#trust me i work at an animal shelter

[obikindred]

Grief/gain

[meraxes-of-new-albion]

Wish mazuri made cat food lmao

[oscargender]

Idk unpopular opinion but. Buying a puppy from a responsible breeder who doesn’t allow any dog they’ve bred to end up in a shelter is a morally neutral act

[ham1lton]

don’t trust the bitch in apt 33!

— part one of four.

pairings: max verstappen x reader.

summary: your new apartment in monaco is amazing. it’s close to your friends, family and work, it has incredible amenities and your neighbours for the most part seem kind. the only issue is your upstairs neighbour, who games all night and sleeps all day, and is insufferably loud while doing it.

author’s note: also this is a little longer than my usual smaus. the usernames might also be slightly different as this is an au!!also i am updating my taglist!

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liked by bestie1, bestie2 and 245 others.

yourusername: moving day done!! shout out to my sexy movers <3

tagged: apartmentrush.

view all 78 comments

bestie1: the pizza was soooo good 😋

-> bestie2: so yum 😋

-> bestie1: so good… we should come around again this week and have it again??

-> bestie2: yes….. we should….

-> yourusername: 🙄 fine. come round on saturday!

workbestie: so excited to see you at work on monday!!

-> yourusername: me too!!! i’ll bring the coffee <3

apartmentrush: welcome to our community!

-> yourusername: glad to be here :)

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liked by landonorris, max.fan1 and 1,728,982 others.

gamermax: just completed another successful 24 hour stream! thank you all for helping me raise money for the sassy animal shelter! also thank you @ landonorris for stocking my fridge up!

view all 234,793 comments

user1: ur so fine.

-> user4: was i the only one staring at his hands the entire stream????

-> user9: i mean. we barely see his face, that’s probably why.

georgerussell63: lando is trying to kill you! that’s why he’s an awful community president. all that redbull will have your heart exploding.

-> landonorris: not this shit again 🙄

-> georgerussell63: profanity on a public platform? another TICK against your name.

user7: is it truly a max post without a cat meme?

*liked by gamermax.*

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from lnorris4@rushapartment.co.uk.

to grussell63@rushapartment.co.uk, c.leclerc16@rushapartment.co.uk, lhamilton44@rushapartment.co.uk, ynln77@rushapartment.co.uk, mverstappen33@rushapartment.co.uk and 45 others.

subject: MEETING REMINDER.

thanks,

lando norris.

rush apartment president.

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you head upstairs to knock on this max’s door, dressed in your night clothes. your sleep mask across your forehead, your bonnet on and your skin still glistening from your skin routine. you knock on the door loudly. you hear swearing as someone falls over and then stands to open the door. the door opens to show a twenty something guy with a pair of streaming headphones on his head. he gives you an obvious look up and down before tilting his head in confusion.

“uh, can i help you?” he asks, his eyes meeting yours with a mix of curiosity and concern.

“you can start by keeping it down,” you snap, crossing your arms over your chest. “some of us need sleep.”

his eyes widen slightly, and he pulls the headphones down around his neck. “oh, i’m sorry. i didn’t realise i was being that loud.”

“well, you are,” you retort. “it’s three in the morning, and i have to work tomorrow. this is ridiculous.”

he runs a hand through his messy hair, looking genuinely apologetic. “i didn’t know anyone was in the apartment below. no one’s been there for a while. i’m max, by the way.”

“yn,” you reply shortly, not in the mood for pleasantries. “just please, keep it down.”

“i will, i promise,” max says earnestly. “i’ve got these noise-canceling headphones, and sometimes i forget how loud i’m being. i’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

you study him for a moment, still irritated but starting to believe his sincerity. “okay. goodnight, max.”

“goodnight, yn,” he replies, giving you a small, apologetic smile. “and good luck at work tomorrow.”

you turn to leave, feeling a mix of lingering frustration and unexpected intrigue. as you head back downstairs, you can’t help but wonder if he’ll actually keep his promise.

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MEETING TRANSCRIPT.

[sound of murmuring voices and rustling papers as the meeting starts]

NORRIS: alright, everyone, let's get started. we’re here to address some noise complaints. yn, you had a specific issue?

LN: (angrily) yes, my upstairs neighbor, max, keeps making noise late at night. i've talked to him, but it hasn’t stopped.

RUSSELL: (salty) typical. this is why i should have been president. i would’ve sorted this out immediately.

NORRIS: (sighs) george, not now. let’s focus on the issue at hand. alex, any thoughts?

ALBON: (trying to smooth things over) well, it’s important for everyone to be considerate of their neighbors. but, you know, people have different schedules. maybe max can use quieter equipment?

HAMILTON: (working on his laptop, half-heartedly) yeah, yeah. quieter equipment. great idea. can we move on? i’ve got a deadline.

LECLERC: (confused) what’s going on again? can we just finish this? i want to go home and see my uh… friends.

TSUNODA: (munching on snacks) i brought these for everyone! maybe we can bribe max with food to be quieter?

LN: (exasperated) i don’t think snacks will solve the problem. i just want to sleep in peace.

NORRIS: (rubbing his temples) max isn’t here because he owns his apartment, and these meetings are mandatory for renters or new buyers. so, we’re kind of stuck.

RUSSELL: (grumbling) see? this is why lando’s presidency is a joke.

NORRIS: (angry) oh give it a rest, george!

ALBON: (egging them on) oh, come on, george. let’s not make this about the election again. unless you want us to go over our allocated time.

HAMILTON: (still working) can we wrap this up? i’m really busy here.

BUTTON: (chuckling) you’re always busy lewis.

RUSSELL: jenson why are you even here. these meetings aren’t mandatory for you.

BUTTON: (smirking) maybe i like the company.

LECLERC: (standing up) i’m leaving. this is pointless.

TSUNODA: (offering more snacks) anyone want some chips before we go? charles, you’ll need the energy when you go visit your ‘friends’ later.

HAMILTON: and let them know to keep it down, some of can’t work through all that noise.

LECLERC: (blushing) uh, yeah, sure... i’ll let them know.

NORRIS: (defeated) fine. meeting adjourned. we’ll try to talk to max again, but for now, let’s just… go back to our lives.

[sound of chairs scraping and people leaving, with no resolution in sight]

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new taglist: @23victoria @maxlarens.

— want to be tagged for any future works? join my new taglist!

[pwurrz]

soon it’ll be a whole year since i lost teddy

[bovineblogger]

Just wanted to pitch my two cents in response to the previous anon! Hi friend, I know for a lot of us who get our food shrink wrapped and packaged at the grocery store it’s mind boggling to even imagine there’s a healthy way of animal husbandry.

I grew up in The Big City™️ but was raised by my grandparents. They grew up farming (just crops, their families were too poor to own livestock or purchase meat/milk/eggs) and taught me to have an incredible respect for where food comes from. We grew our own crops in the tiny backyard, composted, and did aquaculture even before I knew what it was. We bought our smaller meat from the local butcher minimally processed. You had to debone and process the whole chicken, fish, rabbit, frogs, etc. Grandpa traded his veggies for different fruits with the other oldies. Grandma made her own wine and yogurt. And I’ve worked and volunteered at animal shelters and wildlife rescue/rehab centers growing up. I still compost nearly all of my food waste. Even then, I didn’t truly understand the extent to which a properly cared for animal farm could be healthy and ethical.

Until I met one of my previous partners that is. They grew up in an incredibly rural area on a family farm that had animals, including a herd of cows for meat. They hunted, but always to protect the livestock and made use of the animals they killed/sold them to others in town who would. It seemed so counterintuitive to my sensibilities and raised my hackles at first. How could you say you love animals and do that? But I began asking questions…for hours and hours because it was nothing I’d been exposed to.

The way they and their family cared for/revered their animals seemed almost religious to me when I first encountered it. From the time they were kids, it was always the animals’ chores first. You woke up but fed and milked the cows before you made yourself breakfast. They made blankets for the animals and read to them. You gave the herd everything they needed and then some. If something in the barn needed fixing, that would happen first before new windows for the house. The animals had their own things and toys and treats. It was love! There were never cattle prods or whips or any of the machinery you associate with industrial farming. The animals would greet them happily every morning. They loved and trusted their people back enough to be naughty a way a pampered cat is. It really sunk in when I stood next to a cow for the first time — there’s nothing that would stop that animal from harming you, especially if you were a kid, unless it respected you and loved you back.

(They once told me the story of how some large predator like a bear or wolf tried to sneak into the pasture at night. The family woke up there next morning to a furry pancake that had been utterly stomped into the ground by the herd.)

A whole lifetime later, they can still remember the names, personalities, and stories of all the animals they raised. I would get bored and try to list off random names as a game to see if they ever had an animal called that, actually. But the thing that initially shocked (and stuck with me the most) was that when they’d take an older cow to the butcher, they would get packages of meat back labeled with that animal’s name. But it wasn’t ever scary or traumatizing for the kids. They always knew where food was from. Sometimes they were even there helping when that animal was born in the barn. What that did was give them an incredible sense of care, respect, and duty for those animals. When they had dinner that night, they would say grace and mean it in a way you only could if you viewed that animal as an equal family member. I was raised religious, but had never heard grace said like that, with that amount of genuine intent until I ate dinner with them. It used to be just something I did, just going through the motions.

That being said, yes it would probably be the most bio energy efficient/less emissions heavy if the whole world shifted away from a meat-based diet. But ideal isn’t always realistic/something we can achieve overnight. Meat alternatives are often expensive or time consuming to prepare (like beans/legumes). The way I see it, this blog is part of a harm reduction approach in facilitating an appreciation/love/education for livestock and then encouraging people to seek out more mindful sources of meat, like some local farms. We’ve seen time and time again, shame/blame are far less effective in getting people to re-examine their worldviews than education and love.

thank you so much for this ask, this is so so so so so lovely!!! i feel like a lot of people that arent farmers or dont have farmers in their family dont really understand just how much love is there.

[dcxdpdabbles]

DC x DP: Dog Walker

Danny needs someone to walk his dog.

He had been in Gotham for about five months when it became apparent he needed companionship.

Ever since Clockwork and Frostbite came to the same decision to move Danny to a new universe for his health- his core was deteriorating due to his obsession being fulfilled as Amity Park was safe, and everyone was ready to grow up and move on.

So Danny moved to a rough city in a harsh universe so that the danger could help his core restart his obsession.

The first few weeks were fine; he even found work as a computer program designer that allowed him to work from home thanks to his universe's advanced technology, but soon, he struggled with loneliness and homesickness—that was where his dog came into the picture.

He adopted Equinox- Nox for short- from the local shelter, and while Nox was a mutt with unknown parents, Danny had no trouble taking care of him.

That was until he accepted a job offer at Wayne Enterprise, and his work hours shifted from remote work seven days a week to four days. He wasn't stimulating Equinox properly by keeping him inside the three days he was out and his poor boy was suffering from it.

This could have easily be solved with a pet sitter or just a dog walker but this is Gotham. Danny knows he picked this place for its constant danger to keep his obsession active but he just wasn't expecting Gotham to be so...much.

He had a panic attack just thinking about what would happened to Nox if he trusted just anyone to take care of him.

Nox is the only living being that is under his Protection. It went against his very Instincts to not find someone he trusted utterly to walk him.

Danny checks his phone to see Nox peaceful sleeping in his doggy bed and sighs. His boy has been sleeping more and more lately, losing his bright spark.

"Whats wrong Danny?" Karla, one of the Office interns, asks from where she is walking along side him.

"Nothing, it's just my dog needs to go for a walk, and I'm not there to give him one." He says, turning the screen. "I wish I can have some one walk hin for me-"

"Understood. I shall pick up your dog tomorrow, Fenton," a tiny voice cuts in. The two turn around only to look down at the green eyes of Damian Wayne. His bosses' son and brother. Oh boy.

"Ugh, I'm sorry?" He blinks as the youngest, Wayne thrusts a piece of paper at him. Danny has no choice but to hesitantly takes the paper. On it is a professional if short resume belonging to Damian that highlights his skillset and community service.

"Father has informed me of the family tradition started by our Pennyworth. Every Wayne gets a part-time job from twelve to grow character." The boy says, hands behind him and back straight, appearing every bit his status. Also, it is like a little kid trying to appear as an adult. Danny found it kind of cute, and it reminded him of Jazz. "I have multiple experiences with animals, as you can see from volunteering at the local shelters. My fees for my services are also meager and would surely not be difficult to cover."

Danny's core turned cold, but not in the wrong way. It was a cooling sensation he had associated with a fun day of either a snowball fight or the fresh first fall. He knew he could trust the boy.

"You know what? Yeah I love it if you walked my dog. In fact would you be interested in being a dog sitter?"

The boy's green eyes brightened with childish glee, but he tried to remain serious. Danny's heart melted at the sight. Oh, he should call Jazz soon. "That would be most acceptable."

Unknown to Danny, Karla, or Damian, Dick Grayson watched the trio as his brother handed one of the most mysterious employees a resume. Now, why would Fenton want to be close to Damian?

Over the last few months, people have been trying to take advantage of Damian because they thought his brother stupid for his mixed blood, just as they did when Bruce first took him in.

Danny doesn't mind Alfred's rule to find a part-time job to help teach them values, but he finds people aren't as kind as they should be. He'll have to keep an eye on this Danny Fenton.

Maybe he can help co-sit his dog.

[mrsparrasblog]

You're Losing Me Pt.3 POLY 141 x Reader

TW: angst, mentioned rape, mentioned drug abuse, violence, alcoholism, crying, manipulation

prev part first part. next part

Wrapped around with a blanket, you lay on the couch singing all the breakup songs you know, pathetically. You didn't talk to your friends, called in sick at work, and haven't left the apartment since it happened. The only thing you had was Winston, the Taylor Swift vinyl on repeat that Johnny gifted you, and a cheap red wine that tasted like ass. You ordered some pizza so that something else keeps you company. When the bell rang, you didn't bother to put on a nice outfit. You went out with your tangled hair, your puffy swollen eyes, and Simon's ratty t-shirt that you couldn’t bother to throw away; it just smelled like comfort to you.

You were surprised when you saw, instead of the delivery guy, Kyle in front of your house. He looked so unlike Kyle. He didn't have that cheeky smile you loved, and his clean pretty boy aesthetic was gone. His white shirt was full of blood, his jaw bruised, and your heart broke. That was your man - was.

"Do you want to collect your stuff?" You asked, it hurt you so bad to ask, but you needed to be strong. You didn't want to be like your mom who stayed with your Dad despite how often he cheated on her. You were strong and independent before you met them, you can reach this again.

"Babe, please."

"Don't do this to me, Kyle," don't make me love you, don’t make me forgive you.

"Can I see at least Winston?" He asked, and that was a thing you couldn't deny. It was his dog too after all. You remembered how you rescued him together from a dog shelter. Everyone else would have said no, but Kyle loved animals just as much as you do. So you adopted that corgi, and you can regret many things but not your loyal dog.

"Come in," you said, not bothering to apologize for the mess.

When Winston saw him, he jumped immediately on Kyle, and this made you smile for the first time in days. "What happened to your face?"

"Got in some fights around the base."

"Kyle, you never get into fights with coworkers. Look, just because we're not a thing anymore doesn’t mean you need to sabotage your own life. Things like breakups happen, and I'm sure you will find a lovely girl." Your heart ached just thinking about them with another girl, all sharing and loving how they loved you.

"Don't want anyone else."

"Kyle."

"I mean it, I love you, and not just a bit. I know you're the right one. Tell me what you want, and I'll do it. Want me to quit the military? Easy. Want to punish me? Hurt me? I don’t care. Want to never touch me again? Fine, I'll live my life without sex just to have you. Want me to marry you? Done. Why wait? Do you want me to kill that slag? I'll do it. You don’t understand it; there is no such thing as too much for you. There isn’t a thing I wouldn’t do for you."

You were too stunned to speak, but by the look in his eyes, you knew he meant every word of it. He really loved you. But how could you trust him again? And John, you knew Kyle loved John, maybe not as much as you, but you were no one to separate them. That wasn’t fair.

"Let me clean the blood from your nose, Kyle." You stood up, ignoring the things he said, and went to the bathroom, grabbing alcohol and one of Kyle's spare t-shirts, inhaling the scent as you sobbed into it.

"Love—"

"Let me clean you."

He picked you up, sitting you down at the sink, where you slowly cleaned his wounds. Your breath felt heavy every second you got near his lips.

"Tell me you don't love me, and I'll never bother you again."

"Kyle, I can't lie to you."

You cleaned him and gave him his new shirt, but you couldn’t let him leave.

"Kyle, I love you, but I love all of you so much that I can't let you choose between me and John. You love him, I know that, and it's okay. I understand."

"John didn’t cheat on you; it was Johnny."

"Don't lie to me."

"I'd never lie to you. He just knew we couldn’t live without you, and you know how selfless he is."

"I thought he cheated." You started to sob again. "I screamed at him, told him how much I hate him, and he wasn’t at fault." You felt like a monster for your feelings.

"He understands."

"How does he hold up?" You knew John was never someone who shared your feelings.

"Locked himself in the office, drinking for days, doesn’t even speak with me."

"Let me fix this."

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John thought he was hallucinating when you went into his office with the spare key you had. It was too good to be true to see his angel again, but you weren’t real. He needed to stop drinking.

"I'm so sorry, John," you said over and over again, walking towards him, where you sat in your reserved place, on his lap, and slowly removing the glass out of his help. "I'm sorry, John. I don’t hate you, I’d never hate you."

"Cheated on you, deserve it."

"I know it was Johnny."

"Lie."

"Kyle told me."

"Oh."

"Can you forgive me, John?"

"Of course, lovely," he laled and smiled.

"Let me get you in your room, okay, and sober you up." He nodded, and you brought him to his room. You still weren’t sure what to do. Will you forgive them? Will you forgive Johnny?

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"Lea mah room, slag," Johnny screamed at the medic. He had enough of her and her manipulative acts, how she went into his room and touched him in training. It was enough.

"Don't be so harsh; I'm your girlfriend, after all," she smiled. She was sick fucking delusional.

"Youre nae mah burd ah tellt ye this often enough," he pressed his hands together, his knuckles white from rage. If he was a worse man, he’d kill her on the spot. But he needed her to make a mistake, so there would be proof of her lying.

"Not so aggressive, Johnny, this isn’t good for our baby."

"Are you mental? There is no fucking baby. You raped me three days ago. Aren’t you supposed to be a medic and know how this shit works?"

"There will be, and then we'll be happy."

"You're sick. This will never happen."

"Oh, there will, or you know I could tell anyone how you raped me and dared to kill me after your girlfriend found out."

"No one will believe you."

"They will."

And there was a knock on the door. He left her in the room, telling her it was probably only a rookie. He was surprised when he saw you. Even though you looked broken, you were still the most precious thing in his life. He wanted to hug you, tell you the truth.

"I know it was you, Johnny," you started to cry you never thought Johnny would do such a thing to you."

"Hen, please."

You hugged him tight, which caught him by surprise, but he held you through it. "Tell me why, Johnny. Please, let me know what I did to deserve this." His heart broke with every word you said. He desperately wanted to explain to you that you could never do anything wrong in his life, but the shame ate him up. Would you understand? Would you believe him?

"Tell me you won't do it again, Johnny. Tell me you regret it, that it didn't mean a thing. I'll forgive you, please, Johnny."

"Look, hen—" But before he could finish his sentence, the medic left the room wearing only one of his shirts.

"What are you doing here? I thought you’d broken up with that bore."

You noticed the shirt, the ruffled hair, and the bracelet you gifted Johnny that she wore. "Johnny, why is she wearing your shirt? Why does she have my bracelet?"

"Love, don't believe—"

"Oh, you're not only a bore, you're also dense, aren't you?"

That was enough to finally break you. You walked away, screaming at Johnny that he should leave you alone, running into Simon on your way out.

"Luv?"

"Stay away from me, Si," and he respected your wish, giving you the time to heal you need. He finally found Johnny in a screaming match with the medic. When she saw him, she gave Johnny a peck on his cheek and left with a sly smile.

Johnny was never a man to cry until that day. He didn't know how his life went so downhill in a few days.

"Johnny?"

"Go away, Lt."

"Johnny, tell me what's wrong."

"You wouldn't believe me. No one would."

"Let me decide that. Let's get you in your room and talk." His heart broke seeing Johnny like that, and he knew whatever it was, he would fix it for him.

[villainsandvictimsalliance]

So many lonely people on Kaiju No. 8 had found companionship with Kafka.

He's the personification of support. A senpai, a role model, a hero, a friend, a cadet, a reliable worker, even a crush. He's someone you can trust and someone that wants to be there for you. Even the comedy relief guy or the saviour of the day!!

In the latest manga chapters he was a plushie for a little girl.

There's Reno who lost his entire family. Kafka took the role of the senpai with him: guide and teach the guy, talk with him, show him how to survive and inspire him. Reno met a genuinely good guy that was openly offering his help and friendship, so he went back to thank him and do the same. Hey, your dream is not over, Reno said. What did he get in return? Kafka sacrificing his life for him, telling him to run, giving up the most important thing in his life for Reno.

There's Mina, who is terrified of being alone. She found a personal clown in Kafka, yes, but he was also the boy who helped her keep her hope and made things easier. He would always go with her to the shelter during a kaiju attack, even if he was in another school. He told her she didn't have to kill kaijus all alone. He promised to be by her side. Mina was thrown into a world of giant burdens and expectations, where her failures could mean death and destruction. Kafka saw her not as the weapon she was, but as Mina.

Hoshina was constantly disrespected, overlooked and ignored. He gave Kafka a chance because he reminded Hoshina of himself. For his troubles, Hoshina got a guy that would work hard to reach his expectations, that would rival him, that would call him first thing and spend all that time worried and would apologize before turning into a kaiju to save their lives. Kafka became a friend of sorts to Hoshina through hard work and respect.

Kikoru was used to all types of reactions from the people around her, but not to the level of worry and pride and trust Kafka gave her. It was not for show, he was completely open and sincere in his feelings. Kikoru you're an asshole, Kikoru you're amazing, Kikoru pleaseeee take care of yourself, Kikoru I won't disappoint you, Kikoru you have my permission and gratitude if you kill me if I ever lose control, Kikoru I trust you to finish this battle.

The first thing Kafka did during the second part of the recruitment was support Aoi and Haruichi during their subjugation of a kaiju.

He saved Minase's life by partially turning and risking his life for it. He saved Iharu and Reno that day against No. 9.

Narumi told Kafka that only they knew the weight of the burden they carried for being there the day Isao Shinomiya was killed. Freaking Narumi, who wouldn't share that burden with anyone else.

Like it was noted by his boss while he was still part of the Cleaning Corps, Kafka would do his job after complaining, but he'd do it perfectly and do it again if asked to.

He's reliable. I know I said it before, but he is.

In a world where anyone can die any minute, in the Kaiju Country, Kafka is a presence you don't want to vanish. It's what Mina says: everything is easier with him around, anything is possible.

When in the first chapters Kafka tells the little girl to not be afraid because he'll go and everything will be okay— the girl thanks him. In the anime, the little girl even asks Mina to please not hurt the good kaiju. Once people have met him, they don't want him to go. They'd do anything for him not to go, not to die. When Kikoru saw him losing control and remembered her promise, she decided that she'd rather believe in him 'til the end. When Isao was about to disappear, he thought about Kafka and said he'd leave things up to him too.

Isn't that what it means to be a hero? To be able to say "leave it up to me" but also trust others to help you when you need it? Inspire people to support you because you supported them first?

The only thing scarier than the kaijus is to be left alone in the world— and Kafka fights that.

[slowlydifferentbluebird]

The morning Shift - Hybrid AU

Hello there! Before the next part of the Aespa Au and the TripleS fic(still deciding which members), I wanted to drop this work of mine. I don't if the Hybrid AU is something my public is interested in, but I still wanted to give It a try. So let me know if you liked this and if you want more❤️

Can someone be employee of the month and the same time the biggest problem of the workplace? I know it sounds absurd, but it's the truth. One first hypothesis would be a case of nepotism: someone working there just because a parent or a friend is a top name of that agency; but no, it was not definitely your case. You really love this job and anything related to it. You always give all yourself, making the biggest effort to always execute your duty in the best and most correct way. But let's take one step at a time: what even is your job?

The answer is technically very easy: you work in a shelter, just not a normal one; the one where you are employeed takes care of hybrids, half-animal, half-human. Said in this way someone could believe we are talking about centaurs or mermaids, but they are not that mythical. Let's take in example the race you working with, the cat-hybrid race: they are basically normal people with few animals features like tails or cat ears. The rest of their "being hybrid" is really showed in their behaviour and antics, rather than in their body. I'm sure a description of a typical work shift of yours will be enough to make anyone understand.

Your routine starts kinda early in the morning: at 7 a.m. you arrive at the shelter, still kinda sleepy and groggy. Luckily you are immediately welcomed by one of the guests of the building. Two long arms takes you in a soft embrace, keeping you close from snuggling against your chest. "Good morning, Sakura, already out of your room today?", you asked, giggling, while kindly stroking her hair, making her cat hair move in response out of excitement. "Mmh, good morning. Yes, I felt like I had sleep enough tonight", she mumbled against your body, eyes closed in relax. You knew very well that she was lying: Sakura was very affectionate towards you and she had nightmares when you were not there for the night shift. You kinda solved the problem spraying her cushion with your perfume, but still her sleep was not the best; so her way to compensate that was literally waiting for you behind the entrance door. She had a very calm personality overall, so the staff of the place just let her be. "I see. Should we go wake up your roommate?", you proposed patting her head. Kkura just nooded and let you, starting to follow you really close from behind.

Despite this initial moment, Sakura was very mature and she rarely let herself go to these affectionate moments, especially in front of other guests. She often help you with your duties and kinda keeps everyone in check, so it's not easy to see her softer side, maybe the only one, except you, who know the japanese so well was her roommate and best friend. "Goooood morning, babyyyyyy", a loud and high voice shouted, someone jumping with so much strenght at you to send you on the floor. "Chae, be careful, you're hurting our caretaker", Sakura scolded her younger friend, crossing her arms. "Don't worry, she didn't hurt me, she just needs her morning cuddles", you reassured, hiding the pain with a big smile and focusing on scratching the forehead of Chae, making her cutely growls in satisfaction, her tail moving quickly. Chaewon story was particular: in fact despite she arrived in your shelter by mistake, because she was not a cat hybrid like all the others, but a cheetah hybrid. It was kinda a common mistake when they are young, but she was in fact different. At the start she was very aggressive and she didn't trust anyone, so she was about to be sent away...then you tried to get closer. You have always been kind and sweet, even when she was showing her worst behaviour, even hurting you, but you already knew that she was not bad, just very scared. And you were right: in no time she got very affectionate to you and also kinda protective. Not a single scratch would have appeared on your body under sight...well, except the ones caused by her cuddles.

After being held down by the blondie until her her cuddles hunger was satisfied, you slowly got up, helped by Sakura."Well, you already know at this point, I have to go to check the others", you explained, trying to go out of the door; however a pouting Chae was helding your hand to not let you go, her cheetah ears down. Even the mature Sakura was not completely enthusiast of the idea of you not being with them. "Oh, come on, don't make those faces, you're gonna break my heart. We're gonna see again in like 15 minutes. Breakfast, do you remember?", you reassured them, instantly bringing their smiles back and their ears up. You don't get how this scene repeats itself at every morning shift, but you could tell the separation anxiety was real for them, probably later they would asked for more of your attentions. However this sounded like a problem for your future self. You directed towards the next room, you knocked, asking for the permission to go inside. A soft "come in" was received as answer.

Opening the door, such a mesmerizing sight was waiting for you: this long figure was sat under the window, reading a book in silence. Her pale skin shining under the light of the sun, her long black hair almost covering her cat ears and falling on her shoulder, her black tail hidden between her legs. "Here you are, you are some minutes late today", she made you notice smiling elegantly, before closing her book and and shift her gaze towards your face. She gently patted the spot next to her, signaling that she wanted you close to her. Mina is not the biggest yapper between the guest, but you know her well enough to always understand perfectly her body language and her intentions. "You don't miss a thing, uh? I feel like I'm the one under your control", you joke, sitting next to her, your arm brushing against your skin. "I'm just very careful with things I like", she smirked before placing her head on your shoulder and humming softly. Yeah, Mina thought about you as her stuff, it was not rare for cat hybrids to be possessive, but it was quite surprising from the most introverted between the guest. You two just stayed her, enjoying each other company and the fresh wind entering from the window.

"Where's the baby?", you asked suddendly after few minutes. The cozy atmposhere created thanks to Mina almost made you forget that it was also the room of someone else with a very different vibe. "Oh, probably right now she's playing with Ka-", Mina' sentence was interrupted when someone thrown herself over you two, squeezing both of you in a pressing hug. "Oof-, I wish I could have your energies in the morning, Kyujin", you sighed, gently patting the back of the youngest guest, that was being lively and energetic as her usual. "But you have the whole me instead, isn't it even better?", the young girl replied, affectionately rubbing her head against your neck, enjoying the warmth feeling. Mina gave you an apologetic look, but you just shrugged and shaked your head to reassure her that everything was fine. It was your idea to put the calmest and the most chaotic catgirls together in the same room, and so far Mina had made a great job in taking care of Kyujin; and on the contrary, the youngest was the right person to energize the soft girl, given that often she would just lay and don't socialize at all. "You're lucky you're a cutie or I would have scolded you", you said, sitting up and caressing the ears of a purring Kyujin. "I don't believe you a tiny bit: you're too kind to scold me", she chuckled, making you roll your eyes back playfully. But she wasn't wrong tho, you rarely get mad at them and maybe that was the reason you go along with all of them.

"Come on, baby, let the caretaker go: we have to get ready for breakfast too", Mina said softly, caressing the hair of the younger girl. "Oow, fine. See you later then", she nodded, listening well to Mina words. You gave both of them few more pats before heading out. The positive side of the morning shift is that there are only few guests to take care of, just six to be precise; many others are going to wake up just for lunch and even after. At this point there are just two girls missing to check up and to call for eating all together; however even before reaching their room, you met one of them in the hallway: she was at the exact center of the passage, standing and staring at you, her tail moving left and right uncontrollably. "Karina, what are you doing here?", you asked, walking towards her, stopping just at few steps away from her. "I smelled your scent, so I just ran in your direction", she explained proudly, a silly smile printed on her face, her pupils basically taking the shape of a heart while looking at you; Karina was with no doubts the worst at hiding her feelings. "Good job, I was coming to you anyway, so you made my life more simple in this way, good girl", you praised her, scratching her chin, making her melt in your touch. If before her tail was already moving without control, now it was going totally crazy. She was so lost in the moment that she didn't even realize when she let out a loud meow, that echoed in the hallway. "I love when you call me a good girl", she admitted, beaming in your vision. "Then keep being one and wait for me and the others in the kitchen, alright?", you winked at her, making her heartbeat rise. She quickly nodded and then ran as fast as she can towards the kitchen, leaving you amused.

After seeing Karina disappear at the end of the corridor, you kept going your way, till reaching the final room: the door was open but you still need to get prepared for it. "I'm coming in, Irene", you warned from outside, but you got no response. You stretched your neck, took a big breath and finally went in. The moment you put your foot inside the room, you could feel her gaze penetrating your soul, a cold smile used like a mask. She silently got up and started walking in a circle around you. "Why am I always the last that you greet at morning?", she inquired, her eyes judging you. "Always is a big word, it's just something that happens sometimes", you chuckled nervously, trying to not fold under her gaze. "Mmh, is that so? Are you not avoiding me?", she shoot her next question, this time stopping and taking your hand in yours. You were not lying honestly, it simply was that her room was the most distant from the entrance of the building. "Yes, Irene, I assure you. You know that I care about you", you tried to convince her about your sincerity. Irene cold smile seemed to turn into a softer one...and yet, she still decided to take a bite of your hand. It was nothing too strong or dangerous, just painful enough to remind you she was not fooling around. "Ouch, why? I'm being honest", you yelped in pain, confused by her act. "I know, but I'm still pissed at you for being the last", a hint of cuteness in her voice, before licking the spot where she bit you.

You waited until Irene finished to medicate the wound that she made herself. Irene was the oldest of the bunch, she was also older than you, so for her it was natural to see you as someone to take care of, even if her jealousy attacks were the biggest threats for you at work. Being on Irene bad side meant to have an hard time everyday, luckily it was not your case: she seemed interested into you since your first day of work. Your kind ways to interact with everyone quickly made Irene have a soft spot for you. "All done, you're like new. Now let's go eat or I'll take another chomp from you", she teased you playfully, licking her own lips. "Alright, let's go, I bet they are waiting for us in th-", you tried to lead the way, but you felt Irene body remaining still; you looked at her, once more confused. "Today I don't feel like walking", she said with a sly smile. You knew exactly what she had in mind, being the oldest didn't mean acting like it in Irene vocabulary. You gave her your back and squatted: immediately Irene got up on your back, putting her arms around your neck to keep her balance and using your body as a pillow for her head. With Irene on your back, you finally went for kitchen, ready to give a start to the day of the shelter.

Now, as everyone can see, you are perfect for this job: you're kind and understanding, you know how to behave with every girl, and the guests love you and listen to you well. Of course you are the employee of the month...since months. Then what is the deal? Why are you the biggest problem of your workplace? Well, the girls love you too much! They are so affectionate towards you that they don't want to get adopted and leave the place. But honestly in a world where the hybrids are not accepted by everyone being so different from "normal people", the boss is just satisfied of how happy the guests are in the shelter. And maybe a promotion will arrive soon...

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for entertaining a friendship with a child?

okay so this might be a weird one or even a controversial one i honestly have zero clue how other people will receive this, apologies in advance if i ramble!

to begin, i (23ftm) and this kid (15f) first met about a year ago. one of my best friends (23m) is a pretty big model and tiktoker and she was a fan of his, and she was pretty recognized online for making cool edits and stuff of him and coming to meetups etcetera, so he knew of her from there, and over time with always seeing each other at meet ups and her being in his discord server (where i mod) she kind of became pretty well known to us.

an important thing to note is that she's SUPER neurodivergent and she's had a really tough life. she lost her older brother a few years back and she's (i'm not sure of the correct way to put it, her family is originally from the netherlands and their english is kind of in the works so this is how they put it) developmentally behind a few years - her parents describe this as her being "mentally more 13 than 15" but her behaviour to me is even younger than that. she's very very innocent and trusting, very overemotional and sensitive to criticism etc, loves stuffed animals and pink and cartoons and all of that. she's told me she feels like a little kid sometimes and will talk/act like one so maybe there's an element of trauma-rooted age regression there, i'm not super sure - i'm not gonna get into detail but she's talked to me about her life a lot and she's had some pretty fucked up shit happen to her.

from the beginning she pretty much imprinted on me - she's told me before i remind her of the big brother she lost, and ever since then she's called me her "big brother" and "family" etc. at first i was more just playing along with it to make her happy but over time she really has become something like a little sister to me, i feel super protective of her. i want to become a teacher after college (not to mention eventually a parent with my fiancee) so i think at least part of it is that taking a kid 'under my wing' so to speak is giving me experience with it all. i've always been kinda paternal/protective over kids in general but i was the youngest sibling in my family so i never really had anyone to utilise that on before

she does rely super heavily on me emotionally, especially because after i found out she was being bullied pretty badly at school i started dropping by to keep her company during breaks/lunch and making sure shit was okay (which her still-living brother used to do, but he's a famous?? - unsure How famous, i don't know sports at all - footballer/soccer player who's often in another country and can't see her often anymore), and i've been working with her to curb that. i'm actually currently working with her parents to find her a good therapist and support system. she's no longer in the tiktok friend's discord just because it was getting a little all-consuming for her and we encouraged her to take a break, but she's done a TON of work on herself and maturing since then and she does plan to rejoin at some point soon.

however, i find it really really hard to gauge whether being so close with a child is... like normal? or not. i honestly can't tell if it's kind of the internet caution about adults talking to minors kind of warping my brain and making me overly wary of what people will think or if i'm doing something wrong or if it's genuinely like a weird situation, so i guess i'm looking for outside perspectives.

the things that make me question it is that like i said she's very 'mentally young', she's very sheltered, and there definitely seems to be an element of her kind of replacing the older brother figure she lost with me. on top of that, we met through her being a fan of my friend, and though she's now separate from that i worry there could still be an element of power there because i'm close with the guy she calls her idol. her family knows me and seem totally chill with everything, but they've told me she tells people at her school that i'm literally her brother and basically 100% talks about me as if i'm her biological family, which i find super sweet but at the same time wonder if it's healthy.

she obviously needs therapy and hopefully soon we can get her it, but: AITA for entertaining a sort of found family dynamic / friendship at all with someone very vulnerable and young or is this genuinely helpful for her?

What are these acronyms?

[akindplace]

For the past few days I kept posting several pictures of my dog asleep in her most treasured possession, her pillow. I never actually told you why she loves it so much. Some years ago, my mom saw a dog being rescued in the street with all her puppies. Turns out some of the people involved with rescuing her worked with my mom, and they decided to make a whatsapp group to help pay for vet bills and to find a place for her and her puppies. They found their home, but it’s harder to find homes for adult dogs, and she was very scared, and untrusting of people from living in the street her whole life.

They called her Valentina, because the name was very popular, but also because the word valente means brave in Portuguese.

She was in bad shape, thin, and with a skin condition. It would be hard to find a permanent home for her.

For whatever reason, my mom told me she wanted to foster the dog for a few days, until we found permanent shelter for her. Just a few days, she kept telling me. So the day comes, we took her in, my mom took her out for a walk, and when she came back, I looked outside and there she was sitting with Valentina on her lap. I asked her for how long the dog was really staying with us, and she said “if possible, forever”. I still don’t know why she wasn’t honest from the beginning because she knows how much I love animals; there was never going to be a way either of us would ever not want to keep her, anyway.

She was terrified of people, and would hide out under the car on her first days here, and it was hard to get close to her for a long while. But one of our dogs started playing with her, and slowly she would hang around us more. My mom felt bad because she would sleep on only a mat, so she gave the dog an old pillow and Valentina took that pillow as her favorite thing. But she would still run away if we came close to pet her while she was on her little bed.

Months later, Valentina finally sat next to me while I was eating to ask for a piece of my food (pão de queijo, because she has good taste). And I was so happy, I cried a little. It took over a year until she trusted us fully.

She learned how to ask for food, for treats, for pets. But she has also learned that in the morning, she wants us to take her pillow from its place my mom’s room and put it in the living room. And at night, she wants us to put the pillow back in my mom’s room. And she knows that if she sits in the specific spot for her bed and stares at us in judgement, we will bring her the pillow. It’s been years now. She is absolutely close with my mom, it almost seems she understands that my mom was the one who decided to adopt her. She got healthier, fatter, happier.

It took years of building trust, and now she lets us pet her, and doesn’t run away in fear. I don’t know what happened to her while she was living in the street but it made her so scared. But what matters is she found safety and belonging here. And everywhere she goes in this house, her little bed has to come along.

And sometimes, my other dog likes to lie down on Valentina’s bed (she has one of her own) and Valentina just stares at us with profound disappointment.

Life is good. I’m glad we could make a difference in her life, because she changed ours too.

[starrysvn]

puppy love | kang yeosang

pairing: kang yeosang x gn!reader

genre: headcanon; e2l (i TRIED); co-workers au, volunteering at an animal shelter; fluff; angst if you really, really squint, crack (i’m nOT funny)

word count: 3.1k

rating: pg-13

warnings: none; one smooch, mayhaps a couple swear words (lowercase intended)

networks: @cromernet

author’s note: happy belated christmas from your secret santa, @armysantiny !! i really hope you’ll enjoy this and i sincerely hoped you spent warm holidays surrounded by people you loved! <3 i’ve tried my very best with the e2l but mAN writing it is so much less fun than reading it. big, huge, thanks to @hwaightme for giving me wonderful ideas to use and delulus to ponder so i could write this down. ilysm <333

kang yeosang is one infuriating individual. for one, there is no way anyone can be so praised and well-liked by literally everyone. not a day goes by where you don’t wonder how his small smiles and quiet attitude could bewitch every last person he talked to. not when he would not bother to say hi in passing to you specifically, or resolve to small nods and monosyllables when talking. to you.

it seems that you are the problem.

you and him work volunteer shifts at the same shelter. only, he deals with cats while you deal with dogs so it wasn’t like you’d see each other that often, but it was often enough to know he doesn’t like you.

not enough to say hi, engage in any sort of coversation or, least of all, help out if needed.

until christmas.

the shelter was decked out, you spent a whole afternoon helping out with decorations, along with yunho and yena, two other volunteers.

and yeosang.

the man almost laughed his ass off watching you balance on a ladder in the most uncoordinated way possible to avoid falling. arms flailing around and everything.

he just stood there, an ornament in his hands, with his stupidly cute smile and watched.

you sigh, scratching behind the ear of the latest rescue dog that was brought in. you like baxter, he is chill and his black, shiny fur does not show signs of him having had to live out in the streets all on his own for weeks anymore. you like him best because it looks like he is listening when you ramble on, in disbelief of the rudeness showcased, about yeosang.

just then, a call of your name sounds in the air, the voice coming from the front desk of the shelter.

“see you later,” you leave behind baxter’s toy, leaving him with one last pat on the head, and make your way to the front where hongjoong had called for you.

you smile upon entering the reception area as it had been a joint decorating effort between you, yunho and yena. the result was looking very much like an elementary school christmas project, but you enjoy the general vibe. the senior rescuer currently behind the counter, looking rather preoccupied with a few papers, however, had just shook his head dejectedly upon seeing the final result.

“i’m sorry to be doing this, but could you take the christmas day shift?” he looks apologetic as he asks, rushing to explain. “it’d only be a half day, I promise that by one you can leave, we’ve got the staff taking care of the other shifts and the morning one’s the only one left uncovered-”

“no worries,” you interrupt his rambling. “i’ll be there.”

hongjoong smiles, looking relieved only for a second, before his face betrays further worrying.

“what is it?”

“nothing, i,” he sighs, shoulders sagging upon seeing the inquisitive look on your face. “yeosang will be working the same shift.”

defeat. dejection. betrayed trust. you groan dramatically, barely hearing hongjoong say that you’d already agreed and it would not be that bad.

surely it’d make for an interesting christmas.

when you arrive on christmas morning, the night shift staff gives you a tired nod and you offer him a smile in return, quickly wishing him happy holidays.

you waste no time in doing the rounds, giving all the cute doggos their breakfast.

while going over the duty checklist left from the night shift staff you hear the bell jingle in the front and roll your eyes.

when you finally decide to go up front it takes a couple of minutes before yeosang finally comes into view.

decked out in his funniest ugly sweater it reads “here comes santa paws” and has a cat wearing a christmas hat on it and with his long hair tucked behind his ears, he’s coming up to you with an awkward air about him.

you squint your eyes in suspicion.

“merry christmas,”

you’re floored, shocked, gaping like a fish looking up at your co-worker who for the first time ever has spoken to you first.

“cookie?” he produces a tupperware from behind his back, carefully removing the lid to reveal the most crooked, ill-decorated christmas cookies you’ve ever seen. some look slightly burned. a gingerbread man has three eyes.

you’re still gaping, not in the slightest understanding how it's possible that he’s spoken to you first, and also not noticing how ever so slowly a blush starts to creep up on his cheeks.

maybe you’re hallucinating, but it snaps you out of your trance.

you quickly reach for the gingerbread man with three eyes.

“thanks,” you mumble, giving him a small smile. “merry christmas.”

yeosang nods, closing the tupperware and disappearing without a word.

so you’re left there, cookie in hand, not knowing what to do with this.

you stay put, eating your cookie, until you hear a loud bang.

you rush to the source of it, finding a very flustered yeosang surrounded by cat litter. at least it’s clean.

you hold in your laughter, seeing him stand there, look around and try to come up with a plan.

“a little help?” you pretend to wipe away tears, facing his deadpan expression.

“you would’ve let me fall from a ladder,”

“you would’ve survived,”

you scoff, turning around to grab the broom and toss it his way. Yeosang catches it, just barely.

“really?”

“you scared my dogs.”

with that, you leave him to his mess, going to comfort and play a little bit with the shaken up puppies.

it’s not until a little later that you show up at the front desk again, noticing yeosang is already sitting there, typing away on the computer.

he’s also got the phone pressed to his ear, helping out someone on the line with cat duties, speaking with his honey voice and a small smile on his face.

it’s almost mesmerizing seeing him wear an expression that’s not his usual blank stare he holds up around you.

“if you’re done staring, we’ve got hongjoong’s checklist to go through,”

just like that, you feel like a deer caught in headlights, heat pervading your face.

“sure,” you shrug, going over to him to take a look at it, trying not to stare at his smug pout.

deep down, very deep down, you think about kissing it away.

if he weren’t so unbearable. but he is. so.

the checklist read “lobby Ikea chairs”

you both looked at each other, confused, until you noticed the boxes hidden behind the counter.

there was a post-it on it that read: “good luck! -HJ”

simply infuriating. you’d lost count of all the times you had to resist the urge to roll your eyes or drop everything and go back to your dogs.

there was no trace of the cold, odd yeosang you were used to.

he’d casually sat down on the spot where you were assembling the Ikea chairs, picked up the instruction manual and waited for you to hand him the screwdriver. bewildered, you had.

that was about two hours ago, before trying to follow instructions had gone to your heads, when it was only extremely awkward and quiet while he read the manual and you tried your best to sneak glances at him. to figure out what possibly could have been going through his head, of course.

now you were busy trying to one up each other in an undeclared war of who is the best handyman, clearly having lost the main aim: building the damned chairs.

“you were supposed to put in the screw first and then the little wooden thingy.”

“does it matter?”

“does your chair look structurally sound?”

“listen, if we start over-” pinching the bridge of his nose and scrunching his eyes closed with a sigh, you stop him before he could finish his sentence.

“like hell we are, it took us two hours just to get to this.”

“exactly,” his deadpan tone leaves you no choice but to sigh.

“fine,” you give in.

you were going to kill hongjoong.

because it took you only two hours to realize all it took for yeosang to distract you were his hands working on assembling furniture, his voice asking you to pass him stuff and his silence.

if you hated it before, now you appreciated the quiet moments where all you could hear was the faint music coming from the radio and the occasional bark or meow that prompted one of you to stand up and go check on your animals.

of course it was because you didn’t have to hear his disdainful reprimanding, not at all because it gave you the chance to throw glances at him and how a few strands of hair escaped the clips pinning it back and framing his face very nicely. no, not at all. you still couldn’t stand him. mhmh.

once you finally finish building the chairs, he helps you set them up in exchange for the older ones, now piled up in the storage room.

it’s almost second nature for you to hold up your fist for him to bump.

it’s just a thing you do all the time with your friends but now you’re standing there awkwardly, fist mid air, yeosang staring at you very lost, eyes going back and forth from your face to your hand and of course now he’s not going to want to see your face ever again and you feel embarrassment slowly and steadily creeping in the more you stand there until

he fist-bumps back

a little puzzled, seemingly asking if he’s done the right thing with one look, before dropping his hand and clearing his voice

you do the same

“gotta go see the dogs,”

“yeah, no, me too… i mean, the cats, yeah, so-”

he turns around and speeds away.

you follow him.

“so how’re the cats?”

yeosang jumps on his spot, almost dropping the little mouse toy he was about to throw for a kitty to catch.

“sleeping, mostly,” he shrugs. “how’re the dogs?”

you motion for him to follow and, surprisingly, he does.

immediately, he greets the ones that are up or go up to him with a smile on his face that you’ve never seen.

it shines brighter than the sun and you find yourself smiling as well, seeing him crouch down and pat dogs left and right.

then you get a grip, not for long

it leaves you pleasantly surprised how he follows while you introduce him to every dog, how he listens while you explain why they’re there, their stories, their backgrounds

but then, while you try to get some of the dogs to play with you so he could finish the round of greetings, he reaches the puppies’ enclosure and enters it to sit among them

and while he tries to play catch with a couple, one makes his way into his arms

and when he looks down at the pup, he’s wearing the most adoring expression

like a kid seeing snow for the first time

it’s wondrous and starry and happy

and you’re staring as he softly pats the puppy’s head and coos at it

“what’s his name?”

you almost don’t answer, too focused on the scene unfolding and having trouble locating the information he’s asked for in your brain

“i don’t think he has one,” you mumble, patting baxter’s head

“sleepy,” he looks down at the puppy. “cause he’s asleep while everyone wants to play, you know?”

you just nod with a smile, or at least you hope it is because what the fuck

why are you losing your mind over yeosang cradling a sleeping puppy?

why is your brain recognizing just now that your stomach’s doing cartwheels? why do you want to look away but also keep staring?

“what’s this?” you think he’s speaking to himself, but you still catch the words leaving his mouth as he enquires the toy another puppy has just brought him

then yeosang looks up at you, eyes wide as saucers, and your heart drops for being caught staring

he doesn’t say a thing, but looks down prompting you to do the same

it’s the mistletoe chew toy

yunho’s brilliant idea of getting the dogs christmas themed toys

yeosang looks away throwing it

“yunho,” you start, catching your coworker’s attention. “yunho’s idea, to get them those.”

you offer him a pained smile as he nods, scratching his head.

“seonghwa too, for the cats…”

“ah, really?”

“yeah…”

you want to bash your head into the wall

but the phone saves you, so you dash to the front, escaping the burning flames of awkwardness

it turns out to be a family wanting to adopt as a christmas present for their kids

so you say that yes, you’re open and yes they can come in whenever

when they do, yeosang has re-emerged and stands beside you, silent like always

this time around, though, you fear he’ll hear your heart beating out of your chest at the proximity

why’s he so close?

you almost jump to greet the happy family of four when they walk in to the sound of let it snow coming from the radio

“we were afraid it wasn’t going to stop!” the dad says, brushing off some snow from his hat

turns out they’d like to adopt a dog

it surprises you that yeosang follows when you lead the family in but you try to pay him no mind

the kids seem to be enamored with every dog they see, their parents giving them free reign

they’re still very polite and don’t cause much ruckus or yell too loud, which you’re grateful for

“could you tell us more about him?”

you’re about to turn to answer the question, if it weren’t that yeosang’s already at it

he’s introducing the kids to baxter

“he’s been here for a while, he’s very fond of our y/n and his favorite snack is carrots. he doesn’t like loud noises all that much. his past owners left him here because they could no longer take care of him, but he’s looking to find a new home,” he speaks as if he’s always been taking care of him, like he hadn’t just learned all that stuff half an hour ago

and he has his smile on, the one who could charm and warm up even the coldest of hearts

except one detail

you didn’t notice the little girl facing the puppies enclosure

until you hear her go “that one’s sleeping!”

but you can’t tear your eyes away from yeosang and his can’t help but hear his soft giggle as he says “his name’s sleepy”

yeah you want to punch a wall just about now

though you have to snap out of it quick

because you’re now letting this nice family adopt baxter and can’t fuck up the procedure or hongjoong will have your head

“how’d you know?” you ask, a little melancholic but over the moon to finally see your baxter go to a family worthy of him, as you both watch the car pull out of the parking lot.

“know what?” when yeosang turns to look at you, it’s with a shadow of a smile and curious eyes, an expression you’ve rarely ever seen directed your way

you swallow hard before speaking next

“that baxter’s fond of me”

his eyes light up in recognition

yeosang swore no soul shall ever know of this

but now he feels his resolution coming apart under your waiting eyes

because truth is, he’s noticed

he notices everything about you

from how you walk in dragging your feet when you have an early morning shift, relying on your cup of coffee, to how you laugh loudly at yunho’s jokes, always get your favorite snack from the vending machines at just about the same time he goes to get his melon pan he does wait for you to be done before going up to the machines himself

and how deeply you care for the dogs and how you seem to have a soft spot for baxter

maybe he’s even heard you once or twice rambling on and on to him about how you don’t get why he doesn’t like you

truth is, he sees you, and he likes you

so much

too much

he’s afraid of doing the wrong thing, say the wrong thing and make you hate him

but apparently his plan had backfired immensely

that’s why he insisted hongjoong gave him and not seonghwa the christmas shift

he even baked stupid cookies to give you

“ah, well…” yeosang has no idea how to get out of this one. “you just seemed to like him a lot from the way you spoke about him”

you hum, not really convinced

yeosang notices though, just as he notices the car of the afternoon staff pull in under the snowfall to free you of your volunteering duties

it’s not long before the shift’s over and he’s not going to see you until after the holidays

so, as you part ways to say goodbye to the pets and grab your coats, he musters up some courage

under the snowfall, he calls your name

when you turn around his dark hair is lightly dusted with snowflakes, only making him look more ethereal, and his eyes are determined

you don’t know what’s up with you today and why suddenly he’s making you feel like a teenager dealing with their first crush under his gaze

“yes?”

he comes closer, much more than he’s ever been, so close that you’re frozen on the spot

“just wanted to let you know that you can redeem your mistletoe kiss whenever you want to”

there’s a smugness in his voice, in his pouty smirk and a sense of accomplishment shining clear in his honey eyes

have they always been this mesmerizing?

his words and his warmth leave you breathless for just a beat too long, until your eyes fall on his lips

when you look back into his eyes, his are already looking at you, waiting

“alright,” you mutter lowly, pecking his lips once, testing the waters

he places another peck on your lips and, before you know, you’re kissing him

it feels exhilarating, and soft, so soft, just like his lips. just like the hand that’s come up to cup your cheek, bringing you closer, deepening the kiss.

when you come up for air you giggle, yeosang following suit

“may i also interest you in a coffee?” he asks, hand still on your cheek, gently brushing away snowflakes before they melt. you smile.

“i thought you hated me,” it almost sounds like a question and your brow furrows when he clicks his tongue.

“have you ever heard about the concept of quiet, introverted people who feel highly intimidated by awesome, funny, pretty people?”

you laugh, finally presented with the answer to the question that most replayed in your head

“take me on a date, hilarious, quiet, handsome guy”

he blushes and you know he’ll blame it on the cold, but only brushes his nose against yours

and to think you thought he couldn’t stand you mere hours ago

now he’s here, making your heart melt like snow upon touching his perfect skin

[specialagentlokitty]

Rick Grimes x reader - starting with trust, ending with us

Part 1:

You had no intention of staying in one spot for too long, in a world like this one that wasn’t the best idea, it was safer to keep morning.

But the gash in your leg had changed those plans, and you couldn’t travel far on it without falling, so, you stuck to the trees.

You knew there was other nearby, from the traps scattered around, and the fact that when you checked them sometimes they would be empty and set again, sometimes they wouldn’t be, a walker getting to the food before whoever was caring for the traps.

If that was the case you would dispose of the walkers and the spoiled food, and set the traps once again, using them for your own benefit as well.

You didn’t take much from whoever it was, you only took the smaller animals, leaving the bigger ones.

It wasn’t the most ideal way to live but it worked for you, and it kept you alive, and that’s what it was doing right now.

Your camp was surrounded by wooden spike in the ground acting as a wall, going out in all directions, your fire burning as you cooked the rabbit you had caught.

Your shelter was just a couple of sheets you had scavenged a while back and tied together just to keep the blistering sun, or rain off you if it rained.

Rolling up the leg to your trousers, you slowly began to unwrap the dirty bandage, getting a look at the infected wound and you sighed.

Grabbing the pot over your fire, you stretched your leg out, poured the water over it.

You didn’t know if it would help, but at least it would kill any bacteria that was trying to call your wound it’s home.

Your skin was an angry red, and you grabbed your water bottle, pouring the cold water over it to make it a little better.

Rolling your trouser leg back down, you tucked it back into your boot, and you leant against the tree behind you.

You heard noises nearby, and you hauled yourself up, grabbing the pole that you were using as a walking stick and a weapon, making your way to the edge of your camp.

You could see a man fighting a small group of walkers not far from you, and you shuffled between a few of the spikes.

Standing on the outside, you slowly made your way over, mindful not to make any noise at all.

You crept closer, and you stood behind a tree, watching from behind it, trying to figure out if he could handle them and what he was doing so close to your camp.

You watched as he was knocked over, hand on the head of a walked as he tried to grab his weapon.

You made your move, limping over you shoved the pole through the creatures skull, and pulled it out, placing your foot over the handle of his knife.

He pushed the body off, and turned his head towards you.

“You’re the one who’s been taking our food.” He said.

You said nothing, you stabbed the pole into the ground and leant down, picking up the knife and he stood up.

You studied him for a moment, getting a quick read of him and you turned the knife around, holding the blade as you held out the handle to him.

He wasn’t going to kill you, that much you could tell.

He took it.

“What’s your name?”

You turned around, slowly limped back to your camp, pushing the spikes back to where they were supposed to be so nothing else could get in.

The man followed you, and you stood watching him.

“Why did you save me?”

You said nothing, and he sighed, looking around a little unsure.

“May I?”

He gestured to your wall, and you pushed some aside to let him in before closing it again.

He didn’t show signs of leaving soon, and you couldn’t have him attracting walkers to your base, or getting killed in front of it.

You pointed to him, then a spot in front of the fire before walking around to sit on the other side of the camp away from him.

He sat where you pointed, shuffling a little to the side to get a better view of you.

Clad in camouflage trousers, black combat boots, a black shirt and leather jacket with a glove on your right hand, a bandanna around your neck, dried blood on your face.

You had clearly been out here a while.

“Thank you for helping me, and for resetting the traps. Do you have a name? I’m Rick.”

You said nothing.

“How long have you been out here for?”

Again, nothing.

“We know you’re injured, one of my friends saw you limping a week ago, you’re still limping now, have you been bitten?”

You shook your head slowly.

“Can I take a look?”

Rick went to move, only stopping when you picked up the metal pole, aiming to through it right through his head and he stopped, slowly sitting down.

“Okay, okay. I won’t come any closer if you don’t want me to. But I have a safe space, not far away, food, shelter, medicine, someone who can look at your leg for you. I just have three questions.”

With how one sided the conversation had been Rick wasn’t actually expecting you to give him any response, but he still wanted to try.

You had saved his life, that didn’t mean he trusted you, but he still wanted to repay that favour to you, but he had to protect his family first.

“How many walkers have you killed?”

You stared at him.

“How many people have you killed?”

No response.

“Why?”

You just stared at him blankly, not interested in the questions he was asking you, or giving him any answers to them.

Rick sighed, looking at the sky before looking back at you.

“At least come so we can help with your leg, you’re not going to survive much longer out here alone with it like that. There’s more and more coming here every day.”

You knew he was right, because you had noticed the increase in activity. If a horde were to come through your base wouldn’t last, it would fall.

You had made it with the idea of keeping the stragglers away, not a whole army of them.

With your leg the way it was you wouldn’t exactly be running away anywhere soon either, you’d be a sitting duck. You were a sitting duck.

But in your condition you couldn’t fight a large group of humans either, you didn’t know how many he had, or if this was a trap, so, you shook your head.

“Are you sure?”

You slowly nodded.

“Okay.”

Rick pushed himself up and backed away, making his way to your fence and you get up, limping over to move it while keeping your weapon aimed at him.

You took a few steps back and watched him leave before closing it again.

Rick glanced at you again before he left.

You thought that would be the last you saw of him, but the following day he came back with a bag, and he held it over your face, dropping it between a few of the spikes carefully.

“Just a few things, mostly for your leg, some instructions on what to do.”

You got up, making your way over you used the pole to pick it up, backing away as you brought it over.

Sitting down, you dumped the contents on the floor, searching it all throughly.

You noticed the bandages open, so you tossed them back over the spikes, along with some wrapped up food.

Rick picked them up, holding them in one hand.

“You don’t want them?”

He looked at them a little confused before it hit him after a moment.

It was because they weren’t sealed, because they were open or homemade, you didn’t trust him so of course you wouldn’t take that sort of stuff.

He set them by his feet and looked at you, and you held up a notepad.

“Well, I figured since you don’t seem comfortable maybe you could write instead, there’s a pen too.”

You looked for the pen and picked it up, flicking to the first page you scribbled a few things down, tore it out and tossed it at him.

It hit his head and fell to the floor so he picked it up, unballing it to read what you wrote.

“I uh… I don’t understand the language.”

You held out your hand and he threw it back, and you wrote again before tossing it back over.

‘Why?’

Rick glanced at you.

“Why did it bring this?”

You nodded.

“Because you need help, you won’t come to us for help, so I’ll bring the help to you. You don’t trust me, I get that, honestly I wouldn’t trust me either if I was in your shoes, but you do need some of these things.”

You blankly stared at him.

“The world is a shit storm now, I know what it’s like to be on your own in this, and it’s hard. You don’t have to come with me, I won’t make you, but the offer is there.”

You turned your attention to putting things away in the bag.

Rick sighed, picking up the things you had thrown and he left again.

When he was gone you quickly tended to your leg, using what was given to you, and you put the rest in your bag.

He kept coming back, every day for a short while to try talk you into going with him to safety, for help, and to bring you something.

He was determined, and even after a week he hadn’t given up on trying to help you out.

Looking at his empty bag, you got up, swinging it over your shoulder, grabbing your gun for your other shoulder and your metal pole, leaving your camp.

You made your way to the prison first, hiding in the grass as you looked through the scope of your gun.

They had made it into a home, you knew that, but you weren’t expecting a working farm, or children, or so many adults.

They had plenty of guards, and you scanned over the people you could see, and you saw Rick, holding a baby in his arm.

That would explain the questions he had asked you, he needed to make sure you were good, his family would be safe around you.

Putting your gun on your back, you crept back towards your camp and past it.

You knew there was a store nearby, one hidden away by a car pile up, you had been using it for your canned foods, trying to make it last as long as possible.

Making your way there, you pried the door open and walked in, swiping things from the shelves into his bag before going back.

Limping past your camp, you carried on through the forest for maybe half an hour until you found the prison again and you knelt down in the tall grass.

Setting the bag down, you grabbed your gun, looking through the scope.

You counted the people you saw, and determined the best course of action.

You had to wait until the coast was clear, so you sat there waiting, hours slipping by, not making a sound.

Then you saw your break, it must have been the changing of the lookouts, because as a man and a woman started leave one tower, the rest seemed to be heading inside.

Getting up, you made your to their gate as quickly as you could, climbing up on the fence next to it, you carefully placed the bag hanging on a bit of the higher broken fence before climbing down.

Giving the fence a little shake to see if it would stay, you left as quickly as you had come, heading back to your own camp for the night.

It was Rick that found the bag the following morning, and with a bit of struggling he managed to get it down from where you had put it.

Backing away from the fence he opened it carefully, finding it full of tinned food and two tubs of baby food, some clothes, and some toys.

He looked around, but going by how cold the bag was it had definitely been out there all night, but he knew it was you, because he left this bag with you.

You had clearly taken the time to put everything in so it would all fit.

He smiled a little, and he closed it, swinging it over his shoulder to take it inside after his rounds.

He didn’t know you were sat in the grass watching through the scope of your sniper to make sure one of them had gotten it.

When you saw him take it you had left, going back to your own camp, killing a few walkers along the way.

It wasn’t safe there anymore, and you had to find somewhere new to go

[gayhoediaz]

nieeeee. i literally cannot stop thinking about of solace and amelioration. like. i've read it three times and i always skip to the end and cry because buck and tommy are. so full of love for each other, it literally makes me Ache. and. the little details you wove in there about tommy's backstory? just.. annihilate me. do you have any more tommy/bucktommy headcanons to share pls 🤲🏾🥺

jaaaack my loveee 🥺🥺🥺 yess of course anything for you!!!! ❤️❤️❤️

tommy spent a lot of time alone growing up so he can solve a rubik’s cube in like absolute record time. for some reason buck finds this just… so hot. he loves it when his man is capable and confident. (and he loves his hands.)

tommy doesn’t necessarily mind being alone because he is so used to it - spending christmas alone, watching love actually and cooking just for himself doesn’t make him sad. he’s certainly not someone who feels sorry for himself. but when he does have people around him? oh god he loves it so much. he loves taking care of people he loves loving people and he loves it when he gets the same right back.

buck is not a huge fan of muay thai either but he still learns a little bit - mostly because he likes seeing tommy all hot and sweaty (and capable) in as many situations as possible (and yes it always ends in sex, in fact i think eventually “muay thai” stops meaning muay thai altogether. it’s just code for dicking each other down.)

buck loves running his fingers through tommy’s hair and tommy loves it when he does it. after a bad day, he’ll just walk in through the door and drop himself on the couch with his head in buck’s lap.

a few years ago tommy went to the animal shelter to maybe get a cat cause he was a little lonely, but he came home with an irish wolfhound and he named her keira because bonus hc: keira knightley is his favorite actress. (buck and keira take to each other immediately, and since buck does more cardio than tommy, he takes up a habit of running with her whenever he has time - usually in the morning, dropping a kiss to a half-asleep tommy’s temple as he tells him he’ll be back in a bit.)

tommy loves buck’s ass (what he sees, i don’t know, there is literally nothing there) but by the time they’ve been together for a few months, he’s comfortable enough to stop holding back, and he’ll just fucking live down there. often it’s sexual but sometimes it’s also not - sometimes they’re having a sick or lazy day, watching the tv in tommy’s bedroom, and buck is fully dressed in sweatpants and a hoodie, and he always ends up on his stomach so tommy can use his non-existent ass as a pillow.

they shut keira out of the room when they fuck, but when they’re done they always let her back in to sleep in bed and she takes up 85% of the space but that’s okay ❤️

tommy meditates and buck tries too but his brain moves too quickly it doesn’t really work for him. when meditation doesn’t work for tommy either - he smokes. it’s a terrible habit left over from rebellious teenage years and stressful time in the closet, and he’s done a good job kicking it, but sometimes buck kisses him, and he can smell it on his breath and he just. sighs. and runs a hand through his hair and asks if he wants to talk abt it.

the longer they’re together the more “cracks” start to show in tommy, i think he’s a lot better at hiding it than buck is - but he struggles not only with ptsd, but with depression and anxiety and he has worked on himself and continues to do so, but he still keeps a lot of that stuff to himself - it takes a while but when buck starts opening up more, tommy slowly starts to do the same, and evan is the first person he feels he can truly rely on and trust, and he’s never really had that before, never felt as if he can be all of himself with someone - not like this.

tommy is plant dad. he has so many plants and he takes such good care of them, and of course, since buck loves learning things, it quickly becomes a shared hobby. their monstera is their pride and joy.

tommy drinks his coffee with so many extra shots of espresso that buck usually makes a little bit of a face when he kisses him right afterwards.

tommy has a lot of small skills he’s kinda good at but not really but kind of (usually, again, born out of boredom and/or loneliness) painting, baking bread, playing the harmonica. he knows how to do these things, but whether or not his own results will be great is… a toss up. however combined with buck’s love of learning and adhd brain, they learn a lot more small skills together. kind of. for a while. until they drop it and move onto the next thing.

tommy is really good at playing the guitar and the first morning buck wakes up in his bed, he asks him about it, and he plays for him. until buck wrestles it out of his hands and puts it to the side because his boyfriend is even hotter now and he needs to get dicked down again thanks. (when they’re done, buck asks tommy to teach him and they end up doing the classic “hands over hands” move and it’s very cute but tommy keeps pressing soft little kisses to bucks shoulder and telling him he’s doing so good and it’s hngggggg… very distracting.)

tommy used to be on the swim team in high school.

tommy is indeed abby’s tommy cause i think it’s funny. it throws them both off a little bit but then tommy says something so smooth that buck forgets all about it. it doesn’t matter. they are each other’s now, fuck her. (i think tommy ended things w her amicably probably cause he was figuring out he’s gay and doesn’t have any negative nor positive feelings abt her, but when buck eventually tells him how she ended (or didn’t) things w him, tommy decides that he does have decidedly negative feelings about her actually.)

[bloogers-boogers]

Idk if you're still doing requests but could you do one of Adam laughing his ass off when Micheal gives him a rooster toy but it's like one of those ugly loud long yellow rubber chickens but Adam thinks is cute and hilarious. Micheal, maybe, is just glad Adam likes it.

I have so many headcanons on WHY Michael loves roosters qusgwishsis but one of them is it being God assigning all the archangels an animal to represent them as, like Lucifer is a duck (cute and goofy) while Michael is a rooster (the one that fights to protect it's flock) ahsishsowjs anyways the second hc I have about it is that (it could be either seen as platonic or romantic) but Adam was the first person ever that Michael had to create SOMETHING after Lucifer was banished to wonder earth with Lilith; he was left with the responsibility of creating new creatures for Adam (and he wasn't like Lucifer in that category of creativity, so it meant a lot for him when Adam would praise him for his work). The rooster was literally the most convenient (he did it to help Adam wake up in time to do his chores bc the first human would complain about oversleeping and not being able to finish all of his duties in time before nighttime) and beautiful thing he's made not only for Adam but himself too.

Third hc is because of Lucifer. I love them being caring over the other but I like to see Lucifer admire and feel inspire by Michael's hidden creativity that isn't allowed to share bc he's meant to fight not dream. So Lucifer just loves whenever he sees Michael 'slip' up and do something like an object or creature. I have this whole idea about more than anything but it's Michael singing to a young dreamer lucifer 😭💕 ahdkwjsossjsow

[Michael: More than anything

More than anything

I'll shelter and adore you more than anything

Lucifer: Michael, I don't need you to protect me from this

Michael: I just don't want you to be crushed by them like

Like I was

Lucifer: Michael...

When I was young, I didn't really know you at all

I always felt so small

But I heard your stories and I was enthralled

The tales about your lofty dreams, I listen breathlessly

Imagining it could be me

So it's the view I had of you

That showed me dreams can be worth fighting for ]

I dunno it just makes things more tragic after Lucifer's fall.

I also hc Michael having his wings down when being only around Lucifer as he felt relax an at ease while being around him, the brothers all knew that Michael wings were always tensed, up (to look bigger), and alert or tucked away as he had issues on trusting someone/something won't happen if he let his guard down, and without Lucifer (fallen) it was unlikely to ever see his wings down but somehow after Adam entered heaven they started noticing Michael's wings flapped excitedly and flopped downwards while speaking or being around Adam.

Last hc I promise ahsuwwjiw but I also like hc Michael having a prosthetic wing after Lucifer's fall from trying last minute to protect Lucifer but having to be put down by one of the seraphim ripped his wing off as a warning (it was both traumatic for Lucifer and Michael that Lucifer just accepted his fate and shielded Lilith from most of the pain of the fall).

Anyways sorry for the long rant anon 😭😭😮‍💨