#seriously you better go eat-- /lh

[pierswife]

i can't help but agree with what everyone else said but like. you not only want a lover you want a friend. like. a two in one package. hannah montana. you want someone you can trust with anything, someone who will have your back when things get tight. and maybe you want to bring that kind of feeling to a relationship as well. like to give it to your partner. maybe i have piers in mind while i'm typing this maybe this applies to all of your f/os as well but like. i think you also like your blorbos with a little bit of edge. someone who will be your They Asked For No Pickles dude (gender neutral) when maybe you're not in a position to stand up for yourself just yet or if you don't feel comfortable doing so.

i havent eaten breakfast so i apologize if this paragraph is a little incoherent

Miri if you haven't eaten by the time I have answered this, I am throwing an apple at you /j

But nah you're right it's a description that fits my ship with Piers 100%. He really would be the guy to tell someone that I asked for no pickles (except the opposite I asked for extra pickles and only got 2 /j). It'd be nice to have someone like that because I am SO fucking bad at doing that for myself, but will instantly do that for someone else if they needed it. I just wanna be protected and looked after, dammit/lh

[6okuto]

KENMA RELATIONSHIP HCS

gn!reader, timeskip mentions

isn't a pda guy, but will fall asleep on your shoulder/rest against you as he games, and if you play with his hair, who's he to say no?

if you change your contact name in his phone, he keeps whatever it is, even if it's super silly or cheesy. like okay call "my honeybear darling angel 😚". he says it's because he's lazy but he does find it kinda cute/amusing

you cheer for kenma at practice in like, a sort of exaggerated way, like "gooo kenma!!! yeaahh!! let's go kenma!! kenma! kenma!" and he tries really hard not to look at you—not because he's annoyed, but because he doesn't want you to notice how red his face has gotten. his teammates point it out anyway

lol his team using you as motivation. "don't you want to impress them?" and kenma's like 😒😒 but gets up from the floor

kenma teaching you how to play his favourite (co-op) video games!! he's pretty patient and explains things well, so if you don't have a lot of gaming experience, don't worry too much ^^ buttt if you're competitive, get ready to Compete. he seems like someone who doesn't take it too seriously unless you start (jokingly) shit talking him

he'll try out any games you like too, even if it isn't something he'd pick himself. he doesn't really plan to when you're describing it, but then he thinks about it, or sees a post mentioning it, and the curiosity (And Affection 4 U :3) gets him

easily notices if you've gotten quieter/tired when you're out. if you're with a group, he'll tap your shoulder and offer his own, ask if you're alright, and or make up an excuse so you can both leave. if it's just the two of you, he's quick to find a place to rest for a while

he'll never make you join if you don't want to, but fans eat up any videos or streams with you—they make edits and compilations of you walking in during streams and everything. the amount of begging for a q&a and story time of how you met is crazydsjdhsj

chat is soo annoying about it too /lh "no they're not single," "i know they're out of my league," "yes they were my first subscriber," kenma telling you not to answer them when they ask if he's clingy, etc etc

! i think it'd be cute if you guys had matching phone cases, but his fans didn't know until you showed up with the other one. and they realize Just how much he has on that's matching you—the bracelet and necklace that they catch glimpses of under his hoodie, the hoodie itself from the same line as yours... yeah.

time for "he said no pickles." unless you also don't like asking/don't care,, then you guys can just take the pickles off together <3

^ if it's a serious mistake they made with your food, kenma's a lot more compelled to approach the counter.

would teach you about stocks. if you asked

mutual info dumping and yapping... he's very aware of how much he's telling you the first couple of times, but gets more comfortable when you do it back !

^ kind of guy to do his own research afterward. he makes a semi-obscure reference/joke the day after and you're like ???? Who told you that.

kind of boyfriend who hears you go "i want him" "wait why's this character kinda..." and isn't like, that offended or put off by it. says "understandable" (or questions your taste), but knows they're a character at the end of the day

quality time kind of guy. people know you're special even if they don't know you're dating because you can convince kenma to go to events or try something new when they wouldn't expect it. (obviously it's never something crazy out of his comfort zone, and it's probably because he knows you'd feel better with someone with you, but he's going all the same!!)

kenma isn't the best with receiving words of affirmation or gifts... he appreciates it, but gets awkward and doesn't know how to react ^^; you reassure him that he doesn't have to jump for joy or be super affectionate back—he shows his love in his own ways !

his gifts are very thoughtful. he gets you something practical, and then things that you've really wanted for a while. his cards aren't filled with long letters of adoration, but they're genuine and very much kenma. (+ having money in the timeskip doesn't mean he'd ever buy something expensive or flashy just because it might be 'easier.' it means he gets to buy you way more merchandise for your favourite media, paying the shipping fees that kept you away.)

you get him a super thoughtful (and maybe expensive) gift and he Lights Up. and then he's like ? you remembered / really paid that much ? really ? and he keeps smiling when he looks at it..

kenma coming downstairs with super bad bedhead and pouting when you snicker. but then he relaxes as you comb your fingers through to fix it

tying up his hair... a little ponytail or bun...

matching pajamas... or those fluffy headbands you wear to wash your face... he looks so silly and cute

university student kenma who walks in visibly irritated, and you know you're about to shit talk his group members or professor together.

late night breakfast. sitting in the kitchen eating bowls of cereal past midnight

! late night gaming sessions... and or sometimes you fall asleep waiting for kenma to finish, then wake up to realize he fell asleep at his desk. you have to coax him into bed after saving the game for him

very nervous during the first year you're together any time there's a holiday, especially valentine's day or your anniversary. he wonders if his plans and gifts are enough, not romantic enough, too boring, if you'd rather do something exciting, even if logically he knows you'll like anything he thinks up

sometimes you guys will just lie on the floor, stare at the ceiling together, and talk. maybe there's music, a game menu screen playing in the background, or you're just listening to the birds and neighbours outside. floor time is healing all the same

bleaching kenma's hair + him helping dye yours... timeskip where chat asks if you've done your hair recently because his hands have been stained :')

it's super easy to team up with kuroo to tease him but also ! teaming up to taunt and prank kuroo !! think of kenma laughing bright and loudly, eyes squinting and arms clutching his middle !! kuroo can't be that mad because he's happy someone else can get kenma this happy too

🏷️ | @icekitgeorge3 @dira333 (hey guys) @pelicanpizza @godoffuckedupcats @causenessus @priv-rose @ur-local-simp @respitable @deepenthevoid

[missmitchieg]

i don’t go here but what happened to penelope garcia’s hair ? isn’t it like shoulder length ? did she cut it ? !

/lh , tell me about penelope garcia please ?

Yay! I love talking about babygirl! Ok, so it looks like she did indeed cut her luscious locks so rip to her long princess curls. They will be missed until they grow back. 💖

Ok, so season 1-15 Penelope was MY GIRL, ok? She was MY GIRL.

She's, like, a super genius super cutie and she's super sweet and kind and loves animals. (Seriously, one of the reasons she started working for the FBI is she was a computer hacker and hacked into the website of a cosmetic company that tests on animals and her options when she got caught were literally work for the FBI or her ass is getting thrown in prison. She chose the FBI. We love a queen that fights for animal wellfare. The other reason was she wanted to get away from her garbage, and I do mean GARBAGE, boyfriend and have a better life.)

I'm pretty sure she has ADHD. Maybe autism. IDK, but she's definitely some kinda neurospicy.

She's a walking sparkly neon rainbow. You know the way Flynn's bedroom is described in the one jatp book? Season 1-15 Penelope is that and I love it.

She went ginger once and it was a whole vibe.

Wow, I love her.

She was super nice to her ex boss all the way from s1 to his departure in early s12, and I'm 99% sure was the only one that actually called him bossman or sir bc everyone else just called him Aaron or by his nickname, Hotch. She was really good at making him smile, which actually wasn't that hard but people exaggerate the rarity of a Hotch smile for some reason.

After that, she was still really nice to the replacement he handpicked, Emily Prentiss, who she already adored after working with her since s2.

Hotch was literally physically incapable of saying no to this woman and she fully knew and took advantage of that shit, ok? Seriously, one time, Penelope made a joke like "who could say no to me?" and Hotch just smirked a little bit because he knew he couldn't say anything. Penelope does an incredible imitation of the pleading emoji. Or the Puss In Boots face. Whatever you wanna call this:

"Boss, I want you to hire Tara. 🥺" "Ok. Tell everyone else the position has been filled." "Boss, I don't wanna eat dinner alone. Do you want a veggie omelette? 🥺" "Ok. Do you have jalapeños?"

The hilarious thing is she doesn't even have to make that face. She does it to mess with him.

And then there's her, uh...... interesting little flirtationship with Derek Morgan. Or as Penelope calls him, chocolate thunder. He loves that name and encourages it. He calls her babygirl. They also have about a million other adorable pet names for each other.

*gestures at these gifs* They love each other so much, it's kind of gross. I've said before that before I actually started watching and only had the massive comp of him calling her that, I genuinely really thought Morcia was canon. Like, oh, my GOD, dude. These two are disgustingly obsessed with each other. The shit they say on work calls. He calls her sexy and brilliant Goddess and told her it drives him crazy when "she talks that voulez coucher stuff to him". Like, hello? Honestly, I'm amazed Derek only had to sit through one HR lecture about creating a hostile work environment. Or at least, we only saw one.

Then there's her very sweet friendship with baby genius, boy wonder, good doctor, Agent Doctor Spencer Reid.

MY BABIES. I LOVE THEM. I want them back. Gimme back my Penny², damnit.

And her very sweet friendship with Matt Simmons! Oh, my god. I love them. 🥰🥰🥰

They're cute and I wish at least Penelope mentioned Matt in season 16 more.

Penelope and Luke! Oh, my God. Penelope and Luke.

They are in love and both think it's unrequited and it's exhausting but at least s12-15 were FUN. Mostly.

Season 16 Penelope, though....

Season 16 Penelope got abducted by aliens. Or lobotomized. Hard to tell.

[supermew100]

#the fact that nice is emphasized is fucking me up bc it’s reading to me like#HES LIKE ACTUALLY NICE TO ME which is making me think sad blorbo thoughts

fun fact i was going to write "and he's actually nice to me" but i was like nah that's too feels for my funny gag comic but i see the fellow lili enjoyers have my back

anyway thank you!!

You can’t just send me this as an ask and expect me NOT to ramble /lh

But like seriously Lili reads to me like people at the motherlobe just see her as the kid of their boss. They don’t want to deal with her (like we see with that one NPC interacting with her in PN2. They just find her annoying and just there. They just dismiss her most of the time.

Also the workers are so gossipy I feel like Lili has overheard people saying she doesn’t belong and that she’s only around and got as far as she did bc of her dad. She knows the word nepotism at age 10 for surrrreee

Kids her age aren’t much better, she’s for sure ignored by all her classmates (many are scared of her). She used to try and make friends and talk about her interests but her interests are “weird” and “nerdy” so she was pushed aside also. Picked last for projects and teams, eats alone most of the time. Is around the “loser tree” (where she and the other outcasts hang out) during recess.

The reason she’s so mean is bc it’s an obvious defense mechanism bc she’s been hurt before but I think we all know that.

I have more but i can’t articulate it right atm but ugh her and her probable imposter syndrome from her dad too ugh

One day I’ll do a proper ramble post I swear

[sugar-omi]

“They’re mean because they like you” is such toxic bs. Teach these kids to respect each others personal boundaries.

As a mixed kid growing up in the uk, I have hundreds of horror stories about school.

To all the kids that got bullied in school - it’s going to get better. I promise.

this this this ^^^^

i've been lucky not to go through much racism (looks at my father🤨) since i live in a predominantly black town, ALTHOUGH MY TEACHERS HAD SOME SERIOUS FUCKING MICRO AGRESSION W ME.... anyway story for another time huh

but i've had people try to bully me too and all of it is just not okay. n adults let shit happen too much, AND SOME OF THEM ARE BEHIND IT. IM THINKING ABT A COUPLE RIGHT NOW. 🫵🫵🫵🫵 fucking racist bitches

like i know the guy did have a crush on me, but he had screws loose and thought that being possessive over me AND pick on me was gonna make me like him. idk what he was thinking but he wasnt right okay

some are mean bc they're assholes n adults just wanna shrug it off as a crush so that way you "stop bothering them"

and some are mean bc they dont know how to express emotions normally because they dont have a good example, or don't wanna express emotions normally and have a healthy relationship. some are just born a little kooky/have toxicity in the fucking DNA

so either way, dont take it- its bullshit. some people know what theyre doing, some don't, but its not okay either way n its up to the adults/that person to correct their behavior

again!! IT. IS. NOT. OKAY!!! so anyone that spouts that shit abt them liking you, tell them i said eat shit bc its not cute!!! putting bugs down ppls shirt or threatening them or whatever isnt funny or cute

like come let me threaten you or put a bug down your shirt, SHARON. SEE HOW YOU LIKE IT YA OLD COOT

anyway.. this is becoming a such a ramble lol im sorry abt that 😬 ANYWAYZ !!! fuck everyone shrugging it off, bc no matter how intense the bullying or how they do it- its important n should be/should have been dealt with properly n seriously.

finally, yes its gonna get better!! bc one day you won't have to deal with the bullshit of that person/those people and one day you're not gonna be affected by it 🫶🫶🫶

im so sorry that happened btw anon, people are such terrors n karma is gonna get them!!! n if karma wont i will🫶🫶 LOL /lh

[artwithoutblood]

Tysm for the guide! I finally survived ahaha <:

But, I’m afraid I have officially fallen victim to AWB brain rot. There’s no going back now 😔 /lh

Just wondering now, what is everyone like when they’re jealous? I’m sure it’s rare, but not impossible, no?

I hope I’m not sending too many asks! Tism just makes me babble and ask a lot of questions 😩

But in all seriousness I adore this game, the concept, and you seem like a lovely cat, Katdev! Hope you’re having a great timezone <3

-🪞

(eating snacks in my house and sees you come in. i offer you a piece of popcorn from my bowl) hi. i like the interaction so i appreciate it nonetheless. i'm glad you liked my game. ⛷

erebus will make it known he's jealous. he's trying to hide it, but he's more angry than usual and is more prone to snap at you. the whole "crosses his arms, pouts, and looks away". he can't really hide it. he's jealous quite often, actually.

genesis becomes more smiley than usual. he's trying to brainstorm how he can do better. what makes him different is he'll try to learn what he can to get into that person's level. he has the commitment and the skill. you just might see him trying a lot harder. how can you blame a musician?

aeron becomes more personal with whoever they're jealous of. more touchy, more personal questions, because they'll pry it out of the other person rather than simply work hard to learn the tricks. but they'll get over it with time and eventually forget, unlike the other two.

[seelestia]

okay, second attempt at this because tumblr hates me.

i’m glad you’ve been doing well! as for me, i’ve been doing a bit better! still working on it, though. dw abt it, i learned my lesson, i think 🦭 (/hj) you got this lia! i’m sure we’ll both do well <3

honestly i barely passed, it was pure luck i was able to do that actually (we accept all the slander to my terrible math teacher, i won’t stop you huhu 🫶🏼 /lh) ive managed to save my sleep schedule, but who knows how long that’s gonna last! thank you! i hope to return to writing at some point, i miss it dearly 😞

HIDING MY WANDERER RN, YOU WON’T FIND HIM 🏃‍♀️💨 (/lh) those eight seconds, i ate them up like i eat your writing. it took a lot of patience,, and resin but it was for cyno - worth it! i’m planning on pulling for her, but haven’t had time to farm bc of personal issues so - not counting on a miracle. (HELP LIA THATS A HUGE COMPLIMENT <3 live laugh love nahida.)

yep! he turned 11, and tomorrow my sister turns 9 :) oh,, unfortunately our plans didn’t quite work out, i’ve been a little bummed because of it actually 😵‍💫 but i’m sure i’ll get to see them at some point!

i am LIVING the dream rn, so true! i give him kith. also not him threatening to kill you?? manz better explain himself rn, i got the chancla. HELP?? omg,, invite me to the next therapy session (/hj) omg.. maybe 👀

of course! and aw, no boiling hot tea today - a shame. pfft it’s kind of like that with cyno and kazuha rn, not sure how that’ll go either, hehe!

OMG YES I SPOKE TO CYNO AI AND GOT HIM TO FALL FOR ME 🤭 (same with kazuha, and the wanderer.. it’s an all-out war rn /lh) and i bet you that i missed you more <33 ty for the forehead kisses they’re vv appreciated here 🩷 if you see someone glaring at you rn, don’t mind :) it’s just a grumpy lil wanderer trying to scare you! dw, he won’t attack you (yet. /j)

THANK YOU FOR TRYING, YONA!! tumblr may be an obstacle but it's got nothing against you 💪 i'm glad! no matter what, you can always try again and i (+ your mooties) will be there to support and bite your ankle when you need it <3 (/aff)

pure luck?? i thought it was your braincells swooping in to save you 😩 coincidence because i just finished my math test today and now, i'm hoping for the best (holding in tears. there were so many questions abt finance— DARN, I DIDN'T SIGN UP TO BE AN ACCOUNTANT. /j) 🤞 me too, yon, i genuinely hope that you can go back to writing without other people telling you how to be one :( leave my girl yona ALONE or i will come for your kneecaps!! 🐎 (/hj)

NOOOO, GIVE HIM TO ME. (/lh) i have so many intertwined fates, but i can't pull anyone because i have to save my guarantee for his pretty face 😞 FRRRR. hoyoverse did not need to make him look that good if he's not rerun-ing?? they need to be considerate to wanderer non-havers (me) 😦 (/j) i hope the gacha will look down on you with favor and you'll get nahida! and that you get to see your friends too soon (do you already have fun plans for what you're gonna do with them? (⁠ ⁠ꈍ⁠ᴗ⁠ꈍ⁠)) 🍀

NOT THE CHANCLA?? yeahhh, fling it across his face 🪃 hehe, have a sneak peek for that therapy session you didn't get to join— and idk why but the way i talk so seriously here looks so funny when put together with the name and pfp, PLEASE.

cream stew is one of my fav genshin dishes; it reminds me of carbonara pasta, yummzz! weird question but do you have a fav in-game dish, yon?? which one is it and why >:3c

DAYUMMMM. i'm just gonna eat popcorn amidst this war while wanderer and cyno reenact that special program's fight. kazu and yona, come join. 🍿 lucky for me heizou and ayato are both vv civil people.... somewhat. (/j)

[lilacknights]

Obey Me Headcanons: What Your Favorite Demon Brother Says About You (but make it too personal)

ALTERNATE TITLE: I judge you based on your favorite brother but I'm not very good at it

CHARACTERS: Lucifer, Mammon, Leviathan, Satan, Asmodeus, Beelzebub, and Belphegor

AUTHOR’S NOTE: As much as I agree with all the other similar headcanons out there, I also want to write my own take on the “what your favorite character says about you” HCs. So I shall be using my very limited knowledge on psychology, personal development, and how to attack people where it hurts.

WARNINGS: (Edited) As the title already states, these HCs might or might not be on a personal level. This is not angst but please read with caution. But please don’t take any of these too seriously. I’m mostly basing on my own analysis of the characters and their representations.

✄ ——————————————————–

LUCIFER:

You’re used to sacrificing. Whether or not you get the recognition for it, you still continue to give and give and give to people.

However, it makes it harder to address your own lack of emotional support because you don’t know how to ask for help.

Do you really favor this character because he’s “dominant” or does it bring you comfort that someone else is taking the lead and you finally get to take a break?

And do you really just want him to eat and sleep well, or are you projecting towards this character as if he was you? Maybe, just maybe, you’re taking care of him the way you would have wanted people to take care of you?

Just in case no one had told you this today: You’re doing great, pal. I promise you won’t lose your value just because you stopped working. You deserve a break, too.

—————————–

MAMMON:

Ah yes, the classic black sheep of the group.

Is it a family thing? Or maybe you’re the forgotten member of your friend group? The one constantly left behind? The one who is only asked out at the last minute because you weren’t really part of the plan and they just needed someone to fill in the spot?

Or maybe you’re the one whose efforts are always thrown under the rug because someone is always better than you.

Like any human being, you have made mistakes throughout your lifetime. Which would be fine if only people would stop focusing on your shortcomings and forgetting about your achievements.

You want to support this man and be there for him when the whole world is against him — because that’s also what you’ve always wanted. To have someone. Someone who would stop looking at you for what you aren’t and start seeing you for what you could be.

—————————–

LEVIATHAN:

Maybe, just maybe, you have a savior complex… but not exactly in a bad way.

It’s more in the “I’ve always felt ashamed of myself but this man doesn’t have to be.” kind of way. This makes you a good person if I do say so myself.

You have your own particular special interest at one or several points of your life but no one ever reciprocated the same excitement you have towards it, making you question whether it was even worth the attention you gave it.

Have you ever had an interest on an instrument, a sport, or maybe something with arts or writing? But because none of those are “real jobs”, you had to let go? Have you been asked something along the lines of “would that be able to pay the bills?” when you tried to introduce an idea to people?

A part of you probably still longs for that encouragement that never came. And so you’re doing it for someone else.

—————————–

SATAN:

How’s the life of the "second best" treating you? /lh

Somewhat similar to those who favor Mammon, you were probably used to having someone else take all the credit for who you are.

Ever had a family member brag about your achievements as if they are the sole reason behind your success? Or maybe you’ve had an older sibling or a senior that everyone thinks is your “inspiration” and it made you feel like your own actions are never your own?

You also probably have a type and that type is a man who does the bare minimum. I don’t know what to tell you but this is most likely the case. (If it’s not, then good for you. /gen)

“He’s not being an asshole towards me and he respects my boundaries and he reads??? Sign me the fuck up.” - You, probably. If I’m wrong, good. But if I’m right, then you and I need to have a proper talk.

—————————–

ASMODEUS:

Your attachment and abandonment issues are showing, bud.

People say that those who favor him are the horny fans but it’s not all there is to it, isn’t it?

Is it possible that you find comfort that this conventionally attractive and well-known individual chose you? Is it possible that, out of all the people he could have had, you’re finally the first choice?

Tell me, how many times were you just an option? How many instances did family, friends or potential lovers didn’t put you first?

Or maybe you’re the introverted little bean in every room that needs someone else to remind you that you’re actually liked. You need that one person to explicitly tell you that “yes, you are wanted.” before your intrusive thoughts take over and make you believe that you’re just a waste of space.

—————————–

BEELZEBUB:

I don’t know what to say except you probably just want to take a break from all the physical, mental, or emotional bullshit going on in your life.

You probably need a hug (preferably against soft tits) and want to live the quiet life with little to no stressors once in a while.

He reminds you of peace and simplicity, and that’s a good thing.

Not sure what you all think but this man is probably the healthiest brother to be biased towards.

I do hope real life for you finally settles down and you get the peace of mind you’ve always wanted. You got this.

—————————–

BELPHEGOR:

Holy shit, you’re fucked up. Are you okay? For real?

Because if Mammon or Satan are kind of the “neglected guy” representation, this one is the forgotten left-in-the-attic version. The difference with this though is that you’ve probably became numb at one point.

Something inside you probably died a long time ago and you just stopped giving a shit. It could be a good thing or a bad thing, mostly depending on your attitude towards it.

You probably weren’t exactly given the biggest responsibilities growing up but, unfortunately, no one expected big things from you because of this — and neither did you.

Also, you’re either a degradee or a degrader. There’s nothing in between. I also believe you’re pretty chill but would be willing to set a building on fire when given enough reason to.

——————————————————– ✄

I haven't written in forever! I do hope you all enjoyed this because I DIDN'T. Asmodeus and Leviathan were basically me attacking myself LMAO — 🌷

[moved828376278]

Uh uh uh uh team stan + craig and tweek with a reader who plays a lot of video games?? video games on the mind?? pro-gamer perhaps??? Idk—

this was made up on the spot so apologies if it doesn’t make sense or smth

i am not a gamer so i hope this is good

MAIN 4 + CRAIG + TWEEK WITH A GAMER S/O!

[ gender neutral ]

>> reblogs appreciated!

- kyle gets super competitive while gaming.

- he thinks of it as a way to prove his intelligence.

- sweats SO HARD, gripping the controller like an animal.

- he loses, and when he does, he’s like “oh it’s fine. like, i wasn’t really trying that hard.”

- he’d rather just watch you game.

- if you’re forgetting to eat, he’ll unplug the wifi and force you to take a shower, eat, and rest your eyes from the game.

- stan doesn’t really take the video games seriously.

- he’d rather play adventure games rather than competitive ones.

- doesn’t really force you to get off the game, he just reminds you to eat and drink water.

- he’ll bring you a bowl of snacks and will open the curtains if the room is super dark.

- likes to listen to you explain the lore of your favorite games, but he gets confused easily so you’ll have to explain a ton of terms to him.

- kenny likes to come over to your house and play mario kart with you, since he doesn’t really have any opportunities to at his own house.

- will literally spoon-feed you if you’re distracted by your game 😭😭 best bf ever

- misses the bus so he can walk to school with you while you explain everything about the games, and he’ll just shut up and listen.

- draws you little drawings on sticky notes of your favorite characters and asks if he can come over and watch you play AUGHHH i’m getting carried away..

- cartman doesn’t really understand how you can only think about games. like- don’t you wanna go outside? touch grass? /lh

- literally drags you off the couch so you guys can go get food and hang out- not in front of a screen.

- “y/nnnn come ennnnn!!!”

- forces his mom to make you food so you don’t starve.

- acts like you’re super immature if you offer him to play LMAO he’s like “no, actually, y/n, i have better things to do.”

- doesn’t really understand why you care so much about the lore- they’re just characters?? what’s so cool about them??

- craig loves video games!

- he likes first person shooters the best, but will play adventure games if you ask him. he just gets super bored when he’s not killing zombies!

- doesn’t really care for the lore, but he’s not opposed to hearing about it, he might give his opinions on characters.

- sits in the dark with you and plays, complete silence except from the console.

- makes you take breaks with him to get food and drinks, he has great self control.

- tweek gets super nervous when playing games, ESPECIALLY shooting or horror games.

- doesn’t really watch you play, cause he’d be screaming and shaking the entire time.

- the only games he’d really play are mobile games, like neko atsume and cookie run. you could try to get him to play minecraft, but he gets super anxious when it turns night.

- panics when you go a while without eating or drinking water, you have to eat or he won’t calm down.

- likes it when you talk about the characters, but not the bad stuff that happened to them.

[incorrect-encanto-quotes]

Rating the Madrigals By Whether I'd Beat Them in a Rap Battle

(Julieta Madrigal baked Polvorosas cookies for dessert, however, there's only one left, and me and one of the other Madrigals are the only ones who didn't get a cookie. The only way to settle this is via a rap battle. Whoever wins gets the cookie. What are my chances?) 

Mirabel: 7/10--I highly doubt she can rap, but who knows, maybe she can. If she can, then she'd probably beat me or it'd come to a tie, but that's a big "if". 

Isabela: 3/10--She'd be a pretty good rapper, plus, whatever she lacks in flow, rhyme, and rhythm, she makes up for in pure, unadulterated, savage badassery. She's easily the sassiest and best rapper...almost. But a lot of burns could be hurled her way as well. 

Luisa: 4/10--She can probably rap, although slightly below average. I'd most likely win, but it wouldn't be hard for her to diss me as well. Plus, she'd have a better flow, although I have to say that rhymes aren't her thing. 

Dolores: 0/10--The Disney Queen of Rap. She spits bars. Nobody is beating her, I wouldn't stand a chance and would wind up crying. 

Camilo: 10/10--Sorry, Camilo worshippers, but your deity can't rap to save his life. I'd run circles around him so fast he'd be dizzy, plus he's the easiest to roast due to his fragile self-esteem, loss of identity, and gift being possibly the most unfortunate(even moreso than Dolores' with all the pain it brings). And despite outward appearances he's the most sensitive to accusations and criticism. This is not a battle, it's a curb-stomp; I'd massacre him so easily I'd actually feel almost guilty about it. No cookie for him. 

Antonio: 8/10--Most five-year-olds can't rap. Unfortunately, Antonio may have been taught to rap by Isabela or even Dolores, and while he's not quite a rapper yet, he's picking up speed and may even actually stand a chance of winning. I'm scared that I might not get that cookie. 

Pepa: 8/10--Her son inherited her abysmal rapping "skills." She's not beating me in this rap battle. Enough said. 

Julieta: 4/10--She's pretty tame, but people are frequently surprised that she's a better rapper than they expect her to be because of her sweet and demure demeanor. And she's scary when mad. So imagine the bars she could cook up if I dare go too far. She also has a pretty decent flow. But so long as I don't press that big scary red button, I'm confident that I could win. 

Bruno: 6/10--He's not on Dolores' level, but I wouldn't be surprised if he can spit bars like her. Although he may run out of rhymes at some point and give me the opportunity to win. He doesn't do too well in a confrontation, fortunately, which mitigates any rap battling skills he may have had, and leaves me room to take the blue ribbon! 

Felix: 3/10--His daughter inherited her flow from him. So me losing in a stand against him is sadly more likely than me actually coming out on top, even though there's a chance of the latter as well. 

Agustin: 9/10--The only one worse than him is Camilo, seriously. I'm kicking his ass. Unless I insult his wife. 

Alma: 8/10--She probably doesn't even know what rap is, but even if she does, then she still wouldn't be able to outrap me. Or she could, but the chances are slim. I doubt I'd be able to battle her regardless, though, though I could always call out the way she treated her children and grandchildren the same way Mirabel did only, you know, in rap form! Really, though, she'd just take the last cookie without asking anyone and eat it because she's the woman of the house and can do what she wants. 

These are just my headcanons; please don't take them too seriously, and you're free to have your own, so please don't attack me! It is only my opinion. Thank you! 

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

OP is this just an excuse to tell everyone that Dolores has the best verse in WDTAB? /lh

Which she does tbf

Also why didn't Julieta just bake more cookies

[hiswitchcraft]

“I will elaborate on this upon request but it’s gonna be long” give us the long post, friend. Where is it? /lh

But seriously, would like to hear more of your thoughts abt correspondence charts and stuff because I’m trying to figure out what’s important and what’s not.

-theverwitchproject

Why Correspondence Charts are Bad & What To Do Instead

Disclaimer 100% just my opinion here based on my experience doing and writing spells, if your experiences don't match that is fine. Everyone's path is different and maybe many who read this will have a different experience in their research and experimentation. However, someone asked for my take so I'm going to give it.

Charts like the ones I often see online are very simplified and provide no explanation of symbolism or sources. They also normalize the idea that correspondences aren't complex and deeply cultural things. This is bad because it's not going to give you a deep enough of what you're doing, using, and why. The why is always important. You can't have a solid practice you're confident in without understanding the what AND the why. This is also why ideas like "Quartz can be substituted for anything" aren't going to make for good spell work in my experience. If that were true, ingredients wouldn't matter at all. We wouldn't have things that are special and passed down in some traditions. Substitutions can be made, but not for anything, for the most similar thing based on a long list of traits. Correspondences are based on many different things, personal association, tradition, culture. For example I was watching a video not too long ago by a Chinese woman that related to Chinese culture and history. We recognize four elements, air, water, earth and fire. In china they recognize five. That's going to turn any ideas about most witch's understanding of the elements and their correspondences upside down. That is all to say that correspondences are not simple and I hate the idea that they are. You could argue correspondence charts are convenient for a beginner or for substitutions. You'd be right in a way but once again correspondences are complicated and you're better off looking into them deeper. You need to understand the what and the why. That's how you're going to get a solid understanding of what you're doing and spells that actually work. They also are usually formatted by category or specific item online and not by very specific intent so they're not good for substitutions.

Instead of throwing a spell together based on quick and easy correspondences charts I have some suggestions. Trust me, I used to use them and I write my own spells now.

What To Do Instead:

Start Small Find a few spells you have the supplies to do. Experiment with magic and energy safely and get a feel for it. Then find a spell you don't have an ingredient for, and try a substitution. If it doesn't work that's okay. Experimentation is the point. This is a baby step towards deeply researching correspondences and having the ground work to write your own spells.

Focus on Correspondences for Items You Can Get It's easy to get overwhelmed. Focus on items you can actually get a hold of or even find outside. Focus on correspondences for types of magic you like doing. This will narrow it down greatly and make it easier to really dig deep into the what AND the why.

Ask Yourself Why Back around to that why. When you're researching, ask yourself why. This is a great tip for your mindset with any research but especially this. It's so easy to just take the information and not get caught up in the why.

More Than Witchcraft Witchcraft books are great but what about others things? What can you study about this plant for example? What's its color and texture? Where does it grow? Can you eat it? What does this plant or stone mean in history, stories and art? What does it mean in your culture? Or other cultures? What is its chemical composition? What do books on herbalism and foraging say about it? These answers will help you better understand what you're actively working with, and often give you a deeper understanding of the why in witchcraft books too. Experiment Maybe your research gets confusing or you're not sure or resources say conflicting things. Maybe your gut just says throw this in. If there's not a lot of risk, try it. This rant/guide is about understanding what you're doing and getting your results so by all means try it.

You can believe what you want about an item's use. It needs a why though, an explanation even if it's "It feels right and I tried it and it works." So many witches seem to struggle with results and I think it's often due to ideas I see spread online that just aren't conducive to results in spell casting. That's all I'm trying to avoid here. If quartz for everything as a substitution yields you results, go for it.

[square-blunt]

I love my friends, they make me feel alive again, or at least they remind me that I'm not even dead

I am kicking and screaming i must put this one and another Esmp fic out before tomorrow and I am very Nyoom rn so I'm sorry if this one isn't as good, I really liked the way it turned out so here have some clingyduo fluff bc yeah I can writing things that aren't angst?? What? no one dies and their best friend holds them in their arms this time?? fuckin crazy. /lh

TW- Abandonment anxiety, ptsd WC: 2530 words Ao3: :3

It was Tubbo's birthday today. Tommy had been planning something for weeks- grinding, mining, stealing, going through ax after ax getting wood. He even asked Foolish for some help, and after those weeks, he had finally built a perfect replica of the L'manberg bee house. It wasn't in L'manberg, of course, but Tommy was sure Tubbo wouldn't care.

He didn't fill the basement with wolves, but he did get two or three bees in there- he named them. Beeinnit, Ranbee, and Tubbee. Tubbo and his two best friends, but bee form. Tommy was still Tubbo's best friend, right? He knew that Ranboo was more than a friend to Tubbo, the two were married, Ranboo couldn't technically hold both titles, and Ranboo was too dumb- he needs to stop blaming Ranboo. Sitting in the bee dome, planting a few last flowers- cornflowers, poppies, sunflowers, and white tulips, Tommy realizes that he needs to stop blaming Ranboo. He needs to. Because Ranboo was a good… enderguy. And he was good for Tubbo. He had asked Tubbo if Ranboo made him happy- Tubbo nodded, and that was good enough for him. He needs to stop blaming Ranboo, and start looking at himself. Because if he and Tubbo aren't talking as much, of course, he's gonna find someone else to talk to. And he's learning to not blame himself for everything, he does blame Dream for that, but this isn't Ranboo's fault and it isn't Tubbo's. And Tommy knows that he and Tubbo are still gonna be friends. It's been him and Tubbo since the beginning, that's what he said before fighting Dream. And Tommy knows that he and Tubbo will have each other's back. He's just overthinking this, but he is still gonna try and give Tubbo everything he wants or needs. And try to give him the world that he deserves. He's gonna try and make the world a better place for him. And a bee dome is a nice, easy start. It was more tedious than anything- thank prime for Eret stealing the blueprints before Doomsday. They had the plans for every building ever created- they let Tommy have the one for the bee dome. They even brought over the bee that would become Tubbee. Tommy… wanted to forgive Eret. And he would. Eventually. Tommy kind of did that before going off to fight Dream- Eret was the last person he talked to. And Eret looked so relieved when Tommy said that he thought they were the true king. They had been there for him and Tubbo. That was good enough for him. He did think that Tubbo, Ranboo, and Eret, even, were his best friends. He knew that Puffy was his friend, and her griefing his house was just some friendly pranks, and he enjoyed having something to do. Shit was getting too buddy-buddy around here. Wilbur… he wanted to be Wilbur's friend- brother. He wanted the Wilbur who started L'manberg, he wanted the Wilbur who would sit down and play a song. He knew that Wilbur was still there. Somewhere. He stops to touch the petal of a cornflower next to him. Blue and yellow are on opposite ends of the color wheel, but they mean the same thing to Tommy. He loves, and misses, his best friends. They make him a better person. He doesn't have to be the bad guy.

Tommy shields his face, the sun setting and glaring into his eyes through a window. It's almost night, shit. He had put enough lanterns and shroomlights in the dome that mobs wouldn't spawn, but he wasn't so sure about outside. There was some pathing, courtesy of Foolish, and there was some light around, but he wasn't sure. Because mobs weren't the only thing that darkness hid.

Tubbo whispers to you: I'm here boss man

Tommy smiles. He had asked Tubbo to meet him at the community house, after his birthday party in the mansion- Tommy had left early to put the flowers in and told tubbo to meet him there whenever he was ready.

/msg Tubbo: k I gotta do one last thing

/msg Tubbo: be there in a sec

He's almost happier it's night, it'll look a lot cooler from a distance. He plants one more cornflower next to a hive. He brushes his hands off on his pants, and then brushes his pants off, and checks his reflection in the window. It wasn't too far of a run back to the community house, the dome was just to the side of Eret's castle.

"Tubbzo!" Tommy runs up behind his friend, who, unfortunately, had his back turned.

"Tommy!! You scared the shit out of me, fuck you-" Tubbo said, Tommy laughing.

"You fucking jumped, like, 30 feet in the air," Tommy says, a shit-eating grin on his face.

"Fuck you," Tubbo repeats, lightly hitting Tommy in the arm, beginning to giggle as well.

"Come on, I spent so fucking long on this so you'd better like it," Tommy says, beginning to drag Tubbo out by his forearm.

"Yeah, is Ranboo already there?" Tubbo says, walking at pace with the other.

"What? I haven't seen Ranboo since the party." Tommy says, a pit in his stomach opening up.

"Huh, he said he was going to go help you with my birthday gift. You never saw him at all?" Tubbo says, voice laced with worry.

"No, was he going anywhere before coming to me? And- and I never told him where this was- only Foolish knew. So I don't even know how he'd find me." Tommy says, his grip loosening on Tubbo's forearm so he could pull away if he wanted. Tubbo didn't.

"No, he did that weird thing though, he calls me Tubbo and talks to me like you or Foolish would." Tubbo walks a little closer to Tommy.

"What's off about that?"

"Ranboo usually calls me beloved or snow angel, and he'd talk to me like a husband would, yknow?"

"He calls you 'snow angel?'" Tommy screws up his nose.

"Oh, piss off," Tubbo smiles a little.

"But still, we can look for him on our way? Unless you wanna look for him now, the be-irthday gift can wait."

"A beirthday gift, you say?" Tubbo says, smiling.

"Oh, piss off," Tommy mimics Tubbo, "but seriously, if you wanna look for him we can." Tommy stops and turns to face Tubbo, giving a reassuring squeeze.

"No, no, it's- you made it, whatever it is, I'm sure he's fine, and I'm sure he'd want me to go ahead," Tubbo says, looking up and smiling slightly.

"If you're sure. Because fucking Prime, this shit took so fucking long and I had to practically beg Foolish to help…" Tommy continues to talk to Tubbo, trying to distract him from his currently missing husband. Eventually, the moon high in the clouds, they get to the start of the path.

"There's no way you did this." Tubbo laughs.

"I didn't- Foolish did the path but I built the actual thing," Tommy says, letting go of Tubbo's arm, "I'll race you!" and off he sprints.

"NO FAIR YOU KNOW WHERE IT IS!" Tubbo laughs from behind him.

"BYE-BYE BEE- boy-" Tommy skids to a stop, not long after rounding a corner of trees. He can see flames, high over the tree line, the light eating away and the surrounding stars, in the back of his mind he hears explosions- there aren't any explosions, Tommy, it's just a forest fire, there isn't any TNT, there isn't any TNT-

"Oh, is that… supposed to be on fire-" Tubbo stops next to him, Tubbo's hand on Tommy's forearm this time.

"No- no it-" Tommy straightens up, and he catches a glimpse of someone running away- a figure behind the trees, he blinks, and it's gone-

"Tommy?" Tubbo turns to look where Tommy was looking- where the figure was just moments before.

"N- nothing- Tubbo get- get behind me-" Tubbo's grip tightens on Tommy's arm as he pulls Drista's dagger out of his inventory, holding it in his other hand. Together, they creep up the path, until what's left of the bee house comes into view. It’s engulfed in flames, and all of Tommy’s hard work is being eaten away before his eyes. Tommy curses, puts the dagger away, and pulls out his water bucket.

"You've got-" Tommy motions at the bucket

"Yeah- and c'mere," Tubbo says, pulling on Tommy’s arm, throwing a fire res pot up. Tubbo lets go of Tommy’s arm as the shield washes over them, Tommy's skin feeling tingly. Together, they manage to put out the fire and put out a few trees that had caught before it spread anywhere else. They end in the dome, the roof all but gone, one of five beehives on the top floor remain.

"Oh, Tommy-" Tubbo begins to say, sadness heavy in his voice.

"Yeah, yeah, I spent fucking ages on it. Can't have shit- the gods must hate-" Tommy begins bitterly, collecting the last of the water, and putting it back in his hot bar. At least before his knees buckle under an unanticipated pile of weight. He hears Tubbo laughing from right behind him- he jumped on Tommy’s back, “Fuckin- Get off of me-” Tommy laughs, too. He doesn't mean anything by it, there's no malicious tone to anything he says to Tubbo- and Tubbo's one of the few people who actually understand that.

"I know exactly what this is-" Tubbo says, standing straight, a hand on his hip.

"What it was supposed to be." Tommy, out of habit, mirrors Tubbo. "See, why can't we have nice things? Fuckin, everyone else gets cool buildings and kingdoms and shit why the fuck can't we have a bee dome in the middle of the woods- what, why are you laughing" Tommy gestures vaguely at the rubble before raising a quizzical eyebrow at Tubbo's silent giggles.

"What it was supposed to bee," Tubbo says, cackling, and Tommy groans.

"Augh Tubbo, now is not the time-" Tommy rolls his eyes

"It was never meant to bee-" Tubbo laughs harder, clutching his stomach, leaning on Tommy for support. Tommy finds himself laughing a little bit,

"Ok, yeah, that was a good one- you wanna bee a hero, Tommy?" Tommy mimics Techno in a high-pitched voice- sending Tubbo into hysterics.

"We- We-hehehe- We would rather die than give into you and joi- join your SMBee-" Tubbo says between fits of laughter, making Tommy bark out a wheeze, "That was- was beeasier than I thought-"

"My unfinished symphobee-"

"TOMMY-"

"You can't control who lives who dies who-"

"-tells your storbee?"

"Yeah-hahaha! F- for Tommy to bee exiled-"

"That was so fucking stupid why'd I do that-" Tubbo shakes his head, his laughter subsiding.

"Because that's what you thought was best, you had no way of knowing what he was gonna- what he was gonna do to me-" Tommy says, the tone becoming solemnly serious.

"-If I had known I never would have done it, I would have told Dream to shove it up his ass, you know that right?" Tubbo says, reaching for Tommy's hand.

"Of course. We're best friends, I know you'd never do that to me." Tommy squeezes his hand. Tubbo lets out a breath, and he looks like a massive weight has been lifted off his shoulders. As much as he feels guilty admitting it, Tommy's glad Tubbo's been worrying about that. It means that he cares.

"Should he go in there and see what we can rebuild?" Tubbo says, rocking back and forth on his feet.

"If any, but- the bees!" Tommy breaks into a sprint, tugging Tubbo along with him with a yelp.

"Bees?" Tubbo easily gets his footing as they fly down the stairs, and all of Tommy's breath leaves in a sigh of relief. He can see three balls of yellow and black in a patch of flowers.

"Oh, thank prime," Tommy says.

"Oh, the flowers are L'manburg colors!" Tubbo reaches down to pick a poppy.

"Yeah… I tried to think of as many things as possible because I know how much L'manberg meant to you-" Tommy flails his arms out- Tubbo launching himself at Tommy- into a familiar hug, their laughter bouncing off the walls.

"It's fine, Tommy," Tubbo says, his voice bright- and Tommy becomes coldly aware of a memory- the last time Tubbo had roughly tangled him into a hug.

What am I without you?

Yourself?

"Tommy?" Tubbo's pulled back, a- at this point- very familiar concern on his face.

"I'm alright- just, bad memories. I'll be alright-" Tommy shakes his head, pulling Tubbo back into the hug.

"Are you sure? We can stop for a second- sit and talk?" Tubbo says softly from Tommy's shoulder.

"No- not on your birthday, I promise- I promise I'll be alright, this is nothing I haven't done- we haven't done before," Tommy says back, tucking his head into Tubbo's shoulder, trying to chase the pit in his stomach away.

"You sure?" Tommy can feel Tubbo's hand smooth down his hair. Tommy just hmms in response. "Do you think they- the bee's are asleep?"

"What do you mean?" Tommy looks up, he can't see the bees, but he doesn't want to leave the hug.

"The smoke, you think it put them to sleep?" Tubbo muses.

"Maybe," Tommy mutters. "Fuckin- I spent days on this." it was more of an inconvenience than anything at this point. "Do you wanna rebuild it?"

"Not right now, I'm tired, boss man." Tubbo sighs. Tommy realizes how tired he is, too, the familiar ache in his bones.

"Me too, Tubbzo, me too. Let's go home?" He says, making no move to back out of the hug. Tubbo just hums. And so they stand there, until they figure out they can shuffle together- at least to the stairs. Tommy laughs at the image this must make. Two boys, one half-cow, one half-dead, who would rather tear up the ground and trample flowers than break their hug. By the time they do eventually get to the stairs, they both are laughing. Tommy notices that he laughs a lot more whenever he's with Tubbo. He also notices he gets tired a lot quicker. Puffy would say something about Tommy feeling safe around Tubbo, enough so that he shows emotion and lets his guard down, but Tommy knows that. He yawns, he is actually really tired. Tubbo yawns too, and they help each other up the stairs and out of what's left of glass and wood. About halfway down the path, Tommy stops and looks over his shoulder, at the space between trees, where he saw-

"Whacha lookin at, big man?" Tubbo asks from beside him.

"Nothing- I thought I saw someone running away from the fire when we first got here- I think maybe they were the one that did it, but I didn't catch their face." Tommy says, half lying. It was true, he didn't catch their face, but he'd know those two glowing eyes anywhere. He knew who it was. No way he was gonna tell Tubbo about it.

Because he was almost sure it was Ranboo.

[doyumacy]

FALLOUT |LH| TWELVE (ALTERNATE FINALE)

*gif not mine

PAIRING: donghyuck x reader bodyguard!donghyuck

WARNINGS: none

WORD COUNT: 2,2K

@tyongf-sunflower99

ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINETEN ELEVEN

After you arrived at the hangar destination, you got off of the car and grabbed your belongings. All of you went to the airstrip where the jet was already waiting for you. Everyone started to board the plane when Donghyuck let go off your hand. You looked at him. "I think I left my wallet in the car. I'll be right back."

"I'm gonna wait for you here," you say nicely.

He nodded and walked back in the hangar where the black suv was. He found his wallet underneath the pilot's seat and took it. He started walking towards the plane again and smiled when he saw you on the staircase. God, he was so in love with you.

Donghyuck hurried his step and as he went up the stairs he gave you a kiss. "All the time you look beautiful, but today you look... radiant."

If you only knew. You thought.

“I needed the mountain air I guess,” you shrug. “Come one, everyone is waiting for us.”

The flight was almost 2 hours, but Taeyong couldn't keep his head clear. He knew that he didn't want you to be with Donghyuck and had a solid plan, but now things had changed. You were pregnant and as much as he hated him, he wouldn't leave a child fatherless.

He’d take care of your father and make sure he would never hurt you or your baby. Taeyong promised that to himself.

When you two got home, you took a long bath stating you were tired from the flight and Donghyuck joined you. You got dressed in comfortable sweatpants and one of his hoodies.

"Nice hoodie," he leaned down and kissed your head. “I’m going to order some Thai. Want your usual?”

“Yeah, sure,” you responded flatly.

After you two ate, you went to your bedroom and Donghyuck was lying in bed on his stomach watching TV. ‘It’s now or never’, you said to yourself.

Climbing onto the bed, you startled Donghyuck's lower back. As you ran your hands up his back and over his shoulders, you commented, “I have some big news.”

“Oh yeah? That feels good by the way.” He answered.

“Feeling relaxed?” you continued massaging his back. His response was a nod. Swallowing the lump in your throat you continued, “Okay. So, God, uh, I’m…pregnant. About six weeks.” You felt Donghyuck tense immediately.

He flipped over making you slide off him. Donghyuck sat at the side of the bed, “Pregnant. As in we’re going to be parents? Okay... okay. Wow.”

Crawling over to him, you put your arms around his neck. He placed his hands over yours. “Are you mad?”, you asked sheepishly.

Donghyuck let out a held breath. “Mad? No. Surprised? 100%. I mean I know we really never use protection, so not shocked. Just…wow.”

You sat back on your heels staring at his back. He turned around, “So, a baby. Okay. I’m going to be a dad.” He smiled big. “I like the sound of that.” He wrapped you on his arms.

You smiled and snuggled into his neck.  He stroked your hair gently as he kissed your temple.

“We’re going to be parents.” You sniffled. You took his hands and placed them on your stomach that would expand in a matter of weeks. “I’m scared though.” You confessed.

Donghyuck's eyes glint, his focus fixed on your stomach, not able to fathom that he was going to be a father. “Me too.” He placed one hand on your cheek, wiping the stray tears away. “But as long as I have you with me, I think I can manage.”

Smiling at his words, you leaned forward to press your lips against his. Sharing a sweet kiss from the person you loved and trusted the most. Soon enough, the fear was slowly being replaced by excitement. You couldn’t wait to meet your little bundle of joy.

"So... that explains your weird cravings," Donghyuck said after a while. "Who in hell even eats watermelon with salt?"

You laughed. "Apparently our baby."

(...)

“Hyuck, would you calm down a little? You’re gonna hit your head on the ceiling if you start bouncing any higher,” You giggled as you pulled your shirt up for the doctor.

“Couldn’t stop, even if I wanted too,” He said. “I'm gonna see my baby for the first time.”

You winced as the doctor applied the cold gel onto your belly and then smiled as you saw Donghyuck's eyes had lit up with pure joy upon seeing their baby on the monitor for the first time. And a moment later when he’d heard the heartbeat. You practically melted as he looked at you with watery eyes.

The doctor moved the wand over your stomach for a moment, staring hard at the monitor. A slight crease in her brow occurred as she tilted her head and narrowed her eyes.

When she didn’t say anything, you fought back a sudden bolt of panic. “Is everything alright?”

Shaking herself out of thought, the doctor smiled and said, “Oh yes, of course. I’m sorry if I alarmed you there for a moment, but it just took me a second to make sure I was seeing this correctly.”

“Seeing what correctly?” Donghyuck frowned.

“You see this here?” the doctor pointed to a blob on the screen. “That’s your baby. And this over here,” she pointed to a smaller blob that was partially hidden by the first. “That’s your other baby. Both are looking perfectly normal at this stage. Congratulations, you’re having twins! It’s hard to definitively say whether they’re identical or fraternal at right now, but I’m leaning towards identical.”

“Twins! y/n, we’re having twins!” If Donghyuck had been excited before the ultrasound, now he was practically jumping for joy as he grinned from ear to ear.

Your response, however, was definitely... different.

“What?!” Your eyes went wide in horror as you stared at the doctor. “That has to be a mistake.”

The doctor shook her head. “It’s not. I can say with one hundred percent certainty that you’re having twins.”

“y/n—”

"Oh, my God."

Back in your house, you were still shocked you were having twins. TWINS.

“You wanna talk about this?” Donghyuck offered.

Nothing.

“y/n. Talk to me.”

Nothing.

“Oh really, the silent treatment? Real mature.”

Nothing.

“Fine,” he conceded. “If that’s how you wanna be. Two can play at that game.” He crossed his arms across his chest to emphasize his point.

He lasted all of one minute.

“Okay seriously, y/n, stop ignoring me. It’s not like this is my fault. It takes two to tango!”

That one earned him a glare so scorching, he could feel the heat radiating on his face. Okay, not ideal.

“You know, twins can be a lot of fun—”

“A lot of fun?! A lot of fun?!” You finally cracked. “Castle! That’s double the crying, double the feeding, double the pooping, double the mess! I’m gonna have to push not one, but two babies, who will have your enormous head, out of my vagina and it’s all your fault!”

“My fault?! How is it my fault?” Donghyuck sputtered.

"You’re the one that has twins running in his family!”

“Okay, hold up. I have like two distant relatives—whom I’ve never even met—on my mother’s side who are twins. That doesn’t mean it runs in my family.”

“I just can’t believe you gave me twins!”

Donghyuck ran his fingers through his hair. “For the last time, it’s not. Completely. My. Fault. And what gives, Kate? I know we weren’t expecting this, but are you really that mad about it that you won’t stop and realize that we just got to see our babies for the first time?”

You sighed.

“What’s wrong? Why are you so angry over this?”

“I just...I’m not gonna lie, it threw me off,” You said. “I went in there thinking we were gonna see one baby and instead we saw two. It never even crossed my mind that this would happen. And to be honest, it scared me.”

“Well I’m not gonna lie, it scared me a little too,” He admitted. “One’s hard enough to handle. But two? Yeah, that’s a lot.”

“I’m sorry about how I reacted. It wasn’t fair of me to blow up at you like that.”

“Already forgiven,” he said, pressing a kiss to your hair.

“It’s just a lot to process. Twins are a handful as is, but given your genes,” you said teasingly.

“Hey,” he warned playfully. “I wouldn’t mind a girl and a boy. It’d be nice."

You chuckled. “You better give me both of your hands when I’m giving birth to both of them.”

(...)

Your mouth felt dry and you swallowed thickly in an effort to regain some moisture. Blearily you opened your eyes to a room that was far too white, much too loud, and very much not your own.

“...Where?” You croaked softly, you could feel Donghyuck's presence as though it was a tangible thing, and you knew the fingers that brushed your hair away from your eyes were those of his. Your babies, his little boy and girl. You tried to sit up and you saw a figure cradling your crying children and walking away.

No.

No, your babies. You tried harder to sit up, your body trembling with the effort. Where was that woman going? Those were your children, crying for you.

“Ssshhh, y/n sshh,” Donghyuck coaxed, and placed his hand on your shoulder, gently pushing you back into the bed. Panic and frustration clawed at you. Your babies, your children, that woman was taking them and Donghyuck wasn’t doing anything. You felt hot tears welling up and you looked at him.

“Donghyuck,” you pleaded, struggling to sit up again, your eyes flicking between him and the woman holding your twins, she was dressed in scrubs and wearing a mask, and oh. Comprehension sank in and you fell back into the bed with a heavy thud and while feeling very much a fool. Then you remembered. You slipped and fell down the stairs, hitting your head.

Donghyuck kissed your forehead. The nurse made her way back to the bed and placed the twins -now bundled in blue and pink blankets- into your more than welcoming arms.

Oh, it was the most intensely wonderful feeling in the world and you couldn’t help but smile down at them. These tiny people that you had birthed, back in your arms where they belonged. You slowly rocked them and their soft crying stopped while yours continued.

“They’re beautiful, y/n,” Donghyuck assured him, leaning down and wiggling his finger in each of their faces. He kissed your forehead, and then one on each of the twins’ and then yours a second time.

“They look like you,” you murmured, voice thick. So small, so fragile with only wisps of hair on their heads, the most beautiful things you had ever seen.

“I love you,” He cooed, placing a kiss on top of your head. "The three of you."

“Do you have names?” the same nurse asked.

“Eunwoo and Eunbin.”

The house was clean and quiet, only the faint sound of running water from your bathroom was heard. When you heard the shower turn off, you went to make two cups of Donghyuck's favorite tea. As you waited for the kettle to bubble, you stared out the open window to their tiny backyard. You could smell the faint fragrance of the jasmine.

You were pouring hot water into your cups when your heard Donghyuck's slippered feet padding towards the kitchen.

“Tea?”

“Mm.” You smiled when you felt his warm palm between your shoulder blades. “It’s not so late yet. I thought we could sit and relax, talk about our day.”

“Just like the old times.”

“The old times. Like, seven months ago.”

“It’s weird,” Donghyuck sighed. “It feels like forever ago.”

“And yet…” You turned around and looped your arms around Donghyuck's waist, tilted your head up slightly so you could look at your husband. “It feels like time flies so quickly.”

Donghyuck and you had gotten married almost 2 months ago in a small ceremony with your closest friends.

“It does.” He landed a small kiss on the tip of your nose.

You smirked. "I'm so happy, you know? The three of you make me so happy."

Donghyuck pressed a fond, lingering kiss on your cheek. And then on your forehead. “You’re still my baby tho.” He whispered near your left ear.

You were glad that Donghyuck couldn’t see your face, because your cheeks felt on fire.

“Aish.” You mumbled. You could feel Donghyuck's smile against your hair.

"Hyuck?"

“Mmm?”

“I love you.” You murmured

Donghyuck smiled and cupped your face. He planted a soft kiss and then bite your lip, pulling it. "Should we give the twins a new sibling?"

You growl, pushing him away. "No. Maybe in 3 years."

Donghyuck laughed. "Imagine if this time we get triplets."

"You will never fuck me ever again," you warn.

[luminous-shifting-vibes]

*sequel* to actual fucking quotes from the shiftblr coffeehouse discord server

once again, it's out of context because x1000 funnier

also x1000 longer than previous post

"ur satan is gnc af"

"Bestie I’m already having gender envy over a fucking demon please"

"O_O ODEPIJHFbavevisdpvfhzdcnjawedsidjksjdkoeirjfmkdsoeirujdksodifjndmksoidfjdksidfj ITS" NOT IN MY FRAFTS IS SPEDNT 1 hour PN THAT SHIT"

"AUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

"ohoho sexy"

"I am very proud of myself"

"himbo x edgy fuck"

"YOU COULD SQUISH HES CHEECKS"

"he has teefs"

"SQUASH"

"good for biting 📷"

"he's a himbo basically"

"B͂̒̄iͫ̍̈tͧ̓ͯè̄̇"

"bifth"

"i havent watched blue exorcist in years but mr okumura my beloved </3"

"MY LIFE QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED"

"is it important information to mention that the person i put up for my turn is the son of satan" "I know like 1 thing about everyone who isnt ranboo lmfao"

"crimes"

"tumblr sexyman"

"idk why but my first thought was cowboy onceler"

"I vibe with him but he is very long and twisty"

"steampunk e-girl"

"steampunk tumblr sexyman"

"Canonically bi crimelord I agree!!"

"OOO FRIEND SHAPED"

"ARTIST SIGHTED"

"they look like someone i would want to be friends with but is way cooler than me so i'd never actually talk to them"

"babby..... would die for him"

"honestly i probably kin him"

"i'm sure he's lovely but he looks way too much like my ex i'm sorry-"

"i'd be down for another rotation! i have another twink to show y'all"

"Also :00 blonde friend"

"Let us all infodhmo"

"Hsjagdvbs shhh im on phone"

"Nix woukd you like to joon?

"skitters away"

"I have two braincells and they both drink dumb bitch juice"

"oof wait whats the order again i have 0 memory"

"i want to bond with him over cosplay-"

"Awkwardly watches in band kid"

"One day I'm gonna a broadway star"

"which isnt to say they were bad. they were just fortnite dancing during rehersals"

"I threw it so hard my glasses flew off and slid under the stage right divider"

"anyway heres my boi"

"emo"

"haha emo"

"virgil sanders kinnie"

"he looks like he listens to my chemical panic at the fallout boy"

"Bro I bet he'd kick my ass with his deck"

"bird man my beloved"

"fuck i had so much to say and then i forgot it all"

"Birds!!"

"guiguhuh"

"crabrave"

"She sounds like someone I would end up stealing her personality"

"yess name collector gang"

"alias glass aiden haven absinthe fish brick rice"

"But I have Cypress, Remure, Genesis, Lemres, and Comet"

"And she's named after a mars candy bar bc alien"

"Hey, if plato went by plato, you can be king thief"

"im not dissing my gramma like that shfojd"

"My dad has seven legal names" "bitches be like *looks at fictional character* *steals their name* it's us we're bithces"

"coraline lowkey traumatized me but i adore it regardless"

"mmmmmm magic man :]"

"°0° green man"

"criminal (affectionate)"

"he would shoplift a candy bar from walmart and then brag to all of his friends about the sick stealing he did"

"despite the fact he's canonically been capable of overpowering a minor deity"

"i would commit so many crimes for him"

"Very babey"

"Yes please tell green man he is very pog"

"he also keeps a lot of dumb secrets"

"but I will sorely miss the chaos and energy of this here chat until I wake again" (by request XD)

"i just say words and if they're funny then they're funny"

"* or extremly chaotic either works"

"at this point we are just taking turns rambling"

"oH--"

"bc my brain has a schedule"

"Hopefully they have gyoza there or I will lose my mind"

"hehe yes spooky man"

"my ghost glucose guardian"

"the head of the undead group that lives there, and we end up dating. (yes I date a ghost, no I will not be taking constructive criticism /lh)"

"ghosts r just inherently sexy"

"i mean im becoming a squid thing so"

"Raven quirk raven quirk!!"

"ł â m p"

"łæmp"

"mothman: ooh lamp you look very nice today! do you come here often? mothman: wait shit no"

"I'd date a ghost"

"mine is still accurate, i am still sobbing (/j)"

"p e e p e e"

""@nick wilde is a tumblr sexyman" is the best thing i have ever seen"

"im sorry im cackling like a dying hyena"

"you're all 12 year olds"

"PEENIE"

"He once caused global warming on accident so he could get a tan"

"god, what a himbo. i love him"

"that reminds me of my friends kin assigned me jesus"

"Man outside of battle be like: princely crying but then in battle hes like: "CATACLYSM! DISASTER! DEVASTATION!" Chill out man"

"Every time I talk about satan it never fails to shock people it's my favorite thing to do"

"im kin assigning him roman sanders" ""Oh yeah he caused global warming because he wanted to get girls" "he what""

"oh damn i forgot satan was straight"

"twink appreciation club"

"give us the twinks"

"my first thought was bottom-"

"so many people to try and get his dad to love him"

"daddy issued"

"OH MY GOD ITS WILBUR"

"Big boy but"

"anyways janus is swagggg"

"........................."

"gib twink"

"give twink then i will share"

"holds him gentle like hamburger"

"This dumb bitch opened a book that said "do not open" and got possessed by a little bastard"

"he is. fragile creachur"

"klug is beauty klug is grace i would let him step on my face"

"If I'm playing swap and I have to hear one more "Pwanet Powew" Im gonna lose it"

"Who is to blame? Pandora or the box?"

"Bakugo isnt my type but I respect the drip"

"i say like my type isnt long-haired pretty boys and girls that look so gnc that people have a history of confusing them for men"

"hes a gremlin and i can appreciate a pretty gremlin"

"that is to say i am attracted to VFlower vocaloid. This is a confession."

"note i am a lesbian"

"You may like Schezo wegey"

"why does he have one single expression"

"soul soul eater passes the vibe check"

"magic wand"

"I Want To Hold His Hand"

"i would commit a war crime for him any war crime idc which one"

"my favorite one is when he sounded rlly gay because he said "Muscular bodies keep me satisfied""

"p e a n u t"

"Klug is a homophobic homosexual its just facts"

"grug from the croods is peak male performance"

"jaw drops to floor, eyes pop out of sockets accompanied by trumpets, heart beats out of chest, awooga awooga sound effect, pulls chain on train whistle that has appeared next to head as steam blows out, slams fists on table, rattling any plates, bowls or silverware, whistles loudly, fireworks shoot from top of head, pants loudly as tongue hangs out of mouth, wipes comically large bead of sweat from forehead, clears throat, straightens tie, combs hair Ahem, you look very lovely."

"tag yourself im the fireworks shooting from the top of the head"

"i like essays"

"central time gang"

"11:11 pog-" (wait... is that a suprise angel number?? yes it is lovelies just for you <3)

"Then again im also a dumbass bitch who wonders what the souls in soul eater taste like. SERIOUSLY THOUGH. THEY LOOK TASTY AS HELL!!!! LIKE GODDAMN BRO YOU'RE MAKING ME FUCKING HUNGRY. Like. that shit- it's Bone Apple motherfucking Teeth. hell yea my guy. Im hongy now.... shlorp I'm seriously considering this. Like. They seem kinda like a liquid? But a solid? Are they like jello? The fuck they taste like my guy???? I keep imagining they're like sour, like sour candy maybe? Or do they taste salty? Sweet? Maybe some combo of two? Do they even have a taste or is it about the texture? The sensation? God my mouth is watering what the hell. I am starving. I think I need to go get a cookie. I'm gonna go get a cookie. Brb. I'm better. I'm still craving souls though. Which is a weird-ass cringey thing to say but I'm being dead-ass rn. They just.... look tasty???? And I wanna eat one. Thus. I am shifting to Soul Eater for the express purpose of satisfying my fucking cravings. enjoy"

"points were made"

"jello? more like helloooo schloooAHFJDSDAIDWNALDHSJKDAIDANDM"

"WAIT I THINK I HAVE AN ANIME GIRL BITING VIDEO TOO"

"anime girl voice: mmm! mm... ahhhhmp!! mmm, mmm... aaahmp!"

"i think it sounds great i'm going to start eating like that"

"several people are typing"

"do these look edible to you"

"forbidden gummies"

"when I was on lsd I couldn't eat my fruit gummies because I thought they were alive because they had little faces on them"

"oh shit yeah don't do drugs"

"anyways general consensus is puyos are edible, ty for your input everyone"

"everypony is a word so powerful it can bring nations to its knees"

"pls the self control it's taking me not to say "hewwo everypony" in gen chat when someone new joins-"

"hewwo evewrypony uwu deaw cewestia i hopwe it doewsnt wain owo"

"ive cooked up a sowution wiwth the knowwege ive acwued. they say a kitcwen time saves niwne, but im just savwing two. Ive gathewwed the inwedients to make a time sowbet. Thewe's hawdly woom fow seconds when the seconds mewt away."

"I had a ten year old sister... you know what happened to her??? very sad, very tragic... she turned eleven....."

"NIIICE"

"Guts dont say the secks word :( /j"

"watch your fucking language in front of the president"

"im so sorry lumi"

"i think you're like ehhhh 8/10 funny"

"now me???? 10/10. Hilarious"

"sometimes i have to take a step back and remember that this is the same guts i follow on tumblr /lh"

""ok every here's some good shifting advice!!! uwu have a good day" "yeah i did lsd and ate fruit gummies""

"i have one setting and it's whatever this is"

"my bitch ass cat just pushed the door open with his fuzzy face and now my sleeping dad is being lulled into dreams by Cosmo Sheldrake's 'Pliocine'."

"me on discord: nick wilde"

"me on tumblr: shifting water! haha funne! me on here: my hermit crabs are cannibals also i want to eat souls."

"im sorry yOUR VIBESA RE JUST SO DIFFERNT"

"u give off older cousin ive never spoken to but always admire at the family gatherings vibes"

"what the fuck"

"BC I HAVE LIBERTU"

"If you adopt me then yes"

"am I qualified for dad jokes???"

"we're all a lot smarter on tumblr"

"I'm like "awww... sweet... sweet little shiftlings... posting such sweet shiftling content... so pure, so wholesome... does not even know abcs....""

"can't think before you speak if you never think B)"

"I'm not responsible enough to be a mom"

"cat pet"

"show us pictures of the cat or i will do Crime"

"maybe thats me being a coward tho"

"MOTH!!!! MOTH MY BELOVED"

if y'all want I can make this a series bc shiftblr keeps giving me more content

[cheeryfairygender]

Oh, that's so swag about sharing a b-day with Nagisa! /gen /pos That's neat tbh /gen

In terms of Vocaloid/UTAUloid recommendations, I've currently been listening to Pyrite Girl and What Gave It Away, both songs made by R.I.P. (with Pyrite Girl originally sung by Kagamine Rin, and What Gave It Away originally sung by Otomachi Una) on loop. Oh, and if you ever wanna listen to some good Kasane Teto covers (and I genuinely mean good /gen), look no further than Tanjiro Taidana and their covers. They're an amazing ass UTAUloid song artist/tuner, and while they primarily use Teto, they also occasionally use other UTAUloids and even Vocaloids.

Yeah, buffalo wings can be spicy, heh. In terms of wings or the sauce of whatever food item, there's usually a mild option, a medium option, a hot option, and so forth (sometimes). Depending on that, they can be spicy. However, I have a tolerance with spicy food, as well as a huge love for spicy food, so I'm a bit bias in terms of if a certain food is spicy or not /lh However, I completely respect you not tending to not like spicy food! /gen /nm I get that it's not everyone's cup of tea.

Yeah, I can definitely understand your opinion on the artstyle. Looking at the examples you provided, it honestly makes complete sense /gen (not /s). And considering I've completed DRV3, yeah, it's kind of unique compared to the other two [main] games /neu

Oh, and as for the air fryer thing you mentioned in the tags, you can usually figure out how to use it+how to airfry certain things by looking it up! Just type in Google if you can airfry XYZ food, and it'll usually give the suggested temperature and time. I'm sure you can airfry sweet potato fries, as you can airfry regular French fries (whether they're frozen or from a fast food place)! /gen /nf I feel that sounds dumb and easier said than done, but if it makes you feel better, I didn't know how to use it at first for quite awhile /gen /lh (not /s)

Oh oh, and don't worry about not adding reply icons! It's all good /lh /gen /nm

TBH I want to like spicy food but it's a sensory issue for me because I can't tolerate the pain very well, and I don't like a lot of flavors of the actual food that has spice. But oddly enough, I like Japanese style curry. It's super good. Apparently as a little kid I liked spicy food though which makes it super weird I grew out of it. I really like sour food, though! I think the issue is that spice stays in your mouth even after eating, but sour goes away super fast (unless you injure your mouth/tongue from too much/too strong sour food).

I just generally don't like things with strong flavors...like, I don't even like how black pepper tastes. I tend to eat...bread. And sweet baked products. I usually just eat a lot of samefoods but my sister is an incredible cook so I eat whatever she makes when she cooks! Otherwise I just kinda graze on snacks.

Also I listened to the music and it's super interesting /positive, I like finding smaller vocal synth artists! Also yes yes I've heard Tanjiro before and he's GREAT at utauloid tuning. I feel like utauloids are often tuned better than vocaloids nowadays because you have to put in more effort to get them to sound good and it's easier to just put less work in for vocaloid.

Airfryers are just super intimidating IG I think we got ours for free from someone who didn't need it??

Also to make it clear I don't like...dislike v3? It's a cool game, it just doesn't satisfy the itch the first two games give me, which honestly makes sense. The original Danganronpa series ended on purpose--they reached a good end for it. V3 is kinda like a new beginning so you can't go into it wanting what the original series had. I feel like the graphics/art style for Danganronpa didn't age well with time. For the original games, it made a lot more sense considering when they came out and the consoles they were released on, but that kinda sloppy, eccentric style doesn't transfer well when there's a higher production value like v3 has I think.

I think the WEIRDEST thing is how...much worse the games got in terms of jokes/content. Like, the things about incest and any homophobia got way worse. Kaito says slurs against gay men/trans women in the Japanese version more than once, I think.

In SDR2, most characters are implied to be bi and wlw or mlm. There's less in DRTHH, but they're still there. The original games write queer characters subtly but in a very good way. You still have this subtle writing for v3 but they completely upped the explicit jokes to the point it isn't silly or funny...just uncomfortable. (Mikan, Teruteru, Kazuichi, Nagito, Hajime, Imposter, and Nekomaru are all implied to be queer off the top of my head. Makoto, Mondo, Taka, Chihiro, Hifumi, Mukuro, Junko, and Leon are all implied to be queer iirc as well.) Like with Leon in DRTHH, his cousin has romantic feelings for him, but he makes it SUPER clear he hates it and it makes him super uncomfortable. But then I think v3 just has straight up incest with the monokubs? I'm not sure if the other characters reacted uncomfortably to it or not, though. But just...the way the characters talk/the jokes they make totally changed. It's super odd to me. It really takes me out of it and it

I guess my main issue is the shift in how the characters act, less context for the behavior of the characters (like, DRTHH extends into SDR2, and vice versa. Each game lends into each other), transferal/execution of the Danganronpa style, as well as the user interface. The user interface is super busy and confusing for me.

Also, the characters are intense like usual but in a super weird way. Like...negatively? In DRTHH, they were all extreme in a way normal teens could be. Instead, they feel like...superheroes. Like, their whole talents are pushed too hard. In SDR2, they were still extreme but in an, again, rather normal way.

I just seriously love the characters though. I think it's a good game, but you can't play it and expect an experience like the original series. You can only really play it and do your best to not compare it at all.

[stereksecretsanta]

Merry Christmas, kevaaronday!

For @kevaaronday. I tried to use all the tropes you liked, though I played a bit with the coffee shop!AU request. It ended up being pretty long, but I hope it pleases. Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Read On AO3

*****

Food, Drinks, and Pings

Stiles just wanted to clear things up—he did not work for Hale Corp, and he certainly did not work for said company’s inhouse café, The Family Bean. He was a writer, who just so happened to have been roped into the gig because he was best friends with the soulmate-fiancée of the best friend of one of the sons of the company’s owners.

See, one of Stiles’ best friends from high school was Erica Reyes, blonde, vivacious, and both crazy and powerful enough to castrate someone with her fingernails. She might look like she just stepped off the catwalk, with her hourglass figure, fluffy hair, and red lips, but she had a knack for business that led to a scholarship at a reputable business school. Stiles, on the other hand, took to writing like a duck to water, thanks to his overactive imagination and ability to turn a phrase. He could write anything and so he did—news pieces, articles, blogs, reviews, as well as a modestly famous soulmate series published under a pseudonym.

Erica’s soon-to-be husband and soulmate was Vernon Boyd III, a tall, dark, and delicious drink of chocolate, who was so fit he could bench press a baby elephant without breaking a sweat. He was the perfect picture of seriousness and silence, that Stiles used to wonder how he functioned as Hale Corp’s Director of Operations. After getting to know him better, he realized just how smart and charismatic Boyd really was.

Boyd’s best friend from childhood was Derek Hale, one of the sons from the famous and powerful Hale Family, owners and leaders of the mass media company, Hale Corp.

Stiles knew of the Hale Family, and who didn’t? You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who didn’t know the famous family of business tycoons and titans, a family so rich they could buy a person’s soul even. Nor would someone fail to hear about one of the most powerful love stories that rocked the world.

Talia Hale was the eldest child of the main branch of the Hale family and was poised to take over the world. Desmond Fitzgerald, in contrast, was the only child of elderly parents, and they lived at a shabby, squat house with no electricity, scraping by each and every day. 

Talia’s father, the late and great Everett Hale, had visited the local community college as part of their charity program. Talia had tagged along, nineteen and already learning the ropes, and had tripped over the custodian who had been on his hands and knees straightening the welcome carpet.

Take a guess who the janitor was.

An accidental brush of skin, the burning of a Mark, and that was it.

Talia and Desmond turned out to be soulmates, and their Marks, her howling wolf and his crescent moon, had become one of the most romantic symbols of their time.

Now, where did Stiles and The Family Bean came in, you ask?

Aside from writing, Stiles knew his way around a kitchen. His mother had passed away when he was seven, and he had grown up with a Sheriff father who only knew the basics. Stiles had to learn how to cook a meal or risk them subsisting on fried everything and endless takeout orders.

So yes, Stiles knew how a kitchen worked. The thing was, Erica didn’t, and had spent high school eating Stiles’ meals and hanging around his kitchen. Nothing soothed her viciousness and temper like one of his desserts.

So whenever Erica was close to breaking someone’s jaw and risking a lawsuit, she’d invite Stiles over and he would come and work his magic at The Family Bean. It wasn’t like it was such a hardship. The place had a gorgeous kitchen, a full pantry, and a really comfy setup with cozy booths and colorful tables and chairs. 

It wasn’t only Erica who benefited. Stiles often found inspiration at the tail end of a whisk or in between beating a dough into submission while listening to Erica’s gossip. He had come to depend on her brand of sass whenever he was suffering from writer’s block, or dealing with annoying clients, or avoiding his editor, Danny Mahealani. 

It got to the point that Erica had HR make him a permanent guest entry pass—written down for Stiles S, Food Guy—and everyone knew him by name, the security, the delivery boys, the café’s actual employees, and some of Hale Corp’s employees.

That was what he meant by his original statement: He did not work for Hale Corp or The Family Bean. He was just Erica’s food guy and personal chef. Just another title to add to personal punching bag, platonic soulmate, best friend, and partner-in-crime, among others.

Boyd was surprisingly calm about the guy constantly hanging around his soulmate. Then again, no one would choose Stiles’ skinny ass for Boyd’s lusciousness, so Stiles could understand that he wasn’t much of a threat. Erica said that Boyd knew they were a package deal, and it helped that Boyd had been won over by Stiles’ banana bread. Either way, Boyd was cool and didn’t punch Stiles in the face for his and Erica’s weird platonic love affair.

So, in the end, that was Stiles’ life—work, his Dad, Erica, and his other friends.

Then the Hales happened.

It all started on a fine Monday morning with Kira Yukimura. She was pretty and petite, and the goddess who was actually the one in charge of The Family Bean’s kitchen. She wore floral dresses with studded combat boots, and held katana wielding lessons on Saturdays and a kids’ kitchen workshop on Sundays. Stiles adored her.

So when he walked in that day—after spending the entirety of the weekend not writing, because his protagonists, Peter and Wade, were being idiots—only to hear Kira’s cries for help, he was more than happy to tag in.

“I’m not crying.” She glared at him from where she was assembling sandwich orders, her gaze as sharp as her swords.

“But you still need help,” Stiles said. He put his laptop bag in one of the employee lockers, rolled up the sleeves of his red sweater, and put on an apron. “Erica wants to do lunch, but I decided to come in early.”

Kira nodded towards the window. “All right, because I got a purple ticket for you.”

Stiles jumped up. “Ooh, cool! I’ve never handled a purple ticket before!”

Kira gave him a relieved smile. “Well, today’s your lucky day. One of my employees called in sick, another is late, and I’ve got five packed tickets from different departments, three of them being rush orders, not to mention today’s purple ticket is a little too vague. I’m both swamped and stumped.”

“I’ve got your back, K.” Stiles gave her a salute and bounced over to the ticket tacked up on the holder.

Purple tickets were orders sent straight from the Wolf’s Den. It was the codename for the top floors occupied by the Hale Family and their closest associates. Boyd and Erica’s office were there, too. Stiles had only ever seen it through photos. There was a lot of security posted there, as if guarding the gates of heaven.

Anyway, purple tickets meant VVVVIP orders, note the number of ‘very’s. Kira usually handled those, but she obviously needed help now.

“Now, what do the Lords and Ladies want?” Stiles murmured to himself.

The Family Bean:

MH: hot chocolate

CC: pancakes

SHB: waffles

VHB: dirty chai

LH: anything 

“You know who’s who?” Kira called out.

“Yep, I got it,” Stiles replied. He learned about this from Erica.

MH was Matthew Hale, the firstborn son and heir to the kingdom. CC was his seven-year-old daughter, who everyone called by her nickname. SHB was five-year-old Spencer, and VHB was his mother Valerie Hale-Barone, the firstborn daughter, second eldest, and the lawyer of the family. LH was Laura Hale, the third eldest and the maverick of the family. She was the only one not directly working for Hale Corp, and was more involved their side projects.

“Purple tickets are usually like that,” Kira said, looking at him with amusement. Stiles realized he had been frowning in confusion. “Despite being insanely rich people, they’re surprisingly not very picky about what they eat. Laura, in particular, will eat anything. It’s just difficult to give them variety or find a balance between upscale and too simple.”

“And now you want me to take a crack at it?” Stiles asked.

“Sure. It’ll be in my name anyway, and I don’t mind if you go wild,” Kira said encouragingly. It made Stiles grin. Most would be horrified at handing over their precious menu to someone who wasn’t a baker, much less someone who wasn’t a legitimate employee. But Kira had always been a rebel.

Under Kira’s guidance, Stiles filled up a purple delivery bag for the Hales. The dirty chai latte was pretty straightforward, though he didn’t know how Kira usually made it, so he went with his own style. He also made a raspberry hot chocolate, strawberry cheesecake pancakes, mixed berry waffles, and, for the anything portion of the ticket, a berry breakfast parfait made of yoghurt and fruits and graham crackers.

“Tastes awesome and looks pretty as a picture too,” Kira said, nibbling on her own waffle as she sat atop the counter, swinging her legs to and fro. Stiles could see a hint of her soulmate Mark under her dress just on the outside of her thigh. “I still believe you should have been a baker rather than a writer.”

Stiles grinned as he hung up his apron. “I’m both, but one pays the bills and the other’s a hobby. It’s surprising how most people would think one’s the other.”

“Kira?” a voice called out.

Kira perked up and immediately slid off the counter. She straightened her skirt and stepped out the door of the kitchen. 

“Good morning, Derek,” she greeted.

Stiles peeked out unashamedly through the service window.

Tall, dark, and incredibly handsome, DH or Derek Hale was the middle child of the family. He was the Chief Financial Officer, and was said to be shyer and quieter compared to his more unruly and flashy siblings. It made sense why he was childhood friends with Boyd. The two seemed to share a calm, quiet demeanor.

Stiles had always thought that Derek was quite handsome in an already attractive family, and every once in a while, he would get front row seats—or the view through the service window—to the man in the three-piece suit with the godly shoulder to waist to ass ratio. It was quite inspiring.

“I heard Val and the others had a purple ticket sent down,” Derek was saying to Kira. “I’m on my way up and I thought I’d bring it along and save you a trip.”

“Oh, thanks, Derek. I’ll get it from the back,” Kira replied. “How about you? Do you want anything?”

Derek thought about it. “Just a drink. Anything you want to make me.”

“So long as it’s sweet?” Kira teased, which made the man chuckle.

It was like a bulb lit up in Stiles’ head. 

He met Kira at the door when she walked back in, and it said so much about how awesome she was because she immediately said, “Yes, Stiles, you can make whatever you want. I mean, you’ve already tried your hard at the purple ticket. Might as well go all the way.”

“Thanks, K. You’re a goddess.” Stiles bounced off to the machines. He had always liked a challenge.

In the end, Stiles added his specially made ‘very merry berry frappe’ into the bag. He made sure to put it in a cup cozy to hide the purple color. He wasn’t sure if Derek would mind, but it just wouldn’t do for one of the bosses to be seen with a colorful drink. He let Kira whisk the bag away and they watched Derek exit The Family Bean.

“I hate to see you go, but I love to watch you leave,” Stiles murmured, eyeing the man’s backside.

“I’ll drink to that.” Kira giggled, clinking her extra glass of frappe against his. “And you’re teaching me the recipe by the way.”

“Not on your life.”

It took eight days before Stiles could once again visit The Family Bean. He had had a burst of inspiration following his last visit and had locked himself up in his apartment. His Dad John and his editor Danny were used to these binges, so they had taken turns visiting him to make sure he was alive and eating actual food rather than inhaling takeout, junk food, and soda. 

He had sent off the first few chapters to Danny yesterday and had then slept for about eighteen hours, before Erica had barged in to make sure he hadn’t died. She had been pissed at him last week, annoyed that she hadn’t sampled Stiles’ berry-filled menu, but she’d gotten over it and had even brought groceries before dragging Stiles to The Family Bean for some fresh air and free lunch.

And if that wasn’t enough to perk Stiles up, she and Kira proceeded to tell him how well-received his menu was.

“The kids absolutely loved it, and Laura practically licked her parfait cup clean,” Kira said as they sat around the table for lunch. She had prepared honey sesame chicken, egg rolls, and sweet potato salad. She definitely had Stiles beat when it came to savory meals.

“Valerie was surprised that her dirty chai tasted great. She wasn’t biting people’s heads off more than usual,” Erica shared. She was running her fingers idly over her soulmate Mark, the three claw marks that spanned across her forearm.

Stiles felt pleased at the compliment, but he couldn’t help sending Kira an apologetic look. He didn’t want to usurp her clients and her kitchen. 

Kira just laughed. “It’s fine. I know it’s due to your magic fingers and secret recipes. Just teach me how you do Valerie’s dirty chai and we’re good.”

“Sure thing, but it’s nothing special” Stiles said. “I did bring dessert, as thanks for letting me play around last time.”

Kira bounced on her seat. “Tomato pie?” 

“With extra bacon and jalapeños, just how you like it.” Stiles grinned and showed her the pie, making Kira squeal.

“You gals eat up. I’ll mix us up some lattes, if you want anything,” he offered.

Stiles went to the kitchen to fix up Erica’s usual iced cinnamon honey latte and Kira’s vanilla almond. He was in the middle of finishing them up when he heard voices out at the main area. He recognized Boyd’s low voice and decided to make him a cup of blond roast with soy milk. He paused when he heard unfamiliar voices and took a peek out the service window. He instantly recognized the small group that had joined Kira and Erica.

There was Boyd, who immediately sat down beside Erica and kissed her cheek. His soulmate Mark was obvious, a rose on the back of his left hand. Stiles liked their marks, very beauty and the beast.

Having come in with Boyd was Derek, who looked just as handsome as he always did in a fetching dark blue suit. With him were his younger siblings, twins Cora and Cameron Hale, the artists of the family, who made music and art, played a bevy of instruments, and also drew and painted. Stiles was only two years older than the twins, but they had more talent in their pinkies than Stiles had in his whole body.

The twins’ Marks were one of the most popular, not just because the two were celebrities, but also because they were incredibly visible. Even from a distance, Stiles could see the compass between Cora’s collarbones and the lighthouse that popped up over Cameron’s collar at the left side of his neck. 

Suddenly feeling shy, Stiles stayed in the kitchen and watched and listened.

“Nice spread, Kira. Is that for us?” Cameron asked.

“No, you Hales have your own food upstairs,” Kira said. “I heard Wild Flour Italian sent lunch over.”

Cora rolled her eyes. “Jennifer Blake owns that joint. She’s been trying to get us to come over. No doubt she’ll just use it as some sort of advertisement. I’d rather take a bite of this.” She pointed at their table.

“That pie looks good,” Cameron said. “Can I have a bite?”

Stiles saw the gleam in Erica’s eye.

“Go on,” she said. “They’re good.”

Stiles watched as Erica and Kira offered the Hales a slice each. For some reason, he felt anxious to hear about how his food will be received. It had been nice to hear the rave reviews from Kira and Erica, but it was different seeing their reactions in person.

Cora let out yum-yum noises, which buoyed Stiles’ spirit. 

“Okay, that’s pretty tasty. I love the caramelized bacon.”

“Wait, is this tomato in pie? Like a tomato pie?” Cameron asked, inspecting his plate. He took a large bite.

Kira bounced on her seat in excitement. “Yes, isn’t it good?” 

“Who made this?” Derek asked. He didn’t look displeased, but he didn’t look happy either. He had a really good poker face. It might be good for business, but it was hard for Stiles to interpret. Stiles noted that he kept on eating the pie though.

“My Food Guy,” Erica said with a smug grin.

“Her Food Guy’s the one who made the berry-eautiful purple ticket that received quite the sensational reviews,” Kira added. She glanced at the service window and Stiles knew she saw him hiding there.

“The one who made my drink, too?” Derek asked.

Kira nodded. “The same one.” 

“Spence went gaga for those waffles,” Cameron said. “And Mattie couldn’t believe someone got CC to eat fruit.”

A loud ring cut through their conversation and everyone started pulling out phones to check. It was Derek’s.

“Mom’s calling. Time to go,” he said, standing up.

In reply, Cameron started shoving the rest of the pie in his mouth and also popped in a couple of egg rolls.

“Where’s the Food Guy, though?” Cora asked, head turning to the kitchen. Stiles ducked down behind the counter. “If he makes stuff like this, I wanna meet him.” 

“You can order a purple ticket if you want, but he’s not here all the time,” Erica said, and Stiles glared at her in his mind.

“He works part-time?” Derek asked.

“Not quite,” Kira said. “He’s—”

They were interrupted once more by a ringing phone, and this time Boyd spoke.

“Talia wants you all upstairs. Now.”

Stiles peeked out again. Cameron attempted to bring the entire pie tin, but settled for polishing his slice off. He then joined Cora in writing up a purple ticket order. After a moment, Derek put an order in too. The Hales left in a hurry and Stiles leaned right out of the service window just as Kira came bouncing towards it.

“There’s the man of the hour,” Boyd said, with a smirk.

Kira giggled. “Order up, Food Guy. You got a purple ticket.”

“I’m so proud.” Erica mockingly wiped a tear away. “Stiles, my Food Guy, charming the Hales off through the power of food.”

“Oh, fuck you all.” Stiles glared, ducking back into the kitchen.

At the last minute, he reached out and grabbed the purple ticket from Kira, ignoring the others’ laughter.

Over the next three weeks, Stiles prepared four more purple tickets. According to Kira, his drinks and desserts had become quite attractive to the Hales, both because of the taste and the mystery.

“At this point, they don’t even want me handling the tickets. They always ask if The Food Guy is around before they send their orders down,” Kira said. This time, she was the one helping Stiles prepare and pack. 

The Wolf’s Den was going to be holding meetings nonstop, so Stiles had to prepare a variety of drinks and snacks. It would have been easy if they had simple requests, but the Hales were a mix of eclectic and frustrating.

“I’m glad you’re cool about this, but the Hales are bound to find out that the one making all their desserts isn’t even an employee,” Stiles said, as he added an extra shot of syrup in Laura’s honey and milk iced coffee. Just like her usual orders, she had asked for ‘any drink that’s sweet’ which was such a large ballpark that Stiles wanted to clock someone over the head, maybe her.

“I’m more surprised that you keep making these for free,” Kira said.

Stiles shrugged. “It’s a challenge, and I like challenges.”

“Really, just for the challenge?” Kira asked. “Stiles, Valerie fell in love with your version of her dirty chai. I did it the exact same way you did, but she insists that it tastes different. Same with Cameron’s favorite spiced coconut coffee. Same with all the desserts you made for the kids…”

Her face turned serious. “Don’t you think there’s more to this? Don’t you think it’s a ping—”

“It’s just for fun, Kira. It’s nothing,” Stiles said, heart rabbiting in his chest. He pushed it down firmly. “Plus, it’s surprisingly inspiring for my stories. Right now, I’m writing a new story for my spy series and I’m trying to solve this thing going on between James and Quentin.”

Kira’s face fell but she smiled, if a bit awkwardly. “Ah, well. Whatever you say, Food Guy. I’m just happy I get free labor out of it.”

“So you’re the Food Guy?”

The two of them jumped up in surprise and they turned around to see that someone had come in through the kitchen doors.

“Nathan, hello!” Kira greeted. “We didn’t hear you come in.”

Nathaniel Hale was the youngest of the brood at nineteen, and with his dark hair and piercing blue eyes, he was quite the heartthrob in an already beautiful family. If that wasn’t enough, he was an athlete and a rising star in soccer.

Stiles didn’t really care at the moment, too busy wondering if the kid had heard what Kira had been saying.

Nathan leaned against the counter. “Everyone was arguing over who was going to pick up the ticket this time. I walked out while Laura was arm wrestling with Cam.”

Kira laughed while Stiles looked away, suddenly awkward.

“Uh, that’s cool and all, but I’m not remotely interesting enough to warrant an arm wrestle.”

Nathan shrugged. “Your stuff tastes amazing.” He smiled at Kira. “No offense, Kira. You’re still queen. But you… you’re interesting.” He gave Stiles a look. “You know, I’ve been ordering the same caramel vanilla iced coffee from The Family Bean for years now. You made it once and now everything else tastes different.”

Stiles couldn’t help flinching. Oh yeah. Nathan had definitely heard Kira.

But Nathan turned to Kira, breaking the stare. “Anyway, is the ticket ready? Can I take it up?”

Kira smiled and handed over the bag. “You just want to lord your victory over the others.”

“Of course. That’s what having siblings is all about.” Nathan scoffed, but grinned. “Anyway, thanks.” 

Kira smiled. “Enjoy your meal.”

Stiles watched Nathan leave and rubbed his left shoulder. He had a weird feeling about all this.

A single touch was all it took to find someone’s soulmate. However, people couldn’t just go around touching one another. Some did, but there were laws against touching people without their consent. So Nature, in all its wisdom, gave people the capability to locate their soulmates by following a trail.

The best trail was through family members. Take for example one other famous Hale love story, that of Valerie. Her husband, the Italian magnate Piero Barone, was from a family of vintners. During Talia and Desmond’s trip to Italy, they met Piero at a wine tasting event and immediately felt what Mark experts called a ‘ping,’ a connection between them that hinted at the identity of Piero’s soulmate. Piero followed the Hales to America, met the family—all of which gave off similar pings—was finally allowed a Touch Test with Valerie, and the rest was history.

There were other kinds of trails, like what happened between Boyd and Erica. They both attended the same university, though Boyd had graduated several years earlier. However, even without knowing Boyd, Erica inadvertently joined the same groups and organizations that he had, and even lived at the same apartment that he had rented when he had been a student. Then after Erica graduated, she decided to take a year off to travel. Months later, when Boyd went on sabbatical, he ended up following almost the exact same itinerary. They finally met by chance during an alumni event and got to talking, which revealed all of the things they had in common. Before the event was even halfway through, they had done a Touch Test and found their match.

Stiles’ favorite trail story was of his parents’. John and Claudia met when they were children. Having no siblings, they didn’t have the benefit of a family trail, and being young meant there weren’t a lot of experiences that could link them. However, they had always known there was something special about one another. They grew up together, grew apart, and met later on in life. They still didn’t have the same life experiences—she was a librarian, he was a deputy—but the moment they saw one another again, they just knew.

Sometimes people just knew.

“Well, well, well. I didn’t know we were serving twink in the menu.”

Ordinarily, that comment would have had Stiles lashing out with his sharp tongue, but upon looking up, he hesitated. First of all, the other person was clearly drunk and it was only, Stiles checked his watch, three-forty-seven in the afternoon. Second, the other person was none other than the infamous Peter Hale, Talia’s younger brother.

The eternal bachelor, he was called, well known for his many dalliances and relationships. He was also the Hale with the most well-known Mark, not because it was at a visible spot, but mostly because he tended to flaunt the large image of a bird in flight that was across his chest via his tendency of wearing unbuttoned shirts.

In Stiles’ opinion, Peter reminded him of one of his book characters—the rich and powerful Anthony, who, underneath all the bravado, was desperately looking for his soulmate, only to find it in the fair-haired, gentle-hearted Steven, who wouldn’t take his crap. He wondered who Peter’s soulmate was.

“Oh, for god’s sake. Uncle, come back here!”

Stiles looked up to see Derek jogging over to them, looking both pissed and worried at the man leaning against The Family Bean’s pristine counter.

Peter ignored him. “Oh, lay off, Derek. I want a drink, and this twink is going to make me one.”

Derek turned to Stiles. “Peter, do not call—” He paused, dark eyes widening.

Stiles felt his heart jerk in his chest and his left shoulder burn. He felt like he had been hit in the head, so did Derek going by his gaping.

Peter suddenly tilted sideways, interrupting their stare down. Neither Stiles nor Derek were able to catch the man before he ended up sprawled across the counter. The sight of him had Stiles dredging up some semblance of control. He sighed.

“You are very rude, and also very drunk, but because I feel sorry for you, Mr. Hale, I’ll make you a free drink.”

Derek let out a gurgle and then a cough, obviously holding back laughter. Peter propped himself up on wobbly elbows. 

“You feel sorry for me? Don’t you know who I am, kid?”

Stiles was both annoyed by Peter and buoyed by Derek’s reaction. It was probably what sharpened his tongue.

“You’re Talia Hale’s younger brother, but between the supposed—ahh, what was it—Big Bad Wolf of Media and this so-called twink, I’m not the one nursing a hangover at this time of the afternoon.”

Stiles shook his head and walked off, ignoring Peter’s angry, garbled words and the sudden chuckle from Derek. The latter made Stiles’ shoulder ache.

Stiles ignored that and prepared a quick takeout bag. He could hear Peter and Derek arguing out on the main area. It was the work of minutes to prepare a quick smoothie and throw in some crackers and fruits. He walked back out and handed the bag to Derek, but then quickly tucked his hands to himself. The other man’s piercing stare was making him sweat.

Peter grabbed his drink and took a gulp of the smoothie, before asking, “What’s your name, kid?”

Stiles rolled his eyes. Not even a thank you. How rude. 

“Not a kid, and there’s no need to know my name since you’re just going to forget it.”

Peter smirked lasciviously. “Oh, that mouth on you.”

“I’m also not into geriatrics,” Stiles was quick to bite back.

Peter’s jaw dropped. “Geria—”

Derek suddenly burst into laughter and the sound of it seemed to fill Stiles’ heart and mind, making his face flush and his body warm. Derek smiled at him and Stiles felt warmth bloom in his chest.

Stiles cleared his throat, trying to will the blush away. He rubbed his shoulder. “Well, anyway, I’m happy to help. I’ll tell Kira you guys dropped by. See you around.” He glanced at Peter. “Not you. Drop dead.” He stepped back.

“Wait!” Derek lurched forward, startling Stiles and also Peter, who, true to Stiles’ words, slid off the counter to the floor. They ignored him.

Derek leaned forward over the counter. “I’m sorry if I’m forward, but are you—”

Stiles shook his head vigorously. “I’m sorry. I have to go.” 

He ducked back into the kitchen, ignoring Derek’s calls and Peter’s drunken warbling. He leaned against the door and slid down until he could curl up into a ball. He placed a hand over his burning shoulder.

Sometimes people just knew.

Stiles was tempted to stay away from The Family Bean after that. He really wanted to. But it was hard to stay away.

Even harder to stay away from a ping.

Stiles wasn’t stupid enough to let that slip away.

Still, it was hard to face up to it and admit that he had a soulmate.

So for the next two weeks, Stiles stayed away from the front of house, always hiding in the safety of the kitchen. He kept on making purple tickets whenever they came, but he avoided coming out for any reason, especially after Derek started coming by nearly every day. Sometimes he even brought his work over just so that he could stay as long as possible.

It confused Kira and Erica, but they assumed Derek just liked the food. The other Hales also started coming by and many times, Stiles could hear them asking Derek why he was hanging around The Family Bean instead of working in his office. Always, Derek kept mum.

Because as it turned out, Derek hadn’t told anyone about the ping.

In fact, Stiles had a feeling that the only person in the Hale family who knew was Nathan. Maybe because he had already been suspicious of it. Out of all the Hales, he was the only one who didn’t ask Derek about why he kept hanging around the café.

The other one who knew was Boyd.

Derek had been called to a meeting one day, so Stiles had felt it safe to come out and work at one of the booths. He had already fallen so far behind on his writing commitments. After a few minutes, Boyd had dropped by and had joined him. Stiles knew he was typing gibberish on his laptop, but he kept on as an excuse not to look at Boyd, who was looking at him intently.

Finally, he spoke, “Looking back, I guess it wasn’t just your banana bread that won me over.”

Stiles jerked, sending a series of characters across the screen.

Boyd kept on. “I always had a good feeling about you from Erica’s stories, but when we met, that was definitely a ping.”

Stiles bit his lip. “Does Erica know?”

Boyd shook his head. “I love her, but Erica would have thrown a party if she knew.”

Stiles sighed, both in relief and in trepidation for the moment Erica find out.

Boyd studied him. “Derek’s a good guy, you know.”

“I know I got that impression from all the stories you and Erica had of him,” Stiles said. “I always thought it was surprising considering he could afford not to be a nice guy.”

Boyd studied him, making Stiles shift in his seat. “Is that the reason you won’t meet with him? Or do a Touch Test? Because he’s a Hale?”

Stiles almost protested, but he deflated. “…I don’t know.”

Boyd hummed under his breath. “Well, you’ve always played your cards close to the chest when it comes to soulmates, but I know you’ll figure it out.” He stood up. “But you better make it soon. Erica and the rest of the Hales are bound to figure it out.”

Stiles groaned and sank down on his seat. 

“Noted.”

The day after that, a still-conflicted Stiles was once again at The Family Bean. Kira had gone up to the Wolf’s Den to deliver the latest purple ticket, so he had to stay and man the counter. 

The door let out a little tinkle, and Stiles froze the moment he saw the woman entering the café.

He’d know Talia Hale anywhere.

Stiles almost panicked, but then he remembered that she didn’t know who he was. He took a deep breath.

“Um, good afternoon, Mrs. Hale. What can I get you?”

The woman smiled, quite warm and friendly despite her fierce reputation. “Just some tea, please. And are there any new desserts?”

It had been a moment of weakness, but Stiles had actually brought over some peanut butter stuffed cookies and added it to the purple ticket in the hopes that a certain Hale would like them. He still had a few cookies left, but he wasn’t sure if he should offer them to her.

“I smell cookies,” Talia said pointedly. “I’ll have some of those.”

Stiles gulped. “Ah, we have some peanut butter stuffed cookies. Let me get those for you.”

He swallowed his nerves and served the woman, who took a sip of tea and a bite of the cookie right there on the counter.

She smiled, studying the cookies. “Very tasty.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” Stiles smiled politely. He turned away to leave and maybe gather his strength in the privacy of the kitchen.

“When we started hearing about The Food Guy, I admit I was quite intrigued. It’s very rare for someone to grab the attention of my entire family.”

Stiles paused and turned to her.

He should have known.

Stiles nodded stiffly. “Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

Talia smiled, sharp and knowing. “And you, Food Guy.”

“Any reason for the visit?” Stiles asked, shifting on his feet.

“I wanted to meet you,” Talia said, taking another bite of her cookie. 

Stiles frowned. “That’s all?”

“Were you expecting anything else?”

“Uh, well, I…”

Talia shrugged and sipped his tea. “I don’t blame you for any misgivings you might have should you prove to be soulmates with my son. I’m well aware of the reputation of my family. My late father, Everett, embodied the might of the Hale name better than anyone. You should have seen him back in the days.”

Stiles held up his hands. He couldn’t help the feeling that he had to explain.

“It’s not that there’s a problem with Derek or your family. Being a Hale isn’t the problem… not entirely…” he hesitated, but then plunged on, urged by the ping he could feel inside him and the desire to make someone understand. “My mom passed away when I was seven. She was soulmates with my father. He was—I was—we were never the same after.”

A heavy silence fell, and Stiles was both nervous and intrigued. Talia’s face changed. Something in her eyes darkened and she pursed her lips.

“Forgive my sudden melancholy, but I was just reminded of something.” She sipped her tea. “I was reminded of my youth. My father, Peter, and I had never been the same after mother walked away.”

“Walked away?” Stiles was taken aback. It was rare to hear any mention of Talia’s mother, but everyone had chalked it up to grief at her passing. “But you all said she died—”

Talia interrupted him delicately. “People think of Marks as the be all and end all where the only answer is yes. But even soulmates are a choice…”

“Desmond grew up without a penny to his name, so he rejected me as he could only see himself as an embarrassment to the Hale family. My opinionated father had, unfortunately, been a contributing factor to that line of thinking. I grew up with a rather jaded view of Marks and pings, and I had seen his rejection as a challenge and not a privilege. Desmond and I, our story had been tempestuous, quite unlike the romanticizing people had done.”

She finished the last of her tea. “If I may be allowed to request one thing, all I ask is that you make a choice so that Derek can do the same. No one in this family will certainly blame you for it.”

Talia pushed her empty cup and plate towards Stiles, and smiled. “Have a good day, Food Guy.”

Stiles watched Talia walk away.

He had some thinking to do.

Stiles took a deep breath and tried not to crush the boxes in his hands. He was nervous and his left shoulder was throbbing.

“Ready?” Kira asked him. She was carrying the other delivery boxes.

“As I’ll ever be,” Stiles replied.

Kira smiled, both encouraging and proud, and nodded to the guard on duty. The man held open the double doors for them, and Stiles was instantly met with a wall of sound.

“Purple ticket delivery,” Kira called out, leading Stiles inside.

The office was spacious, as it should be if it was going to accommodate all of the Hales, and all of them were there. There was a long table at one end where Talia, Matthew, and Boyd were talking and laughing. Desmond was on one couch, talking to Piero and Erica. Laura and Cora were seated on armchairs and were arguing loudly about something. Peter was egging them on. CC and Spencer, were seated in front of a television at a kids’ play area set up in the corner. Cameron was with them, all of them singing along to whatever cartoon was playing. Derek, Valerie, and Nathan were huddled around a table, looking at blueprints.

“Oh, yes! The food’s here!” Cameron cheered, which sent the children shouting as well.

Kira navigated the area like a champ, while Stiles slowly shuffled after. “You guys ordered a lot. I had to ask for help. This is Stiles.”

Stiles didn’t miss the way Derek’s head suddenly jolted in his direction, nor Talia’s proud smile, nor Erica’s sudden screech of “Stiles!” which had everyone else turning their way. Stiles winced. He was going to get his ass kicked later for not telling Erica about this.

“Well, well…” Peter grinned. “Hello there, twink.”

Stiles shuddered. “Still not into creepy old geezers.”

“Oh, wait, wait! Is he the guy who called you a geriatric?” Laura asked, before shrieking in laughter.

“And the one who said Peter should drop dead,” Cora added, cackling. 

Laughter rang around over Peter’s protests, and it made Stiles’ heart stutter. He felt warm all over, like the pings going off in his head were doubly delighted at the Hales. He glanced at Derek, who was smiling warmly.

Stiles winced when he caught Erica’s gaze though. She looked between him and Derek and her eyes widened. But Boyd was suddenly there, hand over her mouth and whispering to her.

Stiles helped Kira take out all of the food and the ravenous Hales were quickly upon them.

“Food Guy’s stuff tastes awesome,” Nathan said, licking his cupcake’s icing. He waggled knowing eyebrows at Stiles, who bit back a grin. Cheeky kid.

“Please pass our compliments to the chef, Kira,” Desmond said, reaching for his drink.

Kira giggled. “You can thank him yourself.” She waved at Stiles with a flourish.

Stiles felt a little like a deer in headlights when all their gazes alighted on him.

“You’re Food Guy?” and other iterations of the exclamation rang around the room.

Stiles flushed. “I’m glad to hear you all like what I’ve been making.”

“Oh, wow! How wonderful!” Piero piped up. “I haven’t felt a ping in such a long time. How nostalgic, don’t you think, dear?” He turned to Valerie.

“That’s a ping?” Matthew asked, confused, before his face cleared and he rubbed his chest. “Oh, hell, this is a ping.”

“Is that the tingly feeling here, Uncle Mattie?” Spencer asked, pointing at his tummy.

Erica finally managed to get out from under Boyd. “Stiles, did you ping with Derek? Is that why you’ve both been hanging around The Family Bean? You’ve both been pining over each other!”

Stiles groaned, while gasps and shouts suddenly rang around the room.

Kira sighed. “Way to ruin it, Erica.”

“You mean I was pinged through a tomato pie?” Cameron was asking, wide-eyed. 

Cora started laughing. “Oh my god! Uncle Peter flirted with Derek’s soulmate!”

“That’s Uncle Derek’s soulmate?” CC asked.

“Yes, he is.” Nathan looked like he was immensely enjoying all this, and Stiles was starting to realize that he was a little shit.

Derek stepped towards Stiles. His face was a little red, but he was smiling and Stiles thought he was the handsomest man he had ever seen.

“My family’s a mess. Please ignore them,” Derek said, ignoring the protests from his siblings.

Stiles chuckled. “At least they keep things interesting. It’s just me, my Dad, and her.” He jerked a thumb at Erica.

“Oh, fu—dge you!” Erica said, glancing at the kids. She turned to Boyd. “And I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!”

Boyd rolled his eyes. “I was giving him space to process things.”

Stiles ignored them and turned to Derek. He only had one chance to do this.

“Ah, sorry, it took a while. I was figuring stuff out, but I thought we should get to know one another first.”

“Of course,” Derek said immediately. He reached out a hand. “I’m looking forward to getting to know you, Stiles.”

Stiles glanced at Talia, who was whispering to her husband. She winked at Stiles.

“Soulmates are a choice.”

Stiles smiled at Derek. He could feel his Mark tingling in anticipation.

“Me too, Derek.”

He reached out and took his hand.