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jeskoholic · 1 year

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A Little Piece of You Chapter 11: Truth Among Lies

This is a chapter from an on-going series. If you missed out on the previous entries, you can check my masterlist.

Previous Chapter: Sizzling Hot

Word count: 4,007

Tags: M OC x (G) I-DLE Soyeon, University, Angst, Struggle (?)

Enjoy!

Getting my top blown off in front of my newfound friends was possibly one of the worst things I could do, and in just one lunch break I did exactly that. I was so numb and triggered at everything that escaped Hongseok’s mouth that I just flat out lost all sense of self-control and got angry at him. Now that I look back at it, I felt so stupid doing that. I never should have let him get to my head because I know that he’s just trying to find an answer from me regardless of how stupid it was, and I did all of that in front of Ningning too. It would have been better if it were either Kyungsoo, Dawn, Shinwon, Kino, or even Soyeon that saw me emotional like that… allowing myself to crumble apart in front of them two was absurd. I felt so disappointed with myself.

I should have just let it slide. Remembering things that happened during high school and associating them with the things that are happening now is not the most optimal way to go. It’s worse when my past traumas are starting to affect the way I look at things in the present. The end result was Ningning chose to be the driver by introducing a different topic, yet I could tell that they were being careful about their words around me. I hope that they didn’t think of me differently; this was even the first time I am spending time with Hongseok and now I blew it on the first chance I ever got. He was even nice enough to order and pay for my shake…

No matter how much I try to keep myself away from the thought of what happened, I cannot deny though that Hongseok had a valid point in his query. Maybe I was just overthinking about things. I was so busy on proving my point to him that what I thought was actually the right thing. My pride was being stepped on and my first action was to retaliate, which is so stupid and borderline childish.

I spent the afternoon away from them for the best interests of everyone else. I would go far as to say that I temporarily separated my links from them and went to the place that I deem would seclude me from each and every single one of them: the university library. I was sure that not even a single one of them would think to go up there. At least, I could have a couple of minutes to myself while I reflect on my actions; at the same time attempting to keep the issue down. However, as I sat down and wait for the hours to pass, I could still hear the thoughts swirling in my head. It was like I was debating against an invisible Hongseok as I attempt to keep my point across.

I still don’t understand why I should really do things in response to Soyeon’s advances. I just don’t get it. I would feel like if I would do that, I’ll unintentionally force myself onto a situation, a relationship, which I didn’t even want in the beginning. Soyeon’s no doubt a talented and amazing person not to mention beautiful, but I can’t deny that she has her traits that are not… compatible with me, exactly. Seeing red flags like that are things that I do not want to blatantly ignore just because of her reputation. In the end, I would be in a relationship with her heart and not her face or her fame. The fact that she’s a part of this newfound ‘squad’ enticed another series of fears in my head because either way, it was a loss either way. If I chose what I believe was right, or if I choose a decision favourable to her and it would not work out, I might cause an unintentional rift at the group.

Hongseok’s point, on the other hand, felt like a very childish reason and I never was a fan on why he even brought that to the table. I should not let Soyeon go because it’s like a huge privilege to have someone like her develop feelings for me? Does Hongseok think that I’m not worthy of someone with such a huge calibre such as Jeon Soyeon, so I should be flattered that she even confessed that she likes me?

But then again; I can’t blame him because he can only judge us by the surface level. Hongseok, or even the rest of the friend group, had no idea what was going behind the scenes. Soyeon proved herself in many ways that she indeed had feelings for me, but would say that being too erotic is not the love language that I was seeking. I would be a hypocrite if I would not admit that I liked it, but on that level of intimacy, I would have wanted if it was under different circumstances.

I guess it was the one thing that was holding me back against her. Soyeon felt too liberated and open and I’m being too culture shocked with what I’m seeing and experiencing.

Although, I cannot pretend that I’m that much innocent as well. I experience too much skinship from before, on a person I would not even deem thinkable at this day and age.

Maybe it was the reason why I was afraid. I don’t want another relationship to stray close enough or develop into something similar to what happened during the past. From the likes of it, it feels like that’s where Soyeon and I were bound to head to. It might be overthinking like what Hongseok said, but the odds are too much to that direction that I could not just ignore it. The odds were pretty much not on my favour for this one.

I guess… I guess Soyeon had something similar to my past girlfriend… to my first love, if I will. The way that that relationship ended was not exactly pleasant, and maybe it’s the reason why I’m being too protective to myself. I don’t want to get damaged further than how damaged I was before.

Regardless, I think I’m already too old to be dealing with just a fling. I needed to be certain and I need to be arbitrarily serious. At this point with Soyeon, I can definitely say that I’m not.

I could no longer handle the impending anxiety that I was having from within, and so I went off and set my phone to a silent alarm for a few hours, ending on a couple of minutes before my final class with Shinwon even begins. I didn’t even realize that with too much emotion surging with me since that encounter earlier this day, I was still sleep deprived because of that excursion with Soyeon. Somehow exhaustion has caught up to me and now, even with all the delays from home and from this afternoon, I can finally let myself rest and hopefully cancel the stupid mood swing that I have been experiencing even before I share the class with Ko Shinwon.

---4:34 PM, AT THE SCHOOL’S FOUNTAIN---

Yoon Jae-in had woken up to his alarm ten minutes ago and managed to get his face fixed up before the class even begins. He found himself sitting on the small fountain area at the heart of the university, and it was this huge, circular work of water that had concrete benches surrounding its perimeter. It was most commonly known by the students of the university as a past-time place, which is exactly why he was seated there waiting for 5 PM among other students who were perhaps doing the exact same thing.

In Jae-in’s head, it felt like almost every student of North Line had a universal agreement that the watching the waters flow on the fountain and the nearby man-made water fall somehow eases the mind, regardless of the source for stress. It did nothing to help solve the predicament, but it sure did help take the mind off of things even for just a little bit.

Jae-in, however, could only wish that he had brought something to serve music privately to his ears. It would have made the moment infinitely better than it already was. After all, he successfully flushed the encounter the whole Hongseok situation out of his system already, and the small incorporation of even just a couple more hours of sleep eased up his mood to more manageable levels. Somehow electing to isolate him from the other members of the friend group, especially Ningning and Hongseok, helped a lot. Soyeon could have been contacting him at that time but he was too busy with himself to even consider how she was doing.

The approaching twilight was right in the ever-orange skies from above. The time was almost five PM, and almost time for the start of drafting class. Jae-in had just finished gathering his thoughts together and moved to head to the laboratory upstairs when he was approached by a familiar figure coming from the fountain’s right pathway.

A tall and slender frame, hair styled in the usual soft perm, bomber jacket and slim jeans marked the arrival of his classmate and close friend, Ko Shinwon, walking with a huge smirk on his face with a small, pink file case clamped on his grasp. He gave Jae-in a soft wave before proceeding to sit on the space nearby, earning a look of surprise from Yoon Jae-in.

“I had a feeling that you’d be here,” the tall, young man said. “Years of being your friend actually paid off for me now, Jae-in.”

“Why are you positioned like that? Are you not planning to go to class today? It would be waste, considering how close we are already. It’s just up there.”

“Wait, you don’t know? Mr Hwang actually announced something at the university website. He said we can have the day off but made sure to give us something to work on. It’s not due until next weekend, so we have a lot of time to do it.”

“Are you serious?” Jae-in said in slight frustration before sitting beside Shinwon. “I should have gone home and went for a sleep. Staying at the library was a waste of time when I could have slept on a better bed.”

“So that’s where you’ve headed. No wonder everyone else is looking for you at the group. Plus, I think it would be a waste anyway since Mr Hwang posted the announcement thirty minutes ago. It can’t be helped man.”

“Well, at least we can go home earlier now. Do you want to head already?”

Shinwon grinned.

“The first thought was actually to head on off and smoke for the time being, but I guess seeing you here shifted my schedule for a little bit.”

“You’re planning to smoke? I thought you quit that already.”

“Well…. things take some time getting used to being gone. I’m more on… regulating it, if you will. Yeri particularly hates the scent especially afterwards.”

“Oh, that’s… that’s amazing. That’s good for you. It’s nice that you have someone that can help you change. Congratulations on that. I never really got to interact with Yeri, and I do actually want to meet her soon with more conversations.”

Shinwon nodded and then proceeded to shift his position on the bench.

“Actually… I’ll have to cut to the chase. I could easily have gone home but I actually am looking for you. I think that we need to talk.”

“Whoa, that sounded so damn serious all of a sudden,” Jae-in said as he sat beside him. “Are you okay? Is this about Yeri?”

“Well, you know… Jae-in,” he said as he placed his arm on Jae-in’s shoulder as a form of brotherly consignment. “I… I know it may sound nosy of me, but what else is new… I knew about what happened earlier. You and Hongseok had some argument right? It didn’t exactly turn out good, am I correct?”

If anything, Jae-in was not really surprised that he knew. He was more bewildered by the fact that Shinwon was actually the one who went out and talked to him for that as it would usually come the other way around. He was initially expecting the confrontation to not come sooner, and to actually come from Kyungsoo being the ‘introducer’.

“Oh… well I didn’t really … it was not really an argument it’s more of me losing control over my emotions because I’m stupid. I don’t think I can even look straight at Hongseok again after that.”

“Don’t worry man… I’m sure he understands. I was surprised that you’d turn like that in front of Ningning and Hongseok, though. It must have been really serious. They said that it got too intense that Ningning just changed the topic to keep things under control.”

“I’m… I’m glad that she did actually. How did you find out, by the way? Was I too hard that it scattered to the group already?”

“Well no… Ningning knew that we were classmates for the final subject of the day. She was the one who personally asked me to check on you and called it as a favour. She’s really concerned for you, you know.”

Silence broke up between both of them. Jae-in pondered from within him how much Ningning had done for him that day, while Shinwon fell silent because he had no idea what to say afterwards.

“Anyway,” Shinwon continued. “Is it okay for me to ask you what happened? What really ticked you off?”

Jae-in sighed and gathered his courage before venting his frustrations.

“If anything… the argument mostly revolved with my issues. Bottom line is… I really don’t think that I’m ready to get into a relationship just yet, especially on the whole Soyeon situation. The reason why I was so persistent on insisting my point towards Hongseok was because I’m starting to feel pressured with Soyeon’s advances. I can’t do anything to her in return because… I don’t want to keep her hopes up. However, if I would not do anything as well, she’d just think that we’re waiting for something to come yet in the end, there was really nothing. At this point, I just could not keep up that I feel like I’m mentally exhausted keeping whatever was between us up in the air.”

“So what was Hongseok insisting?” Shinwon asked.

“Hongseok kept on telling me that I should give Soyeon a chance. Compared to myself, she’s more likely to get people attracted to her. For Hongseok, it was absurd that I am not even jumping at the first chance of being her guy. I mean, technically speaking, he’s not wrong. Soyeon’s really pretty and not to mention famous, and she has a long line of guys willing to be her boyfriend. She’s right there, waiting for the perfect opportunity to be with me and yet I can’t bring myself to see that we can actually be together. I guess I was just too taken aback when she actually confessed and claimed that she meant it.”

“Does she, though? Keep in mind that she was drunk when she confessed to you. You and I know how she is when she’s drunk, right Jae-in? I would not exactly advise someone to believe what escapes her lips when she’s hazed with alcohol. I know that she’s my friend, but you are too. I’m trying to show you the bigger picture when it comes to Soyeon. Plus, I know her longer before you did, so there’s that.”

“Well if she wasn’t serious with it she wouldn’t have wasted her time talking to me and doing all those advances towards me right? If she wasn’t serious she had all the chances to back out but there she was, still persistent. There are a lot of things that are happening behind the scenes, man. Some are stuff that I do not even want to disclose because it’s too much. With regards to Soyeon, it kinda feels like she’s the one trying to woo me to be honest.”

“That’s fair if you actually feel like the girl. But if that’s the case why argue with Hongseok? What’s holding you back from actually trying your chances with Soyeon?”

Jae-in fell silent and merely stared at the flowing waters of the fountain before him. He knew precisely the answer, yet there was a little bit of a hesitation from his part.

“I… I just dislike the idea that I’m supposed to act back just because she’s doing something you know. That is what I think Hongseok was implying, but to me that is just borderline uncomfortable. That was the fire that ignited my irritation among other things. Sure, I was lacking sleep and all that, but even Hongseok or Ningning had no idea that I have that tendency. I don’t know what else I should tell her. If I’m going to act, I want to do it because I was the one who wanted it, not because the situation is warranting me to do it. Honestly, I don’t even know why I’m making this too much of a big deal. I might just be overthinking because I don’t want to make a move just yet… In light of recent events, I just felt that I was a bit pressured that I can’t keep up and maintain things.”

Shinwon nodded as an awkward silence passed between them both once again. Some of the students that were on the fountain with them have now gone to their respective ways.

“Jae-in… I want to ask you a question. I want you to answer it as solidly and as truthfully as you ever could. Give me a quick answer, and I would encourage you to not even think about it that much. I want an answer from the heart, not from the head; you good with that?”

Why do I get the feeling that I know what he’s about to ask me?

“Go on then. I’ll give you what you want.”

“Do you even like Soyeon?”

“No,” Jae-in mouthed. It was an odd feeling having to admit to it and say it to someone else, once and for all. “I thought I did, but I could not rule out the fact that we were both influence by alcohol when the confessions happened. I think I acted immediately with the situation presented without giving it a fair bit of thought. Now, I can’t put all my eggs in the basket because my heart was never in the basket in the first place.”

“I knew it,” Shinwon said with a nod. “I think I can see why that’s the case.”

“You knew…? How can you say so?”

“Well, I have been your friend ever since we ever stepped foot on our high school, Jae-in. You were the first person that I ever talked to, so our friendship is anchored way back. It goes to say that I have discovered a lot about you during then and in turn, I know how you act to certain degrees. I, for one, know that you are a very ‘all-in’ kind of person. I always got that impression about you. You don’t usually head in first without a thought, but when you do, you make sure that you give more than a hundred per cent. Once you go in, you go in REALLY HARD. I guess that is the reason why you fell so badly when… when you and your high school girlfriend fell apart in the worse possible way ever. Somehow I had a hunch that you and Soyeon would not work out in the long run even if you pursued it because it didn’t feel right.”

“You think so too?”

“Well... yeah. Some things really do ring a bell. Having that too light-spirited of a woman with you is not really your type, as you mentioned before. I kept my mouth shut because I thought that it would end in a couple of days after that, like it was just a one-night deal kind of thing. When things started to get serious, when you two were holding hands together and all that, I got really concerned; my gut was telling me that soon, you’d get tired of her habits given how opposite her interests are with yours.”

I… I was thinking of the same thing. Shinwon, despite teasing me of Soyeon during the past, secretly had a gut feeling that something was wrong. That’s damn good friendship right there.

“I found it funny actually that you feel like the girl between the both of you, because you actually are. Think about it: she’s more outgoing, has more bad habits, and was more of a happy-go –lucky liberated person and here you are, reserved, more composed, and even conservative. You’re like a text-book reserved woman, a maiden, and I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing just because you’re a guy. It actually makes you unique and it separates you from the louder ones.”

“Hey I have my bad habits too don’t discredit that.”

“Yeah but there are things she does that you don’t, right? You haven’t been to a club before, right Jae-in?”

He nodded silently.

“Do you even want to go to a club?”

He shook his head.

“I told you so. In my opinion, that already says a lot. It also helps that you’re the one being pursued.”

Silence, once more.

“Jae-in… you’re a very emotional person. I think you already knew that. You’re probably the softest, most kind-hearted person in our entire friend group, which is why you’re sometimes getting trampled on by people who have a higher social score than you. I would include myself in that. Regardless, what I’m trying to say is that… listen to what your heart is telling you. Set aside the courtesy you’re reserving for Soyeon and reserve that for yourself, because if you really don’t like her, it’s better to end it now that in the long run. It would be easier for both of you and she would soon understand.”

“You’re… you’re right… I should have thought of this sooner. I was so naïve that maybe I’ll have a reason to… to pull it off. I should have done it earlier.”

“Come on… you don’t need one shit bag like me to tell you what to do now, right? You’re freaking Yoon Jae-in!”

“You did well to make me remember it. Thank you. I promise that one of these days, I’ll have to atone for my responsibilities. I’ll tell Soyeon the truth and face whatever goes after it. I have a feeling that it would not be pretty.”

Shinwon tapped his shoulder as a brotherly gesture.

“That’s the spirit, mate. I’ll be supporting you until the very end. Whatever happens, know that I’m by your side than Soyeon’s. In this instance, I know that you’re doing the right thing.”

“I will. I’ll do that for the sake of everyone as well.”

Shinwon finally stood up and gave some stretching. Jae-in followed suit, but before they could both even walk out of the fountain’s premises, he was stopped once again by the voice of the taller Shinwon.

“You know what, regardless if what happens, we’ll be here in case you’re in for a drink. I’d rather share a table with you because you chose to do what’s right than to lull in a depressing drinking session because Soyeon broke your heart. Don’t let what happened to you in high school happen again with Soyeon, okay?”

“What do you mean? What does high school have to do with this?”

“All I’m saying is: be careful. You don’t want this whole Soyeon situation to turn into another Wonyoung now, do you?”

#gidle soyeon #pentagon shinwon #jang wonyoung #ive wonyoung #kpop fanfic #kpop series #a little piece of you

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wfagamerants · 1 year

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So I finally saw the Mario movie, so of course I am not gonna miss my chance to do a good ol’ write-up about my thoughts. Spoilers btw.

I am just fresh from seeing it, so this is very early impressions speaking, but on the whole, I am very happy. A Mario movie on the big screen is something I wanted to experience as early as I can think back and yeah, it did not disappoint.

Above all else, the movie succeeds where it needed to succeed most.

It’s a Mario movie and very proud to be a Mario movie. it doesn’t rely on a ‘’Oooooh, Mario is in our world’’ kind of gimmick or anything. It looks like Mario, it sounds like Mario and it plays out like a Mario film and I mean all that in the best ways possible.

The movie is pure eye candy and while seeing so much of it’s setpieces from trailers already caught me off-guard, there was still more than enough to see. Brooklyn and the way it was made to fit with Mario’s current aesthetic was a major highlight there.

The characters look great, it’s full of detail, really, nothing to complain about there.

Music is a delight too, any time I recognized one of the game themes, which was a lot of times, made me grin. The licensed songs do clash with that, but are ultimately inoffensive. I get when people hate it, but for me, it’s just there.

I watched the movie in german, so I can’t comment on the english cast at large, but I liked them from the trailers and the german cast absolutely delivered too, with Luigi and DK being particular highlights.

Speaking of DK, everything around him and his series was fantastic to see. I always want to see the Marioverse be more connected and seeing a taste of that on the big-screen makes me more than a little giddy.

All that is good stuff and the many references to spot are going to make this an incredible movie to rewatch and discover new details, but there is one issue that I do think may make this movie a more difficult sell for people not super into Mario.

The beginning in Brooklyn is my favorite part of the movie for how it establishes Mario and Luigi, their relationship and struggles with both their business and earning the approval of others around them (being someone in the know and nostalgic about the old backstory adds extra points obviously). It takes time to show them actually at a job, gives Foreman Spike and Pauline small parts to give that fuzzy feeling of familiarity and all around serves as a great introduction. It’s nothing deep but it does a lot to elevate the Bros as characters in a way that suits the medium.

Once the Mushroom Kingdom comes in though, a lot of that starts to take a backseat to jumping from location to location. It’s an absolute joyride, but it does leave a lot of concepts without the room they need.

The flashback Luigi has while captive is great and earned, given Luigi’s timid nature and Mario being so protective of him have already been well established, but it doesn’t really go beyond that scene until the climax. It works, but at least an extra scene where Luigi laments being a scaredy cat would have given his one big moment some more pathos.

Similarly Peach’s backstory, while simple, does create intrigue and a new dimension to her care for the Toads, but it’s only brought up once and stops being a factor afterwards. It honestly feels like an entire sub-plot got cut there.

There is more stuff like that and it is an aspect where the movie feels a bit insecure about itself. It’s clear the shadow of the live action movie was looming over the movie’s production and through that, it feels they were afraid of focusing too long on something less fan–service.

I still enjoy what we got, like Mario and DK’s dynamic is amazing even without an extended talk about their dads, it’s just stuff they could have done a little more of, because the movie otherwise does blatantly bank on your existing familiarity with the cast and world to carry things. It works for me, but I can understand a lot more now why critics who have not much clue about Mario, were less impressed.

On that note, the characters also really landed for me. Luigi did get thrown under the bus though. He’s great when he is on-screen and his moment of glory intensely cathartic, but he really does not get to do much and his dynamic with Mario does not have much time to shine.

Similarly Lumalee is a big question mark for me. He’s amusing, but there is no context as to how Bowser got him. I really did expect some kind of Galaxy tease that just never happens and due to how little time the prisoners get, Lumalee really ends up just being a vehicle for macabre jokes.

I do also wish Peach was allowed to be a liiiittle more flawed, like I am totally on-board with her being more experienced because of her background growing up in the Mushroom Kingdom and always root for the SMB2 team to be the default hero team whenever possible. That I am all cool with, I just feel they overcompensated a little, because aside from being caught by King Bob-omb’s explosion, I struggle to think of a single mistake she made the entire movie, while everyone else bumbles at some point. Not a big deal, she ended up far more endearing than I expected, I just feel they could have made it more balanced than constant hypercompetence.

The rest of the cast I have no complaints about. Mario is precisely what I want a more distinctly characterized take on him to be. All my praises regarding Toad still apply, Spike is great for what he gets, DK rules, Cranky is fine for what this version of him is meant to be, Kamek has good moments and Bowser is a hilarious incel that also caught me off-guard with how surprisingly evil he could be.

All that good stuff easily wins the day and made me genuinely love my time with the movie. A sequel really does need to address the pacing problems and let the characters breathe more, but I do think the movie is a slam dunk in what it wants to archive.

This 100% is a movie for people that would get excited to see the Koopa General become a Blue Shell or see the Bros while invincible, put the smack down on Bowser and his army.

I am absolutely in this camp and as far as I am concerned, it’s a fan joyride, made by people that clearly respect the source material and I am happy I took on said ride.

I do wish the Plumber Rap used the same german lyrics as in the Super Show dub, but nobody’s perfect.

#Super Mario

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destinyc1020 · 5 months

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This is no shade at all!! (Just a bit of perspective from someone who is an immensely huge fan of Austin!!)

I think this is just important to say out loud because there are so many misconceptions/ false pretenses of him!

A lot of the things Austin says in interviews tend to be taken out of context! For example his actors on actors interview, with Janelle Monae. He said "he didn't see his family for three years"... Now the media/articles/ internet ran with that dubbing him some insane method actor that isolated himself from his family and never spoke to them. Which couldn't be farther from the actual truth, the context on why he said that is so important (it's also in the rest of the interview). He filmed Elvis in Australia (the film took so long to produce due to force majeure being called on the film and most notably the Covid-19 pandemic). He didn't "see" his family in a literal sense due to quarantine, he still lived his own life and spoke with them everyday he could!

That's just one of many instances where the media miss construed what he's said and blatantly leave out key elements to the bigger picture!

I suppose I say this not to start anything just know that!! 😭 But to say that I don't think he is fully to blame for the "mistakes" he made you know what I mean?

Also when people discuss him going so "hard" on the role, people equate that to him being some insane method actor. But from the beginning he has always said when preparing for this role he never thought he was Elvis, never wanted people to call him Elvis he just spoke like Elvis for three years, because he felt it would be easier to not have to consciously think about doing the accent!

I hate how twitter has demeaned all the things he went through during filming, as him being a crazy method actor when in reality he just has a really big work ethic! He adores what he does and the fact that people can't see that to the point that they have to make fun of him and his obviously real voice is just gross. (It boggles my mind how people can genuinely hate him over something as simple as his voice! these tweets about him raking up 800k likes, I didn't know people could be so obsessed!! People need to focus their energy on people who are actually bad...)

His voice would obviously change with that much strain on it, he sang like Elvis everyday for three years of course his vocal chords wouldn't return to how they were immediately! It sort of reminds me of how Britney Spears sang in the "baby voice" so much that now she cannot sing (or at least be stable) in her naturally deep singing voice!

As your resident Austin girly! I can admit he was too naive when it came to promoting Elvis, but people online should be way more compassionate and understanding that this was his first big film that he was leading and he put his blood, sweat, tears and soul into the role! He was just excited, and him being excited shouldn't have been condemned like that.

He continues to be way too kind to the media, even when they have been beyond cruel to him! I think that just shows how good of a character he has! In a perfect world people would be way kinder to him, because if they gave him a chance they would see how absolutely kind, passionate, and incredible of a person he is. They would love him if they didn't judge him first!

I hope my little rant in some way made sense!! Sorry if it comes off weird lmaooo

Hey Austin Girlie Anon! 👋🏾

Welcome to my blog. 🥰 I didn't sense any shade at all, don't worry!

I totally agree with a LOT of what you said.

All of this! And even JE said he did the same EXACT thing in his recent GQ interview, yet I don't see anybody saying anything. 🤷🏾‍♀️

He didn't "see" his family in a literal sense due to quarantine, he still lived his own life and spoke with them everyday he could!

^^THANK YOU! I think that comment was taken waaaaay out of context. He was prepping for Elvis in 2019, and was supposed to film in 2020, but then the pandemic happened, and Tom Hanks caught covid as well, so production was HALTED for about half a year! Nobody was traveling during that time.

I myself didn't "see" my own family for almost 2 years due to covid! 2019 - 2021 🥴 But that doesn't mean we don't talk just about every single day. He was obviously keeping in touch with family when he could, even if he couldn't see them in person.

Yea, it's ridiculous. He definitely has a very strong work ethic, because even Vanessa said he has one of the strongest work ethics she's ever known. And I'm sure that was one of the reasons why he impressed Denzel Washington.

People hating on him for that is just weird to me. 🥴

(It boggles my mind how people can genuinely hate him over something as simple as his voice! these tweets about him raking up 800k likes, I didn't know people could be so obsessed!! People need to focus their energy on people who are actually bad...)

It literally is ridiculous. Save that energy for people out here who are rapists, racists, abusers, rude, hateful, violent, and misogynists for goodness sakes. The whole voice hate thing is really dumb and overly played out. 🙄 It's also such a dumb reason for disliking someone.

Btw, his voice doesn't sound that different to me?? 🥴

This was 7 Years ago:

He sounds pretty much the same to me. 🤷🏾‍♀️

I didn't see anything wrong w/how he handled the insane schedule had for the Elvis press tour, AND the crazy awards season. He, Baz, and the entire cast poured their whole heart and soul into that film, and you can tell!

People hating on him for that just comes off as bitter tbh.

Like I always say on here on my blog Anon, unfortunately, people hating on actors is just par for the course in this industry. Actors are just going to get hate no matter what, sad to say. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Unfortunately, you can't MAKE people like someone. People either like you or they don't. 🤷🏾‍♀️

But I agree with you...Austin has always seemed like a sweet and humble guy...even when he was acting as a kid. I always look at people who hate him, and I'm like: "Are we talking about the same person??" 🥴 It just seems so unnecessary, and I get the feeling ppl view him in a way that's totally opposite from how he is irl lol.

Anyway, I hope he stays grounded, cuz that industry can be vicious. It's good he's not on social media much, cuz it can be so toxic.

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pippin-katz · 11 months

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i actually disagree. not every character has to be a favorite (as we all know) and there's nothing wrong with not liking them. You dont need a good reason. As long as they don't spread hate against them, quitely not liking them is fine.

it doesnt make someone misogynistic or racist to just not like a character. its a neutral thing, not everyone's vibe will suit everyone, and not everyone finds the same character interesting.

on the whole are female characters neglected across fandom? sure.

That doesn't mean a person should force themselves to like a paring or a character, just so they dont offend someone LMAO thats not what fandom is for. its people engaging with shit they love for fun and creating stuff from that love.

You seem to be missing my point and manipulating my words.

I did not say that disliking Guinevere makes you misogynistic or racist, but that there are people who ARE that will spread hate.

When I say you need a “reason” not to like a character, that reason can be as simple as “I don’t like her personality” or “I don’t like her vibe”.

THAT is a personal preference a person can have about a character that has nothing to do with a fan-driven ship.

Saying “Gwen sucks because she ruins Merthur!” has nothing to do with her as a character or her portrayal. It is not a commentary or opinion of her character at all, but just a blatantly rude statement because Merthur is not in the show.

If Merlin and Arthur were set up and explored as a potential relationship within the context of the show, and they ended up not doing it/breaking them up within the show, saying you don’t like Guinevere for her role in that plot line would be completely valid. Because they are not explored as a potential relationship, that is not a real criticism of her character.

Nothing I have said implies that you have to like Guinevere, or her relationship with Arthur.

I personally like the chemistry he and Merlin have better. If they had been willing or planning to go that route, I would have much preferred it, but that is not what happened, and that does not mean that what we got is inherently bad because of my personal preference.

People mistake opinions for critiques.

Do not misunderstand, many critiques are opinions, but most opinions are not critiques.

For example: my mother cannot watch the first fifteen minutes of Pixar’s Up because it upsets her too much. She then goes on to say that “it’s horrible”.

Those are two entirely separate concepts. You can dislike something, or be upset by something, but still recognize the quality of that something.

This can work both ways. You can love something, and recognize the lack of quality in it.

Cult classics are a fantastic example. The film Rocky Horror Picture Show is not a well-made, high quality movie. In this case, that is an intentional part of the film’s goal, but regardless, nearly every part of that movie is lackluster in execution. However, I and many other people love it. I am not saying that it is a good film because I personally love it. I can recognize something as poor quality even if I personally enjoy it.

In regards to Guinevere, you are well within your right not to like her. I have my own qualms with the character myself. Her writing in later seasons started lacking the spark and personality she had in season 1, in a way that was clearly not an intentional development. Notice how I did not outright say “Guinevere is a bad character” just because I feel her writing got worse.

When you choose to share your opinion in a public space, you should be thoughtful of how you do so. Not everyone will be, obviously, but if you have no ill intentions, you should be.

THAT is what I mean when I say you should have a “real reason” for disliking a character. If you have an opinion that is a valid personal preference you want to share, that is completely fine, but otherwise, you should “quietly dislike the character” as you put it.

Even if you do not intend spread hate with your own post, there are people who will use it as an opportunity for them to do so.

THAT is my point.

You are correct. Fandoms are meant to be places to engage with something they love, to create and talk about it with other fans. It is meant to be fun, which is why more people, in all fandoms, should think more when choosing what to say and what not to say and how to say it.

If more people made the individual effort to be polite and understanding with their opinions of media, so many fandoms would not be as toxic as they are.

THAT is my goal in saying all this.

I have not been perfect in the past with being considerate or polite in sharing my opinions, and every time, it led to negativity and frustration that could’ve been avoid if I or the other person had stopped to consider how our words could come across.

It ruins the experience of a fandom for the people involved, and many times steers curious individuals away from the content itself out of fear or distaste for the fandom’s behavior.

I hope that this clears things up a bit.

#merlin #merlin bbc #bbc merlin #merlin thoughts #guinevere thomas #guinevere pendragon #merlin emrys #arthur pendragon #merthur #the once and future fandom

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normal-looking-male · 2 years

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am i allowed to ask what the deal is with hunter? i don’t mean to be rude im genuinely curious and remember little to nothing about s2 :0

GREAT QUESTION. I'm gonna avoid tagging this as anything Owl House-related at all, but if somebow a fan of Hunter sees this: Scroll past. You're not gonna like this post. (This is written spontaneously and without any reviewing or editing, so if I stop making sense at a certain point, R.I.P. to me, I guess.)

:readmore:

So, in his first appearances as the Golden Guard, he was pretty much just a snarky extension of Belos. A little shit causing trouble for the protagonists, threatening them and clearly revelling in his deeds.

And then the mask came off, and Dana mentioning that he's one of her favourites became glaringly obvious. Suddenly, this guy whose whole thing was that he was unquestioningly loyal and obedient to Evil White Man McGee, and as just another antagonist, he was great! But then suddenly he was this poor innocent little guy that just wanted to impress his uncle. Adorable, but this awkward uwu little guy was a bit of a tone shift. Where was all this timidity and morals when he was all for dropping best titan, my boy King, to his death?

It's just. So glaringly obvious Dana wanted to pull a Zuko, but Zuko was there from Book One of Avatar, and we could actually see him be an impatient and traumatised teenager, we saw his tragedy before we saw his cruelty. In fact, we are made aware early on that the reason he's on this quest in the first place was because his "crime" was not wanting people to die. We didn't get that with Hunter. We are just informed that he was led to believe what's right and what's wrong by Belos. But unless I missed something, he's most definitely been revelling in the damage he did on his own, without Belos there to tell him "now threaten their dog", or something.

Hunter could see the destruction that was caused by the Emperor's coven, and had an olive branch extended to him one after another by pretty much everyone else in the cast, but none of Belos' actions or the damage they did mattered to him until he found out he's a Grimwalker. He didn't absolutely obey Belos anymore, and would hide Flapjack from him and whatnot, but he was still loyal, and would excuse every horrible thing Witch Hitler ever did, until it affected him personally.

And that was probably the nail in the coffin for me. He only started to team up with the good guys proper after he found out he was just Belos' attempt at resurrecting Caleb. He only cared about the damage Belos has done and will do when he was the victim for a change. Kinda like every other teenage cis white boy that realised Nazism Is Bad, Actually, only when it affected him in a negative way. But, because he made some sad noises and was an awkward dorky uwu bean, the fandom latched onto him. Mostly it was the straight women that saw another angsty Varian-Kylo Ren-Hordak-(HORRIBLY MISINTERPRETED) Zuko-Some other villains whose names I can't be bothered to remember kind of guy, who was blatantly antagonistic and violent, clearly took pleasure or pride in his evil deeds, and had some vUlNeRaBlE sCeNeS, and then did a heel turn at the last possible second. Usually because, again, now that he felt he didn't wanna be a mass murderer anymore, he was now gonna be a good guy, everyone else be damned.

Of course the second his mask came off he was shipped with Luz and Amity (even though Amity is a lesbian, but hey, when has canon ever mattered to that part of the Owl House fandom), of course when that stopped working, he was shipped with Willow. And, here's the fun part, it's not because they work together. It's just shipping for the sake of shipping, just so that their special little blorbo can be shoved into dicussions about characters other than him, and most likely in part just the straight women using Willow as a vessel for projection, because they wanna kiss the angsty white boy, and Willow's more of a self-insert in that scenario. If Amity wasn't confirmed lesbian, I guarantee she'd be shipped with him way more, because the majority of the straight women that would eat the dirt off of Hunter's shoes are... Drumroll... Crackers themselves. Amity would just easier to project onto for them.

The recent episode isn't helping. Even in the conversation at the start that Hunter has with Luz, the second she mentions her worries and struggles, of course he makes it about himself. I shouldn't have been surprised at the audacity, given how self-centered his worldview is, but I just. I can't. I can't overlook that just because he got excited about wolves, or because Flapjack had to sacrifice himself to save his sorry ass, or because other characters just inexplicably care for the guy that would have probably executed them himself, if the Grimwalker part never became apparent to him.

The crew was robbed of a proper third season, we did not get everything Dana had planned for him, and me typing up this whole post is kinda hypocritical, given that the reason I don't even engage with the community anymore is because of the Hunter oversatutation. There's better characters to focus on. I'm just so damn tired of seeing him as a "parallel to Amity", or "sibling to Luz", or "crushing on Willow", or "adopted by Eda", I've genuinely had enough of this guy. He did not have an actual redemption arc. He just abruptly switched to being intended as sympathetic to the audience, because he's Dana's favourite, and the majority or the audience gobbled it up. My general distaste for angsty dickheads becoming The Fandom's Faves is also probably not helping with my growing disdain for his character, and what he represents in fandoms overall.

There's three potential fixes that could have been for him.

Disney not being jerks, and letting us have the full story. Maybe in that alternate timeline where Hunter actually had all his development, grew past what Belos drilled into his head, and actually at least properly apologised to the ones he hurt and betrayed (no, him kneeling before Camila is not cute, it's a sign the guy still thinks he has to serve someone, and no, Luz, he is not family, he triED TO KILL YOUR ACTUAL FOUND FAMILY ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, ARE YOU INSANE-), I could actually move past my own dislike of him, and at least be neutral about his presence in the show.

Dana making up her mind about him either being a little shit or Just A Little Guy..., and also him actually willingly wanting to leave the Emperor's Coven for the sake of anyone besides himself. She had to just. Make him not selfish, it is not that hard. Make him actually compassionate and caring instead of other characters saying he is, and making him go 🥺🥺🥺 at that. It would change the order of certain events, but would at least work with the rest of the plot.

Keep him a bad guy without the uwu bean part, or just cut him out entirely. You'd have to rewrite the way the story progresses quite a lot, but that wouldn't be too big of a loss.

Also, I tend to half-jokingly headcanon characters as LGBTA+ even though canon would kinda go against that, but he's the exception. Like, not even from a "historical accuracy" standpoint. I can see, for example, Brendan from Secret Of Kells as transmasc. Ninth century my ass, the entire Abbey of Kells is Welcoming And Accepting[tm], and nothing gives me reason to believe any of the inhabitants would have been dicks about it. Meanwhile Belos canonically wants to wipe out witches in a very brutal way, most likely because he's still salty that Caleb boinked one, and is one of the most inarguably evil villains in recent kids' (well, teens seem to be more like the target audience, but y'know) media. If his bro 2.0 exhibited any signs of not being a cishet, he'd be dumped into that one cave where the previous Golden Guards got thrown out, and then patched to be cishet in the next update.

#if you're reading this remember to eat every four hours + stay hydrated + take breaks + take your meds + charge your electronics #treat yourself and have fun 'n' stuff

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killerrvelvet · 2 years

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Le Sserafim and the Situation(tm)

tldr: why is *blank* still in the group and hybe sucks ass. also why tf are we still talking about this group as if nothing is happening??

I have been looking up the tag and trying to see if anyone has participated in the discourse/talked about the current debacle plaguing Hybe and the group Le Sserafim. I don’t post a lot of my own content but I feel the need to comment on this current event.

One, at least on tumblr, it feels like very few people have elected to share their opinion or feelings on this whole thing. It is definitely present on Reddit, but here it seems to either be avoided/untouched or it is growing and it hasn’t really reached it’s peak yet. Either way, I just wanted to share my two cents (warranted or not).

I think it’s fairly obvious to anyone that is either closely monitoring the situation or even just catching wind of it here or there (because honestly I don’t know how you could miss it even if you are casually involved in the world of Kpop) that the most glaring issue about this whole thing is the way that Hybe is handling the allegations. I have never seen a company so incompetent; so blatantly lost when it comes to a SERIOUS claim. Whether or not all of this is true, gray/not cut and dry, or false, Hybe is not making this look any less worrisome to ANYONE. The girls are probably freaking out, internally I’m confident the company is scrambling to fix this elaborate mess they’ve created for themselves, and fans of the group are in fear that this debut has been absolutely squandered, because it has been. Before all of you say it sounds like I'm in support of the alleged perprator, I'll get there.

A PLETHORA of examples of companies addressing accusations, allegations, claims, etc are available for any label looking to take something from the how to treat idol accusations playbook. How Hybe adopts none of these methods is beyond me. So this can only lead to the thought that follows after; did she do it, then?

Defending your idol is one thing; but defending your idol when there is evidence (and not some cheap ass document or tweet; potentially some real ass shit from a victim who just wants justice) , lack of an appropriate statement with substance, and a whole group of 5 other girls are serving the sentence for the (ALLEGED; for legal reasons lmao) behavior of one of their members is a whole other thing. at what point, as a company, do you decide to put a member on hiatus? or a more, somewhat common practice; remove them from the group? usually the the first option that I listed above will be enough to do at least one or the other. but in this case? all of the above are at play.

if this was any other company, there is a very good chance that she would be gone. wiped from the system as best as they could manage. I cannot see this being a scenario in which the company defends the perprator in this case so strongly without incentive. this could mean a very lucrative sponsorship (with said member), or wealthy/powerful parents to back her. it doesn't make sense why they are fighting so hard (and so poorly) to keep her in the public eye if it isn't for either of these reasons.

hybe's replies have been absolute dogshit. it's almost comical how substanceless how all of their statement drops have been. not even to mention the doubling down and not even having said member fake apologize or feign distress.

all in all: this whole situation is irritating and gross. hybe sucks and I feel bad for the girls who have to suffer consequences for something that they have nothing to do with. they all worked so hard just for a scandal to tear them down so early in their careers. this will plague the company and the group for a very, very long time. I hope the 5 other members can find peace from this whole thing. and as for the company; either they pull out all of the stops and produce a bombshell that destroys these seriously strong claims, or I never invest myself in a group from this company ever again.

#le sserafim #text post #kpop #kpopnews #kpop opinions

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sneezemonster15 · 2 years

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I found this great sns edit (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=992QSX6ziho) and the comments where saying Sasuke called Naruto 'like a brother' in Boruto? I can't imagine this could be anything but an anime only addition. What are they taking about??

Hey.

I don't think even in any filler, Sasuke called Naruto a brother. Not in my knowledge. Kishimoto stressed so much on the fact that Naruto didn't know how to specify the nature of his feelings for Sasuke, till the end. Sasuke always stressed that he only had one brother and he never liked Naruto's explanation of brotherhood, neither did he accept it. Even the animators or other writers wouldn't say or write something that would go so blatantly against the original author's characterisation of his characters, especially the main ones.

I saw the comments and most of them are the fans' own projection, nothing to do with truth. This one comment is true, misunderstood sure, but Naruto did say it in a way.

“I never had a family, but i had something like a brother" ~naruto

This isn't what he exactly said though.

Of course people miss or ignore the context because of their projection. Sasuke challenges Naruto when he asks him what the hell did Naruto even understand about how Sasuke felt, given he is a true orphan who never had a family and certainly unlike Sasuke who knew what it was like to have a family that was taken from him so cruelly? Naruto doesn't understand what family feels like but he imagines it to be something like his bond with Iruka who he thinks what fathers must be like. Or Sasuke whom he feels must be like having a brother because he has no frame of reference to understand family in any other way, what he does know for sure is that he considers them both close enough to be his family because they acknowledged and cared for him, like no one else did before and hence trying to convince Sasuke that he can somehow relate to him. Sasuke obviously disagreed. For good reasons. And Naruto does come to understand it to some extent when Jiraiya dies. That was the whole point of Kishi killing off Jiraiya.

But well, people do watch and ingest things selectively and project their own understanding on the characters without looking at them objectively (doesn't help that shounen always portrays male bonds as especially close but not homosexual, that Naruto is an exception and anomaly in this genre is not something that they would understand without critical thinking and some more exposure to different kinds of media) and this same understanding colours their perception of the characters going forward into the story. They aren't that adept at interpreting narrative or visual language. Also, most people's understanding of Naruto is still what it was when they watched it as kids when they weren't mature or experienced enough to understand the nuances of the story and characters.

This isn't so uncommon. Now when I watch some of my old favorites, I discover so many new things in it that I couldn't see before. Like the Bicycle Thief. Or The Wire. Or even Harry Potter, especially the third installment. As our understanding of life and media matures, so does our perception of storytelling and visual language. Now when I watch Tarkovsky, I am able to appreciate him so much more. Because my younger and more inexperienced self couldn't decode his excellent auteurship. I am sure there are still many things about it that I have possibly missed and will discover more when I rewatch his work.

To understand an author's motives and intent, one has to have a keen eye for it, and it only develops and matures with time and active critical thought. So our understanding of media is only as good as our understanding of the world and our insights into our own selves.

#ask #sns #naruto #sasuke #uzumaki naruto #sasunaru #narusasu #nsn #uchiha sasuke

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squishneedsahero · 3 years

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Maybe It Isn’t all Bad

Awesomest of Them All 2.0

Part 2 of 13

Word Count: 1714

Batman x Batmom!Reader

You know what the bat family needs? Someone to pull them together and give them all the love they deserve. Who better to do that than you? An author rising to stardom in Gotham who catches the eye of a billionaire with your standoffish attitude at a huge social gathering. You are yourself and never pretend to be more or less than that. Plus you're the most stubborn person in the world, refusing to let good things go without reason.

This is a rewrite of my story Awesomest of Them All, I wanted to see how much I've improved over 3 years.

It had been two months since you published your book, and it had taken off. Tons of people loved it and even more had read it. Because of this you were suddenly a popular public figure of Gotham, and of course like all other public figures you were invited to one of the many galas that happen in this city. You hated it. You, y/n l/n the nobody who lived in a shabby apartment and just happened to get lucky with your book. What you wouldn't give to go back to being a nobody so you could spend your Friday night watching Netflix alone on your couch.

Unfortunately you weren't sure how the snobby rich people,who thought they were better than everyone else, would take you rejecting their invitation the first of probably many. But this was a charity gala hosted by Bruce Wayne: play boy, billionaire, and one of the few people present that seems somewhat genuine even if you didn't think he had a single thought behind his eyes. So maybe it wasn't all bad cause all the rich people were donating to charity and Bruce usually made sure the money went somewhere good.

You had worn an elegant gown, preferring it to the ones that let your ass hang out the bottom. The dress was fabulously elegant and made you feel like a queen. You had paired it with your your highest high heels, stilettos that you could stab someone with if it came down to it. So far the night had been filled with pointless conversations and lots and lots of introductions, all while dancing a waltz.

Lets be honest you won't remember most of the new people you had met, you could've met the Queen of England and not have known it. You didn't remember not because you had been drinking, even if you had thought about it many times, but because there were so many people that wanted to get you and your new found popularity under their thumb and gain through you.

You had finally gotten a break by standing by the buffet table and eating the food they seemed to be letting go to waste. If nothing else you would singlehandedly make sure the food didn't get wasted. You kept trying to think of an excuse to go home, but so far couldn't think of anything. Your planning was interrupted when yet another person came up to you, except his face is somewhat familiar. "Hi," you say after you hurriedly swallow a bite of food.

"Hello, Miss (y/n) (l/n)," he begins, knowing your name but you not knowing his, "may I have this dance?" He asks, great another dance luckily you were used to being on your feet thanks to waitressing otherwise you'd be worried about them falling off with all this meaningless dancing. Why couldn't rich people be more fun with their dancing, most of them were white, playing some pop songs, and the Cupid Shuffle could only make things better.

"Yes, Mister..." you pause as you try to place him, you know you know him but you'd seen so many faces like that tonight that it was a blur.

"Wayne," He finishes for you.

"I'd love to dance with you Mr.Wayne," you lie through that smile that was plastered to your face. You offer your hand and wish desperately you had taken your chance to escape when you'd had it only moments before.

He takes the hand you offer to him and leads you out to the dance floor, waltzing yet again, at least you didn't have to lead cause you had no idea what you were doing. "My son read your book," he begins, trying to start up a friendly conversation, "he's keeps trying to convince me to read it."

"That's nice," you respond awkwardly, what were you supposed to do? Try to convince him to read it too? Hell no, you are not going to act like an airhead and promote yourself.

"He doesn't know that I've already read it," Bruce says. You laugh before you can stop yourself, you almost apologize but he laughs as well. "I enjoyed reading it, it was very well written." Maybe he did actually have real thoughts in his head unlike how the media portrayed him.

"Thank you," you say a slight blush making is way onto your cheeks. He was quite attractive after all and here he was complimenting you. The smile on your lips becomes more genuine as the two of you continue dancing, making light conversation, and surprisingly it was quite enjoyable.

Before you know it the party is over. And you'd spent almost half of it dancing with one man. "Thank you for the dance."

"It was my pleasure," he says, and you find yourself blushing for the millionth time that night. Maybe these parties weren't all bad, you'd found a friend you could have intelligent conversations with after all.

You find yourself invited to almost every gala that happens in the city over the next few months and every time Bruce is there the two of you spend most of the time dancing and talking with each other. The conversations between the two of you are pleasant, covering many topics, and most importantly they aren't meaningless like all the other conversations you were forced into at galas.

Bruce would get your opinion on things such as how the money he got for charity should be spent since you had been more recently living among the people he was trying to help. Like you weren't bad off by any means but you hadn't owned a car, relying on bus routes to get around the city and working 40+ hours a week to keep your head above water. You had been better off than many in Gotham but you had been closer to the poverty than Bruce had, even considering his night job. The fact that he genuinely cared and wanted your opinion amazed you. He was the first and probably only friend you made among the one percent at those parties.

Of course the two of you didn't only talk business, other more casual subjects came up. The two of you bonding over having dead parents, even if he was more traumatized and your wounds more recent. Then talking about school and how you had decided to skip college in order to pursue writing while he had been homeschooled then traveled the world instead of college, not that either of you were too old for college though. He was was 23-24, still young despite having adopted an 8 almost 9 year old and you were close to the same age as him.

The both of you being young, and single, did lead the two of you to have more than a friendship but that was after nearly a year of just talking at galas. Okay a year of just talking was a lie. It was probably only six months before the two of you found yourselves out in a garden and shared your first kiss. But it was an entire year before he finally asked you out, claiming it was a dare from Dick and to ease the pressure of the press.

You of course called him on those lies and pointed out the fact that there had not been a single other woman in his life since the two of you met. And said the only way you'd go out with him was if he'd, "just admit you like me." Needless to say he did.

That was part of the reason that he was so attracted to you. Despite what he knew about you from the one day he saved you from Joker, you were just unafraid to be yourself. You had never pretended or tried to pretend to fit in at the galas. You'd never been afraid to call him on his shit, even if it had risked your one friendship that made those galas bearable.

To your surprise when you had called him a dumbass for thinking it was acceptable to give a 9 year old unlimited access to the internet he laughed and said you were probably right. Then for some reason he thought it was a good idea to ask you for parenting advice and you told him that was a worse idea. You had less of an idea how to be a parent than he did, the only reason a 9 year old shouldn't have unlimited internet access was because he was a bit young to already get unrealistic expectations from porn. Mainly you had no idea, it just felt weird to turn a kid loose on the internet but then again you'd been a kid who ate mud and called it fun.

So, all the talking and asking opinions and just spending a ton of time together leads to Bruce asking you out. The press saw this coming from miles away and caught you both on your date, not that they didn't have pictures of the two of you hiding from people on a balcony. But an actual date?!? Amazing! All the internet fans were happy for you, the paparazzi loved you and would do anything to get pictures of the two of you.

The two of you became Gotham's it couple overnight but the best thing about it was that it was real. Both of you were blatantly honest, calling each other out when needed and defending each other at other moments. There were no secrets between the both of you and you wouldn't trade that for anything. It was amazing to you that you had finally found a man who saw you as his equal and if anything he was a man known for being a womanizer.

So that's how it all started, in the space of a year the two of you fell in love and were head over heels for each other. Dick played match maker every chance he got, since he adored you for some odd reason. And of course, when you finally met him Alfred approved of you and Bruce being together, the one person able to call him on his shit and have him listen. It was a miracle that Alfred had thought he'd never love to see.

#Batman #bruce wayne #bruce wayne x you #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne x y/n #batman x you #batmom #batmom reader #batfam x batmom #dick grayson #damian wayne

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vickyvicarious · 3 years

Text

Leverage Redemption Pros/Cons List

Okay! Now that I've finally finished watching the first half of Leverage: Redemption, I thought I'd kind of sum up my overall impression. Sort of a pro/con list, except a little more just loosely structured rambles on each bullet point rather than a simple list.

This got way out of hand from what I expected so I'm going to put it all under a cut. If you want the actual bulletpoint list, here it is:

PROS

References

Continuity

Nate

Representation

Themes

New Characters

General Vibe

CONS

'Maker and Fixer'

Episode Twins

Sophie's Stagefright

Thiefsome

You might notice the pros list is longer, and that's because I do love the show! I really like most of what it does, and my gripes are fewer in number and mostly smaller in size. But they do exist and I felt like talking about them as well as the stuff I loved.

PROS

References

There is clearly so much love and respect for the original show here. Quite aside from the general situation, there's a lot of references to individual episodes or character traits from the first show. For example, Parker's comments on disliking clowns, liking puppets, disliking horses, stabbing vs. tasing people. The tasing was an ongoing thing in the original, the stabbing happened once (S1) but was referenced later in the original show, the clown thing only had a few mentions scattered across the entire original show. The puppet thing was mentioned once in S5, and the horses thing in particular was only brought up in S1 once. But they didn't miss the chance to put the nod to it in there; in fact with those alone we see a good mix of common/ongoing jokes and smaller details.

We got "dammit Hardison" and "it's a very distinctive..." but also Eliot and Parker arguing about him catering a mob wedding, and Eliot being delighted by lemon as a secret ingredient in a dish in that same episode (another reference to the mob episode). Hardison and Eliot banter about "plan M", an ongoing joke starting from the very first episode of the original show. We see Sophie bring up Hardison's accent in the Ice Job, Parker also makes reference to an early episode when describing "backlash effect" to Breanna, in an episode that also references her brother slightly if you look for it.

Heck, the last episode of these first eight makes a big deal out of nearly reproducing the iconic opening lines of the original show with Fake Nate's "we provide... an advantage." And I mean, all the "let's go steal a ___" with Harry being confused about how to use them.

Some of the lines are more obviously references to the original show, but they strike a decent balance with smaller or unspoken stuff as well, and also mix in some references between the team to events we the audience have never seen. If someone was coming into this show for the first time, they wouldn't get all the easter egg joy but most of the references would stand on their own as dialogue anyway. In general, I think they struck a good balance of restating needed context for new viewers while still having enough standalone good lines and more-fun-if-you-get-it callbacks.

Continuity

Similar to the last point, but slightly different. The characters' development from the original to now is shown so well. I'm not going to go on about this too long, but the writers clearly didn't want to let the original characters stagnate during the offscreen years. There was a lot of real thought put into how they would change or not.

It's really written well. We can see just how cohesive a team Parker, Hardison, and Eliot became. We get a sense of how they've spent their time, and there's plenty of evidence that they remained incredibly close with Sophie and Nate until this past year. The way everyone defers to Parker is different from the original show and clearly demonstrates how she's been well established as the leader for years now - they show this well even as Parker is stepping back to let Sophie take point in these episodes. Eventually that is actually called out by Sophie in the eighth episode, so we might see more mastermind Parker in the back half of the show, maybe. But even with her leading, it's clear how collaborative the team has become, with everyone bouncing ideas off one another and adding their input freely. Sometimes they even get so caught up they leave the newbies completely in the dust. But for the most part we get a good sense of how the Parker/Hardison/Eliot team worked with her having final say on plans but the others discussing everything together. A little bit more collaborative than it was with Nate at the helm.

Meanwhile Sophie has built a home and is deeply attached to it. She and Nate really did retire, at least for the most part, and she was living her happy ending until he died. She's out of practice but still as skilled as ever, and we're shown how much her grief has changed her and how concerned the others are for her.

There's a lot of emphasis on how they all look after one another and the found family is clearer than ever. Sophie even calls Hardison "his father's son" - clearly referring to Nate.

Nate

Speaking of Nate! They handled his loss so, so well. His story was the most complete at the end of the last show, and just from a narrative point, losing him makes the most sense of all the characters. But the way he dies and his impact on the show and the characters continues. It's very respectful to who he was - who he truly was.

Nate was someone they all loved, but he was a deeply flawed individual. Sophie talks about how he burned too hot, but at least he burned - possibly implying to me that his drinking was related to his death. In any case, there's no mystery to it. We don't know how he died but that's not what's most important about his death. This isn't a quest for revenge or anything... it's just a study of grief and trying to heal.

Back to who he really was real quick - the show doesn't eulogize him as better than he was. They're honest about him. From the first episode's toast they raise in his memory, to the final episode where Sophie and Eliot are deeply confused by Fake Nate singing his praises, the team knows who he was. They don't erase his flaws... but at the same time he was so clearly theirs. He was family, he was the man they trusted and loved and followed into incredibly dangerous situations, and whose loss they all still feel deeply.

That said, the show doesn't harp on this point. They reference him, but they don't overwhelm new viewers with a constant barrage of Nate talk. It always serves a purpose, primarily for Sophie's storyline of moving through her grief. Anyway, @robinasnyder said all of this way better than me here, so go read that as well.

Representation

Or should I say, Jewish Hardison, Autistic Parker, Queer Breanna!

Granted, Hardison's religion isn't quite explicitly stated to be Jewish so much as he mentions that his "Nana runs a multi-denominational household", but nonetheless. He gets the shows big thesis statement moment, he gets a beautiful speech about redemption that is the emotional cornerstone of that episode and probably Harry's entire arc throughout the show. And while I'm not Jewish myself, most of what I've seen from Jewish fans is saying that Hardison's words here were excellent representation of their beliefs. (@featherquillpen does a great job in that meta of contextualizing this with his depiction in the original show as well.)

Autistic Parker, however, is shown pretty dang blatantly. She already was very much coded as autistic in the original show, but the reboot has if anything gone further. She sees a child psychologist because she likes using puppets to represent emotions, she stims, she uses cue cards and pre-written scripts for social interactions, there's mention of possible texture sensitivity and her clothes are generally more loose and comfortable. She's gotten better at performing empathy and understanding how people typically work, but it's specifically described as something she learned how to do and she views her brain as being different from ones that work that way (same link). Again, not autistic myself but from what I've seen autistic fans find a lot to relate to in her portrayal. And best of all, this well-rounded and respectful depiction does not show any of these qualities as a lack on her part. There's no more of those kinda ableist comments or "what's wrong with you" jokes that were in the original show. Parker is the way she is, and that allows her to do things differently. She's loved for who she is, and any effort made to fit in is more just to know how so that she can use it to her advantage when she wants to on the job - for her convenience, not others' comfort.

Speaking of loved for who you are.... okay, again, queer Breanna isn't confirmed onscreen yet, and I don't count Word of God as true canon. But I can definitely believe we're building there. Breanna dresses in a very GNC way, and just her dialogue and, I dunno, vibes seem very queer to me. She has a beautiful speech in the Card Game Job about not belonging or being accepted and specifically mentions "the way they love" as one of those things that made her feel like she didn't belong. And that scene is given so much weight and respect. (Not to mention other hints throughout the episode about how much finding her own space meant to her.) Also, the whole theme of feeling rejected and the key for her to begin really flourishing is acceptance for who she is, not any desire for her to be anyone else, is made into another big moment. Yeah, textually that moment is about her feeling like she has to fill Hardison's shoes and worrying about her past, but the themes are there, man.

Themes

I talked a bit about this yesterday, so I'm mostly just going to link to that post, but... this series so far is doing a really good job in my opinion of giving people arcs and having some good themes. Namely the redemption one, from Hardison's speech (which I'm gonna talk a little more about in the next point), and this overall theme of growing up and looking to the future (from above the linked post).

New Characters

Harry and Breanna are fantastic characters. I was kind of worried about Harry being a replacement Nate, but... he really isn't. Sure, he's the older white guy who has an angsty past but it's in a very different way and his personality and relationships with the rest of the crew are correspondingly different. I think the dynamic of a very friendly, cheerful, kind, but still bad guy (as @soundsfaebutokay points out) is a great one to show, and he's got a really cool arc I think of learning to be a better person, and truly understanding Hardison's point about redemption being a process not a goal. His role on the team also has some interesting applications and drawbacks, as @allegorymetaphor talked about. I've kind of grown to think that the show is gradually building up to an eventual Sophie/Harry romance a ways down the line, and I'm actually here for it. Regardless, his relationships with everyone are really interesting.

As for Breanna, first of all and most importantly I love her. Secondly, I think she's got a really interesting story. She's a link to Hardison's past, and provides a really interesting perspective for us as someone younger who has grown up a) looking up to Leverage and b) in a bleaker and more hopeless world. Breanna's not an optimist, and she's not someone who was self-sufficient and unconcerned with the rest of the world at the start, like everyone else. She believes that the world sucks and she wants it to be better, but she doesn't know how to make that happen. She outright says she's desperate and that's why she's working with Leverage. At the same time, Breanna is pretty down on herself and wants to prove herself but gets easily shaken by mistakes or being scolded, which is a stark contrast to Hardison's general self-confidence. There are several times when she starts to have an idea then hesitates to share it, or expects her emotions to be dismissed, or gets really disheartened when she's corrected or rejected, or dwells on her mistakes, or when she is accepted or praised she usually takes a surprised beat and is shy about it (she almost always looks down and away from the person, and her smile is often small or startled). Breanna looks up to the team so much (Parker especially, then probably Eliot) and she wants to prove herself. It's going to be so good to see her grow.

General Vibe

A brief note, but it seems a fitting one to end on. The show keeps it's overall tone and feeling from the original show. The fun, the competency porn, the bad guys and clever plans and happy endings. It's got differences for sure, but the characters are recognizably themselves and the show as a whole is recognizably still Leverage. For the most part they just got the feeling right, and it's really nice.

CONS (no, not that kind)

'Maker and Fixer'

So when I started writing this meta earlier today, I was actually a lot more annoyed by the lack of unique 'maker' skills being shown by Breanna. Basically the only time she tries to use a drone, the very thing she introduced herself as being good at, it breaks instantly. I was concerned about her being relegated into just doing what Hardison did, instead of bringing her own stuff to the table. But the seventh episode eased some of those fears, and the meta I just wrote for someone else asking about Breanna's 'maker' skills as shown this season made me realize there's more nuance than that. I'd still like to have seen more of that from her, but for now the fact that we don't see a lot of 'maker' from her so far seems more like a character decision based in Breanna's insecurities.

Harry definitely gets more 'inside man' usage. His knowledge as a 'fixer' comes in handy several times. Nonetheless, I'm really curious if there are any bigger ways to use it, aside from him just adding in some exposition/insight from time to time. I'm not even entirely sure how much more they can pull from this premise in terms of relevant skills, but I hope there's more and I'd like to see it. Maybe a con built more around him playing a longer role playing his old self, like they tried in the Tower Job? Maybe it's more a matter of him needed distance from that part of his past, being unable to face it without lashing out - in that case it could be a good character growth moment possibly for him to succeed in being Scummy Lawyer again down the line? I dunno.

Episode Twins

This was something small that kind of bothered me a little earlier in the season. It's kind of the negative side to the references, I guess? And I'm not even sure how much it annoys me really, but I just kinda noticed and felt sort of weird about it.

Rollin' on the River has a lot of references/callbacks to the The Wedding Job.

The Tower Job has a lot of references/callbacks to The White Rabbit Job.

The Paranormal Hacktivity Job has a lot of references/callbacks to the Future Job.

I guess I was getting a little concerned that there would be a 'match this episode' situation where almost every new Redemption episode is very reminiscent of an old one. I love the callbacks, but I don't want to see a lack of creativity in this new show, and this worried me for a minute. Especially when it was combined with all three of those episodes dealing with housing issues of some kind. Now, that's a huge concern for a lot of people, and each episode has its own take on a different problem within that huge umbrella, but it still got me worried about a lack of variety in topics/cases.

The rest of the episodes failing to line up so neatly in my head with older episodes helped a lot to ease this one, though. Still, this is my complaining section so I figured I'd express my concerns as they were at the time. Even if I no longer really worry about it much.

Sophie's Stagefright

Yeah, I know this is just a small moment in a single episode, but it annoyed me! Eliot made a bit of a face at Sophie going onstage, but I thought it was just him being annoyed at the general situation. However, they started out with her being awful up there until she realized the poem was relevant to the con - at which point her reading got so much better.

This felt like a complete betrayal of Sophie's beautiful moment at the end of the original show where she got over her trouble with regular acting and played Lady Macbeth beautifully in front of a full theater of audience members. This was part of the con, but only in the sense that it gave her an alibi/place to hide, and I always interpreted it as her genuinely getting over her stagefright problems. It felt like such a beautiful place to end her arc for that show, especially after all her time spent directing.

Now, her difficulty onstage in the Card Game Job was brief and at the very beginning of being up on stage. @rinahale suggested to me that maybe it was a deliberate tactic to draw the guy's attention, and the later skill was simply her shifting focus to make the sonnet easier for Breanna to listen to and interpret, but he seemed more enraptured when she was doing well than otherwise in my opinion and it just doesn't quite sit well with me. My other theory was that maybe she just hasn't been up on stage in a long time, and much like she complaining about being rusty at grifting before the team pushed her into trying, she got nervous for a moment at the very beginning. The problem there is that I think she'd definitely still get involved in theater even when she and Nate were retired. I guess she could've quit after he died, and a year might be long enough to make her doubt herself again, but... still.

I just resent that they even left it ambiguous at all. Sophie's skills should be solid on stage at this point in my opinion.

Thiefsome

...And now we come to my main complaint. This is, by far, the biggest issue I have with the show.

I feel like I should put a disclaimer here that I had my doubts from the beginning about the thiefsome becoming canon onscreen. I thought the famous "the OT3 is safe" tweet could easily just mean that they are all still alive and well, or all still working together, without giving us confirmation of a romantic relationship. Despite this, the general fandom expectations/hopes really got to me, especially with the whole "lock/pick/key" thing. I tried to temper my expectations again when the character descriptions came out and only mentioned Hardison loving Parker, not Eliot, but I still got my hopes up.

The thing is, I was disappointed pretty quickly.

The very first episode told me that in all likelihood we would never see Hardison and Parker and Eliot together in a romantic sense. Oh, there was so much coding. So much hinting. So much in the way of conversations that were about Parker/Hardison's relationship but then Eliot kept getting brought into them. They were portrayed as a unit of three.

But then there was this.

I love all of those scenes of Parker and Hardison being intimate and loving and comfortable with one another and their relationship. I really do. But it didn't escape my notice that there's nothing of the sort with Eliot. If they wanted a canon onscreen thiefsome, it would by far make the most sense to just have it established from the start. But there aren't any scenes where Eliot shares the same kind of physical closeness with either of them like they do each other. Parker and Hardison kiss; he doesn't kiss anyone. They have several clearly romantic conversations when alone; he gets important conversations with both but the sense of it being romantic isn't there.

Establishing Eliot as part of the relationship after Hardison is gone just... doesn't make any sense. It would be more likely to confuse new viewers, to make them wonder if Parker is cheating on Hardison with Eliot, or if they have a Y shaped relationship rather that a triangle. It would be so much clumsier.

Still, up until the Double-Edged-Sword Job I believed the writers might keep it at this level of 'plausible hinting but not quite saying'. There's a lot of great stuff with all of them, and I never expecting making out or whatever anyway; a cheek-kiss was about the height of my hopes to be honest. I mostly just hoped for outright confirmation and, failing that, I was happy enough to have the many hints and implications.

But then Marshal Maria Shipp came along. And I don't really have anything against her as a character - in fact, I think she has interesting story potential and will definitely come back. But the episode framed her fight with Eliot as a sexyfight TM, much like his fight with Mikel back in the day. And then his flirting with her rode the line a little of "he's playing her for the con" and "he's genuinely flirting." The scene where he tells her his real name is particularly iffy, but actually was the one that convinced me he was playing her. Because he seems to be watching her really closely, and to be very concerned about her figuring out who he really is. I am very aware though that I'm doing a lot of work to interpret it the way I want. On surface appearance, Eliot's just flirting with an attractive woman, like he did on the last show. And that's probably the intention, too.

But the real nail in the coffin for me was when Sophie compared herself and Nate to Eliot and Maria. That was a genuine scene, not the continuation of the teasing from before. And Sophie is the one whose insight into people is always, always trustworthy. She is family to the thiefsome. For this to make any sense, either Eliot/Parker/Hardison isn't a thing, or they are and Sophie doesn't know - and I can't imagine why in the hell she wouldn't know.

Any argument to make them still canon leaves me unsatisfied. If she knows and they haven't admitted it to her - why wouldn't they, after all this time? Why would she not have picked up on it even without an outright announcement? Some people suggested they wouldn't admit it because they thought Nate would be weird about it, but that doesn't seem any more in character to me than the other possibilities. In fact, the only option that doesn't go against my understanding of these people and their observational abilities/the close relationship they share.... is that the thiefsome is not a thing.

And furthermore, the implication of this conversation - especially the way it ended, with Eliot stomping off looking embarrassed while Sophie smiled knowingly - is that Eliot will get into another relationship onscreen. Maybe not a full-blown romantic relationship. But the Maria Shipp tension is going to be resolved somehow, and at this point I'm half-expecting a hook-up simply because of Sophie's reaction and how much I trust her judgement of such things. Even if she's letting her grief cloud her usual perceptiveness... it feels iffy.

It just kinda feels like I wasn't even allowed to keep my "interpret these hints/maybe they are" thiefsome that I expected after the first couple episodes convinced me we wouldn't get outright confirmation. (I mean, I will anyway, and I love the hints and allusions regardless.) And while I'm definitely not the kind of fan who is dependent on canon for my ships, and still enjoy all their interactions/will keep right on headcanoning them all in a relationship, it's just.... a bummer.

Feels like a real cop-out. Like the hints of Breanna being queer are enough to meet their quota and they won't try anything 'risky' like a poly relationship. I dunno. It's annoying.

That's the end of the list! Again, overall I love the new show a lot and have few complaints.

#leverage #leverage redemption #leverage spoilers #leverage meta #my meta #this turned into a BIG ol ramble #i planned to write like a couple of sentences for each point but noooo

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heauxplesslydevoted · 3 years

Text

Silent Treatment (Ethan x MC)

Summary: Naomi decides that if Ethan isn’t going to treat her like a valued member of the team, she’ll teach him a little lesson.

Based on chapter 1, some spoilers for chapter 2, and my own speculation, so read at your own risk.

I highkey hate this but I’m posting it anyway

~v~

Naomi is quiet. No, she is unusually quiet. Ethan has seen her get silent when it’s time to buckle down and focus on a task, or if something is weighing heavily on her, but at this point he knows her well enough to know it’s neither of those. She’s withdrawn, and he doesn’t understand why.

Her presence is hard to miss, the young resident has enough charm and charisma in her pinky finger to dazzle an entire room. And she’s never this quiet. Naomi demands to be heard at all times. With unapologetic vivacity. With her hands. Eyes sparkling when she gets an idea, or fiery when she needs to dig her toes into something and fight. Nothing about Naomi Valentine is ever subdued, so why the hell is she so silent?

She didn’t speak much during the last few team meetings. He and Harper have led all of the conversations, bouncing ideas back and forth, building off of each other’s ideas. Occasionally, Naomi would offer input, merely to agree or disagree with a theory, before going back into her shell.

It’s even bleeding into their personal life. For the better part of the past 3 months, she’s stayed with him, the two of them holed up in his apartment in the Back Bay, but now she’s opting to stay at her own place. It’s been going on a few days now, this random despondence, and Ethan isn’t a fan of it. He’d take it a step further and say it's driving him crazy. This isn’t the woman he’s known for the past two years, even at her lowest was she never this reclusive.

As he walks down the halls of Edenbrook, he spots Naomi, her personality back to what it once was. She’s with Ines at a vending machine, and Naomi wastes no time animatedly talking to the now attending about a fun date she went on with her girlfriend.

Heart hammering wildly in his chest, Ethan swallows thickly as he listens to her talk. He’s missed the sound of her voice, the affectionate way her strong accent curls around her ‘r’s’ and dramatically elongates her ‘o’s’. It becomes clear that she’s willing to talk, just not to him. Ethan doesn’t like that idea at all, but it’s the only one that makes sense. And if that’s the case, he needs to get to the bottom of things and remedy the situation.

“Naomi, can we talk please?” He asks once Ines is no longer in their presence.

He doesn’t miss the way she bristles upon hearing his voice. But Naomi nods anyway. “Sure, what’s wrong?”

“Can we talk in the office?”

The walk back to the seventh floor is marked with awkward silence as Naomi refuses to initiate conversation with him. The more time ticks on, the more anxiety settles in Ethan’s chest. What’s going on with her that she refuses to divulge?

The office is unoccupied when they arrive, as Harper has already gone home for the evening. Naomi stands by the door, opting not to settle into a seat or even move further into the room. Everything about her body language reads that she’s poised and ready to strike at any given moment. He frowns. She’s never been this defensive against him, at least when they’re not in the middle of an argument. “What’s going on?”

“Are you okay?”

The question catches Naomi off guard. She blinks slowly before shrugging in nonchalance. “I’m fine, Ethan.”

“You’re fine? Really?”

“Is there a reason why I shouldn’t be fine?”

“Not really, but you haven’t been acting like yourself recently.”

Because you’ve been quieter than a church mouse for the past few days. You don’t talk during meetings, you’re silent when we interact with the patients, it’s like you’ve completely tuned out.”

With the way he’s been acting, Naomi is almost shocked that he even realized what she’s been doing. Wow, so maybe the great Ethan Ramsey hasn’t lost his attention to detail.

“Oh, so you’ve actually noticed?”

“I’m a diagnostician, I notice everything,” Ethan deadpans. He can feel the sarcasm wafting off of her. “What, was this an intentional act for my attention?”

“Intentional, yes. But for your attention? Not necessarily,” Naomi answers.

His eyes narrow at her, his gaze near piercing. She’s playing some sort of childish game with him, first with not speaking and now with the vague half answers. “Okay, so walk me through your thought process. Why has the cat stolen your tongue?”

“I decided that if my input wasn’t going to be valued during team discussions, I might as well not speak at all.”

Ethan gapes at her, confused. Where did that come from? “Naomi, what on earth are you talking about? When have I ever not valued your input?”

“I’m talking about the fact that for the past two cases, I’ve stood on the sidelines while you’ve either cut me off mid-sentence to talk over me, or ignore my presence altogether. I might as well blend into the wall.”

“That’s not–”

Naomi doesn’t give him the chance to refute. “Please spare me the attempt at arguing. Last week, Harper’s first day on the team, you literally had to circle back to me because you cut me off while I was speaking. And now, we’re working on a case, and you and Harper aren’t even taking this patient seriously! I’ve had to redirect the conversation and tell you guys to focus, because you two were too busy acting like bosom buddies, sharing anecdotes about hangovers, and stupid flamenco lessons, and dates you went on in the past, which is not only inappropriate and disrespectful to the patient’s time, it’s disrespectful to me.”

“So either you are completely oblivious, which I find hard to believe for someone as astute as you are, or you have no respect for me, not just as your colleague, but as the woman you claim to be in a relationship with,” Naomi continues. The floodgates have been opened and now that she’s started, she can’t stop herself. “And maybe it’s the latter, because I set that standard. I’ve let you go days, weeks, months without speaking to me with zero consequence, I’ve let you shut me out and slam doors in my face, make snide comments last year when we were treating Leland, I’ve let you have carte blanche over the pace of this relationship. I’ve always just been here and allowed your shitty social graces and piss poor communication skills to rule, and time and time again, you’ve gone unscathed, but now I’m just really tired of it.”

For the first time in a long, Ethan doesn’t have a clue what to say, and as always, Naomi is the woman who puts him in this position.

“Naomi, you can’t possibly think that I think so little of you.”

He can tell by the way her eyes darken that he put his entire foot in his mouth just now. The warning bells go off in his brain, and he scrambles to think of how he can correct this latest blunder.

Naomi bites down on her lip, and she’s actually shocked her mouth isn’t instantly flooded with the metallic taste of blood. She’s getting Punk’d obviously. The office is bugged, and Ashton Kutcher is going to jump out and announce his presence soon. That has to be it. Ethan has to be pranking her, because there’s no way a 38 year old man could ever be so dense, right? Surely his response to her grievances isn’t to dismiss her claims.

“You know what? You’re being obtuse, and we clearly aren’t getting anywhere, so I’m going to cut this conversation off now.”

She refuses to look like the psycho in this scenario and breathe any more life into this argument, and she’s not about to plead her case any further like she’s the one in the wrong.

Ethan’s eyes soften, and he takes a step forward, arms outstretched to touch, soothe whatever hurts he’s heaped upon her, but Naomi sidesteps, moving out of his reach.

If he wasn’t nervous at the start of this conversation, he is now. If the physical act of Naomi blatantly refusing to touch him wasn’t clear enough, the metaphorical chasm between the two of the just widened by a few yards as well. A chill races up and down the length of his spine.

“Naomi, I’m sorry,” Ethan says gently. “I…” His words taper off and he pauses, struggling for what he wants to say next. This has never been his strong point, being vulnerable.

And Naomi doesn’t offer him a lifeline. She’s not going to give him an out or assuage him of anything he’s currently feeling like she usually does. She’s laid out all of her cards, and things are in Ethan’s court at this point. Like always.

“I’m going home,” she announces. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

~v~

The sun is barely out when Naomi shows up for work in the morning. Most of the hospital is still, the last of the night shift heading out as she’s on her way in. She heads towards the residents’ lounge, wanting to put her things away before checking in on her patients and having a team meeting.

As soon as she opens her locker, she spots a gorgeous bouquet of red roses wrapped in newspaper invading the space. There’s no note attached to the bouquet, and she spared a quick glance around the room to see if anyone else is there. The lounge is empty, save for another resident in the corner, sleeping.

Naomi takes the bouquet out of her locker, careful not to smash the petals and holds it up to her nose, inhaling deeply.

Deciding to not put more thought into where they came from, Naomi simply cradles the bouquet in the crook of one of her arms, stuffs her bag into her locker, and continues on with her morning routine.

She’s passing by the nurses’ station on the 7th floor when someone catches her attention. “Oh Dr. Valentine! You have a special delivery.”

Her steps slow down as she approaches the front desk where Sarah, one of her favorite RNs is stationed. Sarah steps aside, revealing an even larger bouquet of roses, these ones white.

“Where did these come from?” Naomi asks.

“They were delivered about half an hour ago,” Sarah replies with a wink. “No note, though. I won’t let Dr. Ramsey know that you have a secret admirer.”

And that’s when it clicks into place. Memories of her fight with Ethan come flooding back, and it becomes clear that he’s the one gifting her these flowers. Before she even realizes she’s doing it, her eyes roll. If he thinks a couple of bouquets of roses are a good enough apology, he can think again.

Naomi plucks a white rose right from the center of the bouquet and hands it to Sarah. “For you.”

“Really? Are you sure?”

“I insist,” Naomi says. “Happy Friday, Sarah.”

“Thank you, Dr. Valentine!”

Seeing the smile on the senior nurse’s face is almost enough to cleanse Naomi of the annoyance she feels towards Ethan in this moment. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Naomi manages to scoop up this new batch of flowers – they’re in a vase, to which she adds her red ones – and finishes her trek to the office.

She isn’t expecting it to be covered in bunches of bright yellow sunflowers.

Their communal desk is covered in them, along with Ethan’s personal desk and the couch. “What on earth was he thinking?”

“I was thinking that sunflowers are your favorite flower,” Ethan answers, and Naomi jumps, startled at his voice. She whips around and sees him standing in the doorway. “And so I got up well before the sun was shining, went to the Boston Flower Exchange and bought every single one I could get my hands on.”

“And the roses?”

“White is supposed to be symbolic of new beginnings and forgiveness,” Ethan explains. “And you simply can’t go wrong with red.”

“If you think buying me flowers is going to cut it, you must not know me well,” Naomi says. Him buying her things doesn’t impress her, no matter how much she jokes about his money.

“No, but I figured it couldn’t hurt.” Ethan takes a cautious step into the room, shutting the door behind him. A sleepless night without her beside him forced Ethan to do a lot of thinking about how he wanted this conversation to go. A peace offering is always a good start. “And it got you to talk to me.”

Naomi scoffs and sets her flowers down. “Barely.”

“I’m sorry,” Ethan says. “I’m an idiot, and an asshole.”

“It’s good that we can agree on something.”

Okay, it’s clear that she is not going to give him any leeway. “You were absolutely right to call me out on my behavior towards you.”

“Why did you do it?” Naomi asks.

“I wasn’t thinking,” Ethan says simply. “I got so caught up in having Harper on the team, and it’s easy to slip back into old habits without even realizing.”

“It wasn’t a simple one time thing. It was more than once that you and Harper completely forgot I was even there. And I like Harper, I don’t think I could respect her more than I already do, and I have a very healthy sense of self esteem, but even the toughest person on earth wouldn’t like being in my shoes, on the outside looking in while you and your ex reminisce on old dates and inside stories. Ethan, you couldn’t handle a modicum of the shit I have willingly put up with in order to be with you.”

His stomach knots up at the thought of an ex-boyfriend of Naomi’s coming into his personal space, sharing personal jokes with her, ignoring him, and monopolizing her time. If the thought of it had him this twisted, he can’t believe he’s been putting her through that reality.

“You were right to call me out on my bad communication skills. I am terrible at relationships. I’m not using it as an excuse, it’s just the truth. But I’ve gotten complacent, which is unacceptable.” Ethan takes another step towards Naomi, and when she doesn’t instantly recoil, he takes it as a sign to get even closer. “The last thing I ever want to do is stifle your voice, or make you feel invisible. Naomi, you are...invaluable. To this hospital, to this team, to me, and I am so sorry that there was ever a time where I made you feel like you weren’t. You are the most important person in my life, and what we have is something I’ve never had with anyone else.”

“Okay, so start acting like it,” Naomi challenges. “I’m your equal and I demand every bit of respect you have to offer. Anything less than that cannot be tolerated anymore, personally or professionally.”

Ethan nods emphatically at her words. “Of course.”

“I mean it.”

“You have my word, Naomi. I’ll never let it happen again.” He closes the gap between them and cups her face in his hand. “Just please...never give me the silent treatment again. Yell from the rooftops, argue with me, I don’t care, but I can’t take not hearing your voice.”

“You needed to be taught a lesson,” Naomi says simply.

“I learned my lesson, and I hated it,” Ethan confesses, his lips dangerously close to hers. Naomi doesn’t budge, not even an inch. She’s terribly stubborn, even at the end of a fight. “It was torture.”

“Good.” Deciding to put him out of his misery, Naomi tilts her head up and captures Ethan in a kiss. He doesn’t waste a single second returning it. His free hand wraps around the small of her back, pulling her in closer. How did he go this long without touching her?

He doesn’t know how long they’ve been kissing, but he finally breaks apart from her long enough to bury his face in her neck, allowing her scent and soft skin to soothe any of his fraught nerves. She smells like home.

“Does this mean I’m forgiven?” Ethan asks.

“The jury is still out on that one.”

“You’re going to make me work for this, aren’t you?”

“Are you up for the challenge?”

Ethan untangles himself from their embrace and takes a step back, so he’s able to look Naomi in the eyes. He takes her hand and presses a soft kiss into her palm. “For you? I’ll do just about anything.”

~v~

Let me know if you want to be added to my tag list, or if I tagged you by accident!

Tags: @mvalentine @ @choicesaddict5 @professorkingslay @nikki-2406 @maurine07 @aka-calliope @bluebellot @whimsicallywayward15 @blossomanarchy @takemyopenheart @jamespotterthefirst @fanmantrashcan @whatchique @ao719 @x-kyne-x @colourmeshy @paulfwesley @the-pale-goddess @writinghereandthere @ramseyandrys @perriewinklenerdie @aworldoffandoms @thatcatlady0716 @drakewalker04 @canknot @hatescapsicum @lapisreviewsstuff @senseofduties @badchoicesposts @ethandaddyramseyx @chasingrobbie @zodiacsign1 @choices-lurker @my-heart-beats-for-ya @adrian-motherfucking-raines @riverrune @edith-eggs1 @thatysn @bellcat2010 @blainehellyes @cecilecontrera @junehiratas @choices-love-affair @openheart12 @caseyvalentineramsey @desmaranj @nazario-sayeed @aestheticartsx @ruinedbypixels @nooruleman @rookie-ramsey @mysticalgalaxysstuff

#playchoices #choices: stories you play #open heart #ethan ramsey #dr. ethan ramsey #ethan x mc

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tobiosmilktea · 3 years

Text

red ink — semi eita

2.5k words | genre/s: tattoo shop!au, friends with benefits, smut | warning/s: uhh badly written nsfw | pairing: musician!semi x tattoo artist!reader

↪︎ in which famous musician, semi eita is a regular at your tattoo parlor and only gets work done from you and you only. the only catch is that fans only know that much and definitely not the fact that you and him are friends with benefits.

a/n: happy belated bday for my good friend @kitsunetea. here’s my shameless second (third?) attempt at writing smut as a late bday gift bc fuck it, amirite haha ✋🏻😔

please take it easy on this one,, this is singlehandedly one of the worst nsfw pieces i’ve ever written and i just want to apologize in advance...

semi had forgotten the tingling feeling of a tattoo gun striking away at his skin. he liked how each indent of minuscule pinpricks would leave a mark on him forever. the pain, though not enough to make him grit his teeth like the first time around when he impulsively got one on the side of his ribcage, was actually quite nice. the sensation was almost addictive, however, it wasn’t as nearly as addictive as you.

it was no shock nor surprise that each reveal of his newest tattoo was always done by you. most would understand the practicality of going to one tattoo artist consistently. if anything, most of his fans would come to believe that he simply just liked your style of tattooing and artistry, but no one would even claim to think that you two had even a pinch of something going on behind the scenes. it wasn’t like he would always stop by your shop all disguised and covered up in a black cap and a face mask just in case there were any hidden onlookers that would blatantly assume the worst.

the worst being that semi eita, the nation’s current rockstar heartthrob, was hooking up with some obscure, back alley tattoo artist.

but it was safe to say he was as addicted to you as he was addicted to the infamous pain of receiving a tattoo.

it had been ages since his last tattoo. this one especially was placed on his right forearm of a snake that spiraled up and around his wrist in red ink.

times like these—here, where your eyes are focused and locked onto his skin, making sure to capture each intricate detail, brows drawing together in concentration as you made swift and accurate runs over his skin—came to realize how much he missed the feeling of getting tattooed. but most importantly, he missed the feeling of you. the warmth of your skin, body blazing underneath him as your breath tickled at the nape of his neck.

at moments like these where he could just stare at your entirety for an hour and a half, admiring how the low lights cast shadows upon each and every curve of your body was enough to keep him occupied through the process.

you lifted your tattoo gun up as your other gloved hand wiped the area clean from any residual ink. you took one last look at your work, clean and well-done.

it was pretty good if you could say so yourself. the linework was easily one of your best, and the shading was even better. no wonder semi liked getting work done by you so much (other than the fact that you two are friends with benefits—he would joke, “i’ll give you the best night of your life and you can give me a free tattoo in return.”)

you’ve never seen that man back out of a joke that quickly in your life. regardless, you still found yourself taking him up on that offer, still paying for his tattoos as a good customer should. support local businesses as they always say.

“alright,” you say, breaking the last ten minutes of silence as you cleaned him up. “you already know the drill–gently wash it with warm soap and water at least twice a day, pat dry, and then apply ointment.”

semi looked up at you once you stood up to grab a box of saniderm from another station. he stands up, making his way to one of the large mirrors on the wall to inspect his tattoo as a smile crept onto his lips.

“how is it?”

“it’s perfect,” he says, “as always.”

“well, you shouldn’t expect anything less from me.”

“you know, you don’t have to be so professional all the time. the shop’s already closed and no one else is here but us.”

you give him a pointed look as you take out a strip of saniderm large enough to cover the circumference of his forearm. you press the thin plasticine carefully around his freshly bruised skin, peeling the protective backing off of the clear bandage. “technically, you’re still a customer. can’t really give you any more special treatment.”

“says the girl who literally gives me tattoos after the shop closes,” semi fires back.

“or you could actually come in during normal hours to get one instead of coming a minute before we close just so we can hook up,” you deadpan, ignoring the look he gave you as you turn around and made your way towards the front desk.

semi doesn’t miss a single beat in following right behind you, stopping in front of the counter as you were on the other side with the cash register.

“well if you didn’t want to fuck in the back room anymore, you could’ve just told me,” says semi as you tap away at the screen in front of you, “we can go to my apartment instead.”

“paying with card again?” you ask, completely ignoring the way your body heated up all of a sudden.

the musician in front of you nods, handing you his card quickly. you take the thin plastic out of his hand and swiped it in one quick motion, handing it to him once the machine properly reads his card. within seconds, the receipt comes out of the printer. you snatch it from the opening before shoving it into semi’s chest.

“so what do you say?” he presses, continuing to follow you around like a dog as you serpentine your way back to your station.

you let out a sigh, huffing as you start cleaning up, “about what?”

“about me taking you home. maybe spend the night?”

you swerve around to face him, a spray bottle of disinfectant in one hand and paper towels in the other. you give him a coy smile, “you’re funny,” you huff before pushing past him to spray the chair then wiping it down.

“come on, (y/n), it’s been a while since we’ve last done anything together.” semi gives you a mischievous pout, “don’t you miss me?”

his words immediately flush out your cheeks as you recalled the memory so vividly, it was like you could almost feel semi’s large hands exploring every inch of your body, memorizing every dip and curve like it was second nature. to think that all happened in the storage closet while there were people still in the shop. the simple thought of your last rendezvous with him went straight to your heat.

no wonder you haven’t done anything with semi in a while after that little stunt he pulled almost a month ago.

in order for a tattoo shop to run properly, it needed to be completely sanitary to prevent any health complications considering your job was to literally puncture tattoo ink deep into people’s skin, the risk of infection runs high in situations like these. so by law, fucking in a tattoo shop, regardless if it was in the backroom, was completely out of regulations. not to mention the scandals to potentially spread like wildfire that one of the world’s favorite musicians being at the root of all this.

those poor fangirls, you thought. drama was the last thing you wanted.

“so?” you say, trying to pull yourself together as you finish sanitizing the chair. you turn to face him, hoping that he couldn’t see the way your cheeks were burning up knowing he would only keep up the teasing. “why don’t you just fuck one of you groupies or something?”

semi scoffs, “i’d never stoop that low. besides, you’re the only one i’ve been with ever since this started happening between us.”

“good for you for not being a whore, i guess?”

you brush past him again, this time cleaning up the mess on your table. placing the spray bottle of water, rolls of paper towels, bottles of red ink, and your gloves away–you discard anything else in the bin.

“don’t be like that,” he sighs as he comes and wraps a strong arm around your waist. he rests his chin on your shoulder, the tip of his nose tickling at your skin as his mouth latches onto your neck. “i for sure missed you.”

“eita,” you say, attempting to hold back a moan as he nipped at the sweet spot on your neck. despite your efforts, quiet mewls escape your lips as his thumbs rubbed circles over your hips. “i-i still have to clean up. let me finish and then maybe we could—”

without another word, semi lets go of you and immediately starts getting to work, gathering up all the one-time-use disposable items and dumping them all in the trash. he moves quickly, rubbing down every nook and cranny of your station until it’s squeaky clean. your eyes widen at his state. it was clear he wanted to get this over with as fast as possible so he can finally have you all to himself.

did he really yearn for you this much?

in just a few minutes, the job is already done. clean and spotless and ready for tomorrow’s workday as semi gives you a hopeful look. “is that all?”

you hold back a smile as you motion towards the boxes stacked up near the entrance of the backroom, “i still have to put those away and then we’re all done for the day.”

the man doesn’t even let you finish as he’s already making his way down the hallway. There was no sign of hesitancy in his actions as he grabbed two of the boxes, one stacked on top of the other as he barged into the backroom. you follow him in with only one box in your hand as you placed them in their respective places on the large industrial shelving.

you let out a grunt as you picked up the last box and inserting it into its spot. you sigh, dusting your hands as you turn around to face semi, “alright, we’re all d—”

semi doesn’t hesitate for a second to push you up against the wall, his lips crashing into yours with such desperation and fervor. he had been anticipating this for the past two hours. from the moment he walked in, to the moment you finished tattooing him; all he wanted was you.

you moan into his lips, his hand cupping your jaw while the fingers of the other were already working their magic. his touch greatly juxtaposed the zeal in the way he kissed you deeply, dipping his tongue between your soft lips as his finger, slightly calloused from years of guitar playing, gently trailed their way up your shirt.

there was a brief moment where you had to pull away from him in order to catch your breath. chest rising and falling rapidly along with the quickening beat of your heart, semi dived down to your neck, marking you with dark red bruising to anywhere he had access to. his large palms rubbed your sides before squeezing at your breasts to elicit a pleasurable groan from you. the pent-up heat within you only built the more he played with your body, fingers flicking at your nipples.

“what happened to taking me back to your place?” you asked breathlessly.

“i couldn’t wait any longer,” he mutters on your warm skin, feeling his soft lips twitch into a lopsided grin as before you knew it, he was already tugging your shirt over your head. “jump,” he says and you don’t miss a beat.

he catches you quickly, hands palming your ass as he steers you towards one of the supply tables. pushing away loose items and paperwork off to the sides.

semi’s lips meet yours again as he fiddles with the button and zipper of your jeans, diving his hand inside. he palms your sex, the pads of his fingers teasing up and down your slit as his thumb rubs circular motions around your clit. your moan muffles into his shoulder, breathe heavy and uneven.

you couldn’t seem to catch your breath as he dipped two fingers into you, pumping them in and out slowly. it was a nice change of pace from earlier, and yet you couldn’t help but let out mewls of impatience as you ground your hips into his hand, desperate for more.

semi knew what the hell he was doing.

he was a musician after all. his entire career was literally built off of his innate ability to play the guitar that each expertly placed finger and movement that accompanied it was guaranteed to send waves of pleasure throughout your entire body. he was good at what he did and he knew it. he didn’t need to see the way you were shaking under him, coating his hand with your juices, or have to hear your addicting moans to know you felt so, so good.

“eugh, eita–” your breath hitches when he curls his fingers inside you, rubbing the spongy spot deep within you in the best way possible. you curse under your breath, savoring the pleasure as you felt your release coiling in your abdomen.

“you’re close aren’t you?” semi didn’t even have to ask to know as your walls tightened around him. you nod hastily, eyes coating in lust and the desire to feel the release as you look at him.

the look that you gave him as enough to send him over the edge, his thoughts blurring once he quickens his pace, his middle and ring finger pistoning in and out of you.

you let out a cry, practically trembling under him. “oh my god, oh my god.”

with his other hand, he finds your clit again, rubbing you over the edge. it was all too much. from the mixing cacophony of the most obscene and vulgar sounds of sex emanating from the backroom to the absolute thrill of how good semi was making you feel—you were ready to feel that euphoric glow.

“fuck,” you clawed at his shoulders, nails digging into his skin even through the fabric of his shirt. “shit, baby, i’m gonna—”

semi doesn’t mind the sting of your scratches at his body as he was too busy paying mind to you cumming all over his hand. gushing fluid escapes from you in waves as semi continues pumping his fingers in and out of you, his pace matching with the way your walls pulsated around him.

as you came down from your high, your arms that rested on the table to hold you up felt weak. almost immediately, your body slumps onto semi as he licks your pleasure off his fingers. you bury your face into the crook of his neck as you both stayed there for a few beats to catch your breaths, savoring the unique afterglow whenever you were with semi.

perhaps it wasn’t so bad doing this type of thing with him a bit more often. you didn’t mind what you had with him right now even if you two were just friends with benefits. you liked what you had now and asking for more would certainly cause a strain you don’t want to happen so soon.

your hand reaches up to run through his soft hair.

“hey,” you softly say. he only responds with a hum, “what about you?” you ask as your eyes cast down to the straining tent in his jeans.

he doesn’t answer. instead, he places a few kisses on your cheek and down to your neck before placing one of your lips. “let’s continue this at home, i have a surprise for you.”

general taglist: @yongboxerrr @rosepetalhaven @tvwhoresblog @tanakaslastbraincell @kellesvt @kitsunetea @anejuuuuoy

#haikyuu!!#haikyuu #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu smut #haikyuu fluff #semi eita #semi x reader #semi scenarios #semi imagines #semi smut #semi fluff

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jean-kayak · 3 years

Text

Anon Request: As someone tired of Y/N’s being spineless cowards around fangirls that disrespect her and cause her issues cuz they love her bf, let’s have Atsumu, Terushima, Oikawa, and Sakusa react to their usually gentle black!gf clocking these bitches with no hesitation. She’s nice and tried to avoid them, but they wanted to intimidate her and they were greeted with a fist to the face with the force of a pro-boxer.

Fangirl: Stay away from him! He belongs to us!

Y/N: 🙂 *cocks back and punches her before looking at other fangirls* Anyone else? No? Good, I’m getting my back blown out after this anyways *goes to her bf*

A/N: lmfao, anon, thank you for giving me a good laugh with this one

Characters: timeskip!Miya Atsumu, Terushima Yuuji, Oikawa Tooru, Sakusa Kiyoomi

🏐This was one of his games that you could finally go to, your schedule finally being cleared up

🏐It definitely wasn't the same watching your boyfriend play on TV, once again amazed at your boyfriend's talent

🏐He had scored the game winning point, his teammates and the crowd growing wild

🏐You hadn't told him you were coming, wanting to surprise him, so you waited outside of the stands, but you could see the many reporters lined up to interview him

🏐When he was done, you couldn't help but bounce on the balls of your feet, ready to see his reaction

🏐He doesn't notice you at first, so you call his name, and he looks around, his eyes widening when he spots you, and he's running over to you quickly, giving you a huge, sweaty hug

🏐"What're ya doing here?" he asks in disbelief, and you respond that you finally had free time from work

🏐He gives you another hug despite your protests before peppering your face in kisses, and your giggles stop along with his kisses when someone calls his name

🏐You both look and see a group of women all with his jersey number on them, and you instantly recognize them as the fangirls that you've noticed always hanging around whenever he did interviews

🏐He keeps his arm around your waist, and he steps a little closer to them. "Can I help ya?"

🏐You don't miss the way they eye you, and you raise an eyebrow at them

🏐"Is she your sister?"

🏐You laugh beside yourself at the petty question, not even being the least bothered by it, and Atsumu denies it, telling them that you're his girlfriend

🏐They all seemed more than shocked. "Oh," one of them starts. "I just expected her to be different?"

🏐Now you're pissed. Atsumu starts to defend you but you cut him off. "No, no, it's alright. They clearly have something to say," you start, stepping forward. "So, if you do. Say it."

🏐They all look between each other as you raise your eyebrows. "Atsumu there's no way you'd go for someone like her--"

🏐You deck her in the face, rolling your eyes when he falls onto the floor like a dramatic bitch

🏐"Oh, no, it looks like my hand slipped," you reply sarcastically as Atsumu's eyes widen, never seeing you or expecting you to do this

🏐You start walking away, stepping over the girl rolling on the ground holding her nose before turning to Atsumu. "Babe, you gotta get changed, right? Let's go."

🏐He jumps out of the shock he was in, glancing down at the girl on the ground, who's now being helped up by her friends before he runs after you

✂️"I know, I'm sorry. I'll remember next time," and you roll your eyes at the phrase that he says every time he forgets

✂️You were visiting your boyfriend at work because he had an annoying habit of forgetting his lunch

✂️You walk into the salon, seeing Terushima immediately, and his eyes widen in surprise before turning into a guilty smirk when you hold up the food

✂️"What did I tell you?" you scold when you walk up to him, and he kisses your forehead as he takes the food from you

✂️He thanks you again before giving you a soft kiss on the lips, and you're walking towards the door when you hear it

✂️"You know, Yuuji, you're pretty cute. Did I ever tell you that?"

✂️You stop in your tracks, spinning around on your heels to see his client blatantly flirting with him when you know she saw you interacting with him

✂️He responds with an awkward chuckle as he rubs the back of his neck, stating that he's taken, glancing your way

✂️"Oh, I didn't notice," she replies, and you watch her with a deadpanned look

✂️You walk up beside him, tiltling your head to the side

✂️"You need something?"

✂️She doesn't even seemed phased, giving you a simple shrug that makes you narrow your eyes at her

✂️This was sort of a regular occurrence, but no one's been this bold before, and you always caught the stares from other women, because duh your boyfriend's hot

✂️"This your girlfriend?" she asks, distain in her voice. "She seems like a bitch."

✂️"Excuse me?"

✂️"Aww, don't be like that. Most guys lower their standards, you know?" You cut her off, your fist connecting with her face before Terushima can even blink

✂️She actually tries to fight you back, but she obviously loses, getting to the point where her only goal is getting you off of her

✂️Terushima's thinking that's my girl, but then he's like oh shit, I have to stop this LMFAO

✂️He's quickly pulls you off of her, having a surprisingly hard time doing so

✂️"You chose the wrong one, bitch. Show your face here again and see what happens." She's quick to leave, and when you finally calm down, you realized that you just beat up someone in public, and Terushima almost loses his job 💀

🇦🇷You both stop when you hear someone call his name, both of you turning your attention towards the voice

🇦🇷You were walking out the gym hand-in-hand with your boyfriend going somewhere to celebrate after another win

🇦🇷When you walk out of the gym, the crowd has pretty much disappear due to Oikawa having a ton of interviews

🇦🇷He wraps his arm around you as you both laugh at an inside joke that you both had before he plants a kiss to your forehead

🇦🇷There's a small group of women with flags and wearing your boyfriend's jersey and he gives them a polite smile

🇦🇷This is nothing new for either of you, both of you already knowing what they want

🇦🇷He asks if they want a picture, already knowing the answer, and you easily take the pictures, this routine like clockwork to you

🇦🇷They giggle happily as you hand the phone back to one of them, and they all thank him before one of them speaks up

🇦🇷"Uh, this might sound weird, but are you seeing anyone?" You blink dumbly at her, like they didn't just see the two of you together

🇦🇷Oikawa has the same look on his face as he walks back to you, wrapping an arm around your waist before kissing your temple as he gives them a duh look, silently answering her question

🇦🇷"Are you sure?" another asks, and both you and Oikawa frown at the same time, as you feel yourself scoff

🇦🇷"More than anything in the world," he responds confidently

🇦🇷This isn't the first time fangirls have tried to come between your relationship, and he'll be damned if he lets it happen again

🇦🇷They all give each other questionable looks as you roll your eyes

🇦🇷"Is there a problem?" The tone in your voice surprises him, this being the first time he's heard aggression towards someone

🇦🇷"No, of course not," one answers sarcastically before reaching over and tugging your boyfriend over to them, the force so hard that he almost falls over. "We just think he would look better, happier with one of us."

🇦🇷You chuckle as you shake your head, and you reach over to take your hand off of your boyfriend, but she grabs at your wrist

🇦🇷Your reflexes are quick to kick in, and you yank both yours and Oikawa's wrist out of her grip before punching her in the face, probably harder than you needed to, but you were fucking pissed

🇦🇷Another girl tries to lunge for you, but you buck at her, making her quickly recoil. "You trynna get hit too?"

🇦🇷Oikawa's more than surprised, but he quickly puts his hand in yours before pulling you away from them with a proud smirk on his face

😷He sighs heavily as he turns to see a couple of women walking towards the both of you, his shoulders slumping slightly

😷Sakusa's never been a big fan of groups of people coming up to him after games, his number one priority getting home and relaxing after his game

😷You understand this pretty well, always helping him make his way out of the gym trying to find the route with the lowest chance of coming in contact with a lot of people

😷You had just made it out the doors, and Sakusa's about to take a breath of relief when he hears someone yelling his name

😷He's not really used to having "fangirls" a term that you use, and bottom line, he doesn't like it

😷They always crowd him, always trying to pry into his personal life, which is why he was so drawn to you when you first met

😷You were the complete opposite, more on the gentle, quieter side which he appreciated, liking that he could come home to you after a lot of excitement and just relax

😷"I'm sorry, but Sakusa doesn't really do pictures," you speak up, another reason why he really appreciates you, showing you by giving your hand a soft squeeze

😷But to his dismay, they don't back down, they actually turn pretty hostile pretty quickly

😷"Oh, relax, it's just one picture," she argues, and you give her a small smile

😷"I know, but seriously, he doesn't really care for them," you try again, and they both scoff

😷"What are you? His babysitter?" You raise your eyebrows at them as you turn your body towards them

😷"I'm his girlfriend. And I'm telling you that he doesn't want a picture."

😷"Well, you seem like a piece of shit girlfriend." You run your tongue over your teeth as you nod your head, and she actually has the audacity to try and reach for you

😷Before Sakusa can stop her, you dodge her hand before clocking her in the face, she hunches over in pain

😷The other girl tries to do the same, but you repeat your actions, putting her in the same position as her friend

😷"You got some audacity you dumb bitch, the fuck?"

😷To say the least, Sakusa is floored, your actions he least expected to come from you

😷"Hope you enjoy your broken nose. I'm gonna enjoy my boyfriend fucking his piece of shit girlfriend into next week."

😷Sakusa chokes as you pull him away, his face heating up at your words

😷"Did you really have to end with that?"

#atsumu headcanons #terushima headcanons #oikawa headcanons #sakusa headcanons #miya atsumu x black reader #terushima yuuji x black reader #oikawa tooru x black reader #sakusa kiyoomi x black reader #haikyuu!! headcanons #haikyuu headcanons #hq!! headcanons #hq headcanons #haikyuu!!#haikyuu #hq!!#hq

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btsandvmin · 3 years

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How much do we really know?

I really don't understand how any BTS shippers can be confident enough in their ships to turn into “supporters/believers” that believe their ship is real 100%. For any ship. Like even deep diving into some theories or getting literally 100+ reasons from various believers own mouths for why some ships have to be real, nothing has been big enough to count as proof in my opinion. (Of course this includes Vmin.)

Like... They all have questionable moments. Some more than others, sure. But proof of more than very strong and unusually intimate friendships? No.

You could argue some things seem “gay” or has possible LGBTQ+ connections. Like GCF having a LGBT+ song, or 4 o'clock including a reference to a gay movie, or Vmin's literal gay drama whatever that was. But most of it is just fans zooming in on various things and adding their own meaning to it. Like it has to mean something becaues it is connected to your ship. (But only for your ship.) Sometimes, a lot of times, it’s not even directly connected to the ship... It’s just assumed to be connected to them. It’s a guess or a theory, not a fact.

I get questions from Vminies not knowing things about Vmin all the time, and I myself know I’ll never be able to remember or even see everything that is out there with Vmin. And that’s just from the content we are able to consume to begin with. Beyond that is a lot of guessing and assumption based on the fraction of moments we get. But if some Vminies might not even know where the soulmate label comes from, or that 4 o’clock was written with Jimin in mind or that Vmin seem to casually sleep together in private (if we take Tae’s words for it in the Billboard vlive) it’s clear that something I might see as obvious and common knowledge isn’t. Even further it’s clear that other shippers will know even less about Vmin.

And how can you dismiss something you don’t even know about?

We all focus on, remember or look for/get exposed to our biases or favorite ships the most. Even if we consume the original content we will likely zoom in and see things for our own ship simply because we look for it. And there is nothing wrong with that, it’s natural. But we need to realize it means we will miss things when it comes to other ships, and need to be aware that we know more and end up in echo chambers of both facts and interpretations for our own ships.

It’s so blatantly obvious to me that many non-vminies have no clue about even some of the biggest moments between Vmin. And again, it’s nothing really odd or bad about that... Until you start to act superior even when you lack a lot of knowledge. So much misinformation is spread this way too...

That’s why even though I personally think I know more about other ships than perhaps the regular person, I still won’t preach or explain too much about other ships. Because just as I know others don’t seem to know or notice a lot about Vmin, I know I work the same in regards to other ships. I can’t possibly even remember everything when it comes to Vmin, so how can I with all other ships too?

If I get questions about tae/kook or ji/kook or any dynamic in BTS I might be able to answer it... But I might also lack the full context or might not even have noticed some things to begin with. Coming to me with questions about other ships will give you a very different view than if you ask a shipper focused on that ship directly. I try to be unbiased, but I can’t. I try to be informed but I can’t remember or notice everything. So even if I feel I know a lot, I might never know enough to get the full context of any situation regarding BTS.

Of course trying to remember to watch unbiased content is very important and helps to keep a better balance. Or as in my case where I actively looked up other ship theories and felt “I know enough to see there are weird things and I can’t dismiss everything since we don’t know the truth of what it might mean”. Just as I feel a lot of things about Vmin shouldn’t be dismissed. Many other shippers also came to me and talked long and detailed about why their ship is real and my isn’t. Many times I lacked knowledge about specific situations about other ships, but so did they about Vmin. I don’t think you can dismiss something if you don’t even know about it to begin with, and there is a big gap of knowledge between the shipping communities.

I mean, the way hyung x maknae line ships have so many great moments and you barely see them outside of the actual content. At this point all ships in BTS are big and get attention, but they don’t seem to register the same way in people’s minds, with the focus always being on the three youngest together.

This is the thing about worrying about “rival ships” too... They only matter if there is a moment between the ones you already see as “competition”. Does anyone worry or cry about Vmin or Ji/kook when Ji/hope or Hope/kook get very intimate and sweet moments? No, because they don’t seem to register at all.

I wasn’t even able to find a gif of this ji/hope moment from Run recently... (And I can’t add twitter videos from desktop)

youtube

Yoon/min holding hands and joking about breaking up.

Meanwhile if Tae/kook have fun together or if Ji/kook does something cute all hell breaks lose. We have been tainted by the narratives from shippers. The more we see and hear about other ships the bigger “impact” they will have on us.

If moments like this between other members doesn’t make me feel insecure about Vmin, then why would any similar moment from Ji/kook or Tae/kook? People need to stop hyper focusing on both skinship and “rival ship” moments in general and stop adding importance to them, especially when they don’t even do it equally with all ships.

It’s not that one is good:

One is neutral:

And one is bad:

They all happen and exist and we need to realize that’s how it always has been and likely always will be. Any interpretations of these moments shouldn’t change how you view them when nothing is even confirmed. They all happen so we should all accept that and be happy the members have close and intimate relationships with each other.

I really don’t think people understand my stance on all of this. I literally don’t mind if another ship turns out to be real (even if any ship being real is probably not that likely), because I trust in Vmin’s relationship after having watched it for 5 years. But since nothing is confirmed I still remain of the opinion that Vmin’s relationship and behavior is weirder than other ships IN MY VIEW, based on MY INTERPRETATIONS. But I am totally ok with being proven wrong, because it doesn’t matter what kind of relationship Vmin have as long as I can trust that the love they express for each other is real. Thus I also don’t have to downplay moments between other ships. They are there and that’s nice.

We lack a lot of information for many reasons even though we do get to see a lot. But even knowing all the things we know, I still don’t think it’s enough for any ship moments to count as “proof”. For example with Vmin, they were denied to sing a song because it was essentially “ too gay” and Taehyung complained about it, but that doesn't mean they have to be a couple and is forced apart by Big Hit.

We put weight into things because we have our biases and guesses and we find things because we look for them. Here are just some things that fans of various communities says have to mean something but to me really doesn't have to mean anything even if proven:

Physical intimacy Emotional intimacy Jealousy Screen time Fanservice “Sexual tension” Heart eyes or any looks in general Joking about being a couple Showering together Sleeping together Being alone together Living together Writing songs about each other Secret signs Hidden messages to fans Hiding in rooms

And so on...

But even If you do want to count these things to mean something, at least acknowledge how many of those things other ships have too. Vmin literally have several of these confirmed as well. Many of these moments either have happened or gets speculated to happen between many ships. You might find your ship isn’t as uniqe as you feel it is if you actually start diving deeper. If you did and it makes you doubt your own ships superiority, that’s good. Being sure won’t lead to any good for anyone.

Also if you wanna go there.... If other shipper say these have to mean something they are either ignoring Vmin or more likely doesn’t know or say it doesn’t mean the same if they do it.

Fine if hand holding and cuddling doesn’t make you wonder about Vmin, that’s totally legit. In fact you don’t have to wonder about Vmin unless you want to. But using excuses for why something doesn’t mean something you don’t want it to mean or downplaying moments or automatically calling them platonic and “not the same” doesn’t mean you can’t be wrong about those assumptions. Especially when you might not know the full context of it. Again, it should go both ways and include moments from all relationships.

I am legit curious how ji/kookers and tae/kookers are able to be so confident about their ship being real with Tae doing the things he does towards Jimin.... Like... They mean to tell me Tae and Jimin being soulmates, Tae wanting to sing a romantic Christmas song with Jimin, Tae writing 4 o'clock, Tae having Sweet night and telling us it's a personal song while he keeps calling Jimin his only best friend doesn't even have a possibility to mean something non platonic? 😗

Soulmates + Friends lyrics + "how could I know one day I would wake up feeling more" + "are you my best friend?" + "sweet night is a personal song" + "Of course Jimin is my only friend" + 4 o'clock/dumpling fight + the not allowed Christmas song + "Jimin-ah I like you the most" + "I told him to come sleep next to me as I was too lazy to go to him" + “we told our candid stories as honestly as possible” + “Oppa, why are you still awake? I’m dreaming of Jiminie” = Vmin is probably the best known guess to what relationship Tae might be talking about in Sweet Night.

Is it confirmed though? Can I call it proof? NO! Because while it fits in theory, we don’t know and we don’t have all the information to know. But I can make a damn good case for it and that’s the whole point. I can do that because I look for material, see things and add them together with a narrative. Just as other shippers do with their ships. In the end it’s all just narratives though, not proof.

Getting all these asks recently just confirms that the people who worry, or who says other ships are real, haven’t read even a fraction of my posts or they just don’t understand them. Or let alone noticed major moments between all BTS members that should show that their belief is not as “obvious” as they might think.

I am tired of insecurities when it shouldn’t even matter. If any ship in BTS is real, let’s support them and be happy. It doesn’t change the dynamics and relationships between the other members if some of them happen to be a couple. What we see is still there. The “worst” that can happen is that our ideas and theories prove to be wrong.

But let’s at least try to be aware of how little we see and know, and especially about ships that aren’t our own. I am writing about Vmin because there is a lot to see, but me focusing on Vmin also gives me a knowledge about them I can’t compare with other ships. Which is why I won’t sit and write essays about other ships, and which is why Vminies coming to me for information about other ships is going to lack the depth I can provide for Vmin. All shippers are biased and all shippers lack information.

If you want to ship do it, if you want to speculate go right ahead. But be aware that there is a big difference between facts and knowledge and narratives and speculation.

I hope you found this an interesting read. And if you are considering sending me asks worried about Vmin because of interactions between other members or you want to send “statments” or explenations about other ships being real, just know you are barking up the wrong tree.

#vmin #bts ships #shipping #btsandvmin #rant #vmin analysis #shipping analysis #bts analysis #shipping narratives #shipping agenda #my post

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robininthelabyrinth · 4 years

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i loved your mingjue/jiang cheng fic so much! if you're inspired, maybe something about the wedding or their siblings reacting?

sequel to this

In their defense, neither Nie Mingjue nor Jiang Cheng were especially good at being romantic – and anyway it wasn’t supposed to be a romantic arrangement in the first place.

It was an arranged marriage for political benefits. Unlike his parents, Jiang Cheng wouldn’t be so foolish as to get his heart involved when it came to one of those.

Sure, now that matters had been arranged and the contracts all signed, they were able to relax a little and spend time together as friends and future spouses rather than as mere allies, sitting together late into the night and speaking freely instead of making excuses to avoid saying the wrong time.

And yes, obviously Jiang Cheng was significantly more invested in showing Nie Mingjue around the Lotus Pier – around Yunmeng generally, even. After all, it wasn’t just politeness now - Nie Mingjue was going to be the second master here, just as Jiang Cheng would be second master at the Unclean Realm; that was what they’d agreed on, an equal balance that respected both of their commitments to their homes.

As for why Jiang Cheng made a point of taking Nie Mingjue’s hand into his when they walked around – well, that was just logic, too. Jiang Cheng didn’t especially enjoy the physical touch of strangers, which would be an impediment to marriage, but he was determined to make this arrangement between them work.

And for someone like him, who wasn’t naturally talented, that meant –

“Practice,” he said, putting his hand into Nie Mingjue’s.

“Practice,” he reminded him when they sat by the dock, until Nie Mingjue yielded and put his arm around him.

“Practice,” he said pointedly, raising his face for a good-night kiss.

“It’s nice to meet someone else who appreciates practice as being worthwhile in its own right,” Nie Mingjue remarked a little later, while they were waiting for Jiang Cheng to remember how to breathe. “My brother is always complaining that there’s no point to training day in and day out if you’re just doing the same things over and over again, but there’s no other way to build a strong foundation. Don’t you agree?”

Jiang Cheng nodded, pressing a palm to one of his cheeks, which were red for some reason. Probably the same reason his heart kept beating too fast – really, this was why he needed to practice. If he collapsed every time they engaged in the smallest bit of physical intimacy, this marriage would be called out as a sham immediately by anyone who saw them, and Jiang Cheng wasn’t willing to endure what his parents had.

Luckily, Nie Mingjue seemed to feel similarly on the subject, and raised no objections to Jiang Cheng’s proposed approach. Best of all, he didn’t do anything in the other direction, either: no silly romantic gestures Jiang Cheng would be required to match, no secret expectations that Jiang Cheng would inevitably disappointed.

No: when Nie Mingjue brought him gifts, they were practical ones, like a new sheath for Sandu or more ink when he was nearly out. Once he’d brought him an assortment of snacks typical to Qinghe, since they’d agreed that any visit by Jiang Cheng would have to wait until the Lotus Pier was a little more stable, but that was practical, too: it wouldn’t do for him to get sick from the local food once he arrived.

Nothing romantic.

Just like Jiang Cheng wasn’t romantic, either. Getting up earlier than usual to train alongside Nie Mingjue was just courtesy, and spending time together doing paperwork until he fell asleep on Nie Mingjue’s shoulder was just properly allocating the little free time they had.

Neither of them were romantic, and it was a relief.

Jiang Cheng had always lived in fear of having to try to sweet-talk someone, but luckily Nie Mingjue found the poisonous lash of his tongue far more amusing – anything even remotely resembling an endearment made Nie Mingjue look lost and awkward, which was about the same for Jiang Cheng.

It made it much easier.

It did also, Jiang Cheng later admitted, make it a lot easier to miss.

“Do you two ever talk about anything other than reconstruction?” Nie Huaisang moaned, his head under his hands. Jiang Cheng had come for his first visit to Qinghe, a short weekend jaunt when his existing plans had been unexpectedly cancelled and the Lotus Pier progressing nicely even without constant supervision. “This is the most boring dinner I’ve ever attended. Ever!”

“We talk about cultivation, too,” Nie Mingjue pointed out – quite justly, in Jiang Cheng’s mind.

“That’s not better, da-ge!”

“I like talking about cultivation,” Jiang Cheng offered. “And reconstruction.”

Nie Huaisang gave him a look that suggested he’d betrayed their ancient friendship (which Jiang Cheng wasn’t sure several months of suffering Wei Wuxian’s presence next to each other qualified as, but whatever). “Have you ever talked about anything else?”

“…the war?”

“Hopeless,” Nie Huaisang declared.

Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes over his head at Nie Mingjue, who just looked amused. “I’m going to sleep; I just flew the whole way here,” he said. “And don’t forget that you promised you’d show me around in the morning, Sect Leader Nie.”

“Of course, Sect Leader Jiang. You can meet me by the western training grounds when you wake up; we can leave once we’ve finished morning exercise.”

Jiang Cheng nodded, the plan sounding good to him. He stood up and tapped Nie Mingjue on the arm pointedly in warning – they’d agreed on a signal that indicated when a gesture for physical affection was welcome, since both of them were war veterans with a tendency to spook at unexpected gestures that came too close – before leaning down to claim his good-night kiss before heading out.

“You can show me your fans tomorrow as well, Huaisang –”

“Stop right there!” Nie Huaisang shrieked. “What was that?!”

Jiang Cheng blinked at him. “A…blatantly dismissive offer to let you torture me with your stupid fans for a shichen or so even though I clearly don’t want to?”

Nie Mingjue snorted. He really did find Jiang Cheng funny, and Jiang Cheng still found that bizarre.

“Not that! The kissing! You kissed my da-ge!”

“Well, yes,” Jiang Cheng said. “We’re getting married. It’s important to set up habits early to –”

He was about to explain the idea of practice, but Nie Huaisang seemed disinterested in that, jumping up from his seat and waving his hands around about why he hadn’t been informed yet.

In fairness, Jiang Cheng highly doubted Nie Huaisang understood the idea of practice in any form, so it was probably just wasting his breath.

“Stop fussing,” Nie Mingjue said. “I’m going to let you help plan the wedding.”

“That isn’t the point! You should have told me!”

“Am I required for this conversation?” Jiang Cheng asked.

“No, he’s just making a fuss.”

“I am not. And, no, Jiang-xiong, but thanks for offering – I’ll have words for you in the morning, probably. I can’t think of any right now.”

“Words?”

“Threatening words of some variety,” Nie Huaisang explained.

Jiang Cheng thought that was fair enough, given that he was marrying Nie Huaisang’s beloved brother. “Tomorrow, then. Good night, Huaisang, Sect Leader Nie.”

“Why do you still call each other by your titles?” he heard Nie Huaisang complaining as he left. “You’re going to get married…!”

Because we’ve only just become engaged and change is hard, obviously, Jiang Cheng thought, rolling his eyes.

Nie Huaisang really just didn’t understand things sometimes.

Jiang Yanli made a point of visiting the Lotus Pier on a regular basis, her doting new husband in tow, and Jiang Cheng was there to greet her every time.

This time was no different, and he showed her around the most newly rebuilt areas before bringing her back for lunch.

“When are you two going to give me happy news?” he said, aiming for teasing but mostly coming off grumpy. “You’re already married – there’s no reason to wait to have children.”

“Give it time, A-Cheng,” Jiang Yanli laughed while Jin Zixuan rolled his eyes but generally looked too happy to protest. “What about you, though? What’s your happy news?”

Jiang Cheng blinked at her, running through their conversation so far in his mind. He’d updated her on all the important things: the new pier district, the housing for war veterans, the new orphanage…he’d even mentioned the new dam they were constructing.

Had he omitted something?

“Your neck,” Jin Zixuan said.

That didn’t exactly clarify anything, and Jiang Cheng looked at him, utterly bewildered.

Jin Zixuan covered his eyes. “You have a mark on your neck,” he said. “It doesn’t look like an insect.”

Jiang Cheng got up to go look in the mirror, and sure enough, he did. It would have been covered by his collar, but it was a hot day and he’d been sweating, so the collar had dipped down just enough to show.

“Oh, that,” he said, making a mental note to tell Nie Mingjue to aim a little lower next time.

Jiang Yanli laughed, but Jin Zixuan’s expression looked a little more serious, and a moment later he asked Jiang Yanli if she happened to have any of that particular delicacy he’d enjoyed last time. She did, and she excused herself from the room to go get it.

Jin Zixuan turned the serious expression onto Jiang Cheng. “If it’s not anything serious, tell Yanli now. She’s convinced that you’re marrying whoever it is that left the mark on your neck, and I don’t want her to be disappointed.”

“Of course I’m marrying them,” Jiang Cheng said. “Who in the world would I allow that close to my neck if I wasn’t planning to –”

That was about when he remembered Jin Zixuan’s father and broke out into awkward coughing as he frantically searched for a subject change. “While you’re waiting for jiejie, why don’t you try some of these pastries?” he tried. “They were brought over from Qinghe.”

Despite the obviousness of Jiang Cheng’s conversational dodge, Jin Zixuan’s expression eased significantly and he looked happy again. “No, that’s fine. That’s good! What’s her name?”

“Sect Leader Nie,” Jiang Cheng said.

“No, not the one who brought you the pastries – the person you’re marrying.”

“Sect Leader Nie.”

“No, I meant –”

“I’m answering your question.”

“…oh.”

Jiang Yanli came back shortly with the little delicacy and looked surprised at how Jin Zixuan looked as if he’d been punched several times in the face – without any swelling, though, so it hadn’t actually happened. “What’s the matter?”

“He’s being weird over the fact that I’m marrying Sect Leader Nie,” Jiang Cheng said with a scowl. “I don’t know why.”

“Sect Leader Nie?” Jiang Yanli said, putting down the tray. “Oh, he seemed very nice. Do you like him?”

“I think we’re well matched?” he said, a little hesitantly. Like was such a strong word, after all. “He’s refreshingly low-key.”

Jin Zixuan muttered something incoherent under his breath, possibly something about Baxia not being low-key in the slightest, but Jiang Cheng ignored him.

“I’m sure he’ll make you very happy,” Jiang Yanli said, with a slight touch of their mother’s steeliness in her eyes suggested that he’d better. “Have you started planning the wedding yet?”

“No, not yet. We’ve drafted the contract, but we’re taking a little bit of time to make sure we’re compatible before proceeding with the details.”

“Good idea,” she said, and the memories in her eyes were the same as his – they both loved their parents dearly, but that was not a marriage experience either of them wished to repeat. “Well, let us know when you make the official announcement and we’ll toast to you.”

“I won’t tell my father ahead of time,” Jin Zixuan put in suddenly. “I promise.”

“…thanks,” Jiang Cheng said, not entirely sure what the point of the offer was – Jin Guangshan would find out eventually, one way or another – but aware that Jin Zixuan was trying to do something nice. “I appreciate it. Jiejie, would you like to try some Qinghe delicacies? Sect Leader Nie left them behind when he left.”

“I most certainly would.”

There were various phrases Jiang Cheng could live his entire life without hearing, and The Yiling Patriarch just attacked the Nie sect delegation was probably one of the top ones.

He ran over at once.

Luckily, Wei Wuxian was not, in fact, attacking the Nie sect; he was mostly just yelling at Nie Mingjue, who hadn’t even drawn Baxia and mostly looked (if you knew him well enough to read the gradation of scowl on his face) as if he was trying very hard not to laugh. That was probably why Lan Xichen, who was standing nearby with his stone-faced brother at his side, didn’t seem inclined to interfere, though he mostly looked confused.

“What’s going on here?” Jiang Cheng snapped, striding up to them. “Wei Wuxian..!” No, Wei Wuxian’s explanation wouldn’t make any sense. “Sect Leader Nie, Sect Leader Lan…?”

“I’m taking advantage,” Nie Mingjue said. “Apparently.”

“Of what?”

“As far as I could determine from the shouting, the answer would be – you, Sect Leader Jiang,” Lan Xichen said.

Jiang Cheng stared. “Of – me?” He looked at Wei Wuxian. “What? How? For what?”

Normally he’d dismiss such a charge out of hand, but for all his recklessness, he could usually trust that Wei Wuxian usually had his best interests in mind…but on the other hand, Jiang Cheng really couldn’t imagine Nie Mingjue doing anything underhanded like that.

Besides, if he wanted something from Jiang Cheng, he could just ask.

Wei Wuxian crossed his arms, still glaring at Nie Mingjue. “He knows what he did.”

“Good for him, but that’s not really helpful to me, is it?” Jiang Cheng said, throwing his hands up. “It doesn’t exactly seem like Sect Leader Nie to be cheating me; I’d appreciate some facts.”

“Oh, I’m not cheating you,” Nie Mingjue said, and he was distinctly cheerful now. “I’m taking advantage of you.”

Jiang Cheng’s brow barely had time to wrinkle in irritation and confusion before Nie Mingjue added, “Sexually.”

Jiang Cheng had never had his emotions shift from irritation and rage into sheer hideous embarrassment so quickly before. “Wei Wuxian!” he howled. “That had better not be it!”

“He went into your tent last night!” Wei Wuxian argued. “You were already asleep at your desk, and he kissed you –”

That sounded a lot more like Nie Mingjue than the idea that the man was somehow cheating him. After all, Jiang Cheng had arranged for him to visit that evening, only to fall asleep before he arrived – it was only reasonable that Nie Mingjue keep up to their agreed schedule of good night kisses…

Huh, Jiang Cheng’s cheeks were red again.

“It’s fine,” he said. “I don’t – it’s fine. I don’t mind.”

“What do you mean you don’t mind? You can’t go around giving your first kiss to whoever wants to take it –”

“First off, that’s a bit hypocritical from the man who’d come back singing the praises of his ‘secret admirer’ in the forest after the Phoenix Mountain hunt,” Jiang Cheng said, because he was petty and because it made Wei Wuxian splutter (and Lan Wangji twitch for some reason – probably disapproval). “Secondly, what makes you think that was my first kiss?! Because it wasn’t!”

“Oh yeah? Who was your first kiss with, then?”

“…also Nie Mingjue, as it happens,” Jiang Cheng allowed. “But that’s because we’re getting married! He’s allowed to kiss me!”

“He’s not allowed to – wait. Married?! Since when?!”

“That is a very good question,” Lan Xichen interjected, looking thunderstruck. “Da-ge, you’re getting married?”

“Yes,” Nie Mingjue said. “We haven’t worked out any of the logistics of the ceremony yet because Huaisang can’t make up his mind about which method to use to pick an auspicious date, so I didn’t bother telling anyone.”

Jiang Cheng thought that that sounded perfectly reasonable – no point in claiming time on people’s calendars before they’d even selected the date – but Wei Wuxian seemed to be even more offended.

“Why didn’t you tell him? Aren’t you proud of getting married? Don’t you want the whole world to know?” he demanded.

“Weren’t you against this just a moment ago?” Jiang Cheng asked. “And he just said why. It’s not like I’ve been going around telling people, either.”

Now Wei Wuxian was glaring at him. “Does shijie know, at least?”

“Of course she knows –” Since that incident last week. “– and she’s fine with it.”

“...oh. She is?” Wei Wuxian abruptly deflated. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I was going to,” Jiang Cheng said, exasperated. “But we didn’t pick a date yet. It’s not like I thought you would have trouble clearing your schedule to attend, what with your – your – your corpses and your radishes and all that.”

“Corpses and radishes,” Nie Mingjue echoed. “Fascinating.”

“You know, I haven’t been to Yiling in years,” Lan Xichen said thoughtfully. “That would seem to be appropriately neutral ground for an announcement of this magnitude, don’t you think?”

Jiang Cheng hadn’t even thought of that, but that would be perfect – everyone would have no choice but to come peacefully, and he’d be able to have his shixiong (however technically distanced) present. And, even better, he would be socially obligated to invite the person who hosted the announcement of his wedding to the wedding itself, no matter what his reputation was.

He turned to look at Wei Wuxian, who was gaping. “You want me to host…I wasn’t even officially invited to this gathering! I had to crash it!”

“And next time you won’t,” Nie Mingjue said. “It’s settled, then. You should probably go get ready.”

Jiang Cheng thought to himself that he’d never seen Wei Wuxian look so surprised – by anything, ever. He wasn’t sure it was possible for him to look any more surprised than he currently did.

Pleased with himself, and with Nie Mingjue, he leaned over and kissed his soon-to-be spouse.

Oh, huh.

Apparently it was possible.

#mdzs #jiang cheng #nie mingjue #mingcheng #nie huaisang #jiang yanli #jin zixuan #wei wuxian #lan xichen #my fic #my fics #Anonymous

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