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prettytoxicrevolver · 3 years

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Ethan | Unus Annus

Requested? kinda?

Warnings? None?

Summary: Ethan makes a grand gesture, confusing you further

Word Count: 1,311

One | Two | Three

“Take your time,” he whispers and you nod against him.

The minute you step into your car you let out a sigh. You rest your head onto your steering wheel and feel the overwhelming sense that you want to cry.

You were certain you loved Mark. You loved him with every fiber of your being and today only proved that more. You loved his overwhelmingly caring personality, his charming smile, his understanding self. Everything.

But Ethan. Ethan was your best friend. He was there through thick and thin. He’s by your side in a second and you loved him. You loved him with every cell in your being and you didn’t know what to do now.

As you pull out of Mark’s driveway, you call Jason and wait as the phone rings. Finally, when he picks up you start talking immediately.

“He told me he loved me. He gave me roses and candles and the best kiss of my life and told me he loved me and now I’m even more confused,” you let out all at once.

“Who did?” Jason asks, confused.

“Mark.”

“He did all of that?”

“Yes and he also knows I love Ethan and told me to take my time figuring out who to pick.”

“Dear lord,” he responds, and despite everything you laugh.

“What am I going to do?”

“Figure it out,” Jason says and you laugh again despite yourself.

When you get home, you end up feeling wired for the rest of the day like you had slammed a Redbull and it was buzzing in you from head to toe. You couldn’t stop thinking about Mark’s display. You wished an answer would just fall out of nowhere.

As you’re practically pacing back and forth across your apartment, your phone rings in the living room. You head towards it, picking up without thinking about it.

“Hello?”

“Hey!” you recognize Ethan’s voice and your heart skips. “Are you doing anything right now?”

“Uh,” you say, running a hand through your hair and letting out a quick breath. “No, nothing.”

“Come outside.”

“I’m sorry?” you ask and he repeats the sentence.

Still holding your phone to your ear, you step outside and walk down your apartment stairs. When you get through the double set of doors, there Ethan sits.

He’s leaning against a red convertible, one you’ve never seen before, and dressed in a clean button-down and dress pants. Your hand slowly falls to your side as you walk up to him, a wide smile spread across his lips.

“What the-“ you begin and he chuckles lightly.

“I rented it. Come on, I wanna show you something.”

At this point you’re so speechless you can’t begin to comprehend what’s going on or the fact that for a second time that day, you’re being swept away by the boy you like.

Ethan walks to the passenger side door, pulling it open before gesturing towards you. You make your way back over to him and get in the car. He walks back over to the driver’s side, getting in and heading out.

As Ethan drives, you can’t help but look over at him and admire the boy you’ve come to know and pretty much fall in love with. He’s relaxed next to you and you notice that’s something that he is around you all the time, relaxed. Calm and seemingly happy in your presence.

"What are you thinking about?" Ethan asks, grabbing your hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

"Lots. You, mostly," you say smiling widely out of habit.

"All good things?"

"Always," you say leaning over to press a kiss to his cheek.

You continue driving for a while and it occurs to you that you should ask Ethan where you're going. However, the wind in your hair, the music floating through the air, and Ethan's soft touch has you mesmerized.

After driving for a bit, you finally head up to a secluded area looking over the ocean. Ethan pulls to the side of the road and the two of you get out of the car and by this point, you’re completely confused.

“Hey Ethan?” you ask.

“Yeah?”

“What are we doing?”

“Come on,” he says smiling wide.

He extends a hand to you which you take and he starts to lead you two farther up the mountain. As you walk you gaze across the mountain and the beautiful sunset backdropping the ocean. You can't believe someone would have ever thought to bring you here. Just as you're about to ask Ethan for the millionth time what you're doing you see it.

At a clearing ahead, there sits a picnic blanket with food and drinks sat atop it. As you come upon it you see it shows a perfect view of the ocean and the sunset. You stop in your tracks, a hand coming up to cup your mouth in disbelief and Ethan smiles adoringly at you. His hand moves from yours to your back, sliding up and down as you look up at him.

“You did this?”

“There’s more,” he says and your head tilts and he gestures for you to sit down at the picnic.

The two of you sit and together you have dinner. The sun is setting slowly over the ocean, a shimmering orange glow floating down below the horizon. You’re entranced by the whole experience not believing that this could be happening to you.

“So,” you begin and Ethan puts his full attention on you.

“Why the big gesture? What’s going on?” As you talk, Ethan absentmindedly runs his fingers along your thigh, tracing light patterns over your skin.

“I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while,” he begins and your heart stops.

“I love you. I’m not good with my words but I’ve loved you ever since you knocked on my door at 2 am and asked to go get cookies. I’ve been in love with you on every night drive and late night looking at the stars.”

As Ethan talks, tears start to fall at the grand gesture of it all. Years ago you would never believe someone could love you this much. And now, here was Ethan, an amazing man proclaiming he is.

“That’s being not good with your words?” you ask through tears that Ethan wipes away gently, smiling lovingly down at you.

“Well I’m no Shakespeare but I am in love with you. I just wish I said it sooner.”

You look up at him and smile through the happy tears still slipping down your cheeks. The two of you sit side by side, legs entangled as Ethan looks down at you. His deep brown eyes search yours and his hand rests comfortably on your cheek.

He takes the leap, slowly closing the gap between the two of you until your lips meet in pure bliss. You sink straight into the feeling, literally falling back onto the blanket as Ethan moves so he’s slotted perfectly between your legs.

You pull away, smiling too wide and Ethan reflects the expression. He props himself up on his elbow to look down at you and you can tell you’re both elated.

“I really should have done that sooner.”

“Ethan?” you question unable to contain your thoughts to your best friend any longer.

“Yeah?”

“Mark loves me.”

“I know doll,” he says pushing a strand of hair from your face and smiling fondly down at you.

“I don’t know what to do,” you admit unfairly. You hated saying this to him, knowing he’d end up asking you to choose him but you couldn’t keep it in anymore.

“Well, I’m biased because I love you. But do what’s right love.”

“But I owe you both an answer. I shouldn’t just keep the two of you waiting around.”

“You’re our best friend. We understand and we love you,” he reassures.

#markiplier #crankgameplays #markiplier imagine #crankgameplays imagine #unusannus imagine #unus annus #ethan nestor #ethan nestor imagine #youtuber #youtuber imagine #imagine #bravebesson

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pazithi-gallifreya · 4 years

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The Hourglass Garden (An Unus Annus-inspired short story)

*Author’s note: Firstly, this is NOT a fan-fiction, nor does it contain Mark or Ethan in any way, so apologies to anyone looking for that type of content. Rather, it’s a story centered around some of the motifs that crop up throughout the Unus Annus channel as a whole - an homage, if you will. These two guys got me to write again for the first time in years, especially when it comes to writing for myself. I’m just happy I was able to create something for the guys, and I’m so thankful to them for getting those wheels turning in my head again, even if they’re a bit slow. As much of a meme it may be on the channel at this point, I think the overall theme of running out of time is super important, and one I think too many of us dismiss a majority of the time, myself included.I even kept putting the writing of this story off, but I finally came up with enough of a concrete plot to put it together. Mark is always talking about how if you want to do something, you gotta grab the bull by the horns and just do it, so this is me doing that. We need to remember that we often don’t have as much time as we think we do, and the clock is constantly ticking. It only stops for us when we die, but us dying has no effect on time for everyone else. It moves forward without us. That’s not to say we have to rush to get everything done all the time. We still need to stop and appreciate the things and people around us. We just need to find a healthy balance, find what we enjoy, and also work hard, not only for others, but also ourselves. All of that is what this story is about.

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“Shit!” Aria gasped as the freezing wind nearly yanked the front door right out of her gloved hands. She reigned it back in, locked it, and pulled her beanie lower over her ears as she headed down the stairs towards her complex’s parking lot. She cranked the heat to max, sitting in her red 2007 Honda, cupping her still gloved hands and blowing into them before adjusting her rearview mirror. The crystals formed on the back windshield looked like little ice people. She smiled.

It had been far too long since she had done something like this for herself. Her boss had recently quit at her editing company, making her schedule a living nightmare over the past month. The added pressure and stress hadn’t gone unnoticed by her best friend Beth, who, after much pushback on Aria’s part, finally convinced her to take a day off. “There’s this beautiful woodland garden about 40 miles out of town. There’s not as much to look at in the winter, so it’s not as pretty, but it’s still open. There’s also less people because of it, so if you’re looking for some solitude, as well as some fresh air, it’s the perfect place.”

“In 30 miles, turn right on Hourglass Road,” chimed the robotic voice from her phone as she turned onto the highway. Any other day, she’d be blasting music and singing her lungs out, but not today. Today was a quiet day. She kept occasional watch over the crystal people slowly being sliced in half by the defroster, reminding her of her own temporary state as they dripped down the back window.

Half an hour later, she turned onto Hourglass – a narrow gravel road that opened into a gravel parking lot surrounded by a short log fence, with an ornate sign that read Hourglass Gardens. She pulled in next to the only other car in the lot and pulled her coat tightly around her as she took in her surroundings. The fence opened onto a dirt path that forked in two directions. One led to the large old house that served as a local historical museum. The other traveled down to the woodland gardens. Aria turned off her phone so as to not be tempted, shoved her hands in her pockets, and sauntered down the longer path.

A short way into the woods was a circular wooden bench surrounding a large, stone fountain that was currently turned off, probably due to the season. The centerpiece was a huge hourglass surrounded by a stone circle with the phrase “Unus Annus” written repeatedly around the outside. The hourglass was filled with pure white sand, which had all sunk to the bottom. Tippy-toed, she reach up to turn it, but couldn’t get it to budge. She sighed as she took a seat and stared up into the bare branches that surrounded her overhead, silently thanking the powers that be for the seclusion. Beth was right, she thought. Not much to look at, but it’s pretty well-maintained... She stared into murky film at the bottom of the fountain. Mostly. At least it’s quiet.

After several moments of taking in the stillness, she decided to move deeper into the barren woods. Every so often, she would run into little plastic markers with blurbs about the plants and wildlife people often encounter there. About 2 miles in, about every 20 steps or so, she began to notice little wooden markers close to the ground, almost hidden. They seemed to have arrows carved into them. They started along the path, then slowly got farther into the woods, away from the path. With time to kill, she figured she might as well go with it. There were no barriers, and having read many fantasy novels, she was always amused by the cheesiness of the “forbidden path” trope. Besides, she did come here to get away, after all, and what could be more detached from reality than following mysterious arrows in the woods into who knows where, even if the mystery was pretend. It was still the most excitement she had felt about anything in a while.

She walked over another mile, and at one point resisted the brief temptation to turn back to the trail. She cleared through one final patch of dead shrubbery next to another arrow before stumbling into a clearing rivaling even the ones in her books – it’s like all the colorful butterflies and animals had congregated in this one spot, encompassed by rainbow assortments of flowers and dense foliage in full bloom, despite the fact it was January. In front of it all was a babbling brook, with an assortment of brightly-colored fish, complete with a little bridge nestled neatly over it. Funny, I didn’t even hear any running water before now. She knelt down to touch it, but something prevented her hand from penetrating the water; some invisible barrier.

“I see you’ve made it.”

Aria jumped at the sudden break in the silence. The voice was calm, yet loud somehow. A man in a white, hooded cloak stood on the opposite side of the brook, but still sounded as if he were standing right next to her. A strange mist spiraled around him.

“What do you mean? Did you know I was coming? What is this place?” Aria asked, reaching her hand out in front of her, only to be forced back once again.

The man pulled down his hood. “This is the end.”

“The end of what? Who are you?”

“I am the inevitable. This is where all of time resides. Everything begins here, and everything ends here.”

“Are you saying you’re God, or something? Or Death? In the middle of a man-made sanctuary?”

“I am neither. I am the in between. I am Time Itself. I do not reside on this plane, but I am wherever you need me at any given moment.”

“So you’re saying you’re not really here?”

“I am, and I am not.”

“Am I the only one that can see or hear you?” Aria looked back to where she had entered. It was as brown and desolate as before.

“Yes.”

“Why? Why are you here? Why am I here?”

“This is your turning point – the point where you decide whether to take back control of your own destiny or succumb to the darkness, the point where you decide to live a prosperous life or a waking death.”

“How do I do that?”

“Make the decision. Only you know which path you will walk down. When you truly have your answer and have confirmed it to yourself, return here before time runs out. You have one year. I will be waiting. Memento mori.” The man turned, slowly walking away as the mist swelled around him until in encompassed the entire meadow. A frog made a loud plop into the brook, and with that, it was gone.

In front of Aria stood the looming hourglass fountain, now gushing with water. She pinched herself to make sure she hadn’t fallen asleep on the bench. What just happened, and why was she willing to believe and accept it so easily? She walked closer to examine the intricate stonework. The hourglass had been turned over. A few grains of sand had already trickled their way to the bottom. She read the phrase again. “Unus Annus.” She turned her phone back on and typed the words into the search bar. “One year,” she said softly to herself. “Okay,” she affirmed. “Looks like I’ve got a decision to make.”

She walked determinedly back to her car, feeling refreshed and invigorated, despite the mind trip she had just been on. As she turned the key in the ignition, she remembered something. “What was the other thing that guy said?” she mumbled to herself. “Memento mori?” She pulled her phone back out and searched the phrase. The translation read, “Remember you must die.”

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Thank you to anyone who read this. Thank you to Mark, Ethan, and Amy for being such a positive and encouraging force in my life for so many years and all the experiences I’ve had because of you. Thank you for giving me some inspiration to start creating again. There have been a lot of hard times going on with my family that I haven’t been able to properly focus on myself, and I’m still working on a lot of things, but this is another small step to help me towards my goals, and I’m glad to have you both be a part of it (even if it ended up sounding like a cheap YA novel). Being a perfectionist, I may not particularly like the final product myself, and think it's weak in every aspect, but that wasn't what this was about for me. I just wanted to show some appreciation for some amazing people. It’s been hard for me to keep up with you guys’ videos as of late, but this channel has been a way for me to stay up-to-date with both of you in a small way, and it’s such a cool concept. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the channel.

(Unus Annus is right on the verge of 2 million right now! Let’s get them there! They deserve it so much!)

- Anne

#unus annus #unusannus #unusannus2million #markiplier #crankgameplays #peebles #mine #not sure if the 2 million subs contest is still a thing #but either way this was good for me and i hope it entertains someone #i just enjoyed doing something for the guys

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