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trustsalvatorewriting · 4 years

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crush culture || kendall knight - chapter one

Summary: In which Kendall Knight has a crush on a girl who plays the drums at a local cafe

Word Count: 2,356

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❝ you make me feel like a teenager in love, you make me feel like i'll be forever young❞

KENDALL GROANED AS HE HEARD A CRASH FROM OUTSIDE HIS BEDROOM, throwing a throw pillow over his head to block out the noises and lights. He'd had to go into the studio yesterday for nearly twelve hours trying to fulfill one of Gustavo's checklists, and about halfway through, he'd started developing a migraine. He'd shrugged it off the night before and tried to sleep it off, but it had somehow gotten worse overnight.

Thankfully, he would have the day off, as he'd managed to get a few harmonies done the day before. He reached toward his navy blue curtains and pulled them over the sunlight leaking in through his window, laying still as he waited for the noise in the apartment to die down.

It was moments like this that he longed for his life in Minnesota. While he was thankful that he'd been given such a privileged life in California, he knew that if he hadn't gone to the auditions with James six months ago, he would've been at the ice rink at the moment, practicing for a hockey scholarship. He wouldn't have learned the meaning of 'stress migraine,' and he definitely wouldn't have had to leave his apartment to get a decent cup of coffee.

When he finally forced himself out of bed, he was met with an empty coffee machine and an empty bag of ground coffee. Kendall all but slammed his head into the kitchen pantry, throwing the bag into the garbage disposal and reaching for his phone. In truth, he wasn't even completely sure where the nearest cafe was, but he remembered his mom mentioning that there was a small one at the hippie grocery store on Rosé.

'God, that's such a Hollywood name,' Kendall thought to himself as he ordered his taxi. Once it confirmed, he quickly changed into a hoodie and jeans, sliding his keys into his back pocket. He headed for the taxi the moment he saw it drive into the parking lot, only giving slight nods to his friends as he rushed to get his coffee.

Thankfully, the driver hadn't tried to start any conversations, allowing him to sit in the backseat in silence. He leaned his head against the window, shutting his eyes as he tried to block out the sunlight. It felt as though direct sunlight would set fire to the back of his eyes.

As the driver pulled into the front of the grocery store, Kendall winced at the slight jerking movement of the vehicle as it came to a halt. He handed a fifty dollar bill to the driver and stepped out, pulling his hoodie over his head as he stared at the oddly hippie grocery store, complete with plants hanging outside the building and a green-painted sign with the name 'Williams' painted in white letters.

Kendall lightly rolled his eyes at the California culture, making his way into the store and heading for the cafe area towards the back. It was a completely different atmosphere from the coffee places and grocery stores they'd had in Minnesota, and while he likely would've figured that out sooner, he'd spent the majority of his time in California stuffed in a recording studio.

As he approached the cafe, he noticed a few bookshelves towards the wall, filled with journals and cooking books, and whatever else California people liked to read. He walked toward the counter and noticed a short girl sitting behind the register, a dazed look on her face as she rhythmically tapped her fingers.

"Uh, hey, could I get a cup of coffee?" Kendall asked, pulling his hoodie off his head. He'd made a slight effort to brush out his hair, but had given up after a while and shoved it ebenath a gray beanie.

The girl snapped out of her thoughts and turned to face him, allowing him to get a view of her name tag: Emory. She smiled happily, soft brown eyes lighting up when she noticed him. "Hi! Welcome to William's Coffee House. What can I get you?"

An involuntary smile came to his face when he heard her voice, but it quickly faded away when his eyes drifted to the menu. He fumbled with his words as he scanned the list of coffees, complete with lattes and espressos -- and what the hell was a macchiato? Kendall rubbed the back of his neck, confusion painted across his ivory features. "Uh... the coffee... kind?"

Emory bit back a laugh and went through the buttons on the register. "I'll just get you a small black coffee, and you can add cream and sugar if you want."

"Thank you," He sighed. He reached to grab a twenty dollar bill from his pocket, but she pushed his hand away quickly. Kendall looked u, dark eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"Don't even worry about it. It's on the house," She explained lightly, standing to go prepare his coffee. "You look like you've had a rough day."

"Is it that obvious?" Kendall questioned, tugging at the edges of his beanie so they covered his temples. They felt like they were going to explode.

She hesitated, reaching out to hand his coffee cup to him. She pursed her lips together, as if she were searching for the best words to tell him that he looked like he just crawled out from the garbage disposal. Emory winced at her own words as she said, "You're still cute."

Kendall might've blushed if it weren't for the tightening feeling on the right side of his head.

As he reached up to press his palms against his eyes, Emory questioned, "Do you have a migraine? I have Excedrin in my bag, if you want some. They're not crazy drugs or whatever."

"Excedrin?" He pulled his hands away from his eyes to find her holding out a small bottle of acetaminophen. She smiled lightly and placed it next to her coffee. "Thanks."

"No problem. I carry them around 'cause my brother and I get migraines a lot. One or two should be good depending on how bad it is," Emory advised. Kendall ignored her and shook three pills out of the bottle. "I mean, or you could do that."

The corner of his mouth twitched into a smile as he went to take the three excedrins and swallow them down with the hot coffee. He winced at the taste, setting it down.

"Didn't you say you wanted cream and sugar?" Emory questioned, pointing at the cup.

Kendall deadpanned at the sight of the cream and sugar, throwing his hand onto the desk. Emory giggled and took the cup from him, shaking in a little bit of each ingredient. Her laugh was high-pitched, similar to a cartoon character's. He lifted his head slightly. "Cute laugh."

Emory dropped the sugar packet into the cup. Her eyes widened and she quickly began preparing another cup. "I'm Emory."

"Kendall," He responded. "That's a... unique name."

"Thanks," She chuckled. "My Pops chose it. It's supposed to mean 'brave' or 'powerful' or something. I'm neither of those, which is why I'm working in a nearly empty café at eleven in the morning on a Friday."

"Three-day weekend," Kendall shrugged and took the cup from her. He smiled, his migraine already beginning to fade away.

She nodded and sat down in a stool behind the counter. Emory didn't have the nerve to tell him that her dads had named her other siblings 'Silas' and 'Andromeda.' She also didn't have the energy to explain that her dads had given her one mental health day per quarter, and she'd used it today so she could skip out on volleyball. She was only 5'2" which made serving the ball practically impossible.

For some reason, she'd wanted to impress him. She wasn't quite sure how to do that while she was sitting in a coffee apron, at the back of a grocery store, though. He was genuinely attractive -- the kind that you found on the cover of magazines and billboards. Complete with dirty blonde bangs, deep green eyes, and dimples. As dramatic as it sounded, Emory swore he would be the death of her.

Kendall stole glances at her as she cleaned up the suddenly messy counter, and pretended not to notice when she glanced back. He hadn't been able to meet a lot of people in Hollywood -- at least, no one outside of the Palm Woods. Gustavo and Kelly had kept him under lock and key in the studio. It had been somewhat justified, of course, considering they were working on an album; but there were times where he missed working at the grocery store in Minnesota. Times where he would've preferred to be playing hockey with his friends, as opposed to learning the same dance moves over and over again.

God, he felt privileged.

"So, skipping out on school, pretty boy?" Emory had said it without even glancing up, but he could hear the smile in her words.

"No, I, uh, have an off-day today," Kendall responded awkwardly. He wasn't sure how to explain that he'd completely forgotten about the essay he had to turn on by three o'clock today. "What about you?"

"My dads let me take the day off," Emory explained. She caught her words immediately and winced, waiting for the backlash or questions she would inevitably receive. Even in California, the LGBT capital of the world, there were somehow always questions.

"Dads, huh? What are their names?"

"Johan and Gerard," She said hesitantly. He would ask about her siblings now, or whether her mom had died, or where she was adopted from. She held her breath.

"That's cool."

'What the fuck?'

"Yeah, they're pretty great," Emory agreed, slightly confused but overall relieved by his reaction. He only gave her a calm look, implying that he was generally unbothered by the topic. She nodded in approval. "So, tell me about yourself, pretty boy."

"What do you wanna know?" Kendall asked, leaning back in his chair. "I'm from Minnesota; I really love hockey and music; and me and my sister Katie were raised by a single mom."

"What do you mean by 'you love music?'" Emory squinted her eyes lightly and sat down in the seat across from him, leaning forward. "Do you, like, play any instruments or are you one of those guys that listens to music and says they love it so they look really cool and pretentious?"

"I'm in a band with my best friends. I think I'm pretty into music," Kendall chuckled. "I play, like, the smallest amount of guitar; but I mostly sing."

"It's not a band of none of you play the instruments," Emory was quick to point out. "I'm in a small band with my foster sister, Evie. I play drums."

"You play drums?" Kendall snickered. "And that's not fair. We're mostly singers."

"Then you're a group, not a band," She shot back. "Yeah, I play drums. Is that hard to believe?"

"You're just so tiny," Kendall laughed. "I couldn't imagine that."

"Ever hears the phrase 'you're lucky you're cute?'" Emory questioned, to sing a sugar packet in his general direction. It hit the side of his flannel jacket, and she sighed internally. He was kind of making her eyes hurt at this point. She mentally went over all the reasons that it would be completely unethical for her to ask for his number, then all of the reasons that she would regret not asking for his number.

Unfortunately, she wasn't given the time to come to a balanced conclusion. Kendall's phone rang and he took it out of his pocket, sending Emory an apologetic look as he did so. The moment he answered it, his mood seemed to falter, and by the end of the call he'd practically slammed his head against the wooden counter.

"Uh, are you okay?" Emory questioned, lightly poking his shoulder as he hung up his phone.

"Nope. My producer is calling me into work today, after he promised me the day off yesterday!" He raised his voice and yelled at his phone, despite the fact that the caller had hung up already. He peeked at Emory from between his fingers. "I probably look really weird right now."

Emory nodded, her nose crinkling as she smiled down at him. "You do."

Kendall sighed and lifted his head, shoving his phone back into his pocket. He looked at Emory. "I should probably..."

"Yeah. I wouldn't want you to get fired or anything. A face like that deserves to have screaming girls chasing after it," Emory said. She regretted her words immediately, questioning whether she'd spoken proper English just then.

If Kendall noticed, he chose not to say anything about it. Instead, he went to stand and took a few paces away from the café. "I'll uh... I'll see you around?"

'Ask for his number. Ask for his number. Ask for his number.'

"Uh, yeah! You should visit again. I'll give you a discount on your coffee next time," Emory responded with a smile.

"Yeah, I will. Uh... thanks, Emmy," Kendall nodded at her, before his phone went off in his pocket again. He groaned and pulled it out, practically yelling into the phone. "I'm coming!"

Once he was out of sight, Emory groaned and laid her head down on the counter, covering her blushing face. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Gerard, who was covered in flour and baking ingredients.

She sighed. "How much of that did you see?"

Gerard rubbed his daughter's back comfortingly. "You'll get better eventually, Emmy."

Emory deadpanned, letting out a sigh. The next time she would see him was on the cover of a magazine, being proclaimed the new teen heartthrob.

If she knew she would get Silas' flirting skills by spending so much time around him, she might've tried to get him kicked out of the house sooner.

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candychronicles · 4 years

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deal // d. kaminari

A/N: My part in the soulmate au bnharem server collab!

CHARACTER PAIRING: Kaminari Denki x Reader

WORD COUNT: 2,187

WARNINGS: nothing that i can think of? just dumb, sweet fluff

SYNOPSIS: in a world full of heros and quirks, finding someone you can love is very, very hard. it’s even harder when you have a soulmate and the words that are tattooed on you are a nightmare. but still, even in this strange world, love finds a way.

TAGS: @jojosmilktea @redbeanteax

Want to be a part of my taglist? Message me!

Want to indulge in some more soulmate ideas? Head on over to the masterlist!

---

in a world full of heros and quirks, finding someone you can love is very, very hard. everyone has the first words your soulmate will ever say to you tattooed on your body. there is not one size, placing or font. it just slowly develops into a full fledged sentence, like a birthmark, as you got older and were able to read more.

some people were absolutely desperate to find their soulmate. they would introduce themselves to as many people as possible, trying out different phrasings constantly. there was a whole app created that was dedicated to sharing your tattoo and trying to meet up with people that matched it. most people, however, believed that soulmates should and would come naturally.

when you were 7, your tattoo was finally developed, and you craned your neck in an attempt to see what was written down your spine. it took you quite a while to figure out the words due to your limited reading abilities and more so the fact that it was hard to read in the mirror. when you finally figured it out, you were absolutely dumbfounded.

“aah! stop! i could’ve dropped my croissant!”

what in the peanut butter fudge does that mean?

you decided that at 7 years old, it didn’t matter to you. it wasn’t until you were twelve that it was even brought back up again. a popular six second video platform went viral and, along with that, came the understanding of where your tattoo came from. suddenly, it was very, very scary, knowing how commonplace your tattoo phrase was.

your heart was broken one too many times by not finding your soulmate, despite hearing those very words over and over again from so many people. you had memorized vine after vine, trying out different ones each time, slowly giving up hope as you approached your 21st birthday. while the platform was dead, the creations made on the app were a forever reminder that you were still, in fact, alone.

on one particularly dark and gloomy afternoon, with heavy, overcast clouds, a thin drizzle of cold rain and a calming yet eerie fog settling onto the street, you walked into your secret, hidden to many, coffee shop, or at least it felt like that for you. you tended to see the same familiar faces, knew all the employees and always tried new things, wanting to support a local business.

you were lost in your own thought when a young man, most likely around your age, bumped into you, balancing precariously a plate with treats and a hot coffee.

“aah! stop! i could’ve dropped my croissant!” he screeched, moving his food and drink away from you, not wanting to spill any, especially on the pretty girl he just bumped into.

without missing a beat, you replied with your own vine reference in the most monotone voice you could muster: “you know what, i’m about to say it. i don’t care than you broke your elbow.”

you were so accustomed to replying to that reference, your brain working before you could even think, randomly grasping at the first memorization that came to mind. it came as a complete shock when the random stranger dropped his food and drink on the floor, mouth wide with a grin, eyes alight with excitement.

you cocked your head quizzically, still not understanding what was going on. at that point in your life, you had given up on finding your soulmate, but it became quite apparent to you that he did not believe the same things or feel the same way.

the strange guy with electric yellow hair and a black streak happily rolled up his shirt sleeve to show you that what you said to him was on his body and, in that moment, everything finally clicked. you had to grab the nearest wall just to wrap your head around the situation. this guy is your soulmate?

with shaky hands, you pulled him to the back game room, apologizing to the workers for the mess as you whisked past him. once you were in the room, you shut the door, breathed once, twice, three times, and then slowly lifted the back of your shirt up to show him the tattoo.

the strange man, without thinking about it, slowly reached his fingers up to the back of your spine, slowly tracing the letters of the words in mesmiration. you, on the other hand, were as still as could be, too entranced by the way his soft fingers felt dancing along your backside. goosebumps rose on your skin and you knew that there was no way to deny or argue the automatic attraction that you felt towards him.

it felt like lightning bolts were shooting out of his fingers, giving you just enough jolt to stay awake, your heart pounding from adrenaline. everything felt so surreal but you could feel that this was the start of something, something truly life changing.

slowly, you lowered your shirt, pulling your back away from his exploring fingers and turned around, looking him in the eye.

“what’s your name?” you whispered out, not trusting your voice to speak any louder at the moment.

“Kaminari Denki, but please, call me Denki,” he answered without skipping a beat, eyes brimming with excitement.

“and what’s yours doll?”

“(l/n) (y/n) but you can just call me (y/n). after all, we’re probably going to be spending quite a lot of time together.”

“while your here, why don’t you sit down with me and we can chat? i just met you but i’m so love struck already. i need to know more about you.”

the two of you ended up spending hours in the shop, stuffing your faces full of pastries and sweet drinks, playing board games, asking each other questions, shamelessly flirting all night. it came as no surprise to either of you that you two would like each other, but to be so content telling a practical stranger your whole life story was still a bit overwhelming for you. you two exchanged numbers and on you went with the rest of your night, then the next day, and then the whole week.

it was practically killing you inside knowing that Denki had not called you yet. he mentioned he was a pro hero, so you knew he must be busy, but the thought of never being able to talk to him again drove you mad. little did you know, Denki was thinking the same things, wondering if he was good enough for you, if you really liked him, if you even wanted to see him again.

after all the moping around you did by yourself, you finally gained the courage to call, leaving a polite message in the voicemail box asking for him to call and discuss some things, hoping you could get some answers out of what was going on.

it only took twenty minutes before Denki’s name was flashing across your phone. you tried to play it cool, allow it to ring a couple of times, but eventually caved and answered, trying to not appear too excited or frazzled.

the conversation ended up lasting hours, with plans to meet up later that week. you two both chuckled when realizing you both felt the same way, not wanting to call if the other wasn’t interested.

the week went by quickly, the first official date arriving much sooner than you expected. Denki had told you nothing except to wear comfortable tennis shoes and athletic clothes. you assumed maybe a hike but you were not prepared for what he actually signed up for: rock climbing.

while heights weren’t your biggest fear, they certainly weren’t something you enjoyed, but you were going to push through and have fun. Kaminari brought out the best in you, fueling your adrenaline side a lot more than expected.

the whole experience was going great, Kaminari going up with you a couple of times to show you the ropes, both literally and physically, when he suggested you try one on your own. it was an indoor facility with plenty of padding, safety ropes and trained staff if any issues arose, but still, it was more terrifying than you were expecting.

you set a slow but steady pace, finally reaching the top, Kaminari cheering you from below. you looked down to give him a smile and a wave, realizing that was a bad idea only when you saw how far you had to jump back down. Kaminari saw it in your face and internally panicked, not sure how to help you in the situation, until he came up with an idea.

“just jump! i’ll catch you. i promise!” he yelled, arms outstretched and ready for your descent.

all it took was a few deep breaths before you let go, jumping down the wall, slipping halfway and fearing you would get injured. Kaminari, however, stayed true to his promise, catching you steadily in his arms, a cheeky, self-satisfied grin on his face.

“i’m picking the date next time,” you declared with a cheeky smile of your own, shimmying out of his grasp.

true to your word, your second official date was picked by yourself, something that was still interesting and adrenaline inducing at times without the fear of dropping from big heights: horseback riding.

you had assumed after the first date he took you to that this would be a nice reprieve from his daily adventures, which was true. what you didn’t assume, however, was the fact that Kaminari was mildly terrified of the giant creatures with hooves.

“oh come on! what are you afraid of?”

“getting kicked, getting bitten, stepped on, bucked off, the list is endless…”

“i won’t let anything happen to you. you caught me last time so i’ll make sure to have your back this time.”

as the day went on, you soon realized that you didn’t need to keep an eye on him. he was riding his horse very well, becoming in tune with his posture and seating, overall making the horse happier. he didn’t even want to leave after your trail ride was all over, you having to drag him back to the car as he stared out the window with puppy dog eyes.

when you made it back to your apartment, you turned towards him, ready to thank him for yet another lovely day, when you felt a pair of warm, eager lips attach themselves onto your own. you were dumbfounded for a minute, not understanding what was going on and therefore not responding. Denki almost took it as a sign that he was going too fast, preparing to pull away when your brain and body finally caught back up.

your lips moved in sync with his, wet tongues and teeth clashing. it wasn’t the prettiest kiss you ever had, but it was filled with such passion and longing that you didn’t know how you were able to pull away.

“wow…” Denki said breathlessly, hands coming up to cup your face and lean in for one more kiss.

“there’s plenty more where that came from,” you squeaked, trying to sound confident but coming out overly excited and slightly embarrassed.

Denki’s face suddenly turned very serious and he shifted in his seat to get a better look at you, you doing the same.

“(y/n), i know we’ve only been going on dates for a couple weeks, and i know there’s still so much more that i want to know about you, but i cannot, in good conscience, let you leave this car without me asking if you want to be my girlfriend. so uh, what do you think?”

your body responded immediately this time, your head bobbing up and down in confirmation, composing yourself for a second before you responded.

“Denki, we’re soulmates. i know it’s fucking scary, i know it may seem even weird, but i have never felt this way about anyone or even anything. i want to be your girlfriend as badly as i want you to be my boyfriend. so yes, boyfriend, i would love to go steady with you.”

before he could respond, you raised one finger in silence, commenting, “but, from now on, we pick the dates together.”

“deal! and uh, i know we’re in your driveway already, but there’s this really good noodle place down the road, and i’m starving. would you want to come with me? i’ll pay,” he admitted, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment, a light flush on his face.“oh, well, if you’re paying, i guess i have no reason to say no, huh?” you joked back, laughing and sticking your tongue out at him.

you both giggled at that, completely isolated from the outside world. at that moment, it was just you and him. while the relationship was still fresh and new, it felt like you guys knew each other for years and yet knew nothing about each other. it didn’t matter, though, because you two knew that things would only get better from there, and you were both prepared for whatever came your way.

#denki kaminari #kaminari denki #kaminari x reader #denki x reader #bnha #mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #boku no hero x reader

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koalitypop · 4 years

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how to make a bookworm fall in love with (all of) you || chapter 2 - “hot chocolate”

chapter 1

pairings: OT7 x reader (in the future), taehyung x reader

tags: love for books, snapping, polyamory (in the future)

word count: 2.3k

a/n: guys, i am so sorry for keeping you waiting for the new chapter. i hope you like it. please, share your thoughts about the story, it is very important for me, i genuinely appreciate it. see ya!

* * *

The fact that you love something doesn’t make it any easier to deal with it. It makes it even harder.

Besides being a massive bookworm, you were also writing since you were just a child. So, it felt natural when you decided to study Literature – it fits perfectly with your dreams for the future and you were enjoying studying. Then the time for the exams came. As any student during the first year of their university education, you were stressed. All these new things happening around you, the teachers, the other students, the fact that you were living all alone in a foreign country, very far away from the place you should call home - it all got too much, to the point that you found yourself coming to a halt in the middle of the street, just to catch your breath and remind yourself that everything will be alright and you can handle it. The last few days you not only felt as you have lost control but also thought you would lash out any minute. And as if all the new and mandatory things around weren’t enough, you decided you want to join a creative writing course, for which you had to prepare a portfolio. It wasn’t something big, but you took it seriously, you wanted to leave a good first impression. You wanted to pursue a career as a writer, so that was just the thing you needed and made it a mission of yours to get in. Despite the constant anxiety and stress, you had to continue reading for the exams and if by any chance you get into the mood for writing, you would close the student books for a little while and start editing the short stories and the poems, which you decided were good enough to use for the portfolio. Drinking tea at a small free refill café instead of sleeping was the only social interaction you could fit in your busy schedule these days, despite really wanting to text Namjoon.

Speaking of Namjoon, you had been texting him for a little over a week now. In all truth, he truly was very caring and kind, a guy every girl can only dream about - he even suggested helping you with the preparation for your exams. You couldn’t deny it – you were crushing on him. And who wouldn’t with his dimples, cordial character and love for books. He was obviously not the only good chick in his band – Jimin, Seokjin, and Yoongi looked like a three-course meal and also kept your mind occupied to the point you had to remind yourself that you are crushing on Namjoon and you also have so much stuff to do in your life right now, you didn’t need any side crushes, for sure. Taking into consideration the handsomeness and the overall personality of one of the members, you can only imagine what kind of angels the other members must be. You waved at the waitress, trying to catch her attention. The cup of tea must have been empty for a while, but you just figured it out. “Another cup of that green tea?” the waitress laughed, picking up the empty one from the table. You just nodded, too tired of trying to memorise some random facts and terms to give a proper answer. Dear Lord, you have been to the café for over five hours. How has the staff not kicked you out? You must look miserable with those books, notebooks, the laptop, all that mess around you. You better finish up this cup quickly and go back home before you get exceptionally strange and annoying. Or maybe they are used to such kind of clients – overworked teens who are nearly falling asleep over their notebooks weren’t a rare sight in South Korea. Studying in a free refill café wasn’t the same as it is described in the books. There is no cookie for the first cup of coffee or tea, the waitress is neither too tired nor too interested in what you do. There is a bit too much noise than one might expect and it is a bit too cold, so you had to wear a sweatshirt and a scarf, sometimes even a thick coat. Some nights you were all alone, but there were also nights when the café was nearly full. Today, for the worse or the better, you didn’t know, there were only two or three occupied tables. The atmosphere there was very snug – it was incredibly quiet, you could only hear the sound of pressed keyboard buttons or writing pens. “Here you are” the waitress placed a cup in front of you, smiling warmly. You took it and just as you were about to take a sip, you sensed the warm and cosy smell of hot chocolate. You would have probably taken a sip, only if the thought about the price you would have to pay for it appeared out of nothing in your mind. It wasn’t much more expensive than the tea, but you had bought only a cup of tea and had drunk several, making the expense worth it. Also, hot chocolate was a very warm and sweet drink, so it would make you even sleepier, you thought. “Sorry, I think there must be a small mistake, I ordered a cup of green tea and this is hot chocolate.” Oh, now they find you annoying. “I know, the green tea is coming in a minute. The man sitting next to the window over there ordered it for you” she giggled, pointing at the man. You instantly turned your head to the side, meeting his eyes. The man, who looked more like a boy, closed his eyes and hid his boxy smile with his hand. He was trying to stop smiling, failing, to the point it made him laugh. Was he laughing at you? And why would he order a cup of hot chocolate for you? “I am sorry, it’s just your reaction, it was really, ah, really adorable,” he continued laughing. So, he was laughing at you. Great. “Thank you,” you murmured, the words sounding more as a question than as a sign of thankfulness. “You have been drinking tea for over four hours and you’re very sleepy. Hot chocolate is a healthier, tastier option for a drink that will keep you awake,” the man said, still with this giant boxy smile on his face. Maybe it was the darkness, maybe it was the fact that you had slept a total of 5 hours in the last six days, but all you could see from his face was his smile. “Thanks, I really appreciate it, it was very nice of you.” “My name is Taehyung. Yours?” “Y/n?” you said, surprised. “Are you telling me or asking me?” he giggled. If he laughs or giggles once more, you wouldn’t be able to take responsibility for your actions. What did he find so funny in you? The fact that you are a foreigner? The huge bags under your eyes? The mess of student books and notebooks, which you had created on the table in front of you? Were you a joke to him? “Here is your green tea, darling” the waitress winked at you. Gosh, you didn’t know about him, but you weren’t trying to flirt him. You had lots of other things to do and most importantly, you already had a crush and maybe even some other side-crushes. “Thank you very much for the hot chocolate and the advice,” you turned your head back to Taehyung, right? “but I am fine with my tea. I appreciate your gesture,” you hissed and stuck your nose back in your notebooks, trying to avoid any more interactions with this man. There was no way you could take this hot chocolate. The hot chocolate was a well-known sign of comfort and cosiness, something, which people normally drink when they are snuggled in their beds with their cats and watch Netflix. Hot chocolate isn’t an energiser, you were sure about that. Or maybe you should google it? No, no need. And he even laughed at you. Why would he buy you a drink and then laugh at your reaction? Why would he buy a drink in the first place? Maybe he does that often, just to feel good about himself about buying random girls a cup of hot chocolate and making them believe that it would help to keep them awake. You were a strong independent young woman, who happened to be a broke student in a foreign country, but that didn’t mean that you would let some random guys buy you drinks. You weren’t so easy. Buy you a drink, give you a piece of advice and then you could make out with him or maybe with some luck have sex with him. Why did the locals think such horrible things about the foreigners? Or maybe it was all in your tired head? It wouldn’t be surprising - you were very stressed out and jittery because of the exams. No, it was the locals. A bit of green tea must help to calm you down. “I insist,” he said, shockingly close to you, making you choke on the tea. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” he laughed. When will he stop laughing? You turned your head, trying to look directly into his eyes, but they were closed, he was laughing so damn hard. “I suggest you and your hot chocolate go back to your table before I explode” you groaned. “Sorry?” You could tell by his expression that he was taken aback indeed. So, there was only one thing you could do – you snapped. “You buy me a drink, tell me that my way of keeping myself awake is incorrect, you laugh at me because of my reaction and then, when I refuse to take that cup of hot chocolate, because of some reasons, which I don’t have to share with you, you decide to come here and startle me. I choke on my tea, the one that I want and I buy by myself, because of you and then you laugh at me again. Is there that you don’t understand?” you growled. You didn’t stop to take a breath, not even once, so you started panting. Your lids felt heavier and you could bet that you can fall asleep on this very chair once Taehyung or whatever his name was, goes back to his table. Well, now that he was closer to you, you could take a look. He was hot. Brown hair, perfect skin, and amazing face features, oh dear, he was one very good-looking jerk. Maybe you shouldn’t have refused that cup of tea. Jesus. Y/n, you are a strong, independent woman, who has a perfect crush like Namjoon, who is not only incredibly attractive but also well-mannered, has a wonderful personality and loves books. And has awesome fellow members. “You must have been on edge. Sorry for laughing, this seems to truly disturb you. I just have such tendencies, I always laugh, when I shouldn’t. Is there any way I can help?” he said simply, his voice so sweet and gentle. Now, you truly felt bad. He might have just had good intentions, he might have wanted to help a fellow student out, but you had to ruin everything. He might have been one of your first friends here in South Korea. What now? He probably hates you. “Have a seat,” you sighed, embarrassed, “sorry for all of that. I had some hard times recently and I was either on the verge of an anxiety attack or on the edge of snapping. In any case, you shouldn’t be the one I throw all of my emotions onto. Is there any way I can make it up to you?” “How old are you?” he quietly asked. “Eighteen. And you?” “Twenty-one. I know how you can make it up to me. You can hang out with me.” You were right to snap at him. Hang out with him? After this whole thing? He was crazy, no doubt. “Why would you want to hang out with me? I just lashed out onto you because you were nice to me.” you gasped. “You are 18 and you are obviously a foreigner. You said you had some hard times recently, so you must have just moved to Korea. Despite your snapping, you invited me to sit down at your table and apologised. Also, it is around 3 am and you have drunk more than 10 cups of green tea, so if you didn’t start barking at me, I would have thought that you are on some hard drugs. All in all, I think you are a good person. I don’t have many friends and I like that fact that you love literature-” “Wait a minute, how do you know that I love literature?” you interrupted. “Looking at your student books you study Literature. So, why would you study it if you don’t like it?” That man was very observant. And strange. And bluntly honest. And positive. And you liked him. But not liking like crush-liking. You already had Namjoon for that. Liking like friend-liking. “You are right,” you said, amazed. “When is your last exam?” he changed the topic of your conversation once again. “In six days.” “Okay, give me your phone number. I will text you in six days so that we can arrange a place and time to meet.” Taehyung explained to you, giving you his phone. You checked the digits twice, can’t risk not being able to contact him again. “And your phone number?” you asked, giving him your phone. “You don’t need any distractions right now. Take care.” Taehyung smiled softly, went to his table just to take his bag and left the café, leaving you speechless.

And definitely distracted.

taglist:

@salomea27 @ireallylikefoodandyoutube @purpleheartsfortae @omg-sol-s-dreamland

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harlot-of-oblivion · 5 years

Text

A Rose of Unconscious Beauty (Part 6)

All work and no play make Dante a dull devil, but when he finds out about his brother's flowery friend he sees an opportunity to cure his boredom. Well, that and his curiosity about what kind of woman catches Vergil's attention. So, he decides to spontaneously visit your garden to see what all the buzz is about.

Hope you enjoy these two finally meeting! And gardening puns...just all the gardening puns. 😆❤

Here’s the link to the list of all the flowers featured in this part. 🌹🥰🌹

Chapter 1: Meeting Dante

Life has been pretty good for Dante since he got back from his little foray into hell. He may still be in quite a bit of debt, but that never stops him from living life to the fullest. For the first time in a long time he does not feel so alone in the Devil May Cry shop. There is just one problem that plagues him now as he leans back in his chair, feet propped up on the edge of his desk as a huge overdrawn yawn escapes his mouth…

He is bored.

Very, very…BORED.

The occasional odd job usually keeps him entertained, but business has been slow recently. There is only so much games of pool and swimsuit magazines before Dante is positively itching to fight something…anything. Nero has taken advantage of this dry spell and is finally getting hitched to Kyrie. Even Vergil, who he annoys into fighting sometimes just for sheer fact that it relieves his boredom for a while, has taken to disappearing from time to time.

Oh yeaaaaah. The mysterious flowery friend.

Dante ponders the potential of that whole situation giving him something to do besides sitting alone in his shop. He did not think it strange when Vergil started to go out more…in fact, he is proud that his brother is finally embracing his humanity and making this world his home. But when his cranky brother came back to the shop with pretty little blue flowers wrapped around his beloved Yamato…well, now that just piqued his curiosity. He tries to goad Vergil into telling him where he got the flowers or where he has been disappearing off to lately, but that conversation usually ends with him being stabbed a lot. Dante got his answer one day when Nero asks if he knew this florist that his old man just recommended to him. It all just suddenly clicked. The constant visits, the soft cloud nine smiles, just the overall secrecy…

Vergil…has a crush.

Just the idea of his brother being head over heels for someone has Dante shaking his head in wonder. Vergil has already left the shop, probably visiting his florist friend if Dante had to guess. It happens to be the day that Nero and Kyrie are supposed to meet their savior of flowers. He wanted to tag along to see what all the hype is about, but Nero absolutely refused to let him. Usually, that is not enough to deter Dante, but then his nephew just had to sick Kyrie on him. And how could anyone say no to her? So, here he sits…extremely bored and very curious.

I have to know if it’s true…if my dumbass brother really is lovestruck…

A sudden idea pops into Dante’s head as he takes out his cellphone and begins to text:

Dante: Hey! Gonna see your old mans flower girl today, amiright?

Nero: NO. Forget it.

Nero: Im not spying 4 u

Dante: NO ONE said ANYTHING about spying!

Dante: Just a couple of pics!

Nero: NO U CREEP

Dante: OH C’MON!!!

Dante taps on his screen vigorously as he provokes his stubborn nephew to reply, but after a few minutes of continued silence he gives up. He rolls his eyes as he groans in mild irritation and drops his phone onto the desk. His nimble fingers stroke his scruffy chin in thought, wondering if there will ever be an end to this torturous boredom…then it hits him faster than the Devil May Cry van. Nico! Dante snaps his fingers and nods his head in approval at his own ingenious idea. He snatches his phone back up and begins to text again:

Dante: Heyyyyyyy

Nico: Wat

Dante: Wanna help a friend out?

Nico: Lemme guess

Nico: U want me to spy for ya, right?

Dante: A couple of pics is NOT spying

Nico: Yeah yeah whatever

There is a long pause and Dante almost thinks his last-ditch effort is a bust. Until…

Nico: Mayyyyybe I’ll do it

Nico: Wats in it for me tho?

Dante only has to think about her prize for second before replying.

Dante: I’ll let you check out my guns

Nico: Ive already seen my fair share of muscles

Dante: Im talking about Ebony and Ivory

Nico: U GOTTA FUCKIN DEAL

Dante clenches his fist in victory. Nico tells him to hold tight while she finds a good hiding spot and the perfect angle. So, he grabs the nearest swimsuit magazine to read while he waits for Nico’s sneaky photos.

He only has to read a couple of pages of articles and check out a few curvy ladies before his phone vibrates. “Well now…let’s see what we've got,” he announces aloud as his hand instantly picks up his phone and eagerly opens up the message. Here she is! is written below two pictures of a bubbly woman with a bright smile and lively eyes. In one photo she is sitting down at a garden table, and in the other she is standing by a bed of flowers. She is wearing white summer dress and has a white flower in her hair. Dante chuckles in glee because now he understands why his brother has fallen so hard: the local florist is a total babe!

Dante is about to get back to his magazine when another text from Nico comes through:

Nico: Yoooooooooo

Nico: U didnt tell me that Vergil was gonna be here!

Dante: Im not my brother’s keeper!

Nico: Im NOT about to get stabbed if he catches me

Nico: Im out

Dante: WAIT

Dante: I’ll sweeten the deal!

Dante: If you get a pic of them together

Nico: DANTE

Dante: Then I’ll let you check out my guns

Dante: FOR A WEEK

A very long pause follows and Dante thinks that Nico is still going chicken out despite his sudden add on to her prize when her response chimes in:

Nico: U better hold up your end of the deal, Dante

Dante: Nicooooo u know I always keep my word!

Nico: Cuz if u dont, I’ll run u over with the van

Dante: No u wont

Nico: VROOM VROOM BITCH

Dante’s amused chuckle echoes throughout the shop. “So, that’s where you’re running off to,” he comments to himself. “The secret garden.” As he waits for Nico’s next photo, he starts to wonder what kind of a woman catches the eye of his broody brother. I mean…sure, you’re a cutie, but Dante knows that Vergil is not so easily swayed by looks alone. Of course, he could be reading into this too much and you’re actually just a really adorable friend…which is why he has to see both of you together. If Vergil has that soft smile on his face and if you show any sign of reciprocating his brother’s feelings…

His phone vibrates and Dante immediately opens the message. How's this for ya? reads Nico’s text along with a bunch of laughing emojis and a video clip. He arches an eyebrow as he presses play. He sees Nero, Kyrie, Vergil, and you all walking together by a bunch of flowers. He cannot make out the soft conversation of the group, but he does hear a lighthearted giggle as you do a twirl. Dante squints his eyes when he notices your hand reach for something in your dress…then his eyes widen as you throw petals into the air. The distinct growl of his brother comes through the audio and Dante nearly chokes on his own laugh. Some of the little pink flowers you threw…are sticking to Vergil’s hair!

I’m totally saving this just for the look on his face!

Dante kicks his feet off of the desk and he leans forward in his chair, never taking his eyes off the screen as Nero and Kyrie step out of frame. He tilts his head when Vergil kneels and you start to pluck the flowers from his hair. Dante has to rub his eyes to make sure he is really seeing these events correctly. Things get really interesting when you move in closer. The awkward expression on his brother’s face is pure gold. But what really has him pressing his nose to the screen is when Vergil stands up and you both just stare at each other. It is like a scene cut straight from a romantic movie. Dante has never seen his brother look so…totally in love. And you are mirroring the exact same expression.

Jackpot!

The video starts to shake and he hears Nico quietly cursing up a storm. The screen is a blur for a moment before it just totally cuts off. Dante is still for a while as he takes in everything that just happened. He honestly did not expect Vergil to be bitten by the love bug. A genuine smile curls on his lips as he thinks that maybe you are exactly what his brother needs to finally let go of the past and start living. But he cannot be the helpful little brother that he is without at least meeting you first. The genuine smile turns mischievous as Dante texts Nico about happened after the video ended and where exactly is this secret garden in the city...

(A Week Later...Reader’s POV)

The late afternoon sun beats down as you wipe the sweat from your brow. You examine the rambling roses you are currently pruning, checking to see if you missed anything before standing up and stretching your legs. Sweet basil, it’s hot, you thought, taking off your gardening hat and fanning your face as you pocket your pruning shears. You think about Vergil and how he always seems to keep cool while wearing a long blue coat in the summer.

The power of Sparda must also include internal air conditioning. You giggle at your own quip as you put the gardening hat back on your head and decide to take a break. As you walk through the multitude of flowers you search for any sign of the Son of Sparda among the flora. He has not called to inform you that he is stopping by today, but that does not necessarily mean he will not show up unannounced…annoyingly startling you before buttering you up with an offering of beautiful blooms.

Vergil has been regularly visiting you in your garden now. Sometimes both of you read and drink tea under the fruit trees, other times you have to work and just let him read in peace while frolicking about your garden. Every now and then he insists on looming close behind you, claiming that he wants to observe how you arrange bouquets and care for the flowers. There are a few times that you somehow rope him into helping since he is so inclined to learn and you must admit…seeing a tall and imposing man handle tiny flowers carefully is so endearing, making you fall even harder for the handsome devil.

You step through the backdoor and walk into your kitchen, heading straight for the fridge and swiftly open the door. When the cold air hits your face you sigh and just stand there for a moment to cool off as you reach for a bottle of water. You close the fridge and head to your office to check the status of a shipment on your computer while you guzzle down half of the bottle. The flowers for Nero and Kyrie’s wedding are well in supply, but you ordered some extra ribbon, wires, needles, and other miscellaneous supplies. It is a little stressful that you only have so much time to pull this off, but that only pushes you to do your utmost best to give them the best flowers they have ever seen. All seems to be order, you mentally note, finishing off your water bottle as you tab out of the website.

Time to get back to work! You go back out to the garden, grab the garden hose, and turn on the outdoor faucet. You adjust the nozzle on the hose to spray into a mist and set off to water some flowers. “Alright, my darlings!” you say cheerfully as you step up to the first section of flowers. “Who’s thirsty?” You happily spray their petals with glistening droplets as you hum softly. One of the many reasons why you enjoy gardening so much is just how tranquil it can be, your mind slipping into a peaceful state as all your worries just drift away and you feel like a flower basking in the warm sunlight.

Although, you do find yourself ceaselessly daydreaming about a certain white-haired gentleman while gardening lately. You cannot get the feel of his slicked back locks out of your thoughts, yearning to do more than just pluck petals from his hair. You wonder if the bergamot scent is from a cologne he is wearing or the constant cups of his favorite tea. And the expression on his face after you picked the stray petals from his hair…cheeks slightly blushing as his gleaming silver eyes stare straight into your soul. The very memory of it has you shivering in delight as you turn around to water the next section of flowers.

“Holy hollyhock!”

The sudden appearance of a man in a long red jacket standing in your garden has you jumping back in surprise. Your foot steps on the garden hose, making you lose your balance and start to tip over. Thankfully, the stranger has quick reflexes and quickly leans forward to catch your fall. “Whoa! Easy there!” he exclaims as he sets you upright, doing his best to avoid the misty spray of the hose still clutched in your hand. That is when you notice his distinct white hair swaying in front of his blue eyes. And his face…if it was not for the slight fuzz of a beard or the care-free expression, he would be the spitting image of Vergil. Which can only mean…

“You must be Dante.”

“What gave it away?” he asks, dramatically holding his hands out to the side as he nods his head in confirmation.

“You wouldn’t be a Son of Sparda if you didn’t scare your local gardener to death!”

Dante tilts head at your answer and smirks as he examines you from head to toe. “I dig the overalls,” he comments as he gestures to your attire. You look down at your green gardening overalls, the phrase "I like big buds and I cannot lie" imprinted on the front surrounded by large colorful flower buds.

“Thanks!” you laugh, turning off the garden hose. “I’m Y/N! I don’t recall Vergil saying that he was going to finally introduce me to you.”

“So, he’s told you about me? Did he mention that I am the better-looking twin?” he jests as he takes a step back and strikes a charmingly rugged pose.

“Uh, he mentioned that you are a demon hunter, a foolish buffoon, and…whoa!” Your eyebrows shoot up as you closely examine his coat. “Your jacket does look really expensive!”

Dante rolls his eyes as he relaxes from his over-the-top stance. “He just can’t let that go, huh?” He shakes his head and lightly chuckles.

“So…what brings you to my garden?” you inquire kindly, not letting his surprise visit distract you from being hospitable. Dante did not mention his brother being present here with him, so you hope that Vergil does not mind you being friendly and helping his brother out if he needs it.

“The girls keep telling me I need something to brighten up the shop,” he explains as he scratches the back of his head. “So, I figured some flowers from my brother’s friendly neighbor florist might do the trick.”

You smile sweetly. “Okay! Do you have any kind of flowers in mind?”

“Well, my mother’s favorite flowers were-”

“Burgundy roses!”

Dante quirks an eyebrow. “Did you just read my mind?”

A giggle escapes your lips as you shake your head. “Vergil told me that his mother had a modest garden herself, and that she grew those roses a lot. Don’t worry,” you affirm as your hand sets down the garden hose. A big confident smile spreads across your face as you twirl in excitement, pausing to strike your own cute pose. “I got you covered!”

He nods his head in approval. “Right on.”

You make small talk with Dante as you lead him to the rose section of your garden, asking if by “the girls” he means the other two demon hunters that work with him. He confirms your guess and grumbles about how unfair it is that you know so much the crew while he knows next to nothing about you. That is quickly remedied though as he bombards you with the oddest series of questions…most of them involving strawberries and pizza. When you tell him that you used to work at the local pizzeria and bakery in your home town he enthusiastically asks if you made the pizzas. You laugh at his boyish glee and inform him that you sometimes helped with the pizzas, but you mostly baked the pastries and desserts.

“Here we are!” You point to a bush full of the dark reddish-purple roses as you step through the various buds and blooms. “Roses of unconscious beauty!” Dante studies the rose bush as you approach it, lean in, and inhale their lovely fragrance. You breathe out in delight and start looking for the best blooms for a bouquet. “Aren’t they lovely?” You look over your shoulder and see that Dante is barely paying attention. His blue green eyes gaze distantly at the rose bush, reminding you a little of Vergil’s silver blue eyes when he recedes into his head. You wait a moment before deciding to coax him out of pensive stupor.

“Flower for your thoughts?”

Dante blinks and shakes his head. “Sorry about that. I was just…remembering something.” He walks over and stands next you, a small grin appears on his face as he peers down at you. “These would look nice on my desk. I’ll take ‘em.”

“Alright!” You reach into your pocket, taking out the pruning shears still stored in there and begin snipping some select roses, carefully removing the thorns before sticking them in another pocket until you can properly tie them together.

Dante quietly watches you for a few moments before he crosses his arms and leisurely leans back. “So…you and my brother.”

You snip a third rose as you glance over at him. “Me and your brother…?” you repeat, hoping he will expand upon the conversation he started. Dante just continues to gaze at you inquisitively. Your brow furrows in puzzlement as you wonder what he is trying to imply…until it suddenly hits you.

No way. He can’t be…

“Are you…Dad-terogating me?”

“Am I what now?”

“You know…that thing fathers do when daughters bring home their boyfriends.” Your voice drops as you do your best impersonation a stern father figure. “What are your intentions little girl?”

“Oh man,” Dante snickers. “And what if I am?” he counters with a puckish smirk.

“Well, Mr. Sparda,” you begin with a cheeky grin, turning to him while you clutch a thornless burgundy rose close to your chest. “I only have the best intentions towards your brother, Vergil. They include smiles, laughter, and a healthy dose of poetry with dash of tea…Oh!” You dip your hand into the front pocket of your overalls. “And lots of flower showers!” Your grin turns cheerful as you toss pink hydrangea petals high into the air.

Dante stares at you closely for a moment, totally unfazed by the petals scattering around him before he chuckles softly. “Well now…how can I argue with that? My party pooper of a brother needs it.”

You giggle and go back to snipping more roses. A fourth one is freed and you begin to remove the thorns from the stem. “It’s sweet of you to look out for him, you know,” you point out with a genuine smile. “You’re a good brother, Dante.”

He smiles back and is about to respond when an awful hellish screech fills the air. Your head snaps over to the direction it is coming from, but you already know what those sounds mean. Dante casually looks over as well, but he does not look as concerned as you. His face reminds you more of the neighborhood kids when the ice cream truck drives by. “Looks like our flower pickin’ is gonna have to wait,” he surmises as he struts briskly towards the commotion.

You pocket the pruning shears and the rose in your hand as you hurriedly follow behind him. The screeching is now really loud and as you step into to a clearing you see the familiar forms of demons just beyond the gates of your garden. Even though you live in a city known for its constant hellish attacks, the sight of their malformed bodies never fails to freeze your blood. The closest one, resembling a large corrupted bat, flies over the gate and hovers near one of your apple trees. It shrieks as its throat starts to glow red. Anger floods through your body when you register what it intends to do to your lovely fruit trees.

“Oh, no you DON’T!” you shout as you run by the gardening tools still laying out, grabbing the garden hoe as you pass by and rush towards the bat-like creature. It swivels around just as you draw your makeshift weapon back and swing up at it with all your strength. The hoe connects and a pained squeal rings out as the demon is knocked back a little bit away from the apple tree. You let out a shuddering breath, quickly realizing that perhaps smacking a demon with a gardening tool was not the best idea.

Multiple gunshots startle you out of your internal dread as they streak up at the bat-like demon. It shakes violently before it drops to the ground and disintegrates. You turn around and see Dante holstering two guns behind his back before giving you a round of applause. “Not bad! Very inventive use of…” his hands pause as he inspects your tool curiously.

“It’s a hoe,” you bluntly inform him.

“Really?” Dante puts his hands on his hips as he circles around you, shielding you from the oncoming demons notice. “Well then…you really know how to handle a hoe!”

You snort and check your tool for any signs of it being broken or bent. “You know what they say…a dirty hoe is a happy hoe!” you joke, flashing him the disgusting bloody residue on the tip. Dante hunches over as a hearty laugh burst from his lips. You feel a sense of accomplishment at making such a clever gardening pun, but it is short lived as a series of terrible growls and roars remind you of the current danger. “Umm,” you mutter softly, “as much as I would like to give more demons a good hoeing…”

Dante reigns in his boisterous laughter and nods. “Yeah...get yourself to safety.” He runs and skillfully jumps over the gate. Before he goes to deal with the demons, he looks over his shoulder at you. “Even though I’m not a hoe I can still get rid of these nasty weeds,” he quips with a wink.

You laugh and shake your head at his own gardening pun before retreating back to your house, sighing in relief as your backdoor comes into view. When you are a few feet away from safety, a low rumbling growl reaches your ears, making you stop in your tracks. You still have your garden hoe, so you hold it up in defense as you scan your surroundings for any immediate threat. It is quiet for a moment…then a series obscure red streaks zoom around you. Your eyes try to track whatever is circling you, but you cannot see what is stalking you like prey.

Your body is quaking now as you turn around to glance behind you. A lizard-like demon with a vicious red blade protruding from one of its scaly arms is leaping through the air straight at you. Your instincts kick in and you raise your gardening tool up in defense, even though you feel certain that it will not enough to block that sharp blade. A series of tumultuous emotions sling around your mind, but one strongly overtakes you as the image of Vergil pops into your head…regret.

I didn’t even get to tell him that-

Before you are able to close your eyes and brace yourself for the deadly impact, a sudden blur of blue spheres pop up and knock back your scaly assailant. A familiar form clad in a blue coat suddenly appears next to the demon and proceeds to hit it with a series of slashes. When he finishes his ruthless onslaught, he turns his back on the demon and dramatically sheaths his sword. Just as the hilt of the sword slams into the case, the demon convulses in pain one last time before collapsing on the ground.

The regret you felt earlier fades away as your devilish rescuer turns towards you. The usual scowl on his face is now even more severe as he scrutinizes your appearance. He may be fuming with rage, but you do not mind, nor do you care. “Vergil!” you cry, trying to thank him for saving your life, but you feel so overwhelmed that no words come out. All you can do is smile gratefully as your eyes well up with tears, so happy that you get to see the man you feel so deeply for again after all.

Read Part 6 (Ch. 2) here

Read on my Ao3

My Master List if you want more ❤

Tagging: @drusoona, @thedyingmoon, @bettybattaglia, @veenus-ow, @meowykittenn, @fandomhell97, @vergilsangel, @venomous-lawyer, @alicewinchester

#vergil x reader #vergil #devil may cry #dmc 5 #romance #fluff #flowers #the language of flowers #gardener reader #writing #fanfiction #humor #meeting the family #hijinks and shenanigans #wingman dante #A Rose of Unconscious Beauty #a rose among the briars #and just like that a legendary wingman is born #harlot writes

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lovemesomesurveys · 4 years

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S c h o o l Did you/do you like school? Looking back after a few years, I think I did overall. I wouldn’t have said that in the moment, though. I got very easily overwhelmed, stressed, and burnt out. Many tears were shed. A lot of anxiety was induced. I hated the presentations and taking exams. There were parts I did like, though. There were assignments, books, courses, teachers, and activities that I liked. The learning aspect of stuff that was of real interest to me was enjoyable. What was/is the best thing about going to school? The worst? I listed the good and bad in my previous answer. All that being said, I do believe education is good and important. What was/is your favourite subject? Least favourite? My favorite was always english and then psychology, obviously. That was my major. My least was always math. That was the absolute worst. Who was/is your favourite teacher? Least favourite? My favorite in elementary and middle school (my school was a K-8th grade) was Mr. McGill. He was my 4th grade teacher, but he ended up being an 8th grade teacher later on and I was able to have him again. He was very funny and cool and made learning fun. He genuinely cared about his students. Everyone loved him. In high school it was my sophomore history teacher, Mr. Coffey. He reminded me so much of Rob Dyrdek from how he looked to how he acted. He was cool. He always jammed out to Red Hot Chili Peppers before class. In college I had a few awesome professors. College professors are usually pretty rad.

What did/do you do for break/recess? Recess I just hung out with my friends. I forget what we did, exactly. I couldn’t go on the playground (I’m in a wheelchair). I probably just watched them for awhile or something. I remember playing 4-square. Probably stuff like tag as well. I honestly don’t really remember what I did for recess in elementary school. In middle school we just hung out. *shrug* Oh, and had snacks cause most of us always brought chips or whatever to munch on before lunch. People were suddenly your best friend if you had Hot Cheetos haha. In school break was lunch and I just ate and hung out with friends mostly. In college if I was campus for a long time I usually ate between classes, studied, did some reading, got coffee, messed around on my phone and watched YouTube or Netflix or something. Did you/do you do any after school activities? What? In 5th and 6th grade I was a Girl Scout. In middle school we had electives, but that was during school so I guess that doesn’t count. I think it was like toward the end of the school day, though. Oh, also my local community college offered some fun classes for kids during the summer and I did some of those. In high school I was in a couple clubs. I was VP for one of them. When I was at community college I was an active club and then board member of the psychology club. In university I didn’t do anything, ha. I went to my classes and went home. Did you/do you take part in a club or sport at school? What? No sports, but yeah the club stuff I just listed. ^^^ What age did you start school? Like 3 in preschool. If you've left school do you wish you were still there? Nope! haha. I served my time as I say. I’m doneeee. S l a n d e r Do you take things people say at face value? Not always. Depends what they’re telling me, obviously. If someone was like, “there’s a huge meteor crashing to earth tomorrow” I’m gonna look into that lol. What is the worst rumour that has been spread about you? There weren’t any. Not that I ever knew of, anyway. I wasn’t relevant. Can you honestly say you never act two faced? No. I think we’ve all been fake in some way or another at some time or another. Some people are just fake people, though. Like that’s just who they are as a person, ya know? I’m not one of those people, but I can’t say that I’ve never been before. Do you get talked about behind your back often [someone tells you]? I’m sure my former friends have talked a lot of shit about me over the past few years and rightfully so. I wouldn’t blame them at all. Now I’m probably not even on their radar anymore and they probably just don’t give a shit, which I also wouldn’t blame them for. Apart from that, I mean I’m sure people have said stuff about me behind my back and I’ve been told things before. For the most part; though, I really feel like I was always pretty insignificant and not even on most people’s radar. Do you believe everyone is somewhat of a gossip? Yeah, pretty much. Some are just make it their life; though, and live for the gossip and drama. Don't you think those who insult others and their lives just seriously need to get a life of their own? I don’t understand the obsession some people have for people they claim to dislike or hate. Like, why are they so invested and give any of their time to someone they don’t like? It makes NO sense. I see that so much on the internet. I watch YouTubers and there will be so many haters who just have to get their fix and watch the video and talk shit about the person. They just have to leave that comment and make it known. I’m just like, WHY. I don’t waste my time watching or following up on someone I don’t like. I don’t feel the need to leave a rude comment. It’s real easy to just X out the video and find something else. Why waste your time??? I’ve just really been seeing that a lot lately especially on YouTube. Same with celebrities. There’s some I’m not a fan of or don’t particularly care for, but I have the need to go tweet and tell them that I don’t like them or talk shit in their comments. Make comments to yourself or to someone privately, but you don’t need to make it known to the person. I just move along with your life. That goes for anyone. We all talk shit sometimes, don’t act like you never do, but you don’t need to insult people to their face. S p o r t s Do you like sports in general? Nope. Do you prefer field sports, team sports or other? I prefer no sports. Do you run/jog regularly? Nope. Do you like/enjoy swimming? What's your usual stroke? Nope. What sport do you like to watch but not to play? None. What sport do you like to play but not to watch? None. Who is your favourite sportsman/woman? What sport do they play? I don't have one. Are you sporty, average or hate sports? Sports are just not my thing, man. R a p Do you like rap music? Yeah. Whose your favourite rap artist? Why? I have several. I’m probably most into Post Malone these days. I like Drake, too. There’s also the newer genre, emo rap, that I’m into as well. That includes like Juice WRLD and Travis Scott. Thennn there’s like rap rock. Linkin Park, one of my top favorite bands, fall under that category. Whose your least favourite rap artist? Why? Hmm. Name me a few rap songs that you like? I don’t wanna. Name me a few rap songs you dislike? I don’t wanna. Is rap one of your top 3 genres of music? I don’t know, man. I just like variety. Eminen or Dr. Dre? Eminem. Dizzy Rascal or Will.i.am? I don’t think I’ve heard of Dizzy Rascal. D12 or Bone Thugs n Harmony? I liked a couple songs by D12. Haven’t listened to them in a long time, though. R e a d i n g Do you like reading? I love to read. What's your favourite book? Whose your favourite author? I can’t choose a favorite. I just can’t. I’ve been reading a longgggg time and have read a lottttttt of books. I have too many favorites. Fiction or Non Fiction? I like fiction better. Sci-Fi or Historical Novel? Hm. Probably sci-fi out of the two. Fantasy or Horror? Horror. Romance or War Novel? Romance. Do you prefer films or books? I enjoy both. How many books do you think you own? Quite a lot, but not as much as I used to. I’ve been reading a lot of ebooks for the past several years, so I have a lot of those. I have a lot saved in my Kindle app. What books have you read that made you sad? I’ve read countless number of sad books. What books have you read that frightened you? I read a lot of mystery and psychological thriller, so. What books have you read that were terrible? The only ones I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve read are the Fifty Shades of Gray series. :X What books have you read that left you wanting more? So many. I get really into a book and the characters. I love a series. R e l i g i o n Do you believe in God? Yes. Do you believe in multiple Gods/Goddesses? No. What is your religion called? Christian. Do you believe in Angels and Demons? Yes. Do you believe in Heaven and Hell? Yes. Do you believe in The Devil? Yes. Not like how he’s portrayed in movies and such, like the red dude with a pitchfork, but yes. What rule/ideal in your religion do you think is the most important? The 10 Commandments. What, to you, is the difference between spirituality and religion? Religion consists of practices, beliefs, and a relationship with God. Spirituality is more within yourself. Q u e s t i o n s O f O d d n e s s Do you like tandoori chicken? Never had it. I don’t even know what that is. Can you hear a man's voice right now? On the TV. What nations tea is the best? I don't know. Can you remember what you were doing at 12.30pm yesterday? Sleeping. Does the colour purple make you feel a particular emotion? No. What age are you going to be in 2020? I’m turning 31 this year. D: What colour are your siblings eyes? Brown. Do you more often get a sore throat, cough or sneeze? Sore throat or cough. Do you get more headaches, earaches, toothaches or sore eyes? Headaches and sore eyes. Do you usually wear plain coloured clothes or dual/multi coloured? I wear a lot of black, but it has stuff on it it’s not just a plain black shirt. How far away is the nearest take away place from your house? Like a 2 minute drive. Do you think sarcasm is a good tool or just annoying? It can be annoying when done excessively. It can just be rude sometimes. I have my sarcastic moments, though. What photos do you have on your phone? Saved photos of stuff I found online, my doggo, some of me, just various things. What's the model of your phone? iPhone XR. Do you drink hot honey and lemon when ill? Nope. My younger brother swears by that kind of stuff when he’s sick. What word would sum up today? It’s only 6 in the morning. I need to go to bed omg. This week? Uh, itt’s just starting. This month? Meh. This year? Way too soon to say. Favourite type of muffin? Banana without the nut and blueberry. Streusel on top makes them even better.

#personal #text #this is a long one #survey #surveys

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rosewinterborn · 5 years

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11/11/11

I waited too long to do this, so now I have 44 questions to do. RIP. Tagged by @writersblockandapotoftea, @arwallace (I know you tagged @expositionpreposition but it’s easier to do it here!), @shit-she-wrote, and @atinydino

Cap:

Who was your childhood hero?

Honestly, probably JKR. Again, RIP.

If we didn’t start the fire, who did?

People like my dad who say “millennials” like it’s a derogatory word probably

What made you start your wip?

Reading too much Dresden Files and also looking at magic academia posts on Tumblr (Gutter Witch); Reading Eragon (Companion to Dragons); Wanting to make an open magic world (Witches Anthology); Reading too much Stucky fanfiction (Fractal); Listening to the Magnus Archives three times through in a month (CHAF3k); wanted to go on a magic adventure with my high school friends (Children of the Light)

Hogwarts house?

Gryffindor!

Star Trek or Star Wars

Star Wars, though I like both

What was your pre-teen bop?

Uhhh Taylor Swift’s whole second album

If you could have a fantasy creature as a pet, what would you pick?

A dragon about the size of a cat that could sit on my shoulder and talk to me

What’s your pet peeve?

Feeling like people are upset with me but won’t talk to me about it

Dracula or Frankenstien’s Monster?

Haven’t read Dracula so Frankenstein’s monster, I guess.

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve said to a friend?

I mean I had a conversation with two lesbians about dildos yesterday, soooo

If you had to murder someone, who would it be?

No one. I honestly don’t think I’d be able to live with myself after.

A R Wallace

Which book(s)/series would you compare your current WIP(s) to?

The Dresden Files. Though I did have someone say it was like reading a better-written Mortal Instruments. I was tickled.

Would you be willing to adapt your WIP into a movie one day? Why or Why not?

Yes. Please. Let me see my work come to life.

What is your ‘writing ritual’? (do you make sure you’ve made a cup of tea, sit in a particular spot, etc.)

I don’t have any particular ritual, I usually just try and seize the energy when I have it. Right now I am trying to sit at my actual desk to work, though, and during school if I had anything that I desperately needed to get done I took my ass to a coffee shop and told myself I wasn’t allowed to leave until it was done.

How much has writeblr helped you with your writing?

It helped me find a writing community that inspired me to get back to work after the depression had taken it away from me. I’m not as active on writeblr as maybe I could be, but the writing discord I found through it has been a lifeline.

If you could be one creature (real or mythical), what would you be?

A dragon. But like, one of the ones that can shapeshift. I also like being human.

Sum up your favorite WIP in one sentence

Oh god I’m supposed to have a favorite? That’s not gonna happen…

Gutter Witch: Local teens sick and tired of prophetic bullshit

Children of the Light: Estranged assholes learn to love each other again and also stop the apocalypse

Fractal: Hell on Earth in so many ways

Companion to Dragons: Girl’s asshole father sends her and her sister on a suicide mission and thinks that’s the end of it (surprise!)

Witches Anthology: literally a whole bunch of short stories so I’m not gonna try

Which of your characters is your favorite?

Whyyyyyy idk in GW probably Hunter, he’s fun to write. Overall maybe Sterling, my enby necromancer in the anthology

Which of your characters is your least favorite?

Hunter’s mother. Like honestly, every time I write about her she gets worse.

What do you believe is the most overused trope in your WIP’s genre(s)?

Melodrama.

Favorite season?

Autumn

If you could travel anywhere in the universe, where would you go?

Several places in Europe, in no particular order.

Eva:

1. What’s the first story you remember writing?

A story about a cat and a mouse becoming friends.

2. How has your taste in books changed since childhood?

I’ve tended a lot less towards high fantasy. I think it’s too much of an energy investment to try and understand the worldbuilding right now, whereas you can usually just jump into urban fantasy. I’ve also gotten a lot more interested in horror.

3. Do you see any similarities to your favorite books in your work? If yes, what are they?

If I’m being real honest, most of my wips are direct rip-offs of stuff I’ve read/watched/listened to, at least in the first draft. I usually try and direct my obsessions into creative energy at some point, with differing amounts of success.

4. What sort of music inspires you?

Stuff with strong beats/baseline and vaguely rebellious lyrics. So like, lots of Imagine Dragons and Fall Out Boy. But also trailer music like Epic Score and Two Steps from Hell

5. Favorite book?

These are the most evil kinds of questions you guys.

I can’t think of any published books I’d call my absolute favorite, but I do have a handful of fanfics I read on at least an annual basis: War, Children, by Nonymos; To Be Vulnerable Is Needed Most of All, by perfect_plan; and Schroedinger’s Romance by lesbuchanan

6. Favorite mythology (Greek, Norse, etc.)?

Probably Celtic? I’m really rusty on it though

7. Dream vacation?

A long, long trip through Europe without having to worry about money

8. Favorite writing snack?

I don’t really eat when I write because its too much of a distraction :P

9. What tea do you drink the most while writing?

Irish Breakfast

10. Do you have a special writing cup, that you drink tea out of specifically when writing to fill you up with inspiration?

I have a couple I’m more likely to grab, like my Night Vale Community Radio mug or my white Starbucks mug with the gold lettering

11. Write your favorite quote from your recent wip!!

Just outside the beam of light was a circle of what looked like black paint, tiny sigils scratched into it, shimmering uncannily in the dark. Wisps of that grim light drifted from the sigils to the figures at their center, dancing around Mara’s hands, clutching at Hunter’s shirt. Anywhere they touched his skin, blood seeped from a new laceration, sluggish and dark and horrible.

“Hunter,” she breathed.

Then she heard him.

“Run, Cady,” he croaked. “Tell my mom...she’s a bitch.”

Ames:

1. What’s your favorite season and why

Autumn! I love rain and also that it’s not super hot or super cold

2. What’s your favorite food?

Bread.

3. Who’s your favorite character in your most recent WIP?

Hunter Bishop, asshole extraordinaire

4. Do you hide easter eggs in your writing? If so tell me a few.

Hm. If I do, I don’t consider them easter eggs, just references. Though I did have someone in my creative writing class ask if the sandwich my protagonist was eating was based on one served in one of the restaurants on campus (and he was right)

5. Would you prefer your WIPs to be turned into a movie or tv series? (feel free to tell me about more than just 1)

Gutter Witch should just be a movie, and I’m leaning towards that for Witches as well. Fractal could go either way, though I’m leaning towards TV show. Children of the Light could go either way. CHAF3k will hopefully be a podcast at some point.

6. If you could have a writing studio anywhere with anything in it, what would it be like and where would it be?

I like the nook I have, though I think I’d adjust the height of my desk chair and add a coffee maker and a closer bathroom so I don’t have to walk all the way across the apartment. Oh, and I’d get a massive whiteboard so I can go all conspiracy theory on my wips.

7. What music do you listen to to get you in the zone? (the writing zone)

Trailer music! Epic Score and Two Steps from Hell. I can’t listen to music with lyrics while I try to make the words go.

8. What’s your worldbuilding process?

Panic.

But actually, I think of the aesthetic I’m after and then try to make everything build off of that. Along the way I usually try to figure out what thing I’m consciously or unconsciously basing it off of so that I can make necessary changes.

9. Who are your most influential authors?

JKR (sorry), Laini Taylor, Juliet Marillier, Tamora Pierce

10. What’s your favorite kind of cookie?

French macarons

11. Give me your favorite excerpt for your recent WIP!

“I wanted to talk to Madge.”

“Madge is dead,” Hunter said, confused.

“I’m aware,” she said. “I asked Death to take me to her, but she said she couldn’t and suggested projection instead.”

Hunter turned from the stove with the most dumbfounded expression Cady had ever seen outside of cinema. “You asked Death,” he repeated.

Cady snorted. “Yeah. I asked Death.”

“The cosmic power, Death.”

“The cosmic power, Death. We’re good friends. She comes over for tea on occasion.”

Hunter stared at her, expression halfway between disbelief and suspicion. “You’re fucking with me.”

“I’m not fucking with you,” Cady said. “Death is the whole reason I came to this Coven. She sent me here when I was thirteen.”

Hunter sank back against the counter, looking almost faint. Whatever he’d been cooking began to sizzle alarmingly. “Death has been...in this apartment.”

Cady nodded.

Not tagging anyone else on this one. I’ve learned my lesson lmao.

#tag games

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greenishbucket · 6 years

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some assorted check, please! fic recs

not at all exhaustive, of course! but i’ve read a lot of fic in the years since i first came across this comic and probably not given any the amount of love they deserve, so this is just a selection of some

scared to let your guard down by cumulativeChaos (Ford/Lardo, 4.8k)

Ford isn't an art student, but she likes to visit the art building. It's got a nice view of Lake Quad, a nice view of the art pieces, and a nice view of the pretty senior girl who's always working on the fifth floor.

Comments: I love Ford all the time despite the little canon we have of her, but I just love Ford here; the humour in her narrative voice, her sweetness, and her determination to make college good despite the isolation-in-a-crowd, nothing’s-wrong-but-it’s-not-right-either feeling which is such a staple of starting college imo. And while as a fic it’s more broadly about that freshman year character growth of finding yourself and setting down new roots, the Ford/Lardo grows from this base and is all the better for it! The way their gradual relationship development is weaved through the fic is really satisfying, and all their interactions are so, so sweet.

too complicated for simple labels (but they sure do help) by @pongpalace/jamesiee (aro!March, QPP March & Ransom, 4.5k)

“What’s 'aromantic' mean?” March asks suddenly, stuck on the ending. “So you know how asexuality is the absence of sexual attraction right? Aro is basically the same except it’s the absence of romantic attraction.” “Romantic attraction?” March hasn’t ever heard the two words put together like that. “Uh, the part of you that wants to like um, date someone. Crushes and stuff.”

Comments: I reread this fic soo often. March’s (and her friends’) understanding of her aromanticism unfolding is handled with such care and nuance. The attention to (especially physical) details makes March’s experiences so vivid and the fic really highlights just how much romance is assumed to be central to people’s lives in big and small ways. But alongside there are always hints of change, and willingness to learn and respect, that keep the overall tone hopeful! March’s relationship with Ransom, which is a delight of mutual respect and and finding peaceful reprieve in each other’s company with a side of dorkiness and cuddles, really cements that.

hold me in this wild, wild world by @queerbycrs/darlingargents (Lardo/Camilla, 666 words)

Lardo thought, sometimes, that Camilla was like the sun.

Comments: I’m not sure I’ve ever been so thoroughly affected by a fic under 1k before. It manages to capture the gentleness and constant-lowkey-settled-affection of a slice of established relationship life so well, and the use of art language/metaphor/etc throughout feels really fitting for Lardo.

untitled fic by @nanlicia (Ransom/Nursey, 1k maybe at a glance)

Justin unlocks the door to his apartment at 4.27am, fighting to keep his eyes open just a minute longer - he only has to make it the 12 steps to his bed.

Comments: Sweet enough to cause tooth decay, honestly. I love domesticity in all it’s slightly unappealing realness, the kind where the trying-to-impress period has passed, and here Nursey eating Ransom’s teriyaki and Ransom being too tired to have sex is a great show of that. The dialogue in particular is a delight.

Little Sour Hearts by @omgericzimmermann (Holster/Esther Shapiro, 6.1k)

The girl is wearing a candy stripe apron, and right as Holster walks into the shop, she makes a face like she’s just taken a bite out of a lemon.

“I can go,” Holster offers.

Comments: Woooooow! I love this take on Holster (and his growth!) and the whole construction of Esther who we barely know!! As suggested by the tags, they are both disasters, and it’s both adorable and achey and I could read so many more fics about these two. Plus their families! The section with Holster’s booming dad and Esther’s eyeliner and sharing truffles was just so much. Esther working in a sweet shop and Holster just taking whatever stuff she offers is a really nice opening-closing link, too, and throughout I just really enjoyed their whole dorky thing.

bless this mess and call it a home by pepperfield (Nursey/Dex, 27.4k)

The thing is, being able to talk to houses doesn't actually preclude them from conspiring to ruin your life. Dex finds this out a little too late. First comes the Dib Flip, then Nursey's bed, and the water heater...the Haus definitely has it in for him.

In which Dex has house magic, Haus has Haus magic, and at least one of them is in love with Nursey.

Comments: I feel like this must be a staple of any Nursey/Dex reading? But it deserves a mention here, because I’ve read it so many times and I adore the entire concept of a living Haus and domestic magic. The dialogue between everyone but esp Dex and Nursey is a delight and really enviable in how it feels so organic, plus the classic of Dex thinking it’s just the house’s feelings (oh, hon) stretches out for the most enjoyable length of time.

hand on your heart by @zombiesolace (Chowder/Lardo/Nursey, 6.1k)

Three struggling art students and a whole lotta love.

Comments: Very stressed but passionate and loving art students Chowder, Lardo, and Nursey is everything I didn’t know I needed. The detail of the Art Experience is really immersive and I loved how the three of them all linked up bit by bit. The inclusion of Charmer through text was so nice, too, and I really like how they all just go for it? I love some dragged out mutual pining but this was just so refreshing, and so fun!

The Takeover by @giraffeter (Bitty/Jack, Shitty/Lardo, SMH friendship, 47k (WIP))

When Eric Bittle started his new job at a local tech startup, he wasn't expecting to find a home.

When pro hockey player Jack Zimmermann agreed to a sponsored Instagram takeover for his favorite nutrition tracking app, he wasn't expecting their social media person to be quite so cute.

When Shitty Knight founded a company, he wasn't expecting being his friends' boss would be this hard.

(AU in which the gang all work together at a tech startup)

Comments: It may be hot off the presses, but this fic has already made its place as one of my most fav Check, Please fics out there!! This is some of the most consistently enjoyable and on point characterisation, dialogue, and journeys of everyone and I actually really like the amount of insight into start up businesses! So so so satisfyingly cohesive, and just a general joy to read! Catch my probs v incoherent comment on the last chapter when it comes to get a more live reaction :D

#thank u everyone that writes check please fic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! or makes art for that matter!!!! thanks to everyone :)#2018 fandomy resolution was to be more explicitly thankful/uplifty/etc of content i enjoy rather than just writing stuff and hiding away #so here we are #art rec coming....... at the speed this took 2019 but someday!#fic

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oldnintendonerd · 7 years

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Pickup post #4 - It’s Sony weeks

So the last couple weeks were slow after the last GameCube find at work. Very slow, so much so I didn’t even find anything else Nintendo related. I am talking to someone about a GameCube game on OfferUp, so we’ll see how that goes. There is also a possible small NES and Game Boy game lot from another co-worker that is in discussion. So I have some things simmering, hopefully I’ll have something more to post about soon, but no more Nintendo finds. Everything I found in the last couple weeks was at a Goodwill, and was Sony related.

I have no problem with this, while not really collecting for Playstation per se, I do have some fond memories of playing many Playstation games growing up. Twisted Metal 2 was fantastic both one player and two player. I would play with friends, my dad, my brother, it’s just a great game. The sound effect you get when you get a kill is so satisfying. Will never get old.

Another series of games I spent a ton of time with was the Gran Turismo series. I had the original one first, as most did, and really enjoyed the experience. Starting from the bottom, buying cars, winning races, upgrading your cars or buying new ones and moving up the ladder. I eventually bought the second one and enjoyed it just as much. Essentially a racing game RPG.

All three of the items I’m going into now were picked up across the end of the month of May, and the first week or so of June. I was hitting dozens of garage and yard sales, combing OfferUp and LetGo. Nothing. I literally hit at least 12 yard sales in an hour span one day and got “Nope, my son took all those” as an answer at 3 of them when asked if they had any older video games.

This was why I couldn’t pass it up when I spotted Gran Turismo 4 on the PS2 at a Goodwill. Just needed to get something, anything to have a find at this point, and I was so fond of the first two. So I bought it. I don’t even have a PS2.

This game is near mint. Only a couple minor dings on the outer case, still very shiny. Manual is in very good condition, and the disc looks like it’s never been taken out of the case.

Snagged this one for $2.99.

Just immaculate condition, I was stunned for a $3 game sitting in a thrift store. I mean just look at the disc, look at it! Absolutely pristine.

I’ll be honest, I’ve never been a huge fan of the PS2, even badmouthed it on numerous occasions. Maybe even right here in this blog saying I’d never collect for it. It all stemmed from when I played Twisted Metal Black back in 2001, and the steering for driving in reverse was backwards from the first 4 games on the PS1. I loved those games. However, on Black I got so frustrated going the wrong way every time I tried to back up. I’d try to turn one way, the car would go the other and screw up what I was trying to do. Did you ever see those videos of the guy trying to learn how to ride a bike when the steering is inverted? It’s a Smarter Every Day episode. Click here if you are curious. Essentially what it comes down to is muscle memory. You’ve done something so much you now no longer THINK about having to do it, you just do it. While not as complicated as riding a bike, doing a rookie turn in Twisted Metal was something I’d done over and over again. It was automatic. Having it reversed, completely broke the game for me to the point where I almost couldn’t function. I know backing up is maybe 20% of the time in that game, but that still puts me at 80% effectiveness, because I was useless backing up. You have to be able to move in reverse, and aim at the same time. Not easy with steering opposite from everything you’ve known for the last 5 or 6 years in a series.

It crushed my love of the Twisted Metal series. The developers completely ruined the game with one simple direction change that was counter intuitive. Turned me off completely. Never had a desire to buy a PS2 after that. Because that was the ONE game at the time I was anticipating on the system.

Now though, heh...

In the thick of a retro gaming hunt, I figured there was a real possibility I could eventually get one, if for nothing else, to play my old PS1 games, and test any PS1 or PS2 games I pick up and intend to flip. I thought it couldn’t hurt to have a few choice games in the collection for the PS2, it was the best selling game system of all time for a reason.

Don’t get me wrong I am still a Nintendo fan boy at heart, and the vast majority of the content you should see in the blog will still be for Nintendo, but, good games are good games. Might as well enjoy them. If I find a good deal on a system or game that is not Nintendo, I’m going to go for it, whether I intend to sell it or keep it I’ll still post it up here for everyone to read about. Heck, I’d even be willing to give Twisted Metal Black another play if it comes along for cheap. Overall, I am game hunting, and Nintendo is not the only manufacturer and developer of video games. So with that out of the way, on to the next bit of the find.

Next up is Hot Shots Golf 3, I have played the earlier ones on the PS1 back in the day. They are good. Not blowing anyone away, but good fun games.

It is essentially a platform agnostic Mario Golf. So I figured it couldn’t hurt to have. I love my copy of Mario Golf Toadstool Tour. This one reminds me of that a lot, right down to the “Nice Shot!” it says after getting the markers lined up for a swing. When the girl at the Goodwill rings you out at the DVD price of $1.99, instead of the video game price of $2.99, no complaints here either. Especially since it was a little bit of a gamble. Admittedly, because it was pretty scratched. But I didn’t see any real deep ones, so it should play. If it doesn’t, eh, it was $2. Still, it was complete, and in good shape otherwise. Would I have bought it had I not been on a dry spell? Probably not.

Lastly, the Goodwill by my work had a PS1 on the shelf in the electronics section. If you read my blog regularly I have mentioned this one before as being the more robust in the video game department of the two I normally visit. Had the PS1 come into the one by my house it probably would have went in the auction case. If it was cheaper I may have picked it up, but it was a relatively high $14.99. This for a stand alone PS1, just the system, no cables, no games, no included controllers, no guarantee it works, nothing. However, it did have a dual shock 1 controller sitting there with it, with its own price tag of course. The sticks and buttons all felt great, tight and responsive. So I snagged it.

$3.99.

I took it home, cracked it open, and cleaned it up. It was in really good shape under a bit of the grime that was there. I hooked it to my PS1 to USB adapter and tried it with ePSXe on the PC. Works fine. Even the joys don’t have any grooves worn in them or anything. They did have that plastic “dust” under them that comes from use, but it cleaned up and looks fine.

The shoulder buttons are responsive and clean as well. Just an all around good controller. I couldn’t pass it up.

So $9.61 total for two games and a controller.

Apparently Goodwill is charging tax where I live. I’ve seen it be no tax before, but I think it depends completely on the region they are in. Wish it was tax free here, but alas it is not.

Kind of terrible that it took almost a full two weeks of hunting just to come up with that. I’m struggling for content on this blog as far as hunting goes. But, I’ll take what I can get. I’m going to keep at it, I’ll keep hitting yard sales, garage sales, flea markets and thrift stores as often as time allows. Obviously when winter hits, yard and garage sales wont be options. Those will certainly be slower months. Though, to be perfectly honest, I haven’t found anything at a yard sale or garage sale yet, so, what difference do those make, at least thus far? Dozens of sales this season under my belt with not a single find at even one of them. The prices are always much higher on other avenues, like OfferUp or LetGo. Everyone always checks eBay before listing anything, and usually wants close to that number.

The luck I’m having with co-workers and Goodwill I may just stop going to yard/garage sales.

I’m kidding, you won’t know whats there until you get there. So I won’t stop going when the opportunity arises.

Official business:

$11.09 - $9.61 = $1.48 game hunting money remaining.

YIKES!

Knowing we were very low on funds, like critically low, I sold the Game Boy Player from the last find. The auction was running when I bought Hot Shots Golf 3 actually, so I had a plan for funds. Even though we never actually went negative. YAY!

I had to use eBay, I had no other choice. Here’s the completed auction.

As you can see, it sold this weekend and it went for $67.00, plus $3.99 shipping. Totaling $70.99. Ebay is kind of terrible to sell on, you really feel like you get fee’d to death. But it works for quick sales on desirable items. Generally you get a little more than you could do in cash face to face with someone so it evens out somewhat. Not all the way, but somewhat. I figure if I sold this to someone locally for cash, I would get somewhere between $45 and $50 since they will likely want to haggle. On the auction, it sold faster than it would to find a buyer on a local site, and after Paypal took their fees, eBay took their fees, and I shipped it, I actually walked away with $52.88. So a couple bucks more than I figure I would have gotten. It feels like you are getting bent over, but in most cases the prices are higher BECAUSE of how much you get bent over and it sort of evens out. Lets put that back into the game hunting money...

$1.48 + $52.88 = $54.36

Whew! Close one, almost went negative. I mean I don’t mind if we go negative. You can’t know what’s going to happen though, if the right deal comes along, it may force your hand. As long as there is something to sell in that lot, or on hand from a past one to bring it positive again, I’m OK with extending myself some credit if I have to.

$54.36 game hunting money remaining. Happy June guys. Hoping to find something else soon so I can post some more content.

2017.06.14

#sony #playstation #ps2 #ps1 #playstation2 #game hunting #retrogaming #granturismo #granturismo4 #gameboy player #video games

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travelsofablonde · 5 years

Text

Going, Going, Gone!

Hey guys! I'm a little behind on blogging, sorry! The thing is, we are CONSTANTLY going over here. The first day it was walking to the grocery store and the immediate area around the dorms to acclimate ourselves. The 2nd day it was a full day walking tour of the city and important historical locations (the entire city is important as a historical location). The third day it was getting up super early to walk to the train station (20 minute walk), catch the train to Liverpool (no wifi on train and barely any A/C and squished in there), and touring 2-3 museums in Liverpool, (seeing my awesome cousin!) and then getting back in time to grab dinner and buy one of the girls a birthday drink for her 21st (we literally all did this as a group and took over a pub). Then there was today, which will be the main topic of this blog entry!

Today was our 4th day in country. And let me just preface all of this by saying that I am having a BLAST. The food here tastes better (to me), the air is soooo clean and fresh, the rain is relaxing and refreshing, the sights are beyond words. It's so incredibly beautiful here and the people are all so kind and helpful. BUT. Today was kind of a cluster fuck.

So we get up early today and get ready to head to the train station again to catch a train to London. No big deal, perfectly normal, we pretty much do something similar to this EVERY DAY. Well for some reason I couldn't be on time today even though I woke up even earlier than I have every other day of this trip. I manage to make it to the dorm lobby with like 1 minute to spare and just as my professor and the rest of our group is ready to head to the train station together (we can go alone if we know the way but I wasn't quite comfortable with the directions yet so I chose to go w/ the group).

We get to the train station and me and my friend Ray (Rayanna) decide we desperately need breakfast and coffee because my baby granola bar definitely wasn't cutting it (I had a whole box but I ate it already and only had the one left). Well by the time we get our food and coffee our train is already boarded and we have less than 5 minutes to get to our platform and find a seat. So we race up the platform entry stairs, across a bridge, down the secondary platform stairs and on to our train. Here, we are met by the veerrryyy disapproving stare of Dr. Mann, one of our History professors. He's happy we made it but now he has to follow us through the various train cars while we hunt for an available seat! Well every single seat (a table with 2 seats on each side) is either full or someone has placed a full suitcase/luggage set in one of the 2 seats and is unwilling to move it. We FINALLY find a seat in train car D and our professor deposits us with great annoyance as he makes his way back to his car. You'd think that'd be it, no more issues, we've boarded the train all is well! Nope!

So Ray and myself are safely seated with two quiet but, I'm sure, very nice ladies and we're preparing to take notes or read or sleep or whatever for the duration of our 2-3 hour train ride. Well one stop in and both of these ladies are needing to get off of the train which means me and Ray both have to get up to let them out. Realizing that if we get sat with new people at any of the train stops this will get quite annoying we decide to take-up one side of the table and sit side by side. As we begin making this transition the train lurches a bit on the tracks and Ray's coffee spills all over the table AND HER BRIT RAIL TRAIN PASS. Why is this a problem you ask? Well not only is it the pass for our train rides for the entire duration of the trip but you CAN'T. GET. IT. WET. Shit.

So immediately whip off my plaid cover shirt and start trying to dry it and Ray and I can't help but laugh about this annoying sequence of events. And of course, being the smartasses that we are, we decide we should post about it in the class group me and tag Dr. Mann. That brief discussion is as follows:

Ray: "Oh and what happens if you spill coffee on your train pass? Asking for a friend"

Dr. Mann: "As I said yesterday, it's your most valuable piece of paper, keep it dry and secure."

Ray: "It's still legible, just has a vintage tea stain look"

**at this point a ticket master comes by to check our tickets and we show Ray's ticket to him and ask if it's ok-he says it should be since we didn't smudge the dates too bad**

Me: "The train guy said it's still good!"

The rest of the train ride was uneventful thankfully! When we arrive in London things are already hectic. There are people EVERYWHERE and it's loud inside the train station. We make our way inside to a coffee shop so everyone can take a bathroom break and we can get our OYSTER cards which we need to get on the tube in London. (The Tube is the underground rail line). Then we go to the tube station directly next door which is even more crowded and start the long descent down towards the platforms. On the way we have to stop and wait in the worlds longest but fastest line to load money onto our OYSTER cards to pay for our tube ride for the day. This is just annoying and only some of the kiosks took card payments so if we didn't have local currency we had to stand in another line to use the ones for card payments. I had just enough local notes (cash) on me to cover the cost and was done pretty quickly.

When we got down to our tube platform the train was already half loaded so we had to rush on and basically squeeze into two cars like sardines so none of us would be left behind. At first this wasn't really an issue with me, I've ridden the express trains around Austin and squeezing in has never been a problem other than it gets really warm. Well... the trains in Austin are above ground where you can see outside. The tube is all underground. There is no outside. You are literally sandwiched into a metal tube speeding on a tiny track in a dark, dank, hot underground tunnel. I FLIPPED OUT. SILENTLY. Basically I got insanely claustrophobic within like 0.5 seconds of the train moving because I had no air and no space and could see nothing but blackness as we (loudly) hurtled forward! I was able to sit down after the first stop (It took everything I had not to jump off at that stop, the trip be damned) and that helped a little as there was a small air bubble of cold air blowing near my seat. That's about it. I had to keep my eyes closed, grip the hand rail, control my breathing and try not to cry because I felt like I was trapped in a box in the ground. It was the worst part of the trip so far. I stayed super quiet during this entire ordeal because I really didn't want to bring attention to myself or my mini freak out. I didn't want to be THAT person. However, my friend Ray and my Museum Studies professor, Dr. Denton, both noticed me not joining the conversation and squeezing my eyes shut. They both calmly and quietly moved over to me and asked if I was ok, to which I explained that I was but this was too tight and confining a space and I just wasn't enjoying it at all. They both understood and (God Bless Her) Dr. Denton stayed near me and quietly kept me updated of how many more stops we had to go. She did this so that I would know we weren't stuck in a box in the ground and so I'd know we'd be in an open, brightly lit space soon.

Luckily this was a short-ish ride and as soon as our tube stopped I was the first person onto the platform.. honestly at that point I was so relieved to have some kind of space and air to breathe and some actual light that I let the tears fall but only a couple of them before sucking it up and calming down so we could get moving to the museum. Dr. Mann checked on me, I assured him I was good, I just needed space for a second. That was done thank god! Dr. Mann assured me the next train was above ground and much less crowded and I happily boarded it. We arrived at the London Docklands Museum and proceeded into the free Hidden Rivers Exhibit which was very awesome. They had very light blue transparent screens erected on wooden casings which separated the different portions of the overall exhibit and I found the entire thing extremely moving. It started with prehistoric tribes, moved well into the 19th century and the industrial revolution and cholera outbreaks and ended with modern times and future plans for the hidden rivers of London.

After this we roamed the other exhibits in the museum.. all interesting but not quite enough to inspire me for my upcoming Museum paper and not as impressive as yesterdays trip to the Liverpool Museum (I know I haven't written about that.. I probably will later but there's not a lot to tell unless you're into history exhibits and museum logistics). After we all finished walking the museum we met up in the cafe where Dr. Mann asked all of us if we wanted to take a walk to the Tower of London and London Bridge. Well at this point it's almost 3 pm and we all have to walk back to the train station, catch the train back to Chester, and wash clothes and pack to leave for a 7 day trip to Scotland tomorrow! So obviously half the people want to go be tourists and go to the Tower and the Bridge.. (Why! We're literally going there officially on the 29th!) THANKFULLY Dr. Mann heard me protesting about time and laundry and packing and made an executive feudal overlord decision (we call him feudal overlord and Henry VIII) and decided we should all just go back to Chester instead. FINALLY A FREAKING WIN!

We make our way back, the tube ride was a little better this time around as it wasn't as crowded and Ray kept me updated on how many stops we had this time around and I just got through it with minimal panic. We boarded our train to Chester and .... No 4 seaters.. just tiny 2 seaters... WTF. Fine. Me and Ray squeeze into one and get comfy... well... now there's a 20 minute delay... WTF. FINE. Finally we get moving at around 3:20. I slept for most of the train ride, I was EXHAUSTED.. honestly everyone was. It was quite a bit of walking the past 4 days. We arrive in Chester around 5.. and a bunch of us head to the Tesco (grocery store) to get supplies and then split up for dinner. The Tesco was fine except for one of the girls had a payment issue, no big deal and not anything that effected me. Well then we get to the pub for dinner.. i'm expecting pub food (think shepherd's pie) NOPE! It's all fish and chips or American type food. NOT. WHAT. I. WANT. I'm in England.. I want English food. So I give in and order a burger which ended up being good but it was supposed to be 5 pounds and ended up being 8. No idea why. I also asked for a Coke (I could see the glass bottles behind the bar in the fridge) and the bartender said they were out and gave me Pepsi. At this point I'm just too hungry to be upset and eat my food and let it go. Then we begin the trek back to the dorms to gather our clothes and go do laundry. Oh man.. this is where it gets good.

Ray and I are sharing a laundry card and soap and decide to go together to the laundry facility. Now, let me explain laundry real fast. You get laundry cards, that you have to load with money online, and then you scan them into the washer or dryer you're using and it charges you for the type of wash or dry you do. BUT in order to get a good wash and actually get all the soap rinsed off of your clothes and get them any where near dry (because Uni washers and dyers suck) you have to choose the most expensive wash type which is 3 pounds 40 (think $5 in the US). And a dry is 1 pound 40 (think 3 dollars US).

So me and Ray get everything loaded and start the walk to the main campus to go do laundry.. well it's drizzling. At first this isn't a big deal but literally 30 seconds into the walk it's pouring rain and we're both getting soaked and neither one of us brought anything to keep the rain off because well we just weren't thinking. So by the time we get all the way onto campus and into the laundry room we are dripping and just so over the day.. then we try to get the laundry card loaded. Well the website won't work so we have to buy a whole new card for 20 pounds.. and we end up spending 19 pounds between us just washing clothes and Ray's clothes are still COVERED in soap and completely drenched as if they didn't even get a rinse or spin cycle. One of my loads is completely drenched.. just whyyyyy. So we combine our clothes to dry them and drop another 5 pounds on a new card and just hope that the dryer doesn't screw us...

That brings us to now. I'm still sitting here... in the laundry room.. with Ray.. Dr. Denton has joined us and they are engaged in a very interesting discussion about the slavery exhibits we say over the past two days... it's stopped raining and there's not even a cloud in the sky..

I'm hoping that's the end of today's calamities and that tomorrow will be better. It's been the only bad day i've had so far. It hasn't changed my opinion of England or this trip at all, it's just been a bad day. I'm very tired and ready for sleep and I know I'll definitely get plenty on the train tomorrow as it's a 6 hour train ride into Edinburgh!

I promise to do a much more positive post next time! And I couldn't get my photos to load so I'm still working on that If you haven't already, I recommend you follow my Instagram or my Facebook as I'm putting photos there as well!

Well... back to laundry and museum discussions!

-Chey

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