#this /is/ their debut right? the songs from last year were pre debut right? I don't think I ever listen to them 😬

[horangslay]

nct wish debut starting with a white woman jumpscare legitimately confused the shit out of me

[maeumi-jng]

hiii!! i love ur writing it’s absolutely adorable 🥹🫶 i was wondering if you could write something about riki & reader and maybe the reader is just a little older than him like a few months to a year? and they are very adamant on giving him his space especially since he has dealt with… so much from older fans. but riki rlly likes the reader and he’s frustrated because he doesn’t want her to think of him like a kid maybe 🤔 but reader likes him back she is just scared bc she feels like what if she makes him uncomfortable? but then it has a happy ending because they talk it out & jungwon helps them 😭🫶 totally understand if u don’t want to take this request! even if u don’t, it’s alright i love ur writing sm

kiss her you fool

pairing: idol!riki nishimura x idol!fem!reader, childhood bsf!yang jungwon x reader

synopsis: riki likes you. you like him. if the maths is right, you should be together. but riki left one variable unaccounted for. or in which riki must get to the bottom of why you are withholding your feelings for him if it's the last thing he does

warnings: reader is a year older, ANGST, mention of c-19, DISGUSTING OLD CREEPY FANS, mentions of sexual harassment, insecurity, problems of young debuting and discrimination, and crying, jealousy, swearing, appearance of riize's anton, riki being an absolute menace but a communication king 😤, romantic confessions, cringe but fluffy, proof-read before dinner soooo ☺️

word count: 2k+ library: enhypen bookshelf

author’s note: it's my first request 😭 i got youuuuuuu. i didn't mean for this to get so um well sappy and sad, got a bit carried away with the 'older fans' thing, but thank you so much for requesting! i hope this is up to par ♡︎ // song rec is titular but not really incorporated

You had made a mistake.

A very big mistake.

Liking Riki Nishimura.

How exactly that happened... well almost four years ago now, in 2020.

The practical shut down of all things physical in the industry. No concerts, no fan meetings, no live performances, restricted filming... the entire world had gone quiet.

Yet, as humans had done since the dawn of time, there was adaptation. Online concerts that were pre-recorded and emphasised stage performances, masked filming with very few staff, well.. masked everything...

And in the midst of all of this, was I-LAND. The survival show that would form a new boy group. The same show that your childhood best friend, Yang Jungwon, was participating in. As his friend, former label mate, and a representative of BigHit, you were very enthusiastic, promoting the show when you could on your lives and consistently voting for him, producing the theme song, even coming on the last episode with your seniors.

Jungwon did it. He got first place. With almost 1.5 million votes. To withhold all your tears that day was a heavy task. You didn't want anyone to think that the votes had been manipulated due to your influence so you had kept a bit quiet about your relation to Jungwon. But you were just so proud.

People eventually found out soon though. Months before ENHYPEN was to debut with the claims that it just made sense that you two were childhood friends.

Along with him came six other people that you would soon make lifelong friends with, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Niki. You debuted quite early and despite being the youngest leader ever to debut and the maknae, friends were hard to come by (surprise surprise). So you welcomed these with open arms. Any friend of Jungwon was going to be a friend of yours.

You cherished all the members in their own ways but you couldn't lie and say Riki wasn't special to you. He reminded you of yourself. So young yet so passionate. Furthermore, he was Japanese. Living in a foreign country by yourself at such at such as young age... it had to be tough.

So in a way, you took him in. By that you meant your mother had basically accepted him as her son and you took care of him as if you were his older sister. You helped him with his Korean, your mother invested into learning Japanese cuisine so he didn't feel too homesick, always sending you with tiffins of food to the company or to the dorm, you stayed by him during the tough times... you made sure that he never felt alone, even for a second. You promised him.

The thing about debuting so young was that it often attracted the wrong type of people. You had gone through it and were still going through it despite turning twenty soon. Older fans... they seemed to love you. Especially, older men. From shouting your name loudly and asking for cute poses at fan signs to genuinely asking to marry you and specifically positioning their cameras at a certain angle to capture under your skirt... It was beyond you.

And Riki was going through the same thing, primarily with older women. Asking to marry him, seeing him shirtless, inappropriate fan fiction... the list of crazy was endless.

But your group and especially ENHYPEN wasn't having any of it. You all tried to the best of your ability to protect Riki but it just never seemed to stop. There were just so many weird people out there. It was infuriating.

You stuck to your promise. You made sure Riki felt safe and you could tell it was working. He was always honest with you, at his most vulnerable. He could share anything with you and he'd feel comfortable. You were the one person closest to him, there was no doubt about it.

But then you had to fuck it up. You got feelings.

You didn't realise it at first. But by the end of last year, you were sure. The long hugs, the stares that lasted a second more than they should've, Riki's abrupt clinginess... all of the mundane things were suddenly making you flustered and open the opportunity to having arrhythmia with all your fluctuating heartbeats.

You weren't sure what to do. It terrified you. How were you any different from the older fans? Well, of course there was a difference. But that year difference between the both of you... it was imposing.

So you did the only thing that made any sense to you. You gave him space.

You thought the space you were giving wasn't too obvious. You just wanted Riki to feel lighter and free.

But he noticed.

Immediately.

Riki noticed your wide smiles were now brief, the fewer texts you shared, the pathetic excuses you made to not hang out as much, the way you never sat with him to eat your mom's food... that the space you gave him was also physical given that you no longer sat right next to him but opted to sit diagonal to him (that way you weren't invading him too much).

Riki wasn't the type to beat around the bush. He directly confronted you. A trait that came naturally to him but was only furthered by the ever so direct Jungwon.

When you told him that you just wanted to give him a bit of space, given that he was older now and the whole plight of dealing with his 'fans'... Riki was in turmoil.

On one hand, an ever small part of him was touched that you cared so much. Not that was a surprise. You had the biggest heart he had ever seen.

But for the most part, he was frustrated. See, the thing was... he liked you too. A lot. Maybe too much for a normal human. It wasn't that you took care of him like a sister (if anything that combination would've made him throw up), but it was just you.

You entirely made him like you. Before he debuted, Riki was a big fan of you. He admired your work and passion, especially for as someone as young as you. Not to mention, he's pretty sure that you're the prettiest person in the entire universe. Never did he think he'd actually meet you. But then you visited I-LAND, twice. Once for the theme song and second for the last episode. And Riki was in awe of you. He couldn't believe it!

But that was nothing in comparison to finding out that he was debuting with ENHYPEN, a group that so happened to have Jungwon, your childhood best friend, and would often meet you to have their songs produced and composed.

And then you took him in.

He remembered it like it was yesterday. Heck, he could never forget it even if he tried.

You found Riki head down, crying alone in the dance practice room and you were immediately by his side. He was having an internal crisis.

It had been a few months since he had debuted and everything was going so well. ENHYPEN was popular. But his Korean was barely up to par, he couldn't keep up with everything that was going on, it was fuzzy in his head, people were commenting on his ethnicity and his looks in ways that discriminated him, he missed authentic Japanese food, he missed his annoying sisters, he missed his dad, his mom... he missed home. God, in that moment, he just wanted to go home.

You sat next to him, listening to all his worries quietly. By the time he was finished, he looked up at you with puffy red eyes that made your heart ache and apologised for burdening you with his problems.

He actually apologised.

For a moment, you were speechless.

So being an experienced person (well a year by age and a few more by career), you did what anyone else would do. Well, you hoped.

You wiped the remaining tears off of his face with your thumb and held his hands with yours. You looked him directly in the eye and told him, "You having nothing to be sorry about, Riki-ah. This... this is all normal to feel. To some extent, I know how you feel. I promise you that you'll get through this. I'll be by your side the entire time, hmm? I'm won't leave you alone. I promise."

With that, you brought him into a hug that he reciprocated. And this was the very moment Riki began to have feelings for you. After all of that and with everything you had done for him, how could he not like you?

Riki's frustration was beginning to peak. Ever since you told him you were giving him space, he had decided to the complete opposite. He was going to be up in your business 24 fucking 7 (if he could).

If you were going to sit away him, Riki would make his hyungs move so he could sit right next to you.

You were too far from him? He'd drag your chair close to him.

Your poor text response rate? Unannounced, Riki would walk into the room, rest his head on your lap, and scroll through TikTok, showing you all the videos he found funny.

But he needed to up his game. They say that flirting is a mastery of sort. It takes time, skill, finesse, if you will. Riki, however, is a fast learner.

"Cute hoodie, noona. But you'd look better in mine."

Backstage, you found him waiting outside your dressing room, on his phone. You sighed, shaking your head. "You're a living nightmare, Riki. You know that?"

Riki looked up from his phone, a smirk tugging away at his lips. His eyes grinned at you with their hanging lids. "So you do dream about me? That's nice to know."

When you gave him your most miffed expression, a soft laugh fell from his lips. "You look so cute when you're mad, noona."

The other time you were at HYBE cafeteria. You had finally given into your stomach's needs after slugging away for hours at a song. You spotted a nice yellow iced cupcake... it was calling your name. Just as you went to pick it up, Riki's hand intervened. His fingers brushed against yours, making you immediately retract your fingers. "R-Riki... yah, I was going to get that."

"I know," Riki said, amused by your flustered expression. "I'm going to get it for you."

Then came RIIZE's Anton. An idol who happened to be the same age, also produced music, also spoke English, had the most softest voice known to mankind, devilishly handsome, tall without stupid vitamins... and happened to be shipped heavily with you by everyone and their mother.

Also known as: Riki's worst enemy.

You were both coming out of the studio when Riki had caught the both of you on the way. From how he saw things, he didn't like it one bit. He didn't like the eye-smile Anton had when he looked at you nor did he like the smile you had at the poor joke he had cracked.

Hands shoved in his pockets, Riki stopped in front of you, interrupting your conversation. "Oh, hey, noona."

"Hmm? Oh, hey, Riki. Anton, this is–"

Completely ignoring the Boston-born but moved to New Jersey whatever-the-fuck guy, Riki just smiled at you. "Noona, you look so pretty today. What's the occasion? Me?"

You went home and screamed in your pillow that day (and apologised profusely to Anton (he said it was okay because anyone with a single brain cell could tell you and Riki were close)).

You had had enough.

The next day you had stomped into the dance practice room with Riki and Jungwon following after you because you had met them just as you were entering. Closing the door, you turned to your childhood friend who was placing his bag down.

With one hand pointing to Riki, "Tell him to stop it."

Jungwon raised a brow, looking at you incredulously. "Stop... what exactly?"

"I– stop... stop this," You stressed when Riki shuffled closer to you.

Jungwon looked at you helplessly. He knew how you felt. But he also know how Riki felt. In fact, he was the one who suggested him to be more obvious with his feelings... resulting in this. Clearly, Riki had misunderstood being obvious with being a bit more invasive. Probably, Jungwon's fault... What you two needed to do was communication.

Just as Jungwon opened his mouth again, he watched you push Riki so he stood a metre away from you. "Stay over there."

So much for communication.

Riki pursed his lips, pretending to ponder your suggestion. He took a step closer to you. "But I want to be next to you."

Your eye twitched in frustration. "Riki!" You cried out, balling your fists around the invisible air with annoyance. "Can't you just stop? I told you... you need space. With everything that's being going on for three years... I'm worried about you."

All the humour that was sported by Riki had disappeared in the matter of seconds. He chewed down on his lip, eyes darting around the room, registering what you had just said. He sucked in a sharp breath. "I'm not a kid, noona. Not anymore. I'm older. I have thoughts. and... I have feelings too."

You blinked, letting out an exasperated sigh. "I know but... I just... I just wanted you to gave some space. Some time to think for yourself as a person. It's important for you."

Riki's tongue poked the inside of his cheek. His eyes fell to you, meeting your tired gaze directly. "You said you'd never leave me alone."

Your eyes suddenly softened at his words while your heart ached. "Riki-ah, I'm not–"

"You promised, noona," Riki whispered, a flash of hurt crossing him. He took a step closer while you took another back. "You're afraid of something."

You furrowed your brows. "W-What? I'm not afraid–" You started to defend yourself but Riki cut you off again, not heeding to the warnings Jungwon was calling out.

"No, you are. What are you so afraid of, noona? Tell me... we can fix together. This time I'll help you," Riki persuaded, still inching towards you.

"Riki," You breathed out. God, you were a mess. All you emotions were everywhere. You didn't know what to think... what to say. "Why are you making this so difficult?"

Riki's hands stretched out, encasing yours with his. "I'm not making anything difficult. I think you're just in denial. In denial that I really like you. In denial that you like me just as much."

Your heart skipped a beat at the sudden confrontation. The guard you had built for the past few weeks had come flying down after taking every hit from Riki. "I... I don't wont you to feel uncomfortable," You confessed, "I don't won't you to feel pressured because I'm older than you... because of everything we've done together."

"Noona, I–" Riki's shoulders fell at your admission. God, the fact you were even thinking of that was entirely disheartening. "I don't feel pressured at all. You could never make me feel uncomfortable. I– you're the only person in the universe who actually makes me feel comfortable. No offence, hyung."

Jungwon raised his hands, gesturing his acceptance and dismissal at the same time.

Riki kept his eyes on you, hands tightening around yours. "I'm grateful for everything you've done for me but that's not the only reason I like you. I wish you could see yourself the way I see you. You might not know it but you welcome everyone with open arms, the most beautiful woman I know, but don't tell my mom that, you're so smart, hardworking, caring... you make me want to be a better person. You make me happy, noona."

You blinked rapidly. Were you dreaming right now? Was this a prank of some sort? You removed your hands from Riki's, using the tips of your fingers to pinch your skin of your wrist. A small yelp slipped past your mouth.

Riki jumped slightly, startled. His hands immediately returned to yours, gently rubbing the affected area. "Noona," He chuckled, "This is real. All of it's real. My feelings for you are real."

"Just making sure," You laughed softly before sighing. A wave of heat washed over you and your mouth felt dry. What were you to say now? How do you respond to something so silly yet so valid?

"You can just say you like me, noona," Riki said, eyes beaming down at you in amusement.

Of course you had said that out loud.

You sucked in a sharp breath, slowly exhaling. "I... I like you, Riki," You mumbled.

Riki narrowed his eyes. "I can't hear you," He teased, grinning from ear to ear.

"Nope, nope." You retracted your hands. "I take it back. I'm taking it back... right now."

Riki laughed, reaching out for your hand, only to pull you into a hug. He lifted you gently, spinning you around with pure happiness rushing into his brain.

"Riki," You cried out, "I'm going to feel sick," You said, even though a full blown smile was on your face.

"It's okay," He retorted back, slowly coming to a stop and putting you back on the floor. "If you do..." His hand darted out to push back your hair behind your ear. "I'll take care of you. I promise."

After a brief minute, Riki turned to the empty area where Jungwon once stood. "Where did hyung go?"

"I think he left after you said I was beautiful," You cooed.

A flush of red tinted Riki's ears and cheeks. He folded his arms, getting defensive. "I... Well... it's true!"

© maeumi-jng | do not copy, post (repost is fine!) or translate anywhere else! thank you ♡︎ requests here!

[blackhairandbangs]

That's What Friends Are For

Seo Changbin x Reader

info/masterlist

word count: 2.8K

genre: smut smut!! but its a little fluffy in the beginning

summary: you head to the studio to return bestfriend!changbin's hoodie and end up talking a bit about your friendship

warnings: smut! minors DNI, oral (f recieving), unprotected sex (don’t do it!) maybe a little choking? Reader is called “baby”, “baby girl”, and “bunny” Let me know if I’m missing anything!

a/n: this is currently unedited... i was too excited to post this and haven't given it a second look-through yet.

reblogs are MORE than appreciated <3

You and Changbin had been friends for years. Chan had introduced the two of you just pre-debut and you both had been inseparable since. From late nights over at his dorm, to early mornings at the studio, he just seemed to get you in a way you others didn’t.

Him and Chan were spending another evening in the studio, finishing up songs for the next comeback. The booming of bass flooded out as you opened the soundproof door. 

“Hey,” you started to speak, giving the boy a small wave. “Hope I’m not interrupting, Binnie, you left your hoodie at my place last night and I know how cold the studio can get so I figured I would come run it by.” You saw the blush fall on his cheeks as you walked over to where he sat at the mixing table to hand him his tan hoodie. Truthfully, you had planned on stealing the hoodie, wearing it around the house, but you two were just friends and that didn’t seem like the appropriate “friend” action. A good friend would wash the hoodie, fold it up nice, and bring it to the owner’s place of employment, right?

“Oh my goodness, you are so thoughtful, thank you!” He takes the hoodie, slipping it over his broad shoulders. “Come have a seat! I was just finishing up this new mix before Chan gets back.” You nod your head, happy to have a chance to hang out with your friend. You loved watching him work. Something about the way his eyebrows furrowed when he was deep in thought, the way his hair would get ruffled underneath the booth headphones, the way he would bite his lip trying to get the audio effects just right, the way he… But all of the things you noticed couldn’t be anything more than platonic… You just loved to see your friend passionate about the things he enjoys and is good at. All friends love to see that!

“Do you want to hear a bit?” Changbin asks, snapping you out of your thoughts. You whip your head to look at him, taking the headphones he held out in his hands. 

You give him a sincere smile, “I would love to.”

He leans over the table, pressing a few buttons before leaning back in his chair to get a clear view of your reactions. You get engulfed by the sound, taping your hand on your leg as the beat carries. 

“Oh my God, Binnie, this is amazing!” You say, removing the headphones as the cut comes to an end. “My best friend has to be the most talented person in the world.”

Changbin gives a shy laugh at your praise. He is so grateful you enjoy his work, but the word “friend” hits him in his heart every time you say it. “I’m glad you like it,” He tries to hide his disappointment with a smile, just happy to have you here with him, even if it’s not in the way he wants.

“How has everything been going for you today?” he continues. You two saw each other the night before but were used to talking multiple times a day. However, his studio schedule left him with no free time to do so all day. 

“Oh you know, the usual,” You start. You look down at your lap, twiddling your thumbs a bit. “Just another failed date, I really need to get off these apps.” You give a small chuckle, hoping to move on from the topic. You had met a really nice guy through one of the many dating apps on your phone and had planned to meet for coffee earlier in the day. You waited at the shop for an hour before realizing he was not planning on showing up and went home where you threw yourself on the couch until you could muster the strength to get up and bring Changbin his hoodie. 

“I told you, you need to try meeting people in different ways!” He laughs. This was a conversation you two had often. You would constantly complain about all of your failed dating app dates. The dates you went on to clear your mind of the crush you had on your best friend. Your best friend would then suggest you meet people in person rather than on your phone. “Maybe you can find dates through hobbies, or maybe your friends?”

You give a small laugh before leaning closer to him. “You know, thats not a bad idea…have any friends I can date?” The question wasn’t serious, just a little joke to get a reaction out of him. You knew you didn’t want any of his friends, just him. 

Changbin laughs, scratching the back of his head. “Well, there’s me-” he starts before realizing what he was saying, “and Chan, of course.” His original comment was muffled and flew right over your head. “But, I don’t think you want to date Chan, hes practically married to that sound booth,” he says, gesturing to the open booth in front of the desk you two sat at. 

“Hmm… I don’t know, Chan is pretty cute…” You tease, avoiding eye contact with Changbin. What were you doing? Sure, Chan was good looking, but definitely not who you have been pining after. Actually, the guy you were into was sitting right next to you and you just told him you found his friend cute!

“Oh come on, I am not allowing you to date Chan,” Changbin says, playfully hitting your arm. 

“Ow!” you laugh, rubbing where he hit, even though it wasn’t even close to actually being in pain. “I’m only joking, Binnie.” You take the opportunity to lean your head on his shoulder, the contact making your ears hot. “Besides, I’d choose you over Chan any day.”

Changbin moves his shoulder so you pull your head up to look at him. He gives a small smirk, “Oh, really? Hm, well you know I’d have to think about that,” he says to tease you. He wasn’t sure where this confidence was coming from. Maybe it was the lack of sleep, but he was having a hard time keeping his feelings in tonight. He lets himself come back to the moment, remembering who you are. “You’re quite interesting, but our friendship will always come first,” he says, hoping you couldn't read the sadness in his eyes. 

“Right,” you speak quickly, looking away, leaning back to your chair. The space between you grew back to what it should have been. “And we are really good friends.”

“Yes we are, and I am so happy about it,” He gives a fake smile and places his hand on your knee. “You’re really special to me…” his voice trails of as he sees the blush growing across your face. He rolls his chair closer to you reaching his other hand out to gently cup your cheek. 

“I might have been teasing you earlier about Chan, but I mean it when I say you’re special to me. I..I like you, you know?” 

Your blush goes deeper, feeling his warm hand on your face. Sure, you two had spent many nights cuddles up watching a movie, but something about this contact felt different. It felt intimate. 

“Binnie, please don’t play with me like this…” You look down, not wanting to show the disappointment in your eyes. “You like me as a friend, right?

Changbin turns his head the other way, pulling himself away from you. “Yeah,” he nods, “As a friend, I promise. I’m just messing with you,” he says, trying to cover his tracks, hoping none of this is making you uncomfortable. “Friends do that, right?” He asks, turning his attention back to you, wrapping an arm around your shoulder pulling you into almost a sort of side hug. 

You give a small laugh, “Yeah, totally! Friends can do a lot of things.”

He releases his arm from you, meeting your eyes. “And what kind of things can friends do?” 

You look down once again to hide the color of your cheeks, which you are almost certain are about as red as a tomato at this point. “Oh you know…” you trail off, trying to think of an answer. “Friends can cuddle, and…” you don’t allow yourself to finish the thought, feeling the tension sitting in the air. 

Changbin leans in, placing a small kiss on the top of your head, sending a shiver straight down your spine. “Well then, friend,” he says, placing an emphasis on that last word, “How about we cuddle for a bit? I could use a break from this song.” He pats his lap, motioning for you to come over. Without hesitation, you are straddling his lap, head resting in the crook of his neck. 

He smiles softly, feeling your warmth against him. “Good friends,” he sighs, reaching a hand to stroke your hair. “I’d say we make quite the comfortable pair.” 

None of this was feeling real to you, you had to bring yourself back to reality. You lift your head from his shoulder, “How much is left to finish on the song?”

He gives a small chuckle, feeling your breath on his neck. “Oh not much, actually. We’re almost done, just a few more lines,” he starts to rock you gently, feeling your hearts beat in sync.

“That’s good,” you reply, looking up and leaning close to him. “Binnie, just out of curiosity, is there anything else you think close friends could do?” You run a hand through his hair, loosing control of your brain. The words came out without a thought.

Changbin’s heart races slightly over the close proximity and your question. 

“Well, good friends can share secrets, and support each other…” he trails off feeling the warm breath of your lips above his. “But were just friends, remember”

You look him up and down, “Binnie, if we’re just friends, why can I practically feel your heart jumping out of your chest right now?” You let yourself be bold, knowing you need him in ways he will never understand. 

He swallows hard, unable to meet your eyes. “Friends…um friends…do that…we’re um…just really good…” He struggles to get the words out, reaching out to touch the side of your face. 

You decide to just go for it, letting all rationality leave your brain. Your hand comes up to grab his chin, turning his head to look at you. “Now, as a good friend, does this do anything to you?” you ask, practically feeling the heat of his cheeks radiating into the air. 

His breath hitches, your faces inches apart. “Well, um… a good friend might be curious about the feelings of another close friend.”

“I think this good friend has maybe had strong feelings for the other good friend, bit was too scared to ruin anything.” His heart races even more, wanting nothing more than to say the words he has been waiting to say for years now. 

“A good friend might have those sorts of feelings too…maybe..” You cut him off before he could finish, finally bringing your faces together, letting yourself lean into the kiss, your arms snaking around his neck. 

Changbin moans softly into the kiss, gripping your hips as he  leans back in the chair, allowing himself to be pinned against it by your weight. He pulls away momentarily, looking you up and down.

“Your lips, feel so soft against mine, I’ve always wanted to taste them.” A shiver sends through your body, feeling his grip tighten on your hips, leaning in to take more of his lips in yours. 

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted this.”

Changbin’s tongue sweeps against your lips gently, begging for entry as he deepens the kiss. He is completely lost in the moment, his mind blanketed by the desire to have all of you.

Your lips part, allowing him access inside. A small moan leaves your throat as the kiss intensifies. You pull away for air, your mouth still lingering close.

“Baby, when was Chan supposed to get back?”

“Not for another hour at least,” he starts, peppering your neck with kisses as you through your head back. “He had some things to take care of.”

“Perfect,” you lean in to take him into another string kiss, this one feeling different. It lingered with lust and need. 

He pulls your hips closer, his tongue gliding against yours. A small whimper escapes the back of his throat as his hands travel up and down your back. You grind softly against him, feeling his hard grow underneath you.

“Fuck, yes…” he moans, kissing every part of your lips, down to your jawline and neck. He growls low in his throat as his hand moves down to grab your ass. “Tell me what you want, baby”

You moan, continuing to grind your hips, wanting to feel more. “Anything please, I just want you.” 

He takes this as an invite to stand up. You allow your legs to wrap around his waist as he carries you to lean against the back wall. 

“Binnie,” you whimper, feeling the contact of your head against the wall. 

“Fuck, that name,” Changbin breaths out, his hands exploring every inch of you. He tugs on the hem of your shirt and you lift your arms, allowing him to take it off in one swift motion. 

“You are so fucking sexy like this. All needy for me,” He starts to speak, lowering himself to his knees as his hands grip your thighs.

“Binnie, please” you moan out, desperate for his touch. He takes this as an invitation to swiftly remove your pants, leaving you in nothing but a bra and panties.

“Let Binnie make you feel good, baby” He says, brushing against your sensitive folds, pushing your underwear aside to leave kisses on your clit. He licks a stripe down you before inserting a finger inside of you, thrusting with precision. 

Your head hits the wall as you moan. “Fuck, how are you so good at this?” Your words come out as jumbles as he continues to please you.

“Come on, baby. I’m not stopping until you cum all over my fingers,” Changbin murmurs, picking up the pace of his fingers inside you, working you up to the edge.

Your hands reach down to grip his hair, feeling more pleasure than you’ve ever felt before. 

“Go ahead, cum for me baby. Let it all go,” he whispers against your clit, sending your legs shaking above him. He feels your walls clench around his fingers and presses his mouth against your clit one last time before standing up and sucking everything off his fingers. His breathing is ragged as he watches you come down from your high.

“Fuck, youre incredible, bunny.” You pull him into a needy kiss, moaning as you taste yourself on his lips. Changbin hums into the kiss, running up and down your back as he holds you close, “I could do this all night.”

“Please,” you whine, “Binnie, I need you to fill me up.” He laughs, picking you up and throwing you down on the couch that lays in the back corner of the studio. Changbin gets on top of you, leaning down for his tongue to invade your mouth once more. Your hands reach down to tug on the waist band of his sweatpants, pulling them and his boxers down. 

“Are you sure about this?” he asks, pulling away from the kiss slowly. You nod your head, looking at him, the hunger in his eyes making you flutter. He takes his cock in his hands lining up with your entrance before pushing himself in slowly.

“Tell me when I can move, baby”

“Please, Binnie, I need you,” You whimper, needing to feel him take all of you. With a hum, he starts a steady pace, hitting every spot inside of you. You throw your head back in pleasure, moaning out his name, his cock hitting places you never even knew about.

“I’m not gonna last much longer, you feel so good,” He whines, reaching a hand up to snake around your neck, squeezing gently. “Come on baby, cum for me, you can do it.” 

You feel your stomach tighten as you reach your high, trying to use your hand to muffle your screams, remembering where you two were. You clench around him as his body shudders in pleasure as his seed fills you up completely. He reaches down, planting kisses down your neck, not yet pulling out from inside of you.

You speak out, breathless between kisses, “You should probably finish that song before Chan gets back…”

“Mhm..,” he hums, pulling out and sitting up on the couch, his breathing finally stable. “Come here, baby girl,” he says as he pulls you up into his arms, nuzzling his nose against your hair. “You’re amazing.”

Your head falls in the crook of his neck, taking in everything that just happened.

“I take it we’re not good friends anymore, huh?” you ask, giving him a small laugh and placing a kiss on his cheek. 

He tucks a strand of hair behind your ear before returning a giggle to your question. “Definitely not,” His voice is soft as he leans your foreheads together. “You're mine now, and I promise I’m never letting you go.”

A/N: there ya go! this was my first time writing smut in years so I do hope this turned out okay! my requests and asks are open if anyone wanted to pop some hot takes, suggestions, comments or anything else you may want to say. Thank you for coming along with me as I finally return from my 3 year long fanfic hiatus. Happy Holidays guys!

[averagewriter-inthedark]

Lover 💗 | Bradley Bradshaw Imagine

TGM masterlist

Characters & Pairings: Bradley Bradshaw x singer!reader (female/romance)

Content Warnings: fluff, mentions of sexism, references to pop culture, profanity | female!reader (she/her) | wc: 5.6k

Requested 📨 yes/no (for @auroradawnwrites 💗)

Premise : When it came to her love life, singer and songwriter Y/n L/n had a reputation where it felt like the world was against her to the point she doubted ever finding her perfect match. Being in the industry for so long made it difficult to envision what a life with her potential soulmate would be like. But sometimes great things come to people who are patient. And finding the person who made Y/n feel like the only girl in the world had that reputation flicker away like dust on a bookshelf.

Note: I know I keep apologizing for the long waits in my requests but I promise it’s because of having to balance school, random shit happening in my life, and wanting to put out a developed, well-thought out story that the requested person deserves 🥹 and I realized about week ago when I started writing this one after finally getting to it after it was sent in February. @auroradawnwrites I saw that you posted last month that you were leaving your blog but if you happen to see this on another account or still have the notifications on for that blog just know I’m so sorry for this taking so long and I hope it was everything you imagined 😭

Songs headcanonned for singer!reader: ‘Love Story,’ ‘Bad Blood,’ ‘Look What You Made Me Do,’ ‘Getaway Car’ ‘You Need To Calm Down’ by Taylor Swift. ‘Love’ by Lana Del Rey. Albums mentioned that are headcanonned for singer!reader: ‘Lover’, ‘1989’ (I just changed it to 1986 to suit the headcanonned year of birth for reader), ‘Reputation,’ ‘Fearless,’ ‘Red’

——————————

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome back our next guest,” Jimmy Fallon grins to the audience, arm slightly raising towards the curtains. “She’s been a friend to The Tonight Show for a long time. Here to celebrate twenty years since her debut and to talk about her newest album ‘Lover,’ singer and songwriter—the one and only, Y/n L/n!!”

There’s no need to turn on the sign reading ‘Applause,’ because the audience are on their feet when the curtains draw open slightly to reveal the beaming popstar. People are waving frantically, whistling, some even on the verge of tears at the fact they were in the presence of their idol. It was even hard hearing the band play from the noise

Y/n smiled the entire walk to Jimmy, blowing kisses at the crowd before embracing the man in a hug and settling down on the arm chair. “Wow, wow, wow,” he shouted, watching her give one last wave as he sat in his own chair. “Hi, Y/n.”

“Hi, Jimmy! It’s wonderful to see you again.”

“It’s great to see you too, it’s been awhile since we’ve had you on, huh?” Both make faces indicating they were thinking about her last appearance on the show.

“I think it’s been almost…six years,” Y/n tapped her lips with a finger. “Pre-pandemic I believe—because I haven’t really done much since 2019.”

“Yeah, you took a bit of a break.”

“A much needed one,” she chuckled, “But it feels so great to be back. I’ve been taking this time to really put time into discovering who I am as a person and what is next for me. I’m so grateful for the fans who’ve supported me all this time—I know,” she looks to the camera, “I know I kept you waiting, but fear not, I am back and better than ever.” The statement ignites a holler and applause from the crowd.

Jimmy claps with the audience, “That’s what I’m talking about. What can you tell us about this new music you’ve been working on? I know I mentioned your upcoming one, but you actually announced you will be releasing another at the end of this year, correct?”

Instantly Y/n lights up, “That’s right, Jimmy. For starters Lover is probably my most personal album to date. During the pandemic I basically shut myself off from everyone—and the world because I deleted the social media apps off my phone,” there’s a light chuckle from the crowd, “which made everyone go crazy thinking I died. But I can assure you I was just trying to put all my time and energy into writing, producing, selecting which songs would go on the track list. Each song is there for a specific reason—telling a story per say, and I feel listeners will be able to relate in some way.”

“Why the name ‘Lover,’?” Jimmy asked with curiosity, “is it a metaphor for the story or does it have a deeper meaning?” Judging by the cheesy smile Y/n started to do, Jimmy straightened his posture. “Are you….?”

“It’s for the lovers, you know?” Y/n shrugged nonchalantly. Those around didn’t buy it, leaning forward in their seats with curious eyes. “Yeah it’s about love and those feelings where you think your heart is about to burst from your chest. Like I said, many will be able to relate to it.”

Jimmy gave a look, “So did someone in your life inspire it perhaps?”

Instead of answering right at that second, Y/n remained grinning as the face of inspiration and the owner of her heart appeared in her mind. His gorgeous hazel eyes glowing under the sunlight. The feeling of his warm body against hers each time he held her in his arms. Tickling sensations from his mustache when he rained kisses across her skin. The sound of his laugh whenever he made a joke or she did something silly just to see him smile. Fingers dancing across the piano while they sang their favorite songs in their own private concert.

Her lover. Her life. Her reason for waking up everyday in an endless state of bliss. The person who inspired nearly every song on the album, best describing it as a love letter to him.

Relationships and romance had been a complicated part of Y/n’s life and career. A reputation often frowned upon despite only seeing a small picture.

It all started one summer day in Nashville, Tennessee. 17-year-old Y/n had big dreams and aspirations of being a singer, spending her free time playing guitar and writing songs about teenage experiences. Growing up in Tennessee, the birthplace of country music, Y/n was surrounded by the legacy of icons like Dolly Parton, The Dixie Chicks, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Reba McEntire, and Kenny Rogers. It was all she listened to growing up, though she did dabble in pop and R&B—going on to cite Aaliyah, TLC, Whitney Houston, and David Bowie as influences in her music.

“I hear the high school is having a talent show Friday night,” her coworker hummed, handing over the now clean plate to be dried. “Did you sign up?”

“No,” Y/n tiredly exhaled. It was pushing 8 o’clock and she still had one more hour until closing. Working at a popular diner gave Y/n the ability to save for college and an apartment, but it meant working more hours than what she legally was supposed to—on top of balancing school and band. “I have a pre-cal test on monday so I planned to stay in and study.”

“Oh c’mon! You’ve been itching to sign up all year—why back out now? All for a test you know you’ll get an A on?”

Y/n rolled her eyes, taking another plate to dry, “That’s reaching and you know it.”

“Y/n, you’re one of the smartest people in our grade. Literally will be in the top five come graduation. It’s a Friday night and the whole school is gonna be there,” her friend pleads to her, “you’ve got a voice that’s meant to be heard and songs that should be on the radio.”

The teen gives a ‘I don’t think so,’ shrug, “Eh, I feel my style is not exactly what country music is looking for.”

“Maybe so…but maybe it’s what it needs.”

Guitar in hand and shaking like a leaf, Y/n pulled everything in her to drum her fingers on the strings. The spotlight shining down on her made her squint, unable to see into the crowd save for the silhouette of their heads.

“Just breathe, Y/n,” she mentally told herself. It was dead quiet in the auditorium after a light applause when the drama teacher called her name. And since she wasn’t using an electric guitar, there was no way to hook hers up to the speakers. “Breathe and let your voice do the work.”

Clearing her throat, her lips curled into a shy smile, “This is an original song I’ve been working on. Hope you like it.” Slowly the tune began to echo through the auditorium. Y/n’s voice was shaky at the beginning, but soon found confidence when she closed her eyes and pictured herself in the comfort of her own room.

“We were both young when I first saw you.”

“I close my eyes and the flashback starts, I’m standing’ there.”

“On a balcony in summer air.”

Those in the crowd perked up, schoolmates looking at each other with impressed gazes.

“See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns.”

“See you make your way through the crowd, and say, “Hello.”

“Little did I know.”

Finally finding her rhythm, a genuine grin broke out on her face.

“That you were Romeo, you were throwin’ pebbles.”

“And my daddy said, “Stay away from Juliet—and I was cryin’ on the staircase,”

“Beggin’ you, “Please don’t go,” she let her voice drag out the ‘go’, igniting jaws to be dropped. “And I said.”

“Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone. I'll be waiting, all there’s left to do is run.”

“You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess.”

“It’s a love story, baby, just say, ‘Yes.’”

Needless to say, Y/n went home with the winning trophy….and a meeting with Capitol Records Nashville.

Going to college was no longer the plan for Y/n once her signature hit the contract. 3 albums and a promise to take country music by storm was the new future. Staring as soon as her tassel turned from right to left with the class of 2004. Y/n packed up her tiny Honda Civic with everything she had, kissed her family goodbye with plans to see them for the holidays and settled into a cozy studio apartment smack in the middle of Nashville.

“You have a unique voice and lyrical direction, Y/n,” Randy Kingston, one of the execs at CRN said to her one day. “You’re not full country—by that I mean there’s a pop element you bring to the table. Country-Pop if you will.”

Y/n didn’t know how to respond except nod, “Uhhh yeah? I listen to a lot of different genres—-Pop being a big one. A-and I like to experiment by adding different….flavors to my music.” Her expression turns nervous, “is that gonna be a problem, sir?”

Randy rubbed the bottom of his chin with a hand, “No, I don’t think it will. It’s refreshing and something new. Frankly I think you’re gonna do well with the youngin’s. Your age range will likely be the best receivers.”

Turns out Randy was right. Releasing her first two singles were met with wide recognition from teenagers and young adults. Topping the country music charts for several weeks. During that time Y/n began working on her debut self-titled album on top of filming her first music video for ‘Love Story’. When it dropped, it didn’t just get noticed within the country scene. MTV released it during their early morning showings most people played when getting ready for school and work. Doing so allowed ‘Love Story’ to get more attention that people who were not even country fans were purchasing the single.

“Platinum?!” Y/n screamed at the sight of the framed record indicating ‘Love Story’ sold one million copies.

“Platinum,” Randy grinned, presenting it to her. “Well done, kiddo. You deserve it.” He also dropped the ball that Ellen Degeneres called to schedule an appearance—which nearly had Y/n drop the frame in her hands.

The Ellen Degeneres Show was the first public interview Y/n had ever done. And….it was the first time she was questioned about her love life. Something that would become her greatest nemesis throughout her entire career.

“So your song ‘Love Story’ is all about love, yes?” Ellen asked, igniting a laugh from the audience given the title of the song made it obvious what it was about.

“Yes.”

“So does that mean you got some love going on for yourself? Anyone who inspired this for you?”

“U-Uh, no?” It came out more like a question, causing the audience to laugh while she nervously smiled. “Not really—I-I’m not dating anyone currently, but the song sorta came from my love for romance novels and movies. Everyone desires love,” she nods to herself, “and I wanted to write something that people could relate to. Plus I love Romeo and Juliet—which is the big inspiration for the song.”

Following the appearance on Ellen, Y/n focused on writing music and releasing her albums. Her unique sound of combining country with elements of pop and R&B had listeners from all over the world drawn to her. It was a new era of country music.

But not everyone was very accepting of it.

Older generations and die hard lovers of traditional country were very unwelcoming to Y/n. They felt she didn’t belong in the genre and was better suited for pop. Though Y/n agreed to some extent, she feared making the transition from country to full pop wouldn’t be wise. She was still roughly new to the industry, trusting the judgment of her label who she was contracted to do 3 albums for. So she continued to fulfill her duty until the right moment came.

By the end of the first decade in the 21st century, Y/n had established herself one of the leading artists in country music with four Grammys, six MTV Moonmen, four AMA’s, five Billboard awards and 12 CMA’s. She appeared twice on SNL, performed at Dick Clark’s New Year Rockin’ Eve, and even collaborated with Miranda Lambert.

Yet the media liked to only talk about Y/n’s dating history.

In the first year of her career, Y/n briefly dated Jesse McCartney after first meeting at the 2005 Kids Choice Awards. Shortly after their breakup she was seen with Harry Potter actor Tom Felton, but nothing came out of it. The ‘date’ the media thought had actually been a handout between several of their mutual friends where they happened to be pictured smiling and laughing. After that incident Y/n did get into a five month long relationship with Leonardo DiCaprio, who was twelve years older than her and sparked endless conversation in the media.

Then in 2007-2009 Y/n became involved with Eddie Redmayne following their introduction to each other at Ellen Degeneres’ birthday party. They remained friends afterwards, but their relationship inspired a lot of Y/n’s work which resulted in people criticizing her for making too many break up songs.

“You’ve had quite the track record when it comes to the romance scene, Y/n,” David Letterman voiced during her appearance on his show. The singer was overcome with immediate dread. Again was she subjected to questions about her love life when it was no one’s business. But of course, if there’s one thing men like David have, it’s the audacity. “Which brings me to my next questions: are you dating anyone? And are they gonna have a song about them once you two break up?”

Now unfortunately it was common knowledge late night show hosts were disrespectful towards their guests and didn’t know what boundaries were. Though this was known, however, there was still the underlying pressure to keep silent by smiling and pushing through. Sometimes playing it off like it doesn’t affect you was better than having an outburst and being criticized more by the media. Displaying any offense would label them emotional and sensitive.

Though she wanted nothing more than to walk off the set and cry in her dressing room, Y/n swallowed the lump in her throat and answered as calmly as she could muster. “I’m not seeing anyone at the moment. I just want to focus on my music and what comes from my heart is what I put out.”

When Y/n did get into a relationship or was seen on a friendly date—hell even being spotted when out with a male friend for lunch had paparazzi and tabloids bombarding her.

“Is love in the air….again? Country music’s it girl, 24-year-old Y/n L/n, was seen holding hands with Australian actor Xavier Samuel who’s playing Riley Biers in the upcoming third installment of The Twilight Saga. Just this past March Y/n was linked to the son of Tennessee’s Attorney General. Let’s not forget L/n was in a two year romance with Eddie Redmayne before calling it quits last fall. Fans are starting to notice a pattern when it comes to L/n’s relationships and album releases. Should we expect her new single to drop within the next year? And will this romance with Samuel blossom into something long term or end as a spur of the moment flame?”

Notice how all the attention is Y/n and her life? Never once were the men she dated ever asked questions like she was—even if they had a history rivaling hers. Take Leo for example. The women he dated only got younger than Y/n as the years went on and people barely bat an eye.

After the release of her third studio album with CRN, Y/n had a tough decision to make. By that point her last album had more pop than country. The reaction of the fans was pretty much, “You need to just label yourself a pop artist now.” “‘Red’ was literally 90% Pop with 10% Country.” “Stop saying you’re a country music star when the last album you put out was anything but country.”

So…it was safe to say it was time to make the move to a different genre. Thankfully Capitol Records in Los Angeles was ready with the pen in hand to sign Y/n on. There she had creative control on what she put out and Y/n was excited to get started on a new era in her life.

2012 would go down as the year where Y/n was on the edge of her seat with how her career would go. Fans were mixed about her going to pop despite her recent music having mostly pop elements. Then there was the fact she was dating Tyler Hoechlin from Teen Wolf which had fangirls hating her guts for dating their celebrity crush.

What’s sad is Y/n was used to that reception whenever she was in a relationship with a public figure. First Jesse then Tom, Leo, Eddie, and Xavier. Can’t forget the times she got caught on dates with Robert Pattinson, Micheal B. Jordan, and Chris Evans. Then there were the incidents where the paparazzi captured her making out with Sebastian Stan at an after party and leaving the 2011 Grammys with Nate Buzoliac before he made it big as Kol Mikaelson in The Vampire Diaries.

Getting a break was not in the cards for the singer.

When things ended with Tyler in 2015, Y/n told herself she would not date anyone for awhile. Her album ‘1986’ was met with critical acclaim and positive reception from fans, earning her more awards to her growing collection, including the Grammy for Album of the Year. The entire time on tour she focused on having fun and not worrying about what people thought of her. Yeah she still got questions from interviews and hosts about dating she’d simply reply with, “I’m single, and let’s not entertain that further. Next question.”

@ inmyreputationera: I guess @Y/nL/n86 decided romance isn’t exactly her thing. I wonder how that’ll change her music.

@ stanningselenerr: not me checking @ Y/ndatingupdates daily for any new info.

Those were just the handful of tweets Y/n saw everyday on her Twitter feed. It got to the point she’d have to mute notifications whenever she was tagged. While she hated doing so because she loved interacting with fans, the singer needed time away from the constant surveillance of her personal life.

So fast forward to mid-summer of 2018. Y/n hadn’t put out an album in nearly three years nor had she been dating anyone. Yeah people still asked her from time to time though she learned to not let it affect her. Honestly it was a breath of fresh air. She was happy, healthy, and living her best life. Putting her heart and soul into songwriting which was heavily inspired by the reputation she’d garnered since her debut. Not to mention developing closer bonds with her friends and family after making the impulse decision in 2017 to move back to Tennessee. It felt good to be back home. Returning to her roots and the place that started it all after being away for so many years. It was a great time.

Now she was due back to Los Angeles to meet with her manager and producers. Y/n was ready to get back into the studio as much as her fans were telling her they were waiting for new music. With a first-class ticket in hand, Y/n boarded her red-eye flight from Nashville International to LAX and settled in for the five hour flight. It would have them landing at just after 3am Pacific time and while Y/n wanted to rest, she could not for the life of her sleep on a plane.

Approaching her seat Y/n noticed a man in a military uniform seated in the seat beside hers. “Excuse me,” she caught his attention, his head raising where he put two and two together by her hand pointing to the window seat.

“Oh sorry, ma’am,” it took everything in Y/n not to stare at him when he got up. He was very handsome. In his uniform, hazel eyes and sun kissed skin. The most notable feature was his mustache that most men could not pull off yet he seemed to.

“Do you need help with that?” The question pulled her from her mini daydream. He was referring to the carryon bag in her hand.

“Oh I got it—.”

“It’s no problem,” he was already taking the bag from her, securing it in the overhead compartment.

“Thank you so much,” Y/n thanked him while moving into the row, placing her purse in her lap when she sat down. The man returned to his seat just as the next wave of passengers boarded.

Manny, her personal bodyguard who’d been with Y/n since her first tour, was seated in front of her. When they got the tickets he purposely told her to have them separated saying, “I need my beauty sleep and while I love you, you will talk the entire time.” Sure enough when Y/n leaned over to ask him a question Manny was already knocked out, buckled in with his eye mask over his eyes and earbuds in.

Well that left Y/n with little to do. And when she went to retrieve her Kindle she groaned at the realization she forgot to turn back her reading light.

“Everything okay?” She saw the man in her peripheral vision slightly turn his head.

“Yeah just…annoyed with myself. I thought I packed my reading light but I must’ve misplaced it.” God that made her sound like a grandma.

His response was an ‘ah’ sound. “Wish I could help ya there, but I’m not usually equipped with something like that.”

“It’s fine,” she chuckled, buckling in her seatbelt. “It was to pass the time—I can’t sleep on flights. Even though it's midnight and I should feel tired.”

“I’m the same,” he suddenly extended a hand, “I’m Bradley by the way.”

Hesitant to reply in case he were to react to her name, Y/n pushed back any concern and gave a warm smile as she took his hand, “I’m Y/n. Nice to meet you, Bradley.”

“Y/n…” her name was repeated slowly, Bradley’s eyes consorting as though they were deep in thought. A wave of dread and nerves coursed through her. Then Bradley grinned, “Oh! I thought you looked familiar. You sing that song—what was it, ‘Love Story?’ Sorry I don’t mean to sound weird,” he let go of her hand when he realized he was still shaking it. “And I don’t want to bother you. I just can’t help but go, ‘wow!’”

“No-no-no, it’s okay! You’re totally fine.” Before long the two fell into conversation following the typical pre-flight announcements. Y/n was amazed by how natural it felt talking to Bradley. She discovered he was a Naval aviator, coming home from an assignment overseas and was flying to L.A to visit some friends. Bradley had been a graduate of UVA and attended the elite Fighter Weapons School, marking ten years with the navy that year.

“Forgive me for admitting this,” he said after the first hour into the flight, lowering his voice when a passenger trying to sleep glared at them. “But while I know who you are…I’m not really familiar with your work. Y-yeah I mentioned your one song but that’s literally all I know,” he laughed nervously. “My taste in music, I’m embarrassed to say aloud, is very limited.”

Y/n tilts her head, “how limited?”

“Uh, I pretty much only listen to the 1950s all the way to the 80s. Dabbling in what’s popular nowadays once in a blue moon. My karaoke songs are all Jerry Lewis” Bradley gives a gentle smile, “And while I can easily do a Google search, I’d much rather hear it from you if you don’t mind telling me.”

What’s that saying again? Oh that’s right, ‘And the rest was history.’

No but literally Y/n could barely contain her attraction to Bradley after he said that to her. She hoped to God she didn’t look like a fool as she spoke of her career and cool places she’s been. Time flew as they talked. In fact the two were so caught up in their conversation they talked the remainder of the journey to L.A, ending with the exchange of phone numbers and the promise to meet up.

It was decided right from the get go that Bradley and Y/n wanted to keep their relationship hidden. Regardless if the one date went somewhere, the last thing Y/n wanted was to have Bradley in the public eye and cause complications with his job. And let’s not forget her album was releasing within the next year. So, there was going to be a lot of attention on her wherever she went.

“The fact we’ve managed to keep this quiet for a year is outstanding,” Y/n said through a mouthful of cake. Bradley had surprised her with her favorite kind, the icing on the top reading, ‘Happy Anniversary, baby—we’ve got them fooled.’

She couldn’t believe they were already marking one year. Time didn’t seem to exist when she was with Bradley. He was everything she envisioned in a partner. Caring, compassionate, funny, intuitive. Listened to her concerns and communicated. Never made her doubt herself or paid attention to the media.

When she brought up her reputation, or better yet the one the press painted her out to have, Bradley stopped her and said, “who you have history with is not my business—unless they did something to hurt you because then I’ll have a problem with them. And those people talking nonsense about you have nothing else better to do with themselves. I care about you, Y/n. The only one who has influence on how I see you, is you. And I see you as the most beautiful, hardworking, intelligent person who knows her worth. Fuck what they say.”

Yeah that night ended with her jumping his bones.

Bradley took a fork full of his own into his mouth, “I for sure thought they were gonna catch us the night I snuck you on base.” After their first meeting in L.A, Bradley had returned to Virginia while Y/n remained to work on her album. It was a couple months before she went home to Tennessee, then for the holidays they planned to meet up when Y/n was on her way to New York. Sneaking her on base involved the two going undercover where they met at a discreet location and having Y/n shove herself under blankets in his backseat.

The singer laughed at the memory, “Thank Goodness for Shania. Had she not posted that photo to ‘tip off’ the paps then we’d have a whole different outcome.” Bradley laughed with her, placing his fork down on the napkin.

“I’m sorry I can’t be there for your release day,” Bradley had been called back to Top Gun for a special detachment by the Navy. Unfortunately the timing was right when her sixth studio album would drop. The details were still unclear, but that it was a team mission where he would compete against his colleagues. Y/n had yet to meet any of Bradley’s friends and vice versa. The only people in her circle who knew of their relationship were her manager, Manny, and family. But when you signed up to keep your love life private, it meant friends were lost in the dark.

“It’s okay, Roo,” she told him. “We’ll have our own celebration.” Another cake, this time with the design being the album’s cover art on it, was brought over the day before Bradley was set to fly to San Diego and the two had their private release party with just the two of them. The music was blasting through the speakers, Y/n jumping up and down with Bradley who was singing at the top of his lungs.

“Band-aids don’t fix bullet holes! You say sorry just for show! If you live like that, you live with ghosts!”

“I’m in a getaway car. I left you in a motel bar. Put the money in a bag and I stole the key—that was the last time you ever saw me—Oh!”

“Ooh, look what you made me do! Look what you made me do! Look what you just made me do!”

Champagne was popped, kisses were shared, and they danced the entire night until it came time to sleep.

They FaceTimed whenever Bradley had free time, even if it was in the later hours of the night. Those three weeks Y/n felt her heart long for Bradley in a way it had never done with her previous partners. She felt his excitement, his distress. The day he left for the mission Y/n paced around her home for hours—unable to focus on anything and overcome with nausea. It was as though her mind was trying to tell her something was wrong.

Relief came at around nightfall, the singer tripping as she raced to grab her phone when it rang. Seeing Bradley’s picture pop up had the breath she was holding in release. “Oh thanks God,” was the first thing she said.

“I’m coming back to you,” was his response. Tears pricked in the corner of her eyes, hand going to her chest to calm the rapid beat of her heart.

“I would expect nothing less, Lieutenant Bradshaw.”

Several celebrations were in store for the couple when Bradley returned to the east coast. Not only did he receive a medal from the Navy for his brave actions but got a promotion. Y/n’s album hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the first hour of its release, prompting a record number of sales in a single night for the singer.

“I’m so proud of you, Bradley,” she praised, patting the new patch on his uniform indicating he was now a Lieutenant Commander. She was met with a sweet kiss on the lips.

“Thank you, baby. I’m proud of you too—you’re gonna win everything come awards season.”

During the 2020 Grammy’s, Bradley leaped from the couch in absolute joy when Y/n’s name was called for the winner of Pop Album of the Year and Record of The Year. She missed out on Album of the Year, but that was okay. She was now the owner of 12 Grammys in total. Coming home the following night Y/n’s home was decorated with balloons, a banner reading, ‘Congratulations!!’ and of course, a cake with an edible Grammy topper.

And so it came time for a break. Six albums in a fifteen-year long career, Y/n kept it under the wraps that she wouldn’t be putting out another album for some time. Fans had started to notice she was more uplifted and vibrant in interviews, posting things on social media that were suspicious. For example she uploaded a photo of red roses, captioning it “the symbol of love.” Then there was the screenshotting of well known love songs and posting them on her story.

@ Y/nstansince04: is it me or does @Y/nL/n86 appear happier than usual? Is she hiding something?

@ getawaycarlover_: @Y/nL/n86 totally has a man or someone in her life. That recent Instagram post had all the hints.

@ fearlessdefender: I bet it’s a normal guy she’s with and not a celebrity. If it was we’d probably would’ve known by now who it was.

@ Y/ns_red_lipstick: honestly if Y/n does have a boyfriend then I’m happy for her and wish them the best. She deserves to be happy and we should respect their privacy. She doesn’t have to share with the world if it’s their desire to keep it secret.

Right when the world went to chaos at the brink of a global pandemic, Y/n thought, “you know what, I’m gonna just delete my social media—not my accounts but the apps on my phone. I want to go off the grid for a bit and just enjoy my family and boyfriend.” Not having the constant shadow of social media on her back made it easier for the singer on the break she desired.

Everyday she fell more in love with Bradley. She had been visiting him when quarantine happened so they basically went to the next step in their relationship by living together. Again, it all felt natural. They settled into a domestic life with each other early on with homemade dinners, movie nights, nerf gun wars, and karaoke contests. Bradley on the piano and Y/n with her guitar, being each other’s act and audience in their private concert.

“You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain. Too much love drives a man insane. You broke my will, but what a thrill. Goodness gracious, great balls of fire!”

“Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone. I’ll be waiting, all there’s left to do is run. You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess. It’s a love story, baby just say, ‘Yes!’”

Late nights were reserved for drives with the speakers blasting. Y/n camera roll would be filled with endless videos of the two, but mostly of Bradley jamming to his favorite songs. More often than usual the thought of, “I’m gonna marry this man,” would cross her mind.

“You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog. Cryin’ all the time. You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog. Cryin’ all the time. Well, you ain’t never caught a rabbit and you ain’t no friend of mine!”

Y/n would lean her body out the window when it was a clear road where they were the only ones, hair blowing and the light from the moon shining down on her. Her beautiful voice carried in the night sky, Bradley in absolute awe of her and wanting to capture the moment forever.

“I came home in the mornin’ light—my mother says, ‘when you gonna live your life right?’ Oh momma dear, we’re not the fortunate ones. And girls, they wanna have fun. Oh girls just wanna have fun!”

But was supposed to be maybe two years at most…..ended up being close to five.

Honestly Y/n was surprised to still have fans. To say they were shitting bricks when she out of the blue dropped a cover art for her upcoming single, ‘Love’ would be an understatement. They were losing their fucking minds.

@ Y/nwhereforartthou: IS THIS REALLY HAPPENING OH MY FUCKING SHIT! PLEASE TELL ME THIS AINT A JOKE Y/N IS COMING BACK AFTER FIVE FUCKING YEARS

@ stilladirectionerbby: *insert Micheal Scott gif* OH MY GOD IT’S HAPPENING—Y/N’S RELEASING NEW MUSIC

@ MTV: when all hope was lost, our prayers were answered….by @Y/nL/n86

Then she announced in the same week they were getting not one but two albums that year.

@ themadalorianswife: TWO ALBUMS?!?! WE GETTING TWO?!?! GOD FUCKING BLESS

@ daddyisastateofmind: oh mother is spoiling us after making us wait so long and I absolutely am here for it.

@ neveroutofstyle_: love how @Y/nL/n86 basically said “this is my sorry for falling off the face of the earth, please forgive me.” On behalf of the fandom, we forgive you queen.

And wanna know something else?

What was even more impressive than becoming a ghost for five years with little to no sightings by the paparazzi, was that she and Bradley had yet to be discovered. Her lover was just as good of a ghost as she was. Their secret was like trying to find the Holy Grail.

Hidden like a treasure the world desired to unearth.

And on their six year anniversary, Bradley got them the same cake as the first time he did. The icing reading, "Happy 7 years, baby—we’ve totally got them fooled.”

…………….

TGM Tag list: @avaleineandafryingpan , @caitsymichelle13 , @poppyalice2001 , @cutelittlepotatofry , @luckyladycreator2 , @americaarse , @elenavampire21 , @back-tooo-black , @wildellaa , @artemissunn , @pinkpantheris

[disgracefiles]

☻ ₊ ⊹ THE DOWNFALL OF 2LUVU

2LUVU (often shortened to 2LU, which, let’s be honest, is weird and kinda stupid since the name wasn’t exactly long to begin with) was JYP Entertainment’s first and last attempt at a coed group, currently inactive and disbanded. The lineup consisted on four members (two boys and two girls): Liv, Hanse, Jules, and Junseo. 2LUVU made their debut on March 12, 2018, with the EP ACTION!, which, unfortunately, flopped hard due to JYP’s half-hearted promotion efforts.

The EP was promoted for the sad amount of three weeks, including the pre-release period in which JYP posted a couple of photos of each member and called it a day. The MV teaser dropped only three days before the actual release, leaving no time for barely any hype to build up around the group’s debut. Once the EP was out, 2LUVU only performed the title track U READY? four times. Surprise, surprise! They didn’t get any wins because who were they, anyways? No one knew! They came out of nowhere so no one was expecting them. On top of all the lack of promotion, a lot was going on in the industry at the moment. Just to name some names, KRUSH and STUPID CUPID happened to be promoting around the same time, which banished any remaining hope the group had at getting any win at all. If the effect these groups had wasn’t negative enough for 2LUVU, the VENUS debuted only five days later, completely overshadowing them and their silly little song. Let’s just say, JYP wasn’t the brightest when deciding on the group’s debut date.

Following their debut, 2LUVU remained silent for almost a year. This made the few fans the group had gathered completely forget about them. Honestly, with JYP in charge, the group was doomed from the start, but leaving them without any new music for a whole year? Even their small fanbase was losing their minds! Rumor has it that JYP had bigger, more successful groups to focus on, so they just sidelined 2LUVU after their flop of a debut. I guess, at some point, someone remembered the group existed and that they hadn’t had a single comeback. So, they got a second chance in February 2019, though this time with a way smaller budget but slightly better promotions. Their digital single XOXO did better than ACTION!, but it still wasn’t enough to cover all the costs. JYP ended up disbanding the group and pretending they never existed in the first place. I mean it! No one in the company talks about them and, when being asked about their time in 2LUVU, the former members always avoid the question. Expect for Junseo, I guess. He likes to point out how awful his time in the group was and how much he despised their concept and discography.

₊ ⊹ DEBUT DATE: March 19th, 2018

₊ ⊹ DEBUT EP: ACTION!

₊ ⊹ DISBANDMENT DATE: July 7th, 2019

₊ ⊹ COMPANY: JYP Entertainment

☹ ₊ ⊹ THE MEMBERS + WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

(FROM LEFT TO RIGHT)

🙂 KANG OLIVIA ‘LIV’, 1999 ₊ ⊹ After 2LUVU’s disbandment, Liv became a trainee once again. She trained for a around a year before being sent to Mnet’s Once Upon a Dream, where she ranked 3rd and got to redebut. She’s now an active member of IDOL MAKER’s EVERMORE as the group’s main vocalist and visual princess.

🍓 CHOI HANSE, 2002 ₊ ⊹ Hanse’s contract was bought by IDOL MAKER right away, but he’s still in the company’s basement ever since! His fans continuously beg for his redebut on twitter, but so far IDOL MAKER has turn a deaf ear to their pleas.

🦋 JULIANA ‘JULES’ SANTOS, 2002 ₊ ⊹ Jules is now one of the famous Pick Me dolls! After 2LUVU disbanded, Jules was sent to Girls Planet 999, where she didn’t make the cut to debut with Kep1er. But then her contract was bought by Heartbreak and she’s finally got the success she always deserved.

🌈 LEE JUNSEO, 2000 ₊ ⊹ Junseo, now going by the stage name JUNO, is a soloist under IDOL MAKER. He redebuted on 2020, only a year after 2LUVU’s disbandment. Even though his redebut was a total success thanks to IDOL MAKER’s management, he’s initial fame has been declining lately. You could say people has grown tired of his music!

thanks to @venusvity, @stcpidcupid and @urmykrushhh for giving me permission to mention their amazing ocs <3 love you lots!

[fymoonbyul]

[Show Review] At her solo concert ten years after her debut, Moonbyul shines brighter than ever

"I never thought about going solo, at first. It just wasn't something that crossed my mind," Moonbyul said.

Mamamoo’s Moonbyul is back in Singapore for a concert. But this time, the 31-year-old singer-rapper is here as a solo artist.

She had been to Singapore on multiple occasions, and her most recent was last year, for sub-unit Mamamoo+’s fan concert.

Titled [MUSEUM : an epic of starlit], Moonbyul was glowing and shining in her own right, for fans to know and see her as herself, instead of in a group setting. Held at the Capitol Theatre, here are four highlights from her show.

1. Solo concert only came ten years after her debut

Moonbyul is one-quarter of Mamamoo and she has pretty much toured the world with her bandmates. But this solo world tour is special to her as she finally has the chance to embark on this voyage, ten years after her debut.

However, Moonbyul had her fair share of doubts, which probably explains why she’s only going solo now. She shared via a video played: “I never thought about going solo, at first. It just wasn’t something that crossed my mind”.

She added, “I wasn’t sure I would still be a singer ten years later. But when the opportunity to be a solo career was presented, it felt like the beginning of a new dream.”

2. Crisp live vocals

Mamamoo is a group that is known in the industry for always bringing live vocals to the audience. Moonbyul, a member of the band, demonstrated that during her solo show too. Hearing her resonant vocals and rap live? Chef’s kiss.

She also made the effort to sing songs that were not originally on her setlist. And she presented them with acapella.

Even as an avid concert reviewer, I was sold by Moonbyul’s live performance. Her vocals sounded exactly like her studio version, and everyone in the crowd would agree too. While she’s a rapper, Moonbyul never fails to hit every high note with ease.

3. Endearing bond with fans

Moonbyul has a close-knit relationship with Moomoos, a term endearingly given to Mamamoo’s fans.

On some level, they’re like her friends to whom she sometimes dishes advice. Between her songs, Moonbyul said: “No matter who is around you, before you think of others, you should love yourself first.

“Because if you love yourself, you get to share that love with others,” she added.

Another case in point: before she performed an unreleased song titled Take Off, she said, “If you are a Moomoo, you would know what song this is”. Of course, the crowd would know, responding with defeating cheers.

4. Fans sing the encore instead

Encore stages are always the time for artists to sing a few songs before they officially part. Rarely do they get their audience to sing with them, let alone by themselves.

Not for Moonbyul.

“You know I wouldn’t be singing it, right? You would be singing the encore,” Moonbyul later chimed in and accompanied the crowd in singing too.

For concerts, the show’s setlists are usually planned. But Moonbyul prefers to go freestyle at times. She took in song requests from the crowd during the encore.

For an idol to be so comfortable in their element and be able to perform without excessive pre-preparation, it’s refreshing and respectable. And this just shows how much experience Moonbyul has under her belt.

[casablancarossa]

Taemin leaving SM; a retrospective rant from a severely uneducated and overly caffeinated fan.

I have thoughts about Taemin leaving SM and by extention Onew too. Might as well drag Minho and Key into this.

Since this is majorly about Taemin, let's talk about him first.

Taemin & SM (pre-NGDA era)

Taemin has been with the company for 16 years, closer to 19 if you count his trainee days. As an older shawol (LLO-era, got me whipped BAD), it was seriously out of the blue that Taemin would be the first to debut solo. SM at the time (i.e in their prime) was a vocal powerhouse and I genuinely thought Jonghyun would be the first one to go solo. SM made the right decision dedicating time and resources in letting him shine and 'Ace' was a phenomenal debut album for Taemin and really stamped that 'Taemin vibe/sound' we all know and love' Generally speaking SM not the best for promotions/scheduling, but the company still had their shit together when 'Move' came out, it felt like it was everywhere and surpassed the noteriety Guilty had achieved. I feel like when Taemin does variety shows, up to now, Move was always the most referenced and remembered act, even amongst the junior idols, that he did and thats because SM did go hard on promoting that song and picked a quiet month to do that comback in.

Taemin vs SM (during/post-NGDA era)

Somewhere along the lines, SM really dropped the ball with promoting Act 1 especially during Taemin's 'Criminal' comeback. They heavily prioritized their newer groups and suddenly their legendary acts were getting shafted with poor promotions and what felt like less dedicated management and resources. I recall, SM postponed the release for Criminal, squashed Taemin in Super-M activties and focused on their new acts while simultaneously over working them (honestly Mark has had such a hectic few years). My internal speculation/assumtion is that, SM figured that acts like SuJu, EXO, SHINee, GG and RV and solo/ duo units, wouldn't need as much dedicated promotions because they are iconic acts and they are fully dependant on fanbases to generate the buzz. Which leads me to my main hypothesis that after a few years of being active, SM really does not care about an artist anymore. Mind you artists that put them on the fucking map to begin with. SM won't double down on these artists because they believe they can't appeal to a younger audience. With the shitshow that was the Criminal promotions. SM really didn't do any better with 'Advice'. Pinning aespa's comeback a day before was a low blow instead of focusing on the talent that's about to go into the military, if they are aware enough to give Taemin a mini comeback so his relevancy sticks throughout his service, why damage it with an aespa release (that felt like it was to tactically avoid facing off the BTS release later than month) and basically doing NOTHING bar announcing pre-orders. Then we enter the 'Guilty' era. Which as we saw was a hit, but mainly because SM capitalized on the power of social media trends, placing Taemin in VARIOUS online contents and slowly dropped related media during winter. I mean we are still not over his 'Guilty' era, the Metamorph concert still has us at a chokehold. I 'd like to think that Taemin became more vocal in what he wanted and expected out of SM when he came back. Obviously the priority to them is/was SHINee and that's fair. DCM did really well with promos (althoughlike most shawols would say, LSM did have a major part to play with that). HOWEVER it was their 15th anniversary comeback last year and I feel like SM treated it like it was just another comeback instead of a major milestone. There were no interviews or press releases for Hard, when events were happening, it felt like it was gate kept to just local fans, like it made me feel like I was living under a rock because it was so last minute and I was not aware of anything. I want to believe that just because SM did an okay job now, excuses them for the last 3 years. What's worse is it's undeniable, Taemin lives to perform and it's no secret he sets some high goals and standard for himself and probably the toll 1) not getting to preform Guilty in GDA, despite wanting to and 2) probably not getting a solid backing for touring globally, despite very vocal fan support. I am not sure if anyone saw that SM forecast for the first two quarters of 2024, but it genuinely feels like Taemin knows that him and SHINee will not be a priority after promotions are finished. I hope I am not dense enough to assume that obviously SHINee has spoken about this privately and internally for a while now. It's really something you can't avoid talking about. Taemin has spoken to his hyungs, people in his circle inside and outside of the industry. Hopefully he is well informed and supported and it seems definite that SHINee is still active as a group.

Key vs SM.

Someone has already mentioned it but if anyone was leaving SM for creative freedom, I genuinely thought it would be Key. 'Bad Love' was an amazing release and Key fought with SM to release with his own brand/aesthetic. Because Taemin's imminent departure is so publicized, SM might be keeping the talks with Minho and Key super under wraps and trying to offer a btter deal. Although recently, bar Good and Great, SM has been using Key as a 'Variety' idol than an actual singer, which sucks because Key is super talented and if SM doesn't recognize that star power now, good luck to them. Also apparently, Kany is signed with BPM? I know she is close with SHInee in general, but I would assume it'd be Key joining her ya'know?

Minho vs SM.

Imma put it out there, the promotions for 'Stay for a Night' was lackluster? I feel like they treat solo Minho and SHINee Minho as two separate entities. Like yes there is a dualism of being a group preformer vs solo preformer. But on the rare occasion SHINee does get promoted Minho seems to get more attention, but as a solo artist, I don't feel the same love for his solo promotions. I hope Minho gets to write and contribute more, which I believe he does in the background. If he does stick to SM, I pray they open other avenues of artistry, primarily, he does really well with his acting roles and yes it really helps that he does fit the 'K-drama ML' look.

Onew vs SM

I feel like Onew gets the short-end of the stick out of the rest of SHINee, never mind that the man has the voice of an angel, but again, he is another one that SM never bothered to market right. It kind of make sense that he would want to leave the company and seek ones that would expand his career inside and outside of singing and while the one good thing SM did recently is make sure Onew was healing and taking care of himself, recent SHINee promo activities feels like they are treating Onew's break as a hush hush 'taboo topic' Honestly, bring back the era where our idols would randomly disappear during promotions because they were casted to be on-stage again. I am still forever clinging onto Onew singing opera, because despite him not being trained for that, he has the talent to do so. It'd be nice to hear him produce his own music, or give acting another shot.

[likeadevils]

which albums do you think took the shortest amount of time to put together? i think that evermore was very quick (only two or three months?), am i right in thinking that lover and folklore were pretty quick too?

evermore was super quick! there were about five songs written from october-december, but about 12 songs were written in about a month, between mid august and mid september. which is just crazy. like that’s more songs than the standard edition of debut like that’s insane

the bulk of folklore was written in two months, between may and june, though the jack songs were mostly written between march and april, with some pre pandemic songs (my tears in dec 2019 and trying in jan/feb 2020)

midnights was a bit more spread out— high infidelity and would’ve could’ve should’ve were written in march 2021, i believe bigger than the whole sky and snow on the beach were in early 2022– but still the bulk of it came together in november/december 2021, making it a year in total but mostly done in two months.

rep took almost exactly a year— she starts writing it in september 2016 and finishes in september 2017. the bulk of the album was likely finished by july 2017 though, so it goes was just a super last minute addition.

lover was recorded in about four months— the bulk of the album was between november 2018 and february 2019. there are some exceptions, like death by a thousand cuts in late april and likely london boy in early june, and maybe a few jack songs throughout 2018, but we don’t know for sure which. she was also probably stockpiling songs a bit before jumping into the studio, but we don’t know for sure.

1989 was another stockpiling album— she did this love in 2012, a couple songs jan 2013, and then that aforementioned stockpiling period while she’s on tour, and then a big rush in oct/nov 2013, and then another rush in jan/feb 2014. it sounds like now that we don’t talk came fairly late in the process though, possibly as late as fall 2014, which would make it a two year long writing period, but as far as the original album goes, about a year and a half.

red was also about a year and a half— we have all too well being finalized in march 2011 (after being started in dec 2010), and then 22 and i knew you were trouble in june 2012. there are probably some outliers— stay stay stay might’ve been as early as summer 2010, some stuff on the vault might’ve gone up until september 2012– but that’s at most about two years of consistent writing and recording.

if we’re counting sparks fly (halloween 2006) then it took four years to write speak now, but excluding sparks fly georg the earliest song we know for sure was if this was a movie in april 2009, and then it ended with the story of us in june 2010, which is a little over a year. she was likely writing songs for speak now earlier in 2009 though, making it her standard year and a half, but we just don’t know for sure. the recording process was also spread out throughout both years— the first session for the album was in march 2009, and the orchestra sections were the last thing recorded, in july 2010.

fearless had two big recording sessions, in december 2007 and march 2008, so recording wise the album came together super quickly. that being said, if we just take the first and last songs written for the album, fearless has a pretty big stretch— she had stuff from the vault from like 2005, and then come in with the rain in september 2006, and white horse in december 2006. and then the last song is similarly up for interpretation, with forever and always in late september 2008, and mr perfectly fine in march 2009. so even though it came together very quickly once she got in the studio, counting the vault it was four years to write it, making it one of the longest timeframes, but standard edition is still a fairly long two years.

and then debut! i’m a bit more hazy on debut’s timeline, but a perfectly good heart was written sometime in 2003, and should’ve said no was the last thing written and recorded, on august 10, 2006, making it about three years.

so it’s pretty much an exercise in counting— the earlier and album came in her career, the longer it took her to make it, until we get to post pandemic where she’s busting out almost complete albums in two month periods (ts11 looks like it’s bucking that trend though, so let’s see!!)

[solarwynd]

https://www.tumblr.com/solarwynd/753644440437080064/releasing-the-same-day-as-a-bp-members-new-single?source=share

Can't lie, armys are kinda useless right now. They love the idea of members continuously releasing but they don't have any fucks to give in actuality after week 1 even if they're competing with other fandoms especially now that they're all enlisted and we have such limited promo. The only hope one has is that Jimin has a great track record of making songs armys vibe to - they will not usually stream beyond a day unless they actually like it. If they end up loving the album though, that could fuel their competitive spirit.

Also to the anon that's worried about opps linking up, tbh it's not easy work to spend money or stream music even for fans. I doubt these people are doing anything extra for someone they don't even care about just because it harms Jimin. All they love doing is running their mouth on twitter and that's probably the extent of it. For skz, their endless variants are the only threat and for Lisa, the autoplay and playlisting she'll get. Unless they get some truly viral moment, based on history it seems unlikely we'll have to worry about them long term.

If skz decide to go the let's pollute the earth path and release a lot of versions, then a bb200 #1 will unfortunately be difficult. I can only hope BB might suddenly apply their anti-kpop bias with some handy filtering. They haven't so far but hope springs eternal (for me).

Also regarding 2 versions versus 3 - extra tools are handy and I desperately need Hybe to do their job but I'll always appreciate if an artist, when he has to choose between artistic sensibility and charts goes for the former. At least I know Jimin will never embarrass me as a fan with some transparent cash grab album or some empty music. Long term I think it's more valuable to build that kind of relationship with your audience and have that kind of reputation.

Lastly while I'm really hoping for some great debut numbers, the real lynchpin of Faces success was twofold - it's artistic merit that's acknowledged by almost all and it's lasting power. While Jimin is responsible for the former, I hope that longevity is our goal for Muse as well. The way Face and LC pulls streams more than a year after release with it's (comparatively) limited covers and remixes is actually amazing.

More than anything I'm excited to see what Jimins planned for his sophomore attempt. Will his pre-release be something experimental (for him) like last time? What kind of sound will he be going for? Can he live upto my frankly massive expectations built up after face? Are we all dead on about the 70s theming and how might that influence the tracks? Ahhh it's hard to wait for answers. New music in 10 days. That's crazy 😭

Very much agreed on pretty much all of this.

I’ve been thinking it to myself that armys have silently been waiting on some quality music from somebody, somewhere, to drop. They’re still churning out hit tweets about Like Crazy till this day. You’d be hard pressed to see an army wax on about prior releases the way they have about LC. You wouldn’t have even though Hobi dropped anything this year the way they don’t mention it. I have faith in my man that he’ll deliver, I do. Even if it doesn’t exceed Like Crazy I still believe it’ll be a good song.

Like I remember the estimates for FACE when they came out were like 105k-110k and we managed to bring it up to 164k by the end of tracking week when our competition at the time was Morgan Wallen and we had an almost 100k gap to bridge. I know we still didn’t beat him (atp it was an after thought cause Jimin got #1 on hot100 with LC 😭) but the work everybody put in back then? On level with a BTS comeback and although it was stressful it was still fun.

The #JIMINJIMIN and #MUSE hashtags on twitter have been trending for nearly 2 days now with 2M and 1.5M respectively, the interest is absolutely there. I also want longevity with MUSE cause to think LC will still be charting by the time the pre release come around is amazing. I don’t want MUSE to fall off quickly and I want it to be impactful just like FACE was.

If we could get more digital album versions (cause that’s really what it’s gonna take), I think we have a shot We’ll just have to see what MUSE’s estimates puts it at to gauge the effort we have to expend. I’m still first and for most here to enjoy the music cause I’ve been begging for it forever I don’t want charts to take up too much space. I think Jimin’s gonna be pulling from the people who inspires him in sound potentially. So not necessarily 70s but MJ, (and he’d actually do that man justice unlike the sorry attempts Hybe pulled last year 🥴) Neyo etc . and just genre hopping in general. But considering those two do a lot of RNB and pop, I’m really excited for it.

[hueningsloverr]

౨ৎ not your song !

chapter two : NOT IN LOVE

pairing : hueningkai x 6th member!reader summary : tomorrow x together, or txt, wasn't always six members, and for some unforeseen reason, it wouldn't stay six either. set in : pre-debut, skips to around late 2019 word count : 1.0k

prev / next / masterlist

as the group inched closer to their debut, kai couldn’t help but notice how restless (y/n) had become. she fidgeted with her hands more, picked at her nails, and played with her hair.

not that kai was obsessing over her or anything. he wasn’t stalking the poor girl, or taking every moment he had with her to look at her. he was not in love with her. he just, noticed?

“are you anxious?” he had asked her, randomly, one day.

she hadn’t know what to say, so she didn’t say anything. but she did shake her head, her eyes screwed shut.

kai nodded to himself, and sat down next to her on the floor of one of the many practice rooms. it was just the two of them at the time; beomgyu and taehyun had left for some idotic reason, yeonjun babysitting them, and soobin was discussing something with a manager.

“if you’re nervous, that’s okay.” he added, mumbling slightly.

“i’m not nervous. they’re calling me the ‘fourth gen weapon’ or something stupid. i’m so far from nervous.” she laughed, a faux confident tone in her voice.

kai nodded slowly, as if to say ‘i know you want to say more, so say it.’

and clearly, she picked up on his message.

“i don’t- it’s just that my last group was pulled right before we debuted. my family was torn apart in like five minutes.” she huffed, running a hand through her hair absentmindedly.

“why? you never did tell us why love machine got pulled, and you didn’t tell us why they didn’t just put together a new group for you.”

“they are putting together a new group, i think they were just too scared i’d leave big hit, so they put me in the first group they could find, which so happened to be txt.” she grinned, playfully hitting her shoulder against his.

“why was love machine disbanded?” kai asked again, a serious look in his eyes and determination in his voice.

he was not in love with her (which tyun and gyu liked to tease him about), but he was worried about her, like any friend would be.

right?

it didn’t occur to kai at the moment to ask about the ‘new group’ being put together. (y/n) had been with txt for nearly a year now, and they were debuting in a month, so why would she have another group waiting for her?

“i don’t know.” she snapped, an upset look filling her face. “they didn’t tell me. they didn’t tell any of us. one moment we were so close to debuting, and the next we were done for.”

kai should’ve calmed her down, comforted her. she was upset, and hurt, over something that happened so long ago. that sort of pain only makers a person bitter. but kai did not do that.

instead, he simply left. grovelling about how she needed to learn to control her temper.

as the group debuted, of course, they made waves. five boys and a girl was not exactly ‘the norm’ in the industry, nor was (y/n) though.

of course, each member was set to open their own personal twitter after the success of txt within the first week, so fans could stay updated on their favorite member(s).

(y/n) was the only one who was really active on social media though, posting silly photos and updates. of course, they all got approved by management first, but fans didn’t seem to care. they still idolised their girl and her posts, making their own posts wondering what she could be ‘teasing’.

her first post, unnaturally, got a million views, nearly a million likes, and three hundred thousand retweets.

kai wasn’t aware that that many people even listen to k-pop, let alone liked (y/n).

his feelings towards her were mixed, still weary from pre-debut, yet he had accepted that she had upstaged him. he didn’t hate the girl, of course not, but it’s not like he was in love with her.

she was no taehyun, beomgyu, or yeonjun - all of whom he'd been with for nearly two years.

and she definitely was no soobin, who suspiciously gifted kai a penguin plushie on the first day of their break after the groups exhausting debut.

though kai never thanked soobin for the plushie, he didn’t know what other member would do such a thing for him. soobin was really kai's only friend during their trainee days, always sticking by the younger boys side. soobin looked out for kai. always. so who else would give kai a gift?

kai never stopped to consider (y/n), the one who went around questioning each member on their favorite animal. maybe he brushed the possibility of the girl being the gifter off because he missed beomgyu and taehyun happily thanking her for the gifts she got them.

either way, kai never stopped to think about the girl except for wondering how long she'd actually be with the group. sure, her vocals were good, and any day of the week she could out-rap any member, but her dancing was different.

he knew that not all girls could easily do boy group choreography, but even his little sister, bahiyyih, was able to mimic some of the choreo.

(y/n) on the other hand, had the choreo changed to suit her. yes, she was more flexible, and sure she wasn't a towering 6'1 like soobin was, but what was her real excuse to have the choreo differ? when beomgyu brought up the change in crown to suit a sixth member, and a girl, and how odd it was, she simply laughed it off.

"i'm not you, my dancing isn't the same as yours. we weren't trained to debut in the same style of dancing." she giggled, shaking her head.

the answer was sufficient enough for the other boys, but not for kai.

"then why are you here? or why not change your style?"

she didn't have a response for him, shrugging and continuing on with what she was doing before.

perhaps he was a bit rude with her, but he barely even counted her as a friend. when people theorised if txt were friends, family, or just co-workers, kai wanted to shout that they were a family - but he didn't exactly count her.

the other boys did, of course, but it didn't exactly bother the teen. he didn't hate her, but he was not in love with the girl. he had learnt to just be indifferent.

and he planned on staying indifferent.

©2023 — all rights reserved to hueningsloverr , please do not plagiarise or translate any of my work

[sageistri]

did you watch lessera's coachella performance? if yes what do you think of it ? they are getting whacked left and right for their live vocals throughout multiple songs...

The only way I would tune into coachella is if BTS or Jimin performs there, or Beyonce decides to give us another beychella

But I did see some tweets about them, and I mean what's there to say. They've been getting dragged for different things for the past few months, so it's just another day on Kpop Twitter for me. They'll get through it, it is a needed transition.

And I say this because le sserafim has never been a vocally strong group, they were mostly known for dancing and their stage presence like Itzy was. During a time when le sserafim were the token Kpop girl group being used to shit on new jeans and Ive, no one cared about how bad they sounded but they care now because it's trendy to hate on them.

New jeans went through a hate train similar to this during their debut, Ive went through this last year just as bad as this by the way(wonyoung used to get hit hate tiktoks calling her names and the other members too), g-idle also do experience dog piling like this every once in a while (I remember how soyeon was dragged and ridiculed for months over her rap verse on tomboy). Le sserafim will live. A couple months from now they're going to release another song that's going to get popular and kpop stans are going to forget that they're supposed to hate on them and are probably going to move on to hating on another group like Illit at some point because they were all hating on the group pre debut but they release one good debut song and suddenly they're the darlings of Kpop, I would say they'll also hate on babymonster but they already hate on them everyday so it wouldn't matter.

That's the thing though, and why I always say having kpop stans on your side is the worst thing that could ever happen to an artist. It's fun when you're the token group or idol being used to shit on others but the moment they turn on you, it's extremely brutal and not fun.

[lageografiademicamino]

UMK 2024 Song Review - Sexmane

The hype is very real around Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK), the Finnish national selection for Eurovision and the race to Malmö continues!

Sexmane - MANIA

Max Scene aka Sexmane is currently the most streamed artist in Finland and also he has a connection to UMK. His little brother Isaac Scene competed in 2022 with Kuuma Jäbä.

Since releasing his debut album Sextape in 2019 he has been Emma awarded (Finnish Grammys) and he's managed to beat his previous successes with each release. He will no doubt have a lot of loyal young voters out there!

As a background info he and his brother grew up in a religious community where hymns were in and commercial music was not. He mentions this fairly often in the interviews so I believe it had an impact on his creativity and that he even ended up in the music industry.

MANIA is a song about mental health. "It's ok not to be ok" he says.

The song slaps you right at the face with MANIA. There's a lot of autotune in here from the very beginning and many have questioned if he can pull this through live. This is no basic pop tune you can put into a box within a certain genre. This is a hip hop / rap song with a heavy rock push. Music experts can peal this like an onion because it has plenty of layers to go around for all.

The song goes on smoothly having a strong pre-chorus and the anthemic MANIA is catchy and difficult to forget. I'm not a fan of rap music but I do enjoy listening to this even though my very first reaction was fear. The guitar solo at the end of the song is impressive and much needed add. The song ends with a scream.

Musically there's a strong pull towards our last ESC entry and a lot of people are criticizing of sending MANIA right after Cha Cha Cha (can anything be better?). In contrast to Käärijä's drinking party hit, there's some real pain and seriousness here. The beat is pushy and urges you to rush to act. And him desperately screaming in his pain and getting it out of his space - we see a lot of symbolism in the videoclip.

I kind of play with the idea of this winning because of the orange theme. In 2022 we had The Rasmus with Jezebel having a yellow staging, Käärijä last year obviously with his green effect, this would be a great continuity with the orange look.

What do you think of the second UMK24 track and would you vote for Sexmane to go all the way to Malmö? UMK final takes place on February 10th!

[in-death-we-fall]

Fishnets and Formaldehyde

Hammer went backstage on the Murderdolls sell-out pre-Xmas UK tour last month to die alright. Terry Bezer advised on lippy and eyeliner. Compact shots: Awais

(google docs) Thanks @incredizort for sharing your collection

The last 12 months have been one helluva year for one Mr Joey Jordison. Slipknot have gone strength to strength – the Iowan nontet (sic) embarked on arguably the biggest stage spectacle ever seen with their debut British arena tour and the subsequent ‘Disasterpiece’ (sic) DVD release. Before that of course were the triumphant stints at this year’s Reading and Leeds festivals. And, oh yeah, he’s also managed to get a whole other band to a similar status of credibility.

The switch from drummer to guitar god for the Murderdolls was all too easy for Joey – reflected by their glorious position in the Metal Hammer reader’s Poll (p.58) for their outstanding ‘Beyond The Valley Of The Murderdolls’ album. Not to mention those awesome live shows that helped build that solid fanbase at monumental speed through relentless touring in the band’s self-titled ‘Mobile Morgue’.

“Whenever you start a band you want people to go apeshit,” explains vocalist Wednesday 13 backstage just before the band hit the stage the night of their crowning glory at the London Forum in December. “But in the UK I can’t believe we’re already headlining a place this huge, so it was kind of shocking, but at the same time it was something I was hoping would happen.”

To say it has simply ‘happened’ for the Murderdolls in the UK would be selling the band’s achievements something short. An incredibly successful UK debut at the Garage, a stint supporting Papa Roach across Europe where they consistently blew the headliners clean off of the stage, and now with a sell-out British tour to their name, the Murderdolls bandwagon quickly turned into far more than just a side project featuring one of metal’s biggest stars.

“Maybe when we first started out people were perhaps just turning up to see me,” admits Joey somewhat coyly, “And there was a hell of a lot of Slipknot shirts in the audience at first, but as time’s gone on, it’s become more and more about the Murderdolls as a whole.

“I think we’re providing a fun outlet and a lot of kids aren’t used to that, hearing depressing lyrics all about war, politics, childhood trauma and bad parenting all the time. It’s a different circumstance to hear a band singing about grave robbing, killing your wife on your wedding day and killing Miss America. I mean if you’re relating to a song that’s called ‘Grave Robbing USA’, you’ve got a fucking problem, because our songs are written with a dark humour attitude and it’s just about having fun. Kids’ll leave our shows with smiles all over their faces and be saying ‘Man, I had so much fun at that show’ and maybe they’re not used to that because of a trend that’s going on right now.”

Agreed. That fun atmosphere of the band’s shows remains unrivalled in the world of rock music right now. Witness vocalist Wednesday 13 whipping the crowd into a frenzy on top of the monitors thrusting a red and black umbrella adorned with the word ‘Fuck’, throughout new song ‘I Love To Say Fuck’. Hear the squeals of excitement that greet the opening to typically twisted Murderdolls romance story, ‘Love At First Fright’. Or witness Joey’s camp homage to Marilyn Manson as he comes on for the encore in a pseudo SS Grüppenfuhrer’s get-up. (Whether the little guy knows the irony of the situation as the Forum infamously played host to Moseley’s 1930’s fascist rallies – and that giant eagles adorn each side of the stage tonight — is anyone’s guess). Just a few examples of how the ‘Dolls expertly plaster shit-eating grins across 1,000 baying audience members’ faces with style and ease.

“We’re definitely a touring band,” states Wednesday defiantly. “That’s the whole thing about us: we never grew up in the same town and we hadn’t been practicing in our mum’s garage for years and years – it was just a thing where we met and just learned to be a better band by playing onstage every night.

“If you’ve seen the show before you’ll know that everyone is running around, giving their all. We just try to get better and better and I think we’ve definitely progressed into a live band. Right now, I’d say we’re one of the best live bands currently on the scene.”

Consolidated by the band’s three minute anthems of aggravating slabs of punk rock fury, the shows are doubtless an excuse for everyone to let loose and have a good time. Something that must clearly be out of the ordinary for Joey when you consider his day job…

“Fuck yeah,” laughs the drummer-come guitar god Jordison. “I didn’t ever want to come out playing drums with fast double bass drums and being real heavy wearing my mask and shit. I thought it was really important that the kids could see that I do play guitar and that I write a lot of Slipknot’s material.

“It’s just been fucking fun. I’m having a blast. With this band, I don’t care how many fans we get. Slipknot was definitely geared towards getting as many people to listen to us as possible while still maintaining that ‘fuck everyone’ attitude but here I just get to go wild and have a good time.”

The doubt that will be hanging inside many a ghoul’s head will be concerning the future of the Murderdolls and how long the good times will continue to roll. With the Slipknot engine ready to fire up any week now, to begin work on their much-anticipated fourth album, is there any chance that the Murderdolls will be a brief flash in the pan, or are the band in it for the long haul?

“This is absolutely a long-term project,” Joey says reassuringly. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, man. I’ve got to do some Slipknot stuff next year with the recording of the album but then we’re going to go out again after that. There’ll probably be three or four months of leeway time and then we’ll go back out on tour again. Me and Wednesday have already begun writing for the next album already and I can’t wait to get back out again even though we haven’t finished touring this album yet!”

Photo captions:

Because you’re worth it

“Spare any change for some Loreal guv?”

“Hmm. Too much emulsion?”

“Oh. My. God. I think I see a blackhead. Oh, hi Eric!”

Wednesday: dressed to kill

“Bah! These raspberry ripple stains will never come out!”

Acey: most dreaded

Is it raining men yet?

School’s out for ever!

Wednesday falls for the old mascara-swapped-for-road-tar gag

Eric Griffin: Nikki Sixx’s very own Mini Me

[daisiesonafield-blog]

Review -After many a postponement, for the first time since his debut world tour in 2017, Grammy award winning artist Harry Styles touched down at Mt Smart Stadium, bringing Harry Styles: Love on Tour to Tāmaki Makaurau.

Released in 2022 and recently awarded Album of the Year at the 2023 Grammys, Harry's House, built in London by way of Hollywood, Malibu, and Wilshire, and engineered by the likes of Kid Harpoon, Tyler Johnson, and Samuel Witte has seen almost every major city of the world. It's only fitting that, at long last, Aotearoa finally got a taste of the artist's highest acclaimed album.

Decorated from head to toe in sequins, sparkles, cowboy hats and the coveted feather boas, punters, who had been lining up as early as two days before the concert itself, descended on Mt. Smart Stadium bright eyed and bushy tailed, eager to get as close to Styles as they possibly could. His charm, wit and general crowd interaction is a major selling point of the tour itself - something all 47,000 attendees were eager to get a taste of.

Aotearoa's own Ny Oh and Isle of Wight-based band Wet Leg opened the show, to a crowd that, although mixed in demographic, got behind every single beat. Seeing Wet Leg at Mt Smart was a bit of a big deal; the last time they were here, they performed to a sold-out Tuning Fork - a venue which can hold up to 300 people. Fast forward eight months, playing to a sold-out stadium, comprising a crowd who, for the most part, know every word to every song, is something to marvel at.

I always admire an artist who has an impeccable pre-show playlist - it shows that not only do they know their crowd well, but when done right, the right selection can show that they know the city, or in this case, country, well too. Classic tracks such as 'Best Song Ever' by One Direction and 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by Queen had the crowd doing vocal somersaults over one another, singing as loud as they could.

What took me by surprise was the addition of Poi E by Pātea Māori Club - released in 1983, sung entirely in te reo, now playing to a crowded stadium before Harry Styles of all people graced the stage. He knew his crowd, and where he was in the world, extremely well.

Styles is known for his on-stage outfits. Some are understated, some are extremely overstated, and most, if not all of them, end up being one of the main focal points of every performance. The last time he was in Aotearoa, he wore an all-black suit, assumingly paying homage to the All Blacks. Last night, he wore a short sleeve raglan tee with a bejewelled whale's tail adorning it, with a pair of purple dress pants. Not the most spectacular outfit compared to his recent Australia tour, but we'll take what we can get.

After all, fashion comes second when you're stood mere metres from One Direction's Golden Child.

It's always special when an artist comes to any given country and does more than just plays their show and jump on the next flight home. On his recent Australian tour, Styles immersed himself in the culture of the Aboriginal peoples of Australia, and his stop in Aotearoa was no exception.

At his first break in the show, Styles, who, earlier in the day, had spent time with Te Matatini finalists, Angitū, sang the start of 'Tūtira Mai Ngā Iwi' - written by Canon Wiremu Te Tau Huata in the 1950s.

The crowd, clearly stunned, sung the rest of the waiata back to him without hesitation while he danced around the stage. He continued to do this multiple times throughout the night, which kept the crowd on their toes. I was almost waiting for it to happen every time he got the chance to speak. At one point in the concert, he picked a Tino Rangatiratanga flag from the crowd, and put it on his mic stand - the flag found itself to be a permanent fixture on the stage for the rest of the night.

The moments of the concert I remember the most vividly seem to be the same at almost every one I go to; the times when the whole crowd is still, flashlights up, yelling the lyrics of the saddest songs back at the person singing them - and last night was no exception. At the end of the catwalk which spanned what felt like ten trillion miles, Styles performed 'Matilda', 'Little Freak', and 'Satellite' one after the other, and for all three songs, I've never heard a crowd with so much gusto.

Harry performed songs from across all three released bodies of work, such as 'Woman', to 'Golden', and even far back as a new rendition of One Direction's seminal hit, 'What Makes You Beautiful'. He even snuck in crowd-favourite unreleased weapon, 'Medicine' which went viral during the tour for his last album, Fine Line. During every song, the crowd didn't hold back. So much energy in one space - it was amazing to bear witness to.

It's crazy to think that, from Harry's end, there are 47,000 people in the same space as you are singing the words to the music you wrote back at you. Those moments stick with an artist - I feel as though they stick with the crowd for eternity.

Crowd interaction is paramount for an artist as big as Styles. Throughout his time as a solo performer, he's always placed a large emphasis on connecting with his crowds, and as he's grown, the interactions have only evolved to be more intense.

Last night was no exception. From pointing out a fan who had been throwing fruit at him (which then proceeded to him singing a two-minute-long song about people dressed as bananas, eggs, aubergines, so on and so forth), the singer, who encourages fans to bring signs with him to his shows, went back and forth with two fans. One, who allegedly sold their cats leg to be at the show, and the other, who was with her best friend going through a breakup. After finding out the now ex-boyfriend wasn't prioritising them, hence the breakup, he told the crowd to "not be a Michael, be a Romy!"

Styles also asked the crowd about the census, telling everyone that he too had filled it out prior to the show.

Finishing with crowd favourite, and aptly named, 'Kiwi', Styles had made the nights of 12-year-olds with their parents and mid-40-year-olds alike, as well as everyone in between. Harry Styles is truly an artist who transcends all levels of musical talent and incomparable wit, with a hint of charm that can't be matched.

The remnants of the 47,000 plus feather boas will live on the field of Mt Smart Stadium until Harry Styles makes his triumphant return to Aotearoa.

Admittedly, he doesn't actually know when that will be. All he knows is that he hopes it won't be too long.

[svwu]

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after breaking the 'no dating' rule in their band, y/n and donghyuck end up in a messy breakup right before their first world tour. the ex-lovers decide to remain a couple in the public light in hopes of a successful first tour —║THE DREAM TEAM║𐀔ʾʾ

─── ·  ·  ·  · ﹙⏲️﹚01

⚠︎ 3XR ⚠︎ is a band based in Los Angeles, California and was formed by five best friends in the confinement of their homes. they released their debut single 'Tongue Tied' in 2019 and gained worldwide recognition with their mini album 'FULLBORN' in 2021. the band consists of Y/N, RENJUN, JENO, HAECHAN, AND JAEMIN

[ BECOME A VIP ] [ 3XR'S DISCOGRAPHY ]

╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲

MEET THE BAND

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . /ᐠ｡ꞈ｡マ

“this is the dream job with the dream people. it doesn't get better than this.”

✮ Y/N . . . ( leader, lead guitarist, and often provides supporting vocals ) . . . was the one who built the band from scratch and worked closely with haechan to create their songs before bringing in their close friends mark and chenle to help. they have the tendency to overwork themselves and often rely on haechan for comfort. y/n and haechan have been dating for three years. y/n is hardworking but bubbly on camera and is extremely passionate about music

____ ▭ ▬ y/n chose jeno as their closest friend

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ʕ•̫͡•ʔ

“we haven't been in the industry for long, but we belong here, and we're going to dominate.”

✮ HAECHAN . . . ( drummer and lead vocalist, real name is 'donghyuck' ) . . . has the odd tendency to impulsively lie whenever he's on camera and is usually playfully slapped by his bandmates when he does so. he's a ball of sunshine that fills the air with his positivity, and when he's on the drums, he plays like if it were his last day on earth. pre-debut, haechan worked closely with y/n to create their songs before bringing in their close friends mark and chenle to help. haechan was the one who confessed to y/n first in 2020 and released their relationship status to the public a year later in 2021. they have been dating for three years

____ ▭ ▬ haechan chose jaemin as his closest friend

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (.◜◡◝)

“sharing the stage with my best friends...wow, it really doesn't get better than that.”

✮ JENO . . . ( bassist, main rapper, and face of the group ) . . . is noted the 'most popular member' in the band. out of all the members, jeno has the most contracts with modeling agency and does a lot of independent promotions. jeno has a stage presence that is unforgettable and a smile that makes it impossible to not swoon over him. a poll taken in 2022 showed that 56% of their fans got into 3XR because of jeno's pretty face

____ ▭ ▬ jeno chose y/n as his closest friend

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ૮꒰ ˶• ༝ •˶꒱ა

“i don't know why renjun would put a 'no dating' rule when we're all so clearly obsessed with each other.”

✮ JAEMIN . . . ( rhythm guitarist, lead vocalist and lead rapper ) . . . doesn't post often on social media, but still has many fans that would die for him due to his relaxed composure and charmisma on stage. one smile is known to make fans fall onto their knees, so jaemin knows when to use it lightly. out of all the members, jaemin dies his hair the most, but lately it only switches between black, brown, and a specific shade of blue

____ ▭ ▬ jaemin chose haechan as his closest friend

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (๑ↀᆺↀ๑)

“after thirteen years, you'd all hate spending time with them too. that's more than half my life, i need a break.”

✮ RENJUN . . . ( keyboardist and main vocalist ) . . . is the most active member on twitter yet still isn't verified (he almost has as many followers as y/n. make it make sense?). renjun is the oldest out of the five yet is often overlooked because he doesn't want to show up to promotions LMAO. as much as he bickers with all the members, he would trade the world and more for them. he wishes they would never break apart and had a 'no dating' in place to which donghyuck broke nearly a few weeks after. he's their relationship's #1 supporter though (or so he says). renjun carries most of 3XR's songs with his heavenly vocals and low rasps and gets the most praise out of all the members

____ ▭ ▬ renjun didn't choose who was his closest friend because none of them chose him. he called them all pricks and claimed mark and chenle as his best friends instead

╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲╱╳╲

MEET THE TEAM

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .└(=^‥^=)┘

“i'm the most talented person i know...wait don't put that, i might get cancelled.”

✮ MARK :: one of the two designated producers for 3XR. he was made fun of in elementary school for being friends with the younger kids, but he was glad he stuck with them. aside from being a producer, he sometimes helps donghyuck out with lyrics. lately mark has been trying to put out singles of his own, and sometimes he is featured in 3XR's title tracks

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Q )) >

“i'm pretty proud of all my accomplishments. i think everyone should be proud of what they accomplished.”

✮ CHENLE :: the only one that currently attends university while also working under 3XR's team to create future hits. while taking online classes, he and mark produce future hits for 3XR, and if you listen closely enough, you would be able to hear some of his vocals in the background of their songs. he also produce and writes songs for other bands and soloists such as AleXa, Betcha, and Death and All His Friends. his dream is to make it as a singer, but right now, he's completely content with where he is

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . < ˊᯅˋ>

“no comment.”

✮ JISUNG :: played an important role in 3XR's rise to fame. he became 3XR's manager ever since the group was formed because despite being clumsy, jisung knew how to get things done and the band always put their faith in him. on the contrary to the other seven, jisung hates being in the public light, so he does his best to cover up and keep hidden as much as possible. he has no idea how Timers (3XR's fandom name) have started getting his photos, but then he realized it was because mark kept forgetting to crop him out of photos

│█║▌║█║▌║▌║│█║▌║█║█▌║

. . . 3XR'S VIPS :: @sunflowerhae @luvlyjaemin @flower-lise @dolcetraditora @flwrtbz @mrkleelvr @aj13-29 @marklexleaf @xxxhyuck @skyfvlls @oc-helps @sseastar @minjiville @jeminiepabo @nycol-ie @lokideadontheinside @ppeachyttae @officiallyunofficialperson @minavenue @itsyaapollochild @cocoa-bitter @1800-mark @daegalfangirl @skrtbeepbeep @frickyratz @ikyk-leeknow @bbnana @sunshine-skz @binky-bean @virgospace @junjungsunwoo @yunho-1999 @teddy-cheol @chenfleur @eneiyri @noidnoentry @deny4l4 @dulltint @seongwhaffels @wooyoung-a @kimaya2209 @sunfics @fullsunfluff @lyleo @justalildumpling

[glasshcvse]

I always thought Stupid Cupid would be on the same level as Red Velvet in terms of popularity! In your opinion which real group would you assign for your fic groups in those terms?

AINE ! ⠀ › ⠀ SAYS. omg you're being too nice anon!! i think red velvet is wayyy up the scale when looking at stupid cupid's popularity– took me a hot second to cook something up, but under the cut, you'll find all of my important groups / ocs ( including both npc & under co. groups! ) and their popularity based on irl kpop groups!

first, we have lilypad, aka the saviours of glasshouse! i'd definitely say that they're on par with kara! they've been releasing bops from the getgo, and have been doing so until their unfortunate ( or fortunate in this case ) disbandment, so kara would be the best group to mention in this case, especially when back in 2009, glasshouse only had crumbs and a handful of trainees to go with.

next on the list is raevil, aka the dead women walking! raevil = twice, and you can't prove me wrong!! the fact that each member comes from a different country just goes well with the public ( international more than domestic, bc we all know how knetz are about these types of things ), and they for sure know how to charm people to at least listen to their songs occasionally. their popularity grew as time passed, so raevil being on the same scale as twice right now would be a plausible answer!

sorry to disappoint you, anon, but stupid cupid's popularity goes lower than red velvet's– i'd say ive or kepler would be more of an appropriate answer, especially because everyone can clearly see the favouritism in stcp ( looking at tomie ). it's a good thing that their discography is full of mostly cute songs, otherwise, i don't think stupid cupid would've been supported this much if it their concept was anything else... i imagine them being compared to lilypad a lot if they had a different concept, and they'd kind of flop. yeah, their fandom is definitely smaller compared to raevil's, but they have some crazy ass fans out there ( think orbits during that twitter era )–

at the beginning of their career, i surely saw nextone go hand in hand with stray kids based on popularity, especially because prdx had a different concept from any other artists from the company, were their first bg and they were promoted a lot during their pre-debut era by stupid cupid. however, after the whole scandal happened with one of the members and they went on a hiatus for a year, the hype kind of died down, so now i'd say they're kinda like monsta x / the boyz!

hero is 4th generation's taemin! of course, his popularity slowly grew as he went through a shitty survival show, but once he actually debuted as a soloist, the fandom significantly grew, and it's still growing as time goes by. there's a reason why he's called an all-round and ace of kpop! although, if you asked him, he'd deny being that popular, but the receipts don't lie, nor do his album sales that get sold out after every comeback!

and last but definitely not least, we have crystyle! && just like everyone expected, i imagine them to have the same popularity as got the beat! they also have some similarities; as they're both project groups with members from different groups ( or are soloists ), so saying they have the same popularity as got would be true. not only that, but each member has their own fandom that just combined in the end to support the girls as a group!

and that's it ( for now )! come back later if there are any updates to this~