#the one with the girlfriend who i had absolute drama with in 3rd year of uni. but not for reasons of like. me formerly having a thing for

[eggmeralda]

overcome with the sudden urge to listen to songs my friend likes...what does that mean

[getmemymicroscope]

I've wanted to see this movie for a while - especially recently, as a combination of rediscovering the absolutely amazing "Jhilmil Sitaron Ka" and of learning that it is, at least in some aspects, a Bollywood version of The Count of Monte Cristo (one of my all-time favorite books). And while it isn't Monte Cristo - in typical 70s Bollywood style, there is an attempt at a comedy track (at least, a couple of scenes) that probably could've been done without, and there is a happy ending for protagonist and the girl (after some misunderstanding-induced near-drama), a lot of talk about honor over money (which, maybe has a point, but they really beat you over the head with this; luckily, the story is great so you don't get annoyed by this too much), and an ending that goes maybe a bit heavy on the action (because, of course, the bad guys have to find out who he is and bring in kidnapping and a subsequent action sequence) - it's still a lot of fun.

Adore this movie. <3

The basic premise remains, for the most part, true to Monte Cristo - a jealous co-worker ends up getting our protagonist framed and sent off to jail for a while. And when he's freed (as the movie begins), he realizes that his mother is dead and his girlfriend is missing. But he happens upon a friend who tells him who framed him and, after some chance encounter with a rich man who listens to his story (including a lengthy flashback in while our hero tells his story, which is fine, including random scenes that he had no way of knowing because he wasn't there, which is annoying but very typical of flashbacks and exactly why they're stupid), the rich man agrees to help him and pretty much gives him free reign over his money. And so, he sets out for revenge.

There's obviously some lack of communication with Rakhee (her first role!), causing him to, for a brief spell, set out for revenge against her as well - but sanity prevails, and then the truth comes out (her truth; he remains hidden). Can't blame her - some random guy shows up and is like "tell me about why you're a widow and what happened to your husband," and yeah, no blame for not wanting to talk. He probably shouldn't have over-reacted. Not telling her, once he knew the truth, though - that's probably harsh. And not telling his friend the entire time, also probably harsh. Like, I get it initially - but after you know your disguise has worked, why still keep it hidden (other than one attempt at a comedy scene midway through the movie, which isn't really all that funny).

I absolutely love Jhilmil Sitaron Ka - both versions! - and upon watching the movie, I think I'm more in love with second, sadder version that Rakhee's character sings (well, mouths; Lata Mangeshkar, obviously, sings it) right before the beginning of the 3rd act. I mean, the happier version is great too - and Lata and Mohammed Rafi are obviously excellent - but I don't know. The sadder version (though, not overly sad) is just more. Also, I may have teared up, because you sort of really feel her pain at that point (because, you know - even if our hero doesn't - that her dead husband is actually him), and that line

Dukh ke toofanon se bhi main na ghabraungi

is absolutely haunting. The music/songs/lyrics back then, man. Love.

Between this and Johny Mera Naam and, slightly lesser, The Train and Kab? Kyoon? Aur Kahan?, 1970 was a splendid year for these sort of crime thriller/suspense movies in Bollywood.

[lycheepocketwitch]

𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐚 & 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 - 𝐨𝐧𝐞

pairing: cheerleader!wanda maximoff x fem!reader

summary: it's a typical high school day. people love to talk and you hate the drama, but your bad sense of timing lands you in detention. at least you had an entertaining show and two visitors to keep you company. hell, you even got to see one of the main stars after the show.

warnings: tony, vision and pepper are lowkey assholes oops (like for this whole series)

word count: 4.7k

a/n: this is like the 3rd repost bc the other posts didn't appear in the tags🙃

series masterlist | main masterlist | also on ao3

If there was one thing that remained constant throughout your high school experience so far, it was the incessant rumors about everyone and anyone that spread almost as quickly as chlamydia had when there was an outbreak among last year’s senior class. You would think that people would get tired of meaningless gossip, especially when 99% of the time, it was all bullshit. However, it seemed like students foamed at the mouth when they heard just about any new piece of information about their peers.

“I’m telling you, Maria is hooking up with someone,” you heard someone whisper.

“And why exactly do you think that?”

“She’s my lab partner and usually, she’s an absolute pain in the ass, but she’s actually been quite… tolerable lately.”

“Mr. Rollins, Mr. Sitwell, care to share what you find so funny with the rest of the class?” The teacher asked, interrupting the resident bullies, who were really just Brock Rumlow’s minions.

“It’s nothing, Mr. Heimdall,” said Jasper as he nervously pushed his glasses back up. His friend, though, was having none of it.

“We were just talking about how Maria Hill is back with her ex,” Jack said, meeting your glare with a smirk.

You weren’t Maria’s ex. You didn’t even remember talking to her other than that one time you left Yelena and Natasha’s house and you bumped into her as she was leaving. That didn’t stop the entire from speculating about your supposed relationship, especially the last people you were apparently hooking up with were seen tonguing each other at a party.

“Alright, alright,” said Mr. Heimdall, trying to regain control over the classroom full of chattering juniors. “This isn’t a gossiping period. Go back to working on your Great Gatsby worksheets unless you want additional work to complete as homework.”

A collective of groans was heard and the students quieted down, but you could still hear murmurs from those near you.

“I heard Maria is dating Romanoff though… You think Maria is cheating on her?”

“Ugh, I would never show my face again if my girlfriend was cheating on me with her ex.”

“Guys, Jack is totally lying. I bet it’s just some bullshit Rumlow fed him. I think she’s actually hooking up with Nebula now.”

“Nebula? Gamora’s weird emo sister?”

“Well, maybe she has a type. Remember how Wanda used to be emo? And those two used to be close. I bet you they were hooking up before Wanda became a cheerleader.”

“Damn. Imagine hooking up with Wanda Maximoff, then she becomes hot and dumps you for a nerd.”

“He’s rich though.”

“Even worse. There’s no way she’s looking back your way then. I don’t blame her for turning into a player and trying to seduce every single girl at school.”

This time, you couldn’t stop yourself from facing the group of snickering teenagers and flip them off. Of course, Mr. Heimdall chose this moment to pay attention to the class, catching you in the action. He sighed and gave you detention before asking you to stay after class.

“Couldn’t you have until after school to do that?” he asked you once everyone filed out of the classroom after the bell signalled the end of the day. “Or at least when I’m not looking?”

You smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of your neck. Mr. Heimdall was your favorite teacher and he always had a soft spot for you. “It won’t happen again,” you promised.

“I’m holding it to you. Now, about that internship,” he chuckled at the way your eyes immediately brightened. “I talked to my friend, and Frigga said that she was impressed by your portfolio and your resume. You have an interview scheduled in 2 weeks.”

“Oh my god! Thank you so much, Mr. Heimdall!” you squealed in excitement. The tall English teacher gave you a warm, fatherly smile as he packed up his things to leave.

“It’s your work that got you the interview. I was just the messenger,” he shrugged. “But Frigga is very particular about her interns. She doesn’t just accept anyone to work at her museum. So, you need to be on your best behaviour. You don’t want to be stuck in detention and be unable to complete your internship, now do you?” You gave him a mock salute and nodded. “Alright kid, go on then. Dr. Lawson is the one supervising detention and you know how much she hates tardiness.”

You gave your teacher one last thank you before leaving. You were nearly skipping your way to your locker to grab a few things before heading to Dr. Lawson’s classroom in the STEM wing of the school for detention. Right when you thought nothing could bring down your mood after receiving such great news, you came face to face with Tony Stark’s little group of friends, and Pepper and some of her cheerleader friends standing near your locker.

“So, rumor has it, you’re the reason Hill isn’t as cranky during our robotics club meetings,” Tony sneered while Pepper pulled him back and chastised his behavior. Although, her weak grip on his arm and the slight curl of her lip betrayed any kind of sincerity in her actions.

“Have you ever thought that maybe she’s in a sour mood because she has to be around your arrogant ass all the time?” you challenged him with the raise of a brow and turned to the rest of his group. “You know, our classrooms aren’t all that big. It gets pretty hard to breathe with your big heads taking up so much space.”

“Listen here—” Vision was always the more even-tempered of the Stark brothers, but any attack on his loved ones would rile him up in a matter of seconds.

“What? You think I’m scared of you because your name’s on the building? It just proves to me that you’ll never achieve anything without daddy’s money.” You took one step closer to the group, eyeing both Stark brothers and the rest of their group, not missing the way Tony’s best friend, Rhodey huffed and puffed while Bruce just stood there awkwardly as if he wanted to be anywhere but here.

Your little stare-off was cut short by the clearing of the throat from one of Pepper’s cheerleader friends, Thena. You actually weren’t sure if they were really friends or if they only tolerated each other because Pepper was the captain and Thena wanted to stay on the squad.

“As fun as this little squabble is,” the tall blonde said, twirling one hand in your direction, “I only agreed to wait because Pepper said she had to grab something from her locker. So, either you hurry up to get to my car or you find another ride home.”

Without waiting for a response, Thena turned away from the group and threw a wink in your direction. You watched her walk away, trying to suppress a smile. You were sure she was going to tell Makkari all about your encounter with the Starks and your friend would inevitably tease you about it.

“Whatever, have fun in detention, Casanova,” Vision muttered before pulling his ex-girlfriend closer to him who pushed away with a scowl. Right as they all started to leave, you briefly made eye contact with Wanda, but you promptly turned your attention back to your locker to retrieve the notebooks you were looking for and headed to detention.

Obviously, you were late and Dr. Lawson wasn’t pleased about it, but she was also busy with grading tests, so she let it slide this time. Looking out from the window in the chemistry lab, you saw the group from earlier all try to get in the car. Thena was leaning against the driver’s door while typing away on her phone, completely uninterested in the scene Pepper and Tony were causing. The three other guys were trying to calm the couple down while Wanda just stood to the side with her arms across her chest.

As if sensing you watching her, she tilted her head up and met your gaze. You were sure that had the others not been so focused on Tony and Pepper (save Thena), Wanda would’ve never risked staring your way. It was like an unspoken rule you two had. It hadn’t always been like this, but after she became a cheerleader by the end of freshman year, something just changed between you two. She acted like you didn’t exist and being the normal human you were, you did the same. You couldn’t remember the last time you had an actual conversation at school.

A small scrunched up piece of paper landed on your desk, preventing you from reminiscing about your lost friendship any longer. You found a grinning Makkari standing in front of Druig. You craned your neck in search of Dr. Lawson who would’ve surely reprimanded them for disrupting detention, but she was nowhere in sight.

"Dr. Lawson went to get something in her office," Makkari informed you as if reading your mind.

“Now, please tell me you won your little fight with the Starks,” Druig pleaded, pulling out chairs for both him and his girlfriend.

“First of all, I didn’t fight anyone,” you said, narrowing your eyes at the couple. “Second of all, I think Thena might a faster texter than you,” you told Makkari while gesturing finger guns, then pulling both your index fingers and your hands closer to you, and the texting sign before pointing to her.

"She’s just a concise texter," Makkari responded, shaking her head. "I’m definitely faster than her."

“Stop trying to change the subject, what was your fight about?” Druig nudged your arm, a mischievous expression on his face.

“I already told you, it wasn’t a fight,” you repeated, staring back down the window to the group still on the side of the street. “But if you’re looking for a fight, there’s one happening down there,” you gestured out the window.

Makkari and Druig quickly mirrored your position to watch the scene below. Tony was seemingly trying to comfort Pepper while their friends watched them on the side and Thena took refuge inside her car.

“They were probably fighting about not having enough space in Thena’s car. The girl drives a freakin’ sedan, and they’re out here trying to fit six passengers in there,'' you guessed, but then switched your attention back to the World History assignment on your desk.

"The guys don’t usually carpool with the girls," Makkari noted with a frown, but then snorted in realization. "Thena definitely didn’t remind Pepper that she doesn’t have enough space in her car. How long have they been out there?"

“How ever much time it’s been since school ended,” you shrugged before writing down an answer on your worksheet.

“And has Wanda been stealing glances your way this whole time?” At Druig’s question, your eyes snap back up then down and sure enough, green eyes stared back at you, accompanied by a slight furrow of the brow. But just as quickly as she’d been caught, she turned her head back to face her friends.

“Be honest with me, Lothario, you are aware that Wanda Maximoff totally has the hots for you right? I know you keep saying that you’re not the reason Wanda and Vision broke up at the end of the summer, but come on. You two used to be joined at the hip before sophomore year. And now ever since they broke up, it’s like the eyefucking has only intensified!” Druig argued, leaning against the ceiling-to-floor window.

You rolled your eyes and shook your head. “Can you not call me that?”

“Got it, would you prefer lady-killer?”

"Druig, stop." Makkari lightly hit his arm and just as you lifted your hand to your chin to thank her, she added, "She’s clearly Romeo. Can you not feel the star-crossed lovers energy? You know, the popular cheerleader and the withdrawn artsy kid."

Your smile dropped as you just stared at them, unamused. You observed the giggling couple for a few moments before you interrupted them, “I don’t know why you insist on calling me that we all know those rumors are bullshit.”

Dr. Lawson chose that exact moment to walk in. Neither one of you said anything until the chemistry teacher just sighed. “I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear or see anything,” she said but motioned for Druig and Makkari to leave, which they did while expressing quick apologies.

Just as you were about to go back to actually doing homework, your phone lit up with a notification. Seeing that Dr. Lawson was back to being focused on her own work, you discretely responded.

red: see u later? yellow: 👍

─── ᗢ ───── 💔 ───── ᗢ ───

After closing your bedroom door behind you, you shrugged off your backpack and your brown work jacket.

“If you’re not gonna wear that, can I wear it? I’m kinda freezing in my cheer uniform.” The voice made you jump and quickly flicked on the lights.

“Jesus, Wanda!” you exhaled and clutched your chest. The intruder had absolutely no remorse though, judging by her bright expression. You opened your closet and pulled out one of the hoodies you knew she liked wearing. She was likely going to return it to you in about a week’s time once it no longer smelled like you, instead smelling like the perfume she had started wearing the summer of freshman year. “Are you trying to kill me?”

“Obviously not, if you die, who’s going to cuddle with me while watching movies?” Her pout was wiped away as soon as you presented her with her favorite hoodie. Snuggling into the soft garment, she smiled shyly at you. “Hi,” she said softly.

“Hi,” you responded, matching her tone. You pushed away a loose strand of hair behind her ear before placing your hands on her waist, pulling her closer to you while she wrapped her arms around your neck. Your eyes trailed down at her lips, back up at her eyes and then back down only to see her teeth now catching her bottom lip. Slowly, you leaned forward to press your lips against hers, a smile spreading on both of your faces. She giggled and hid her face in the crook of your neck.

“I missed you so much,” Wanda murmured against your skin.

“You saw me like two hours ago.”

“You know what I mean.”

You fought the urge to tell her that things didn’t have to be this way. You were the one who had agreed to this secret arrangement, and you would never pressure her into doing something she wasn’t ready to do. Besides, fighting with your favorite person was a dumb way to spend your limited time together. So, you joined her on your bed, making her grin in the process. The moment you laid down on your back, she shifted her body to lay on top of you, her head resting on your chest while her left hand rested on your stomach. You began to stroke her hair, enjoying how soft her hair felt between your fingers.

“Remember that internship I told you about?”

“At the Odinsons’ museum?”

You hummed, “I have an interview soon.”

Wanda quickly pushed herself up and beamed at you. “Oh my gosh! That’s great news! I’m so proud of you, baby.” She started to pepper your face with kisses, making you laugh.

“It’s just an interview, it doesn’t mean I actually got the internship.”

“Still,” she insisted. “When is it?”

“In 2 weeks.”

“After homecoming?”

You nodded, your mood slightly dimming. You couldn’t care less about homecoming. You didn’t even understand the point of having a dance every year after a sports game. At least this year, it would be after a basketball game, which meant you wouldn’t have to freeze on a cold October evening while watching a bunch of sweaty footballers tackle each other. Instead, you would get to watch some of the most attractive girls at your school swiftly pass the ball between them to make a basket.

Alright, so you were a little (very) biased, but it wasn’t like it really mattered when your focus wasn’t on the players most of the time. No, your attention was solely on a certain brunette cheerleader encouraging either team that played that year. Even before she was a cheerleader, Wanda had been the only person that made homecoming games tolerable for you.

Even though Yelena liked to claim that she had been the one who succeeded in dragging you to the football game by bribing you with food, she was wrong. It was really the thought of having an excuse to see Wanda for more than a split second as you “accidentally” made eye contact with her in the cafeteria that pushed you to go.

This year, you still couldn’t openly show any affection towards Wanda, per your agreement, but at least you didn’t have to try so hard to pretend you didn’t find her utterly adorable during pep rallies. You had already planned to spend the weekend with her since your parents were going to be away visiting family, and you also had an extra homecoming surprise for her.

Just because you didn’t quite get homecoming didn’t mean you wouldn’t try for Wanda, especially when you knew how much she loved homecoming. Ever since you were kids, she talked about how one day she wanted to be homecoming queen and she would want to dance with her lover under the bright lights. She would talk about how she wanted a romantic proposal, but it didn’t actually matter how the person asked her as long as it was someone she loved and who loved her back.

Freshman year, nobody knew her (nor you), so you had planned a small homecoming proposal at her house, but it didn’t mean much since you were asking her as a friend. (That was what you told her anyway). Last year, Vision had asked her. You had heard all about the dozens of roses he had showered her with along with the digital announcement board in the hallway from the main entrance being used as his proposal sign. Although you didn’t see it, you were sure Wanda loved it. This year, she and Vision were no longer together, but he was still trying to win her back and he would undoubtedly attempt to do so with another extravagant homecoming proposal.

“Are you going this year?” she asked, propping herself up on her elbow.

“Maybe? I don’t really have anyone to go with, but Yelena is probably gonna force me to go again.”

“You could ask Maria Hill,” Wanda said in what you assumed was supposed to be a joking manner, but the girl was absolutely terrible at hiding the green-eyed monster residing inside her heart.

“I don’t want to fight tonight,” you said as she suddenly gained interest in fiddling with the sleeves of your hoodie.

“I don’t,” she affirmed as she sat back up, cross-legged. “I just don’t get why you let people say those things about you,” she said, sitting back up cross-legged.

“What am I supposed to do?” you ask, exasperated.

“Tell them it’s not true!”

“I have always denied any rumor about me dating or hooking up with someone. It’s not my fault that people are too dumb and would rather live in delusion than believe me.” You pushed yourself up to sit up and face her.

Most of the time, you didn’t mind the whispers in the hallway. They were dumb and had nothing better to do than to make up things about people they didn’t know. And the first time, you were even a little flattered that people thought you had managed to grab Carol Danvers’ attention. In hindsight, the only reason people thought you were dating the basketball team’s captain was probably because you two used to be the only ones out of the closet back then.

What you initially believed to just be a one-time thing became the reason you now had the reputation of being some sort of heartbreaker, making Sappho proud. That was when you started to harbor contempt for what your classmates liked to say about you. It started to make you wary of how you interacted with anyone and everyone, paranoid that people would misconstrue a polite smile as a flirtatious smirk.

Stil, no matter how careful you were, people still found ways to link you to just about any girl at school. After Carol, you were apparently hooking up with Valkyrie, the resident stoner, but that rumor died pretty quickly after Carol and Valkyrie were seen making out at a party. Then, Maria Hill had the unfortunate consequence of being attached to your name after defending you from people talking about you in the locker rooms. (Months later, when you saw her at Yelena and Natasha’s house, she assured you that she didn’t mind since those people were assholes who didn’t shit anyway.) People also thought you were seeing Nebula and you had absolutely no idea where that came from. At least with Yelena, you knew people thought you were dating because she only hung out with you the moment she transferred schools. And lastly, Natasha… well, if you weren’t seeing Yelena, then people would settle with linking you to her older sister who often gave you lifts back home after school whenever your art club meetings ended at the same time as her dance club practices.

So yeah, as great as all those girls were, you didn’t enjoy being the subject of your classmates’ gossip chain, but rarely did you do anything about it. It was just easier for you to ignore them than to fight them. You were already halfway done with high school and then, you would never see the vast majority of them ever again.

Wanda remained silent with her eyes glued to the floor. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “I know you don’t like people constantly talking about you.”

“I’m sorry for lashing out,” you said, reaching out to tilt her chin back up so you could see those green eyes you loved so much.

Wanda shuffled to get close enough to rest her forehead against yours. “I wish I could block out those people’s voices and ignore them like you do. You make it look so easy,” she admitted with a sad smile.

“You’ll get there some day,” you told her before placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. You knew she wasn’t talking about the rumors anymore. Well, not solely that anyway. There was a reason you two had kept your relationship secret. Wanda wasn’t ready to come out to everyone yet. She knew her family would still love her and most of the school would be accepting of her, but she also knew people would talk about her. She also didn’t know how the cheer squad would react, and despite how unpleasant they could be sometimes, she genuinely liked being part of the squad.

You told her you were okay with keeping things between you two. And you truly were. There were just days that were harder than others. Days where you wished you could just hold her hand in the hallway. Days where she wished she could tell her classmates to fuck off and stop bothering you. But those days weren’t possible. Not yet.

Suddenly, you heard the front door of your house open and the telltale sounds of your parents coming home. The thuds of boots being kicked off, the rattling of keys being tossed in the key tray on the entryway dresser, a “honey, we’re home” being yelled.

You groaned, but pulled away from Wanda so she could go grab her belongings. You hugged her one last time and kissed her goodbye like you had grown used to doing.

“We’re still on for Friday?” She asked, as if you would suddenly bail on her.

“Of course,” you said and pecked her cheek.

“See you on Friday, sunshine.” Wanda grinned and carefully climbed out your window that looked out on your garage. She crawled towards the edge of the garage roof and grabbed onto one of the thicker branches from the tree planted next to the garage. Once she made it safely on the ground, she waved at you and pulled her bike from the bush. You waved back, watching her figure disappear as she biked down the street back to her house.

─── ᗢ ───── 💔 ───── ᗢ ───

Back at school the next day, it was as if last night had never happened. You walked from the bus stop to school, your steps matching the beat of the music you were listening to.

“Hey, loser!” You heard a faint voice yelling, mixing in with the song playing from your earbuds. Pulling out one earbud, you heard the voice again coming from behind you, but clearer.

“Good morning to you too, Lena,” you greeted your best friend with a quick side hug. The blonde girl was having none of it though. She groaned and pulled you in for a proper hug, arms wrapped tightly around you and your backpack, head on your shoulder and everything, effectively blocking traffic right in front of the staircase leading to the main doors of the school. You gave apologetic smiles to those around while you shuffled to the side of the stairs.

From the corner of your eye, you caught some of the cheerleaders coming out of Gamora’s SUV, along with her boyfriend, Peter Quill, and her grumbling younger sister, Nebula.

“Did you hear, Pepper and co. were stuck at school for like an hour because she invited Tony to carpool with them but he also brought his friends with him. So, they were like 15 trying to fit in Thena’s car. She had a breakdown and everything on the side of the street,” Yelena said when she saw who you were looking at.

“Yelena Belova,” you gasped dramatically. “Don’t tell me you’re into gossiping now?” The cheerleaders walked towards you, but the only one you cared about was the brunette with the red backpack wearing the same hoodie you had given her yesterday.

“I can’t help it when it comes to them,” she replied, venom lacing her words.

“They’re not all bad,” you argued right as you caught Wanda’s eye. A shy smile on her face, she looked back down at the ground, tucking her hands in the pockets of her (your) hoodie.

“Right, because the one person you were actually friends with in that group didn’t ditch you the moment they welcomed her in their little clan.”

“Lena,” you warned. Sure, you had been somewhat bitter after you and Wanda had your falling out, but you could never speak badly about her. Not even when you met Yelena and told her about your tricky past with Wanda. Even though you didn’t quite understand what happened to your friendship, you couldn’t bring yourself to badmouth the girl you once called your best friend. Yelena didn’t understand how you could just move on without closure, but she respected it anyway.

“Fine, fine, fine,” she surrendered with her hands up in the air right as the cheerleaders walked past the two of you, not paying you any mind. Just as they walked by you, a waft of the perfume they all wore invaded your nostrils, making you grimace.

“VS Bombshell must be the cheerleaders’ version of the football guys’ AXE body spray,” you remarked once you thought the girls were out of earshot. It turned out that a whole staircase wasn’t far enough since they all turned around in search of the offender. If it weren’t for Yelena’s loud cackling and you smacking her as an attempt to shut her up or at least quiet her down, you probably would’ve gotten away with it. Instead, you had to deal with nearly half a dozen cheerleaders’ deathly glare, including Wanda’s.

“Come on,” Yelena said, slinging one arm around your shoulders. “I’ll protect you from the scary little cheerleaders.”

“My knight in shining armor,” you cooed and snorted, but leaned into the blonde girl.

The cheerleaders were likely going to make their displeasure over your little comment known, probably by spreading another fake rumor about you to make sure you wouldn’t make the same mistake again. For now though, you just enjoyed the comfort of your best friend as you tried to get through another uneventful day of high school.

next >>

[dannythedog]

Bestie ive tried reading all of the anon drama stuff and I still kinda don't understand some things and was wondering if you could clear some things up for me?

Ok to start off what happened (before?) The September 3rd concert? Why did their inner circle start getting hate afterwords?

Second who's who with girlfriends, like who's Mackenzie, joy, Jita etc...

Where did the cheating allegations come from for Sam and Jake?

And anything you think I should know?

Sorry if this is a lot, I've recently started listening to (GVF) them and I am absolutely in love with the boys and I just wanna be able to get as much info as I can. Thank you! 🍄

There’s just too much to read through lol but welcome to the fandom!!! I’m sorry you’re starting out on all this drama lol

So a few years ago Danny had posted a picture to Instagram with the caption “you could say we’re the qu**rs of the band” or something along those lines and Jake had commented “definitely qu**rs”. The LGBTQ+ fans did not appreciate this and wanted an apology from Danny. Danny did apologize back when it was first brought up, but the fans wanted one now. Within the same time frame I guess the band were saying some ableist things but I don’t know anything about that. Poc fans also want an apology from Josh and Danny for “appropriating” culture i.e. wearing feathers (and I guess josh wore a headdress? I’ve personally only seen him wear a headband with feathers on it, but he could’ve worn one and it isn’t my culture so I have no right to speak on it). Fans allegedly began attacking their inner circle trying to force an apology.

Danny’s girlfriend is MacKenzi, Jake is with Jita, and Sam was/is (we speculate they broke up because she removed all the pictures of them and moved away) with Joy.

The cheating rumors have been happening since before I started regularly following the band. Jake used to date a girl named Hannah before the band took off and people say that when they started to gain traction, he cheated on her. Sam used to date a girl named Carmen and people also say he cheated on her. We don’t know if any of this is true. Fans are now speculating Sam may have cheated on Joy and Joy may have cheated on Sam. Again, all rumors.

I know this post doesn’t necessarily make it seem like it, but these boys are good people. They are appreciative and caring and kind. They have made mistakes and have their vices, but they’ve grown as people and are trying to navigate through something as difficult as fame as young adults. We have to remember they are still human beings and will not be perfect. I typically try to keep a neutral standing on things because we don’t know how true everything is. People like to talk.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to message me any time :) I’m always willing to talk

[haikyuuwaifu]

Coming Soon*

Keep your eyes peeled👀

Warning: They’re all POLY because it’s really all I write now🤡

Cyber S**

Keigo x Reader x Dabi x Katsuki x Shinsou

Keigo Takami, Toya Todoroki, Hitoshi Shinsou, Katsuki Bakugo: 

4 men who spend their nights in front of a screen fulfilling the desires of all the needy men and women of Tokyo. By day they’re 4 men who work for Toya’s father in the Endeavor agency. Their personal life and their “nightlife” never cross. They never fuck fans and they sure as fuck don’t fuck anyone who’s actually watched their content.

Enter Y/N L/N college graduate recently hired as the executive assistant for 4 strangers she’s never met or seen. She spends her nights watching anime, k-dramas, reading fanfiction, and writing eroitc. Her friends watch cam-boys on girls night so they can talk and gossip about the men they openly thirst over. Y/N has never seen the appeal; so she’s usually doing her own thing. 

Upon first meeting, Y/N can vaguely recall hearing their voices but she can’t pinpoint where. Follow her as she tries to maneuver through office romance, outrageous flirting, overgrown man children; jealous under secretaries, and four men that want to see her fall apart behind closed doors ;)

Daisy

Tendou x Reader x Suna x Kyotani Poly

Satori Tendou, Suna Rintaro, Kyoutani Kentaro, kings of the campus, exclusive playboys, religious party animals. They can have any girl or any guy they want with a look, a nod, a single word. Something about them draws people in, but they’re not the kind of men for anything long term. Getting involved with them is guaranteed heartbreak; but most girls don’t care. They just want to say they got a chance with the 3 kings.  No one could resist them, and why would they want to? When they could be promised the greatest night of debauchery.

Y/N L/N is no stranger to college parties and popularity. Being a partier herself, she had no qualms with merging into the party scene Tokyo had to offer. Her first party would have been a success if she hadn’t ended up running into her toxic ex-boyfriend. Lucky for her, 3 men came to her rescue, but she knew at first look they were nothing but trouble; and she wasn’t going to put herself through that shit again. Thanking them once, she managed to lose them in the heaping crowd and hoped never to see them again.

First day of classes proved someone was out to get her as her eyes made contact with three pairs of familiar irises from that night at the party. The three kings want to bend her to their will. Y/N L/N wants to show them just how wrong they are to think she’d break so easily. It’s a game of cat and mouse; but who’s the cat and who’s the mouse?

Paradise:

Reader x Keigo x Izuku  x Katsuki Poly

Y/N and Katsuki dated from 3rd year middle school to the summer after 2nd year when Katsuki brutally dumped Y/N. No one knows why except for the two of them. Y/N in turn transfers to a different class entirely and moves on to college after graduation. 

3 years after high school finds Katsuki transferred to Tokyo University newly single after dumping his girlfriend of 2 years Camie. Upon arrival Katsuki is bombarded by the sight of his elementary school punching bag Izuku Midoriya rocking someone else's shit and his first girlfriend standing behind him cheering him on. 

This sight alone sends Katsuki into an absolute rage only for him to wake up in a hospital bed confused, angry, and floored when he finds out bitch baby Midoriya beat his ass. 

Follow Katsuki as he tries to maneuver his way through a new college, old feelings, and outside forces doing everything they can to literally fuck up his life at nearly every turn.

THIS CITY: TSUKISHIMA X READER X KENMA X AKAASHI X OSAMU POLY

Hito Tsukishima just wants a baby brother. He’ll even take a baby sister, but his dad scares of women and his uncles don’t keep them around long enough for him to ask; so he’s decided it’s time for him to take matters into his own hands.

And he knows just the woman he wants to be his new mom.

[plctitude]

* daniel sharman, cis man + he/him  | you know tobin 't.c.' childs, right? they’re 30, and they’ve lived in irving for, like, eleven years? well, their spotify wrapped says they listened to the art of getting by by laura zocca like, a million times this year, which makes sense ‘cause they’ve got that whole scuffed shoes and messy bedhead, faded denim jacket, nervous twisting of a wedding ring on his ring finger thing going on. i just checked and their birthday is june 3rd, so they’re a gemini, which is unsurprising, all things considered.

( CW : cancer & death ) .

hello ! im gel and this is my little runt t.c. ! lmk if you wanna plot something

full name : tobin childs . preferred name / nickname : t.c. age : thirty . birthday : june 3rd . sexual orientation : straight . relationship status : widowed , single . occupation : pediatrician . residence : port apartments .

history ––

t.c. was born in hackney , london . he’s gone by t.c. ever since he can remember and rarely ever allows people to call him tobin ( even his family ) .

his parents went through a horrible divorce when he was 13 , at which point he moved to the usa with his mother to live with his grandparents . his father stayed in england with his then-girlfriend , now his wife and t.c.’s stepmother .

he and his mother ended up in wrightsville beach, a small town near wilmington, nc.

essentially based off of landon from a walk to remember : an absolute troublemaker as a teenager . completely aimless and just uncaring caring about his future . his senior year , he and his friends ended up getting a boy’s leg broken after a prank went wrong . instead of being expelled , t.c. was only made to do a multitude of service/community projects . and that’s how he becomes close to avery , when they’re paired up in the school play . his friends had always disliked her , because that’s how the status quo was – he was in the popular crowd and she was the daughter of the local minister .

cancer cw // they grew closer , and after getting past some petty high school drama , they began to date . it’s not until several dates later that avery tells t.c. that she has leukemia , and she’s not making any plans for the future . and t.c. goes to his estranged father , a doctor , to beg him to help avery , but despite their best efforts , there’s nothing that can be done .

cancer cw // avery’s condition worsens , and she ends up in the hospital . she decides to forgo further treatment , wanting to be able to enjoy the time she has left . on the night of their graduation, t.c. asks avery to marry him , and she accepts . they get married a week later with their closest friends and family , avery’s father officiating .

death cw // they spent the summer as a married couple , and avery passed away that fall. and as a result, t.c. became a very young widow .

t.c. tried his best to heal and move on , working odd jobs and making plans to go to college then medical school , but being in a town full of memories was just too painful so he decided to leave .

he moved to irving , nc where his aunt ( his mother’s sister ) and her family lives . ( this was about 11 years ago )

he worked as a waiter for about a year while taking online classes at the local college , before he transferred to unc chapel hill . he graduated in three years and then went to attend medical school at wake forest .

originally , he planned to work in oncology but instead of it being a helpful part of his healing process like it can be for some , it actually just forced him to remember a lot of things about avery and it hurt too much . so he chose to become a pediatrician instead , since he loved working with kids and he was pretty good at comforting the parents when he needed to .

now ––

t.c. definitely considers irving his home now , but he still does his best to visit his mom and her boyfriend in wrightsville beach . he also visits avery’s father every now and again just to catch up and to make sure he’s doing alright . there are four times a year he will always visit though – avery’s birthday , his birthday , his and avery’s wedding anniversary , and the anniversary of avery’s death .

he works as a pediatrician which surprisingly isn’t as stressful of a job as he thought it would be . he absolutely loves working with kids and he’s very committed to his job .

becoming a widow at such a young age really put a lot of things in perspective for him so he’s a lot less indecisive and apathetic as he used to be .

that being said , he stills finds it hard to get up in the morning sometimes . he’ll wake up about 15 minutes before his shift starts , not because he overslept , but because he laid in bed staring at the ceiling for thirty minutes .

he still has an english accent but it’s not as obvious as it used to be when he first moved to the us . it’s definitely still there but there are slang words that he doesn’t really say with an accent , or with just a very faint one .

personality ––

the grief he experienced from losing avery was something that was incredibly hard for him to work through , but a lot of what he does now, he does to make her proud . she still serves as motivation for him to get up and go do things , because he knows that she wouldn’t want him just sitting around .

he’s an all-around good guy , though a little quiet at times . he sometimes tends to fall a bit too deep into his thoughts , but overall , he’s charming and really sweet .

he loves being around people , but on a bad day , it can be very draining for him .

when he gets anxious , he fiddles with the ring on his hand , which he hasn’t taken off and doesn’t ever plan to. with how often people ask about the ring , he’s grown more used to telling the story of him and avery but most people notice the way he still gets a little choked up every time .

hobbies include : writing , volunteering , cooking ( not baking ) .

wcs ––

ride-or-die best friend - they’ve been friends since t.c. blew into town and they’ve been inseparable since

exes - these probably didnt last long bc he genuinely feels like he’s used up his one ‘true / epic love’ on avery ; could’ve ended well or badly 

neighbor(s) - would love like a cute little apartment group that gets together and has dinner parties and regular parties and movie nights , game nights ,etc.

someone he volunteers with - they could be friends who just decided to volunteer somewhere together or they could’ve met when they were both volunteering at the same place

childhood friends / enemies ? either from london or from wrightsville . it would be cool to have someone who knew him before avery .

former coworkers – from back when he was a waiter

college classmates – at unc chapel hill 

current coworkers – other doctors , medical professionals , etc.

friends of his aunt , friends of his aunt’s family

friends , in general !

literally anything ! i’m super super down for anything so lmk if you wanna plot 

[writer-dreams]

Love Potion (Part 6) (Draco Malfoy x Reader)

Part 6 has been released! For those of you confused as to why this is labeled part 6 now, read the A/N below. There's only one more part left, so keep an eye out for it! ((Also, to the person who asked me for a tag, I'm sorry that I couldn't add you. I was stupid and forgot what your username was. It started with miniature and that's all I remembered. Please message me again if you still wish to be tagged.))

Prologue / Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / End

Update Tags: (I HAVE REACHED THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF PEOPLE THAT CAN BE TAGGED IN A POST, I'M SO SORRY!) @celestialceci @marvelobsessedteen @imaginesforthepeople @danidomm @marvelrose @vogueworthy-barnes @glossysoph @stevesvibraniumshield @bi-mama @fiveisadorable @paulalucianap1 @drama-llama-04 @mellow-delight @hahaboop @awesomehannaha @stantalentstanclc @queenskyster @outsider-underwater @babebenhardy @imaginespnr5er @riddikuluslypotter @pitkins @bughug1999 @drawlfoy @onyxbunny22 @sorgenprinzessin @vivianhuynh77 @dauntlessdracarys @jellyfishbeansontoast @frenchkpoplover @kaibie @starvinggaywriter @lunathepettuna @accio-rogers @summer-wasteland @storymage-danganronpa @daintyyukhei @writerandee @accio-perseus @fightpain-with-morepain

House: You choose

Blood Status: You choose

Warnings: Possible swearing

Note: The reader in this story is female / uses female pronouns

Word Count: 2,927 words

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3rd Person POV

Day 6

Y/n woke up on her soft dorm mattress. She looked around in confusion before her eyes settled on the note placed beside her pillow. Raising her eyebrows, she picked the note up and read what was written.

‘Good morning, Love. I hope you had a wonderful sleep. I took the liberty of carrying you back to your room after you had fallen asleep. I hope you don’t mind. I’ll see you later today!’

-D.M. ♡

That’s right. She had fallen asleep on Draco’s lap yesterday. Her cheeks heated up at the memory, still wondering why she didn’t push him away. Her feelings were so mixed for Draco, it was just so confusing. She shook away her thoughts and got ready for classes, trying to ignore how quickly her heart was beating.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few hours later, Y/n walked out of her Transfiguration class, completely ready to eat lunch. McGonagall was still just as strict as ever, pushing her students to their limits with tons of homework and a low tolerance for horseplay. After such a tough class, Y/n was starved. She practically dashed through the halls, almost drooling from the scent of (favorite food) wafting from the Mess Hall.

As she rounded one of the corners, Y/n heard some shouting coming from the next hall. At first she ignored it, thinking it was some stupid first-years. That is, until she realized that she recognized one of the voices.

“Get your filthy hands away from me, Potter!” That oh-so familiar voice barked. Of course, she knew that voice. She had become quite acquainted to the owner of that snarky voice.

Curious, Y/n peered into the hall from behind the wall, gasping at the scene in front of her. Draco was cornered at the wall with Harry and Ron pointing their wands threateningly at him. Draco’s wand lay discarded far away from him, proof that Harry had most likely disarmed him. Before she could stop herself, she threw herself between her friends and Draco.

“What the hell is going on here?” Y/n shouted.

“He levitated a first-year into a tree! That’s what’s going on! So, we’re simply trying to teach Malfoy a little lesson.” Harry glared at Draco.

“Poor bloke was crying and begging to be put down. However, this prat,” Ron said, pointing at the blonde, “Only smiled and left him up there.”

Her two friends continued, trying to secretly poke their wands around her. Y/n rolled her eyes at their pathetic attempts and shoved the two boys back. Taking a couple of steps back from the force, Harry and Ron looked at her with disbelief in their eyes.

“Honestly, just leave him alone!”

“Y/n, why the hell are you defending him?!” Harry accused, “He’s nothing but a bully!”

Y/n stopped, considering Harry’s words. Why was she protecting him? Any other time and she probably would have hexed Draco’s arse as well. It’s not exactly like he was in the right either. What was so different this time? She just instinctively stepped in front of him without a second thought.

“Because he’s my boyfriend and he’s actually really caring, despite what you may think!” Words flew out of Y/n’s mouth before she could stop them. Somehow, they just felt right to say. Like an instinct.

Ron’s eyes looked as if they were going to pop out of his head while Harry searched Y/n’s eyes, trying to find some sort of hidden meaning in what she was saying. His eyes softened slightly, seeing that Y/n was shaking.

“You know, Y/n, just because he’s your boyfriend, it doesn’t mean that you have to feel obligated to protect him all the time.” Harry said, putting emphasis on the word 'boyfriend’. Clearly, Harry still remembered that she was Draco’s girlfriend in the first place because of a dare. A dare that was coming to an end very soon.

Y/n rolled her eyes at Harry. “I like to think of it as more of a sign of good faithfulness. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I were to abandon my boyfriend to the mercy of his two enemies?”

“But Y/n! You-” Ron began.

“Just shut your damn trap and leave, will you?” Y/n said, exasperated at her friends. “Just accept that as long as I am his girlfriend, I’m going to protect him to the best of my abilities. It’s what a good girlfriend would do.”

“Even when he’s wrong?” Harry raised an eyebrow.

“I would support him through thick and thin.”

Harry’s face quickly turned to one of disappointment as he tugged at Ron’s sleeve.

“Let’s just get out of here, Ron.”

Ron was about to protest before he saw Harry’s face. He then sighed and turned to follow Harry out of the corridor.

Y/n turned back to Draco, who put his hand on her shoulder. She turned to see absolute awe in his eyes.

“You would choose me over your friends?” He asked, surprised.

Y/n nodded, her cheeks starting to turn red. “You protect me all the time, a good girlfriend should only be able to return the favor.”

Draco began to smirk before Y/n elbowed his side. He gasped out in pain, holding his ribs.

“What was that for?”

“Just because I’ll protect you, doesn’t mean that you’re in the right.” Y/n rolled her eyes, “You know better than to stick a first-year into a tree.”

Draco gave Y/n a small smile, though something flashed in his eyes as he did so. Something so small that not even Y/n noticed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hey Love, I have a question for you.” Draco asked Y/n as they walked together in the halls after lunch.

Y/n turned to him with a questioning look on her face. The Slytherin boy looked nervous for once. He bit his lip and avoided eye contact with her. How strange.

“There’s going to be a party in the Slytherin Common Room tonight. Zabini told all of the Slytherins to come with a guest and I was hoping that you’d be mine.” Draco said, scratching the back of his neck. He still didn’t look at her and he was licking his lips nervously.

Ignoring Draco’s odd behavior, Y/n focused on what he said. A party was exactly what got her into this situation in the first place, along with a wild game of truth or dare. Then again, how many more opportunities would she have to attend a secret party in Hogwarts? Not many. She may as well enjoy everything she can in Hogwarts, seeing as she would eventually leave the school.

“I would love to go with you!” Y/n smiled at the boy. Draco’s face split into a beaming smile as his nervous posture relaxed.

“Oh, thank Merlin. The party’s at 7, I’ll see you then.” Draco pressed a kiss to her cheek before walking off, practically emitting an aura of happiness.

Y/n placed a hand against her cheek, feeling as though Draco’s warm lips were still on it. She sighed happily, not bothered by anything happening around her. She definitely couldn’t deny that one of the other reasons she wanted to go to that party was to spend more time with Draco. There was just something about him. It was as if she were seeing him in a different light. Her heart was fluttering like a wild bird in her chest. She began to walk to her next class, a slight bounce in every step. She simply couldn’t wait for tonight.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Y/n stood in front of the tall mirror in her dorm room. Her eyebrows were furrowed as she still couldn’t find the perfect dress for the party. She sighed and took off the dress she was wearing, going back to her wardrobe to look for another.

She roughly pushed through the coat hangers, frustrated at herself for taking so long to find a dress. Usually, she wouldn’t bother taking so long. She’d simply change into a random one and go. Groaning loudly, she hit her head against the hard wood of her wardrobe door. From the corner of her eye, she spotted a flash of (f/c). Y/n raised her eyebrows and pushed all the other gowns aside to reveal a gorgeous (f/c) dress. Y/n smiled as she remembered the first time she got it.

“Y/n!” Her mother called. The small girl entered the bedroom shortly afterwards, wondering what her mother wanted. She stared curiously at the woman, who had her back turned to her daughter. Her mom suddenly turned around, holding an elegant (f/c) dress. Y/n’s jaw dropped at how amazing it looked.

“Look at what I found, darling.” Her mother grinned.

“Wow, it’s gorgeous!”

“You know, Y/n. I wore this dress when I went on my first date with your father. It was at a time that whenever I was around him, I felt this feeling in my chest. At first, I didn’t understand it. However, when I wore this and danced around with him in the streets, I realized what it was.”

“What was it?” Young Y/n asked with a sparkle in her eyes. The way her mother was describing the scene seemed almost fairy-tale-like to her.

Her mother hummed a soft tune. “You’ll know when you’re older, darling. All I can say is that it will feel….right.” Her mother suddenly extended the dress towards Y/n.

Y/n raised an eyebrow at the gesture. “What are you doing, mum?”

“Giving you this dress.” She answered bluntly.

Y/n let out a gasp of surprise as she pushed her mother’s arms back. “I can’t take this. It’s so important and holds so much meaning. What if something happens to it because of me?”

Her mother gave her a pointed look. “This dress was there when I first went out with the love of my life. It has witnessed many tears and fights, but it has also seen the magic of love. It has been there for me and now it will be there when you first meet the one who will bring you eternal happiness. I want you to wear this when you find them and when you do, know that your parent’s love is there with you.”

“But, how will I know if they are 'the one’?”

“You’ll know.” Her mother smiled knowingly.

The small girl gingerly took the dress from her mother, feeling honored that she was being given something of so much value. She walked to the nearest mirror and placed the dress in front of her body, imagining what she would look like in it. Of course, being so small, the dress practically pooled on the floor and the bodice was definitely made for a larger body. Nonetheless, she beamed at her reflection while her mother tilted her head and flashed her a soft smile behind her.

The memory faded as Y/n found herself in front of the mirror, the dress pressed against her body. Something stirred in her gut, a warm feeling filling her body. Something inside of her unconsciously screamed at her to put it on, that this was 'the magic moment’. She continued to look into the mirror, contemplating it. The dress looked like it would fit perfectly now, compared to all those years ago. It was perfect. Finally opting to wear it, she thanked her mother inside her head for convincing her to take the dress with her and changed right into it.

Y/n looked back to the mirror, excited to see how she looked. She cracked a smile and quickly spun around, admiring how the dress billowed and twirled. Yet, something was still missing. Something glinted silver in her peripheral vision. She turned her head and noticed the dragon necklace that Draco had gotten her. She had avoided wearing it every since the day that Pansy had taken it because every time she put it on, she got the same weird feeling in her chest that she got when she saw Draco smile.

Yet, she still picked it up off the dresser top, placing it around her neck and feeling the cold steel on her skin. She turned to the mirror, finally feeling satisfied with her final look. She grinned and exited her room, ready to go to that party.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She arrived at the Slytherin Common Room, feeling intimidated by the large amount of people and the loud music. All around her, people were already in their friend groups, chatting away and enjoying the night. Y/n spotted Draco’s blonde hair from afar, seeing that he was standing around a table with some of his friends. His eyes met with hers and his face split into a toothy grin. He was dressed nicely in a simple black suit, with a green tie and black shoes. Her breath caught in her throat, and she was unable to move until he was in front of her. She smiled up at him, seeing his eyes looking over the dress she was wearing.

“You look stunning, Love.” He complimented, looking down to see the necklace she was wearing. “You actually wore it….”

“Of course, why wouldn’t I?” Y/n asked confused.

“It’s just….” Draco trailed off. “Never mind. Let’s just go eat something.” He grabbed her hand gently and brought her further into the party.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hours later, Y/n found herself genuinely enjoying the party. All night long, she was practically stuck to Draco’s side and noticed that he had never let go of her hand. Suddenly, the upbeat tune of the last song faded away and a slow song started playing, causing everyone in the room to grab a partner and start waltzing together. Draco turned to her with a small smirk.

“May I have this dance, Love?” He bowed, still holding her hand.

“Well, how could I say no when you refuse to let go of me.” Y/n joked.

Draco smiled and led her to the middle of the room, resting his hand on her hip and holding their intertwined fingers out. Y/n placed her other hand on his shoulder and the two began to move their feet together in sync, swaying the to the soft beat of the music. Draco’s warm grey eyes bore into her, as if he could see into her very soul. Her chest felt as though it was swelling with an odd happiness. Time seemed to stand still as the music and everyone talking was muted into background chatter, like she and Draco were the only thing that mattered. She no longer saw the people around them, seeing them only as shapeless blobs of color. All she could see was Draco and his sweet smile.

Then, he stopped dancing, worrying Y/n. Everything was still unfocused as he took her outside the Common Room. She had no idea why he stopped or where he was taking them. The whole time, she was in a daze. However, she soon found Draco taking her up the familiar stairs of the Astronomy Tower. He didn’t stop until they reached the balcony. Outside, it was completely silent. The night sky twinkled with thousands of glittery stars and the moonlight bathed everything in a soft white light. It was so beautiful and peaceful. Y/n was suddenly aware of how often Draco would take her here, like it was their special spot.

Gazing at the stars, she could see all of her favorite constellations. She could make out the constellation of Draco, which shone the brightest of all the others. Y/n could feel eyes on her, making her turn to see silver eyes watching her with adoration.

“What are you looking at?” She giggled.

“You.”

She was taken aback by his blunt statement. Nevertheless, heat began to rush to her cheeks, turning them bright red. Draco sighed as he finally looked away from her.

“Draco? What’s wrong?”

“I love you, Y/n. I love every single fibre of you. I just…..” He paused, “…I just wonder if you feel the same.”

Y/n didn’t know what to say. Even she wasn’t sure of what she felt around him. Surely, it couldn’t be love, could it? Draco turned back to her, closing his eyes. He placed a soft hand on her cheek and leaned in slowly. However, he stopped a few mere centimeters away from their lips touching. He was giving her the decision to either kiss him or turn him away. Y/n was shocked, staring at his lips. Her heart was pounding in her chest like a loud drum.

'It was at a time that whenever I was around him, I felt this feeling in my chest.’ Her memories recalled what her mother had said.

'All I can say is that it will feel….right.’

'But, how will I know if they are 'the one’? ’

'You’ll know.’

At this point, Y/n had understood. She understood what that feeling was. She understood why it felt right to wear this dress. She finally understood why dancing with Draco made everything else melt away. Without a second thought, she connected her lips with his and felt him pull her in closer to him. It was such a sweet kiss, filled with unsaid confessions. Their lips fit together perfectly, almost like two puzzle pieces. This was the first time, during this whole fiasco, that she had kissed him on the lips. Any other time, she had turned away to make him kiss her cheek. She knew then, that she wanted to stay like this, with him, forever.

Finally, she realized that she couldn’t deny it anymore.

I’m in love with Draco Malfoy.

*******************************************************************************************

Thank you so much for reading Part 6. So, to stop any confusion, I labeled this part as Part 6 because I changed the first part to a ‘Prologue.’ I felt this better suited the description and now the chapter numbers line up with the days. I actually really like this one (especially the ending bit) and I hope all of you did as well. Sorry it took so long, I found myself busy with schoolwork and such, but I’m back. Thank you again! Until next time.

-Jade

[slstmaraudersjple]

Belated Fic Rec Event post!

Soooo... some of you may know that I was unfortunately not able to post my fic recs for the KC Fic Rec Event hosted by @klaroline-events due to my laptop dying and me needing to order a replacement battery/charging cord. So here are the fic recs for days 2-6! Lots of good fics ;)

Klaroline Fic Rec Event 2020 - Day 2 Sep 1st: All Human!AU Title: Colored You In (Links: FFN | AO3) Author: @lalainajanes (Links: FFN | AO3) Summary: AH-AU. Rebekah asks a favor that turns out to be kind of life changing (life ruining?) for Caroline. Living with a temporarily broke Kol is one thing. A really, really annoying thing. And then Klaus is suddenly always around, planted on her couch, drinking her wine and adding snarky commentary which Caroline DOES NOT appreciate. Mikaelson's and boundaries apparently did not mix. Warnings: none Status: Complete

Why you should read it: This has everything I love in a Klaroline fic: Caroline friendship with Rebekah and Enzo, Caroline/Kol bonding, Mikaelson sibling drama... and of course, Klaus secretly being trash for Caroline. It’s hilariously entertaining, especially when Caroline suspects SOMETHING is up and Kol keeps teasing her about it because he KNOWS, and Rebekah DOESN’T know what’s happening until she does, and the Mikaelson sibling dynamic is so entertaining and YOU WLL LOVE IT. I mean, in the first chapter, Rebekah bribes Caroline into letting Kol stay with her. That alone should set the tone for the entir story for you. Seriously, just read it already!

A favorite scene:

The box said 'Louboutin' so Caroline was on guard. When Rebekah had called yesterday and asked Caroline to meet her for drinks Caroline had agreed immediately. Work was hectic, she had fundraiser to oversee tomorrow, so a martini (or three) to wind down sounded like a good idea.

Beware of Greeks bearing gifts, or so the saying went.

"Do you need a kidney, or something? Because I love you, Bex. But I love gin too."

Klaroline Fic Rec Event 2020 - Day 3 Sep 2nd: Angst Title: all you need to grow inside my spine (Links: FFN | AO3) Author: @highgaarden (Links: FFN | AO3) Summary: Klaus watches, satisfied, and in that moment she realizes something terrible: that she is grateful for the blood in her mouth. The sooner they break this bond the better. / or, Klaus and Caroline try to bargain their way out of their soulmate bond, but discover that dealing with magic isn't quite as easy or liberating as snapping a neck. ONESHOT. Warnings: none Status: Complete

Why you should read it: You should read this for the writing alone. The lines just TUG at your very soul and if you didn’t know words could hurt, this does it. This story is a variation on the soulmates AU where Klaus and Caroline are NOT delighted by what they learn, and so they agree to try to break this bond. What I like about this is that it’s a story where, while Klaus may be intrigued by Caroline, he still chooses power over his soulmate. Or does he? 

A favorite scene: 

“I tried, so hard, to be good.” Caroline closes her eyes to the blood dripping down her forehead. “So freakin’ hard. I was on the bunny diet. I thought if I ever showed you who I was, my soulmate would run for the hills.”

 “Aren’t you glad then that it’s me?”

Klaroline Fic Rec Event 2020 - Day 4 Sep 3rd: Fluff Title: The Sound of Settling (Link: AO3) Author: @galvanizedfriend / Yokan (Link: AO3) Summary: Klaus hates his job at Mikaelson & Sons. He hates wearing a suit. He also hates his brothers constantly butting into his life. Everything will be better once he gets his much desired transfer to the New York branch. Caroline Forbes is the owner of Mystic Café, and when Klaus accidentally wanders into her coffee shop, his whole perspective changes. [AH/Coffee Shop!AU where Klaus is a lawyer. Lots of Mikaelsons and some Carenzo friendship.] Warnings: none Status: Complete

Why you should read it: I love this story so much! It’s a variation of the coffee shop meet cute, and I love how @galvanizedfriend​ can take a simple setting like a coffee shop and making something beautiful out of it!!! All Klaus wants in life is to get away from his family, so he works himself to the bone in hopes of getting a transfer. One day he comes across Caroline’s coffee shop as he’s looking for his next coffee fix, but discovers reasons to keep coming back... and the best part about all this? This beautifully written story reminds us that sometimes, what we think we want is not what we truly want.

A favorite scene:

"Well, you haven't run for the hills. I think you turned out pretty ok, if you ask me." Caroline pushes up her seat and winks at him. "Duty calls."

Klaus is left in a state of absolute disbelief as she walks back to the counter. Thirty-two years of age and this might be the first time anyone claims he's turned out ok. His ex-girlfriend with a degree to validate her opinion would probably have some points to make.

He doesn't know if Caroline is completely crazy or if she genuinely sees something no other person ever did. Klaus is almost afraid of believing the latter.

Klaroline Fic Rec Event 2020 - Day 5 Sep 4th: Smut Title: Battle Lines (Links: FFN | AO3) Author: Jinxed-Wood (Links: FFN | AO3) Summary: Battle Lines [Dark Season 2 AU ] The little cheerleader had seemed the perfect candidate for Klaus's purposes, an outlier of the herd if you will, but as he tried to bend her to his will, it quickly became apparent she was not the pushover she had first appeared to be... Warnings: character deaths, dubious(?) consent, mentions of sexual assault and trauma Status: Incomplete

Why you should read it: This is a dark season 2 AU where morality is very, very gray. Klaus decides to use Caroline to spy on her friends. Caroline, on the other hand, is used to being underestimated, and she takes advantage of it to ensure her survival. In an interesting turn of events, Klaus’ actions result in Caroline getting what she deserves, which is better. However, since this fic is incomplete, I have no idea how it’s going to end! Also, tons and tons of smutty goodness!

A favorite scene: 

He collapsed on top of her and waited for their thrum of their hearts to ease, stroking her hair absently as his mind turned over the future. Truth be told, Caroline's usefulness as a spy had been somewhat eroded as a result of his earlier than planned return to Mystic Falls, but he found her...diverting, and that was not a phrase he used for a lot of people. Perhaps he could convince her to make a more permanent arrangement?

But that meant he would have to to seduce her into his life as well as his bed, and what did he have to offer that Caroline Forbes would want?

Klaroline Fic Rec Event 2020 - Day 6 Sep 5th: Supernatural!AU (undine!Caroline and Originals!Mikaelsons) Title: Drown Me in Ash, Burn Me in Salt (links: FFN | AO3) Author: @cupcakemolotov (links: FFN | AO3) Summary: Cursed with legs by a witch as the gods were unmade, Caroline is a relic of ancient times. Bored and lonely, her interest is peaked by the newest predators in the world - vampires. And in particular, Klaus Mikaelson, with his monsters teeth and the wolf caged in his blood. Warnings: some blood and gore, nothing explicit Status: Complete

Why you should read it: If you’re looking for powerful Caroline and the Mikaelsons, this is it! This is a rather lengthy 14k-word one-shot, and one that I find myself turning to time and time again. @cupcakemolotov does an incredible job building worlds upon worlds, and this is no exception. I love that in this world, Caroline is older than the Mikaelsons (but not an Original), an ancient creature who finds amusement in this dysfunctional family and keeps them around because she can. I love her interactions with the Mikaelson siblings, of the way she seamlessly moves through the world on her own terms and no one else’s.

A favorite scene:  

“So, you’re more of a siren?” Klaus asked thoughtfully, head tilting as he faced her with no fear.

Caroline sighed and disentangled herself from the chains and corpse. “What is it with humans and naming things?”

“Power,” Klaus murmured as she reached for his locks. “Dominion does not come easily, against the unnamed night terrors. Why are you helping us?”

“I’m bored,” Caroline told him, switching to Rebekah’s chains. “Your little vampire creations are amusing, even if you taste like the grave.”

  Klaroline Fic Rec Event 2020 - Day 7 Sep 6th: Free for all! Title: A Pregnant Pause (Links: FFN | AO3) Author: @supremeuppityone (Links: FFN | AO3) Summary: Klaroline supernatural AU multi-chap. Pregnant and alone, Caroline meets a woman named Rebekah, and an unexpected friendship is formed. But then, her ridiculously attractive asshat of a brother starts inserting himself into their lives, causing all kinds of trouble. Despite being distracted by those dimples, she notices something seems a bit off about the Mikaelsons... Warnings: discussions on abortion Status: Incomplete

Why you should read it: It should go without saying that this is one of my FAVORITE Klaroline fics of all time. This features a clueless and pregnant human Caroline who finds herself entangled with the MIkaelson family. I absolutely adore the Caroline/Rebekah friendship that forms, the way Caroline wins over each of the Mikaelson siblings, and the way they find themselves drawn to her in turn. This story makes me laugh and cry, and I appreciate @supremeuppityone’s writing SO MUCH.

A favorite scene:

Clearing her throat, she told Rebekah, “You’ll figure it out. And I’ll help.”

She favored Caroline with a weak smile. “I thought I was supposed to be helping you.”

“So, we’ll help each other then.” Caroline laid back against one of the fluffy pillows on the chaise, a forearm over her eyes as she let out a soft groan.

So here we go! One epic belated post!

[artificialqueens]

Not Nineteen Forever (10) (Branjie/Scyvie)- Ortega

a/n: are we all ready to read a chapter about Christmas on this day of our Lord August 3rd 2019? here’s chapter 10 of the wild ride that is n19f!! please please please if u love this fic then let me know, i’m starting work again soon so my motivation is going to be basically on the floor, so i need u lot to let me know u miss it and love it to give me the kick up the bum i need! enjoy xo

please note: this fic contains young adults often behaving in irresponsible/unadvisable ways with regards to alcohol, drugs and sex. if you are someone who feels as if they could be heavily influenced by fic and incorporate what happens in the plot into ur own life, pls steer clear!

summary: Brooke, Yvie and Nina are three flatmates who forged a friendship in their first year of university and picked up some other waifs and strays along the way. Now in their final year, there are feelings that need to be unravelled and confessions to be made whilst navigating drunk nights, hungover mornings, takeaways, group chats, library meetups, cafe gossiping, and the small matter of getting a degree.

last chapter: Brooke and Vanessa admitted their feelings for each other, and everyone’s favourite set of flatmates all made up.

this chapter: it’s the annual big festive gathering before everyone goes home for the holidays. will Secret Santa gifts be a hit or a miss? will the Christmas dinner be edible? will Nina ever stop singing songs from Nativity?

***

Scarlet was woken up from her nap by a voice in the hall loudly singing a Christmas song. As she came to from her sleep-induced stupor she realised it was Nina that was singing, and that the song was Five More Days til Christmas by The Cheetah Girls. It was actually fifteen sleeps, but these kinds of semantics didn’t seem to matter to Nina, as her voice got muffled and she presumably went into a different room. Scarlet stirred and tapped Yvie on her back, marvelling at how skinny she seemed to be.

“Yvie,” she muttered, then louder as she woke up a little more and Yvie didn’t stir at all. “Yves. We gotta get ready, c’mon.”

“Mnmhh,” came Yvie’s voice from the pillow, as she turned around to bat her girlfriend away. Scarlet gave a soft laugh. They’d been working themselves practically to exhaustion for the past couple of weeks for their exams which they’d just finished the day before, and they were both so tired from constant library days and cramming nights that they’d decided on a 2pm nap. Scarlet looked at the giant Sweeney Todd-themed clock on Yvie’s wall, the razor blade hands showing her it was now five o’clock.

“Oh fuck, we really slept,” she chuckled, as Yvie pushed her curls out of her face and rubbed her eyes, scattering mascara clumps over her cheeks like squid-ink snow.

“The worst part about naps is waking up from them,” Yvie mumbled grumpily, Scarlet letting out a hoot of a laugh.

“Babe. That’s really fucking dark,” she rolled her eyes, leaning over and planting a kiss on her cheek. “Come on, get up and get that Christmas jumper on. I want my girlfriend to be the most festive bitch at the dinner!”

Yvie tried to roll her eyes at Scarlet but a big goofy smile stopped her from doing so. Scarlet smiled back and the pair of them pressed their foreheads together, grinning like idiotic Cheshire cats. Scarlet thought that it would never get boring to call Yvie her girlfriend. It was so crazy to believe that they’d been together for over a month, and it had been a whirlwind. She’d lost count of the amount of dates they’d been on (and the amount of times they’d slept with each other), but it hadn’t all been easy. Scarlet had had to hand in three essays as well as sit one exam, and Yvie had had four exams, all of which had been spread out over the past week. So as much as the first month of their relationship had been about great sex, adorable dates and enjoying their time together, much of it had been sharing stressful cramming sessions in the library, Yvie proofreading Scarlet’s essays, and Scarlet testing Yvie on her revision knowledge. There had been countless times where they’d wiped each others’ tears and cheered each other up when the other had thought they would absolutely fail or that they couldn’t do it anymore (and they’d both been through many of those moments, Scarlet noted). She would be the first to admit it had been stressful at times, but Scarlet wouldn’t have had it any other way. She’d revised alongside Yvie over exam periods previously, but this time was different because whenever Scarlet had hugged Yvie and reassured her or brought her an iced coffee back from Starbucks, Yvie had looked into her eyes with more gratitude and appreciation that Scarlet had ever been looked at with before.

But their exams and essays (and portfolios, in Brooke and Plastique’s case) were all done, and so there had been talk on the groupchat about some form of Christmas gathering before they all went home for the holidays. They all usually did something, at least to Scarlet’s knowledge- last year they had gone out for “festive drinks” (which was really just drinks- but Akeria had insisted that it was inherently festive because it was December), and apparently the year before they had all gone sledging at the big hill behind their student halls because it had been snowing. But this year they had decided that, in preparation for graduate life, they would host a classy and civilised potluck dinner. Everyone had picked one component of a classic Christmas dinner to cook, and Scarlet, who was far more confident baking than cooking, had made a lemon and strawberry meringue roulade for their pudding. It had been sitting in Yvie’s flat’s fridge overnight, taking up a substantial amount of room, and Scarlet was very proud of it. She desperately hoped everyone would like it. Scarlet knew that her friends were her friends and that they loved her, but sometimes her anxiety would convince her otherwise and exam season hadn’t helped her mental state. She was looking forward to what would hopefully be a good night, where the only drama would ideally be who had the last pig in blanket.

Yvie had finally got up off the bed and had grabbed her towel. “I’m going for a shower. Do you want one?”

Scarlet self-consciously sniffed herself. Smelling nothing, she frowned and turned to Yvie. “I don’t know. Do I stink?”

Yvie rolled her eyes theatrically. “Honestly, woman, the plots you hatch just so that you can get me to hug you.”

Scarlet stuck her tongue out at her girlfriend as Yvie moved across the room, wrapped her arms around her and buried her face in her neck, taking a big, over-exaggerated, disgustingly loud sniff. Scarlet squirmed away. “Ugh, Yvie! You’re fucking gross.”

“Well luckily, you’re not. You smell fine. But you can use any of my deodorant if you want to make sure. I’ll be five minutes,” Yvie said as she pulled away, muttering something under her breath. Recently Yvie had started mumbling incoherently, or beginning sentences and then cutting herself off, as if she was about to say something and she’d forgotten what it was. Scarlet couldn’t help herself wondering what the something could be. She hoped it was something nice. She’d tried asking Yvie to clarify what she’d said, but Yvie always just explained it away as talking to herself. Scarlet somehow knew that wasn’t the truth.

Scarlet pulled on the Christmas jumper she’d brought with her to Yvie’s flat; bright red with three dogs on it wearing Christmas headgear, and writing in sequins that read “Bark the Herald Angels Sing”. It was suitably the right mix of campy and classy and matched what Scarlet usually wore relatively well. Pausing before leaving Yvie’s room, Scarlet scrutinised her Secret Santa present. She’d drawn Brooke’s name, which her heart had sank at as she was arguably the girl she felt the least close to out of their whole group. She had so badly wanted to ask Yvie or Nina for advice on what to get her but they both were taking the whole thing deadly seriously so that plan had been out the window. Scarlet had settled on a gift bag full of Canadian snacks that she’d ordered from various online stockists, as she knew Brooke was getting homesick and had spoken about how much she’d missed Coffee Crisps. She had spent so long choosing everything and was really hoping Brooke would like it, and that it would bring them closer together.

Optimistically, Scarlet took her makeup through to the kitchen and hoped that Brooke or Nina would be there. Recently Scarlet had been spending more and more time at their flat. This was for three reasons- one, she loved spending as much time with Yvie as possible, two, she loved seeing her other two friends (and Monet and Vanjie, who also popped by quite often), and three, she would rather fling herself into the Eurotunnel and make a cosy bed out of the railway tracks than go back to her own shitty, leaky, breaky, messy flat where Ra’Jah was.

Sure enough, as Scarlet padded out into the hallway there was a variety of sounds behind the kitchen door. One was the tinny racket of Nina’s phone speakers blasting a different Christmas song. Another was Nina singing along. The third was a clatter of cooking utensils and the fourth, lots of swearing. Scarlet was almost afraid to go in.

The sight that met her was only the tiniest bit chaotic. Nina was dancing along to the song in a unique sort of way that seemed to include a lot of bouncing and ignoring Brooke, who was in front of the oven and facing three different pans of sauce, each a different colour. She seemed moments away from a stress-induced meltdown and had her hands in her hair, clutching at big fistfuls of it with frustration. Scarlet was barely given a chance to speak before Nina noticed her, jumped in front of her and pointed in her face, half-singing, half-shouting the song.

“Cause she’s blinding me with love, she’s my saviour from above!”

“Nina, I swear to God I will kill you,” Brooke snapped, before Nina beamed a smile and turned her attention to her flatmate.

“She’s the brightest star I’ve ever seen- brightest star!- It’s like we’re living in some kind of dream- like some kind of dream!” she continued, beginning to dab obnoxiously and making Brooke put her head in her hands. Scarlet burst out laughing as she saw Nina’s Christmas jumper- a riot of white snowflakes surrounding a dancing Santa, with “FLOSSING AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE” written in bright green.

“Oh my God, Nina. That’s quite the jumper,” Scarlet finally got a word in as the song reached an instrumental break. Nina’s happiness was slightly dented as she looked down at the horrific design and rolled her eyes.

“Ugh, don’t. I bought it for placement because the school did a Christmas jumper day- yes, in November, I know- and it was only really for the consumption of my class, but all my other Christmas jumpers are at home so looks like this is what I’m wearing. I love yours though!” Nina’s smile was back, reaching out and touching Scarlet’s sleeve as she sat down at the kitchen table. Scarlet thanked her, then cast a glance to Brooke.

“How’s cooking going?” she asked, nervous about the answer.

Brooke twirled round from the hob and mustered up a smile that Scarlet could tell was more for her benefit rather than it being in any way genuine. “Put it this way, I’m half expecting Gordon Ramsay to pop his head through the door and start screaming about sauce. I mean how did I fuck up gravy?!”

“It smells amazing! I don’t think it’ll be fucked up at all,” Scarlet said confidently. She wasn’t lying- the smells in the kitchen were delicious- but she knew Brooke was a giant perfectionist and if she’d messed up even the tiniest part of the recipe she would see it as a total failure.

“It would help if my flatmate didn’t insist on giving me the one-woman version of Nativity as I’m making them, like a fucking expert level of Ready Steady Cook,” Brooke side-eyed Nina, who somehow heard her comment over the music and her own singing. Nina budged Brooke out of the way of the oven, grabbed a teaspoon and dipped it into the gravy. Tasting it, she laughed.

“Christ, Brooke, it just needs more salt. And wine. If in doubt, always add salt and wine.”

Appeased, Brooke continued cooking. Scarlet gave a sideways glance at Nina from her position at the kitchen table and paused her contouring. “Nina, what were you cooking again?”

“Carrots. They’re cooking away. I do them in garlic and honey and they’re just amazing,” Nina explained, grabbing a half-empty glass of wine from the kitchen counter and sitting down opposite Scarlet to keep her company. It was only then that it occurred to Scarlet that Nina was very clearly already on her way to being drunk.

“If you do say so yourself,” Brooke piped up.

“If I do say so myself,” Nina gave a wink, downing the rest of her glass. She turned excitedly to Scarlet. “Also girl, Jesus. That roulade’s been calling my name all damn day. You’re lucky you’ve got something to bring tonight, because you almost didn’t.”

Scarlet gave a shy shrug and suddenly thought she might not need any blusher if she got any more compliments from her friends. “I hope it’ll taste alright. I’m relatively confident that it will, though, so don’t worry about going hungry!”

“If it doesn’t, I still have so much Christmas chocolate that the kids got me for finishing up. We can crack that open. Are you staying tonight, Scarlet?”

Scarlet cast a quick, nervous glance to Brooke, who was busy with her pans. She was always conscious of imposing on Nina and Brooke, hyper-aware that it wasn’t her flat and she didn’t pay rent and she never wanted to stay too often. In this case, however, the answer was a yes, and Scarlet nodded carefully to Nina as she did her eyebrows. Nina gave an excited clap.

“Aah! Exciting! I won’t be in this evening but I’ll see you tomorrow I’m sure.”

“You got to see a girl about her cat?” Brooke piped up, turning around from the stove and quirking an eyebrow. Nina glared up at her, unimpressed.

“If you’re insinuating that I have a pussy appointment…” she curled her lip up in distaste. “…then yes. But come on, it’s not like that. At least, it isn’t to me, I still don’t know what the fuck she’s thinking.”

Scarlet smiled as Nina grew a little quieter. Nina always got a little more shy, a little more reserved, a little more flustered at the mere hint of a mention of Monet. It was just cute enough to be adorable and not vomit-worthy.

“You should just do what me and Vanjie are doing. We know we like each other and we know we like having sex with each other. It’s a good place to be in,” Brooke shrugged, evidently satisfied with her sauces and pouring each of the contents of the pans into three different tupperware boxes. Scarlet snorted a laugh.

“You missed out the part where you pined after each other for two years,” she explained, Nina hooting a laugh and thumping the table. Brooke folded her arms, trying to look exasperated but being unable to hide her smile.

“Okay, I don’t think any of us get a say in how to conduct a relationship.”

“Well all I’ll say, Brooke, is that Vanjie won’t be happy with that arrangement forever. Sooner or later you’ll have to upgrade her to girlfriend status, because she sure as hell does not strike me as the type of girl who’ll ask you first,” Nina said matter-of-factly. Brooke exhaled deeply.

“Christ, this is like that nightmare I had about being on Loose Women. Look, just leave us to it, okay? We’re happy! It’s working,” Brooke shrugged lightly, clicking the lids onto her tupperware boxes.

“What’s working?” came a voice, as Yvie entered the kitchen. Her curls were still a little damp but her makeup was perfect- though admittedly, everything about her was perfect in Scarlet’s eyes.

“Your Mum’s prostitution company,” Brooke retorted, Yvie ignoring her and giving Scarlet a kiss on top of her head.

“You look nice, baby,” she murmured against her hair, Scarlet lighting up at the compliment.

“You know whenever you say nice things about me, my heart grows ten times in size?” Scarlet said matter-of-factly. Nina raised an eyebrow as she moved to the oven and removed a large baking tray with foil over the top of it.

“That sounds like you should see a doctor. Are we almost ready to go?”

“I just need to change into my jumper, two seconds,” Brooke said as she left the room. Scarlet turned around in her seat to see Yvie’s outfit. She had on the black ripped jeans that Scarlet loved so much, her usual Docs, and a navy blue jumper with “MERRY CHRISTMAS, YA FILTHY ANIMAL” on it in white writing.

“Of course your favourite Christmas movie is Home Alone,” Scarlet smiled affectionately. Yvie frowned at her.

“I’ve never seen it?”

Scarlet screwed up your face. “Your jumper has a quote from it?”

Yvie looked down at the design. “Oh, does it? I just liked the sentiment, to be honest.”

Scarlet snorted and then began packing up all her makeup. Soon enough, all four of the girls had their potluck items (and their Secret Santa gifts) and were ready to leave, but not before Brooke had proudly shown them all her amazingly tacky jumper which was green and patterned like a Christmas tree, covered in knitted baubles, sparkly silver tinsel-like material, and a full set of in-built battery-operated fairy lights. All the way to Silky’s flat, the girls had many questions for Brooke (“Does the tinsel not itch?” “How do you wash it?” “Is there a possibility that you could go on fire mid-dinner?”) and the endless chatter tided them over until they reached the girls’ stairwell. They had to buzz twice before they were let in, but eventually they reached the front door which was flung open by Plastique, wearing a very on-brand white jumper with “Dear Santa…I can explain!” on the front in sequins.

“Hey guys! Merry Christmaaas!” she cried, hugging them all happily and letting them in. “I’ve been put on door duty. The girls are all having a meltdown in there, it’s like Cutthroat Kitchen and Hell’s Kitchen and Masterchef all rolled into one, if the object of these shows was to kill all the contestants instead of making anything relatively edible.”

“You could say it’s…” Brooke began, pausing dramatically. “…a Kitchen Nightmare.”

Plastique immediately began pushing her back out the door. “Get the fuck out, you’re uninvited.“

“God, imagine having to make an effort for the potluck. Can’t relate,” Yvie shrugged peacefully, holding her offering up in the air smugly. The girls all groaned.

“Frozen fucking peas,” Nina shook her head. “You are the luckiest bitch, I swear to God.”

“Not fast, you’re last, bitch,” Yvie smiled, clearly happy that she had shotgunned the item that took the least amount of effort to make.

The five girls tentatively opened the door to the kitchen, where the air seemed to be slightly cloudy with smoke. The window was wide open and there was so much sound that Scarlet felt she needed ear defenders. From the speakers, the hum of the extractor fan, and the three girls that were working away, there was an impressive wall of noise being created.

“And this Christmaaaaaas will be, a very merry Christmaaaaaas, for me!”

“Silk, can you shut the fuck up for a second? I need to check my veg!”

“Oh yeah, that’s right, sorry Vanj, I forgot you need to be able to hear to check on a fuckin’ roasting tray!”

“Somethin’s burning, I’m tellin’ y’all.”

“If it’s my stuff you know I’ll kill you all, right?” Plastique piped up, the three girls turning around and instantly lighting up when they saw their friends. Vanessa immediately rushed forward to Brooke, the taller girl greeting her with a “Hey, gorgeous” and a kiss. Scarlet and Yvie were both hugged at once by Akeria, and Silky and Nina seemed to be making a good effort to crush each other to death. Scarlet noticed each of their Christmas jumpers and thought they were all very fitting: Vanessa’s was red and had two gold baubles on its front which were very strategically placed, Akeria’s was almost identical to Nina’s except hers said “TWERKING AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE”, and Silky’s was blue with “Hoe Hoe Hoe” written in cursive silver glitter.

“Ladies, welcome to the Michelin-starred Antigua Road kitchen,” Akeria said with a flourish, Scarlet having to hold back a laugh at her optimism.

“Y’know, I never understood why they named that after an Eastenders character,” Silky pondered aloud, Nina instantly howling with laughter and swatting at her.

“You dumb bitch! Phil fucking Mitchell?!”

The kitchen promptly erupted with laughter, Scarlet having to cling to Akeria she was giggling so much.

“Nah, bitch, they named it after that tyre man. You know, Michelin?” Vanessa piped up, everyone promptly losing their shit again. The girl looked put out and pouted up at Brooke. “What the fuck you hoes laughing for?! That’s what it is!”

“I don’t think they named a restaurant rating system after a tyre company, Vanj,” Brooke smiled down at her affectionately. Clearly seeing she was looking dejected, Brooke gave her waist a squeeze and kissed her on the cheek. Vanessa seemed to cheer up after that and began enthusiastically beckoning them all through to Akeria’s room. Scarlet was impressed by what was there. The girls had moved their dining table through to the biggest room in the flat and had managed to combine enough kitchen chairs, stools and wheely desk chairs to create a table that could fit all seven of them. Each place had been set with plates, cutlery and wine glasses with a small paper napkin propped up on each plate and a cracker at one side, and there was a huge space in the middle of the table to hold all the food.

“I spent way too long on this, but I’m proud of it,” Vanessa smiled happily, the girls all congratulating her.

“This looks amazing! Well done, boo,” Brooke smiled, kissing her on the cheek again. Scarlet watched as Vanjie’s face lit up. With a small dip to her heart, she remembered Nina’s words from earlier. She really hoped that Vanessa and Brooke were on the same page about their relationship.

Everyone began to put their food out on the table, except Scarlet who decided to save her roulade for later on. Brooke set out her sauces and Nina took the foil off her carrots with a flourish, the smell of roast garlic instantly wafting through the room. It took Yvie mere minutes to get her peas ready and she carried them through from the kitchen in a jug, Plastique following her with some delicious-looking pigs in blankets and stuffing balls, each with a shiny, sticky glaze.

“Oh my Christ, Plastique, they look incredible,” Nina practically drooled. “Did you make them?”

Plastique snorted. “Jesus, no. M&S.”

“God, Plastique, I know you’re fucking rich but there was no need to bankrupt yourself,” Brooke rolled her eyes. Yvie smirked and joined in.

“How much did that cost you? Eighty pounds?”

“Is that stuffing made from gold leaf?” Nina quipped.

“I’ll stuff you in a second! Do you want to eat them or not?” Plastique bit back, a warning glare in her eyes that made the girls pipe down. In the silence, Scarlet found herself sniffing the air.

“Something’s definitely burning in there,” she frowned, as Akeria came through with a bowl of Brussels sprouts and set them on the table.

“I keep trying to tell those two, but they won’t listen to me,” she nodded, looking happily at the food in front of her.

“Why did you even bother with sprouts?” Yvie screwed up her nose. Scarlet swatted at her.

“Hey! I’ll eat them! I like sprouts.”

“Ugh, don’t. I have to share a bed with you tonight. Has anyone got a fucking gas mask?”

The girls burst out laughing as Scarlet rolled her eyes and thumped Yvie, before the other girl pulled her in for a hug. They were interrupted by Nina’s surprised voice, the girl looking at her phone intently.

"Oh shit. Vanjie, you were right. It is named after the tyre company.”

“Suck my ENTIRE dick, hoes!” she yelled excitedly before running through to the kitchen to continue gloating, Brooke groaning at having been proved wrong. Akeria rolled her eyes and motioned at the chairs.

“Ladies, sit! It won’t be long.”

Sure enough, as everyone had taken their seats, Vanjie and Silky brought their food through from the kitchen. Vanjie looked pleased as she put two bottles of wine and a tray of roast potatoes and parsnips on the table, then sat down. Brooke whispered something into her ear, presumably more praise by the way Vanessa smiled. Silky didn’t look as pleased.

“So…the bad news is…”

“The turkey looks like a fuckin’ dementor?” Akeria piped up, laughter exploding around the table. Silky narrowed her eyes at her flatmate.

“…the turkey is burnt…” Silky finished. “The good news is I ordered a fourteen piece bargain bucket and it’ll be here soon.”

“That’s chicken?” Plastique screwed up her face, confused. Silky rolled her eyes as she sat down.

“It’s a fuckin’ bird, alright!”

“Well, I ain’t had cranberry sauce and fried chicken before, but there’s always a first for everything,” Vanessa shrugged, casting a hand across the table. “Okay, ladies, start!”

Even though there wasn’t any turkey, it was still an amazing meal. Everyone’s food tasted delicious and when the KFC arrived, most of the girls were open to trying it as part of their Christmas dinner (except Plastique, who put hers on a sideplate and ate it separately). They pulled their crackers and got Brooke to read out all the shit jokes (“She’s queen of shit jokes!”) and all ended up with flimsy paper crowns on their heads. In between eating they all talked about how their exams had gone. Nina seemed the most nervous about her essays as she, out of everyone in their group, was the one who was the most desperate for a first, with Akeria a close second. Silky was her classic blasé self, confident she would get the marks she wanted, although as Scarlet watched the worried look that passed between Akeria and Vanjie she wasn’t so sure. Eventually everyone’s plates were empty and Yvie, Brooke and Plastique took them through to the kitchen and washed up as Scarlet set out her dessert. Soon enough, everyone was munching away and Scarlet felt she was about to burst with everyone’s compliments about how incredible and tasty it was.

“Okay, guys,” Plastique said through a mouthful of roulade. “Can we please do the Secret Santa now? Please please please?”

“Oh my God YES!” Vanjie grinned, thumping the table and sending her fork flying. “Let’s go, I want my present!”

“Alright, bitches, calm down! Okay, I’ll start,” Yvie said, reaching behind her and into her bag and pulling out a small gift bag. “I had…Miss Akeria.”

Akeria gave a yelp of delight and reached her hands across the table for her present, mouthing a thanks to Yvie. Peering inside the bag, she abruptly closed it and doubled over laughing, tears squeezing out the corners of her eyes.

“What is it?!” Scarlet asked, looking from Yvie to Akeria expectantly. Yvie attempted to explain, but she was too busy killing herself laughing like the other girl. Still howling, Akeria pulled out three things from the bag- a white ashtray with “BUTTS” written in the centre, a small plush donkey, and a pink silk eye mask which said “Booty Sleep”. As the room began to register the link, everyone began hooting with laughter at the ass-themed gifts.

“Jesus Christ, Yves, that is so perfect,” Scarlet shook her head as she clutched at her stomach.

“Oh my God, thank you, Yvie. It’s amazing,” Akeria wiped the final tears of laughter from her eyes and took a big deep breath. “Okay, mine isn’t nearly as good as that. But I got my good old flatmate…Vanessa Vanjie Mateo.”

Vanessa showed more excitement than an infant on Christmas Day as she opened her present and found a huge stack of DVDs tied with a red bow. As she leafed through it, her smile grew.

“I know that we got Netflix and that,” Akeria explained to her, looking the closest to shy that Scarlet had ever seen her look as long as she’d known her. “But I thought it might be cute.”

“Kiki…” Vanessa smiled up at her then trailed off, as she explained to the others. “These are all my favourite movies that we all watch together all the time…She’s The Man…The Proposal…10 Things I Hate About You-”

“Yeah, they’re pretty much all rom-coms,” Akeria cut in, getting another laugh from the girls. Vanessa got up and hugged her flatmate, thanking her and fussing over her until Plastique started clamouring for more present-giving.

“Alright, ya filthy whores!” Vanessa exclaimed, producing a haphazardly-wrapped present from under her seat. “I got Yvie’s bitch a.k.a…Scarlet!”

Scarlet found her face lighting up in surprise. She’d had no idea as to who had got her, but she was glad it was Vanjie. Thanking her, she reached over to take the present and opened it excitedly. Inside was a shiny silver photo frame with crystals outlining its edge, and in the frame was a selfie that featured all seven of them from a night out they’d had months ago. Scarlet recognised it because it was her cover photo on Facebook. She loved it because they all looked so happy together, and it had been taken on one of those nights out where everything just went right, and so many hilarious things seemed to happen, and there was no drama at all. Scarlet looked up at Vanessa who was smiling happily. She knew Scarlet loved it.

“Vanjie this is so cute, what the hell!” Scarlet exclaimed, turning the frame around to show the girls. The room was filled with “aaw”s, until Brooke frowned and squinted at the frame.

“What does it say?” she asked, Scarlet turning the picture over, confused until she spotted the small engraved quote at the bottom. Scarlet felt as if she would cry as she read it out.

“Best friends forever, never apart, maybe in distance but never at heart,” she smiled, getting up and squeezing Vanessa in a hug. “Vanjie, it’s adorable. Thank you so much.”

Vanessa blushed as Scarlet pulled away. “Stop bein’ all mushy, bitch, and tell us who you had!”

“Oh, right,” Scarlet said, tucking a bit of her hair behind her ears and reaching down to the gift bag at the floor. “Brooke, this is for you.”

Brooke’s eyebrows shot up as she smiled in surprise and took the bag from Scarlet. Scarlet’s heart thrummed with nerves as Brooke looked in, her eyes widened, and she let out a scream.

“Oh my GOD! Scarlet!!” Brooke cried, Scarlet jumping as Brooke hopped out of her seat and immediately sprinted round to Scarlet’s side of the table to give her a hug. She began explaining to the others as she retreated back to her seat to have a proper look in the bag. “She got me all my favourite things from back home…there’s actual maple syrup…oh my God, Swiss Chalet sauce! There’s fucking Ruffles All Dressed in here…oh my Jesus. There’s so many fucking Coffee Crisps! Scarlet, fuck, thank you so much.”

Scarlet could barely stop herself from smiling, happy her gift had had the desired effect. The present-swapping continued. Brooke had Silky and gave her a huge holographic makeup bag with “LESS GUYS, MORE FRIES” on the side, which Silky insisted she would use as a clutch bag when going out. Silky gave her present to Plastique- a set of expensive nail varnishes and a keyring with the entire lyrics to Vroom Vroom by Charli XCX on it in tiny font.

“My fucking anthem, bitch, yaas!” Plastique cried, clearly happy with her gift.

Plastique gave Nina a hand-stitched hessian carrier bag with “Miss West” on the side in red sequins, which Nina was very excited to use for all her marking. The final present to be gifted was from Nina to Yvie, who got given a little alarm clock in the shape of a headstone which played “Spooky Scary Skeletons” as its alarm sound.

“I was just fucking sick of hearing that iPhone alarm going off for minutes on end every morning, so this’ll be a nice change,” Nina explained, as Yvie laughed and thanked her.

Soon enough, all the wine bottles became empty and the night soon drew to an end. Plastique offered to give Nina a lift to Monet’s flat and the two of them left first, leaving the three hosts, Brooke, Yvie and Scarlet. Brooke was slightly slumped in her seat from the effort it was taking her to tuck her head into the crook of Vanjie’s neck, who turned and kissed her on the forehead.

“You sleepy, baby?” she muttered, Brooke nodding lethargically. The two of them concluded that Brooke would stay the night with Vanessa and so Scarlet gathered her things, thanked the girls for a lovely evening, and left arm-in-arm with Yvie.

It was a cold night, but Scarlet couldn’t really feel it as much after the few glasses of wine she’d drank. They both, however, had to watch for the small patches of black ice that had formed after the drizzle of the day had frozen up on the ground, and Scarlet’s heart gave a swell every time she gave a small skid and Yvie clung to her protectively. The night was pitch black and magic, and each yellow streetlamp cast a spotlight on the pavement for the love story that she and Yvie seemed to be living out. It was deeply surreal.

Scarlet looked up to the sky, smiling as she saw a few stars despite the endless amount of light the city produced. Looking at Yvie and watching her concentrating deeply as she navigated the icy pavement, Scarlet found herself smiling in spite of herself.

“She’s the brightest star I’ve ever seen…it’s like I’m living in some kind of dream…”

Yvie gave a chuckle as she turned to face Scarlet. “Oh, Jesus, not you too. We’ve only just managed to free ourselves of Nina and she’s basically a Michael Buble in training.”

Scarlet gave a soft laugh and slipped her hand down from the crook of Yvie’s elbow and into her hand. She gave a sigh, suddenly sad.

“I’m going to miss you when I go home, you know.”

There was a small, melancholy pause in the silence that followed. Yvie eventually gave a matching sigh and squeezed Scarlet’s hand. “I’m going to miss you too, baby.”

“It’s only a month or something, though. We can still skype,” Scarlet added optimistically, trying not to worry about how the distance between their family homes would affect their still very new relationship. There was another small silence where Scarlet tipped her head back up to the sky. “Why do I feel overcome with hope and joy- shit!”

Scarlet suddenly found herself hitting the ground, pulling Yvie down with her onto the ice. She gave a splutter, Yvie sitting up on the ground and beginning to let out her deep, Disney-villan chuckle that Scarlet loved so much. Scarlet laughed so hard her stomach muscles could barely support her endeavour to sit up but eventually she managed it, sitting on the icy pavement and laughing with her girlfriend like a lunatic. Suddenly, Yvie said something, her face growing instantly serious.

“What?” Scarlet asked, her smile dropping off her face.

Yvie swept the hair back from her face with a nervous hand. “Fuck…remember how we used to say I love you to each other?”

Scarlet’s stomach gave a plummet, almost as if she was hurtling down a rollercoaster with ten consecutive loops in front of her. “Yeah?”

“Well…can we start doing that again? I know it’s different now we’re properly together, and I’m not saying I’m falling for you yet or anything intense like that, but I could see that happening. I do love you though, so fucking much. And sometimes…fuck, I don’t know. I just want to tell you.”

Scarlet could barely wipe the smile off her face. She wasn’t going to let Yvie in on what she was really thinking- that she’d begun to fall for Yvie a small while ago and it wouldn’t be long before she would be able to admit to herself that she was completely in love with her- because it could wait for now. For now, she had her beautiful girlfriend with her curls framing her ridiculously gorgeous face and her eyes full of hope, and a sky full of stars.

“Well I love you too,” Scarlet smiled back, her pulse giving a jolt as Yvie’s smile grew wider. “Not much has changed on that front.”

Scarlet leaned in and gave Yvie a soft kiss, her lips warm even though the air was freezing. It wasn’t the I-love-you moment, but it was pretty perfect. As Yvie pulled away, she stood up, dusted herself off, and offered Scarlet her hands.

“Come on, dumbass,” she smiled bashfully, Scarlet allowing herself to be pulled up. “Let’s get back before our tits turn into snowballs.”

[eikyun]

Eishi Tsukasa Essay; how I met him, and 10 reason why I love him

Caution: it will be pretty long. Please bear with me >_<

In this post, I’m going to spill out all of my feelings I have for this guy. Stay away if you hate him, okay :) Hating Eishi is a bad civilization :p

I met Eishi 3 years 9 months ago, exactly at November 2015. After I finished watching the 1st season of Shokugeki anime, I was interested to read the manga. For the most thing I was more curious about the rest of Elite 10. With the information I got from Google, I clicked ch 119 and... tada~ At a manga panel, I saw a beautiful white haired male sitting while drinking a cup of tea.

“Wow, he is hot.” I mumbled. Yes, I was attracted to his looks at first glance. He is totally my type, appearance wise. Two next pages later, the cool, collected guy I saw before suddenly turned into an anxious, shy dorkie boy. 

“Is he actually the 1st seat?? Omg this is getting interesting.” I thought. How could soggy guy like him can gain the highest rank in the friggin Totsuki Academy?? This fact tickled my curiosity more, I wanted to know more about this guy. I skipped to ch 132, where Soma and Megumi met Eishi in his booth (I read the chapters in order later, though). It was more emphasized that our 1st seat is a true introvert, and a perfectionist. This guy... is very similar to me. 

He automatically jumped into my most favorite SnS character. No, he became my most favorite anime/manga character at that time.

After I read SnS until the latest chapter (ch 145), I eagerly waited for his next apperance. When ch 148 released, I saw him on a pretty big panel, sitting leisurely while watching the Souma vs Eizan from the screen... my heart skipped a beat, my lip drew a wide smile. What’s up with me? I just knew him for like... less than a month, and yet I felt like an idiot when I saw him. Did I... fall in love?

It took 4 months until his next appearance (ch 161). I was extremely happy to see him again, and I couldn’t wait to know about him more and more. During that Souma vs Eishi battle arc, I learned more about Eishi, I was amazed that the way he talked... the demeanor he showed... is very similar to me. I never met a 2D character (or perhaps irl people) who shared a lot of similarity (personality wise) with me. I felt more kinship with him more than with Megumi, who is also a shy character. This fact just made love him even more.

***

From ch 118 until Le Dessert ch 1, plus Betsubara 6 and 7 and some extras, my feelings for Eishi remains same. Here’s my 10 reason why I love a chef named Tsukasa Eishi.

1. Let’s start from the shallowest thing; looks. Yes, he is undoubtly good looking, I’m sure everyone must admit it! Nobody can resist that beautiful pale lavender iris with outstanding long eyelashes, combined with that gorgeous shining white hair... Oh, how ethereal. His fair skin, slender and long fingers, his alluring neck, his collarbone, his body shape, his waist— aaaaah ok ok I’ll stop >////< in tl;dr, people would fall in love by his looks alone, but when they find out his true self, who knows?

2. Fashion sense. I know you guys might find his flying necktie weird, but I admit, it looks so damn cool on him. Not to mention, I love how he wears his uniform, both school and chef one. The unbuttoned collar, half-rolled sleeves... What an unexpected style for a shy boy like him, huh? But I don’t care, if it makes him looks hotter, I’ll take it~ Not to mention the collection of casual outfits he has. He’s not on the fashionista tier for sure, but he still has good sense. Well, I can say that he looks good on everything.

3. His voice. This is something I admitted way later. At first I wasn’t too fond of Akira Ishida’s voice on him. Too ‘husky’ for me, I thought. However, the more I hear him talking on anime, the more I’m used to it, then it grows on me. Now everytime he speaks, my heart throbs faster. The power of love is too strong haha.

4.      The adorable gap moe! Gap moe! Gap moe! Eishi’s gap moe is... too cute and irresistable >///< I’m sure people’s first impression of him is... a cool, elegant, and handsome guy... he must be a very cool guy like heroine’s love interest in shoujo manga or Korean drama! Who knows if he’s actually a huge dork! He can show you his anxious, worry-wart side at unexpected time, wrecking his previous prince-like image completely. What a gap! Would he stay calm and stoic everytime people surround him? Please don’t scare this soft guy, he would be freaked out and get nervous >_< 

His gap is also shown by his demeanor towards people. If it’s someone he barely knows and cares, he wouldn’t bat an eye, hence you call him an absolute selfish guy. However, he shows his care towards someone close to him. Just look how he treats Rindou (hmph, I’m so jelly :<) I’m sure he’d super sweet to his girlfriend and treat her like a princess, if he has one someday! >_<

5. If he is that spineless, is he actually an incompetent guy? Hell no! You all must know that he’s one of the best chefs in the series! If you’re going to deny this, you must read/watch a wrong series lol. He had sit on the throne of 1st seat of Elite 10 for freakin’ two years (there’s a plot hole about this, but regardless he gained the 1st  seat on 2nd year or 3rd, my point still stands). The more amazing thing is, he gained it not by magic or ahem, plot no jutsu. Many said that he’s a natural genius chef, however, he worked hard for that sweet 1st seat. You can reread/rewatch the whole of SnS to prove his competence in cooking.

6. His elegance. French cuisine as his speciality alone proves that. His dishes always have luxurious presentation. The taste? If only I could actually taste it... ;_; Throughout the series, it’s proved that he never fails to make a lot of people amazed. Not only by his dishes, people are also enthralled by his elegance in kitchen. The way he keeps composure while cooking, the way he interacts with ingredients, the way he set the plating of his dish... it’s like watching a prima ballerina dancing in an opera. Oh, not to mention, his nickname sounds elegant and noble as heck! Let me say it; Weiss Ritter der Tafel! The White Knight of the The Table!

7. Have I said he’s a hard-worker? Sure he is. Since junior high, he had set his goal to be the 1st seat of Elite Ten, and he didn’t just sit down for the whole of his time in Totsuki. He was famous as ‘Teacher Crusher’ for his effort to drag teachers nearby to try his countless test dishes. 

Even after he gained it and graduated from Totsuki, he still aimed to be a better cook! Can’t you just imagine how persistent—I mean, hard-working he is? His hardwork isn’t limited to cooking only; he is a diligent boy in general. As he got the 1st seat title, he didn’t throw his responsibility down to the rest and walk away like a boss. He hates paperworks and especially public speaking, yet he’s responsible enough not to ignore his duties. People might see him as a doormat for letting himself doing Rindou and the others’ paperworks, but not for me. Who’s the selfish one then? :p 

He deserves my highest respect for his hard-working nature and being responsible.

8. His innocence— I mean, it’s more like his naivety. This trait might be irritating for some people, and in Eishi’s case, it lead him to earn the ‘bastard/asshole’ title by those who misunderstand him, due to his incompetence to understand people’s feelings. It’s emphasized by the fact that he tends to be straightforward, both in words and act. 

His naivety makes sense, he lacks social/communication skill since he’s an introvert (not all introverts sucks in social skill, though). He doesn’t interact with a people much. Eishi’s own world is just around cooking and nothing else lol, that’s why he’s focused on his own cooking and prioritizes it above anything else. Sounds like an autistic person, you say? Maybe. As someone who has a tiny bit of autism, I understand this side of him well and I can’t blame him for that. I always find myself being busy in my own world, and I tend not to interact with people much. I’m not saying that he’s diagnosed with autism, no. He might have a bit of it, just like myself. So don’t blame him for forgetting Kuga after his match with him, he was just way too busy in his own world XD

Talking about innocence... isn’t he also actually an innocent, adorkable boy? I mean, he seems to have a relatively pure mind. He never actually means to harm people. If the others think so, it’s mostly a misunderstanding. He might be blunt with his words, but he’s just being honest, you know. He never lies. 

Please give him a chance, I believe he’ll grow to be a better person in future.

9. The previous point has connection with this one, his introverted nature. I can say he is 90% introvert. Isn’t it obvious? He is undoubtly shy boy, hates public speaking, easily gets nervous in front of a lot of people, prefers to cook alone, lacks of social skill... he is socially impaired, Rindou said so. However, he tries to overcome his social anxiety for the sake to be a better chef. Isn’t it great?

As a fellow true introvert, I find Eishi very relatable, thus I feel a deep connection between me and him. Every time I feel anxious in front of people, I think of Eishi that he would feel the same and imagine that we would overcome our shared obstacle together.

10.  Eishi isn’t Tsukasa Eishi without his dominant trait: perfectionist. 

Let’s start with the fact that his blood type is A. People with this blood type (including me) tend to be perfectionist and organized. You can search more about it on Google, and you’ll find out that Eishi fits most of A-type traits! You might see his obsession for perfection a bit annoying, but that’s Eishi for you. Everything he does must be perfect. He’s someone who makes plans and he wants to follow those plans completely. It leads him to be a hard-worker, but it also makes him prone to stress and worry. Is being a perfectionist a good thing? Yes, but it would drain yourself if you’re way too obsessed with perfection. Eishi seems... quite perfection obssessive. I’d say it’s way too much because I don’t want to see him being trapped in the endless loop of reaching perfection and drained him both physically and mentally. I’m also a perfectionist, but not as much as him, yet I understand how painful it is. I love this side of him for another reason; he always has a clear goal; honing his cooking skill to be perfect, and works hard for that. I’d prefer someone like that than a hopeless person who has no goal in their life. I admire people who try hard to reach their dreams. Also, he always gets things done properly and never try to be half-assed.

My conclusion: Eishi isn’t perfect, despite of being obsessed with perfection. He isn’t a perfect husbando material, but he’s perfect in my eyes. He has flaws and weakness, but I’d embrace those and keep loving him. I love you, Tsukasa Eishi.

[xsoft-liarx]

Okay, here we go. Check my last couple of posts for my trigger warnings..

I'm suicidal. This is a fact I've accepted in 8th grade. It started mostly in 7th to become a realization, but I was in terrible denial. I hate to admit it, but it's just always been there. Always been a part of me since I was little. When I was around 5, I wanted to disappear, because I wasn't like all the other kids. I was tan, I was also happier than other kids at the time. Louder. I was the kid who picked flowers before school and gave them to kids who looked upset. But few people liked me. I was an annoying kid who was sensitive.

I'm now 15 years old. Going on 16 in 2020, I'm still annoying to this day. I can admit that. I've changed from when I was in 6th grade. 7th grade was the "I need to be a cisgirl for my mom" phase. I was an accident (she confirmed it), but she wanted a girl and forced me to be one. I just wanted her to be happy.

8th grade, it was my "fuck it I do so much for people, I need to stop being a bitch and grow a pair" so I started binding. And in the middle of the year I would cut bits of my hair off and hide it from her. None of this is the main point.

Due to everything from my past that will catch up to me, and due to my life now. I will most likely always remain suicidal. I used to slit my wrists on the daily, one time I did it so hard I almost passed out, and I felt awful for my best friend who I was on and off on the phone with telling me to tell my mom, but I didn't want to because her girlfriend was drunk and threatened to leave because I called her out on her shit. Her girlfriend Monica is one of the reasons I'm like this so often.

I was 7, this woman would shake my mattress and bang my head on the wall to wake me. Needless to say, that probably did some damage up there that I never noticed.

Something else this year she did?

"You're a piece of shit!"

"You're garbage!"

"You tore a family apart!" I'm sorry

"I hope you're happy!" I'm not. I never will be, and I've come to accept it.

I had a boyfriend this year. His name was Bruce. I thought I loved him, at the time I did. Little did I realize with the help of two rotc cadets, I was slowly but surely falling out of it..

"You love him, but not as much as you used to." Because he hurt me mentally, but he didn't mean to. Bruce is an amazing person, he's a little crazy, and the relationship ending was both of our faults when I told him about my addiction to nicotine (which I got over quickly when I saw how he reacted, but he broke up with me the day I planned on telling him I quit for him), and he would get pissed off with me for smoking weed, as well. All of my friends except for two, were absolutely convinced that Bruce and I would be together forever, that this was the most perfect relationship. He left me over text, with a small paragraph on tumblr. I was heartbroken for almost an entire month over this boy who wasted two almost three months of my life.

Back to suicide, I.. have a lot on my mind. I've wondered what would happen. But I know what I would do before doing anything.

I would write one last note to my mom, and leave her a voice recording of me singing some old song we liked on the radio when I was 7. Because she was convinced that I wrote like a poet, and sang like an angel. Let her bury me in a suit with that plushie I've had since I was 5.

Give all my friends one last thank you, one last I love you, I'll miss you. Give Zach one last I love you. Wonder who would tell me online best friends because I wouldn't have the heart to say "Hey, man it's my time." They would wake up to Zach, Bella or Alex telling them I died in my sleep or something. I was shot. Stabbed. Or hit by a car or struck by lightning. I should be dead by now, but I know that when I try, I'll fail.

If I had a gun, I would have shot myself through the skull. In 6th grade I read a book, a kid named Anthony did it. The idea was so incredible to me. I loved how easy it seemed.. I was so desperate on finding these books again. I needed them. I loved them. I needed to read more of this morbid shit that I called "fascinating"..

I wonder sometimes. The people who used to love me.. I'm talking about two very specific people, all ex best friends who harassed me on July 3rd when our drama had been over for a month, what they would do. I know I would get my ass beat at school, they hold grudges. I hate this i hate myself whatever gets me away from all of this. I just want to stop having nightmares of these two ruining my life! One of them also told my ENTIRE FRIEND GROUP about my suicide note and attempted suicide that happened in May! The whole fucking group no longer saw me as "the happy bouncy boy who calls everyone sunshine" they all saw me as "the sick pathetic suicidal boy who slits his wrists"! I dont want that anymore! I want this all to stop and I'll admit it I called a girl a snake the same girl and she then admitted to pretending to be my friend for THREE YEARS! And then I cried in front of my boyfriend and my new friendgroup. I didn't want them to think I was weak and emotional.. especially not Zach. They all thought i was this.. amazing ray of sunshine who brought Brian tea in the morning and brought Zach sweets because he wanted his boyfriend happy and knew he had a sweet tooth and gave everyone compliments and hugs all the time.

But then they all realized that I could cry. I could sob. I could feel sadness. I wasn't always a ray of sunshine who carried band aids for people wounds and made people feel better all the time. I tried to hide my negative emotions from them, but it didn't work out too well. I was sobbing so hard I couldn't breathe. I already lost a friend and probably many more due to this girl. Because she vapes abd smokes nicotine and weed and used to drink. Shes pretty and everybody has a crush on her.

"All of your friends talk shit on you, because nobody likes you!" I believe it. She told me that, and I believe it.

I would give these people who hugged me the world. Who told me it would be okay. The ones who even may have been pretending to care about me.. you have my heart.. I promise you, that before I go, I'm going to give you the world. All of it and more.

Jax, Megan, and Kat can have the moon. If I could I'd honestly rope it down with tied up blankets.

I would give everyone individually a star.

I would pick all the sunflowers for Bella and Owen.

Kaylee, Sage, Ashlyn and Alex would get all the roses I can find.

Kasper, Tori, Jaiden, and Gemma can have the crystals and gems you can't find unless you really look.

And for Brian, Richard, Bruce and Zach, they can have the sun.

This is too long, sorry for continuously going, but one last thing, I promise..

I had a plan. When I'm 18. Until I see something or read or hear something that convinces me to keep going, and that life is worth living, and can be amazing, and that even someone as sad and awful as me can be happy, I plan to commit suicide. I don't know what day, but it's a good possibility.

Thank you so much for listening, I'm sorry if this made anyone upset, but I needed to get all of this off of my chest. It's been on my mind all summer. Please don't call anyone on me for my thoughts, I plan on eventually getting help when I have the resources to get the help I need. Thank you. I love you sunshines. 💕

[romancemedia]

NCIS: Los Angeles S10E3 - The Prince

In the 3rd episode of the tenth season of NCIS: Los Angeles it had a lot of surprises and shocking familiar faces in store as the team were protecting a Deputy Crown Prince from Saudi Arabia. I can honestly say... I LOVE Every Minute of This Episode!!! It was absolutely fantastic with Kensi and Deeks talking about their wedding, Joelle’s return as well as Callen still upset over his father. Honestly this episode had a lot to feature and it’s amazing how well everything went together.

Obviously, my favourite moments of the episode were between Kensi and Deeks talking about their wedding plans... or supposed plans. Everyone including Deeks’ mom, Nell and even Callen think they are taking forever when it comes to planning their wedding as they keep planning it on and off. Due to everyone‘s thoughts on their wedding, it makes Kensi and Deeks feel pressured and try to do more wedding planning and there is a LOT to be planned still. However, thankfully, Sam was supportive towards the couple, assuring them to take their time when it comes to planning their special day, but some advice... don’t wait three years and trust me the wedding is DEFIANTLY going to take place this season. It’s an event you won’t want to miss. Honestly I’m really glad we got some more coverage on my favourite NCIS couple compared to the last episode and I just Love It when they talk about their wedding. God I Just Can’t Wait For It!!!

Anyway, aside from the Densi wedding planning, there was a lot more in store. NCIS had been asked to help in protecting the prince, but one member of the team was not so happy when it came to the person asking for help. Brian Bush... the agent who was responsible for sending Callen’s father away in the previous season was asking for NCIS to help assist protection and you can immediately tell from the look on Callen’s face He Was NOT pleased to see him again. However, like a professional Callen did his job and in the end he even got an APOLOGY from Brian about having to send his father away. However, the real attention quickly fell on the return of another old familiar face... Joelle Taylor, Callen’s ex-girlfriend as well as former CIA agent who had gone into hiding to hunt down the syndicate responsible for the rogue CIA group that tried to take down the team. They are also currently responsible for targeting the prince and she is trying to protect him.

Joelle’s return was honestly a REAL surprise for the team as it turns out, Callen had kept her survival a secret from everyone and the only people who knew the truth were himself, Sam... and Nell. Gotta say I Did Not See That Coming. Although keeping secrets is bad, in the end Callen’s reasons were understandable considering how much trouble the rogue CIA group caused them in the past such as Kensi’s kidnapping for example. Overall, Callen was just protecting the team and they forgive and understand. The scenes with Joelle, Eric and Nell were Absolutely Amazing and HILARIOUS!!! Eric and Nell were so in shock to see Joelle at their headquarters that Eric even tried to get a weapon to attack her. Seriously that was SO FUNNY. Nell continued to show what a Great A Badass she was around Joelle that she even got out her gun to show she means business and Joelle immediately fell into line. I love that Joelle is starting to become scared of Nell. That really reminds me a lot of Hetty.

In the end, the Prince was saved and Joelle managed to get a lot of evidence to prove the crimes of the syndicate during her time away, meaning she can come out of hiding and go back home to her family. Callen accompanies Joelle, but she is terrified to see her family again, believing they won’t understand her actions or forgive her for what she’s put them through. Callen assures Joelle that her family is fixable... compared to his own. We finally get some info on the situation with Callen’s family and it’s revealed that ever since their father was taken away, Callen’s half-sister, Alex hasn’t spoken to him since and just like Joelle said, Callen doesn’t deserve that. Joelle steps out of the car and Callen drives away, but in the end she walks away from home and into the shadows as she can’t bear to face her family after everything she’s done to them. However, despite Joelle’s disappearing act, this isn’t the last we’ll see of her.

Overall, Fantastic Episode and Definitely One of My Top Favourites. However, there are still some questions that remain unanswered for the time. Where did Joelle disappear to and where will she go? Will Callen ever find his father or reconcile with his sister? In the end only time will tell as season ten progresses. However, the real action and drama starts next week as we will finally see the return of the Ice Queen herself, Executive Assistant Direactor, Shay Mosley. That’s an episode you don’t wanna miss.

[thenixkat]

Thoughts on the cartoon Static Shock

So these notes n’ stuff was part of my 4th? rewatch of the series. I’d watched it once to actually finished the show since I never caught all the eps when it was airing on tv, another time when I was on a Static Shock kick, and the 3rd time streaming it with friends to see what they thought of it. Each time I picked up on more stuff like character and events, but this time I gave it an actual serious watch to get details, timeline, and a solid handle on characterization and abilities, and plots that I can work on for my fanfic. And taking off the nostalgia goggles and giving it a real hard critical look?

It’s not great.

It’s about average like it still makes it to my top ten superhero shows but its like probably number 7 on that list. It is still absolutely my favorite show in the DCAU; but ya gotta take into account that I don’t like Superman, I hate Justice League b/c it’s very much a drama and its ep should have just been released as hour-long things, I refuse to watch Batman Beyond, and I prefer The Batman over Batman The Animated Series. What I’m saying is literally the only other thing in the DCAU that I’ve watched and liked was Justice League Unlimited and even that I have issues with. 

If I’m ranking DC shows that I like I’d go:

1. Teen Titans

2. Black Lightning

3. Static Shock

4. Legion of Super-Heros

5. The Batman

6. Justice League Unlimited

So what do I like about Static Shock?

Black people. Like, holy fuck there’s so many Black people in this show. With different skin tones, hairstyles, eye colors, body types. Got em as good guys, bad guys, and neutral parties. Got a Black girl as the protag’s main love interest. Introduced a slew of original Black heroes and villains to the pasty as fuck DCAU, even if the rest of that universe likes to forget that Static Shock takes place in it. 

Just, I love dorky science types like Virgil and Richie? Also, I like their friendship very much. That is some good shit right there even if I hate the ship and thus don’t interact with most of the fandom b/c of it. And paying close attention to it added a lot more complexity and depth to the characters than I’d known was there.

Also, I don’t normally like female characters, but Shebang is good. I like her very much and I will not forgive the writers for “She-Back!”. Also, Sharon is a boss. Daisy is the best girlfriend and could literally do so much better than Virgil, that boy is blessed to have her.

And I do like to see superhero noobs who have no fucking clue what they're doing and keep trying their best. And I like more stuff where like the hero does more than just fight people? And has a life outside of heroing?

The show is also just, genuinely entertaining to me? Like both as an adult and as a kid its fun to watch. It's something that younger me tried to catch on tv.

My problems with the show?

This show does not do right by its female characters. Frieda drops from the face of the earth for long stretches of time when by all rights she should appear at least as often as Daisy. The show forgets that Frieda and the main boys are very close friends. The main girls are never brought in on the loop as well as their intelligence gets completely underfunded that they don’t figure out the loop exists in the first place. Others like Trina and Shenice just fucking vanish, much like Frieda, even when they shouldn’t. Sharon spent an episode being blatently ooc. Also, Virgil’s mom literally got fridged for drama and male character development. And doing a bit of reserch it also fucked up a femal character from a different show and then killed her off in a brutal graphic manner.

There are plenty of spots where the writing is either noticibly lazy or outright incompetent. Especially in the aformentioned area in handling characters. Other times there’s the plot of an ep being pushed in a direction that doesn’t make sense given what we’re being shown, or don’t make sense going by just... fucking basic ass phsiscs, or doesn’t make sense b/c it contradicts things we’ve previously been shown.

Speaking of that! The lack of continuity very much hurts the show. Characters at the very least should learn from previous experiences. Past events should effect the present and the future.

Also, I’m not sure what’s at fult for it, either the Y7 rating or the writers’ lack of nads, but the show ignoring many many deaths and how they’d logicly effect characters also robbed it of some of what it could have been. For the same reason is probably why the gang and coruption of city officials and such dropped from the show so quickly. Its possible that I would have not noticed this as much if I never watched Black Lightning (which is fucking good btw) and seen it done right.

And as a show for kids some of the episode have fucking gods aweful messages or undertones. I will not forgive the use of the ‘what measure is a nonhuman’ trope in “Toys In The Hood”. Nor will I forgive the narritive fucking around with characters and their relationships to punish Shenice for being a confidant Black girl in “She-Back!”. And I don’t know who the fuck thought that telling kids that people who break the law don’t deserve human rights and its ok to use them is human guinea pigs was ok in “Wet N’ Wild”. And did no one stop to think that maybe they shouldn’t portay a dude poisoning the community of an in-universe predominantly Black comminity with largly untested and potentially dangerous experimental chemicals on the reasoning that “most of them are thugs” as a good guy. Idk, someone shoulda stopped and thought a little bit about that in the entire time it took the ep to get made. WHAT THE FUCK WRITERS.

What I would change?

-Have Frieda and Daisy in on the loop. Frieda either figures it out or is told in the 2nd ep and Daisy figures it out in her debute ep. Sharon figure it out durring ‘Brother-Sister Act’ and she isn’t written wildly out of character. Have the 3 of them become superheros, expand the fucking team.

-Remember that Shenice and Trina fucking exist? 

-Remember that all of the other villians that nly show up in 1 ep still exist and would likely be able to escape from prison about as easily as the onse that do get to make multible apperences.

-Remember that BacPac isn’t a backpack and can act with his own agency.

-Scrap 90% of ‘Toys In The Hood’.

-Have characters actually effected by people they knew dying in the Big Bang? I. E. Hotstreak’s entire posse never showed up again and he should feel some fucking way about that. Virgil and Wade had known eachother for years.

-Do something with the fact that Brainiac did fucky shit to Richie that should have lasting and possibly traumatic concequences. Also all of the nanites, where are they?

-Have Dr. Todd be a villian and the heros and villians working together to stop his plot b/c holy shit its unethical.

-Just... so many things. Little improvements.

[donheisenberg]

Top 20 TV Shows of 2017:

So this is the bit where I talk about how difficult it is to write a top 20 list because of peak TV, yada, yada, yada. If you are into TV criticism you have read it all before several over the last few years, the thing is while it might feel like a cliche it is totally true and with every year it become more true. Trying to watch everything out there is impossible and trying to then narrow down what you have watched to a list of 20 is almost as difficult. Every show on this list had an outstanding year as shown by some of the shows I left off of the list. In any other year the likes of Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Americans would be givens even if they just had middling seasons but not this year. It was truly a great year for TV and here are my top 20 shows of 2017.

Shows I Did Not Get Around to Watching/Completing That May Have Made My List: The Deuce The Handmaid’s Tail (to watch) Legion (to watch) Better Things Search Party Difficult People

Honorable Mention: Rick and Morty (season 3): Shout out to Review as well, which was excellent but just had to few episodes for me to really count it. In terms of Rick and Morty it was often in the news (or at least the twitter news) for the wrong reasons this year as a group of its fans decided to act like complete dickheads for a period of time. All of which deflected from the fact it had its best season ever. I’ve always had issues with the show and basically how pro-Rick and his asshole behavior Harmon and co seem to be and this year didn’t necessarily dissuade me of that but on a week to week basis it was crafting, ambitious and well thought out stories, at a rate the show had never before.

No 20: Fargo (season 3): As many observed this was not Fargo’s finest year and it maybe took a while to get going. It is also the case that 3 seasons in it is tougher for a show as idiosyncratic as this one to surprise us. When a seemingly major character dies in episode 1 it is less of a shock than it should be because that is what happened in season 1. Yet at the same time I so enjoyed this season and the performances by the likes of Carrie Coon (more on her later), Ewan MacGregor and David Thewlis and you still had episodes as excellent as The Law of Non-Contradiction.

No 19) Veep (season 6): Similar to Fargo this was a just slightly below average year for Veep, but even then the quality of the ensemble is so far above any other comedy out there and the quality of the writing/jokes/insults is again just of the highest order. There are few shows I enjoy more than Veep.

No 18) Master of None (Season 2): In my review I did write about how aspects of MON did frustrate me. For it’s social awareness, it is a show that wants me to desperately feel sorry for the man with seemingly the nicest/most privileged life in the world. The extent to which the show is essentially lifestyle porn at times can be a problem and the extent to which the show never questions Dev’s actions can also be a little off-putting. Yet having said that the good outweighs the bad and then some. The show crafts so many beautiful fully realized episodes and months after watching it is episodes like Thanksgiving that stick with me, more than the show’s flaws.

No 17) The Young Pope (Season 1): I’m not sure I get The Young Pope. I love it but I’m not sure I get it. Even in this age of weird TV there is something truly odd about this show. So difficult to write about because it does not conform to any conventions or labels and that’s why it makes this list. Having said all of this I’m not quite sure the show ever hit the heights of its pilot (even if it remained excellent throughout) and that’s why it is not a little bit higher.

No 16) Brockmire (Season 1): Brockmire is exactly the sort of gem that can get lost in this golden age, but for those few of us who did see it we know that it was one of the most raucous, hilarious and endearing comedies out there. I don’t know or care about baseball at all but I do love Brockmire and can’t wait til it comes back.

No 15) Brooklyn Nine Nine (season 4/5): Just as Brockmire can get lost in a sea of amazing shows, B99 is the sort of show that you can take for granted so easily but 5 seasons in and it is still full of heart and brilliant gags. More than that though this year on a couple of occasions we saw the show break-out of its comfort zone with episodes about Terry being racially profiled and more recently Rosa coming out to her less than progressive parents. Those episodes showcased a different side of the show and demonstrated how B99 is not just a great sitcom but an important one. Nine Nine!

No 14) Preacher (Season 2): Parts of season 2 of Preacher were as good as anything on TV. The opening scenes of the first two episodes, as well as standout episode Sokosha plus a whole host of other moments, showed how Preacher could execute some of the most ambitious TV out there to near perfection. It was not all perfect and the season might have benefited from being 10 episode long rather than 12 but nonetheless I love this show and it seems to only go in one direction. Bring on season 3.

No 13) GLOW (Season 1): GLOW was sort of the perfect summer show. It was funny and likable and so binge-able. Netflix makes a lot of deeply serialized shows, designed to be consumed in one sitting so as you find out what happens next. Glow was not that. What GLOW was, was a show that quickly established an ensemble of distinct and interesting characters who you wanted to spend time with and for that it was a standout show.

No 12) Better Call Saul (Season 3): It pains me to put BCS at number 12, in any other year this could be a contender for my number 1 spot but here it does quite make the top ten. Part of the reason why it is a little lower than you might have excepted is that at this stage I don’t have to tell anyone how good this show is. Into it’s third season and BCS was possibly better than ever. Certainly episodes like the chilling Lantern and in particular Chicanery mark series high points and some of the finest TV I’ve seen all year.

No 11) American Vandal (Season 1): American Vandal is a curious show. It is ostensibly a parody, yet by the time you finish it you look back and think that was funny but not funny enough to be making this list necessarily. What it was though was the most engrossing show of the year. And it all centred on the question “who drew the dicks?” Yet for the silliness of the premise I could not have been more intrigued. AV found new ground for the most tired of sub-genres, the mockumentary and in the process delivered an absurd but in many ways tragic story of a stupid but well meaning kid in high school whose life goes array for reasons that have little to do with him. Defining the pleasures of the show may not be straight, but boy was it insanely watchable-the Netflix model at its best.

No 10 )Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Season 3): Similar to B99, UKS is the sort of consistent joke machine that you can take for granted, and that many have, but for me this year there were few shows enjoyed nearly as much as it. I thought the show delivered its best season. The work of Ellie Kemper and in particular Titus Burgess can match any comedic performers on TV. Again though amidst all the laughs is a very human character study piece of an abuse victim and maybe where the show’s genius thoroughly lies  is in the way the show balances these two sides of itself.

No 9) Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (Seasons 2/3): Rachel Bloom’s musical comedy/drama goes from strength to strength. Like many shows of this list it perfectly balances cartoonish sensibilities with discussions on mental health and never more so than in the first half of season 3. In addition to that though are the musical numbers. At times I’m just in awe of how spot on and clever their parodies, my favorite this year being “Let’s Generalize About Men” and for that it had to make my top ten.

No 8) Bojack Horseman (Season 4): In its 2nd and particularly 3rd seasons Bojack became a show that delivered some of the most outstanding individual episodes of television, possibly ever. Escape From LA, Fish Under Water and That’s Too Much Man are just incomparable half hours of TV. Season 4 did not deliver a single episode of quite that standard. What season 4 did do though is deliver quite possibly the show’s most consistent, revealing and hopefully season. Something we all needed at the end of the show’s previous season.

No 7) Catastrophe (Season 3): Okay it was only 6 episodes along, but I ask this question every year, is there a better written show on TV? There might be snappier dialogue out there, there might be more profound existential musings on some other show, but there is no show with more wonderfully naturalistic dialogue on now or possibly ever. Also there is not really a couple of TV I root for quite as much as Sharon and Rob and I really just want to watch the two of them on screen together as much as possible.Plus the final episode of season 3 was just the perfect send-off for Carrie Fisher and for that alone it deserves it place on my list.

No 6) Jane The Virgin (Season 3/4): Now four seasons in Jane the Virgin still has the power to surprise and hit me emotionally as much as just about any show on this list. I would go as far as to stay no episode of television this year hit me as hard as (spoilers) Michael’s death which was absolutely devestating. But when it comes to Jane the Virgin it is not just the big gut-punches that count, it is the smaller moments as well. The other scene that sticks with me most from its episodes this year is when Rogelio (often the show’s most comic presence) opens up to Xo about how he hasn’t been able to grieve properly for Michael, who was his best friend, because he knew he had to be strong for Jane while she was grieving. It is a comparatively small moment but every bit as resonant. I can take or leave all the intrigue concerning the Marbella but week after week the show delivers moments that really effect me, which even in this golden age can’t be said of too many show.

No 5) Twin Peaks (Season 3): It seems to me that Twin Peaks has either been number 1 or completely absent from every critics list. And I can understand both positions. Twin Peaks was fascinating in a way that television and art more generally rarely is. It was also incredibly and deliberately frustrating at times. I’m almost reluctant to point out how obviously frustrating parts of the revival were because I feel like I might be missing something. On the other hand because its Lynch and because he is a widely and rightly acknowledge genius I think some critics have been too forgiving of some pretty blatant narrative issues, that on another show they would have lambasted. Ultimately though it was the TV event of the year and nothing quite engaged me on a week to week basis like it did. More than anything though there were certain moments, particularly toward the end of the season, that were greater than anything else on TV this year. Moments I completely lost myself in, in ways that are quite difficult to explain and for that I won’t be forgetting the revival for a very long time.

No 4) Mr Robot (Season 3): If season 1 was clinically perfect, in a way no show since Breaking Bad has been, season 2 was an over-ambitious, definitely fascinating, mess. I was a bit of an apologist for the largely disliked second season-but even I was somewhat disappointed after the heights of season 1. Season 3 not only got the show back on track but it found a balance in the ensemble that neither season 1 (which was almost all Elliot) or season 2 (which felt like very little Elliot) had. It also starting making sense again and the show successfully battled the urge to be overly opaque or to have unnecessary twists. All of which meant that we got some of the show’s finest hours yet specifically the thrilling fifth and sixth episodes as well as the surprising and heart-warming eight hour, not to mention the finale which had a bit of everything. And for all its pessimism few shows made me happier this year, because I was so delighted to see this great show prove all the doubters wrong.

No 3) The Good Place (season 1/2): Michael Schur has secured himself a place in TV history with The Office, B99 and in particular Parks and Rec, already but with The Good Place he has gone one further. We all knew he could craft wonderfully funny and likable sitcoms, but here he has delivered a show as twisty and as engaged in huge philosophical issues as any prestige serialized drama. The Good Place is not necessarily a sad-com like many of the show’s on this list but it is possibly the most plot driven network sitcom ever. The thing is the plot has real stakes and is completely unpredictable as well. The huge twist at the end of season 1 showed that even in the age of Reddit you could pull out the rug from underneath your audience and I did not think that was possible. I don’t know how much longer they can continue it but as of now The Good Place is just about a perfect piece of television. 

No 2) Halt and Catch Fire (Season 4): Without spoiling what is number 1 on my list, when it aired I thought nothing would come near it but Halt and Catch Fire came very very close. Back in its much derided first season Halt was a jukebox spitting one antihero cliche after another. In some ways it never strayed too far from the conventions of the antihero drama but what made it different was that at a certain point it just wasn’t about antiheroes. Sure all the characters were deeply flawed, none more so than Joe, but their constant strive for something more, for some kind of connection felt so human you could not help but love them. The final four episodes were TV drama at its best and when it ended I really struggled with the notion that I would not be spending more time with these characters, but if anything made it okay it was how well they stuck the landing. Speaking of which..

No 1) The Leftovers (Season 3): No show has ever made quite the impact in such a short space of time. The Leftovers conclude its mere 28 episode run this year, just 28 episodes yet about half of them are nothing short of masterpieces. That includes just about every episode in this final run. It’s tough in just a paragraph to breakdown what made The Leftovers such a transcendent piece of television-so to be glib I’ll say it took the ambition and phantasmagoria of Twin Peaks and combined it with the heart and focus on character of Halt and Catch Fire. LOST-one of my absolute favorite shows of all time-will define Lindelof’s career but The Leftovers is ultimately a more complete and mature piece of work. The writing, performances and direction coalesced to give us something often hilarious and surprising and always deeply powerful. There may never be a show like The Leftovers again and for those reasons it was always going to be my number 1. 

[curseofaphrodite]

toriiii i hope you're doing good manifesting you did well in your neets

✨buckle up bestie you're in for a lot of drama bc i'm pissed✨

continuing my drama w "tina"!

i met her in 3rd grade w her another friend and tina was always like rude controlling in power type of person so she was sorta leader of our "trio"? like if i fought w her then she wouldn't let the other girl talk to me so i become alone and since i'm introverted person i usually don't talk to ppl outside my circle she knew that and took advantage of it like leaving me out of almost everything but i'm sorta desperate for someone so i'd stay anyways. so once we fought over some petty thing and she didn't talk to me for 5 months and just before my birthday she was like "BESTIE HEY HOW'S YOU" and naive innocent me became friends w her without any proper apology or conversation. yk i made some friends during those 5 months and idk once tina let me back into the "trio" i fell out of touch from my those new friends. then guess what after my birthday party and being a goodie two shoes infront of my mum she stopped talking to me once again and didn't let the other girl talk to me too. her and i would meet up in secret after tina would go home and bitch about her (we named her jiggly puff pokemon sorry jiggly puff for even considering you're anywhere near her😔) like see how toxic it was since the beginning. the other girl sort of left because of toxicity (funny she's toxic too she was gaslight gatekeep but no girlboss lmao) tina fucking finally apologized in 4th grade that too on a paper no verbal shits let's ignore it only when we were forced to sit together 🥰 damn now i think about it i think she "apologized" bc 1. the other girl was distancing herself 2. i started making friends again and we were like a group plus plus plus i would get along well with my seatmate and his friends so we were all (my girl friends++ my seatmate s friends) an unofficial official group ig she just wanted a group she could dominate

in short me 🤝 being friends w toxic ppl

now drama #2🥰🍷

so when i was 13 i liked a guy. i went to attend my cousin's wedding and he was my cousin's cousin (no blood relation with me pls! no insect 😭) so he was there too. i met him quite a few times before this and we were friendly anywhore that year we spent a lot of time together and blah blah blah and all. we kissed too😟 he was 25/26 at this moment and i was 13 pls do remember this shit. after the wedding was over we went back to my grandma's place so he and i had no contact. i was still in my ✨feels✨ and thought nothing was wrong. i even had a hidden folder of his pictures 🥲#regret anywhore after some days my cousin who got married and her sister (who's of my age) visited us and i was talking to the younger one whose of my age and turns out that he already had a girlfriend when we kissed and all that ilysm shit. he told me they've broken up very long time ago and he's single for almost a year now- TF BITCH BOY I WANNA BEAT YOU SO BAD. anyways i got over it soon it wasn't a proper crush i think i just found him attractive lol. thank god bless everyone who unknowingly stopped my attraction grow to love bc my god that guy was 25/26 and i was 13 that's illegal and a 12/13 age gap?? tf boy i didn't even get through my puberty at that time?? i didn't even have tits tf you liked me for??? and now the age gap i don't have any problems with age gap when they're both mature responsible and of age but in my case i was immature to. but anyways thank god nothing happened after the kiss i really don't want to imagine what could have happened had we have been close and in contact 😃😃 now 3 years later i see so many things which were wrong so many things which could have ended horribly and the fact that one of my very close friends is going through the same situation but the guy she likes is atleast respectful and he did say he cannot date her but they talk and i know it damn well she hasn't lost any feelings. it absolutely breaks my heart bc idk i feel like that guy is trying to be "respectful". he knows my friend feels more than friends for him then why not distance yourself from her especially when she's so young and immature. okay i understand if you don't wanna talk to her mum but atleast he could've distanced himself plus plus plus he invited her family for some travel tour EVEN after knowing her feelings for her??? what is wrong with people?? go for someone who's of age not some underage person who could regret it later in life when they become mature and start understanding shits???

if you don't mind me asking where in india are you from its totally okay if you don't wanna answer it pls feel free to ignore if i made you uncomfortable

AAAHHH OKAY THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO MY TALKSHOW ILY BAEE😩🤎✨

🔮

OKAY OKAY lets unpack all of this together.

isnt it like funny how mean people are also dumb, especially when they're young??? like literally tina sounds like someone i would stay away from with a ten feet pole. she made you feel shitty and thus secured herself a spot in my TO BURN IN HELL book. she gaslit you into being alone, gatekept you from making other friends, and she's rude asf.

a bully in the making.

please please tell me you are no longer in contact with her or imma throw hands. yes bestie you really do be with toxic people. fear no longer for ill manifest them out of your life.

NEXT UP, WHAT THE FUCK. WHAT THE LITERAL FUCK??? kissing a 13 year old???? he's 25?????? THATS PEDOPHILE-ISH. disgusting little creep. when i read that, there was a surge of hate rushing through my veins like the dude should be locked up, I do not ever trust him with anything. pls tell me this guy isn't in contact with you either. I'll literally 👊👊👊 him. I hope he falls headfirst into a lego pool and wakes up in prison.

and no they were mock neets, and i did terrible! i had like 50 right answers and 100 smth wrong ones fml.

also IM from keralaaa wbuuuu!! <3

AND I LOVE YOU MOREE

[thelarryficrecplace]

Personal but I feel really shitty right now. Like don’t even read this, it’s just for me to offload somewhere! 

Sorry for this being on your dash, I’ll start doing recs tomorrow 

I’ve been with this guy, let’s call him H - on and off since first year of uni. So it’s been what like 2 years now, since we’re in 3rd year. And like we’ve got our ups and downs but there’s just something so addictive about him. 

We spent the better half of second year not talking to each other as he got a girlfriend for the summer and then told me they had broken up and got with me on a night out. Turned out, they hadn’t broke up and I felt bloody awful about it, literally spend weeks not eating cos I felt sick to my stomach. Worst thing is, he is in the same friendship group as I am, so I had to see him all the time for 6 months. 

I believe it was on the night after our finals in second year, when we finally talked it out and said we should try and be friends. And it worked, cos I went home for the summer and he stayed here so it was fine. And then for the first month of uni it worked us well. 

But then it was my best friend’s birthday, and there was no getting with each other in the club or anything but when we called it a night, it was like an unspoken agreement he would come home with me. So he did. And stuff happened. 

And it was fine. There was no drama, no anything. 

And then he started snapchatting me and texting me. And it felt great. We’re complete opposites, like polar opposites. But he’s just hilarious, a bit immature, but just so funny. He makes me laugh and yeah he’s never going to be an Abercrombie & Fitch model but he’s attractive in my eyes. Thing is, my best friends think it’s purely physical. Keep saying how I am too good for him. And whenever I bring up the fact that I really I’m gone for him they laugh it off. 

Anyway.

I’ve gone back to his place a couple of nights since. 

But then a few weeks ago, I was really pissed off with him about something that I can’t even remember. And I was out with this flatmate of mine called R who absolutely hates H cos he thinks he’s been playing me. So R decides he’s gonna play matchmaker and tells one of his friends, L, that I fancy him. 

Bearing in mind it was on a night out. I had a bottle of prosecco, three shots of tequila, a shot of sambuca and a drink one of my friends offered me, which I found out later that it had a couple of strong drugs in it. So I was absolutely hammered. I was off my head. 

And I got with that guy. As in, I kissed him. And apparently that was an invitation to come home with me. Which ok. So he came home with me. And I’m not gonna play innocent, we did things. We didn’t have sex, but we did do things. And then the next morning, he was being creepy - asking ‘is it too soon to call this dating’ and ‘can i take you out on a date’. So I freaked out and more or less kicked him out. 

I got a message from him on that same day saying ‘I miss you like crazy’. Which really freaked me out. And then I was more or less bullied into going on a date with him by R. I made it completely clear to R that I was not interested, even less so when I found out that the guy had never had sex before, as he had major appearance and confidence issues and was just looking to lose it. So, heck no I was not gonna be his guinea pig. But I did go on the date. 

It was a movie and then drinks. I insisted to pay for myself but he had already booked the tickets for the theatre. So we got to the movies, was completely awkward with me, sat stiff for two whole hours. Then we went for drinks - I paid for mine - and he just would not talk. I was the one asking questions to avoid awkwardness. He kept insisting to come back to mine, and I was very firm, declining every single time. 

At this point, I want to say. I was not playing hard to get. I don’t have an issue with having sex. I know some people do, but I do not consider it as a massive deal. If I feel like it, I will have sex. If not, I won’t. But in his mind, that was me being classy and playing hard to get. 

He messaged me straight after he dropped me off at home. Saying just how much fun he had and looking forward to next time. I replied that just to be clear I am not looking for a relationship and if he wants to go we can be friends, but it’s never going to go anywhere. His reply to that was that there’s definitely ‘something’ there and he is willing to wait. I replied that nothing is going to happen. So I thought that was that. 

In the meantime, I carried on seeing H. Who, even 2 years later, he is still a fuckboy that is messing with both my head and my heart and I hate it but I love it. 

Then this past week, H was ignoring me. He was seeing my snaps, opening them but never replying. And then today, L - who I’ve not spoken to since the first week of October as I thought he would get the hint if I stopped replying  - started ringing and texting me, asking if there is a reason I’ve not been speaking to him and saying how much he misses me. So I’m completely freaking out at this point cos it’s just really creepy. 

And then H started talking to me today. And he is being flirty but a bit off as well. And I just really don’t know what to make of it. 

And my period is about 3 weeks late and I’m too bloody terrified to take a pregnancy test.

That’s all. Feels good to finally get things off my chest and not feel like I’m being judged.