#so many of the songs on midnights focus on the good that was once there but do not seem to make any claims about whether it still is

[midnightsslut]

also, she is not saying lover and snow on the beach aren’t love songs. of course they are. she’s just saying she had to be in denial when she wrote them because she was focusing on the positives while, in her own words, ignoring red flags.

[honeyhivess]

as the clock strikes midnight

directory | main m.list | twst m.list

GenderNeutral!Cinderella!Reader x Riddle Rosehearts

Night Raven College was hosting a big dance to celebrate the end of the year, your stepmom had only bought dresses for your step-siblings and had told you to focus on your studies. A faerie took pity on you, seeing you all alone as your siblings departed, and she had given you everything you could of dreamed for, the perfect outfit and the perfect carriage to get you to your destination with one clause, at midnight it would all disappear and revert to what it once was.

notes: this was originally supposed to be drabbles for all the housewardens but i got kinda carried away with Riddle's, so let me know if you'd be interested in seeing that or even a part two of this!

content: one singular curse word, established friendship, mutual pining, reader is written as a second year, if he seems ooc i apologize it's my first time writing for him.

The dance was going swimmingly, lively music surrounded by your friends and dancing the night away. The only lingering stress on your mind was watching the clock, the nightmare of your outfit and carriage coming all undone in front of everyone terrified you.

But alas the thought left your mind as your friends had upon your arrival dragged you to the dance floor immediately. You had spotted Cater taking pictures and videos of everything and somewhere you could of sworn you saw Rook staring at you... But that didn't matter at this moment.

Dancing with your friends eventually got tiring so you waved to them as you walked off the dance floor, heading over to the refreshments table alone and grabbing yourself a glass of punch, the red liquid sloshing in the glass as you poured it in.

"Glad to see you donning proper ball attire." You heard a familiar voice muse behind you. Turning you met gazes with Riddle, his silver eyes shining under the bright lights. "You'd be surprised at how many students I've seen in casual clothes, it's so disgraceful to the college." He sighed and picked up a glass, taking the ladle from your hands and scooping some punch into his own glass.

"Good to see you too Riddle. You look nice, white compliments you." You smiled at the red haired male who's cheeks seemed to light up to the same color as his hair from the compliment. He did look amazing, donning a mostly white suit with a red vest and tucked into the suits breast pocket was a singular red rose.

"Whatever, it is only right I dress my best for the event." He huffed, taking a sip from his glass.

"I would expect nothing less from you." You laughed and took a drink from your own glass, momentarily glancing up when you realized the songs had switched from fast paced music to slower musical pieces.

Riddle seemed to notice too, gaze following yours before he cleared his throat. "Since the opportunity has presented itself it would be a shame to let it go to waste, would you care for a dance?"

Looking back at the redhead you nodded with a small smile, pretending not to notice the breath of relief that left Riddle's lips. You two set your glasses down after finishing your drinks and Riddle offered you his arm, leading you out to the dance floor elegantly.

His right hand settled onto your hip and his other took your hand into his gently. Bringing your own hand up to settle onto his shoulder and throwing the now blushing boy a smile you two began to dance around the room.

Surprisingly, Riddle seemed to be quite a good dancer. Light on his feet and he guided you around the room elegantly.

"Didn't know you could dance." You muttered to him, knowing he could hear you due to the close proximity of your faces.

Riddle let out a small hum from your comment, looking at you and smiling. "I asked Trey to teach me. I had planned on asking you to dance with me tonight."

"Oh?" You smiled, tilting your head slightly at him. "And why would that be?"

"I decided tonight would be a perfect time to tell you I like you." The boy spoke, tone soft as he looked at you. His cheeks were burning with his signature red blush but his face still seemed soft. "I fell for you, your kindness and patience took me."

His words took you by surprise, out of all people to ever confess to you Riddle had to be one of the people who ranked lowest on your least likely to list you had in your mind.

The confession wasn't unwelcome, you had liked Riddle for a while yourself. After helping him with his overblot you had originally been left with a sour taste in your mouth from the male, but seeing how determined he was to change and get better after that made you admire him a lot.

"(Y/N), you there?" Riddle spoke, voice sounding a tad smug as you looked back at him. "Normally your silence might put me off but your burning face reassures me I seemed to have just flustered you."

Clearing your throat you nodded, nervously smiling at him as it was a bit embarrassing to randomly space off. "I like you too, a lot."

Riddles hand moved up from your waist momentarily to brush a stray piece of hair back into place, hand soon returning and you noted how he pulled you closer.

"That is lovely to hear, then I suppose if I were to ask you to be mine I would be met with a positive response?" He asked softly, gaze meeting yours.

You shrugged a bit, a playful smile growing on your lips as you looked up at him. "I don't know, try asking and lets see."

Riddle seemed unamused from your answer, huffing a bit with a slight roll of his eyes. "You have begun to hang out with Ace and Deuce too much." He sighed and looked back at you. Your eyes seemed to be playing tricks on you, his eyes looked softer. "Will you be my partner?"

"I will Riddle." You said softly, pulling him in closer to you. His gaze flickered down to your lips for a moment before he quickly looked away.

"May I... Kiss you?" He asked slowly, gaze returning to yours to see your answer. His grey eyes lit up as you nodded your head at his request.

Ever so slowly he leaned in closer to you, his breath fanning across your lips for a moment as you let your eyes shut. The moment was only interrupted by a loud chime from the clock. You pulled away from him in a panic, glancing at the clock only to realize it was midnight.

"Shit." You whispered and despite Riddle's concerned yells you turned on your heel and ran. You could hear his footsteps behind you as you ran out of the school and down the stairs.

Stumbling only for a moment you realize you lost a shoe, debating only for a moment you chose to keep running, back into the carriage that had brought you here and with a singular yell the doors slammed closed and the horses began to pull the carriage away with haste.

Riddle was left stunned as he stood on the entrance of the school, watching your carriage drive away quickly. Concern clouded his mind from how panicked you seemed to be from the time, or maybe his proximity? He sighed a bit and was about to walk back inside before he paused when he saw your shoe on one of the steps.

Walking down the flight of stairs he took the shoe into his hand, gaze going back up to look at where your carriage once stood.

"(Y/N)..."

[illicitlimerence-writes]

a man after midnight | p. gasly

pairing: pierre gasly x reader word count: 2.7k words request: nope. prompt: ice-cold cocktails + staying up till sunrise from this prompt list. warnings: not actual smut but like allutions to it, a loooot of abba and mamma mia! references (can you guess what i watched while writing this for inspo?) really really recommend listening to 'voulez-vous' and 'gimme! gimme! gimme!' whilst reading this lolol since this was inspired by the horniest songs in mamma mia (if this does well maybe 'lay all your love on me' could be a part 2 a/n: happy september first! happy return to hogwarts! august really slipped away into a moment in time. we have one summer fic left! (yes, i know summer is almost over buuuuuut, we’re about to enter seasonal depression and i feel like we all (me) need a little more fics about sunny days at the beach. (btw, after i’m done with the summer of love event i will focus all my energy into sorting out my masterlist) also! to all my french readers or ppl whose first language is french, the last sentence won't make much sense for y'all! sorry! (i mean, maybe? kinda? but like not in the way i meant it)

my masterlist / summer of love masterlist

greece had been a dream. you’d been planning for that trip for so long, it had always been a dream of yours to visit a place with such rich history and a lot of views that seemed straight out of a movie. 

the first week had been dedicated to tourists attractions, athens, santorini, and finally, mykonos.

you decided to spend the last week of your trip there to wind down from the hectic and tiresome previous days. everything was perfect, the weather, the people, the food. one thing you still had to try out were the nightclubs.

you’d been sitting in your hotel, half past twelve, watching re-runs of a tv show. you had your window opened, the summer breeze was just cold enough to make the heat bearable. you’d been exploring the city early that day, and it had left you quite exhausted. once you got enough from the show you were barely paying attention to, you stood up, walking to the window and seeing the dark of the streets out. as you looked to the side, you saw colored lights, and through the distance, heard music playing. and it was like a lightbult went on over your head, like your prayers had been answered.

why were you all alone in your hotel when you could be enjoying a night out? even if it was past midnight, you were sure that the clubs in mykonos would welcome a tourist in need of fun, and you were sure you wouldn’t be the only one there.

you wore a black dress, one that hugged your body perfectly and made your confidence go sky high. your matching black heels clicked against the cobblestone streets as you made your way to a club, neon lights illuminated the dance floor, and the music playing wasn’t like the obnoxious booming the other clubs played.

you decided to go for it, if this place wasn’t to your liking there were many more options to go instead. after going through the bouncer, you smiled in relief. it was way past 1am, but there were not too many people, most of them were girls in big groups, and the guys there seemed decent at first glance. 

you approached the bar and asked for a light, fruity cocktail to get started. you smiled in thanks once the bartender handed it to you, you brought it up to your lips, wincing a little as you swallowed the ice-cold drink. it was good, though, and it brought a smile to your lips as it helped fight the heat. so far, so good.

you walked to the dance floor, keeping to your spot as you swayed to the beat. it felt nice to let loose every once in a while. you drank some more, with less than a half still on your glass. you decided to save the rest for later, wanting to avoid the hassle of returning to the bar. you wanted to focus on enjoying the night, and the people welcoming you to the dance floor.

your eyes met clear blue ones, on the other side of the club. you smiled at him, and kept dancing as you looked somewhere else. a group of girls to your right invited you to join them, you agreed, walking a few steps towards them. after a few minutes of dancing, one of them grabbed your arm and twirled you around. you laughed, feeling eyes on you once she let go of you. you looked back, seeing the same guy still looking over at you. he was talking to, who you assumed, were his friends, but every few seconds his eyes and attention drifted away from the conversation, traveling to you. 

you smiled, turning your back to him. in the dark of the club, with colored neon lights, he looked hot. 

you downed the rest of your drink, excusing yourself from the group and walking to the bar. 

“another one, please. ice-cold, just like the last one,” you asked the bartender, who nodded and started preparing your cocktail. you turned around, leaning your back against the counter, scanning the room for nothing in particular. 

“this one’s on me,” you heard, turning your head to the side, you came face to face with the guy you’d spotted minutes earlier. 

“oh, it’s okay, thanks,” you said, shaking your hand.

"please, it's just a drink," he insisted, "how about an exchange?" he asked, you raised an eyebrow.

"and what would you like in return?"

"how about your name?" he lifted a corner of his lips, his answer made you chuckle.

*smooth," you nodded your head, thanking the bartender. "(y/n)," 

“i’m pierre,” he said with a gleam in his eye.

“nice to meet you,” you said, standing on your tiptoes to reach his ear, so he could hear you over the loud music.

“it’s your first time here?” he asked, moving so he was in front of you, his breath hitting the skin of your ear and neck. you nodded, giving him a small smile. “what do you think?”

“it’s beautiful,” you couldn’t stop the sigh that left your lips as you thought about this place that took your breath away when you thought about it, “do you live here?” you asked.

“no, i’m here on holiday too. i’m from france,” your eyes widened, a hot french guy in greece. 

“i’ve been wanting to go there as well! but since i was little it’s been a dream of mine to come here,” you bit your lip as you looked into his clear eyes. “i don’t think i want to leave,” you admitted, laughing. pierre nodded.

“i come back here every chance i get. besides home i’d say this is my favorite place,”

“i haven’t left and i already want to come back,” you sighed, closing your eyes as you took a sip from the cold drink. “it exceeded all of my expectations. the movies don’t compare to the real thing.”

“let me guess,” he started, a smile on his face, “mamma mia?” he raised his eyebrows as his expression turned playful.

“guilty,” you nodded, “it’s one of my favorites.” you bit your lip, shrugging.

“it’s a good movie,” he lifted a shoulder, smiling. “do you want to dance?”

“with you?” 

“i’m a pretty good dance partner,” he smiled wide, your eyes instinctively drifting down to his lips.

“maybe some other time,” you declined politely, “i’m quite tired,”

“just one song, please?” pierre placed a hand on your arm, “you won’t regret it,”

“i don’t like this one,” you shook your head, aware that you were playing hard to get.

a lightbulb seemed to go on over his head, his eyes widened a little as a smile settled on his face.

“stay here,” he told you, and walked away, you lost sight of him once he mixed with the crowd of people dancing. you stayed there by the bar, enjoying the last of your drink. you paid for both of them, since it had been a few minutes and pierre still hadn’t returned.

you decided to go back to your hotel, stepping down the few steps leading to the bar. your head perked up once you heard a familiar song begin. the people on the dance floor recognized it as well, since they started cheering and dancing to the beat. you turned to the dj, to the guy next to him, who stared at you with a smirk on his face.

a song from ‘mamma mia!’ playing in greece. how predictable.

you laughed, shaking your head as pierre made his way to you. he offered his hand, a smirk on his face.

“you can’t tell me you don’t like this song,” he had a gorgeous shine in his eyes, that popped up against the white shirt he wore. the first three buttons were undone, letting you see a good portion of his chest, a golden chain reflecting with the lights.

“fine,” you gave in, letting him guide you to the middle of the dance floor, as you walked, grinning, you couldn’t help but think how fitting the words of the song he chose were to your situation. 

now is all we get. nothing promised, no regrets.

“voulez-vous?” you heard his voice in your ear as he twirled you around, keeping your back pressed against his chest. you chuckled, feeling a chill running down your back. you decided to play along this game, moving your hips side to side, placing your hands on top of his, drifting them down your body, settling them on your waist. he held on tighter, throwing caution to the wind and placing a kiss to your neck. 

you turned around, throwing your hands around his neck, fingers curling on his golden hair. 

“i know what you think. ‘that girl means business so i’ll offer her a drink. looking mighty proud, i see you leave your table, pushing through the crowd,” you sang, pushing your body closer to his, as he couldn’t help but smile, aware of the accuracy of the words. 

when you first landed in greece, the last thing you expected to do was dance with an attractive frenchman, who held you both delicately and posessively, who asked the dj to play a song from your favorite movie only to dance with you. 

maybe it was the lights, the drinks you’d had, the suggestiveness of the song, that gave you the courage to raise to your tiptoes and place a quick kiss to his lips. 

it took him by surprise, at first, but amusement filled his face as you moved your hands to grab his face, singing the next verse with your lips touching his.

“ain’t no big decision. you know what to do. la question c’est ‘voulez-vous?’,” you raised an eyebrow, almost daring him to make the next move. it felt like the rest of the club had blurred away, and it was only you and pierre, it didn’t matter that you two only met each other minutes ago.

it’s like the song said. nothing promised. no regrets.

his lips on yours felt like being lit on fire. it was hot and messy, full of need and curiosity. 

just one night. one night of being careless, of losing fear and daring to step out of your comfort zone, to experience something new. something without promises, without regrets and what ifs. 

“do you want to?” he translated it for you, his breathing was heavy and hard as he leaned back, one of his hands was holding the back of your head, something you missed as he kissed you.

the song encouraged you. take it now or leave it. now is all we get.

when else will you get a chance like this?

you answered by pressing your lips against his, your hand finding his as you walked back, leading him out of the club.

-

throwing your head back in ecstasy, a smile formed on your face as you felt pierre’s lips on your neck, placing quick kisses, combined with soft bites all over your skin. you were both breathing hard, trying to catch your breaths after three intense hours of exploring each other. 

everything ached. you dropped down on top of him, your breasts pressed against his chest as exhaustion took over your body. he circled your waist with an arm, turning you over so your back now rested against the mattress and pillows. 

“any regrets?” he asked, leaning his weight on his elbow as he stared at you.

“no, nothing.” you shook your head, a blissful look on your face as you bit your lip, thinking about the past few hours.

“good.” he said, leaning in to kiss your cheek. he moved back, leaving the bed. you took advantage of the view, not believing the amazing times you would’ve missed had you not agreed to go with pierre. “the sun is rising,” he said, bringing you out of your thoughts. you turned to him just in time to see him pulling his boxers up.

“no way,” you made a sound that was a mix of a gasp and a chuckle, “it’s 5:30am,” you looked down at your phone, “no wonder everything hurts,” you dropped your head down on the pillows, feeling the bed dip as pierre sat on it, you felt his face against yours a second later.

“i hurt you? you should’ve told me, i-”

“no, no,” you placed a hand on his chest, “you didn’t hurt me, it’s just… it’s been way too long since i, you know. and for so long, as well,” you reassured him, watching the way his face changed from worry to pride. “stop,” you placed a hand on his face, laughing as he grabbed it and pressed kisses all over it. 

“it has been a true pleasure, honestly,” his voice somehow got lower, huskier. 

“i can say the same thing,” you laughed as he dipped his head down to kiss your neck, throughout the night you’d noticed that he really liked that spot, and you were sure that the skin there was tender and most likely, red or bruised. not that you minded. the sun sneaked in through the windows of pierre’s hotel room, and you realized that was still something you hadn’t checked off your greece bucketlist. “i want to see the sunrise,” you said, your hands on pierre’s shoulders. he looked back, seeing the scenery through the window, and when he looked back at you he pressed your body against his, your legs around his waist instinctively, and carried you out to the balcony. bedsheets around you and everything. “wait,” you laughed, wrapping your arms around his neck, but he didn’t stop, he sat on the floor with you on his lap.

“ma belle wanted to see the sunrise, and that’s what we’ll do,” he smiled, proud of himself. you couldn’t hold back a grin, so you leaned your head against his shoulder, seeing the sky change colors, your head moved up and down to the beat of pierre’s steady breathing. “i had a great time last night,” he said after a few minutes of silence. your lips curled up as you lifted your head.

“me too. i mean, if it wasn’t obvious,” you chuckled, feeling heat rushing to your cheeks. “i’d never done something like this before,” you confessed.

“what?”

“a holiday hookup,” you looked at the sky, watching as it settled into a golden daylight. the sky turning its usual shade of bright blue. 

“ah,” he laughed, “and what did you think?”

“i think you’ve ruined it for any other guys in the future,” you chuckled.

“well, that’s a confidence boost,” he leaned his head back against the wall, a cocky grin on his face.

“like you need it,” you joked, “i think i should get going,” you said, but made no attempts to actually get up.

“will i see you again?”

“maybe.”

“maybe?” he asked, his hand playing with the skin of your back, trailing his fingers up and down.

“i haven’t left yet and you already want to meet me again?”

“yes. today, and tomorrow, and the day after that. i liked you. and i liked… what we did all night.” was he blushing? you swore you saw a pink tint on his cheeks. “and if that’s okay with you, i’d like to use the time we have here to get to know you better.”

you were left speechless for a few seconds, but the sincerity in his voice calmed your fears.

“don’t go sharing your devotion,” you leaned forward, brushing your lips over his. “tonight. same place. midnight.”

“okay. yes, perfect.” his eyes widened a little in excitement. “i will be there.”

“good.” you nodded, “i don’t have anything planned for today,” you raised an eyebrow, hoping he’d understand what you were trying to say. the way his eyes shifted from happiness to… want told you everything.

“you’re gonna love the bathtub, i think it’s big enough to fit us both,” he declared, standing up with you in his arms, walking you to the bathroom. he tossed the bedsheets to the side once he reached the door. “voulez-vous?” he asked again, you only nodded in reply.

since that night, you couldn’t listen to the song without thinking about pierre. and your friends and family couldn’t quite decipher why you came back home speaking more french than greek. 

-

@idkiwantchocolatee @yeolsbubbles @spideyanakin

[gv80gb]

Surprise at a Concert

The music was so loud that even the floor beneath her trembled. This was the way she liked it, that's why she fell in love with rock when she was barely a teenager. Now, many years later she was fulfilling her dream of being the drummer of a growing rock band called Midnight Angels, which was becoming more famous each day. Tonight was their most important gig to date, they were playing at a medium sized theatre, but for them, it was the biggest venue they had ever filled. 

Everyone in the public was dancing, jumping and yelling their songs, it should have filled Karla with so much joy and excitement. And usually, it did, but that night she was feeling a little under the weather. Her stomach had been cramping most of the day, at first she had assumed her body was preparing for her next period, she had never been regular and it had been a few months since she had her last one, so it was about time it came. But after a few hours, and after the pains began getting more intense and painful she started to think it was something she ate. The night before she had sneaked out with Erick, the bandmate she had been secretly fucking for over a year, to have Thai for dinner, probably something had gone bad. 

Before the concert started she approached Erick ––.Hey babe –– She whispered. 

––Hey beautiful, you ready? –– He asked enthusiastically. He didn't seem sick, but she still asked him. 

––I am –– She lied ––. Hey, I wanted to ask you, did dinner last night caused you any... discomfort?

He furrowed his brows ––Not really. Why? Are you sick? 

––No, just with a bit of a tummy ache, but nothing serious–– She lied, again. That had been 3 hours ago.

Right now they were playing their most famous song, but Karla couldn't focus on anything but the pain forming in her insides. The moderate cramps had become so much more intense and excruciating. It felt like knifes all around her abdomen. It was a good thing that the band was obsessive with practicing, because she knew the set  by muscle memory and was capable of playing it even through these awful cramps. 

The pain kept on building stronger as different songs passed. A strange pressure was building up inside her, different than the previous pain. Worse. It was like one of her organs was trying to slip out of her through her vagina. FUCK. What if that was what was happening. Another cramp overcame her and she screamed, as she couldn't resist it anymore. Her scream wasn't perceived, since the music and the crowd were loud enough to conceal them. Once she realized no one could hear her, she kept on moaning and grunting through the pain. She wasn't sure if it helped, but she couldn't really stop her body from doing it.

At some point Erick turned to look at her with a concerned look, he raised his eyebrows at her, silently questioning her. She was sweating, and probably looked like a mess. She tried to smile at him, she knew what this concert meant for him, for all of them, she was not going to ruin it for them. Erick gave a slight nod and continued to sing. 

Not soon enough, the last song of the set came, after this she would be able to go to the hospital. The pressure inside her was now so unbearable, she found herself pushing to relief it a little, she din't even realized it at first, it was like her body was taking control over her and was doing the necessary to lift the pain and pressure she was feeling. Suddenly, she felt something inside her shift and pass through her cervix. She closed her eyes and the worst scenario possible came to her mind. She was probably about to die. Never in her life had she felt that amount of pain. When the song ended and the applause began she felt something bulge against her cunt. She closed her legs tight, she wasn't gonna let something out of her in front of their biggest audience ever. A tear began forming in her eyes, but not even crying made her feel any better. 

At the end of every concert each of the 4 members of the band stood up and gathered together in the front of the stage. Each usually said some words and then they would all leave the stage together. Karla stood from her seat behind the drums, and she felt the force of gravity push the thing inside her forward. She walked carefully, without opening her legs much and made her way to the front. She stood besides Erick. As always, they gave her the mic first, being the only female in the band had its perks.

––Thank you for an un...––A cramp made her stumble with her words. Nobody seemed to notice, only Erick's eyes focused on her with a weird expression ––...Unforgettable night. ––She couldn't say anything else, her usual long and heart-felt speeches forgotten. She gave the mic to Erick, waved a little and began walking off the stage. She couldn't stay there anymore, she had to get to her dressing room. 

In the distance Erick could be heard saying ––Erm... yeah, thank you... Excuse me–– But Karla could barely hear it. As soon as she got to her dressing room she doubled over in pain. She let out a scream as she fell to the floor, her hand clutching her tight abdomen. The door of her dressing room burst open and Erick was standing there, pale as a ghost. 

––Kar, what's going on? ––Erick yelled, his voice filled with worry. He kneeled besides her and she immediately found herself supporting her weight on him. 

––Erick–– She said panting. She was pretty sure these were her last moments on this planet, she had to say it, she had been keeping it for months now, always trying to keep it cool, trying not to let her true feelings show, living them in secret–– I love you. I'm so in love with you and I don't want, I can't, keep it anymore UGHNNNNNNN–– She grabbed his shirt and fisted it. 

––Honey, Kar, tell me what's wrong baby ––He said, grabbing her tighter. 

––I think I'm dying –– She simply said and a tear rolled down her cheek. 

Erick grabbed her face and looked for her eyes ––WHAT? No, of course you are not dying. I'm taking you to the hospital. You are not dying on me, you hear me? –– He stood up and helped her up too. 

When she was on her feet, the bulge against her vagina grew, and suddenly a gush of water came out of her.  ––AGHHHHHHH–– She screamed ––. SOMETHING IS COMING OUT OF ME–– Karla's hand reached for the place between her legs, and she could feel something making it's way out. 

Erick took her to the sofa quickly and got rid of her wet pants and panties. She threw her head back in pain. A slight coat of sweat covered her whole body, and her legs were covered in bodily fluids. He parted her legs to investigate, and she felt his hands roaming over her swollen lips. 

––Kar?––He said confused, but a slight smile was forming in his lips. He couldn't be happy about her imminent death, could he? ––You are not dying honey ––He rubbed her stomach as he said it.

––Erick, an organ is coming out of me, tell me how I'm supposed to survive tHATTTTHHGHH–– Another cramp, they were coming right on top of the other now. 

––That is definitely not an organ –– He said, touching her pussy again –– That's a baby. You are having our baby. 

––WHAT? –– It was her time to scream in confusion. A  BABY? She was pregnant? How did that happen? Of course she knew HOW it happened, but she couldn't know how she didn't realize it happened. She had had alcohol during the last months, plenty. And she wasn't careful as a pregnant woman should be.  Was her baby going to be okay?

––We are having a baby honey, I need you to push okay? The head is almost crowning, but I need you to push so we can get it out –– He said, immediately grasping the concept of his parenthood. Karla on the other hand was still very much confused, but nevertheless, she bore down with the next contraction that hit her, more on instinct that on understanding of the situation, but it seemed that her body did understand what it had to do. 

She felt the thing, the baby, stretching her entrance without mercy. The widest part of the head was now parting her slit, every inch of her skin being pulled tighter than she could ever imagine. 

––I can't do this! –– Karla yelled ––I'm not prepared. I CAAAAN'T! Erick, I can't

––Push Kar, come on. PUSH! It's almost out, almost out

A big push that strained all her energy paired with an ear piercing scream later and the head emerged. The lips of her vagina felt the smallest amount of relief as they closed on the neck. Karla threw her head back. 

––Good job Kar, the head's out. The hard part is over. 

––Hardly think its OVER–– She said as the next pain surged and the shoulders slammed against her bruised skin. Throughout the next contraction she pushed, moving their kid little by little. 

––WAIT!–– Erick said suddenly –– I forgot to check for the cord, don't push –– His hand travelled to the base of the baby's neck and he found the cord there. His fingers started working quickly in disentangling it. But the following contraction came harder than the previous ones. Involuntarily, Karla pushed, causing the child to move forward. Erick's hand quickly stopped the motion of the baby ––. I said don't push Karla ––. He said strongly ––. The cord is around the neck, and until it is not you are going to have to hold it. 

She simply nodded, knowing he was right. His hands returned to working the cord and he looked lovingly at her ––I'm sorry babe, I know it hurts, but you need to hold it if we want the baby to be okay, okay?

––I know–– She whispered with a fresh round of tears. She did wanted that baby to be okay, even if she knew nothing about it. Karla knew she had to protect it and she also knew she would do whatever it took to do it. 

After what felt like an eternity, blessed words finally left Erick's lips ––You can push now honey. 

And she did. Karla gave that push all her might, and in that contraction she managed to let both shoulders free ––. OH MY GAAAWD –– She screamed as the rest of her baby was expelled from her body. Fluid flooded the couch beneath her. 

Erick caught their baby in his arms and in between tears he said ––We have a baby girl Kar. In her exhaustion she managed to smile. Erick passed her their baby and stood up. He sat beside her in the couch and with one of his hands caressed her cheek ––. I was to damn scared to answer, but I love you too Kar. You know that, right?

––I do –– She whispered and he closed the distance between them, kissing the hell out of her. 

The door of the dressing room opened up again with two angry bandmates ––Why the hell did you both leave the scenario like th... –– Greg's mouth hung open as he took in the scene in front of him. Erick and Kar hugging and crying, Karla sweating, her legs open and her lady parts exposed and a baby crying in her chest ––What the fuck?

––We have lots of updates for you guys, but lets just say Kar won't be the only female member of the band anymore ––  Erick said smiling at her. 

Greg and Tony stayed in front of them, immobile with surprise. Karla giggled at their faces. 

––Now now –– Erick stood up and walked towards them ––Enough looking at my girl's vag. Give me and my family some time alone, okay? ––He rushed them to the door. 

––Family? –– Tony asked, opening his eyes even more if it was possible –– The baby is yours?!?

––As I said, lots of updates. 

I hope you enjoyed this. Something I wrote for fun :) Hope y'all have a nice day

[imaginidol]

HueningKai: “You’ve always been my comfort, it’s about time I do the same for you.”

“I’m heading out, I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Kai waves at the boys of TXT, who all happily and sleepily sing a chorus of good-byes in return.

Another long (but very successful) day at the recording studio. Kai couldn’t wait to share the news with you once he got home about how he was singing lead for their new single – and how he’d even contributed to some of the lyrics of the main chorus himself! Just thinking of how excited you would be made him giggle in content, ecstatically looking forward to the ride home.

About twenty minutes pass when Kai is almost at the red light to your apartment complex. But just before the light turned green, a small plush store that you loved caught his eye. To his surprise, they were open until midnight. Perfect.

—

You’d started dating the artist many years after having had met him for the first time at a local plush store you loved. You were both in the same isle looking for a particular Molang plush, one that he had found first. At the sound of your gasp, he realized you had been searching for the same one, too.

“Oh, I know this one’s hard to find, but you can have it,” he’d smiled at you.

“No, that’s okay! You can take it, since you found it first,” you insisted happily in return.

Kai smiled and pointed at the phone case you were holding in your hand, which had bright, decorative stickers with the letters TXT plastered all over them. “You’re a fan! You’re a moa!”

You covered your mouth in shock and perhaps even slight embarrassment, when he suddenly walked closer and held his hand up for you. You shyly turned your hand over to him in confusion, and he placed the soft stuffed animal between your fingers and his. “Take it as a gift from me, then,” he smiled warmly.

It is needless to say that shortly afterwards, you began having short conversation about your favorite songs, your favorite eras and comebacks, your favorite member (and he was annoyed to hear that your bias was Yeonjun!), and eventually he asked for your Line account. Many months later, you grew from fan-and-artist to friends to close friends. He had slowly come to fall for the way you were endearing to him, along with all the ways you made him feel comfortable in and out of his idol-image. You loved him for him, and he treasured that.

Now, two years into your relationship, you had only recently begun to share an apartment, which soon became a safe haven for both to come home to. Long hours of studying and recording alike, you both loved the feeling of having an escape in a comfortable space and within each other’s company.

Right now, however, you did not feel so comfortable. You’d been fighting through a long assignment for a class you were taking, and it was starting to feel like there was no ending to it.

Why can’t there be more hours in the day? Or better yet, why do humans get tired so fast? Your thoughts slowly filled with confusion and despair hour after hour, and you started losing hope for yourself and this terrible, time-consuming assignment.

I don’t know what to do. I just want this semester to be over.

—

Kai rummaged through his wallet in search of single-dollar bills, inserting one after the other into the claw machine of soft, brightly-colored animals of delight. Four tries it took, until he finally managed to catch the one that reminded him of the first time he met you. My love is going to love this, he thought, smiling into the plush and hugging it tightly.

—

It’s getting late. I should probably head to bed, before Kai gets home.

Now that I think about it, where is Kai? Maybe I should call him.

No, that will only distract him from his work.

What if I start complaining to him, and he doesn’t want to hear it? What if I ruin his perfectly good day?

No, I can’t be overthinking this right now. I have to focus. It’s almost midnight.

This is due tomorrow.

I’m not going to finish.

Why does this have to be so difficult?

Why did I choose this career path?

I can’t be overthinking this. Just focus.

Please focus.

Please… focus…

I’m so unbelievably…

…tired…

Please…

—

The luminated headlights die down in the parking lot as Kai locks the car and starts walking over towards your shared apartment. His keys are the only sounds jingling in the night, accompanied only by distant crickets and wet grass frogs. The soft plush is balanced on one arm along with a plastic bag of food from your favorite late-night ramen bar, the other hand now inserting the key into the door lock.

“Love!” Kai calls out, walking towards the kitchen table. He places the food and keys down, hiding only the plushie behind his back.

There is no sound throughout the apartment.

“Looove!” Kai calls out again, and this time only sees the peeking light leaking from under the door of the bedroom.

He walks up to the door, knocking quietly before walking into the room. The song playing through your headphones was loud enough to where you hadn’t noticed him come in at all.

“My love?” Kai looks down, but your back was facing him from your desk. He smiles warmly at the sight of you.

You’re so hard working. You’ll be so successful one day.

Very gently, he slips his arms under your shoulders and embraces you in a welcoming hug, placing a new Molang plush on top of your papers.

You gasp at the sudden intrusion, but your fear quickly turns into a huge smile when you see the plush in front of you. Immediately, you stand up and yank off your headphones and turn towards him.

“Kai!” He laughs and welcomes you with open arms, your face completely melting into his soft sweater. The familiar scent of your perfect boyfriend hits you, and the overwhelming feeling of safety brings you to tears.

“Are you okay?” Kai looks down after feeling your small sobs. He attempts to pull away to see you clearly, but you only grip him tighter.

“I can’t take it anymore, I can’t take this stress anymore!”

You sob harder into his chest, unable to stop the accumulation of tears that have been holding in all week up until this point, finally breaking you completely.

Kai gently runs his fingers through your hair, caressing you softly and leaving safe kisses on your head, your forehead, your cheek, and finally holds your face warmly between his hands.

“There is nothing you can’t get through. You’re one of the strongest people I know, and you’re going to finish this with my full support,” he whispers lovingly, wiping wet tears away from your face. “You’ve always been my comfort, it’s about time I do the same for you.”

You calm down after a brief moment, and finally deliver a fragile attempt of your best smile, one he loved so dearly. He laughed lightly at the sight of it, and kissed you warmly.

“Thank you, Kai,” you breathed into him. “I missed you.”

Kai drapes his arms over your shoulders, standing taller above you, and smiles sheepishly.

“I missed you more.” He pulls you into a long, everlasting embrace. His scent is your safety net, his company your peace.

The hug lasted several seconds, then a minute, then two. Neither pulled away, neither felt that it was too much. All of your negative doubts washed away and became absorbed into his good aura.

“I have something for you,” Kai says, looking down at you.

“I saw it, and I loved it, Kai,” you smile back.

“Well, yeah, but the plushie is only one thing. I also got you your favorite ramen,” he gives you a toothy grin, and happily pecks your lips at the sight of your sudden beaming expression.

“Worry about this stuff tomorrow. Don’t think about it now, just one night. Let’s go eat dinner instead, before it gets cold.” He takes you by the hand, and gently tugs towards the door with you followimy eagerly.

“I have much better news to share for you, anyway, and I hope it’s enough to motivate you for your assignment tomorrow!”

You both leave the room, laughter filling all ends and corners of the otherwise quiet apartment. A Molang plush sits quietly on its side, stacked on papers, mounted sticky notes, and even more colorful highlighters; its new home was sure to be filled with the most comforting love yet.

[caltropspress]

RAPS + CRAFTS #23: Sunmundi

1. Introduce yourself. Past projects? Current projects?

Peace. I’m Sunmundi. I started rapping a few years ago. Last year I released my debut album, Midnight Oil, produced by Āthmaan, through Damn That Noise, and my second album, Lived and Born, produced by klwn cat, just came out. I’m currently working on a project with my man Sasco for '25.

2. Where do you write? Do you have a routine time you write? Do you discipline yourself, or just let the words come when they will? Do you typically write on a daily basis?

I try to write every day. But I go through long bouts of writer’s block, in which case I have to force myself to take a step back and wait till I get inspired again. And I pretty much only write raps while driving. For the past few years I’ve had a really long commute to work, so I end up just listening to beats and jotting down lines in my car. Pretty fucking dangerous, but it is what it is.

3. What’s your medium—pen and paper, laptop, on your phone? Or do you compose a verse in your head and keep it there until it’s time to record?

I just use my phone.

4. Do you write in bars, or is it more disorganized than that?

Initially I tend to just focus on writing down as many thoughts and lines as possible when listening to a beat, then eventually separate them into stanzas where it feels right. I don’t count bars or anything—when a verse feels done, it’s done. 

5. How long into writing a verse or a song do you know it’s not working out the way you had in mind? Do you trash the material forever, or do you keep the discarded material to be reworked later?

When I feel like I’m forcing lines, I stop writing. But once I have a set of good/memorable lines and can figure out how I’m gonna rhyme, I know pretty immediately after that I’ll finish the song. I used to try and repurpose all my leftover lines, and a lot of them do end up in songs, but lately I’ve been finding that shit turns out better when I write the whole thing to a beat from scratch.

6. Have you engaged with any other type of writing, whether presently or in the past? Fiction? Poetry? Playwriting? If so, how has that mode influenced your songwriting?

When I was studying English in college, I enjoyed academic writing, so I got used to a certain command of language. I presented one of my papers at a literary conference (the paper was about Griselda and Machiavellian ethics, so I read Benny and Westside Gunn lyrics to a room full of academics and peers, which was funny). But I was never very interested in any creative writing before rap. I feel like my voice/songwriting comes down to my musical influences more than anything.

7. How much editing do you do after initially writing a verse/song? Do you labor over verses, working on them over a long period of time, or do you start and finish a piece in a quick burst?

I definitely labor over verses. I might take anywhere from a week to a month to get a verse done. I try to edit as I go, working line by line, but on the whole, I’m spending most of my time editing after I have a foundation set. I used to take way longer to write a single verse/song, but I’m learning that sometimes quick flashes of writing can yield good shit. 

8. Do you write to a beat, or do you adjust and tweak lyrics to fit a beat?

I usually let the beat dictate the direction of a verse. I’ll occasionally write down lines that pop up in my head and put them in a song later on, but generally, I write to beats. 

9. What dictates the direction of your lyrics? Are you led by an idea or topic you have in mind beforehand? Is it stream-of-consciousness? Is what you come up with determined by the constraint of the rhymes?

It depends. When I was releasing one-off songs before Midnight Oil, they were mostly inspired by the beats producers would send me. Now my albums are becoming gradually more conceptual, so I generally have a pool of ideas to pull from in order to write a song. I don’t really make songs “about” specific things though—not that I have anything against that, but I like trying to capture moods and atmospheres in more general ways. That’s just more satisfying to me. And I won’t say rhymes are an afterthought, because I spend so much time thinking about them, but I think the content of what I’m writing is moreso at the forefront of my mind. And I believe there’s always some element of stream-of-consciousness going on as well. 

10. Do you like to experiment with different forms and rhyme schemes, or do you keep your bars free and flexible?

I feel like I’m still trying to solidify what makes my shit work, so I don’t experiment too much with form. Occasionally I like to try and keep one rhyme scheme for a whole song/verse, but otherwise I’m sticking to the basics and going where each line takes me. 

11. What’s a verse you’re particularly proud of, one where you met the vision for what you desire to do with your lyrics?

The verse on “Harbingers” off Lived and Born. It’s the last song on the album, but it feels like it’s opening a door for the listener as I’m closing one for myself—“It’s goodbye for now, hello forever.” Also the whole verse feels like a major catharsis, which is becoming a habit of my outros.

12. Can you pick a favorite bar of yours and describe the genesis of it?

I don’t think I can pick a favorite, but one couplet I love is, “From now until my voice drown, I vow to hold it down / Say Holden, don’t you wait around, say, Scout, take me out.” I just dig the wordplay on the first line, and the second line references Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye and Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird, two books my dad and I share a love for. I feel like by contextualizing myself with those two characters, both of whom are kids, I’m crediting my dad for teaching me to appreciate reading while also reflecting on my own nostalgia. So it feels like a nice shoutout to him.

13. Do you feel strongly one way or another about punch-ins? Will you whittle a bar down in order to account for breath control, or are you comfortable punching-in so you don’t have to sacrifice any words?

I try not to punch in. I think I’ve only done it on two or three songs before. It’s common for me to write myself into a hole, where I don’t have the breath control to rap what I wrote, but I think I’m getting better at knowing my limits and writing around that by condensing lines. Plus the challenge of writing more concisely makes you a better writer, in my opinion. 

14. What non-hiphop material do you turn to for inspiration? What non-music has influenced your work recently?

I’m not as big a reader as I used to be, but when I get writer’s block, which is common, I try to get back into it. Some writers who have inspired me are James Baldwin, Dostoyevsky, David Foster Wallace. But I dig movies too. I find David Lynch, Bong Joon-ho, and Robert Eggers to be inspirational. And lately I’ve been trying to give my albums more of a thesis of some kind, so I’m trying to do more reading and studying topics to put into the music. For the project I’m working on right now I’m thinking about media overconsumption, the perils of technology and its impact on communication, etc. 

15. Writers are often saddled with self-doubt. Do you struggle to like your own shit, or does it all sound dope to you?

I’m full of self-doubt as an artist, but I think that mindset leads me to only release music I can be content with. I listen to my stuff pretty frequently before releasing it, then when it’s out, I tend to move on to the next project. I feel like I need to live with the music before I can really claim it as my own and be proud of it, you know? 

16. Who’s a rapper you listen to with such a distinguishable style that you need to resist the urge to imitate them?

Definitely woods. Obviously his style can’t be copied (he takes care of his words—Munchausen by proxy), but when Aethiopes dropped, I had to stop listening to it after a few weeks because I didn’t wanna start biting. His tone, humor, and flow are infectious. I’ll put Starker in that category too—I think he has one of the best flows I’ve ever heard.

17. Do you have an agenda as an artist? Are there overarching concerns you want to communicate to the listener?

I don’t have an agenda that extends to the listener. I try not to be didactic, or preachy, or purport to know more than anyone else. My writing is mostly very internal, personal, emotional. It’s common for me to speak in the second person in rhymes, but that’s just a device I use to tell or ask myself something. I’m my own target audience. That being said, I do feel like I tend to write from a very zoomed out perspective, and if that happens to be relatable or evocative to a listener, that’s tight.

RAPS + CRAFTS is a series of questions posed to rappers about their craft and process. It is designed to give respect and credit to their engagement with the art of songwriting. The format is inspired, in part, by Rob McLennan’s 12 or 20 interview series.

Photo credit: Andi June

[silentmagi]

Rising Star

What new calamity is rising now?

2. Their guide, the sun, is covered with clouds and storm, they are lost

Main Page

So, the tarps and lean-to held the night and kept them mostly dry, and more importantly kept the books and scrolls safe from the rain. Sadly that was little comfort as they trudged in the gray gloom and dark day that was barely brighter than midnight. The mud clung to their legs like they were a lifeline from the ground itself, shoving the cart from behind with the horse hitched to the front.

Trying to focus on the good like the wise wizard one told her class, “when the heart wants lifting, think of pleasant things. Currently she was up to ten spells that would have been so useful in this situation she had in her spellbook, fifteen of her favorite dishes, and the thought of a hot bath soaking by a fire.

“You know, if you keep muttering death threats, you’re going to kill yourself with stress,” Luna teased, her voice strained with exertion as the reached a patch of grass that wasn’t full of roots and could rest their shoulders for the moment.

Star blinked as she made the futile gesture of wiping the water from her face. “Death threats?”

“Is that not what you were saying?” Luna asked with a twinkle in her eye, seeking some source of enjoyment in the celestial deluge they were heading. They had long since given up any hope of finding a path, instead focusing on just getting out of the forest and mud.

Shaking her head, she moved to rub her shoulder through the oiled cloak keeping the majority of her body warm, even if dry was a distant dream. “Trying to keep positive by listing off spells, meals, anything that could help keep me going.”

“If that’s not working, we could sing a song, I’ve seen field workers, soldiers, and many others do it to keep their spirits up,” Luna offered as she let out a small laugh. “How about a fun little drinking song?”

Singing? What good would singing do that listing off her favorite things wouldn’t? Rolling her eyes, she figured that it would at least not be heard by anyone else on this horrendous day. Her voice wasn’t the greatest, but at least it was something to keep her mind off things.

“Do you know the Bottom of the Bottle?” the wizard asked, remembering some lingering memories of that song from when she had her little party and tryst she could barely remember. Luna let out a small laugh as she patted the cart in time.

“Ten versions, take the lead on the first verse.”

Nodding her head, Star let her feet match the tempo of the beat as best she could, the mud causing some troubles. Taking a deep breath, she began to sing a little uncertainly since she wasn’t currently drunk enough to be confident.

“The Bottom of the Bottle, glass molded and mottle. Upon the skies you do gaze, despite our bleary haze. Twice do you see a cloud, once silent, the other loud…”

Luna licked her lip as she let out a soft laugh, seems she recognized this one at least for she joined in on the next lines. “The Bottom of the Bottle, glass molded and mottle. Drink upon our memories as we drain your gift, be it fruit, grain, or bereft.”

With the song lifting their mind beyond the rain, they continued through the song, with Luna mixing the other versions to form a longer song. Star could just manage to get her mind off the current troubles and think they could do this. Hopefully they’d be able to get some direction where they were.

[no-light-left-on]

more of my post-DotO au that I wrote a couple nights back. just exploring Emily and the Outsider's potential friendship

for some reason it's 1.5k words

The mechanism of Emily’s crossbow clicks into place as she holds the weapon up, the dart pointed squarely at the Outsider’s forehead.

“It’s just me,” the Outsider says, not phased by the weapon aimed at his face.

Emily sighs. “You’re going to get yourself shot if you don’t start knocking,” she says. “Especially if you do that to Corvo.”

“I do not visit Corvo’s office,” the Outsider replies as he closes the door behind him. Emily raises a brow at his words, but asks no questions.

“Well I am honoured that it is I who you chose to visit at-” she glances at the clock on her desk, “ten minutes past midnight. Shit, it’s really late…” She nods to an armchair across from her own seat on the sofa and straightens up. “What are you doing here this late, anyway?”

The Outsider drops down into the piled up cushions of the armchair with a sigh. Up close, Emily notices the buttons of his shirt are misaligned, and he’s wearing only a jacket on top. His hair sticks out over his left temple, and the answer to her question is obvious even before he opens his mouth.

“I couldn’t sleep,” he says. The same words he’s shared with her many times since his arrival to the Tower. “So I decided to walk around the hallways, scare a couple servants, tempt married women and lonely men, you know, the usual Outsider business.” He waves his hand as he speaks, sarcasm lacing his words. “I only came to see you because I noticed the light was still on.”

Emily nods, hums. “Would you like a drink?” she offers, kicking her feet off the armrest of the sofa she was sprawled over.

“You know I do not solve my night terrors with alcohol,” the Outsider says, but by then Emily has reached her desk and picked up a clean whiskey tumbler.

“I do,” Emily admits and sets the tumbler in front of him. “But I also know that you do not decline alcohol in polite company.”

The Outsider snorts at her words, an ugly half-laugh that escapes through his nose, and Emily follows with her own laughter. “How in the Void am I supposed to interpret that?” she exclaims. “Am I not good enough for you, prick?”

The Outsider laughs proper, then, shaking his head at the insult. “I would not call the Dunwall nobility polite even if it saved me from an Abbey interrogation session.” He takes a breath, feels the air fill his lungs. “You will do, better than anyone else in this accursed city.”

With those words, Emily opens the half-empty bottle of whiskey set on the little table between them, and pours until the Outsider calls ‘enough’. She refills her own glass, then, and as the Outsider picks up his share with trembling hands, she clinks their glasses together.

“To sleepless nights,” she toasts.

“To sleepless nights,” he echoes.

They drink in silence, the whiskey warming their bellies and burning their mouths. It isn’t until he has drank most of his share that the Outsider speaks again, his eyes downcast, watching the remaining liquid slosh in the tumbler.

“I keep dreaming of the Void,” he whispers. “The way it was for millennia. And then the way it was before I was freed.” The remaining whiskey shifts from deep browns to gold, warm like Serkonan afternoons, and the Outsider tries to focus on the warmth and the light to chase away the remaining wisps of the Void still curled around his racing mind. “I thought- or hoped, dared to hope, that once I leave Shindaerey, it would let me go. That I was freed. But it persisted and chased me to Karnaca, and then to Dunwall. I felt ill with fear when we approached Dunwall at night, and I heard a whale song from my cot, and the ship was so cold by then that for a moment I expected to open my eyes and be back there-”

“Hey,” Emily interrupts and the Outsider looks up from his glass, meets her eyes, as deep and warm as whiskey in candlelight. “Mio,” she speaks the nickname and the Outsider doesn’t flinch away as he would at the sound of his full name. “You were trapped there for over four thousand years. These things stick with you. They follow you. I spent six months with Madam Prudence and sometimes I still dream of my days in the Golden Cat. It’s normal.”

“I do not understand how you deal with that,” the Outsider admits. He sinks back into the pillows, pulls his legs up until he folds himself onto the armchair. He’s startlingly small like that, with cushions and velvet armrests swallowing him whole. Emily wonders for a moment just how much of his life he spent being swallowed whole by the world around him.

“You just do,” she says and takes a sip from her glass. “You wake up every day, and you keep going. And then you wake up again. And again. And you do not stop.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

“It is, in a way.” Emily finishes her whiskey, pours herself another glass. “I simply do not know what else there is to do but keep going.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” the Outsider mutters. “It does not make the nightmares any easier to bear.”

“I never said they would be easy to bear,” Emily tells him. “Maybe with time. But for now we have whiskey to dull that ache.” She raises the drink to the light, a smile creeping to her face. “Drink up. This is the good shit.”

And the Outsider does. Finishing the last of his drink in a single swig. The last drops burn away the remaining chill of the Void from his chest and the present sets in, with the warmth of the embroidered blanket draped over the back of his chair and the fire slowly dying in the fireplace since long before he entered Emily’s office. The icy sting of the Void does not reach him.

“You’re smiling,” Emily notes as the Outsider cradles the now empty glass in his hand. “I told you it chases the bad things away, for now.”

“Billie taught you that one,” the Outsider says instead.

“She did,” Emily confirms.

“You struggled sleeping on the Dreadful Wale,” the Outsider continues. “You never felt like you could wake up right.”

“That’s one way to call me spoiled,” Emily teases. “The cot was too hard, the room too stuffy, and everything reeked of stale liquor.”

“And your mind kept wandering, even in your sleep. You were so determined to chase after Delilah and her minions you could hardly rest. Her magic was too vast for you to stop worrying.”

“I don’t think I ever stopped worrying, even after coming home,” Emily admits. “I felt empty once things went quiet and we chased the last of the witches away. Too little to worry about.”

“Just like every time you came back to the Wale.”

“Every time I’d return,” Emily whispers, “Billie would get the best whiskey she had and we would celebrate a mission accomplished. It knocked me out on top of the exhaustion. After three times I realised Billie just wanted me to sleep for once. I guess it helped.”

“It must have, since you went out of your way to find the same brand of whiskey to keep around.”

“Nothing gets past you, huh? Nosy brat.” Still, there is no malice in her voice. Just fondness “It calms me down even a year later. Helps put me to sleep.”

“And yet you keep it in your office.”

“I could have kept it in the safe room instead. But here we are. I had to walk all the way here for this bottle. You wouldn’t have found me otherwise.”

“I am grateful that you came here for me to find you, for whatever that might be worth.”

“It’s worth a lot,” Emily says. Their eyes meet and the Outsider turns away. “Truly.”

A silence stretches between them. The Outsider closes his eyes, soaks in the warmth of the room as Emily drinks what is left of her share. The time approaches one in the morning when a light knock sounds from the heavy door and it is pushed open.

“Emily?” Corvo’s rasp follows. The room goes still as he enters the office and his eyes go to the Outsider. Neither of them move, but Corvo’s voice lacks the private warmth it held just a moment ago the next time he speaks. “I didn’t realise you had company.”

“Father-” Emily tries to say, but the Outsider interrupts her.

“Well, would you look at the time,” he says as he sets his long empty glass on the table. “I suppose it is time I retire to bed. Thank you for your time.” He stands then, straightens his crumpled jacket. Corvo’s eyes never leave him as he hurries to the door. Don’t worry about it, he mouths at Emily as he walks past Corvo, as he grips the brass door handle. He pretends not to see the angry furrow of his brows. “Goodnight, Emily.” He avoids her eyes as much as he avoids Corvo’s when he slips out of the room and shuts the door closed behind him.

The Tower is much colder outside of Emily’s office.

[taylortruther]

different anon here than the one who sent the initial message about joe songs feeling redundant but i felt the same way and found your response really interesting! it's very true that from rep to midnights we did hear new layers and steps in the relationship, although i think it's notable that from 2020 on, songs inspired by their relationship were one of three categories: 1) reminiscing on the beginning or, if more recent, either 2) surviving rough patches or 3) trying to protect the relationship from outside forces conspiring against it. as a longtime fan who adores the quintessential old taylor fairytale-esque love songs ,it was interesting to me that she was choosing not to romanticize or "fairytale-ify" her current relationship. I don't even remember consciously being like "hm that's weird I wonder if it means something about her & joe" but I do distinctly remember feeling a bit disappointed that midnights didn't have much of that. this all kind of goes back to the idea that midnights was, like taylor said at the same, a catalog of sleepless nights throughout her life, but we can also understand a lot about her headspace at that moment in time by which sleepless nights she choose to focus on and how she perceived them. anyway, this isn't to say there weren't good moments from 2020 onward (like you said, wicklow!) but it is very telling in retrospect that both "categories" for more recent songs are very... heavy, even if not entirely negative. i think and hope that taylor's at a point now where she feels a lot lighter and recognizes that consistent heaviness isn't necessarily super healthy

this is very well-articulated bestie! i shared some of that disappointment with midnights as well, but i think now we know it wasn't as separated from her relationship than we thought 🥲 and i hope she experiences more lightness too! i am so eager to hear what she has to say about this heaviness that you're describing, and i'm also interested to see how we talk about this period of her life in retrospect.

and honestly, i'd be a liar if i said i NEVER thought "when will we get more about their present relationship?" throughout the last 6-7 years. but honestly, once i heard peace and renegade, i think i figured she would write more later? like, she was going to give her present-day relationship issues room to breathe before putting them on albums (and i wasn't expecting her to continue releasing so many albums tbh.)

[storm-and-starlight]

Doctors that could pull off Heaven Sent, as in the same plot and structure of the episode as it stands in canon:

Twelve -- obviously.

Eight -- He just seems like someone who could pull off a monologue and make it interesting -- I don't know if he could pull off the "that's a hell of a bird" (I need to relisten to the audios), but a.) I feel like he could and he could definitely pull off punching through the wall (he'd be much more of a sad wet cat about it though) and b.) I would absolutely watch Eight wander sadly around a mysterious castle for fifty minutes and not even because I'm starved for live-action appearances of Paul McGann.

Doctors who could maybe pull off Heaven Sent, but it would probably need some pretty major plot/style revisions to make it work:

Seven -- once again, he could absolutely pull off a monologue and make it interesting, and he's got the charisma and the ego to carry off an episode with him as the only character, but the episode would need to have a fairly dramatic tone shift to work with who he is as a person. Seven's speeches are very different in style and tone, and his solution to the episode would need to be immensely different.

Four -- 100% has the ego  to pull it off, but I'm not sure I can see him giving any of the speeches. I'm putting him into this category for the ego reasons, but he kind of also falls into the next one, where tonally it might be the same as the episode but it would need a plot/character/action shift, probably towards a much stronger puzzle sort of mystery.

Doctors who could pull off a focus episode at the level of Heaven Sent but would need a fundamentally different style of episode:

Fourteen/Ten -- they absolutely have the on-screen charisma to pull off an episode where they're the total focus, but Fourteen/Ten doesn't have the kind of speech patterns/problem-solving style that lends itself well to being a solo character. He needs someone to bounce off of so he can talk ten miles a minute and still have it work. (As a side note, this entire ranking was built around the idea that Wild Blue Yonder is basically Fourteen's Heaven Sent, and like... it really is, and also that's what I'm talking about when I say he needs someone to bounce off of -- we get just as much focus on him even with three other characters in the episode. Same with Midnight, really, but that's got too many other people to really be what I'm talking about.)

Nine -- I feel like Nine would have to go the route of getting really really angry to pull off that kind of focus episode, which means he'd need an outright antagonist he could interact with. (So basically just Dalek, tbh, but. y'know. more.)

Doctors who probably couldn't manage something like Heaven Sent: (NOT a commentary on whether or not these doctors are well-written or interesting or have distinct character writing, just a note that I think they need the rest of the cast around them in a way that a Heaven Sent-esque episode, by its very nature, removes them.)

Eleven & Five -- I don't want to sound mean but they just don't super, like... have enough ego to pull it off? They've always read as fairly mild compared to, say, Ten and Seven's mania or Twelve and Four and Nine's intensity, and their quirkiness works best when its contrasted or counterparted with someone who does have that kind of intensity (River Song) or characters who are a lot more "normal" (Amy and Rory, Nyssa and Tegan).

One, Two, & Three -- They just work best as part of an ensemble cast, like not even the case with Ten where they need someone to bounce off of, they literally just work best in stories when they're part of a group.

Doctors I don't have a good idea for:

Fifteen, Thirteen, & Six -- I either just have not seen enough of their eras or don't have a good enough grasp of their personalities (sometimes both) to say whether or not I think they'd work in an episode like this, so anyone who's got a better grasp of them please tell me what you think!

(IMPORTANT NOTE: this is categorically not a comment on any of the actors' skills -- this is about whether or not I think each Doctor as they are written would be interesting to watch in a Heaven Sent-like setting -- aka would each Doctor's personality, transported into that setting and plot, be interesting to watch or would it be dull and/or a tonal mismatch. The actors are all amazing and I love each and every one of them)

[merp-blerp]

I'm sorry if I'm insulting certain swifties, but I don't like the sudden theory that Midights was a breakup album the whole time. I understand the Jaylor breakup threw the fans for a loop, and we are used to clowning on average, but this theory... just doesn't make sense to me. Taylor and Joe were seen at least twice post-Midnights’s release before the breakup, so how could the album be about breaking-up with him? You think Taylor’s wrote breakup songs about him before they broke up, invisible stringing him along for a few months till she decided to call it quits? That’d be pretty mean of her. I don’t think anyone wants to believe that about her without proof. Maybe I’m misunderstanding the theory, but it just doesn’t make sense to me. And I’ve even seen people claiming that the breakup’s been hinted at since the Lover era. THE LOVER ERA! Come on, guys!

You can have any interpretation you’d like, but try not to connect it to Taylor’s personal life too hard to the point where you deluded yourself that you know her. She allows speculations like that, yes. But in moderation. Don’t be invasive. For example, I think songs like Ivy, Fearless, and I Know Places can have sapphic interpretations. Does that mean I’m labeling her as a lesbian or a sapphic person? No. I just like to interrupt songs through a sapphic lens sometimes ‘cause I’m a lesbian and want to relate on a personal level. I don’t think any of those songs are inherently sapphic just ‘cause I can interrupt them that way (except maybe Ivy, which tells a fictional story made up by Taylor). And I also don’t want to intrude on Tay’s life. If she’s queer that’s her business and she doesn’t owe the fans deep info on her sexuality. If she came out I’d be so happy for her; if she choose to “stay in the closet” or actively said that she wasn’t queer, I’d still be happy for her. In comparison, she doesn’t owe fans an explanation for what happened with Joe, so we shouldn’t make theories that intrude on both of them. Midnights could be interpreted as a breakup album, going through the stages of grief for a relationship, and it’s okay to do so. Does that mean it inherently is? It probably isn’t. It’s inherently about “sleepless nights scattered throughout [her] life” because she said so. We’ve known this since the first announcement.

I know that many of us thought Taylor and Joe were never going to breakup ‘cause they made us believe in love, and the breakup has really made us feel a lot of things; it’s made some fans feel hurt and want to blame something or someone to get rid of the pain. And God knows we don’t want to blame Taylor, so some people (baselessly) are picking on Joe. I myself only began to believe that the breakup rumors were even true once Taylor began to (seemingly) reference that she was now single (and I don’t regret doing that) and I made a whole post about how it made me feel. But no need for us swifties to lose our heads and stop heeding logic over this. No need to try to sniff out what happened, invading Joe and Taylor’s personal lives. No need to start rumors about Joe cheating on her or anything else without Taylor saying he did so. No need to start making fun of Joe’s looks or whatever (though, toxic swifties were doing that even while they were together, so maybe I can’t ask them to get rid of their cognitive dissonance and not bully people in the name of a woman who notoriously hates bullying). No need to start shipping Taylor with her friends; shipping real people can get really toxic if you aren’t careful, so I recommend abstaining from it if you can. Please just respect Joe and Taylor instead of trying to find drama where there is seemingly none. They could’ve broken up amicably, have you considered that? We don’t even know where to look for drama right now in this situation. So many good things are happening with Taylor, like her breaking records yet again like the queen she is, so let’s try to focus on that. I too want the best for Taylor and don’t want to lift up those who’ve hurt her for no good reason, but we don’t know if Joe did anything. Keep cool while we slowly learn more—and I mean slowly—and respect those who deserve to be respected.

[tales-of-a-wallflower-swiftie]

crucify me daddy (or how I learned to stop giving a shit about celebrities relationships and focus on the nu cold war) *insert edgy title here by Fall Out Boy* - a rant with love

So TTPD has finally graced us with it's presence and it's an amazing album. It's a mix of Folklore + Speak Now + Reputation + Midnights in one bundle. Will have to give it a few more listens before I can decide my personal favorites but Clara Bow has been stuck in my head quite a lot.

Now... elephant in the room. I am a fan of The 1975 but I am not a Matty Healy apologist by any means. Do I think he's a racist, fuck no! If so, why are pretty much all of The 1975's work r'n'b based and has a black influence and collaborations with ethnic artists. He's not dancing in a KKK outfit or anything or wearing blackface or beating up a Pakistani kid or . Why are the many artists he's supported over the years people of color or *coughs* ASIAN! FOR FUCKS SAKE HIS LAST GIRLFRIEND IS BLACK AND WAS A VICTIM OF DOMESTIC ABUSE TO WHICH HE SUPPORTED AND STOOD UP FOR EVEN GIVEN HIS SICKENING PORN TASTE!

Do I think he's a twat and an idiot who sticks his foot firmly in his mouth a lot and says and does a lot without thinking, YES! The whole Love It If We Made It incident which started the entire Matty hate mob was an honest ill thought mistake. He shouldn't have shared his own song during his BLM post, I agree. It was fairly cringe for him to kiss the gay fan and put a target on that fans back but his heart was in the right place in calling out the bullshit in the eastern areas against stuff like this.

Cum Town helped Matty through his rehab and in return he was invited as a guest to which he joined in on some edgy jokes about Ice Spice and shared his porn taste of the hardcore variety like most men watch. The episode was out for many months prior to the news of them getting together however the psycho swifties wanted any ammunition to cause a fandom jihad.

So to no one's surprise, I was expecting at least a few Matty mentions. Boy was I in for a treat. Peter, But Daddy I Love Him, The Tortured Poets Department among others.

But kudos to Taylor for actually sticking up for herself and Matty during But Daddy I Love Him. I loved Taylor before but I completely adore her for having the guts to say to those parasocial dicks who thinks everything is a coded message or an easter egg, enough is fucking enough

"I'll tell you something right now I'd rather burn my whole life down Than listen to one more second of all this bitchin' and moanin' I'll tell you something 'bout my good name It's mine alone to disgrace I don't cater to all these vipers dressed in empath's clothing"

It sickens me to see some of Swifties wish death, rape, bus crashes, , overdoses on Matty and his family. She chose to be with him, she wasn't shotgun wedding or married off to him and fuck me, imagine genuinely liking someone once you get to know them and not look at the edgy stuff they said online... crazy am i right?

Look what happened to Mac Miller, Ari's fans launched a crusade against him and he ended up doing himself in because of it

You know we're going to be nuked soon anyway... china, russia, israel or even if Trump gets re-elected. Mexico is over run with videos of people getting their faces cut off and Logan, Jake and KSI sell poison to kids and have yet to be assassinated. Life's too short to care about the relationship of two celebrities. Go touch grass, go milk a horse blindfolded, go kick a hornets nest, go burn yourself alive in front of Trump tower. Be a decent human being stop fixating on relationships of the stars

#staygay

[wesawbears]

Midnights (AFTG Version)

Because I am unwell, I bring you a comprehensive guide of all the lyrics on Midnights that make my chest hurt when I project them onto All for the Game characters. Please enjoy.

Under the cut because long

Lavender Haze:

Overall vibes- Andreil early on, when they’re just making out in secret. Could also be directly after the books.

Lyrics:

“Staring at the ceiling with you, oh you don’t ever say too much. And you don’t really read into my melancholia”

“I’ve been under scrutiny, you handle it beautifully, all this shit is new to me”

“I find it dizzying, they’re bringing up my history, but you weren’t even listening”

“I just wanna stay in this lavender haze”

Maroon:

Overall vibes: JereJean for the first verse. It gets sad, but we won’t mention that, unless you want to write that AU

Kevin/Jean for the second verse

Lyrics:

JereJean: “Laughing with your feet in my lap like you were my closest friend. How’d we end up on the floor anyway?”

“And I chose you the one I was dancing with”

“The burgundy on my tshirt when you splashed your wine into me and how the blood rushed into my cheeks so scarlet”

Kevin/Jean:

“When the silence came we were shaking, blind and hazy, how the hell did we lose sight of us again? Sobbing with your head in my hands, ain’t that the way, it always ends?”

“And I lost you, the one I was dancing with”

“And I wake with your memory over me, that’s a real fucking legacy to leave”

Anti Hero

Overall vibes: Genuinely most of the Foxes but I’m gonna split it up for more specific vibes

All foxes: “It’s me, hi, I’m the problem it’s me”

Kevin: “When my depression works the graveyard shift all of the people I’ve ghosted stand there in the room. I should not be left to my own devices they come with prices and vices I end up in crisis”

Neil: “I wake up screaming from dreaming one day I’ll watch as you’re leaving cause you got tired of my scheming for the last time”

“I stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror”

Jeremy: “Did you hear my covert narcissism I dress up as altruism”

Jean: “I wake up screaming from dreaming one day I’ll watch as you’re leaving and life will lose all it’s meaning”

Snow on the Beach

Overall vibes: Andreil and JereJean

Andrew: “and life is emotionally abusive and time can’t stop me quite like you did and my flight was awful thanks for asking I”m unglued, thanks to you”

“I can’t speak, afraid to jinx it, I don’t even dare to wish it”

Andreil: “And it’s like snow on the beach, weird but fucking beautiful...you wanting me, tonight feels impossible”

Jean: “And it’s fine to fake it til you make it til you do, til it’s true”

You’re on Your Own Kid

Overall vibes: Again, many of the Foxes, but I will focus on Kevin and Allison

“I gave my blood, sweat and tears for this”

“You’re on your own kid, you always have been”

Allison: “I hosted parties and starved my body, like I’d be saved by a perfect kiss”

Midnight Rain

Overall vibes: Kevin/Jean

“I guess, sometimes we all get just what we wanted...and he never thinks of me, except when I’m on TV”

“I guess sometimes we all get some kind of haunted...and I never think of him, except on midnights like this”

Question

Overall vibes: Renison, though I could not explain to you why. Like, I don’t have lyrics, but just listen to the song and you’ll get it

Vigilante Shit

Overall vibes: Once again, many of the Foxes, but I’ll split it up

Andrew: “You did some bad things, but I’m the worst of them”

“I don’t start shit, but I can tell you how it ends”

Neil: “She needed cold, hard proof so I gave her some.”

Fox Girls: “Ladies always rise above, ladies know what people want, someone sweet and kind and fun, the lady simply had enough”

Foxes: “They say looks can kill, and I might try”

Bejeweled

Overall vibes: The Fox Girls

Allison: “Best believe I’m still bejeweled, when I walk in the room, I can still make the whole place shimmer”

Renee: “Baby boy, I think I’ve been too good of a girl”

Dan: “Did all the extra credit and got graded on a curve”

Labyrinth

Overall vibes: Andrew catching feelings

“You know how scared I am of elevators, never trusted if it rises fast, it can’t last”

“Oh no, I’m falling in love”

“I thought the plane was going down, how’d you turn it right around?”

“You know how much I hate that everybody just expects me to bounce back”

Karma

Overall vibes: Kevin and Jean to Riko

Jean: “Karma is my boyfriend”

“Karma is the guy on the screen, coming straight home to me”

Both: “My pennies made your crown”

“Ask me why so many fade when I’m still here?”

Sweet Nothing

Overall vibes: Andreil. “And you always said you want nothing” anyone?

“Neil: They said the end is coming, everyone’s up to somethin’, I find myself running home to your sweet nothings”

Andrew: “All you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing”

Mastermind

Overall vibes: Andrew. “No, but I’ll still solve you” vibes

“and the touch of a hand lit the fuse, of a chain reaction of countermoves to assess the equation of you”

The Great War

Overall vibes: Andreil post-Baltimore

Andrew: “My knuckles were bruised like violets, sucker punching walls, cursed you as I sleep talked”

“You said I have to trust more freely, but diesel is desire, you were playing with fire, and maybe it’s the past that’s talkin’, screamin’ from a crypt”

“It turned into something bigger, somewhere in the haze got a sense I’d been betrayed”

“That was the night I nearly lost you”

“There’s no morning glory, it was war, it wasn’t fair”

Bigger than the Whole Sky

Overall vibes: Allison to Seth

“Your were more than just a short time”

Paris

Overall vibes: Andreil dodging the press

“Did you see the photos? No I didn’t but thanks though”

“No I didn’t see the news cause we were somewhere else”

“Romance is not dead, if you keep it just yours”

Glitch

Overall vibes: Andreil

“I think there’s been a glitch, five seconds later I’m fastening myself to you with a stitch”

“I was supposed to sweat you out”

High Infidelity

Overall vibes: Neil

“I didn’t know you were keeping count”- the countdown

“I bent the truth too far tonight, I was dancing around, dancing around it”

Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve

Overall vibes: Kevin to Riko (not shippy, to be clear. Just referencing a toxic relationship). Andrew to...life

Andrew: “And if I was a child did it matter, if you washed your hands?”

Kevin: “And now that I”m grown, I’m scared of ghosts, memories feel like weapons”

“But Lord you made me feel important, then you tried to erase us”

“God rest my soul, I miss who I used to be the tomb won’t close”

“I can’t let this go, I fight with you in my sleep, the wound won’t close, I keep on waiting for a sign. I regret you all the time”

“If clarity’s in death then why won’t this die?”

Dear Reader

Overall vibes: Neil, the unreliable narrator

“If it feels like a trap, you’re already in one”

“Get out your map, pick somewhere and just run”

“Burn all the files, desert all your past lives. And if you don’t recognize yourself, that means you did it right”

“Never take advice from someone who’s falling apart”

“The greatest of luxuries is your secrets”

“When you aim at the devil, make sure you don’t miss”

“I prefer hiding in plain sight”

“You wouldn’t take my word for it if you knew who was talking”

[xiaojuun]

it's officially midnight so i am stepping up to the microphone !!!! i always get all reflective and sappy during my bday time but i do really want to express how thankful i am for all of u here ... this is the second birthday i will be celebrating with all of you on tumblr, and my circle is even wider than last year, but it still feels just as close and homey as it ever did. so many of you have been with me since before i started nursing school, and now i only have 6 months left before i sit for my licensure exam !!! for those of you who don't know, i moved to my parents' home when the pandemic hit, it's not where i grew up and it's in a very isolated / rural area hours from where any of my friends live, and i decided to stay here and commute for these 2 years of nursing school to save money and focus on my studies. despite knowing i made the right decision, and i'm so grateful for my family and their support, it can feel extremely lonely here (especially for an extrovert like me). i genuinely do not know what i would have done if i hadn't found you all - falling in love with kpop and the comfort i find in my favorite groups is one thing, of course they are a huge source of joy to me, but i am someone who has always adamantly believed that all good things in life are meant to be shared. i'm so glad i get to share this joy with the most talented, kind, smart, and wonderful people all over the world !! i know i'm never alone with all my friends in my phone cheering for me, no matter how many new groups i adopt, no matter the timezones between us ... you share the most important moments with me, whether a new song just changed my life or i had a great day in clinical, whether i'm crying in a good or a bad way, i feel your support and love every step of the way. your happiness and wins feel like mine too, and when you doubt yourselves or are feeling down i wish so badly that i could teleport to give hugs or a listening ear. i want to be someone who gives comfort to people, i think there is nothing that makes my heart feel more complete than someone knowing i'm on their team. so i hope you all know i'm always on yours, and i'm so grateful to have you on mine, so so so grateful beyond words. thank you for celebrating another birthday with me but more importantly for celebrating every day with me, for being a safe and happy place that i feel so lucky to have. as treasure once said, in all caps of course ... I LOVE YOU ♡

[theowesterling]

♛ → WESTERLANDS presents LORD THEOMORE WESTERLING, the MASTER OF LAWS of THE CRAG. when the dragons danced in the sky they thought the GREENS would still fly, but in the blink of an eye, they would all die. the THIRTY TWO year old MALE who was PROTECTIVE & WELL-MEANING before they saw the first of the flames, is now TEMPRAMENTAL & UNSURE after seeing the last. through the ash, now they struggle to find MIDNIGHT RIDES ON HORSEBACK, THE SWEET SMELL OF SEAGRASS, and THE CHEERING OF HIS SOLDIERS instead of the remnants of the war of succession. ( alp navruz )

theomore had always wanted to be viewed as the golden child in his father's eyes growing up. but he was always just a step behind his older brother. theo did his best with his studies but always seemed to fall behind his brother. he could hit a target with an arrow from a far distance but his brother would hit a bullseye perfectly. resentment boiled in the young boy as he tried to hard to be the bet. others saw his brother as a pinnacle of what a good son should be while theo saw the truth. his was arrogant and rude and cocky. he would do anything if it meant he could be the best. but his parents were blinded by their love to see the entitled child they were raising.

theo wanted to pour himself into his studies but he struggled to get the words down right. they all seemed to jumble on the page for him. instead he focused on his training for fighting. knowing at least he could excel in that.

soon the call of war whisked the two brother's away. his father was a high ranking general for the lannisters, always at the ruling lannister side to give advice where it was needed. he was more than proud to have his two sons there as well. for once theo felt a little more seen by the generals there and by the lannisters even if his father was still too focused on his brother.

fighting continued and theo started to get better and better. before long he began to move up in his ranks. as the war continued on, theo and his brother ended up being stationed in lannisport during the sack. many of the soldiers in his unit theo was in charge of leading were brutally killed. however, theo stood firm and defended what he could.

once the dust of battle settled, theo was lauded as a hero of the battle. he was the brave lord who took down as many invaders as he could while protecting the city's people. however, his brother was killed, and it quickly became clear he had abandoned his post to guard guinevere lannister. no one was longer talking of his brother but of the heroic actions theo had taken.

his father did not see the hero his son was. he only mourned for the loss of his oldest, despite the cowardly way he went out.

anger burned inside of theo but he had a war to focus on for now.

other battles raged on and fight after fight theo remained and more word spread of the young lord's actions. a young hero who's ability in a fight was deadly for his opponent

despite the greens losing, theo had come out of the fray as a war hero. someone who songs would be written about one day he was told. and yet there still was a fit of burning anger that moved within him. anger he wanted so desperately to control. because after all of this how could he still not be seen favorably by his father? what more could he do to win his approval?

after the war was done theo returned to casterly rock to serve the king of the westerlands. the lannisters had been a family who supported him. a family who raised him up as as a champion of the westerlands for what he did. he proudly took his place as lord commander of the kingsguard originally

when his father came to visit his new found confidence came crashing down. everything he achieved was dismissed by his father. he only could talk about the wonderful things his brother would have done if he had not been killed. an argument began between the two of them. that anger came back. he tried to push it down, push it away but his father would not stop.

he barely remembered what happened next. but he knew it was an accident. he never wanted to hurt his father. he never wanted to kill him. but now his father lay dead at his feet.

panic washed over tho as he realized what he done. he cried for hours before he was able to pull himself together. he had to protect himself now.

theo was able to stage the killing as an accidental death. and soon the westerlands mourned for the tragic, accidental death of the late great lord.

he played his part over the next coming weeks. he truly was the grieving son. he comforted his mother and young siblings as best as he could, knowing the truth of what he did.

theo lives with the regrets of his actions. he is viewed as a war hero by most and yet he feels like he is still a failure. there is more he can do, more he wants to achieve if he can keep his temper under control enough. if he is smart enough to play his cards right, he sees much greatness before him.

more recently he has stepped into the role of master of laws. seeing he is now the ruiling lord of the crag he knows he must settle down soon enough and start a family.

quick connections:

-his younger siblings, two sisters and a younger brother.

-past flings. thinking during the war there could have been one or two people that theo had a ~*~moment~*~ with when there wasn't a fight. but it would be something that both of them knew was not anything serious

-theo is in need of some friends, i think he would be close to people of the old way. but i also think anyone from the westerlands or allies could work as well!

-perhaps someone suspicious of him and what he did? could be something who admired his father and thinks theo had something to do with it

-someone theo saved during the war. either during the sack or any of the bigger battles that took place. i think it would be nice for him to reunite with someone he helped.

-anything else!! i am open to all sorts of things so come hit me up

[justinmitchellfan]

ARIANA GRANDE X MERCEDES VARNADO LOVE STORY SMUT WARNING ⚠️ PART 2 of the continuation of the she's the one love story

Chapter 4 title: uh I forgot

Mercedes is wearing black hoodie with black pants and white shoes

Mercedes point of view

I have no idea what to wear, I've never been to a listening party, not like this anyway, quick recap, scooter had my song played with a focus group and they loved it, from 13 year old kids to a 48 year old which is amazing, he then explained that the release party would determine how much of a hit this song is even though the few people in the focus group liked it that doesn't mean everyone will, so he's going to get the song into a club and fill it and a few things about it made me nervous, the main two being: a lot of people are about to hear my first ever recorded song and celebrities are going to be there and scooter said that it's best that some famous people come to hear the song so that, if they like it, they can post about it and hlpe it up before it's officially released

I asked what we'd do about everyone else who will no doubt be recording the song and he said that we want people to do that and tonight is the night for the release party and scooter hasn't told me the celebrities that are going to be there, he just said to come looking my best which is my problem now "ant as mercedes calls "sup says Anthony "uh I don't know what to wear says mercedes and his chuckle is quiet because he's in the other room and it's gone by the time he gets in and my eyes scan his outfit "you obviously know what you're doing says mercedes as she points out and he shakes his head and starts going through my suitcase and after pulling some stuff out, he leaves and comes back with something of his "go get dressed says Anthony and I grab the clothes he picked and go change in the bathroom

"So says mercedes "what you mean so, I picked it out, of course you look good says Anthony as he rolls his eyes, nodding, I run my hands down my pants legs and he comes over and sits beside me nudging my shoulder with his "so you excited, people bout to hear yo first ever recorded song says Anthony "yeah, which is why I'm kind of freaking out says mercedes and one of his eyebrows raise "do you not think the song is gonna be good says Anthony "I don't know, that's what this party is for right, to figure out if it's good or not says mercedes "look as his hand claps onto my shoulder "this song is good, no it's amazing, everyone is gonna love it, just Trust that says Anthony "and yhen what says mercedes and he laughs "then you make another and another until the only name people can think of is mercedes varnado says Anthony

With his optimistic speech in mind, I stand and say I'm ready and after making sure we have everything we need, we leave the hotel and head over to the club scooter told us about, it's lit up In blue, a line of people out to the corner just waiting to get in but Anthony and I go right up to the bouncer and give him our names and for some reason I'm anxious that he'll turn us away, instead his eyes scan the tablet in his hand and he let's us in and scooter sends a quick text to meet him in v.i.p so that's where we head "there's the star says scooter as he exclaims once he sees us and after a short handshake and a brief hug, I look around the v.i.p section and recognize so many people. Why are there so many celebrities, haliee stienfeild, jacquees, kiana lede, post Malone and social house

"So look as I direct my attention to scooter "your song Is going to play around 11:45 and then at midnight we're going to release it on YouTube, Spotify and iTunes, till the just mingle some, have a drink or two and relax says scooter and mercedes nods "how will they know it's me says mercedes "the djs gonna tell them says scooter "okay days mercedes and Anthony smiles at scooter before directing me over to the bar and I ask for greyhound (vodka and grapefruit juice) and Anthony asks for an old fashion and while the bartender makes our drinks, we chat and listen to the music and I send a text to Samia to tell her that my song is dropping at midnight so she and my mom can listen

She replies with an okay and I keep it in mind to call them after it's dropped, for now though I'm anxiously waiting for the dj to play it and there's a big crowd here and that's not even including the v.i.p sections and In a few minutes they're all going to hear my song and before I can even dig myself into a hole of nerves, my eyes widen at the person approaching the bar and spin around quickly and I'm supposed to mingle but does that include celebrities "you good says Anthony as he asks and I shake my head "what's wrong says Anthony, I should say something to her, I will, wait no. My body acts before my mind and I spin around to face her "holy shit you're Ariana grande, I'm sorry I promise I'm not gonna fan girl on you I just ,I love you says mercedes as she gushes

Then I realize I just pulled a fan girl on her anyway and I smack my hand on my forehead and her laugh breaks through the music and into my ears "you're cute says Ariana grabbing my hand and pulling it off my face and slowly, I shock ,I look into her brown eyes "what's your name says Ariana and mercedes blink "uh, I forgot says mercedes and Ariana giggles again "it's mercedes says Anthony as he answers for mercedes "and I'm Anthony says Anthony "nice to meet you both says Ariana and her smile is angelic "your beautiful says mercedes as she ends up saying "thank you, so are you says Ariana and cue blush and before I reply the djs voice booms over the speakers

"Alright alright everybody, I have a new exclusive song for yall provided to us by my boy scooter says the dj and I look over to see scooter raise his drink "so for the first time ever, this is rush by mercedes says the dj and the beginning vocals begin to play in the almost silent club followed by my voice and my eyes scanned the crowd watching for reactions and a couple people start to sway, nodding their heads and maybe it's the club atmosphere or the drinking or the lights but as soon as the beat drops everyone gets hype and they dance and jump around, the lights make it hard to but I see a couple people repeat the chorus when it comes around again and scooter meets my gaze from our section and nods with a smirk and I raise my glass to him with a grin of my own, they actually like it

Once it's over the dj says "I think that deserves a second play says the dj and a headache including cheer roars over the crowd and my song plays again "yooo as I jump in my spot a little "they love it says mercedes "I told you says Anthony as he chuckles "so" as my eyes snap down to Ariana grande "you're a singer says Ariana "uh, yeah says mercedes "your songs amazing says Ariana. Melting "you like it says mercedes and Ariana nods "it's really good says Ariana "thanks says mercedes and I watch her as she pulls her phone out "how would you feel about some promotion says Ariana "what kind says mercedes as she asked confused and her phone comes into view "the social media kind says Ariana "sure says mercedes, I'm still a little confused

She pulls her Instagram up and stands closer to me before starting to record and her eyes stay trained on the camera as she sways to the song "guys this right here is about to become my new favorite song says Ariana "and its sung by this cutie right here says Ariana as the ca.era angles up to get me in the video and I wave with a nervous smile "this is my new friend mercedes, you have to listen to her new song rush, where says Ariana as she asks looking up at mercedes "oh, on YouTube, Spotify and iTunes says mercedes "rush by mercedes, check it out guys says Ariana and with that she ends the video "what's your Instagram says Ariana "mercedes varnado says mercedes and after captioning it with my name and the title of the song ,she posts it "done says Ariana as she beams

Literally seconds later my phone starts buzzing like crazy in my pocket and I pull it out. New follower notifications keep coming in one after the other then the tags, I recognize names like ddlavato, Iamhalsey, Laurenjauregui, socialhouse, and haileesteinfield "holy shit, demi lavato just followed and tagged me on Instagram as I stare at the screen "I love demi lavato says mercedes and Ariana pouts "I thought you loved me says Ariana "I do love you, you're incredible says mercedes pulling Ariana into a hug then quickly regretting it "sorry, I totally should've asked says mercedes "mercedes, it's fine, I like hugs says Ariana as she smiles and with a smile of my own ,I pull her into another hug, only to be brought from it at Anthony's voice "yo stop flirting, scooter wants you says Anthony

"I wasn't- says mercedes. Not on purpose, I'm too nervous to talk to a camera let alone flirt with Ariana grande "yeah yeah come on says Anthony as he grabs my arm and pulls me with him before I can say anything else to Ariana and when we reach him ,scooter tells me that u need to post about my new song on all social media platforms so I do and just like that im number 5 trending on Twitter and I jump to number 4 right before my eyes "how much does this champagne cost as I turn to scooter with the sudden push to celebrate "don't worry about it, it's on me kid says scooter as he flags down a server and order two bottles and after I down two glasses, I do a little happy dance that makes Ariana laughs, why is that laugh so goddamn adorable

At midnight, like scooter said, my song is released and I immediately pull it up on apple music and screenshot come then about six or seven minutes later I excuse myself and step outside to call my mom and Samia and it rings for a second before they answer "ohhhhh says Samia as she exclaims, my sing is playing in the background and I smile "my baby made a hit says mercedes mom as she cheers and a smile lights up on my face "I take it yall like the song says mercedes "oh its a bop, all my friends playin it, they postin about it, you trendin on Twitter sis says Samia "for real says mercedes as her eyes widen "yes! SIS FAMOUS says Samia as she shouts and I laugh at her antics and my moms voice comes in louder

"I'm proud of you sweetheart, I know this is just the beginning but I already know you're gonna soar and your dad would be too says mercedes mom and with the paparazzi across the street, I'm not about to cry but tears do well in my eyes "thank you momma, really, I wouldn't be here today without you, I love you says mercedes "I love you too, now go head to yo party and drink responsibly please says mercedes mom "always says mercedes. Hanging up, I take a deep breath and head back inside. Scooter, Anthony and surprisingly Ariana are still in our section when I get back "everything okay says Ariana as she asks and mercedes nods "had to call my mom and sister says mercedes and Ariana smiles at that and nods "now as I clap "shots on me, everybody's takin one says mercedes

The night proceeds like that, we drink and party and I find myself being introduced to haliee, social house and demi freakin lavato who shows up around 2 and with my new found money, I buy both her and Ariana a drink and I dance with both of them and all in all, I don't go back to my hotel sober and it's the best night of my life so far

Chapter 5 title: already

Arianas point of view

I can't get rush out of my head, nor can I stop thinking about mercedes, meeting her last night was amazing, she is such a cutie, she can dance her ass off and she made me laugh so hard, yes, she was a little tipsy towards the end of the night but she was still so much fun which is why I asked scooter about her the second I got a chance, meaning the second I walked into his office at republic records and he shakes his head and sits at his desk "you've known her all of a few hours says scooter as he chuckles "scoot come on, does that matter says Ariana and his eyebrows raise and i sigh and fall on the couch in the corner "she's so hot as I tell him, making him laugh "and that smile and those moves and wasn't it so cute that she called her mom and sister to celebrate her song says Ariana "sounds like a crush says scooter

My eyes narrow at him despite my blush "it's curiosity scooter, how'd you find her says Ariana "YouTube says scooter "show me says Ariana and he shakes his head and waves me over before typing on the computer. Musichaven and I look over the page, majority of the videos are her playing a piano cover of a song while the others are her djaying "play that one says Ariana and scooter rolls his eyes and presses the video and the video opens with her sitting at a keyboard in presumably her room, she starts playing the piano and then she sings but her voice is layered with mine, I know I can sing and when I heard her song last night I knew she could sing but my heart starts to beat faster at the sound of our voices together, why do we sound so amazing together

"Scooter says mercedes and my eyes snap up from the video and connect to mercedes and she walks in with Anthony behind her. How does she look so good in anything so simple "oh uh Ariana hey says mercedes with a nervous blush rising on her cheeks "sorry if we interuppted says mercedes "you didn't as I smile at mercedes and her hand scratches the back of her neck and she and Anthony walk further into the room and they both sit in the chairs across from me and scooter and mercedes looks into my eyes and I can't help but smile and I see her shyly mouth the word hi and I say it back and suddenly she asks "are you free later says mercedes then her eyes widen "I am actually says Ariana as she tells mercedes and that's definitely not what she was expecting but her face breaks into a smile anyway

"Could I take you out says mercedes as she asks "like not like a date says mercedes and my smile falters "or it could be like a date or not, I'm sorry I just says mercedes as she sighs "I'd like to hang out with you says mercedes "mercedes as she looks up at me "I'd love to go out with you says Ariana "does 8 sound okay says mercedes and I nod "or we could hang out now, I'm not exactly doing anything says Ariana and her eyes pan over to scooter then Anthony and I look to him "oh right, I called you here because I thought you'd like to know that you're song is trending on streaming platforms also if it continues to get the attention it's getting you'll be top 50 on the billboard charts says scooter "already says mercedes as her eyes widen and scooter nods "it's already number 67 says scooter

We all give her a second to process it all and once she does, she thanks scooter and does a bro hug with Anthony and unexpectedly but definitely welcome, she hugs me too "we'll talk more business tomorrow kid says scooter as he tells mercedes. Nodding, she stands and looks at me expectantly, the both of us then leave out, Anthony staying behind to talk with scooter about mercedes most likely and we get into my car and I look to mercedes "I was going to do some shopping today, we don't have to do that if you don't want to but says Ariana and mercedes smiles "we can go shopping, I was looking to buy some jewelry anyway says mercedes and at her mention of it, I pay attention to the fact that the only jewelry she's wearing is a pair of studs and a watch, she didn't have much on last night either

With that decision we go to the mall ,on the way we talk about music and the way she talks about it draws me to her even more and she talks about all these ideas she has for rush, the main one being a music video and she says how she can't wait to make more music then I tell her the songs I've been working on, finishing the sweetener tour means I have some time on my hands minus all the interviews and appearances and coming award shows and the way her eyes stay on me the whole time I'm talking makes my heart flutter and she's making me feel like a teenager again and it's only been a few hours and my driver stops outside of the mall and even though there aren't any paps here, I know a lot of my fans will be inside, I love my fans and I'll always make time for them but I kind of want to spend this time with mercedes, no distraction

We should've just gone to my house "Ariana says mercedes and I look over to see mercedes with her eyebrows raised and an amused smile "Ariana says mercedes and I look over to see mercedes with her eyebrows raised and an amused smile "Hey Jackson, I'm so sorry but can you take us to my place as I lean in to my driver and he chuckles and nods "of course, miss grande says the driver and mercedes frowns "I thought you wanted to go shopping says mercedes "at first I did but now I just want to keep getting to know you says Ariana as she smiles at mercedes and in turn she smiles back, knowing I don't have snacks at the house we stop at a store and mercedes insists that she go get the stuff, she says it'll be quicker since she won't be recognized

But her 10 minutes turns to 30 minutes then to 45 and I get genuinely curious so I go to look for her and I find her in the cookie isle surrounded by like ten people and she has this nervous yet shocked smile on her face, when her eyes meet mine the smile gets bigger and for a second I was going to go over to her but I leave instead letting her have her moment and not too long after she comes our grinning from ear to ear "so you have fun meeting your fans says Ariana as she smiles at mercedes and her mouth opens and she moves her hands in shock "I did not think that was gonna happen says mercedes and I chuckle "I don't know why, your song is huge says Ariana

While it had been number 1 trending on Twitter last night its now number 2 and mercedes is number 1 and everyone is wondering who she is, where she came from and when she's making another song and the funniest thing to me had been there replies to her old tweets and even their replies to her Instagram posts and some of the pictures were her sitting at her keyboard in her room ,her and her sister and some of her and her mom and family members and I've noticed that her father isn't in many pictures, I saw one or two of them but that was it but I'm not sure about asking about it and Jackson takes us to my apartment and the second we get in the door my dogs and piggy smallz run up to us

I didn't expect toulouse and Myron to move from me to her so quickly "hi cuties says mercedes as she smiles ruffling their ears and scratching their heads and Myron licks at her hand and gets really energetic with her and the other dogs ,seeing how much fun they seem to be having run over to her and the force of all 9 dogs and piggy smallz sends her tumbling to the floor and my dogs already are adorable adding to that is mercedes cuteness so I have to record them and I add the words 'my babies🖤' to the video before posting to my story "you have fun with them ,I'm gonna go get the snacks ready says Ariana as she laughs at mercedes

Her eyes widen "wait as Myron licks her face "ari as pignolio nibbles on her fingers "help says mercedes as toulouse lays his paw over her mouth, her laughs seem to fill the apartment with the occasional bark from my dogs and I put most of the snacks away grabbing some popcorn and putting it in the microwave "so" as my eyes snap over to mercedes as she comes into the kitchen "I uh I know you're vegan so I was careful when I picked the snacks ,I hope everything's as mercedes frowns at the thought "uh edible says mercedes and I giggle at her and nod "everything is perfectly edible and you got my favorite as I hold up the strawberries and mercedes smiles proudly

After we've gotten the snacks together I grab her hand and pull her to the couch and when she sits I don't hesitate to sit beside her "Harry Potter says mercedes as she asks. Okay um she's perfect "I see the look on your face, before you get excited, I've never seen a full Harry Potter movie says mercedes and my jaw drop "I know says mercedes as she groans slouching in her seat and hiding her face in embarrassment "but my sister loves Harry Potter, she gave me a House and everything but I usually fell asleep when we watched it together says mercedes "that's not what's about to happen now, you are gonna stay awake for every movie as I say with finality grabbing the remote and navigating to the series "8 says mercedes as she exclaims

"What house did your sister give you as I ask ignoring her suprise over the number of movies "hufflepuff says mercedes as she bites her lip "didn't you uh say you were slytherian says mercedes. Awe, she knows so much about me and I know nothing about her and instead of playing the movie, I fold my legs under myself and turn to face her "spill says Ariana "what says mercedes as she frowns "I want to know everything, start from the beginning says Ariana and her eyes search my face, I'm dead serious "from the beginning beginning says mercedes and i nod and her chest rises with a deep breath and she starts talking "not sure any of this is interesting but uh I was born and raised in San Bernardino California by my mom Y/M/n, I got into music when I was 9 says mercedes

Even though I'm completely captured by her, I interuppt and ask how and scratching the back of her neck she says "that's when my dad died, I remember how hard it was for my mom to explain it to me and I couldn't begin to understand and one night a couple weeks later I heard dance with my father on the radio and" her eyes were watering but she's managing to hold back tears unlike me, a few roll down my face "it's like hearing that just confirmed to me that he was really gone and songs had never resonated with me before but in that moment I realized how powerful music is says mercedes and my hand reaches over and grabs hers, that's why there weren't any pictures of him on her social media

Gently, she brings a hand up to wipe my stray tears and she smiles softly "then five years later my mom had Samia, my little sister, her dad comes around every once in a while but he's not exactly in the picture but uh I worked really hard in everything I did which was mainly my music, school and odd jobs to help my mom with money, I try my best to do the same with Samia you know says mercedes and I nod "she's 13 and u don't want her stuck in the idea that San Bernardino is all there is, she's so smart and I know that she can accomplish whatever she puts her mind to says mercedes, just like with music, I see that passion in her eyes, she loves her little sister, she loves her family

"Did u lose you talking about my sister says mercedes as she chuckles nervously, hand scratching the back of her neck and my eyes widen "no as I shout a little too loud "I just love how passionate you get about things you love says Ariana and her cheeks heat up at my words and she cutely bends down burying her face in our joined hands. Dear God I like her so much

Chapter 6 title: kiss me

Mercedes is wearing an all black outfit

Mercedes point of view

"I met Anthony shortly after I graduated high school, he's kind of my unofficial manager at this point cause he's good at the kind of stuff says mercedes and Ariana nods along, her fingers playing with mine, honestly when she asked me to tell her everything I thought she was joking but she listened intently to my life's story and she shed a tear or two when I talked about my dad passing away and how that introduced me to my love for music, she laughed when I talked about high school and there was definitely some jealousy in her eyes but I could be wrong. The whole high school experience for me was unique I guess, it's when I realized how gay I am so there was the whole coming out thing, Ariana laughed when I told her how I told my mom

Basically I hid in the closet, waiting until she came home from work and when she did I jumped out with a rainbow flag around my shoulders and it scared the piss out of her so much so that she smacked me, not for being gay but for nearly giving her a heart attack and also surprisingly a lot of girls I went to school with were crushing on me and they made it known and it's how I got my first girlfriend, we broke up obviously but she and I are still friends and then I started telling her about after I graduated, instead of college, I started working, most of the money went towards my mom even though she wanted me to go to college which wasn't a big part of my plan anyway so I didn't lose much "so, he's your best friend says Ariana as she asks about Anthony

Mercedes shrugs "i guess so, I've never had a best friend, well no, my mom is my best friend says mercedes and this makes Ariana smile sweetly and then she literally groans and throws her head back and I laugh "what seems to be the problem miss grande says mercedes "you says Ariana as she sits up and points at me "you're perfect and I like you and I hate you says Ariana. My face heats up at her words, she likes me "I'm sorry says mercedes and her hands cup my face "don't apologize says Ariana and I nod and for a second, she stares into my eyes but the could've been moment gets interuppted by toulouse as he jumps up onto the couch between me and Ariana, lying his paw on our joined hands "someone wants attention as I chuckle, scratching his head

He comes closer, curling himself into my lap and lying his head against my arm and I can't help but smile at the little cutie "you must be special, it's rare that my babies take a liking to someone so quickly says Ariana as she mentions and looking up from the dog into her eyes ,I smirk "maybe they know, like I do, that there's something special between me and you says mercedes and Ariana raises an eyebrow "where did that come from says Ariana "I'm sorry as I look down shaking my head "that was a shitty come on says mercedes "no it wasn't, it was just a really confident one and you've been doing this whole shy thing since we met says Ariana as she chuckles "I mean I like you then again I had a crush on you before we met so says mercedes as she shrugs and her cheeks turn red "you had a crush on me says Ariana

"Everyone does, you're Ariana grande says mercedes "I'm not interested in what everyone thinks says Ariana as she looks into my eyes with a new found seriousness, she likes me right, i can't be reading this wrong and obviously I'm not as she's now leaning in, her face and body inching towards mine and I close the gap between us careful not yo hurt toulouse and place my lips against hers and there's a slight hesitance as our lips press together but all that flies out the window when her hand cups the back of my neck and our lips move together in seemingly perfect sync and a little bark breaks the kiss and I pull away finding toulouse looking at us "your mommy started it buddy as I instantly say to him, scratching behind his ears

Ariana reaches over and smacks my arm "you kissed me too says Ariana "sounds like she's deflecting to me, what do you think toulouse as I pick him up and he licks my face "I think that's a yes says mercedes "okay, time for you to go says Ariana scooping toulouse from my arms and my eyebrows raise "alright says mercedes, pushing myself up off the couch, I fix my sleeves and turn to leave "wait I was joking baby, come back says Ariana and the blood that I feel rush up my neck goes to my cheeks "w-whatd you just call me says mercedes as she asks fighting a smile and realizing what she called me makes her blush too "baby says Ariana and I walk back over to her speaking with each step "so, I'm your baby says mercedes and Ariana nods "if you want to be says Ariana

That just makes me smile even more and I hover over her, one hand on the back of the couch and another on the armrest then I lean down and press my lips to hers "I'll be your baby if you be mine says mercedes and with a smile, she nods and kisses me again, my phone buzzes in my pocket and I pull it out, Anthony "sup man says mercedes and his deep voice meets my ears "two words, music video says Anthony, eyes wide, I stand up straight "Is that what scoot wanted to talk about today says mercedes "yep, he ran some concepts by me and I picked s few, I thought you'd be interested in says Anthony "holy shit, uh any dancing says mercedes "nah, but this only the first video, you'll have plenty more to show off those moves says Anthony

I chuckle "okay, when's shooting, how's this gonna happen says mercedes "first he said check you account cause you're getting paid big time for the song, it's huge, second he said to come by tomorrow and we'll get started on the video, auditions, concepts, location, all that stuff says Anthony "cool, and when can I start working on another song says mercedes as she asks with ideas swirling in her head and Anthony laughs "one sec says Anthony, it goes quiet on his end "mercedes says Anthony "hm says mercedes "he says you can work on music whenever you want, just come to the studio, but releasing is a different story says Anthony and I nod even though he can't see me

"Okay, I'm not too worried about releasing yet, I just have a lot I want to record, hear how it sounds and stuff, you know says mercedes "right right, well whenever you want to get the songs out you can, just try not to pile too much at once alright, everyone's gonna want to move quick but take your time with this, your talent isn't going anywhere says Anthony "but this opportunity might says mercedes sitting beside ari and he scoffs "don't think of it that way, just do you says Anthony "okay says mercedes "alright, I'll see you at the hotel later says Anthony "peace says mercedes and he hangs up and I put my phone in my pocket and Ariana speaks up "so, what was that about says Ariana

"Scooter wants to do a music video for rush says mercedes and Ariana nods "but right now I was gonna head to the studio, I have a couple songs I want to work on, do you maybe wanna come with me says mercedes and her smile brightens "yeah I'd love to says Ariana and with that we got ready to go, I say bye to all the dogs and Ariana grabs her stuff the we leave out and on the way to the studio, I look over some songs I want to record and luckily enough, Cass is the tech I get to work with again "sup man as I nod and shake his hand which turns into a hug then he hugs Ariana "congrats on the song, I knew it'd blow up says Cass and mercedes smiles and thanks him "so, what we workin on today says Cass as he asks sitting back down "I got two songs that I'm really really excited about says mercedes

"Let's get it then says Cass and the first song I have down pretty well already, I even arranged the music back home when I first came up with the lyrics so it only takes us a couple hours to finally get it to where it's nearly perfect "what'd you think as I ask Ariana after the songs been played to its entirety and Ariana smiles "I love your voice says Ariana "thank you as I kiss her cheek without thinking and it makes her blush and give a glance to Cass "don't worry I'm not saying anything about anything says Cass as he raises his hands and mercedes chuckle "what about the lyrics says mercedes as she asks Ariana "they're good, really good, I love the whole thing, music included says Ariana and I do a little fist bump all giddy that Ariana likes my music then I get up

"This next one is gonna take some tweaking I know but I wanna hear how it sounds all the way through first says mercedes and Cass gives me a thumbs up and I go back into the sound booth, put the headphones on and start singing

🎶" all I really know is that I felt ok, when I met you in April, you were looking like may, I know you like to run girl, so go on, set the pace, the liquor never tastes good but I don't need to chase, take another hit just fake it till you feel it, open up and let me in, I just wanna feel you, closer, closer, close enough to feel this moment, closer, closer, close enough to feel this moment. Like the sun in December or a lemonade in June, I know you want to run girl cause I want it too, have you ever noticed that I can't see straight cause I'm hooked on your body, got me glued to your waist. Take another hit just fake it till you feel it, open up and let me in, I just wanna feel you, closer closer, close enough to feel this moment, closer closer, close enough to feel this moment, closer closer, close enough to feel this moment, closer closer, close enough to feel this moment

Alright i look good, I smell good, I fuck good too, I'm looking around like, she would and she would and she probably would too (yup) I'm sittin on the couch like it's my house, you a bad girl, take a time out matter fact, you can bring a friend, my voice sound like silk in the wind. And Arianas eyes widen when I start rapping and Cass smirks "henny bottles on my table, the owner was a fan so thats already paid for, girls lookin at me like I got a halo, I don't do second dates, that's just how the game go, look at my life, I made that shit. Look at my car, I suede that shit, Replay that shit, She don't fuck wit girls. Ima change that shit" I do a little laugh and start singing again

"Closer closer, close enough to feel this moment (oh) closer closer, close enough to feel this moment, closer (oh no) closer (oh no) close enough to feel this moment, closer closer, close enough to feel this moment as mercedes finishes singing and once I'm done, I set the headphones over the mic and walk out "we aren't tweaking a thing, that was fuckin dope says Cass with a laugh and I smirk and dap him up before looking at Ariana "since when says Ariana as she asks shocked "what'd you mean says mercedes "I had no idea you could rap says Ariana and mercedes shrugs "sort of, singing is more my thing but that part flowed better as a rap than me singing it so that's what I went with says mercedes "yo says Cass as he interuppts "I think I got a dope ass beat for this one says Cass, smiling, I stand up "let's hear it bro says mercedes