#this is what separates a good romcom from a bad romcom for me

[littlespoonevan]

the thing about romcoms is just- it's never meant to be 'is it believable?' but instead 'do you believe it?' do you believe these two characters are actually falling in love with each other??? do you believe their chemistry??? do you believe whatever obstacle is thrown in their way is legitimately something that might keep them apart for a time and not something that could be solved with one conversation?? do you believe that they believe they need to fake date for this very specific reason??? do you believe the reason why they're 'enemies' at the start, no matter how silly a misunderstanding it may be??? do you believe the grand romantic gesture fits the characters and is actually how one character would show their love to the other?? like!!!! it's about empathy and authenticity and feeling what the characters feel so strongly that even if it's a trope or a cliché it doesn't matter because you believe it

[temis-de-leon]

Pick me girls and OM! Brothers - Part 1

Characters: Lucifer, Mammon and Levi (x reader, separately)

Pick me boy variant

Part 2 - Satan, Asmo, Beel and Belphie (x reader, separately)

Part 3 - Diavolo, Barbatos, Solomon and Simeon (x reader, separately)

Masterlist

CW: pick me girl behavior, suggestive, mentions of sex between the brothers and mc, mentions of violence, a bit of magic, mentions of cheating (not actual cheating), mammon and mc taking a shower together, jealous mc, some fluff, some hurt, some comfort, kinda ooc but i had so much fun with this

.

Lucifer

Wherever you went, rumor followed. Haven't you heard? The mighty Lord of Pride has a significant other. Who could it be? Maybe the prince or his butler? Both of them? Or perhaps it was just some random demon? Surely not the human... right?

"Of course not!" said the witch, surrounded by both curious and jealous nobles.

You weren't in the balcony, but you could still hear the conversation in your spot near the open door. You could also hear the gasps and the murmurs. It was ridiculous.

What to do next? You could interrupt the gossip and make your relationship public; after all, it was only a matter of time before someone spotted you both in Ristorante Six or an empty hallway in RAD.

Ignoring them was the better option, however. No words sounded aggressive and yet polite enough to get the witch to shut up without making a scene. Plus, Lucifer was looking exquisitely fine that night. His wings did wonders to his appearance.

"Then who?" the voices asked while you walked away towards your boyfriend.

"Well, I wasn't supposed to say anything..."

Oh no she did not.

"But we're just so in love"

I'll be damned, you thought. She did.

The wrath you felt was primal and it provoked a worried glance from Satan, who was chatting with one of his many contacts in the other side of the ballroom.

You wanted to make an entrance, a dramatic one, but you could only watch as the witch talked and talked about her supposed first date with Lucifer, their first kiss, their first time, his performance in bed (which... No. She was so wrong about that one).

Finally, you opened your mouth.

"You don't say?"

But that wasn't your voice.

Beside you stood Lucifer in all his glory, with a smile that didn't reach his eyes and a hand hugging your waist. The floor trembled under your feet as he walked and, if it wasn't for his tight grip, the magic induced vertigo would've send you to the ground.

You could tell he was trying not to harm you too much, but the group in the balcony wasn't so lucky. All of them were on their knees and some even coughing blood.

"Do tell all your stories tonight, by dawn you'll have no tongue to keep lying"

The witch had tears in her eyes, too focused on her own pain to be aware of her surroundings or his words. Was he being serious? You wanted to ask what would really happen to that woman, but Lucifer was always two steps ahead.

He cradled your face and kissed you, slowly yet firm. His cold skin felt good against yours, already blushing under his half lidded eyes.

"Dance with me?" he asked, caressing your bottom lip with his thumb.

Damn, did he know how to distract you.

Mammon

"You're dating the Great Mammon!" he'd said with his characteristic smile, both of you eating ramen in your bed while watching bad romcoms "That's something to be stoked about! You need to tell everyone about it!"

Of course, that translated to: please, please, please, I need people to know that I bagged YOU and YOU chose ME.

So, there you were, chatting with his makeup stylist and some other models while he posed in front of the camera. It was better than you expected, actually. You thought the fashion world in the Devildom would be full of self righteous assholes and insufferable divas, but you couldn't be more wrong.

Well, of course, there's always an exception.

There was a demoness in the other side of the studio, taking selfies with a pout in her lips and a fake, nauseating, innocence in her expression. She looked toxic from a mile away.

And yet, your boyfriend dated her for three months; three long and excruciating months, yes, but still. They'd dated.

And you were cool with that. So so cool with that. You were chill. A freezer, even. You loved Mammon and everyone and their mother could tell Mammon loved you. Everything was fine.

Except... well...

It was easy to forget the brothers were famous and popular bachelors, princes of hell, that, just like in every human monarchy, had fans to spare. People that would support them no matter what they did and no matter who they dated and people that would hate everyone they dated because... You don't really know why.

You just had some haters.

And this bitch was taking advantage of this, you knew it in your heart.

Rumors of Mammon cheating on you with one of his model coworkers had been there since the beginning of your relationship. It was something you just had to live with, one of the reasons the Avatar of Greed doted on you with everything he had.

Mammon loved you.

So why did you panick so much when he stood up in the underwear he was advertising, getting ready for the next picture, and the demoness took a selfie of her lips with his half naked body behind her?

"That whore" whispered another model behind you. You liked them.

But it was okay, you didn't mind. No, really. You didn't.

Except you did.

And so did Mammon.

"Oi!"

Everyone looked at him and you could swear his demon form was starting to show, blending with his siluette in blurred edges.

"Delete that"

She could've laughed at him, like everyone tended to do. She could've ignored him and tempt fate, but it was not a wise idea.

There was static in the air, black mist barely clouding your vision and a faint voice whispering in the back of your brain. The sound of feathers filled the room and soon crows started to surround the studio outside the window.

After a couple of sickening minutes, a loud pop settled the place back to normal and caused the birds to fly away.

The demoness gasped, letting her DDD fall to the ground like it burned her. Looking at her smoking hands, it probably did.

After that, everyone acted like nothing happened. You, however? Your whole body was buzzing, leaving you paralyzed with feelings you needed to explore in the future and making Mammon look at you with a knowing smile.

"...sick of those rumors..." he'd say hours later while he washed your hair in the shower "and you dumbass humans believe everything you see, even if it's stupid"

He'd wait until you were both in bed, ruminating about every little thing that happened back there before talking again.

"Because it's stupid, you know? I'd never cheat on ya. The Great Mammon would never do that to you. I mean, I'd never to that anyway, but specially not to you. Keep that in mind, human! You catched the best demon of all hell! Lucky you!"

Lucky me, he wanted to say instead.

You understood him anyways.

Leviathan

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu sent you a message!

.

.

You stared at the screen and the screen stared back at you.

Reading the user name physically hurt you and you'd lie if you said you weren't worried about it. Did you trust Levi? Yes, absolutely. Did you trust f3istyk1ttenuwu? Not really, no.

So (this time voluntarily), you opened the gates of hell.

It was the Devildom version of Discord, which was worrying enough, and the user's pfp showed a cute pinked hair girl with dainty horns and half of her boobs out.

With a frown and your heartbeat in your throat, you opened the chatroom.

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: r u lone?

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: did ur frend leef?

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: their a party pooper

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: didnt let u join the grp

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: :(

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: leviachsn?

.

Oh, heeeeell no.

First of all, it was leviachAn. Second, YOU were the only one who could call him THAT.

Ignoring the voice of reason, you checked the door before investigating the previous messages. Levi was in your room, retrieving your nightwear as punishment for not letting you win in Devil Kart YET AGAIN, so, knowing how flustered he got everytime he saw you in the Ruri Chan's inspired piyamas he got you for your birthday, you were sure you had another couple of minutes alone in his room.

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: thx 4 sving me !!

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: we shld team more

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: were zo good 2gether

wEre Zo gOoD 2gETheR

You couldn't help but mock her in the privacy of your mind. Did she think writing like a 10 year old was attractive? If so, what the fuck?

@/f3istyk1ttenuwu: call? brke my pc & cn't fix it alone \(-o-)/

"Call a fucking tech" you whispered to yourself.

"Henry?"

Fuck.

You turned around like a deer in headlights. Levi's cheeks still wore a furious red, but he remained quiet at the door when he saw you snooping through his private conversations.

Fuck it, you thought after some uncomfortable seconds. If someone could understand jealousy, it would be him.

"Who's this girl?"

Levi frowned and got closer to you, leaning over your shoulder to see his computer, probably giving you the closeness he'd crave if he was in your place.

"Oh, I don't know" his final answer disappointed you "Some girl the others wanted in the party"

But why was she talking to him like that?

"And why is she talking to you like that?"

He shrugged his shoulders, knowing that both of you knew the answer. Then, he straightened like he had an epiphany, and looked at you with shining eyes and a smile too big for his face.

"Are you jealous, MC?"

Levi jumped in happiness before you could say anything, unable to truly express how happy he was upon his sin affecting you.

"My Henry is jealous!! Because of a yucky disgusting otaku like me!! This reminds me of that anime: 'Help?! My crush snooped through my pc and now they're jealous because someone else is flirting with me??'"

It was obvious by now you had nothing to worry about, so you let him be. You let him appreciate how much you loved him.

In the end, you had to shower his face in kisses to shut him up and, for great measure, you also changed into that extra large Ruri Chan t-shirt in front of him.

Hours later, both of you were sweating in the comfort of his bathtub and Levi was completely sure you fell asleep.

And if you saw how he offered himself to fix this girl's computer only to hack her camera and post her real face all around the internet, no you didn't.

Tagging them lovely people: @hello-gloomy @the-sassiest-toaster @hero-nii-blog @yourlocalyin

Hope you like it!

[obsessivestar]

'What If It's All A RomCom?' - a Ted Nivison x Reader.

!! This is Chapter 3! Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 can be found here! If you'd like to be here for the next part, ask to be added to my taglist! It'd be my pleasure ♡ !!

{{-Story Description: You're a youtuber with a fairly decent following deciding to help your good friend Tanner with a minor film project, with you set as the leading lady. When the actor for the male lead is a no show, Ted takes up the role himself. One problem: This short film's a Rom Com, and you just met the guy.-}}

//18+, Def gonna be some smut. Reader is implied to be afab, under 5'5 and has specifically named friends, all who have no real connection to Ted.

☆▪︎▪︎▪︎Taglist!▪︎▪︎▪︎☆

@k-k0129

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Word count: 3.5k

Chapter 3: My Eyes Are Up Here

The first day of shooting the film finally came and went. We had spent most of that afternoon figuring out what every character's wardrobe would be like and making sure everything on set looked good on camera. If any furniture needed to be moved, we moved it. Paintings were taken down or added, blinds were closed or left open, overrall it felt like the first day was about preperation. While I had thought we'd get at least some filming done on the first day, it actually worked out well. It gave Ted an entire day to go over the script with Tanner, and Joe the entire day to play the role of my father, demanding I stay away from bad boy Ted. I mean that sarcastically. Mostly sarcastically.

The plot of the film is almost similar to our real lives: We're supposed to be a bunch of adults out of college trying to hold on to our youth while spending their last summer together at some...summer house. There's a few extras that are meant to be playing our friends, but the main focus is on the relationship of Ted and I; our characters, I mean. At the end of the first day, everyone part of the film crew leave to sleep at their own accommodations except 5 of us. Ted, Myself, Tanner, Joe and another member of the editing team, though I don't learn his name tonight as he spends the entirety of it in his assigned bedroom. Joe had offered to get me a separate Airbnb when he realized I was the only one staying here that didn't identify as a guy, but I'm not uncomfortable with these arrangements. I have a lock for my assigned bedroom if need be, but I have no reason to distrust anyone else that will be spending the next 3 weeks living here.

The first night passes with no problems from anybody, except from Ted. He started knocking on my wall around 12am. Took a good couple minutes and a quick Google search to realize the fuckass was knocking 'cunt' in Morse code. He stopped shortly after I messaged him a picture of my middle finger being held up at the same wall.

The next morning i'm involved in a few scenes with some of the extras first so I can get a real feel for being on camera in this light, which also gives Ted time to read over the script in another room. In the film, my name is supposed to be Kara, and he's Mason. Tanner picked simple names. Ted looks like he could be named 'Mason'. The scenes go by fairly quickly, doing the necessary repeats to get multiple takes and angles, standard procedure when filming. I find myself to be quite a natural at this sort of thing. Other than the occasional stammer, I'm able to speak my lines and act the part with little to no difficulty. No bloopers just yet.

Next thing I know, morning turns into noon and we're having to move outside to take advantage of the last bit of full sunshine we'll have for the day, including Ted, who will finally be joining me in front of the camera. Like Ted had explained yesterday, we'd been filming a lot of the scenes out of order, this one included. At this point in the story, several days have passed, and our characters have already shared their first kiss, so our chemistry needs to be on point to make it believable. We need to act like there are some real, lingering feelings for one another while keeping it subtle. It was actually challenges like this that made me agree to take the leading lady role. I could've easily been one of the extras and only have a page or two to read off of, but I wanted to explore true acting, not just pretending.

I can't say I'm inherently a romantic. I'm certainly intrigued by how romance in film was handled decade's ago compared to now and I'd absolutely invest myself into a romantic comedy of the 90's or 2000's if one was turned on in front of me, but I didn't sign up for this to play pretend with a handsome guy. I want to explore the trials and tribulations of this cheesy kind of storytelling I'm a sucker for. I want to see if I'm capable of bringing chemistry into one scene, then slipping it into my pocket for the next as if it were never out there.

My thoughts are cut by Tanner and Ted meeting me and the rest of the crew outside, with the script still in Ted's hand. He's still in the white t-shirt they fitted him with yesterday, changing his slacks into some dark blue jeans. He looked pretty good in jeans.

"Okay, so we wanna get some establishing shots.." Tanner explained to us, Ted moving to come stand beside me. "We're gonna get some of the extras to toss around a football and sort of...run around, get some shots of them playing. You two are gonna go stand over by that post and just...talk..." He pauses on that last word, as if to really emphasize it. "Just talk?" Ted repeats, raising both of his brows with a smile. "I don't like the way you hesitated there, my good man."

"No, I mean--"

"I feel like you're trying to imply something, good sir."

"Yeah, Tanner. He can talk to the 'pretty lady'." I pitch in with a knowing smirk, getting a look from Ted. "We won't need an intimacy coach just yet."

"No, I get it.." Tanner chuckles slightly. "What I was trying to say is now might be a good time to talk about what your 'tell' is going to be, if you can't think of anything to talk about."

I furrow my brows in confusion, silently looking to Ted for an idea of what that is. He looks equally confused. "Our 'tell'?" I ask.

"Yeah, for when you have to kiss." Tanner replies, pointing at Ted and I. "We can't just count down from three and shout at you. It has to feel natural, so if you have a tell, a non-verbal way of signaling that one of you is going in for it, it makes it...realistic and saves up some time."

I suppose the way Tanner explained it make sense. It makes me think back on a moment in Stranger Things. There's a scene at the end of Season 2 where everyone's dancing, and you can just barely see Finn Wolfhard's mouth move before he goes in for a kiss. He had mouthed 'I'm coming in' or something like that to Millie and it's noticable in the final shot they went with. Tanner wanting to avoid that is completely valid.

"OK. No problem." Ted was the first to agree with a casual shrug, turning to look at me. I give a quiet little nod in return. "Where should we go stand?"

"Just over there would be perfect." Tanner pointed over by the large empty flagpole in the distance, a bit farther away from the rest of the extras. "I'll just be a little more to the left with the film crew, I'll give you a. O.K. signal just before we start filming so you know when to start and I'll shout 'cut' when we're done."

"Sounds good to me. Let's go." Ted beckoned me to follow, heading towards the flagpole.

I'm walking somewhat behind Ted, blushing a little to myself as I take in just how much taller he is than me. He's definitely at least a foot taller, maybe more. I'm only noticing it now. I wonder how tall he is?

"It's 6."

I stop walking for about a second, almost wondering if Ted had somehow read my mind. "What?"

"It's 6 kisses. I counted."

"O-Oh." I giggle a little to myself, crossing my arms over each other to rub them with my hands. "You counted them? Did you even read the script?"

"Better than you did! How do you over count kissing?"

"I counted 7!"

"You added one in, you fuckhead."

"Why the fuck would I add one in? What, you think I was enticing you with an extra kiss, asshole?!" I move up a bit to stand beside him as we walk, just so I can playfully nudge his arm. "I counted 7!"

"You fucking wish, princess."

"Ooghh, you fucking wiiiish!..." I start to mock Ted's strong voice again. "You're projecting. Maybe you under-counted."

"How about you under-count how cute you think you are, huh?" Ted snickered to himself, nudging me back a little harder. "We're supposed to want to smooch it up more once we get to this pole, I need to be able to stay in character."

"That sounds like a you problem. I can stay in character, even with your headass."

"I am going to stick you up on that fucking flagpole, princess. One more."

"Stick--" I pause and close my mouth, resisting the urge to burst out laughing. "Stick deez nuts down your throat."

Ted and I erupt into laughter, almost getting a little hysterical. I leaned forward and hugged my stomach while Ted flung his head back. I'm sure at least some of the others could hear us, our laughter was practically echoing out. We knew we had to come down from our laughing fit when we reached the flagpole, letting out a few more cackles and giggles. I lean back against the large flagpole, it's wide enough for me to push all my weight on it without shifting one way or another. From here, we can see that Tanner was still talking to the film crew as they mess with their large cameras. I'm having to squint and raise my hand up to cover them from the sun's bright, harsh rays, though I smile to myself. I'm glad I agreed to help with this.

"How much longer, do you think?" I ask Ted, watching as Tanner moved over to a different cameraman. Before Ted can answer me, I see Tanner turn to us and raise his arm up high. I can just barely make out the O.K. symbol he's doing with his hand. Next thing I know, the sun's rays are no longer over me. Did some clouds move over it, or...?

I turn my body, only to stiffen it up against the flagpole, almost like I'm trying to push my body into it. Ted is now completely towering over me, only being held up by his forearm resting above my head against the pole. He's crossed his legs somewhat, so if he were to remove his arm, all of his weight would come crashing down on me. "You feelin' alright there, (Y/N)?" Ted's grinning like an absolute winner, keeping his dark brown eyes on me as he removes his round glasses and rests them atop his head. I feel like his eyes could be replaced with the red laser of a sniper, and I'd be just as tense.

"Wh-Why are you--"

"Ohhh, nothing sassy to say now, eh? Where's more deez nuts jokes, hm? Where's being an annoying little cunt?"

Before I can create a coherent response, I feel another one of his hands move closer to me. Ted rests his hand right on my forehead. "You're burnin' up, princess. Did you pack some sunscreen? Gettin' real red over here.."

Something about the way he's bullying me is making my stomach twist. His tone, his words, his smile....

I try to turn my head away to get his hand off my forehead. It works, but his hand moved down to the side of my chin, gently pushing it to the side to make me face him once more.

"My eyes are up here, baby."

I glare daggers right back at him. I can't tell if he's actually flirting or if he's just fucking with me 'cause of yesterday. Both are plausible.

"Y'know this isn't helping your case." I collect my composure enough to speak plainly.

"What case?" He asks with a snicker.

"The case where you don't think I'm a pretty lady."

"I don't. Tanner said I need to act like I'm into you, so I'm acting like I'm into you."

"You're a terrible actor."

"I act for a living."

"You make YouTube videos for a living."

"Well, I'm good at pretending to like you, so.."

Ted's earthy orbs linger on me as he removes his hand from my chin. I'm not sure what I'm feeling at this moment. Is it embarrassment? Is it uncomfortable? Am I...intrigued? Interested, even? The way he speaks to me, it's just...

"Sh-Shouldn't we be discussing what our tell is going to be?"

"St-St-St-Stammerin' up a storm over here.." Ted mocks my stutter, his confident grin becoming even more annoying to me.

"You're not funny.." As the words leave me, I realize I've been smiling a little at him.

"What, and you are?"

"I mean it! I--"

"Woww, you wake up on the wrong side of the bed, princess? All that knockin' bothered you?"

"I'm gonna knock you into this fucking pole if you don't shush. I meant about the tell." A chuckle escapes me. "He's gonna want to know what we've come up with. Any ideas?"

Ted let's out a gentle sigh, finally pulling back to stand beside me against the pole instead. I feel like I can breathe properly again. "It's gotta be subtle, yeah?" Ted asks, crossing his arms. "I believe the term Tanner used was 'non-verbal', but yes." I cackle a little. Tanner has a certain way of speaking that's rather amusing. He's one of those friends that are naturally funny, whether he's intending to be or not. "Something that, if picked up on camera, would make sense in the moment.."

"Like a wink?" Ted asks. I turn my head to him, watching as he gives the most non-subtle wink I'd ever seen a man give me. A chuckle leaves me. "More subtle...like..." Thoughts about how the kissing scenes are shot wander through my mind, where the camera may be at any given moment, whether or not there will be a close up. It needs to be as non-verbal as possible; the most subtle way a person can signal to another that they want to kiss them.

"...Like...a quick look at the lips."

"Like a quick little one-two?" Ted asks, moving his eyes from my lips to my eyes to give me a physical demonstration.

"Yeah. I'm sure people do that when they're about to kiss someone."

"You're 'sure'?" Ted's smile drops, his change in expression suggesting he's nervous. "Oh man, don't tell me I'm about to be your first kiss.."

"Oh fuck you! I've had my first kiss! I'm in my 20's!" I laugh at him, watching as he let's out a sigh of relief. "I've had several kisses with several other boys, thanks!"

"Wowww, okay, first of all, kissin' the bro's is different." Ted points his finger at me, trying to appear serious with his lips tucked in a bit. "Second of all, boys? I'll have you know you'll be kissing a MAN, (Y/N). A fully grown 26 year old man!"

"What happened to the 'man' that was supposed to put me up on the flagpole, hm?"

"I basically already did, and you turned into a tomato."

"My feet didn't even leave the ground."

"Were you expecting me to pick you up? Cause I can do that!"

"Oh please, looks like the heaviest thing you ever carried was a Tuba."

"Okay, fuck you, I was in theater, but I can throw a mean ball and could absolutely carry you."

"You think so?"

"Absolutely."

"Try it."

Ted raises a curious brow at me and turns his body towards me once more. For a moment, I thought I saw his eyes wander downward, but our moment is interrupted by a shout, though it's not from Tanner. Right before my eyes, like time moved way faster than I was ready for, Ted had moved around me to stand in front of me to catch a fast-moving football. His back was close to me, in fact, this was the closest he's been to me so far. Though for only a brief moment, I could feel his white shirt slightly caress the tip of my nose as the wind blew. He smelled like...pine trees.

"Dude!" Ted shouted at the extras as he threw the football back. He may not have been a jock in high school, but his form was pretty good.

His. His football form. Y'know, like, not--not his--

I think that football would've hit me if Ted hadn't reacted as fast as he did.

"Jesus..." Ted huffed before turning to me again. He noticed how tense I had gotten, reaching to touch my arm. "I'm sorry, I didn't back up into you, did I? You alright?"

"I-I'm alright.." I managed to mutter back. It was odd hearing his voice sound so concerned for me. Up until now, most if not all of our interactions had been full of sarcastic, tyrannical but overall light-hearted jabs at each other, but in this very moment, I realized we may have unintentionally developed something here. I'm not saying it's necessarily romantic, but...there's a tension building up between us. It's not just in my head, is it? Does he feel it too? Is that why he's?...

"That...works too." Tanner catches up with us, alongside the man that had thrown the football. I didn't even realize they had been approaching us.

"What, did you plan that?" Ted turns to Tanner, sounding quite frustrated with him. "That could've hit her."

"Dude, I'm so sorry, I messed up my throw..." The man next to Tanner spoke with a genuine frown. "I-I meant to throw it higher up and hit the pole, the sun blocked my view. It's my fault."

"No, I told Dan to throw it, I'm sorry." Tanner speaks up as well, his hands resting on his hips nonchalantly. "I've been shouting at you two for, like, a good minute. I thought it would've been funny if Dan hit the pole.."

Ted and I are silent. Oh fuck. How long have they been trying to get our attention? How did we not hear them? I can tell Ted still isn't satisfied with the answer. Angry wasn't a good look for him, I don't think it's a good look for anyone.

"We need to buy you a whistle.." I manage to get out a joke, smiling to show everyone that I wasn't upset. I knew Tanner hadn't meant for anyone to get hurt. He probably trusted this 'Dan' to make the shot. Tanner wouldn't hurt a fly. He /would/ hurt a spider, though. He hates those things. "Yeah. Clearly." Tanner chuckles slightly, slipping his hands into his shorts pockets. "I'm really sorry."

"I'm okay, Tanner. Teddy's got me." I move away from the flagpole to place my arm on Ted's shoulder, leaning against it somewhat. I think my attempts at showing him I was OK finally worked, watching as he looks down at me with a friendly scoff. "I should've let it smack you in your stupid face." He remarks, finally bringing some of the tension from that altercation down. "Maybe, but at least I believe you now." I smile at Ted, moving my hand off his shoulder. Dan apologizes one last time before moving to rejoin the extras. Tanner let's us know that we'll be moving back inside to check on the shots before returning to the cameramen to help pack up. Ted and I start walking back to the house, though he pauses for a moment.

"What do you mean you 'believe me now'?" He asks, furrowing his brows while smiling. "Believe what?"

I give him a cutsey smile and reply simply.

"That you could carry me."

I walk a bit ahead of him, feeling the weight of my cheeks from how wide I'm smiling to myself. I hear a quiet scoff from Ted, though the rest of the walk is quiet.

After a few minutes of packing up and walking, we all return inside to look over the footage and set up for other scenes the extras will be filming. Now is the time we let Tanner know that we've figured out what our 'tell' is going to be. I look over at Joseph in the meantime, who's across the living room helping an extra with adjusting their outfit. As Ted explains the idea, Joe shoots me a look, furrowing his brows like I had just disobeyed a direct order. I return the look with a shrug. He's just going to have to deal with it. Tanner absolutely loved the idea, said it would add 'real intimacy' to a scene if he caught it on camera.

I suppose that's it, then. If I'm ever going in for a kiss, I'll look at Ted's lips to let him know.

__________________________________

|| Chapter 1 || Chapter 2 || Chapter 3 (Here) || Chapter 4 || Chapter 5 || Chapter 6 (smut) || Chapter 7 || Chapter 8 || Chapter 9 || Chapter 10 (smut) || Chapter 11 || Chapter 12 || Chapter 13 || Chapter 14 (smut) || Chapter 15 || Chapter 16 || Chapter 17 || Chapter 18 (smut) || Chapter 19 || Chapter 20 || Chapter 21 || Chapter 22 || Chapter 23 || Chapter 24 (smut) || Chapter 25 (Final) ||

[casuallivi]

Sunshine, brown eyes and a trespasser

Summary: The joyful state of mind necessary to romcom my way into the wips of TMK is nowhere to be found, but this particular wip is resonating with me. This elriel piece was originally inspired by the poem No Meio do Caminho by Carlos Drummond de Andrade, with Elain being a witch and Azriel serving Rhys' tyrant father who is the current high lord.

Warnings: rated mature for explicit content. From my memories, the story revolves around a certain survival x morality issue, can contain violence, cursing, blood, gore, assalt, depression, anxiety, trauma/triggers, power-play, and others things. But maybe this is just deeep in my head, proceed at your own risk.

I. Sunshine

Violent droplets of water falls nonstop in what has to be the hardest rain of the season. A thunder ricochets in the air, splitting the dark night sky in two. Neighing, the black stallion throws its head fiercely to side, and Elain almost loses the rein. She runs a hand over her own face in a futile attempt to reduce the wetness and push the sogg hair away, double looping the rein around her wrist afterwards. A pack of wolfs must be crossing through the woods, cause the stallion's eyes sway frenetically from side to side trying to identify from which direction the collective howling is coming from. Elain can't identify the direction either, but she knows they are growing louder, getting closer. Close enough to make her anxious too.

“Come on, Sunny.” She pleads with shaking voice, patting the bridge of the stallion’s nose. “We are almost there boy, come on.”

Soaked to the bone, her stomach growls with hunger. Leaving town without eating was a bad decision of her part, but Elain hadn’t know rain would catch up with her. Wandering pieces of the fallen bridge they were supossed to be crossing float past them, Sunny struggling to trudge against the water that crashes against them at the height of her knees. Shivering, Elain tries to control her shaking, worried that she’ll scare Sunny with sudden moves, doing her best to keep their pace steady as she pulls his rein, guiding the animal over the slippery rocks sitting on the bottom of the river.

Stupid! Elain curses herself.

Why did she think it was a good idea to go to town in the middle of the raining season? Over the last week the downpours had given truce, being replaced by thin rain, leading her to believe it was safe to make a quick trip to town. So Elain closed the inn, put on a cloak and saddled Sunshine with no idea the rain would pick up again, the dreadful wooden bridge separating the meadow from the mainroad splitting under them on the way back, turning her stallion into a desperate and frightened creature. Elain had to scream over the thunderstorm to soothe him, teeth chattering as she promised Sunny all the apples in the world in return for his cooperation. Sunny always had a big temper, and apples were his downfall.

Between ragged breaths they finally manage to cross the river, Elain sliding of the stallion and collapsing with exhaustion on the other side. Sunny shuddered, getting rid of the extra water on his mane and Elain, after a few minutes of rest, wrung the edges of her dress and cloak, turning her boots upside down to get them a little less wet. Sighing, she laced them again, taking the rein to walk beside the animal, preferring not to mount him in fear of worsening his limp.

"It's going to be alright," she promises slapping his neck. "I'll make you good as new, boy."

The downpour dark clouds had turned the day into night before her eyes, and Elain struggles to find her way amongst the trees, even when she is well accustomed to travel this particular path in the woods. Her steps are heavy an slow guiding Sunny along the irregular ground, making sure to avoid fallen branches and trees.

The pair walks in companionable silence for a couple minutes before Sunny starts to freak out, throwing his neck into another direction.

“What is wrong with you, stop that!” she gritted through her teeth. “It's safe here, there are no rocks.”

Elain pulles him froward trying to assert dominance, but the stallion refuses to go further, standing on his back legs. Elain grunted pulling the rein, struggling to get Sunny moving, managing to take a total of five steps before the horse refused to move again. She is about to yell at Sunny when an eerie feeling settles over her bones. Letting go of the rein, Elain veered left of the path in search of the cause. Protecting her eyes from the raindrops, she looks back at Sunny, the stallion fallowing her in a questionable distance.

Scarycat, she chants in his mind.

In front of them a lighting shines illuminating the space for long enough for her to see an odd-shaped-something sticking out from under one of the fallen tree trunks. Elain walks closer, her steps careful in contrast to her heartbeat picking up. An eerie feeling zaps through her body. She breaths in an out, freezing when her nose tracks the unmistakable coppery scent of blood thick in the air.

She exchanged looks with Sunny, who seemed to say ‘let’s get the fuck out of here.’

Ignoring his whiny-protest, she leads them closer.

“Hello?” Elain called carefully.

No one answers her.

“Hello?”

Her body moves without her consent, Elain turning to the left, venturing further from the path. Lightning split the sky once more, and Elain sees it. There. Further on the path. There they are.

Wings.

In the dampened forest ground lays a pair o severed wings black as the night sky, sharp talons prodding dangerous at the tips, the thin membrane still spasming as would a dying animal in agony. Her blood chills recognizing their leathery shape.

Illyrian.

They are Illyrian wings.

Elain covers her moth in shock at the sight of the bleeding flesh attached to the ends of the bone as if they had been ripped from someone’s back. Someone who was very much alive at moment.

Mother have mercy. What could possible rip the wings of an Illyrian like that?

With wild eyes, Elain turns around to make her way back to Sunny. Whatever had the ability to do this to an Illyrian would end her in seconds. Sunny was right, they needed to get the fuck out of here! In her hurry to get away, Elain trips in the roots hidden under water, falling face down in mud.

"Shit." She cursed under her breath, hand rising to clean her face.

A flicker of movement flashes on her peripheral, a hand closing itself around her ankle and Elain screams for her life, kicking and trashing to get away from whatever is trying to grab her.

The hold is weak. So weak so barely begins to move before the hand lets her go. Heart hammering inside her chest, Elain looks back to see a body flat on the ground. An unknown male lays face down, bleeding profusely in the earth, rain washing his life force little by little as it carries the dark red blood away. The male is so injured she can almost feel it in her own skin, the profundity of the gashes along his skin being confused with nothing but flogging. Elain knows this wound well, the ones made by whips with sharp metal tips embed in ash and blood at the end, the newest cruel way High Fae have found to punish unruly behaviour. And his back. His mangled back...

Elain looks over in direction of where is detached wings lay.

She swallow tightly, heart up to her throat, and crawls near to check the pulse on his neck.

Weak. So weak. Dying.

This male is good as gone, she thinks with despair.

Sunny fretts on the sideline, urging her to get away from the dying male. Their eyes meet.

'Leave, we need to leave.'

Her heart tightens. Elain fells sorry for the male, she really does, but she cannot risk dwelling here. Whatever being had the strength to rip an illyrian’s wing from his back would rip the life out her as well. Abruptly, the dying male spasmes, scaring the hell out of her. Elain fells on her butt. Bloody fingers closed over her boot, a frail grip trying to get her attention. The male turns his head, tremulous eyelid shading dazed eyes, the fire of life diminished, but still there, still fighting. He wheezes, too weak to speak, but Elain can understand him all the same. She closes her hand around him, watching as his consciousness slips away.

Sunny’s nose touches her wet face, disapproving of what she is about to do. She can hear his words inside her head.

‘Don’t do it,' he says. 'Leave.'

"I can't leave him," she answers.

'Leave!'

Elain hesitates.

‘Leave him,’ the stallion urges her ‘They'll find you.'

Her hesitation wavers.

'We need to go. You can’t save him anyways.’

Dazed eyes fighting to hold the threads of life float in her minds. A decision being made. Elain moves her away away from Sunny, back to the male who's hand she still holds.

“I saved you, didn’t I?”  

The Cauldron is Elain's fierce guardian, the sleepless god who watches the path of all his creation. It makes sense now, why such a firm bridge broke down on her way back, the fickle-minded god twisting the hands of fate presenting her with a challenge to face or ignore.

Elain was never one to back down from a challenge.

This male was not dying on her.

Pushing her fears and hesitations out of her mind, Elain closes her eyes to reach inside, searching for a presence other than theirs. Her own aura pulses strong and bright in the dark, an ember glow filling the space around them. The male's is weaker, flickering in and out of existence, the red threads of life crushed like a ball inside an injured hand. Sunny neighs and chastises her. Elain does her best to smile at him, hiding her own worries behind white teeth.

“Come one boy, we got a job to do.”

She slips her arms under the male’s armpits, grunting under his weight as she begins to haul him up.

+

[arminthada]

Hi Claire,

Could you explain what was Nadao Dancing please? I know it was some kind of joke but how did it start? When? How many people were involved? It seems to be a really fun story and I would love to know more about it 😊

Thank you!

Hiiiiiii

Gurl I LOVEEEEEEEEE NADAO DANCING. THEY'RE FOREVER THE BEST NADAO BOYS IN MY HEART.

So like basically since Billkin, PP and Sky were in My Ambulance together, that summer in 2019, Nadao Music shook T-POP world with the hit that is รักติดไซเรน (Love Siren) by Pearwah and Ice Paris (fun fact: I was randomly at Emsquartier when they filmed this MV and My Ambulance hadn't even come out yet and I knew it was gonna be a huge song, glad to be validated). And since then P'Yong had a shift and started allowing more and more Nadao actors to delve into singing and releasing music (this OST and 9x9 Project had great effects on P'Yong and is definitely an interesting subject for another post).

They often have contents together since they would do promo contents for My Ambulance so people basically loved this trio and they naturally formed into a tight knitted friend squad.

I believe the term was first coined during a Weverse live around late 2019 where Sky jokingly talks about Nadao Dancing being a three-person company in which he's the President, Billkin is Vice President and PP is Secretary (the joke here was that they're known as the bad/amateur dancers at Nadao, but they dance confidently so actual good dancers like JJ or Ice wouldn't qualify to join).

This term got popularised/more known to the general public through a post of Billkin of the three of them dancing to Zico's Any Song Challenge in February 2020. This was when EVERYONE got in on the Nadao Dancing joke and Nadao Bangkok acknowledges this by having this trio do a lot of dance covers/challenges, lives together, and even official reactions of Nadao Music releases.

The joke was so popular that on a talkshow where Tor Thanapob, P'Yong (CEO of Nadao Bangkok/Tada Entertainment), Ice Paris was present, Sky got asked about Nadao Dancing 🤣 You can watch the Interview with Engsub here - courtesy of our resident Nadao Bangkok wikipedia @sinlapinthai

And yeah that's basically it. Their inside joke was so popular that it remains a thing even until today and Nadao Bangkok fans (ME) forever reminisces this beloved trio from My Ambulance (dying on the hill that this is boss kuno's romcom masterpiece).

I think Nadao Bangkok was a breath of fresh air in the industry at the time because their works/artists feel authentic and even the marketing for their works at time feels down-to-earth and organic, not completely polished but a good amount of relatability, even if they were technically a subsidiary of GDH whose parent company is media giant GMM Grammy Conglomerate.

Thank you for your ask, it really made me take a trip down memory lane and I found a pretty funny/cute post from Nadao Bangkok about Great Men Academy that I'll post separately to this ask.

[prismbearer]

I always thought if Poppy and Ian kissed they'd go in for it and immediately hate it and be like "eugh gross" as a once-off, but that was like... Actual chemistry?

- culmination that Ian IS learning through failing Poppy each time, even if slowly because it upsets him that he's failing her.

- Poppy doesn't want to be Ian's machine anymore. She wants him to prioritize her as a person he loves outside of just work. They've been together for over a decade working, Poppy needs more and Ian has struggled to understand and provide what she needs to keep her. If Ian is capable of sacrificing his desires to support her then that means he's grown emotionally and is capable of being the person that she wants -- someone she can grow with and have a future with. Even if it's just a bubble. But they've been together in their own little fucked up creative reality bubble for 15 years or whatever already.

- tbh I don't care if they're fucking or not, I just want them to be creative partners with Ian and Poppy learning. I feel like Grimpop isn't even really about shipping they're the heart of the show and MQ as its creators. Their relationship is important regardless of sex or not-- like whatever the love is there.

- the idea of Poppy pulling a romcom run through the airport and all that is so-- I mean already stated Poppy and Ian are RomCom coded and like 00s romcom coded.

- Poppy went back to Ian bc he pushed her away and supported her trying with Storm-- she said it was what she wanted. So he respected her wishes to be far away from him, even going out of his way to drag her to the airport himself and even go through the hard goodbye. He could have manipulated her or let her keep the job alone (and probably drown again) until they just made him come back. But instead he put her wants/needs over his own. Idk personally I thought Ian was super emotionally open/heart on his sleeve this season. Very vulnerable with seeing Poppy potentially moving on away from him.

- I actually liked the writing for them so much this episode like it felt so good. Ian would rather be in hell to hold onto a connection to Poppy through their baby (MQ) than say goodbye even after he convinced her to leave him. I was ready for her to leave him but they won me back around.

- Poppy and Ian are not normal. They're in love I'm just accepting it. "It's just a video game. / It's not." They're always cloaking everything in another subject when they're talking about their relationship it's fine. The way they talked about the bubble with storm and taking a chance and the way the subtext was also for Ian and Poppy. FinE.

- anyway. Poppy saw a Glimmer of Hope that Ian could be the person/partner she needs. They're in love. IDC if they keep kissing or not so long as they don't fuck it up. Idk they have their own reality/bubble they've made together and know each other in a way that no one else even their own family knows them.

- the idea of them dating is hysterical with work tho. Like presuming they don't both pretend it didn't happen while screaming inside for half the season next season. We're probably getting a little time lapse post Poppy giving birth tho. So idk.

- they both wanted that kiss bad. Like they were ready for it. I rewatched the whole episode again just to accept it tbh, it's a good kiss. 🤦 I'm getting flashed of Barney/Robin which devastated me. So idk I'll die if they have an actual break up and separate. I can't handle MQ having a divorce ending for their partnership. This was the only window I think for Poppy to Get Out, but Ian had to give Poppy that glimmer.

- Biggest thing with them next season will be how Ian handles Poppy's baby. If he can handle it better than the worst case they'll have to address his actual son again and Ian will have to work through that with more than just money next season. Tbh they should do that anyway, I was happy to see the son dropped in even just in the side episode. I also love his ex-wife or whatever too so I want more of her just being chill. She would actually be a hysterical sort of confidante for them both who could also hit them with some hard truth.

- I had a random thought of Poppy giving the baby to her sister if her surrogate doesn't work out but feeling that less now. They'll probably keep it on as a story-based way to address their trauma with their families and fears of causing that generationally. Also want Ian to have to work through his issues with his dad and himself as a father so bad. Addressing his reasoning and taking accountability, respect his sons wishes etc.

[kenjiyabuki]

gmmtv 2025 wants and needs and predictions

i was in a yapping mood. feel free to comment :0)

anyone remember Captain from My School President? yeah, i forgot about him too until i was revisiting it last week. he is such a cutie and he really shone through in episode 6. yes he did, go back and check it. so, GMMTV, please take him out the basement in 2025 and at least give him a secondary role? i accept even if it is just one of those "main BL lead's goofy bestie" ones, just let him see the sun.

SO I THINK THIS WONT HAPPEN BECAUSE ITS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE but does anyone remember this interview where Jojo said he wanted to make an Sex and The City-esque series about the dating life of a guy with Gun Attaphan as the lead because it haunts me daily. if i believed in a god, this would be among my nightly prayers. especially after watching Love in the Big City, i just kept thinking how a Thai series like this would eat!!! my first choice would not be GMMTV to be honest (i want bigger budget!!!) but then, i would trust Jojo with a story like this. at least i would love to see his version. its obvious Jojo's other not BL series (3 Will Be Free, Mama Gogo, The Warp Effect, Dirty Laundry etc.) are more widely beloved than his BLs (Never Let Me Go, Only Friends). so maybe he would be more successful doing something that doesnt have to adhere to branded pairs and it just could be messy and queer as much as he can make it without the shipper fans nitpicking at everything. which, OKAY, i dont know if Gun fans are that blasé but i assume they are as he does work outside of BL and like... c'mon he is such a great actor, put him next to a pot of flowers and he could create chemistry.

Jojo also said he would like to work with Fourth... which is yes. YES, please. look, yeah Jojo sometimes disappoints but to me, he is still one of the most exciting directors in Thai BL. he has a VERY distinct style and i love him for it. its exciting to see which new actor will get the Jojo touch each year. he is such a actor's director and they always shine a different way through his lens. I just want to see what Jojo would make out of Fourth and Gun, both great talents!

some days i think there is no way AouBoom wont have main leads this year and other days my trust issues kick in... nevertheless, i think we wont be seeing them separated but i am asking the court, haven't they done their time in the side couple prison? didnt they pay their dues? if the court agrees, let's get them out of the uni uniforms and put them into something darker. something higher stakes, desperate love, fans nail biting every week, some new actors as the side couple etc.... AouBoom can handle it.

GL ANTHOLOGY/ENSEMBLE SERIES. at least two. one in the messy Only Friends type of way, the other a saccharine romcom a la We Are. for cast i want them to put all the ladies in that GMMTV building in there, even the female flies buzzing around

tbh, if we are going to get another long ass New show, i want BL AND GL couples. like i dont understand why all BLs have to be sausage fests like why cant we have best of both worlds together in one series........... i need to see more useless lesbian and dumb gay friendship representation stat. (e.g. The Warp Effect or Bad Buddy)

a more personalized wish for GL: i think she is back from maternity leave so, i want Fah in a GL purely for my self interest. she is just so talented and gorgeous and i want to see her kiss other gorgeous girls... i want to say Namtan but i think NamtanFilm might keep going through 2025, which okay, not complaining!!!!!!!!!

i KNOW GeminiFourth will have another series because i think they have been saying it or at least confirmed that they intend to keep working together. they make GMMTV lots of money so i dont see any chance for them to not have new series. they also expressed that they wanted get out of the high school uniforms which is like YEAH. yeah, boys. i agree. last year i was so disappointed to see them in My Love Mix-Up. it felt like such a setback after MSP and their spectacular work in Moonlight Chicken. just get them out the those blue shorts and put them in whatever, that's my (our) only wish.

i love them but i think want FirstKhaotung to rest. or i just want to see them something not exactly BL. yeah, i cant believe i am saying this as well. excited to see them in THK. no further comments.

might be an unpopular opinion but PLEASE no japanese BL remakes. please. i think it doesnt translate well. i am sorry...

i dont follow them that closely but i think GreatInn confirmed they will keep working together. BUTTT how about ThorFluke tho👀 will we get any crumbs from them?

WinnySatang… i think they have lots of room for improvement in their acting (i feel the emotions but they can look stiff) which affects their chemistry's physicality (e.g. sometimes they leave room for several Jesuses). still, i find them endearing together and see lots of potential and growth in the future IF they also want to keep on being a ship. tbh, i dont see them ready to tackle being leads yet so i am okay to see them as secondary again. and also singular roles in other BLs or non BLs.

MarcPoon. in whatever way or shape or form they think we deserve it. i just want to see more of them on my screen, together or not. but if together, preferably in a different dynamic than We Are (looking at you Perfect 10 Liners…). i adored Poon in Shadow, i would love to see him in a horror or just anything challenging again.

Lego of LYKN in his own BL?????????? that has to happen at one point, no? something to do with dancing, hopefully????

OffGun is already confirmed for next year. and full disclosure, i am soooo biased. generally i want couples to mix and match but i like OffGun together so much, i dont think i will ever complain about them. they could've been on their 78th BL and i would be like "okay, when is the next one?". my only wish would be for them to go back to the darker, more challenging, higher stakes kind of BL in the vein of Not Me again.

i think we can all agree when we see that trailer with Podd & Papang on that screen we wont even be shocked...

on the topic of shock, i want a new unexpected BL pair that will make us feel gagged and gooped and gobsmacked like the announcement of OhmNanon (rip) or JossGawin. hit us where we least expect it!

[mermaidsirennikita]

ARC REVIEW: A Jingle Bell Mingle by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone

4.75/5. Releases 9/24/24.

The Vibes: roommates with benefits, widower angst, porn star/boy bander, tons of banging; tons of emotional constipation

Heat Index: 8/10

The Basics:

Five years, former boy bander (and People's Sexiest Man Alive) Isaac Kelly suddenly lost his wife Brooklyn—and he'll never love again. Two years ago, Isaac had the first sexual experience since his wife died (I mean, his only sexual experience with anyone OTHER than his wife) in the form of a threesome with porn stars Jack and Sunny. NOW, he's back in Christmas Notch, moping in a mansion as he tries to write a Christmas album. Sunny's in town too, NOT moping as she tries to write a Christmas movie script. It's all too convenient for them to become temporary roommates... and maybe roommates with benefits. But all Isaac can offer Sunny is sex—and while that seems like a good idea to a woman who can't say "I love you", once she starts feeling feelings... It might not be enough.

The Review:

I knew this would be good. But it was better than good. It was the perfect culmination of the Christmas Notch series—the rare series that really just kept getting better. The three main books are all great, but each one was superior to the last for me (the novellas are fab too, but I need to rethink and rank them separately).

They're Christmas-y (but not so Christmas-y that I at all regretted reading this in July... I'll just reread it closer to the date). They're SUPER hot (more on that below). They're body-positive, sex worker positive (Sunny is no longer active in the industry once this story really begins, but she has no bad feelings about it) and deal with actual issues while maintaining a fun, heartwarming tone. Oh, and they're fucking hilarious. It's surprisingly hard to find romcom books that are actually funny, but—here you go!

What makes this book so special is that, while you have the framing of Sunny trying to find Isaac his muse while Isaac tries to help her write her script (almost like... a muse...), this is really a character piece. So much time is spent building up Isaac and Sunny's relationship. While I kind of refuse to call this "friends to lovers" because the reality is that these two are super into each other from the jump—albeit moreso physically than emotionally in the beginning—you do truly believe in their bond. Their emotional connection is just as intense as their sexual connection, which is, um, pretty intense.

And dude. If you read the previous books first—not strictly necessary but HIGHLY recommended—you'll see that Isaac is just... so depressed. Like, not leaving his house depressed. Ironically, his threesome with Jack and Sunny kind of jolted him back to life? And that's all it's supposed to be. So he's not in complete "wallowing in grief" mode here, but he is still very sad, and really only half-enjoying life. But Sunny is by no means a Manic Pixie Dream Girl. She has her own responsibilities. She has her own goals. And she has her own problems—if this book has any weakness (and it's minor) it's that Sunny's problems aren't quite as dramatic or compelling as Isaac's. But they're still valid, and they're integral to her growth. Point is: Sunny has her own deal, and Isaac helps her with her deal just as much as she helps him with his, and they also both have a lot of growing to do.

But anyway, what Isaac's deal gets us is a lot of sweet, SWEET angst. Not the level of angst you'll find in some of Sierra Simone's darker works. Just enough angst to have me feeling the fucking emotions, though. There's a moment late in this book that is the conflict I was SO hoping would come up. A conflict that is honestly quite real, but still a gut punch. And soooo satisfying to see resolved. We may have a "snowmobile for your love" moment. Can neither confirm or deny.

Finally, it's a great time to see everyone in Christmas Notch together again. Bee and Nolan! Winnie and Kallum! The North Pole dancers! Luca and Angel! Krysta and Addison! And we get some really good Teddy Ray and Steph content. I love Teddy Ray. Such a unique character. Rarely do you get a "wholesome porn peddler" stepfather figure in a contemporary romance series, and seeing him get his HEA with Steph was incredibly sweet.

The Sex:

RIDICULOUSLY hot. All of these books are hot, but there was something about Sunny and Isaac falling in love, each encounter becoming more intimate, while remaining in such deep denial about their feelings...

I mean, photo booth sex... creative usage of gingerbread lotion (a big thing in this series)... butt stuff with the HERO as the recipient, something we don't see enough of in m/f romance... And Isaac is a bit bossy! Which we love to see!

You really feel like these two can be honest with their feelings in the bedroom, without words. Which I am SUCH trash for.

Also, loved how casual the book was about Isaac and Sunny both being bi, their threesome with Jack, Isaac being pushed onto dates (by Sunny) with men and women. It's just the norm, which is in fact standard for pretty much all Sierra Simone books. Love.

Anyway, this is great, a perfect finale for a series I've loved and can't recommend enough. Read it during the holiday season. Read it now. Read it next summer. I mean, read it ASAP because you'll love it. But I might do an entire series reread around Christmas, to be real. These are CLASSICS.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[caspersgraveyard]

y'all really are not able to separate the concepts of quality and morality of a piece of art and even that of the artist and It Ends With Us is the perfect example. Colleen Hoover was damn near universally beloved when she was blowing up and everyone loved her stories - ESPECIALLY It Ends With Us. and then the sexual misconduct case with her son came out (which, let me clarify, I have not looked into, and obviously abhor and condemn (but some of y'all really need that explicitly stated); but you are not a bad person for defending against allegations and a parent is obviously going to want to defend their child, but that is not what this post is about) and everyone immediately jumped sides, suddenly being too good for her mass market writing.

you're allowed to hate the artist and thereby detach yourself from their works without calling said work bad. hating the artist does not make their art bad, bad art does not have to come from bad artists, and the opposites are true too.

everyone now saying it romanticises sexual assault are the same people who used to make edits of the book for the exact same thing. and, while it's been a while since I've read the book, it pretty openly condemned domestic violence and I think even included a note from Hoover herself about her own experiences with it.

look, I don't know what they're doing with the movie or why Blake Lively et al. have decided to go the cozy romcom route, but the almost overnight 180 on Hoover and her work is a direct byproduct of purity culture getting to y'all once again and that is the slipperiest of slopes.

[demiromantic-daily]

Hi! In one answer to an ask you said about going to media and how they describe romantic attraction to understand it. However, media portrayals of romantic attraction are often unrealistic even to alloromantic people ("love at first sight"), and initial crushes are often mainly expressed sexually because they are from an allo perspective where sexual and romantic attraction are often experienced as one compound attraction, so it's hard to separate the romance. They also sometimes describe something that could easily also apply to a squish. Once they get more specific in a traditionally romantic sense, they're already at the "I love you" stage, all of which makes it hard to figure out initial romantic attraction, especially when your sexual attraction doesn't align with it.

Hi! Sorry, my inbox on my main browser doesn't show my top asks anymore so I keep forgetting to go and answer this in another browser. Hate typing on mobile. break because this got long.

So I really just think media can be a good place to look to start to get an idea of romantic attraction/love. It's really not going to give you all the answers and absolutely will give you some inaccurate ideas but if you have no idea what it might be, then it's not a bad place to look to get a sense for it. Obviously good couples in your real life can be good too, but not everyone might have that and I think fiction is a great way to get a sense for what things feel like when experienced, and what love might look like behind closed doors. Not in a sexual sense, necessarily, just that observing couples in your life might not give you a full picture. But for sure a more realistic one than media, lol.

I am a sucker for romcoms but like. There are a lot of really bad ones. And most are unrealistic in a lot of ways. Mostly I think they fail in showing people falling in love way too quickly (I think the natural need to rush plot for 1h30m romcoms is a factor here, especially if the movie is more interested in exploring people in a relationship than the journey to getting into one. which isn't a criticism, some movies just do different things.) and are a bit too optimistic about characters' chances of staying together forever. Like obviously most fiction is meant as escapist fantasies for the viewer so fair enough but like so often the hurdles couples in movies have to overcome are ones that people in real life would break up over. And outside circumstances might not magically fix themselves to the couple's advantage.

I think TV can be great for showing slow development of relationships and a building of feelings. There's just more time for it and it can be a good plot point for two characters to go from friends/coworkers to into each other. These crushes aren't usually shown as primarily sexual.

Books are really where it's at for me, mostly because I love books, but I think the ability to exist in a character's head is really helpful for this sort of thing. Again, things can be not realistic and very often that's the case. Certain genres are better at being realistic than others. Like I won't say read exclusively women's fiction* sad books because that'll give an unrealistically dower perspective, but that's a reality a lot of the time too. So balance that sort of thing, at least.

*women's fiction is a term that should not be the name of the genre but like. it doesn't have another name, really. literary books focussing on relationships between people.

I think the big thing for me for squish vs crush is do I want to do things I feel are romantic with this person or not? I don't hold my friends hands or make out with them or whatever. Other people might be different and that's fine but to me those are romantic attraction things. Squishes I want to hang out and really really want to be their friend and make them laugh and whatnot. And so fiction can be a place to see ok what are those romantic attraction things, for a lot of people? I think also for me I don't really get to a place of having a crush until I am just about in love. Like the leap from one to the other is not very big. I need to feel a lot for a person to notice it's romantic and by that point it's pretty close to love. Again, this won't be the case for all demi people, but probably for many.

I'll shout out some fictional media about romance and not much about sex that I think is good at realism (these accidentally lean optimistic; that is my personal preference biasing this, sorry):

Past Lives (movie; focusses a lot on human connection more broadly but is very specifically focussed on romance; beautiful movie, just generally, also)

Emma (movie, I personally love the 2020 one; I'd also recommend Pride & Prejudice but I think Emma does a bit better job at looking at liking someone as a friend vs as a romantic partner)

Straight Up (movie, mostly about what to me reads as a queerplatonic relationship, it does talk about sex but in a way that feels pretty ace or ace-adjacent, it's really good and I love it a lot; it's not about romance, so much as the lack of it)

New Girl (tv; a fair bit about sex but, with the main couple, acknowledges the difference between their sexual and romantic attraction to one another)

The Office (tv; not my favourite show but it's decent and this is a great friendship-to-romantic-relationship-that-is-still-a-great-friendship)

Good Omens (tv; find Alternative Means to watch this, due to recent allegations, but it's still great; to me it read as very queerplatonic, until it wasn't. most people seemed to think it was romantic the whole time and I guess the latest season was written with that in mind (the first wasn't) so it's up to you what you see. either way they are canonically ace.)

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (book; there is a movie but the book is so much better and also the best book ever)

The Lunar Chronicles (book series; each book features a different main character and a romance subplot and each couple is very different from the last which is awesome and gives a wide variety but also this series is incredible in every other way)

Heartstopper (graphic novels/webcomics; a bit less overwhelmingly cheesy in comic form and so I really love them (the show is good too); it's got loads of stuff about attraction and love and friendship etc and I think it being written by an aroace person gives it a really good perspective on all that)

it's sort of relevant because some of the things recommended here are on prime, but there's a movement to cancel your prime subscriptions on Mar 7-14, 2025 (now), due to CEO Jeff Bezos' recent actions wrt American politics, so if that's relevant to any of you, please consider it!

[darksigns-exe]

Sweet Like Honey - Caught In The Rain

Warnings: None Word Count: 715 Note: I wrote this at the beginning of the month with the intention of of churning out little fics all month. Evidently that didn’t happen. But here’s a little Sweet Like Honey bonus content for your entertainment. It’s basically unedited so don’t come for me and my bad punctuation. Regular chapters continue this week she’s been a bit busy <3

-

Under normal circumstances, PDA isn’t his style but he also knows that Bee loves a good romcom and if he can give her that cheesy, cliche kiss in the rain moment, he’ll do his damndest to make her knees buckle.

Noah has a whole day for them planned. It’s their one day off for the week and Bee’s time off is nearing its end, meaning that they’ll be separated again way too soon. The first half of the day goes as planned, they look at sights, have a nice little lunch, do some more sightseeing. It’s surprisingly normal, if someone spots them they don’t make contact for which Noah is more than grateful. He luxuriates in her presences, allows himself to just be Noah the boyfriend who gets dragged around Boston so that his lady can look at all the pretty things. It’s nice enough. He takes her picture whenever she asks and even when she doesn’t. He keeps the candids to himself for the most part, pretty little reminders of his girl when she goes back home. 

She’s dragged him into some little shop with little handmade trinkets. He doesn’t know how many of these shops they’ve already been to, but it makes her happy so he trudges along no matter how much he’d rather slip beneath the sheets of their bed right now. The twinkling in her eyes when she holds one of the little things she’s found up to him makes it worth it. 

By the time they leave the story he’s a good fifty bucks lighter, but Bee has that little spring in her step and so he forgets about it. Fifty dollars doesn’t hurt his wallet anymore. He barely notices that the air has a significant chill now and if Bee notices it, it doesn’t seem to bother her. 

When the first drop of rain hits his forehead they’re still a solid thirty minutes away from their hotel. Within no time one drop turns into a full on downpour that soaks them down to the bone in mere moments. He tries to shield her from the rain as best as he can while they maneouver the packed streets.

Noah pulls them under an awning, hoping that they’ll be able to wait out the worst of it. They’re soaked anyway so it doesn’t matter too much, but he doesn’t need either of them getting sick right now. 

Bee’s hand is still wrapped firmly around his when they find a free spot between the other soaked bodies trying to escape the rain. Her fringe sticks to her forehead, droplets of rain trailing along the strands of hair and down her face. She looks gorgeous, even wet as a dog. 

He brushes some of the wetness away from her cheek. Sometimes he still can’t quite believe it. Their start had been rough, but now that they’re through what he hopes to be the worst it’s absolute bliss. His fingers linger against her skin. It’s awfully cold. 

“Whatcha thinking about, pretty boy?”

The nickname forces the blood to rush up into his cheeks, it always does. 

“What I’m gonna do to you once we’re out of the rain and these clothes.” His reply comes low, whispered against her ear. 

He bites back the rest of what he wants to say. 

Bee squeezes his hand “Filthy.”

“Gotta use what time we have, don’t we?” He presses a kiss below her ear “What kind of boyfriend would I be if I sent you home without a souvenir of my own.”

He doesn’t know if the shiver that runs through her comes from the cold or his words. He likes to imagine that it’s the latter. 

He shifts his hand behind her neck and pulls her in for a kiss. Under normal circumstances, PDA isn’t his style but he also knows that Bee loves a good romcom and if he can give her that cheesy, cliche kiss in the rain moment, he’ll do his damndest to make her knees buckle. He brings a hand behind her back so that he can lean into her a little more. She lets out a little gasp when he draws his tongue against her lip. The hand that still holds his squeezes tighter still. 

She’s breathless and flushed bright pink when he pulls away from her. If she wants romcom, she’ll get romcom. 

He leans back in, once more whispering against her ear so that only she can hear him “Soaked as you are, we might as well brave the rain.”

[cupidsnumberonehater]

OFMD S2 SPOILERS KINDA MAYBE IDK HOW TO TAG THIS SHIT???!!!

Picture from (unlisted) clip from Max!!

IGNORE IF YOU DONT WANT ANALYSIS AND SHIT ABOUT SPOILER CLIPS!!!!

Izzy lovers after seeing that clip:

For real, though.. that's episode one? COOL, can't wait to sob 😭. Con O'Neill's acting is GORGEOUS as always and my word, does he sell the character. It's out of character for Izzy yet still so in character and that is splendid. So! A few rambles if anyone care to indulge because I have re-watched the clip wayy too much already:

A. The Crew

I know this is a romcom but I find it wild that Jim and Frenchie seem to have some amount of care for Izzy rather than the off-put "what is happening" sort of reaction I would've expected. Fang has shown his own sweet self in season one, it makes sense he would be so nice to Izzy, but Stede's crew? Who wanted to mutiny the DAY Izzy became captain? Again, it's a romcom, I'm sure there's not much to it, but like what would have happened in the months between Ed's returned and this clip that they would care enough? Does Blackbeard get THAT bad and THAT obvious in his treatment of Izzy? Potentially even his treatment of the crew? Like I want to know when the crew realize "shit, he isn't treating that little fucker right." Like obviously his fucking toes getting snipped off isn't exactly a good sign, but when are they like "mmmm somethings not right" yk

Stede's crew was always very open about caring for each other (in their own ways) so maybe it's simply that, plus Stede's influence on them still shining through, but yk, I like being way too fucking deep into things. Also I really want to see more of the nicer Fang/Izzy interactions, mainly bc I love Fang and I love Izzy, but them interacting this season seems like such a nice little addition.

Also, not only does the crew seem so worried, but Izzy LETS them be worried. He doesn't try to escape the situation, he stands there and lets it happen, with the SMALLEST bit of fighting Fang and of course biting back his sobs. He's rendered completely vulnerable, as he seemingly can't talk much without crying, so he can't really make orders (least not in a very strong or commanding way like usual) and he probably can't walk too well. He's sick and vulnerable and has to put his trust in the crew in that moment.

B. Fucking hell, Izzy

Izzy already has tears in his eyes when the scene begins. It makes me think of two things; either maybe Fang or Frenchie brought up the situation with Blackbeard or something similar (likely in the more comical, laid back way, not actually thinking about Izzy's part in the situation) and it makes Izzy upset with everything's that been happening, then that leads to his breaking. Or alternatively, he could literally just be in so much pain (physically) with his leg, assuming it's likely getting pretty bad at that point, that he can't help but cry. Either way, the distress would easily lead even a man like Izzy to some sort of breaking point, like the clip shows, and it hurts my heart but also it's so good.

Additional thought and more of a "I'd read this in a fanfic" type of delulu deal: Izzy states that they've run out of room on the revenge bc of the looting, pretty much, but the way he starts the scene indicates some sort of conversation prior. While it's probably more likely that they were all just looking around their shit and trying to make room or figure out a plan to separate it all and such, then Izzy could've sat down with a tear bc he's probably in a lot of fucking pain, I would love the consider the possibility of Ed getting upset with the situation. Maybe he isn't listening when Izzy tries to explain the situation, maybe he's having a bit of an emotional day and he's being all "Blackbeard 🤬👹" bc of it, maybe he's raising his voice, who tf knows, and maybe it gets to Izzy that particular day and then boom, yk.

C. Hopes and desires (except I'm delulu)

The possibilities that that scene alone can lead to makes my brain scatter and run to grab all of them holy shit. The idea of some of the crew staging a sort of intervention for Izzy and his obsession with/love for Blackbeard. The idea of Izzy getting a little, teensy weensy more comfortable with some of them after this because fuck they saw the man BREAK even if it's just for those few seconds after all. The idea that THATS what helps push his character growth into motion. The idea that this plus after his amputation, he grows to trust the crew more, or trust them with more of himself anyway. The idea of him growing closer to them and realizing Blackbeard isn't the only person on this ship he can or should devote his life of piracy to. The idea of his motto of loyalty changing from "loyalty to the captain" to "loyalty to the captain and his crew." The idea that most of them keep Izzy's slip a secret but then someone spits it out by accident and either Ed rethinks things, ignores it, or he and Izzy both get a "what happened to you" talk from each other (probably in a bad way but the potential for a healthy chat is always there). The idea of Stede and him having a chat about love (doubting Izzy would fully realize he's obsessed/in love with Ed, but) and Stede basically telling Izzy what Mary told him, and that just confuses Izzy further - "It's easy" "it's just like breathing" - there's no way in hell that description fits Izzy's relationship with Ed (least not anymore, clearly) so what else could he possibly be feeling?

D. Final thoughts

All I know is Izzy is so clearly a fucking broken man at the START of the season. It's very promising for his character growth, which sounds weird but it stands. It's likely his leg is all infected in this scene, considering the false leg in the trailer, so that means we might be getting an amputation scene (or at least a reference to one). We might be getting some relationship growth between Izzy and the crew rather than just him and Stede, which I heavily look forward to. I'm a big Stede fan, but I would love to see Izzy and the crew actually be sort of acquaintances rather than pure co-pirates. I would especially love some more Fang and Izzy. They've clearly had some sort of positive relationship if Fang can hug him without facing some sort of physical aggression, so I would love to see it. Also, Fang's "how you doing, Izzy?" and "am I crushing you?" were the best lines I've heard so far, I fucking love him and his genuine care.

Also this screenshot makes me want to draw him sooo bad. The lighting, the expression, the scenery, everything is so perfect and sorrowfully angry.

AHH it's eating me up. I have worms in my brain and their names are Izzy, Stede, and whatever the fuck this scene is. I have more art ideas now too uhg

[bryantspeed]

Season 2 Good Omens spoilers

Long rant incoming

Now that I’ve finished crying I wanna talk about the ending and some gut punch reactions I’ve already seen from other people. A repeated sentiment I’ve seen from Aziraphale and Crowley’s separation after the kiss is that “we don’t need more tragic queer endings” and that Our Flag Means Death and Good Omens suffer from straight writers writing queer love that fails in the end. And there are a few problems I have with those sentiments

The first being, BOTH GOOD OMENS AND OFMD AREN’T FINISHED? Like Neil Gaiman has stated in the past that he and Terry Pratchett envisioned 3 seasons in the TV adaptation of Good Omens, and we have definitely left off on a very interesting note for the third act to pick up from. This is the furthest thing from an ending as we can get.

Second, Season 2 of Good Omens very much shifted away from the idiot plot of Season 1 to truly make it a love story and emphasize that above all else. Hell, both Crowley and Aziraphale both point out romcom tropes that they find attractive and attempt to use them to make Maggie and Nina fall in love! Good Omens may be a self aware romcom, but it would be wrong to say it’s not still a romcom that subscribes to those tropes and utilizes them fully! We are ending the second act on a three act romantic story, and what typically happens then? The romantic leads, despite their mutual attraction and desire, split on ideological grounds and leave each other with regrets heavy on their lips (no matter how powerful a kiss is). Queer love stories do this too! Look at the movie “Bros”, they have this same 3 act structure, as does “But I’m a Cheerleader!” where we are screaming at Graham to please just run away with Megan but she is prioritizing her financial safety and family above her own desires.

Hell's sakes, look at the pinnacle of Romance, the brains behind the 1810 Clerkenwell diamond robbery, Jane Austen! Pride and Prejudice also follows this format where Elizabeth and Darcy are ideologically and emotionally split apart, and it is not until Darcy and Elizabeth grow and change for the better that they come back together in the most romantic scene to ever grace the world! "One word from you will silence me forever. [...] You have bewitched me body and soul". What I am trying to say is, Aziraphale going back to Heaven with Metatron is an extension of that common romance trope, splitting our star crossed demon and the too-trusting angel apart to prepare for the third and final act.

And ya know the funny thing that would have certainly happened even if they ended up together at the end of the second act? They would have been split apart very early into the third act. Stories are born of conflict, no story worth telling is one that culminates in "Nothing bad ever happened and we just watched our two lovebirds go on dates and explore each other's bodies for six hours!" Love stories thrive on setting up conflict, so that the romantic leads can fight and claw and work their way back to each other in a much more satisfying emotional climax than if the sloppy, rushed confession that Crowley gave Aziraphale had worked. Stories where the leads end up together in the middle of the story itself don't tend to end well for them (See Romeo and Juliet, "La La Land," "Titanic," et cetera). That is how you end up creating a romantic tragedy.

Third, while “We want queer stories that don’t end tragically” did have a place in film criticism at one time, and a time fairly recently, I feel that sticking to that now when there are a lot more stories that express queer joy and love (especially if you look beyond just major studios, support indie filmmakers, and support the SAG AFTRA and WGA strikes!!!) limits the kinds of stories we can tell. A genuine benefit of today is that there are a lot of queer stories that we can tell, and I’ve been lucky to read a lot of them. The freedom with which we can create stories about us is breathtaking. I've had the privilege to read many well written queer stories, but I've also had the strange privilege to read poorly written queer stories that I can't fathom how they made it past editing. There’s a fierce joy I carry knowing that there are a plethora of queer stories that I can read now, and that more are being created, good and bad.

My point is, there are so many queer stories to be told, and that are being told, so limiting queer media to “must end happily” is exactly that! Limiting! If we go in to every story with the foreknowledge of a happy ending, well frankly that’d be so boring! I want tragedies! I want fucked up characters not fully resolving their problems and being left in situations arguably worse than where they began!

And while I doubt that's the direction Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett wanted to take their supernatural love story, if Aziraphale and Crowley, despite all their struggles, are tragically separated because of metaphysical forces beyond our wildest imaginings, then that would be something new! It'd be interesting if done right! As painful it would be to not see Aziraphale and Crowley together gallivanting off to Alpha Centauri, I'd much rather see a story that has these sorts of stakes for both the characters and the audience!

Anyway, the reason for this rant is just to say that I'm excited for where Crowley and the new Supreme Archangel Aziraphale go in their final act, and by god will I impatiently wait and see.

PS: to those that I saw dismissing Good Omens' and OFMD's cliffhangers for coming from straight writers, Taika Waititi literally came out as queer, and Neil Gaiman had boycotts on Sandman in the 90's because of his queer characters, and his loving portrayal of Wanda, a trans woman that I will protect will all of my heart.

[sunlithearts]

🤍 hello and welcome to my personal blog! 🤍

disclaimer: this post is to give you a gist of what this blog may reflect and you are not in anyway obliged to follow or interact with it at all. :)

i've had this account for years now, and i've never posted anything of my own, it's basically just a diary of everything i've liked on here and literally just me reblogging stuff that is an all-encompassing package of my interests, which MAY include:

— films/tv shows: outer banks, criminal minds, stranger things, bridgerton, six of crows, a good girl's guide to murder, suits, marvel, some horror films and romcoms, other

— games: stardew valley, the sims 4, hogwarts legacy, detroit: become human, resident evil

— sports: f1 (mainly c16, op81, gr63, fc43, ln4)

— music: taylor swift, niki, sabrina carpenter, gracie abrams, laufey, lizzie mcalpine, olivia rodrigo, noah kahan, hozier, other

— other: literature, different forms of art and media, fashion, astronomy, food, funny stuff, pretty things, other random stuff

i may reblog nsfw stuff, which will be tagged with #— please please please , so minors, please dni.

i have side blogs that i use for reblogging fics i've read just for keepsakes and just so they're separated from my personal blog (i am bad at usernames). to emphasize, i am not a writer. what i am though, is a reader, and i just like to share all the fics i've found from amazing writers [another disclaimer: all contain fics that are self-inserts and rpf (if uncomfy, dni) + nsfw (minors, dni)]:

• hogwarts legacy: sebastian sallow (@sallowswinter)

• outer banks: jj maybank (@jjsdoll), rafe cameron (@rafeandpraises)

• stranger things: steve harrington (@steviesvinyls)

• marvel (@marveldelights)

• criminal minds: spencer reid (@strawberreid)

• f1: mainly cl16, op81, ln4 (@heartsforleclerc)

that's basically it! thanks for stopping by. :)

(i got the divider here!)

oh, and a reminder: free palestine. here’s how you can help.

[coffee-with-mint-syrup]

I've been binge-watching crazy ex-girlfriend for 3 days, it's finally forth season...and I can't take it anymore, I'm gonna vent a little bit or I won't be able to function today.

Greg is back bullshit is so unsettling - and not just because of recasting (I would loved if Skylar Astin was Greg from the very first episode but that's not what happened). Greg was always so judgy, so condescending towards Rebecca so all that "he is meant to be" crap is so so so annoying. Don't get me wrong - I loved that storyline in the first season because dah anyone was better than Josh for her at that point. But after all these seasons and after all that growth that feels so wrong - he was kinda a jerk back then and it didn't feel weird because of Rebecca's own flaws and issues... but now these two recovering people are getting together? Nothing good will happen. And don't even get me started on how separated Greg is from the rest of the gang, he doesn't even hang out with Josh. And I still can't see him as, well, the original Greg, it's so weird.

While Nathaniel...Alright, I get it, I got a huge second male lead syndrome but all this time I felt like he was kinda right for Rebecca. Even in her bad days. Nathaniel was alright when she almost choked him and, well, ever since nothing she did repulsed or disappointed him (well, there was this one time with his family issues, but Rebecca immediately snapped out of it). Never has he ever acted as some sort of a moral superior or pretended to be this "nice guy" who deserves the girl by default (and the episode I watch now is clearly a parody of a classic romcom and this particular trope). He's this one guy who loves her almost no matter what happens to them and that clearly didn't happen to Greg. He feels the type that would say "let me grab a shovel" when his loved one tells him there's a body. And all those things he did for Rebecca? Like, she says - I need to destroy Josh, he does that no questions asked (it would be much better if he asked for details though), and trying to become a better person and, gosh, even binge watching all the romcoms because she loves them...and I know that the latter is kinda small, but I just don't feel that Greg did anything for Rebecca? Like literally nothing comes to my mind that would require from him some sort of sacrifice or efforts? And before you say something - recovering from alcoholism and trying to be a nicer and better person are two different things. First is an health issue that needs to be treated and the second one shows a one's willingness and ability to change themselves in personal relationships, platonic or romantic ones. So yeah, I think Nathaniel's personal growth plotline is greater.

So yeah... I know that there's 8 episodes left and everything can change but that whole Greg thing kinda sucks.

[whence-the-woody]

Okay so 12 hours later, more fully formed review nobody asked for

So I didnt love it. There were parts that were great, I think the actors got the characters and did a good job. Some of the direction was really good, the soundtrack was good. And almost all the changess made sense to me, dont agree necessarily but I understand. The only one I dont get is Alex's parents being together because it changes so much of his characterisation and then we didnt even really see them. Obviously not that big of a deal but still.

My issue is with the parts that they kept in but rewrote. I love the book so much and arguably the best part is the dialogue, especially between Henry and Alex. They are both so funny and smart and romantic. The book is so quotable and includes beautiful quotes from others. There are so many lines said out loud or as internal monologue that make me ache. There werent any moments in this movie that made me ache.

I cant fathom why they decided to keep the key scenes, dedicate the time to them but instead of keeping the near-perfect script ready to go, they rewrote a worse version. Not a bad or terrible version by any stretch but essentially the hallmark version. They took beautiful speeches, conversations and moments and swapped it for dialogue that was cheesier and less natural, more stilted and on the nose. As I said before, if it was an entirely separate thing and just a cheesey romcom I would have no issue with that. It why ultimately I enjoyed the film. But when you had such a better version of those scenes, why rewrite them worse? I dont understand. For me the point of an adaptation is to see those lines and quotes preformed - they had the right actors, why give them the wrong script? I would kill to see them preform those original scenes.

Why make those beautiful emails more casual? Why remove so much of their obnoxious intelligence? Why touch a word of the castle storming scene? Why change Alex's beautiful speech? Why take out the pet names? The endless beautiful love declarations? The talks about their future?

That's my main thing and why Im disappointed somewhat in a movie I was so fucking excited for.

Other less serious and dumb complaints would be: Pez being there but never speaking, Nora and Bea also barely there, no bi crisis, the afformentioned one sided first hookup, Alex giving his speech without even talking to Henry first, there being nothing between I love you and being outed, what they do next never being referenced

In terms of things they straight up left out, even though I understand why, it feels less than to not see Alex's struggles with anxiety, Bea's story, Henry's charity work,

I already posted the things I liked. There were plenty and its still a good movie but it makes me sad that now there's been an adaptation we wont get one with all those lines I loved. It was good but with that source material and those actors it couldve been so much better.