#i know it's not even remotely the worst thing to ever happen in the world | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

killedpink · 1 year

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방찬 | the space between us.

🎧 masterlist !?

🏹 synopsis: after a particularly difficult breakup, your reliable, trustworthy best friend chan shows up to comfort you. in some ways more than others.

☕️ word count: 3.7k

🏷 contains: breakup, friends to lovers, mutual pining, comfort sex, soft dom chan, pet names, unprotected sex, creampie, teeny bit of nipple play, possessive chan, thigh riding, so much praise, multiple orgasms.

a knock at your door pulled you from your bedsheets, throwing the covers off of your entire body and swinging off the edge of the comfortingly warm bed. your apartment was unnaturally quiet, unnaturally bare and unnaturally unfamiliar. was it even yours to begin with? it didn't take long to get to the dead-bolted front door, unlocking the tedious locks and swinging it open, the cold air slamming into your face.

seeing chan felt like a weight was lifted off of your shoulders, slamming your tear-streaked face into his middle and wrapping your arms around his toned back was your new favourite thing to do. he smelled warm, homey and gently masculine, like cedar wood and citrus. he was calming all over, he was comforting all over, he was kind all over. chan was your only sense of familiarity now, the better half of the past year being wasted on a dirtbag of the highest order. "what happened, beautiful?" he whispered into your hood, (his) the black champion hoodie obscuring the top and back of your head, using it to shield you from the cruel, unjust outside world. just hearing chan's voice made everything feel better; his presence giving you another reason to carry on tomorrow. you could hear the soft thumps of his heartbeat, you could feel the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, and most importantly you could feel his large hand slowly stroke your back, moving up and down, following the path of your spine.

you felt yourself hiccuping tears into his chest, his arm slowly rocking you back and forth like a tiny, exhausted baby. you pulled away from him, eyes immediately focusing on the dark patches on chan's hoodie from where you had cried into him. "come in, chan." you stood aside, letting him enter your apartment and set down the hot drinks he brought with him for the both of you to share on your coffee table. who bought that? you couldn't even remember, feeling like an intruder in your own home, despite owning it before ever knowing the world's worst boyfriend. chan settled on your couch, his trusting eyes watching you follow his lead, leaning your head on his broad shoulder. "i hate him.." you spoke, to no-one in particular, your eyes closing to let your tears pass. "oh, baby," chan was sympathetic, of course, rubbing your sides and wiping the tears from your eyes. you let chan take care of you — you let yourself relax into his touch, into his warmth, into his chest.

"what do you say we forget all about that idiot guy, yeah? you wanna watch a movie?" chan proposed, his australian accent making you giggle. "of course. you pick." you smiled into him, moving off of him so he could grab the tv remote. is that where you last left it? you watched chan, noted how his brows creased in concentration, how his full lips pouted as he debated every movie your netflix had to offer. everything about him just felt right: he never made you sad, he never made you uncomfortable nor unwelcome. you hated how you didn't hate anything about chan, instead completely enamoured with every little detail of him. his wavy hair, for one — you loved the way it tickled your skin, or how it framed his face, how it bounced when he moved too suddenly. his dimples, especially, you felt your heart flutter when they peeked through his skin when he stretched his cheeks or spoke certain words.

you hadn't had a drink all day, your body dehydrated from crying. the warm, aromatic coffee tasting so delectable you struggled to put it down, letting the heat seep into your hands through the sleeve on the cup. when your eyes caught chan's gaze, he looked away, seemingly upset even if you could only see one side of his face. he shook his head, barely, and turned to you, with a soft, small and gentle smile on his rosy, plump lips. "no one's gonna hurt you again, i swear." the palm of his hand gingerly holding the outside of yours, your hand now feeling warmth from both sides, giving you goosebumps. or was it chan's touch? his hand moved from yours to your cheek, softly cradling your face in his wide, strong hand. his brown, trusting eyes searching yours as if the harder he looked into them the more of your mind he would be able to read, "i won't let them." he whispered, your bodies close enough that you heard the emotion in his voice as clear as day. your hand wrapped around his muscular arm, fingers curling around his forearm, "i trust you, channie." you muttered, your mouth speaking the words before your brain even realised you were speaking.

there was nothing else the two of you needed to say in that moment, opting for a comfortable silence in which you simply rested your head on chan's chest, letting him absentmindedly play with your hair or fiddle with your hoodie strings. it was oddly relaxing; just lounging on chan was all you needed to feel miles better, his company alone proving to be more efficient than spending your days sobbing into your pillow. those days of pure heartbreak feeling like a lifetime ago already in chan's arms. he fixed everything, even if he was doing nothing but watching a movie and letting you use him as a pillow.

if you were asked what the movie chan picked was called, you'd be speechless, completely concentrating on chan, your aching, yet mending heart and the sting of your under-eyes. you supposed it was funny, considering you often felt the rumble of his chest from laughter, his mellow voice soothing you entirely. it was late when chan arrived, the sun slowly exiting the sky and the roads chock-full of people rushing back home. about twenty minutes into the movie you were certain neither of you were watching, the sky faded into a dark blue, the edge of the earth still brimming with light. you shifted positions, your legs resting on chan's lap, your head still tucked safely into the crook of his neck, his heartbeat coaxing your exhausted body to sleep.

when you woke, it was entirely because chan had moved you from his arms onto your bed. your body woke before your mind, your eyes not registering the time on your clock for a few moments before your brain had the opportunity to catch up. 01:22. are you serious? "chan? how long was i asleep for?" your eyesight was bleary, yet you could still make out his tender smile, his eyes crinkling. "don't worry about it. you needed the rest. go back to sleep if you want." he stroked the hair out of your face, kissing your forehead. what? "chan.." you started, voice betraying you as it whispered, voice slightly hoarse and feathery from sleep. "i know, i'm sorry, i didn't realise i.." chan was trying to get the words out of his mouth faster than he could say them, unable to explain what had happened.

"no.. it was okay, actually. i.. i liked it. a lot." you smiled, slowly sitting up on your bed. chan still seemed a bit uneasy, his mind likely racing like you knew he had a habit of doing. you sighed, "look. it's late, it's dark and it's cold. just.. stay the night for me? please? we don't even have to talk about it. i just.. i don't wanna say goodbye yet." you stammered, feeling your heart beating frantic in your chest, blood rising to your cheeks, throat dry and hands trembling. you smiled at him, your heart fluttering when you saw he couldn't resist his own smile, his dimples showing and his eyes turning into crescent moons. he was so pretty — who in their right mind wouldn't want him to stay the night?

please say yes. please say yes. please say yes.

"you're right, it's late and it would be really dumb to try driving anywhere right now. i'll just sleep on the couch, i'm sure you want your space," he decided, shrugging sheepishly. you were instantly dejected by his answer, his dark, copper eyes briefly holding eye contact with yours. you knew you were teetering on friendship and relationship, you knew asking could ruin so much — but you also knew you couldn't sleep without chan. fuck it. "please don't go. chan, stay with me. please." asking felt like a shot in the dark, it was terrifying and exhilarating. his gaze softened, his brows relaxed, his soft lips curved into a tiny, delighted smile. "okay. i'll stay here." chan sat down next to you, easily welcoming you into his arms once more. "so.. about that kiss?" you inquired, eyeing him carefully. his body usually reacted before his mind, always caught up in his thoughts. he shifted momentarily, "i just.. i don't even know, i saw you there, all sleepy and calm and i just wanted you to feel better." you shook your head, "i always feel better with you, chan." he was taken aback, clearly unaware of his effect on you, or on others. you sat up, facing him, inches away, interested in what his next words will be.

you were not expecting a kiss. a full bodied, chan's soft, plump lips on yours, his hands holding your cheeks tenderly, type of kiss. and while you sat there, blinking, dazzled it was over before you knew what had happened, before you had the opportunity to savour it. your eyes were wide, resembling a deer caught in headlights, a strong opposite compared to chan's relaxed, calm eyes. you leaned your body into his, allowing your lips to collide with his once more. you felt him smile into the kiss, you felt the tip of his wide nose brush against yours, you felt his hands twirl the hair from the nape of your neck in his fingers. you felt tingly all over, goosebumps rupturing all over your skin, feeling yourself nuzzle into him. "this isn't a heat of the moment thing, is it..?" chan whispered against your lips, pecking them quickly, hungrily and eagerly. you shook your head, "no.. definitely not." you answered, pressing your puckered lips against his, your teeth grazing his bottom lip.

distance grew in-between the both of you. "do you wanna..?" chan trailed off, too embarrassed to formally ask. "i thought you'd never ask." you leaned into him once more, pressing needy kisses to his jawline, "i need you, channie." you murmured into his bronzed, tan skin. with less than five words, you had set something ablaze in chan that you had never seen before. he tore his hoodie off of his body, letting you — not so subtly — check him out. he was like an adonis, every inch of his torso perfectly carved like he was a living, breathing marble sculpture. following his lead, you yanked the hoodie off of your body, turning it inside-out in the process, throwing it wherever your mind decided in such a short amount of time. your legs fell on both sides of chan, his hands holding your bare breasts in his hands; they felt heavy all of a sudden, hyperaware of his hands experimentally groping them, fondling the soft flesh in his skilled hands.

chan took your nipple in his mouth, flattening his tongue to brush the hardening bud in one swipe, his lips puckering around it as he let his teeth graze against the sensitive skin there. it gave you goosebumps — the feeling of his hot mouth on your erected nipple, heating up not only your breast but your face, feeling it flush against the skin of your neck. he replaced his mouth with his thumb, rubbing the nipple with the pad of his thumb, observing how you reacted to his touch intently. you squirmed in place, "chan, please.." you started; however unable to finish. he caught on quickly, yet he was simply too cruel to follow through, instead opting to lean back, putting his weight on his hands and arms as they held him up, "c'mere, then. i won't bite.. too hard, at least," he grinned, his white teeth poking out from his blushy, pink lips.

you approached him on your knees, "take these off," chan's finger hooked under the waistband of your pants, watching you expectantly. as shy as you were — you weren't embarrassed by chan, thanks to your many years of friendship, intimacy came surprisingly, yet welcomely, easy. you didn't have to think twice about it, quickly stripping them from your body, leaving you in your underwear alone. it couldn't be helped that your eyes wandered to his chest, watching as it rise and fell with his breath, watching as the shadows contoured his muscles, and how his abs fluttered with the air he inhaled and exhaled, the movement just a few milliseconds behind his chest's movements.

his hands wrapped around your waist, sitting just above the swell of your hips, and guided you onto his thigh. his smirk was crudely wide, not even hiding how much he was enjoying this. the denim of his jeans gave a different sensation than what you were used to, your arms wrapping around chan's bare, wide shoulders to anchor yourself, allowing him to grind you onto his thigh, your flesh under his fingers dipping from the pressure he was using to grab onto you, his veiny hands clinging onto your waist as if you'd slip through his fingers. chan brought you to paradise and back, pushing and pulling you by your waist on his thigh, clenching and unclenching the muscle underneath your cunt so expertly that you needn't do much but let him control you; positive you couldn't achieve an orgasm as brilliantly as chan gave it to you if you tried by yourself. your nails dug into the muscle of his shoulder, connecting his neck and shoulder blade as your clit caught on the waistband of his jeans — causing chan to chuckle and grind you onto his thigh even harsher than before.

it didn't take long for you to cum, leaving a dark wet spot on both his jeans and your underwear, sticky and clinging onto your sex as a consequence. "you see what you do to me, beautiful?" chan muttered, your eyes falling down to his crotch to see the painfully apparent bulge residing where his cock was. fuck, he was that big? the ashes of your orgasm are still glowing and simmering with a residual heat in your body, but it's the kiss that chan presses against your throat, and the way his hands trail down to the curve of your ass and brazenly gropes it — that's what fully reignites that volatile pit in your gut.

"chan.." you plea, your hand falling to cup the tent in his pants, palming it in your hand. you watched as his abs trembled, his chest stuttering as he shakily drew in a breath. he used the side of his hand to push you back, your body colliding with the mattress below that easily took your weight and cushioned your fall. chan loomed above you, your eyes unable to look away from his, despite the audible sounds of his belt unbuckling, the sound alone making your breath hitch and mouth water. he shrugged his jeans off surprisingly seamlessly, making it look easy — which you were sure it was not. you stopped him before he got to his boxers, "i wanna do it," you were sheepish about it, sure, but you were more eager than coy; you'd swallow any pride for him.

chan lets you undress him, of course, watching you endearingly as you pulled his boxers down, letting his cock spring free and hit his stomach. you almost want to roll your eyes when you see it, because on top of being caring, and talented, and funny, he's got a gorgeously thick cock that you know no man or toy could ever replace. your hands cradle his hard shaft, unable to fully hold it with one hand alone, your fingers a few millimetres away from touching your thumb. you drag your hands up and down the length of chan's cock, until his skin is glistening with his own arousal and every ounce of your body is screaming at you to let chan fuck you in desperation.

you felt his hand start at the curve of your calf, fingers dipping into the inside of your knee, travelling higher to the silky skin of the inside of your thigh, rounding out at the dip of your hips, before finally brushing against your naked, wet slit. you hum in approval, your hips bucking to follow his touch and grind yourself onto his hand. chan's index finger starts at your entrance, moving higher to illustrate small, electrifying circles around your clit, swollen and puffy and sensitive from his touch. chan stopped as soon as he started, removing his hand from your sex and using both hands to wrap around your thighs, spreading them far apart from each other and letting them rest on both of his sides, caging him in. you hiked them up onto his waist, both legs wrapped around and pulling him into you.

soft lips collided with yours, chan's mouth tasted lustrous and sweet, like ambrosia on your tongue. he parts the kiss before he slinks into you, "wanna see your pretty face when i finally get to fill you up," he hissed all too eagerly, his eyes attentively watching every flutter of your eyelids, every gasp that falls out of your lips, every little movement you could possibly make; chan ensured he'd witness it, determined to see it as it really was, not as he imagined it to be — but to really, truly see you under him. he fantasised about this for months, a vision of you not too far away in his mind whenever he had his cock in his hands. your breath hitches when you feel his hot, hard cockhead press against your hole, but you have to draw in a breath when you feel him slowly inch inside of you. there's no discomfort when he enters you, just a dizzying, breathless, fullness. it makes your eyelids flutter closed, completely lost in the feeling, suspended in the moment of pure, unfiltered delirium that seemed to intensify every time chan sunk deeper into you.

he watches as your cunt swallows him whole, eyes wide with glee and dark with a carnal hunger. he has to hold in a sensual, sex-drunken groan when he watches your puffy slit swell from his cock buried under your skin, and with each eager ache of your cunt clenching ravenously around his cock he in turn feeds you more and more of himself. you can feel his bulbous, sopping wet head throb from within you, letting out a starstruck gasp when chan finally fills you to the brim, his hilt rubbing against your sopping wet clit and you cry, keen and write under him, gasping for air. "so fuckin' beautiful like this, you're taking me so, so well," chan gushed, his heart-fluttering words of praise almost sounding innocent if his language wasn't filthy, and if he wasn't practically moaning the words out.

scratch that — nothing about any of this is innocent. not even a morsel. chan's hips kiss your inner thighs, fucking you in brutally powerful, needy and erratic thrusts, skin snapping against yours, his cock filling you to his hilt each time, his head nudging your cervix and pouring his leaking precum into your hole, confident you can take it all. and it's the only thing you can do, repaying his more-than-satisfactory efforts by taking everything he generously gave you. how is that anything but sinful? he's getting close, you can tell, his hand clinging onto your waist so hard it burned, setting your nerves ablaze. you shudder when you feel your shared slick leak out from your hole, chan's filling cock leaving no room inside of you, consequently pushing it out and letting it smear your thighs and trickle slowly down your slit. your body moved on its own when it clenched around him, your stomach twitching each time your cunt milked chan's cock.

you squeal, you cry, you gasp out his name like he will save you, your legs tighten around his waist to pull him physically impossibly closer to you, as if he could get any closer to you, both of your bodies sweaty and skin sticking together. your arms wrap around his neck, fingers hooking into his skin like he'd slip out from underneath you. your voice is hoarse, your legs ache, your head is dizzy and your lungs are breathless, but he keeps going as if he has something to prove. you wail out chan's name, your eyes squeezing shut, ignoring all of your senses but one: touch, of course, lost in the sensation of the wanton licks of friction chan sparks between the both of you, each drag along the inside of your cunt pushing you further on the edge of mind-numbing bliss. your pulse echoes in your ears, your heartbeat thundering in your ribcage as your insides turn into mush, your limbs jellied and your body so, so exhausted.

chan bottoms out inside of you, pushing his entire cock into you so forcefully you're sure you'd fuse together, his hips stuttering and his mouth pouring out such a pornographic moan so erotic you're sure you combusted from his sounds alone. he's shameless. he's noisy. he's so fucking sexy he makes you want him all over again. he stills, and you can feel the way every atom in his body tenses as he fills you with his cum, so heavy and so warm, pouring himself into you. completely spent, you sigh chan's name as if it were a prayer, leaning into his touch and surrendering yourself completely to him. once he pulls out, you quite literally feel yourself gush with yours and his climaxes, spilling out of your entrance and down your legs, slowly and crudely dribbling onto your bedsheets below, likely already soaked with sweat.

you wait until chan lays down next to you, and you sluggishly, timidly crawl into his middle, resting your head above his heartbeat, still erratic and still winding down. his arm wrapped around your waist, his skin so much warmer compared to yours even now. chan's thumb affectionately stroked your clammy skin, all the while whispering into your hair, "just so you know, i'm not going anywhere."

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stargazedwinchester · 2 months

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Too Soon? | Sam

Summary: Charlie teams you both up with the Winchester brothers for a case. After a very long road trip toward a hunt, someone's caught feelings for you.

Word count: 1,113

Let me know if you want a part 2!

♱⁺. ⋆˙✧⋆✧˙⋆⊹.♱

Charlie's excited grin means two things; there's a new World of Warcraft DLC, or she really wants you to do something with her. You huff, loosening your grip from her hands. "Char, I honestly really don't want to. I love you, I do, but..."

"Why, Y/N? It'll be so fun. Sam and Dean are so fun and so cool, you'll really like them. Even if it's a shitty boring hunt, at least you'll have me." She bounces up and down on the spot. "Please? Pretty please?" She begs, her ruby hair shining from the daylight coming through the window behind her. She looks at you in your eyes, pleading for you to once just say 'yes'.

You had been childhood best friends with Charlie ever since you both were bullied at school for playing video games during lunch breaks and recess. Both of you were the very few girls who would actually spend time around nerdy guys and weren't put off by them. Not that anyone gave them a chance, though.

"Okay, fine. I'll go with you. Just this once, though, you owe me." You give in, a smile creeping onto your face. What's the worst that could happen?

After Charlie's parents passed in a horrible accident when she was 14, she had been adopted by your father as both families were extremely close, good friends. It was almost like a dream come true for both of you at the time, being able to actually have a sister who's also your best friend? That's the best thing to ever happen to a child.

♱⁺. ⋆˙✧⋆✧˙⋆⊹.♱

You exit Charlie's beetle to a place that doesn't remotely resemble a home. "We're here?" You ask, squinting your eyes from the mid-summer sun blaring into your pupils. "Yep. They said to meet here." She says, checking her phone for any text messages. While glancing over at Charlie's phone, you notice two huge men walking toward you. "They're here!" She announces whilst the shorter man opens up his arms for her.

"Charlie!" He laughs gleefully, and she gives him a massive hug. You stand there awkwardly, not knowing what to do. "Hey, I'm Y/N." You greet the taller one, he runs his hand through his hair, before shaking yours. "Hi Y'N. I'm Sam. Nice to meet you." You look up at him flashing him a quick smile. "I assume the other guy is Dean?" You question, and Charlie pulls your arm towards her. "Y/N! This is Dean, he's my favourite. No offence, Sam." She chuckles, and Sam grunts. "None taken." He says. "Hi, Dean. Nice to meet you." You hold out your hand for him to shake it, and he takes it. "Nice to meet you. We've heard lots about you." He shows you a warm smile, his eyes a lovely shade of green that you haven't seen before.

"The gangs back together!" Charlie exclaims, you furrow your brows. "Back together? I've never met these guys in my life."

"You get what I mean."

♱⁺. ⋆˙✧⋆✧˙⋆⊹.♱

After lots of arguing about who gets shotgun, Charlie sits in the front with Dean, and you're sat in the back with Sam. Charlie passes you snacks every so often so you don't feel left out.

"So, YN," Sam starts, taking his gaze off of the trees speeding past the car. "How long have you known Charlie?" He asks, his hazel eyes meeting yours. "My whole life. She's my sister." You trail your sentence, not understanding why Sam would ask this. Dean chuckles. "Sammy, you didn't know that?" He and Charlie start laughing before she reaches over the seat to face you both. "I never told him this. Sorry, Sam." She pops another snack in her mouth, and Sam rolls his eyes. "Perks of being the least favourite, I guess. I'm out of the loop, guys." He throws his hands up in the air, a grin on his face. "It's okay. I'll tell you everything you need to know." You turn yourself round to face him, starting with the story of how you met her, where you grew up and everything that happened with Charlies' parents and your own.

The sun is setting pretty quick, the clouds turning salmon and the sky a denim shade. Dean smoothly parked the Impala outside of a small '70s diner, you all climb out and walk inside to find a free table. Luckily, the place seems busy so you assume it's got good food. You're starving at this point so to be honest, you'd eat anything at this point. You sit opposite Sam, but next to Charlie who's already looking at a menu. Scanning the table, there are only two menus. Dean and Charlie are so lost in their own world that they wouldn't even think about sharing a menu. You snatch the menu out of Charlie's hand and usher her to share with Dean while yourself and Sam work something out between you both.

You stretch your legs out and accidentally hit something long in front of you, assuming it's the table leg, you stretch out further. "That's my leg." Sam says, catching your eyes, then quickly looking away. "Sorry," you mumbled, seeing him act so awkward was somewhat charming to you, how his good looks could so easily get him so many women, yet he seems so reserved and polite. There really aren't that many men in the world like this, at all.

His golden eyes meet yours again, but you're already staring back at him. Your eyes widened in surprise, you didn't even think that he'd look at you again. "What?" He huffs, a smirk appearing. Oh, he knows he's hot. A dimple forms and suddenly, you're really attracted. "Me? Nothing. I was daydreaming." You lie.

The waitress comes over and takes everyones orders, and Dean turns around to allow you both to order. He notices how flushed your cheeks are and Sam's sly grin, and he puts two and two together. He nudges Charlie, and they both glance at you, then Sam, then back at each other with a huge smile on each of their faces. "Look at you two love birds," Dean starts, and you roll your eyes. "Please, don't start." You can't stop a simper from taking shape on your face, Charlie slaps your arm. "You two would be so cute together!" She scoffs, you've never seen her this happy about something before, it's almost scary.

"No, it's far too soon to say anything like that, Char!" You hide your face in embarrassment. "Am I not allowed to make friends?" You say, hoping Sam would have something to add.

"Is it too soon?" Sam says, grinning from ear to ear.

#supernatural #spn #spn imagines #supernatural imagines #dean winchester #dean winchester imagines #sam winchester #sam winchester imagines #supernatural imagine #dean x reader #sam x reader #spn x reader #charlie bradbury

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the-music-maniac · 3 months

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I think what drives me a little crazy (in a good way) about zosan as a ship is - ironically - that they're willing to do the worst possible thing, to sacrifice, for a necessary goal unrelated to their relationship. By that I mean that a common romance trope is an individual being willing to sacrifice the world, anything and anyone else, for their lover, and zosan is...not that. And for some reason that drives me more feral than that other romance trope ever possibly could. I find that more romantic than "I would burn the world for you" and I'll explain why.

The root of their specific willingness to sacrifice isn't a shortage of love or care by any means, but a complete trust and understanding of each other. To the absolute core of who they are. I'm going to refer specifically to that agreement between zosan (that I got spoiled on, so apologies if I get details wrong, I haven't gotten there in the story yet - ALSO spoiler warning if you haven't gotten to around Wano, so click away).

I'm referring to Sanji telling Zoro to kill him if he changes after his stint in Germa, and Zoro agreeing without need for an explanation, telling Sanji to survive until then - that is so fucking romantic to me, and people hold it up as proof that they don't care about each other but to me, it's anything but.

There is a burden of duty to being the wings of the pirate king, and they both take that responsibility seriously. They're both devoted to their captain and to their crew, and to the dreams of their crew. Zoro perhaps more outwardly unwaveringly so, but Sanji is devoted too, different from Zoro but equal in intensity. There are moments when you can TELL they're on the same wavelength, moments where Zoro gives a rare speech on the dynamics of their crew and Sanji is silent because he agrees. Sanji is terrified of hurting his found family, and he's terrified of becoming like his brothers and father. He loves his nakama and so he's willing to sacrifice his own life to prevent from turning into that type of monster.

Zoro is similar. He is willing to die for his nakama, and their dreams. They are in complete understanding of that point. Death itself is not something that scares either of them, there are some things that are worth the price. Potentially for different reasons ahem self worth issues ahem Sanji ahem but that's still something they both understand. Zoro would sacrifice himself in a heartbeat to save Sanji (he already has at Thriller bark), Sanji would do the same (again. Thriller bark), so it's not remotely because they don't care or love each other. They are absolutely willing to give all they are to keep each other from outside harm.

But what happens if the threat to the crew is Sanji himself?

Sanji asks Zoro to be the one to kill him, because Zoro is the only one on the crew who he trusts 100% to do so, to fulfill the promise, who understands. I personally think Luffy would try to save his nakama, even beyond what is possible, at his own detriment. The other crew members would probably do the same (then again I'm still not through the show so feel free to disagree with my interpretation).

But Zoro could do it if it came to that. It would be awful, and it would shatter and change him, irreversibly, heartbreakingly so - I don't agree with people who say Zoro would kill his nakama without hesitation and be fine with it out of loyalty to his captain, Zoro has a heart y'all and he loves his crew - but he could grit his teeth and do it if he realizes it is necessary, that there is no other option. Sanji trusts him to keep his word, to protect the rest of their family. Do you know how telling it is about the level of regard you have for your partner, to trust them to the point where you can easily place the well being of almost all you both treasure into their hands, once you realize you can't be the one to protect it anymore, and know without a shadow of a doubt that it'll be safe as long as it's with them? With knowing they're strong enough to accept the heavy burden of having your blood stain their hands for the rest of their life, the blame for your death on their shoulders, the shadow of you in every single thing they do, inescapable and marking every facet of their life forever? And to trust that they'll not only accept those consequences without hesitation because it's what you asked of them, but will also protect what you both treasure until their last breath, without you even needing to EXPLAIN that that's what you're asking to them to do, because it's the obvious, it's what you've both been doing all this time, it's something you both know so well that no words need to be exchanged, no reassurances need to be given.

And the implication of Sanji wanting Zoro to do this task too, of being okay dying by Zoro's hands because they're equals in every way. Especially since their fighting dynamic is mostly a competitive, I'm stronger than you, I'll never lose to someone as weak as you, blah blah. This is proof that that's not what Sanji and Zoro actually think of each other. Sanji knows that they could kill each other if either of them truly tried for one - wouldn't have asked Zoro to kill him otherwise. Sanji is also fine with Zoro being the one to defeat him. There is an inherent (kinda fucked up) romance to that notion. 'If I have to die, let it be by your hands.'

And on Zoro's part, there's an inherent fucked up romance to keeping your lover close forever because your fingers are stained with the necessity of their blood.

fUCK.

(here is a caveat that I'm viewing this in a scenario where Sanji and Zoro have established that they love each other and are potentially in a relationship. If it's before that you could also flavour it with Sanji's "I love him but I think it's unrequited, actually I think he may hate me, so it would hurt him the least to be the one to kill me" which is JUICY, but just for this post I'm viewing it where they've already established that they're valuable to each other, that they care)

How am I supposed to look at that and not fucking die. It's so much more nuanced and romantic to me personally than "I would burn the world for you" because that trope at its core is a selfish sort of protection. I can 100% see how people find it romantic, don't get me wrong, I'm not judging you if you like that trope, that's so valid. It's "I can't live without you" and "I would choose you above all others" which is romantic, but it's romantic in a different way. Depending on the characters, it's also, I would go to extremes to make sure you're alive, even if there's nothing else left after the carnage except for each other, even if everything else that makes life worth living has been destroyed for survival, and we can only ever rely on each other for the rest of time. I only care about you but not anything else you care about. I won't try to save it, even if you tell me to, even if you want me to, and won't forgive me for all I've done because I can't bear the burden of you not being alive and around anymore.

I get why it's compelling, but that trope could ignore (depending on how it's written) everything else that person could hold dear. Ignores potentially, the agency of the person being protected, a character who could have accepted the consequences and have not wanted the world to burn for their sake, who is strong enough for that burden. And true, maybe the character isn't like that, maybe they just want simply to live a life (valid of them, people are allowed to want happy endings for themselves), but my point is, it's a different archetype of romance for a different archetype of character, but it seems to be more accepted as a romantic trope then zosan's dynamic and I think it shouldn't be that way.

Zosan is the opposite. It suits their character type perfectly. For them, it's "there are things that are worth more than even you and me. I love you, knowing who you are and how you view the world and what other things you value. I love you everyday on purpose, not hopelessly or illogically or blindly, even knowing you may not always choose me. I'm willing to accept the pain of that, just to be next to you. The time we share isn't any less valuable for being fleeting and impermanent. I care about the things you care about and our lives are also worth living because of those things. It would tear me apart irreversibly to hurt you, but I would do it if you asked it of me, I would do it if that's what this life demands of us. I know you can protect what we both love, even if I'm not beside you. I respect your choices. In this, we understand each other perfectly."

THAT is my shit. That's the fucking deranged ass bs that has me staring at my ceiling at 3 am, pacing the floors at 6 in the morning, gnawing on conkcrete like a rabid dog. Brain rot brain rot brain rot.

#EQUAL PARTNERS IN LITERALLY EVERY WAY I CANNOT WITH THESE TWO #one piece #zosan #sanzo #zoro x sanji #sanji x zoro #THEM #romance tropes #analysis #roronoa zoro #black leg sanji #monkey d luffy #the strawhats

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farfromstrange · 5 months

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New Year's Day | Matt Murdock x Reader

Masterlist

Pairing: Matt Murdock x Reader

Summary: You recount your history with Matt and the highs and the lows of your relationship.

Warnings: Fluff, descriptive writing & lack of dialogue, mentions of blood, but this is mostly very tame

Word count: 2.5k

A/n: This One-Shot is dedicated to my bestie, @blackshadowswriter. I'm a bit late, and I'm sorry for that. It took me a bit to finish. I just want to tell you how much I love and appreciate you. I also know you love Taylor, so I thought "why not write a fic and use as many song references as possible? She's going to LOVE that!" You're my favorite person in the world and you deserve this. I love you. I'm all out of words because I'm anxious as hell about showing you this. It took me two days to finish. I wanted it to be as good as I could make it. I'm still not 100% sure, but I never am when it comes to giving gifts. I hope you like it <3 (This is also why I'm not tagging anyone else because this is a gift for my best friend and I intended it as such)

From the moment you bumped into him on the corner street of your favorite café, you knew that he was the kind of chance that would only come around once in a lifetime.

It wasn’t like you, at least not back then, to buy a stranger a coffee. And it was even less like you to give him your number afterward.

You had never been big on dating at that point in your life. You used to take things exactly the way they came to you, and dating never really seemed to fit into that narrative.

You preferred to lose yourself in your own world, a world where no one could touch or hurt you the way you’ve been hurt so many times in the past by people who claimed to care about you—people who claimed to love you, and in the process, you lost sight of the fact that there are still a handful of good people out there.

No one can blame you for thinking like that though. Your heart has been broken one too many times, and not just by broken relationships.

Deep down, you craved to find someone capable of understanding all of you, not just the pretty parts. You almost felt pathetic for pretending you didn’t need it and still thinking that way.

But deep down, you craved to find someone who wouldn’t be afraid of sticking around, someone who would never leave you because life tends to get hard.

It seemed nearly impossible to find a person like that without breaking your own heart, so you decided to retreat into your shell. Better to keep your heart safe and protected than put yourself out there and be broken all over again, right?

Those stupid love songs on the radio and the endless romantic stories of your friends’ dating lives, however, fueled your need for the same kind of connection only a few songwriters know how to put into words.

You wanted to fall in love, find the right person, and heal. You wanted to figure out why love wasn’t like the burning red of sex and passion but golden, like daylight. A love living for. A love fighting for.

You felt so stupid, secretly pining for an innocent childhood dream that eventually got crushed after years of heartbreak, but that is what happens when someone becomes chronically lonely. You turned to daydreaming because at least in your head, your life could be perfect. Not just good, not just livable, but filled with love and happiness.

Truth be told, when you’re your own worst enemy and have an inner saboteur set out to destroy everything that could be remotely good for you because you truly believe you don’t deserve it, it’s hard to allow yourself to be open. So perhaps that is why you chose to lock yourself away and live in delusion instead. Not facing reality became standard procedure in your way of life.

You tried blaming it on your past, your broken relationships, and disappointments, and while that played a big part in your trauma, you also slowly started to realize that you might have been hurting yourself so you wouldn’t have to open up ever again.

In an attempt to erase all the problems, you became the problem. You became your worst enemy, someone chasing ghosts that stayed long in the past and only came back to haunt the living shit out of you. But that’s a survivable condition.

You tried therapy, you tried turning your life around and starting anew, and while that helped you find a job you love, find a nice group of friends, and make peace with what’s been broken, nothing else seemed to change.

You had barely started putting yourself back together again when you bumped into him. You were late for a meeting, so your focus was on your phone instead of the street before you.

It was your fault. He was just trying to make his way over the sidewalk, his cane tapping in a steady rhythm to make his way forward, and you stepped right in the middle of it.

You remember him grabbing your arm, catching you before you could fall. He wasn’t even irritated. When you looked up in shame, seeing the red glasses and the came, you begged for the floor to open up and swallow you whole.

“I’m so sorry,” you said. “I wasn’t looking. Are you okay?”

But before you could go on a rant about your stupidity, he cut you off, and in the silkiest voice possible, he said, “I’m fine. Don’t worry about it. Are you?”

“What?”

“Are you okay? You seem in a bit of a rush. Don’t want you to accidentally bump into a car next.” He chuckled, adjusting his glasses. Blood rushed to his cheeks. “That was a bad joke, sorry.”

You just about melted. “It’s okay,” you found yourself chuckling. “And so am I. I was too focused on my phone. That was my fault.”

“Don’t blame yourself. It happens,” he said. He was so calm about it, unlike other New Yorkers you’ve met before.

Maybe the fact that you found him extraordinarily attractive and easy to be around compelled you to ask if you could buy him a cup of coffee to make up for bumping into him, completely abandoning your plans to make it to your work meeting five minutes late.

He introduced himself as Matthew. A lawyer. Not one of those rich defense attorneys who simply do it for the money. No, he does it to help people, and you fell for him right then and there.

Maybe it was fate, maybe it was destiny, or maybe it was just dumb luck, but that day, when you got home after work, his number in your phone and a stupidly giddy smile on your flushed face, you knew that you’d somehow been enchanted to meet him.

You never believed in love at first sight until you bumped into Matt Murdock, but the second you did, your life flipped upside down and changed in ways you could have never predicted.

It is possible that the song playing over the speakers in the café right before you bumped him played a part in how you perceived the interaction. You’ve never been one to believe in coincidences. Nothing is ever accidental, and neither was your meeting. It couldn’t have been.

You found each other when you needed someone, anyone, both of you, and it stuck. Thankfully, it did.

Summer that year was cruel with New York drowning in an excruciating heatwave. You’d been meeting up with Matt for a couple of weeks, but you didn’t have it in you to put a label on whatever delicate thing was starting to build between the two of you. You didn’t want to wrap your hand around it and accidentally shatter something you could see growing into something more in the future.

He was unlike anyone you’d met before, and he treated you in a way that made you believe, finally, that you are worthy of love. Not just giving but receiving because Matt himself struggled to see his worth after years of being disappointed and being there for everyone but himself.

Love is a fragile thing though, and you have never been quite good with fragile things.

After a night of drinking away your sorrows at a nearby bar, you made your way to his apartment. You took a cab, too wasted to find your way there by yourself. You remember that you were crying; you were miserable and loathing yourself for several reasons that didn’t even make sense to you then.

When you arrived there, you knocked on his door. You didn’t get an answer. Just as you started to turn around and make your way back outside, you could hear a thud from the other side of the door. Panic settled in. You didn’t even hesitate before you opened the door, which was surprisingly unlocked, and made your way into the dark interior of his apartment.

Finding your blind, catholic not-boyfriend in a pool of his own blood, wearing a leather-clad suit with the horns of the devil had not been on your to-do list until that night. Reality hit you just as fast and knocked sobriety back into your senses as the adrenaline started to take over.

He let out a grunt. Your name passed his lips. He sounded so weak, so fragile, and you just stood there, your heart pumping too much blood for your body to handle.

“What the fuck?!” you said. You didn’t yell, you didn’t snap, you simply didn’t know how to process this information.

You were well aware of the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen parading outside at night, beating up criminals and giving them a good fright—Matt did not fit the picture you had of the guy until you saw him lying there, obviously injured.

“It’s not what it looks like,” he said hoarsely. He tried to roll over, but the pain turned out to be too severe.

Needless to say, he passed out on you without a proper explanation, and you somehow had to use what little you could remember from first-aid to help this bleeding mess of a man. You feared that you would lose him that night, and that was when you realized that, on top of falling for him, you didn’t care who he was, you only needed him to live.

When he woke up to you hovering over him, he groaned. “I’m sorry,” was all he said. “I’d understand if–”

“Don’t talk,” you cut him off with a finger on his lips. You wouldn’t let him push you away. Not after everything you’d been through.

He tried to sit up. “I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“It’s not exactly something you lead with on a first date. I get it. What I don’t get…”

“I didn’t lie,” it was his turn to cut you off. You remember looking up at him, and you heard him out. You had to. In your mind, there is an explanation for everything, and you were once again proven right at that moment.

He bared his life story to you, how he survived through tragedies no human should ever have to face. How he turned blind, how his senses heightened, and how he lost the one person he could always count on. When his father died, something changed in Matt. He tried to go straight, to do his father proud, but he couldn’t ignore this desperate need for justice forever. He felt cursed. So, he became someone who could make a difference, and not just as a lawyer.

He expected you to walk out, but you didn’t. You saw him for who he was, and you accepted him.

“I think I’m falling for you, and it scares the hell out of me,” you blurted out that night.

He stared at you, his unfocused eyes bewildered, his lips moving soundlessly as he tried to find an answer.

Just when you thought he would break your heart after putting your trust in him, he let out a shaky sigh and he kissed you.

He wasn’t ready to say it back just yet, but he spoke to you through actions that made you feel confident in what you were growing again.

You somehow already knew back then that Matt Murdock would be the man you one day would marry and spend the rest of your life with.

The truth is, you two have been through a lot throughout your relationship. It hasn’t always been smooth sailing, but you would be lying if you said that it wasn’t worth it.

From the moment you met him to the countless dates, sharing coffees over empty takeout containers, kissing in the rain, Daredevil, fighting over the beautiful women in his life that almost broke you, and fighting over his desperate need to push those away who only want what is good for him because he is own worst saboteur.

It all led you down a journey that turned out to be harder than expected and not at all the love story you envisioned, but it still turned out to be the best thing that has ever happened to you. He is the best thing that has ever happened to you.

You used to run away from happiness out of fear of getting hurt, and Matt did the same. He feared to admit it, but then he met you and he finally realized that running was of no use because you were more than ready to stick around through everything. Through every disaster and heartache—through every broken bone, you stuck around.

You saw something in him from the moment you met that no one can ever take away. You got a taste of heaven from the devil himself, and even though he was darker than the sunshine you wished for in your life, you managed to find a way to bring some light into his life.

You are sunshine, even on your worst days, and he’s midnight rain. But you love the rain. You love him.

Your first kiss happened in the rain. He took your hand and asked you to dance, and you did. You danced to the sound of the raindrops pattering against the asphalt beneath your feet, and it was the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen—Matt engulfed in the soft moonlight, his hand in yours, and a big smile on his irresistible lips.

You want more of those nights. Even the nights you’ve had to patch him up or hold him as he broke down from all the weight he often enough carries on his shoulders, you want more of those. You want all of them.

You want him and all the strings attached to him, no matter how painful because ever since he can remember, people have walked out on Matt and hurt him in ways you can only fathom. You don’t want to be that person.

He opened up to you. He decided to be vulnerable. He stood with you through everything and fought for you when you thought you two wouldn’t last.

He gave you his best smile and his tears, and he laughed with you every night that you waited up for him to come home safely. He quickly became the moonlight to your sun—it is a different kind of light, but it is a light that sustains you nonetheless.

You want all of his laughter and never miss it again. You want his smiles. You want his tears. You want to spend every waking second with him. You want to miss him and welcome him back home after an agonizingly long night of worrying. You want to cheer him up in court and be his lucky charm. You want to wear his initial on a chain around your neck, in Braille, because he got it for you on your birthday.

“I know I don’t own you,” he said to you, “but I love you. And I know you. I want you to carry me close to your heart the same way I’ll always carry you close to mine.”

And his, you are. You’re no one else’s but his, and even if that sounds a bit territorial, you don’t care. You want all of it and more because it’s Matt you’re talking about, no one else. Not a stranger but the man you love so desperately it hurts sometimes.

All the girls he loved before don’t matter because he’s got you now. You forgave him more times than he probably deserved. You held on when he barely had any strength left. In return, he has shown the same kind of devotion to you time and time again. How can you ever say no to any of that when you are so in love?

All those memories replay in sudden flashing sequences right in front of your inner eye. You love him more than anyone has ever loved him. You pulled him out of a very dark hole. You saved his life. And he saved yours.

As he’s kneeling in front of you now, your hand in his and clutching the small, velvety box in his other, your life passes by before your eyes. Your life alone and your life together. You recount every memory in a millisecond, too shocked to even comprehend what is happening. But it is happening.

Matt Murdock is kneeling on the floor before you, the glitter, confetti, and sticky champagne someone spilled earlier most likely leaving a stain on his good dress pants, but he remains unwavering in his decision to open that little box and show you what he’s been hiding for a while.

It’s a diamond ring, something he probably took months to save up for. It’s small yet elegant, and it’s staring right at you. He’s taken his glasses off to try and do the same. You would marry him with paper rings, that much is true.

Matt says your name oh-so-softly. “Will you marry me?” Four words that stop your heart and restart it at the same time.

He sees right through you. You see right through him. Even in your worst times, you were there for each other, and now he’s asking you to spend the rest of your life with him. Together. To give him all of your days and nights and he will give you all of his in return. He is asking you the question you’ve been wondering if he would ever ask it, and he did.

The fireworks go off in the distance, in your stomach, everywhere. The new year has rounded the corner. People are cheering and celebrating around you, but you don’t pay attention to them.

The clock strikes midnight and with the softest smile, you say, “Yes.” You don’t need to tell him that you would do it a million times over because he knows. He knows your heartbeat, and he knows that you would never lie to him.

He doesn’t waste time to pull you into his arms and kiss you softly, passionately, as if both of your lives depend on it.

It’s a bit cliché, to get proposed to on New Year’s Eve. To start the new year with the man you love and a ring on your finger. But that only means that you will still be together on New Year’s Day, and all the days after that.

Matt chose you. You chose Matt. You chose a life together that is as unpredictable as they come, but at least you have each other to hold onto.

And he will never be just the stranger that you bumped into in front of your favorite corner café ever again. You have him now. Maybe that was your plan all along. Maybe you are the mastermind he knows that you are. None of it was accidental.

And now, Matt Murdock is yours. Forever and always.

#matt murdock #daredevil #matt murdock x reader #matt murdock x gender neutral reader #matt murdock fluff #matt murdock angst #charlie cox #daredevil x reader #birthday gift for my bestie #taylor swift references #song fic #new year's day #matt murdock imagines

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w1ldthoughts · 2 months

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All of My Tomorrows

Synopsis: Aftermath of Dangerous Delusions.

A/n: Last part of the series! Thank you all for reading as always, you all mean everything to me.

Series Masterlist

“Literally what were you thinking not telling anyone? Did you really think this was all just magically going to disappear?” Her best friend lays into her over the phone. She can tell by the huffing and puffing that Mani is probably raging at her while getting her morning Pilates in. The worst part is, she’s right. Everyone was right. She’d fucked up…majorly. “You are so lucky Jack has you on house arrest until this situation is sorted because if not, I would fly to Kentucky myself and beat you up for being so dumb.”

“I know,” she sighs, pulling out her laptop to distract herself with work. “What I did was stupid. I should’ve told him and realize that. I heard you the first time. And the second. And the third but definitely the fourth.”

Mani laughs, mentally reminding herself not to continue her rant, even if she really wants to call her out again. “I love you, so much. I want you to be safe and when you feel unsafe I want you to speak the hell up. No more suffering in silence.”

Four days had come and gone since the incident. Four days of Zoey sleeping alone, replaying everything that happened before things went south. The smile on his face when she practically tackled him. How warm and cozy he felt when he hugged her back. She missed him so badly there was almost a physical ache in her bones. After finishing up her nightly routine, she laid her head on the pillow, trying to will herself to close her eyes and enter a true REM cycle.

This is probably the first time where she’s really had to face her demons. On several occasions she was the master communicator when Jack fell short, she was the shoulder he could lean on for support after he apologized and promised to be better. Now that the shoe was on the other foot she had to do the same. He had every right to be upset maybe that’s why this was so hard. She knew she acted irrationally, but she needed to come to terms with why.

At 2am, she looked at her phone and rolled her eyes, hoping that she’d gotten more than two hours of sleep and was sadly mistaken. She tiptoed down the hallway and down the stairs to grab a bottle of water. Jack was sitting on the couch, holding the remote. But the tv wasn’t on.

“It’s um—it’s hard to sleep without you, knowing that you’re down the hall.” His voice sounds rough, like he’s been screaming but she doesn’t push it. She nods instead, taking a seat next to him but keeping a little distance. Zoey felt like she needed to earn the right to be in his space again and that required some real honesty. He hands her his water, assuming that’s what she came downstairs for. Jack was usually the one to remember to stay hydrated and kept water in the room. But she forgot.

She thanks him, taking a few sips, the cool liquid quenching her thirst but did nothing to calm her nerves. “I had a nightmare,” she whispers looking straight ahead at the black tv screen. “I was back in the parking garage but I was alone. And I—just stood there, by myself. It felt so…cold and dark. But then I woke up and I remembered that I wasn’t alone. I’m not alone and I don’t have to do by myself. But Jack,” she pauses, a small sob escaping her, “I was so scared. I don’t think I’ve ever felt like that in my life.”

There it was. The wall that he’d built around himself the last few days handling this mess came shattering down as soon as he saw her cry. Nothing in this world mattered anymore, not his feelings, not his ego or pride. He scooted over to hold her close, shedding a few tears of his own, telling her to take her time and that he wasn’t going anywhere.

She was crying so hard her voice was hoarse when she found her words again, a simple fact that almost brought him to his knees. “I didn’t tell you not only because I was scared and didn’t want you to worry,” she sniffles, wiping a few tears as he keeps her in his arms. Zoey looks into his soft blue eyes, a much more tender look than the ones she’s been getting lately. “Jack I was being selfish. Our time together is so limited and I want it to be about us. About peace and love and this just tainted this fantasy and bliss that I was living in and I wasn’t ready to let it go. So I acted like it wasn’t happening and hoped it would go away…until it wouldn’t and I called Mike for help.”

“I should have come to you, but I wasn’t ready to fully acknowledge that this was actually happening.”

He sits in silence for a few moments, letting out deep breaths. “Zo, baby I get it. I fucking hate long distance. I hate being away from you. And when I see you or get to talk to you I want it to be only good things too. But that’s just not real life. I want you to come to me not just for the lovey dovey ‘everything is perfect stuff.’ I want you to come to me with the bad stuff too, the scary things, the uncomfortable things, all the things. Because I want to hear whatever you have to say for a very very long time. And I want to be the first person you go to because you are mine.”

“Whenever anything happens to me, you’re the first thing on my mind. You’re my first call. And it really hurt that you didn’t feel the same but I get it now. I just want you to know that you don’t have to do any of this alone. There is no amount of distance that is enough to keep me from taking care of you, believe that.”

“I do. I do believe that,” she squeezes him tighter, taking in the warmth that she’s been missing. “I will work on being more open and honest with you, cause you’re my person too, I wanna tell you everything. Promise.”

She yawns and he runs his hand down her back, telling her they should head back to bed. He walks behind her up the stares and she tries to bite back a smile when he walks into the master bedroom behind her. Jack crawls into bed on his side, opening his arms to let Zoey in.

“Don’t even think you’re off the hook yet, I’m just tired and I sleep better when you’re next to me,” he whispers with a straight face. “Get some sleep.”

She reaches up to kiss his jaw, sending chills down his spine. “I love you Jack Jack.”

“I love you too,” he kisses the crown of her head.

It’s over. Two simple words that he’d been waiting to hear for almost a week. Every single day he sat by the phone, scribbling out words on a notepad, trying to get work done but his mind just went back to it. Back to her and her safety. Hearing Mike say those two little words over the phone was like getting a semi truck lifted off of his chest. It allowed him to finally let out a deep breath, and the tears followed. There was a relief like nothing he’d ever felt before and he’s finally starting to realize what they mean when they say that love is painful sometimes. There’s been this constant nagging pain that he couldn’t pinpoint but it was as if all of the pain he’d been feeling stemmed from being worried. The sheer horror at the thought of someone intending to hurt Zoey had actually been causing him physical pain.

And now it was over.

Jack sighed again and wiped his tears, exiting his office. Zoey took one look at his face and knew what it was immediately. She practically leaped into his arms and held on tight, thanking him.

“You don’t have to thank me. Baby you are my life, I will die before I ever let anything happen to you. I mean that.”

His light chuckle brings her immense peace and she gives him a kiss, his lips feeling so familiar, feeling like home. This is what love is, holding your person ever so tightly after a fight, the feeling of security even at the most vulnerable and scary moments. It’s about admitting when you’re wrong and having the courage and trust in the other person to let you know you’re wrong so the next time things will be done differently. All of these moments, these painful but necessary life lessons are what brought her to this moment with her person. And there’s no one else in the world that she’d ever do this with.

She pulls away from the kiss to just take it all in. “I love you so fucking much. Even though I almost gave you a heart attack, I—I love you and I want everything with you.” Jack swipes his thumb under her eye to catch a stray tear. “It was so wrong of me to even doubt that we couldn’t handle this together and I will never ever keep anything from you again. I am so sorry.”

He gives her a soft smile and another tender kiss on the lips before speaking. “I love you like…so fucking bad. Been waiting my whole life for you. I’ve manifested a lot of things in my life but I thought I was asking for too much, so I never thought I’d actually find the perfect partner. And then here you come, everything I could’ve wanted and all the things I had no idea I needed, all wrapped up in the most beautiful person to ever walk this earth. And you think I’m just letting all that go? You are crazy.”

“I say all that to say…I forgive you.” His hands settle on her hips pulling her in even closer just to look at her like he’s memorizing every detail of her face…and she’s memorizing his.

“Do you wanna go finish that moon puzzle?” Zoey asks him, breaking the silence.

“You want me to get down on one knee and propose to you right now don’t you?”

This love is physical, full of desire. It is practical in a functional sense where it has a healthy dose of ups and downs. It is playful, fun, joyful and full of laughter. It’s a love that is going to last. And most importantly? It’s a love that Jack and Zoey intend to keep…as long as humanly possible.

#jack Harlow #jack Harlow imagine #jack harlow x oc #jack x zoey #jack Harlow fanfic #jackman thomas harlow

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wayfayrr · 11 months

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So here's something I've been working on for a while where one of the links and reader get split from the chain, ending up on present-day Earth. And because Totk has now consumed my focus near entirely he's the lucky one to stick with the reader (as a separate link from wild, for extra ✨drama✨ with the chain - thanks to @neverchecking for sparking that Idea for me)

also if anyone has any ideas for what this au could be named any suggestions would be greatly appreciated I cannot come up with a name for the life of me

I've ended up writing a Part two where sage gets to adjust now as well! And a third to go with it!

It’s been a long few months with the chain since I ended up in Hyrule; being torn from your world certainly isn’t an experience I would wish on anyone.

being chased through all of Hyrule's different histories was bad enough, and now getting dragged through the portals that thing creates by those who once told me they would protect me?

It’s exhausting.

The links are welcoming, mind you, there's just something off about them in that uncanny valley where you know something is wrong, just not what. They’re still well, they're still links. And they’ve had to have known me leaving is always going to have to happen; no matter how overbearing they get; no matter the denial they have; no matter how much they may try fight it.

I will never belong in Hyrule, that’s a fact.They know this. I have told them time and time and time again, they swore to me that they’d help me get home and now?

god have they gotten attached, it's like I've been dunked in a potion or something with how comically obsessed most of them are, with how they look at me and treat me like I'm a glass doll.

Time takes advantage of being the oldest, of being the "leader" to arrange shifts where I'm next to him or partners with him for whatever needs be, Warrior seems to be following him to the blueprints when he gets the chance. The smithy looks like he's on the verge of a breakdown when I get within five metres of anything remotely sharp, even just a simple butter knife as if I'm so stupid that I'll injure myself with it. Twilight thankfully doesn't take after his ancestor although that doesn’t mean he’s not without his quirks, that wolf side has indeed left its mark on him after all. Wind’s just a clingy excitable kid, it’s not like he’s doing anything wrong. The Traveler seems clingy while at the same time, he doesn’t seem to think he deserves to be around me; Legend acts both similar to him but also his exact opposite, seemingly hating me with his very soul but being a leech at my side. Sky may play dumb about it to my face but he's down just as bad as the rest taking every opportunity to stake his claim over me with at least one of his clothes, it's uncommon now for me to be without his sailcloth about my shoulders.

Sage is the one I would have to describe as the one who is the worst, it’s not like I don’t know the exact reason either - it’s only natural they handle it worst. Similar to Wild naturally, acting almost identically but with anything even remotely possessive amped up drastically. He’s the one who’s had to deal with loss the most; with the worst possible circumstances, I’m the one who should’ve expected this.

I mean - I guess it’s sweet as well? If having someone cling to you at all times as they’ve glued themselves to your skin is what you’d consider cute. Since he realised I’ll be leaving eventually, the bare minimum doesn’t even come close to how little time I’ve had alone - no not even alone, just existing without Sage holding me in some way.

“[name]? Were you listening to me?”

And there he goes again - looking at me with the saddest of eyes, like I’ll vanish if he ever takes his eyes off of me.

“Sorry juniper, I zoned out a bit there - what were you saying?”

And wasn’t that the wrong thing to say. His reaction to that was immediate, now he’s looking up at me with puppy dog eyes like I’ve just hung the stars in the sky for them; I can barely breathe with how tightly he’s holding me. I hadn’t even said anythin- I called him by a nickname, right.

“... can’t you stay? I don’t- I don’t want to lose anyone else...”

And with that, he’s decided to press his face into my shoulder. Is- why is my shirt getting damp..?

He’s crying... Oh, damn it. How do I respond to this - I can’t stand to see him so broken up like this but what can I say?

"You know I can't Sage, I don't belong here and it's not safe for me either"

"but I can make it safe for you! And you do belong, you belong by my side. I know you do!"

Sage's sobs have to be the most heart-wrenching sound I've ever heard, even worse still when I know I'm the one who's the cause of it; not being able to comfort him with anything that's not an outright lie.

There's something else in his voice though, something much darker than heard from any of the heroes let alone Sage, and it sounds dangerous.

"I have a house, I can hunt, I can fight, I saved Hyrule. I can make sure you're safe and I can keep you happy. aren't… wouldn't you want that [name]? please?"

He's gotten so desperate to keep me here that he's begging me through tears?

"Sage I - you know I can't. it's not fair for me to stay"

"I don’t care that it’s not fair! I just - I just… please, please don’t abandon me. I can’t - I can't lose you as well"

It took a few hours to calm him down but eventually, I managed to get him to stop crying. Granted they did pass out onto me shortly after.

It was after about fifteen minutes of resting there that things started to feel odd? That seems like the best way to describe it.

We were just resting after lunch; of course, due to Sage we were a bit further from the rest of the group when it hit, everything got blurred and distorted. Similar to the portals throughout Hyrule’s history but different. Stronger. It felt as though my very cells were being torn apart and remade, like when - like when I was brought here.

“[NAME], SAGE YOU NE- TO -VE”

Is someone screaming? It’s like everything’s been thrown underwater it's all muffled and faded. Even as I try to get up with Sage’s weight on me, I can barely shift, let alone get away from this portal drawing me in.

...

And then I was back on earth.

There wasn’t a large ceremonial goodbye, there wasn’t even really anything special about the portal.

I'm just here.

And with an oddly familiar weight on my side actually, a very very familiar weight on my side…

“SAGE???”

Sage’s here, of course, he is. Of course, the shadow hasn't had enough of just sending the links between different Hyrules. Of course, Sage gets thrown into my world with me. Do the rest of the chain know we’re even still alive? Know we’re safe? Or do they think - think that we were killed? How long have I even been gone? I spent months with the chain, months, did anyone report me missing, was I gone long enough for that? My phone should have resynced with the time here, I just need to check it.

It’s not even been a day.

All of that, everything and it's been less than a day. I have to slot myself back into everyday normal as if nothing has happened.

Snap yourself out of this [name], there’s no point in getting stressed. Just deal with everything as it comes.

“Sage, wake up, please.”

He’s moving now, okay, that’s fine, he’s fine, He’s alive. He’s alive, the gloom didn’t worsen, can’t have worsened and…

There’s someone who should be fictional, who is famous in his own right, lying on my side in my living room. I've been gone for barely a day and now to everyone else, there's a stranger with a funky-looking arm in my house. How will I - is there even a way to explain this?

Everything in my life is upended now, this isn't a normal thing, not something that can just be explained away. how do I? Where do I-

I don't know - this isn't something I've ever considered dealing with.

Now I wish Sage was up and being clingy, anything would be better than sitting here in silence with my thoughts like this. There are a couple of ways I could think to wake him properly, but just as I move to shake him he sits up immediately. Panic set in at the same moment leading him to hold me close while looking over every corner of the room we’re in.

“Where are we? Did the others abandon us? This isn’t like anything I’ve seen in any Hyrule.” “We aren’t in Hyrule now.”

Might as well just bite the bullet and get this over with.

“Welcome to earth link, in all of its awful glory.”

#linked universe x reader #yandere linked universe #yandere linked universe x reader #link x reader #lu sage

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rollinouttahere-writes · 5 months

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I would like to propose what I’d call, the Armageddon time line where the news accidentally reported Lucky as dead.

Like there was some mix up in the news room where someone with a similar sounding name/allies got killed and a miscommunication happened (Yucky Luck or something rip to him his death got over shadowed) or there was like a big Straw Hat battle and it looked like Lucky got killed.

Could you imagine the horrors?? There’s shrines going up rapidly in her honour! A man hunt for the person/crew that killed her (they got the biggest bounty ever)! We got Yonko’s and Yonko children teaming up (Cracker and Shanks)! Kid is about to put aside his beef with Shanks for a minute (unheard of)! It’s a MESS and the world has never seen such pirate unity?!? Everyone is terrified Yanderes are teaming up to deal with the bitch that did this!!! (Smokers in the pirate crowd with a very good disguise on and everyone’s to confused to question it! Like what is happening??)

Then a few days later a report comes out about “False alarm!!! Lucky spotted alive and healthy!!! There isn’t even a scratch on her!!!” *photo of Lucky Laughing with the crew* There is a couple scraps and bruises but they gotta defuse this problem as fast as possible emotions are heightened. The world was on fire for a couple of days.

The world government is seriously debating whether having a bounty on Lucky is a good or bad thing. They might even change her poster to say “Please only bring her in alive for the love of GOD!”

RIP to whoever got blamed, they're about to suffer a thousand deaths

I'm imagining that after the battle, whoever the Straw Hats helped approaches them like 'hey there's this remote island over here with a resort built on it, y'all should come over and recuperate' and no one argues because it sounds nice. What's the worst that could happen?

While everyone is have a lovely time, the rest of the world looks like a war zone. Pirates are killing each other, memorials are going up, it's complete chaos.

A marine fleeing from the destruction is passing by the island and spots Lucky sunbathing on the shore without a care in the world. They scramble to get photographic evidence and to get to the nearest publisher in hopes of ending the bloodshed.

It does work, but the whole thing has a severe consequence for Lucky. Now that her suitors have experienced what it would feel like to lose her forever, they're more desperate than ever to have her in their clutches where they can keep her safe and alive.

Lucky will never know a moment of peace ever again and wants to throttle whoever made the false report.

The world government is terrified but intrigued by the level of influence this one random woman somehow has. They do conclude that her bounty poster should be changed to alive only. They don't want to be targeted because they motivated a bounty hunter to kill her

#lucky break #rebeccawinters

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flutteringphalanges · 11 months

Text

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

Adam Warlock x Star Lord!Sister Reader

Prompt: All babies get sick. You knew that. And yet, when yours caught a cold, it was the worst feeling in the world. If it wasn’t for Adam, you’d really be a mess. Just another bump in the road of parenthood--but also another sign of how great of a father he truly was.

Word Count: 1,613

A/N: Hello, hello! Another one shot installment to my Adam Warlock x Star Lord!Sister Reader baby series! Here is the LINK to the master-list of all of the one shots! Requests are open! To those who have sent some in, I promise I will get to them! I also plan to do more with Aydith being different ages besides a baby so please send some suggestions in if you’d like! Thank you guys so much for your support! Here we go! -Jen

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

It was just a cold. A simple runny nose accompanied by the occasional cough and low grade fever. Something you had personal experience with in your (age) years of life. It was nothing. A mere inconvenience. But now, sickness played a different role since you became a parent--or, rather when your child fell ill. The feeling of helplessness brought on by not being able to take it away at once and give them comfort. It was just a cold, but it was your baby’s. That was one of the many awful feelings you felt.

You watched with exhaustion as Adam paced around the room, lightly bouncing Aydith in his arms. She had been crying for what felt like an eternity now. It didn’t help that the damn cold hit right around when she had begun to really teeth. You were at a loss of what to do. Mantis had offered to put her asleep, but you didn’t want her to use any powers on your daughter. Not when she was so little. Not when you didn’t know how it could impact her. If you hadn’t brought her to Earth to visit your grandfather last weekend, this wouldn’t have happened. How were you supposed to know the bug was going around?

“This is all my fault.” You exhaled, shaking your head. Gods, you just wanted to cry with her. “I exposed our baby and now she’s infected. I’m a horrible mother.”

Adam made his way over to you, Aydith’s cries only amplifying. At this point, you were quite sure that all of Knowhere had been awakened by them. How such a little thing could be so loud was a question you didn’t have an answer to. Just like how you didn’t have an answer as to how to ease your daughter’s distress.

“This is no fault of yours, Y/N. And it is impossible for you to even be remotely considered a below average parent. Please don’t ever think like that.” He tried to assure you, his tone sympathetic. “I’ve done a great deal of reading and it is quite common for human infants to contract it. Our child is half Sovereign, I am more than certain that being so lessens the chances of this developing into anything serious.”

He had done research. A lot of it. As soon as Aydith let out her first cough, Adam had gone into protective parent mode and scoured through the entirety of what felt like every medical file in the galactic internet in search of answers. Meanwhile, you had reluctantly allowed Nebula to run some scans knowing full well that your baby was more than safe. That the Luphomoid would never do something that would put her in harm’s way. Still you worried, even after your partner was relatively satisfied with what he found.

“She sounds so miserable, and it’s like nothing I do makes any difference.” You looked over at Adam as he took a seat beside you. “I hate this. I hate this more than any of those assholes we’ve ever had to fight--and I’m not trying to be dramatic, but this is my baby and she is upset and nothing I try helps! I…” You inhaled deeply, trying to reel yourself back in. “When I first met you, I didn’t think it was possible to fall so deeply in love again--and even though this is a different kind of love, I just feel like I’m failing.”

Adam’s cheek rested against the baby’s as he maneuvered her so he had a free arm to put around you. “Your feelings are more than valid, my love. I wish I could ease your stress equally as much as I wish for our daughter’s recovery.” He leaned over and pressed a kiss to your temple. “You need your rest. I can tell you are very tired. Let me take care of Aydith.”

You shook your head, fighting back a yawn. That would’ve only proved his point. “I’m fine.” You told him firmly. “I don’t need sleep. Not when she is like this.”

“But you do, especially as you’ve had the same exposure as her.” Adam countered, gazing straight into your eyes. “You becoming sick like her won’t do either of you any benefits, my love, so please, I implore you to sleep. Please don’t make me call upon Mantis to assist you.” He really had an odd way of saying things sometimes. “Deal?”

Adam was right. You really needed to rest. All of your energy had been spent long ago worrying and taking care of your daughter. As much as you hated to admit it, you weren’t any use to her if you were out of commission yourself. Frowning softly, you gave in and nodded.

“Okay.” You responded reluctantly, but finally agreed. “But if she seems like she is getting worse, you’ll get me up. And you won’t let me sleep too long.”

“I suppose that is reasonable enough.” He accepted as Aydith whined, wriggling in his grasp. Adam shifted her to his other shoulder and gently patted her back. “I shall take her in another room so it is quieter for you. We’ll be fine, won’t we, my tiny comet?”

Your mouth curved into a small smile, the first you’ve had in awhile. He was so good with her. So amazing that it made you love him that much more. You couldn’t ask for a better father for your child. And Gods did he adore her too. Talk about you hitting the jackpot.

You leaned in, kissing Aydith’s flushed cheek. “Only a nap, nothing too long.” You reminded Adam, taking a moment to kiss him. “And if she gets worse…”

“You have my word,Y/N. But I assure you, all will be well. Aydith is strong like her mother.” He hummed, glancing over at his daughter. “Now we will step out so you can sleep. I love you dearly and, though she cannot talk yet, I know Aydith shares my feelings too.”

“I love you both too.” And you wished there was a more powerful word to convey that.

Lying on your bed, you didn’t expect for you to fall asleep as quickly as you did. You honestly thought your body would fight your mind over remaining conscious. But you were gone. Floating in a dreamless state. A dark void enveloping you in a tight embrace. If it wasn’t for the distant sound of rhythm, perhaps you would’ve stayed there.

Your eyes opened, mind still fuzzy from sleep as you sat up. The music you heard was definitely there, not something you had dreamed up. And something about the tune felt so familiar. Adam and Aydith were nowhere to be seen--but what was more surprising, you couldn’t hear the softest of whimpers. Slightly worried, you forced your body up and made your way over to the doorway that led to the small space that served as your living room. The music grew louder as you quietly peeked in.

The Lion Sleeps Tonight by The Tokens. That’s why you recognized it. You didn’t remember much from your childhood on Earth, but you had the vaguest of memories of your mother playing that along with a few other songs when she was trying to coax you and Peter into falling asleep during a long car ride. You noticed the clunky radio Phyla had gifted to you--or rather, Aydith, as a present. The thing was pretty old and banged up, but that kinda gave it character. You looked away from it, your attention suddenly drawn to the figure standing right in the center of the room.

What Adam was doing, you couldn’t exactly call it dancing. It was more so like a bobbing, rocking sort of motion that kinda gave off the impression of someone having literal ants in their pants. Sometimes he’d sway back and forth before immediately stopping in his tracks to do knee bends. It was the strangest and yet, oddly cute thing you’d ever seen him do. And when you listened closely, he was even singing under his breath. Until that moment, it hadn’t even clicked in your mind that he was still holding Aydith. Nor that she was finally asleep.

“Hey.” You whispered, trying your best not to startle him. “Whatcha doing?”

Adam’s head snapped in your direction. “Oh! I’m sorry, did I wake you?” You shook your head and he sighed in relief. “Good. I have successfully aided our child.” “I can see that.” You smiled, making your way over to him. “You give Peter a run for his money with those moves.”

Adam beamed. “I call it The Dad Disco--I’m not quite sure what disco looks like, but I really liked the sound of it.” He looked down at the baby and you could’ve sworn his eyes sparkled. “I must admit, I was growing concerned but then when she finally fell asleep…well, I feel very accomplished now. I’m glad she’s out.”

“Me too.” You replied, admiring your daughter in his arms. “You’re an amazing dad, you know that?”

“I certainly couldn’t do it without you. We make quite the team, don’t we?” Adam smiled at you.

“Yeah. I’d say we’re pretty great together.” You reached out and lightly touched her small hand. “She makes it all worth it, huh?”

“Every millisecond.” He fell silent, eyes fixed on her before focusing on you. “If she stays asleep when I put her down in the crib, would you care to have a dance with me? I promise that we don’t have to do The Dad Disco. That’s more reserved for Aydith.”

You gave him a grin. “I think I would like that very much.”

#Adam Warlock #Adam Warlock x Reader #Reader x Adam Warlock #gotg vol 3 #Adam Warlock Imagine #Aydith Warlock #Adam Warlock baby fics

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alwaysxlarrie · 1 year

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favorite fics of 2021/2022

i love recommending fics & i love appreciating the talented, lovely writers in this fandom, so i wanted to make a list of my fav fics in 2021/2022. there are some longer fics that came out this year that i’ve wanted to read, but haven’t gotten a chance to, so knowing me i’ll make a masterlist of long fics or something bc i simply continue to be a slut for making masterlists & recommending fics idk what to tell u LMAO. anyway, these are in alphabetical order. sorry there’s kind a lot, thank u for ur time xoxo

are you taking clients? by @jaerie / jaerie

“Escaping had been the hardest thing Harry had ever done. They'd stolen his child and nearly stolen his life. Being homeless and pregnant gave Harry few options. It's a last resort to let men fetishize his body, but the luxury of choice is something Harry doesn't have.”

all your mates are here by @londonfoginacup / ladylondonderry

“"The pack is... It's folding, Harry."

Like every werewolf does when they get to a new town, Harry joined one of the many local packs when he started university. Now, three years into his program, he's hit with the news that his pack is giving up, going their separate ways. In the wake of the holidays, the three single wolves from the Majestic pack are pointed in the direction of a new pack to join; one that's got struggles of its own.

A new pack, a new house, and two new roommates with personal space issues... Plus exams, of course.

Happy Christmas, here's to many more.”

babydoll blues by @thedevilinmybrain / devilinmybrain (venomedveins)

“Louis is a high profile, filthy rich label executive who has the world at his feet - a music god.. Harry is the sugar baby trying to make a name for himself singing in shady bars and hanging off the arm of Louis' biggest rival. What Louis wants, Louis gets. But what if the game gets too hot and hits a little too close to the heart?”

boy for sale by @ohpleaselarry / ohpleaselarry

“Three large cushioned chairs face him, each holding a suited man. Mr. Horan, Mr. Payne, and Mr. Malik respectively sit at these chairs, eyes on Harry as he steps up to the middle of the room, lowers fluidly to his knees, hands behind his back, and looks to each man one by one, neck prickling with the eyes all on him, on his nude body.

They’re all going to have him, and yet Harry only really wants one man here, and it’s the man who steps up behind him, sets a hand on the nape of his neck, right over his collar.

“Alright,” Louis says, voice raspy and authoritative, “Mr. Horan, you’re first. Would you like his mouth or his arse?””

between two lungs by @hershelsue / docklands

“Harry and Louis are graduating medical school. There's a big party and everyone has big expectations. All of Harry's are exceeded when Louis remembers him from a long time ago. They fuck.”

boom, boom, don’t you wanna go by anonymous

“It doesn't take much to convince Harry to participate in Lambda Sig's annual ceremony for graduating seniors. She's hooked up with a few of the brothers already anyway, as lackluster as they were. She has to have her legs and bare bottom half on display for the rest of the brothers in the senior class to see, but she's always kind of liked being played with and definitely likes being on display. She's graduating in a few weeks anyway. What's the worst that can happen?

She doesn't expect contestant number fifteen to blow her mind in the first round. He doesn't let up.”

caught in your gravity by @lululawrence / lululawrence

“It felt like the blood froze in Harry’s veins even as he got a bit lightheaded. He hadn’t even made it two practices, only one of which he was remotely in charge of, without giving it all away and now he and Liam were both absolutely fucked.

“Shit,” Harry breathed out. “Who all have you told? Does everyone know? I thought I covered it better than that…”

“No, no,” Louis said quickly. "They’ll figure it out soon enough, though, because they’ll get used to you changing things up, but you’re only going to trip over your so called Americanisms for so long before they realize it’s because you don’t actually know fuck all about football.”

Harry sighed. “Yeah. I figured. I just need to bullshit for long enough to allow Liam to get the situation figured out from his end.”

“Right, which brings me to my entire point. I think we can find a mutually beneficial arrangement with all of this.” Louis leaned forward. “You need to learn the ins and outs of the sport incredibly fast. I can help you with that.”

“What do you want in exchange?”

Or, an AU inspired by a 30 second trailer of Ted Lasso that doesn't actually have much in common with the show at all.

counterculture by @sadaveniren / sadaveniren

“It all culminated to this: Harry in the middle of a crowded basement, music blasting from the live show on the far side, shirtless amongst alphas and omegas who all weren’t covering their scents. He took a deep breath of the heavy air and he felt alive.”

erva venenosa by @hershelsue / docklands

“Harry goes to his first all-gender party. There, he meets Louis, an eccentric bartender who claims to know more than he does. He turns Harry's world upside down.“

hint: i want to be yours by @greenblueish / bluegreenish

“Thinking back to Harry’s rut, Louis shivers, needing to put effort into keeping other bodily reactions at bay.

“Are you cold?”

While Niall’s been commenting through the entire film, Harry had stayed mostly quiet, so it’s a surprise when he speaks up, eyes zeroed in on the omega.

“Uh, yeah. It’s a bit chilly, innit?”

Niall shrugs, dressed in a sleeveless t-shirt and seemingly unbothered by the room temperature. Harry doesn’t ask for an explanation though.

“You can have my hoodie, wait, here.” Before Louis can counter, Harry’s pulling the light grey piece of clothing over his head and handing it to the omega.

or, the one where Harry unconsciously starts acting like Louis' alpha after they spend his rut together and Louis finds ways to make sure Harry's affection doesn't end.”

hike up your skirt (and show your world to me) by anonymous

“Louis has a very hands on approach to training his new secretary. How else can he make sure Harry realizes his full potential?”

i can’t wait to see what you find by @non-binharry / enbyharry

“"What do you do for work?"

"I, uh, don’t. I don’t work."

"Cuckold’s got you well kept then, yeah?" Harry’s face morphs into a frown, adorable creases forming along his brownbone, and Louis throws up his hands in a placating gesture. "Sorry! Sorry! I’m just taking the piss. You can do whatever you like. I swear I’m not some judgemental prick." Harry’s expression relaxes. He wedges a hand between his crossed legs, looking down at the arm of his chair. "You do like it though, yeah? You know, the whole —" Louis cuts himself off, gesturing broadly to avoid overstepping on a dynamic he doesn’t fully understand.

"Yeah, I um. I do like it. I get off on feeling used for him. I only belong to him and he loves that, no matter how many hands I’m passed through."

"Okay, so what happens if I agree?"

Louis finds himself entering an interesting sexual arrangement with a happy, committed couple.

He gets more than he bargained for.”

i’ll be your new favourite tune by @harrystinyshorts / lsforever

“Louis gulps, all coherent thoughts flying from his brain as he unabashedly stares. There’s just so much to take in, from the silky curls springing out in every direction under some sort of headband/scarf looking thing, to the bright eyes and rosy cheeks and cute dimples that make the man’s - Harry, Louis reads from his nametag - smile so charming. He’s wearing a simple black shirt paired with some short jean shorts that only reach the middle of his thighs, and Louis has to force himself not to stare at those long, beautiful legs.

“You okay there?” Harry sounds amused.

Louis clears his throat.

or, Louis is the Pop Punk King of our dreams, and Harry is the cute associate at the rescue who helps him adopt a cat.”

it’s been ages by @2tiedships2 / 2tiedships2

““We need to talk,” Niall said as he plopped down on Louis’ bed. “It’s you and Harry. You like him, he likes you, it’s a match made in heaven and you will one day be mates,”

Louis shook his head in exasperation. “If you’ve been watching, you would see that Harry is interested in, like, alpha alphas. Not me.”

“What the fuck is an alpha alpha?” Niall asked with furrowed brows.

“You know what I mean,” Louis said, giving Niall a pointed look.

“I literally have no idea what you’re talking about.”

i love this feeling (but i hate this part) by @lululawrence / lululawrence

““Stand up.”

Harry stood up from the couch, not a moment’s delay.

“Oh my god, is that what that’s like?” Harry turned to Louis, surprise on his face. “I really thought they were somehow exaggerating, but it really is an automatic response with absolutely no thought from me behind it whatsoever.”

Louis sighed again. “You really wanna keep doing this? Have me use my alpha voice on you so you can work on resisting it?”

“Yup,” Harry said, clapping his hands and smiling. “How else am I going to be able to have any chance at reducing the power an alpha voice has on me?””

keep me closer by @zanniscaramouche / zanni_scaramouche

“Louis expects Harry to react poorly, maybe even file a formal complaint and that’s gonna suck ass but Louis won’t say shit cause he knows he deserves it, so he prepares an apology before Harry’s even turned around.

What he doesn’t expect is Harry to fucking drop.“

know you better. by @wabadabadaba / wabadabadaba

“It didn't help that oftentimes Niall and Zayn's other friend, Louis joined them and from all the stories Marcel has heard about Louis, he was positive they wouldn't get along. From their description, Louis was loud, annoying, and competitive. He liked to tease Niall and Zayn mercilessly and he was creative. Being a tattoo artist, Louis knew things about art that Marcel would simply never understand due to his analytical mindset. He was the complete opposite of Marcel and Marcel didn't think he would ever last in a social setting where he had to be with Louis.

or the one where Marcel and Louis fall in love.”

like air to the fire i need you to breathe by @larrydoinglaundry / cuckootrooke

“Louis is going to do this right. He is going to praise every little effort Harry has made and will still make with his nest, telling him how cozy and well put together it is. And practical, on top of everything. Despite being situated in Louis’ closet. But it has so many blankets, duvets and pillows that Louis will happily make Harry fall apart in that nest when he goes into heat.

… Well. He’ll try.

The thing is, Louis is sort of terrified.

OR Harry is in preheat and Louis is nervous about his upcoming heat, fearing that he might not be able to fulfill his mate's needs. Lucky for him, Harry knows how to push the right buttons to get him relaxed.”

lost in your paradise by @sadaveniren / sadaveniren

““To the alpha I fucked at the Ziam concert, I think this is yours.”

aka Harry and Louis have a one night stand.”

my service, your pleasure by @hershelsue / docklands

“Harry moves in with Louis, his childhood best friend. He had always enjoyed doing things for him, never putting much thought into it. What happens when they're in the same space all the time and Harry can't keep his hands to himself? Surely, his adoration bursts at the seams and a very suspicious Louis tries his best to keep up.”

making my way downtown by @disgruntledkittenface / disgruntledkittenface

““Bye, Harry!”

“See you tomorrow, hon!”

Harry turns in the doorway and waves before he hitches the strap of his backpack over his shoulder and steps out onto the pavement. He tries to ignore the pang of regret after he couldn’t muster a smile, knowing that the middle-aged women he works with love him and won’t hold it against him. The walk from the bakery to his apartment takes almost an hour, which is usually brutal after being on his feet for a full shift, but he decides to skip the bus today. Maybe the sunshine and light breeze will lift the mood that had taken a nosedive when he checked his phone after getting off work.

So Louis didn’t text him back. So what?

So fucking everything.”

milk kinship by @jaerie / jaerie

“Harry had aspired to become a wet nurse since first learning about the honored and respected tradition when he was a teenager. The first documentary he’d seen had been detailed and brutally honest and Harry had still fallen in love with the idea. It’s origins were rooted in highly regarded positions of the royal staff and were credited in playing a role in the lives of some of the most famous children in history. There were medically trained wet nurses and other milk services for mothers unable to feed their babies, but true wet nurse nannies could only be afforded by the rich and famous. The glamorous life appealed to Harry even if his understanding of his role changed to a more realistic view over time. As a starry eyed kid, that was where he wanted to be.

Or Harry is a wet nurse and isn't allowed to have an alpha. He may or may not break his vows.”

my pleasure (to make you mine) by @zanniscaramouche / zanni_scaramouche

““Think about it.” Niall raises an eyebrow at him before amiably leading the interrupting customer to the other side of the store.

And the thing is, even a day later, Harry's done nothing but think about piercing his nipples.

Harry decides to get his nipples pierced. Louis is the piercing artist with a smile that breaks every rule of the universe.”

no one likes to be alone by @lululawrence / lululawrence

“Harry was a full-on fucking failure.

Letting out a whimper, Harry pressed his hands to his face as he finally allowed himself to cry. After a few sobs, he realized that something soft was pressed to his face, catching his tears instead of his hands. Harry pulled it away to see what it was and saw it was one of his sister’s shirts.

Shaking his head, he turned and placed it very specifically right where he usually tucked himself up against the wall. As he carefully shifted the shirt so he could see the faded image of Britney Spears looking out at him, Harry was overcome with a need he had only ever felt once before.

He needed to nest.”

opulence thrills by @brightgolden / brightgolden

““You know, it’s my first time bidding-”

“Bidding on people?” Harry supplies.

Louis snickers as he shakes his head, a small smile playing on his perfectly shaped lips. “You could say that, yeah.”

Where a well-versed submissive, Harry Styles has spent eighteen months in BDSM abstinence after an irreconcilable difference in kink preferences with his ex-dom, and a random winner for a charity auction might just be the one who brings him back.”

plenty of time by @juliusschmidt / juliusschmidt

“Harry gets into Louis' Uber. He's not in heat. Not fully. Not yet.”

picture this by @kingsofeverything / kingsofeverything

“Part of Harry’s job at the bar includes working the door on Friday nights, checking IDs and asking for proof of vaccination. One night, Louis Tomlinson accidentally shows him something else.”

sweet like candy by @neondiamond / neondiamond

“Louis is an Alpha with an odd obsession for gummy bears. Harry is an Omega who makes friends a little too easily. They meet on the bus.”

scent partner by @daggerandrose / amomentoflove

“The name of the company was horrible: Scent Partner. Whoever was on the marketing team should be fired immediately for green-lighting that name. But the instructions were simple.

Alphas wear a shirt for three days and nights. The shirt gets sent to omegas nearing their heats to pick the alpha who smells the best to them. The company notifies the alpha and gives them the opportunity to say no. If both parties agree, they meet at a heat room for the omega’s heat. Everything is safe and consensual.”

secrets don’t make friends by @thedevilinmybrain / devilinmybrain (venomedveins)

“5 times Louis' crew knew too much, and the 1 time they thought they knew, but didn't really. Not at all.“

single bells ring by @absoloutenonsense / nonsensedarling

“A holiday singles event is not where Louis wants to be tonight, but there he is, helping his best friend find love. Just as Louis is settling in, ready to have a terrible time, he meets the fittest alpha he’s ever come across.“

skip the small talk by @sadaveniren / sadaveniren

“"Your initial Result is that you are a service based submissive.”

Harry froze. James’ eyes were on him, boring into his soul. Harry had never felt so exposed. He wasn’t a submissive. He was an alpha.

“But I’d been so careful,” came out before he stopped himself.

aka Harry is an alpha that's just a little too soft to be a good dom but that's okay because Louis is an omega who is a little too rough to be a good sub.”

the lost art of breeding and (mis)behaviour by @indiaalphawhiskey / indiaalphawhiskey

““Strip, slave.” His voice was rough – stern, as a proper Master’s voice should be. Harry couldn’t help but feel pleased. “I could have had five of your kind for your price. Best make sure I’ve not been cheated.” -- Or, Harry learns a thing or two about fate and faith.“

the only one (when it’s said and done) by @londonfoginacup / ladylondonderry

“Louis Tomlinson, alpha, twenty nine years old, is head of the Tomlinson pack.

He's unbonded, and happily so. A trip to the neighbouring Arthur pack certainly isn't going to change that.”

there’s always another option by anonymous

“Harry gets all dressed up to go see his boyfriend with one goal: get railed. He doesn't expect his boyfriend's cousin to be staying in his flat, and he definitely doesn't expect his boyfriend to dip out to go cheat on him. Oh well, just because his boyfriend isn't there doesn't mean he can't still get what he wants.“

this is my jam by @disgruntledkittenface / disgruntledkittenface

“The guy’s eyes are so blue that Harry can’t tear his gaze away, even as he moves to the beat. The searing light shade is magnetic; he finds himself leaning in and yelling, “This is my jam!” only to earn a laugh from thin pink lips that Harry’s definitely going to be dreaming about tonight.

“Your jam?”

When the guy yells back over the music, his blue eyes sparkling and his lips twisted in a smirk, Harry’s chest literally puffs out with pride at earning his attention. His obvious approval. Tongue-tied, Harry nods and closes his eyes as he lets go, the music reverberating around them. All of the usual inhibitions that keep him in the corner at parties fall away and he bounces around the center of the dance floor, waving his arms above his head. Somehow his towel stays on, even as he starts to think he wouldn’t mind if it fell off. Fuck it. He finally made it here, he’s damn well going to enjoy it.

Harry goes to a gay bathhouse for the first time. 90s AU.”

the money mark by @brightgolden / brightgolden

“Harry's heart beats faster in his chest as the name sinks in. The Tomlinson name is awfully familiar, and he isn’t sure how many rich Tomlinsons are out here in London, but he knew one. Seven years ago.

Like all fine things in the world, Louis Tomlinson ages exceptionally well.

Where Louis is Harry’s first sugar daddy who dumped him over text and their paths cross, seven years later.”

the risen by @creamcoffeelou / creamcoffeelou

“In search of the next breaking story, Harry goes off to do something no one else has been able to do: get the scoop on Louis Tomlinson and his devoted group of followers.“

the flower that blooms in adversity by @hershelsue / docklands

“Harry is twenty-six and he hasn't presented yet. He lives in London with his alpha best friend, Niall, who invites him to a New Year's camping trip with his other alpha mates. Amidst them, there's the always sharp Louis, who has a knack for observation and dirt under his toenails. Harry ends up agreeing on going, unaware he's leaving for the trip of a lifetime.“

venus as a boy by @hershelsue / docklands

“When Harry goes to a friend's movie night, the last thing she expects is to meet an enigmatic and handsome stranger who sweeps her off her feet. Louis might just think she’s the most wonderful thing alive.“

where’s the divide? by @2tiedships2 / 2tiedships2

“Louis brings potato salad to Niall's barbeque.“

wait by the light of the moon by @jaerie / jaerie

“Being a single parent of a newborn was not in Harry's plan. He can barely keep himself together doing everything on his own. He can't explain why he finds comfort in his neighbour next door, but apparently it's mutual.“

you’re shooting stars from the barrel of your eyes by @thedevilinmybrain / devilinmybrain (venomedveins)

“5 times Louis was gross hot and 1 time Harry was.“

you make the world taste better by @loveislarryislove / livelaughlovelarry

“"Nice to meet you," Harry said. "What can I get for you today?”

Louis rattled through the order – a couple loaves of different breads, some pastries, and a dozen cookies. There was a niggling sensation in the back of his mind that he was forgetting something, but he couldn’t think what it might be.

Harry nodded along as Louis spoke, starting to flit around the shop and gather things together. “Is that all?” he asked when Louis finished. “No muffins this week?”

That was it! “Oh yes, a half-dozen of the pumpkin and blueberry,” Louis said. “Almost forgot, thanks.”

“Of course,” Harry said, packing the muffins into a box. “I remember all my regular customers’ favorites. Your mother has good taste.”

Louis smiled. “She usually does,” he says. “I look forward to trying your goods myself, and finding my own favorites.”

~~~

Or, a story based on Hans Traxler’s fictional non-fictional text, The Truth About Hansel and Gretel, which is based on the Grimm fairy tale Hansel and Gretel.”

young hearts on the chase by @polaroidlouis / daffodilsforlou

“Before he can question him any further, Harry’s holding out a drink to him, ‘Louis’ written on the side of it with messy, pink letters. Warmth spreads all throughout Louis’ body when he takes it, starting from the tip of his fingers where they brush Harry’s to curl around the cup and settling in his chest.

“I also got us– um,” the omega starts, nervous fingers fumbling to get the paper bag open. “Got you an egg muffin. Or– or a normal muffin if you don’t like egg ones.”

“Who doesn’t like egg muffins?”

The smile that breaks across Harry’s face in response is as bright as the one yesterday. Louis almost expects it to be kissed into his cheek as well. It looks like Harry’s considering it for a moment, too, dreamy gaze gliding all over Louis’ expectant face. He seems to decide against it with a sigh though, and Louis’ not disappointed when they start walking side by side instead (he’s not).

harry’s a hopeless romantic, louis’ oblivious, and it’s going to be Valentine’s Day.”

if you read any of these fics, please don’t forget to leave kudos & a comment!!

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sseomtada · 1 month

Text

being [ruben dias]

you run into ruben twice - both ending in unexpected and disappointing ways.

warnings: none | wc: 5609 | 2/???

It was as if all the time in the world and none at all passed simultaneously.

During that theoretically improbable glitch, you felt like you experienced every emotion known to man. Disbelief was the first. Was it really him your eyes were taking in, or did the mice actually exist in your brain and managed to do severe damage to your amygdala?

Then came shock. He stood to his full height, seemingly taller than you recalled and held out something in his hand. It took a moment for your gaze to drift to the item - ah, your original weapon of choice.

You reached out to grab the tail end of your keys. Whether it was to avoid contact with his skin was left to be determined.

Wave after wave, each one slamming more forcefully than the last into your body, you spun helplessly through a cycle that would only end one way.

Confusion, because what was he doing here? Not in this city, the answer to that was fairly obvious even without knowing his affiliation after seeing his address, but actually here on your street. Not remotely close to where he lived.

Anger followed suit. At the forefront leading the march of red hot flames licking the back of your neck was all of the questions you had about that night. Every single one of them starting with the word why. Though, not all of that vitriol was directed his way.

A fraction of it had been left to God or Fate or whichever entity decided to move your chess pieces to end up in this predicament. This was the last thing you needed and the worst time for it to happen. The one thing both he and the powers that be shared was the prefix to all of your venom laced inquiries, why.

You fought against the current and undertow. Nothing good waited for you at the bottom.

That was easier said than done, especially as the sky illuminated with a flash again and gave you an even better look at him. Adding insult to injury was the fact that he was achingly perfect, fully grown into the features you adored.

His strong brow bone contrasting those soft eyes more than they did before. That nose of his, still as big as ever, but sitting just right in a way that highlighted his prominent cheeks. His lips were possibly the one thing that remained unchanged, but you wouldn’t know for sure unless…

“I-” Ruben croaked.

A tiny, broken word was enough to tear you into two pieces. One half of you begged and pleaded desperately for him to spit it out. All of it. The other part wanted absolutely nothing of the sort. It wanted him to never even do so much as breathe in your vicinity for as long as he lived.

You swallowed thickly, eyes squeezing shut. This was too much for you to fully grasp right now. What were you even doing still standing here getting torrentially poured on? What did you hope to gain from watching him grapple to form a single sentence?

It’s over. Don’t contact me. I don’t love you anymore.

The keys bit into your palm as your grip around them tightened. If there was anything he had to say to you, he could’ve done so when you showed up at his door. He could’ve said something on any of the days, weeks and months that followed while you experiencing a part of yourself die and fade out of existence.

You turned to leave and didn’t make it more than two steps before his hand grasped your wrist. He was still so warm. Flashes of memories flooded your mind so quickly and intensely that it threatened to bring you to your knees.

How are you always freezing, baby? Come here. Closer. Perfect.

Just as you pulled your arm up to free yourself of his grip, he released it. You stood with your back still facing him for a beat. It was long enough for him to drape his jacket over your shoulders, shielding you from the rain. Your body let out an involuntary shudder.

And then you ran.

Everything muted. You didn’t feel your legs moving, or your galloping heartbeat, or your lungs burning from uncontrolled breaths. The next thing you knew, you were in your building facing the door opposite yours.

You knocked, careful not to be too loud given the hour and hopeful that despite the time, you’d be let inside. Only God knows how long had passed before you leaned your head against the cool surface. With a final attempt, you raised your first to knock again.

Instead of your knuckles connecting with wood, they swung into empty space. Your torso fell forward into Aki’s as she yelped.

“The rain just had to come down on your run, didn’t it?” She peeled your wet frame from her pajamas.

The playful look of concern quickly turned serious once she took you in. The look in her eyes filled you with deja vu. It was that September 15th stare all over again because she just knew.

This time, the water running down your face was warm - coming from within. There were millions of mice wreaking havoc in your mind now. They gnawed, scratched and unearthed all that you buried years ago, decimating the walls you’d built brick by brick.

Aki pulled you in tight, squeezing and cradling your head.

You let it all out.

Everything that you had created with Bana held more importance to you than most things in life.

It was far more than just a passion or a dream. As silly as it sounded, forming that company quite literally gave you hope. At a time where you’d felt so lost and at your wits end, fully at odds with what seemed to be your only option, you decided to do the craziest and most ill-advised thing. Although the road was anything but smooth in the beginning, you managed to navigate from treacherous dirt tracks to freshly set tar.

You currently found yourself in that same pocket of gratefulness that you were in back then. With the contract finally being signed, the real work had only just begun on the project you had with Nike.

There was so much to be done. That coupled with the pressure of having to solidify Bana’s strength in the new city left you devoid of extra time or energy to expend to whatever the fuck happened a few nights ago.

Aki was more than a saint. She gave you a safe space and the support you needed to seal the cracks, without judgment or prying into things further. The only thing she had to offer was: if you need me to take over from here, just say the word.

She knew that this venture meant an infinite amount to you, so suggesting backing out wasn’t a gesture you would appreciate. An attractive alternative, however, would be for you to take as much time as you needed to decompress while looking after the business for you.

There were no IOU cards in existence that could compensate the support a friend like her gave. You began to think you’d spend your entire life trying to repay her for all that she did for you. On this occasion, that looked like breaking the cycle of the past.

You weren’t going to fall apart and have her clean up your messes anymore. Everything that you went through wasn’t going to be in vain. Despite the massive destabilizing event, you would carry on for both your sakes.

“T-minus two weeks, ladies.” You set your stack of materials on the conference room table. “Let’s get to work.”

Cindy whooped and Aki clapped, ready to dive in. Their high spirits empowered you to shake off any residual feelings in order to pour everything you had into Bana’s debut in the Manchester market.

The schedule was torturously tight, leaving no margin for error. Neither you nor the client’s team had the luxury of dillydallying when the date for the launch party had been set and was a non-negotiable. Your first order of business was meeting up with the design team to essentially interview them about their process and goals.

That would help you in forming the image you intended to portray to the audience. They had been outsourced just like your team, so even delving into a bit of their backstory and their journey to working with a major company would come in handy.

Cindy’s expertise would come in next. She had an unrivaled pulse on current trends across seemingly every culture. Her knowledge was a inspiring and an endless resource that would take this project beyond the local scene, which was the whole purpose of working with a brand like Nike.

Aki had to be the smartest person you knew. Her ability to forecast financials was seen by the top four multinational firms even when she was an undergraduate. She even spent time working with Deloitte post graduation, but was fast to come to the conclusion that the corporate accounting world wasn’t the environment for her. It was a realization you owed your company’s life to.

The weeks approaching the deadline quickly dwindled down to days. All the while, the three of you worked tirelessly alongside your accompanying staff to ensure that the product’s marketing was seamless.

“And…breathe.” Aki shut her laptop with a smack.

Cindy let out more of a roar than a breath, drawing both of your gazes to her.

“Sorry, was that a bit much?” She grinned sheepishly.

Actually, it wasn’t in the slightest. You too found yourself bellowing aloud, to everyone’s confusion at first, until they joined in as well. It was a release of everything you all had endured to drag your bodies to the finish line. It was also strangely therapeutic to nonverbally, yet vocally, express your relief.

At the end of it, you were laughing - something you realized you hadn’t done in quite some time. That moment made continuing on regardless of whatever issues loomed feel so very worth it. This was why you took the leap you did, the rewarding feeling of succeeding and doing so with an amazing set of people alongside you.

“We’ll tidy things up here.” Aki shot you a don’t even argue with me look.

“Sure will! You go and get some well deserved rest, boss.” Cindy offered a sincere smile.

As much as you wanted to put up a fight, you learned with experience to graciously accept kindness when it was extended to you. After bidding them goodnight, you headed back to your place.

For once, your body wasn’t coursing with insane amounts of adrenaline. Maybe the post project high wore off with age. Or maybe you’d finally discovered the limits to running yourself ragged. Either way, you were happy that when your head met your pillow, sleep was all but ready to welcome you instantly.

o passado

Your sophomore year internship was going to be the end of you.

Across every industry, it seemed that there was a rite of passage one had to complete in order to be considered a serious candidate. Going into working for your current firm, you held that belief too. But why?

You thought there’d be some lesson to be learnt or character to be built while being put through endless trials of your patience. Was it to make you value every level or work, or to not take your future position for granted? If that was the case, you didn’t need to go through them.

Everyone held some level of privilege. Whether you were fully able bodied, or neurotypical, or alive, regardless of anything else going on, you held something another wished they had. You’d never gone a day in your life without recognizing the privilege you possessed to be able to go to school, and then work a job.

The only thing the constant barrage of belittle comments, humiliating scolds and time wasting tasks achieved was making you feel disappointed. Was this all there was to life? Were you expected to obtain this badge of honor only to inflict the same horrors upon the next generation in hopes that they’d do the same?

Your tired legs carried you to bed where you curled into a little ball. What made this experience even more gut-wrenching was the misplaced guilt that crept in at moments like this. Sometimes recognizing your blessings came with a side of feeling ungrateful when you were sad because of them.

All those long days and nights your mom worked to sustain a comfortable life were undoubtably for you to even be in a position to be so stressed out. You couldn’t ever bring yourself to tell her just how hard some days were, especially knowing how much she must’ve suffered to provide for you alone.

“What’s wrong, coração?”

Ruben’s question made you whimper. You’d been trying to hold it in as much as possible so that you didn’t disturb him having fun in the living room with his friend. The go-to guise of yours was having to work on a report in order for you to duck out early.

He sank into the bed beside you and wrapped you in his arms. You shuddered, not even realizing that you hadn’t pulled up the duvet or shut the window against the winter air outside. His hand stroked your hair softly in a steady rhythm as your heartbeat slowed to mirror his own.

“I don’t want to do this anymore.” You choked out. “I can’t.”

Something about letting the voices in your head speak aloud felt even more devastating. Your body shook against his as you were hit with another wave of sobs. You felt stupid and weak and hopeless.

Ruben turned you over to face him, his brows pressed together with concern before tucking your head against his chest. He stroked the length of your spine while you cried, giving you the time you needed to let everything you felt pour out. When your shoulders finally stilled and your breathing regulated, he angled your face to look at you again.

“If you truly feel that way and want to quit, it’s okay.” Ruben wiped your cheeks with him thumb. “I won’t think less of you, neither will anyone else who loves you. More importantly, I don’t want you feeling this way or considering that decision make you see yourself as less than.”

You cupped his face with a trembling hand and touched your forehead to his, closing your eyes. With the emotional tsunami subsiding, you slowly put back together the pieces of your spirit.

It was difficult right now, but you genuinely loved what you were pursuing. Just because you were in this current predicament didn’t mean you’d stay there, or have to perpetuate it upon anyone else.

“I don’t want to give up, but…” Your voice was small.

“That’s it, then. All that matters.” His brown eyes crinkled at their edges. “You don’t want to give up on your dream.”

You shook your head, lips pouting.

Ruben sat upright and brought you with him. His hands engulfed your shoulders as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. You subconsciously found yourself doing the same. When yours reopened, you found him gazing at you lovingly.

“You can do it.” He led.

It was a journey to muster up the energy to follow, but you did, “I can do it.”

“You’re the best.” Ruben continued, hands coming down to squeeze your own.

“I’m the best.” You huffed out with a half laugh.

He brought your fingers to his lips, kissing the tips softly.

“That’s my girl.”

o presente

The blaring alarm from your phone on the bedside table didn’t startle you since you were already wide awake.

You’d gotten the most sleep you have in months the night before, but woke up earlier than you’d hoped. The past hour saw you staring into the darkness of your bedroom, groggy mind going places you were too tired to derail them from.

It was better to get those thoughts out of the way before you got your day started, you guessed. Especially those as important as the one that laid ahead.

With one last deep sigh, you threw off your duvet to get things moving. If you didn’t complete your morning routine, you wouldn’t be half of the person you needed to be. And you had to be even more than that given that the launch party was tonight.

You got dressed to go for a jog - indoors at the gym in your building this time, for obvious reasons. Avoiding songs with lyrics had been a habit you picked up since that unexpected run in too. Annoyingly, you were the type of person to be reminded of personal situations when hearing a singer croon about theirs that mirrored your own.

For an hour, you zoned out to a random chill house DJ set while your legs moved without a thought. After ending your run and stretching, you headed back up to your loft for a shower followed by a big breakfast.

You felt strangely serene despite all the recent chaos. For once, instead of questioning that, you decided to lean fully into it. On the way to the office, you even swung by a nearby cafe to pick up coffee for the girls. It would be a nice detour from the exhausted Nespresso machine.

“For me?’ Cindy beamed, taking in her signature flat white.

“Yes, for you.” A bright grin spread across your face. “And you, madame.”

Aki clutched her iced americano to her chest dramatically. “CEO of the year: Y/N.”

Your eyes rolled playfully as you all settled in for a quick recap. Something you liked to do after wrapping up a project was to firstly celebrate the work put in by everyone. Then, you analyzed strengths and weaknesses that could be improved upon for endeavors to come.

“I can’t thank you guys enough for making this process as hassle-free as possible and smashingly successful.” You concluded.

“We’re going to do great things together.” Cindy reached across the table to give each of your hands a squeeze.

“I’m so excited for our debut tonight!” Aki wiggled in her seat.

It wasn’t always a given that the client would invite outsourced teams to launch parties with their stakeholders, but Nike was gracious enough to extend an invitation to your team. They were clearly pleased with the work Bana presented, but this added an extra layer of validation.

The importance of an event like this also couldn’t be overstated. Though it was more or less a party, it was a huge networking opportunity. You and the girls had to be in your best form tonight to do the job that mattered most in this industry - marketing the firm.

After checking in on your home office and answering a few emails that could potentially produce leads, you joined Aki in her preparations for the event. It had been a minute since either of you had the opportunity to get this dolled up, so you decided to go all out.

Why not let the professionals do the heavy lifting? You felt more relaxed than you had in ages having someone else wash and style your hair. Even Aki had found herself less talkative than usual, going as far as nearly dozing off while she got her pedicure.

“You should wear that dress you’ve been saving. Remember the one you got when we were on vacation?” She suddenly perked up.

“The one from Nice?” You scrambled to find the exact one she meant. Shopping on vacation was a kryptonite of yours, making her meaning a bit difficult to pinpoint.

Aki shook her head, “Santorini…”

“Ah,” Your eyes bulged and then you nodded. “Santorini.”

There was rarely a time where you experienced love at first sight with clothing. Most of your pieces were carefully thought out and heavily deliberated upon prior to purchasing. Classic, sleek and complimentary trumped jumping on trend bandwagons to you.

When you saw that dress on the mannequin in the window, you felt like you had an out of body experience. The soft cream color, the draping with it’s exposed back and beaded details - it was a no brainer that you had to have it.

Tonight was the perfect occasion to finally break her in.

It went with the theme you’d decided on for your team’s fist major outing as well. In the spirit of celebrating Bana, Cindy suggested wearing the colors in the logo - cream, burnt orange and sage green. There were no limits to your options, anyone could choose any color and it didn’t matter if you all showed up in the same hue.

You'd just finished fastening your chunky gold hoops when Aki’s knock sounded from the door. She was always on the dot, so that meant you had exactly five seconds to head out to the car waiting downstairs.

“Good lord…” Her mouth dropped at your appearance.

“Stop,” You scrunched your nose. “Is the slight glisten on the skin too much?”

“It’s perfect! You’re giving trophy.” She gave a thumbs up.

“And you look like a sunset on the Gulf.” Your hand extended to grab hers, giving her a twirl to make the orange fabric of her halter-cut gown dance.

If there was ample time, you two would’ve stood in the hallway having a compliment battle. The ticking clock, however, demanded that you haul ass since there was one last stop to be made before arriving at the event.

“You look like a fairy!” Aki gasped as Cindy hopped into the back of the car.

“A sexy wood nymph, I hope.” She arched a freshly shaped brow.

You made a noise of agreement, “It’s exactly that.”

Fate played its hand well tonight given that you all ended up blindly choosing different colors. Cindy’s dress looked like something straight off a Dipesta runway - a soft, dreamy green that perfectly sculpted her frame.

The team’s car arrived just in time for a few photos to be taken before receiving an escort to your table. Aki took an appreciative sip of the champagne that was poured, savoring the bubbles in her mouth.

If you didn’t know she tended to not drink while working on huge projects, you might’ve thought she was a weirdo. You took a sip of your own and understood her pleasure even more — it was fucking delicious.

“I’d like to thank everyone for coming tonight to celebrate this new line of our iconic Air Max. Even though we’re still a few months out from consumer purchasing, each one of you here has made it possible to bring this dream of ours to life.” Nike’s CEO began.

A short round of applause followed. Their words filled you with gratitude and relief. The best part of branding a product like this was that you got in and out early. Everything was in their hands now and you wished them the best of luck on the remainder of their journey.

“A special thanks goes out to our major partners, who’ll be pivotal in the time leading up to the release.” They continued, point towards a table near yours. “We look forward to seeing them on our Manchester City players on European nights and beyond.”

You clapped along with the other attendees, eyes following the direction of their attention. The meeting of your hands slowed to a stop. Only a few feet away from you sat the owner of the brilliant grin that haunted you, that same expression returned to the speaker on the podium for their words.

Aki sensed a shift in your energy instantly, looking at you and then picking up your line of sight. She squeezed your knee to bring you back to the present. Your burning eyes blinked before turning to hers.

Are you okay? They silently asked. You mustered a small smile and placed a hand overs hers. I’m good.

“Our concept with this new shoe in the Air Max line was to really emphasize that trademark, shock absorbing feel that they’re known for.” The head of the design team took the stage.

As much as you wanted to give them your undivided attention, you struggled to keep your eyes forward without shifting off to the left. Get it together, Y/N, now’s not the time. You took a breath breath and held it, begging oxygen to flow straight to your brain.

“The team at Bana really understood what we were going for and found the perfect way to translate that to the masses. A big shout out to you lot for being absolute rockstars.” They saluted your table.

Faces filled with smiles turned in your direction, crippling your efforts to steady your nerves. You somehow gathered what you needed to slightly bow your head in appreciation before they continued with their speech.

Cindy inhaled sharply and leaned in to whisper conspiratorially, “Uh, don’t look, but Ruben Dias is staring over here for some reason. Do you guys know him?”

Fuck it.

Any hope of regaining a sense of normalcy to your night was thrown in the trash. It wouldn’t ever be a usual occurrence as long as you two ended up in the same space. It couldn’t.

You had to stop avoiding that, especially considering that this wasn’t your fault. You’re not the reason why it felt like trying to breathe outside during a heat wave whenever you shared the same space as him.

“Yeah,” Your eyes locked with his, unshifting. “Something like that.”

It didn’t take a detective to realize that your words were loaded. Cindy was quicker than most to pick up on that and her back quickly rejoined with her seat. Aki downed the rest of her champagne, signaling discretely for a top up as soon as the flute touched the table.

She was right on cue for the start of the event’s mixer portion.

You swiped a fresh glass from a tray being floated around the room and tapped into the part of your brain that gave you laser focus. Bana was your priority, had been for the past four years, and nothing - or no one - would ruin that.

The head of design was your first stop. It was only fitting that you return the kindness they’d extended to you in their speech and throughout working with their team. They promised to keep your firm high in their mind when cooking the next great invention for all your hard work.

Cindy introduced you to her mystery contact who was on the executive side. You got to know a bit more about how they met, the middle-aged woman being her former advisor at her university. It said a lot to you as an employer to see that she still kept very strong connections with people she’d met years prior.

Aki was working her charm as usual with some guys who seemed to be too shy to get into the cocktail hour. You weren’t sure about their affiliations, but everyone in this room was worth sparing a conversation. Besides, she’d definitely fill you in later.

“Are you Bana’s CEO?” An accented voice spoke from behind you.

He was tall, tuxedo fitted to his huge frame with superior precision. Oddly handsome too, though you couldn’t pinpoint if his lips were real or not. He was also the person sitting beside Ruben, if you weren’t mistaken.

“I am, nice to meet you.” You shook his hand. “And you’re in the City squad. Excuse my ignorance, I don’t keep up with football.”

His laugh exuded relief, strangely. “That’s quite alright, I can imagine how busy you must be. I play up front, Erling Haaland.”

If there was any waver if your expression, you did well to mask it. So, he was Ruben’s teammate. It made you question whether or not he knew anything about your previous relationship to his coworker.

“I hope our firm continues to have a good relationship with Nike, maybe we’d keep running into each other at events like this.” Though far from explicit, your tone was leading. What was his reason for approaching you?

“It’s something I hope for as well, though I might want to pull your attention away from them just a bit.” Erling smirked.

Suddenly, you became the one being roped in. “How so?”

“I’ve been looking for a change in my own personal branding. Based on what you did here, I’d be interested in having a conversation with you and your team.” He answered directly.

This time, it was your tiny laugh that was filed with relief. No grilling about your past, then. Even better was the fact that you’d potentially lined up a new business opportunity. Was continuing to work in this particular vein the smartest idea? Yes and no.

But you didn't have the luxury of playing it safe currently, you also didn’t particularly care to anymore. Manchester was just as much yours as it was his for the taking.

“We’d love to hear what you have in mind.” You smiled.

Erling accepted your contact via Airdrop, telling you to keep an ear out from a call from his assistant before excusing himself to make more rounds. You bit down on your bottom lip to ground yourself from showing just how good it felt to be in top form. Not just yet, that could wait until you were done hunting for the night.

You refocused on combing through the sea of people for your girls to see if they needed bailing out. Unfortunately, classy gatherings like this didn’t put a halt to rather tasteless behavior from men. You'd just spotted Aki cackling at something the person she was speaking to said, thankfully, when your view was obstructed by yet another tuxedo clad chest.

Salt water, patchouli, sage…tobacco.

Your sense knew it was him before your eyes combed up to meet his. It was the same potent yet subtle fragrance that lingered on his jacket, and your skin, even after you’d washed them.

“I always knew you could this.” Ruben’s voice made your flesh raise.

You can do it. You’re the best. That’s my…

“Well,” You spoke aloud to shut the memory out. “I guess deep down I did too.”

Awkward silence took the reigns yet again in an encounter neither of you expected. Unlike the previous one, it wasn’t an empty street providing him with the opportunity to say any of the things you wanted to hear. It certainly wasn’t the place to get into why he’d so terribly and abruptly ripped your heart clean out of your chest.

“Excuse m-”

“Y/N.” His call paralyzed you.

From within your own body, you watched helplessly as he stepped just a bit closer - shined loafers nearly meeting your gold sandals. Ruben was never in the business of hiding what was on his mind, a trait that evidently remained as he scanned over your daringly cut gown.

At that moment, it felt like more of a curse than a blessing that you chose to wear this of all things tonight.

“If it make things too…difficult, me being teammates with Erling” He whispered. “I can make sure there are no questions if you want to decline.”

A fault line appeared in your composure as you scoffed, blinking in disbelief like you’d been physically struck. Who the fuck did he think he was? Actually, who was this person standing in front of you?

The Ruben you knew was far from this version. Someone who was all but telling you to walk away, much less based on an assumption that his presence in a client’s life was too much for you to handle. Because what, he broke your heart almost a decade ago? Did he really think he held that much power of you still?

Him being here tonight might’ve been a good thing. If you hadn’t ran into him again, you’d still be subconsciously romanticizing the past and letting your mind dip into the imaginary pool of what ifs for longer than you deserved.

Seven years was a long time. It seemed to give Ruben a level of audacity that quite frankly made you feel an emotion that you didn’t think was possible when it came to him, disgust.

Your limbs were suddenly free of any stiffness, and quicker than he could object, you made your way to the exit. You weren’t running away from him this time. Leaving was for the best given the fact that you were seeing red. Besides that, you’d already secured something of a win.

An opportunity that you were going to pursue with every ounce of your being.

#ruben dias #ruben dias x you #ruben dias x reader #ruben dias fic #ruben dias imagine #being

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progenycursed · 3 months

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OHHH I LOVE PALE KING AS A CHARACTER AND I LOVE YOUR TAKE ON HIM, I AM EATING GOOD TONIGHT

If it isn't a spoiler for the comic, does he ever realise he was wrong about the vessels? And what do you think was his reasoning for escaping into the dream realm with his palace?

Thank you! I wanted a different take on his character than what I usually see. And I loved the idea of a god that doesn’t act regal because who’s going to stop him? So it’s great to hear people enjoying this hyper deep-in-denial nerd I have created. Now onto the lore dump!

I won’t say when for story reasons, but yes, he does eventually realize he was wrong about the Hollow Knight being mindless.

For the explanation for him being in the dream realm, it wouldn’t be covered in Progeny Cursed so I can let my chronic can’t-shut-the-fuck-up-itis run wild on this one.

As for why he entered his dream realm, it was his backup plan for catastrophic failure. When he realized the Hollow Knight plan wasn’t going to work, he had to come up with another way to keep his people safe. Since fully ascended higher beings can’t enter another's dream realm without them knowing and allowing it, it was his only option.

His plan was to pull all his still living citizens into his dream realm until it safe to bring them back out. But he needed to research how as he didn’t know enough about the dream realm to do such a feat. He needed time and data. His best source of information was from Unn, but even she wasn’t sure how to pull living mortals into a dream. But it was all he had to go on, so he did test after test to learn how best to do it. He learned no one who was even remotely infected could enter his dream. They had to be untouched. And he would need to pull in physical objects as well so the mortals could actually walk on something.

As the infection was getting worse, he began moving citizen to the palace. Those who had already lost their families, homes, towns were offered a safe place in the palace. Anyone willing to was allowed in as well. As being closer to him lowered the chances of them falling to the Radiance. Many in the city, especially the upper class, decided to stay in their homes.

He decided to run a larger trial on how to get people into his dream before committing to the final pull. When he ran the test, something went wrong. Instead of just the few volunteers, everyone along with the palace, was pulled in. Since it wasn’t his plan at that time to pull the entire palace in, some of it was left behind. Along with anyone or thing just outside it.

Worst of all, he pulled himself in. Without an anchor in the physical world, he couldn’t get anyone out, including himself. They were all stuck inside, and no one else could get in. Most, didn’t even know what had happened. Many thinking he had abandoned them. And all he could do was watch them all fall to Radiance from his dream realm.

But I don’t think this was his only backup plan. >:)

Has anyone ever been confused by the lore tablets in King’s Pass? When I first played the game, I thought higher beings was referring to those who had their minds given to them by the Pale Kings blessing. They became higher than animals. Then I learned that higher beings are the gods.

But then that lead to new problems. Any higher being that came from beyond the borders would know that there was a world beyond. They wouldn’t lose their mind outside of Hallownest. And the tablet about ‘only this kingdom could produce ones such as you’ would just be our right wrong. No foreign higher being would read these and believe them.

Then it clicked for me. The only group all these tablets would cover, is the vessels. They are technically higher beings so they could read these tablets. They are the only beings we have seen that can focus soul to heal. They were made within the Kingdom of Hallownest. And Ghost lost their memories beyond the borders, lost part of their mind. These tablets were made for them. And they were all trying to convince them to enter Hallownest.

Now why would the Pale King want vessels to return to Hallownest? How would he know these vessels would specifically come from the Howling Cliffs into King’s Pass? Why would he not want them to hide themselves? It’s almost like, he knew it was going to happen, and he wanted to lead them to something…

Lore Tablets referring to Higher Beings:

Higher beings these words are for you alone-

-(Kings Pass) Your strength marks you amongst us. Focus your soul and you shall achieve feats which other can only dream

->If you made it this far, you can heal by the way

-(Kings Pass) Within our lands do not hide you true form. Let all bask in you majesty, for only this kingdom could produce ones such as you

->Don’t hide your face or form. As this is the place you came from

-(Kings Pass) Beyond this point you enter that land of king and creator. Step across this threshold and obey our laws. Bear witness to the last and only civilization, the eternal Kingdom. Hallownest.

->Past here, you enter the land of the king that created you. Once you enter, obey the laws

-(Howling Cliffs) These blasted plains stretch never ending. There is no world beyond. Those foolish enough to traverse this void must pay the toll and relinquish the precious mind this kingdom grants

->There is nothing out there, to leave is to lose the mind this land gives you

-(Abyss) Our pure vessel has ascended. Beyond lies only the refuse and regret of its creation. We shall enter that place no longer

->Don’t look what’s past this door.

#progeny cursed #hollow knight #hollow knight comic #pale king #hollow knight pale king #hollow knight pure vessel #lore #answered asks #lore dump #it was so hard not to just spill everything for this one #its for story buid up #a dramatic reveal late #I just need to keep my mouth shut #cant shut the fuck up itis

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thecarnivorousmuffinmeta · 1 year

Note

I’m not sure if I ever asked you this question or not, but I’ve always wanted to: how do you come to the conclusions you do about the characters in Twilight and other works?

Actually I guess my question is how do I learn to do it myself lol

Is there a way I can train myself to? Is it just that you take a story and start digging? Did something just seem off about the characters and you took a bigger look at it?

I’m an aspiring writer, which is why I want to know; I feel like it would make me better in my own writing if I could do the things you do, because, well… you’re rather good authors, you and Vinelle I mean.

Frankly, Painting Red Madonnas is one of my favorite books ever.

Anyway… thank you lol

Look, @therealvinelle, praise!

It just seems to be the way I'm wired. I don't even realize it's heresy until I hear other people talking about the same thing and realize "well, shit, I can't talk about this at Christmas parties". There's a lot of, "Muffin, what did you think of X?" "... I thought generic normal things that wouldn't offend anyone's blorbo."

I guess I can give some pointers on how I end up in the bizarre places I do:

Completely Ignore the Existence of the Author

Much of the time it's obvious why Character X does Y in a piece of media and you can point fingers at the author. The author loves this trope, the producers wanted to draw in a certain audience, doing Z would be much too spicy for the viewership, etc.

In the @therealvinelle and Muffin world, that's not allowed. The work has to make internal sense with internal logic. Which means that if something doesn't seem right or doesn't match up, you have to find a reason for why it is what it is.

More, you can't take the author's word for what a character is supposed to be or what they're supposed to be doing and thinking.

As a rough example, JKR clearly tells us that Dumbledore is a good man and a firmly moral character. However, within the story, he does very questionable things all the time (I'm actually struggling to think of anything he did that is remotely moral).

So, you can't take the author's word for anything.

Characters Can and Do Lie

All narrators are on some level unreliable. They each have an agenda, their own biases, their own goals and desires that sometimes conflict with what's actually happening in the world. You view things through the narrator so always take what they say with a grain of salt.

Take Bella Swan, she tells us that Jessica Stanley is the worst. That Jessica is only interested in Bella to further her own ends and is, at the end of the day, a cheap friend who is envious of everything Bella has and is (such as Mike's attraction to Bella).

However, if we discount Bella for a moment and really take a look at Jessica. While the girl is chatty and does talk about things like the Cullens, her gossip is the normal amount I'd expect if someone looks incestuous in high school and she always makes an effort to be with Bella.

What Bella conveys to us, the readers, is a very skewed perception of Jessica framed entirely by Bella.

We hear only what the narrator wishes for us to hear.

Another is the Tom Riddle memories. We later learn why Dumbledore is doing this, he is dying and needs Harry to eventually kill himself so as to rid the world of Voldemort. To this end, the memories are very carefully selected and narrated to show Tom Riddle as the worst human being on the planet who is irredeemably evil and must be killed at all costs.

Harry doesn't ever question this, though, because he takes Dumbledore at face value and eagerly considers himself a Dumbledore loyalist. And so, if you don't think to question Harry, you'll never question just why Albus would ever do this.

Similarly, characters can be wrong and misinformed. They have access only to certain information, covered by bias, which means it's entirely possible they could be incorrect about something even if they firmly believe it.

Look at What the Characters Actually Say and Do

Ignore what you're supposed to think about the characters (either from other people, the author, or the characters themselves) and instead look at what they say and what they do to inform your opinion about them.

What does Edward actually say about his grand love with Bella Swan? What is it that actually seems to draw him to her from his own perspective and from what he tells to Bella?

#about this blog #vinelle #therealvinelle #praise #painting red madonnas

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marisoft-paint-adventures · 1 year

Text

Pgs. 309 - 384

so there’s this guy.

he has an intro.

and

he’s pretty cool.

he’s so cool he has a shitty galaxy reflection in his shades.

his name is David and his room looks like this.

Dave’s room is the most kind of guy room ever, I can just feel his entire personality here, and I can also feel the “this dude has no parental guidance outside of an equally unorganized brother” energy.

Dave is just a hyperspecific Guy, a real type of Guy, he’s even described as liking obscure bands and shit, Hussie was airing something out when making him.

Anyway, these are your copies of the beta you received in the mail recently. You've labeled them with your name in BOLD RED PRINT to distinguish them from your BRO's copies, who labeled his in kind. Neither of you really gives a shit about this game or has any intention of playing it, but you'll be damned if you'll let that get in the way of your campaign of one-upmanship.

the Lalondes and Striders have a lot of parallels going on between each other with their dynamics and situations. 1 thing that sets them apart is that the perception of an insane mindgame rivalry seems to be more truthful on Dave’s end compared to Rose. Rose thinks that even a fucking fancy pillow is some kind of symbol of scorn and spite in the waterfall of irony and insincerity. while there’s not much seen out of Dave and Bro’s relationship on a normal day, the stupid ass stealth moves that Bro pulls out in order to get Dave’s goat really implies that there is a genuine absurd rivalry going.

also they’re just brothers. when there’s brothers in fiction, they either hate each other or like each other but still fuck with each other just for the sake of Being Brothers.

Dave: Bleat like a goat and piss on your turntable.

You would never consider allowing any fluid even remotely resembling urine to touch your beloved TURNTABLES. That would risk breaking them, and a world without the gift of your godly science just doesn't sound like a place you want any part of. While you're at it, you might as well wipe out human civilization with a meteor or something ridiculous like that which will probably never happen. That sort of thing only happens in stupid idiot movies for stupid idiots.

You will however contemplate bleating like a goat for IRONICALLY HUMOROUS purposes at a later date.

Dave is so lame.

FUCKING APPLE JUICE BABY. YEAH LOVE THAT SHIT. TOP 3 FRUIT JUICES ON THE TIERLIST WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

he’s gonna say it, he’s gonna say the thing.

yeah this is the OS design I’m attached to the most, I grew up with Windows 7 which basically did everything Vista did but a bit more glassy, so this is up my fucking ally. look at those GRADIENTS, look at all that GLOSS, it’s so fucking good.

HE SAID IT.

I love Hussie’s fake UI I love it.

I also love Dave Strider’s blog, he said the n-word on it

not joking you can check for yourself.

FUCKING SWEET BRO AND HELLA JEFF YEAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

SBAHJ is so damn interesting because it’s the Homestuck thing that has the furthest reach out of the entire comic but at the same time people don’t even know it’s Homestuck.

true story: my 1st ever exposure to Homestuck without even knowing it was when I was like 12 years old and watched a fucking VanossGaming GMod video in which they played that masterpiece SBAHJ map.

youtube

seeing a giant shittily compressed texture that just said AIDS which spun around in a circle and fucking instantly killed anything it touched was literally formative for my sense of humor.

the backstory is also absolutely beautiful, imagine dropping your armature Gamer Webcomic™ on the Penny Arcade forums only for Future Homestuck Artist Andrew Hussie to come in and completely shit on your comic by turning it into the worst form of art you have ever seen which would then turn into its own popular comic.

I really like the utility of SBAHJ as an in-universe source of memes and in-jokes for all the kids to reference rather than forcing relevance by shoving in memes that were popular at the time. it really helps make Homestuck feel... not exactly timeless per say, but more relatable in way that supersedes generations.

I say this because I fucking know for a fact real ass memes come in later on in the comic and they get really fuckin annoying.

I would kill someone for a Midnight Crew adventure, you would not believe how far I would go for this to be real.

TT: In some cultures the persistent refusal of a lady's invitation to play a game with her would be a sign wanton disrespect. TT: Either that, or flagrant homosexuality.

STOP JOKING ABOUT DAVE LIKING MEN YOU DO NOT KNOW OF THE FUTURE CONSEQUENCES IT HAS.

it is here where Dave and Rose immediately become the best fucking character dynamic ever.

TT: Sometimes I wonder how you are ever allowed to pay for meals in restaurants. TT: It must be hard to keep a low profile when you're always overhearing awed voices whisper, "It's that guy who has a blog." TG: seriously TG: dudes be worshipping me left and right TG: i cant hardly walk down the street without stepping over torsos of the prostrate TT: Navigating the urban landscape I'm sure is difficult enough without an obstacle course of deferential flesh and skyward asses. TT: Perhaps adapting the art of parkour to your unique environment would help? TG: yeah! TG: i mean damn TG: like theres this scruffy little shit at my feet TG: an orphan or something i dont know TG: face flush on the pavement TG: im like dude you listening for a stampede of buffalo or something? TG: he braves a look at me then gives my shoe a little kiss and scurries the fuck off TT: Heavy is the crown. TG: yeah TG: not kicking oliver twist in the fucking face every day is my gift to the world i guess

also the little "yeah!" he does in excitement of parkour before he corrects himself back to serious coolguy mode is fucking perfect.

aw what the fuck put that shit away.

Dave’s Phat Beat Machine may be a silly joke about shitty fucking DJ machines that have weird pre-made beats and sound effects but some of this shit slaps when you play them at the same time ngl. 11 and 12 together is really fuckin good.

also Captain Planet is in this flash.

maybe Dave is cool, no one else could catch and open that apple juice with such finesse.

this is a really great series of expressions, he is so mad. he can’t stop thinking about PISS.

HE’S SO MAD.

oh god.

oh god they’re here.

You glance at one of the many RADICAL PUPPETS in your BRO'S collection and nod in approval. Is there anything not awesome about your BRO? No, you think not.

this is not cool this is very not cool.

why is the little man in the SHOWER, bro does not BATHE, he is made of WOOD.

he is simply having a terrible, terrible day.

why did he do this.

HOLY SHIT IT’S DAVE’S IRONIC SELF PORTRAIT.

this is why Dave’s sylladex shit is the best sylladex shit, sheer frustrating mathematics leading to renaming items into weird synonyms and yelling out shit to fucking send out swords.

LOOK AT HIM.

he changed his tune so fast, he went from imposing and about throw down to just...

now how will he play the funny Sburb??? what will he do to get out of this situation- WIZARD.

GIANT, STONE, WIZARD.

girl is not having it.

it is here we get the entire downlow of this maddening mother-daughter relationship through the totally not biased eyes of Rose. I mean look at this shit:

Your mother clearly has no real affinity for these damnable things. She only collects them to spite you. If anything, she finds them even more repellent than you do. She's just a committed woman.

A while ago you gave this as an ironic gift to your MOM for mother's day. You even customized it with a drink holder to support one of her ubiquitous ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES. She "liked" the gift so much, she had it bronzed and put on this pedestal. She even left it plugged in so it can still be turned on now and then. But never to do any cleaning. It never leaves this display.

The PRETTY PRINCESS DOLL has been sitting there for months, ever since your mother got this abomination for your birthday as a totally PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE gesture. You decided to make it much less abominable by knitting Her Majesty a new head and new arms. Now it brings a mischievous smile to your face whenever you walk by. Your mother hasn't removed the doll yet, and probably never will. She would never be the one to blink first.

This was a drawing you did of your cat JASPERS when you were younger, along with a poem about him. Your mother bought this ostentatious $15,000 frame for it, and had it welded to the door.

Using the colorful MAGNET LETTERS, you recently left a succinct message, which may or may not have been directed toward anyone in particular. But you couldn't find the letter W, so you just stuck two V's together.

Your mother then purchased a fresh pack of W's and left them there for your convenience. Appreciative of the thoughtful gesture, you left her a sincere THANK YOU NOTE, which you had legally notarized, and then marked with a drop of blood.

But part of it was touching the floor, so your mother was kind enough to lift the lower portion of the document with a VELVET PILLOW.

this entire cavalcade of fucking overly professional stupidity really just symbolizes the daily Lalonde struggle. again, way more of an actual thing compared to the baking menace in Washington, Rose does not feel loved enough, she projects contempt onto every action of her mother, even if they’re completely genuine, who’s also literally an alcoholic. but at the same time, this is ridiculous. I can bet that the mere thought of any of this coming off as mean-spirited to Rose is just flying over Mom’s head because she’s too busy cleaning shit or getting drunk. she’s so sincerely nice but also too damn ignorant, while at the same time going completely overboard in every sense just because she can. “oh look at this!! my daughter’s very own drawing!!! it’s so nice!!! let me put it in an expensive frame and then weld it straight onto the fridge!!! :)))))” and then Rose sees this and just goes “SHREW!!! DAMNED SHREW!!!” meanwhile Mom’s just taking this as “oh she’s spelling words on the fridge!!! :))))) but she has no Ws..... :((((( I’ll buy some for her!!! that will satisfy her needs!!! :)))))” and I guess Rose takes a break from the absolute scorn she’s building up in her system to make the most polite ass note all like “Dearest Mother Lalonde, I thank thee for this humble present.” and notarizing it with BLOOD. of course this has to end with Mom walking in, seeing this note and going “how thoughtful!!!” and then sliding a god damn pillow just for the presentation.

it is my firm belief that the Lalondes are just kind of off the fucking wall inherently, literally all of them just do wacky shit like this without question.

fandom mischaracterizations are so frequent that they’re not even a surprise, but this concept of Rose being this completely serious and levelheaded girl who’s always moody and brooding and never puts up with stupid shit is something I cannot understand how anyone picked up from her. she has a sense of humor, a really damn good one, a lot of the comedy can be attributed to her dialogue. she’s not dead serious, she literally knits Lovecraft monsters in purple for goofs and does something like the above while no one is around. and in no possible way is she running on full logic and reasoning because she plays weird mind games with her mom and later on just goes insane and destroys shit for the hell of it. there really is more to Rose than just “goth = serious smart.”

a lot of this extends to Kanaya as well because I guess people just write the 2 of them as the same person, as we all know, couples can’t be together unless they completely overlap on the Venn diagram of their personalities, hobbies, and interests, but that’s for later.

AND THEN SHE PAYS FOR THE FUCKIN MAGNET. WHO DOES THIS.

MOTHER JUMPSCARE.

And of all things to be doing during a power outage. She's up to her IRONIC HOUSEWIFE routine again. That mop bucket doesn't even have any water in it! What an absolute madwoman.

I like how Rose calls this some kind of weird irony chore that no sane individual would do without a hint of joking, she really expects too much out of Mom. a real core part of this relationship is how Rose assumes that her mother is operating on the same high level thinking as her, when in reality she’s just doing actual housewife stuff genuinely. the bucket being empty is even part of Rose overthinking all of this, Mom’s using a Swiffer, she doesn’t need water, she just brought the bucket because it completes the housewife look.

I don’t know if that latter part was intentional or if Hussie just didn’t know how Swiffers worked.

NYOOM.

SICK TRICKS.

ah fuck.

the Strider household is such a very specific home aesthetic of “complete fucking disaster, the likes of which you have never seen, owned by 2 dudebros who like Eminem.” this visual style is so poignant that the best way Dave fixes a window is with straight black tape, how classy.

big fan of how everyone talking to Jade starts to smile, she just has that energy. I mean look at Dave, you see that single raised pixel? that’s him smiling! he’s got joy! and he’s so much more genuine when he’s talking to her too, she’s literally the one person in the friend group where he can drop the whole image of “I am so fucking Cool and Real and Awesome and Swag.” they play off of each other really damn well, no wonder DaveJade is a really big ship.

TG: say hi to your grand dad for me too ok GG: ._. GG: yes i guess an encounter with him is almost certain GG: it is usually........ GG: intense!!! TG: well yeah isnt it always with family

this is the non-embarrassing parallel to John talking about Dad with Rose. Dave’s probably thinking to himself, “ah yes, she too knows of the struggle of high octane anime fights in the middle of the house.” meanwhile Jade’s talking about yelling at a corpse.

also JADE KNOWS THE FUTURE??? HUHHHH???? HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE???????????

#homestuck liveblog #hs liveblog #hs reread #liveblog #reread #live read #liveread #homestuck #hs1 #hs #home22tuck #Act 2 #flash #rose lalonde #dave strider #jade harley #Beta Kids #mom lalonde #guardians

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