#the director at one point turned to me and said 'what a day. from 2 understudies to 6.'

[andhumanslovedstories]

I am just flabbergasted sometimes: one week you are on a leave from your job to heal and the next you are receiving an award for doing such a great job at your job. The duality of human kind.

Anyway, double whammy: congrats and hope you feel better soon!

it's so wild. actually, and this is such an "everyone clapped story" but it is true: when I went back to the hospital a few weeks back to discuss my return to work with my manager, my goal was to slip in and out so I could see how I felt about being back at the physical location of work without making a big fuss. Then my manager was like, "oh come into our morning staff meeting!" And I was like, sure, I should see what's going on. So I walk into the conference room and find out 1) I am the last person there to arrive and 2) this is the most crowded staff meeting I've ever seen. so already failed my goal of discretion. I scoot to the back of the room, and then the chief nursing officer starts a presentation which includes showing a short video about DAISY award winners, which I watched and was like, "this is schmaltzy as hell........but it would be cool to be featured in something like that one day."

The clip ends and they announce that this business associated with the awards had picked someone from our hospital as one of the three people they were going to feature this year, and I thought, "is it me?" because I did win a DAISY, but then I thought, "nah. surely they would have given me a head's up in advance." And then the nursing director said, "They picked Sarah," and pointed at me, and like forty people in the room turned to stare and, yeah, everyone clapped.

My first response was, "I'm not even back to work yet." They asked if I would participate in this, and the answer was yes despite some reservations (I'm proud of the work I do, but I'm mortified at the idea of talking about it), but what I said aloud was, "Wouldn't it be wild if I said no right now?" Anyway, after I was rapidly and frantically assured that of course I could say no, obviously, I let them off the hook and said, "sure yeah I'll participate in this."

And then I went to go talk to my manager about accommodations for return to work, and guys would you believe I got exactly the shift schedule I asked for?

[youremyonlyhope]

.

[evermoresqueiswriting]

dance the night

"Baby, you can find me under the lights Diamonds under my eyes Turn the rhythm up, don't you wanna just Come along for the ride? Oh, my outfit so tight You can see my heartbeat tonight I can take the heat, baby, best believe That's the moment I shine"

summary: barbie date and an invitation from clarisse you can't refuse

pairing: clarisse la rue x f!reader

word count: 3.4k

tags: fluff fluff fluff

series masterlist 2/?

You were getting more and more comfortable at camp. You were getting along very well with your siblings. Especially Lee and Cornelia, who explained everything – sometimes twice – to you. They also explained to you that if you wanted to leave camp during the summer, you needed to get an authorisation from Mr. D. And Clarisse knew, so she told you to get it since it was your idea to go see that movie. Your siblings told you he rarely gave them away. 

“Mmh. I accept this challenge.”

“It really wasn’t,” Lee said. “It was a piece of information at best.”

You walked, determined, to Mr. D’s office. You didn’t have many arguments, but Cornelia did tell you Mr. D was always looking for campers to give him alcohol even though his father, Zeus, forbade him to drink any. Mr. D was playing cards with Chiron. Maybe it wasn’t the right time, you hesitated before Chiron looked up.

“Yes?” he said, putting his cards down. 

“Mmh,” you froze before staring at your camp director, “I needed to talk to Mr. D, please.”

Chiron turned his face to look at Mr D, and he took off his sunglasses before looking at you.

“What?”

“I need authorisation to leave camp for one day,” you explained firmly. “Please.”

“And why would I give you that?” 

“Because I need it. For next week, the 21st,” you begged.

Mr D stared at you, bored. He was ready to take back his cards, when you shouted, desperately.

“I–I’ll give you alcohol in exchange!” 

“No you will not!” Chiron gave you a hard stare. “Zeus–.”

“I’m desperate, so yes I will.” 

Mr D was still silent. 

“What is this about y/n?” Chiron asked. “Why do you need to leave camp?”

“I– I asked Clarisse on a date. Well,” you faltered. “It’s not exactly a date I don’t think, it’s more like I won a bet, and what I asked for was for us to go see a movie together. So maybe it is? And it would suck for me if I can’t go, when I won the bet you know.”

Chiron and you were both looking at Mr. D, and you had your best puppy eyes for him.

“Still a no for me,” Mr. D took his cards. 

“Please, please, please, please, please!” 

Mr. D shook his head. You sighed, thinking about what to say to try and convince him to let you go. 

“That’s–,” you hesitated before blurting out “such a homophobic thing to do in 2024 to refuse to let us go on a date! Which is what that is… a date, with us girls.”

“What?” Mr. D muttered confused.

“And during pride month? You have no shame. It’s–.”

“Fine, if I give you this authorisation, will you shut up and leave?”

You nodded vigorously. And Mr. D sent you a  flying paper with the snap of a finger, and after reading the paper to make sure it was legit – which did take a few minutes – you ran away in case he changed his mind. The first person you ran into Luke and asked him if he had seen Clarisse. He pointed at the Ares cabin, and told you he saw her go in. 

You walked to her cabin, and knocked, shouting Clarisse’s name over and over again. The door flew open, revealing an annoyed Clarisse.

“Hi,” you smiled. 

Her face softened slightly at your sight, but she still looked at you annoyed, with her arms crossed. 

“What?”

“Guess what?” your hands were in your back, hiding away the piece of paper you got earlier.

“Your boyfriend called your mom to ask her why you ditched him?” 

“What?” you hesitated. “No. First, I don't have a boyfriend, they were all losers in my school. And no girlfriends either for the same reason.”

“Good,” she nodded. “So what was the news then?”

The paper was still held behind your back, you held her gaze a few more seconds before showing her proudly the paper. She looked at the paper, frowning, and then took your paper. You stood there patiently, swinging on your feet, waiting for her to finish reading it at her own pace. 

“How did you get Mr. D to agree to this?” she puts the paper down. 

“It’s a secret. But I’ll tell you if you want to know.”

“Of course I do, no one here in years got one of these,” she shook the paper in front of you. 

You held up your index, and made a ‘come closer’ motion with it. She came closer, and you put your face even closer, her nose almost touching yours. Clarisse was taller than you – taller than most campers actually – and your face was facing up. And having her this close to you, it was as if time had stopped. You smiled. 

“I promised him alcohol,” you whispered. 

“What!” she stepped back. “Do you know Zeus–.”

“I know, I know, Cornelia told me. I don’t remember what I said after that,’ you lied, “I guess he just likes me.”

“Okay,” Clarisse smiled, “liar.”

Clarisse and you stood there, at the threshold of the Ares cabin for a few more moments, just enjoying each other's company before her siblings ran in, pushing you toward Clarisse. Your  body slammed against hers, her arms wrapped around your shoulders to steady you. You would have been upset if it weren’t for the outcome. But Clarisse quickly let go before grabbing the shirt of her brother – Mark – and made him stop in his tracks. You didn’t hear what she said, but you saw Mark nodding vigorously before walking away. 

“Let’s get out of here,” Clarisse grabbed your arm and led you outside. 

“So,” you started when she stopped under a tree and sat there. “Do you know what you’re going to wear?”

“No. Do you?”

“Uh obviously! I have the perfect outfit for Barbie. I actually planned this before coming here, minus the ‘going to camp half-blood’ cause I didn’t think I’d end up here. It’s all pink, and cute and oh, should I also do my nails? Should we do our nails all pink?” you beamed at the idea.

“No.”

“True, yours do look very good in black,” you nodded. “Oh, we could cosplay Barbie and Raquelle. But it’s not going to be accurate, Raquelle hates Barbie.”

“I think it’s pretty accurate,” she shrugs. 

You slapped her arms playfully before laying your head on her lap. The weather was nice, the sun was out and the leaves were shading you from it, the perfect combination for you to take a nap. And then Clarisse started to run her fingers on your arm which made it for you. You were asleep in no time.

“Wake up sunshine,” Clarisse pinched you lightly on the hip. You jerked awake. 

“What?” you mumbled, standing up. 

“I have to meet up with my brothers and sisters for the next Capture the Flag strategy.”

“Can I come too?” you yawned. 

“We’re not on the same team, remember.”

“I won’t tell them anything.”

“Nope,” she walked away, “don’t follow me,” she turned around, walking backwards. 

I’d follow you everywhere you go Clarisse La Rue. 

“I won’t,” you said instead. 

The night before the date, you laid out your outfit neatly before washing up to go to bed. Cornelia was your bunkmate, with the bed above yours. But before going to sleep, you loved updating each other’s day. 

“So tomorrow huh,” Cornelia sat on your bed. “I never thought I’d live to see Clarisse being friendly with anyone other than her siblings.”

“I think she’s funny.”

“Sure, if funny was a synonym of mean. Wait– do you even have money to spend on tomorrow’s activities?” 

“Actually I do. Mr. D did tell me he wouldn’t give me any, and thank gods I found a load of cash in my backpack. My mom gave it to me. I mean she did write it was for any expense that I would have to make on my way home, but I have other priorities.”

“Clearly,” she rolled her eyes, laughing. “You’re gonna regret this in August.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Like before any exciting day, it took some time to fall asleep. Anxiety and excitement mixing together, making up the worst and best scenarios. What if Clarisse is just messing with you and forgot? That can’t happen, you just saw her a few hours ago talking about it. What if you annoyed her so much with it, she’d stood you up? What if she doesn’t like everything you planned? Not a single positive and happy ‘what if’ comes to your mind. 

“Wake up!” someone shakes you awake. “It’s 8 already, you're going to be late!” Cornelia said. 

“Fuck!” you ran to the washroom. 

You rushed through your routine, before rushing back to your bed and grabbed your outfit, and put it on. And all of that only took 28 minutes. You looked at yourself in the mirror for a final check up, before opening the door. Clarisse was already there. Her curls free, just like the first time you saw her. It felt weird not seeing her in her usual orange tee, but she still looked pretty. She wore a simple short brown tank top with blue faded jeans, with her beaded necklace still hanging from her neck.

“You look really pretty today,” Clarisse smiled shyly, holding her arms around her.

“Thanks,” you approached her, putting your hands on her arms and leaned in, “you look pretty every day.”

“Don’t come home too late,” Lee interrupted, appearing just next to you. 

“Don’t worry, but also don’t wait up!” 

You grabbed Clarisse’s hand and dragged her away from your cabin. A taxi was waiting for you outside of the camp, and in no time you were at the local theatre in the middle of nowhere. And lucky for you, the people of this town weren’t going to see the 9:30am slot for Barbie. Except for that one couple sitting in the back. You dragged Clarisse in the middle, and sat with the popcorn and sodas. You ate in silence, watching the trailers. 

Well that was not fun. The worst ‘what ifs’ from last night came back immediately making you anxious. It was not supposed to be like this. What if she wasn’t enjoying herself. What if she was mad because she ate a salty popcorn when you asked for the sweet ones. What if she was disappointed—

“Ouch,” you looked at her, frowning, rubbing your arm. “Why did you do that?”

“You were ignoring me.”

“What? Oh I– I didn’t hear sorry.”

“I asked you, what’s the deal with Barbie anyway? Why are you so excited about a blonde, white, plastic doll?”

“W– Barbie is not– ok. She is a plastic doll, and she may not look like us but it’s the idea of Barbie, the idea that us women can be anything we want. And how in Barbie Land, it’s all about girls and women being able to be whoever they want, and have whatever jobs they want. Barbie is literally a doctor, a pilot, a model, a chef, a fashion designer, a business woman, a teacher – she has every job in the world. And there is no one telling her that she can’t do that because she’s not a man. And also, the Barbie franchise is my childhood. The movies, they deserve an Oscar honestly–,” you stopped. “Sorry, I talk too much.”

“I asked,” her attention went back to the screen. “So did you have any barbies?”

“Of course! I had Barbie's dreamhouse, and so many barbies and outfits. I’m surprised I didn’t end up being a writer with all my imagination. Did you?”

“No.”

“No?”

“My mom wasn’t the kind to buy me anything. And certainly not dolls.”

“Oh.”

“Don’t feel sad for me, I’m fine,” she gave you a quick glance.

“I’m not!” you frowned. “So you never watched Barbie and A Christmas Carol? The best Barbie movie ever?”

“Nope.”

“Oh, we have to change that. Mmh. But phones and laptops aren’t allowed though… Maybe if I bring my mom’s DVD player next summer.” 

“Already planning on your next move to woo me?” she teased, approaching you. 

Your eyes widened, your cheeks were hot.

“I– No! I– I– I don’t.”

“Relax sunshine, I’m kidding,” she laughed. 

And just then, the lights went out and the movie was about to start, thank the gods. Because you did not know what to say. The movie was incredible, you shed a few tears at the end, and sang Dance The Night with Clarisse laughing and cheering you on. It was a great experience, and it was even better to have watched it with Clarisse. 

“Did you like it?” you asked her when the credits started rolling.

“Yes. It was great.”

“And you’ll love the other Barbie movies because they are way less depressing.”

“So, what’s next?” she stood up.

“It’s almost time to eat, what do you want?”

“Whatever you want.”

“No you choose, I insist,” you smiled.

Really you were just very indecisive. Clarisse settled for a burger place not too far away from the cinema. There weren't many people inside, so you were able to choose where to sit – a table next to the window. It was a booth seat, so you had your own booth each, facing each other, menu in hand. 

“So, what are you choosing?” you asked her.

“I’ll take the Highwayman. You?”

“The Roadhouse looks good.”

Clarisse raised her hand and weaved at the waitress, when you grabbed her hand. 

“Wait!”

“What?”

“Can you order for me please?”

She furrowed her brow, but nodded. You smiled. You only waited ten-or-so minutes before the waitress came back with your food. Like always, you checked the inside of your burger before eating it, you picked out the onions and the tomato. 

“What are you doing?”

“I don’t like these.”

“Couldn’t you have asked the waitress to take them out.”

“No…”

“Give me your tomato then,” she opened her burger bun.

You were the one entertaining lunch. Clarisse asked questions about your life and you told her – you told her stories about your childhood, your school, your mom and she listened, nodding along. Once you were done, you took a cab and decided to go to the mall. 

“We don’t have any money,” Clarisse stopped you when you were going to step into the mall. 

“I do. Remember I paid for the tickets, and the food.”

“Yeah, but I thought you only had enough for these.”

“Nope. Well, remember how I said my mom is an opera singer. It was you fifty percent talent and fifty percent nepotism and generational wealth. Meaning I’m rich, I mean my mom but her love language is sending me money for not raising me,” you joked.

She stared at you, concerned. 

“I’m kidding,” you grabbed her hand, “let’s shop.”

Clarisse refused to accept anything you’d set eyes on for her. 

“Well, at least try on some of them, just to see.”

She agreed to it, which was a mistake because now that you knew her size, you could buy her everything she laid eyes on. She was trying on this dark green simple long sleeve tee shirt, and after she put it back, you took it with you.

“What are you doing?” she tried to grab the tee shirt back. 

“I might want it for myself!” you hid it behind your back. 

‘Doesn’t look like something you’d wear.”

“My style changes, it depends on my mood. Maybe I want us to have matching clothes.”

“Then why is there only one in your hand?”

You quickly grabbed another one. And then it was settled. You’d buy her things and then another copy for you – everything went, from boots to tee shirts to pants, and jackets. Then you went to a jewellery shop. You needed new rings because yours flew away from your hands during the last Capture the Flag – they were obviously a tad too big. 

“Did you find anything you like?” you asked her. 

“No, they aren't the most useful things to have.”

You pouted, and threw a bunch on the table. 

“What are you doing?”

“Putting these back on the shelves, cause I chose half of these for you,” you sighed dramatically. 

“Oh,” she took a look at the jewellery. 

Various rings and bracelets.

“They’re great, I love them.”

“No you don’t.”

“You picked them out so yes, I do.”

“You don’t have to, it’s fine,” you sighed. 

“Maybe you don’t have to buy all of it, just one of each.”

You nodded, and picked one ring for her, and two bracelets for each of you. You gave them to the seller to wrap them and left to look at other items. Clarisse soon joined you and soon enough the seller gave a little bag, you paid and left. Your hands were full of shopping bags, and before leaving you needed a little bit of rest so you two sat on the chairs in the resting area. Thankfully the mall wasn’t too crowded as it was still early in the afternoon on a random Tuesday. 

“Huh!” you gasped pointing at something behind Clarisse.

“What?” she turned around swiftly, not seeing any threat. 

“A photobooth!” you smiled.

You stood up, grabbed all of your bags and walked to the booth, hoping Clarisse was following you. You turned around, and Clarisse was still sitting still, legs crossed, leaned into the chair, staring at you. You held your hands together, and motionned her to come. She didn’t move for a good minute, but seeing how you weren’t going to move, she caved in and stood up. 

“Sunshine,” she put her hands on your shoulders, “you can look at me for free, I won’t charge you, don’t worry.” 

You rolled your eyes, smiling. 

“You’ll thank me in a few years because of this. Pictures are the best kind of souvenirs.”

Clarisse got in first, the space was a tight fit, and you were glued to Clarisse, but you two fit in the frame so it was good. You put the coins inside, and waited for it to take the picture. But that was not good enough for Clarisse – she put her arm around your waist and scooped you onto her lap.

“Better?” 

You nodded, staring at her. 

“Better,” you confirmed. 

You went to take a pose but too late, the four pictures were already taken. 

“It’s fine, we’ll take another one.”

Another turned into another few more and you ended with a ton of pictures. By the time you left the mall it was already pretty late. Almost time to go home. But neither of you wanted that, so you went to the beach instead – main beach in the east. It was empty – people at this hour were all eating. You two sat on the sand, far from the shore. 

“Did you have a great time?” you asked.

“Yes,” she looked at you, “did you?”

You nodded enthusiastically. 

“Aren’t you glad you lost that bet against me?”

“Mmh,” she shrugged, “my option would’ve been just as good for me.”

“Well, I am glad I won. I prefer this option much better.”

Clarisse started to lay down but you grabbed her arm. 

“Sand will get in your hair.”

“I’ll wash it tonight, it’s fine.”

You shook your head, and took off your blouse and laid it on the sand, behind Clarisse. She tried to protest, but you were quicker. 

“I don’t want this day to end,” you admitted, staring at the waves. “I don’t think Mr. D will give us another authorisation anytime soon,” you laughed. 

Clarisse stared at you, not saying anything. You arrived at camp only a week ago, and yet you two were already closer than she was with any of her siblings. You were nice to her, always rooting for her, and you were a great friend. Not many people were these things to the Ares kids. 

“There this field trip around October,” Clarisse sat up again, “I suppose you’re not staying around the whole year. But it’d be great if you could come.”

“A field trip? To where?”

“It’s something we do once a year at camp,” she explained. “A trip to Olympus.”

You thought about it. 

“Are you asking me to meet your father? I didn’t think we were already at this stage so early on."

[lokativa]

People calling Hobie×Miles (punkflower) shippers proshippers as if we didn't ship them for longer than the movie even came out will always be crazy to me.

I've seen lots of people sending threats, or reporting people because they made punkflower, goldenflower (pavxhobie), ghostbyte (gwenxmargo), flowerbyte (margoxmiles), etc, arts or videos. Going to assume that it isn't because most of these ships are POCs ships, there's just literally no point to do that.

First of all, there's no confirmation of hobie's age. If ur basing urself of that one interview, then it was of the CONCEPT of hobie, and even so remember it was only one person who said it. Its heavily implied thats he's a teenager throughout the movie. (Also in the art book, its said that he's slightly older than Miles).

For the thing about him going to the pub and all, minors can and will go in pubs, (not saying that its always legal) are yall living under a rock or just dense on purpose? Teenagers do wtv the fuck they want, even when theyre not allowed to. Youre all going to tell me teenagers respect the rules of not drinking and go to clubs becuz theyre underage? Come off it. Also hobie literally merked his president and u think he'd draw the line at drinking alcohol as a minor? HA.

Aside from that, to be fair to everyone, the directors keeps on changing what they're saying about hobies age, one day they'll say and imply he's a minor and the next second say he's an adult. It's like they all have different idea of this character's age. So, nothing is really comfimed, and his age is really up to interpretation.

Now that we're past THAT point, the other kind of people talking about his age are people saying "oh but he looks old" "that man is most definitely 30yo" "there's no way he's underage" things of the sort, u get it. And I'm just over here like??? Why is it impossible for you to think that this guy could be a teen? Is it the air? The wrinkles? What makes it seem like for you that there's no way he could be around the other teens' age? And 30??? Cmon. People often assume black people are older than they look, which is a universal experience for all of us. Did none of u ever see a blk teen who doesnt have a baby face? Because thats literally what hobie looks like to me. To others we can seem too "mature" for our age, or just look too "old" to be the age we say we are, so is it really impossible for him to be a teenager? Think about it.

(Speaking of him being black, this discourse turned into some kind of racist thing that honestly was not unexpected at all. Yall come over here shitting on people talking and educating u about a character they relate to cuz hes like them, and the representation is making them go bonkers. I don't know why yall can just sit ur arses and listen for a bit, its not that difficult tbh. And dont get me started on the mischaracterisation of his character. Marking him as "an angry black man"? Really? Be. Fucking. Original.)

Same goes with Margo?? Yeah in the comics she's in college, but cmon now u guys know damn well she's a teenager in atsv😭. Gwen is also much older in the comics but i never see anyone talk about it, so what does that mean???The only reasons I can see that you all don't want Miles & margo to be together is because you're all stuck on the milesxgwen ship. News everyone, other ships exist, not everyone is going to like the same ships as you, so either move on or stop being on the Internet.

Also, the thing about pav being 13 is bonkers, where'd u even get that from? I need to know asap. "Oh, but he has a gf!" Yeah? Well he has two hands. (Idk why u all act as if that has ever stopped anyone)

Everything just seem like a race thing to me tbh.

The movies might be inspired from the comics, but not everything is going to be 100% the same. For exemple: gwen is 2 yrs older than Miles in the comics, but in movies she's only 15 months older, Jess Drew is white in the comics and black in the movie, Miguel O'hara is white passing in the comics, compared to his version in atsv where he has brown skin, lyla's disign is also different.

You get it? Things are going to differ as much as things are going to be the same, because (get ready!!) this is the multiverse! Just as earth-616 is just one universe in all the marvel comics, atsv is another universe.

All in all, im not saying u can't view them as adults, or wtv u want, thats ur interpretation, but don't go around being pissy at people around u cuz they have different point of views.

[thebeast-dennis-etcetera]

Training Part 1

Prompt: Enemies to Lovers type. You and Gibbs never got along, and luckily you never really had to work with each other…until now.

Part 2

You followed behind Agent Fornell as the both of you stepped out of the elevator and into the squad room of NCIS.

You spotted the 3 familiar agents standing in front of the plasma, speaking amongst each other until DiNozzo spoke.

“Trouble on your 6 boss.”

Their supervisory agent turned towards you and Fornell, looking ready for an argument.

“You can release Ramos, we’ll take it from here Gibbs,” Fornell started.

“We’ll release him when we’re done questioning him Tobias. He has ties to our victim and has no alibi for the night of the murder.”

“He’s got nothing to do with your murder. He’s been under FBI surveillance for the last 3 months and if you compromise all of our work, both of us are gonna be on the chopping block with our Directors.”

Gibbs gave him a look that showed that he had no intention of backing down and Fornell sighed before turning to you.

“Stay here. We’ll be back.”

As Gibbs walked past you, you made sure to give him that hard stare that he always gives you every time you see each other. You met Agent Gibbs a few months ago on a joint Investigation and from day one he rubbed you the wrong way. He was stubborn, arrogant and always thought he was right. Even though he was good looking and good with a gun, you weren’t gonna let him intimidate you.

“So how’s it been, being the FBI’s lackey?” DiNozzo jested, making you roll your eyes.

“Better than you being Gibbs’ pet,” you shot right back, getting a snicker out of the Mossad agent behind you.

“You know I heard about that incident with your last case. Suspect got the jump on you. Sounds like your hand to hand combat needs a little work,” he continued.

You walked over, closing in on him, causing him to take a step back. You were at least half a foot shorter than him but judging by the unsure look on his face, your intimidation tactics were on point.

“He was 6,4” and pushing 200lbs DiNozzo. And I didn’t really do much hand to hand with him before putting two bullets in his chest. But by all means, we can put those skills to the test if you want.”

“Stop harassing my agents, Agent Y/N. If you wanna spar, you can do it with me,” you heard Gibbs’ condescending voice speak from the stairs. Looking over, you saw Fornell and him walking over and backed off of DiNozzo who chuckled nervously. You waited until he was standing in front of you to speak.

“Pick a place and time Gibbs.”

Your words held contempt and he just gave you a smirk while taking a sip of his coffee. It took everything in you not to slap it out of his hand. The rest of his agents were quiet as Fornell was smiled in the back.

“NCIS training room, 6pm.”

“I’ll be there.”

You all continued working, the case turning into a joint investigation, you making a point to avoid the Supervisory Agent as much as possible throughout the day. When lunch time came around, you and Fornell stopped by a little sandwich shop.

“So what’s your beef with Gibbs?” he asked you, taking a bite of his pastrami on rye.

“He just thinks he’s so righteous. The way he talks with people, the way he walks, everything about him screams douchebag,” you ranted, Fornell chuckling as you did.

“What?”

“Nothing. It’s just funny. Have you ever thought the reason you don’t like Gibbs is because he’s so much like you? And being the most competitive person I know, you hate having someone that matches you.”

“Don’t profile me Fornell. It’s above your pay grade.”

“See. Like that. Gibbs would’ve said something just like that. Maybe not as harsh but similar. I think you actually like him but don’t know how to deal with it. Maybe this little sparring sesh of yours will prove beneficial.”

You huffed in annoyance at his words but you he wasn’t completely delusional. It did make sense but at the same time, part of you genuinely didn’t like Gibbs.

“Are you trying to set me up with your best friend Tobias?”

He just shrugged his shoulders before stealing a fry off your barely touched plate.

“I’m not trying anything. You challenged him remember? Just one word of advice. He’s got a blind spot just outside his left eye. You use that knowledge correctly and you’ll have him on his ass. Then I can break his balls for the rest of the investigation.”

You both laughed and finished up your lunch before heading back to join NCIS.

————

You were just finished tying your shoes when you saw Gibbs come into the gym. He was wearing an old NIS shirt, some sweat shorts, and black converse. Very casual for someone about to get his ass kicked. You on the other hand, went with some black leggings, sports bra and a loose tank top.

“On the mats, let’s go,” he said in passing.

You followed him to the training mats where he placed a dummy handgun down. There were only 2 or 3 other agents in the room, minding their business with various gym equipment, seemingly none of Gibbs’ minions hanging around.

“Your objective is to not let me get ahold of that gun, understand?”

You just nodded and stood across from him, both of you an equal distance away from the gun.

“Now.”

Both of you ran for the gun, you getting there first and grabbing it. As soon as you brought it up to fake fire, Gibbs knocked it out of your hands, sending it sliding towards the other side of the mats. Before he could make his way to get it, you grabbed a hold of his neck and pulled him down in an attempt to get him to the ground but he just twisted out of it and broke free, giving him plenty of time to grab the gun and aim it at you.

“Dead,” he declared, making you roll your eyes.

“Congratulations Gibbs. Want a medal?”

Keeping a straight face, he walked over to you, eyes never leaving yours and stood a foot away, making you have to tilt your head up because of the height difference. Ok, maybe he was a little intimidating.

“I want you to stop being a brat and let me help you.”

You wanted to spit out something snarky but bit your tongue as he continued. “You’re never gonna win a hand to hand combat with someone much bigger than you based on brute force. Maneuverability and quickness are going to be your best friend.”

He took a step back and dropped the dummy gun.

“I read your file. You spent 2 years training in Judo and Jiu-Jitsu. Use those skills. Use the enemies own weight against them. For now, just try to get me to the ground for an arrest.”

You sized him up real quick, identifying his strong and weak points before attacking. You remembered what Fornell had told you earlier and decided to use it. Side stepping to Gibbs’ left side, you grabbed him by the shirt and used your leg to trip him backwards so that he fell to the floor. You wasted no time in climbing on top, getting your legs around his arm and neck before pulling in for a successful armbar. Once he tapped, you let him go and couldn’t help but wear a triumphant smile.

You went to get up but was taken off guard when you felt Gibbs push you back to the ground, grabbing your wrists and twisting them behind your back while sitting atop of your stomach and wrapping his legs around your own so you couldn’t move. You squirmed, hoping to slip free but he had you in a vice grip.

He leaned down so his face was inches from yours, both of you breathing hard from the exercise.

“Never let your guard down,” he whispered. You don’t know if you were more pissed about the fact that he got the drop on you or how turned on you were right then but you weren’t gonna let him win that easy.

He may have had a grip on your hands and legs but that didn’t stop you from pushing your chest up and bringing your head to the side of his, gently caressing his cheek with your mouth. You heard him let out a breath and loosen his grip just the slightest.

That’s all you needed.

Slipping your arms out, you used all your momentum to shift the weight, grabbing the gun that was lying inches away and pointing it at him once you were on top.

“Dead,” you declared the same as he had earlier but with more cockiness.

He chuckled and sat up, leaning back on his hands, licking his lips and looking at you with his head cocked to the side.

“With a little more practice, you could join NCIS.”

You laughed at his joke and took a second to give him a once over. His striking blue eyes, chiseled jawline and boyish grin was actually pretty attractive if you thought about it. In that moment, he didn’t seem like the typical douchebag you pegged him as and it unnerved you.

He didn’t make a move to push you off as you realized you were still straddling him and just held his stare until you looked away.

“I’ll stick with hanging with the big boys, thank you.”

You got to your feet and offered him a hand which he took. Your stomach fluttered just a little as his hands met yours to took the dummy gun from you.

“Look forward to working with you again Agent Y/N.”

You just smiled and turned to leave.

“Goodnight Agent Gibbs.”

As you left the gym, you saw his own smile appear on his lips.

[redbatchedcumbermayned]

It all started under a duvet held up by an oar

Not so long ago I emailed Chris Tester, the voice of Heinrix van Calox in Owlcat’s recently released CRPG Rogue Trader, and asked if he would like to sit for an interview with me. Having some experience in interviewing people I like, most famously Oscar winner and all-around sweetheart Eddie Redmayne, this was not a completely nerve-wracking endeavour. And within a day of sending my email, Chris said yes. And what a pleasure it was interviewing him: Chris was so generous with his time, that the agreed upon 30 minutes turned into 50 minutes as we brushed upon many topics from his start as a theatre actor to his first voice-over role in a video game to his recently discovered hobby of playing D&D. Of course, we also spoke about all things Warhammer 40k, his new found fame brought on by voicing Heinrix and the insights he could share about the character.

I will publish this interview in three parts over the next week in text form and with the accompanying audio file (the audio quality is not spectacular but tumblr limits uploads to 10MB). If you quote or reshare, please quote me as the original source.

Part 2 of the interview

Part 3 of the interview

Fran: Thank you very much for taking your time.

Chris Tester: That's no problem. No problem at all.

F: So then let's start. You graduated in 2008.

CT: I did. Yes.

F: You started out as a stage actor. Did you always want to become a stage actor or an actor in general? Tell us a bit about your career.

CT: I always wanted to be a stage actor. Yes, as soon as I knew that I wanted to be an actor, which probably wasn't until I was a teenager. But yeah, my first passion was always the stage, and that was kind of borne out in my career. I would have been open to TV and film of course, if it had come along, I'm a huge fan of TV and film as well, but I never got an audition for any TV or film work.

I think I literally did about three short films in my 10, 12 years of actually professionally acting, and it is one of those industries where the more you do of one thing, the more you seem to find yourself doing the same thing to a degree. So yes, watching Shakespeare from an early age was one of my first passions.

And that was what first planted the seed of wanting to do it myself. The whole aspect of live performance is still something that I'm very passionate about. Up until 2020, when the world changed, I was trying to do two or three theatre shows a year, but since 2020, I haven't been near a stage and I doubt right now, especially with the way that the UK theatre scene is going, that I'm going to be back on stage anytime soon. I am resigned to that, but at some point in my career, I know I will be on stage again, because I can't live without it, but only for the right thing, both financially, but more importantly, creatively.

F: Your production company is currently on hiatus?

CT: I was the producer of a theatre company, which was run and was the baby of the director of the company, a guy called Ross Armstrong, who's one of the most talented writers and directors that I've ever worked with. I was helping out with a lot of the administration stuff so that he could still put me in plays. Instead of creating my own work because I'm not a very good writer or the best writer in the world, I support those people who will write me good parts. So yes, it is currently on hiatus, but never say never, we would always be looking to get back. It's difficult right now. It's difficult for all of us, because arts council subsidy, that way of being able to fund stuff, is drying up. We were doing a national tour of the UK when we were doing that [with the support of a subsidy]. There's even less money, there's even more people. I won't bore you with anything more than that, but it's kind of tough. We'd like to come back, but in the right way, and that's tricky to negotiate.

F: It's always hard as a stage actor to earn a living.

CT: Well, I've been spoiled by voice-over as well, and whereas when I was in my 20s and 30s then you're all about your art. And of course, I'm still all about my art, but I'm also about my wife and my cat and the mortgage and the bills and wanting to have nicer things to a degree as well. I've come to terms with that and voice-over does facilitate that as well as it opens you up to different roles and working with different people. So, I can't complain.

F: It's quite similar with making a living as a writer, because with a steady income you get used to a certain standard of living and once you have obligations and bills to pay, I think the stress on your mental health being creative and having all the stresses of regular life thrust upon you brings with it a challenge.

CT: It's a cliche we can very easily fall into: if I'm suffering, then it means I'm an artist. And that's not necessarily very true. It very often means that the art that we create only reflects one aspect of our lives, and it's usually a very tortured one. I am also about having wider experiences and broadening myself out. Whereas I think when I was in my twenties, I was thinking a bit more like: Oh, I'll experience the world and life through my art and just purely through my art. Whereas now necessarily I need to have a life outside of it as well, and then I can justify like I have the life so that I can feed my art or not, whatever. You know, I'll be a better artist by having a bit of a life outside of it. Maybe.

F: But that's what your twenties are for.

CT: Yeah, indeed.

F: Doing the crazy stuff, doing the band stuff 

CT: Yeah, yeah, exactly. So, there was certainly an aspect of that in my twenties.

F: So, what brought you to voice acting or voice-over work initially?

CT: Money. Video game stuff is kind of sexy and cool, and I'm a gamer, so that's important. Before I was a video gamer, I was a board gamer and off the back of that, I was a voracious video gamer, partly because I wasn't very good at team sports at school. I was always the person who was picked last in the football team. So that becomes part of your identity for better or worse. But video games, I was pretty good at, not amazing, but I was pretty good at, and I enjoyed it. And it gave me a different form of escapism as well, and off the back of that I always had an interest in them. 

So, the very first voiceover job was a video game: Dark Souls, which is quite a big franchise. At that time, I was your very typically jobbing actor. My acting agent came in and said: I got something for you. And so, I went in with that. But it was only in 2016, 2017 that I realised it was something that you could actually do yourself. People had recording studios at home and they were contacting people directly, not just going through agents. Because I'd basically written to the same 20 voice agents in the UK, mainly in London for like eight years in a row and not received anything. So, you keep knocking on those doors hoping. 

Before I'd even graduated from drama school, I'd burnt a CD and made these cases with my headshot on it and sent them all off at what at the time felt like great personal expense and didn't get anything for eight years in a row.  So, I was a bit like, I'm obviously doing something wrong, but I don't really know what, because I'm doing these workshops and getting good feedback. Then I found out through a couple of online courses, that there were ways and means of doing it myself, and that was a bit of a game changer for me, and within six months of having started, I was earning more through voice work than the bar job and the box office job that I was doing combined. Within six months, I was kind of like: “I gotta quit because I'm actually holding myself back from things.” So that was quite a big shift.

F: Somewhere you said, you started out under a duvet and with an oar.

CT: Yeah. On my website, I do have an image of it. [Dear reader, I could not locate this elusive photo] I literally had to take the duvet off my bed and put it into the living room, which was the quietest space in my then shared flat. I also had to wait until after one flat mate had watched TV and another one had used the table that had their washing on it. One of my flat mates had stolen an oar from some night out and that was perfect in order to be able to erect it over my head and the duvet as a frame. 

I did probably the first four or five months of voice recording like that. Probably about 10, 15 voiceover jobs that I actually got paid for, I was using that because it worked well enough. Since then, I've gone through various different iterations of a setup in the bedroom, to a setup in the hallway, to my current setup. In 2020 we moved to our first house, and this is the spare bedroom which I've had converted into a studio, which means my cat can be here asleep on me or near me getting fur everywhere, but it's fine. I can thrash around and I've got natural light to work in at the same time, which I find quite important. [Pictured below Chris' current setup.]

F: Very pretty. That's good. Guide us through a typical day of yours, if you like.

CT: Oh, sure. I mean, there is no typical day. And yet, and yet, and yet. A typical day for me is, because I am spending the vast majority of the day sitting in this room or somewhere close to this room, because I may need to record at short notice, because the vast majority of jobs are quite short notice. My priority is exercise for mental health more than anything. I've got some weights at the bottom of the garden, and I will get up first thing, and I will go there and I will do that after breakfast. And that's my minimal routine of physical activity done. 

And then I'll come back, and this is so rock and roll. Now what I do is, I spend like an hour on LinkedIn. And that's what you dreamed of as a creative person. Isn't it as an actor? I spend time on LinkedIn regularly every day, because it's a really good networking place for a lot of my types of work, and first thing in the morning, I'm a bit mentally sharper. So that's when I come up with a quick post that may be inspired by a bit of content that I've made elsewhere. That probably takes about 20 minutes and then I spend another 45 minutes to an hour engaging with people and saying hi and introducing myself and asking questions, whether that's with video producers or game developers or documentary makers or pretty much anything and everything. There are a lot of people who are active at that time. And so I do it.

And then after that, if I already have some recording lined up, then I'll prioritise mid-morning, because I've warmed up physically a bit more then, and I'm focused. So, you're going through the scripts, annotating the scripts, recording the scripts, editing the scripts. But then there could be live sessions at any time within that as well. I try to keep hours from nine till six. But occasionally, like with Rogue Trader, that was recorded at various different times of the day because we had people in New York, we had people in mainland Europe, and we had people in the UK. So all different time zones, so that can happen at any time. 

And then I try to do other kinds of bits and pieces of marketing whenever I've got free time to. I do use really exciting productivity hacks, like time blocking. Again, not something that as a creative individual, I was like: Oh God, this gets me so excited, because it doesn't, but it works. It's finding a system that works for you, but still has a certain kind of flexibility and fluidity. I'm trying to make sure that I get outside of the house, and that kind of stuff. 

Recently, over the last year, I’ve started doing audiobooks as well. That long form type of thing is quite nice to be able to dip into because sometimes you don't record for two, three days. You don't get the work. Nothing’s coming in. So, you’re marketing, but it kind of connects you back to the performance side of things to go: I can do a few chapters and you know, that kind of thing. So that's probably it. I try to formalise it, but you know, every voice actor’s day is radically different. There are people, some of the biggest names, going into different studios every week or every day. I very rarely, despite being based in London, I very rarely go into external studios. Like I would say 99 percent of the work I just do from home.

F: So how do you find the right voice for the specific type of voiceover work you do, maybe start with how did you find Heinrix's voice?

CT: Thankfully, Owlcat sent through quite a detailed casting breakdown. So, you get a picture, and that's pretty crucial, as well as a short bio, in terms of the background of the character, but not too much, because you have to sign an NDA, a non-disclosure agreement. But even if you do sign an NDA, I think developers are always slightly hesitant of giving you too much info about the game because things could still be changed. But I think I did get a picture of Heinrix, if not in the first audition, then certainly on the second one. From that you immediately think about the physicality and what might affect the voice, and there was also some direction in terms of what they were looking for. Anybody who has heard the character and me, they do not sound radically dissimilar. There's not a transformative process that I needed to go through, other than his sense of authority and the space that he takes up and the sureness that he has in that he has a kind of divine right from the emperor, so that level of confidence being brought through.

The other part of the audition was about the void ship [the Black Ship] that he'd been raised in and the horrors that he'd seen. And you as the actor have to do the detective work to go like this is showing another side, the more vulnerable side, the side that underpins all of his life choices up to this point. It's essentially playing the opposite to a degree. So it was kind of knowing when to let those elements bleed through a little bit. I think I had probably about a page worth of scripts, quite a lot of script actually to audition with. 

But I don't like to listen back to it a lot, because I think you get into your head. My biggest thing is stage work where it's ephemeral. You say it once and it could be different the next night. The whole point is that there's no one definitive way of doing things. Not quite the same with voice acting, where it's being recorded and you've got to get used to hearing it back. But I try not to overthink it. Just like record it two or three times with different impulses and then review and go like, those two seem pretty contrasting. I'll send those along and hope and then never hear anything back unless I do.

[nrdmssgs]

I'm crazy and this is mainly based off my oc, but yn is prices adopted daughter that works with him, and the read is like 22-24 and price is supposed to be 45, and he kept it a secret because he's want to protect yn. I wanna see how the 141/könig reaction, can be romantic or platonic don't care lol, yes i know it's stupidly specific, but I'm stupidly specific.

The reader being Prices adopted daughter (part1)

Masterlist

Summary: you are Johns adopted daughter. This is how different members of the 141 find out about that and how they react.

AN: Hi! I'm almost through with this absolutely beautiful request! I've decided to split it into two parts, I really hope, you don't mind. I've kept it all really platonic and very comforting, and I just wanted to express my gratitude for such a wholesome request! Two important remarks: 1. My interpretation of your OC has turned to be a bisexual person. 2. The order in which the characters appear in the story does not affect their proximity to the main character in any way. This is simply the order in which the characters learned that she was Price's adopted daughter. She loves them all the same) I will, of course, tag you in the second part!!

There were four important names in your life. In your darkest hours, you kept repeating them in your mind. They were so much more than just colleagues, teachers, friends… they all were your family.

John

You were the oldest in your group in an orphanage. Others came and went, but not you. It happened so that you had to grow up ahead of time, get used to the fact that adults more often wanted to adopt babies. But you accepted this world and the rules. You never thought of it as some kind of noble mission, but you took care of your younger friends, worried about them, rejoiced with them. Whenever someone from your group left the shelter forever, you are separated from your friend, but at the same time rejoiced. Caregivers jokingly called you “the Keeper” sometimes, as you cared for other kids as much as a director of the orphanage. 

So when one day one of your teachers came up to you after class and said, "There's someone here who wants to meet you," and pointed to a man standing in the doorway, you were confused. The teacher led you to a stranger, and he squatted down so that your eyes were on the same level. "Hi. I'm John." He held out his hand, but noticing your uncertainty, lowered it and smiled warmly at you.

You hit it off quickly. John asked you a lot about life at the orphanage, about your interests. He himself turned out to be an incredibly interesting person: he visited all the corners of the world that you heard about on TV. John told you about jungles and canyons, about villages where all the roads were just small bridges thrown over the water, about ghost towns where it is so cold in winter that the steam from the mouth immediately turns into snow. Your stories seemed not that big to you. What is the story of how you and your friends fed a bumblebee worth compared to John's travels? You were embarrassed by this and quickly reduced such conversations to stories about your younger friends. What if he likes someone and takes one of them home?

“You seem to care for all of them dearly.” Johns looks on the horizon as you two sit on the bench. “You have it in you, kid. Willingness to help, to stand up for them. I see it clearly. Teach me to be like that, will ya?”

You look at him with big eyes full of disbelief. What can you teach him, an adult? Are you used to everyone teaching you something...

"I'm not doing anything special..." You look high into the sky above you. "Well, when any of them is very sad, I hug him with all my might. Maybe you can try to do the same and become like me?"

"Hug with all my might?" John chuckles. "Yes, Simon will be impressed..." But then he sees your worried stare and encourages you, "Hey, that's great advice! I'll try it. But I think, it's now time for you to have dinner, and for me to go home. Don`worry, kid, I promise to come in a week and update you on my progress!"

You do not believe that this man will return, so you try not to wait for him. Most often, adults come back for babies. You remember it. But he comes back a week later. Then he visits you again and again.

Then you end up visiting him. John has a whole house with a backyard! You build a bird feeders together, play board games late into the night, and even go hiking.

These are the best days of your life, and when it's time to go back to the orphanage, you turn your back on John and hide your tears, so he won't notice. "Hold on just a little longer, kid. I'll sort it out soon," he says, and puts a hand on your shoulder.

Whenever he takes you to his house, he gives you something: a plushie or a book or some clothes. But you never took those gifts to your orphanage because you were afraid that one day he would simply stop coming, disappear from your life, and all these trinkets would remind you of him. This little biter habit of yours broke Johns heart over and over again. You were still a child, but you were already afraid to get attached to someone.

One day he takes you back to his house once again. After an evening with cocoa and a board game, he hands you a simple envelope. "This is something very important. Take a look. I need your opinion on it." You are confused, but still open the envelope and start reading the document, that was inside it. You can hardly make out the text, overloaded with terms you are unfamiliar with. And then, little by little, understanding comes to you and the letters begin to blur before your watering eyes.

“Is… is it? I…” You try to say anything, but words fail you. So you jump off your chair and run to John. He barely has time to move away from the table when you do not even hug him - you cling to him with such force, as if your life depended on it. You've always tried to hide your tears in front of him, but now they're rolling and rolling down your face. John hugs you back and pats your head to comfort you. “It's ok, it's ok, I got you. You're gonna be ok, little one. We're gonna be ok. Not ok even - we're gonna be good. Together.” His voice is soft and quiet.

Simon

“I'll need you to take the mask off this time. Don't want you to scare anyone in m`house.” Ghost grants John a side eye and scoffs. “John Price lives alone no more?” John nods and continues to drive silently. Initially, Ghost was supposed to visit Captains house just for business, but now he is tormented by curiosity. “Someone trustworthy?” Ghosts voice is still muffled with the mask. “The most trustworthy person out there,” John smiles and Simon takes the mask off. Ghost enters the house before Price, who lingered at the trunk in search of something. Simon hears joyful kids voice. "John is back!" A girl of about twelve years of age runs down the stairs with a loud clatter. But when she sees Simon, she stops in her tracks. Price often leaves for some time, and she is already used to the fact that strangers often appear in the house: Johns relatives, acquaintances who look after the child while he is away. But Simons menacing appearance made her dumbfounded. She takes a tiny step back when Price's voice comes from the street. “It's ok, kid. This is mister Riley, he's my colleague and friend.” Both Ghost and the girl look at each other startled, not knowing what to say. John finally comes into the house and defuses the situation. "Look who we met on the way home," he says, and hands the girl a plush tiger cub. Her face immediately changes and she happily skips to John.

At dinner, she sits her new toy next to her and bombards Price with questions about his work and stories about what she has been doing in his absence. Simon looks from her to John and remembers how the captain stayed in his office until late at night, endlessly filling out some forms a couple of years ago. Ghost thought it had to do with work, but when he once offered to help Price with this paperwork, John refused with strange zeal. And now Ghost sees, what was it all about. And it all was hella worth it: she was the nicest, most well-behaved and happiest kid, Simon seen in a while. 

When they finished their dinner, the girl grinned conspiratorially. "Hey John! Guess what." And before Price could even react, she burst out impatiently and with ill-concealed delight: "I made your favorite dessert!"

"You? Or was it Aunt Meg?" John smirks and Simon realizes he's never seen the captain so happy before. "No, it's definitely me this time! She was just… looking out!"

Price walks into the kitchen and an awkward silence spreads across the living room. Although it seems that only Simon feels awkward - the girl stares at his tattoos with the most sincere interest. "Ehm, so you... love animals?" Ghost squints at the toy tiger cub. The girl smiles broadly and nods, never taking her eyes off Simon's arms. "Do you maybe… want to be a veterinarian when you grow up?" Simon continues this awkward conversation. "No!" She looks up at him and continues loudly, "When I grow up - I want to be a soldier like John!" The shrill sound of spoons and forks scattering across the floor comes from the kitchen.

“Soldier… I thought, kids in her age were supposed to want to become… I don't know, pop stars? Princesses? Figure skaters?” rants Price later that evening, when the girl is already sleeping and he and Simon are standing on a backyard. 

“She doesn't want to become any soldier. She wants to be 'a soldier like John'. You are her hero, Captain.” Simon chuckles, masking the fact, that he envies Price a bit. The undisguised delight with which the girl looks at John, her admiration for even the simplest, most trivial of his stories… No money could buy that.

Ghost visited Prices house throughout several next years, and every time he gradually became more comfortable around the girl. In some time, they could hang out together without any awkwardness. She brought her homework down to the big table in a living room and asked Simon to tell her stories about his work with John. Of course Simon tried not to mention anything too disturbing, but it was difficult, and the stories came out short and inconsistent. But she still thrived on them. “Seems like you are quite good at what you do!” She sounds almost as exited as when she talks to John. “Quite good? Lieutenant Ghost is the legend, kid,” comments Price, entering the room. Little do John and Simon know, this was the exact moment, that predetermined the girl's life for years to come. Now she had not just one, but two heroes and a dream: to become like them.

A few years later, which flew by for Simon like a few days, he and John were already present at her oath. Of the two, Ghost, who kept aloof from the others, seemed the calmer. John seemed to be worried about everything: because his daughter was one of the shortest in her formation, because of the bad weather and the fact that she was about to get wet, because of the form "which was of much better quality back in his time" ... But when she got out of line, when she began to recite the text of the oath, Simon shuddered inwardly. Price's daughter, this little dear miracle, who had been running around the house what seemed like just yesterday in funny pajamas, was reciting the oath... Ghost couldn't believe it.

And when she, with burning eyes and a happy blush on her face, ran up to them and saluted with the words "Captain, Lieutenant", Simon felt his eyes tingle. He left her alone with John so that they could share this very special moment. But a few minutes later he heard her hurried steps and she lightly squeezed his arm in a short friendly hug. "Starting your service with insubordination?" Simon scolded her, but in fact it was one of the brightest, happiest moments of his life. He never thought that someone else's adopted child could become so important to him.

Johnny

“Let go!” The fabric of Soaps T-shirt was stretched, and the seams began to crackle dangerously, ready to burst. "Johnny, cut it out!" - your voice echoed between the gray walls of the neighboring buildings of your base. You tried to work things out quietly, but with Soap, that's impossible. If he decides something, it's as good as done.

You try to hold him by force, but it's not so easy: to a greater extent, it's not your hands that clutched at his T-shirt that stop him, but the risk of ruining that T-shirt forever.

"Hey Soap! The hell is going on here?" Price's voice sounds so close that both you and Johnny flinch and turn around at the same time. "She's holding me by force! And you still ask me what happened?" Soap sounds fierce, but his posture shifts, and he unconsciously shields you from Price, who is looking from him to you. 

"Sorry, Captain. It's all right, the Sergeant and I were just joking." You answer, turning away from Price. But nothing ever escapes John. He walks around Soap, catches up with you and looks into your eyes. "You've been crying." It's not even a question, it's a statement. Price sees your reddened eyes, swollen eyelids. He also knows that you almost never cry. You want to be a good soldier so much, you look up to him and Ghost, you never let your emotions get the better of you. But if something brings you to tears... Something or someone... It's really bad.

“Gonna ask it once…” Prices eyes pierce right through the mask of dumb jolliness, you desperately try to put on. “What happened?” You try to come with anything, but your best shot just sounds pathetic “It's just an allergy, Captain…”

“Allergy my ass…” - Price walks around you and comes back to Soap. “Ok, Sergeant, let's see if you have anything better for me… Same question, I'm waiting.” 

You look at Soap with a mute pleading, but he does not notice this, his eyes are riveted to Price. “She was dumped today. I wanted to find the bastard and have a word with him.” Soaps voice is still harsh from your fight. You shut your eyes and let go of his T-shirt at last. Price slowly exhales. You know that sound. A quiet long exhalation, a harbinger of a storm. “Who?” - Johns` voice sounds cold and distant.

“Your guess is as good as mine. She doesn't tell, so I was heading to the barracks to find out myself.” Soap finally looks at you, his gaze is absolutely fierce, as if rejecting you was some kind of personal insult to him. 

Price turns around to you once more. One word is enough for him to express both a question and an ominous threat. “Name.” You shake your head, not daring to look up at him. 

John clearly doesn't want so sound menacing to you. And if Soap wasn't around, Price would already wrap you in a tight embrace to hide you from your own pain. But the fact, that someone dared to hurt, to reject you, his little treasure (and it doesn't matter, that the last night you turned 22), makes his blood boil with rage. Of course, he is overprotective as your father, but he believes, it's you, who deserves to choose partners, and they just have to be eternally happy and grateful for your attention. You understand, that your problems have just doubled up… Now both Soap and Price are waiting for you to drop the name, and every next moment of silence seems to only make it worse.

“I need the name, kid. Now, there won't be any fights, we'll just talk. Nice and calmly… And if that bloody moron just happens to slip and fall on the Sergeant's fist - I may not notice …” your Captains` voice was quiet, menacingly quiet. Johnny didn't look any friendlier, his posture was tense and his eyes - furious. You bite your tongue, afraid to say a word. “As you wish. Off to the barracks we head then,” commands Price, and they walk past you.

In a fit of desperation, you take off and rush after them. "Wait! There's no need to 'talk' to anyone, please... It was Sarah... from the office."

They both stop in their tracks and look at each other. This... changed a lot. Of course, they still care about you and want to help, but now, obviously, they will have to reconsider their plans. Soap looks completely lost, Price checks time and rises his gaze back at you. 

"In two hours, both of you. My office." Johns` voice is echoing in your head as they both leave you alone. It's hard to even roughly imagine what awaits you and why John also needed Soap. Perhaps the Captain just wanted to lecture you about relationships at work, and so he invited Johnny, who had several... similar experiences.

But when you and Soap meet on the threshold of Price's office at the appointed time, the captain silently nods to his desk with three empty glasses and a flask. The rest of the evening, these two vied with each other to tell you about different failures in their personal lives. At first you feel awkward, but gradually you relax. Some stories make you sigh sadly, others are so funny that you almost choke with laughter. Little by little, you're feeling less pain from being dumped. Yes, maybe you didn't get someone, you wanted, but you have John and Johnny, who are not embarrassed to tell you the most silly and sad personal stories, just to make you feel less alone even in such a situation.

When you leave Price's office, both you and Johnny's faces are flushed with constant laughter. He puts his hand on your shoulder and says: “Hey, don`ya spend y`tears on that dafty, ok? She lost more than you today! We'll find you a nice lass or lad, that papa Price approves of!” You almost fall over in surprise. Nobody but Ghost knew that Price had ever adopted you. Here at the military base, you and Price were just colleagues.

"What, you think m`blind?" Soap stops and stares at you. "The captain takes care of everyone in his own way, but arranging something like this... The last time, I was in a similar situation - the man just filled me up with paperwork so that I had no energy left for anything else." When he puts it that way, it darts to be obvious to you too: you may kept your secrets, but the way you and Price cared for each other was sometimes on the surface. “Johnny… I don't know, how to put it right, but we really try to keep it…” 

“Keep just to yourselves? Dinae worry, I get it.” He smirks. “Price is protecting you and so will I from now on. So, ma mouths shut.” 

And Johnny keeps his word: he never mentions how you are related to Price, never publicly reminisces about that evening at Captains office. And he also starts a whole operation to find and select the perfect candidate for you, but that's a whole another story.

[38sr]

How did you get where you are now? Job wise I mean? Were you a college student before doing this or did you go looking for jobs in the art industry straight away?

Oh, well it's been quite a journey for me in terms of how I got to where I am right now but here's the full timeline (?):

August 1996 - BIRTH

April 2007 - I watch Brave Story at Tribeca Film Festival, life is changed and I decide to purse animation

June 2014 - Graduate high school and accepted into Montserrat College of Art for Animation & Interactive Media

Summer of 2016 - Studied abroad in Japan attending Niigata School of Art & Design

Summer of 2017 - First animation job as an animation intern for Sesame Street (yes that Sesame Street)

December 2017 - Graduated from college (yes I graduated early due to having college credits in high school), did not have a job lined up

2018 to 2019 - Living back in NY with my parents, working on indie animation productions, creating emotes and animated intros for content creators, applying and getting rejected from many job listings, received and fail multiple storyboard tests, developing my own projects and story ideas after years of not being able to for school work

July 2019 - Fly to California for the first time, made the decision to move in order to further pursue a career in animation, at this time the Nickelodeon Artist Program were accepting submissions so I busted out boards for a personal project in 3 days and submitted it (please do not be like me, take your time haha)

September 2019 - I receive a call from Nickelodeon and I go through a series of interviews for 2 months straight

Thanksgiving 2019 - I receive news I was selected as a trainee for the Nickelodeon Artist Program

January 2020 - Move to California and begin work as a trainee at Nickelodeon (specifically for Rugrats reboot)

March 2020 - The pandemic

July 2020 - I leave Nickelodeon and move onto Titmouse as a storyboard revisionist for Star Trek Lower Decks

November 2020 - My Supervising Director for Lower Decks recommends me to the first Critical Role show Legend of Vox Machina

December 2020 - I do freelance boards for Vox Machina and get hired as a full time revisionist for season 2

January 2021 - I receive a interview request for a job on WondLa at SkyDance due to one of the directors finding my work online, I heavily consider the job

May 2021 - My Adventures of Superman is announced, I draw a piece of fanart that goes viral

July 2021 - Vox Machina season 2 wraps, I receive an offer to return to Lower Decks season 3 as well to work on X-Men 97 (I said yes to Lower Decks)

August 2021 - Spiderman Freshmen Year (now known as Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman) asks if I be interested to do boards, I decline not knowing what it was for

September 2021 - Showrunner for Spiderman contacts me personally for interview, my Superman fanart from May 2021 finds it way in front of the eyes of one of the creators for MAWS, still currently doing revisions for Lower Decks S3

October 2021 - Accept job offer as board artist for Spiderman, freelancing on MAWS as a character designer (first time doing this job), turn down SkyDance job offer

December 2021 - Wrapped on Lower Decks S3

January 2022 - Launch as board artist for Spiderman at Marvel Studios, still been developing my own personal projects at this point

February 2022 - Studio Shaft offers layout and genga work for Madoka Magia Record after seeing animation work of my personal projects, I accept

April 2022 - My episode of Madoka Magia Record airs, Studio Pierrot sends offer for work on Boruto

May 2022 - After my first episode on Boruto I am offered to work on Bleach Thousand Year Blood War, I accept and continue to on Bleach as of this post (3 seasons in total), Studio Mir offers me animation work for XMen 97 (I accept but only work on the first episode)

Summer of 2022 - Working on Spiderman, animating on animes, I think at some point this is when I was offered to do animation work for Castlevania Nocturne

November 2022 - Complete season 1 of Spiderman, Marvel/Disney lays me off for *reasons*, I receive an email about potential work on an unannounced show at Nickelodeon, I'm unemployed at this point

January 2023 - Collecting unemployment, freelancing on animes, trying to survive in general, also approached by Colosso to create my own course

February 2023 - Land a short gig on Big City Greens movie over at Disney TVA, Studio Mir once again offer me work but this time for second animated Witcher film

March 2023 - Land an interview as a character designer for that unannounced Nick show, didn't get the job

May 2023 - Wrap up on Big City Greens and Witcher, fly to Japan to relax (I failed)

July 2023 - Land a layout artist position at A24 (no it's not for Hazbin Hotel), Studio Mappa offer me work on Jujutsu Kaisen Shibuya Arc

September 2023 - Land another interview with Nickelodeon (this time for storyboard artist), freelancing on layouts and animation for Castlevania Nocturne S2, A24 job is stressing me out way too much so I decide to leave, MAWS hits me up for retakes on season 2

October 2023 - Wrap up at A24, I land the board artist job at Nick, I am also drowning in Jujutsu Kaisen production meltdown, complete my online course for Colosso, wrap up on MAWS S2

November 2023 - I start at Nick as a board artist, Colosso course release, I am still dying by the hands of Studio Mappa

January 2024 till now - Still boarding over at Nick and still animating on animes (I am VERY selective now about it though after JJK), I am also in therapy now Yeah so that's like, a real rough timeline over everything from school till now (and even then I am missing a lot of work details like video games and development projects due to NDAs). But pretty much what carried me was putting myself and my art out there on social media along with building relationships with people in the studios (outside of just my production) and that's how I've been able to maintain a steady work flow even when I was unemployed. Also not being afraid to develop my own ideas and share them since most of the times that gives the leadership a pretty good idea what sensibilities I have (and they just happen to match). I hope that answered your question!

[716chr]

Chihiro Natsuyaki Novel - “Choose Me!”

Track 1 - 1st Round

Smiling brightly, I turn on my charm.

Desperately trying to connect with the person on the other side of the screen, I seek their love.

Whether the image of me reflected there is fake or real…..Even I can’t tell anymore.

—— “Heya! Thanks for checking out my 100sec-PR vid! My name’s Chihiro Natsuyaki, and I’m from the special tourist ward, HAMA 14! All my friends call me Chii! I’m passionate about dancing and regularly upload my idol dance covers on Dazzle!”

“So come check me out!”, I say with a smile.

However my smile is a bit forced, and there is a hint of anxiety lurking in my eyes.

The reality is I have no confidence in myself, and those who understand that feeling would definitely notice.

“Also, I have lots of respect for the gyaru culture of the Heisei era….. My hobby is collecting Heisei memorabilia(1)! First, please check out my dances!”

I hadn't started using “Chii-nese” at this point in time.

There was a moment in my SNS self-introduction video that was shot soon after I was accepted for the audition show but before the final selection where I started dancing, and only in that moment did I truly appear to be brimming with confidence.

“Alright, how about you adopt a gyaru persona? It adds more flair to have someone like that on the show. Got that? I’m counting on you.”

“……A gyaru… persona?”

That day, I sat in the TV station’s conference room, my heart thumping with nervousness.

“13Choose!” ——After applying to this next-generation idol audition program, I successfully passed the document review and video screening and made it to the finals. I was then invited for an in-person meeting; I wondered if the other contestants would be there and what they were like. It made me really nervous.

But, to my surprise, the only person in the meeting room was a man who introduced himself as the director.

In the room, there was a TV playing my newly recorded self-intro video.

The director glanced at it and said, “You mentioned liking Heisei’s gyaru culture, right?”

“We need at least one flashy person among the contestants. Ah, your current makeup is fine, but can you make your eye makeup a bit heavier? Put more emphasis into that cat-eye(2) look. And also, dye your hair pink”

“Dye… my hair… pink?”

“Can’t do it?”

“N-No, I can.”

When questioned, I hastily agreed. I wasn’t sure what this all meant, but I felt that I shouldn’t refuse. The director was telling this to a nobody like me, who wasn’t even part of a talent agency, so I figured I should follow his instructions if I wanted to have a chance at making it.

“Make sure to really play up the gyaru persona in front of the camera. If you can at least make it to the semi-finals, it’ll keep the show engaging.”

The director didn’t even look my way, as if I was a speck of dust in his eyes. My self-introduction video reached the dance portion, the one part I wanted him to see the most, but…

“Next person, please.”

With those words, I had no choice but to get up and leave the room.

After leaving the TV station, I looked for a salon where I could book an appointment.

I needed a place that could dye my hair pink for as cheaply as possible.

What kind of personality would a gyaru have?

I wonder if it means someone who uses a lot of gyaru slang.

Does that mean I should act bright and cheerful?

“……..At least make it to the semi-finals…., huh…”

I remember the director’s words.

That means he doesn’t think I can debut, right?

Being told to exaggerate the gyaru persona on camera surely means he wants me to be a high-energy hypeman.

I suddenly become aware of the hole deep inside my heart.

The usual draft blows through it, leaving me feeling cold and lonely.

It's the unbearable loneliness that comes when I realize no one in this world needs me.

But then, I shake my head and think to myself, “I can do this, I know I can.”

After all, I do this at home too. The same old routine.

My bad-tempered mom, my irritable big sister, and my frightened little sisters.

I smile and play the role of a clown in order to make everyone laugh.

In order to make everyone smile.

…..I thought, for a moment, that no matter where I go, nothing changes.

But even so, that’s okay.

I clenched my fists tightly at the thought.

“If it means I can become an idol, I’ll do anything.”

If it’ll change my meaningless life around.

If it can make my family smile, even just a tiny bit….

At least for now, the only path I can choose is to win the audition in front of me.

For me, there is no other option.

“13Choose!” is the successor to a popular, regularly held audition show. Being chosen and making your debut here means becoming an idol with a tremendous amount of fame and popularity.

I’ve watch many idol audition shows myself.

Contestants are brought to their dormitory, their smartphones taken away, and are made to live under strict supervision. They are ranked and compete in dancing, singing, and idol concepts. Viewer votes and producer evaluations are combined to determine who gets eliminated, starting with the lowest-ranked contestants.

I heard that there’s a total of 133 contestants this time.

And only 13 people will be allowed to debut.

So, here I was, unpacking my belongings in my assigned room at the dormitory. The other contestants were probably doing the same, though I could hear occasional excited shouts coming from down the hallway.

It was only natural.

The first mission song was just announced, and everyone was on cloud nine. I was feeling excited and anxious too.

“Man~, I’m a total nervous wreck, but I love that song to death so I can’t help but feel excited ‘bout it~!”

There’s a camera in my room too, capturing everything.

Remembering the direction to…. play up and exaggerate the gyaru persona in front of the camera, I struck up a conversation with my roommate.

“Y’know! I nearly cried when I listened to this song. It’s a song by an artist that I’m the biggest fan of…. Ah, geez, I got emotional again.”

My roommate, Komu-kun, was super cute.

His smile was radiant, like an angel’s.

It seemed he’d come all the way from Kansai to participate, and got embarrassed whenever he accidentally slipped into his Kansai dialect.

Even now, he’s shyly covering his mouth, and I can't help but think he's one of those naturally "adorable" types.

“Komu-pi is so cute—— Ah, can I call you Komu-pi? You can call me Chii!”

Komu-kun, elated, said with a laugh, “I’m glad to be roommates with Chii….”

“I haven’t tried singing or dancing before…. But Chii’s good at dancing, right? I saw it in your 100s-PR!”

“Eh, you checked it so fast! Didn’t it just come out yesterday?”

“I was told in advance that I’d be roommates with you, so I looked you up right away…. Your dancing skills are amazing, and you look so cool too!”

The day before arriving at the dormitory, my roommate’s name was indeed given to me.

In fact, I had already watched Komu-kun’s PR, and his shy yet amusing display of his talent of being able to “recite pi to a hundred decimals!” as he called it while fidgeting was kinda strange, but entertaining nonetheless.

I never thought Komu-kun would watch my video, so it was a nice surprise. It warmed my heart to know that he watched my dancing and complimented it.

“To be honest, I dunno if I can keep up with practice. …..But my family is poor, you see. So I dropped out after middle school so I could become an idol to support my family.”

“Oh, same here. I dropped out after middle school too.”

“For real? That’s pretty comfortin’. Come to think of it, Chii and I are almost the same height too.”

I missed the chance to say it, but knowing that we both wanted to support our families and that we both came from the same impoverished background made me feel somewhat comforted.

But when Komu-kun pulled out a bunch of family photos from his luggage and put them up on the wall, I felt a pang in my chest.

Between the two people who looked to be kind and gentle parents stood Komu-kun, smiling.

Looking at the photos from his childhood to present day, I felt they all gave off the sense that he had a close bond with his family.

There were not only formal pictures, but also some casual playful ones taken of their daily lives.

As I stared at them intently, Komu-kun turned around and innocently said, “Ah, those’re my family photos.”

“…..You guys take a lot of photos, huh.”

“Papa and Mama are always…. Ah, I mean, my Dad and my Mom really love taking photos, so despite our financial situation, they always want to take photos and make photo albums for me every year. I wish they could cut me some slack, but I can’t deny that it makes me really happy.”

“………..”

I pause. My words won’t come out right away.

I thought we were similar just mere moments ago, but now I just couldn’t see him that way anymore.

I desperately tried to stop the bubbling sense of unease inside me.

“C’mon, Komu-pi, don’t try to act cool~. You usually call your parents ‘Papa’ and ‘Mama’, right? You can call them that in front of me.”

“Ehhh, you’re not going to laugh at me for actin’ like a kid?”

“I won’t laugh, I promise. I think it’s cute, so you’re totally in the OK-zone.”

Komu-kun’s shy smile really is cute.

There wasn’t a single shred of malice in him; just a genuine smile. And it made me think, “He truly is loved.”

…..He’s going to be really popular.

The thought suddenly occurred to me.

“Come to think of it, Chii, you didn’t have pink hair in your 100s-PR video, right? Did you dye it? It really suits you.”

“Aah…… Yeah, the director gave me some advice. And he suggested I go pink.”

Actually, it was more like an order.

But Komu-kun turned to me with a smile and genuinely exclaimed, “Woah, the director is so kind!”

“I got some advice too. He said that by being myself, I can bring out my natural charm, and that I should just be confident.”

“……Is that so.”

“That’s completely different from what he told me,” I thought to myself.

Deep inside my chest, ugly jealousy began to sprout alongside my anxiety.

It was dark, viscous, oppressive, and the moment I became conscious of it I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

I brushed it off. I didn’t want to lose to something like that.

After all, I’m gonna become an idol, and I want to keep that idol spirit inside my heart too.

“If it’s dancing, I can teach you all ‘bout it!”

That’s why I decided to say that. Komu-kun who said, “Chii, you’re too kind!” was really happy.

Because of my slight sense of guilt, I swore to make sure to teach him with absolute seriousness and sincerity.

I made up my mind to practice together, to make sure that both Komu-kun and I could make it through to the next selection.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3 | Track 4 | Track 5

TL Notes:

Here, even though the original script used “グッズ” (goods), I decided to go with the word “memorabilia” instead since Heisei era ended in 2019 and this game supposedly takes place in a pretty far future, I’d say it’s pretty fitting

Original word is “つり目” (tsurime), the eye style that’s famously known to be a trademark trait for tsundere characters but its definition defined it as “slanted upwards eyes”, I decided to call it “cat eye” due to similar look + in Chihiro’s profile, he said his charm point is his “cat eyes” so yeah

[laladellakang]

partners (1/2) ♡

masterlist | wattpad

DETAILS: bold dialogue: english members: ot7, (individual scenes) nrk, psh, lhs, yjw word count: 5.1k add. della in dark blood/bite me

SUMMARY: behind the scenes of dark blood [revamp] hehe revamp like vampires 1/2 + slight continuation of burgundy lipstick on jungwon's part

NOTES: hi! i'm so sorry for being away for so long! i have an explanation here if you wanna see what's been happening BUT NOWW i've come back for this new special birthday + anniversary month chapter! this is basically the partners chapter but revised + more scenes. i was gonna just combine it w part two but it was hecka long and i hate extremely long chapters. oh yea and della's dance in bite me includes a girlie now (but still has a man) please let me know what you think by sending asks/commenting. i look forward to them while writing and they really make my day <3 

Della's hand injury at the start of 2023 has caused an obvious shift within Enhypen's dynamics. The fear of another relapse has caused the members to grow increasingly protective and wary of the girl, doing everything they can to get the love of their life back. Displaying it through their constant supervision when Della is in the kitchen, to being assured that she has taken her antidepressants, to an overall improvement in communication to ensure that her negative thoughts don't boil over.

Fortunately, the slump went away faster than they anxiously expected. Following the tour and her plastic surgery, Della had regained her usual self just in time for her birthday and their two-year anniversary. As their bond grows stronger by the day, the eight found themselves back in their honeymoon phase— practically inseperable.

Then the time came for a comeback.

It would have been ten months since their last one, and the group ready to go back into their busy routine with barely any rest but at least looked cute while doing it. They were excited for the change, and even more thrilled to find out that the concept would be something sexy. However, when they were briefed about the potential couple choreography, all seven boys froze collectively.

"We have to see how this goes. This is uncharted territory for us, so we're not sure if it's the best idea," the creative director explained. "BTS' Jimin incorporated mixed dancers, and the response was pretty good. However, 'Like Crazy' wasn't a full-on couple dance, so it might be different this time."

Jungwon, who was sitting to the left of Della, immediately held her hand under the desk, while the other six stole glances in her direction. Their minds were mostly occupied with how their girlfriend would react, as opposed to fully sinking in what such concept would entail for them.

"You'll hear the song in a bit, but since the key point is about a man doting on the woman who turned him into a vampire, we are going to have Della be the killing part," another director continued. "You'll have slightly different lyrics from the boys and you'll have an overall more seductive look."

"Thank you," Della bowed in her seat. "Is it altered to be more feminine?" she asked.

"No, no. You'll be singing from the girl's perspective. So if we look at the next page—" the sound of papers flipping echoed through the room. "Here, for Della's part in the teaser, we're gonna have you bite an actor— of course, not literally," the director's comment made a few people snicker. "—and turn him into a vampire. So, essentially, you'll be singing to two people: the woman who turned you and the man that you turned."

"Ahh, understood," Della nodded calmly. "Thank you," she said once again before caressing the back of Jungwon's tense hand. She glanced over at the others to find most of them looking at their sheet with a hard gaze. She could additionally see Jake playing with the corner of his and hear Jay's foot tapping on the floor. 

"Thank you for the question, now back to the previous page—" another round of paper-flipping. "Now given that backstory, Della's partner in this comeback will be the only male—" the comment made Ni-ki choke on the coffee he was sipping. "Are you alright?"

"Ye– yeah! My– apo– apologies." he said in between coughs, turning his body away from the table while Sunoo patted his back.

"Like we said, we don't know how this is gonna turn out. We're sort of taking a gamble by doing this type of concept, but it's certainly going to be different and memorable."

The car ride home was tense. The members made an effort to conceal their emotions in the office, but in the privacy of the car, they saw no need to do so, and thus, they didn't. Though the discussion had to wait until they reached the dorm, as they needed all seven boys to be there. Della, who already knew the reason behind the tension, just calmly played with her phone and hummed to their upcoming title track.

"You really like the song, huh?" Jay commented as he entered the combination to their dorm. Since they had freshly heard it, all Della kept doing was humming the tune and repeating the words 'just come kiss me and bite me',which only heightened the tension among the three boys in her car. She could have chosen any other parts of the song and instead went for that specific line.

"It's one of my favorites of ours. It's so good," Della stopped her humming to reply with a grin. "We're ho—"

"Group meeting!" Jungwon immediately called out.

"As expected," Della muttered to herself. The four new arrivals swiftly put their shoes away and made headed to the living room, where the other four were already waiting. "Hello—"

"Lala, how are you feeling?" Jungwon wasted no time in asking. The question that all seven boys have been meaning to ask for the past two hours.

"I feel great," she replied with a soft smile, sitting on the couch armrest. "The song's great! The concept's great! I really can't wait for it."

"Is there... anything you dislike about the concept?" Sunghoon asked with a suspicious tone.

"Honestly..." the boys all looking at her with curious, yet almost eager eyes. "I think it's our best concept yet. It really represents Enhypen," her words made them collectively sigh in relief. "Were you expecting me to hate it?"

"No, it's just— like..." Sunoo struggled to find the words to explain the situation. "We were worried about the couple concept thing. The couple dance plus all the acting."

"Why were you worried about that?" Della furrowed her eyebrows. "Are you expecting me to be jealous?"

"No!" the seven said simultaneously in different tones. "We were just worried." Della couldn't help but scoff and giggle at her boyfriends.

"You guys have gotten so used to being a group that you often say things in unison," she covered the bottom half of her face, unable to contain her giggles. "So cute!"

"Wait— Lala, stay focused— are you seriously, seriously fine with everything?" Sunoo placed a hand on her knee to grab her attention.

"I'm totally cool! I don't mind you guys dancing with girls at all!" Della said with wide eyes and a genuine tone. "Guys, I used to train in YG— dancing or acting with the opposite sex is nothing! It's all professional," the mention of her old company itself suddenly provided the answer to their question.

"But the concept is quite sexy. We won't just be dancing next to each other, it's gonna be a couple dance with hand touching, at least," Jake explained.

"Honey, have you seen groups like Winner and BigBang? With Riki still being a baby, I doubt any of the parts will be suggestive— the worst thing they can do is have you hold onto the dancer's waist or something," she gave the Aussie a knowing look. "This is the art of dancing! We're exploring new stuff that fourth gen hasn't done before!" her eyes shone with every word she spoke, clearly showing her enthusiasm for the concept.

"I mean... on top of that, we don't love the idea too," Sunghoon spoke up, trying to be gentle. "We— or at least I wouldn't want to dance with another girl, let alone seeing you dance with another guy," Heeseung and Jay pointed to him in agreement while the others nod.

"Aww, darling, it's all professional, I promise!" Della made her way to the Sunghoon and released his crossed arms. "I'm only dancing with him for a little bit! Barely half a minute, I'm sure," she linked her arm with his and stared up at him with puppy eyes.

"It still ain't fun," he muttered, gulping down at the sight of her.

"Della, it's not that we don't trust you or anything," Heeseung sighed. "You have guy friends, for Christ's sake, we really do trust you! It's just... it's just..."

"It just fucking sucks," Jay bluntly completed for him. "—and we really don't wanna do this couple dance thing either. We know it's gonna hurt you."

"I'm not hurt, honest!" Della straightened her posture and widened her eyes. "I mean, we can always try to reason with the team if you guys are rea—" her idea was immediately cut by a string of 'no's.

"Forget about us, we'll be fine!" the other six wanted to smack their maknae on the head for lying. No, they will certainly not be fine. "But you! We don't want to hurt you or anything!" at least his other point was correct.

"I'm not hurt! Look, guys—" Della sighed, sitting down in betweenn Ni-Ki and Jay on the sofa and held their hands. "I'm not gonna lie, I might get a little jealous, but just a little! I'm not gonna be 'hurt', I swear! Just this conversation alone is enough to assure me that you all are seriously the best boyfriends in the world," she said with utmost sincerity. "I have nothing to worry about and— I know it's easier said than done but so should you. I'm completely obsessed with you guys! I don't want anyone else"

"Well, there are seven of us," Jungwon blurted out without thought. "I'm sorry!" his eyes instantly filled with regret while his hand went up to cover his mouth. "I didn't mean it like that. That sounds so wrong, I'm sor—"

"It's okay, darling. I'm not offended," Della got up from her seat and ruffled his hair. "Plus, you're absolutely right! I have seven boyfriends, I don't need any more! Especially when you're all so perfect." she placed a kiss on Jungwon's cheek before heading towards the kitchen. The seven boys all looked at each other in flabbergast.

"Are you absolutely, positively certain you're okay with the couple thing?!" Jay called out.

"Absolutely! I trust you guys! Best boyfriends ever, I tell you!"

The boys eyed each other as the same thought crossed their minds; one that they could never say aloud. "She gets jealous and upset over fan ships with idols we barely (or never) even talk to, yet she seems completely fine when we act with a girl for the screen?"

When the day came to finally learn the choreography, the boys were evidently really tense. They didn't even bother to conceal it in hopes that they might magically cancel the idea due to lack of chemistry. Little did they know that that is what the company prefers; for them to not 'stray from Engenes' hearts.'

The overall lesson came out smoothly, with everyone remaining professional and focused at the task at hand. Yet that was also because Della had not even touched her male dance partner. That part would only come towards the end of the song, on the second chorus, as Della dances with a girl on the first half. It was easy for the boys to cast their jealousy aside, but it certainly wasn't when the man finally came along.

"Della, your partner, Ingyu, as you know," the choreographer introduced the two out of formality. "Ingyu, Della," both Della and Ingyu politely bowed, despite already knowing each other from earlier. "Do you think you can do the moves from memory?" the choreographer grinned at the girl.

"Maybe...? Hopefully?" Della nervously grinned back, causing both the choreographer and Ingyu to chuckle.

Everyone had practiced and (essentially) mastered the chorus dance, but Della needed to be taken aside to learn the part switch she has with her male partner. It was an entirely new set for her, whereas several of the members just had to change partners.

This also provided an opportunity for them to fully observe their girlfriend dancing with another man. How lucky were they to have their full attention on the session they dread the most.

"Let's see what you've got," the choreographer stepped back to observe. "Five, six, seven, eight— it's you and me in this world..." Della did a great job mirroring the moves. Although some details in her leg movements were missing, her upper body ones were practically all correct.

"Damn, we just had to have a break while they are doing their part," Jay mumbled to his fellow members. "If it had happened earlier, we would have had something to focus on. But now it's right up on our faces."

"They have great chemistry, don't they?" Heeseung scoffed with a sardonic smile. Their eyes followed as the choreographer instructed Della on how much she needed to bend, having her hold onto Ingyu for support. "Wow, such amazing chemistry," he sarcastically remarked.

"Did I ever tell you about the time I asked her about the chemistry between my partner and I?" Sunoo asked Heeseung, who replied with a shake of his head. "I asked her how she would feel if I had good dance chemistry with my partner, and she just said, 'That's great! You should switch partners if the dance chemistry isn't there.' Like, what the fuck?"

"Ahh, you mentioned that to me," Jungwon reminded him. "Della really isn't jealous—she even encouraged Sunoo-hyung to make eye contact," he pointed at Sunoo.

"Really?!" Jake's eyes widened. "Even in front of the cameras?!"

"Uh!" Jungwon and Sunoo nodded with wide eyes. "I think as long as everything remains professional, she's completely fine."

"Well can someone tell her that we're not completely fine?" Sunghoon really tried to not glare at the couple but it wasn't like he was the only one.

It took around fifteen minutes for Della to get all the moves down. While it wasn't long by any means, the boys felt like the session ran through a hour. Instead of making the most out of their break, they were using up their energy on the glares that they sent the couple's way. 

Both the choreographer and Ingyu (and certainly Della) could feel the potential holes that were burning through the male dancer's skin, yet they decide to brush it off since it doesn't appear to affect Della's performance. They always knew that the Enha boys had a crush on the girl anyway.

The keyword was professional, and as long as everyone remains that then all should be well.

"Are you finish?" Sunghoon asked Della as she finally made her way over for her break.

"Yup," she gave a thumbs up. "Thankfully, it wasn't difficult."

While they were all feeling jealous, they knew that Della had done everything they asked of her and there was wasn't much she could do. So they resorted to the only outlet available for them to express their emotions; teasing and poking fun at her.

"Was it fun?" Sunoo playfully glared at her with a pout.

"Aish, it's all professional," she playfully pushed him.

"So it was fun?" Sunoo pestered further, causing Della to scoff and mutter a "no it wasn't."

"'It's all professional,' but you were fully leaning on his chest?" Jungwon teased as well.

"It was no different from you!" she protested with a point to him. "—with all of you! We maintained our distance and everything."

"Our distance was like this—" Jake opened his arms wide in exaggeration. "While your distance was like this," he demonstrated by getting very close to Jay.

"No, it wasn't!" Della stomped her feet repeatedly. "You guys are exaggerating!"

"In that case, show us how it was," Ni-ki stood up from the floor and got closer to Della. "Demonstrate with me," he smirked.

"Eyy!" the members teased, impressed by their maknae's smooth flirting. "Go on! Show us!"

"Aish, you seven," Della complained with a roll to her eyes but complied anyway. "It's you and me in this world..." she sang monotonously and lazily repeated the moves that she just learned.

"Wah! Look at the large gap when it's with me!" Ni-ki protested to his hyungs. "Wah... seriously..." he pinched his nose bridge and shook his head.

"What the—" Della's confusion was immediately cut off by the members simultaneously jestering her. Choruses of "wah Della!", "how could you do that?!" "with our maknae too!" and "can't believe you play favourites," ran through the circle, making whoever else in the room glance at them with an amused expression.

"What are you talking about?!"

"Riki, riki, what do you think of this? So everyone disappears out of the frame except for you," Della explained her vision, using her hands to mimic curtains opening. "All eyes are on you and then Sunghoon-oppa emerges!" her hand then dramatically raised as if she was Thanos. "Brave heart— pam, pam, pam!" she said Ni-ki's line while popping her chest. "Then you and Sunghoon-oppa couple dance on his part!" the pen in her hand dropped as if it was a microphone and she had just said something life changing. 

"Couple dance?" Ni-ki raised an eyebrow. The two dancers were ecstatic when the choreographer had asked them to take part in the process. They have wanted this for so long and were finally given the responsibility of the pre-chorus and second verse. The pre-chorus practically screams Ni-ki's name so it was a no-brainer for the maknae to take the former. 

They were experimenting together but didn't interfere with each other's section, simply situated in an empty practice room with snacks and their phones playing the recently recorded song. It almost reminded them of the time when they had their first kiss.

"Not literally, but like... a pair dance, y'know? Something like Given-Taken," Della grinned. "Then Heeseung-oppa emerges! Then I emerge! Then everyone gathers and emerges—"

"What is with you and people emerging?" Ni-ki laughed. He was feeling a little too happy to have his girlfriend all to himself whilst doing the activity they love the most (especially since said activity was recently ruined by the couple dance). It was evident in his clinginess and the shine in his eyes. 

"It's the drama! The vampire! The darkness!" the younger could only laugh more, letting his head drop on his girlfriend's lap. 

"I'm sure you know what suits the mood, and I think the emergence thing sounds great," Ni-ki can't help but hum when Della's fingers tangled themselves in his hair. "I'm doing something like this; come here and get some—" with his eyes still closed and basking in the soothing sensation, he brought his hands up to form the first part of his original dance. "Something with a cool vibe, y'know?" 

「大好き」 Della smiled softly. 「まじ力のスタイル」 she got close to his face to place a sideways kiss on his lips. [daisuki: i love it, maji riki no sutairu: it's seriously riki's style]

「ありがとう」Ni-ki muttered out before closing the gap to deepen the kiss. [arigatou: thanks]

Della and her boyfriends wouldn't call herself a jealous person. However, what she definitely is, is an anxiety-filled, insecure person. Otherwise known as a jealous person. 

But she's not envious! She simply overthinks that some girls just suit the boys better than her and that they deserve better. While she's not jealous of the boys acting with Park Jiwon for the trailer, she had to admit that she was a little nervous before the shoot.

'What if they look great together? Especially Sunghoon since he has a lot of scenes with her,' she recognises that she's overthinking it but she really can't prevent herself from doing so.

'Sunghoon and one of your close friends look great together, but they don't give off couple vibes,' she reminded herself. 'You look great with them too, Lala. Give yourself some credit, you bad bitch.'

With the help of her self-pep talk (and antidepressants), her nervousness subdued quick. It also didn't take long for it to completely wash away, resulting from Jiwon being a massive shipper of Enha as a group. It was evident in how she giggled to herself whenever Della and the boys did anything close to being couple-like.

Furthermore, she had caught Jiwon pouting to her manager, questioning; "Is that all we're getting? Della being disappointed in Sunghoon and they don't even hug?" or along those lines.

Needless to say, there was no reason for Della to feel jealous, and that almost annoyed Mister Park Sunghoon himself.

"You're seriously, seriously not jealous?" Sunghoon asked when they had a moment to themselves on set.

"No? Why would I be?" Della said with a borderline sassy tone. The boys have been walking around eggshells with Jiwon and have constantly asked the same questions to Della. A rotation between "are you sure?" "is it really okay?" "aren't you jealous?" and "are you feeling okay?" Although she appreciates the gesture and thinks it's incredibly sweet of them, she has gotten tired of saying the same things over and over again.

"Not even the slightest? Babe, the storyline literally includes me defending her more than yo—" 

"And what are you gonna do if I said that I was?" she cut him off, moving closer to him with a low voice.

"I– I mean," he stuttered at the look on her face and sudden close proximity. Even after two years, there are still moments when he finds Della intimidating. "Just wanted to make sure you were okay—"

"And what are you gonna do if I said that I wasn't?" she practically repeated. "You want me to congratulate you?" an eyebrow was raised to challenge him further.

"No! That's not what I meant!" his eyes widened in panic. "I– I was just– a little—" he did have an reason, but the addition of Della's hand pushing his bangs to the side had distracted him from whatever it was he was trying to say.

"Why don't you relay this to the others as well, hm?" she then brushed her fingers on his cheekbones. "I am rarely ever jealous because, at the end of the day, when you act out those scenes or record our songs, I'm the one who's on your mind. You don't think of Jiwon, your dancers, or even Sooha or Engenes. You think of me," she lets out a smirk when he appeared to be in a daze.

"The lyrics that you sing in your songs? Those are all for me."

"I get to have a couple dance with you?!" Heeseung exclaimed when Della broke the news. "Sweet! Nice!"

She really couldn't help it. She just had to reveal to the guy that she sneaked in a tiny pair dance for the two of them. It wasn't much in her eyes but it's more than enough for Heeseung.

"You have to show me! Please!" Heeseung got up from his bed, ready to replicate whatever it was that Della came up with. "It's definitely gonna be the choreo, right?! Like they won't ask you to change it or anything?" Della couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable the older was. His eyes sparkled with eager and hope, incredibly ready to perform his girlfriend's arrangement in pride.

"Nope. Absolute free to do whatever I want," she grinned before standing up as well. "All you do is kneel..." she kneeled on the floor to demonstrate, with Heeseung following suit. "Then rise... walk... then this," what he had to do wasn't difficult at all, so he would definitely still be able to sing live. "That's it."

"And yours?" Della smiled and made her way behind him. It was a tight fit, but the two can definitely make it work with how simple the moves are.

"Go ahead."

"'Come to me, make it right,'" Heeseung could feel himself get even more excited when Della placed her hand under his chin. "'Please connect me again,' woah!" his eyes widened at her hands running down his arms. 

"'Devour you,'" Della whispered, leaving goosebumps on his skin. Her face got close to his neck while her right hand mimicked a claw on his shoulder blade. Knowing Heeseung, this move should drive him insane.

"No fricking way," within a flash, Della was back onto the bed with Heeseung lips on the side of her neck. "Gosh, I love this vampire concept."

"Gosh, I hate this vampire concept," Heeseung rumbled under his breath.

"It was all fun and games until we realise what a vampire concept entails," Jake mumbled with crossed arms. 

"Yeah, and it's whatever this shit is," Jay huffed, openly glaring at the unfolding scene without a care.

Della was in the midst of filming the scene where she wakes up and bites a passerby. For budget conveniences (since his face wouldn't be visible anyway), the actor was none other than her male backup dancer, Ingyu.

It seems that, although she had made her lack of jealousy clear, her reasons did not resonate with her men. Even when they implement her advice, they still felt that red, hot jealousy. 

"If his face ain't even on the video, then can't one of us do it? Seriously..." Sunoo rolled his eyes to avoid looking at Della leaning into Ingyu's neck. 

"I know right?" Jungwon and Jay briefly replied, shifting their eyes to the monitor and giving them a closer look at the scene.

"Oh my God!" the boys (with the exception of Sunoo, who was still avoiding the performance), held a shocked look when Della's pretend bite appeared very realistic.

The segment is definitely different from that of Jay's and Sunghoon's. With Della being the one to initiate the bite, the focus is on her face instead of the partner's. The audience could see her laziness-laced body with eyes holding a convincing hunger to them, making it look like she was an actual starved vampire. She looks incredibly alluring, all while looking at another man.

"Oh great, she's amazing at acting too," after a quick glance back, Sunoo let out another eye roll. "Does she always have to give it her all? She should've half assed it," he spat out. 

"Sunoo-ya," Heeseung and Jungwon laughed while the other four snorted with grins on their faces. 

"You're gonna get us in trouble with that language," Jay chuckled.

"I wasn't screaming it or anything— I'm just saying what you all are thinking," Sunoo shrugged innocently. "You three are way louder than me without even saying anything" he gestured to Heeseung, Jay and Jungwon, additionally giving them a pointed look. The others know they can't disagree, as the trio really placed their heart on their sleeves this time.

"I don't fucking get it. Any one of us could really act this scene, I swear," Jungwon huffed out with a sarcastic smile. He placed his hands in his pockets, turning his body around to avoid looking any further. "Seven boys and they went with someone else for fucking budget reasons when they don't need to pay us fuck all for that scene alone. It's like they're doing this on purpose just so his name is on the fucking credits and Engenes won't ship us or—" 

"Woah, woah!" Heeseung and Jake cut him off from his tangent. Jay and Sunoo's eyes simply widened while Ni-ki and Sunghoon held him back as if he was going to fight.

"You need to have a talk with Della or something," Sunghoon pat his left shoulder in attempt to calm him down. On his right, the youngest did a similar gesture by massaging the tense area.

"Or your therapist..."

"A little birdie told me you need to let things out," fortunately, since Della's part was the last shoot of the day, Jungwon's sour mood did not interfere with their work. It also gave them the opportunity to talk in the fully private hotel room. 

Jungwon only scoffed out, keeping his arms crossed as he sat on the bed. The man himself doesn't fully understand why he was so upset. The other boys had quickly calmed themselves— unbeknownst to him, it was because they saw how angry their leader was, yet he remained with a scowl for majority of the time. 

"Who?" he avoided eye contact when he muttered, afraid to raise his voice at the girl.

"It doesn't even matter because I can tell with my eyes closed," Della mirrored his body language but remained standing before him and leaning on the desk behind her. She has always been nervous whenever any one of the boys are mad at her, but Jungwon is probably the most intimidating. His leader energy is incredible.

"I just don't understand why they need Ingyu to act when there are seven other men who can do it," he went straight to the point. "If his face isn't even showing then any one of us could've done it! Heck— even the director could use his own neck! They couldn't have one of us to do it?!" as he went on, his voice started to raise a little in passion.

Della only stood there with an occasional nod, listening to the tangent that the other members have already heard. He talked nonstop for a few minutes, leaving Della room to ponder through her words.

She noticed that he kept repeating points like 'any one of the members could do it,' 'the bite could've been even more realistic,' and 'why they would want you to imitate a bite on another man.' It all finally clicked to her when Jungwon said, "They scrapped the kiss mark for the jacket shoot and now this? They're definitely keeping us apart on purpose."

"Jungwonie?" she grinned mischievously, to which he stopped and replied with a hum. "You're so cute," she didn't give him much time to react, as she had already hovered above him to connect their lips.

"Wait, Lala—" the younger was certainly not complaining, but he wished that Della would say a bit more than that, especially after he went on and on.

"You want more neck kisses, don't you?" she grinned once again. "You felt special during the jacket shoot and want that again, right? And you're jealous because the concept was scrapped for you yet another man got it. Am I right?"

Jungwon blinked slowly, taking in the observation that the mind reader had made. He didn't even know that he was feeling that way but it all makes sense. His emotions weren't even specifically directed to Ingyu; it's towards a man who wasn't him. He would feel the same if the team had chosen any other member. 

A rare occurrence for Jungwon, but definitely not impossible. As much as he loves his best friends and the relationship, he did originally want Della all to himself.

A giggle interrupted his train of thoughts, and when Della asked for a confirmation, all he could do was nod in embarrassment. She let out another giggle before closing the gap between them once again.

"Don't worry, Wonie. I'll give you a million neck kisses if that's what you want."

my writing style has evolved and i'm hating a lot of my old works so i'm going to edit + tweak them soon but i'm still keeping the old ones on wattpad just in case they're someone's comfort fics <3 n e ways i hope you enjoy because i hope my writing style has progressed instead of regressed

part two coming soon

taglist! @afiaaaa19 @riikiblr @one16core @i90snoo @danyxthirstae01 @seulgifted @clar-iii @nichmeddar @jiwlys @duolingofanaccount @nvmbheart [i have removed accs that i can't tag so please send me an ask/message to be in the tallest again]

[strawberryya]

3, 2, 1… and we’re live

jeonghan x reader

synopsis: Jeonghan, your co-news anchor, and the biggest flirt in the office has it out for you, and luckily you couldn't help but give in to your desires last night.

word count: 1.7k

genre/contains: filth, enemies -to lovers?? -and lovers?, office romance, afab!reader, protected sex (not mentioned but they’re not risking it), teasing/banter, hints of degradation and praise, pussy slapping, mentions of hands being restrained, sex in office space (empty but still fairly public)

rating: 18+

a/n: I would give in so fast. y/n is stronger than me fr. thank u @lovelyhan for proofing and your kind words <33

.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・.

“Everyone get into your positions, we have three minutes!” 

The director’s voice resonated through the studio, making both you had Jeonghan rise from your seats in the makeup chairs even though the frantic makeup artists were still chasing after you as you walked toward the bright set. 

“So what are we doing tonight?” Jeonghan teasingly asked in a whisper when you sat down. 

You looked at your co-anchor in disgust. 

“I am going on a date. What you are doing is none of my business.” 

“Oh, that’s not very kind of you to say, now is it y/n?” 

You scowled at the man sitting next to you, the stylists still trying to perfect his hair and stop it from falling down into his eyes too much as it would end up a disturbance during the show. 

“I don’t need to be nice to you just because we fucked, okay?” you wheezed out, hoping to any god that would listen that the stylist couldn’t hear or just didn’t care enough to listen. You could barely deal with the fact that the man you spent every single early morning with had made you scream out his name as you came on his dick last night. Other people in the office knowing about this happening however, that would somehow be even worse. 

‘Never sleep with your coworkers,’ they had said when you had first started your brand new job at the morning news. 

‘Especially ones like him,’ they had said and pointed toward a tall man, laughing with one of the makeup artists. Flirting, with one of the makeup artists, you soon realized. That was what he was best at you discovered within days at your new job. 

Within a week of his cute and innocently flirty comments, you had sworn to yourself never to fall for it. Honestly, it wasn’t as if he even meant anything personal with the way he just naturally made everyone crush on him a little bit by simply chatting away with that damned beautiful face of his. 

You had kept that vow of yours for almost an entire year… all the way up until last night. 

“One minute left!” the director called out, and you tried to snap back into reality as you read over your cue cards once more. Your efforts were soon lost on you though, because Jeonghan, that absolute menace, had now bent closer to you than before, the stylist having left you two to your lonesome when the director had called out the time left until you were going live. 

“You don’t wanna reconsider that date? I think I could be a lot more fun than some random guy you found on the street,” he whispered into your ear, his hot breath sending shivers down your spine as his words sent your brain right back to him whispering into your ear as he had you moaning and bent over this very desk just hours ago. 

“I told you coming in for this late-night meeting could be fun,” he had whispered with a smug tone before sucking yet another mark into your neck, his dick twitching inside you as you clenched and moaned at his words. The set was empty and dark, all except for the low light coming from a lamp left for you two to turn off when you left. The rest of the staff had gone home and left you two to rehearse the last-minute change in the scripts for tomorrow’s show. 

“Fuck you,” you had panted out, breathless and experiencing too much pleasure to say much else. 

Jeonghan had scoffed breathlessly at your attempt at contempt even in this situation. Your tight was skirt pushed up to reveal your dripping core and bare ass while your blouse was unbuttoned and your tits were falling out from your bra as he bounced you back and forth on his erection. “You say that, but I think you like me fucking you more.”

You wanted to hit him, but instead, you just pushed yourself back against his cock harder. 

“F-fuck, harder Jeonghan,” you whimpered out, needing that last push over the edge from him, feeling so close to your orgasm you couldn’t dare argue against his mocking words. 

“What was that sweetheart?”

He grabbed your face with the hand not currently holding both of your hands behind your back as he slammed his hips into yours, making a rough slapping sound each time your skin met his. Gently but with a stern motion, he turned your face around to look at him. 

“Use that pretty little mouth to tell me what you want again, properly this time.”

You moaned when his hips snapped up with even more force, making your pussy drip juices down your thighs. 

“Please, I need you to fuck me harder, please Jeonghan,” you begged, your voice a whine as he sped up at your words.

“That’s my girl,” he cooed at you, letting your face go and pressing your body down onto the cold and shiny desk in front of you. You would have to wipe it clean before you left unless you wanted the staff to find an imprint of your damp tits pressed against the blank surface in the morning. You made a mental note of that before your mind was snapped right back into your current activity where your coworker’s hand had just found its way around your body and landed on your clit. 

He began circling your clit in perfect circle movements, precise and with the perfect amount of pressure. Suddenly it was interrupted and you whined at the loss of his fingers before a light smack sent a jolt of arousal through your entire body, the pleasure from the slight sting on your clit had you seeing stars. 

When you moaned loudly, his fingers came back to continue the gentle and precise rubbing he had been doing just a moment ago. The circles on your sensitive clit soothed the delicious pain and the way his strokes continued to fill you up just right made the pleasure build until it was almost unbearable. 

You were all but screaming in pleasure as he continued snapping his hips against your ass at a brutal pace. You were dripping and clenching around his throbbing cock, your hands still held firm behind your back, and the grunts of pleasure coming from behind you were the very last drop of stimulation you needed. Your orgasm came crashing over you, making you see a white blinding light, a pleasure so intense you couldn’t remember a single other person making you come that hard ever before in your entire life. 

All that was in the past now though, you thought. Determined not to ever again repeat the worst mistake of your life. You had to stay strong and you would be moving on from it, even though it might’ve actually been the best sex you’ve had in your entire life…

It didn’t matter though, because it would never happen again. 

“Ten seconds!” 

“Just shut up, last night was a mistake, you should give up because it’s never happening again,” you wheezed back at him, a bit flustered when you looked back at him, meeting his gaze and noticing that his face was only inches away from yours now. If you wanted to, you could close the gap and kiss him before the red light telling you that you were live would have time to turn on… 

No, you reprimanded yourself, you didn’t want to. Did you want to?

“3…” 

“Why don’t you just come home with me after work? Cancel the date,” Jeonghan whispered yet again, a small smirk on his face as he watched you attempt to scowl at him but was interrupted when he placed his warm hand on your thigh. His movements feather light and soft against the thin stockings you had on. 

You shushed him, not wanting to bring any attention to how his hand was gently sliding up your thigh, sending goosebumps shooting from where his addictive touch was on your skin. 

“2…”

“I’ll make it worth your time.”

Your breath caught in your throat as his words sent your mind spiraling, and his touch slid up to the hem of your panties, teasing you and sending a rush of desire toward your core. 

What if you agreed? Would it really be too bad to have him one more time? 

You begged your brain to shut up, you needed it to be quiet. You weren’t supposed to find him attractive, you weren’t supposed to feel flustered any time he stared at you a bit too long when you were getting ready for the show, and you certainly were not supposed to want the man to fuck your brains out over and over again until you couldn’t speak or stand anymore. 

“1…” 

This time Jeonghan said nothing more to convince you. He knew the effect he had on everyone, including you, and chuckled slightly as he pulled back his entire body from you.

You had to stop a wince from escaping your lips at the loss of his closeness and his touch. The whole thing was too much for you to handle. 

“And we’re live!” 

The director’s voice and the bright red light turning on had you looking like a deer in headlights. You were canceling that date and coming home with your menace of a co-anchor today, you thought, feeling resigned and flustered as you tried to collect yourself when you heard the cheery voice of Jeonghan charming his way into the general publics’ hearts, even after having turned you on in front of the entire office at 7 am. 

“I’m Jeonghan and beside me, we have your lovely y/n, and you’re watching today’s news. We hope you’re having an equally enjoyable morning at home as we are in the studio.”

You could kill the man, you thought as you tried your best to not scowl at the man live on national television. 

.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・..・。.・゜✭・.

Reblogging and commenting is highly appreciated!! Hearing what you thought is what makes writing and being here overall so much fun! Ty and ily 💕

[navigation post!]

[denimbex1986]

'...Mr. Arnold is tempted into the ball by a Doctor Who Annual and is playing the theme in the music shop scene – are you a fan of Doctor Who in real life? And what was it like making those jokes and references in front of the Tenth Doctor David Tennant?

“I’ve always dipped in and out of Doctor Who over the years since Sylvestor McCoy, who was doing it when I first became aware of it when I was growing up. Even if you’re not a fan it’s one of those shows you can’t really get away from, so doing that particular scene in front of David was really fun, and of course Douglas had directed Doctor Who as well. Apart from the amusing situation of two supposed Doctor Who fans talking about Doctor Who without realising they’re in the company of a Doctor Who, I also seem to remember Michael being the one to suggest that he would deliver his “due to problems at the BBC” line directly to David.

Oh, and I think it was actually my idea to grab the annual off the harpsichord before joining the queue behind Crowley at the end of the ballroom scene (which we’d shot weeks earlier at this point). When we were blocking it out and rehearsing I knew I had to leave my position and get to the front for my “surrender the angle” line, and then later it just felt like I wouldn’t leave without the annual so I ran back through everyone to grab it. Nobody seemed to have a problem with me doing that so I just carried on doing it when we shot it! I do remember it being a fun set with Douglas and the team being very open to suggestions.”

How did you balance filming both Good Omens and BBC Ghosts at the same time?

“Luckily both shows were a joy to work on, and everyone seems to know about both of them. We were shooting them in early 2022 and I also had a little part in an ITV drama called ‘Stonehouse’, starring Matthew Macfadyen. I usually never know when I’m working next so to have three great TV jobs at once was very unusual. There was all this date juggling and I actually almost had to turn down Ghosts due to clashes. Luckily both shows had to move some dates so it worked out. But yes, I spent two weeks up in Scotland shooting all that Good Omens ballroom stuff, then I came back down to London to do Ghosts, knowing I’d be back up to shoot my scenes in the music shop in a couple of weeks. Now, when I found out who was playing my wife in Ghosts I couldn’t believe it: Caroline Sheen – Michael Sheen’s cousin! She was amazing and that was another great set in general. I say “set”, but it’s all filmed in that house which surprised me. I’d worked with Kiell [Smith-Bynoe] and Jim [Howick] before, and Charlotte [Ritchie] was in the Good Omens radio play a few years ago and a big fan of the book. Charlotte’s very musical of course and we got talking about my folding keyboard I had for practising my Good Omens stuff, and she ended up setting it up in the house for us to have a play on!

Now, when we’d shot all our internal scenes there was this big storm forecast, and our external scenes were scheduled for the day of the storm, so that had to be moved into the next week. It meant I ended up shooting those scenes outside the house, then going straight back up to Scotland to shoot the Good Omens music shop scene the next day! When I mentioned to Michael I’d just worked with Caroline he said “ooh she’s in Ghosts is she!” and revealed that she’d texted him about me which was rather surreal. Then later after the Ghosts wrap party Kiell gave me a part in his Channel 4 Blap, so at the time I felt like I was killing it career wise, but the industry quietened a bit after that and my workload eased off over the year so I was in my overdraft by November.”

What are your plans for the future – can we expect to see you in something else soon?

“This year, after a bit of a quiet start, I was very fortunate to work on a Disney+ show called Rivals which stars… David Tennant! I think I’m allowed to say my character is called Brian, and I shot five episodes so that was another really amazing job, and great to work with David again (I told him he must be my good luck charm, although I hope he’s not sick of me). That should be out at some point in late 2024. Other than that I’ve filmed a few other bits I presume will be out next year, one of which is called Truelove on Channel 4 which actually looks really good. That starts early January. Of course now Season 3 of Good Omens has been greenlit, I would love Neil and the gang to have me back on that… but I can only keep my fingers crossed!”

[projectbluearcadia]

[P1] Your Blood, Your Heart

[ Part 1 ] [ Part 2 ] [ Part 3 ] [ Part 4 ]

So I played the vampire event on Lonely Devil. And y'know I thought, "Hmm… Vampy Luci. SPICY."

[ Story Premise - In which all of the brothers are pureblood vampires, and although Lucifer has been protecting you, he loses himself to carnal desire, demonus and the thirst for blood. ]

Note: The other three parts are marked NSFW.

Wordcount - 1047

It's been difficult for you, living among the seven Pureblood brothers, but it could be worse. Among other things, it doesn't seem like Lucifer is interested in your blood, and he's been protecting you on the condition that you do what he tells you. You were initially reluctant, but as it turns out, most of the time he just wants you to do little chores. Alright, fine. Do your share, and you're safe. Pretty fair trade. 

Maybe that's what made you think Lucifer wasn't interested in your blood, that he was too "proper" for it. He certainly acted like he didn't want it, instead preferring the iron-enriched wine supplied to the family by Diavolo. 

How utterly naive of you.

---

"MC, what are you doing awake at this hour?" is Lucifer's first question as he sees you cross through the living room, the moonlight cutting beautifully through the window to illuminate the vampire's unreal features. There's a wine glass in his hand, a half-empty bottle of Lucifer's favorite Miel de Sang casting a deep red glow onto the coffee table. 

"Couldn't sleep," you answer sheepishly. "Sorry. I went to the kitchen to heat up some spiced milk." You gesture to the warm cup in your hand, and Lucifer sighs. 

"Well… you may as well come join me. I could use some company right now." The request sends you stumbling. Lucifer? Company?

"Are… are you okay?" you ask as you come to sit next to him. Lucifer looks straight in front of him before he rubs the bridge of his nose. 

"No, I'm not. As if my brothers weren't enough of a handful, those damn werewolves in Purgatory Hall won't stop howling every morning. And then there is also the matter that my favorite drama was canceled yesterday on account of the director's illicit affair with a vampire hunter…" Lucifer lets out a long groan.

"It's just one day," you try, giving him a tentative pat on the back. "Out of thousands. I guess it's more like trillions for you, but…" 

"I appreciate it, MC. And… thank you for always doing what I ask. It helps a lot." Well you weren't expecting that.

"Oh, uh… thank you?" Lucifer chuckles.

"Isn't the response normally 'you're welcome'?" You drink your milk awkwardly. 

"You're being nicer than usual, so I'm off my game." 

"Well, while I'm being nicer, your perfume is lovely today. It's not as overpowering." 

"I thought you said it should be overpowering," you reply unsurely as Lucifer pours himself another glass, and the muted stench of iron comes to greet your nose. Alas, it’s a smell you’ve grudgingly gotten used to.

"To deter my brothers, yes. But you're alone with me right now, so there is no need." 

"And you like the smell of my perfume?" 

"I gave it to you; do you really think I'd give you a perfume I didn't like myself?" 

"Fair point." You finish your milk a little quicker than you'd like, but you'd rather not indulge in the awkwardness any longer than you have to. 

"Hey." You shiver as you stand with your back turned to Lucifer. You're not allowed to leave yet; you disobeyed him. That's what this feels like. "Before you leave…" His voice growing gentler makes you turn, bemused, to see him fiddling with his glass, his eyes just barely averted from yours. "Can I… Have a hug?" 

What? 

"Is… that a command?" you ask hesitantly. 

"No. It was just… it was just a whim. That's all." You hesitate, only because you know that's a lie. This isn't one of his petty little "Bark for me" whims he's indulged in just to make fun of you. He really wants a hug. 

So, what can you do but lean in and give him a nice little hug? And, maybe you like it when he squeezes you back and returns you to the seat next to him. Surprisingly enough, the arms of the cold-hearted taskmaster are quite comfy.  

"Thank you," he mumbles against your shoulder, and you can't resist the urge to fluff his hair. For a moment, you worry that he'll rebuke you, but he doesn't seem to mind. "I think I'm touch starved," he chuckles. "I like… the feeling of your hands too much." 

"Well, you have had a lot to drink," you point out, taking that as a sign to stop touching him, but his head is still leaning against your shoulder. 

"Mm. I haven't had enough to drink tonight."

"Enough? Lucifer, I'm pretty sure you're wasted. You just asked me to hug you." 

"No… no…" Am I going to have to lug him to bed? you wonder with an impending sense of trepidation. "My throat is so dry that it feels as if it’s going to stick together and close when I speak." Lucifer lets out a slow exhale. 

"Is that wine really that dry?" It’s a joke, but you're getting the distinct feeling you should have already taken off running, but is that safe? Safer than just staying here and hoping for the best? 

"It's sweet, just like a ripe fruit, but… the taste isn't quite as resplendent as if I had bitten through the skin and eaten my fill." Yeah, you should run, but his lips are against your neck like a sharpened blade. His every word thrums through your veins, sending your fingers twitching and fidgeting. Fight? Flight? How about freeze?

"Lucifer?" you whisper. "I'm not a fruit, so please don't bite me." His lips part, and every last one of your muscles stiffen. He could kill you. 

"I can't take it anymore, MC," he whispers back, tracing his lips up your neck to graze a spot just behind your ear. "I want to taste your blood, indulging in you just a little bit each night… I want to take my time giving you so much pleasure that the only thing you can do is beg for more of it…"

He lightly bites the shell of your ear, and you twitch as he puts his hands on top of yours, interlacing your fingers. His voice, low and husky, echoes through your being as he loses himself. "You belong to me. I want you to tell me, from your own lips, that you are mine. You can do that for me, can't you?"

[meamiiikiii]

Hello. I haven't spoken much on the Reverse Entry AU (Modern Office + Reverse Isekai Loop AU). That changes today!!! Have some scattered (relatively long) tidbits on this AU. Mainly background to actually get to the office part of it but, yea!

If anyone wants elaboration on anything on this list, and I do mean anything, I encourage asking!! Or any random questions on the AU general!! Or just things in general!! Make me think about things I have not considered!!

Spoilers for all of ISAT + 2Hats and the like:

Mainly Concrete

The Country -> The Company.

Well, more of a family storefront, but the similarity in those two words next to each other was too good to pass up LOL.

Said storefront was run by Siffrin’s parents, and was their life's work.

Specialized in niche craft related stuff, in both teaching people how to do them & selling materials for the crafts. 

It was a very warm & homely store, and was adored by locals and visitors alike. 

A store that felt comforting to just vibe in for a bit, if that makes sense.

Loop ends up being Siffrin’s roommate after being reverse isekai’ed :)

They do not help with rent

They are a solid night light, which they try to justify as helping with the electricity bill

They also find a mirror shortly after arrival. 

Important Points

Mirabelle & Isabeau have known each other since University and are besties!!!!!!!!!

Not 100% sure of the logistics yet, but this was too important of a point to not include

Additionally, please know at some point, Isa custom stitched the scarf-shawl Mira wears to work all the time now, and gifted it to her!

He is also responsible for the fun pattern on the vest he wears all the time too!

Bonnie, whenever they are hanging around, makes sure to sneak onto Nille’s computer, and block out time between meetings for time to breathe / snacks for the others

And they also make sure to block out like an hour of time for proper lunches as well

Back to back to back to back meetings are not fun!!!

Breaks are important!!!

I have mentioned this in a different post, but this too, is a very important point to not include here as well

Location of Living

Mirabelle & Siffrin live in the same apartment complex, but on opposite sides of it

They have briefly interacted a few times prior to being coworkers? 

But Siffrin had his hair dyed for interviews for a long time

So Mirabelle didn’t realize it was him for a while, since he started growing out the dye before formally meeting in a work environment

Siffrin simply forgor

Isabeau lives relatively close-by to where Mira & Sif live, he visits Mira sometimes!!

He may or may not have also interacted with Siffrin two (2) times prior to working together due to the above point

Nille & Bonnie live around the area Siffrin used to live before he had to move, and have resided in that area for a long time

They technically were neighbors, at one point!

Odile lives closer to the office than everyone else 

Shorter commute for in-office days 

But still in the general vicinity of everyone else's abodes ofc

Hiring Order

Mirabelle has been working in the office the longest (interned two years in a row, and was formally hired right out of University)

Isabeau is next after since he got a referral off of Mira (interned for one year before graduation, then was hired at the same time Mirabelle was)

Odile was hired to replace Euphrasie (previous senior manager to their team who got a promotion, she’s now director of the regional office)

Siffrin was hired a bit after Odile when they got more capacity, since what they were originally doing was way too much for just three people LOL

Apparently, he got a referral from someone internally, but has no idea about it!

Nille was hired a little bit after Siffrin was

She only agreed upon the role if she was granted the flexibility to pick up Bonnie from school whenever

Random RPG Equivalence Hour

Turn Based Combat = Emails 

Whether it be waiting for data to start processes, answering inquiries, so on and so forth

Sometimes those turns take literal days

It happens!

Being Frozen / Damaged = Program Freezing 

This goes for any program being used

If it freezes it inflicts small damage

It inflicts more damage if it crashes

It makes you cry on the floor if the program crashes and you can’t recover any of what you did for the past hour

It makes you regret all of your life decisions up to this moment in time if it crashes, you can’t recover anything, and you have a presentation on the stuff you were working on in 15 minutes

Misc Meetings

Mirabelle writes fanfic

Isabeau knows about this and supports her in her endeavors

Odile has read some of her works, but does not know she wrote them irl

At some point prior to working together, Mirabelle & Odile became mutuals and started trading book / fanfic recommendations to one another

Odile had a brief stint as a bartender prior to working for the office

Mainly to earn some form of income while applying for jobs / waiting for prior certifications to process and transfer properly after moving from another country

In one or another, she met Isabeau and Siffrin at separate intervals while working there

Additionally, the bar is located close to the office. A lot of happy hours happen there. It ended up serving as a networking opportunity for her LMAO

Both Nille and Bonnie moved around a lot when they were younger

At different intervals, Nille went to the same high schools as both Mirabelle & Isabeau

Nille has probably worked a lot of jobs throughout high school / university

This includes working at the same place Odile worked at for a bit, they were probably coworkers there at some point.

Maybe not necessarily a bartender but, general staff

Again, this served as a networking opportunity similar to the Odile segment ASFASDASDA

Um????

Loop somehow ends up becoming a vtuber.

Loop somehow ends up being a vtuber for the company the team works under, akin to Tony the Tiger.

Loop does this vtuber gig for approximately one (1) stream and quits right after.

((loop decided their first stream was a nuzlocke for some reason. the crafts company literally didnt ask them to. they decided this on their own volition for no apparent reason. the company literally asked for a stream where they do crafts?? anyway they named their pokemon after the party. and. well.))

As I am Indecisive, this still has a chance for change! But for now this list is slightly ordered from “concrete in my mind” to “need to let simmer more probably, but the vibes are there” to “probably not but it is a bit of a funny to consider” (this only applies to the last loop segment ASDAFA)

But yea!! Thanks for reading the ramblings :)

[differenteagletragedy]

Our Life Swap AU continues to haunt me. This one begins sometime between Step 2 and 3. Baxter and MC befriend a stray cat and they pay attention to that instead of to their feelings.

The first time the cat came around, Baxter was having a bad day.

You weren't sure exactly why, but you could tell by his demeanor that it wasn't the time to pry. He'd tell you eventually whatever it was that had happened, he always did, but sometimes it was better for him to push the bad things away at first and to let a little light back in before he could face them. You were, he'd often told you, that light for him.

He'd come over that afternoon, and the two of you were sitting outside your house, just talking about nothing in particular, when the cat showed up. It was a stray, you could tell that much, and had a black coat with some white markings that made it look like it was wearing a tuxedo.

Baxter had brightened up when he saw you, but at the sight of the cat, he began beaming.

Your best friend always loved being fancy, he had since he was small, but he was no snob, so it wasn't a surprise when he knelt down right on the street and held his hand out, trying to coax the cat over.

"Here, kitty kitty," he began saying in such a soft, earnest voice that you couldn't help but smile.

"Careful," you told him, but the warning was unnecessary. Almost as if it sensed that Baxter could use the extra support, the cat cautiously made its way over to his outstretched hand and lightly touched it with its nose.

"I think it likes you," you said.

Judging by the massive grin he shot back at you, dimples shown prominently in his smooth cheeks, the feeling was mutual.

The rest of the afternoon was spent focused solely on the cat. You theorized where it came from, how old was, if it was a boy cat or a girl cat. Baxter in particular wondered about its family, and he came up with an elaborate backstory spanning generations before you thought to ask a more basic question.

"What do you think we should name it?"

He took a moment, looking the cat over, then said "Busby."

Smiles came awfully easy that day, and you gave another then. Before you met your friend, you'd never heard the name, but it was one that belonged to his favorite film director. Memories of watching Busby Berkeley movies, black and white classics with big dance numbers that he thought were absolutely magical, came to mind. Considering the cat's built-in formalwear, it was a fitting name.

"Busby it is," you told him.

You both knew you couldn't keep the cat. Your parents wouldn't allow pets, and neither would Baxter's. You decided to spend the day with it until you had to go back inside for the night and then bid it farewell, but Busby had other plans.

Day after day, week after week, the cat came back to your neighborhood. Eventually months went by, then a year, then a couple more, and your furry friend still made a point to stop by for food and pets nearly every day.

The week before Baxter left for college, the two of you sat outside your house like you'd done countless times, taking turns petting Busby and imagining all the adventures he'd been going on when he wasn't with you. At one point, the cat climbed on Baxter's lap and started kneading his stomach with its little paws. You both heard a loud purr, then it nuzzled its head firmly against his chin.

"I'm going to miss this more than words could possibly express," he said softly. You caught him glance at you, but before you could properly meet his eyes they turned back to the cat.

"Me too."

He was moving to Virginia for school, across the entire country. You'd been thinking about it constantly since he'd dropped the news, but it wasn't something you'd be able to fully grasp until he was gone. The idea that Baxter wouldn't be nearly within arm's reach every day was unfathomable. You knew it was something he felt like he had to do -- he was desperate to put as much distance as possible between him and his parents, and he wanted so badly to prove that he was capable of making it on his own. But still, life wouldn't be the same without him so close.

"Moms are going to keep taking care of our little friend?" he asked, giving Busby a gentle scratch behind the ears.

You nodded, reaching over to stroke the cat's back. In doing so, you scooted closer to Baxter, enough that your legs were touching and you could feel the heat coming off of him.

"And you're going to keep taking care of yourself?"

You looked up at him at that, and he looked back this time, his expression full of meaning. You saw ten years worth of caring in his eyes, what felt like almost a lifetime worth of love.

"Of course," you told him. "And you'll do the same?"

Instead of answering, he brought one hand away from your best furry friend and used it to slide around your shoulders. You felt him give you a squeeze before he pulled you against him, and he placed a firm kiss on your temple. You let out a shaky sign and leaned into it -- it lasted long enough for that -- and hoped that your own expression showed the same kind of friendly love and affection, that it didn't give away the years of longing that you'd felt for him.

"I'll take care of you too," he said, landing a series of smaller kisses along your cheek and forehead. It felt impossibly intimate between just-friends, but you didn't dare stop him from doing it.

"Always," he continued. "We may not be living on the same street or in the same state, but I hope you do know that you have a home in my heart. Anything you need, anything at all, for as long as you live, that will be my priority."

It was a heavy promise, but you didn't doubt he was sincere. He shifted slightly, pulling you a little harder against him. Another one of his kisses went further in your cheek, almost to the corner of your mouth. He stopped, taking a moment to look at you. There was a question in his eyes, and a sort of darkness you didn't recognize.

You'd wanted Baxter for a very, very long time. You'd thought about him looking at you like this, feeling his lips on your skin, more and more as time went on. Every time, you convinced yourself that your feelings were one-sided -- how could someone as beautiful and sweet and funny and perfect as him possibly want you?

But now, it felt a little different. His eyes trailed down to your lips, and he leaned a fraction closer.

"What if I need ear scratches?" you whispered, looking back down to the cat, deflecting because that was safer than whatever this was.

A moment passed, then Baxter's hand, which had made its way down to your hip at some point during his declaration, came up to your head. You felt gentle scratches against your scalp, and one more kiss on your cheek.

"I'll give you whatever you want," he told you.

[hugheses]

The Rise of the Hughes Brothers with Jim Hughes - Nov 3, 2023

transcript below cut ↴

Jeff Marek: Not exactly a secret that, right now the Hughes family, all three of them dominating the National Hockey League. Whether it's Jack with 20 points, whether it's Quinn leading all defenders or whether it's Luke trailing Logan Cooley by a single point in rookie scoring, this is the Hugheses’ NHL. We're just skating in it. Father Jim Hughes is a hockey director of player development for CAA, he joins me now. Jim, how are you today? Thanks so much for hopping aboard.

Jim Hughes: Hi Jeff, how are you today?

Jeff Marek: I'm doing very well. Let me jump in with last night. I'm gonna ask you a few things historically about the kids and growing up and the family and how in the family full of defenders you ended up with, you know, one of the elite forwards in the game. But I want to rewind to yesterday. So, you know, watching Vancouver just take apart the San Jose Sharks, I mean, it's a blowout. It's a, it's a tilted ring, 10 to 2 is the final and I'm seeing Quinn, we all are and he's just piling on points here. And after two periods, I think we're all, you know, rushing to our media guide to try to figure out, OK, what's the most amount of points a defenseman's ever had in a single game. And it's Paul Coffey and Tom Bladen with eight. And I'm thinking to myself, Quinn's got a shot. Here, like Quinn's got a real shot here. And then third period rolls around and you know Carson Soucy’s on the power play and things are sort of Tocchet’s calming everything down. Was there a part of Jim Hughes that said, ‘I want to see if my kid can set a record here?’

Jim Hughes: No, and the reason why we we know we know David Quinn and Wiseman and and and and Gordon, they're they're all on the other bench and I think I think the Vancouver staff know that really well in terms of you know they could have been maybe even goalie interference on Demko at at the end but. Everybody wants that thing to just get going and get out of there and and you know, it was it wasn't an easy night for San Jose, so. I I think it was done, you know in the right way with the right manner and and and I think yeah, I mean I I think it was it was time to put some other people on the ice and give some other people opportunities.

Jeff Marek: Interesting, that is... Listen, you're very much a hockey guy and I understand where that comes from. On my perch here. I just love watching records get broken. And right now, you know, your sons are playing on a different level. And man, New Jersey is must watch television. Vancouver is must watch television and a lot of it is because of your boys. Like when you watch them right now, like what? You know take us behind a father's eyes here. What do you see when you watch all your three kids playing in the NHL right now?

Jim Hughes: Well, listen, it's a it's a, it's a very difficult league. It's a humbling league. It's a really hard league. It's a man's league and... You kind of just keep your feet in the ground and you just go one day at a time. Yeah, they're having success because, you know, the general managers, the coaches, they've done a good job building this team and putting good teams together and adding pieces so. So the journey, you know, Jack's been at this five years now and so they're building it and it's really starting to turn the corner and you know, I feel the same way about Vancouver and Quinn’s situation, but you you're bringing these additional pieces such as Hronek, who's doing a wonderful job with Quinn. A guy like Toffoli that's playing with Jack, who's just a hockey, you know, you know, he's a hockey, hockey, hockey guy, and that's probably why Jack loves him so much because they have so much in common. But Toffoli's got so many… intricacies and he does so many things well as a hockey player, he's a hockey junkie, so. You know they've added really nice pieces and you know, just sit back and you know Ellen and I, we just, we were in the living room last night, we actually had three TV's going. We watched the U17s from Prince Edward Island at 6 o'clock and then we watched Fantilli and Kent Johnson in Columbus, and then we turned on the Vancouver game, and I think we had the Ottawa game on the other TV. So it was like we, it was a busy night here, but we, we sit here and we watch and we're, we're enjoying you know how the kids are playing and. Yeah, they, they work hard in the summers. We have a fantastic group here of about 12 to 15 players. And they get after it three times a week. And we're big proponents of, you know, when you're 20, you got to, you got to make yourself better. When you're 21/22/23, you got to keep improving. You got to keep working on your skill sets and you gotta keep climbing the mountain. You got to keep getting better. So we have this group in the summer with Dylan Larkin and Werenski and Debrincat and Kyle Connor, Beniers, and Copp, and Sanderson. Luke, Jack, Quinn. I mean, so they get going and and really they challenge each other all summer and they just keep getting better. And now that's what you're kind of seeing in, I guess you're seeing in the... In the early part of the season.

Jeff Marek: With Jim Hughes, you know, one of the things, you know, Elliot and I, every year at the NHL Players Media tour. Uh, it's always fun catching up with Jack and one of the things that he always talks about, we always ask him too, you know, how? How were the family competitions in the offseason? How was, you know, the summer golf and summer tennis and whatever games the kids are playing against each other. And I can't help but think. And you can... Can shine the spotlight on this it seems. As if this is a family where all the kids have grown up, not just competing against other kids, other teams, but competing against one another like it, it seems as if you know competition has been at the forefront of their minds. You know, since they were, you know, able to play hockey, golf, tennis, whatever it is. Have they always been like this amongst each other? Like ultra competitive?

Jim Hughes: Always, and even when the kids were living in Mississauga. On a Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, when all the hockey was done, there would be six of them down in the basement. Maybe playing, you know, basement hockey and everybody, everything has a winner and a loser, unfortunately. So if they're out playing tennis or they're playing golf or they're playing pool. There's a judgment. There's a judgment going on. And so I don't, I don't think they're trying to outdo each other but it's... It's a competitive environment and no different than the Tkachuk family or you know, we can go on and on and on, but yeah, they get after it, there's no doubt, right? You know, if it's, if it's golf, they get after it and if it's, if it's tennis, they get after it, and so they probably bring out the best in each other.

Jeff Marek: You know it. It's so fascinating too. And listen, Henry Staal was, you know, was asked, you know, similar questions about his boys as well, you know, is there one sort of common thread that's running through all the kids here? I mean, you've got three kids in the NHL, like getting one to the NHL is remarkable enough. You've got three in the National Hockey League. Like, what's the, we always talk about, you know differences between people. I'm curious what the similarities are between these three kids, that allows them to be top of their field, top of their position in the NHL.

Jim Hughes: It's a very good question. Obviously people see the skating. And we used to drive the Zamboni guys crazy because we'd have six nets on the ice and people said, “We only have two goalies, why do you have all these nets?” But it was all it was, all skating mechanisms. It was all going around nets and and it's a tight turn with explosion and a burst and coming out of the turn faster than you go into it. But I would think that the biggest common threat between the three of them is their work ethic. And I always say that to the young kids and the kids we work with. Is that the work ethic propels and makes everything better. If you have a great work ethic, your skating will get better, your shot will get better, your passing will get better. Your physical training and the gyms will get, everything can get better. If you have a high workload. And so I would say, you know that would be the common thread because you've just got to keep getting better in all areas of your game, and if you got the work ethic ingrained in you then you know, there is a very good chance that you can become the best version of yourself.

Jeff Marek: You played, Ellen played. Jim, I'm curious. You know what that you know, you know, when you, when you snatched the pebble from the master's hand, then you can leave the temple of moment was. Like do you remember the moment where the kids got better than you and what was that like for Jim Hughes?

Jim Hughes: Um, well, we've never played in the league, so [laughs] it's really easy. It's really easy. We just we support, we're we're we're, we're resources and we're- we support and listen with any of these kids in the league that get there, there's a small village of people, it's coaches and strength coaches and NTDP coaches and youth. Approaches and there's a lot of people that are involved with the process as we call it resources and so. You know we try to make friendly suggestions like we there's ups and downs and there's roadblocks and there's highs and lows and. Sometimes we try to bring the temperature down like. You know they're competitive people and Jack will say something and I'll say, you know, Lindy wants what you want. You want what Lindy wants. You want the same thing. Like relax, it's gonna be OK like. You know, like, you know. And so it's their competitive environment, it's their competitiveness. But sometimes you know, not throwing gasoline on the fire is a good idea. And that would be my suggestion to a lot of parents out there that are listening and and we're all guilty of it. And I've been, I've been guilty of it too. But if you can learn how to really message with your child, your kids and bring the temperature down and have common sense conversations and talks. I think it's, I think it'll go further and it's more helpful.

Jeff Marek: You know it's so fascinating when you look at your three boys, there's I think an assumption that everybody makes, which is well, you know what their development has been a straight line. They've always been great. They've always been marvelous skaters. They've always dominated. They make it look easy. It must have come easy to them. I know you talk a lot to hockey parents. Can you share with us some of the setbacks? Because you mentioned like development, you know this, Jim better than a lot of people. Development is not a straight line, it's a bunny hop. It's you know. Two steps forward, two steps back, one forward, three back, four forward, one... You know what it's like, can you share how many setbacks the kids had along the way and how they work through?

Jim Hughes: There's constant setbacks and you can- you can sabotage yourself if you're not careful. Because the world of youth hockey, and youth sports in general is, it's not an easy climb and so you've got to be persistent and hard working. But. It's it's a, it's a. It's a challenge in so many ways of getting there and quite frankly. At an early age, I think we- a lot of people can attest that Jack was a little bit different than a lot of the other kids up in Toronto. But for Quinn and Luke, you know for Ellen and I, all we wanted was hopefully they had an opportunity to go play college hockey in the US. Which both of them wound up going to play at Michigan. But, we were realistic and you know, we weren't. We didn’t have these grand plans of National Hockey League or anything like that. All we're trying to do is just move the kids along and hey, hopefully maybe they're good enough to play in college someday and then, you know, one thing led to another. But we didn't get, we certainly didn't get too far ahead of ourselves and, you know, the NTDP didn't didn't hurt either because it's a place that they value practices and strength conditioning. So it's, it's a good place to really propel, propel yourself if you know, and you see a Norris doing it, a Brady Tkachuk doing it, you see... You know, there's countless guys that have come out of the program that have taken those resources and used them along the way.

Jeff Marek: Between Vancouver and New Jersey, how are your frequent flyer points doing these days?

Jim Hughes: They're manageable because, you know, we went up for the first game in Vancouver and then we were on the first flight the next morning and we caught the- we went right to the arena in Newark and we caught their home opener. And then we- we caught two more in New Jersey and then it happened that Vancouver was in Philly. So we caught five games on the trip and then we come home and now we're just bunkered down and we got our televisions and we're comfortable just watching games on the television, and doing it that way too. And so I think it's important to stay out of their way a little bit. We- we visit here and there and then we get out of the way and let them do their thing.

Jeff Marek: It's got to be the biggest thrill. It's got to be great. Jim, listen. Thanks so much for parking time. I know you're very busy. Not just, you know, watching the kids, but working at CAA. Hockey director of player development. Thanks so much for parking some time with me today. Much appreciated. Congratulations on the early success for the family and all the best in the future. Thanks. So much for doing this.

Jim Hughes: Thanks, Jeff. Talk to you soon. Take care. Bye.

bonus bit from later on in the podcast that was relevant to my interests

Jeff Marek: Listen, I just had a conversation with Jim Hughes, father to the stars. What used to be Henry Staal is now Jim Hughes, and Hughes has the three boys and you know their, Jack Hughes is leading all scorers with 20 points. Quinn Hughes leads all defensemen in points and Luke Hughes trails Logan Cooley by only a single point, like right now, this is domination by the Hughes family. Can you sort of, you know, isolate these three and share what you think about these three players that are top of their field amongst their peer group?

Brian Lawton: Yeah, it's really incredible. We've been talking about it for, it really started quite a while ago, particularly in the US, NHL Network, American kids, you're going to really jump on that. I remember the first time we met Jack at NHL Network. He did an interview at the finals. And Jack was so confident that the guys completely hated him. They were like, “Oh, my God, this kid is so confident, you can't be that confident.” And as time has gone on, they've grown to love him because he doesn't do it in an evil or rude way. It's just who he is. He's a very confident hockey player. He went through hell in a handbasket to get really where he is. I mean, it wasn't easy when he came into the league. But he never stopped believing, he remained with that confidence and obviously now, I mean it's ridiculous what he's doing. So I give him a ton of credit. He's a great kid, he's fun loving. He's a character. His abilities... Everybody always knew he could skate, the first time I really ever saw Jack do anything special was at the prospects game. He got even against the player and blew by him. And it was so unnatural. I was like, that's not natural. Those two guys are equal. He's the weaker player. The defenseman is much stronger, but they're dead even. And he just turned on the jets and I just went, “Oh my goodness, this guy just has a hidden gear that he can call upon any time.” And I believe that that is still what's happening at the NHL level now. He's earned respect. Where if you go back and you watch his overtime winner against the New York Islanders, Ryan Pulock backs off him. Gives him time and space. He walks to the middle, shoots it in the net, end of game and he never looked like he wasn’t concerned about anything, and that's that confidence. But he's earned a little bit of room and now you give him an inch and he's taking a mile. So that's his greatness, plays the game with his head up way faster than you think. Not super strong. Seems abnormal he's doing as great as he is because of that. But he's no longer small. Or frail. And we saw that early on for him. He's over the hump. He's going to be a great player. He's proving it every single night and everybody seeing.

Quinn on the other hand is just magically gifted, also with the player that plays his head up. Jim did a great job with his kids teaching them that. But his skating is so incredible, his IQ. There was a play last night he made for Van where he's out at the blue line. He backs his body outside the blue line, extends the space in the offensive zone for himself to create a little time and space. And ends up just absolutely geeking the forward out that was covering him, where he's looking for his jockstrap as Quinn blows by him to the outside, comes in and takes the slapshot, ends up in the back of the net. The magic in that is the feet and also the ability to play with the head up and then, I'll say it again, another very confident hockey player. You're the last man back with the checker at on you at the blue line. If you turn it over, it's a breakaway and it's on you. Absolutely no fear, I feel like he could make that play 9 out of 10 times, if not 10 out of 10, that's special. Luke, on the other hand, we haven't got a good read on, watched him a lot at Michigan. I watched a guy, quite frankly, struggle defensively, particularly turning to one side. He really had an issue with that in college where guys were blowing by him. He appears to have really cleaned that up. Now his feet are taking root. He's really the biggest of the three brothers. His potential is untapped. I don't know why we'd expect him to come in and dominate more than Jack did his first couple years. Quinn was a little bit of a freak. He stayed a little bit longer at college. He was able to come in and really be effective if truths been known, Quinn could have left college a year earlier. He just couldn't really get the type of assurance as he wanted to, to leave Michigan. So he stayed another year, grew his game, walked in and was really dominant. Luke, on the other hand, I think it's just a matter of time. I don't know who will be the best of these kids, but you're right, this is hockey's version of royalty right now for a family that's just dominating in the league.

Jeff Marek: You know it's interesting, Lawts, because I mentioned to Jim, I'm watching the Vancouver game yesterday and after two periods, I'm looking at this and saying well, hang on a second, if Quinn gets, you know, three more points here in the 3rd and we've seen him pile up before and he's playing against San Jose. With all due respect, he's getting into that, Paul Coffey, Tom Blade and you know. Either tying or setting a new record for points in a game by a defenseman. And I asked Jim if, you know, he thought that, you know, if he wanted to go see, you know, wanted to see his son, you know, set a record last night, would Quinn have liked that? And he said absolutely not. And it's because it was a blowout and it's respect to David Quinn and no one likes being on the end of these blowouts, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. I mean, this is a guy that, I mean, that's a very hockey answer. I get it. I personally when you're, I think you I think when you're close to a record, you owe it to the game to try to try to break it like, you owe it to hockey. You know what I mean, Brian, like you owe it to hockey to try to break that record. And the other example that I cited last year was a December game between Buffalo and Columbus, when you know all of a sudden bam bam, bam, bam bam, you know we're halfway through the game and Tage Thompson has six points and we're all wondering about Darryl Sittler in 1976. And then, you know, his ice time diminished and held back and stopped shooting et cetera, but I always have felt that when a player gets close to a game record, regardless of what the score is or how the other team may be offended, I think that you owe it to hockey to try to break it, to give it a really good shot because these records have stood for a long time and when you get close, you should really go for it. Do you have a thought on that one, whether Quinn Hughes should have said, or Rick Tocchet for that matter, should have said my guy’s close to a record that's stood for a number of years, I'm going to give him a chance to break it, or you say hold on a second here. It's a 10-nothing blowout. Let's pump the brakes a little bit.

Brian Lawton: Well, from the coaches perspective, you're trying to create accountability in the room and that rises one individual above the rest of the group. And that's not inherently normal or accepted in hockey. Now, from a player's perspective, I can tell you that they're aware of these things. They'd like to do these things, but they're never going to come out and say that. I don't think Wayne Gretzky, you know, is really openly gonna  say, “I went into game 39 knowing I needed five goals to get 50, so I did it. You know, I didn't really care if we won or lost.”

Jeff Marek: Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Brian Lawton: You know, so it. But make no mistake, having been a player, if there's something that you're aware of, of course you'd love to do it, but you're never going to hear that from players and quite frankly, hockey players. You know, I used to be a sports agent. We used to have all sports at Octagon, they still do. They had basketball players, football players, baseball players, a lot, I've got a lot of great athletes from other sports. But I'm biased, of course, but I didn't- I, one time. I won't say who it was I met, who was supposedly the nicest guy in another major sport. And went to a charity event that he had, was really excited to meet him and he would have been like the 700th nicest guy in the NHL. Like I was just blown away. He was not a super great, nice guy. So I've always had this thought. It's not true about all players. That was a bad sample size, but it's a very known player who's still playing to this day. He really had that line and don't try to guess because I don't want to get into that and embarrass him. But hockey players are just brought up differently. Things are, you know, now it's changing when I say, you know, people at NHL Network, or a few of the guys, I shouldn't say people, were not thrilled when meeting Jack. Jack's a great kid, youth. But what's different about him than other players at that age that maybe had that kind of success is they will tell you more what they think. Whereas in my era you were really, that wasn't happening. It was not happening, Jeff. And personally, I think it's a good thing. Jack Hughes is a great kid. The fact that he's going to tell you what he thinks and that's maybe different than what was 30 years ago does not make it wrong. As a matter of fact, I think it's better for hockey. I really do. So you gotta let these kids express themselves.