#friendly competition kdrama

[iknowyuu]

hello! how are you doing?~

i was wondering if you could write a fic of sieun where reader and sieun r classmates , reader gets super good grades and is like rlly smart (js like him ) so sieun starts to develop a slight crush on reader. sieun starts to realise that reader is super good looking also 😮😮 then one day reader bumps into sieun and knocks over his books so they're picking them up tgt and reader goes "omg ur the sieun in my class! we shld hang out sometime"

😭😭i hope you get the gist of what im saying but its fine if you don't want to write it too 💓🙏

kdrama! sieun x reader

// read req!

note: someone else requested something similar but i ended up not publishing, i hope u both enjoy !!

♡

at first, sieun was annoyed at you.

i mean, he’s been working almost his whole life, over a decade to be the best of the best, the top of his class, then you waltz in and ruin everything.

and the worst part? you'd barely noticed.

in fact, you had been so painfully oblivious to the fact that he absolutely despised you, that when you bumped into him in the hallway, you not only smiled, but attempted to have a conversation with him.

"oh my gosh, i'm so sorry," you turned around just as swiftly as you were walking back to your class, only to recognize the person you'd bumped into. "sieun, right?"

he didn't confirm nor deny, simply staring at you blankly. you didn't let his lack of response deter you though, "i'm sorry for bumping into you, but it's crazy we've never talked! i'm pretty sure we're like, tied for the top of the class." you shrugged, "pretty cool. anyway, we should hang sometime! maybe we can exchange study tips?" you wiggled your eyebrows at him jokingly before bidding a farewell.

to say sieun was shocked was a complete understatement.

he was so used to the competitive culture of the classroom (him always ending up on top of course), that meeting someone not only as smart as him, but as friendly as you was.. not normal, to say the least.

as you slid the door open to your shared classroom, all the dislike and annoyance towards you melted from his heart, like an icicle drip dropping down to form a river of flushed feelings on the way to a sea of past emotions.

he made his way back to the classroom and since it was almost the end of lunch time, the desks were filled with chattering students, and amongst them was you- headphones on, scribbling down on a paper that had been left on your desk.

he sat at his seat, not breaking contact with your figure just a row ahead of him.

well, he wasn't annoyed at you anymore, that's for sure.

after that instance, sieun began to take more and more notice of you, but in a different way than what he had before. everytime you raised your hand to answer a question (beating him to it), he noticed how the pitch of your voice would raise a bit at the end, almost like you were unsure if you were correct or not- but you were. you always were.

your fingers would skillfully spin your pen under your desk and if it had been any other student they'd have been scolded, but since you're as smart as you are, the teachers let it slide, but that didn't stop it from being any less of a distraction to him. your fingers were so pretty and looked so soft, he wondered how they'd feel in comparison to his? interlaced with his own, even?

from your eyes that would robotically scan the papers handed to you, to the way your uniform framed your body as if it was perfectly tailored for you, he suddenly took notice of it all. even though it had just been a week or two since you both talked, he could not get you out of his head.

even now as he was supposed to be studying, he found it hard to focus on anything but you, only thoughts of you, you, you- "-ieun?"

he looked up in shock, eyes immediately meeting yours

"i was... just wondering if you wanted to study together after school today? i think it'd be really.." you thought for a bit, "beneficial if we put our heads together."

now normally sieun would not agree to such a request, especially from someone he barely even knows, but since it's you, he thought for a few seconds before subtly nodding his head in agreement.

"great! let's meet outside the school right after. it's a date!" you smile at him before making your way out of the classroom along with the rest of the students.

a what?

♡

taglist (send an ask/comment to be added or removed!): @brxght-world @karyuliee @kkaesslovr @qtaisuu @midnightgyu @neteyams-wife @insomngyu @raybeomgyuu @woonierkiz @venus-fly-trap105

#sieun x reader #sieun yeon x reader #sieun yeon imagines #weak hero class one x reader #weak hero class 1 fic #weak hero class 1 x reader #weak hero class one #kikisficz

[obscurecharactershowdown]

Before I reveal the contestants, I want to shout out some characters that didn't end up getting in, for one reason or another, but stood out to me

Prince Peasley (Superstar Saga): I mentioned him as a character I really enjoyed learning about, but since he won the Luigi ship competition, I'm unsure of his obscurity status and he may overpower the other characters. I'm sorry your highness, please know I love you

Francis York Morgan (Deadly Premonition): I was stunned to see not one, but 2 people submit this character. I'm endlessly entertained by his weird ass game. He would've been a shoe in had he not been submitted twice. Sorry buddy. Also if he was I would've put in my own propaganda, consisting only of this image

and a video of the squirrels that make monkey noises

Crow T. Robot (Mystery Science Theater 3000): the only reason he's not in is because another MST3K I consider comparatively more obscure was submitted, but I am going to post part of the propaganda for him now because I really loved it and it would be a shame if I was the only one who got to read it:

i have to take a chance on crow, for he is my #1 blorbo and my favorite mst3k character since forever. i charted out a whole TIMELINE for him and there's like. 4-6 of him just existing in various locations. he's shaped like a friend. he can be folded into a torpedo. he has legs and i constantly forget this until he has them on-screen and i'm like OH SHIT this guy is mostly leg (he's around 5'4"). he managed to kill mike (the human guy he lives with in space) TWICE on accident and neither time stuck. all of his presentations are insane and completely factually inaccurate. he claimed women were myths like bigfoot in a short-film style black and white presentation. he's friendly/friends? with pearl, one of the main antagonists (and a woman, who he just claimed didn't exist). he can play the trombone. he just kinda bounces up and down sometimes and is so shaped. he spent 500 years alone because he got bored of being pure energy at the edge of the universe after five minutes. he wrote patrick swayze christmas, the only christmas song ever. he's constantly doing t-rex arms. he keeps falling from extreme heights. to a few ancient romans he's a spider-duck god. he's a bit of a pyromaniac. he went to thanksgiving in deep 13 and walked away unharmed (everyone else got poisoned). he causes an illusion in the theater where it looks like he's staring at you instead of the movie. he's an absolute menace. he contains so much gender yet none at all. he's different! he wants to decide who lives and who dies, and i think he should. he is simply so guy. ty for reading my crow rant sorry for the wall of text

Thank you for this. I love Crow and MST3K too, you are in good company

Mister Qi (Stardew Valley): In the propaganda section, the submitter wrote: "He sucks and I hate him. It'd be really funny if he lost." and it made me laugh

Chuck Cunningham (Happy Days): The submitter's dad told them to submit him and that was also funny to me

Vincenzo (kdrama of the same name): Submitter's dad has a crush on Vincenzo <3

Pioneer 9 (17776): This was the most submitted character, with a total of.....4 submissions! Wow!

Husky (+Anima): This is the second most submitted character, with 3 submissions! I'm sorry to you both but this means you are automatically excluded from being picked for the competition.

Less specifically, shout out to the many characters who were just barely well known enough to drop out of priority. And the major characters/protagonists of major series. A couple were clearly jokes, but several were not.

And all of the characters from albums, commercials, various Real Life Things, myths, some OCs, etc: I have a plan for you. It's not the main bracket, but you are not being left out here. More information on that when the time is right.

Thank you for all your submissions! The list of contestants and their matchups are coming soon!

#obscurecharactershowdown

[archie-tan7]

If I could turn back time, what would I do differently and why?

Oooohh, I like this question. Umm, so first of all, let's begin from the beginning. Okay, so the exact point in time where I want to go back is 7th grade. The first time I decided to not go outside and watch Kdramas instead. Yup, not doing that again. Even if it was hard, I would try my best to make time for playing outside, maybe not with others since I understand why an 11-year-old me felt so left out. But I would not ignore her physical health. And also, I would find a good music teacher, or if not, then learn vocal techniques online. Try to bond more with Papa. Understand Mumma more. Guide my younger brother better. Be a better friend to my bestie. Read more. Start maintaing a diary and also hiding it better. Be more friendly to people and a bit extroverted. STOP eating junk food and develop healthier eating habits filled with nutrition. Develop and MAINTAIN good hygiene.

In 8th grade, I would stop being resentful of a senior who got selected for a solo singing part instead of me. Also, I would learn skincare and exercise routines. I would also be more confident in class since I always feared being wrong. Who cares if I'm wrong? Fuck that shit. Be more grateful towards my friends who really cared about me. I would take singing and music more seriously as a hobby. Study more and get that academic excellence award. Start to learn more about the world aka read newspaper.

In 9th grade, again I would just maintain good physical activity and skin care. Plus, get motivated to do well academically from my friends. I would work on my self-esteem issues and just be more self-aware and self-reflective. Also, stop being less of a bitch to my parents. Plus, read more books. Also, I would stand up for the class prefect position. I would NEVER write that cringey ass letter to my then friends about being insecure and instead actually open up. And also, stop my benchmate for fatshaming me. Develop a habit of writing creative stuff.

In 10th grade, I would take my studies more seriously because I'm pretty confident that I could become one of the toppers in my school and they would fucking put my name on the school website to make sure everyone knows and I get the credit I deserve. I would let go of my infatuation to my then crush. Again, I would be more outspoken and friendly. I would actually enjoy my trip, instead of being a depressed bitch and also have a good time in that pool. I would consistently journal, read books, writing, practice singing and studying. Most importantly, I would not take Science stream and not join coaching for medical entrance exam. Fuck that shit. I would choose humanities and work towards my career of a psychologist. I would start treatment for PCOS.

In 11th grade, I would either actually pay attention in class or study the books on my own. I would continue singing, reading and introspection. I would learn more housework and kitchen. Learn about personal finance. Make a career plan. Talk to my school friends more often. Work on my glow-up. Take my medications. Do well in exams. Participate in competitions. Develop writing skills for temporary jobs. Stay away from online addiction. Start doing hair care. Not talk with any stranger on the Internet. Guide my brother better. Get therapy.

In 12th grade, I would take my studies even more seriously. Become THAT girl: healthy diet, workout, journaling, meditation, academics, social life, skincare, hair care. Definitely get into my dream college. Have a plan for my career in psychology in college. Work on developing my style: fashion, makeup, walk, personality. Separate my fantasy from reality. Continue everything from above.

Post-college entrance exam, start action on career before college starts. Internships, read journals and books, find connections on LinkedIn. Make goals for all the 4 years of college and achieve them. Make sure I am confident in myself: looks, personality, knowledge and empathy. Learn to dance (party-style). Read philosophy and non-fiction books.

In 1st year of college, take my studies seriously early on since current university is fucked up. Talk to a lot of a people first and then join friend groups. Find one person to stick to and become "besties". If not, then be okay with being a loner. Hang out my actual current bestie more because she deserves better than this. Be more active. Start gym. Become more knowledgeable. Do internships from home, build good rapport with teachers. Learn more psychology. Join the NGO thing. Start building resume and ensure good CGPA.

Well, the reason for all these things is pretty obvious. I do NOT like myself currently. I'm not doing well in any of the aspects of my life. Like I'm not using any of my gifts or privileges well enough. I'm SO disappointed in me and I literally fail myself all the time. And being aware of that doesn't help. At all.

#self reflection #self introspection #regret #mistakes #emotions

[malkhyuckss]

I know it’s rude, dumb and foolish of me to be thinking of him at this hour.

How all his behaviour doesn’t seem to match with those millions of Instagram reels about ‘what boys would do if they are secretly interested in you’ or perhaps it was just me.

Perhaps I missed the smile you were hiding, or the eye contact you’ve made every time we spoke, or the way you called out my name.

But it’s unmistakable. You’ve changed, at least for me.

I miss your small gestures of friendliness. How you knew where I sat in class as you ambled past by, eyes sparkling with a glint of mischief, mouth and eyes creasing into crescent moons and arms waving high up, as if telling the world that I’m here.

Now, you strode by without leaving a single trace of your essence, eyes not sparing the girl who was yearning for you less than a mile away. We were close, yet unreachable.

You’re unreadable. Yes, you’ve agreed causally upon our promise to match up for the school even that day but you ended up in an entirely different and unrecognisable fit. God, my stubborn heart skipped a beat.

With those hairy-pottered glass and the shimmering smile of yours, no wonder you didn’t greet me that day nor did you bother to tell me about your long-awaited competition results.

At that point, I questioned myself— what am I to do? A mere being to be there for you only when you acknowledge and remember my existence?

That’s not how he was like the past few months.

Not considering the few sparkly k-drama moments we shared. The time when we bumped into each other on the same bus, and gave each other the most priceless reaction. For me, I swore butterflies were flying around me. For him, it probably wasn’t special.

That particular day was the first time a boy ever walked the same path as me back home. Though it was a mere 5minutes down the escalator before we went our separate ways, it still meant a lot to me, sadly.

Call me a teenager with crazy hormonal issues but the fact that we wore similar black hoodies and were the only two there on the escalator made my heart burst into pink, fine pixie dust.

I can’t believe a month had already passed.

We barely talked and ever since that incident I’ve been trying my best to avoid him, as in his occasional eye contact.

Maybe in some other life, we’ll have a chance to be together.

Maybe then, I’ll be the female protagonist and you’ll be the male protagonist in our very own kdrama world.

[lee-minhoe]

omg yes i love jung kyung ho!! i loved him in hospital playlist so i was really excited for ccir when i realized he was the male lead

and i haven’t really watched many of the recent kdramas i try but the plot or the execution never sticks for me </3 but every now and then i pull up beauty inside bc it’s my favorite drama of all time probably

i know this one isn’t a kdrama but physical 100 was really interesting if you wanna give it a try it’s a bunch of fit people (including big names like athletes who are on the korean national team or won medals at the olympics) competing to see who has the best physique through different missions i binged it in like a day i love how the players had really good sportsmanship with each other even though they’re considered rivals so no trash talking mostly just friendly competition c:

im in love with jung kyung ho and im slowly going through his other dramas right now 😂 currently watching (almost done with) when the devil calls your name, it's pretty good and his acting in it👌

ooh i havent watched beauty inside yet but it's on my list!! i'll have to check it out :) some other ones with similar vibes that i liked: a business proposal, true beauty, at eighteen; you might also like prison playbook if you liked hospital playlist (the episodes are long but it is funny and heartwarming 🥺). run on is maybe one of my all time favs too <3

i have heard good things about physical 100! it sounds interesting and that is so nice that they had good sportsmanship with no trash talking, i like that. i'll let you know if i watch it!

#answered #byjeekies

[amakumos]

go figure! － profiles 1.

SYNOPSIS being a popular actress, it’s common for you to be invited to reality shows. but when your company agrees for you to join a reality show where you’ll have to live with another celebrity for a month, you get paired up with the person you least expect to be partnered with. your partner just so happens to be park sunghoon, olympic figure skater - and also, your celebrity crush.

ABOUT!

y/n － user yassyn. popular actress who starred as the female lead of kdrama ‘love alarm’ alongside park jay. her celebrity crush is olympic figure skater park sunghoon, and she never shuts up about him.

park sieun － user sieunpriv. former actress and now idol in the girl group stayc. met y/n through acting together on a show, and they have been best friends since. concerned about the amount of times y/n watches sunghoon’s programs daily.

bae sumin － user freesumin. member of stayc. met y/n through sieun, and they’re now very close. started watching figure skating because of y/n, but she watches the ladies’ event more often.

park jay － user jaysthoughts. y/n’s co-star in love alarm. very close friends and have good chemistry together. during the times when they’re filming together they will always have some little friendly competition going on between them.

yang jungwon － user yjwonie. became friends with y/n after they worked on the same movie together. doesn’t do many acting projects often but when he does they’re always a hit.

kim sunoo － using sunooing. famous actor, and met y/n at an award show when they were sitting next to one another and instantly clicked. sunoo knows almost (if not most) of y/n’s secrets.

choi yunjin (jinni) － using jinni928373738. member of nmixx and y/n’s childhood friend. was there when y/n watched a figure skating program for the first time. also her biggest cheerleader whenever y/n has new projects to be released.

liu yangyang － user yangx2. member of nct / wayv and met y/n through a variety show. has playful arguments with y/n about whether basketball is better than figure skating or vice versa. kind of the crackhead of the friend group.

kim sejeong － user godsejeong. worked with y/n on school 2017. cares for y/n a lot and y/n sees her as somewhat of a mentor figure. very busy due to her new dramas but always makes time to meet up with y/n and talk.

profiles one － simp nation! next ♡ masterlist

authors note: hehe profiles of y/n's friend group !! and some descriptions yass !! posting this before i head off to camp slayyy ^_^

GO FIGURE! a sunghoon smau. genre: smau, crack, fluff, slight angst, mutual pining, figure skating au pairing: figure skater! sunghoon x actress! fem! reader warnings: swearing, ignore timestamps, photos of kim minju will be used to visualise outfit / concepts for y/n! taglist is OPEN!

#enhypenwriters #kflixnet #ficscafe #enhypennetwork #k-radio! #enhypen smau #enhypen imagines #enhypen fluff #enhypen angst #enhypen scenarios #enhypen au #enhypen x reader #sunghoon smau #sunghoon imagines #sunghoon fluff #sunghoon angst #sunghoon scenarios #sunghoon au #sunghoon x reader #📂: go figure! ⛸

[mel-ixa]

Tianshan Police x Mafia AU

I was studying and my brain wondered off and came up with this AU and it wouldn’t let me go unless I throw it somewhere so here it is: 

He Tian is part of the mafia under the He family  

Mo is a policeman who got into the force because his father was wrongly accused and jailed. He doesn’t want that to happen to anyone else (and also because he wanted to investigate more on his father case to free him)

The He family covers their tracks well and the police higher ups are bribed so they’re mostly left alone

Mo was on a trail for another case and chanced upon Tian doing mafia things (idk maybe selling drugs?) and Tian being the flirt that we know and love instantly latched onto Mo and started bothering him 

Mo obviously wants to put Tian behind bars (and is more adamant because Tian is annoying af) but when he brought it up to his superiors, they told him to let it go 

cue all the chasing and flirting from Tian and Mo not being able to do anything because the force doesn’t allow him to

It gets friendly eventually because Tian sometimes helps Mo out with some cases since Tian is more familiar with the underground dealings, and it helps the He family get rid of competition

but one day another family decides to go after the He family and it’s such a big thing that the police are involved 

Tian is cornered and I’m thinking it’s at a top of a cargo by the harbour and Mo can see him and Tian’s assailant who is pointing a gun at Tian

Tian and Mo makes eye contact and Tian gets shot and falls backwards into the ocean

Mo dives after him

Happy End: Mo finds Tian and pulls him out, then cue the recuperation fluff and eventual get together because Mo realised how important Tian was in the instant he was shot and Mo thought he was going to lose him 

Angst (with hopeful) End: Mo couldnt find Tian who is swept away by the currents and everything is sad but yknow the typical 5 years later kdrama ending where Mo sees a silhouette of Tian when solving another case

ok that’s all for my brain rot. i hope this is enough for me to go back to studying without my brain jumping back to the story every 5 seconds. Please add to this if you want!

#19 days #tianshan #mo guan shan #He Tian #alternate universe - mafia and police #man i really have to get back to studying for my finals #why is my brain like this #was studying about drug formulation and my brain went 'oh you know what else could be linked to drugs?' how about a Mafia AU?? #has this been done yet? i see mafia AUs but not with a police counterpart #headcanons

[konaizumi]

Can you please sell me on Light On Me? I kinda want to see it but it also seems like it leans too much into the love triangle aspect (?? Idk I'm guessing based on gifs) and I'm not into that. Feel free to go as hard as you like 😁

Ok you should definitely, 100% watch Light on Me, it's amazing!

To address your concern, yes the love triangle is a big part of the plot, but it's like, a good love triangle. I totally get it, I also really dislike love triangles and find them annoying (though kdramas usually do a pretty good job with them imo) but! this love triangle isn't just added in for unnecessary drama and angst, it actually has purpose and plays into the character development of all the characters involved. Also, the two "rival" characters are close friends and always very respectful about everything. The love triangle isn't fueled by competition, it's more just two people falling for the same person.

So I don't know if that encourages you or not, but now I shall try to sell you on the characters. First, our dear protagonist, Taekyung, who is socially awkward (autistic-coded imo) and doesn't have any friends (by choice, not bc people dislike him), and he decides he wants friends, so on the advice of his teacher he joins the students council. I love him so much and at first he seems like he'd be the typical innocent and naive dating-sims protag, but he's actually pretty witty and smart once he gets comfortable, he's just extremely straight forward and open about his opinions.

Next is Shinwoo, my son, resident disaster gay, best boi, and tsundere of the student council. They have an awkward first meeting, so he's kind of harsh at first toward Taekyung but gradually they become close. He's not the most friendly and sociable, but he's always willing to help out his friends at his own expense.

Then Daon. Daon is president of the student council, and super popular bc he's so nice. He has an inability to say no to people and people recognize that he is a pushover and take advantage of him (not maliciously bc everyone loves him, more just like a "i know daon is willing to help if I ask" way). He's got it kind of rough but prob has the most character development.

Last, Namgoong, wingman extraordinaire and best friend. He's always there to cheer people up by making them smile. He seems really light-hearted and not very serious, but he's always there to support his friends in a supportive but non-invasive way. He's got the best lines. (not part of the love triangle)

The dynamic between all the characters is beautiful and has a good balance between funny and serious, and they're always friends first before anything else. It's really endearing to watch Taekyung become friends with these people and the way he gets excited over the new friendships. And it's really a story of how these three boys are grow because of Taekyung. His honesty and straightforwardness is very different than what they're used to from other people and it's really the catalyst for their character development.

I also really like the way they handled the love triangle. While it still played on common troupes, it felt somewhat subversive? Non-traditional? Idk, it was very different from usual love triangles, so if that's what's putting you off I would still recommend giving it a try. (also you will get second male lead syndrome out the wazoo, but for a while you won't be able to tell who you're feeling it for lol)

Ok, that was maybe too much but you said I could go as hard as I wanted 🤣 and this is prob top 3 fav bls for me and I've had to restrain myself from writing more. It also def feels more like a kdrama than your usual bl, if that helps. It's truly and beautiful and wholesome show and I recommend it with my whole heart!

#ask #light on me

[yawnjunie]

so you’re the artsy type, huh ❦ cbg (1)

Genre: fluff, university au, crack (get ready for a bad take on comedy)

Pairing: broke artist!reader x art sponsor!beomgyu

Word count: 7k

Summary: After spending way too much time chasing after an impossible dream, you weren’t too sure you wanted to continue with your lifelong passion— art. One eventful day at the museum steered you onto a road full of twists and turns, and you unexpectedly found yourself wading deeper into murky water with your new employer.

A/N: a huge thank you to @noiaeu​ and @halohyuka​ for being my beta readers! anyways here is a long overdue fic that was a 20k+ word monstrosity but is now a series. happy reading!

— blu and struz

You tapped your feet absentmindedly against the grimy tiles of the cheap burger chain as you waited. The atmosphere that usually felt bustling and welcoming now felt stuffy as your stomach churned each passing second. The waitress walked past your seat as she served the customers behind you, the fragrant aroma of the burgers on her tray prompting a vicious growl from your stomach. Sighing, you checked the time on your phone: 8:52pm. Scrolling past the inactive conversations with your “friends” (you didn’t really know what to call them because you tried to ask them out and got rejected; you’d kept those conversations anyway because you were too attached to them), you sent a quick message to a number you wish you didn’t need to text today. Without a second thought, you picked up your belongings and left the small burger shop.

Thank goodness, you knew just the perfect place to drown your sorrows in.

You called for the nearest taxi to the small food shop by the name of Mrs. Lee’s Mandu House.

“What happened this time?” A stout lady with an apron asked, peeking her head out of the kitchen, setting down a large bowl of dumplings in front of you. She made her way to the condiments shelf. “Kimchi?”

“Yes, please. I got stood up again.” You grumbled, stuffing a large dumpling into your mouth ravenously. Then, speaking through mouthfuls of food, you continued. “Maybe I should just stop trying altogether. Change my major to agricultural studies and move to the countryside while I’m at it.”

Food had never tasted so good! The savory filling of the dumplings literally melted in your mouth, and soon the blaring sound of the old AC and the sound of the kdrama from the TV had just blended into the background. It was nice not having to listen to anything.

“Aw, don’t say that.” The woman replied as she set down a pot of kimchi and a plate of kimbap on your table. The friendly ahjumma took her seat across from you and set down a bag of melon seeds. “Trust me, it’s going to be hard. You’re just in your first year of college! You’ll get there someday.” Then, she continued on to tell you about other people she knew who had it harder than you, but all that faded into the background noise, along with the AC and the TV. That sentence was the only thing you heard, and although there weren’t any lemons in the soup, everything that you ate suddenly started tasting sour. Sometimes, even the best food cannot drown out the bitterest words.

You’ll get there someday.

Foomp. You flopped onto your bed with a small grunt as your back met the soft mattress. Throwing off your glasses to the side, you massaged your eyeballs and then looked at the ceiling. It was grey. The same grey that you saw before going to sleep at night, the very same grey that greeted you when you awoke in the morning to another unexciting day. The more you stared at it, the more the popcorn ceiling looked just like a grey mass with a few monotone specks here and there.

You were always told to look to the future and stop dwelling on the past. And that was a long shot, given that all you saw in front of you was a blurry ceiling.

What is this feeling? You let yourself sink a little deeper into your mattress, lazily shifting your gaze to the left, where you saw your huge Gabriel Garcia Marquez poster taped to the wall. Solitude. Looking back, you supposed that was how you’d been living your life thus far.

Doing jobs here and there, never really achieving anything big.

Single as hell.

It was days like this that made you feel not quite sad, but just really demotivated. A reminiscent smile flickered on your face as you turned your head to stare at the wall, unto which the light that peeked through the overcast sky cast a faint shadow. Words like “lonely” and “outcast” didn’t mean a thing to you. The fact of the matter was, you didn’t have anyone, and the universe sure didn’t put an effort to sugarcoat that fact.

Rolling lazily to the edge of the bed, you finally sat yourself up. You walked over to your desk, pulled out the wooden chair, and turned on the lamp. Then, you took a moment to tie up your hair before looking down at what was lying under the spotlight of the lamp.

Amidst the blizzard of eraser shavings and the familiar scent of freshly shaved wood stood the lead outline of a girl. Shoulder-length hair up in a high ponytail, a soft, rounded nose, chapped lips, and blank, unsuspecting eyes with dark circles hanging below them. Looks like she’s never seen a day of joy in her life. Looking into the mirror standing to the left on your desk, a very tired girl with a dark face stared right back. Dusting off the eraser shavings into the trash bin next to the desk, you commended yourself for the superb self-portrait. 

At the insistence of the tightness in your right wrist and the crick in your neck, you set the pencil down and extended your arms to stretch your back. When your eyes fell upon the drawing once more, a wave of disappointment washed you back onto the shore of frustration. Yet another addition to the ever-growing pile of wasted white paper. A part of you argued that art was not a waste, which was true enough. Art made by you, however, was a different story.

What happened to me? All that time, effort, and energy never really amounted to much. After all, you’d only seen the world in black and white. It was as if someone took a giant paint tube and squirted an awful lot of grey paint everywhere.

After all, who’d ever heard of an artist who couldn’t tell orange from blue?

–––

Even the song playing in the background mocked you with every word.

♪ I see trees of green,

red roses too ♪

♪ I see them bloom,

for me and you ♪

♪ and I think to myself

what a wonderful world ♪

You glanced around tiredly as you saw your classmate’s boyfriend carry a stack of canvases for them. For someone who, one: saw the world in grey, and two: had never gone on a date, the world was anything but wonderful. You felt your eyelids drooping despite the hard, wooden stool jutting into your buttcheeks. Drowsily, you turned your gaze to your art pieces. Noticing the other students coming in to set up their pieces, you straightened up your back and set your bag down on the stool. You took a deep breath and swung your arms nervously in an attempt to garner a sense of purpose and hope. You got this! You whispered encouraging phrases to yourself under your breath, smiling at the students who bothered to greet you first.

Today was your first time participating in a student exhibition. Although it was quite unconventional for first year students to be showcasing their work in the advanced exhibition, your teacher had been nice enough to make a spot for you. Well, it was more like you practically begging her to consider you, because of your current family situation. You terribly did not want to sound like that broke college student™, but sometimes, a little bit of courage to fight against the stone cold reality was useful. And of course, Ms. Kim, being the benevolent soul she was, granted you special rights to participate.

This year, the exhibition was being held in the empty room at the Museum of Modern Art. Attendance of the students was optional, but a good handful of them came, hoping to get a professional review, or even a sponsor for their art. The moment you walked in, you held your breath—the entire room was empty, all six surfaces painted white. It was the brightest room you’d ever been in, yet the temperature seemed to drop 100 degrees.

It’s fine. This time, things will be different, you told yourself in an attempt to shake off the dread that settled in the pit of your stomach. Fifth time’s the charm, after all.

It may have been your first time participating in a college exhibition, but you’d participated in countless art competitions as a kid. You were like a wildfire, and there was no award for a competition you entered that you didn’t win. Now, it felt like you were back to base one. After all, who has that easy of a life? Those days of your easy childhood life were long gone.

You tried not to think much as you sat uncomfortably next to your paintings. For the first hour or so, you made a point to look each passing person in the eye, a wide smile plastered on your face. The second hour, the corners of your mouth started to twitch beyond your control. By the third hour, you found yourself staring at people’s shoes more often than their faces. As the minutes ticked by, you kept your eyes trained intently on the floor, mouth pressed firmly closed. Glancing around the room, you tried to take your mind off of your worries. But you couldn’t help but be envious of your classmates, who were getting noticed by the professional guests.

That’s okay, there’s always next time. Guess today just wasn’t my day.

It was beginning to feel like no day was your day. A warm sensation pricked at the corners of your eyes when a voice pulled you out of your thoughts. 

“Ma’am, excuse me.” A woman in a worn out blue outfit approached your stand. 

Being as desperate as you were, you hastily wiped away your tears from all the yawning and slapped a smile on your face, mustering up the peppiest voice you could manage. “Hey! How can I help you? As you can see, I work exclusively in grayscale, and I mostly do portrai–” “Miss–” the lady interrupted, “it’s closing time. Could you please pack your things?”

Upon processing the sight of the tattered mop in her hand, realization hit you like a truck, and not just any ordinary truck— it was a Belaz 75710 filled with 496 tons of rocks and sharp glass. That was a fun fact you stumbled upon while scrolling on Instagram; the fact that you somehow retained this useless information made you silently curse yourself. Your smile was frozen in place as you gave a series of curt nods. “Oh. Okay, I’ll start packing.”

The kind woman nodded back and started to walk away, but stopped and turned just a few steps away. “Don’t feel too down. Sometimes, life just doesn’t go the way you want it to. It’ll get better, trust me.”

“Yeah.” You replied coldly, not bothering to mask your sadness. Attempting to muster a small smile in gratitude for her kind words, you gave her a thumbs up before she left the room. It kind of hurt, getting pity from the janitor. But in a way, you felt a little comforted. At least you knew you weren’t the only person struggling. Robotically, you placed the canvases onto your utility cart one by one, then started folding up the easels. When the janitor’s footsteps had faded away, the only thing disrupting the silence was the rain. 

Plip. Plop. With the accompaniment of the beating of the raindrops on the rooftop that rang in your ear like a dull symphony, it only seemed natural for your tears to fall. And this time, there was nobody to interfere with your sob session. 

And on that afternoon, in the empty art hall, you cried your heart out. There was only one question that gnawed at the back of your mind relentlessly, like a famished dog on a bone twice its size. Should I just give up on art? The thought of it just made you cry even harder. Art was your everything.

From the moment you’d grasped the thin body of the paintbrush on your doljabi, you’d fallen in love with art. Throughout your childhood, you’d spent your days drawing. From drawing on plain computer paper to painting entire murals on your bedroom walls - you did it all. Everyone was sure you’d become an artist when you grew up. You’d even kept a money jar by your bed, which you’d used to store money for new art supplies and eventually, art school. You were happy. You had a good eye for color. 

Thunder crashed outside as that memory resurfaced in your mind. Back then, you drew like there was no tomorrow when you could see colors. Until the world became dark when your colors, your precious colors were taken away. And the world remained dark ever since. They all pitied you, sending a sigh your way in condolence for your loss. You didn’t need or want their pity, of course. All you’d ever wanted was an answer, a reason to why they left your eyes. 

You wanted to blame it on something, but what could you do? Every night you prayed, praying desperately for your colors back. But every morning, the ceiling remained grey. So did the sky when you walked to work. Pushing your shabby cart with a loose wheel down the hallway full of eccentric art pieces, you didn’t even spare a glance at them. Well, other than to avoid being noticed by the few people who were still in the museum, to which you hid your swollen face in the opposite direction and choked back your sobs. Well, what can you do now, y/n? It’s not your first time participating in an exhibition anyway. There’s probably someone out there having it harder than you, so suck it up! Everything will be better once you get back home… 

Just when you were nearing the entrance of the museum, you heard a different pair of footsteps from your own behind you.

“Hey.” You jumped out of your skin at the tap on your left shoulder. Caught by surprise, you found yourself stumbling backwards into your cart. You lost your footing and down crashed your rear end. By attempting to hold onto the cart handle for balance, your art pieces now seemed to fall in slow motion, the cart suspended in the air as your mouth hung open in horror. You reached out to grab it, but unfortunately, you were an aching 2 centimeters short of saving your artwork. The cart toppled on top of your canvases with a comical crack, wooden splinters flying everywhere. The empty utility cart squealed defeatedly as it toppled to its side, a loose wheel still spinning.

You felt your head spin even faster, as you grew increasingly frustrated by your inability to comprehend what had just happened. Holy shit.

Strewn across the floor, battered and broken, lay hours upon hours of your time, your hard-earned money, along with the last strains of your hope of becoming an artist. F*ck!

Eyes wide and mouth agape, you turned to face the perpetrator of the tragedy. 

This is the part where he apologizes and promises to make it up to me, then gives me his contact info and we go on a date and he falls for me and we live happily ever after. Or so you hoped, you thought. The thought was so ridiculous that you could have burst out into laughter if it hadn’t been for the fact that the fruit of your blood, sweat, and tears was now a bunch of broken wood and torn cotton on the floor. F you and your last brain cell, y/n. Get yourself together and snap out of it. You were convinced that you were so sleep deprived from your K-drama binging session this morning at 4am that you’d convinced yourself that you were living the next episode.

Chances were low that the two of you would get together and live happily ever from an offense like this, but even so, he would have to compensate for the damages somehow. Now that you came back to reality, you realized that you couldn’t even make out what the guy in front of you looked like. “Okay, but what if he’s like, your next patron or something.” You don’t know if you muttered that out loud, but your odd behavior was really annoying you today. Shut up, it's not like he's Song Kang! Stop it! Nevertheless, you bet on the Balenciaga slides that he was wearing that he would pull out a business card the next moment.

You stared into the boy’s eyes expectantly and he met your gaze. You felt your pulse quicken as he opened his mouth to speak, eagerly awaiting your compensation. Hello hello, my next patron. This is the moment that marks my upgrade to a better life.

“I am so, so sorry about this.”

“You should be.”

As he spoke, the boy pulled his cap lower and threw on his hood. “Not just about me breaking your paintings, but also this.” Dammit, what have I gotten myself into?

And then he bolted.

🏃 💨

“Wha– hey! Where do you think you’re going?!”

He slammed his body against the glass door and ran into the rain while you followed in close pursuit. However, after a few wobbly steps, it occurred to you that you weren’t exactly dressed for the occasion, so you took off your heels and continued the hunt barefoot. 

Still, even under normal circumstances, you weren’t much of a track star. Wearing a blazer with suit pants and no shoes wasn’t helping your chances either, and the weather didn’t seem to plan on making things any easier.

The two of you ran through the heavy rain like cat and mouse. Clenching your teeth and your fists, you chased after the boy. He ran about two blocks before you caught up to him. As your calves grew sore, you considered hurling one of your heels at him.

The boy slowed down for a couple of seconds, looking around frantically. Mr. Kim.....! I told you to wait for me out here—!

Heaving a sigh, he turned around and began to run in another direction. And although he'd hate to admit it, today was one of the days where he had no choice but to admit that his choice of footwear today was a fatal flaw.

Somehow, despite the odds against you, you weren’t the one who ate the pavement. The boy tripped over the curb and slammed into the sidewalk, bellyflopping straight into a gargantuan puddle. Those Balenciagas did not help him run through the rain very well. You laughed in triumph and squatted next to his almost-lifeless body. 

“Gotchu now, you jer–” 

Boom! The world went white for a second, illuminated by the blinding clap of lightning. In an instant, the downpour increased tenfold, the raindrops now feeling like bullets against your skin. 

“Okay, maybe this isn’t the best place to have a conversation.” 

–––

The two of you trudged through the rain—or, more accurately— you dragged the boy through the rain, your grip on his hoodie sleeve iron-tight. When you finally reached your car, you opened the passenger door and he went in obediently. From an outsider’s point of view, you might’ve been mistaken as an undercover cop. In fact, you were sure feeling like one as you apprehended the criminal.

You went around to the back and opened up the trunk, where after rifling through months' worth of empty bottles, fabric bags for shopping, and a variety of other car junk, you finally found your stash of somewhat clean clothes. After careful consideration, you chucked a worn hoodie and the swimming shorts you’d worn to the beach last year over the seat. Just in case, you also tossed your first-aid kit over. You threw your heels in and swapped them for a pair of nylon flip flops before slamming the trunk closed. 

You went back to the passenger’s side and opened the door. Taking in the figure of the drenched and bleeding boy, you kind of felt sorry for him. Which was stupid, considering he had just wrecked your life’s work and made a run for it. You tilted your head back and sighed, trying to sort your thoughts out. 

With all of your best art pieces now reduced to splinters, it was a cold, hard fact that you weren’t going to get a sponsor. Besides, even before they’d been smashed into smithereens, nobody had been willing to give you a chance. The probability of you finding a sponsorship was like the graph of the height of a ball thrown from a cliff at sea level, or the number √-1. It was not just in the negatives, but it was also imaginary.

Taking a sharp inhale, you talked as quickly as you could. “Listen. I’m going to go get what’s left of my art from the gallery. Just change your clothes and patch yourself up, then you can leave.” You paused to dig out a few crumpled dollars from your wallet, which you promptly threw at him. 

“Here, take this to get a taxi. I don’t know how far you live, but that’s all I have. Don’t get me wrong– I still think you’re a massive schmuck. And there’s nothing you can do to fix the damage you’ve caused.” Despite your best effort to remain composed, your voice cracked a little at the end. You stopped talking before you were to break out into tears again.

Without waiting to hear what the douchebag had to say, you slammed the door closed and strode through the rain back to the gallery, where your pieces still lay broken on the ground where you’d left them. A part of you was hoping that maybe, by some magic or miracle, the whole thing had been a dream, and nothing really happened. 

But reality was as cold as stone, and you were powerless to change it. So, as you always did when confronted with the unchangeable, you picked yourself up and carried on, struggling against the current. 

By the time you wheeled the broken canvases back to your car, the boy was long gone, all traces of his presence vanished except for the dampness of the left side passenger seat. You buckled on your seatbelt and tuned into your favorite radio station, then sped off into the summer storm. The storm, your artwork, it was all so out of the blue– well, in your case, grey.

The situation on the freeway was like a stuffy nose: irritated and congested. In fact, it would’ve been faster to moonwalk down the road. To make matters even worse, instead of music, the radio station was streaming ad after ad. Is this even legal? Exasperatedly, you tuned into a different station, then another one, but to no avail; all of them were on ad break. 

It was frustrating enough that the gallery was a complete flop, not to mention that your best art was demolished in a hit and run and that you were sitting soaking wet on a leather seat stuck in the middle of traffic. Now, even the radio had turned against you. You shut it off and sat in silence.

Thump. You sighed and leaned your head back against the seat, willing the migraine that was building up in your head to f*ck off. After craning your head to check the backseat one more time, to your vexation, you found that the asshat hadn’t even bothered to close the first aid kit.

Muttering obscenities under your breath, you reached for the kit, cracking your inflexible spine 4 times in the process. You rummaged through its contents, straightening them out, counting how many were left, and you were about to slam the lid closed when you saw the note. 

XXX-XXX-XXXX

“Well, gee, that’s REAL helpful.” You scoffed, rolling your eyes at the ten numbers scrawled on the note. Your half a brain cell told you to quit being stupid and toss that note out the window.

The rest of your stupid self told you to call it. I mean, why not? You cursed yourself for how your brain worked– or rather, didn’t work– sometimes.

You licked your lips in brief contemplation before punching in the numbers in. The person on the other end picked up immediately. 

“Hello, welcome to Papa John’s Pi–”

You hurled your phone into the backseats and ripped the note up, throwing the scraps into the air like confetti before continuing the wearisome ride down through the rain. 

–––

It took an eternity, but you made it back to your apartment, where you promptly crashed onto the couch. As per usual, you spent the rest of your waking hours scrolling through baking videos, even though you had neither the ingredients nor the time to be making any of the confections. At around 8pm, exhausted from crying and the events of the day, you dozed off without having a bite of the frozen pizza that’d just finished baking in the oven.

Bzzt! Bzzt! Bzzt! Bzzt! Bzzt! Your dreamless slumber was disturbed by the vibration of a string of text notifications and the glow that lit up the dark ceiling. Still half-asleep, you blindly felt around for your phone and attempted to read the message through bleary eyes.

It was from an unknown number.

Rubbing your eyes to clear out the nasty gunk, you sat up and read the message again, this time with clearer vision. 

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] Hello, sorry for ruining your paintings today. I will make it up to you.

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] Thanks for bothering to call, let’s meet at this address to talk about your compensation. My parents can’t know that I did this so it would be great if you could keep this a secret :(

What the f*ck. You muttered under your breath, eyes half shut. Did I call anyone? In your half-asleep state, you didn’t bother to recall. For a second, you considered blocking the number. But just in case this was just one of your dumbass friends who changed their number, you decided to give that person a reply.

[You] hello? is this papa john’s?? i would like a cheese pizza

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] oh sorry the voicemail was a prank for someone else

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] i’m the guy from the art museum earlier, remember

[You] okay why do you have my number

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] because you called me

[You] right. okay, what do you want

[You] unless you want to pay me back for all those damages back there, no i am not interested in anything else sry i’m a very busy person you know

You hesitated a second before pressing the send button. You’d just sent a lie; in fact, you weren’t really that busy. Apart from your part time job at the boba shop, you were actually quite free most of the time. During the summer, at least. In fact, your screen time had gone up by 42%, your daily average now totaling to a whopping 12 hours. After a minute or so of silence, you threw your head back onto your pillow and let out a loud sigh of relief. Peace at last! It also made you quite happy that the person who texted you was in the least, not some weird scammer. 

Ping! You celebrated too soon. Reaching for your phone groggily, you read the new message.

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] okay then i was going to ask if you were free tomorrow

Am I being asked out? You squinted at your bright phone screen in the dark. You might have been nearsighted, but you weren’t illiterate in pick-up lines.

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] i want to return the clothes you lent me

[You] it’s fine, you can keep that

Oh good, he was talking about the clothes, not anything else. Your millisecond of relief ended quickly when he sent another message.

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] oh also it would be great if we could meet up anyway? i want to talk to you about something that i had been meaning to say for a while

Oh, god. I knew it wasn’t just about the clothes. Lonely as you were, you would shoot yourself in the foot if you got into any relationship without landing a stable job or having any money. Scoffing amusedly, you stared at the screen as he continued to type. But dating someone like this? Never in a million years. Turning over to your other side, you thought about the many ways you could reject him.

[You] no sorry :(

[XXX-XXX-XXXX] we should set a date at the cannoli restaurant to talk about your compensation costs. i’m extremely sorry for ruining your beautiful artwork, and i know that my apologies will do nothing to change your current situation. since this is my fault, i’m willing to pay any amount you request (and i’ll pay to the best of my capabilities)... i’m assuming $50,000 would be enough to cover the costs for most of the damage? if monetary compensation doesn’t work for you, we can discuss other forms of compensation as well.

[You] i know it may not seem like it but i’m actually caught up in too much work to have time for dating anyone. you see, it’s just that i have lots of work on the side so i can’t really spare time at the moment. please don’t take this personally haha i’m sure you’ll find someone,,, like i don’t know how to say this but yeah…..you don’t wanna be w someone like me, it’s me not you

Huh? Just as you sent your message, another message popped up before yours. And if your life had a background narration, this very moment would have been “and in that moment he knew. He fvcked up.” 

Fml.

With just one single message, you perhaps have ruined the only god-given opportunity to turn your life around ever. He’d just offered you money to cover the costs of your broken paintings... now that you thought about it, he could even be your patron! You couldn’t even get a patron even if you went out of your way to look for one on Craigslist, pestered Ms. Kim for any news from the Art Teacher’s Association, or even begged random people on the street in hopes one out of the million people would be willing to promote your art. Now, someone was asking to compensate you with tons of money, and you’d just rejected him in the most embarrassing way possible. 

[You] oh shoot

[You] i mean wrong chat, uh can you please stay on hold, i will get back to your compensation offer, yeah i will see you at the restaurant sometime thanks

XXX-XXX-XXXX is typing…

You did not bother to see what he had to say. Hurtling your phone onto your carpet, you let out a guttural scream of “I AM SUCH A DUMB@$$$” before pulling the strings on your hoodie tightly. And for the second time that day, you cried.

———

Leaving behind the upsetting events from a couple of days ago, you listlessly shuffled through the entrance. It was Saturday morning, and that meant groceries. The local Asian market was one of your favorite places to be; breathing in the familiar blend of spices that hung in the air was a cathartic feeling. The corners of your lips were turned slightly upwards as you bent to grab a basket.

First stop was the meat section, where the bugged-out eyes of dead fish followed you as you walked down the aisle. Cooking raw animal flesh wasn't really your thing, so you simply picked up a package of pre-cooked chicken and went on your way.

Next came the produce section where you felt up all the tomatoes, only bagging the ones that felt the right amount of firm and soft. You also added a pack of bok choy and mushrooms, perfect for cooking up a lazy soup.

Now that you were nearing the end of your expedition, it was time to head into the best part of the store: the snack aisle. Sometimes, when you were feeling more down than usual, you would blow the whole sum of your weekly grocery savings on off-brand shrimp chips and chocolate banana Pocky. One by one, you were doing all the things your mom had told you not to do when you moved out, from coating the entirety of your insides with nothing but sodium and sugar to shifting your sleep schedule by 15 hours. 

What was next, the-no-dating-boys-until-you’ve-gotten-your-Master’s-and-have-a-7-figure-job rule? You scoffed and rolled your eyes. Even if your stomach was totally trashed and your sleep schedule was nonexistent, you would never let yourself fall that far.

As you stepped foot into the chips aisle, you beheld the holy grail. From Hello Panda to rice crackers, wasabi peas to Yan Yan sticks complete with a chocolate dip, cream wafers to dried seaweed, you were in a sea of temptation. Being that broke college student™, you just gulped and kept walking. I can just feast on these goodies with my eyes.

Your initial plan had been to just walk through the aisles to admire and drool over snacks you knew you couldn’t afford, but you were stopped in your tracks when you reached the instant noodles section. 

At the end of the aisle, the shelf was bare except for a single lone pack. Even from a distance, you recognized it, all right; there was no mistaking the outline of your favorite instant ramen brand. 신라면. More like 神라면 (it’s more than just spicy noodles— it’s noodles made by the gods) you thought, eyes already tightly clutching at the packaging from 5 feet away.

From many a sleepless night of binge-watching third-rate rom-com dramas (though you cringed thinking back on it, this was an integral phase of your dark “past”), you knew where this was going–– but you weren’t going to sit around and let yourself fall into some overused trope. You gripped your basket tight as you swiftly made your way over to the shelf, just about setting a world record for speedwalking with a basket.

Sure enough, if you had been one second slower, you would’ve been ensnared in a sticky situation. Just as you were snatching up your prey like the pterodactyl you were, another figure was rounding the corner. Another broke college student™, it seemed, judging by the state of their hoodie, which was pulled over their messy hair, the strings tied in a bow to make sure the hood wouldn’t fall. Even though their face was concealed by their hood, you could see their reaction as they connected the dots from the bare shelf to the ramen pack in your hand.

“Hey–” they started, reaching towards you, but you promptly dropped the pack into your basket, spun on your heel, and noped out of the aisle before you could be confronted. You felt sorry because you could sympathize with their situation, but you were in no place to be kind to others. Not in this dog-eat-dog world. To survive, you’d have to stay on top of the food chain.

You were about to fall in line when you remembered that you were all out of Sriracha sauce. You could deal with giving up your Pocky and shrimp chips as long as you had your favorite condiment in stock; no matter how down you were, scrambled eggs with a heaping squirt of Sriracha always took you up to Cloud Nine. If you were going to leave something behind, it would never be the Sriracha sauce.

After grabbing a bottle from the condiment aisle, you scanned the checkout desks for the shortest line. Luckily, a new checkout desk had just opened on the left, so you scampered over and placed your basket onto the counter. The clerk was a kind-looking old woman, but was surprisingly agile for her age. As you waited for her to bag the large span of items that belonged to the grandpa in front of you, you opened up your phone to check your budget. You eyed the message app with two unread messages temptingly before going into your bank app. This was a lucky trip~ thankfully ramen isn’t too expensive. Even if it wasn’t on my grocery list, a few cents won’t make too much a difference. I think I can spare enough to get a Pocky next time.

At long last, the grandpa shuffled away with his cart filled with some veggies, a thick stack of newspapers, and an unusually large stash of rice crackers. While the clerk scanned and bagged your items, you continued to fiddle with your phone until she cleared her throat. 

“Would you like a single receipt, or two separate ones? Because there’s a divider between your items.”

“Excuse me?” “You and your boyfriend. By the way, you guys look really cute together, especially with your hoodies~ are you on a date?”

You spun around only to come face to face with the broke college kid from the ramen aisle. Well, that’s awkward. The cashier must have been blind or deaf (or both) because you didn’t even interact with that boy. You stole glances of the customer through your peripheral vision, trying to see what he looked like. Hmm, do I know him? He looked uncannily familiar. Just then, another realization dawned on you. A terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad one. Your expression quickly changed from one of confusion to one of pure shock.

Surprise, surprise. It was the douche from the art gallery. And he was wearing your old hoodie.

“I-I don’t know him.” Before he could open his mouth to say anything, you quickly looked away, feigning ignorance. Unfortunately for you, the old clerk had seen much in her day and your little ruse wasn’t going to slip past her that easily. 

“From the flushed look on your face and the stammer in your voice, I’m pretty sure you do. And I’m sure he would agree, wouldn’t you, lover boy~?”  

And… cue to the horrified look on lover boy’s face. The conflict that was playing out in his mind showed on his face; he knew that if he answered this wrong, he would be facing your wrath.

“Uh, well, the thing is…” He shot you a nervous glance, but your features were stone cold. At a total loss for what to say, the boy just trailed off and turned his eyes to his basket. Following his gaze, you looked over his items and immediately recoiled in disgust. 

Not a single leafy green (grey) in sight, no meat, no rice, not even one of the food groups necessary to sustain life. Strawberry ice cream mochi, Taiyaki, strawberry Melona bars, Choco Pies, strawberry Hi-Chew, strawberry Chocorooms, strawberry Pocky–– it seemed that strawberry was a recurring theme among his groceries.

Even though the sheer amount of sugar made you gag, a pang of jealousy flashed across your face. That was the life you’d longed for ever since you finished high school: living off of nothing but sugar and carbs, looking like a bum and not giving a damn about it, just chilling. 

Unfortunately, with the number of failures and setbacks that stained your past, a carefree life was something you could no longer afford. 

“Yeah, okay, we’ve met,” you cut in, saving the boy from the tricky situation. Skeptic, the clerk stared into your unblinking eyes for what seemed to be a solid 15 seconds before shrugging and handing you your groceries. You snatched up your fabric bag and went on your way, walking fast. The color in your cheeks was probably the same as a tomato. Your least favorite fruit.

Why him, of all the places? Why, universe? Where did I go wrong? You were about to drop dead from embarrassment. As you closed your eyes, you could see your tombstone: “Rest in Peace y/n, died alone and patron-less.”

However, what you didn’t know was that your day was about to get worse. A whole lot worse. It all started when you felt a familiar tap on your left shoulder. I swear– You took a deep breath in and let it out slowly to compose yourself and answered without turning around. 

“What in God’s good name do you want. And why are you wearing hobo clothes.” My clothes, you realized, a tiny bit weirded out.

“They’re comfy,” he pouted, stuffing his hands into the pocket of his newfound hoodie as if to show off. “Anyways, how come you didn’t check your phone earlier?

“Oh, uh,” you felt the pressure in your head rising as you recalled how you threw your phone down in embarrassment and cried. “Sorry, I was feeling kinda down because a certain someone sorta trashed my life’s work and my only chance of being successful in the industry, sooooo yeah. My bad.” 

Sniff. You looked up, startled, only to find that the boy in front of you had tears glistening in the corners of his eyes. His mouth was clamped closed, but his bottom lip was quivering and his eyebrows were turned up, resembling a small child trying to keep himself from bursting into tears after falling and scraping his knee on the pavement. “I’m sorry. I’m really, really sorry.”

Well shit. There were two ways you could go about this: one, let your superego do the talking like a good person and prevent the boy from having a total meltdown in the middle of the sidewalk. The second was letting your id run rampant, taking full advantage of his feelings of remorse and overall just being a jerk. Maybe you could be distant and lacking in empathy, but you weren’t an asshole because you wanted to be one. 

“Listen, I’m sorry for calling you a schmuck. A schmuck would not have bothered to keep in contact and a schmuck would not be on the verge of tears out of guilt. ...I accept your apology.” You were going to say that what he did was unforgivable, but you decided no to say that. After a pang of guilt jabbed into you, you bit your lip and softened your tone. 

“I know you feel bad, but you don’t need to cry; there’s no way to turn back time. So instead, let’s move forward and keep looking up. I’ll start.” Smiling slightly with a tilted head, you held out your hand. “Hi, my name is y/n. I know that we’ve technically met, but this is the first time we’ve met met. So, nice to meet you.”

He wiped his tears away with the butt of his palm and tried to return the smile, though his was more watery. “Nice to meet you, y/n. I’m Beomgyu.” You noticed the corners of his lips curl upwards in a small smile as he took your hand, shaking it firmly.

There was a pause of awkward silence as you let go of his hand, wiping your sweaty palm on your sweatpants. Well that was the most awkward introduction I’ve ever had in my life. Clearing your throat, you spoke again to clear the tense atmosphere.

“About my compensation.”

#moacabin #txtarcadianet #txt fanfiction #txt scenarios #txt fluff #beomgyu #choi beomgyu #beomgyu fanfiction #beomgyu scenarios #beomgyu fluff #okay this is ... awkward #it's been an eternity since i first started writing this #i don't even think this is that good of a fic LOL it's just lots of crack #but anyways i hope you enjoy this story so far !! #it would be great if i could get some feedback about how it's going so far haha

[i-may-be]

hello! may a request a romantic and platonic matchup for haikyuu!!

my pronouns are she/they and I'd prefer a male matchup for romantic and for platonic idm!! Personality traits of mine include easygoing, supportive, charming, excitable, blunt, optimistic, imaginative, confident, loyal, reliable, mischievous, stubborn, secretive, dumb, lazy, clumsy, indecisive and petty.

People tell me I have an image of an approachive, kind, and helpful person. I tend to dress in soft beige tones with a wardrobe of mostly pretty skirts, cardigans, dresses, hoodies, and sweatpants. I like wearing big platform or heeled shoes because im 5'0 but I wanna be cool and tall! When I'm comfortable with someone I tend to be very talkative and unafraid to ask for their help.

My hobbies include gift decorating, baking sweets cleaning, playing videogames, reading comics (horror and romance genres) and watching kdramas! I enjoy brewing and drinking tea, caring for pets, fluffy blankets, perfumes, light pink, sage green, sleeping, and early mornings. I dislike messy rooms, sweating, room lights (prefer natural sun light), vomit, and bugs!

For my type... perhaps someone who is reliable when it counts, easily flustered(?), a good listener, willing to take our relationship slowly, and accepting of me?! I don't mind if it's difficult for them to express themselves because all my friends are like that but I'd like to get to know him well! Maybe someone who is very different from me so it's interesting and we can always learn new things about each other?

Anyways thanks for reading through all this, have a lovely day! ❤

hello! thank you for choosing this blog for your matchup <3

PLATONIC MATCHUP: Koshi Sugawara

HOW YOU MET

While walking a dog, either your own or your friend's, you met Sugawara!

The two of you had let the young and playful dogs off their leads and let them run around the dog park excitedly.

You both struck up friendly conversation seeing the two dogs get along so well.

After finding you both had a lot in common, you both exchange phone numbers and/or social media.

Your fabulous friendship should flourish from her on out!

RELATIONSHIP HEADCANONS

This man is so horrible to go to if you want him to get a bug out of your room. He'll do it, but not before saying shit like "Hm, lemme think about it" or being insufferably slow.

He absolutely helps you in any petty revenge plans. Be comforted in the fact that you're not the only petty one in the friendship.

Very supportive!! You guys definitely have a mutually beneficial relationship, always willing to offer a shoulder to one another!! It's very very sweet.

He will pretend to depise every perfume you choose to wear, but he really does like them!! He'll start joking around that they're a completely different scent like lavender would be a rotten fruit or something (I don't even know if this one makes sense).

HANGING OUT

Clothes shopping!!! I imagine Sugawara has a similar style to you so it'd be easy to shop together for similar clothes.

When you both play videogames together, specifically any competitive game (e.g mario kart, valorant), he goes wild. He rages when he games, but a weird silent rage where if you provoke him slightly he will snap. If you rage too, it'll just be hell for anyone caught in the crossfire.

He loves introducing you to his friends and he loves meetings yours!! If you're comfortable with it, he loves frequently meeting with a group of friends.

He'll randomly show up at your place (if it doesn't stress you out ofc). If you're doing something when he arrives, like baking or watching kdramas, he'll do it with you. He will absolutely steal some of your baked goods because they're so delicious!!

ROMANTIC MATCHUP: Azumane Asahi

HOW YOU MET

In a very underwhelming start, Sugawara introduced you to Azumane.

But really, Sugawara had asked if you wanted to meet up with his old classmates and you agreed!

After spending the day out with all of the third years, you had become aquainted, creating a groupchat together before you all split up.

As time went on, you all chatted some more a met up a few more times, but Asahi was who you'd grown closest to.

Either way, Sugawara takes every oppourtunity to pretend to be the reason you're both dating so you have that to look forward to.

RELATIONSHIP HEADCANONS

Because he's so used to people thinking he's scary, compliment this man at all and he is putty in your hands.

I imagine that he would just adore listening to you explain things to him, how you do cool things in games or what's happening in the comic you're reading. He could listen to you for hours.

Communication is key ofc, and it's important that you both feel seen, so frequent talks to just keep up with what you're both doing.

If he spots something you might like, maybe a brownie recipe or a unique perfume, he is absolutely getting it for you as a gift. I just imagine he gives gifts as his main way of showing affection so exect many, many gifts. He likes personalising them too!

HANGING OUT

Watching Kdramas together!! Specifically any that are particularly sad or romantic, he gets so invested in emotional ones.

Being the fashionable man he is, he loves to show you any kind of design he has and asking your opinion on them.

Tea time, I am begging you, I am begging you to have a tea party with him. You brew the tea, he makes sandwitches, maybe you made some cupcakes as a treat! You sit together, talk, gossip, anything, but it would be so much fun.

Ever wanna learn some volleyball? Asahi would be extra patient with anything you struggle with. If you have any preferred sport or physical activity, he would love to try and learn the skill.

#haikyuu matchup #hq matchup #romantic matchup #platonic matchup #sugawara koshi #azumane asahi #haydens matchups!!!

[kpophours]

What are your thoughts on SF9 joining the official Kingdom lineup?

now that I’ve gotten over my initial shock... I guess I’m still mostly conflicted but maybe also a bit excited ??

on the one hand, I hate that FNC is doing this to my boys, because Zuho has had ongoing back problems for over two years now and is still getting treatment, Rowoon has still not recovered from his injury either, and Chani hasn’t had any proper rest in what feels like forever with his kdrama roles/cameos and MCing...

on the other hand though, I’m excited to see ot9 together again, because I really truly just miss them all together. plus the interactions with the other groups will be amazing! Eunkwang has basically already adopted Rowoon, Chani and Hyunjin are bffs as are Hwiyoung and Younghoon, Inseong and Seungmin will see each other again, we‘ll hopefully finally have some official Changmin and Taeyang interactions... so I’m excited for that! I just hope the boys won’t go all out with choreographies (so please no Jungle Game or K.O., no matter how cool those are), because the boyz did kinda set the tone for that with their incredible stunts during rtk. in the end, I just hope everyone will have a good time, make lots of new friends and that no one will get hurt!

I’ve also decided to just immediately unfollow anyone, mutual of not, who says anything mean about any of the groups participating. I just don’t need that negativity in my life - this is supposed to be a friendly competition (as there are no eliminations unlike during rtk) between incredibly talented groups with different strengths. I‘m here to see great performances, stages and concepts, and not to deal with any toxicity ✌🏻 any of the boys participating deserve respect and support, and that‘s final for me.

well, these are my thoughts on this lol, hope you‘ll enjoy my rambles 🥰

#ask #answered #anon #sf9 #kingdom #sf9 kingdom

[pinaasang-umasa]

tagged by: @mamamoshrek and @louisgaslitt

Here are the rules:

Always post the rules,

Answer the questions of the person who tagged you and don’t forget to thank them,

Write 11 new questions,

Make your own banner, and

Tag 11 people and link them to the post.

AJ’s Questions

1. Do you believe in the presence of a Parallel Universe?

actually, mas naintindihan ko lang yung idea ng Parallel Universe dahil kay Clara Benin, but wala talaga akong idea ron before. then here comes her song, and maybe there is talaga. hoping na sa kabilang universe we’re far way happier and better than what we are now.

2. If you could go back in time, would there be anything that you would want to change?

maybe i would change my mindset. i’ve been used to be so competitive sa lahat ng bagay and i always make it to the point na i’m dealing with others standards. siguro kung umpisa palang eh lowkey na ako, hindi siguro ako aabot sa ganitong thinking about life and acads and everything.

3. If you were given the chance to wield Thor’s Hammer, who would you smash first with it?

DDS MAMI AND U-KNOW-WHO!!! char not char hahahaha pero kasi nakagagalit lang talaga and wala akong ibang maisip na may deserve ng pefect smash aside sa kanila.

4. Would you change your name if you’d have the chance? if yes, what would it be?

no, kasi satisfied naman na ako sa tracey kasi medyo hindi common (madalas nga lang mali sa spelling but izzokay naman)

5. What is/are your comfort food?

red velvet and matcha!!!!!!!

6. What would you do if you were given invisibility powers?

siguro magtra-travel ako around the world kasi syempre libre yown. tapos magpapaka-fangirl ako sa mga concerts, pupunta ako sa backstage or sa mga bahay nila HAHAHHAHAH ang creepy pero kasi naman chance ko na yown tapos wala pang gastos.

7. If you were given the chance to learn a new language, what would it be?

korean para kapag nag-sokor ako (using my invisibility powers stated above) hindi ko na kailangan ng subtitle para maintindihan sila HAHAHHAHAHA zzz

8. If you were to be reborn to another nationality, what would you choose? (could be mixed e.g., half german, half shepherd)

wait, bwesit napaisip ako kung aso ba ako o tao. HAHAHAHHAHA half-korean siguro para naman ma-fulfill ko dreams ko kahit sa ganitong tanungan lang HAHAHAHAH

9. Describe your ideal date.

my ideal date could be sa concert grounds siguro or sa isang mellow-gig sa jess & pat’s or kahit saan basta may gig ng indie bands, tapos chill lang kayo, jamming with all those beautiful love songs. hindi ko na kasi masabing ideal date yung sa concert ng LANY kasi i already experienced it tapos hindi naman kami nung kasama ko pero soon jks HAHAHA

10. Is there someone you look up to? If you were given a chance to ask them any question provided that they answer you with all honesty, what would it be?

there’s no specific person na gusto kong matanong, but i really look up to those registered Civil Engineers and ask them how they made it kahit na ang hirap hirap. don’t wanna sound dramatic pero grabe, idol ko silang lahat lalo na pag laude or topnotchers. gusto kong magpatapak!!!

11. If you were given $1,000,000,000,000,000,000 now, what would you pay for first? (e.g., PH debt 2020)

andami masyado, sige pambayad nalang ng utang ng pinas. kapag may sumobra at hindi nakurakot, tsaka ko na babayaran utang namin HAHAHAHA jks

Kamil’s Questions:

1. Is there an icon you aspire to be like?

albert einstein tayo!! ano pa bang mahihiling mo sa sobrang talino niya tapos lahat prinoblema niya na hanggang ngayon prblema ko parin yung iba. ARGGHH!!!

2. What is the cheesiest/most romantic stunt you’ve ever pulled up on someone?

hinayaan kong matulog sa tabi ko yung crush ko kahit hindi ko alam kung crush din ba niya ako? HAHAHAHHAAH omg. tsaka natry ko rin gumawa ng box na puro letters tapos iniwan ko sa bag ng crush ko. (wala akong naging jowa sakanila AASHGSYG)

3. Which house do you belong to in Hogwarts?

GRYFFINDOR!!!!!!!!

4. If you end up in jail, what would be your crime?

pagbatikos siguro sa gobyerno lalo na sa sitwasyon natin ngayown huhu

5. If you had to name yourself now, what would it be?

still tracey siguro kahit hindi ko alam kung paano ko maiisip yon, pero stick tayo sa tracey hahaha

6. What tv show or book do you want to be in?

if a tv show, i would like to be a part of ELITE or any kdrama hehe. if a book, i want to be in a hundred and one reasons!!!

7. Who would play you in a movie about your life?

i want Ester Exposito!!!!!

8. What would you like to be known for?

that i’m a Registered Civil Engineer!!! ARGHHHH

9. What is the first thing people notice about you?

my speaking voice and how i interact with other people. they find me friendly and makapal yung mukha kasi talaga HAHAHAHHA

10. What’s the quickest way to your heart?

just make me laugh, madali akong ma-fall mami.. ZZZ

11. Do you collect anything?

any keroppi or cartoonish-frog!!! i have almost 100+ na gamit na frog yung design AHEHEEHZ

My questions:

1. When is the last time you experienced nostalgia?

2. What’s the scariest dream you’ve ever had?

3. What’s the weirdest thought you’ve ever had?

4. What animal would you want to be reincarnated as?

5. If you could visit one planet, which would it be?

6. What super power do you wish you had?

7. What’s your very first memory?

8. What did say as a kid when asked: What do you want to be when you grow up?

9. What country do you most want to travel to?

10. Which foreign language would you like to learn?

11. What’s the most ticklish spot on your body?

Tagging: @alwaysthesleepy @solaceinbetween @jillaxkalangg @thewrittencupofsolana​ @klang-y​ @carminology​ @made-by-nonsensical-creature​ @jawanalife​ @celestialmoonbae​ @wholeheartedlycat​ @qtmiming​

#hala naenjoy ko mami #credits sa google para sa random set of questions #late ako as alweyz #sipag ko sinagutan ko both hehezzz

[starmakerdotcom]

°.•☆ solar’s ORION, the BASICS

stage name ;; orion | 오리온

birth name ;; song ji-hoon | 송지훈

english name ;; noah song

birthdate ;; november 30, 2003

place of birth ;; sydney, australia

ethnicity ;; korean

fluent languages ;; korean

sexual orientation ;; heterosexual

°.•☆ solar’s ORION, the APPEARANCE

face claim ;; song hyeongjun (cravity/former x1)

height ;; 169 cm (5’6.5)

weight ;; 58 kg (128 lbs)

blood type ;; o

tattoos ;; none

piercings ;; none

°.•☆ solar’s ORION, the CAREER

occupation ;; idol

agency ;; starmaker entertainment

group ;; solar

position ;; lead vocal, lead dancer, maknae

°.•☆ solar’s ORION, the PERSONA

positive traits ;; friendly , brave , clever , competitive

negative traits ;; naive , childish , reckless , timid

°.•☆ solar’s ORION, the TRIVIA

his representative planet: neptune

he moved to korea in 2017 and passed an audition.

he was a trainee for 2 years.

in the solar dorm, orion, milo, and mj share a room.

he doesn’t have an english name from leda, because he already has one.

the other members say he looks like a penguin.

he was a very popular smke trainee because he was one of the youngest (and cutest).

he enjoys watching kdramas, and keeps a list of the ones he’s watched and planning to watch, and shares it with fans.

he likes photography, and uploads a lot of it on solar’s social media.

he said on a vlive that his favourite food is rice.

when he was younger, he would often go out exploring in the woods with his friends. his parents always joked that he was meant to be an urban explorer.

he has a minor allergy to some kinds of grass.

he is left handed.

he thinks his charm features are his hands and his cute smile.

#group.solar #solar.profiles #orion.dev #koc #idol group #kpop oc #idol oc #oc kpop group #fake kpop group #kpop imagines #smk entertainment #smke #made up kpop agency #starmaker entertainment #shinobikocnet

[luvdsc]

yeah, its just scary right now :( and i can only imagine that it's fun to meet all of these anmials!! ohh, that's such a nice memory,, isnt it weird to think about that youre eating fruit that you planted yourself when you were young? oh, i didnt even think about that you dont get a grad ceremony :( thats sucks so much!! im so sorry, but i hope you somehow can arrange smth else maybe? and hong kong is truly beautiful!! and thats sounds so cool!! i hope you get to go to all those places (1/3)

in vietnam! i definitely want to explore vietnam one day too!! and, its true!! the easiest way is to learn by watching shows 🤧 grammar is all nice and whatnot, but it does get tiring and watching smth really helps with learning! you definitely should watch john mulaney's specials!! he is really great and funny and really loves his wife 🤧 ahh, you love the try guys too?? i LOVE them so much!! they really brighten my day and are all so open minded and not toxic at all? its so refreshing! (2/3)

do you have a fav try guy? or video series? and i feel like being more invested in side stories than the main one is common in kdrama? like, yeah, a love triangle is funny at first, but gets annoying after a while,, and was fight for my way good? thanks!! i hope you have fun painting too!! and sorry again for the late reply, but ive been kind of stressed and i can only ever reply when im on my laptop so it always take a while :( i hope you had a great week tho and got to relax a little 💕💘(3/3)

✿ ✿ ✿

it definitely is lots of fun meeting and petting all these different animals! they’re adorable and quite friendly :’) and now that you mention it, it is kinda weird to think about! :o huh... thank you to my past self for the free fruit!! yeah, it’s definitely sucks /: i think they’re talking about having a ceremony in the fall or something if the virus dies down, but a lot of people are already gonna be working by then, so it’ll be difficult to get everyone together ): aaaah i wanna go to hong kong now!! i can’t wait to travel again :’)

omg it’d be so nice if i could just live in vietnam for a year and backpack around, y’know? and then, i can brush up on my language skills too lmao ahhh maybe i should start watching some spanish shows then!! oooo ok, i’ll check out john mulaney’s specials then!! and YES, i really enjoy watching the try guys!! they’re funny, and their videos are kinda relaxing, like they don’t take a lot of brain power to watch LOL

hmm i like all of them! i really like the try wives’ videos actually though and their cooking without a recipe competitions!!! and yes, definitely, the love triangle kinda gets boring and repetitive after a while.. i really liked fight for my way a lot!!! maybe because it’s friends to lovers LOL but also, it really showcases the hardships you have to go through to make it in your dream career. i’m a little //: at the side couple, but i really love the main girl in this drama! i really relate to her a lot :’) 

and omg no worries, please don’t feel obligated to respond! and you don’t have to do all the tag games i tag you in either! it’s just there for fun :’) i hope everything’s going well for you and you’ll be able to destress soon 💕💗 my week is going well! i’ve been studying for my tax accounting midterm, which is a little nerve wracking.. but!!! i bought a switch and it just came in today, so i’m really excited for when my animal crossing game comes in on tuesday!!! :D

#asks #latetaektalk

[pickalilywrites]

Hiiii! When you get the time can you pls write a levi/petra one-shot in which they end up having a second date (their first one was a failure) ❤️ thank you!

I was watching a kdrama where two celebrities pretend to get married and pursue a relationship for a variety show and i was like “cute” 

Let’s Fall in Love!

Rivetra. Dating Show AU. 

4547 words. 

Buy me a ko-fi!

It is every girl’s dream to date Levi Ackerman, lead singer of the hit rock band No Name. In fact, Petra herself had fantasized him being her boyfriend when she was just a teenager, but she’s completely changed her mind after their initial meeting when he had clasped his hand in hers for a handshake and remarked that her hand was unusually cold.

“Kind of a like a dead person’s,” he said aloud.

At first, she was sure that she had just misheard, but the rest of their interactions only confirmed his rudeness. Petra knows that you should never meet your heroes, but this is ridiculous.

“I liked the part when he was complimenting her,” Eld says with a grin. He reaches out twirl a lock of Petra’s hair around his finger and watches it unwind as it falls away. He mimics the constipated expression of the famous rock singer and says in a low voice, “’Your hair…is very orange.’”

“Oh, what about the time he visibly cringed when he saw her putting cream in her coffee?” Gutner says.

“Or when he said he’d never heard of her music before?” Auruo snickers.

She’d yell at them to get out of her dressing room, but she’s trying to keep her temper in check especially when she eventually has to meet up with Levi again. She’d rather never see him again after the disastrous date from last week, but they’ve already signed the contract and she can’t back out of it now. Goddamn variety shows.

“Are you guys done?” she asks through gritted teeth. She stands up from her dresser and brushes herself off. She looks at herself once more in the mirror and frowns at her reflection thinking that Levi will definitely hate her no matter what she looks like. Not that she cares. She’d wear her ugliest clothes, but she’d get a lot of criticism online if she didn’t look perfect. Sighing, she runs her hands through her hair and looks warily at her bandmates. “Besides, it’s our music that he hasn’t heard of. Aren’t you guys the least bit offended? We’ve idolized No Name our entire lives and he’s not even interested in us even after the success of our last album. He could at least pretend to be a little impressed, don’t you think?”

Gunter shrugs. “Everyone knows he’s pretty reclusive. If it were his bandmate Hanji or their drummer Mike, I’d be miffed, but it’s Levi we’re talking about. He doesn’t seem to be interested in anything.” He pats her on the shoulder when her frown deepens and gives her a smile. “It’s just a silly show for fun. I doubt you’re the worst celebrity couple they’ve put on this show.”

“Not according to some people on Twitter,” Eld says as he scrolls through his phone. He chuckles as he reads a few out loud for them. “’Levi and Petra have absolutely NO CHEMISTRY at all.’ ‘Watching Levi and Petra together makes me want to tear my eyes out. They’re so terrible!’ ‘Petra doesn’t deserve to date Levi.’ Oh.” Eld frowns when he comes across a particular tweet. “This person wants to kill you for dating him. That won’t do. Don’t worry, Pet, I got you.”

“If they want to date Levi so badly, they can,” Petra groans as Eld furiously taps away on his phone. She’s stopped reading any tweets involving her lately. While she does get a bunch of tweets about how lucky she is to be dating the No Name front man or compliments about how nice she looks on the show, she’s been bombarded with more insults than she normally is and she’s thinking about staying off all her social media until this is all over and done with. “Don’t they know this isn’t real anyway? It’s just a TV show.”

“Does it matter? It might as well be real. You know about half the celebrities that get paired up on this show end up dating each other in real life?” Auruo says as he leans against her counter. He inspects his nails and grins at her slyly, watching her from the corner of his eye. “I know high school you would be ecstatic at an opportunity to date Levi Ackerman even if it’s just for a variety show. You were over the moon about him, saying that he was the greatest male vocalist in our time and you’d die if you ever met him in real life. I think you even said you’d marry him at one point.”

Petra side-eyes her friend, thinking that it’s unfortunate that one of her bandmates has to be her childhood friend. He knows far too much about her. She’d get rid of him, but he’s terribly good bass guitar player and it’d be a bitch to replace him. “Are you sure you don’t want to marry him instead?” Petra asks him as he splutters and turns beet red. “You certainly seem to have a lot of good things to say about him even now and isn’t your hair cut in the same style as his?”

“Alright, alright,” Gunter says, holding his hands up to signal them to settle down. “It’s not so bad, right? Our sales are going up at any rate, so just try to do your best with him, Petra. It’ll all be over in a few weeks anyway.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Petra mutters. “You don’t have to date him.”

Just then there’s a knock on the door and someone on the outside, probably a studio hand, calling Petra out. She’d rather just stay in her dressing room than go out there and see Levi again, but she is getting paid for this so she might as well just go.  

“I’m coming,” she calls, pasting a fake smile on her face as she heads towards the door.

“Good luck, Petra!” Eld calls as she pushes the door open, the rest of the band also sending her off with their own well wishes.

“Looks like your band is optimistic,” smiles the studio hand. It’s Eren Jaeger, the studio intern who had comforted her after she had filmed the first episode. It turns out that while he’s a big fan of No Name (like most people are), he’s also been a fan of Wings of Freedom ever since its conception and talked to her excitedly about how much he looks forward to her band’s new music after she’s done filming for this show.

“Yeah, well,” Petra says, dropping her mask and giving him a weary smile. It’s nice to have an ally in the studio, she thinks. “It can’t really get much worse than last week, right?”

“Oh, it wasn’t that bad,” Eren says with a shrug. He fiddles with the paper on his clipboard with all the tasks on his schedule, folding and unfolding the bottom corner. “I’ve seen interviews he’s done with people he really hates, and he’s nothing like that with you. Besides, you guys might not get along swimmingly, but you definitely have one of the more interesting dynamics this season. I really think the viewers will be rooting for the two of you in a few episodes.”

“Rooting for us to break up and leave the show early,” Petra snorts. She actually contemplated the possibility after the first shooting, but it’d take a chunk out of her earnings. “How much did you guys offer him? It makes sense for me to sign up for something like this. Wings of Freedom might be big now, but it’s still somewhat of a fledgling of a band. I’m sure No Name is well off even without being featured in shows like this.”

Eren scratches the back of his neck and shifts his gaze away from her. “Er, I’m not supposed to know things like that,” he mumbles. “But he must be interested in you somehow if it’s not the money, right? Why else would he sign up for something like this?”

“Because the headshot you used when you were convincing him to pick me was really good?” Petra suggests. When Eren frowns, she ruffles his hair and grins at him. “Don’t worry, it’s not that big of a deal. I’m glad you’re enjoying us though. It’s always good to have a supporter.”

He grins widely back at her and asks her how Wings of Freedom’s second album is coming along as he leads her to the nearby café near the studio that they’re filming at for today’s “date.” It’s the same one that they had gone to in the first episode and unlike a lot of the other celebrity couples that had visited this place, Petra doesn’t have any happy memories here.

“Hey, nice timing!” someone says. When Petra turns, she sees Hanji, the lead guitarist of No Name. They have what looks like a friendly smile on their face, but Petra has no idea why they’d smile at her in that way if they’d seen the last episode. They hold out a hand for Petra to shake and Petra takes it tentatively in hers. “I’m Hanji, but I think you already know that. I’m flattered you find our band such an inspiration! The way that Wings of Freedom is rising up the charts, you’re a real competition to us, you know? It’s good to finally meet you, Petra. Hopefully, I’ll be able to meet all the other members as well!”

“Nice to meet you too?” Petra says. She’d be ecstatic about meeting another member of No Name, but her experience with Levi so far has made her cautious. “What are you doing here?”

“I just want to see how much of a dumpster fire this date’s going to be,” Hanji says casually. When they see Petra reel back in surprise, they laugh and throw an arm around her shoulders. “Hey, don’t worry about it. If it’s terrible, it’s going to be Levi’s fault. That guy’s just difficult to get along with. I should know since I’ve worked with him for years! You couldn’t do anything wrong even if you tried, Petra. You’re adorable. If you want, I could take his place and date you instead.”

Before Petra can say anything, Levi appears from behind Hanji. He reaches up to pinch his band mate’s ear and scowls, “Shut up, Hanji.” To Petra, he says, “Come on. Let’s get this over with.”

At least she knows he feels the same way about this.

“Welcome once again to Let’s Fall in Love!, the show where you get to see your favorite celebrities fall in love with each other!” the announcer says, gesturing toward where Levi and Petra sit at the café table. She’s a rather nice woman named Ilse, although Petra’s sure she’d like her better if they hadn’t gotten acquainted on this show. “While it wasn’t love at first sight for them, maybe they’ll find love today at this very same café!”

“It’s good seeing you again,” Petra murmurs. She tries to give him her most genuine smile, but it’s so forced that she’s afraid that he can see right through it.

“Hm,” Levi says in reply, not even bothering to give her a proper response. He looks at her briefly but looks away immediately afterward. It’s probably because he can’t stand the sight of her. If she weren’t on camera, she’d scowl at him.

“Let’s see how well these two know each other now after that first date! They’ll be ordering for each other today by writing it on these napkins, which we’ll give to the barista,” the hostess says with a plastered-on smile. They wave one of the napkins around before placing it in front of Petra. “And we’ll join them while we wait for their drinks to arrive to see the progress they’ve made.”

It’s not a lot of progress, Petra thinks with a grimace. Outwardly, she smiles pleasantly at the hostess and speaks about how great it will be to let others catch up on her relationship with Levi, how much she’s learned about him so far, and how she was looking forward to exploring this relationship with him further. Levi, meanwhile, sits at his end of the table with that perpetual scowl on his face. Looking at it now, it’s difficult for her to understand how she could have ever thought his frown sexy back when she hadn’t known him.

“So, have you and Levi gotten together off-camera after the events of last week?” Ilse asks Petra. Petra’s sure that the woman had intentionally spoken with her first instead of Levi knowing that Petra was far easier to manage than him.

“Unfortunately, no,” Petra says sheepishly. She hopes that she doesn’t look too happy about it. “Both our bands are busy, I’m sure. Wings of Freedom is currently working on our second album, so my bandmates and I are spending as many days in the studio when I’m not busy filming over here.” Even if she did have free time to spend with Levi, she wouldn’t. Not that she’d say that out loud though. It definitely wouldn’t go over well with viewers and Levi already hates her as it is.

“What have you been busy with, Levi?” Ilse asks.

Even though the hostess gives him a polite smile, he only stares back at her with a frosty glare. “Rehearsing for the No Name’s upcoming tour,” he replies, not even bothering to give her his answer in a complete sentence.  

“Wow, you two have some much in common. It’s a shame that you don’t spend more time together. I’m sure you’d hit it off even more if you did,” Ilse says, but even Petra can tell that she’s finding Levi difficult to handle from her strained smile. The hostess pulls out a small deck of index cards from her pocket, tapping them against the table as she turns once again to Petra. “Well, we all knew this would happen with two superstars, so let’s play a little game! I’ll ask you a few questions about your partner and you’ll answer. Even if you get it wrong, you’ll still be getting to know each other!”

Petra laughs weakly. It seems that Levi has similar feelings because he’s looking like he’d rather die than stay here and play a get-to-know-you game.

“Sounds fun,” Petra says, sitting up and folding her hands in front of her. She gives Ilse a cheerful smile. “I don’t mind starting.”

“Great!” Ilse says. It might just be Petra’s imagination, but Ilse looks a little relieved. Their hostess clears her throat and glances at the first card before saying, “We all know that you and your band are huge fans of No Name and consider them to be a big inspiration for you, so I expect some of these questions to be a breeze for you, Petra. First question: When is Levi’s birthday?”

“December 25th,” Petra says without hesitation. She notices that both Ilse and Levi are staring at her, probably surprised because she answered so quickly. Is it really that surprising though? She is a fan…or at least she was one. Refusing to be embarrassed, Petra reaches up to pat her hair down for any stray hairs and laughs nervously. “It’s an easy birthday to remember after all.”

“I guess that is true! It’s the same day as Christmas after all,” Ilse laughs. She turns to Levi now, glancing down at the card. “You have a slightly harder question, Levi. Your question is: What year was Petra born?”

His frown deepens, and he looks at Petra and back at Ilse as if one of them will tell him the answer, but none of them budge. He finally takes another long, hard look at Petra before opening his mouth and saying very slowly, “1998?”

It’s more surprising than when Petra answered the question. This is because while Petra took less than a heartbeat to answer and was right, Levi took his time and still was off by half a decade.

“Do you think I’m twenty?” Petra asks. She had been able to resist herself before, but she can’t hold herself back now. She really wants to know if he really thinks she looks twenty or if he’s just really bad at math. She looks at Ilse incredulously. “Do I look like a fetus?”

Even Ilse starts to laugh at her reaction, but Levi looks less amused. He crosses his arms and turns away from her. “You look abnormally young for your age,” he mutters under her breath, but she’s not sure if this is supposed to be a compliment or not.

“I’m very well above the drinking age,” she informs him with a smirk.

He raises an eyebrow and props his elbow on the table, leaning towards her as he asks, “Is that so? How often do you get carded despite that?”

Nearly every goddamn time she has to get drinks, she thinks sorely. When she doesn’t answer, he smiles smugly. She’d feel even more insulted if she weren’t so surprised. She doesn’t think she’s seen him smile at all in front of her until now.

“Alright, alright,” Ilse says, clearing her throat. She nods at the both of them and flips to the next card. “Petra is actually born in 1993, Levi, so at least you got the decade right. Are the two of you ready to move on to the next couple of questions we have for you?”

Petra looks up and meets Levi’s eyes from across the table, but he looks away quickly from her.

“Yeah, whatever,” Levi mumbles. He taps his fingers impatiently on the table. His ears are still red with embarrassment from answering the last question wrong.

For the first time since being on set, Petra thinks that this might just be fun after all.

The rest of the game goes similarly. Whatever question Ilse throws at Petra about Levi, Petra answers flawlessly without much thought. She has impeccable knowledge about all of No Name, Levi included, and she’s aware that she might come off as an obsessed fangirl after this episode comes out, but she doesn’t care at the moment. She’s far too amused by Levi’s inability to answer any of their questions about her at all.

It doesn’t matter what they ask him about her. He gets it wrong every time. With each incorrect answer, he gets more flustered and tongue-tied. He snaps out his answer grumpily whenever Ilse turns to him and scowls whenever she informs him that he’s wrong. He can’t name a single song Petra’s written, where she grew up, or the other bands she listens to aside from No Name. He’s so frazzled that Petra’s sure that if Ilse asked him what her hair color was he’d get it wrong even though she’s sitting right across from him.

“Petra, what’s the first song that Levi wrote for No Name?” Ilse asks her.

“’The Reluctant Heroes,’” Petra says easily. She glances over at Levi who scowls at her once more. She only shrugs and smiles in reply.

“Correct once again! You really weren’t kidding when you said you loved No Name. I’m sure Levi is flattered to be with such a talented artist and dedicated fan,” Ilse says, not at all noticing the glower on Levi’s face. To Levi, she asks, “Final question is for you Levi. What is the name of the song Petra and her band Wings of Freedom covered that helped propel them into mainstream success?”

Petra sits up, smirking at Levi because she’s sure that he’s going to get this answer wrong as well, but he has the oddest look on his face. The hardened gaze of his is gone and his expression has softened. Gone is his frustration and impatience, and he looks at her quietly before answering in a quiet voice, “’Call Your Name.’”

“That’s right! After covering No Name’s best-selling single ‘Call Your Name,’ Wings of Freedom began to catch other people’s attention and helped lead them on the road to success,” Ilse says happily. “While you might not know a lot about Petra now, you’ve certainly learned a lot about her today, Levi, and it’s good to see that you at least know something about her.”

Levi doesn’t reply and instead continues to look at Petra, who finds herself blushing. She’s not sure if it’s because he’s looking at her with such a soft expression or because she’s finally being acknowledged by her childhood idol or some other third reason she doesn’t even want to think about at this moment, but his gaze makes her turn away.

“It was a really…it was a good cover,” she hears Levi says. “Beautiful.”

She can feel her face burst into flames. “Thanks,” she mumbles.”

A waitress finally comes by to hand them their drinks. What good timing. They’ve taken far longer than they should, and Petra suspects that they delayed the orders to allow more time for the game. These stupid shows and their stupid games, she thinks with a sigh.

The black coffee Petra had ordered for Levi sits in front of him and Petra finds her own drink set in front of her. It’s a mocha topped with a generous amount of whipped cream and sprinkled with cinnamon and chocolate swirls. Just looking at it makes her feel like she has a cavity and she looks over at Levi confusedly.

“Well,” Ilse says, clapping her hands together and looking from Petra to Levi again. Petra wonders if the hostess is ever tired of acting so excited for these things. “You have your drinks in front of you. Tell us how you like them! Levi, did Petra make the right choice for you? I wouldn’t be surprised if she did!”

Levi takes an awkward sip in front of the camera, pausing before he answers to taste the coffee. Somehow, he’s shocked, and he gives Petra a suspicious glare as if she shouldn’t know his coffee preferences despite her showing how knowledgeable she is about him and going on a coffee date with her last week where he ordered the exact same thing. “It’s good,” Levi finally says.

“And you, Petra?” Ilse asks eagerly. She gestures at the cup in front of Petra, motioning at her to take a sip.

“Ah,” Petra says with a nervous laugh. It’s not that she doesn’t like sweet things, but she doesn’t like overly sweet coffee. If she wanted something sweet and chocolatey, she would have just ordered a hot chocolate. Still, she doesn’t want to seem rude and hesitantly picks up the cup and holds it to her lips. It’s even sweeter that she had thought it would be, and she begins to choke from the taste of it. “Oh, it’s…it’s very sweet,” Petra coughs.

She’s not sure why, but Levi looks hurt. How strange.

“I don’t usually drink such sweet things,” Petra says apologetically, but she’s not sure if she should say this to Ilse or Levi so she just awkwardly speaks to the space between them. “It’s not bad though…it’s…nice.”

Ilse laughs at her response. “Well, I’m glad you can still enjoy it even though it’s not quite to your liking. Thanks for joining Levi and Petra once again on their romantic journey. Let’s hope that Levi can get to know Petra even more in the upcoming weeks!”

Once the cameras are finished rolling, Ilse sighs and rips off her mic. Smiling at Petra, she says, “Thanks for playing along so well, Petra. And thanks for your participation today too, Levi – ah.”

Levi has already torn off his microphone and stalked out of the café without so much as a goodbye. Petra does notice that he did take his coffee with him though.

She should really stay behind and talk with Ilse for a while, thank her for being such a wonderful host, but she really wants to chase after Levi and ask him something, so she smiles apologetically at Ilse and excuses herself, saying that she’ll catch up with her sometime during the week.

When she catches up with Levi, she sees him being held back by Hanji. Or Hanji’s trying to hold him back. Levi’s managing to walk quite well despite having to drag along another person behind him.

“Why’d you run away? Go back!” Hanji tells him. “Don’t you want to talk to Petra some more?”

“No, I don’t want to talk to her,” Levi says, trying to shake Hanji off.

“Should I go back then?” Petra says amusedly. While Hanji looks at her with an expression of pleasant surprise, Levi looks incredibly horrified. “Sorry. I just wanted to talk to you for a little bit, but I can just see you next week if you’d rather not see me.”

“I can talk to you, Petra!” Hanji says, letting go of Levi. They wrap an arm around her and grin down at her. “Levi’s always a grouch, so don’t mind him. I’m much better company than he is!”

Levi sighs and stomps over to where they are, pulling Hanji off Petra and glaring. “It’s fine. I’ll talk to her. Just…go back to the hotel and talk to Mike or something,” he grumbles at Hanji. When he looks at Petra, she sees that his face is flushed the same way it was when they were at the café together. He’s starting to look a little less mean-looking, Petra thinks. To Petra, he asks, “What did you want to talk about?”

“The cover my band did,” she says. “Did you really listen to it?”

“Yeah. Hanji made me listen to it during rehearsal last week.” He shoves his hands in his pockets and turns away from her. “It was good. It was really good. I was going to sit and listen to your album, but I haven’t got the chance to do that yet.”

“Oh, I’m glad you liked it. I didn’t think you’d be interested in listening to my band,” Petra laughs. She’s starting to think that although he’s difficult to get along with at first, he’s not a bad person. Maybe this won’t be so unbearable after all.

“Why not?” Levi asks, looking at her with a furrowed brow. “Your voice is beautiful.”

“Huh?” she says stupidly. It’s difficult to believe he’s complimented when she had firmly believed he hated her only an hour ago. She’s blushing more than she usually would if any other person had said the same words to her and she covers her cheeks with her hands in an unsubtle attempt to hide her blush. “Ah, that’s…I’m so happy…”

“Hm” is all Levi says. He continues to look at her, his expression curious now, and she remembers why she had swooned over him back in her high school days.

“Er, I have to go now,” Petra says, desperate for an excuse to escape. She doesn’t reconvene with her band until tomorrow, but it’s not like Levi knows that. She doesn’t even know he says goodbye to her because she’s already run away.

She doesn’t think she hates him anymore though. No, she’s pretty sure she doesn’t. She’s not sure how she feels exactly, but she does know that there’s a part of her that looks forward to seeing him next weekend even though this relationship isn’t really real.

#rivetra #petra ral #levi ackerman #dating show au #snk #requests #asks #answered #anon #anonymous #hanji zoe #auruo bossard #eld jinn #Gunter Schultz

[ennangg-blog]

Autobiography

i. Introduction

Hi, I’m Enna Arguilles Roselo, I’m 16 years old from Panghulo Obando, Bulacan. I was born on January 12, 2002. My fathers name is Eduardo Roselo while my mother is Wilma Roselo. I have 3 siblings and we are all girls. My two sister is now currently working while my younger sister is Grade 4. Now , I’m studying at STI Caloocan taking the strand ABM.

ii. Hobies

My hobbies are dancing and singing, watching KDrama and Korean Music Video/ KPOP but actually dancing is my talent. I started to discover my talent when I was 12 years old when I entered the KPOP world which introduced by my sister because they’re also a KPOP fan. KPOP world change my life it turned from boring life into a colorful one. KPOP artist become one of my inspiration to strive hard for my dreams. I have a dream that when I have my work I will go to South Korea because I’m biggest fan of it. and also I will bring my family there to show how beautiful it is but it doesn’t mean that I’m turning my back to our country I just a mind thinking that loving other country is not bad as long as you know your limitation. My personality is somehow introvert , I’m really a shytype person and also I’m not friendly I will only talk to a person if she/he is the one who will approach me. I was born in this way but now I’m trying to overcome with it because I know I will lose something if I let my shyness comes first. Also, Im a pet lover I have 2 dogs and 1 cat they are the one who relieve my stress and making happy. Someday I will buy different breed of dog because I believe that dog’s is a human bestfriend and they have the rights to treat rightly.

iii. Achievement

My achievement in my life for me is when I always have the academic award. I was really happy whenever I’m receiving this kind of award because my hard work finally pay off and make may family proud. Also when I was grade 10 when we had the competition in school which by section in HIPHOP I was entitled to be the Best Female Dancer and I was really shock , I didn’t expect it because there’s a lot of people who dance great and also our group is the one who won and get all the possible award. I’m lookong forward now for more achievements.

iv. Purpose in life

I think my purpose in life is to help other people when they are down. I always say to them to trust God because everything will be fine. God will not give us a problem ih he didn’t trust us that we can do it. It’s one of the way to make people more stronger and better than before. We just need to be happy because nothing will happen if we let our problem eat us. We just need to think a way how can we resolve it, every problem has it own way to be done, just think of a good way to overcome.

II. How does Media and Information Literacy affect my life as a student?

Media and Information Literacy affect my life as a student because whenever I’m searching about my homework I’m looking for more than one sources to see if it’s really true. And I’m not believing what I see until it has a proof because nowadays there’s a lot of fake news spreading in the Social Media. And also before I always that kind of person that keep on updating my accounts wherever I go or what happened on me but now I deleted it all because it may harm me. Being Media Information literate help me to be a better person.