#anyways i realized a couple days ago that it was october

[th3b33skn33s]

-rises from the grave to post homestuck art- Homestucktober2023 Day "One": Patron Troll

#hi ive been sick again #we've gotta stop meeting like this #anyways i realized a couple days ago that it was october #and you know what that means? #Im gonna try and do a drawing challenge #oh whats that #its the seve- EIGHTH by the time of posting already? #i have been a woman possessed these past couple days so im gonna post a bunch over the next while #anyways... #happy october #or in this case #Homestucktober #homestucktober 2023 #homestuck #sollux #sollux captor #art #myart #hs

[avatar-anna]

Classic Fall Fun

my mind is empty. i bought a halloween squishmallow and decorative pillows for fall. so i wrote a blurb about it. enjoy!

"Baby...What...?"

"I can explain!" you blurted, rushing over to your fiance.

"I hope you can," Harry murmured as he picked up a throw pillow from the couch. "I can hardly see the sofa under all these."

"There was a sale," you began. "I was only going to the craft store for puzzle glue because I finished my puzzle this morning and I wanted to hang it up, but then I saw the Fall and Halloween section and..."

"And you turned our living room into Halloweentown," Harry said.

"You remembered!" you said, trying to shift the subject off all the Fall decor that now lived in your home.

You really didn't mean to buy all the decorations—the throw pillows, the blanket with pumpkins and candy corns and warm toned leaves on it, the welcome mat that said, Hocus Pocus!, and all the little decorations that were perfectly arranged on the kitchen counter. You'd been proud of how perfect your home looked, how everything tied together so nicely. Now that Harry was here, though, you worried you'd overdone it. Or worse, he'd make you take it all back.

"Course I remember," Harry said. "You've only made me watch it every year since we've been together."

"I—I know it's a lot," you said, trying to hide a stuffed vampire holding a little pumpkin spiced latte behind you and out of his eyesight. "But you know I love decorating, I mean I did the whole house when we moved in—very tastefully, I might add—and I love the holidays an—and themes, and—You're laughing at me."

Harry shook his head, chuckling softly. He took your face in his hands and kissed your forehead. That was definitely not the reaction you were expecting. Some light teasing? Sure. Insisting you take at least some of it back? Probably. But you mentally crossed your fingers that you could keep it all. Right down to the mummy mugs and ghost candle holders.

"I've been waiting for this day, if I'm honest. I'm surprised it didn't come sooner. Starbucks changed their menu two weeks ago."

Blushing, you held Harry's hand as it rested on your cheek. "Do you hate it? If you hate it, I can scale it back."

"I love it," he said. "And I love you."

He led you to the couch where he took the same stuffed vampire you tried to hide and held it against his stomach. You took the blanket that rested on top of the couch and draped it over yourself and Harry, snuggling up close to his side. You kissed his cheek a couple times, stomach flipping when you felt his grin beneath your lips.

"No Halloween movies yet, because it's not October, but..."

"Way ahead of you," Harry said, reaching for the remote and firing up Netflix on the TV.

"I knew you liked the show as much as I do," you said with a grin.

"You realize it's actually quite hot out, right?" he said, but pulled you closer anyway as he made himself more comfortable.

You shushed him as the theme song played. You'd thought of that already, and the air conditioning was already pumping through the vents to make it the perfect temperature for hiding under the fluffy blanket. And drink warm drinks. And cuddle in bed with the twinkly lights you put up earlier while listening to music.

"I know it's silly. I know it's...a little over the top, but—"

"Hey, I think it's cute how excited you get over the holidays," he said. "And, just because I know how much you love Autumn, so I got you something."

"Autumn," you repeated, imitating his accent. "What did you get?"

"An appropriately themed seasonal puzzle that we can complete together."

Your eyes lit up immediately. "You bought us a puzzle?"

Harry kissed you repeatedly, his fingers holding your chin lovingly. "I happen to like this season too, you know. Not as much as you, but I do. And puzzles. And you. Easy math."

You sighed and rested against his chest, kissing him over the soft material of his shirt a few times. Harry said it was fine, but you could admit that your love for this particular season was a little intense. But you loved putting a room together, making it feel warm and inviting and festive. And each item you put in your cart was part of a vision you had, and once you had said vision, you had to make it come to life. It was how you ended up putting all the rooms together in the house when you and Harry moved in. He had input of course, but he knew you had a knack for decorating and trusted your judgement.

And you couldn't help but think of the future too. Yours and Harry's. You wanted to do this for your kids, to raise them in a home that was cheery and fun. It was something neither you nor Harry had yourselves growing up, so you wanted something new. New traditions that you could start together.

You couldn't wait to share a lifetime of feeling cozy and cuddling festive pillows with Harry. You couldn't wait to watch movies and do puzzles and make pumpkin flavored baked goods with him for the rest of your life, or sew costumes for your kids because what they wanted couldn't be found at the party store. You wanted all of it, and you wanted it with him.

"I really do love this show, you know. I'd never heard of it, and now I can quote it," Harry mumbled. His eyes were trained on the show playing in front of him while his fingers traced patterns on your arm idly. Then, he looked down at you and smiled. "Our first real tradition, don't you think?"

Your heart squeezed with delight. You knew Harry loved you, that was never a doubt in your mind. But hearing him say that, knowing that he had lofty visions of the future too, made you hold him just a little bit tighter.

#harry styles #boyfriendrry #harry styles blurb #harry styles x reader #harry styles fanfic #harry styles oneshot #harry styles imagine #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x you #harry styles fluff #harry styles writing #harry styles one shot #harry styles fic

[joeys-babe]

Joey B Imagines: Peewee

————————————————————————-

Summary: You take your boyfriend, Joe, to your little brother’s first tackle football game. Your little brother, Tommy, has always been such a huge fan of your NFL boyfriend and both you and Joe loved how much he idolized him.

Warnings: So so fluffy.

Pairing: Joe Burrow x Reader

Imagine universe: None! (Misc.)

A/N: Joe isn't injured and the Bengals have a very late bye week!

————————————————————————-

December 18th, 2023

If you told me a year ago, when I started dating Joe, that we would have to go two months without seeing each other, I wouldn't have even agreed to go on a date with him.

Joe and I had an… age gap. He was 27, with an amazing career and a life built for himself, and I was 20 and still in college.

He was in Cincinnati while I was in Athens attending Ohio University.

We had met through our fathers who were both on the coaching staff at OU. We had a family dinner together, and Joe was the only one of Jimmy’s three boys who was able to make it.

Joe swears up and down still to this day that it was love at first sight when he saw me. He was just out of a relationship and wasn't looking for anything but he says that all changed when he saw me.

Now back to the two months without each other. Obviously, we were long-distance, and it was the mid-football season for him so that meant he was busy all of the time. I had just gotten done with finals for my fall semester, so up until now I had been super busy with university stuff.

Today I would see Joe for the first time since early October, and I couldn't be more excited.

My parents were even super excited because they were the ones on the receiving end of my griping the past couple of months.

My little brother was also super excited. Tommy was 10 years old and playing his first-ever tackle football game today. It was my dad’s travel football team he was playing for. My dad doesn't trust the coaches at his school so Tommy’s not allowed to play there.

Tommy’s only request for his first game was that his favorite NFL player be there.

It was Joe of course, and he promised he would be there.

He didn't disappoint either, just as my dad and Tommy took the field, Joe texted me saying he was a couple of minutes away.

“Are you excited?” - my mom nudged me

“Yeah. I've missed him.” - you smiled

“Oh, we know.” - your mom

I glared at her and rolled my eyes before I pulled out my phone to pass the time.

“Look, there he is!” - my mom

My head snapped up and there he was in all of his glory. Joe was walking over to the bleachers while watching the field.

“Go!” - my mom

I jumped up and ran down the stairs, seeing my mom get her phone out to record in the corner of my eye.

Joe by now had realized I'd seen him and stopped walking to open his arms for me.

When I was within inches of him I jumped into his arms.

His strong arms wrapped around my body and he slowly swayed with me.

“There’s my beautiful girl.” - Joe

“I missed you so much.” - you

“I missed you more. A day didn't go by that I didn't wish I was with you.” - Joe

My legs wrapped around his waist and my arms were around his neck. I knew that Joe wasn't a fan of PDA but this moment was too good, and there were barely any people in the bleachers anyways.

“You’re not allowed to leave me for that long again.” - you

“Never again sweetheart. I'll take you with me if I have to.” - Joe

“I love you.” - you

“I love you too…. so much.” - Joe whispered

A few moments of just hugging later, I spoke up.

“Can you walk us up to my mom? I don't want to let go yet.” - you

“Of course.” - Joe chuckled

My grip on him tightened as he easily started walking in his usual loose-hipped strides.

Climbing the stairs wasn't a problem for him either with me in his arms, Joe was taking two steps at a time.

“Hey Joe!” - your mom

“Hey! It's good to see you.” - Joe

“I don't know if you can tell, but she's missed you a lot.” - your mom

“I think I picked up on that.” - Joe chuckled

Joe gently lowered me onto the bleacher and plopped down next to me. We always sat at the top so we could sit against the wall of chain fencing.

I couldn't help but admire how cute he looked right now. Joe was wearing light grey sweatpants with a dark grey sweatshirt and flannel over top of it. The white backward hat was the icing on the cake.

“You're so handsome, Joe.” - you laid your head on his shoulder

“You say that all the time, baby.” - Joe smiled

“Because I mean it.” - you

Joe looked down at me with a large smile and kissed my forehead. One of his arms looped around my waist as he pulled away.

“Well, you're pretty gorgeous yourself.” - Joe

Feeling my cheeks heating up, I hid my face in his neck. Joe would usually try to make me blush more, but he was enjoying the heat of your red cheeks against his cold neck.

My mom handed Joe a blanket to which he gave her a thankful smile before draping it over our legs.

“You warm?” - Joe

“Mhm. You emit a lot of heat.” - you giggled

“Good.” - Joe

“By the way, you're going to have to activate your muscles and carry my bags to your car later. I have a few.” - you

“I’ll start warming them up.” - Joe joked

My mom laughed along with me and I couldn't feel any happier in that moment.

——

I knew Joe would cheer the boys on, but I didn't expect him to be jumping up, yelling, warning the defense when the other team was doing a pass play, and so much more.

This one time specifically, the game was kind of getting slow so I was falling asleep on Joe’s shoulder. My brother’s team got a touchdown and Joe abruptly jumped, waking me up in the process.

“Sorry, my love.” - Joe sat back down and pulled you back into his chest

The scene made me wonder about my future with Joe. Maybe one day we’ll be doing the same thing with our own son.

“I'm so proud of Tommy. He acts so maturely football-wise for his age.” - Joe

His statement sealed my previous thought. There will be a future for us, and maybe I'm right about us cheering on our future son.

——

Come halftime, my dad’s team was up 12-0.

“Joey.” - you nudged your boyfriend, who was deep into a conversation with your mom.

“Mhm?” - you

“Can you get me some hot chocolate from the concession stand?” - you

“Of course. I'll be right back. Do you want anything to snack on?” - Joe

“Mm, no I'm okay. Thank you! I love you!” - you

Joe stood up and moved the blanket onto me more before placing a kiss on my cheek.

“I love you too.” - Joe grinned and walked away

A few minutes later, Joe walked back with a drink carrier and a paper bag in his other hand.

“What is all of that?” - you laughed

He handed me and my mom a hot chocolate before setting one down for himself.

“You said you didn't want a snack but I know that means you wanted one.” - Joe handed you the bag

Gosh, he knew me so well. After giving Joe an appreciative smile I opened the bag to find three chocolate chip cookies.

“There was an older lady up there selling baked goods so I thought I'd snag a couple cookies. You can have one if you want to, y/m/n.” - Joe

“Well aren't you sweet.” - your mom took a cookie from you as you handed it to her

My mom happily munched on her cookie and I couldn't help but laugh at my own thoughts.

“What?” - Joe

“You're trying to impress my parents, huh?” - you

“Well, I’m taking you three hours away for a week! I want them to know you're safe staying at my place.” - Joe

That's probably what I'm most looking forward to out of this whole day. After the game is over, I'm going with Joe to Cincinnati where I'll be staying at his house for the week since it's their Bye.

“Joey, they already know that. I wouldn't be going if they didn't. Also, I'm an adult I can do what I want!” - you

“Babe. I know you're an adult. I just don't want them to be wary because I'm an older guy.” - Joe

“Joseph, you're seven years older stop acting like you're forty.” - you

Joe rolled his eyes but I scooted closer to him and threw the blanket over his lap.

“You're allowed to want to impress my parents, but don't feel like you have to. They love you, because I love you.” - you

My heart did pretty much the exact opposite of the rest of my body and warmed deeply when Joe placed a tiny kiss on the tip of my nose. It was a signal that he didn't know what to say back in the moment but appreciated my statement.

——

“Joe!” - Tommy ran out of the gate and up to Joe, who had his arms open for your brother

The team had won, thankfully and now we were all standing and waiting for the kids to get out of their post-game huddle.

I couldn't put into words how I felt when I watched Joe hug Tommy like his own brother. It was so sweet and I'd never felt so in love.

“You’ve got one good man, y/n.” - your mom

“I know.” - you grinned

My eyes drifted from my mom’s smiling face back down to my boyfriend, the love of my life, hyping up my little brother over a couple of his receptions.

That's when I knew Joe was the one.

————————————————————————-

Authors note: the fourth day of Christmassss

Guys who is she… consistently updating like this…

This fic came from my own mind! 🤍

Hope you enjoyed! 🫶

#joe burrow #bengals #joe burrow imagine #joe burrow x reader #joey b #cincinnati bengals #joe burrow fan fic

[jewish-vents]

I’m Jewish through my dad but I wasn’t raised in the community(i learned what Purim was two weeks ago, i was fully not in it), so when I got to college last august I decided to really dive in and it’s been a beautiful sort of homecoming for me. I joined SAEPi and got into Chabbad leadership at my campus, and I’m almost at the point where I can do the Chabbad Shabbat prayers before and after dinner without stumbling over my words. Gonna surprise my grandma if I see her in the summer. Anyways.

When October 7th happened it was a shock to my system, because I was a baby Jew barely getting my feet. My parents never mentioned antisemitism to me as something that could affect me in the future, it was always a thing of the past. But I was right there standing in the doorway between jew-ish and Jewish, and it pushed me over the edge. I had many friends with family in Israel. I had a couple friends whose friends died in the attack. Everyone in that group was my family. It felt personal.

When the march in dc happened I went with one of my friends, and it was sad, but amazing to see in person how strong we are. In the plane terminal on the way home he and I got cornered and called baby killers, among other things, because he was wearing a kippa and his Israeli first responder coat. That was my first time experiencing antisemitism and it was terrifying, even though I didn’t get hurt. It was terrifying even though my friend was built like a tank and would’ve protected me. It was terrifying just to sit in the train car with him and watch a woman stare at him with wide eyes like he was some kind of criminal. I stepped closer to him as if to remind her he’s human. I stared back at her with just as much fear and watched her snap out of it, confused.

Last week was holocaust awareness week at my college, and one of the things I did was spend a couple hours in the plaza reading the names of people that died. I found 34 Feldmans and Fotts. I found family names, Chana and Fayge and Jeshua and Sophia Feldman one after the other, and still am wondering if that was part of my family that didn’t make it to the US in time.

I called my grandma and asked for everything she could remember about her family lineage and how we got here, everything she had from that part of her life. I thought that there would be plenty to lean into, family recipes and heirlooms and stories, but there was barely anything. She has a Star of David necklace and a ton of repressed memories, next to nothing else. The recipes I could find were through my great aunt, some short instructions from my great grandmother on the back of a letter she sent to the aunt about what to ask for from a kosher butcher.

My family made it here in 1915 and 1921, they escaped before the holocaust, but they still weren’t untouched because of the ways they were ostracized and othered when they got here. My grandmother will barely admit she’s Jewish because none of her kids passed it on, it’s easier for her to let it go. I didn’t understand this until I realized that one couldn’t be hurt by the grief and pain of a family they aren’t part of.

Even those that survive are not left unscarred.

How could this not be personal? How could it not be generationally affective when it’s pushed so many to minimize their Jewishness out of self preservation? Raise their kids thinking they aren’t Jewish and hope their names never end up on a list of living or dead Jews? People still don’t see us as human. the antisemites still want to scar us. They want us to forget who we are.

It’s unreal to me when goyim act like American Jews in the current day are unaffected by the past and safe from antisemitism. I’ve been here less than a year and have been screamed at in an airport, have uncovered serious intergenerational trauma, and realized that of my Jewish family I have nothing to hold on to but a torn in half piece of paper with a sentence long tangent about brisket.

We are strong and we will outlive them, but god are we still fucking fighting for our lives.

.

#jewish vents #antisemitism #diaspora #long post #Jewish #judaism #this is an amazing post anon I'm sorry I lack the words to respond #thank you so much for sharing

[thevioletcaptain]

So I've been quiet on here a lot longer than planned.

The reasons are many. The reasons are varied.

The reasons are mostly fucking horrible.

Under a cut because it's long. Check tags for content warnings.

First was the expected absence: my parents came to visit me in Los Angeles over my birthday, so I spent the first half of October showing them around whenever I wasn't working a shift at my shitty department store day-job, or in class at UCLA.

Then, almost immediately after they went back to Australia, I got a second job working as a personal assistant for a composer. This was (and is) an extremely fun and rewarding job, but meant having one more thing on my weekly schedule, which was an adjustment.

Given that until halfway through last year, I'd been out of work since I immigrated in 2019, it took a while for me to get used to having so many concurrent responsibilities, and I'd just started to get a handle on things when I got sick right before the holidays. I took many covid tests -- all negative -- and eventually determined that it was just last year's strain of flu, which I hadn't managed to find time to get the shot for due to the aforementioned super busy schedule. I'm almost positive it was thanks to a particular customer at the aforementioned shitty department store job who coughed hard enough in my direction for their germs to get through my n95.

Anyway, last year's flu was a monster, and I spent a week in bed with a fever, then several more weeks being utterly drained and with a horrendous cough to match. It took a full month for me to recover, and then in mid-January, almost as soon as I started to catch up on all the things that had fallen behind while I was sick, things got bad, then good, then worse, then better, then much, much, much worse.

Basically, it starts with my dad being diagnosed with prostate cancer. He'd told me in October when they came to see me, but the surgery was scheduled for the tail end of January.

The surgery happened on a Monday, and it was a complete success. They got it all in one go. No chemo or radiation or further treatment needed at all. I spoke to him on the phone after he woke up, and he was in good spirits. Happy to have been given the all clear by his doctors.

I told him to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds & Evil while he rested up at home, because I'm writing specs for both this year and wanted him to be able to read them and know what was going on. He's the one who got me into sci-fi and horror, after all.

He went home.

He was home for two days.

He started feeling a bit rough on the Thursday. Short of breath. No appetite. Mum took him back to the hospital, just to be safe.

Turns out he'd had a mild heart attack. They couldn't figure out why. The echocardiogram didn't show any issues with his heart.

Then over the next couple of days, his breathing got worse. They took a scan of his lungs, and found that they were extremely inflamed. They'd given him covid tests but they came back negative. We told them about a work accident he had about 20 years ago, where a switchboard he'd been working on exploded in his face, and he'd suffered from inhalation burns among other things.

They thought that maybe something during the prostate surgery had caused irritation in his already damaged lungs, which put stress on his heart and caused the mild heart attack. He's never had any issues with his lungs since that accident, but they thought that maybe he'd just adapted to the damage over the years without realizing.

They kept trying different treatments to help his lungs heal. Nothing seemed to work. His breathing kept getting worse. They had him on as much oxygen as possible without intubating him, but it wasn't enough, so over that weekend they decided that they'd need to move him to another hospital with a more specialized lung unit.

When they were preparing to do that on the Monday night, he crashed. Another heart attack. Bigger, this time. They intubated him. Sedated him. Called my mum and told her to come in right away because things looked so bad.

But then he rallied. By the morning, though he was still sedated and intubated, the doctors were confident that with the right treatment at the specialized lung unit at the other hospital, he'd be okay. He was still in a rough condition, but stable. They transferred him to the other hospital.

He was given another covid test. This one came back positive.

My mum and brother called me once it was a reasonable time in Los Angeles to let me know what was going on, and the next day my brother booked me a flight back to Australia. I had to leave for the airport about five hours after my ticket was booked.

I got to Melbourne on February 1st.

For the next two weeks, dad was intubated, sedated, and in an isolation room. Every few days, they scanned his lungs again, and they were slowly improving.

Finally, he stopped testing positive, and was moved to a regular room in the ICU. Then he healed enough for them to extubate him and wake him up.

On February 13th, he was conscious enough to squeeze my hand when we went in to see him. On February 14th, he was conscious and capable of talking enough to ask a nurse in his ward to bring him his phone, and called mum first thing in the morning to wish her a happy Valentines Day.

Two days later, on Friday 16th, his lungs looked good enough on scans that they felt it was safe to do an angiogram, which they wanted to do just to double check that there weren't any issues with his heart that they missed with the echo.

They did the test. They found massive blockages. 90% blockage in one artery; significant blockages in two others.

Even though he'd barely recovered from covid, the blockages were bad enough that they scheduled him for open heart surgery on Monday 19th. They said without surgery there was a 100% chance that the blockages would cause another massive heart attack that he would not survive. They said there was about a 20% chance that he'd have complications, but only about 4% that they'd be serious/life threatening.

Like before, the surgery went well. Triple bypass, in the end. We got a call late on Monday afternoon to say that he was in recovery and looking good. His heart was functioning perfectly. They'd bring him out of sedation that night. Keep him in the ICU one or two days just as the standard post-op procedure. He'd spend a week or so in a cardiac ward after that, then head to a physical rehab ward for a couple of weeks until he could build back the muscle mass he'd lost while sedated.

We went in to see him the next day. Tuesday 20th. His 66th birthday.

He was tired, but looked good. Color in his cheeks. He made a couple of jokes. We left after about 45 minutes because he was pretty worn out, and we wanted to let him get some rest.

But then after, that his breathing started to get bad again. By Wednesday morning, they'd switched out the oxygen prongs in his nose for a big, high-pressure mask again. They called to let us know they were going to intubate him again so he could rest while his lungs recovered a bit more.

They struggled to get the tube in.

His lungs were deteriorating badly. He kept getting worse. We couldn't go in to see him because they were working on him all day.

At 9pm we got a call to say that he was just getting worse. They had him on 100% oxygen. He just wasn't absorbing it. His entire body was under massive strain. They were doing everything they could, but he just wasn't improving.

They said we should go in right away.

We got there by 10pm. My brother and his wife arrived about the same time. We went in to see him. He didn't look good. He looked pale. But he was warm, and he'd come back from the brink before, and we were sure he could do it again. We stayed with him for about an hour, and left not long after 11pm. Went back to my brother's place because they live closer to the hospital.

We were there about half an hour before they called us again. Just after midnight. He was gone.

That was about a week and a half ago, now. It still doesn't feel real. He was only 66. He hadn't even retired yet. He was working full time up until the week before Christmas, and had planned on going back to work a few days a week after he'd recovered from surgery. He never had any heart trouble, or lung trouble. He was active. He was fine.

My wife Zel and her mom flew in a couple of days after it happened. I barely remember anything from the past two weeks. Everything just feels fake.

I've been trying to write something to say at the funeral, which we've finally been able to arrange for next week -- it was delayed because we had to wait for dad to be released by the coroner. I don't think I'll be able to do it.

Anyway. That's where I've been.

It'll probably be a little while longer before I'm around here much, let alone posting with any regularity, because I'll be in Australia helping my mum & and my brother sort everything out. I have no idea how long I'll be dealing with stuff, or when I'll be able to make words cooperate enough to post anything, but I'll be back eventually.

I'm trying to keep an eye on Discord (I'm violetmatter over there) so you can find me there if you want. But yeah, I just wanted to let you guys know why I've been so quiet.

#cass says things #this is a very long #and heavy post #so i guess i should include some content warnings #uh #christ what do i even tag this with #cw: hospital #cw: health #cw: death #cw: parent death

[misc-obeyme]

Here's a kinda angsty thought I have with dateables!

Okay, the brothers and side characters (not Luke ofc) love MC, yeah? And MC makes it very clear the brothers are their first choice whenever they have to choose between them and the side characters.

Imagine Diavolo, Barbatos and Solomon hell maybe even Thirteen when they realize no matter what they do, the brothers will always be on top for MC. Sure, MC is great with them but they only truly relax and show their real self with the brothers and it shows.

What do you think? [BTW have a great night/day!]

MY FRIEND I AM SO SORRY.

Apparently this ask was sent way back in October?!?! It only just showed up today!!! Tumblr, whyyy??

I got your other ask today, too and I will answer that one as well! But I think this must have been the mystery message my ask box kept telling me was there, but I could never see it?! It was like you have 1 message, but then it'd also be like your ask box is empty and I was like which is it?!

I'm so sorry if you thought I just ignored your ask 😭

That is absolutely not my style at all, so a note to everyone who has ever sent me an ask: if I don't respond in maybe a week, please send it again!! I usually answer asks within a couple days, but I'm saying a week just in case I have some extenuating circumstances lol.

ANYWAY lemme actually answer your ask from two months ago! 😭

I think about the potential of this scenario when I wanna get angsty lol.

So here is what I think it would be like for the side characters realizing that MC will always choose the brothers over them:

Diavolo: Ahh, our prince would be so gentlemanly about it. Especially if MC ended up with Lucifer specifically. But either way, I think he would prioritize MC's happiness over his own. He would see MC's choice as a good one. He would see the way the brothers love MC. He would get sad about it sometimes and I think he'd have some sleepless nights where he wishes MC was beside him. But in the end, he would focus on his job and let MC go. Seeing them be comfortable and happy with the brothers would bring him a sort of bittersweet happiness, too.

Barbatos: I think Barbatos would withdraw. I think he would become quieter and even more formal around MC than he already was. He respects MC's choice. I also feel like he would deliberately restrain himself in order to keep the peace. He cares too much about Diavolo, the brothers, & the state of the Devildom to really fight for MC's affections.

Simeon: Quiet suffering, but willing to cry about it when he needs to. Like I see him being honest with himself about how much it hurts, but never letting anyone else know. He would watch MC with a soft fondness, but from afar. Willing to let them be with the brothers if that's what makes them happiest.

Solomon: To be expected. Solomon already believes this. He already thinks MC is going to choose the brothers over him every time. He's prepared for that inevitability. It still breaks his heart to watch them slip away from him. Deep down, it probably devastates him. But he's determined to be there for them in any way he can, no matter what that looks like. And he would never let them know how he really feels... unless he got drunk maybe.

Thirteen: I see her being kinda like, Fine! Who needs you anyway!? But she says it with tears in her eyes. She gets abrasive as a response. And at first she might be a little stand offish with MC after she realizes. But I think in the end, her love for MC would soften her again, but it would hurt, too. She would need some time to transition herself to "friends only" status.

Raphael: I see his response as being kind of a mix between Simeon and Barb. Like, he's going to accept MC's choice and wants them to be happy, but he's also going to have to restrain himself from fighting for MC. Mr Spears does not strike me as the kinda guy who would just let someone go if he really loved them. But he does seem to be the kind of guy who cares a lot about doing the right thing. And I think he would consider letting MC go to be the right thing.

Mephisto: I could see him trying to push MC away himself, in an effort to protect himself from getting hurt. Like oh who would want a human anyway? Only fallen angels, obviously. But that's not what he really thinks, it's just a coping mechanism. And he can't keep it up anyway. He's secretly soft for MC. So I see him just transitioning to hating the brothers. Not going out of his way to make their lives difficult, but not helping them out either. Only being nice to MC. Keeping that pain inside because he can't admit it even to himself.

Nooo I made myself sad lol. I guess that's the point of angst though, huh??

Anyway, I am very fascinated by this topic! Once again, I'm sorry you had to wait so long for the response, I'm still so annoyed at Tumblr lol.

#I'm glad I finally got the ask though #because I like talking about these things lol #obey me #obey me nightbringer #obey me side characters #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me simeon #obey me solomon #obey me thirteen #obey me raphael #obey me mephistopheles #avatar0fpr1de #misc answers

[deancasbigbang]

Title: Love Brewing

Author: allthismusic

Artist: Reverie

Rating: Explicit

Pairings: Dean/Castiel, referenced past Dean/Lisa, referenced Charlie/OFC

Length: 20000

Warnings: n/a

Tags: Best friend to lovers; domestic fluff; alternate universe; pining; a cat named Elle Woods

Posting Date: October 3, 2023

Summary: Dean and Cas have been best friends for years. And sure, Dean had asked Cas out when they’d first met, but in the years after Cas had turned him down, Dean has come to realize that he wouldn’t trade their friendship for anything (even if he does still think about kissing Cas sometimes).  Anyway, between running his bar and preparing for a homebrewing competition that he hopes will help make his dreams of turning his brewing hobby from amateur to pro, he doesn’t really have time for romance. But is there more brewing between Dean and Cas than just a couple of extra-hoppy IPAs? Or is it only Charlie who thinks so? 

Excerpt: “I started brewing a couple years ago,” Dean explains. He kneels down to pull out the keg a little bit so Charlie can take a look. “Sam — my brother — said I was spending too much time here and convinced me I needed a hobby. I don’t have a license to sell it, not yet at least, but some of the regulars like to try it.”  “Some of the regulars allow themselves to be the guinea pigs for your mad scientist experiments,” someone corrects dryly from above him. Dean stands back up, although he doesn’t need to make eye contact to recognize the owner of the voice. “Hello, Dean,” Castiel says. “Hey, Cas,” Dean says, filling another tasting glass and handing it to him. Cas raises the glass to his face and sniffs it before taking a small sip.  He nods. “It’s good.” “But?” Dean probes.  Castiel thinks for a moment and then shakes his head. “No, it’s good,” he answers. “It just tastes a little… early?”  “Ah,” Dean says, relieved. “Yeah, it is. Probably needs another week or so, but Charlie asked — this is Charlie, by the way,” he interrupts himself, gesturing to his new bartender.  “Hello,” Cas says, and Charlie gives him a wave. Cas orders a beer, and before he goes over to a table by the window, says, “You still haven’t chosen a movie for tomorrow, Dean.”  “Yeah, yeah, I’ll get back to you,” Dean says, “Or we can just watch Tombstone again.” He thinks he catches Cas rolling his eyes as he turns away from the bar.  “Ooh, date night?” Charlie asks.  “Ha,” Dean says, halfway between a word and a cough. “Cas is just a friend.”  Charlie replies, “Do you want to try that again and see if you can make it sound believable this time?”  Dean indulges her. “Cas is just a friend with some large gaps in his pop culture knowledge.”  “Uh-huh,” Charlie says. “I’ve read that one in the playbook before. You fill some of his gaps, he fills some of yours—”  “You wanna get fired on your first day?” Dean asks her.  Charlie holds up her hands in surrender. “Sorry, boss,” she says. She turns away to serve a customer a gin and tonic and then glances over to where Cas has ensconced himself in one of the booths that line the side of the bar and set a notebook and bulging file folder on the table next to his beer.  “Really though, nothing?” She asks, looking back at Dean. “Even I can see he’s gorgeous.”  Dean can’t help but chuckle at that, even as he rolls his eyes. This time it’s his turn to look at Cas. The sun is setting outside and a few rays are shining through the window of the bar, catching Cas across the face as he looks down at his research.  He must stare for a moment too long because Charlie makes a “hmm,” noise that can only be described as ‘knowing.’ 

DCBB 2023 Posting Schedule

#dcbb 2023 #fic preview #2023 promo #deancas #destiel

[darkeralmond]

UNEXPECTED VISITS

TREVOR ZEGRAS X FEM! OC

october series

synopsis: while hayden’s home alone, trevor decides to stop by and things get a lil… wild?

warnings: semi smut, making out, that kinda stuff

word count: 2.7k

a/n: SUPRISE!! GUESS WHOS GIVING U A CHAPTER EARLY!! anyways the spice is here w/o the ACTUAL smut (but be on the lookout for sure)

In the past year of living with my friends, this was the first time in a while I had the house to myself. It was the one night that Mal, Alex, and Wes all had individual plans and I did not. I watched Trevor’s hockey game last night and he played well, but since there’s no game tonight I had nothing else to do.

I sat in the living room with my songbook and my keyboard. I just hit random keys on the keyboard and prayed that something would come to me. I played a note and sang out, ”I…want you to know.” I couldn’t come up with anything after that, so I just wrote that down in the songbook and resumed. I repeated the same lyric over and over, trying different keys.

My process was interrupted by knocking at the front door. I whipped my head in the direction of the door and noticed that I had completely missed Trevor’s texts from a while ago. “Shit,” I muttered as I grabbed my phone and checked the texts, making my way up to the door.

Trevor had texted me saying he was gonna head over today with some food after practice. I hadn’t realized my notifications were silenced. I opened the front door and there stood Trevor with two paper bags and a bright smile. “I brought food over to help you write!” he exclaimed as he held the two bags up.

I let out a faint giggle before I moved out of the way and let him in. “Thanks,” I said as I shut the door when he entered and followed him into the kitchen. “I didn’t see your texts, my notifications were silent.” It was obvious I hadn’t either. I was wearing my pajamas and my hair was a mess along with the apartment. “Sorry for the mess. I didn’t expect company.”

He placed the bags down on the kitchen island and replied, “Oh, my apartment is much worse. I live with 2 other guys, mind you.” He pulled out a couple of take-out boxes and looked inside one before handing it over to me. “I got you a BLT from Gigi’s down the road.”

I smiled as I took and box and looked at the sandwich. I haven’t had Gigi’s in forever. “Thanks,” I said as I brought my food over to the dining table and sat down. “I thought you would’ve been out partying after your win yesterday.” I then took a bite of my sandwich.

He chuckled, “Nah, we did that yesterday.” He grabbed his own box and brought it over to the table as well, sitting next to me. “I just joined them in going to Gigi’s for a bit, but I got food to go and came over here.”

I nodded my head and hummed. “How did you know which apartment was mine?” I asked him before taking a fry and eating it.

“Mal told me,” he answered before taking a bite of his sandwich. “She said that you were home alone and needed a babysitter.”

I gasped, fake offended but also kind of shocked Mal had texted him that. First off, didn’t know they were in contact, and second, she treated me like a kid just like Alex does. Whatever, this is for another day. I just brushed it off and said, “I appreciate the food. You want anything to drink?”

“Let me see what you guys have,” he answered. I got up from my chair and made my way over to the fridge, Trevor following close behind me. I opened the fridge and looked at the drink options. I could feel his presence from behind me as he peered over my shoulder. I moved out of the way so he could grab whatever he wanted. He then grabbed himself a bottle of Coke before looking up at me. “What do you want?”

He leaned against the fridge with one hand as he looked down at me, an alluring grin on his face. I felt my face flush with heat as I answered, “Uh, I’ll have a Dr. Pepper.” He grabbed the drink for me and held it out, grabbing himself one as well. “Thanks!” I made my way back to the table and sat down.

Trevor chuckled a bit as he sat back down at the table. “You got anything new?” he asked before snagging one of my fries. “Even though I’m not allowed to know.”

“Well, no,” I answered. “I was working on something, but you interrupted me and my writing process!” He gasped, throwing his hand over his heart. I laughed in response and took another fry, taking a bite. “But, I could play something I wrote in high school…”

A smile grew on Trevor’s face as he said, “Yes, please! I want to hear anything!” His desperation made me laugh, I didn’t think it was that serious, but it was to him. We finished eating shortly after that and I grabbed my keyboard and songbook from the living room floor and walked back to my room.

“Follow me,” I said. He threw his trash away and chased after me with his drink. I placed everything on the ground and gestured to Trevor all the songbooks lined up on my bookshelf. “Pick one.” He hummed as he bent down and dragged his finger along the bindings of the songbooks. He snagged one randomly and held it up to me. It was from sophomore year when my parents got divorced.

I knew a lot of the content would be depressing, but I knew there were some songs that were love songs. I flipped through the pages, passing every uninteresting or depressing one until I landed on ’Halley’s Comet’. “Alright, I semi-remember how to play this,” I giggled as I sat down in front of the keyboard. “So bare with me.”

Trevor sat next to me, scooting close to me so there was no space between us. This caused my cheeks to flush a faint red color. I looked down at the keyboard and then up at the journal, seeing what chords I wrote down. I was hesitant to play since I was reading this again after years. I played the beginning of the song, my fingers gaining their muscle memory back for the song. “I don't want it… and I don't want to want you,” I sang, “but in my dreams, I seem to be more honest, and I must admit you’ve been in quite a few.”

I wrote Halley’s Comet when I had first started seeing James, but not dating him, and how I was slowly starting to fall for him harder than I wanted to. The reason I was so stubborn about falling in love was because of my dad and my mom’s divorce and how heartbroken it left her. I wasn’t even aware of the fact I was singing a song I had written for James when I had Trevor next to me, admiring every lyric I sang and every chord I played.

“Halley’s comet,” I sang, “comes around more often than I do… but you’re all it takes for me to break a promise, silly me to fall in love with you.” I felt the smile on my face grow when I glanced over at Trevor, the look of awe on his face was adorable. His eyes were focused on my hands as I played the keyboard and he was slack-jawed. “I was good at feeling nothin’, now I’m hopeless… What a drag to love you like I do.”

My fingers effortlessly played the instrumental break, causing his eyes to go wide. I cracked another small smile and fought back the laugh that hung in my throat. After impressing him with the piano break, I sang the outro of the song, “I’m sitting in my room, haven’t slept in a week or two… I think I might’ve fallen in love.” I looked back up at Trevor, whose glimmering eyes I met. “What am I to do…?” I played the last chord and listened as the newfound silence rang in the air.

Trevor glanced down at the piano and then back up at me. He was speechless, scoffing as he tried to come up with anything to say. “Hayden,” he whispered, “that was beautiful… I want that on the album.” He brought his hand up to my face and caressed my cheek with his thumb. If I wasn’t mistaken, I was falling in love again.

“You do…?” These were the only words that could come from my mouth, as the tension in the air suffocated me. I felt like my life had been going a downward spiral, but how was he able to change that? How was one interview the thing that changed that?

“Yeah,” Trevor husked, “I do, Hay…” His voice trailed, leaving us in the silent tense air once again. There was a flame already ignited, but this… this was the fuel to the fire. I gazed at his eyes before flickering my attention down to his lips. He leaned in, closing the space between us, and gave me a small peck on the lips.

This was his way of testing the waters to see what I would do. Before I knew it, I lost control over my body and impulsively crushed my mouth against his. Trevor’s hands didn’t skip a beat to sink into my hair from the nape of my neck, grasping to it tightly but not to the point of pain. My hand rested on the side of his neck, the other rested on his chest. His hands traveled down to my waist, pulling my body onto his lap.

Trevor pulled away, staring up at me while his chest heaved with his deep breaths. I assumed he was using this as a break to catch his breath like I was using it, but he had other intentions. Before I could say anything about the kiss and how exhilarating it was, he buried his face into the crook of my neck and began nibbling at it. My eyes widened and my face went red.

My mind was so clouded with arousal, that I wasn’t able to pinpoint a single of my thoughts that buzzed throughout my head. The only way I could signal to Trevor that I was enjoying myself was by letting out a quiet moan and gripping his curls. I could feel his body shake as he chuckled. Jackass, I thought. I would’ve had a snarky comment in return if he hadn’t bit the sensitive part of my neck. A whimper escaped my mouth, leaving me shocked that I could even produce a sound like that.

My head spun as my body temperature rose, leaving me scorching hot. My breaths were hitched and heavy, my knuckles growing white with how tight I held onto his hair. “Trevor,” I finally managed to whisper. I could tell there were now dark marks on the right side of my neck that belonged to him.

I shouldn’t have left my door open and I should’ve remembered the type of roommates I had. Though my physical body was there at that moment, my consciousness was on another planet of satisfaction and pleasure. Trevor’s cold hands had slipped under my shirt and his fingers dug into my fiery skin. I was unaware of the fact the front door had opened and someone was approaching my room, and clearly, Trevor was too busy giving me an out-of-world experience to also notice.

“Oh, my god!” Trevor’s head shot up, dragging me back to the real world. His and I’s attention whipped over to my door which Weston was standing in. He had a look of shock and disturbance on his face, but I noticed his face was red and puffy along with his eyes. He had been crying. “I-I’m so sorry!” he apologized before slamming my door shut.

I couldn’t just go back to hooking up with Trevor after that. I was more concerned about why my best friend was crying over the fact he had ruined the mood. “Shit,” I mumbled as I got up from Trevor’s lap, his grasp on my body loosening as I did so. “I-I gotta check on Wes, I’m so sorry. That was amazing and I think the best experience I’ve ever had in my life!”

Trevor nervously chuckled in response and got up. “Yeah, it was. I get it, I’ll head out so you two can talk,” he said as he glanced down at the keyboard. “Alright, yeah.” I walked with him to the front door and he slipped on his shoes. “I really enjoyed spending time with you and I really liked the song.” He had a smile so contagious on his face that I felt one slip onto my own. “I have 2 games out of town this week, the 14th and 15th, but I want to take you out on an actual date when I get back.”

I felt the butterflies multiply in my stomach when he popped the question. He didn’t know how long I was waiting for him to ask me out on an official date. “Yes, of course, I would,” I replied with a wide grin on my face which caused my eyes to slightly squint. Before he left, he gave me a hug and a kiss on my temple.

When the front door shut, I remembered why he left and made my way to Weston’s room. The way our condo was set up, there were two rooms near the front door, mine and Mal’s, then the kitchen between the two rooms in the back, Wes’s and Alex’s. I grabbed a bottle of water for Wes from the fridge and went to his room.

He had the door open while he sat on his bed, sniffling as he wiped some tears from his cheeks. I entered and sat down on the bed next to him, holding out the water to him. He just took it from me and immediately opened it, chugging away. I knew that his throat would be dry from all the crying. I also knew he would just bury under his gray duvet for as long as his body let him, maybe even longer.

“You wanna explain what happened?” I asked him in a soft-spoken voice, placing my hand in his.

He gripped my hand slightly as he looked down at them. “Yeah,” he mumbled. “I ended up going back over to Alejandro’s house to tell him that I’m done with him.” His words were shaky as he tried to explain what was going on.

I grazed my thumb over his hand to soothe him down as he continued explaining, “But when I went over there, I saw another car in the driveway… It was Valarie’s.” My gut twisted at the realization of where the story was going. “When I went up to the door and knocked on it, Alejandro answered shirtless and was all upset with me coming to his house instead of just texting him. Then Valarie came around the corner wearing one of his shirts.”

His voice cracked as he took a break from talking. He let out a shaky breath and pressed the back of his other hand against his mouth, his eyes were glossy as he did his best to hold back his returning tears, but inevitably lost that battle. He choked out, “That’s when I found out Valarie was the one who Alejandro left me for.

Even though I knew it was going there, it still surprised me. My words spewed out like venom as I said, “She’s such a bitch.” Wes nodded his head as he shook with silent cries. He rested his head on my shoulder and sighed. I let go of his hand and placed it on his cheek, letting out a faint sigh as well.

He broke up his cries by wheezing out, “I’m 19. Where’s this teenage dream everyone’s been fucking telling me about.”

#apricot’s fanfics #trevor zegras fic #trevor zegras #trevor zegras x reader #trevor zegras x y/n #trevor zegras x oc #trevor zegras smut

[spar-kie]

Do You Have The Time?

A Thorough Dissection of What Past Aevium Means For You

So I've been reading through @/jazz-kitty's rejuv playthrough (not actually tagging them bc this will contain spoilers for shit they've not gotten to but if you're reading this Jazz, keep up the good work! It's super fun to read through your playthrough :>), and I've realized we got some concrete dates (in a fashion), meaning that, we might be able to figure out when Storm 9 happens, within a couple months! As well as some other details.

Anyways even if you don't want to hear my rambling about dates, there's gonna be something I really want to share underneath the cut, I'll put some big bold header text so you know where to scroll to.

Now, it all starts here, with Melia's Mimikyu, which we are there to see caught, giving us a concrete date, October 10th, 198X.

Now you may be asking yourself, but Sparkie, the screenshot says 1984? That's because my buddy Nym, who is on the dev team, stated that to its memory, the year is calculated based off your system date. Meaning that the year will change depending on the year you play Rejuv in. However, Jazz's post that I got this from does mention in the tags how the rest of Melia's pokemon are caught from 1981-1983. I had an old save file kicking around that was near Blacksteeple, and checking "Emma's" Pokemon in that I can also say that these dates are variable based off system time. Being 198X-3 through 198X-1. For simplicity's sake we're going to be based off of System Time being the year 2024, mostly because shit like 198X-1 is hard to read. But just keep in mind that as Rejuv is set in 202X these dates have about a 10 year range they can vary by, this will come back later, take note of this.

I want to establish before we go forward, you can also see how this works for yourself rather easily, if you go into the past and catch a pokemon, the date it's caught at will be your system time, minus 40 years. This, combined with some plot elements such as Melia's birthday being after she catches this Mimikyu confirms that the past segments take place exactly 40 years before present day, with the Time Crystals not sending you back or forth to a specific time and date, but rather a set amount of time forward and back (in this case 40 years).

Anyways, this also lets us know that Storm-9 happened a little over 39 years ago as of the game's start, and at some point during the game's time span we will hit the 40 year anniversary. I always thought it was 50 years before the game's start, I don't remember if I got that from somewhere in game or it's just one of them things I got in my head, but between the wiki and a reply from Zumi on one of my tweets it's actually 40. If anyone has the same misconception I had, I hope that clears it up.

But through what we can gleam in game, we can actually tell (roughly) when Storm-9 happens! Judging by the fact we can still visit the past at the end of the .karma files, Storm-9 has not hit the past yet. It's going to happen very soon, but it's not there yet. Thankfully, we have a very concrete date on when that would be, December 25th, 2024, as the Xen Raid is just one day later. Meaning, that as of December 25th, 1984, the Aevium region is still fine. This combined with the fact that there is a note on the door of the house occupied by the A-Gang near Hyoshi City that says they'll be out until the Summer means that they are going to be at school until late May, early June, assuming it runs at similar time frames to a school in the U.S.. Meaning that, at some point, most likely in Early 1985, but possibly for about a week in Late 1984, is when Storm 9 hits. You could extrapolate more (i.e. no teachers/other students in the academy during the Interceptor's Nightmare Realm means people might've been on break, meaning it was Late 1984 and the gang was just hanging out at the academy) but as that's explicitly stated to be not entirely accurate to how that day actually was, I'm not going to do that.

HI IF YOU JUST WANT THE FUNNY INFORMATION SCROLL HERE

Anyways, now that you've heard me ramble about dates like your history teacher, we get to the fun part! That being I get to tell you about the A gang! That being we know the protag choices are 17-18 years old, and given that we know Storm 9 happened in either very Late 1984 or Early 1985, we can assume that the A-Gang were those ages during Storm-9. Meaning their birth years could range between 1966-1968, placing them firmly in Gen X, meaning they are chronologically old enough to be some of the people reading this's parents!

But that's not all, do you remember how I stated that Rejuv took place in 202X, meaning it could be any year of the 2020s? And thus, the past segments take place in any year 40 years before that, in the 1980s? If we were to say, put the year Rejuv takes place in in 2020, then that would mean the A Gang would be born in the years 1962-1964.

The general consensus on baby boomers is that they were born between 1946-1964.

The A Gang could, conceivably, be baby boomers.

Have a nice night everyone.

#pokemon rejuvenation #pkmn rejuv #rejuv #Look even if you don't like this boring kind of stuff I BEG YOU to at least scroll down to the bottom bit with the header #It is VITAL that I get this information out there

[janetbrown711]

Little Lion Man

Pigsy sends the kids off with Tang for a field trip to the zoo on the eight year anniversary of his abandonment of Sandy. Surely he will be perfectly fine on his own, especially if nobody calls him. And surely Tang will be fine handling the kids on his own for the first time ever. Everything is fine.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 8.5 Part 9 Part 10 Part 10.5 Part 11

Ao3 Link

Pigsy woke up to his alarm on October 14th the same way he did every goddamned year: with his alarm blaring, dread in his chest, and a lump in his throat. It was aggravating– even when Pigsy made an effort not to keep track of calender dates, his body just knew– it just fucking knew. Then again it probably didn’t help that today was also the day of the field trip to the zoo that Tang was chaperoning for MK and Mei– which was good, but also meant for weeks all he’d heard about was today’s date.

The last time he ever talked to Sandy.

Pigsy was going to open the restaurant. He had every year since that godawful call. He had to. It wasn’t like he ever wanted to close it though– that would be stupid. He needed the money. ‘Sides, Pigsy never closed– unless it was for the kids. But that was different. This was nothing. A memory. Something that happened eight years ago. Pigsy was fine. This didn’t matter.

Sit up. Crack the back. Turn off that stupid alarm. Breathe.

He’d lived here for over a month, but it was still difficult to adjust to the fact that while this room certainly had the space for a kitchen, he’d actually have to go out for any of that.

Unlike that day. Or night, really. It was 2:46 AM when he’d gotten the first call. He’d just gotten home from spending the night with some lady demon at a stupid ass bar. He was exhausted from the drinking and hollering and had just wanted to crash into bed, and when he saw it was an unknown number he just ignored it.

“PIGGY! I CAN’T FIND MY BACKPACK!” Mei called from the hallway.

The chef rubbed his eyes. “Have you looked in the closet?”

A bit of pause.

“NOT THERE– OH WAIT–” Pigsy chuckled a little as he heard things being tossed. “FOUND IT!”

“Well there you go, kid. Get ready.” He called out and with a quick patter, she was gone.

Find a clean shirt. Put in one arm, then the other. Make sure the buttons aren’t crooked. Find pants, one leg, then the other. Find socks. Realize all of your socks are a mess. Realize you are a mess. Put them on anyway. Find shoes, tie them. Breathe.

Pigsy was glad he wasn’t going on the field trip. Of course Mk and Mei had practically begged him, but it was a good step for Tang to have them for a couple of hours. Sorta like ‘testing the waters’ or whatever. ‘Sides, he was feeling hungover, despite the fact he didn’t drink at all the previous night. Or– week, for that matter. Either way there was a headache and he didn’t feel like making breakfast.

MK was already dressed and waiting for the pig demon at the kitchen island, feet swinging happily with the kind of pure joy radiating on his face that only a child could possess.

“Morning Pigsy!” He said, leaning forward. “Whatcha gonna make today?”

“Cereal. I’m tired,” Pigsy grumbled, pulling down a box of ‘Monkey Charms’ and some bowls.

MK laughed a little. “You’re tired a lot, Pigsy.”

“Yeah. I am,” Pigsy sighed, going to the fridge for milk, disappointed to find there was barely enough for two bowls– but whatever, he’d just skip it. Wasn’t like he couldn’t afford it.

MK was content though, scarfing down his food at his usual quick pace while he tried to talk about the latest episode of The Ninja King while Pigsy brewed himself a pot of coffee and tried to listen.

He hadn’t even had time to take his coat off when the phone rang again. With a grunt, he set it on the counter, upset he saw it was the same unknown number. He had gone to pour himself a glass of baijiu. It had stopped ringing by the time he finished drinking it.

“...And then Monkey King– er– Monkey Ninja King was all like ‘Watch this suckaaaaa’ and did a backflip, snapped the bad guy's neck and saved the day! It was so cool, Pigsy– I love cable,” MK finished, snapping Pigsy back.

“Sounds kind of violent, don’t it?” Pigsy didn’t have an issue, he just wondered how a kid like MK would like something like that.

“Eh, it was cool,” MK shrugged with a grin, eating more cereal. “Plus, it was to defend this lady monkey so it was for honor and stuff and the greater good.”

“Well that’s good I guess,” Pigsy shrugged to himself.

“MK-! Do you have my– Cereal? Why cereal?” Mei stopped in her tracks.

“What’s wrong with cereal? Don’t you like it?” The chef frowned a little.

“Nooo, I dooo, it’s just– I dunno– boring?” Mei shrugged.

“Well it’s what you’re getting today. Mr. Tang can buy you two some lunch– and if he can’t, then tell him I’ll pay him back,” Pigsy rubbed his forehead and went back to his coffee.

“Ughhhhhhhhhh, okay,” Mei groaned, taking her seat and complying.

The machine beeped and Pigsy grabbed his favorite mug and poured.

With the blink of dissociative eyes, Pigsy was already out the door and dropped the kids off at the school, and apparently he’d lit a cigarette somewhere along the way too. He wasn’t supposed to– he knew MK hated it, but he couldn’t smother it no matter how hard he tried.

“Hey you two little monkeys-! You ready for the field trip?” Tang snuck up on Pigsy and cheered for the kids who quickly joined in.

“I wanna see the monkeys! I hear they got cool nets and stuff and you can go through tunnels and stuff and they’ll move around you,” MK grinned big, glad to step away from the smoke a bit.

“Well I wanna see the reptile room. I wanna see me a big old lizard boy,” Mei announced.

“I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time for both, you two,” Tang laughed before turning his attention to Pigsy.

“Are… you okay?” His face immediately fell.

“Bad morning. Have fun with the kids,” Pigsy half-lied, not wanting to get into it and figuring a simple explanation would keep him happy and at least slightly unworried.

“Oh– uh– will do then,” Tang winced a little, before adding– “Try not to smoke too much, though.”

Pigsy snorted weakly before saying motionless goodbyes and heading off to the restaurant by himself.

In the subway, his phone rang. Pigsy’s breath hitched as he fished it out and immediately hit decline, not even bothering to check caller ID. He also didn’t get rid of his cigarette when someone told him it wasn’t allowed on the train. He rode in silence, until he was suddenly unlocking the door of the restaurant.

8:32– he was late.

How, he didn’t know– maybe there’d been a delay in the train. Maybe he’d done something wrong– well that was probably guaranteed but– ugh, he didn’t have time for this. He set his cigarette in an ashtray and started prepping, startled when half way through slicing chives he realized he already had another in his mouth, and the stench was starting to burn his throat.

Get it together.

Suddenly he was finished with both the cigarette and the prep work and so opened at–

9:03– still late.

This time he saw himself fish out his reds and lighter but he didn’t even bother to try and pull back.

His phone buzzed to life again at 9:32, when still nobody had arrived at the restaurant. He took it out of his pocket but instead of answering, he placed it on the counter and watched it buzz and buzz and ring and ring and ring and ring and– Why hadn’t anyone arrived yet? It was a friday for crying out loud– Pigsy was supposed to be busy by now– his hands were supposed to be clocking in orders and he was just supposed to be lost in the circadian rhythm– they were supposed to fucking be here already.

When the phone finally stopped buzzing, Pigsy scrubbed down the restaurant one– two– three but still by 10:19 nobody was there. Nobody. Not a single soul.

Alone.

…He wasn't supposed to– it was technically illegal, but he opened a bottle of rice wine and began to drink, the dry mix of sweet and sour clashing with the ash and toxicity of tobacco. It was god awful and didn't do anything to make Pigsy feel better but he continued to drink anyways as his world just started to spiral in his head.

Nobody was there.

Was he even reading the clocks right? It was morning– people should be here– they shouldn't let him do this– he shouldn't let him do this–

His phone rang again.

Enraged, Pigsy snatched the phone from the counter and grabbed another bottle of wine (having finished the first) before storming up the stairs into the mostly empty apartment that was in the process of becoming an office/hang out space for MK and Mei. He set the phone on the counter and sat at a stool and watched it as his mind tugged him further and further back into the past.

Pigsy popped open the bottle and took a long, long swig.

.o0o.

Annoyance had flooded Pigsy’s senses when the phone rang a third time that morning, and despite his instincts to just hang up and block the number, he answered.

“Hello–”

“Pigsy-! Thank the stars you answered– I-i—”

“Sandy? The hell happened to your phone?” Pigsy poured himself another glass of baijiu.

“Pigsy– l-look, I-i– I don’t know what to do– I-i didn’t know who to call– I-i–”

“Woah, woah, woah– slow your roll here, man,” Pigsy huffed and took a sip. “The hell happened? Are you– crying?”

“I-i’m in jail, Pigsy– b-but look– you gotta listen to me– whatever they tell you, I-i didn’t mean to, okay? She was my world Bajie– please–”

All humor left the air and Pigsy set his glass down. “Sandy, you gotta calm down. I can’t understand you with all this weepin’.”

Harsh words– too harsh.

“Pigsy please, you gotta help me–”

“Sandy, stop– Just–” Pigsy rubbed his forehead, leaning on the sink. “It’s way too late for this, and you know I got delivery day tomorrow– ‘sides, bail is closed on the weekends.”

“I just– Xin– you know I-i love her– b-but I thought– she looked like one of ‘em– the enemy soldiers– I didn’t mean to hurt her, Bajie, you know I never would.”

Pigsy’s eyes widened, a lump forming rapidly in his throat.

“Sandy… what happened to Xin?”

His friend didn’t reply.

“Sandy, answer me," Pigsy slammed his fist against his fridge.

Sandy, the tall and stoic and brave, just started blubbering like a baby again and all Pigsy could do was shake his head to stop realization from hitting him, but it settled in nonetheless.

“B-bajie– I swear I didn’t mean to– I didn’t mean to– It was an accident– I thought sh-she– A-and now– I-i can’t live with myself– Bajie please–”

Pigsy took his trembling legs to the table where he lowered the phone and poured another drink through rapidly cloudy eyes.

Hai Xin was the kindest woman alive and the perfect soulmate for Sandy: tall, strong, honest and confident. She was everything Pigsy couldn’t have ever been– she made Sandy happy.

And now she was fucking gone. Because of Sandy. Because of the war.

Because of Pigsy.

“–Bajie y-you have to help me– you know I didn’t mean it– I never would– I loved her– I loveher– please–”

“Jesus fucking Christ Sandy– what the hell do you expect me to do?! Y-you killed her–! I-i can’t–”

"Pigsy, please. No one else knows me like you– y-you’re my best friend– you have to help me," His friend wept.

“Friend???” Pigsy laughed bitterly, tears falling down his face. “I-i– I’m not your friend, Sandy– Friends don’t do this to each other.”

“B…Pigsy, you don’t mean–”

“Of course I fucking do! I-i– I can’t do this– I can’t be with you– I-i–” Pigsy buried his face in his hands.

“Pigsy… please… It was an accident– please believe me…”

Pigsy shook his head violently before having to take several deep breaths so he could spit out, “Get a lawyer, Sandy. A good one.”

Sandy gasped on the other line– “W-wait, Pigsy– plea–”

Pigsy hung up, poured himself another glass of baijiu, and chugged it down before collapsing into sobs.

.o0o.

Sobbing.

Pigsy was sobbing.

He was sitting at the same fucking table, in the same fucking apartment, holding the same fucking phone– that phone– that ringing, unceasing phone– that stupid fucking cursed phone that had destroyed everything–

In half a heartbeat, Pigsy stood and threw his phone against the wall with all his might, shattering it into bits and pieces instantly. He was almost startled by the monstrous force behind it, before he touched his face and realized he had completely lost his glamor.

Long tusks, scarred cheek, wild and matted fur, and roughly seven feet tall– probably 700 pounds too.

He looked like the monster he was inside.

Pigsy immediately sank to his knees and wept– he wept and wept and wept and wept until he was on the floor next to the completely empty bottle of rice wine, sharp pain infecting his chest as it felt he forgot how to breathe.

“S-sandy, I– *hic* – I-i didn’ mean– I’m so– *hic*–sorry,” He gave meaningless, useless, pathetic apologies to the swirling apartment around him. Painful ringing filled his ears and all he could do was cry and cry and cry and cry.

Hai Xin was a saint. Sandy was a saint. And Pigsy? Pigsy was what you saw– a filthy, disgusting, violent, destructive, addicted, fat demon who can’t ever solve his own goddamned messes and was now intoxicated, miserable, and alone.

His vision started to blur as the pain and agony in chest grew. He tried drinking more wine to drown out his disappointment and wrath but by now the bottle was empty so he threw that aside too, glass going everywhere.

Broken pieces– shattered lives– what was Pigsy even doing right now?? God– he totally destroyed his phone– what if it was Tang who called? The school? Were MK and Mei alright? What about Tang? Were all three of them– he shouldn't have left them alone– he shouldn't have left any of them alone. This was his fault. He was a monster– a beast– a murderer– a–

“Mr. Zhu?” A soft voice sent Pigsy shooting straight up, and he immediately swung a punch in that direction, but the (glowing???) figure dodged with perfect ease.

Pigsy landed on the floor with a heavy thud and he cut himself on some of the glass from the wine bottle. He turned back to them, anger still bright in his eyes before the glowing figure touched his arm, and a deep calm washed over him, relaxing his breath and muscles before he could focus his eyes and realize that the bright figure was just–

Gatita..???

“Pigsy– are you alright?” The woman touched his oversized, beastly arm with zero hesitation, which made Pigsy flinch.

“G-gatita– I-i wasn’t– *hic*– expecting you,” He struggled to sit up.

“It’s okay, Pigsy, you’re okay– you're just having a panic attack, just breathe for me,” Gatita assisted, getting him against a wall and kneeling in front of him.

“Th-the kids– they’re– *hic*– are they okay?” He grabbed shoulder. with all his might, making her wince, and he let go in a panic.

“Hey, hey– easy there,” She tried to soothe. “The children are fine, Mr. Zhu– I’m asking about you; What happened? Why didn’t you answer my calls? Why are you up here?” She sat in front of him so he was forced to look at her.

Pigsy’s hands fumbled for his cigarettes in his pocket, but Gatita gently pulled them away from his hand.

“Mr. Zhu, I need you to be forward with me,” She looked at him so softly it hurt. “What happened here?”

Pigsy blinked slowly. “Y-you’re the one who– *hic* –called?”

Gatita nodded. “I was hoping to have lunch with you; have you take the day off to chat and see how you’re holding up.”

Pigsy laughed, covering his eyes with his hand. “Sandy… Xin…”

The woman nodded solemnly. “I’ve heard.”

“You’ve– oh shit– Gatita– please– y-you– *hic* –you can’t– the kids– please the kids–” Pigsy shook his head as tears streamed down his fur.

“Hey now,” Gatita said, and another calm wave washed over the demon against his will. “Nobody is going anywhere, nobody is getting taken away– it’s okay.”

‘It’s okay.’

When was anything ever “okay”? How could ruining your best friend's life and getting someone else killed ever okay?????

“Leave me alone, Gatita,” Pigsy growled, eyes red.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that, Mr. Zhu– you are deeply unwell, and you need help,” She placed a soft hand on his giant cheek.

Pigsy glared. “You should be– *hic* – afraid of me.”

Gatita chuckled and wiped away a stray tear. “I’ve seen my fair share of demons, Mr. Zhu, and you’re a rose compared to them.”

Pigsy grunted his disbelief, before asking, “Why were you calling?”

“Well… if you want to think of it in professional terms, then it’s because I know that my client–Mei–’s wellbeing is directly tied to your wellbeing. However, I like to think of it more as me being fond of you and wondering how you’ve been holding up since I last saw you,” She assured him gently.

“You calling is what set me off in the first fuckin’ place– I mean– goddamn– six– seven times–?”

“It was only twice, Mr. Zhu,” Gatita looked genuinely confused.

Pigsy blinked. “N-no, you had– who–?” the demon shook his head, “Doesn’t matter– phone’s fucking broken,” he gestured to the shattered pieces before rubbing his face. “God, I’m such an idiot– I’m sorry– I just– I–”

“You’ve hurt yourself,” Gatita noticed the cut in his hand.

Pigsy growled, “S’what I get for breakin’ all this shit.”

"Broken glass can be swept, and a phone can be replaced, Mr. Zhu, but a life cannot," she frowned softly, reaching into her bag and pulling out a bandage.

“God– you think I don’t know that?!," Pigsy snapped, startling her.

For weeks he had pleaded to never had heard that phone call– that he'd go to Xin and Sandy's wedding in two months as planned. That he'd be the best man and give a sappy speech and everything would feel okay and Pigsy would be satisfied knowing Sandy finally had someone good in his life and he could become the recluse in his restaurant like he was always meant to be.

He wished for– begged for– prayed for a way he could've possibly made things better– but once the newspaper arrived and the details of the trial were released, he had known the best thing he could do was disappear.

His Nana had stopped him.

"Hey, hey– it’s alright, just breathe for me–"

“Hai Xin is dead because of me, Gatita,” Pigsy snapped. "I cant just fucking 'breathe' that away!"

Gatita went silent for a moment, closing her eyes before unwrapping the bandage and placing it on his hand.

"Mr. Zhu… feeling guilty and torturing yourself or even getting yourself killed won’t bring her back– you must understand this," she pleaded. "MK, Mei and Tang need you, and I will not watch idly by as you throw yourself away."

Pigsy sat up a little. “I-i wasn’t– I’m not–”

Gatita looked deep, deep into his eyes.

"...It's just a bad day."

"You don't have to be alone, you know."

"I've been alone for eight years, Gatita, and I’ve always been just fine, and I’ll always be fine–"

"You know you didn't turn on your sign. The one outside."

Pigsy blinked. "...What?"

"That’s why nobody was in the restaurant. They thought you hadn’t opened.”

The demon shook his head. "But that's… nonono, I always–"

"Mr. Zhu, look at me."

He hesitated but obeyed.

"You are not fine. You are not okay. You made terrible mistakes in your past and they have wounded you severely. You need help and not just for your sake– but for your family's too."

"They aren’t my family…"

Gatita gasped in quiet heartbreak and Pigsy quickly corrected himself.

"I-i don't mean it like that– I-i just– I-i can't. I'm not good enough– I'll never be good enough– I mean– look at me!" Pigsy laughed pathetically. "I'm a seven foot drunk fucking monster with giant tusks and claws and just– I can't. I-i can care, I can watch, I-i can protect, but I'll never– I can't be a– I'll kill them."

Gatita instantly wrapped her arms around his thick neck and squeezed tightly, saying nothing and yet everything at the same time. For some stupid, pathetic reason, Pigsy hugged her back and allowed himself to cry in her embrace.

“Mr. Zhu… you are not cursed, and you are not a murderer. What happened was an awful, awful accident that isn't anybody's fault," She said, still holding on.

Pigsy shook his head. "I'll kill them one day– I will, I will–”

“Pigsy–" She let go.

“All I do is hurt people. A-and yeah, I can try, but I’ll fuck up just like my pops did and then they’ll turn 18 and never, ever want to see me again, and with Mei’s fancy schmancy inheritance they can move to the otherside of the world for all they care, a-and–”

“Pigsy, look at me.”

He did.

“Your father is not kind to himself. Neither was his, or his father and so on and so forth. If you want to break this pattern, you must believe in yourself and that you can be better,” She placed a hand on his shoulder.

“How the hell’d you know that?” Pigsy snorted in contempt, and Gatita frowned.

“That doesn’t matter,” She waved him off. “Let me ask you somethinge: do you think the kids would be happy seeing you like this?” She asked.

Pigsy shook his head and meant it.

He could practically imagine it– MK standing frozen by the door at the sight of him– terrified of him throwing that bottle. Mei would yell at him for scaring MK– say she hates him, or say she wished she’d prefer her babysitters or nannies anyday compared to him. She’d find a way to hurt him– she would. They’d never trust him again. And Pigsy would deserve it.

“Children are impressionable creatures, Mr. Zhu. Their minds are so susceptible to every little thing and pattern– not unlike monkeys, really,” Gatita laughed a little before shaking her head. “But I digress– what I mean is… well… Would you like it if the kids, having heard or seen your self-abusive tendencies, began to mimic it?”

“No-! That’d be–...” Pigsy’s eyes softened in realization. “That’d be awful, ma’am.”

The lawyer smiled at him wearily. “You need to take care of yourself, friend. For the children’s sake because– well– pardon my bluntness, but the last thing they need is to lose another parental figure.”

Her words hit like dagger in his chest, but at least the message was loud and clear.

“I-i don’t… I don’t wanna fail ‘em, I just feel like I will anyways…” He whispered, looking away.

“The best way to make sure that doesn’t happen is to take care of yourself, Mr. Zhu,” She placed a soft hand under his chin.

“But I– I don’t–”

“You may think you don’t deserve it, but don’t the children deserve a happier, healthier guardian?”

“Then give them to Tang-!” Pigsy shouted. “I-i don’t know why or how I was chosen, but I am very clearly not the best guy for the job– I mean– look at me– really, really look at me.”

She did.

“Do I seriously look like I could ever be a ‘happy, healthy guardian’?” He asked, voice cracking.

“Mr. Zhu, you do not understand how much deliberation went into your eventually selection– while Mr. Tang is good and kind and–”

“–And human?” Pigsy glared.

“...and intelligent, he cannot provide the level of protection you can. He lacks your bravery and tenacity and your resourcefulness– he is a great man, but he is not the protector and caregiver they need,” She took two of his fingers and squeezed them, since his hand was far too big to be held.

“...But what if I ruin ‘em? What if–” Pigsy swallowed a lump in his throat– “What if one day that light in MK’s eyes just… fades. What if Mei stops joking around? What if something hurts them– what if I hurt them? What if it’s all my fault and they really would’ve ended up better off with some fancy schmancy royal life instead of being with me? What if you were wrong?”

“There is nothing that cannot be overcome with love, compassion, and care– and that includes to the self,” Gatita didn’t waver a second.

Pigsy opened his mouth to speak, but Gatita held out a finger.

“Think of it this way: if you had the option of boarding a bus with a driver that hated himself, never got any sleep, and was smoking and drinking, versus one with a bit of temperament but always arrived on time and with care, which would you feel better about picking? Heck– which one would you want MK and Mei to ride with?”

Pigsy closed his eyes and bit his cheek before shaking his head. “Dammit Gatita– you make this really hard.”

The lawyer laughed. “I’ve had a lot of practice over the years.”

Pigsy didn’t doubt that.

Gatita dusted herself off and stood. “Look– how's about you let me take you home, I’ll make you some tea, lend you an ear for any other thoughts or feelings you have– or we just watch a movie, go for a walk– and overall just relax until the children and Tang get home and I’ll let you take it from there, hm?”

Pigsy sighed, running his hand through his fur. “I… yeah, I guess that does sound kinda… nice…”

“Wise decision,” Gatita winked and offered her hand.

Pigsy didn’t take it right away though, glancing at her nervously.

“I… I really, really don’t wanna hurt ‘em…” he confessed.

“You want to know something?” She asked.

Pigsy nodded.

“No good parent wants to either,” She whispered with a wink.

Pigsy laughed a little. “Guess I can’t argue there, huh?”

Gatita shrugged. “You put up a good fight– reminds me of an old friend,” she once again offered her hand.

This time, Pigsy took it, shrinking back down to his glamored form, though stumbling a bit forward since he was still quite drunk.

“Feeling any better yet, Mr. Zhu?” Gatita smiled softly and helped stabilize him.

“It’s Pigsy– and… yeah, I guess I am… thanks.” Pigsy couldn’t help but give a weak smile in return.

“Anytime, Pigsy,” Gatita nodded a little. “Now let’s get you home and get something other than two bottles of wine in you, hm?”

“Ugh– is that what happened? Jeez, I really am a mess,” Pigsy cringed.

“You’re a work in progress,” Gatita patted his arm before getting the door. “Shall we?”

“Yeah… yeah– let’s go,” Pigsy nodded to himself and together the pair walked into a brighter day.

#lego monkie kid #lmk #pigsy lmk #lmk fics #freenoodles #ptsd #sandy lmk #dadsy of two au #hurt/comfort #angst #my fics #fuck how do i tag things #why do i keep forgetting tags #uhhhhh #dadsy #hell yeah

[imtrashraccoon]

This one took me longer than I would've liked to write but I blame work. This is also definitely one I might write a bonus chapter on as it got a bit too long to include everything I planned.

@scrambledmeggys

First Day, Previous Day, & Next Day.

Day 18: Festival

You finished putting the last plate away in the cupboard. Hopping off the step stool and shoving it into the corner where it was now normally kept, you couldn't help but hum a little tune as you finished cleaning up after breakfast. Papyrus had left a little while ago, presumably to run errands as he hadn't been wearing his guard uniform today and had put on a coat before leaving.

You were just heading into the living room when he returned. At first you heard a few thumps outside the front door before he opened it and stepped inside, although you could tell he was having a bit of difficulty doing so. The reason why was immediately apparent as he'd brought a whole pine tree home, much to your bewilderment.

"What's with the tree?" you asked once he'd set it down and closed the door behind him.

Papyrus smiled and looked over at you. "It Is For Gyftmas," he said simply, as if that explained everything.

He started to move the tree to one corner of the living room and you immediately retrieved the broom to clean up the snow. You'd have to get the vacuum afterwards for the pine needles since if you knew cats, Doomfanger would be curious about the tree and you didn't want her to get sick.

"What's Gyftmas anyways?" you asked after a few minutes.

Papyrus hung up his coat before answering. "It Is One Of The Few Times Of Year When Monsters Come Together To Spend Time With Each Other And Give Gifts." He got a sort of faraway look in his eyelights as he added, "I Have Always Enjoyed The Holiday, Although Sans And I Have Never Had Much Of A Reason To Celebrate It, Until Now Anyways."

"i think you just want an excuse to show off literally the only nice thing about our traditions," Sans teased as he descended the stairs with a decently sized box in his arms. You noted that someone had written 'GYFTMAS THINGS' in black marker on all the sides, this someone was probably Papyrus from the bold capital letters.

"Yes..." Papyrus muttered through gritted teeth. "Can You Blame Me Though?"

"nah, it's pine, bro. this holiday just seems to make everyone act all sappy."

Papyrus glared at Sans and briefly clenched his fists. "You set that up on purpose," he grumbled.

"yep, you should know i never miss a chance to needle ya, " Sans chuckled as he set the box down.

Papyrus rolled his scarlet eyelights and crossed his arms. "And You Never Cease To Remind Me Either," he muttered.

Frisk came over to investigate what was going on. Although, they barely took one look at the tree before turning to you to ask a question. "Is this a Christmas tree?" they signed.

You thought for a moment before the realization that it would be just about Christmas time on the surface hit you. It had only been mid-October when you'd both fallen down here and you'd barely been keeping track of the time.

You shrugged, "It certainly seems similar to a Christmas tree."

Seeing the brothers looked a bit confused, you explained to them what Christmas was and a couple of the traditions. In return, they explained what Gyftmas was and you quickly realized how similar it was to Christmas. There were some differences, but the spirit of the holiday was almost the same and it was enough to make Frisk really excited.

< ~ - . - ~ >

After decorating the tree together, you made some hot chocolate for Frisk like you used to, much to their delight. While you didn't have many holiday traditions, it hit you that this would be the first year you wouldn't be with your family. You'd missed Thanksgiving without realizing and your heart ached just from thinking about how much they probably missed you.

There was nothing you could do about it though. Unless a miracle happened, you weren't returning to the surface any time soon, at least not alive or with your friends anyways.

Papyrus apparently noticed how quiet you were being and he moved to your side. "Are You Alright?" he murmured.

You nodded slowly, although your eyes were beginning to burn with tears that threatened to fall. Not wanting to make a scene, you turned away from the living room and slipped into the kitchen.

Papyrus decided to follow you, which was fine. You just didn't want Frisk to see you feeling sad when they were so happy.

"I'm fine," you said quietly. "It just hit me how long we've been here... I've never missed a holiday before, not even while I was back in college.

Papyrus didn't seem to know what to say. So instead, he pulled you into a gentle hug and held you for a while. "I Am Sorry," he murmured into your hair. "This Is Not Your Fault, So Try Not To Beat Yourself Up Over It."

You shook your head. "I know...things could be far worse right now." Not wanting to focus on negative things any longer and end up actually crying, you decided to change the subject. "When is Gyftmas exactly?"

Papyrus pulled back slightly so he could look at you properly. He scanned your face for a second, as if checking that you were alright and not just pretending to be.

"Tomorrow, "he finally said. He seemed to relax slightly when he apparently didn't find what he'd been searching for.

You nodded thoughtfully. "You mentioned that gift giving was part of your traditions, right?" you asked.

"I Did..." Papyrus said slowly.

You hesitated for a moment before deciding just to go ahead and ask what you'd been thinking. "Is there anything we can do to make this special for Frisk? I'd hate for them to be sad and it doesn't have to be anything crazy."

He seemed to consider your question and after a bit he nodded. "Yes, We Could Go To The Shop So Long As We Conceal Your Appearance," he concluded.

Your eyes widened slightly at the prospect of actually going outside again. "I wasn't referring to actually buying anything but if you think it'll be alright, then let's do it."

Papyrus managed to find you a black parka, presumably one of Sans' considering the size, and a gray scarf with a red fringe. The coat was rather thick and had a fluffy fur hood but it was a tad large on you, not that you minded. You wrapped the scarf around your neck in such a way that you could pull it up over your nose, and combined with wearing the hood up, made it pretty hard to tell you were human in your opinion.

Papyrus seemed satisfied with your appearance and he nodded approvingly. The collar he'd given you wasn't visible but it would be okay this once if you stuck close to him.

Sans had started up a game of Mario Kart with Frisk and since they were so occupied, you and Papyrus were able to slip out of the house seemingly without them noticing. Not that it really mattered but you didn't want them to become jealous and want to come with you.

As soon as you stepped outside, you took a deep breath of the crisp winter air. While you were grateful for the warmth and safety of the brothers' home, you'd slightly missed being outside, even if it was stupidly cold. The coat was doing a good job of keeping you warm though, at least for now.

Papyrus took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. It was like a switch had been flipped and his demeanor shifted to a much more stoic vibe like when you'd first met him. He motioned for you to follow him and began walking towards the Shop.

You stuck close to him or at least as close as you could without actually touching him. You were pretty sure he wouldn't like it right now if you did. Still, you wouldn't be opposed if he decided to initiate physical contact, but that depended entirely on what kind.

The shop was run by a middle-aged rabbit monster who barely spared either of you a glance, let alone a greeting, when you entered the Shop. You didn't want to risk drawing unwanted attention to yourself but you couldn't help but admire how shiny her fur was.

Surprisingly, the Shop itself had a fairly good selection of items for sale. It was still pretty small but it seemed to include most of the essentials and even some random things. There were a lot of brands you were unfamiliar with, which made sense, but whenever you discovered a brand you did recognize, you felt an odd thrill course through your brain. It was ultimately kind of fun to explore and try to figure out what certain things were supposed to be used for.

Papyrus didn't say much and you didn't either, rather you communicated by briefly signing whenever you wanted to point something out to him. You tried to do so subtly and he seemed to understand you for the most part, granted you weren't trying to have full blown conversations with each other.

You picked out a few things that you knew Frisk would appreciate that weren't expensive as you weren't comfortable feeling like you were taking advantage of Papyrus' generosity. These things included a sketchbook and a set of basic coloured pencils, a few children's books, and a small brown stuffed bunny that smelled like cocoa powder. To your surprise, Papyrus pointed out a Mettaton action figure and while you didn't really like the robot very much, you knew Frisk enjoyed watching his shows.

All in all, you felt happy with your gift choices. No matter what happened, you were certain that Frisk would enjoy their first Gyftmas. Plus, if they were happy, you could be happy too, even if the ache of being apart from your family still lingered.

#selfshipufpap #undertale #underfell #underfell papyrus x reader #underfell papyrus #reader #named oc #the hand we've been dealt #thwbd #alternate universe #raccoons drabbles

[ssbbwxviolet]

Hey y’all, I’ve been really appreciating the love these past couple of days! I really don’t want to get this personal but not only have I had quite a few people ask me about it, I also kinda just don’t know where to go from here. And for those of you who haven’t noticed yet, there aren’t any pictures of me smiling with my teeth. I’m about to get very personal and vulnerable (because what else is the internet for am I right) anyways, sorry in advance for the novel

About 5 years ago, my Dad and I we're basically at each others throats due to my Mom being home (she was bed bound and needed around the clock care. At this point, we didn’t realize this was about two weeks before she had passed away and tensions we’re already high as is) so one thing led to another and, he ended up smacking me in the face with a broomstick resulting in my 2 front teeth getting knocked out.

This has been a HUGE insecurity and as of recently, it's been causing me some pretty immense pain. I went to the dentist about a month ago now that I have insurance, and they won't even cover a deep cleaning to see exactly what I need done. So you can only imagine the cost it's going to be getting this fixed which fuckin sucks (which sounds like classic America to me LMAO)

Basically what I'm getting at is, if you’d like to cashapp me ($exewhere) and if it’s over $30, I’ll give you a free one year trial to my spicy site and access to my premium snap as a Thankyou 🥺

And if you can’t donate that is totally okay!! I get it we’re all struggling it’s rough out here! All I ask is if it isn’t too much of a hassle to please reblog this just for it to get traction.

Just for proof attached below are three pictures, first one being before the incident, second being when it had happened (October 7th, 2018), third being them currently (taken today) due to me being so depressed about them and not giving them the proper care, they’ve decayed over the years and are slowly falling out😭

#teeth #tw teeth #teeth rotting fluff #tooth decay #please boost #fat #fat girls #fat belly #fat piggy #get me fatter #feedee girl #feed me #feeder wanted #looking for a feeder #bigger is better #viralpage #cashapp #onlyfats

[maximumcheese]

Playing Cards - Prologue

Location: A recollection, or possibly in a dream

???: (I wonder, how many times has the sun risen and set since I left my hometown? I wonder, how many days have I been walking?)

(There’s a lot of people. Structures so high that you have to look up. A machine that has a thunderous roar when it runs by. It’s just as I’ve heard—No, the unknown is even more spacious than that.)

This is the city…

I have to track down “that person” and bring him back from here as soon as possible.

(.......? I’ve been seeing those same posters around since a while ago… I wonder if it’s an official notice.)

Let’s see… “The Idol Festival SS will be held again this year.” —Idol?

(What!? A strange sound suddenly came from the sky…!?)

(No, that’s not it. Could it be that there’s a device that plays music attached to the top of the pillar I’m leaning on?)

(I can hear all these sounds, and everything in my field of view is new to me. It’s quite disorientating, indeed.)

Ah, what happened? I feel like I’m lost in a world I don’t recognize—

  Location: Yumenosaki Classroom

October. One day at dusk.

Hiiro: …Hmm. Where am I…?

A Yumenosaki…classroom? I was in the middle of a city just now…?

Fuah, fuh…

(—Ah, I see. I was dreaming, wasn’t I?)

(If I had woken up just now, it’s no wonder the evening sun is so radiant. At what point did I fall asleep?)

(After club activities were over, I realized I had left the textbook I needed for the assignment. I came to the classroom to get it but—)

(And why is this book? Why is it on my desk…?)

Tomoya: Huh, it’s Amagi. What are you doing~? At this hour, too…

Hiiro: Mashiro-kun.

Tomoya: You look sleepy, huh. Could it be that you fell asleep on your desk?

I do that sometime too, but the arm I rest my head on gets all numb, you know?

Hiiro: Fufu. Luckily, I don't seem to have any such symptoms. I just woke up and am a bit foggy, though.

Tomoya: Hm? Is that my book on your desk?

Oh thank god, I knew I left it in the classroom. ♪

Hiiro: It has “Alice in Wonderland” written on it, huh.

Tomoya: Yeah. There’s gonna be an event that I want to participate with Ra*bits in—A live called “Underland.”

It's a fairly large-scale live performance with multiple units participating, based on the motif of “Alice in Wonderland” but—

In order to participate in the live show, you have to pass the screening process…

Before the screening, we even have to submit an application and get a referral and everything.

Now, to prepare for all that, I'm rereading the original work and learning about Alice's world all over again.

Hiiro: Wow…

Tomoya: We Ra*bits are aiming to participate in the “White Rabbit” slot but......

Hiiro: A rabbit?

Ah, I remember! I was reading this book before I fell asleep.

A racing rabbit took out a pocket watch and then…Alice leapt down in the hole after it. That’s as far as I remember reading.

Tomoya: That’s just the beginning of the beginning, huh…

Hiiro: I’m sorry I just took it. It’s a bad thing to read someone else’s book without their permission.

Tomoya: It’s fine. It's my fault for leaving it out on my desk and forgetting about it. And I'm sure I'd be just as concerned if it was left on a seat near me.

Hiiro: Thank you. Mashiro-kun’s kindness is wearing off on me. ♪

But why did it happen? It's strange that I suddenly felt sleepy while reading a book when normally that wouldn’t have happened.

Tomoya: Yeah? You were reading and suddenly drew a blank. Guess your fatigue all came out?

You know, Alkaloid just did R2 a couple weeks ago, right?

Right after the live, I’m still in the midst of all that excitement, so it doesn’t bother me much, but after a while I start to get tired and exhausted.

Hiiro: Hm, I wonder if it’s like that…

Tomoya: Well anyways, Alkaloid has been sprinting along since summer.

Suddenly forming a unit and having great success like that. Even you, someone famed for their stamina, would be tired after something like that.

Hiiro: Yes… I also had school events to attend along with my idol activities. It was certainly a hectic and stimulating time.

However, everyone is working hard, and there are many people who are working even harder than I am.

I certainly have not been willing to learn and perform as much as you, Mashiro-kun.

You’re a splendid person that is able to study hard for the lives you wish to perform in.

Tomoya: No, no. This sorta thing’s normal. After all, I’m the leader of Ra*bits, I have to.

Ugh~ I need to think about who to ask for recommendations when I go home. I also need to work out what I want to fill out on the forms…

Hiiro: You’ve got a lot of work cut out for you, huh?

Tomoya: Yeah, it’s a lot. But if I can do my best here, it might determine whether “Ra*bits” will be able to perform live or not.

So when I think about it that way, I can’t really say it’s hard work then.

I’ll do my best, so that we’ll be able to appear in Underland for sure…!

Hiiro: Fufu, if it’s like that, I think Ra*bits will be just fine. I’ll be rooting for you guys, too. ♪

next →

[junkyardromeo]

I don’t mean this as a personal attack or to be condescending since you are very young but one day you will mature and realize that trans liberation and the liberation of Palestine and Sudan are connected. Those are your siblings being bombed in their homes and starving to death because of the actions of your government. The very same boot on your neck is the boot on theirs. I understand not having a lot of agency to control international geopolitics vs. local political action, but I hope you can find it in your heart to still care and advocate for Congo, Palestine, Sudan, etc.

I have trans friends, Southern friends, and trans Southern friends who have watched tens and hundreds of their family members die since October and no, they can’t do a lot about it, but that doesn’t mean they quite rudely tell people to stop posting because it’s hopeless. Your cynicism is on no one else but you and to post the way you did about literal genocide is disgusting ngl. Please do some sober self reflection as to why people advocating against the slaughter of brown people bothers you so much, especially when you are fully capable of curating your own dash experience and never had to say anything in the first place.

Drink some water, rest well, and Free Palestine 🇵🇸

shit man i aint even gonna lie rn bc they say whatever you say drunk is probably what you really mean sober (i aint sober a lot but it is what it is rn) but man i cant do shit about nothin. i cant do shit about this. i cant do shit about nothin. i aint even that damn cynical neither, at least not compared to how damn cynical i was a couple years ago. n also shit, i already told yall that i aint educated enough on this shit to be takin no stance on neither side, n i aint tryna start no fuckin problems. im just real sick of hearin about it. n i aint even gonna lie, im about two fuckin seconds away from not even bein on this app no more. bout sick of it. shit bout all the people i met on here anyways save for about two of em aint even on here no more. whatever. im glad you think youre old n wise. good for you. happy for you. n as far as sayin shit, i can say say whatever the hell i want. this is my damn house n im allowed to say whatever the hell i want. you curate YOUR fuckin dash if you dont wanna see me. i dont give a fuck. shit i got 2k people followin this blog which is funny as hell but you aint gotta see me if you dont wanna. idc. im in a world where i do not need validation from people on tumblr to chill w myself. we chillin. i dont need you to tell me what the hell i should be doin. yeah i think palestine should be free. yeah i think everyone should be free. but there also aint no such thing as freedom n if you want me to elaborate on that lemme know n i will. godspeed brother (or sister idk i aint tryna assume nothin)

#we r gonna ignore that it took me like half an hour to fight god to type that out im rly fightin the demons rn fr #like damn bitch the key board movin rn i aint even gonna lie

[meili-sheep]

This is really poorly timed as October was so long ago but I just thought of this so, Diluc harem couples costumes??

I love these because I love thinking about the Diluc harem but HOLY COW, do you know how long these take to write. And 3 days in a row is a lot for my poor fingers. Lolol

Anyway, let's hit it.

And we'll start with breaking it up into They suggested the costume, and Diluc suggested.

So first up, their suggestion.

Childe

So this is the obvious suspect. Like he's a guy who loves the holidays. Like no matter what holiday it is, he goes all out. Halloween, in particular, he goes crazy for. He loves coming up with great costumes that get kids all excited.

And now he can do that with Diluc, the person he loves the most.

Honestly, Diluc's not enthused about it. Like he doesn't mind being dressed up, but honestly, he'd feel a little like a spectacle. He goes along because Childe's happy the kids are happy, so his discomfort isn't that much of a sacrifice. And Childe would probably pick some very uncomfortable costume.

I think Childe would pick out like the sexy kind of Angel/Devil Costumes. Like this (And yes. Diluc is the angel)

So yeah. Diluc's uncomfortable, and Childe doesn't notice for a while because he's just so so excited. But when the night winds down and Diluc's just totally out of it. Childe realizes what's been happening and Is suddenly plagued with a shit ton of guilt. And just goes into spoiling Diluc mood and apologizing.

Eula

Now, this is totally one of Eula's revenge plots. But Unlike Childe, she still makes sure the costume is stylish. And It is more focused on Diluc still being comfortable. She'd end up putting Diluc in like a wolf onesie, and she is in a very nice red riding hood outfit.

So like this. And honestly, Diluc would be really embarrassed by all this. But he'd have a good time. Mostly cause Razor would love Diluc's costume, and they would just have a good little introvert time together. Eula will never admit it, but she loves seeing Diluc interact with the kids. It gives her some pretty bad baby fever. So her revenge doesn't go quite as she originally planned.

Itto

So I don't think Itto would know about Halloween or dressing up for most of his life, and Diluc does end up telling him. And Itto jumps on the idea of doing a couple costumes. But he probably can't find a good costume that fits him so well I think Diluc would take it into his own hands. And would probably talk with Granny Oni and make and really nice Oni costume.

And Itto would just love to match with Diluc, to be honest. He really goes into all the specifics of how to be a great oni. And really teaching Diluc all about oni culture. And honestly, Diluc out of the two of them, is probably the scary one.

Kaveh

Ok Kaveh has been planning this FOR MONTHS. He wants Diluc to be seen as the most beautiful creature in the world. And I do think Kaveh has a talent in sewing. So he'd personally make himself and Diluc outfits. And they wouldn't be costumes so much as just elegant outfits. Maybe making himself like a knight and Diluc a prince.

Diluc's pretty unassumed as he thinks Kaveh's doing it because of his title as uncrowned king and his position as a former knight. Kaveh is shocked when Diluc points that out to him.

"You really didn't know..."

"I... did not."

"You know I was also a knight too."

"... Should I change the customs?"

"Haha... No, I'm a little endeared now. I'll be the prince to your knight."

Thoma

Now out of everyone so far, Thoma's probably the most reasonable one and probably the one who really talks to Diluc about what he'd think would be fun. Their costume would probably also be the goofiest and somehow the least embarrassing for Diluc.

Like mustard and ketchup or Peanut butter and jelly. Or a Plug and a socket. Just something really light heart warm, and goofy. Sort of like how the two of them are. They are defiantly the more relaxed and domestic of all the Diluc harem. And really, they are the pair that is gonna have the most funny with their silly little costumes and handle out candy to all the kids.

Zhongli

This is going to be closer to Itto because Halloween is definitely more of a Mondstadt thing. So Zhongli doesn't know too much about it. But he instantly loves the idea of a matching costume with Diluc and just as quickly wants to do something from like Liyue lore.

Now I do really like the Phoenix Dragon stuff with Zhongluc, and I think Zhongli would suggest a reverse custom idea where he dresses like a bird while Diluc is the dragon. And While Zhongli would want to do more elegant-looking costumes, I feel Diluc could talk him down into something a lot more comfortable and, well, honestly... less expensive. And while disappointed at first I think recognizing Diluc is showing him something more about his personal culture he'd accept and actually end up having a lot of fun taking a step back and just letting things come.

Now Diluc's suggestion.

Albedo

I'll be honest here. This isn't really Diluc suggesting they do a couple costumes. It's Alice. Alice sent them both a costume, and OH, would you look at that, they match! How on earth did that happen?!

Of course, Klee matches too. Can't have her left out now, can they? And Kaeya? She bribed him to take a lot of photos of the trio. Which he's not happy about, but you know He's not fucking stupid he's not gonna fight Alice, and if she happens to offer him a really nice wine in return for a couple of pictures he's not gonna say no.

And Honestly, the pair just take it as it comes. They probably really enjoy watching after Klee the whole night and after Klee has gotten all her candy. They just settle down for and when she's asleep, they have some warm apple cider and treats of their own. Just a very sweet and relaxing night.

Al Haitham

Al Haitham is not a party guy, and he's actually surprised when Diluc suggests a couple costumes for a Halloween party. And To Diluc's surprise, he's instantly onboard. Haitham sees it as another form of commitment, and it think he's the type who, while not really one who shows traditional affection, he likes showing his commitment and devotion. Things that say. "Yes, we are together." So he's into matching things quite a bit.

And yes. He's given Diluc several small matching trinkets and jewelry. So he's fully on board. But he's very, very picky. To the point that Diluc honestly just gives up and lets him a bit, giving him Diluc's size and just leaving it at that. Come times for that party, Diluc is very surprised to see very beautiful and nice costumes based on Aranara or some type of Sumeru spirit. Very very elegant and beautiful and, of course, comfortable and practical. Al Haitham's is probably red, while Diluc's is green. Both have a very, very good night.

Ayato

Now Ayato will probably get put into another case of It's a holiday, and he's working. So he doesn't even think about a costume but is whining about how he can't just spend the night with Diluc. Which Ayaka relays to Diluc, so Diluc prepares a costume for Ayato and gives it to Ayaka.

So come the event, Ayato being busy up to the neck, just puts on whatever he is given. And he doesn't even know that it feels off. Like It's clearly supposed to be something of a set. Something from a popular romance novel Inazuma. Think along the likes of Fred and Wilma or Morticia and Gozem, something people are gonna recognize, but when they see one alone, they go up and ask Ayato where his partner is. And he's pretty confused by this at first until he gets around to seeing Diluc. Who is just happily laughing on the sidelines? Enough of the slight confusion Ayato's been dealing with.

Xiao

So Xiao stays away from people, especially on big days for holidays. But he'd be curious about this. And peak around. Diluc did tell him all about it and probably complained about it. He is mostly there watching Diluc and making sure he's OK and safe.

And like Albedo. It's not really Diluc who makes the suggestion but in this case. It's Venti. Cause he totally notices Xiao stalking and seeing Diluc. Ultimately he's like, "Ooooh hoho~" so he probably forces Xiao not only to come out but to come out in a costume that's clearly meant to match Diluc's, no matter what it is.

Xiao is extremely embarrassed. But Diluc quickly sees him and is so excited to see him, which instantly eases Xiao.

#diluc harem #albeluc #albedo #haithamluc #al haitham #ayatoluc #ayaluc #ayato #chiluc #childe #tartaglia #euluc #eula #ittoluc #itto #kaveluc #kaveh #thomaluc #thoma #xiaoluc #xiao #zhongluc #zhongli

[miruac]

003 | croissant

genre: strangers to friends to lovers, slowburn, potential angst, fluff

pairing: casey ruang x yunmei qi

warnings: none

synopsis: casey is a bit homesick, how to cure?

masterlist

LIKEY CAFE; 10:45 A.M

saturday morning, on a breezy fall day. just the slightest chill flowing through the mid october breeze. weekends were rather slow for un. not much to do, since she's on top of her assignments. as of now, she sat in a little corner booth at a local diner outside campus.

“well looky looky, what do we have here?”

a familiar voice spoke, catching yun’s attention. she looked up, and there stood casey ruang. a little smirk plastered on his face, his smirk growing into a toothy smile.

“..hi?"

“hey. what’cha up to?” casey pushed his bag below the table, sliding into the booth as he let out a quiet grunt.

yunmei glanced at the croissant in front of her, before glancing back at casey. this diner was always her to-go meal spot. need a quick breakfast? take a breakfeast wrap from their to-go breakfast menu. late night dinner? Their dinner plates will be right out as soon as you even order.

“croissant.”

“i’m sorry?”

“croissant. they have good croissants here.” yun explained as she wiped leftover pastry crumbs off of her mouth with her sleeve. awkwardness creeped in as the two grew silent; plates clinking and quiet chatter being the only sounds. yunmei looked at her pastry sheepishly, whereas casey was looking at the menu. he glanced around before raising his hand. a teenager quickly came over, pulling out a notepad and a pen.

“hi, what would you like today?”

casey looked back at yun, a small smile on his face.

“one plain croissant, please.”

yunmei smiled fondly at casey, going back to her food. she glanced between casey and his backpack. the diner had opened a couple weeks ago, but yun had been frequenting the place recently.

“so, why are you here?”

yunmei took another bite of her croissant, chasing it down with a fresh cup of strawberry milk.

“was looking for a place to write; my literature professor assigned us a mock report, and the dorm wasn’t really a good place. y’know, someone threw a party last night and left their mess for us. what a great morning!”

casey took a deep breath, rubbing his face. now that yun looked closer, she saw that casey’s eyes were dropping and had bags under them. an arrow of concern poked her heart but she decided not to inquire about it.

“jeez, sounds bad. i was gonna go grocery shopping later, you wanna go with me? after you’ve made some progress on your report.” 

“yeah, sure. i have to buy a couple snacks anyways.”

it made yun a little happy that she didn’t have to go shop alone, nonetheless she wasn't expecting for him to come with.

;;

I.H DORMITORY 7:20 P.M

evil spawn #1(claudia): insert image me: why does mom have to make my fav when i’m not home evil spawn #1(claudia): lolz evil spawn #1(claudia): did u eat yet me: no, almost done studying evil spawn #1(claudia): i’m snitching to mom me: NO SHE’S GONNA END ME evil spawn #1(claudia): go eat broski  me: never call me that ever again evil spawn #1(claudia): ok bye love u me: love u too

click

a wave of melancholy struck casey, causing him to stare up from his work and at the ceiling. after seeing th picture claudia sent, casey realized something. he missed home. the chaos of four siblings, the noisiness, but his mother’s cooking is what he missed the most. It had been a while since he last ate something that truly tastes like home. he glanced at the digital clock on his desk. 7:24, it displayed. 

may as well have dinner, i can study later.

casey thought to himself. he had been studying for the past four hours, and it was already past the time he would usually eat dinner. as casey made his way out of his room and into the communal kitchen, the scent of beef and spring onions grew stronger and stronger.

peeking past the corner, he spotted yun at the stove. it seemed like she was sauteeing some sort of noodle dish. casey stood there for a minute, waiting to see if yun would even look away from the stovetop. he stood for a good three or four minutes, before yun scanned the premises. she jumped, then began to laugh as she clutched her heart.

“oh my god, casey! i almost threw my spoon at you, don’t do that."

casey chuckled, walking over to the kitchen island and sitting down. 

“okay, okay sorry. what’s on the menu tonight?”

“oh, just this beef noodle dish i ate growing up. i messed up the ratios though, there’s bound to be some-”

growl

casey’s growling stomach interrupted yunmei’s speaking, embarrassment creeping up onto his face.

“..leftovers…i’m gonna assume you’re hungry, and you can have the rest. i don't trust my cooking, so you taste it first!”

yun shoved a bowl of the noodle dish into casey’s arms, and handed him a pair of chopsticks and a spoon. the aroma was heavenly, notes of different soy sauce variations and oyster sauce with that slight smokey scent. it…reminded casey of something familiar.

“if you don't trust your own cooking, why should i trust it?”

“because you’re hungry and i’m not letting you starve.”

“...fine..”

casey hesitantly picked up a couple strands and stared at them with a questionable look, and put them in his mouth. the expression on yunmei’s face was one of uncertainty, her eyes glued onto casey’s face. it was subtle, but his eyes sparked. he looked up at her with a look of excitement on his face and nodded.

“i’m surprised you don’t trust yourself, because this is really good.”

yunmei let out a breath, anxiously shaking her hand. her shoulders felt lighter as her face lit up with happiness.

bzzt

bzzt 

bzzt

something was vibrating. it was casey’s phone. he pulled it out, and his expression changed to worry. he whispered a ‘sorry’ over to yunmei. His finger hovered against the screen, before flicking up.

“casey, my son! claudia says you didn’t have food, are you eating now?”

a light and airy voice spoke from casey’s phone. other voices were distantly heard in the background. yun assumed it was his mother, judging from the words ‘my son’. she gathered the pots and pans, and placed them in the sink for later. 

“mom, mom. i’m fine. i’m okay, just a little tired. i’m eating right now. claudia showed me the seolleongtang you made.”

“sorry, your brothers and sisters wanted it because they know you like it, and they miss you.”

“i’ll be home soon, okay? just two more months and i'll be home for christmas.”

“okay. what are you eating now?”

“well my friend made this beef noodle stirfry, and there was a lot extra so she gave me some.”

casey looked over at yun, who was standing across him. she seemed to be invested in her own bowl. he flashed her a soft smile again, before turning back to his phone.

“okay. I know you’re a busy boy so i’ll let you eat. stay safe and-”

“is that casey? hi big brother!”

“casey!”

“ew, it’s you.”

casey’s phone screen went from displaying just his mother to his whole family. a smile lit up on his face, and yunmei could see his eyes crinkle. it warmed his heart, seeing his whole family after little contact.

“hi everyone. claudia, that’s mean. hi cecillia and cody. are you two being nice to mom and dad?”

“yes! cody helped her make dindin, and claudia draw with me!”

a high pitched girly voice spoke. 

"is dad home or is he still at the bakery?"

"yeah, he's still working. your favourite tarts have been the weekly special for like, three times since you left."

a breathy voice spoke, in a slight sing-song tone.

“thanks, claudia. and what about cole?”

the phone screen panned from his siblings, back to his mother.

“oh, cole is having a sleepover with one of his friends. they have soccer game tomorrow. eat now okay? i love you, my son.”

“okay, love you too mom. bye everyone."

“bye casey!”

“byebye big brother!”

“see’ya.”

click

“sorry about the fuss, my family’s a bit on the rowdy side.”

casey took another bite of his food, wiping the corners of his mouth with a napkin. yun shook her head, fiddling with her utensils.

“it’s okay, your family seems fun. are you the oldest?”

she asked, walking to the fridge. 

“yeah. i’m the oldest, then it’s my sister claudia, my brother cole, and the twins cecilia and cody. claudias fifteen, coles eleven, and the twins are both four.”

“oh really? What’s it like,being the oldest?”

yun chuckled, wiping her hand with a napkin. the boy smirked and sighed.

“well, it’s kinda hard since i help my parents with the younger ones, but i don't mind it.. they’re all great kids.”

it was nice, seeing casey talk about his family in such a loving way. if yun was being honest, she thought it was kind of cute.

I.H FILM ROOM; 9:20 A.M

“you’re finally on time, for once!” 

“always on time for my favourite class. professor lee still isn’t here?”

casey shook his head, unsheathing his laptop from the case. he pulled out his sketchbook as well, flipping it open to a blank page. this time, yun was prepared. she had stuffed an extra sweater in her backpack, and even brought a couple of instant heat packs if the chill became unbearable. 

“nope, i wonder what surprise he’s gonna show up with this time.”

professor lee is casey and yunmei’s film professor, and he always came to class in a special way. sometimes he would wear inflatable animal costumes to teach in, other days he would just not follow the day’s agenda and would just casually talk to the class.

“i’ll buy you lunch if he comes to class wearing a dinosaur costume. he doesn’t, then you treat me.”

yun said, pulling out a packet of mini rice puffs to snack on.

“deal.”

the two shook hands, smirks on both their faces. last time, prof. lee wore a carrot costume and almost every week, he alternates from food costumes to other types of attire. but when yunmei sat down, the professor came through the doors wearing something no one expected him to.

“oh my god.” casey whispered, his eyes slightly widening.

“what even is he wearing? oh whatever, thanks for lunch art boy!” yunmei squealed excitedly.

professor lee came to class in not just one costume, but separate parts of multiple costumes sewn together. the cherry on top of the outfit was the pumpkin hat that sat ever so perfectly the professor's head.

“okay class, let’s get started!”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

EEEEEEEK HI EVERYBODY!!! i'm so sorry for the wait, i got stuck writing this chapter :/ i hope it is up to your standards. but as for other chapters, they may be published rather late. i will try to post at least once a month, but it may be a bit longer. either way im so glad that you all stayed this far, i hope you all had a good first day of school <3 goodbye my loves !!

#podcast au #casey ruang #goodnight central #fluff #miruac #college au #oc #yunmei qi #slowburn #friends to lovers #ftl