#text emoijs

[liamedemon]

How did no one cover :D and D: already. I love them

gonna post a controversial take alright are y’all ready??

…

actually typing out emoticons like XD and :D and :V never should have gone out of fashion and you can pry them out of my cold dead hands okay I know emojis are fun but THEY DON’T CAPTURE THE EMOTION IN THE SAME WAY

so like

…yeah that was basically it, thanks for reading

[phaexie]

haiii...if you have a typing quirk please provide a plain text version. I don't talk in symbols and emoijs.

[typicalskz]

Minho: I only feel one emotion and it's anger Jisung: Last night you drunk texted us thousand heart emoijs Minho: Out of anger

[starrysundaez]

The Cafe is Open!! ♡

♡ Blog to post cute emojis, mainly self-indulgent graphics and MOGAI terms! ^^

I am WAYYY 2 lazy to make this look super nice soo..ILL REVAMP THE BLOG LATER!! I JUST WANNA POST !!

Info about meee:

⟡ Call me Star, Vani, or Sundae please! [No preference]

Fae/Faer please! They/them is fine for anonymity if needed.

♡ I'm a Lesbian and Genderfluid <3

I'm diagnosed with ADHD and I am a MINOR ! ⌟

ok now text flood

Requests are open, for graphics I am willing to use fanart but you most provide artist credit if you link any. And no, from pinterest does not count. For emojis anything sfw is fine!

I have full rights to turn you down whenever I want and for whatever reason, as well as change my mind or take a long time to work on it! Please keep this in mind.

While all my MOGAI terms are f2u by anyone, please DNI entirely and do not use my graphics if you are; A pedophile( even non-contact, cus, you shouldn't contact me!), a Zionist, or extremely anti-good faith (Neutral, or case by case is fine to int! but straight up no tolerance is a big NO. Queerdom is diverse and lovely <3. and since some weirdo anon was in my inbox FUCK NAZIS!! Fuck anti-Semites too. Me personal im neutrual-pos lean when it comes to good faith no i dont support transid or anything like that NAWW

This blog is NOT involved in syscourse. I am a singlet, it is not my place. Any questions involving my syscourse opinions will be ignored!

NOTE ABOUT INSPIRATION: DO WHATEVER YOU WANT !!!! tag me if u want, or don’t, go crazy! if u edit directly do credit that. but inspo?? fuck yes pro go crazy

(however feel free to ask about making edits! Just ask first!!) EMOJI USAGE: Just credit with SS_ or Strry_ in the emoij name!! :D

I currently do not have a discord..if this blog gains traction I’ll make one! :] <- likely will not happen,, uhm,, unless u guys know how to make an account without a phone number verification bc i dont wanna use my personal one

[ilovesadiesink]

<six of crows as b99 quotes3

Kaz: I only feel one emotion and it's anger

The crows: Last night you drunk texted us thousand heart emoijs

Kaz: Out of anger

[zimwy]

some misc hcs.

bucky is a very stiff texter. very, VERY rare emoij use. almost never uses acronyms or text lingo. you may get a 50-yr-old mother esque "Lol!" out of him every now and then. otherwise it's perfectly formatted, grammatically correct, etc.

(unless he is using voice to text, in which case there will be weird sentences as it mishears and swearing.)

would sext. whether he's good at it or not is up to you to decide.

better at taking photos than most of his Old Man Peers, esp selfies--however, he just doesnt take selfies, because he doesnt like photos of his face floating around.

had his first taste of alcohol with his father, but it was nothing more than a very tiny little sip. his first real experience was a beer with namor, and after that, a whole six pack on his 18th birthday. he got so sick he threw up and fell asleep next to the fire, and someone had to drag him back to his tent. steve was not very happy with him.

huge fan of spotify and other online radio stations, though he will literally always pick the actual radio over them when applicable. but having music on demand is extremely neat to him. listens to shuffle / puts it on his speakers when practicing or doing ballet, which sometimes results in him practicing to weird music. whatever!

(would get very quickly disillusioned with subscription services though. firm believer if you buy something then you should own it, not pay for it fucking monthly. would grouse about this every time something comes up to remind him there's some fee to pay for.)

a little bit of an old man about some things, but not in a bad or antagonistic way. like, piercings anywhere but the ears earn a few passing thoughts, rainbow dyed hair raises his eyebrows. like, fully 'you do you', he still just--notices it? it's a little 'oh.. i dunno if i'm ready for that yet'. tattoos do nothing to him though, he saw guys getting plenty of those.

actually pretty difficult to get ahold of for casual conversation. has like three different phone numbers and uses encrypted untrackable apps. will toss his SD card and smash the phone if he feels compromised. the only people who have a relatively constant line to him are natalia and steve, not even sam is afforded that luxury.

in indiana, had a tree outside he'd use for target practice--mostly knives, he isn't going to be blowing bullet holes through a tree or into peoples houses. if he wanted to practice aiming with ballistics, he'd find the wing of the avengers compound designated to it. its actually more of a stress relief thing than anything; because of bucky's alterations, his skill will never degrade.

[a-captions-blog]

Hello dears👋! I am asking you👈 to support my campaign to help me🙏 reach my goal. I am now in dire need of your support to help me survive👇Gaza is a very dangerous place both in terms of living and lives. I need your financial support to enable me to get the basic needs for my family until the Rafah crossing is reopened to transport my family to safety and peace. Please help a family survive through your donations or through your shares to others. Thank you very much for standing by the oppressed🇵🇸

[Plain text: Hello dears [waving hand emoji]! I am asking you [left pointing finger emoji] to support my campaign to help me[praying hands emoji] reach my goal. I am now in dire need of your support to help me survive[down pointing finger emoji] Gaza is a very dangerous place both in terms of living and lives. I need your financial support to enable me to get the basic needs for my family until the Rafah crossing is reopened to transport my family to safety and peace. Please help a family survive through your donations or through your shares to others. Thank you very much for standing by the oppressed [Palestinian flag emoij] \End PT]

~

They are currently at £884 / £55,000

GoFundMe: link

[fancytextnet]

Are you looking for some nice symbols to decorate your Facebook, Instagram or Twitter posts and comments? Fancytext.net provide you with special characters in a variety of categories: Symbols, Smileys & People, Animals & Nature, Travel & Places or Flags....

[povlvr]

3. No games, just the truth;

Pairing: Biker Bucky Barnes x Female Reader

Summary: An unexpected lunch date with Bucky leads to prying eyes that might burst your bubble.

Word Count: 3.4k

Warnings: Fluff, smut-ish but not really, potential angst, but Bucky just being a sap

A/N: I prefer giving my female reader an actual name rather than Y/N. Apologies for the lack of updates work & Christmas has taken up all my focus recently so i've been reading a lot, plus working on another mini series to post alongside this (Not related, think Soft lumberjack Beefy Bucky).

~~~

To say Bucky utilised having your phone number would be an understatement, the texts were almost immediate once you said your good night that Friday, Bucky headed back to the bar to deal with some club business & gave you running commentary about what the guys were saying about you. Of course, he left out the part where they had declared him whipped & in response him jokingly announcing that he would marry you one day, although the others laughed Steve knew he was being sincere.

Each ding of your phone made your heart skip a beat, it hurt to smile as much as you were, but you couldn’t stop yourself even If you tried, you gave into it, gave into the feeling of falling. You didn’t care if it was 2am & your eye lids were threatening sleep, you fought it to keep talking to him, he made you feel 17 again like you could do anything with him, go anywhere.

Despite all his friends being sat around him he hadn’t ever felt such a pull elsewhere, the urge to constantly check his phone was an unfamiliar rollercoaster of feelings that could change in a split second, anticipation when he checked the screen, disappointment when he was met with a message-less phone & then the euphoria when a notification was awaiting him.

He didn’t want to be sat there, he wanted to be in bed with you, lying down & having the conversation in person that was taking place through his phone. It wasn’t the physical side he was pining for, it was everything else, he wanted to hold you whilst you slept, wake up & your face be the first thing he sees, he wanted the feeling that was consuming him whole to never leave his body. You were IT for him, he hadn’t ever felt this before, sure there had been other women in his life but you were making him question if he had ever felt anything for them. He kept asking himself if it was possible to fall in love with someone after one night.

James 💙

Doll, I’ve kept you awake too late. Get some sleep pretty girl. Text me when you’re up.

You fell asleep, didn’t you?

Kinda tired myself tbh, going to head home I think.

Trying not to send too many messages so you don’t wake up to a bunch.

Just wanted to say I loved meeting you tonight, you have no idea what you do to me.

Anyway, if you read this when you’ve woken up I hope you had sweet dreams … all about me.

Also, why haven’t you text me if you’re awake. Huh?? Don’t be cruel to me doll. 😫

That’s the first one of them I have ever sent.

I just googled, they’re called emoijs.

Don’t tell Sam I googled that.

Shit I hope none of these messages wake you up.

Shit, I did it again.

Fuck & again. Ok I’ll go now.

Text me xx

Waking up to so many messages would have usually been a red flag, but somehow from Bucky they were charming & adorable, you laughed & smiled until you’d read them all. All the usual rules seem to have gone out the window, it was refreshing to have the freedom to just text at will to someone, not think if it was too soon or if you were coming across too eager. No games, just the truth;

You were utterly sweet on each other.

You were still riding high on the Bucky Barnes serotonin being kindly administered by him from each message he sent on the way to the office that Monday, who knew a good morning text was all it took for you to be a morning person? The weekend had been filled with non-stop exchanges, the flirting increasing exponentially as well as him letting you know how much trouble he was getting himself into messaging you whilst he was working, but assured you he cold handle Steve’s scolding’s.

You got to know more about him, he told you things he wouldn’t share with other people, dreams of leaving the sleepy town to escape the pitfalls of the cycle the Barnes’ men found themselves in, he found it effortless to let you in, he loved your perspective on it all. You told him more about why you were here, your childhood & your life in New York promising to take him & show him all the pizza places he could dream of after his non-stop pizza related questions.

As you headed through the halls of the beige lifeless office you passed countless nameless faces all filled with the animosity you had been initially greeted with, you quickly found in your line of work that being an outsider tasked with 'fixing' a workplace staff thought was functioning well left you lacking in the work friend department, no one likes change. One face you did recognise smiled at you; Scott Lang, the only acquaintance you had made at the company so far, you couldn’t not like Scott, he was charismatic, funny & had the sweetest daughter in the world, she made a card for you when Scott had told her of your arrival, it was cute as hell.

‘Woah, slow down tiger.’ He called after you as you passed.

‘Morning Scott, did you have a good weekend with Cassy?’

‘Always do, she is so sweet I swear I am going to get cavities hanging around that kid. What’s up with you? You’re practically bouncing through the office, you're glowing & that smile is the first I’ve seen since you got here.’

‘Just had a nice relaxing weekend. I think I’m finally getting into a routine ya know.’

‘Well it suits ya, ya know’

You could tell he wasn’t buying it from the tone of his ‘ya know’ but you just rolled your eyes & headed towards your office.

‘See ya later Scott, any issues just knock.’

Throughout the morning Scott noticed the pings slowly followed by a smile plastered on your face, by lunch you were grinning & he was on the verge of planning a heist to get hold of your phone to see what had got you so happy. Pulling the fire alarm seemed a bit extreme so he was finessing his plan before he would take any action.

Turns out getting a lunch time message to meet Bucky outside your office now made you a person who loved Mondays. Like clock work Scott heard the ping & directed his gaze to your office, he saw the elation on your face, you grabbing your bag & sprinting out the office. He followed you figuring that taking his break at the same time as you & taking the same brisk route out the office seemed a less risky option than stealing your phone.

You spotted Bucky immediately, how could you not? He stood leaning against his bike, despite memorising his face you’d forgotten how stunning he really was to look at, the sparkle in his eyes made every second you had spent apart seem like a punishment. You practically skipped up to him & wrapped your arms around him in a hug, his arms rested on your hips pulling you into his body.

‘Hi’

‘Hi’

At the mere sight of you his shyness consumed him, he wondered how you got him so flustered but he managed to get out of his head when you smiled at him, it was like all the rays of the sun radiated from you. ‘Wow, you look beautiful doll, very professional. I wouldn’t be able to get any work done if I worked with ya.’

‘Just wait til you see me in my glasses, you’d feel my authority & have no choice but to get to work.’

He pulled you closer nuzzling his nose & mouth to your neck ‘Just tell me what you want to do darlin, I’ll do a real thorough job.’

You were giggling at his words, knowing exactly what he was implying, feeling him growing pressed against you. You wondered how it was possible that you could have someone so obviously wrapped around your finger & yet be just as wrapped around theirs. One word & you’d be down on your knees for him without question.

You managed to compose yourself from the heat that was growing in your underwear & pulled your head back to look at him ‘Ok gorgeous, I only have an hour, where we goin’?’

‘If you’re ok with it I thought we could ride out to this place I know, real quiet & no one will bother us.’ He moved some hair out of your face & you leaned into his touch, all you wanted was his lips on yours, you would be lying if you said you weren’t disappointed when he leaned towards you reaching behind you for a helmet.

It was a strange feeling to want to rush into something so much yet savour every minute together, the early stages of infatuation shouldn’t be rushed through but the urge to be his everything meant you wanted to skip ahead & just be together, the logical side of you pleading to go slow, to enjoy the feeling of falling, you had the rest of your life for the rest. There wasn’t a doubt in your mind about that, you hadn’t even kissed him yet, but you knew there would be no other after James Barnes.

He tucked your hair behind your ears on both sides before carefully placing the helmet on your head, you struggled to keep the grin from your face as he secured the clasp under your chin, checking & double checking it was safe. He paused & stepped back to take a look at you, he had to hold what he was feeling in because he thought you would run if he said it out loud, it was easy to fall this hard when it came to someone like you.

‘What?’ you said though a smile, he was looking at you like there was nothing else to look at in the world.

‘You just look so cute with your face all squished up in the helmet, I want to take a picture, so I can’t forget it.’

‘Well, if you play your cards right you’ll be seeing me like this a lot & you won’t need the picture.’

He almost looked surprised, you didn’t think you could make it more obvious that you were into him, so the loveable goof stood before you & leaned down giving you a kiss on your squished cheek, before moving to the other, then to your forehead & the tip of your nose.

‘I’d like that doll.’ He reached to his helmet hanging from his handlebar. ‘You ok being behind me on the bike? You could always go up front.’

‘No, I’ll be fine, if I squeeze you too tight let me know though.’

Bucky threw one leg over his bike & sat down holding out his hand for you, you managed to hold your balance & not make a tit out of yourself & placed your hands on his hips. Once his helmet was secure he turned on the ignition & the engine roared to life, after a quick check in his mirrors he sped away carrying you both to your lunch date.

Scott watched your exchanges from the lobby of the office wondering how you knew the infamous motorcycle gang leader responsible for terrorising the town & more worryingly why he was kissing you & riding off with you on his bike.

The vibrations of the bike combined with being so close to Bucky had your knickers soaked, before setting off he reached for your hands & pulled them tightly around his waist, the temptation to touch him whilst he was riding had your imagination in overdrive, you were practically grinding on the seat for some relief. Thankfully before you made a fool of yourself by orgasiming having not even been touched Bucky pulled up to a peninsula by the roadside, you hadn’t paid much attention to the journey being on the brink of climax the entire ride so you hadn’t noticed the views. You jumped off the bike once you’d come to a full stop praying you didn’t leave any evidence of your arousal on the seat.

The views were exquisite, land as far as the eye could see, the terrain always looked so dreary to you but from afar you could see the beauty of it, the subtly of the colours dancing around the landscape set against a cloudless expanse of blue sky.

‘Sorry Doll, did I go too fast?’ the worry was plastered on his face, his sweet concerned face. You could just tell him the truth, it was deserted I’m sure he wouldn’t mind fooling around with you, but you managed to compose yourself.

‘No not at all, just hungry plus we don’t have loads of time. Just want to make the most of it.’ He was taking off your helmet as you fed him the half-truth, it wasn’t a lie just a slight omission you reasoned.

‘Glad to hear it Doll, I may have gone a bit OTT at the deli.’ He began taking container after container of food out of the saddlebags he had strapped to his bike. ‘Didn’t know what you’d like so I went for a mix of everything.’

‘You didn’t have to do all this for me.’

He reached out for your hand, stroking your soft skin. ‘It was nothing gorgeous, my best girl hard at work needs a good lunch, plus I eat a lot so it will get eaten darlin’.’

‘Good to know, I enjoy feeding my man.’ You didn’t realise you had said it until the words left your mouth. ‘Shit, sorry I just meant my friends, ya know looking after people that kind of thing.’ Great save Florence, you thought.

Speechless wasn’t something Bucky was often, yes, he was quiet for the most part & explosive when he needed to be but utterly speechless that this amazing woman, this sweet little thing had thought of him as her man & stumbled over herself in the most adorable fashion to cover a faux pas that he didn’t care about. He was her man & she wanted to look after him, he felt on cloud nine.

He pulled you onto his lap, looking so deeply into your eyes you felt as though he was reading into your very soul, ‘Don’t you dare apologise, if I get to call you my girl & you call me your man I’d have to check I hadn’t died & gone to heaven sweetheart.’

Any tension you were feeling melted away in his arms as you giggled against him. ‘let’s not let all this food go to waste honey.’ You nodded & reached for a sandwich, you were astounded by how much Bucky could eat, you were already thinking of dishes you could cook for him & his obvious sweet tooth meant you didn’t have to bug Scott with testing any new cake recipes you were working on. You made a mental note to find your baking equipment buried in the sea of unpacked boxes in your spare room to make Bucky some of your lemon & blueberry loaf cake as a thank you for lunch.

It was perfect, the view, the food, Bucky, you were cursing having to go back to the office because you knew you’d spend all day thinking about him rather than doing your job. Time is a funny thing, if you’re in pain a second can seem to last an entire life time but when you’re floating feeling completely content in your bliss time moves at light speed, so it felt like as soon as you had got there it was time to leave.

‘I really could stay here all day Doll but I’ve kept you long enough, I doubt you can threaten your boss with a beating like I can if you’re late back from lunch.’ he chuckled.

‘No, I don’t think Tony Stark would take well to that but I’m the boss down here so I can reprimand myself another day if I am.’

'I'd be late back every day to be reprimanded in your office doll.' he raised his eyebrows up & down repeatedly with a cheeky smirk plastered on his face.

'That can be arranged Mr Barnes. HR won't have to know about it if you comply to my every demand.' the words rolled out your mouth as you looked at him through your eyelashes. You'd never been so comfortable being this flirtatious with someone before, hell, you'd hire him just to play out the fantasy flashing through your head. You sitting on your desk with the outrageously short skirt you'd worn for him that day hiked up to your waist whilst his face was buried in your pussy until you were cumming on his tongue.

'I'll be sending over my resume later. Can't reprimand me if I don't work there.' It was like he was reading your mind, you really weren't getting any work done this afternoon because you'd be working on the detailed plot of your fantasy in your head.

Reluctantly you rose to your feet & dusted off your trousers whilst Bucky packed away the now empty containers, you actually managed to contain yourself & enjoy the scenery you missed earlier during quick ride back to your office. You loved being on the Bike with him, he rode quickly but you felt completely safe with him enveloped by his scent & pressed up against the wall of muscle, even in a white denim shearling jacket people would think he looked menacing but he was as docile & soft as a kitten with you, you loved it.

Exactly like before he helped remove your helmet & smoothed down your hair, you assumed he'd stay on the bike but he got off & took his own helmet off.

'I had a really great time Bucky, thanks for lunch. Next time I'll make you a picnic & we can go back. It was beautiful up there.'

'In that case, same time tomorrow doll?' he wanted to push his luck & ask to pick you up tonight but he stopped himself.

'It's a date.' you couldn't stop yourself from reflecting his smile.

He pulled you into his arms, you swore a hug from Bucky should be prescribed by doctors instead of anti-depressants, they made you feel so safe, secure & cherished, apart from being completely addictive & the only side affect you had come across so far was unadulterated horniness.

He pulled back slightly, your noses brushing against each other’s, he had regretted not kissing you that first night so he made sure he leaned in & softly pressed his lips to yours. His lips were so soft & you melted into him, your hand made its way to his face feeling his strong jaw as you pulled him even closer to you. It took every ounce of restraint not to let passion take over, he was aware you were outside your office so he kept it as respectable as possible, one hand in the small of your back pressing you against him & the other on your hip. You were both smiling throughout & didn’t stop at one, as you were attempting to part it turned into long lingering kisses & small pecks like your lips were magnets repeatedly finding the pull too great to be separated from their rightful place. Together.

You eventually peeled yourself away from Bucky & floated to your office on a cloud of euphoria, as you began to flesh out the narrative of your fantasy in your head your phone pinged.

James 💙

Doll I swear if we weren’t outside your office I wouldn’t have been so well behaved. Tomorrow can’t come soon enough.

You were beaming as you read his text, you quickly replied as there was a knock on your door. Scott stood in the doorway, in place of his usual kind expression was a look of anguish, he was torn, on one hand it was truly none of his business who you associated with but if you were being forced to be with Bucky he had to try & help or worse if he was trying to manipulate you into bed by pretending to be someone he wasn’t he needed to warn you at least.

Doll ❤️

Tell me about it. I don’t think I’ll get much work done this afternoon after that goodbye 😘

You quickly switched your phone to silent & placed it in your desk drawer whilst you dealt with your visitor, ‘Hey Scott, what’s up?’ Your eyes narrowed immediately assuming something had happened whilst you were on lunch.

‘We need to talk.’

[describe-things]

[ID: Two screenshots of tweets, both by "holly is too cheeky". The first says, "bro thinks twitter discource is gonna get it killed. Yall be so dramatic and corny", with two dramatically crying emoijs at the end. The second is replying to "vegapunklilith", and reads, "how does people saying 'you should get arrested' online mean that all bi lesbians are going to get murdered in real life. I'm just going off what OP said", with an emoji of a white woman shrugging. Below this is a cropped image with text mostly cut off, reading, "--of the prob--" and "us killed. I ho--". End ID.]

tfw you can't tell if 19 year old radfems in the making are just genuinely stupid or genuinely don't know the history of pigs murdering gay people and why its so unfathomably evil to say GO GET ARRESTED to somebody who exposed evil perpetauted by the Unitrd States government bc something something neopronouns amd bi lesbians

[lesamis]

gonna agree on the patron saint of homesickness but also letter writing, mountain lakes and raspberry picking🍓🫐 (raspberry emoji supremacy when??)

no raspberry emoij, no lavender bushel emoji, how is one meant to text under such circumstances...

(thank you!! ​😭​ this is rly all i aspire to be)

[dupliciity]

@lagda sent some CHARACTER QUESTIONS  //  ACCEPTING !!

What are their 5 most recent google searches?

weather forecast today ua sports festival footage what are popular tiktok trends abba music  nice cat picture

What’s their texting style like?

hiroto is embarrassingly formal in his text messages. if you are texting him, you’re basically getting an email back. it’s either too much text or just a simple ‘okay’ and nothing more. 

What is on your muses phone? ( apps , photos , contacts , notes , most used emoijs .etc )

hiroto is a bare bones kind of guy. he usually just uses his phone to make phone calls, and send text messages. for his parents owning a tech company, it’s pretty odd. he doesn’t use emojis often, but if he does it’s usually just a simple smiley face. he has instagram on his phone, but doesn’t use it often. he never posts. 

How does your muse handle distressing and/or overwhelming situations?

honestly?? it depends on the situation. if it’s a situation that puts himself in harm  ( like a fight )  he is very calm and analytical. he will think through the scenario and create a plan in his mind that gets him out of the situation with the least amount of harm done to himself. now, if it’s a consistently distressing situation  ( like lets say living a double life and betraying his classmates oops )  he will push all his feelings involving the situation as far down as they can go. he will let the bad feelings simmer until he snaps. 

Do they have a sensitive spot/s?

ok so this could either be physical or emotional but i’m gonna go with emotional. he has a soft spot for people who are powerful who have been pushed aside or ignored. he wants to let them know how important they are, and he wants to make sure they know they are valued. this is a little bit of a projection from his parents attitude towards him. also cute animals. he likes cute animals. 

[tbhstudying]

Its fun to text the gays. As a gay myself, texting with the straights is extremely boring. No emoij’s or anything or like KSJSJSKSH or ABDCRFAGLL. Im so uncomfy with that last keyboard smash. I hate it

i think it rly depends on internet culture and access to internet imo? a lot of gay folks i know are on the internet a lot, especially since it’s typically where we first found other ppl like us and since it’s typically where we find our first communities. from places like forums and servers and social media, we found different memes and ways of speaking and all of that good internet linguistics stuff. i’ve met some gays who don’t text entirely like me, but that’s mostly due to exposure and experience of different internet and irl cultures. 

[thepayloadmoves]

i think its really interesting how, linguistically speaking, that those of us that contact our coworkers online or over text fairly often or almost exclusively will use different emojis ‘professionally’. i think that this says a lot about how humans in general present themselves, a way of speaking with different people, the same as if you wouldn’t curse around your boss or your parents but with your coworkers and your friends you swear like a sailor, like how you’re soft and sparkly for your significant other but sharp and snarky with your pals, and dont speak much at all at work because you just want to keep your head down and do your job and collect your paycheck. you would use different emojis for each interaction you have with certain people if all of these interactions took place over text. for example i have the exact same set of emojis i use on Slack for both public work discussions and in DMs with my coworkers (such as the one with the monkey covering its eyes, the generic laughing crying face, the fingers crossed, a wide variety of party parrots, and various takes on the thinking face, especially the spinning thinking emoji [and the same one except it spins super fast or becomes very distorted, clearly signifying that im thinking very hard about something])

but i would never use these emojis somewhere say, over text, over snapchat, over facebook messenger, over Discord. and even in these places i use a different set of emojis. for text and snapchat i like the laughing crying face thats sideways, at an angle, sparkles and the gold star, and various animal ones. on facebook i mostly just use the rainbow and snake emoijs, maybe the laughing crying one. but only maybe. 

on discord however, for me, it’s a lawless no man’s land where the generic emojis (outside of the trademark symbol) are fucking blasphemy and if you use them you will instantly become a target and will be destroyed on sight. anime emotes only!!!!!

[a-captions-blog]

Hello, I hope you and your family are well. Can you please help me with your generous donation or recycle this post on my account? 🌺 And help save my family from the war in Gaza?

Your donation, even a small amount, means hope, creates a smile and makes a real difference in the lives of others. Be part of this smile 🙏 Thank you

https://gofund.me/124fd3c9

[Plain text:

Hello, I hope you and your family are well. Can you please help me with your generous donation or recycle this post on my account? [flower emoji] And help save my family from the war in Gaza?

Your donation, even a small amount, means hope, creates a smile and makes a real difference in the lives of others. Be part of this smile [praying hands emoij] Thank you \End PT]

They are currently at €622 / €30,000

GoFundMe: link

[shootwinterfest]

GenXmas

Shoot Secret Santa by @hufflepufflovespizza!

        The snow started coming down heavy in buckets on the streets, blanketing New York in deep banks of ice and real snow; not white blankets as seen in certain television holiday movies. 

        Shaw looked out of the frosty apartment window with furrowed brows, she was glad to not be out in the bitter cold. Glad her robot boss believed in holidays even if she didn’t. Shaw walked back over to her comfortable couch and sat down to clean her gun while an old black and white holiday movie played in the background on the television. As soon as she sat down, Root moved her feet to fit under Shaw’s legs. Root had her glasses on as she worked on her laptop. It did not go unnoticed by Shaw that Root had her feet tucked up under her legs to keep warm. 

        “Hey, I’m not a human blanket. Get a real blanket,” Shaw threw over a blanket on the edge of the couch and hit Root in the face. 

        “Your legs are much warmer and then I get to see your face when I do this,” Root pulled the blanket down on her lap as she ran her foot completely under Shaw’s leg, moving up further along her thigh. Shaw scowled back at her. 

        “Jesus, Root your feet are like blocks of ice, put some fucking socks on,” Shaw grabbed one foot with her hand and began rubbing it. Her slightly, rough calloused hand over the smooth skin of Root’s ankle back and forth, massaging her arch and getting a moan as a result. 

        “Can you rub another cold part of my body?” Root raised her eyebrows and stared hard at Shaw. 

        Shaw rolled her eyes but didn’t move the foot, so Root ran her foot up higher. 

        “Did you put this movie on?” Shaw pointed to the television. 

        “No, I think it’s one of her choices again,” Root went back to typing on her laptop, not glancing at the television. 

        “Tell your robot girlfriend to stop commandeering the television,” Shaw rubbed Root’s harder which got the hacker’s attention away from her laptop. 

        The Machine at times was known to switch the television in the apartment on many occasions. Shaw would go into a rage when the Machine changed the channel during a sporting event she was watching. The Machine didn’t seem to be into sports as much as after life comedies, warm-hearted baking competitions and haunted house family dramas. 

        Root smirked; she stopped typing and moved her laptop off her lap. She leaned over to Shaw and whispered in her ear as she ran her nose over Shaw’s neck. 

        “She knows how much you enjoy the Great British Baking Show,” Root’s mouth latched onto Shaw’s neck. 

        Shaw growled back, “Bake off.” She was losing the will to keep fighting as Root’s mouth sucked harder on her neck. 

        Before Root could come back with a witty comeback, Shaw pinned her down on the couch and crashed their lips together. Root responded immediately by wrapping her legs around Shaw’s torso. Shirts were discarded quickly and if it was up to Shaw pants would be next as she needed more than dry humping.

        KNOCK. KNOCK. 

        Root and Shaw both whipped their heads to the front door of the apartment with confused expressions. 

        “Did She tell you anyone was stopping by?” Shaw asked in between labored breaths, she was still pissed that no matter how many times she had sex with Root the damn annoying woman could leave her literally breathless every time. 

         Shaw grabbed her tank top from the floor and pulled it on over her head. 

        “No, so at least this person must not be a threat,” Root smiled big while pulling her shirt over her head. “So it must be a nice surprise.” Although, she was disappointed they were interrupted. 

        Shaw scowled back at Root. 

        “Nice, my ass. When has the Machine ever delivered a nice surprise?”

        “Maybe it’s a pineapple pizza?” Root raised her eyes mischievously and tilted her head. 

        Shaw looked back at Root and scowled even harder, she kept her hand on the glock in the back of her jeans as she opened the door. She opened the door cautiously, ready to attack if need be. 

        “Hi Shaw,” there in the doorway was a young familiar kid with beautiful curly hair and a wide grin. “It’s been awhile, you look almost the same but a little more haggard. Saving people might not be good for your skin.” 

        Shaw’s mouth hung open. “Gen? What are you doing here?” She poked her head out in the hallway and looked back and forth. 

        “I got a text message giving me your address and saying you invited me for winter break,” Gen pulled out her phone to show Shaw. 

        Shaw squinted at the text. It was the to the point with no stupid emoijs, the Machine was getting creepy good at matching Shaw’s typing and speech patterns.  

        A huge grin spread across Root’s face, she had not been privy to this plan by the Machine; that sneaky bitch sometimes. She stood up from the couch and waltzed over to the doorway.  She had heard so much about Gen mostly from the Machine, but a few bits here and there from Shaw. She had always wanted to meet Gen and hoped one day she would get the chance. Shaw always kept the Lenin medal in a safe place, no matter how many times they moved.

        “Did you not text me?” Gen furrowed her brows and stared at Shaw. Then to her surprise another woman appeared in the doorway standing next to Shaw. 

        Shaw gritted her teeth. Of course she hadn’t sent a text inviting a kid to spend the silly ass holidays with her. She hadn’t even really paid attention that it was the holiday season. 

        “If you didn’t, I guess I could go back to the school campus,” Gen’s face fell, she shuffled her feet together on the wooden floor, there was a small suitcase sitting next to her. 

        Root looked back and forth between Shaw and Gen, she couldn’t let this opportunity go, plus she didn’t want to see a kid turned away. She hadn’t realized it was so close to the holidays; they had been very busy lately saving numbers and testing out new things with the Machine. Not to mention now that Harold disappeared there was more coding on her end and overall admin duties along with her analog interface duties. 

        “Hi, I’m Root,” she offered her hand to Gen. “Of course she sent the text, she’s being modest.” She pulled the young girl’s arm gently, bringing her fully into the apartment and closed the door. 

        “Shaw? Modest?” Gen squinted her eyes at the tall, lanky woman. She looked at the woman and really studied her. Her eyes took in the loose t-shirt and what seemed to be pajama shorts and she really wondered who this woman was and why she was at Shaw’s apartment. Then she thought, the best way to get intel sometimes was to infiltrate. “Hi, I’m Gen.”

        “I’ve heard a lot about you,” Root smiled warmly at Gen then glanced to Shaw who was scowling at her. “Maybe not from Shaw directly, but from Harold and another…mutual friend.” 

        Gen had no idea who this woman was or who the mutual friend was, but she definitely knew Harold. The man that had changed her life by sponsoring her at the swanky school, which sometimes still felt like Hogwarts to her. Shaw didn’t really seem the type to have friends over to hang out. Maybe they were working a mission? She really hoped they were working a mission. She looked around the sparse living room and saw two laptops on a coffee table next to organized gun parts and various computers parts strewn about messily. Could be a mission, but they also looked like they were in their pajamas. 

        “Please, come in,” Root motioned with her hands and offered to take Gen’s coat. 

        Shaw threw up her hands and moved so Gen could enter the apartment fully. 

        “Is this a stake out for a mission?” Gen filed away this information. “What kind of mission is it this time?”

        Shaw rolled her eyes. 

        “Why would I give you my address if this was a stake out?”

        “Did Shaw tell you about the mission we worked together?” Gen turned to Root and looked up at her with a big smile. “I’m going to make a great spy one day.”

        Root did remember that this kid basically almost took down the whole HR bad guys with her cassette recordings; she was impressed with this young woman. And the Machine was always keeping an eye on Gen; she was definitely potential Primary Asset if she wanted the job one day. 

        “No, we’re not on a stakeout,” Shaw crossed her arms against her chest. “How long is winter break?”

        “Two weeks,” Gen grinned back to Root who returned her grin, then both turned to Shaw who rolled her eyes. 

        Shaw wanted to groan loudly, but kept it inside. Two weeks. They had numbers to save. Possible other missions. And other things that wouldn’t be good for a tween to see or know of thought Shaw. 

        “Through Christmas and New Year’s,” Gen looked around the sparse apartment. “You’re not much for decorating are you Shaw?”

        Root smiled watching Gen talk to Shaw. 

        “So if this isn’t a stake out or mission. Who are you?” Gen stared at Root. 

        “She’s a co-worker,” Shaw snapped back to the young teenager. She thought adding, ‘co-worker with benefits’ wouldn’t be a good visual for Gen and it would probably piss off Root. And she wanted the benefits later tonight. 

        Root glared at Shaw, then her face softened at the confused expression on Gen’s face. 

        “Well, it’s getting late, I’m sure you’re tired,” Root offered. “Unless…you’re hungry?”

        “No, I’m okay.” Gen walked slowly, checking out the apartment more. “It’s less than a week from Christmas, no decorations?”

        “Do I look like a tinsel kind of person?”

        “No,” Root and Gen answered at the same time. 

        Root motioned to Shaw, raised her eyebrows and nodded down to the couch with some gun parts sprawled across it. 

        “You can take the couch,” Shaw picked up various parts of her gun. She didn’t like to admit to herself that her and Root had been sharing a bed since the fall of Samaritan. At first it was mostly celebratory, then it was finically practical and now she wasn’t sure what it was. She wasn’t going to make a big deal of it and thankfully Root didn’t either. 

        “Do you live here?” Gen asked looking at Root. 

        Root looked like a deer caught in headlights, she had almost a literal thought bubble over her head with dots appearing and disappearing while she opened and closed her mouth several times. 

        “How about tomorrow we get a Christmas tree and some decorations?” Root smiled at Gen as she closed her laptops and moved them both to the kitchen table. 

        Shaw groaned, she walked over to the kitchen and poured two glasses of water. She walked back over and set a glass of water on the coffee table near Gen. 

        “If you need anything, don’t wake me up,” Shaw put a pillow down on the couch and an extra blanket. 

        Bear trotted over and sat down in between Root and Shaw. Shaw furrowed her brows while Root couldn’t hold down a smirk. 

        “You have a dog?” Gen asked with a smile. “Oh wait, is this the dog you talked about?”

        Bear looked up between Root and Shaw, he then went over and sniffed Gen. Bear was getting older now but still went on a few missions here and there. 

        “We don’t have Bear, he’s his own dog.” Shaw let out a deep sigh. Had she just said ‘we’, she cursed herself. And she noticed that Root’s grin got wider at her slip. 

        Gen looked around the apartment and only saw one bedroom. She wanted clarification if this Root woman lived here too along with Bear, but didn’t want to push with too many questions right away, sometimes to get the best information, the timing has to at a good calibration. Tomorrow she would do some reconnaissance like checking coat closets for multiple coats, checking the master bathroom for two toothbrushes and testing Root’s knowledge of kitchen inventory – all giveaways of co-habitation. 

        “Get some sleep kid…” Shaw nodded to Gen then shuffled off to the bedroom. “…see you in the morning.” 

        Shaw walked off to the bedroom. Root and Gen watched her. 

        “Very nice to meet you Gen, hope you sleep well,” Root smiled as she trailed after Shaw and closed the bedroom door. 

        In their bedroom, Root tilted her head, she never really thought of the bedroom as their bedroom but she had been mostly living with Shaw since the take down of Samaritan. Shaw’s apartment was the only place she stayed when she wasn’t on an out of town mission; except for nights she got too tired working at their new subway location and spent the night in her purple dorm room as Shaw called it. 

        Shaw exited the bathroom and got into bed. She looked over at Root who had that ‘the Machine was downloading information into her brain’ look. 

        “What is she telling you? Is Gen okay?”

        “Yes, she’s fine. She got bullied last week at school when it was revealed she started a Santa blog,” Root looked over to Shaw with her brows furrowed. 

        “A Santa blog? Gen? The girl who’s going to be a spy? The girl who actually made me when I was trailing her? The kid who nearly took down HR with her low tech recordings?”

        Root walked over and crawled into bed with Shaw, it wasn’t lost on either of them that sleeping in the same bed while talking about a kid seemed very domesticated. 

        “It appears that Gen is running a Santa blog for kids with questions for the magical bearded man with eight reindeer.” Root scooted down on the bed and laid down on her side facing Shaw. “And it’s a place digitally for kids to send letters to Santa since some kids don’t know what stamps are.”

        Shaw rolled her eyes. She continued sitting up in bed. Root snaked her arm around Shaw’s waist. Shaw would have stopped Root’s roaming hands, except the hacker had been gone for two weeks and while she didn’t do lonely; she did get horny and nobody compared to Root. Not even herself. In a swift few seconds she was straddling Root’s hips while Root’s hands were already dipping underneath her sweatpants, firmly grabbing her ass. Shaw was leaning over Root, staring at her lips until she inched closer and closer. Root wiggled underneath her in anticipation of Shaw’s lips and tongue in her mouth. 

        “Shaw?” was heard through the door. 

        The muffled shy, yell was heard by both women who stilled their amorous actions. Shaw stayed motionless on top of Root. 

        “What Gen?” Shaw yelled back towards the living room, but sounded more like a growl. 

        “I think there’s something wrong with your TV,” Gen yelled back. “It’s stuck on some baking show.” 

        Root couldn’t help but let a little giggle slip out. Shaw raised herself up on her knees then stormed out of the bedroom back into the living room. By the time she got back to the bedroom, Root was fast asleep.

*****

        The next morning Root, Shaw and Gen were sharing pancakes around the kitchen table, courtesy of Shaw’s cooking. 

        “So probably too many secret missions to go Christmas tree shopping yet?” Gen thought to herself, she was going to start her investigation into what the relationship was between Shaw and her co-worker Root. She didn’t necessary want to jump to conclusions since the two were sharing a bedroom; maybe Root usually took the couch when she stayed over Gen started developing multiple theories. 

        “We’ve been busy kid,” Shaw wanted to add saving the world and too many dumb ass people. 

        “Neither of us are big decorators and like Shaw said, it’s been busy,” Root added only a little more explanation to Shaw’s. 

        Gen seemed a little sad. “Usually, I have to spend the holidays at school or sometimes Harold would arrange a ski trip for me with other kids where there were always these big Christmas trees at lodges. I didn’t hear from Harold this year.” She pushed some food around on her plate. 

        Hearing Gen’s voice dip a little into sadness had Root flashing back to her own holidays when she was younger back in isolated small Texas town. 

        “How about we go get a tree?” Root said as she took a sip of her coffee and looked over to Shaw who gave her an annoyed look. 

        Shaw left the dishes for Root and Gen to do, she couldn’t shake how all domestic this felt. Normally, it would have her skin itching but this was Gen, she liked the kid. And it was Root. 

        While Gen helped Root with the dishes, she asked the co-worker some more questions, she was getting a really strong vibe this woman was Shaw’s romantic partner and not just her co-worker. Which made sense now as Shaw had scoffed when she first met her about dating some guy named John; however, Shaw called them both co-workers. She wondered if Shaw had any friends or just co-workers. And her first point for romantic partner over worker partner was that Root did know where all the dishes were kept in the kitchen. 

        After doing the dishes with Root, Gen was more puzzled Root didn’t seem to know where everything went, which lead to two more theories – either Root never cooked or she didn’t spend much time here in Shaw’s apartment. She would do some more snooping while Root left her to go get dressed. 

        Shaw felt a cold breeze hit her backside in the hot shower and immediately knew that Root had stepped inside with her. 

        “Root, what are you doing?” Shaw didn’t look back. She didn’t want to get an eyeful of something she couldn’t have at the moment. 

        “Thought you might need an extra hand,” Root moved slowly up behind Shaw, she leaned pushing her breasts against Shaw’s wet back while snaking her hand around Shaw’s waist. 

        “Gen is right outside,” Shaw croaked out with her eyes already closing and waves of arousal coursing through her body. She kind of hated how Root could turn her body on; it was as quick and easy as flicking a light switch. She was a highly trained operative, not some schmoopy person who only wanted to have sex with one person for the foreseeable future.

        Root smirked as she ran one hand over Shaw’s breast, giving a firm squeeze then pinching a hard nipple. 

        “Gen is in the living room,” both of Root’s hands were now squeezing and massaging Shaw’s breasts. “She’s in a completely different room. We are in the bedroom with the door closed, in the bathroom with the door closed and in the shower with the door closed.”

        “Thanks for the virtual tour of the apartment,” Shaw pushed back against Root needing more friction, heat pooling in the lower half of her body intensely. 

        “Well, we didn’t get to finish what we started last night,” Root brought her lips down on Shaw’s neck and started sucking, her hands trailed down Shaw’s stomach and slowly found it’s way to it’s much needed destination in between her legs. 

        Shaw spun around and pinned Root against the shower wall. She crashed their lips together and Root slipped her tongue into Shaw’s mouth. Root began to quietly moan when Shaw plunged her tongue into her mouth.  Suddenly, there was a loud CRASH. She sprang from the shower with shampoo still in her hair and clutching a towel as she sprinted into the living room. 

        Gen and Bear stood in the middle of the living room with shattered glass all around them. 

        “Sorry, Shaw…” Gen looked wide-eyed as she saw Shaw burst into the living room in a towel. “Bear and I were playing and broke some dishes. I’ll clean it up,” Gen’s face was all scrunched up, Bear sat down and stared at Shaw. “Do you have shampoo in your hair?”

        Shaw growled and went back to the bathroom. As she was entering the bathroom, Root was getting out of the shower. She let out a heavy sigh, despite the chill on her wet naked skin; Shaw could still feel Root’s warm fingers over and in her body and was very angry that there was going to be no happy ending to her shower. 

*****

        Before they left the apartment, Gen did notice that both Shaw and Root got out their winter coats from the hall closet. Score another point for romantic partners over work partners. She smiled to herself. 

        The Machine had them diverting to a Christmas store before going to the Christmas tree lot for decorations. Shaw scoffed at not believing there was a whole store devoted to selling Christmas crap. She followed along behind Root and Gen as they filled their cart with lights, ornaments and way too many holiday themed toys for Bear that was necessary. 

        After shopping for far too long by Shaw’s standards, they all stopped at a holiday themed café for hot chocolate and cookies. Shaw didn’t mind the snack break. As they were sitting enjoying their holiday treats, Root got that Machine look on her face. Shaw knew that Root Machine look all too well, she nudged Root’s knee with her knee under the table. 

        “What’s going on?” Shaw asked in between bites of snowflake shaped cookies. 

        Gen noticed the small physical action Shaw did under the table with her knee, another point for romantic partners. 

        “It’s work,” Root replied while taking out her phone and typing something on it. 

        Gen furrowed her brows, a point also for work partners. Before she could ask a question, Root and Shaw excused themselves to talk privately. The almost teenager watched the two intense women become even more intense with each other as they looked like they were arguing. Shaw threw up her hands and walked back over to the table. 

        “So kid, wanna work another mission?” Shaw let out a deep sigh. 

        “Yes! My Christmas wish came true!” Gen pump fisted in the air, jumped up from her chair and smiled at Shaw and Root. 

        The Machine had informed Root who had instructed Gen and Shaw that they were to infiltrate a Christmas tree lot as workers to help someone. What surprised Root was that both Shaw and Mini-Shaw as she was calling Gen now, refused to wear their costumes for the mission. 

        “No, we are not going to be elves,” Shaw crossed her arms against her chest and Gen mimicked her action. 

        “Yeah, no way,” Gen scoffed and followed Shaw’s stern look. 

        “Hey, if she’s not doing it neither am I. And she runs a Santa blog so there,” Shaw pushed the elf costume Root had given her back into her hands. 

        “How do you know about my blog?” Gen asked with wide eyes. She moved closer to Root and Shaw and whispered to them, “I guess as spies you two are like Santa, watching every hour of every day. Seeing everything.”

        Both Shaw and Root turned to each other then just nodded and shrugged. 

        “Well, no elves. No mission,” Root tilted her head to Gen and raised her eyebrows, adding a hard stare. 

        Gen only had to think for half a second before she knew she wasn’t going to miss her chance to work on another real mission again; even if that meant being in a dorky holiday costume. 

        “C’mon Shaw, let’s elf it up,” Gen gave Shaw a smile. 

        After Gen convinced Shaw to be the angriest elf, they were dressed from head to toe as Santa’s helpers, complete with jingle hats and pointy shoes. Gen got into the mission spirit, not the holiday spirit in her outfit as they began their task of locating and saving the number while Shaw remained grumpiest elf ever. 

        Thankfully, saving the number was one of the easiest missions. The three elves saved the day and their fellow elf worker at the Christmas tree lot and without telling Gen about the all-knowing artificial intelligence checking the naughty and nice list, not only twice but a few googol times. 

        Gen couldn’t contain her excitement as they walked the streets after their successful mission, “That was so cool!”

        “It would be cooler if we could change out of these silly ass outfits now,” Shaw grumbled. 

        Root stopped walking, Shaw and Gen turned back to her to see what caught her attention. 

        “Do you want to build a snowman?” Root asked Shaw and more specifically Gen. 

        “Let’s go and play,” Gen’s face lit up, making her look even younger than her twelve, almost thirteen years. And she was so dangerously close to breaking into song but judging by Shaw’s scowl she decided against it. 

        “No,” Shaw spat out. 

        “It doesn’t have to be a snowman,” Root grinned to Shaw. “We could build a snow person and we could win a prize.” 

        Root pointed up to a sign that read – ‘BUILD A SNOWMAN CONTEST’. 

        One of the borough parks was taken over and turned into a holiday village with all kinds of activities from building snow people and ice-skating to competitive snow ball fights. 

        Shaw shook her head; she guessed it made sense since a lot of New York snow was disgusting from garbage and urine. She let out a long, deep sigh as she resigned herself to participating in more holiday crap. 

        “Fine, I’ll help build a snowman as long as nobody sings that song,” Shaw headed towards the holiday village with two happy elves following behind her. 

        Gen ran and caught up with Shaw, “You know the song?”

        “I know it’s a very annoying ear worm created by Disney to sell toys,” Shaw glanced over Gen and was surprised such a smart kid was taken in by a princess story. 

        “No, it’s not. It’s a song about estranged sisters and one girl dealing with being different than everybody else and embracing it and loving herself,” Root said, with a raised voice laced with passion. 

        Both Shaw and Gen looked at Root surprised. 

        “What?” Root looked at both Shaw and Gen with her eyebrows raised. “Elsa is a cultural icon…and gay.” Her smile was wide, and she did her ‘wink’ towards Shaw. 

        “You have a crush on an animated character?” Shaw shook her head and squinted her eyes at Root. 

        Gen put another point down on romantic partner versus work partner since Root basically acknowledged she was gay or bi and Shaw was clearly jealous of Elsa. And she made a note to talk Root and Shaw into getting Bear an Olaf stuffed animal. 

        As the three elves entered the contest and gathered their supplies, the Machine started talking to Root, giving strategy and best building techniques. Things were going well until a few teenagers wandered past the three elves building their snow person and heckled. 

        Shaw whipped her around to see what the annoying teenagers were saying. “Gen, do know those kids?”

        “Unfortunately, we go to school together,” Gen rolled her eyes and kept her focus on the snow person building. 

        Root and Shaw gave the kids the side eye as they continued to build their snow person. 

        “Leave it to Genrika to still believe in something as lame as Santa Claus, she’s probably writing fan fiction about him and his elves,” said one of the heckling teenagers. 

        “Hey, that’s disrespectful to fan fiction,” Root blurted out to the rude teenagers. 

        The tweens looked shocked Root and talked back to them. They lost interest in watching the three elves building a snow person and started to walk away. 

        “It’s pretty cool though that Gen has two moms,” said one of the tweens as they walked away. 

        Root, Shaw and Gen all froze. Then Gen got a huge grin on her face when she saw how angry Shaw looked. 

        “Not a word,” Shaw glared at Root who was beaming heart eyes at her. She picked up some snow, made a quick snowball and threw it Root. 

        Gen giggled so Shaw threw a snowball at her too. 

        The three elves worked together building a big snow person with big muscles, Shaw insisted the snow person have snow muscles. Root insisted the snow person be holding a candy cane in each hand. She was going to say two guns but Shaw cut her off before she finished verbalizing her idea. 

        All three of them were surprised they ended up getting third place. Shaw was mad, she felt they deserved at least second place, she lamented this on the walk home many times. Root and Gen laughed watching how invested Shaw had become over the contest. Once Root and Gen started singing, ‘Do You Want To Build A Snowman?’, Shaw rolled her eyes and walked further ahead of them; putting as much distance between herself and the two nerds. 

*****

        The rest of the few days went by quickly, even Shaw agreed. The three of them did some holiday related activities along with some more Root and Shaw activities. Shaw taught Gen how to dissemble and reassemble six different types of guns. Root taught Gen how to hack into her school system and few other places that Shaw didn’t know about. Gen taught Shaw and Root how to play her favorite video game. Bear was happy to have another person around to play and rub his belly. 

        When Christmas morning finally arrived, three people who haven’t had the best Christmases in the past were all pleasantly surprised to wake up to find a tree filled with presents underneath. 

        The opening of presents went by in lightening fast rounds as no one had patience to wait much longer to see what was underneath. Shaw got some more black tank tops along with a new gun she wanted. Root got a new leather jacket and along with a start of the art high-powered server stored in a remote location that no one could hack. Gen got everything she could possibly wish for and more. 

        Root went digging around the tree and pulled out one more present and walked over to Gen. 

        “There’s one more present for you,” Root smiled as she handed over the wrapped represent to Gen. 

        Gen excitedly tore off the wrapping paper revealing top of the line headphones. 

        “Wow, these are top of the line headphones. For spying right?” Gen’s face lit up as her eyes darted back and forth between Root and Shaw. 

        “And noise cancelling…” Root looked over at Shaw longingly. “…for later when I give Shaw one last Christmas present.”

        “Ew, gross,” Gen replied even though she was smiling. And that point pushed the tally over the edge, romantic partners for the win over work partners.