is technically not a multi-muse. Thanks for tagging me!

1) Rank your softest Muse and your toughest Muse. (Personality-wise)

Ohh...That's a tricky one...I thinks softest is a tie between Rhys and Sam. Ah! Or maybe even Daianira or Hypnos! When I first think of softest, though, my brain goes to Rhys. He's always been my precious little boy. Toughest? Jazzi or Chell, maybe E. I think Chell comes to mind first, though.

2) Which Muse would blow through $1000 quickly?

Aurelius Bridgers...Because $1,000 is nothing to zem.

3) Do any of them have nicknames? Is there a meaning behind them?

Rhys & August have a couple of my fave nicknames I've written for characters. Rhys' being Reese Cup & August's is AJ or Almond Joy. They typically only really use those names with each other, like sweet little brotherly affections, but August will use AJ with people he's close to...Samuel's nicknames include Sami, Sam, and even Arthur which is his last name or Arlo when he was a kid. Aurelius has lots of little nicknames mostly because people struggle with spelling and/or pronouncing his name and it's just easier that way--his stage name is Aurora. Daianira goes by Daylight or Day because they find it pretty and it's easier to pronounce/spell for most humans. I also gave that to them because it reflects their personality very well--sunshine. Elizabeth goes by "E" because they hate their name and it's more gender neutral, which they prefer. Leo (@gollldrush) calls Ambrose Rose which I find absolutely adorable. Jhazala typically goes by Jazz or Jazzi again just to shorten the name. Some people call Demetrius Demi, but don't ever say it to his face because he'll smite you. James hates nicknames and would be absolutely livid if anyone called him Jim or any shorter version of James. Shimi goes by Sami or Sam sometimes as a sort of "human" name in homage to his transition from living with xyr jinn brethren to living amongst humans.

4) Are any of them up-to-speed on the latest trends? Anyone more old school?

OK that last one was long, I'll try to make this quick: Sami is very old school. Aurora is trendy as hell. Rhys is old school or at least just somewhere in the middle because he doesn't care. August is a mix of old school and trendy--he likes what he likes and sometimes that's old stuff sometimes that's new stuff. Chell, Ambrose, Luna, Demetrius, Jazzi, and maybe Skylar are all what I'd consider up-to-speed on trends. James, Shimi, Sarai, and Day are all a little old school. The rest just don't care so they're probably aware of trends but don't pay much attention to it.

5) Who has the best relationship with their siblings?

Rhys & August, of course.

6) Karaoke night! Who is likely to grab the mic first and bust out a tune?

Aurelius, for sure! Godly voice and proud of it. August would try to talk Rhys into it, but he'd definitely decline and August wouldn't push him too much. Luna would probably jump up there too. Maybe Ambrose because they'd probably be drunk as all get-out.

7) Who is least likely to enter a beauty pageant/model?

Oh gosh, um...Probably Rhys & August would be least likely, but also Elizabeth, Day, and obviously Sarai would require a lot of convincing. Hypnos probably wouldn't either and probably not Hermes.

8) If your Muses visited a haunted house where actors scare you, who would panic and who would be unfazed?

Muses that would panic: Sami, Hypnos, Day, Ambrose, Luna (but she'd be enjoying it), Aurelius (also probably enjoying it just a little)

Muses that would be panicking on the inside: Shimi, Rhys, August, E

Muses that would be unfazed: James, Sarai, Demetrius, Hermes, Zagreus, Chell

Muses that would be kicked out for punching an actor: Chell (maybe if they happened to spook her), Elizabeth, Skylar, Jazzi

9) Are any of your Muses particular about taking certain modes of transportation?

Rhys takes the bus or bikes a lot because he can't drive. He definitely prefers biking over bus, though, and is known to bike in the rain so long as it isn't storming. Aurora loves to take his convertible whenever he can have the top down. Sami prefers not to drive even though he can so he'll take the bus sometimes. Day will usually walk because she can't go very far anyway and she's taken a couple of taxis but has definitely gotten in trouble for not having money to pay for the trip.

10) Share a little-known fact about any Muse.

Oh gosh...but I have so many muses with so many little facts! Here, I'll throw a few out there... Rhys is trans-male--something that I've gone back on in the past but recently brought back again because it just feels right for him even though his faceclaim isn't trans. Sami doesn't talk about it at all or even know how to put a name to it, but he's definitely queer in terms of gender, which is why I use different pronouns for them even though they would never ask someone to do it because they're still learning. Aurora has a verse that's technically his canon in which about 10 years from his main verse he contracts a deadly disease that is extremely rare and most typically developed in demi-gods and basically dies in his mid-thirties! Little known part of that is that it's also the same disease that killed his mother.

[yourbelgianthings]

rhododendron

a juno devine character study (titled after the state flower of west virginia)! post ep 28 spoilers, and i do believe her and duck actually knew each other when they were younger than when i have them meet in this fic but shh it's fine, ~560 words

Juno Devine. She had always felt like her name created shoes a bit bigger than she had ever been able to fill. The king of the Roman gods’ wife and then just the word divine (albeit spelled differently) didn’t exactly conjure the image of a small town forest ranger. That was okay with her though, it was more a recurring thought in the back of her head than a true worry. Her life had really turned out perfectly. Who knows where she would have ended up if not for Arlo Thacker’s intervention with seven-year-old Juno on the day of that fateful field trip? At any other job, she would have been perfectly competent, but never really satisfied, always glancing out the window and longing to be back outside. Luckily, though, the Monongahela National Forest became her home, almost even more so than her apartment in Kepler.

The best part of being a forest ranger was her colleagues. As a child, Juno never really connected with any of her classmates. After Thacker talked to them, they eased up some on the bullying, but she was still very lonely. Now, as an adult, she could have conversations on all the topics related to nature she was most passionate about and be met with the same level of enthusiasm from her fellow rangers. Duck Newton was the one that Juno found herself connecting with most. They started hanging out outside of work and became friends. It was difficult for Juno to be in silence with others, since it felt like all the times she had been ignored and invisible in the past, but this anxiety seemed to naturally dissolve with Duck. One warm summer night, when it was dark enough to see the stars, without a cloud in the sky, they met up by the river just as they had planned. Duck brought a blanket and some popcorn, Juno brought a couple hard lemonades, and they just enjoyed each other’s company and the perfect view of the stars without a word.

So, when things started getting strange in Kepler (or more so than usual), Juno trusted Duck to help handle it. Sure, she wished she had a better idea of what was going on (and something was obviously being covered up since Duck couldn’t lie for shit), and she didn’t really know Duck’s two weird friends, but if he thought they were good enough to work with then that must be the case. When things really went south, the FBI came to town, and all of a sudden Arlo Thacker showed back up on her doorstep asking her to basically commit a federal crime, what was she going to say? No? That absolutely wasn’t an option at the behest of the man who had set her life on the right track, and really, at this point, she would have joined the plan herself soon anyway. As a forest ranger, she worked for the government, but Juno’s first allegiance had always been to the flora and fauna and the land itself. The FBI coming in and closing off parts of the forest to set up their goddamn surveillance base camp wasn’t gonna stand. Not in her town. So she gave Thacker, now an old man, but still with the same twinkle in his eye as always, a big hug and promised to do everything she could. The fight was on.

[luckyqueenreign]

Since people have started to talk about Finn, I too wanted to make some sense of his speech. More specifically the why now?

1) Some are saying that Alfie is out of the picture and that that is a reason as to why Finn publicly announces his feelings for MC now. And while I do think that that indeed plays into it, we do have to remember that this is the guy who slept with his best friend’s sister while he was taking a bath. And that Finn – while MC was coupled up with Alfie – wanted to tell her and everybody else about a sex dream he had about her. So ‘yes’ to this reason but I wouldn’t put to much of an emphasis on it. However, Alfie being with Meera does play a role as…

2) …MC – from what Finn knows – is not romantically involved with anybody at this point (and SNP has made that even clearer).

Alfie? Has Meera now. Dana? Constantly talks about Gabi. Suresh? Doesn’t talk to MC. Nicolas/Johnny? Please. Be serious. Gabi/Lulu: He doesn’t know about them (and their potential interest in MC).

So this is the first time in the Villa that MC is truly free. And while Finn did say he likes a challenge, he doesn’t like a competition. Why am I saying that?

Well, during the date he asked MC quite a few times about Suresh and her options in general, with MC never once saying that she’s only interested in Finn. So he provoked Suresh in an attempt to also find out how tough the competition would be, and then chose Kat. He was interested in Arlo but only went for it (kissed her during Truth or Dare) when it was obvious that her and Suresh are done. Because there is no way that Kat didn’t tell him that Suresh spent that whole date flirting with MC. No way. The pre-Casa confession he did only happened after MC was vague about possibly having kissed Suresh and he asked her if she is done with Alfie/Dana.

So Finn was secretly interested in MC, the one he didn’t think he could have, and is only now truly speaking up because MC is free. He has no competition that he knows of. He can win her over.

3) Finn has revealed that he is insecure. That he wonders if he could be a good enough catch for anybody. Now that can play into a) why he doesn’t want to compete for MC’s attention and affection and b) why now is the perfect time to speak up. He has the chance to prove here that he is a good catch for MC. That he is on her side. That he has her back.

4) Additionally, he has mentioned that he always lands himself in messy situations. Does that sound familiar? Messiness and drama are MC’s middle names at this point – not because she wants drama but because the drama seems to follow her (though if our girl could communicate, she probably could avoid quite a bit of it). So it’s possible that Finn feels protective of her in this absolutely messy situation with Nicolas/Johnny because he can relate. He knows what it feels like to be in these kinds of situations.

5) Being at Casa probably finally gave Finn some room to breathe. He mentioned early on that Kat is too clingy for him, so coming back to that might be overwhelming. And not in a good way. Meanwhile, MC once again is giving him space and makes him come to her, for his first confession after Casa and in the last two episodes too. She isn’t pressuring him to make a decision, to figure out what he truly wants. Finn likes that. The mystery that is MC, playing the long game, having to more actively pursue her, having some room to breathe. So the guy was about to crack soon, Casa helped with that.

6) Suresh being so quiet at the moment – not only with MC but in the Villa in general – also allows for a change in the Suresh/Finn dynamic. This whole time, their interactions carried an undertone of ‘I’m the leader here’. And now, with this speech, Finn has the opportunity to finally establish himself as exactly that. He is taking charge. He is taking a stand. He has the opportunity to be in that power position. So why wouldn’t he go for it?

(Didn’t include the Kat/Alfie kiss here because that obviously only happens in one of the ‘routes’.)

BESTIE OMG THIS IS GOOD...I feel like ive seen the Finn light now. This makes soooo much sense!! I was having such a hard time understanding the "why now?" aspect of his confession and you've spelled it all out so perfectly. The insecurities, the lack of competition, even the Finn/Suresh dynamic all of that you nailed it on the head. And I know you didn't mention it, but I would assume that the Finn/Alfie relationship is probably also a bit strained if MC was previously coupled with Alfie and he kissed Kat. There's got to now be an underlying lack of trust between them that didn't exist before, even if both claim that they are over it.

I love this so so much. Thank you for sharing with me 💖

And to my Suresh girlies ...dw this doesnt mean im jumping ship to Finn..im not leaving you ❤️🥰

[catharsis-in-darkness]

Grief of Hearts Pt. 1

pairing: Ricky Olson x OFC Iris

warnings/tropes: slow burn, enemies to lovers, angst, fluff, smut, language,

summary: Iris' passion has always been passionate about music, specifically her band. What happens when she gets to open for her favorite band of all time and finally gets to meet her heroes?

author's note: enjoy this emotional rollercoaster yall

word count: 1011 words

Iris Hart

"Ya know I was thinking about it, and I think we should try to do some more ballads Riri." My best friend Nora told me from her place sitting at her drum kit.

I looked at her and raised my brow.

"What happened to 'oh my god Iris I want to hear you scream your lungs out, this song is too soft'??" I mocked her in a high-pitched tone.

"I'm just saying," She shrugged.

"Our most popular songs have more singing in them than screaming. Maybe we should try to do it more."

"I think she might be right Iris." Arlo said while grabbing his guitar from its stand.

I let out a groan. I have nothing against them wanting to do a different style of song, I just don't want to completely give up our bands sound to be popular. From the start, this was never about becoming famous. This has always been about making music that's genuine. I heard a scream making me flinch.

"WHAT'S UP BITCHESSSS!!" Carter, our bass player yelled walking into the garage.

"Do you have to do that every time?" Nora asked with a mug on her face. I let out a laugh and gave Carter a hug.

"Yes, Yes I do." He smiled innocently.

"Honestly, it keeps things interesting." I chuckled.

"Whatever, let's start with Psychopath." Nora said rolling her eyes.

"So I've been writing this song, it needs a little work though. I feel like the verses and chorus don't mesh well." I told the group as we sat in my basement. I pushed my hair behind my ear, grabbing my notebook showing them the lyrics. Before anyone could say anything, I was interrupted by my phone ringing. Our manager Asher was calling.

"Hey, Ash what's up?" I asked as I answered, putting him on speakerphone.

"Okay, so BIG news! I have a tour lined up for you guys!" He stated excitedly.

"Really with who?!?" Arlo asked.

"The one and only, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE!!!" Ash practically screamed through the phone.

We all gave each other excited glances.

"THE Motionless In White, wants us on tour with them?!?" I asked, my heart beating faster than it ever has.

"YES!! The tour starts in a month. I guess, Chris heard Ten Thousand Screams and wants you guys to open for them!!" Ash told us.

"I mean obviously we're gonna say yes! Right guys?" I asked before seeing everyone else looking at me with disbelief.

"Okay, Perfect! I will let them know you guys are in! I'll send you updates!" Ash said before abruptly ending our call.

"Guys... WERE GOING ON TOUR!!" I screamed before jumping around excitedly.

"OUT OF EVERYONE?!? MOTIONLESS FUCKING IN WHITE WANTS US TO TOUR WITH THEM?!?" Carter screamed.

"WE MADE IT GUYS!!" I yelled before forcing everyone into a group hug.

"You guys are literally so dramatic." Nora said pushing all of us off of her.

————————————————————————— Chris Motionless

"So, I found this band. They're called "Grief Of Hearts" and they're really fucking good." I told all of the guys, while we were at practice.

"No shit! I've heard of them, their song 'Psycopath' is so fucking good!" Vinny said while looking at me with wide eyes.

"I've invited them on tour, so hopefully they'll be willing to join!" I exclaimed. Vinny looked the most excited, while Rick, Ryan, and Justin looked confused.

"Let's hope they're actually good..." Ricky said, looking away from me.

—————————————————————————

Iris Hart

"Hey Guys! I just wanted to come on stream to give you guys an announcement!" I smiled at all the people commenting.

"We are officially going on tour with Motionless In White and Knocked Loose!!" I let out.

"Starting September 16th, We will be opening for the Scoring The End Of The World Tour!!!" I exclaimed. My heart was racing. We have never been apart of something this big. Yes, we have done many shows, but nothing this fucking huge.

"The guys and I will be giving you guys updates! So stay tuned, and make sure to follow us on all of our social media!" I told them, before reading some of the comments.

"Honestly, I've never been this nervous for a show before. I know we're just openers, but this is huge for us!" I said, replying to a comment.

I stayed on the stream for a little longer before ending it. I honestly couldn't believe I would be touring with my favorite fucking band. I'll finally be able to meet the men that quite literally saved my life.

—————————————————————————

"Okay, we've got everything?" I questioned. I don't want to have to come back and knowing these dipshits something will be left behind.

"We're all set!" Arlo told me.

"I'm 90% sure we're not missing anything!" Carter said.

"90 percent?" Nora asked with her brow raised.

"Yes Nora, 90%. If anything's missing I will personally pay for it." Carter smiled at her innocently.

I rolled my eyes at them before starting the GPS towards Scranton. It was longer than a 24hr drive, so hopefully I wouldn't lose my mind making it there.

"Arlo, you're okay switching out halfway through right?" I asked skeptically.

"Yes, of course! Anything to get away from them." He said, side eyeing Nora and Carter who were arguing over who got the back seat.

"EVERYONE SIT YOUR ASSES DOWN!" I yelled startling them. They slowly made their ways to their seats. The small sprinter van we rented wasn't much, but it fit all of us. That's all that we needed. Something reliable and spacious. Honestly, we needed something a bit bigger, but we couldn't afford much. I'm praying to whatever or whoever is out there, that this trip won't send me on a psychotic break.

With that, I started the long ass drive from Colorado to Pennsylvania. The lovely sounds of my band mates filling my ears. I connected my phone to the car, playing 'Bleed the Freak' by Alice in Chains trying to drown everything out. I cannot wait to get the fuck out of this van, even though we just got into it.

Part 2

[clairelsonao3]

OC Name Meanings Tag

Thanks to @starlit-hopes-and-dreams (post here) and @mysticstarlightduck (post here) for this one that I've been looking forward to for weeks! I'm a total name nerd and am obsessed with name meanings as well as new, trendy, odd, and/or obscure names (too bad many of these started out as generic placeholders!)

For obvious reasons, though, I can't help but wish you'd waited a bit longer to tag me in this. 🤣 But, here goes.

Some very minor spoilers here for Ch. 16 onward.

Louisa is German for "famous warrior," a surprisingly strong name, but, then again, this is a girl who has a way of surprising people with her strength. It's also one of the many, many girls' names I've had a crush on for years, and one of the many I probably won't ever use for my own (eventual) child. So I gave it to my fictional child instead. 🥹🥹

I established in an earlier tag game that she was named after both her maternal and paternal grandfathers (Louis and Daniel). So for the rest of her name, we have Danielle (Hebrew: "God is my judge," and Phillips (Greek: "horse-lover") (and literally the first surname that popped into my head as a placeholder, and I'm very annoyed because it's so common. Oh, well.)

Maeve is interesting. She should have a Luxembourgish name, but she's not one for convention. So the name is actually Irish, for "she who rules" and Maeve, a lover of fantasy stories, chose it herself after the mythological warrior queen. It's also a variant of Mab, Shakespeare's Queen of the Fairies, made famous in Mercutio's soliloquy from Romeo and Juliet. Conveniently, we haven't gotten around to learning her surname yet.

Erica is Norse for "eternal ruler," and Muller is German for "miller." Another name that started as basically a placeholder, but I've come around to it.

Milagros (Spanish: "miracles") who, in a plot point of sorts, named herself, has the full name of María de los Milagros de Ulloa y de la Torre-Giralt-Muller, chosen to honor an obscure Spanish astronomer who discovered Ulloa's ring aka the fog bow: Antonio de Ulloa (and hyphenated with Muller, obviously, for her wife). Interestingly, María de los Milagros is one of many Marian titles, meaning it's a Catholic name commonly used in Latin America referring to the Virgin Mary aka "Our Lady of the Miracles," though knowing Milagros, that's definitely not why she chose it.

Keith (Scottish: "wood") and Corey (Irish: "from the hollow") have the dubious honor of being the two most bland, generic, white-bread male names I could think of at the moment I created the characters. 🤣 Killeen is Irish and a variant of O Cillin, referring to St. Killian, the patron saint of rheumatism. But actually, it was just stolen from a friend of a friend; it seemed rare enough that no one would be offended when I used it for the worst character in the story. 🤣

And in case anyone remembers or cares that Lou's mom's name is Zoe, it's Greek for "life."

Jacob is of course a variant of James (Hebrew: "supplanter"), and I lazily stole Wallach from old-timey Western actor Eli Wallach, who was best known for playing the bad guy in The Magnificent Seven. But I mostly chose the surname, again, because I'd never heard it anywhere else, so, less chance of offending anyone. And before I knew he was going to be German. Luckily the name IS German, from valche, meaning "foreigner from a Romance country, usually Italy." Yeah, I'm confused too.

Resi/Tresa are German variations of Theresa (Greek: "late summer.") Hahn is also German, meaning "conceited, flamboyant, or sexually active." Really.

Felix (Latin: "happy") and Arlo (multiple origins, all relating to "hill") were chosen because they're two currently trendy baby names that I hate, hate, hate. (No offense to anyone who named their kid that, lol). And their surnames, which were only mentioned once and I'm not bothering to look up the meaning of, were chosen because they're two prominent family names on the island where I live, as kind of an in-joke.

Lemaya: As far as I can tell, it's made up (but not by me!) Maya has a ton of different meanings in various languages, the most common being Sanskrit, "illusion or magic."

Obadiah: (Hebrew: "servant of God"). I'll leave that there.

And that's pretty much everybody -- oh, wait. I'm missing someone? Imagine that. 😅

Okay. I'll tell you what. Because this is a post about names and I'm feeling cute, I'll leave you with a couple of hints: his first name is of Hebrew origin and was chosen for both sound and meaning.

I'll try gently tagging the following:

@romanceandshenanigans @janec23 @lucylyricism Would love to find out where your OCs' names came from!

[3lectra-he4rt]

since there’s only a few weeks left until the day of reckoning,,

What scenes do you *need* in the ballad movie?

This one’s gonna be a long one, i’m pasting it from my notes app. (Some have emojis cause i was going through the rings of hell while reading) Buckle up. Also, some are just very vague in the sense that i just want *something* like what i’ve described.

- Coriolanus reading the letter from Tigris

- When Lucy was crying in the classroom with Coryo

- When Coriolanus gave Lucy the compact

- When Lucy is running from Reaper

- Arachne’s death

- Sejanus putting the breadcrumbs over Arachne and her tribute after they died, either Coriolanus noticing him doing so or it in the background for us to find

- Reaper making the graveyard

- Reaper cutting the flag

- Sejanus going into the arena and everything that followed (and him putting the breadcrumbs over Marcus!!)

- Sejanus showing up to be a peacekeeper with Coriolanus

- When Coriolanus calls Clemensia “Clemmie” </333

- When Clemensia comes into Coriolanus’ hospital room in the middle of the night

- The pus coming out of Clemensia when she is bitten (it NEEDS to be blue, pink, and yellow)

- Coriolanus and Lysistrata. Them while watching the games and strategizing bc Lysistrata has Jessup, but also just them being silly together ☹️☹️☹️

- Tigris with her fathers coat

- “Lucy Gray, having languished in Dr.Gaul’s lab, would be long dead, and his heart dead with her.” (Coriolanus thinking of his future)

- Sejanus’ house + “Ma’s corner” 😭😭😭

- C: “I don’t know what ever possessed me to ask for twelve.” S: “Completely random, obviously,”

- Lucy saving Coriolanus from the bombing, a shot of when her arm is around his shoulder and he’s clutching the ruffles of her skirt (the clutching is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.)

- Him parading her around the monkey house when he get stuck in there w her and the other tributes

- The picnic at the zoo </33

- Coriolanus holding Clemensia from behind when the snakes show up in the arena

- When Smiley says there’s going to be someone named “Lucy something” singing at the hob the book says “His girl. His love. His Lucy Gray.”

- Ma’s explanation of the bread crumbs

- “We pour money into our industries, not into the districts themselves,” said Sejanus. “The people are on their own.”

- Literally just the daughter of Mayor Lipp’s name. It’s Mayfair.

- The execution of Arlo Chance + ‘Lil’ coming through the crowd for him

- “What’s bothering you? And don’t say nothing.”

- Everyone slapping each other’s backs after drinking some of the stuff smiley got in the Hob

- “It reminds me of the capitol” “you don’t say home.” “No. For me, that will always be district 2.”

- The hob fight

- “And yes, I’d be happy to go with you.”

- C: “Do I look okay?” S: “Gorgeous. Trust me, that lips working for you, soldier.”

- Lucy and Coriolanus’s argument with Billy Taupe

- C: “I thought you were letting this whole rebel thing go!” S: “I can’t, all right? It’s part of who I am..”

- Sejanus having drugs in his locker box

- ‘High-as-a-Kite-Bottom’

- L: “that’s what my daddy thought, too. And he ended up with more bullet holes than I could count on my fingers,”

- “ "Well, that's it, then. I saved you from the fire, and you saved me from the snakes. We're responsible for each other's lives now." "Are we?" he asked. "Sure," she said. "You're mine and I'm yours. It's written in the stars." "No escaping that." “

- “ "You know, Sejanus, I'm your friend. More than a friend. You're the closest thing I'll ever have to a brother. And there are special rules for family. If you need help . . . I mean, if you get into something you can't handle ... I'm here." Tears welled up in Sejanus's eyes. "Thank you, Coryo. That means a lot. You may be the only person in the world who I actually trust." Ah, trust again. The air was full of it. "Come here." He pulled Sejanus into an embrace.”

- Barb Azure is a LESBIAN?? “She just started seeing a gal down the road,” (Lucy talking abt Barb Azure

- L: “People have been around for a long time without the capitol. I expect they’ll be here a long time after.”

- Cc finding Katniss for Lucy

- The lake being the same lake as THG trilogy, Coriolanus noticing the house that would end up being so important for Katniss in THG

- The explanation of the covey’s names (song + color)

- The “we all have a ballad, and this is Lucy’s!” Scene with the song

- Sejanus looking like an eight year old boy to Coriolanus as he’s being pulled up to be hanged

- Sejanus saying “Coryo” while being pulled up to be executed

- Sejanus’s last word being “Ma!”

- Coriolanus’s absolute breakdown after Sejanus died

- The epilogue.

- "Because we credit them with innocence. And if even the most innocent among us turn to killers in the Hunger Games, what does that say? That our essential nature is violent," Snow explained.

Ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in between, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[mashiee]

Arlo family lore plspls its beneficial to my health

OKAY SO

so i got another ask specifically about [REDACTED] so im gonna talk abt that in a separate ask

BUT i will tell u abt my ocs for arlos fam (almost exclusively on his dads/valeries side, havent thought abt mom much) and general stuff for them and their relationships w eachother and arlo specifically

OKAY SO

i gave Arlo four older siblings because why the hell not and i can (i will get to the parents later)

also while im thinking abt it, im unsure abt Arlo's last name but im thinking Kingston right now

OKAY ANYWAY

also i just wanna say that when made character names i usually just smash sound together until i find something i like and hope it isnt a slur in another language

so what im saying is none of the names have any relevance or importance i just like their sounds and how they look

the first oc is Mammi (pronounced like ma'am-ee)

hes the oldest of the five of them, as of current uno time hes 25

he/him

amab cismasc

haven't decided sexuality. probably gay bc im gay and i self project too much

anyway he currently works with the authorities and is in a relatively high ranking position

but surprise surprise hes a spy for [ERROR]

(a secret organization :) also has a whole Thing that would require a separate post. a lot of new characters and also some world building. plus it also kind of plays into my bod au/rei fic)

but unfortunately the authorities are all fucking idiots and no one would even think of suspecting him

Valeire is the only one who does (she basically Knows) bc their father (her brother) was against a lot of the things the authorities did

but she has absolutely no proof so she cant do anything :)

fun fact Mammi and the entirety of Arlo's sibling except for Arlo himself all Loathe Valerie

2 of them want her dead

one would actively make an attempt on her life themselves if they ever saw her again

pst psst Mammi is the former

anyway Mammi is Tall (TM)

atm his height is fluctuating between 6'5 and 6'6 bc i cant choose

i just think itd be hysterical if Arlo's entire family on his dad's side were all giants

speaking of that let me take this time to tell you that Arlo is the youngest in his family aside from his mom and Valerie because i thought it'd be really funny

bc Mammi is in the authorities he often wears a suit and let me tell you this man looks fine as hell

not all men can work a suit but this one can

i still havent drawn any of the siblings except for a bit of the next one so my visuals of them are all p vague and could absolutely change but as of now

Mammi has long straight blond hair that roughly reaches his waist

its usually in a low ponytail

he has gold eyes :)

not sure what i want his ability to be yet (obviously a shield variant but what exactly) or how powerful

now for the lovely sister of the family

so the next one is Luss (pronounced how it's spelled)

shes 24 :)

she/her pronouns trans woman

6'4

lesbian

a model who travels quite a lot

long curly hair and gold eyes

always wearing red lipstick

a bit mischievous

her ability is... well its honestly kind of useless on its own

she can make shields that are full orbs but theyre only about the size of a fist

she did find out that they hurt if u throw them at ppl tho, esp if u put stuff in them

not sure what level yet. maybe a flat 6.0 . or maybe even like a 5.9 if i wanna get angsty and make like her family disappointed in her for not being a god tier or smth

very caring about her family

very forgiving person to a fault

strongly believes in second chances

Luss is the closest to Mammi

but she doesn't really feel like she has anyone close to her

(which ends up being a huge bonding point between her and Arlo)

tries her best to keep their family together but it's pretty futile

tries to be optimistic and cheerful and such but it's all an act

would do anything for her family, especially her siblings

sees herself a lot in Arlo for what little she's seen of him

and then we have the twins

as stated above, theyre twins

the older one is Sade, and Kallo is idk like two mins younger or smth

theyre both 21

Sade uses they/them pronouns and is nonbinary

Kallo uses he/they and like. he knows he's masculine but he isnt like a man or male

hes keeping his gender unlabeled but sometimes says its homeboy bc he thinks its funny

tbh im not sure what assigned gender at birth i want either of them to be so im just not gonna choose 🤷

both are 6'4 1/2 or sth

the twins are very separated from the rest of the family they want nothing to do w them

they both dont like Mammi

and hate Valerie

Sade wants her dead and if Kallo ever saw her again he'd lunge

they tolerate Luss and don't dislike her but it's not their favorite to be around her

they don't have any feelings towards Arlo

Sade is a fashion designer and occasionally works with Luss, occasionally

Kallo is a mechanic

originally i had him as a surfer dude but i decided not to

the twins live a long long way away from Wellston and the rest of the family and have no intention of ever going back

theyre both closest to eachother obviously

they both have a lot of trust issues (all of them do) and only really trust eachother

again not sure about abilities

might want Kallo to have some variation of his mom's rather than their dads tho, or maybe a combo of both

i think ill keep Sade w a shield variant

also dk abt sexuality 🤷

i feel like at least one of them would be aro or ace tho. maybe like one is aro and the other is ace lol

ok so now that im done w the siblings

mr dad man's name is Vickaius. hes Valerie's brother. not sure if i want him to be older or younger.

he has long yellow hair (usually up in a pony tail) and gold eyes

yes im terrible and am making him an attractive dilf you cant stop me i have no self control

if it makes u feel any better i'll probably make the mom a milf too

anyway

i kinda wanna give him a scar or two and/or an eyepatch

def a god tier. some type of shield ability. i think i want him to be like a 7.1

he/him or he/she not sure what i want

tbh probably bisexual but thinks he's straight for whatever reason

6'5-7 or smth

fun fact he's currently in jail :)

the moms name is Ariella and she has curly hair and blue eyes. im not sure if i want her to have blonde or brown hair

i dont have much to say abt her tbh. not bc i dont care abt her but like. in my arlo fam plot while she is relevant and important she isnt like. you dont need to know about her. if that makes sense

i do know that i want her to be exactly a whole foot shorter than Vickaius bc i think its hilarious

context for post: arlo hcs

other related stuff: [REDACTED]

[writermuses]

Giftmas Request from @hcllriot

Explanations under the ✂️

Nathaniel x Seraphina - It's been a year and he's known for quite some time. So he's doing the ole "is that a present still under the tree" and "Arlo must've knocked it way back there when he and Cosmo were playing... Oh, it's yours" 😏

Yasin x Mercedes - Key with a 'home sweet home' keychain... but it's for his new place in Miami that he can't move into until the New Year and he's just going to let her think it's for her to come and go from his place in Maine until he's down there. They both can be little shits.

Lale x Blake - The girl has nothing to give except her body. Seeing as how she's fairly certain that he'd be unimpressed by a Lale with a bow on top, she made him peanut brittle.

Danny x Kiraz - Danny's shit at gifts and asked his mom what to do. She ordered Kiraz and her daughter matching aprons (Head Baker and Taste Tester) but made him wrap it (and it shows).

Aubrianna x Rex - The black leather Tournis Tresse bracelet from Hermès. Cartwrights aren't so great at gift giving, but Brianna would want him to have something discrete he could wear/keep on him that reminds him of her.

Sorcha x Serkan - She made him a basket of three teas and biscuits. The labels only read measurements; steep time; and 'wake up', 'relax', and 'get well soon'.

Pembe x Emre, Zeynep, Ferit - She made each of them a mug that was perfect for their size and in a color she remembered reminded her of each of them.

Tristan x Riley - A simple, black diamond pendent necklace with a rose gold chain. the leaf has an 'R' engraved on the side that faces out and a 'T' on the other side.

Yana x [the] Roman Cohen - She already felt like she was overwhelming him by putting up little decorations, so her gift was simple (though heavily researched) a very fancy and expensive knife with a holster that was actually practical.

Hannelore x Billy, Charlie - Baked the baes German stollen and gave it to them before she left for Aspen. She loves it, but I suspect they may chuck it.

Emirhan x Ceren - A keychain that looks like a song is playing. It's the song he was playing on his guitar when he met her in the hospital and the 'album art' is a picture of them on a picnic kissing. Just something for her to keep on her when they're apart.

Caleb x Seyda - A recipe box but inside is a bunch of cards (50 to be specific) with dates all tidy and in order. Caleb gives her clear instructions to not open them except on their day. They're all love notes; memories, reasons he fell for her, things he wants to do with/to her, and observations about how amazing she is. He's hoping she'll have forgiven him by the end of the box because he has a plan 👀

-- I didn't include the ones we already know about in other threads, obviously. But if there's others I should put in another post lmk --

[idontplaytrack]

Sing Me To Sleep

Amber Appleton x fem! reader

Warnings: fluff, tiny make-out scene

In which reader can’t fall asleep and asks Amber to sing her to sleep

Been sitting in my drafts since April 30th. I just had to finish it instead of deleting the whole thing. 🤷🏻‍♀️

You watched the wall clock intently as the hands ticked, feeling the frustration of not being able to get to sleep. You scrambled out of bed to walk around the apartment and stretch. Getting to the kitchen, you poured yourself a glass of water and sat at the table to drink it. You were still gonna be on your own for a while, Amber wouldn’t be down with her shift at a diner nearby until about thirty minutes and it takes her about twenty to get home.

You made yourself a cup of tea while waiting, playing a staring contest with the wall clock in the meantime. It was no fun, obviously. Then, you turned the TV on and flipped through channel after channel but nothing good was on either. So you just...stared into space and drank your tea, hoping the warmth would somehow make you sleepy. Or maybe the boredom would.

You spaced out until you heard the front door open. “y/n.” Amber says, “Why are you still up?”

You blinked profusely, snapping out of your thoughts, “Can’t sleep. Very tired, but I can’t sleep.”

She sets her backpack down, untying her hair. Amber came up to your side and pressed a kiss to the side of your head, “I’m sorry, honey. Give me a minute to change my clothes then I’ll be right with you.”

You took your mug with you and followed her into the bedroom, sitting down on the edge of the bed while she got out of her work clothes and into sleepwear. After brushing her teeth, she climbs into bed with you. “What can I do so you can get some sleep?” She rubs your back soothingly.

You hummed in thought, taking the last few sips of your tea then sitting the mug down. She lets you go so you could set the mug down properly but quickly envelopes you in her embrace again. “Are you coming down with something?” Amber asks.

“No, I really don’t think so.” You shook your head, snuggling closer against her chest. For some reason, you got this overwhelming urge to kiss her. So, you gave in to it. Hand reaching up for her cheek while you looked up at her. Amber leans closer too, allowing you to kiss her. She smiles into it, asking, “What’re you doing?”

“Nothing.” You answer, pressing another kiss to her lips, “Just felt like kissing you.” With that, Amber deepens the kiss, hands roaming your back while both your hands now held her face and, you were straddling her.

“Do you want to—”

“No, do you?” You ask, pulling away for a moment before connecting your lips with hers again.

“I don’t mind, but if you don’t want to, we can just make out.” She informs you, barely audible as she carries on kissing you, her tongue sticking into your mouth fleetingly.

“Miss me?” She asked, eyes cast downward to watch your grinding against her thigh. You chuckle, “Maybe a little.”

With one final kiss, she breaks away from it, guiding you back into her embrace.

“Amber?” You said quietly.

“Hm?” Her eyes looked down, meeting yours.

“Can you sing me to sleep?” You asked, an arm wrapping around her as you laid slightly on your side and stomach.

“Sure can, my love.” She says with a smile. You didn’t look at her, you could just hear it in her voice.

“Sing me Feels Like Home.” You requested, blocking a yawn that escaped your lips, “Please?”

“Anything for you, sweet girl.”

————

🏷️ Tag list:

@ashecampos @auliisflower @cheesysoup-arlo @frogs00 @reneeswif3 @ludoesartnstuffs @pda128

[marleyrose17]

Almost Paradise ( Owen Patrick Joyner Fic )

Hey everyone! This story is gonna be a Owen Patrick Joyner story and I will be pairing the reader with Owen, so I’ll put Y/N anytime the main character is mentioned or is talking. This is my first story since high school so please bear with me as the writing will slowly become better the more I write. I hope all you fellow Owen simps like myself like this story. FYI this story takes place if COVID 19 never existed. Please check out my best friend Sydney ( @imsydneywalker) for cute Charlie Fics. Love Yall.

Summary: Y/N just turned 22 and decided to make a spontaneous trip to L.A California USA from Dieppe,New Brunswick, Canada to visit her best friend Charlie Gillespie for her 22nd birthday present to herself. He doesn’t know she’s coming, hence the surprise. But little does she know would she get a little surprise of her own on her way to America.

Chapter 1: Someday

House outfit: https://urstyle.fashion/styles/2814065

*Week before Reader’s birthday* 2021

Y/N’s thoughts: It has been forever since I’ve last seen my best friend Charles Jeffrey Gillespie or how I like to call him Arlo *as I hold onto the necklace he gave me for my 15th birthday*. Weird nickname I know, but I’ve been calling him that since kindergarten and I’m not changing it. It’s almost my 22nd birthday so I felt like I should treat myself to a present of seeing my best friend for a little while. Momma bear doesn’t know yet but I don’t think she’ll care as much since she loves Charlie as one of her own kids, so just taking a trip cross country shouldn’t be too hard to tell her. Right? Let’s find out.

*Y/N walks down to the kitchen from her bedroom*

“Hey mami,” Y/N says as she sits on one of the barstools, popping a green grape and dipping it into nutella into her mouth.

“Yes Y/N nickname?” Y/N’s mom says in a what do you want tone, while finishing cleaning up the kitchen after dinner.

“What?” Y/N asks.

“I already know you want something. You never come back downstairs after dinner unless you’re getting a snack or you want something. I’m your mother, remember.”

“Damn, that predictable huh? Anyways, yes I wanted to ask you something or more like tell you something. So I was thinking for my 22nd birthday I could possibly fly down to America and see your adopted son for a couple weeks. You know I’ve been wanting to move down to L.A so why not go for my birthday. I’d obviously stay at Arlo’s, money shouldn’t be an issue since I’ve been saving plus birthday money from past years. Sooo?” Y/N finishes saying while looking at her mom with puppy eyes.

“You already bought your plane ticket didn’t you?” your mom says while staring at you with one eyebrow raised.

“.... maybe…. no actually, I wanted to see what you’d say first before splurging.” Y/N  says while looking down at the bowl of grapes and looks up again to smile cheeky at her mom.

Your mom rolls her eyes and laughs. “ Sure, why not. Do you want me to call Maman J so she can tell Charlie?” your mom asks.

“No no, I want it to be a surprise. It’s kind of a birthday present to myself since Arlo decided to be like “ I wanna be an actor and blah blah blah”. You say mimicking him.

“Alright, well as an early birthday present, I’ll buy your ticket. Should I make it a round trip or a one way?”

“Ummm make it a one way trip, I’ll let you know when I want to come home. You know Arlo, he always has some random hiking trip he wants to take, and knowing him he might drag me to one of those trips” you say rolling your eyes.

“No problem. You better go upstairs and start packing.” your mom says.

*You dip one last green grape into nutella and pop it into your mouth before you hop off the bar stool to give your mom a kiss* “You’re the best mami!”

*You run back to your room and start planning the whole trip*

*5:30pm One day before reader’s birthday and your flight*

*you're sitting on your bed finishing up some last minute packing, when you hear a knock at your door.*

“Come in.” Y/N says without turning around.

“Hey hun.” your mom says.

*you turn around to face your mom* “Hey mami, whats up?” *you say while sitting on top of your luggage trying to close it*

Your mom chuckles, “Here is your plane ticket for your flight, it's at 5:55am, you have a connecting flight to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma which will have a connecting flight to L.A.X.”, your mom says handing you the tickets. “So you better finish packing and get some rest.”

*You reach for the tickets while trying not to fall of your luggage* “Awesome, thanks mami.”

“No problem, just get some rest ok. I will drive you to the airport.” your mom says while walking out of your room.

“Ok!” you yell through the door. *You finally got the luggage to close* “YES!” you say standing up on the edge of your bed but then proceed to fall off your bed in the process which leads to a loud thud hitting the floor. “I’M OK!” you yell before your mom asks.

You place your luggages and carry ons by your door and start getting ready for bed. You look into the mirror one last time and stare at the picture of you and Charlie at the waterfront, ( https://www.instagram.com/p/B-suC_WF8Cu/) ( just pretend its yall, I know its like his cousin or friend)

“L.A.X I’ll see you tomorrow.” you say to yourself before walking to bed.

*Reader’s birthday* 3:00am

Airport Outfit: https://urstyle.fashion/styles/2813992 (girl on the left is what your hair looks like)

*your phone goes off at 3:00 am with the song I See Fire by Ed Sheeran playing from your phone softly.*

*You groan annoyingly wondering why you’re up so early, when you realize it is your 22nd birthday and you have a flight to catch in two hours. You spring out of bed, pop your airpods in and blair The OtherSide from The Greatest Showman and begin getting ready for your long day of flying*

*Dancing towards your bathroom, you turn on your shower to warm up and start brushing your teeth. You lay out the outfit you will be wearing to the airport on your bed, take out your headphones and head into the shower.*

*20 mins later. You hear a knock on your bathroom door*

“Almost done sweetie?” your mom asks.

“Yes, I’m just finishing up, I’ll be down soon.” you say through the door.

*Because you’re going to the airport you didn’t put too much makeup on, just enough to make yourself look kind of awake on the flights. You put your hair in a messy bun, put on your jean jacket, take one last look in the mirror before you shut off the light and head out.*

*You look around your room to make sure you grab any last minute items for your carry on. Especially making sure you have your Beats, charger, spare hair elastics and gum. You go to grab your luggage when you realize your mom already did and placed them in the car. Best mom ever. You grab your guitar case and your bag and head out.*

*Skip the car ride, you’re already at the airport*

“You’re sure you have everything right?” your mom asks while taking the stuff out of the car.

“Yes, I promise, I have everything I need. If I forgot anything important I will call you and have it shipped to Arlo’s.” you say while closing the trunk of the car.

“Alright, have a safe trip hun, please be safe and try not to get Charlie in too much trouble ok?” your mom says while hugging you goodbye.

*GASP* “ HEY! I’m a good noodle, Arlo’s the one who dared me to jump in the fountain at the mall. You know me I could never pass up a good dare.” you say while breaking the hug.

“Haha, yes I know which leads you to getting sick. Remember, it was winter.” your mom retorts back.

“ Yeah yeah I know, I’m still a good noodle though.” You chuckle while grabbing your stuff again.

Your mom shakes her head, “Go before you miss your flight silly.” She says while turning you around.

“Ok, ok I get it you want me gone.” You say laughing while walking towards the automatic doors.

“OH SWEETIE!” your mom calls out.

You turn around. “Yes?” you ask

“Happy Birthday!” your mom yells in front of everybody.

You stare at her like really. “Thanks mami. I love you too”

*You walk inside the airport and walk towards the check in line to check in all your luggages.*

*Skip to you’re already on the plane before take off.*

*You check your phone for the time, plug in your Beats, place them on and hit shuffle before. You look out the window watching the sun just barely starting to rise before you close it and begin to read your book, for the next 4 hours.*

*4 hours later*

*You finish up one of your books, you pull off your headphones just in time to hear the pilot announce that you guys are about to land. You place your book and headphones back into your bag and prepare to land.*

* You get off the plane and check the time on your phone to notice that your connecting flight is almost here and you begin to panic. You check your ticket and realize that of course your flight is on the other end of the terminal, so you begin to run and book it to the other end, hoping you’ll make it on time.*

“Excuse me! Sorry! Sorry! Excuse me!” you say as you weave through airport traffic.

*Half way through your running spree you look down at your phone again to make sure you didn’t miss your flight when you feel your arm get tugged from behind you. You notice one of yours and someone else’s luggage clipped each other by the wheels and they both go flying. “Sorry, my bad.” you say as you grab a luggage, not even looking up to see who you collided with and go back to your sprinting.*

“Yes!” you say to yourself as you make it to your gate. The flight hasn’t boarded yet so you take a seat and wait for your row to be called. You get to your gate, hand the lady your ticket and proceed to board your flight.

*You place your carry-on luggage into the overhead bin and take your seat, when you notice a very sweaty guy just barely making it onto the flight. You chuckle to yourself.*

*3 hours later*

“Alright passengers, we will be landing very shortly. The weather today is 89 degrees, partly cloudy, and 40% of humidity. Welcome to Los Angeles, California passengers.” the pilot announces over the intercom.

*You place your headphones back on, and calmly this time walk off the plane and head towards baggage claim*

*As you’re waiting your favorite song Someday by Max Schneider starts to play. You begin to sway back and forth, humming to the tune when you then feel a tap on your shoulder. You turn around to see who it was and begin to stare at him weirdly wondering why you can’t hear the guy talk*

“Oh shit, my bad. Forgot.” you say as you take off your headphones to actually hear what the guy was saying.

“It's cool, all I was saying was that I was sorry for colliding with you back in Oklahoma. I wasn’t paying attention, I was in a rush and didn’t see you. It wasn’t until after that I noticed that the gate was in the opposite direction.” A dirty blonde guy explains to me.

“Oh no, it was totally my fault, I should have been looking up instead of on my phone. I guess we were both in a rush. But hey, I like your jean jacket. Pretty dope.�� I say to him.

“Right back atcha.” he retorts.

*Awkwardly stands next to each other waiting for your luggage to arrive*

“Welp, that's my luggage. Have fun in L.A.” The guy says as he grabs his other luggage and heads towards the exit.

“Thanks, you too crash buddy.” you say back.

*you grab your luggages from the conveyor belt and pull to the side so you’re not in the way of people. You go to open one of your luggages to make sure nothing spilled on the flights/crash over, when you notice that the things in one of the luggages isn’t yours.*

“Shit, I must have accidentally switched luggages with that guy back in Oklahoma.” you say to yourself as you look around to hopefully see if he is still around.

*You close up the luggage, and begin to gather your things and head towards the exit, hoping the guy hasn’t left the airport yet. You get to the exit, head outside and don’t see the guy you bumped into.*

“Damn it!” you say defeated, “How will I ever get my stuff back? What a way to start off my birthday.”

*You get an uber and head towards Arlo’s place*

[luckyqueenreign]

Honestly, it took me a min to process this weeks episodes.

I have been reading people thoughts about the episodes, and i miss when the Islanders had their own personal opinion on MC.

I'm also getting tired of FB desperately trying to make LI so shady in this case, Lewie, for me.

Like pls make up your mind. Is Lewie a sweet guy, or is he a red flag. Is Jamal the chilled cool guy, or is he a snake. Like i get there has to be drama but why is everything surrounding MC at least season 2 and 4 we had Priya/Noah/Hope drama Lottie or mc/Rocco/Marisol drama and 4, the whole Lexi/Kobi/Valentina.

If this is an attempt to bring back the story line of MC and Bruno, they are failing horribly.

At this point, i just feel like Ozzy is obviously the main character, I like him, but i really wanted to pursue and look into the other routes before his slow burn.

I did like that we finally got to interact abit with amelia and she wasnt mixed in the drama, but Pls for the love of god just get over what you have to say because i promise you i dont care if its anything Zeph involved.

I liked Lewie getting jealous, and im not gonna lie. i liked the whole (Suresh/Arlo) moment looking at each other through the dates, i wish we could have flirted like we did then, but i was a Suresh Girlie. But definitely, last season gave me whiplash, and i was hoping for a cleaner route the first time around.

The whole recoupling was so rushed like i was literally just coupled up with Lewie the night before????

Also once again FB WHY ARE YOU MAKING HIM GO TO TALK TO CHLOE BEFORE US, then coming to me to sneak away with you at the day beds???

I'm calling it now, FB IF I SNEAK OUT AND I FIND THIS MAN WITH CHLOE IN A COMPROMISING POSITION IM RESTARTING MY ROUTE AND STICKING IT OUT WITH OZZY.

Like i love Lewie but i hate how they are doing his route filled with sneakiness.

Something bugging me is that we can't seem to talk to other ppl unless it's LI related. In Season 2 my MC was hooping around in my noah route. Right now, i feel like i barely spoke to Jamal or Roberto. it's either flirt with your first LI or Ozzy. Maybe they change it later. Sorry for venting!

no bestie dont be sorry because I feel the same right now!!

Every single season since s2 we've all been like bring back s2. give us what we had back then. and I know when s2 was out people complained that MC was constantly in someone else's drama and it was too centered around the villa and not us. but why didnt they tweak that just a tiny bit instead of giving us the most boring season of life with s3. s4 I think is the closest we ever got to s2 because we actually had routes that season but we also had one of the ugliest MCs of all time. no need to drudge up the past on s5...I was a suresh girlie too and man they put literally everyone in hell every single week. I have some ptsd after that season and still havent been able to replay it. I know we said we wanted recouplings back after having zero last season but we actually wanted some control over them!! we didnt want fb to just dictate them all over again. fb lowkey has ruined the LJR route for me. one I hate that those THREE guys all have the exact same route. and then if you aren't romancing the other two u literally never see them or talk to them. S2 I never romanced Ibrahim or Gary and was never coupled with them but I actually got to know them and even though we were just friends I knew so much about them. We know nothing about the other guys. Some people have sent me asks about head canons for Roberto and I havent been able to answer them bc I literally dont know that man. the only people I know are Ozzy and Lewie and even then the convos have been kind of surface.

ps you can vent anytime!! 💖

[thedevilsruby]

Pre-established Arlo x reader where Reader never joined any of the teams and have to frequently turn down invitations from the main three, who don't seem to wrap their heads around the fact that they don't wanna join? The trainers pick up their leaders' mood and begin pestering them as well. The only ones to never do it? Team Go Rocket. And when there's another meeting, the very annoyed reader goes like "You know what, screw you. You want me to join a team? Fine, I'll join team Go Rocket."

You rolled your eyes as you saw another envelope bearing the symbols of Teams Valor, Mystic and Instinct. It was another invitation to join one of them.

When would they get the message that you simply didn’t care to join one? Wasn’t going on a journey to learn and catch new Pokemon enough for them?

You went to the meeting with trainers and even the three Leaders. Sometimes even Professor Willow would be there. But you just didn’t feel the joy most trainers talked about.

This was the fifth letter this month. You rolled your eyes and let your little Charmander burn it for fun. Ugh.

But you were about to find it wasn’t going to just stop at letters. Soon, all your friends who were on the Teams were telling you to just pick one and join them. They would say how fun and epic it was to be part of a team, how fulfilling it was.

You would just roll you eyes, say “no thanks” and walk away before they could say anything else.

But you noticed a difference in their villainous rival team, Team Rocket. 

All three Leaders, Sierra, Cliff and Arlo, knew how to take no for an answer. 

You would battle them, beat them (or lose, but you didn’t go down without a fight), then they would say how impressive your skills are and you should join them. You said no, you weren’t interested in a team

Sierra would shrug and say “At least think about it, dear.” before walking away. Cliff would say “If that’s what you want.” in the gentlest of tones and hurry away to whatever task his Boss bestowed.

But Arlo gave you different vibe. 

Arlo would tell you “If you ever join, you could be great. Even I have that much respect for you.” Then disappear without a trace.

It gave you Butterfree in your stomach.

But you brushed it aside, deciding it wasn’t important.

But one day, you snapped.

You got another letter, specifically requesting you to go to a meeting with the three Leaders. 

“fine.” You muttered, wanting to get it over with. You once again fed it to your Charmander and headed out to VMI HQ, which was painted red, blue and yellow.

You entered and saw the three Leaders chatting in the main room, Candela must have joked because Spark was laughing cheerily and Blanche simply rolled their eyes and shook their head.

“Hello.” You said simply.

All three heads whirled around to see you. “Y/n!” Spark and Candela said happily, Blanche seemed surprised to see you.

“Come on, we’ll go to meeting room two so we can talk.” Candela said, patting your shoulder as she walked by. You rolled your eyes inwardly and followed the trio to a rather small room with a round table and chairs, a small table set aside for refreshments whenever they had guests.

“Please sit.” Blanche said, sitting at their usual spot between Candela and Spark. You took the seat farthest from them, raising an eyebrow. “Is there a point as to why I’m here?” You asked.

“Y/n, you’ve been ignoring our requests to join one of us for a month now.” Spark said, with a sigh. “You have so much potential, Y/n. Tell us why you won’t.”

“Simple: I don’t want to.” You said with an edge to your voice.

Candela rubbed her face, trying not to groan. “Y/n, you have such passion and fire in you. You’re brave and make sure things get done. You’d be perfect for Valor.” She said, almost pleadingly.

“No,” You snarled.

“Y/n, I’ve seen your work and you obviously know what you’re doing. You think things through and never lose yourself in battle. You know that. Team Mystic could be your calling.” Blanche offered. 

“No thanks.” You said disinterestedly.

“Y/n, work with me here. You’re so happy all the time and you love your Pokemon, I see the joy on your face when one of your eggs hatches. That’s what Instinct’s all about so join me and we’ll make the world a better place!” Spark said in his usual enthusiastic tone, grinning and doing a thumbs up.

“Look!” You finally snapped. “I don’t want to join a team, ok!? I don’t see the point! Some trainers just work better on their own!” You groaned, rubbing your face.

“But Y/n-” Blanche tried to intervene, but you held your hand up, finally having enough of this Taurus-shit.

“You want me to join a team?! FINE!” You yelled, making all three Leaders jump at the ferocity in your voice. “I’m joining Team Rocket!” 

“Team what?!” Candela yelled, standing up. “I absolutely forbid you to-”

“No, they know how to take no for an answer! They don’t spam me with letters every week! They understand me!” You said, looking Candela in the eye. “So I bid the three of you good. day!”

You stormed out, never looking back to see the three faces as they tried to process what just happened.

One week later...

You fidgeted with your skirt, tongue sticking out a bit. 

“Do Grunts really have to wear them this short?” You whined, making Arlo chuckle.

“Y/n, relax.” He said, shaking his head. “This is just your first day, you’ll do great.” He said. 

You smiled nervously. In a few minutes, you would be able to choose your Shadow starter. You hoped for an Ekans. Or a Scyther like Arlo.

“She ready?” Cliff asked, entering the room, Sierra clinging tightly to his arm. You pieced it together they were an item when you entered the building and saw them nuzzling on the couch.

You wondered if you and Arlo could be like that one day.

“Almost. She’s adjusting to the outfit.” He said with an amused smirk. You rolled your eyes, you would have to get used to his teasing.

“I do not miss those skirts.” Sierra said with a groan. “I’m so happy Boss let me change my uniform when I became a Leader.”

“I wouldn’t mind seeing you in one.” Cliff teased, Sierra smacked his arm lightly and blushed.

You smiled. So this is what it was like being part of a team that cared.

“I could get used to this.” You thought. 

--

@whatsupwithjinx it’s finally done! This was an interesting turn on how people view VMI so I had quite the experience writing it!

[maluminspace]

Genre: Fluff/Parent!sos

Pairings: Calum Hood/Michael Clifford

Word Count: 5.8k

Written for: 5sos fic event

Prompt: “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I have no idea what I’m doing. I almost never do.”

Event Masterlist

A/N: My first contribution to the fic event that @h0tsos​ and I put together. This whole experience has been so fun, we’ve managed to bring together a bunch of really talented writers and I hope you all enjoy all of the fics they’ve all produced. I really hope that everyone’s on board to do another of these because I’m so happy with how this one is turning out! 

Title taken from ‘Lay All Your Love On Me’ By ABBA.

***

Michael Clifford had made no secret that his days off were incredibly important to him. He loved to lounge around in his underwear playing whatever games he fancied with his online buddies for as long as he liked.

So it is a testament to his friendship with his long-term best friend, that he’d given up one of these glorious days to take care of Luke’s daughter.

Michael had thought it would earn him some much needed friend points since he’d gotten Luke into trouble with his girlfriend after their last drunken night out.

The park had seemed like a good idea at first. Michael had thought that a bit of fresh air might be just what his honorary niece needed to tire her out. It turned out, however, that little Ivy had more energy than Michael had given her credit for.

“C’mon, Uncle Mikey!” The toddler grinned as she pointed towards the playground hopefully. “Push me on the swing!” Her blonde curls bobbed around her face adorably as she bounced up and down on the spot, staring up at Michael with big blue eyes. She looked so much like her dad, that was undeniable.

“Isn’t it nearly time for your nap, Miss Hemmings?” Michael yawned, glancing at his watch. He’d sort of hoped to be home by now so that he could join his gamer friends in a few online battles whilst the little one slept for a couple of hours.

It didn’t seem like that was going to happen, though and he just had to make his peace with the fact that he was probably going to be out in the world entertaining this energetic toddler for the rest of the day.

Ivy shook her head defiantly. “Not tired!” She giggled. “Swings now!”

Rolling his eyes, Michael admitted defeat. His best friend’s little girl really knew how to wrap him around her finger already. He allowed Ivy to lead the way to the playground, hoping that he’d at least get to sit down for a bit whilst she played with other kids.

The play area in this particular park was a fairly large one, split into a few different sections for different age groups to enjoy. The whole playground was surrounded by a bright red fence and there were two sunshine-yellow gates marking the entrance points. The toddler section was situated next to the nearest entrance. It was undeniably cute, with ocean themed rockers, swings and slides. Beyond that was a pirate ship themed jungle gym, complete with various climbing frames, slides and monkey bars. On the other side of the playground was a set of swings for older kids, one of the tallest slides Michael had ever seen and a climbing frame that gave him vertigo just looking at it!

It was a warm sunny day, so of course the place was absolutely packed, full of families of all descriptions. There were quite a few older kids tearing around, not really caring which of the smaller ones they scared in the process of whatever dumb game they were playing. Michael made sure to keep an eye on them, knowing that he’d probably end up in a huge argument with their parents if they ruined Ivy’s day in any way, shape or form.

Luckily the boisterous brats seemed to be terrorising the area of the playground where the larger slides and climbing frames were situated and Ivy only seemed interested in the toddler section. She headed straight for the swings but another little girl swooped in to grab the last empty one just before her.

At first, Michael thought that Ivy was going to get upset, but she simply pulled Michael over to the slide instead. It was set into a simple little purple plastic structure shaped like a submarine. Ivy seemed torn between playing in the submarine and going on the slide itself. Her cute little face twisted into a confused expression as she seemingly contemplated her choices.

It was only when Ivy spotted a little boy hiding inside the submarine, that she made her decision. “Hello!” She chirped, her blue eyes regarding her potential new friend with excitement. “What game are you playing?”

The little boy, who seemed to be right around Ivy’s age, looked up at her, his brown eyes shining with tears. He looked a little bit frightened and Michael immediately felt the need to find out what was wrong. Before he could ask what had happened, though, Ivy beat him to it.

“You’re sad?” She asked, plonking herself down on the tiny painted bench next to the crying boy.

The brown-eyed little boy nodded and pointed to a scrape on his elbow. “Fell over…” he sobbed, aiming a tearful glance at the older kids still running around recklessly near the pirate ship.

Michael felt anger bubbling up in his chest. How could those mindless brats knock over a toddler and not even make sure he’s okay before carrying on with their stupid game? “Where’s your mummy or daddy, buddy?” The blonde man asked. The little boy shrugged, fresh tears spilling over into his cheeks.

Michael tried to think, glancing around the playground to see if he could find a distressed parent. It didn’t take him long to find a man that looked like he was on the verge of tears, frantically glaring around the playground with a tiny backpack in one of his hands. He seemed to be calling out a name but he was a bit too far away for Michael to hear him over the noisy games of the dozens of children filling the playground.

Of course leaving Ivy and her new friend alone, even for a second, was out of the question. That only really gave Michael one option, he jammed his thumb and index finger into his mouth and whistled loudly, waving his free hand wildly so that the frantic dad would know it was him that was trying to attract his attention.

When the upset man finally met Michael’s gaze, the blonde gestured for him to come over.

Taking one more look around the playground before figuring that he had to trust this stranger, the dark haired man jogged over. “Have you seen my little boy?” He asked, before Michael had a chance to speak. “He’s only three years old, he has…”

“Brown eyes and dark curls like you?” Michael asked, smiling in what he hoped was a soothing way.

The stranger nodded hopefully. “Have you seen him?”

Michael gestured to the little submarine and stepped aside so that the obviously distressed dad could be reunited with his son.

The dark haired man crouched down and his face lit up with relief as he saw the little boy sitting next to Ivy on the bench inside. “Arlo!” He sighed. “Why did you run away from me like that, little dude?”

The toddler’s lip started to shake as though he was about to start crying again.

“No, no! Don’t cry, buddy!” The father said gently. “I’m not angry, I was just worried! I couldn’t see where you were!”

“Sorry, Daddy.” Arlo muttered, scrambling out of the submarine to give his father a hug.

The tall, raven-haired man grinned as he enveloped his son in a loving embrace. It was only when they pulled apart that he noticed the graze on Arlo’s bare elbow. “Oh no, Sweetheart!”, he sighed. “What happened?”

Arlo shrugged but once again shot the group of boisterous older kids a furtive glance that told Michael everything he needed to know.

“You should have come to me, buddy!” The father said, his brow knitted together in a worried expression. “We’ll clean it all out when we get home, yeah? I think we still have some of those dinosaur band aids left too. I’m sure that’ll fix it right up!”

Arlo seemed satisfied with his dad’s plan and gave him a watery smile. “Can I play some more?”

Before the kid’s dad could reply, Ivy bounced over reaching for Arlo’s hand. “Lets play on the slide!” She giggled, pointing at the submarine slide.

Arlo looks at his father hopefully before the man that Michael had decided is incredibly handsome now that he’s seen him up close, told the toddler to go ahead.

Ivy literally jumped for joy as her new friend took her hand and allowed her to pull him over to the slide.

“She seems like quite a handful.” The handsome stranger observed as he watched the two toddlers climb the few steps to the top of the slide.

Michael nodded. “She really is… I can’t keep up with her. She’s like a tiny whirlwind. I have no idea how people have children and stay sane.”

“Well you’re not alone in that.” The stranger smiled softly. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I have no idea what I’m doing. I almost never do.” A sort of sadness tainted his smile as he gazed over at his son.

Feeling the need to cheer up the sweet stranger, Michael paints a cheerful smile on his face. “You look like you’re doing a great job to me.” He reassured as best he could. His lack of experience in parenting kind of made him feel like he had no right to say something like that, but he needed this guy to know he wasn’t a bad person just because his kid ran off one time.

“Thanks.” The dark haired man shrugged. “It’s nice to hear that once in a while.” He turned back to face Michael and once again the blonde was taken aback by just how pretty the stranger’s face was. “I’m Calum, by the way, and the little escape artist over there is Arlo.”

Taking the hand that was offered to him, Michael let out a tiny laugh. “The little ball of sunshine over there is Ivy, I’m Michael.”

“Is it just the two of you here?” Calum asked, taking a quick glance around the playground. “Ivy’s mum not here with you?”

Michael shook his head, a sudden fear washing over him as he realised that Calum had this all wrong. “No actually… I’m not…”

“Oh I’m sorry man.” Calum interrupted, a slight blush ringing his cheeks. “That was a stupid question. I, of all people, should know better than to ask that. Being a single parent is hard enough without idiots like me assuming stuff about you and your family…”

Before Michael could explain the whole misunderstanding, Ivy yelled over, not only saving him the bother of clearing things up, but saying it much simpler than he could have. “Watch this, Uncle Mikey!” She giggled, launching herself down the slide at an almost alarming speed. He rushed forward to catch her so that she didn't topple off the end of the contraption and hurt herself.

“Be careful!” Michael sighed. “What would your daddy say if I took you home all bruised up?”

Ivy simply laughed again and bounded off to join her new friend at the base of the steps.

“Wow, I messed up even worse than I thought.” Calum chuckled. “Can we just start over?”

Michael smiled fondly as he brushed himself down. “It’s fine, I’d assume the same thing you did. Ivy is my best friend’s kid, though. I offered to take her for the day to give her parents a rest.”

“That’s sweet.” Calum complimented, letting his gaze drift to Arlo and Ivy again as they reached the top of the slide. “They’re lucky to have a friend like you. Ivy seems to love spending time with you, too.”

Michael managed to tear his gaze away from Calum to watch the children go down the slide again - a lot more safely this time. “Yeah, probably because I let her eat way too much sugar and don’t enforce nap times.” He admitted, feeling somewhat guilty in the presence of a parent who’d most likely have a meltdown over someone taking care of his own child with such lax discipline.

The dark haired man simply laughed. “That’ll all change if you ever have your own. Nap times are like the only part of the day you can shit done without a tiny shadow following you around chattering about whatever annoying TV show they’re most into that day.”

Michael laughed, allowing himself another look at the handsome man beside him. “I get that. I guess these are just perks of being the favourite uncle.”

Once again, Calum’s smile slips from his face, replaced by a more thoughtful expression. “Yeah, that must be fun. Sometimes parents get so caught up in all the mundane stuff, it’s difficult to provide light entertainment like this.”

Faintly, Michael wondered what Calum’s deal was. He seemed pretty lonely and Michael couldn’t help feeling bad for him. Being a parent was hard, he knew that from what Luke told him - the sleepless nights, the tantrums and the constant worrying that you’re doing a good job. He couldn’t really imagine going through all that alone. Luke had a partner, siblings, parents, in-laws and a whole group of close friends to help him out with Ivy, and even he still struggled at times. “Well you’re here now and Arlo’s having a great time! Look at his little face.” Michael grinned, glancing over at the little boy as he tugged Ivy towards the steps of the slide again.

“That’s all thanks to you and Ivy.” Calum insisted. “He was having a shit time before and I…”

“Hey…” Michael soothed gently, automatically placing a hand on Calum’s shoulder. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. Kids get into scrapes all the time. Ivy got her fingers trapped in her toy box last week. Luke thought he was gonna have to take her to the emergency room, he thought she’d broken them!”

Calum stared at Michael’s hand for a moment, before lifting his gaze to meet the blonde’s eyes. He seemed to go through a bunch of different emotions, all of them flickering across his face and disappearing too quickly for Michael to identify them.

Worried that he’d overstepped a boundary, Michael pulled his hand away, feeling his cheeks heat up in an embarrassed blush as he dropped his gaze. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s fine.”Calum reassured him. “I just don’t get much adult company these days. I’m not used to being the one that needs comforting.” He laughed humorlessly.

That wave of sympathy and sadness that Michael had felt for Calum a moment ago seemed to intensify. “Well, if there’s one thing I’ve learnt from Luke, it’s that parents need a shoulder to cry on sometimes too.”

The raven-haired man gave Michael a soft smile. “You’re right. We do. I’m glad your friend has you to help with little Ivy - he’s a lucky guy.” He met Michael’s eyes for a moment before turning back to the children and taking a step towards them. “I should probably get Arlo home, it’s almost lunchtime - he gets cranky if he doesn’t eat on time.”

“I feel that on a deep level.” The blonde man laughed. Luke had always told him he got on so well with Ivy because they were mentally the same age. Apparently, he was entirely right.

Calum gave a huff of laughter before calling his son over. “C’mon buddy, time to go!”

Arlo’s face dropped into a heart-breaking frown and Ivy mirrored it perfectly. They both looked so distraught at the imminent end to their short friendship, that Michael just couldn’t let it happen. If he ever needed a reason to stop being such a wuss, this was definitely it. Even though he couldn’t explain why, Michael felt a strong connection to this stranger and his need to get to know him better had started to consume him. He wasn’t usually the confident type; Michael never usually put himself out there, always waiting for others to make the first move instead. Judging by Calum’s demeanour, though, he was sure that if he didn’t say or do something, this would be the last time they ever spoke. That thought had barely crossed Michael’s mind as he summoned all of his courage. “Hey, Calum, um…” He scratched the back of his neck nervously, trying to force out the words perched on the edge of his tongue as Calum turned back towards him, a curious expression on his handsome face. “I was gonna take Ivy to our favourite little café for lunch - it’s only about a five minute walk from here. I wondered if you and Arlo wanted to join us? It’d be nice for Ivy to have someone her own age to chat to…”

Arlo and Ivy both looked up at Calum hopefully, their little faces focused on him as they patiently waited for his response.

Calum’s face broke out into a genuine smile. “You really wouldn’t mind if we tagged along?”

Michael shook his head, trying to control the nervous energy pulsing through him. This was the closest he’d ever been to asking someone on a date and it was pretty terrifying. “Of course not. You’d actually be doing me a favour because if I have to hear about how Olaf from ‘Frozen’ is the funniest thing ever one more time, I’m sure I’ll lose my mind. Please let Ivy give that speech to Arlo whilst we talk about anything else. You’d be saving me, honestly.”

Dropping down to crouch next to his son, Calum slips the backpack in his hands over Arlo’s shoulders. “What do you think bud?” He asked. “Do you wanna go for lunch with Ivy and her Uncle Mike?”

Arlo nodded, immediately reaching for Ivy’s hand. “Can we have toasties?”

Calum shrugged and looked up at Michael. “I don’t know; do they make good toasties, Mike?”

Nodding confidently, Michael took Ivy’s free hand. “They make the best toasties I’ve ever had.”

“And milkshakes!” Ivy interjected matter of factly, causing Calum and Arlo to giggle adorably.

The looks on all three of their faces made Michael’s heart melt. He was pretty sure he’d never felt quite so proud of himself before. “Well, that depends.” He chuckled. “Their banana milkshake is the best I’ve ever had but their chocolate…”

“Choccy milkshakes are the best!” Ivy grins, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. “Lets go!”

***

The walk to the café took a little longer than usual. That was mostly down to the fact that Ivy and Arlo stopped every couple of minutes to discuss, in Michael’s opinion, the most mundane shit imaginable. At one point, Ivy had stopped to tell her friend that a twig on the ground looked like a crooked old finger. She proceeded to pick it up and the two of them giggled over it for a while. Michael has taken this opportunity to ask Calum some simple, non-intrusive questions. He just wanted to get to know the handsome stranger better; there was no crime in that. A moment later, Arlo stopped to scoop up a handful of cherry blossoms and throw the tiny petals into the air. This resulted in both toddlers giggling delightedly whilst twirling around every time the warm breeze picked up enough to swirl the petals around in the air.

The whole thing was completely adorable. Michael found himself smiling stupidly big by the time they’d reached the café. He was particularly pleased when he noticed that Calum’s happy expression mirrored his own. He somehow looked even hotter when he was genuinely cheerful.

The little café was pretty busy, but luckily, Michael’s favourite table near the window was still available. He urged the children over to it before slipping off his denim jacket. He didn’t miss the way that Calum eyed his bare, tattooed arms for a moment before helping Arlo into one of the chairs.

The waitress arrived before Michael had even helped Ivy out of her pretty blue cardigan. Not that he needed the menus to order of course; he and Ivy were creatures of habit.

“Oh, you’re taking care of your Uncle Mike today, huh?” The middle-aged lady grinned at Ivy. “Is he behaving himself, or do I need to give you his banana milkshake instead?”

Ivy laughed, her blue eyes sparkling gleefully. “He’s a good boy!” She answered instantly. She’d always loved the staff here, having been a regular since birth as it was one of Michael’s and Luke’s favourite places to hang out.

“Glad to hear it!” The waitress nodded. “Are you two gonna get your usual, or are we having a change today?”

Michael was terrible with names and since the staff here didn’t have name badges he was clueless as to what to call the friendly waitress. “The usual, please.” He grinned, as he glanced back at Calum who was quietly reading out the children’s menu to Arlo.

The lady nodded. “I wouldn’t expect anything less!” She laughed, before turning to Calum and Arlo on the opposite side of the table. “And what can I get for your new friends?”

“Two cheese toasties, a cappuccino and an orange juice, please.”  Calum replied, placing the menu back in its holder.

Once the waitress finished hitting the order down, she informed the men that their order wouldn’t be long before she bustled off behind the counter.

“This place seems nice.” Calum observed, glancing around the simple room approvingly. “I never even knew it was here.”

Michael widened his eyes in mild surprise. “Really? I come here at least once a week.” He confessed.

“Yeah, I can tell.” Calum chuckled. “You’re on first name terms with the staff.”

Heat rose in Michael’s cheeks yet again and he faintly wondered if anyone had ever made him blush this much in such a short space of time.

“I don’t mean that in a bad way!” Calum rushed to repair the damage he obviously thought he’d done, by reaching out to place his hand on Michael’s lower arm. “I think it’s really cute, actually.”

Maybe it was because they were sitting opposite each other in a quiet little corner of the café, that made Michael hyper aware of the word ‘cute’, or perhaps it was the slight emphasis that Calum put on that particular word. Whichever it was, the blonde was kind of melting and it was incredibly embarrassing. He’d never really flirted or been flirted with much when he was sober, so he wasn’t sure how to react. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if this was flirting; was he just overreacting? Was this how normal people interact during the day? Michael wouldn’t know; he spoke to the same few people during the day and two of those were his parents, one was Luke and the rest were employees at this café.

“Yay! Milkshakes!”

Ivy’s excited voice pulled Michael out of his fog of thought and back to the table. Calum still had his hand on Michael’s arm and it felt as though that patch of skin was burning, but not in an unpleasant way - in a ‘I need more’ kinda way. Knowing that that thought is entirely not appropriate for the situation, Michael forces himself to remove his arm from Calum’s loose grip. He offered the raven-haired man an apologetic glance before turning to the familiar waitress that was approaching their table with a tray of drinks.

Calum seemed a little saddened by Michael’s decision to pull away from him, but his face brightened a little as he watched Arlo sipping his juice delightedly through a colourful paper straw.

Somehow working out a way to let Calum know he was cute, too, preferably without being too forward, was now Michael’s top priority. He had absolutely no idea how to do that though.

“I’m sorry.” Calum mumbled, “I apparently don’t know how to interact with other grownups anymore.” He adds, almost guiltily.

“Don’t apologise!” Michael rushed to put his new friend’s mind at ease. “I’m the worst at speaking to people, especially when I don’t even have a beer for a bit of Dutch courage, y’know?”

The raven-haired man laughed at that, although he kept his attention mostly on Arlo. This was presumably to avoid eye contact and Michael understood that reasoning. “Ah yeah, I remember alcohol.” Calum sighed, in faux distress. “Haven’t had the time or opportunity to enjoy any of that in a while.”

Something about Calum’s tone and demeanour suggested that he was mildly upset about that but the fondness with which he regarded Arlo, made it clear that his key reason for not having a beer lately, was entirely worth it.

“Yeah, I guess being a dad can do that.” Michael replied, hoping that his sympathy didn’t come across as sarcasm or anything. “Eat up your time, I mean. It must be really rewarding, though.” He added.

Calum nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah, it is really rewarding and I wouldn’t trade my time with this li’l due for anything.”

It was obvious that Calum was telling the truth. The love he radiates for his son was undeniable. It was also obvious that Calum was tired, though, and possibly in need of some time for himself. It was far too early in their friendship for Michael to start prying about how much his friends and family help out with Arlo - let alone offer his own help - but he was determined to do something. “It’s important for you to have a bit of down time too.” He ventured cautiously. “I know that Luke and Chloe take Ivy to a playgroup sometimes. That gives them a break to hang with other parents and stuff…”

“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to do something like that.” Calum shrugged. “I think it’d be great for Arlo to make new friends.”

“I made a new friend today, Daddy!” The little boy grinned, pure joy painting his tiny features as he beamed up at his father. “Ivy is my new best friend!”

Michael was pretty sure his whole heart had just melted into a puddle of mush on the floor. Arlo was just about the cutest kid he’d ever met, besides Ivy.

“She is?” Calum asked, his brown eyes sparkling with happiness. “Well I guess I’m gonna have to get in contact with her parents to set up more play dates for the two of you, huh?”

Both of the children nodded excitedly at the proposition and Michael couldn’t help but beam at them. In his peripheral vision, he noticed Calum’s gaze turn back to him. Even though he kept most of his attention on the kiddos, Michael didn’t miss the way Calum’s eyes continued to sparkle as he glanced at him.

It’d admittedly been a while since Michael had dated anyone. He was severely out of practice when it came to flirting like this. Luckily, he was saved the bother of trying when the waitress chose that moment to return with their food. She set each person’s chosen meal in front of them, pulling funny faces at the children and smiling politely to Calum. When she placed Michael’s plate in front of him, she offered him a knowing look, almost like a smirk and she motioned with her eyes to Calum. It was undoubtedly a silent appreciation of his taste in men. He gave her a quiet laugh in response, but inwardly he wished the ground would swallow him up.

As they ate, the children exchanged careless conversation. They giggled at each other constantly and took every opportunity, no matter how small, to chat to the other. Michael found himself faintly wishing he had the confidence and nonchalance of a kid Ivy and Arlo’s age. As it was, he was stuck in an awkward silence with the most attractive person he’d been in close contact with for months. Calum was definitely the most promising candidate for a date that he’d had in embarrassingly long time, but he was too stuck in his own head, too worried about making a fool of himself to do anything about it.

Unfortunately, Calum seemed equally as determined to keep himself guarded. Unless of course he wasn’t attracted to Michael at all, in which case he was simply waiting quietly for this ordeal to end. Either way, Michael felt completely out of his comfort zone and therefore decided to make little more than pleasant small talk.

As the food on everyone’s plates gradually disappeared and the inevitable ending of the lunch ‘date’ grew ever closer, Michael felt his anxiety about the whole situation growing inside of him. He kept trying to weigh up the options in his mind. Was he more scared of putting himself out there for once, or of letting this promising opportunity slip through his fingers? It was a question he spent a long time debating with himself - too long in fact. By the time he’d decided that he was definitely not Calum’s type, everyone had already finished their lunch and both of the children were slumping over the table, obviously feeling tired now that their bellies were full.

“I think it’s time for a nap, little bud.” Calum chuckled softly as he tucked one of Arlo’s curls behind his ear. “Are you gonna say bye to Ivy and her Uncle Mike?”

Arlo groaned, shaking his head disapprovingly. “I don’t wanna go!” He protested. “Wanna play more games with Ivy.”

Ivy agreed, sleepily nodding her head. “And we want cake.” She added with a yawn.

It was adorable that both children had taken such a shine to each other and the thought of parting them now was heart-breaking, but definitely necessary. “Well I think you’d both fall asleep in your cake if we got you some now.” Michael reasoned gently. “I think we’ll have to just arrange to meet up another time.”

Pouting dramatically, Ivy shook her head. “Don’t wanna go home yet, Uncle Mike!” She whined defiantly.

Before Michael could argue with her, the waitress appeared with the bill. “I thought I’d bring this over seeing as the little ones look about ready for bed.” She laughed, placing the printed receipt on the tale. “I’ll be right back.” She added before gathering the plates and heading for the kitchen.

Calum shuffled in his seat in order to pull his wallet from his back pocket before reaching for the bill.

This was Michael’s only chance to do something to show he liked Calum without putting too much pressure on himself. He grabbed the bill before the other man could and gripped it tightly in a closed fist. “I’ll get this. It was my idea to come here, so it’s only fair!”

Calum’s surprised expression softened into something like a grateful smile. “I couldn’t let you do that…” He argued, but there wasn’t much conviction in his voice.

“Sure you can!” Michael insisted. “Please, you and Arlo deserve this.”

Seemingly deciding that protesting further was pointless, Calum simply thanked him and slid out of his seat before turning to Arlo. “C’mon buddy, it’s home time.”

The little boy frowned but did as he was told, clambering off the seat and joining his father at the end of the table.

Ivy wasn’t quite so well behaved, though. She opted to begin a tantrum just as the waitress returned to take the payment for their meals. Michael handed the lady a few notes and insisted that she keep the change before turning to the crying toddler. “Ivy, do you really want me to have to tell your Mummy and Daddy that you’ve ruined the day like this?”

The blonde child shook her head again, although tears continued to fall down her chubby cheeks.

Once the small group had filed out onto the street, Ivy pulled her hand out of Michael’s and lunged at Arlo, wrapping him in a big hug. “You’re my best friend.” She pouted as Arlo hugged her back and returned the sentiment.

Judging by the heartbroken look on Calum’s face, he was having as tough of a time with the idea of separating the children as Michael was. After silently chewing on his lip for a moment the raven-haired man turned to Michael, a resolute expression on his beautiful face. “Could I borrow your phone for a moment?”, he asked.

Despite his confusion, Michael nodded and pulled his phone from his denim jacket before unlocking it and handing it to Calum. He watched in shock as the other man typed in his name and number into Michael’s contact list. “Could you please forward my number to Luke and Chloe? Maybe we should arrange a playdate for the little ones. They seem to have really hit it off and it’d be a shame to keep them apart.”

Michael nodded, slightly disappointed that reuniting the kids was the only reason Calum had offered his contact details. “Sure, I’ll make sure they know how well these two got on today - I think they’ll like that Ivy found herself a new friend.”

Smiling, Calum held his hand out to Arlo. “It’s time to go, lil’ dude. I’ll make sure that you get to see Ivy again soon, okay?”

Even though the little boy was obviously upset about having to leave Ivy, he seemingly trusted his father implicitly and gave her one last hug before taking Calum’s hand.

Ivy’s bottom lip started to wobble again as fresh tears brimmed in her sky blue eyes. “C’mon, little miss.” He said, scooping her up into his arms. “You heard Arlo’s daddy, you two will get to play together again really soon, yeah?”

The toddler nodded glumly as she cuddled into Michael, resting her sleepy head on his shoulder.

“Hey uh, Mike…” Calum mumbled just as the blonde man turned to leave.

Michael stopped in his tracks, glancing back at Calum and Arlo curiously, not sure what else there was to say.

“If you, um, wanted to text or call me sometime.” Calum rambled, scratching the back of his neck nervously. “We could maybe hang out, y’know, without the kids… I could buy you a drink or dinner or something…”

Michael’s heart seemed to leap out of his chest as he nodded all too eagerly. “I’d really like that.” He replied, unable to stop a beaming smile from erupting across his face.

A sigh of relief escaped Calum as the tension in his face and shoulders lessened. “It’s a date, then…”

“Yeah, it’s a date.” Michael grinned. “I’ll text you as soon as I get back to the car so you have my number too.”

“Great.” Calum replied, lifting Arlo into his arms. “Don’t forget to pass my number to your friends, too. It’s not like Arlo to click with other kids so easily; I’d hate for him not to see Ivy again soon.”

“I’ll make sure they contact you ASAP.” Michael promised. “See you soon, Calum.” He added, before turning back in the direction of where he’d parked his car.

As he set off, still feeling a little giddy at having been asked on a date by the most gorgeous man he’d ever laid eyes on, his attention was brought back to the real world by Ivy’s sleepy little voice. “Uncle Mike…” She yawned, fixing him with a heavily lidded stare. “What’s a date?”

Tag list: @catearscliffo @byxthexway​ @afuckingunicornn @painkillerash @moonchildsblack @calumbbyyy @h0tsos @loveroflrh @sexgodashton @megz1985 @myfalsedevotion @aulxna @honeyedlashton @tea4sykes @ghostofmashton @fairyintheglass @cashworthy @cashtonasfuck @opheliaaurora23 @5sosnsfw @wildmichaelflower @wildfl0wer-meg @irwinkitten @cxddlyash @wildmalumflower @cashtonasff5sos @iovehemmings @lowpowermodex @pinkbubbles-and-bigtroubles @celticclifford @5-secondsofcolor @queer-5sos @Secret-Diary-of-an-Aquarius-blog @babylon-corgis @paradigmax @koalacal @treatallwithkindness @lovelybonesetc @morguleth @atlcalm @mantlereid @calumsmermaid @punkrockpreferences @mermaidcashton @mysticalhood 

[stereolovers]

ok i hope this isnt weird bc it was a couple days ago BUT i saw ur tags on the post abt ocs and if u want to talk abt ocs i would absolutely love to hear about them!!!!

hi sorry this has taken so long! i keep coming back to it because i’m not entirely sure on how to describe each of them without like... saying too much!

so obviously i’m still working on editing everything, because i keep learning new information whenever i go down a wikipedia rabbithole, and because i’ve accidentally connected the dots many many times, so even though i’ve done a few drafts and stuff i’m still not 100% certain about everything (if things don’t make sense here it’s because i’m absolutely trying my best to not just dump everything about the character)

arlo is my main main character! i’m actually writing this entirely from his perspective, which is a biiiig change from what i’m used to.. but it’s weirdly fun because he’s very fun to write as he has certain ways of speaking (pats myself on the back for this one). he.. originally was a dishonored oc, which is Weird once i look back on that because he’s basically just shittier jindosh. because he can be. it’s a bit hard to explain his character without giving too much away, but since he’s my main Dude, he goes through a lot of good development throughout the story while also (un)knowingly helping everyone else out that he previously fucked up. i don’t want to say that he gets redeemed, because not everyone should be, but he definitely realizes a lot of shit. yeah he’s cool.

ace is actually an older oc of mine that i brought over because this originally wasn’t supposed to be a Big Thing, but she’s here now and i love her slightly more evil personality... as they’re all Bad in some way. i just like antagonists way more so.. everyone’s shitty. she’s like my main character, a little less than arlo, but she’s still very important and shows up the most. she really just Appears. that’s her thing. and also in this universe there is a (somewhat) logical and scientific (not really) explanation for her blue eye

crystal is... something else. her name is inspired from a lady my mom went to school with (she gave me both crystal’s name and will’s). i’m still working on her character, but i enjoy her as she’s kinda the breath of fresh air in this group of determined evil backstory ocs (she’s an antagonist too, as they all are. she’s carefree evil... chaotically loving. yknow? i love her despite the fact that she needs more development.

malachite is one of the most important characters in this, as she’s basically the most level-headed of the group, and really is the brain of the entire story.... she does A Lot. like a lot. everyone (excluding celia and, technically, montgomery) has like a niche of science that they excel in, along with other things. everyone kinda invents something important during this, that helps another character in the future with their plot progression, if that makes sense. and malachite is very very important! she literally creates wireless communication, gps tracking, and with the help of crystal she crafts ‘phones.’ they’re not called phones of course, but she does, and she’s great! she also creates boats! she’s a ship captain and absolutely loves it. crystal & her & ace (they’re kinda all a Group) hang out on her ship frequently, and they’ll just enjoy each other’s company. crystal & her are girlfriends and they’re just wonderful.

will is great, and even though it’s really arlo’s story, he actually goes through the most change throughout. and it’s good change! even if he’s not described to be there, or talking in a scene, chances are he’s actually in the background...he’s like a walking dictionary definition for irony- he absolutely Hates being known and seen and being in crowds, etc, you get it. but get this. his name is will durness. wilderness. this is another name my mom gave me out of the blue (his development throughout the story isn’t like, oh, this guy now can do public speaking and is comfortable in crowds, because imo that’s not realistic. instead its more like how can he accept that other people enjoy his company, and want to be around him? he allows himself to have friends and to feel safe around them. and i love him)

those ^ five knew each other at aronose (which, without making this even longer, is basically a Huge and Important and Prestigious science trade school type thing. it’s cool and basically what every dark academia fan wants), and after a mysterious four years in which Things happen they all reconvene in interesting ways, and discover how they’ve all kinda been intertwined in this Thing. and then they help each other. it’s cool! i promise.

montgomery is the worst of everyone, which is saying a lot when they’re all antagonists. he’s the main reason everything that happens.... happens, and [spoilers for a big part of my story just in case you don’t want to read it.. don’t know why i’m talking like i’m actually gonna upload it when it’s done but you never know] even after he’s gone, his presence is still like... there. his thing is just... manipulation, but in different ways. he just Knows how to talk to people. and all the rest of the characters have to deal with his lingering Ideals and Things. which is cool. everyone’s gotta work through that! yay for character development. and he’s the duke, so he can do basically whatever he wants (and he WILL remind you many times of that fact.) he’s kinda got his eyes on everything and everyone. i don’t really like to describe my ocs by comparing them to other existing characters, but he’s like if you somehow combined peter lukas and (sorry for this) h*ndsome jack. yeah he’s definitely a very fun character but man is he hard to write which is kinda funny cause like. he’s my oc lol. he only married celia for the status and she definitely knows that (but i promise there was once a time where they actually loved each other)

celia is possibly my most underdeveloped character out of everyone, but she’s still important to the story! she’s the duchess, and yet we don’t really see much of her in person until probably.... halfway through the story. she hates everyone, but mostly montgomery (lol) and arlo, for numerous reasons. they hate her too so it works out ig. i don’t have much to say about her oops

i just realized how dump-y this is... but i have an unfortunate time trying to describe everyone. somehow. yeah hope this somewhat made sense! i think.. honestly their pinterest boards / tags on my oc blog / spotify playlists do a lot for them