#still it was good of him to fit in an interview while trying to win his camping badge at scouts

[cutielando]

Okay I have a request. Lando with his long time girlfriend and when Oscar joins the team they warn him to stay away from Lando’s drivers room after a race because him and reader love to ‘celebrate’ no matter the result of the race. And Oscar finds out the hard way. But McLaren are like use to it. 🤭🧡

Please and thank you.

a/n: i'm sorry this is short, but i literally couldn't come up with more for this :((( i'm trying to push through my little writer's block and put out as many fics as i possibly can while i still have a little time (i have my first exam on Thursday and I have so much shit to learn it's actually not even funny, but here i am writing fics instead of doing just that, yay me)

In all fairness, Oscar had been well warned about Lando and his girlfriend’s antics post-races. Given that the walls in the motorhome were very thin, as Oscar had stated previously, the team felt like they should let Oscar know what he was in for.

He hadn’t quite taken to heart what he had been told. He had been thinking to himself, how bad can it actually be? And oh boy, it was bad.

You and Lando had made a pact from the beginning of your relationship and when you started coming to all of his races that you would do something to celebrate his every race outcome, no matter how good or bad. You vowed to see every race as something positive and take something from each one.

The McLaren team had become accustomed to your shenanigans, knowing not to go anywhere near Lando’s driver room in the hours after the race. They had come to learn to stay away the hard way, if you know what I mean.

And yet, Oscar chose to ignore them. Why? He didn’t even know.

Maybe it was just pure curiosity, maybe it was ignorance, one could only make suppositions. 

If he had managed not to hear anything that even remotely resembled the warnings he had been given up until that moment, he was in for a treat this time.

You had attended the Miami GP with Lando, catching a break from your studies and having promised him that he wouldn’t have to go to a race alone after failing to attend Japan. And imagine the joy you had felt once Lando had taken the checkered flag in P1. Scratch that, imagine what was going through your mind about the celebrations you were about to have with Lando as soon as he came back to the motorhome ;).

Your boyfriend had been thinking the exact same way, trying to make his way back to the hospitality as soon as he possibly could, but still politely stopping for interviews and photos or autographs.

But once he finally reached his room and saw you waiting for him, dressed only in your underwear, he knew he was in for an enormous treat.

Oscar hadn’t heard Lando get back. He had been so deep into thought and so focused on the music he had been listening to with headphones on that he hadn’t heard the door opening, the squeals that you let out once Lando had practically pounced on you as soon as he locked the door. 

However, he was pulled out of his thoughts when he started hearing bangs, moans and dirty talking through his wall. At first he had thought he was hearing things. There was no way you were actually celebrating that loudly, right?

Wrong.

When he turned off the music and took off his headphones, he realized just how fucking loud you guys were being.

He didn’t even know how to react. What was he even supposed to do? Was he just supposed to leave his room and find somewhere else to hang out until you guys were done? Should he knock on your door and ask you guys to keep it down? No, Lando deserved the win and winding down whatever way he saw fit.

Sighing, he felt himself growing redder once the sounds on the other side of the wall only intensified. He couldn’t just stand around and listen to his teammate probably getting the fuck of his life after his maiden win, so he figured he would just get something to eat and hang out with either Mark or Logan.

The moment a member of the PR team, David, had seen him coming from his room, his cheeks a heavy crimson and refusing to make eye contact with anyone, he realized Oscar had just been the victim of Y/N and Lando.

“You heard them, didn’t you?” David asked him, an amused smile stretching on his face.

Oscar blushed even heavier, if that was even possible. Shyly, he nodded, making David laugh and pat him on the back.

“I didn’t think they were actually that bad” Oscar said, playing with his fingers as his ears could still pick up the noises he had done his best to avoid.

“We tried telling you, you didn’t want to believe us” David chuckled, patting him on the back again as he departed.

When you and Lando finally emerged from his room almost an hour later, the both of you laughed when you noticed how Oscar was avoiding eye contact with the both of you.

Poor Oscar…

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[heart4reigns]

CHANCES, roman reigns.

warnings: curse words, awkward moments, just FLUFF

tags: happy go lucky fic, (y/n) is having the time of her life getting the push she deserves!!!

summary: what happens when old exes ponder upon old memories?

“OPEN up, (y/n)!” sami’s voice was cheery as usual. “yeah, yeah! wait a bit!” you quickly threw on a black hoodie that you have never seen before from your suitcase. “were you sleeping with someone?” sami furrowed his brows when you opened the door. “now, why would you say that?” “because that’s not your hoodie, i’ve never seen this before.” he tugged your clothing. “you know i didn’t have time to pack so i threw in whatever was in my wardrobe.” the ginger man remembered your last minute packing that almost made you late for your flight.

the ride to the arena was filled with chatters since it was your actual first money in the bank. you were in the ladder match and you knew you were going to win it. although you knew the final for the match, you couldn't help but to feel nervous. it was finally time for a push in your career and you couldn't wait how it would play out.

you were scheduled an interview with your faction–sami and kevin. the three of you formed a faction because creatives thought it would be a good idea because of your 'break up' with the tribal chief. although it wasn't really a great idea for them to monetize your break up, it was a mutual idea as it was fitting for the story. you were drafted to raw and he was drafted to smackdown, which made the two of you go on your own ways.

truth be told, nothing dramatic happened–you just fell apart. despite what all the tabloids said about your relationship, it wasn't true. roman and you agreed that it was time to get away from each other. from college friends to lovers to friends again, you knew he was your soulmate, but you didn't know if it was romantic or platonic.

even though you separated brands, you still see him once in a while if the company held a ppv. it was just a small 'hi' and 'hello', nothing more. the break up happened months ago before the draft and safe to say that you moved on with your life, so you thought. "welcome back to wrestling nation, i'm your host stacy and today we're joined by the cool cats! please introduce yourself!"

"hello! i'm sami zayn!" "kevin owens." "the future ms. money in the bank, (y/n) here!" the three of you introduced yourself. the strong london wind blew your hair, it was a good thing that you wore the unknown black hoodie to protect you from the coldness. "how are you guys enjoying london?" stacy asked. "london has been good to us, i think i really like the weather here." sami chuckled, earning a groan from you.

"yeah but this wind? i'm practically gonna fly away soon!" you complained. "speaking of flying," stacy looked at you before asking the question. "will you fly back to the states with the briefcase, future ms. money in the bank?" before you could answer, kevin cut you off like usual. "of course she is, we're the undisputed tag-team champions and we will have a ms. money in the bank with us. right, (y/n)?" "okay, i think i can answer on my own, kevin. and he's right by the way, i'll kick anyone's ass if they tried getting in my way, i'll even kick their asses." you pointed at your teammates.

without your knowledge, a certain black-haired man was watching your interview. he kept tabs on you even after the break up. roman immediately recognized the hoodie you were wearing. it was his hoodie that he lost months ago. "oh, you're watching the interview too?" jimmy entered the room, carrying a cup of coffee and his phone on the other hand. "yeah." roman replied, trying to focus on your voice.

"damn, i miss her. i think she's doing just fine without us, uce." the four of them were watching your interview in the locker room. "is that a soft way of saying that she's better off without me?" roman joked, earning a nod from jey. "just joking, i meant like i've never seen her all smiley and shit." and jey was right. as cliche as it sounded, you were the right person at the wrong time. the two of you had so much going on in your hands and being in a relationship wasn't your top priority. "when was the last time you saw her?" solo shot a question at him. "i think it was night of champions? that was months ago." "well, we're probably gonna see her today. don't start crying." jimmy patted his back.

after the interview, the three of you immediately went to the arena. you brought your gear because you were going to cut a promo after sami and kevin's match. you hopped off the car and parted ways with the duo. you still had a lot of free time to chill and talk to your coworkers, so you took the time to go to the pantry, grabbing a cup of coffee to fulfil your caffeine craving.

"hey, ms. money in the bank." bayley nudged you with her elbow. "shush, you're gonna spill the beans." you joked. "how you feeling today?" she asked, pouring a cup of coffee for herself. "honestly, i feel like i should get some rest and not come here, but pearce wants me to cut a promo, so like... i'm dying to get out of here." bayley chuckled in response. "welcome to the big leagues, kid." she laughed once again. "on that note, i think i should leave you alone." you furrowed your eyebrows. "what?" before you could hear an answer, she skipped her way out of catering.

what you didn't know was, someone was standing behind you. “i’ve been looking for that hoodie everywhere.” a familiar voice startled you. it was none other than your ex boyfriend, roman. “oh, this is yours?” you asked. “sorry, i didn’t know. i’ll give it back to you later, if you don’t mind.” roman shook his head. “no, no. keep it. i always said it looks better on you.” you smiled at his sentence. “thank you, it is comfortable.” you added.

there was an awkward silence in the air and you were okay with that. “so, how are you?” you asked. “been great, honestly. still the same, what about you?” “i’m good, you know with the push and all that, tiring though. i finally know how you feel.” roman chuckled at your sentence, remembering the conversation he heard that you were finally getting a push. “you deserve it though. finally.” you chuckled.

"no, but for real... if you want this hoodie back, i'll give it to you right now." you unzipped the clothing, to only have him shake his head. "no, no. keep it, (y/n)." he waved his hands in front of you. "really? i feel bad now. what if people noticed and they started talking about us again?" you teased him, causing the roman reigns to be flustered. "joking, joking. you look great though, loving the long hair." you said.

it had been a while since you last saw him. "thank you, you look great too. new hair?" you immediately nodded. "yeah, cut it short. blame kevin, he got gum stuck in my hair." you rolled your eyes in annoyance, remembering the incident. "i like it, it suits you." his intention was totally pure–roman reigns wasn't a flirt. "yeah, nothing changed since we last broke up. oh, i adopted a new dog!" "really? she has a friend then... that's good."

you were happy that you and roman were comfortable enough to talk about the break up. it wasn't really a big deal for the two of you, you knew that was the right thing to do. you were both grown adults and had no bad blood in between each other. "been seeing anyone?" roman suddenly asked. "yeah," you paused for a second to look at his face. roman had a confused expression plastered on his face. "oh, that's good for you." you burst out laughing. "the only person i'm seeing is my manager all of the time, i'm still single."

a wave of relief hit him when he heard that you were still single. "what about you?" you were walking together in the hallways, earning looks from the crew. everyone knew that the two of you were the it couple of the industry and your break up shocked everyone, so seeing him laughing and walking with you was a weird sight.

"i think we both know that we're practically still attached to each other, so no... i'm not seeing anyone." roman was always a truthful person, he wouldn't lie saying that he was no longer in love with you. "damn, you really love me that much, huh?" you elbowed him. "shut up, we've been with each other since we were broke college students, i know you better than anyone else." "and that's why i love you too!" you giggled.

time moved fast, sami and kevin retained their titles. you ran from the gorilla position to the main stage, hugging the two of them, like the script played out. the crowd went wild as they saw you. turning babyface made your job easier, your kind nature really helped shaped your current character. sami and kevin lifted you up and you pointed at the briefcase hanging on top of your head. "ms. money in the bank soon." you mouthed to the crowd, earning yet another pop. "the cool cats celebrating their win... will (y/n) become ms. money in the bank tomorrow? this faction is going to be dripped with gold, if she wins!" michael cole narrated the situation.

as you were out of sight of the cameras and the crowd, you hugged sami and kevin again. "good match, it was amazing!" you were practically jumping with adrenaline. "alright, who gave you coffee?" "she got coffee with me earlier." the same voice from before popped up behind the three of you. "great performance guys." roman patted their backs. he was already dressed with his promo gear and he looked damn good to be walking alone.

kevin furrowed his brows. "you? with her? god, it must be my lucky day!" he grinned, clearly ecstatic to see you and roman interacting again. "hey, it's not like we're not talking anymore. we only broke up." "yeah, she's still my (y/n)." roman added, playfully taking you in his arms. "tell him, roman!" the four of you laughed in unison. "i swear to god, if you two ended up dating again, i won't be shocked."

the thought of going back to his embrace did cross your mind once, but you brushed it off. you were still in love with him and yet it was complicated (in a way). you didn't stay for his performance because he was the closing act. of course, you tuned in from your phone. you had to admit that roman was on your mind today. being with him backstage sent a wave of nostalgia.

his segment ended and as a talent yourself, you were curious to know the ending for tomorrow's money in the bank. his facade from the big dog to the tribal chief improved so much, you thought. he was truly the face of the company. you gritted your teeth before finally pressing his contact to message him.

(y/n): acting so good, it got me shaking to my core!

a few minutes later, he replied.

roman: you were watching me?

(y/n): oh don't be flattered, i was watching paul

roman: haha so funny

(y/n): you know me i'm funny like that

(y/n): but you also did great!

roman: kinda miss you being here, the boys said hi

[roman attached a picture]

(y/n): miss you all! let's catch up soon!

the night went on and you spent all night texting him. it was a big day for you today. you were anxious and excited at the same time. after exiting your hotel room, you waited in front of the elevator. “good morning.” a voice greeted you, cutting off your thoughts. “oh! hi! wanna get breakfast together?” he nodded. “couldn’t get enough of me, huh?” “shut up, (y/n). you’re the one who asked me to eat with you.” he chuckled. roman and you were walking down the breakfast area, still earning glances from your coworkers. “morning!” you greeted them. “morning, (y/n) and roman.” they replied, clearly confused. as you walked by, they started to whisper. “are they back together?” “i hope so.”

“we can do this.” you nodded at trish’s sentence. the girls were gathering around at the locker room before showtime. “(y/n), it’s your big moment. we’re all proud of you.” you couldn’t help but to grin widely at them. “and thank you for giving me this. i love you all.” the girls hugged you as they left one by one. you couldn’t stop bouncing your leg in nervousness, trying to distract yourself from the thought of fucking up. “(y/n), you’re up in 5!”

you were the only one left in the gorilla position, waiting for your entrance. “good luck tonight, little sister.” sami and kevin bombarded you with a group hug. “thank you, i’m so fucking terrified.” you breathed out. “you shouldn’t be, we know you’re gonna kill it.” kevin added, ruffling your hair. you groaned at him, earning a chuckle as a response. “you’re gonna ruin my hair.” you complained. “that’s why we’re here.” the man said.

“(y/n), in 2!” you felt your heart beat faster than before. “you can do this, (y/n).” you were hyping yourself up. “good luck, i’ll be rooting for you.” roman’s voice rang in your ears. you turned your head around and spotted him with his gear. “thank you, i need that.” you smiled. “i brought this for you, for good luck.” roman slung his lei on your neck, causing you to blush. “thank you, roman!” he kissed your forehead, going back to your old traditions before going on stage. “now show them who you are, (y/n).”

as you walked down the ramp, you could hear the crowd chanting your name. “the warrior, (y/n) (l/n) walking down the ramp… with a lei, does this mean she is back with the bloodline? or is it just a sign if respect from the tribal chief?” “i don’t know about that cole, but i know that she is so much more than the bloodline!”

the match went on perfectly. sure there were a few bumps that you took, but as soon as everyone was down–you ran as fast as you could, climbing up the ladder. “is (y/n) going to be ms. money in the bank? she is climbing up the ladder… the warrior, (y/n) (l/n) is ms. money in the bank! she did it! she did it!” you breathed out the air, feeling the sore pain in your entire body. you lifted the briefcase and everyone cheered for you. “i did it!” you yelled on top of your lungs.

“MS. MONEY IN THE BANK, CONGRATULATIONS!” jimmy and jey yelled when you walked backstage. “oh my god! i haven’t seen you two in a while!” you grinned widely. “right? can you come back with us? solo is so boring.” “i’ll kick your ass, uce.” the younger sibling threatened. “see!” jimmy pouted. “i miss you all, i saw your segment yesterday. it was amazing!” you complimented them. “we were amazing or was it big uce?” jey teased you. “damn, soon as i saw your lei, i knew something was going on.” jimmy added.

“alright, that’s enough. give her some space.” roman joined in the conversation. “congratulations, (y/n).” he hugged you and you returned the favor. “think you gave me a lucky charm because all my bumps were not as bad as the royal rumble one.” he remembered you coming home with a dislocated shoulder. “thank god.” roman muttered. “i’ll be staying for your match too, i’ll be watching with sami and kev upstairs, so… better give a good performance!” you waved at them, walking to the locker room to change your fit.

everyone congratulated you and you thanked them. it was going to be a long night and you were still high on energy. “wait up!” once again, you recognized that voice. “still can’t get enough of me?” roman shook his head. “you mind if you accompany me getting ready?” you mimicked his gesture. “not at all, i need to get off this gear first though.”

“you going somewhere after this?” he asked. “nah, i think i’ll just crash.” you answered, not looking up from your phone. “do you wanna… do you wanna go around town with me?” that caught your attention. “are you asking me on a date mr. reigns?” “well if you look at it that way, then sure. but i just need to get away from all of this… you know how the match will end.” roman fixed his gloves, trying his best not to make eye-contact with you. “sure, like old times?” “like old times.”

the bloodline closed the show with a banger, even you were shocked by the aftermath of the match. every single one of them gave an outstanding performance, you never felt so proud. these past 2 days made you miss being in the ring with them. but there was nothing you could do about it. the chapter was done and little did you know, another chapter was going to start.

(y/n): what’s the plan for tonightttttt

roman: 1 am should be fine right?

(y/n): yup

roman: we’re just gonna walk around like usual

(y/n): okay, see you soon!

you freshened up after getting back to the hotel, putting on a new set of clothes. you stared at the briefcase on your bed, giggling like a kid. the night was just getting started for you. it was a tradition that you and roman had after every big event. the two of you would walk around town at night, no security, no fans, just the two of you. you didn’t know what possessed you to say yes to him, but after a long time not seeing each other–you felt like you needed this.

“now this is a sight.” you were walking side to side, with him standing right next to you. “yeah.” roman shortly replied. “you hungry?” he asked. “starving.” that was how the two of you ended up in a local restaurant, eating fish and chips. “finally, some proper food. i’m getting tired of eating catering.” you complained. “cheat day for us, i guess.” he took a bite of his food. “remember when you used to put fake money in jey’s lunch? he was over the moon, acting like he won the lottery.” you paused for a second, tracing back your own memories. “oh, yeah! and the vending machine broke because of that fake money.” the two of you laughed in unison.

just talking to him made you realized that you missed him. being friends with your ex was definitely a weird thing for some people. but for you? you knew you couldn’t get rid of this big samoan dude in front of you. “you were such a prankster, do you still do that a lot in your locker room now?” “of course, i haven’t changed at all.”

that was true. despite everything that happened, you didn’t change at all. so did roman. the two of you were still the same easygoing people that you were. the only thing that changed was your relationship status. “i do miss messing around with all of you.” you admitted, taking a sip of your water. “yeah, sometimes it feels empty without you.” roman sighed. “well, hey… i guess that was needed at that time.”

"no, no. but you remember that time where you got paul as your secret santa? you gave him a pink tie and he wore it with pride the next friday." you couldn't help but to burst out laughing at his sentence. "fuck! that was so funny, i bought it as a joke but he actually wore it!" the night was pretty cold and you regretted not wearing anything that covered your skin. "alright, alright. i'll give you my jacket again. you can keep it." he saw how cold you were and gave his jacket to you.

"do i get to keep this?" you teased him. "no. actually, yeah. keep anything you want, take my shoes too." roman joked, his laughter filling the cold air of london. "i don't want no damn ronald mcdonald shoes!" you pouted. the two of you continued walking until you found an empty bench near the park. "you wanna sit down for a bit? my legs are kinda sore." roman immediately nodded and took a seat next to you.

the two of you sat down and you huffed out the cold air of london once again. “i missed this… just us, the stars, and nothing else.” he couldn’t agree more. “like that night where you confessed to me, right? we had stars showering us too.” you traced back to the night. “yeah! it changed my life, like i couldn’t ask for more to be honest.” roman raised a brow. “really? it changed your life?” you nodded. “my first ever boyfriend being my best friend? that was probably the happiest memory i had from college.” it was the first time roman heard your confession. “i didn’t know that.” your cheeks flared up. “i- i thought you knew.” he shook his head. “i’m glad it was me, i couldn’t imagine you with someone else, (y/n).”

the view tonight was beautiful, he thought. he wasn't looking at the bright stars scattered in the sky, he was looking at you. you kept him up all night, the memories slowly coming back to him. he tried pushing it all away at first, but you kept coming back. the way you scrunch up your nose every time you tried holding back a laugh, the way you always tried to make the room brighter with your jokes, and the way that you were irreplaceable in his life–roman was still madly in love with you.

roman sighed. “why did we ever break up at the first place?” the question caught you off guard. “i think we just had enough of each other at some point.” you shrugged your shoulders. “i mean, i still love you and all… you know that right?” you nodded. “i still love you too, looking back… actually, i don’t know why we broke up. there was nothing wrong with us, right?” this time, roman nodded back.

“honestly, do you mind if i say this?" you nodded at his question. "it's literally 3 am and we're taking a walk in the park talking about our past memories, just say whatever you want, roman." he smiled, bracing himself for the possible outcomes of his sentence. "i don’t know but… i’m willing to try again, like these past 2 or 3 days made me realize that i miss you so much. i know the break up was needed because we had a lot going on in our lives. does that thought ever crossed your mind? us getting back together?” he suddenly blurted out.

“of course, it’s you... like you said, i can’t really imagine myself with someone else but you.” “we’re in a different position now, i think i don't mind starting all over again, if it's with you.” you looked at him, trying your best not to tear up at his sentence. "i'd love that, roman." and that night, you were ready to start all over again with the same person.

this time, it was the right person at the right time.

a/n: right person right time tropes ugh when @ god ? anywaysss i hope y’all enjoyed this fluff (i need to stay away from my angsty shit tbh), likes and replies/reblogs are highly appreciated!! andddd requests are back open!!

[snailsandpuppy-dogtails]

I Do, Do You?

A Criminal Minds/ Married At First Sight AU Strangers, Penelope Garcia and Luke Alvez are matched on the arranged marriage reality show, Married At First Sight. ~3,500 words, on AO3 Chapter 1 The Interview

“So, Mr. Alvez. Luke,” the production assistant interviewing him says with a little too much familiarity for his liking, “tell us; why have you signed up for this? I mean, surely a good looking, healthy, man like yourself doesn’t have a problem meeting women.”

She leans in placing her hand just above his knee. Luke isn’t sure if this is some kind of test for the last part of the selection process or if she’s actually hitting on him while interviewing him in the final stages where he’ll be matched with the (hopefully) love of his life. Either way he finds it crass and uncomfortable, he’s here for a reason and he’s given zero indication he’d welcome such a touch. He’s also nervous. Nervous because he knows how this looks, how it will look. A guy like himself single and hitting his mid 40s? He wasn’t old, but he was getting there. When people his age are single there’s a reason, and usually it’s not a good one. His wasn’t terribly great either, but it wasn’t the worst.

He responds, painting on one of his bright, winning smiles as he removes her hand, and sits up straighter, lacing his fingers in his lap. A sound comes out that’s like a laugh dying in his throat, then he answers, “Thank you, but, I do. Ah. People have a way of romanticizing things that are often hard on a person…maybe to distract themselves from the reality of it. The life of a soldier, office workers working overtime everyday, long-haul trucking - solitary lifestyles… My jobs have been very time consuming and isolating, and for a long time I romanticized that life. I let them take the place of real connection in most instances, when people didn’t fit in those areas, I let them go…I didn’t try to find a balance. But I’m trying to get better at it. For the last three years I’ve been able to call a place home, it’s the longest stretch of time I’ve been in one city. For most of my adult life I’ve devoted myself to causes I felt were important, but in doing that I sacrificed really fully being in a loving, committed relationship. That is definitely an area I could improve in.” Unbothered by the rejection, she goes on, “You mentioned that your job has been a factor in finding love. Is that still a concern, or do you feel you can dedicate the time needed to form a deep relationship in our eight-week time-frame?”

Luke takes a minute, his eyes close, the tip of his tongue swiping at the seam of his lips, taking to heart the question, considering it. “I won’t lie, it could still be an issue. My job doesn’t have set hours or weekends off, I can be gone for undetermined lengths- but I’m willing to devote time to work-arounds, I’m willing to make things work for the right person.”

“And do you think that’s a fair thing to ask of a stranger?”

“Honestly? No. But I think the right person would understand, and in time, can help me learn to strike that balance.” He’s sure they’ll drop him now.

—-----

“Ms. Garcia, tell us why you signed up for Married at First Sight.”

“Don’t let this exterior fool you- I date. A lot. Love to go out; drinks, karaoke, the whole nine- zero problems finding some Mr. Mr. to join me out on the town. The problem is,” her face scrunches, “and this is gonna sound like, well duh, that’s everyone’s problem, but I’m kind of crap at picking guys. I had a lot of toxic relationships early on after my parents died, control freaks, stalkers, clingers… this one guy I went out with even tried to kill me…shot me after saying goodnight…”

Penelope quiets, frowning before sniffing and looking back up blinking rapidly, cheering. “But he was something else entirely. Now Sam, Sam was good. Sam was sweet. We just don’t work on that level, you know? It was good and all, but there wasn’t that…spark. It wasn’t romantic love if we were really looking at it and… I want romantic love. I can’t trust myself to pick it, so I’m hoping this matching process can. Well, that, and my best friend Derek got married to this gorgeous doctor and I can’t have him trying to set me up on pity dates when we go out to dinner any more. -Oh! But don’t tell Derek I said that! He won’t see this, right? You don’t show these parts?”

The assistant ignores the question and moves on, “We heard you’ve been proposed to before, but turned him down. Mind telling us what happened there?”

She’d been concerned about being upfront with that detail of her past when filling out the form. She went back and forth clicking ‘yes’ and ‘no’ alternately until eventually deciding on just being truthful. They wouldn’t have included it as an option if they were automatically going to exclude her because she’d turned down the proposal, right? If she lied and then someone mentioned it while she was being filmed, production would have a field day. No, it was better to be honest about it.

Except now here they were asking about it.

Dang it.

“I wasn’t at the right place and he wasn’t the right person.” She says it simply, with so much nonchalance even she feels it’s entirely true.

The interviewer, apparently, however, has met this casual indifference before. They look up at her from over their glasses, “But you’re in the right place now?” they ask with some skepticism. Penelope grins wide, Tulip-pink lips stretching “I know I am. The only question is if you can find me the person worth marrying.”

—-Telling Family and Friends—-

~For traditional couples, informing friends and family of upcoming nuptials is a time of celebration, happiness, excitement, and shared joy. For our couples, however, this can be stressful. Situations may need to be handled with care, families aren’t expecting this major life change for their loved one. Brides and grooms can be met with hostility, suspicion, bargaining, hurt feelings, and dismissiveness at choosing an unconventional path to finding love.~

As her family lives out of town, Ms. Garcia has chosen to inform them of the big news over Zoom.

“Carlos! Gideon!” Penelope greets excitedly over her computer as their images bob and freeze.

“We’re here, Penelope, is everything ok?” an older man with thinning, dark hair asks in mild concern, “The only time you set these things up is on holidays and it isn’t a holiday that I’m aware of.”

“Everything’s fine. Great in fact…Actually…” she grins at their images on her screen. Gideon and Carlos will support her, she knows. They may not understand it at first, Carlos has strong convictions, but Gideon always tries to see where each of them is coming from and help the other understand. He’d come around. “I kind of have some big news…" she continues, figuring she should just rip off the bandaid, "I’m getting married!”

The faces peering back at her are understandably confused. After a moment of silence, each working things out on their own, Carlos is the first to respond, “...Morgan’s leaving his wife?”

It was a jumble of words then as all three talked over the other, “What?! No! It’s not Derek,-” Gideon frowning and shaking his head chuckling, “And ditch that doctor? Not a chance. Penelope, what do you mean? You’re not-”  “it’s…well even I don’t know who it is yet! I was kind of selected through this matching thing and they have these experts and well, it’s-”

Excited dawning sparks on her brother’s face as he shouts over both of them, “IT’S THAT SHOW!”

“Wha- Yeah. It is. I’m going to be on ‘Married at First Sight’...So are you guys…are you upset?” Neither sounded mad, they didn’t look mad, but who knew? Give either time to think and it’s possible they ended up that way, frustrated at her impulsiveness, what they saw as reckless behavior.

Gideon took the lead, Carlos feeling thrown off, but excited, hesitantly happy for his sister. “Peanut, you’re old enough to make your own decisions. Hell, you’ve been doing it since before you were old enough…Though I don’t know that I agree with your choice to have your private life splashed all over every tv and computer around the world with as deep and quick as things spread, I trust you know what you’re doing. If you think this is the best way for you to find happiness, that’s all your mom and dad ever wanted. It’s all we want for you, too. And, it’s not Kevin.”

“I’m just surprised at your restraint,” Carlos jumped in teasing, “you’re tellin’ us you haven’t hacked their systems, found who they matched you with, and searched him down to the very first time he even touched a computer?”

“I would never!”

“Ahh, someone recognized you.”

“They did not!-”

“Who was it, huh? Some tech nerd for sure. Hey! If things don't work out with whoever they set you up with maybe go for him, yeah?”

“Shut up! Fine.” She huffed, “It was a mic guy. He told production and they put it in my contract that if they found out I did that, they’d replace me. And I reeally wanna do this! I guess it’s kind of fun not knowing…you know, if the anxiety of it doesn’t kill me before the wedding day.”

~~

She hadn’t gotten anxious when telling Carlos and Gideon, JJ and Derek on the other hand were a different story. JJ wouldn’t say much, she didn’t often judge, but Derek, Derek was fiercely protective and very vocal when he felt she was making a mistake.

She didn’t think it was a mistake, but she could already feel those brooding eyebrows’ and careless tongue’s lashing sting, building up the wall of resistance to let her news be known.

Looking at her friend’s curious faces on the other side of the coffee table, she wished she could dive into the crashing waves of the magazine  cover between them Mary Poppins style.

She’d invited them over for brunch, just the three of them, meaning to casually drop the news while whipping up Belgian waffle batter. But fruit had been sliced, waffles cooked, doused, and consumed, and glasses drained of mimosa nectar all while tension built and she danced around the big reveal.

JJ and Derek speculated while Penelope busily cleared plates and cleaned up, insisting she didn’t need the help. Was she moving? Was she in trouble? Had she happened upon some government documents again while messing around online and bored? Did she adopt them each a pack of dogs?

Finally, with nothing left to distract her or use as an excuse, she was sitting pinned to the cushion in front of them.

“So…?” JJ prompted.They both were leaning forward, elbows on knees. Penelope dropped her eyes to the rug, playing with the hem of her skirt. If she didn’t have to look them in the eye it wouldn’t be so bad.

Derek sat back, exasperated. “Baby girl, we know something’s up, just tell us! If you need it, we can help-”

Her eyes shot to his across from her, “It’s not like that, I want to, really, I do! But, I’m worried…I’m worried you’ll be mad. You have to promise you won’t get mad- it’s nothing bad, I swear!” Her eyes bounced from Derek to JJ and back again. “It’s just, you might think I haven’t thought things through, or I'm being impulsive, or maybe I'm doing it as a reaction to what happened before, but I’m not and I have and I really believe it could be a good thing.”

Telling friends shouldn’t be more stressful than telling family, telling either exciting news shouldn’t be stressful at all. She thought about her mystery husband (as she’d taken up privately calling him) then; was he having as much trouble telling his family? Were they accepting? Were they close? Did he have a good relationship with them? Did he even have family? Siblings, parents, cousins, grandparents… Did he have lots of shallow friendships or few but deep ones? Would his friends go to the ends of the earth to protect him…like hers had?

“Ok, now you really have me lost…Pen, what is it?”

Penelope looked up, as ready as she’d ever be, “Jayge, you have Will and that’s awesome! And Derek, you have Savannah, and- and that’s wonderful and you’re both so happy and your little families are so cute and I’m so not wanting kids- but I do want that happiness, and it’s hard sometimes being around you both when I don’t have someone. And we know how well my gut’s been at choosing-“

“Hey-” Derek started, “You can’t blame yourself for that, there’s no way you could predict some piece of shit  would shoot you.”

“No, but you were right…Some random guy at a- never mind. That’s not my announcement. Anyway.” Her busy hands swept the veering track away, dropped to her lap, then flew into the air as a massive smile spread across her face, “I’m getting married!”

Derek’s face contorted grossly, “Don’t tell me you went back to Kevin-”

JJ’s grew incredulous and disgusted, “Oh my god, Penelope, no! He wants you to live on a farm!”

Ah, yes, this. This is the judgment and presumption, this was the reason she had been so apprehensive about telling them, well that and her impulsiveness. No matter, it wasn’t what they thought and that would definitely be worse than what it is…

“It’s not Kevin. Well. Actually, I guess it could be, but the odds are incredibly low that it would be? The truth is I don’t know who the groom is because well, I signed up for a show, and I was selected, so some professionals have chosen a husband for me, it’s all very scientific- and we get to meet him together on the day of my wedding” she paused in her nerves, trying to read the emotions of her closest friends from their body language.

“…That is, if you’ll both agree to be there with me? Please. I need you there. I’m already getting nervous. My feet are itching and my palms are sweating just telling the two of you about it.”

JJ was stunned, Derek, predictively, looked less than thrilled. His arms crossed tight against his chest and a jet eyebrow arched sky high. “You tell Gideon and Carlos yet?”

“Not that it has anything to do with me telling the two of you, but yes Mr. Nosy, I told my family.”

“And?”

“And what?! They’re happy for me, Derek! Carlos is flying out here from California and Gideon is driving down from his cabin in a few days so we can have dinner as a family before the ceremony...”

JJ leaned forward, hand grasping Penelope’s, smiling, “That sounds great, Pen,” then looking pointedly at Derek, “of course we’ll be there, we wouldn’t miss it for the world. You, me, and Savannah can go suit shopping for the boys.”

Derek rolled his eyes but relaxed into the chair, “Yeah mama, of course we’ll be there, just name the date, since you can’t name the groom.”

-For security reasons film crew were not permitted onto the office grounds of Participant Luke Alvez.-

He’s shocked he was selected, he figured with his history of emotional and physical unavailability along with the restrictions around filming him, they simply would have gone with an easier candidate, but he’s hopeful and excited nonetheless. With background checks and interviews behind him, all that was left was checking in with work and telling his mom and Isabella.

“Hey, ah. Emily, can we talk in your office? I have something to run by you…” Luke asks as he catches her walking into the bullpen.He’s approaching with coffee, she can’t help but notice he seems off, almost on edge. “Of course, everything alright?” she asks as they make their way up the stairs and across the catwalk.

Entering her office, she perches on the edge of her desk and gestures to the open door, “Should we…?” If he was disguising his emotions this poorly, asking to talk in private, and attempting to soften her with caffeine it must be pretty important, and Luke tended to be private regardless.He was half way to sitting, but stood up wiping a hand on his jeans, “Uh, yeah. Yeah, maybe.” he said, reaching over to close it, feeling the latch catch before letting go.

“Look, before I say anything, what I’m asking, I’m asking Unit Chief Prentiss, not Friend Emily. I know you’re going to want to mock this, but please before you do that, try to address it from the perspective of the Bureau first, then you can say whatever you want.”

Putting on her best Ambassador voice and face, she responds haughtily, “I resent that you feel I would be anything other than strictly professional in this building…” her lips twist into a smile, “but knowing you think I’ll think it’s stupid makes me feel better.”

Luke shakes his head as if to say “You couldn’t wait” but goes on. “A few months ago, as you know, I took some time off to visit family. Being around my mother and my sister, talking about Papi and my abuelo, hanging out with my nephews, they got to talking about me and naturally there was the whole ‘why aren’t you married, you’re breaking my heart, your father would be crushed the family name is dying, yadda yadda.” He looks up at Emily, poorly disguising her knowing smile with the rim of her cup.

“I didn’t know we shared a mother.”

Luke laughs, rolling his eyes, “Ok, well. I didn’t think it bothered me, but I guess it did, because I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Not from a guilt perspective, but I just started thinking they were right. Not about the family name, but what am I doing? Am I going to wake up 10, 20 years from now in some motel the bureau’s put me up in and realize that’s all my life has been? That all my life’s amounted to is having put a few dozen murderers behind bars?”

“Hey, that’s no small feat-”

“Yeah, but you of all people know how isolating this job can be, how lonely, how hard it is to find someone willing to stick it out with our schedule… and how easy it is to let it eclipse everything. So when my sister called a few weeks later talking about this show, saying applications were open, making jokes about how it would be the only way I’d ever ‘lock down a wife’ I told her go for it, sign me up. And after assuring her I was serious, she did. I guess they liked what she wrote because they picked me, and matched me with someone...”

Luke took a deep breath, “So, my question is…am I allowed to do this? Not, can I take time off again, but logistically as a Federal Agent, will I be fired if I go through with this? Would I need to use a fake name or take a leave of absence?”

“Oooh,” she sucked her teeth, “Yeah. That might be a little more complicated. I know we make appearances on tv from time to time on certain cases; informing the public, addressing unsubs, but the Bureau is not going to like this. A reality show? Luke, the optics if it goes poorly... Look, I’m not telling you you can’t do it. If you think it’s worth it, I can check, but I’m confident there isn’t a rule against it. Maybe just don’t say on camera what you do for work. We don’t need any of that kind of blowback, especially in this political climate.”

Luke sat back, shoulders hiking down, relief taking over as worry left his body. He didn’t realize just how stressed he’d been over the whole situation. “Thanks, Emily.”

She beamed an evil, toothy grin back, “Don’t thank me yet, you still have to tell the team, and lucky you, I was just about to gather everyone…”

~~

Breaking the news to his mother had gone about as well as he’d thought. She was overjoyed he was finally getting married, settling down, and starting a family (or so she imagined), but appalled and borderline scandalized at the spectacle a reality show would be and the fact that no one knew the girl or her family.

“If you insist on going through with this can’t you persuade one of your computer friends at work to check up on her, mijo?” had been bargained down from “I don’t understand why you refuse to meet up with any of the nice girls I know from the neighborhood and church. I can find you a good girl with good family at the church. Doloris’s daughter-”

“No mother, that would be a violation, not to mention a misuse of government resources and personnel…and,” he shrugged though he was on the phone alone in his apartment, “I kind of like not knowing…the anticipation. It’s exciting.”

“You’re an idiot” were her last words on the matter, everything else after had been communicated through his sister. But she was coming, and it wasn’t to hold a protest.

[umlewis]

lewis hamilton is interviewed after qualifying, malaysia - april 7, 2007 (transcription under the cut)

Lewis: "Fortunately I had testing here last week and I was able to learn the circuit. It's not an easy circuit at all. It's really quick; a lot of high speed corners. G forces through a couple of the corners is pretty high and you've got to try and take it flat while holding your neck up. It is tough, but I'm fit enough, which is a positive thing. But the race is gonna be hard, 56 laps around here." Interviewer: "You're very careful about protecting yourself in the immediate race build-up. It's something that you enjoyed in GP2. The Formula 1 experience makes different demands." Lewis: "Yeah." Interviewer: "How important and how deliberate a decision is that?" Lewis: "Well, preparation is everything, and when you get to the Formula 1 world, which I'm still learning and still not used to it… It's so different from anything I've experienced before. But there's all these different demands, people pulling you here and there, and at the end of the day you need to be able to calm yourself down in a short space of time and then get yourself out there to drive as quick as you've ever driven before and try to win the race." Interviewer: "There's huge confidence within the team now, isn't there, and the relationship and the partnership it really is between yourself and Fernando is good and strong, but has it changed just a little after he saw what you did in Melbourne?" Lewis: [laughs] Interviewer: "Is there extra respect there?" Lewis: [laughs] "I don't know if there's extra respect there. I think we always have respect for each other. I think he knew in testing that I was quick, but probably didn't expect me to be as quick in the race, and definitely probably was suprised by me all of a sudden cutting in front of him in the race. But at the end of the day he finished in front of me, which definitely made him happy. But we come here, we're still competing for the team, and as a team, but wanting to win… Both of us wanna win. He's extremely quick. He knows the track. I'm only just behind him on the grid, like I was in Melbourne, and I'm on a different fuel strategy to him, so you could say I'm in a better position. But it's all about seeing an opportunity and seizing it, and I think in this business and when you're in the car, it's a split second decision. You either take it or you don't, and sometimes you just miss it because you're just too slow at reactin gto it, and I think that there'll be times this year where it doesn't turn out well and I'm sure where it goes well, but I have to try and limit the risks and the mistakes and do the best job I can."

[hello-im-not-a-possum]

A Secret Leak: Bringing the Dark to the Light

Audrey poured the contents of her bag across the dining room table and looked over them with a sigh: Artist found dead at his desk, Bendy's going bankrupt, Angel gone AWOL, Workers caught in devastating ink flood, twelve injured, six dead, Maestro gone missing, GENT Lawsuit against retired animation veteran ends in strange stalemate... She went to her bedroom and took the collected death certificates off of her shelf and brought them to the dining room, planning in figuring out how they fit in with the newspaper stories, like trying to fit puzzle pieces together.

'Shortly after acclaimed, award winning voice actress Susie Campbell had done an interview with press over her upcoming meet up with animation producer Joey Drew, she completely disappeared off the face of the earth without a trace. According to Ms. Campbell herself, the two were going to discuss the possibility of her going back to reprise the role that had the public catch her eye in the biggest and most ambitious project Joey Drew Studios had ever dared to achieve. But before fans of the original Alice Angel could even anticipate the return of her voice, it was stolen away once more.'

'"Joey and I didn't really leave on good terms... One minute I was doing my daily routine as usual and the next I was scrambling for a new role while looking for new jobs. And I'm not going to lie and say that I *didn't* resent him for that." Ms. Campbell commented in the interview. "While there was still a lot of good folks at the studio, I can't say I missed the place itself or the grinning devil at the top. I think he's only come crawling back after he saw that I've made a name for myself while he's shot himself in the foot." When asked if she was considering turning down Mr. Drew's offer of a reprise, she responded "I guess it will all come down to him. Does he really feel guilty about the whole thing? Is he treating his remaining workers better? Is he actively trying to be a better boss and person? If I so much as sense a single 'no' as an answer for any of my questions, I'm not setting foot back in that studio! Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice...".'

'As there's currently no other leads, the public suspects one of two outcomes: that the voice actress was kidnapped by a scorned and or lovesick fanatic who saw their chance when she was waiting for Joey to arrive, or that the man behind the grinning devil struck down the original Alice Angel in a blind rage-

"...You know, just because Ink creatures don't *need* sleep doesn't mean they don't get tired." Bendy bit his lip as he watched Audrey read through the article.

"Yeah, but it's not like I have the luxury of hiring a private eye to help on this... I mean, imagine if the truth got out, either there would be mass hysteria, or you'd be sent to some lab and I'd be sent to some asylum-"

"Hey! Let's not bring labs or asylums into this!" he shuddered while taking a seat at the table. "...Anyway, while we're going to be pulling an all nighter, there's something that's been on my mind since I've moved in... ...Two somethings in fact."

"What is it, Bendy?"

"One; why do you have these death certificates? Joey I could kinda understand. I don't know how the death business works, but I guess it makes sense for people to give the still-living family members copies of it along with the inheritance, but Henry? Susie? Everybody else who was close in contact with Joey while working at the studio? Where did you get these and how?"

"They were all in file cabinets at Archgate Studios. I also found a lot of the newspapers in a file cabinet in Nathan's office." Audrey put Susie Campbell's death certificate on top of the 'Angel gone AWOL' article. "Sometimes I get mistaken for a secretary and I play along with it to get into areas I'm normally not allowed in."

"Huh..." Bendy nodded in thought as he looked over the ink flood case. "...I thought that the guy who turned part of his studio into a museum celebrating "Joey's legacy" would want to hide away the parts that the public found disgusting. Sweep it under the rug by destroying them..."

"Well, the thing about Nathan is that he loves everything about Joey." Audrey shrugged. "All the good, all the bad, all the truths and lies... Everything. He'd keep things hidden away so that only he could see them, but I don't think he could ever bring himself to destroy anything related to him or his legacy."

"...I guess that makes sense..." The imp sighed as he skimmed over the closest article to him 'Artist found dead at desk'. "As for the second thing: How come you're nothing like Joey?"

"Care to elaborate..?" she smiled nervously, not knowing if the imp meant that in a good or bad way.

"You two have different hair colors, different physical forms, different ink forms, and wildly different personalities. I mean, he's stupid, impulsive, has questionable morals, loud, and most importantly: He's always trying to make himself the main star of the show, being loud and in control."

"I see..."

"While you? You might be kinda clueless, but you're also curious and you're doing your research, you seem to only be taking risks because you're backed into a corner here, and you're pretty quiet, meek even. Sure, you can banish souls into the inky puddles and break skulls open when push comes to shove but you sure as hell don't act like it... In fact, you remind me more of Henry than Joey."

"And how do you feel about Henry?"

"Good question... When I first met him, I hated him. I thought he was the reason I was in this mess in the first place. I believed that if he stayed back and... I don't know, done *something,* anything to change my fate. Maybe if he was there he could've convinced Joey not to hurt me, maybe if he was there he could've fixed me in a way where I didn't need to be tortured into a perfect form, maybe... maybe if he was there he could've taken me with him so I wouldn't have to be along with him..." He rubbed the tears out of his watering eyes to keep himself from bawling like a baby. "...But now? Now I know that I was blaming the wrong person. Henry is just a retired animator, he never would've suspected that he was capable of anything like this. For all he knew, Joey was just a good friend but a shitty boss and that's that. When he found out the truth, he was already trapped in a cage just like everyone else..."

Audrey moved to hug the imp but held back, not knowing if she'd make it worse but not willing to risk it...

"Can I come to work with you tomorrow?"

"Well Bendy, we both know some of the problems with that..."

"Please! I could wear a disguise and I'll be quiet! I also know how to get through vent systems without making noise and my hearing's good enough to sense where people are coming and going! They'll *never* know I was there!"

"Okay, fine... but you also have to be very careful, Wilson's ghost has been hanging around the studio."

"Weird... I thought it would stay in the machine since he died in there- Wait, he doesn't enter or leave properly, so it probably spat him out to prevent more irritation."

"...What?"

"Okay, when you first got in the cartoon studio, did you see ink coming out of its nozzle when you entered the ink? Or see a doorway open to what distinctly looked like a sepia-toned and cartoonish world?"

"No..? It was more of a pool of ink leaking out of the bottom of the machine itself and Wilson pulling me into it."

"Well that explains it... Think of the ink machine like a person and normal people as food. It eats the food and makes ink people. But Wilson doesn't get 'eaten' because he doesn't properly enter it, he more so... makes it bleed, enters the blood stream, and gets to the ink world that way. Like some kind of parasite that the ink world notices and tries to fight off."

"...Huh..." Audrey blinked slowly, processing the metaphor and internally wondering if they alluded to something else or if she was just overthinking it. "...Well I guess that explains why he's here..."

"Anyway, if he's here no matter what form he takes he wont scare me." The demon smirked confidently. "He's powerless without his keepers!"

"If you say so... See you in the morning, Ben."

Audrey went back to looking over the articles, just wanting to match up one more to a certificate before calling it a night...

-----

It was easier sneaking Bendy out of Archgate than it was to sneak him in, some reasons more obvious than others.

The crowds of other coworkers were difficult enough to navigate through, but she also had to deal with the lingering fear that 'playing dead' wasn't enough for the little devil in her bag to avoid suspicion. Sure, any random passerby would easily mistake the limp demon for a very well-made toy, but Audrey was so used to his liveliness that just going limp wasn't enough to convince her, and therefore she didn't think she and the imp were convincing anyone else.

She was thankful that her office had a lockable door and an airvent cover that could easily be unscrewed with a pencil.

"Okay, to keep you from getting lost; No unscrewing other vent covers while you're in there and just in case, I'll mark this one with a sticky note."

"Don't worry, I know exactly what I'm doing." He brushed her off and climbed in the open vent.

"But do you know the layout of Archgate?"

"I don't need to, the thing I'm looking for has a *very* distinct smell."

She nodded hesitantly, reminding herself that while Bendy did need help from time to time. the imp climbing through the vent wasn't always a small and helpless creature that jumped at loud noises and cried when he burned his tongue on soup. Just because he hasn't turned into the Ink Demon yet didn't mean that he was permanently like this, ...did it?

"I'll be back in say... two hours, maybe three if I get held up by vent-traffic or something." He reassured her. "Don't worry until at least past the three hour mark, okay?"

"Okay, and if you see Wilson in there..." She handed him what looked like a bottle of bleach spray. "It doesn't *kill* ink creatures or ghosts mind you, but it's basically pepper spray for him."

"Got it, thanks Audrey!"

With that, he disappeared into the vents while Audrey tried to refocus her mind on her work.

...

"It's so much dirtier than I anticipated..." Bendy murmured while crawling through the webby, dusty vents. "Spiders in the not-ink world must be really flexible..."

He shuttered at the thought of entities *like* the regal widows, but with the traits Audrey described them with: more legs, eight beady eyes, and large, sharp pincers...

"Okay, focus Bendy, Nathan's office has to be around here somewhere..."

To his left, the sound of a set of keys being dropped echoed throughout the vents (or at least, it did to him) and as the opportunistic demon saw his chance, he made it to the set, peeking at the vent cover to make sure that there was no one looking and carefully removing the cover from his side to pick up the forgotten set...

...Only to be grabbed by the wrist by a four-fingered hand and hoisted up like a freshly caught fish. And the 'fisherman' in question was grinning ear-to-ear.

"Looking for these?" Wilson let out a raspy chuckle as he jingled the keys in front of the annoyed imp's face. "I knew you were going to come back here eventually, but I didn't expect you would be so easy to cat- AAAURRGHHH!"

Spraying the ghost in the face with the bleach, Bendy braced himself for impact as Wilson dropped him to wipe the stuff out of his eyes, grabbing the keys and slipping back into the vents.

"Not so fast!" the false janitor called after him while trying to climb into the small vent himself. "This is far from over, devil!"

Just as he saw the demon's tail disappear into the darkness in the vents, Wilson started to chuckle before breaking down into full on laughter, laughter that made the demon stop in his tracks...

"Of course you ran! It's all you can do you... you pathetic, insignificant, little ink stain! And to think that you're the product of the legacy my father gave so much up to protect! The legacy of a thief that left a wife husbandless and a child fatherless by infecting a good man with obsessions over a dying empire that deserved to die! The legacy of a weak, cowardly, little man..."

Bendy turned back, glaring at the man half-stuck in the vent.

"...Do you think I'm running from you because I'm afraid of you?"

"Well, it's not like you stayed and fought me, is it?" He smirked. "Go ahead, run along little mouse, the cat will catch you once and for all before you know it..."

"It takes one to know one, what is even one thing worth fearing about you? You have no powers given to you, taken from others or otherwise, The ink machine created your Keepers, not you, and your creation "Duddy Shitchips" or whatever his name is has nothing behind it, no heart, no soul, it never would've worked to be my successor because it was just made in a spiteful attempt to steal an audience you don't even want, just taking it for the sake of making them talk about a creation you made instead of a creation made by someone who you hold the stupidest grudge against."

Wilson's smirk quickly fell to a frown.

"You know, it's kinda funny." He sat down with a chuckle. "Even if it's for wildly different reasons, we have the exact same enemies and same tragedies... Both of us were cast aside by our fathers because they wanted to chase illusions of greater things, both of us were hated by people for our appearances when we have no control over how we look, and both of us really, really want Joey to get beaten to a pulp. Who knows, maybe if things went differently, we could've been the best of friends."

Wilson's eye narrowed at the grinning imp. "I am nothing like you..." he spat through gritted teeth.

"Exactly. I'm a being of darkness that wanted to embrace the light but was rejected from it all my life until now, and you? You're a spoiled rotten being of light that threw away so many things that even now you still take for granted... All to try to control darkness out of the false belief that the light rejected you."

Bendy turned away from him and made his way back through the vents while Wilson tsked.

"I lost nothing, do you hear me demon?! Nothing!"

"Then you can make it back to being passably human on your own, right?"

The only 'answer' given was the soft echos of the various sounds of the demon disappearing back into the vents.

[hisaacswrites]

Bake Room in Your Heart for Me? Chapter 2

【 Fandom: Call of Duty 【 Main Pairing: Simon "Ghost" Riley x John "Soap" MacTavish 【 Rating: M for Mature 【 Trigger Warnings: -

Summary:

When Simon first interviewed for The Great British Baking Show, he hadn’t expected anything to come of it. He certainly didn't expect to win. Despite the chaos it brought to his life, he couldn't really complain. It landed him the best job he could ask for and a close circle of friends who actually seemed to enjoy his company. It also led him to his biggest fan, one John MacTavish, who's determined to win him over one baked good at a time.---Or, The baking AU that no one asked for.

← Chapter 1 】 ⦿ Chapter 2 ⦿ 【 Chapter 3 →

☆ Read on AO3

【 Chapter Specific Warnings: - 【 Notes: Un-beta'd, as always. Still not entirely sure where I want to take this but I hope you all have fun on the ride!

Bake Room in Your Heart for Me? Masterlist ⦿ CoD Library ⦿ Hayden Isaacs Library

🍰 Chapter 2

Simon was carefully folding his macaron mixture when he heard the commotion out front. Cafe 141 was made up of a lively crew, almost all of them veterans that could more than handle a disgruntled civilian, so he paid the ruckus little mind. It wasn't until he heard Rudy's voice joining the shouting that he looked up from his batter. Rudy and Alejandro were his two baking assistants, with Rudy being the more level-headed of the two, so if he was fired up about something...

Simon sighed and eyed his macaron mixture carefully, taking in the consistency of the pale blue batter (Price said black macarons would scare off their customers, so the SAS' pompadour blue seemed like a fitting choice). It was at the perfect consistency, ready for piping, and he didn't want to risk ruining a perfectly good batch of macarons just because some civvie thought they could get smart with the staff. Confident that his coworkers could handle themselves for a few moments longer, Simon gingerly scooped his mixture into his prepared piping bags, quickly tying them off so that the batter wouldn't dry out while he tended to... whatever was going on. Straightening to his full height, Simon rolled his shoulders back, made sure his surgical mask was in place and secured, and made his way across the kitchen and out the doors.

He had expected to see a Karen or Ken up in arms about some minor inconvenience, shouting obscenities, poking fingers, making threats, or perhaps attempting to destroy their merchandise (again). What he did not expect was for Gaz to have a random man pinned to the ground with Rudy's assistance , his knuckles vigorously giving their victim's head a noogie while Rudolpho cackled and shouted good-natured abuse. The pinned man was struggling valiantly, but he couldn't shake two of Cafe 141's finest staff. Instead, he resorted to shouting angrily, though Simon couldn't understand a lick of it. He stared, unimpressed by the childish antics, but silently relieved that it wasn't anything major, as the man thrashed and cursed at the pair in a way that only a tried-and-true friend could. It was fortunate that it was a slow day, the cafe entirely empty, lest he have to field questions from concerned customers. (Again.)

Through the chaos, Simon was finally able to make out a disgruntled "Gerroff me, you bawbags!" and some of the pieces started clicking into place. Gaz and Rudy's victim was Scottish, violently so if the strength of his accent was anything to go by. Leaning his hip against the counter and crossing his arms, Simon just couldn't resist adding fuel to the fire with some of his own heckling.

"Let's try that again in proper English."

Both Gaz and Rudy's heads whipped around at his dry baritone, Rudy's face flushing in embarrassment as he scrambled off of the Scottish man, while Gaz merely smirked as he pressed the man's head into the tiled flooring, muffling the renewed shouting. "Hey, Ghost!" He greeted, apparently unfazed that he was smooshing a potential customer's face into the less-than-sanitary ground of the cafe.

"Garrick," Simon returned, raising a brow in an unspoken question as to what was actually going on, ignoring the wheezing sounds as the Scot fought to catch his breath with Rudy now off of him.

"An old friend of mine finally deigned to grace us with his presence," Gaz explained, pinching at the other man's cheeks one last time before finally letting up on his head and leaning on his lower back instead. "This is Soap, my absentee best friend with an arson problem."

The Scottish man, "Soap", apparently, immediately seemed to take offense to Gaz's ribbing. "It was just the one time an' there wasnae any property damage," he scowled, prompting an amused snort from Simon.

Largely free from Gaz's grasp, Soap turned his head towards the noise, his eyes sweeping up Simon's torso from where it showed from behind the counter, all the way up to his face. Bright blue eyes met Simon's own dark brown ones, Soap's mouth sliding open as his gaze darted all over Simon's face. Simon met the stare head-on, his walls sliding up at the open gawking. A military career like his garnered more than his fair share of scars, so he was used to the staring, but people tended to at least try to be a bit more discrete. His face mask hid the worst of them, but he knew that there were countless others still exposed. Simon stiffened as the silence stretched for one moment, then two, his anxiety building with each passing minute. This was one of the reasons why he hated being out in the front of the shop. People were always staring for one reason or another and Simon just wanted to just bake and exist in peace. He was just about ready to make a tactical retreat back to the kitchen, ego be damned, and leave Gaz and Rudy to their friend.

It was only when Rudy cleared his throat awkwardly that Soap shut his mouth, teeth connecting with a firm click as a ruddy flush exploded across his tanned cheeks. His eyes met Simon's again, though they still seemed to have a weird haze to them that had Simon a bit suspicious , maybe even slightly concerned. When Soap opened his mouth, Simon expected a question, maybe an apology, or at least some sort of belated introduction.

That is not what he received.

"Do you knead a bakin' partner? Because I promise I could fire up your oven like no other."

Simon stared.

Rudy stared.

Gaz stared.

Soap froze.

Simon spun on his heel, making a hasty retreat (he didn't run away , fuck you very much) and pointedly ignored Gaz's sputtering laughter, Rudy's long-suffering groan, and the thunk of Soap's head as he repeatedly hit it against the sticky floor.

[mountinez]

Yesterday he said he usually isn't happy with p3 but it was impossible to not be with all the support from the tifosi. So I think he's happy with the support and the whole environment and with ferrari having a good result, but deep down he's probably still disappointed with himself for the p3.

You know whats funny, after quali he went straight to congratulate Carlos while he was still on the car, but many people didn't saw that.

They only saw the moment where Carlos go to charles and they compliment each other, so I saw many people acting like charles didn't went to congratulate charles like he was jealous or something and it was carlos who had to go to him.

I just think it's funny because people wants so bad to believe the worst about him. They can't deal with the fact he is a genuine person so they always try to see the worst. I think many people put in their head that carlos is like this underdog in ferrari, while charles is the spoiled prince of monaco. So it fits their narrative that charles was being petty and didn't complimented carlos, when in the reality he was praising carlos in every moment he could !!! You never see Carlos doing the same and showing this support when Charles gets pole or podium. It's the opposite actually, he usually ends up shading charles in those spanish interviews...

I think I'm ranting by now, but it annoys me so much how general audiences seems to see charles as this spoiled selfish kid, while carlos is the humble hard working man.

You know I actually would like charles to be a little less nice

"You know I actually would like charles to be a little less nice" -> me too, bestie. i think all of us miss the pre pr trained charles. at the same time i love him for being a nice dude, i think he needs to stand up by himself more often. but well, i won't complain... these are the cons of being a fan, we can't protect of interfere in what our faves do or say.

he actually went there and congratulate carlos first thing as we can see here. he is a team player and he is fair. carlos in the end coped well during the weekend.

i feel like people have some sort of dissociation from reality when in fandom. they picture carlos as a poor man who is mistreated by the team but this car is perfect for him, the setups are perfect for him, charles struggles with terrible luck and ferrari strategies and still is the one to always face red bull to this day. there is no 1st driver at ferrari anymore, so i don't understand the complaints. carlos has always benefitted from the team since last year *shrugs* we never see charles complaining about it though, can we say the same about carlos?

and yeah, remember monaco 2022? when he blamed charles... it was not the first or last time but it's what comes to mind. anyway, i think it is what it is. we need to wait and see.

in any case i have been seeing a lot of people who call themselves charles fans back stabbing him since yesterday. so next time charles gets a pole or a win most of us will remember that.

[f1]

Verstappen admits hes been struggling to recover from illness as he seeks first win in Australia

As he looks to take his first Grand Prix victory in Australia, Max Verstappen has revealed he's still feeling the effects of an illness that he contracted before the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Verstappen qualified 15th and finished second in Saudi Arabia, with the fastest lap bonus point giving him the championship lead over Red Bull team mate Sergio Perez heading into this weekend's Australian Grand Prix. Yet, the reigning champion said he has been dealing the after effects of an illness he caught earlier in March. NEED TO KNOW: The most important facts, stats and trivia ahead of the 2023 Australian Grand Prix Looking ahead to three-week break between Australia and Azerbaijan, Verstappen said: "I was not looking forward to [the break] but then I got really ill and have just been struggling a bit since that time, especially last race out, so I think for me now these three weeks are just about getting back to full fitness, getting a full programme in… "It felt like I was just missing a lung, and I got to the weekend [in Saudi Arabia] really believing that it was gone because normally when you get sick like two, three days after, you’re normally alright – you know, you can just do your workouts – but then when I jumped into the car in FP1, even just one performance lap, I felt like I had to recover for two laps to be able to breathe normally. Max Verstappen leads the championship by one point heading into Round 3 of the championship, at Albert Park "It definitely did affect me throughout the weekend, which I didn’t like because it was one of the first races where I felt like I was physically limited, and that’s really frustrating when you’re out in the car but since then I’ve been trying to work on it, trying to improve it, and I do think that it has improved a lot, so… this weekend should be alright," continued Verstappen. "I think it was just all coming together and Jeddah is quite a tough track in general; when you don’t feel well it hits hard on you but these things unfortunately happen when you catch a virus and stuff. So hopefully for the rest of the year it should be okay." DESTINATION GUIDE: What F1 fans can eat, see and do when they visit the Australian GP Verstappen now seeks to put behind him "frustrating" memories of last year's Australian Grand Prix, which saw him retire late on while Charles Leclerc took victory. "Yeah, last year was very frustrating here, being slow in the race, retiring from the race, but I think we also understood quite quickly after the weekend what we did wrong of course with the set-up… I think from then onwards it was quite alright in terms of reliability and of course we made big steps with the performance of the car," he recalled. This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences 2022 Australian Grand Prix: Mechanical failure forces Verstappen to retire Albert Park is one of the few tracks at which Verstappen has not won a Grand Prix, and the Dutchman said that could well change this weekend as Red Bull have finished on top in the opening two races of the season. FULL TRANSCRIPT: Read every word from Oscar Piastri's Beyond The Grid interview "Yeah, of course it was a bit different back then… because the last few years we’ve never really been that good in the beginning of the year so I think if this race would have been at a different place in the calendar then probably we would have had a lot better results here, but that’s not how it is. But yeah, for sure we do need a bit of a good result here," he said. "I think we have a good chance of course for a good result but we do need to execute a good weekend…" via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

[jimmylee300]

Hong Kong Action Cinema (Blog 4)

For Blog 4, I’m looking at how John Woo’s Manhunt from 2017, stacks up against his classic films from the 1980s and 1990s, specifically Hard Boiled from 1992.

To start, there is one big similarity. The one main similarity is that Manhunt it is still an action film. It still has plenty of gunfire and weapons and fight scenes. This is what John Woo specializes in, just gun-fu as most would call it. His films from the 80s and 90s, and Manhunt both have enough action to satisfy. Another similarity is the fact the action scenes still exist and he uses the same techniques, fast cutting angles and slow-motion along with gun-fu and close quarter fights. We even get a jet-ski chase which is incredibly awesome!

For the differences, there is a few. For one, Manhunt focuses more on the story and plot than the action. We follow Du Qiu throughout the film, who was framed for a murder he did not commit.

Now he is on the run while trying to prove his innocence. This movie has more emphasis on the story than the action, which was not necessarily the case with John Woo’s films in the 80s and 90s. It takes the action from his earlier films and turns it into suspense rather. His earlier films, specifically Hard Boiled are very straightforward and fast-paced but John Woo takes a slower approach with his 2017 release. Another difference is the fact Manhunt is based on a Japanese Novel, “Kiminona”, so it makes sense why it isn’t like his other films, and focuses more on the story than the beauty of gun-fu.

John Woo in an interview, states “the biggest difference for me now is that the action should be realistic… Silent Nights’s action looks more realistic and more powerful, and it gives the audience more of a feeling instead of just being entertained” (John Woo, The Hollywood Reporter). What he says can fit into Manhunt too. It makes you feel something and makes you feel emotion and connection to someone, rather than just watching straight action for the whole two hours. Although John Woo’s style has changed over the years a decent bit, he stays true to his roots. In an interview with he was asked if he prefers CGI in this time of moviemaking. John Woo states “I still prefer physical stunts. Unless we can’t get the actors together on set, then we’ll have to shoot them separately with a green screen” (John Woo, The Film Stage). He loves to stick to his roots and that is why he is such a great director and filmmaker.

My personal take on the film is that it is refreshing. I love the constant action, but I also can enjoy a good story. We as an audience know Du Qiu is innocent, so the story makes us root for him, and it makes us sit on the edge of our seat hoping he gets his innocence heard. In Hard Boiled, you root for the cops to win but it wasn’t as thrilling because we could have predicted the outcome. His style has changed the least, and it is more the content of his films that have evolved, but John Woo still puts out great projects, nonetheless.

[lgcdowoon]

FUTURE DREAMS 05 : part one interview solo  COUNT : 692 words (excluding questions)

“what were your thoughts and feelings when you found out about the surprise?”

“of course, i was disappointed our hala hala team wouldn’t be performing. i’ve gotten a lot closer with the members and was looking forward to standing with them on stage.” he explains, clearly bummed that they had missed their chance. “i was nervous, and still am to an extent, about being able to execute the choreography in this song. to be honest, i was relieved that i don’t have as many vocal lines in our group. it would be hard to balance keeping up with this level of choreography and keeping my voice stable.” as soon as he had been assigned to hala hala, he was nervous. it was an intimidating song for anyone, even the best of performers. especially as the first performance in a season, which could make or break his time at future dreams. but his confidence in his dancing and performance grew with every evaluation, so he done what he always done. “so, i worked hard to make sure i had the stamina to nail the dance parts and my lines...i wish the fans could have seen our hala hala.” it was pretty solemn that the stage he had poor the last month or so into wouldn’t see the light of day, despite his anxieties about his performance. even if he hadn’t done well, he knew his group members would have killed it.

after giving himself a moment to live in the disappointment, he picks himself back into his chipper demeanor. “but it’s very exciting we’ll be performing at the family concert! and all of the hala hala members will be in jikjin, with my other friends this season as well, so you will still be able to see us on stage together!” his smile doesn’t reach his teeth, but his eyes are bright. he turned to look straight into the camera, face sure and comforting, “trust me! we all worked very hard to make an entertaining performance for you all.” he asserts with confidence before adding, to prop himself up a bit since it is a competition, “and i will continue to do so for the duration of the season!” even though he is sure he won’t win the solo, he still has to try.

“if you were given the choice, which song (hala hala, boss, rock with you, dalla dalla, bungee) would you prefer to do?”

“my instinct is to say rock with you! i’m a big fan of v&a so i would like to cover any of their songs.” and would do anything to stand on stage next to any of them. he often forgot that he was on a song with one of the members and would be sharing the stage with him, and the rest of the group during the final song, group. was this what getting famous was? sharing the spotlight with your idols? dowoon wasn’t sure, but knew it was a lot to take in. 

but he thought that might be too easy. of course the boy with the sweet voice and sweet face would want to do the sweet boy next door song. so, in effort to be a little unpredictable he corrected himself, answering “however...i think i will go with bungee!” with a bright face, fitting for the song of choice. “i really enjoyed that team’s performance. watching it made me want to get up and join them!” there could very easily be footage of him quietly dancing along to the choreography while the bungee team performed in front of the judges and other trainees. the song was addicative and had been stuck in his head for the rest of the night. 

“plus! i think cuter concepts fit my style well...don’t you think so?” he said to the camera, attempting to form puppy dog eyes into the camera. fans like cute boys right? at the very least his mom might think he looked cute while she watched at home. “i would need a lot of practice to do the high note as well as the girls tho!” he added. that song was high. and even though he was making good progress with his vocals, his voice was still male and had a lower register than most female throats. hopefully this interview wouldn’t back fire and have him straining his voice on stage. 

[imaginesandbandfiction]

Harry Styles — Secret Little Rendezvous

Thank you guys so much for all the support on my last post! I have a ton of ideas so I'm hoping to post at least twice a week. Hope you like this one! xx

Masterlist

As the music editor of a popular magazine, you got to hang out with a lot of celebrities. You had started taking photos with each one mostly for yourself, and to send to your mom (She was thrilled with every single one, but the last time you visited home you saw the photo of you and Bon Jovi had been printed and framed). With every Instagram post, your following grew steadily, until your follower count screamed less “journalist” and more “influencer.”

It was during his press tour for Fine Line that you first met Harry Styles. Your reputation preceded you; a few of his crew members had been following you for a while, and when they found out that you were interviewing him they promptly scrolled through your entire Instagram with him, though you didn’t find that out until later.

The interview went great; it was filmed for the magazine’s YouTube channel, but you still jotted notes into your light blue mini moleskine, wanting to capture your observations to make the article more intimate and personal. Banter flew easily between the two of you, and two years of interviewing celebrities had emboldened you quickly, so you weren’t afraid to tease him and ask the hard questions that everyone wanted answers to. He was a good sport, and dished it right back to you, making fun of your midwestern accent and your celebrity obsessions.

After the interview, you started to tell him about your Instagram, preparing to ask him to take a picture, but he cut you off.

“I have an idea for the photo,” he said, catching you off guard. You stared at him, blinking in confusion. “Where’s the fashion closet?” After a quick glance at the production manager, who just shrugged and nodded his approval, you grabbed Harry’s hand and pulled him out of the film studio.

“Come on,” you said, adrenaline rushing through your veins as you led him through the labyrinth-like hallways of the magazine’s office building.

“Sorry it’s so twisty,” you added, glancing over your shoulder at Harry, who looked amused. “This building is super old, and I think it used to be, like, 10 different apartments that they smushed together.”

“That’s New York real estate for you,” Harry joked, making you laugh.

“I’ve thought about just moving into my office, it’d save me a fortune each month and I wouldn’t even lose any square footage.” You chuckled nervously, self-conscious about mentioning your tiny studio apartment to Harry-fucking-Styles, of all people. “Anyways, here we are.”

You opened a door, leading Harry into the fashion department.

“I’m sorry,” you mouthed at your friend Imogen, one of the styling assistants, as you passed her on your way to the closet. She gave you a wide-eyed, open-mouthed stare, momentarily distracted from the fitting she was currently in the middle of.

“Here we are,” you said as you opened the closet door. “All yours.” You realized you were still holding Harry’s hand and blushed, quickly trying to drop it. He squeezed it before letting go, and your hand fell limply to your side.

He dug around until he found what he wanted. Two hats and two jackets. He put one of each on and placed the second hat on your head, handing you the jacket.

“So are you going to tell me what we’re doing?” you asked, slipping on the jacket. He shook his head, smiling shyly.

“Nope. It’s a surprise,” he said, grabbing your hand this time. “Come on, first one back wins!” He opened the door and led you out but dropped your hand as soon as you were out the door, taking off ahead of you.

“Hey, no fair!” You called after him, racing to catch up.

When you returned to the studio, you handed your phone to one of the production assistants. Harry directed the shot, recreating the iconic photo of Rick and Ilsa in Casablanca. It was intoxicating, standing so close to Harry, gazing into his eyes. They were greener up close, like the grass in spring. Your heart was beating so fast you were sure he could hear it. After about a minute, you saw his lips curling up in the beginning stages of a smile and bit the inside of your lip to keep from laughing. It didn’t work, and soon the two of you were both cracking up.

Once you had calmed down, the PA handed your phone back to you with a wink. You scrolled through the shots, there were a few awkward-looking ones at first, but there were one or two that seemed perfect. As you scrolled to the end of your camera roll, you saw she had caught some candids of the two of you laughing. They made your heart flutter, and you quickly scrolled back to the more serious shots as Harry made his way over to you to peek over your shoulder.

“It looks good,” he said. “You have to put a black-and-white filter on it, when you post it.”

“Will do,” you replied, starting to put your phone in your pocket. Harry grabbed your wrist, stopping you midway.

“Wait,” he grabbed the phone out of your hands and started typing something. “I’m sending these to myself.”

You tried not to let your excitement show too much, not sure if this was a way to get your number or if he just really wanted a copy of the photo.

That night, before you posted the photo, your phone vibrated with a text.

Hey, it’s Harry.

You squealed and clicked on the notification to pull up the text conversation that you had been avoiding all day, sure he had immediately deleted it. But nope, there it was, and above his most recent message were the photos he had sent; the one that turned out the best, and then all three of your candids. Your heart skipped a beat as you texted back.

hi Harry

That kicked off a few months of texting, which turned into daily phone calls, before he flew out to New York to surprise you with a private dinner on the rooftop of the Ritz-Carlton for your birthday. The rest, as they say, is history.

Oh, and the photo you posted ended up getting over a million likes, skyrocketing your follower count, too.

***

It had been over two years, and though you had been as discreet as possible, people were starting to get suspicious. The only photos you had posted together were the official interview photos, recreating Sandy and Danny’s all-black ensembles from Grease, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears’ iconic denim moment, and, most recently, the boat scene from The Notebook. That one had taken a dedicated photoshoot to capture, but it turned out incredible.

But apparently, when you recreate iconic couples' photos more than once, people start to catch on. Plus, although Harry had only been on tour for a month, you had flown out to six of his shows already. As a music editor, being at concerts wasn’t out of the ordinary, but usually, the magazine only sent you to the first show of an artist’s tour, and then the New York show, if there was one. Fans had been speculating about your relationship for a while, so you and Harry decided to make it public. After all, you were both itching to get out and explore the world together. You decided it would be fitting to do one final interview with Harry, before leaving your job to join him on tour.

That’s how you found yourself sitting across from Harry in the studio on October 2nd, 2021.

“So, Harry, thanks for joining me again,” you said, pressing your lips together to try and keep from laughing.

“Thanks for having me, Y/N,” he replied, his smile slightly too big for a press interview.

“I hear you’ve got not one, not two, but three sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden coming up. Congratulations, that’s quite the accomplishment.”

“Thank you, but it has nothing to do with me, really.” His eyes flickered down, bashfully. “It’s the fans, they’re the ones who made it happen. And my incredible crew, of course.” He let out a laugh. “I’m just the singing, dancing monkey.”

You chuckled before responding. “You’re slightly more talented than a monkey.”

The rest of the interview went pretty smoothly, and you asked some generic questions about the tour so far, letting Harry take up most of the time to share some stories from behind the scenes. As the producer motioned at you to wrap it up, you took back control of the situation.

“So there’s one final question that I haven’t asked you since our first interview two years ago,” you said, trying to sound mysterious. Harry folded his hands under his chin, leaning forward.

“Ask away,” he said, waiting patiently, staring at you with wide eyes.

“Is there anyone special in your life these days? It’s been a while since you’ve been seen with anyone and your fans are extremely curious.”

“Well, I’ve actually been with someone for the past two years. She’s incredible, and although I’ve loved having her all to myself, I think that’s been rather selfish of me and it’s about time I share her with the world.” You felt your cheeks heating up and tried to hide your smile.

“I’m so glad to hear that! I actually have some news myself, if I can interrupt?” You glanced over at Harry, who gave you an encouraging nod.

“This is actually the last interview I’m doing for Iconic Magazine,” you paused to take a breath. “I’ve absolutely loved my time here but after today, I will be starting my next adventure as a freelance writer. That way I will have more time to join my boyfriend on tour.” You looked into the camera and winked as you said the word boyfriend. Harry reached over to take your hand in his.

“That’s me, by the way, in case you didn’t get that,” he added as you laced your fingers through his. You wrapped up the interview by saying goodbye to everyone who had supported you throughout your career at Iconic, before turning back to Harry.

“Well Harry, thanks for coming,” you said,

“Funny, she said that to me last night, too,” he joked, a cheeky grin breaking out on his face. The entire crew busted out laughing. You reached across and slapped him playfully on the arm.

“Harry! You can’t say that! I’m at work!”

“It’s literally your last day!”

The interview ended and later the editing team faded it out slowly as the two of you bickered, reminiscent of an old 90’s sitcom. It was the perfect way to end your career at the magazine and kick off your new adventure.

Instead of some sort of posed photo, after the interview has been live for a few hours, you post a simple selfie of you and Harry from a few days ago in Chicago with the caption Introducing… Harry Styles, the boyfriend, not to be confused with Harry Styles, the celebrity.

That post blew all of your previous posts with Harry out of the water, and you were excited to begin a new chapter by his side.

[charlestrask]

(I find your commentary about the show and the characters v interesting so I thought I'd ask)

I remember a Peter Gould interview from before season 6 premiered, where he says that we should ask ourselves what does Jimmy deserve and if 'there any way for him to win any redemption after everything that he's done'. And after watching yesterday's chapter i honestly don't know what to think. What does he AND Kim deserve. But the fact that he wants us to consider it. and what does 'redemption' means in the context of the whole show. Especially after that article where Bob talks about how 'he likes where he ends up'. A part of me still has sympathy for them but after yesterday i honestly don't know what they 'deserve'...especially now that we'll see Walt and Jesse and probably the breaking bad timeline...

i think the concept of what people "deserve" is a very nebulous one and very often in discussing it especially in terms of characters here people often land on this idea of well, punishment fits the crime and atonement for sins and all that. and while i think its an easy way to paraphrase the 'morality' of the brba universe - bad people get what they deserve - a more ACCURATE assessment would be that people experience the consequences of their actions (and often the unforeseen consequences of the actions of people around them). so their fates are not necessarily some universal, objective "deserved" fate that matches the harm that they've caused, but just the natural end to the choices they've made (and, importantly, works from a writing standpoint of fulfilling the arc of their character). like walter white, if we're talking "deserved," balancing the scales of the violence he inflicted, he probably "deserved" more than an arguably peaceful death after enacting revenge on people. but in terms of where his life went, he and the people around him fully experienced the consequences of his actions and his death resolved the show in an incredibly fulfilling way.

in terms of what anybody truly deserves, from innocent people like howard to harmful people like kim or jimmy or even lalo, everybody really deserves the chance and ability to live a life that fulfills them and doesn't harm others, everybody deserves happiness. but the important thing i think we'll see in bcs's ending is that people have to make the choice to get this and become better people. i think that's something that jesses arc in brba showed well (and theres a much larger and more articulate post about this that i read on here and i wish i could remember who wrote it) where we see jesse deal in various ways with the harm he's caused, through feeling guilt, trying to punish himself for it, rejecting this idea of "acceptance" and moving forward because to him it means that you can just keep doing bad things as long as you accept you've done them, but in el camino we see him really understand what that sentiment actually means - that blaming and punishing yourself for harm you've caused doesn't actually help anybody, least of all yourself. it only perpetuates this violence because once you've convinced yourself that all of this is innately your fault and theres nothing you can do to recover from it or wipe that stain off of your life, it becomes that much easier to continue causing harm, because you've labeled yourself as a "bad" person, and that's what bad people do. accepting what you've done doesnt mean absolving yourself of all sin. it means being able to move forward with your life and make better choices, realizing that there aren't good people and bad people and the concept of atoning is ultimately a very futile one.

i read the same bob odenkirk interview that you mention and one of the things that stood out to me most in it was what he says about telling peter and vince that sometimes people do learn the right lesson from bad situations, and that while historically in jimmys life this has not been the case, but as gene, after everything, isn't it possible that he can actually learn and grow from this? i think this existence as gene is "punishment" enough, having every part of your individual being stripped away into a automated hole of nothing, being unable to make connections with the outside world, unable to express yourself in any way, it's a really devastating and empty existence. so i think in terms of jimmy and kims endings, i think bobs interview indicates that we might be moving towards an ending like that, one like jesses, one where people actually do grow from their actions and consequences. and i dont think the harm that they've caused, terrible as it is, should deny them from living a good life. being punished still won't bring howard back, or chuck back, or anyone back.

[words-for-holland]

Distractions

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Summary: Tom and Y/N decide to work in the same room together. The problem...both of them get easily distracted and a whole lotta fluff comes with it.

A/N: Whoa its been awhile but here we are again! Thank you for 1,000+ followers it means the world! Surprises to come 😉

“Hello beautiful.” Tom greets Y/N with a cheeky smile on his face. He quickly pecks her soft cheek as he places his laptop across from his lovely girlfriend, who was currently focused on her work.

She takes a second to look up, returning his smile with a soft one. “Hey, good looking. What’s up?”

“Nothing really. Is it okay if I work here with you? I just want to be close to my girl.”Tom pouts.

Y/N’s heart could burst at the sight and reason he gave. An inaudible “aw” prolonging through her mind...until she quickly realized that there could be some complications with this as a slight frown starts to replace her dimpled smile. “Wait...are you sure?”, she asks. “Dont you have press interviews that require absolute silence? I doubt any of you will want to hear the constant typing in the background.”

“Yeah, your typing is horrendous with those lead heavy fingertips of yours.” Tom teases.

“Well these lead heavy fingertips aren’t leaving anytime soon, so youre probably better off working elsewhere.” She suggests, pointing off to the distance. Tom groans at the idea, using his one hand to put her finger down. He engulfs hers with his, lacing her fingers and holding on tightly.

“Noooo. Dont wanna be anywhere else. Please darling? ” He pouts once more.

She giggles at his plea, rolling her eyes. “Course you can, bubz.” Tom excitedly scoots his chair in as he rubs his hands together to prep for the work to come.

And work they did...for at least 10 minutes. Tom was getting antsy as he read through his next script. Occasionally his eyes would roll to the left, and observe Y/N as she continued to read through an article on her screen. Not that Tom didnt find his own work fun but he always found watching Y/N do her thing just a bit more interesting.

He hadn’t realized himself, but his body start to shift and lean more towards her. His arm extending to wrap her in, as it glided up and down in a steady motion. His thumb doodling hearts on her shoulder. Tom could tell it had an effect on Y/N, discreetly smirking to himself as he heard her audible shakey sigh.

He wanted to see what else could make her sigh like that, so instead of his thumb he used pointer and middle finger, running them up and down her shoulder. Tom could see the smile creeping on Y/N’s face and her little head shake. She knew what he was up to and yet, Y/N still wanted him to think that he was not gonna get her that easily. But God was it hard. Every touch felt like tiny fireworks against her skin, goosebumps forming all over her body with every touch. She to stay strong. No distractions.

Tom eyes perked up, at the action. He must go further, he thinks. Tom starts to trace his nose from her shoulder to her neck, leaving kisses at her jawline. “C’mon darling. Think its time for a break.”, he whispers in her ear.

She turns her head towards him as she smiles, leaving a quick kiss on Tom’s lips. “Its only been ten minutes.” She laughs. “Five if you want to count the distractions.”

He backs up, pretending to look appalled. “How dare you. I’ve been a good lad focusing on my script for the whole ten minutes.”

A playful glare formed on Y/N’s soft face which ultimately ended her up with a fit of giggles. She couldnt take him seriously, but then again she never did with anything. Tom has always said if they were kidnapped by a pair of robbers, her first reaction would be to laugh. As the laughter died down, Y/N paid her attention back to the screen which had been inactive during the playful banter and continued to type out those set of documents that she had been meaning to get to.

Tom on the other hand was still reading through his script, taking mental notes on how he was going to approach his character. This time he was completely engrossed in his work. His eyes moving left to right with every line he took in. Until...he felt something ticking his lower calves. Tom knew it was Y/N’s foot, by the way it brushed just as he had done with his hand on her shoulder. The movements never stopped, her legs now curling around his own. Y/N was trying to getting back at him, but one thing she always forgot was that Tom always wins.

Naturally he had to the same, and what once became a playful game of footsie, now ended up with Tom shifting Y/N to sit on his lap. Her legs now wrapped around his waist and his hands holding onto her hips. Both of them connecting their soft lips, feeling every spark and essence of love. He looked up at Y/N with admiration, thinking how lucky he is to have her in his life. Yeah Covid sucked for the most part and limited their ability to even do anything exciting outside, but it gave them the opportunity to be with each other far more than they could have on a normal day. On a normal day, Tom would be jumping around country to country while Y/N would be home miles and miles away from him. Course, nothings changed with jumping from country to country, but Tom gets to bring Y/N with him now and thats all that mattered to them.

But work never stopped them from keeping busy. Just as their kisses were getting more heated, and their hands tangling each others hair both their alarms went off. The couple stopped their antics as they leaned their heads back, groaning in synchronization.

“Ughh. Thats my cue. I have to prep for an interview.” He mumbles as he nuzzles into Y/N’s neck.

“I know. I have to get ready for another business meeting. Whoo.” she speaks in a sarcastic manner, dropping her head.

“What time?” He asked pressing a kiss to the shell of her ear.

“Mm...3. Why?”

Tom plays with the strands of her soft hair. “Was wondering if you’ll stay with me through mine and Ill stay with you through yours.”

“As much fun as that would be. I dont think were allowed to —“

“Im not saying we have to be on camera for each others meeting. But if one of us will be off camera itll be all right.” He plans, still looking at his girl with pleading eyes. Y/N’s mouth twitches to the left, her eyes furrowed with suspicion.

“You’re doing it again.” Tom states, a small chuckle escaping his lips.

“Doing what?”

“You’re making that face again.”

Her expression quickly changes to confusion, not entirely sure of what Tom was noticing that she didnt about her own face. “What face?”, she asks.

“The one where you twitch your lips and make your eyes look angry. You only do it when youre indecisive about something. Its bloody adorable.”

Y/N snorts at his comment, and tries to get off to give him time to prepare, only to be stopped by his hands pushing her back down on his lap.

“I was serious about wanting to stay with my girl the whole day while doing work. Please?” He pleads again, this time bringing out the puppy face. “I’ll be good and do the dishes tonight.”

To be fair, Y/N knew she was always gonna say yes to Tom. Its pretty hard to deny her dorky boyfriend when hes asking so sweetly and just wants to spend the day together. More so, if the roles were switched, she would have done the same thing. “Go get changed movie star, before youre late for your interview.” She murmurs to him, kissing his cheek before she scrambles of his lap to sit across from him.

Tom whoops with victory as he runs out the room quickly changing into his shirt, fixing his hair, and adding glasses for that sophisticated touch. Sure he wanted to look his best for the Cherry Press, but he made sure his outfit was something Y/N would very much adore as well.

“How do I look?” Tom asked coming out of their shared bedroom.

Y/N looks up from her computer, and smiles widely. “Handsome as always.” She couldnt take her eyes off of him, admiring every detail of the clothing and how it perfectly complimented Tom’s feature. She eyed him from top to bottom, until she noticed something. “Uhh..honey....you’re not wearing any pants.” She asked a bit confused. Her eyes engrossed in the muscles of his thighs and the fit of his Calvin Klein boxers.

Tom smirks at her. “Its uncomfortable wearing pants. Besides no one will see...except you.” He teases, gently lifting her head up so that her eyes meets his. “Eyes up here love.”

“Youre something else.” She laughs, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks. “Well...least we know who wears the pants in the relationship.”

Tom laughs loudly at her comment. He hooks the waistband of Y/N’s sweatpants and snaps them back to further prove her point. “That was a good one. Ill give you that.” Tom and Y/N high five each other, and then it was press time.

Y/N kept quiet and tried her best to minimize the typing unless it was really needed. Seeing Tom talk about his work and dedication was something that she had always admired about him. He loved his job and everyone can see that. Occasionally they’d steal glances from each other, smiling and holding each others hand under table so that no one could see. But it was just one of those moments that Tom and Y/N couldnt help themselves too. Two hours passed and Tom was free.

“You did so well.” Y/N praised Tom and awarded him with a quick kiss. “I love it when you talk about your passion.”

“Thanks. I love that you were there with me to sit through it all.” He smiles. “I believe its your turn now. It’s almost 3.”

Y/N frowns, knowing shed have to dread through hers. Instead of getting to talk about her passions, itd all be about business, business, business. “Ugh. Do I have to?”she groans.

“Come on now. Dont be like that, you’re gonna be fine. Ill be here with you the whole time.” Tom reassures her with kisses all over her face.

“No distractions?” She asks.

“No distractions.”

[literallymitch]

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 || 𝐄.𝐓

requested: yes​

summary: Ethan thinks the reader is cute but is too shy to ask her out

Pairing: Ethan Torchio x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 1k

What kind: fluff

warnings:none

a/n I loved working on this request. I hope y’all like it as well. Again please keep in mind that english is not my first language! I’m always happy about feedback :)

Today y/n had the honor to interview the Eurovision winners Måneskin. She had plenty of experience interviewing celebrities. Still, she was kind of nervous. Of course, they were just normal human beings, but she couldn't deny that she found a liking in the long haired drummer. After she did some preparation for the interview, which included checking out their socials, looking at fan questions and of course listening to their  music, she had developed a small crush on him. She took one last look in the mirror, making sure she looked good for the interview. Well more specifically for Ethan.

As soon as she stepped into the room, Ethan was stunned. She looked like an actual goddess. He tried not to stare at her, while she avoided eye contact with him. Knowing she would either pass out or make a fool out of her self in some way. Maybe she didn’t only have a small crush on him. Little did she know the drummer also started to get anxious as well. Also scared, to make a fool out of himself.

Y/n walked up to them, shaking their hands and introducing herself. The atmosphere got a bit awkward, as she shook Ethan's hand. Both of them laughed nervously while saying hello. The other three could already tell that their friend found a liking, in the cute interviewer in front of them. They all sat down and y/n started asking them question.

“First of all, congratulations on winning Eurovision, you really killed it out there! How are you guys feeling right now?”

“Thank you! We’re still overwhelmed by all the things that happened in Rotterdam. I think we’re just starting to realize that we actually won.” Damiano answered with a proud smile on his face.

“You guys we’re already well know in Italy before Eurovision, but now whole Europe is going crazy about you. When I was looking for fan questions yesterday, there were so many people saying how obsessed they are with you and your music now. Have you guys ever thought that something like this could happen to you?”

“I think we always dreamed about something like this happening to us, but we could have never imagined it. I was completely shocked when I saw how my phone was exploding from all the notifications I got. This is all just so crazy, but we’re happy that people like us and our music.” Victoria said.

At some point Ethan stopped paying attention to the interview. He was too busy admiring the gorgeous girl in front of him. ‘Y/n’ what a beautiful he thought. Also, her voice was so soothing. It fitted her angel like appearance perfectly. Vic nudged him with her elbow, when she noticed he was staring, pulling him out of his thoughts.

The interviewer obviously noticed that Ethan was staring at her. She got a little uncomfortable, because she thought he was judging her in some kind of way. Was it the way she talked or the way she looked? Did he dislike the questions? Wanting to focus on the interview, she tried to ignore the stares.

After asking some more questions, it was time to end the interview. The whole interview, Ethan didn’t say a single word. Not that it was something new or anything. Y/n already figured out the boy with the beautiful hair was a bit shy, before the interview, but this wasn’t just shyness. Usually he would nod his head in agreement or do little gestures with his hands. Today he did none of that. He just sat there and stared at her for a moment. Maybe he just didn’t feel too well today. Being too caught up in her own thoughts,  while collecting her stuff, the girl didn’t notice that Damiano had pulled Ethan to the side.

“Bro, if you don’t ask her out like right now, I will do it for you.” Damiano whispered.

“Are you out of your mind? I didn’t even know how to act while she interviewed us. I just stared at her like a creep. There is no way I can talk to her without embarrassing myself. I mean look at her, she’s stunning.”

“Oh come on. Just get it together for once. I know that you’re shy and this is hard for you, but you’ll definitely will regret it later if you don't ask her out now.”

“Damiano is right. Even if she says no, there are now thousands of girls who’d love to go on a date with you.” Thomas joined their conversation.

Ethan just sighed and went over to the girl, that just interviewed him a few minutes ago. His friends were right. He probably would regret it later if he didn’t ask her out now. Anxiously he cleared his throat trying to get her attention. She turned around,  a nervous smile appearing on her face as she saw who stood in front of her.

“Hey, first of all I would like to apologize for being so absent throughout the interview. I just got a little... distracted, I guess.”

“No worries, sometimes I get lost in my thoughts as well. Actually that happens quite a lot” she said letting out a soft chuckle.

“So what I wanted to ask is...eh.”

‘Oh god this is so embarrassing’ he thought. It seemed like he forgot how to speak. After a moment he collected his words and tried it again.

“I wanted to ask if you’d like to go out with me sometime.” he said, sounding a bit more confident than he did before.

A huge smile spread across y/n’s face. She couldn’t believe this was actually happening.

“Yes, I’d love to go out with you.” she answered excited.

A smile now appeared on the drummers face too. While y/n happily typed in her number into his phone, Ethan looked over to Damiano. The singer just mouthed an ‘I told you so’ and gave him a cheeky smile. Shaking his head, he looked back to the beautiful girl he just asked out. He could not believe she actually said yes, but he was glad that she did.

[mcheang]

@pendoodlex Do an Adrien Salt where Lila lies about Chat Noir and Ladybug being in a relationship and Adrien confirms the lie.

It’s my love life!

It’s easy to lie about stuff people want to hear. Alya was greedy for any gossip about Ladybug and loved support for her theories on Ladybug.

Recently they debated on Ladybug’s true age. Was she an immortal with teenage hormones and atttiude? Or simply a teenager?

Now they were on to Ladybug’s love life.

Lila: Of course LadyNoir is a thing. Ladybug just denies it because she doesn’t want to give Hawkmoth any more reason to target Chat Noir, but it’s obvious how much they care for each other.

Alya: Yes! A witness to Ladynoir!

Marinette: a lying witness

Nathaniel frowned. “I don’t know, Lila…”

Before Lila could insist she was correct, Adrien actually jumped in. “It’s true. Ladybug and Chat Noir are a couple. Sorry, Nathaniel, but she’s off the market.”

Marinette froze. Did Adrien just lie to Nathaniel about her love life? Just so no one would interfere with their beloved Ladynoir fandom?

WTH???

Overwhelmed by her hurt and rage, Marinette actually grabbed Adrien’s hand and dragged him out of the classroom, her face burning red.

Some assumed she was trying out another one of her confession schemes. Lila thought Marinette was going to tell Adrien she was a liar (eh, he already knew.)

In a far off corner, Marinette was whisper-yelling at Adrien. “What are you thinking? It’s one thing to ignore Lila’s lies, it’s another to endorse them! LadyNoir is not real!”

Thinking that Marinette still had a crush on Chat Noir, Adrien winced and rubbed his head. “I’m sorry, Marinette. But it’s true. Ladybug and Chat Noir are a couple.”

“No, they are not! Where’s your proof?“ She demanded.

Adrien thought quickly. “I saw them kissing on a rooftop last week.”

Marinette raised a brow. “Are you sure you weren’t just dreaming?” Her voice was heavy with skepticism.

Adrien: Positive.

Marinette: Well, I’m not sorry to say that you’re wrong. Ladybug and Chat Noir are not a couple.

Adrien: and how are you so sure? Just because you have a crush on Chat-

Marinette: Because Ladybug visited me after my dad was akumatized!

Adrien:…what?

Marinette took a deep breath. She hated lying but she also couldn’t stand lies about her.

“Ladybug consoled me after Chat rejected me. She reminded me about the other great boys in my life and ones I have yet to meet. And I asked her why she wouldn’t date Chat. Do you know what she told me?”

Adrien was quiet.

“She said she was in love with a boy from her own civilian life, not Chat Noir. To be honest, he’s not even her type.”

Adrien perked up. “Ladybug has a type?”

Marinette: Obviously. From what I hear, she’s more into the sensitive soul kind of guy.

Adrien: Chat is sensitive!

Marinette just stared at her crush in disbelief. “Um, yeah, no. The dude sulks whenever he gets rejected and has no idea what no means. For crying out loud, he gave me a pink rose before dumping me, and that was after he ate the treats my dad baked for him.”

Adrien: For someone with a crush on the hero, you sure sound bitter.

Marinette exhaled again, calming herself. “I’m not bitter. I’ve moved on, truly. Enough to see what Ladybug meant when she said I’ll move on soon enough. I’m over Chat.“

Adrien raise his brows.

Marinette continued, “I’ve been able to analyse his actions without the hero-crush filters. Be honest, Adrien, how would you feel at having to constantly reject the same person over and over again? Wouldn’t you be annoyed by their repeated flirtations?”

Adrien shrugged. “I reject fans all the time. Well, not exactly. I just ignore their love letters.“

Marinette shook her head. “That doesn’t count. You don’t know those people. Let’s say Chloe was going to confess her love to you every day. And you have to reject her every day. When you reject her, she raises a fuss and causes an akuma. How would you feel about your childhood friend?”

Adrien grimaced. “That would suck. I would avoid Chloe just to avoid her confessions.”

Marinette raised her hand, like there you go. Point proven.

Adrien wasn’t done. “But,” he insisted stubbornly, “it’s different for LadyNoir. They’re partners. Yin and Yang. A superhero duo. Who else is she going to end up with if not her partner? These kinds of pairings always win in the end.”

Marinette: that’s just sad. You’re comparing Ladybug’s love life to fiction. Life isn’t a fairy tale, Adrien. you don’t decide who Ladybug ends up with, and it’s not right for you to lie about her either.

Adrien: LadyNoir will happen. I’m sure of it.

Marinette: You’re not even going to take back that lie, are you?

Adrien: Why would I? It’s going to be fact.

Marinette said sadly, “Goodbye, Adrien.”

After school, Marinette tore down her posters of Adrien. Filters removed, indeed.

Tikki: Don’t worry, Marinette. I’m sure things will come right in the end.

Marinette: that doesn’t mean I can’t help set things back in order. Tikki, spots on!

Alya turned around at a tapping on her window.

Alya: Ladybug!

Ladybug: Hey, Alya. Listen, I’ve been reading your blog, and I need to set some facts straight.

Alya: Is this about revealing your love life? Because honestly, it would be better to be honest about your love life than to let others hope they have a shot with you. Remember Copycat?

Ladybug: That’s my point. I’m not dating Chat Noir. I don’t even like him that way. Lila has been lying to you, Alya.

Alya: Um, she’s your Best Friend…

Ladybug: When did I ever say that?

Alya:…….. ……….Why didn’t you correct me before today, then?

Ladybug sighed. “Because i had called her out in front of Adrien, and she got akumatized. And when she disappeared for a while, I figured there was no need to bring her up.“

Alya: Hold on. Adrien knew Lila was lying?

Ladybug: Yes. Though I’m sure he must have his own reasons for protecting Lila. But back to my point. I am not dating Chat Noir, and I am not interested in him like that. My love life is mine to decide, not for others to insist on just because they prefer me with Chat. How would you like it if Parisians started pairing you with Pegasus or Monkey King instead of Carapace? With them insisting you break up with Nino just to be with someone they chose for you?”

“That would be annoying,“ admitted Alya. “And invasive.”

Ladybug: I want to do a live interview, to clear the matter up once and for all.

In this interview, Ladybug was professional and succinct as she stated she doesn’t know Lila Rossi and she is not in a relationship with Chat. She doesn’t want to hurt her fans, but her love life is for her to handle.

Unable to help herself, Alya asked, “If you don’t like Chat, who do you like? You don’t have to give any names, but just one little tidbit, please?”

Eh, why not?

Ladybug leaned back on her hands and smiled, her eyes going faraway and dreamy. “Mature. That’s all I’ll say.”

After all, Luka had always supported her crush on Adrien. He never pushed her, but was always there for her. Why didn’t she how good he was? Oh right, Adrien filters.

Lila was fuming. How could she show her face again? Where was an akuma when you wanted one?

The akuma was drawn to a LadyNoir fanatic.

Fight fight fight. Chat was noticeably sulky at having been rejected on air.

When Alya came over to interview, he insisted he would not give up on Ladybug. Alya raised her brows, “Yeah that’s fine. But just don’t be pushy about it. And from your attitude earlier during the battle, I don’t think you fit Ladybug’s ideal criteria.”

Chat flushed and turned away, using his baton to propel himself home.

At school, Lila was playing truant, and Alya was grilling Adrien for keeping quiet.

Adrien: her lies weren’t hurting anyone!

Alya: I’m taking into account your isolated childhood, so let me just say, lies are hurtful. And it’s not right to encourage and spread her lies either.

Adrien: LadyNoir has to happen!

Nino shook his head in disgust. “You sound like that akuma last night. Ladybug has the right to decide who she wants to be with. If you ship LadyNoir, that’s fine. But you shouldn’t let it get this far to decide for Ladybug who she ends up with.”

Alya sighed, “Let’s blame Gabriel for this and hope Adrien can still be saved.”

Alya also understood when Marinette gave up on Adrien after seeing his behavior. She was interested in Luka but decided to wait because she didn’t want him to be a rebound guy.

Anyway, Adrien learned to keep his opinions to himself when all they got him was disapproval.

Ladybug’s interview caused the Parisians to question if the Italian diplomat should even still be in Paris if her daughter likes to spout lies about their heroine. How could she let her own daughter lie about stuff like that? It was enough that Mrs Rossi was questioned at work and her ignorance unveiled.

Yeah, Mrs Rossi would be lucky to keep her job after this but it was suggested Lila be sent outside Paris since she would certainly be unhappy with her new pariah status. Lila was sent to a correctional facility where no one was charmed by her falsehoods. Hell, she couldn’t even contact her mother because she was even busier trying to make amends.

When Ladybug finally told Chat she was happily in a relationship with her new boyfriend, he was sulky. Oh sure, he continued to fight alongside Ladybug but he was hopeful that she would break up with her boyfriend.

Plagg: that’s a horrible reaction. Can’t you just be happy for Ladybug?

Adrien: love is irrational and can’t be reasoned with, Plagg.

Plagg: then can you at least be polite and respectful to Ladybug’s wishes that you stop flirting with her?

Adrien: fine. Being Chat Noir was a chance to finally express myself, though.

Plagg: there’s a difference between freedom of expression and being rude/disrespectful/obnoxious

Adrien tried to date Kagami, but she broke up with him. There was no point in continuing the relationship when Adrien was so fixed on Ladybug.

I’m gonna leave this open ended. Any ideas how you would end this story?

[charlie-rulerofhell]

For they know exactly what they do

Today there was a pretty long article published in the German newspaper FAZ, written by Julia Schaaf. Since there were quite a few interesting topics raised in it and Måneskin talked about some new aspects (or in more detail), I translated the whole thing (it might also have helped me to procrastinate).

Full interview in English under the cut.

For they know exactly what they do

June 22, 2021

Four young rock musicians from Rome are today's hottest band. Måneskin are enchanting Europe. Why? We met them for an interview.

Every romance needs its founding myth, an anecdote from the beginning, something you can tell later in more difficult times for self-assurance.

In the case of the band Måneskin, who first had Italy and now half of Europe wrapped around their fingers, and who are now trying to conquer the rest of the world with their rock music, there is the story of the shoe box. Rome, around five years ago: Four teenagers who are meeting every day after school in their rehearsal room to make music together, and sometimes they play their songs on the Via del Corso in the city centre in front of a changing audience. One day they want to record their own stuff. They find a studio that they can actually afford and as they go there they bring a shoe box, with the name of the band written on it, 'moonshine' in Danish, the bassist's mother is Danish. In the box: around seven kilogram of coins. The things you get from playing music on the streets. Everyone searching through Instagram for photos from that time can find four hippies with children's faces, three boys in batik, the girl is wearing a straw hat.

As they have to pay [for the recording], frontman Damiano David, 22, says that there was this guy, Angelo, and his bandmate Victoria De Angelis, 21, is interrupting: “No, Andrea, not Angelo”, and all of them have to laugh because a rigid studio manager with the Italian name 'angel' would be even funnier for a founding myth. David continues his story: “The guy was completely dumbfounded. 'We can't do that.' We went: 'Sure we can, that's worth the same even if it's just 20 cent coins, it's still 300 euros.” Thomas Raggi, 20, the guitarist of the band, is gasping for air as he laughs, while drummer Ethan Torchio, 20, is smiling dreamily. David finishes: “And then we snuck off before he was able to count it.” [the German text says 'verdrücken' here which is just a colloquial way of saying 'we left', but it entails some sort of a dramatic exit, so yeah, let your thoughts get creative how they left exactly :D].

Four young musicians on the verge of global fame are sitting on a white interview sofa in Berlin, completely styled, babbling across each other like overeager teenagers.

Ever since the Roman band first won the music festival Sanremo and then also the Eurovision Song Contest, carried by the enthusiasm of European viewers, you could say Måneskin has become a phenomenon. “Rock 'n' Roll never dies!”, Damiano David yelled fueled by the adrenaline of winning, and the insinuation that circulated on social media of the singer snorting during the counting of votes in front of a live camera – including their strict denial followed by a negative drug test result – might have given an additional boost to their public interest, their exploding album, ticket and merch sales, and their outstanding success on Spotify.

“We think it's a shit prejudice against rock music that there always have to be drugs involved. We fully threw ourselves into our participation with the utmost professionalism. We give everything for the music. So of course we don't want people to think that we can only do that because we take drugs.” – Victoria De Angelis

Prior to Eurovision, Måneskin was more of an insider's tip outside of Italy. Handmade rock music, not creating something entirely new but paying homage to the good old times with classic guitar riffs and cracking drum beats, being a lot of fun but also quite fragile and vulnerable at times and, first and foremost, conveying a captivating energy. Finally, on the stage of Rotterdam, live after so many months of isolation and renunciation, this wave of energy spilled straight over into European living rooms. It seemed easy to (mistakenly) interpret the winning song “Zitti e buoni” (Shut up and behave) as a declaration of frustration of our youth in times of a pandemic. In fact, singer Damiano David is singing about the favourite topic of the band: the unrelenting need to, against all odds, be yourself, despite or perhaps because you are different. The message fits their provocative sex appeal, which the band uses to demonstrate their independence of gender norms at any given time. But the core essence of rock music has always been the promise of unlimited freedom.

Thus at the first moment, the meeting with Måneskin is kind of startling. It's Wednesday, we are in the top floor of the new Sony head quarters in Berlin. The four Italians have just started their two-week long promotion tour through Europe. In the afternoon there will be a live concert in a queer club [the SchwuZ, but that's not mentioned here] in Neukölln, which will be streamed via TikTok. Around one million viewers will watch the show, some of them even from Brazil, so people at Sony are pretty excited [for Måneskin to come here]. But at first, these stunningly gorgeous creatures [yes, that's the exact wording :D] are standing surrounded by an entourage of people – their management, PR team, a stylist, a photographer, people who can hold a smartphone or a cigarette if needed [this paragraph is worded a little weirdly, especially taking into account that basically their whole team / 'entourage' is just friends of them, but it seems like the journalist didn't know that or maybe they just wanted to describe their first impression]. They seem like fictional / artificial characters out of a Hollywood movie. Transparent frill blouses with blazers and flared leather trousers, even the platform boots, everything brand-new, the makeup makes their faces look like a glossy magazine cover even in person. The smokey eyes of De Angelis and Raggi make them look smug and bored. Later, on the pictures it will probably look cool.

So of course your first impression might be: This band is under contract to industry giant Sony ever since their success on an Italian casting show [X Factor] in Winter 2017. The music industry must have its hand in the game when a band is photographed half-naked by Oliviero Toscani and styled by Etro. Also, one does not simply rent a villa with a pool in Rome to produce new music there, isolated from the rest of the world. And who else went to London for two whole months, shortly before the winter lockdown, just for inspiration? After the TikTok concert in Berlin – De Angelis and David are now wearing fishnet shirts that sparkle with every move, their bare nipples covered with an X of black tape – the band is posing with a few influencers. In the world of social media you would call that 'producing content'. But what does that mean for a band who are preaching their hosanna of authenticity? How authentic is Måneskin? And is their pointedly casual approach to sexuality and gender cliches in today's pop-cultural spirit more than a marketing strategy?

We're in the interview, the recording device is running for not even five minutes, when Victoria De Angelis says: “Actually, we just try to be ourselves and do what we really want to do.” And really: The more you listen to those four how they speak about the early days of the band in their slurred Roman dialect, about the shoe box and their own experiences with being different, but most importantly about their shared obsession [with music], the more you realise that [De Angelis] is  very serious. Ethan Torchio, who got his first drum kit at the age of six or seven from his father because he was beating everything he could reach, says: “For me, music is like food. I cannot live without it.” The bassist next to him laughs at his pathos. Singer Damiano David applauds the otherwise more reserved friend for his truthfulness [it says 'klarer Punkt', meaning 'for the point he makes', but it makes it seem like Damiano is agreeing with Ethan here, although it doesn't indicate whether he agrees that yes, music is everything for Ethan or that he understands and feels the same].

De Angelis and guitarist Raggi already knew each other from middle school and they were the ones who tried to form a band at the age of only 13, a band that actually took music seriously.

De Angelis: “It's just difficult at that age to find other people who really put everything into music and who truly commit themselves and are willing to invest a lot of their time.”

Raggi: “We set strict rules and scheduled fixed times for the rehearsals, for every day.”

David: “Fever, stomach ache, there was no excuse. Even if you were feeling sick in the rehearsal room. At least you were in the rehearsal room.”

The way the four of them talk across each other, completing each other's sentences, taking turns in talking and sometimes joking about each other, seems intimate and playful. Singer David remembers how at first bassist [De Angelis] was merciless towards him when it came to her first metal band project, as she told him that he wasn't committed enough [to the music]: “Back then I was still playing Basketball. I was one of the people that Vic absolutely didn't want [in her band].” Drummer Torchio was later discovered through Facebook, even though there had already been a drummer, a close friend, but he was not good enough. It seems as if even back then music was everything for them. Even if it meant that only Raggi managed to graduate.

And why rock, why rock music of all things? Because it's great, the four of them say in unison. David adds: “Actually, it's a genre that allows you to do everything you want to do.”

When they played on the street, they were laughed at by their classmates. But not only there. De Angelis explains that she never wanted to be a typical girl: “I was always deterred by those stupid boxes that people put you in, and that are just restricting and constraining you, because something is only regarded as male or female. I always rejected that. Instead, I just wanted to do the things I enjoyed doing, I went skating and played football.” Torchio says: “Friends who are not friends anymore were already telling me at the age of ten that those“ – he grabs his long, silky black hair – “were wrong. Because I'm a boy and boys are meant to have short hair, long hair is only for girls. I was bullied a lot for that.”

“Compared to the past, people in our age became much more open-minded. It gets better.” – Thomas Raggi

Frontman David on the other hand, for whom eye shadow, jingling earrings and nail polish as well as his bare torso with the tattoos have become trademarks by now, says: “I was actually more of the average boy.” De Angelis convinced him to try out some eyeliner, which he describes as a spiritual awakening: “I liked myself much more [with makeup]. I saw myself more as myself. As if it had been a suppressed desire of mine.” On a trip to Copenhagen with the others, when he realised that it really didn't matter what people were thinking about him, he got his first fake fur [coat? the article doesn't specify that] in a second-hand shop and let his clothing style be guided by his own love to experiment: “I realised that my whole life I was just going at half speed.” When it comes to diversity all four of them are becoming almost missionary.

At the same time, their success is not only opening doors for them. Back home in Rome they are barely able to go out on the street due to all the paparazzi. “[You need a] hoodie and huge sunglasses”, David says, “the mask is quite helpful, too.” And still, none of them is complaining, and Torchio explains why: “Even if those experiences right now may have sides that are not so pleasant, we still know that for us a dream is coming true. We experience something that we always had in our minds, so we are willing to face every consequence that this entails.”

So is the band facing difficult times, is Måneskin going to change with all the success? Again, all of them answer at the same time.

David: “I'm not worried about that.”

Raggi: “No way!”

De Angelis: “On the contrary. Everything that happened to us happened because we are who we are, so we want to continue the exact same way and stay ourselves.”

Just a few hours later, they are at the stage in Neukölln, bouncing around like pinballs, hammering at their instruments, flirting with each other. “We are out of our minds, but different from the others”, David sings their winning hymn against conformism, and: “The people talk, unfortunately they talk.” Here on stage, the four paradise birds [a German word describing someone with a flamboyant personality] with their half-nude-glittering outfits are radiating an incredible energy with the utmost sincerity, and you begin to wish there was a live audience instead of the TikTok cameras, absorbing and spreading this energy. Måneskin. A cry for a life after the pandemic, a cry for freedom and a better world.

“We do what we wished for all our lives.” – Ethan Torchio