#i was super happy when it got an official release

[bellastay99]

STRAY KIDS: HOW WOULD THEY...

(fem!Reader x SKZ)

Dealing with you scared even to go outside after JYP release the note confirming the relationship with him...

(Is quite big, I write a lot...)

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Hyung Line

JYP ENTERTAINMENT CONFIRMS RUMORS OF DATING!

This last two months, Dispatch released a photo of an idol having regular dates with a unknown woman. Fans confirms that is a member of the group STRAY KIDS and they made up theories that she may be dating him for at least a year, she appeared in photos at the airport, waiting rooms at events, performance events and etc. Some others, said that she may be only a staff, but most of the fans confirms that no, a staff wouldn't go out in romantic date with the idol. Look at some knetizens positive comments:

"He's lucky...she's also lucky"

"People still thinking she's a staff? They're holding hands"

"At least she's pretty"

"I actually said hi to her once...I tought it was a staff, but she's super sweet!"

"SHE'S NOT A STAFF?!"

"Oh! My baby is growing up!"

After the rumors, JYP immediately responded to the case confirming the dating between a member of Stray Kids and this girl, who the name wasn't reveled:

"Hello, this is JYP Entertainment,

This note is a response to the dating rumors that is being on internet in those last two months.

We confirmed that, a stray kids member is officially dating a woman (non public person) for at least two years. The couple didn't want their private life exposed to soon, so we agreed to wait for the right moment.

We're very happy for them! We all wish good energies and lucky to the couple, this person has been helping the entertainment and the group in the last years. We trust our members, we trust the ones who follow and love them, so please, send happy messages! :)"

Of course that the attacks would be large, but worse then we expected. Threats, locations being exposed, dangerous mailboxes and photos of lethal weapons being posted on Twitter with the hashtag: #ComingForYou, has being alerting the fandom, the JYP Entertainment and the Stray Kids group that has already showed their disappointment toward the fans behave.

After the threats started, according to the fans, the group member hasn't being posting photos as usual and his bubble message to "try me first".

Stays are in shock and trying to help banning hate users and warning the police, but also, relived that no one knows the girl's identity, that way, she can stay more safe.

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BANGCHAN

Not happy....at all.

I mean, he's happier and more chilled after starting dating you

His sleeping is much better

He still working his ass off, but...well, he's a workaholic and you understands him

That's one of the reasons he loves and protects you so much

You know Chan from Australia, a year before he went to South Korea to be a trainee.

From all that time, both changed messages

And soon, you'll be also moving to Korea

Why?

Cause you loved him

And he send it to you a voice message confessing his love before a show

Yes, he got the adrenaline and confessed.

You immediately got your saved money and moved to Korea

You couldn't handle one more year without him.

You lived in a family house

Bangchan paid your collegue

You got a work inside of JYP administration area

Thanks to him

Bangchan PAID a apartment for you

Cause he really wants you to stay

Then...soon, very soon, both were dating

He talked to the CEO and yes, he accepted, cause he knew both of you

He never had being so happy after Stray Kids formation

The boys loves you

They protect you

They help you two hide your secrets

Bangchan is a little jealous, cause they're very touchy with you and treats you like a little sister

Well, they love you!

About the threats...

Oooh man...ooohohoho! He got so pissed off!

And you know how pissed off he's when he's pissed off!

We all can imagine!

How would he deal?

Make a song...for sure. Unreleased, but he made it.

Talk about that at lives, very mad. Not happy at all.

And the most...scary one...

Delete his bubble photo...

And send a message like: "Very disappointed..."

The boys would have to chill him sometimes

He abandoned internet for days because of the threats, also for him, but...specially about you.

You're afraid to go out...

He would make sure to where his armour and sword to protect you

On live...he would also "threat the threatners"

Bangchan: Also, before end the live...I wanted to say that, I'll go see the Wonka movie soon...and yes, she will be coming with me and she will be protected by me and bodyguards, and JYP and myself, the boys, will be dealing the threats with the best way possible: Law Suit. So, we already have a team for that and she got bodyguards everywhere. I had to convince my boss to protect and prove to him how bad it was. I'm done, she's done...Stray kids and JYP are done with this...bullshit, sorry the word, but this is all bullshit, is coward, is childish, dangerous and a criminal. If you're a criminal, you're not a Stay. If you're a murderer, you're not close to be a Stay. Not even close to be human. So...with this message, I say goodbye, sorry, no hugs today...I love you Stays, you know that...but, I'm fighting against this too, we're not in the best mood. Stays! The real ones! *smiles* She love you guys so so so soooooo much! She said that will thank you guys soon as possible! And I'm so grateful too! Love you guys so much...so much. I love so much at a point I want to marry her one day, and...have a family *laughs* . You guys are our guardians... our guard angels! *giggles* See you guys soon! Bye bye~

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MINHO

He's angry, of course...very angry

But he's terrified as well

He was waiting for the hates

But not in that intensity

Fans can record him looking around all the time

He can barely focus on what's going on

The boys have to always call his attention

In the first week of threats

Minho let you stay at his mother's house

Cause he was so afraid...but so scared to lose you

By someone crazy enough to put their dirty hands on you

Do and say evil things to you

He couldn't handle that

Again... He was terrified

He would never give up on his girl

After years he finally got the chance to confess to you and talk to the CEO

That he fell deeply in love with his only girl friend...best friend

You used to be a colleague of him at the dance academy on his pre debut era

He fell in love very fast

And when he realized that they were debuting

He promised himself to write for you everyday

To not, never, lose contact

A man of word

You end up being friends with the whole Stray Kids

You're his princess, his treasure, shelter, everything

You're the only person that Minho can call: Mine

And he's jealous and protective

So... For that situation, he became a little paranoid

He let you stay in his mother's house and his dorm

Never your house, cause the crazy people were exposing location wherever you go

You're also terrified (of course) and he doesn't show what he's truly feeling about the situation

So he's always trying to calm you down and not letting you see the internet

Everyday he's ending up saying that he'll protect you and everything will be ok

And a kiss on your forehead

He would probably try to express himself on bubble app

First taking off his photo

And change the bio to: Over my dead body

And send a message in the first week, terrified

BUBBLE MESSAGES:

-Hi

-Is cute Lino here

-Of course it is me

-And I'm scared...

-I'm terrified...

-For her life...

-You guys are scaring me too

-A lot

-This is how you crazies show love?

-I don't want that...

-I really don't

-I will make a law suit for this, soon as possible

-I'm disappointed

-Afraid

-And disgusted

-Leave her alone...leave us alone

-If you're attacking her, you're attacking me!

-So I'll attack back...wait for your consequences

-JYP will soon release a note about this with a law suit

-For the innocent stays that had to read this, I'm sorry, I see you guys helping us😻

-Thank you so much, we love you and you guys deserve the world❤️

-I normally don't express myself like that, but for that situation...I'm really, really thankful...

-Rest well and SKZ love you❤️

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CHANGBIN

You have a personal body guard

He's worried to death

Unfortunately, outside, he's not trusting no one...

He let you walk only in front of him

Not even by his side

Ready to fight 24/7

Won't make you go out by force, would wait the right moment

Probably would definitely let you stay at their dorm

If he's out for work, he would, or take you with him or spam messages asking if it is all alright with you alone

You would have to calm him down sometimes

If he sees something about you (a bad comment) anywhere, he would get very, very stressed out for the rest of his day

He wouldn't be afraid to talk in public about that

He would get so stressed out that maybe would start a discussion

He would be confused by how people could do things like that to you

He is not fighting with you, he's just...trying to understand why

And not understanding a situation, makes him mad

His voice is raised, he can't stop moving around, his breath is out of control

Then...starts to cry, looking at you with desperate eyes

Scared, confused, angry...mixed feelings

You know, he's trying his best too

He probably would be so done with this...

But would never give up

Changbin breaks down in tears at the fanmeeting...

On the last fanmeeting of Stray Kids, Changbin couldn't hold back his tears of fear anymore. Apparently, a "fan" screamed out many times asking for his girlfriend's location, asking if she was there. Changbin and the boys seemed to ignore her for the past 20 minutes, but Minho stepped forward to confront and protect his two friends. Changbin can be seen walking behind the curtain and kneeling starting to cry, Chan walks to him to give him support, and only a heartbroken question could be heard far away from the mic:

"Why are they doing this with us?!"

Stays felt the pain in Changbin's voice and everybody started to cheer for him saying that it will be alright soon, and of course.. Stays couldn't hold back the tears.

A video has been posted right at the exact moment of the girl screaming at the boys, but the user soon deleted it to respect Changbin privacy

Stays at the fanmeeting, said that the girl screaming was indeed a user of the hashtag #ComingForYou and she seemed out of her normal. She was banished from the place and some other Stays confront her outside the place before the securities take them back inside.

We all hope Changbin and especially his girlfriend are well... We wish them the best and good energies!

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HYUNJIN

He's tired of injustice...

Him itself has tasted

Hide yourself because of bad people? Is it worth it?

Open more space for them to act like maniacs?

He won't hide you...

He'll show them that he loves and will protect you at all costs

He'll be at the coffee shop with you, none of you guys with masks, glasses or hats

No hiding...

No pretending that's ok

He'll post photos with you much more often

Post videos of you on the shorts of Instagram

Paint pictures of you

He'll prove to everybody that he won't give up

More hates? More reason to stay with you

He's not happy with those "Stays"

He doesn't let the paparazzi take too many photos of you

He would nicely ask to step back and put down the cameras

And if they don't hear me, he would get mad and walk away with you far away

He is a good man, golden heart and very gently

But don't mess with him

Don't make him angry... Don't provoke him

He will be taking legal actions if somebody cross the line

He will protect, he will prove his love to you and throw in their faces

He will not give up

The bubble bio is changed to: Try me first...

He is a gentleman and a warrior for his love

He'll throw his love for you on the haters faces...

"I've been feeling chased, my life is in dangerous together with my girlfriend. My feelings are mixed, angry and sad, disappointed. I'll handle that with her, we'll stay together until the end.

I really hope that changes... I'm disappointed with all of you that call yourself Stays while doing that..."

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Continue in part 2 - Maknae line

#stray kids #stray kids icons #stray kids x reader #stray kids smut #stray kids scenarios #stray kids reactions #stray kids lee know #stray kids imagines #stray kids changbin #stray kids felix #stray kids hyunjin #stray kids bang chan #stray kids fanfic #stray kids x you #s

[crescencestudio]

๋࣭⭑ Devlog #39 | 3.27.24 ๋࣭⭑

Happy March!!

This devlog is going to be a bit shorter, but...... it's for Exciting Reasons that I will share later in the post. heh.....heh.....HEH.....

Let's jump in ^^

This month, writing was mostly dedicated to Etza's route! We have officially entered the Developmental Editing part of Etza's route, which is super exciting!!!

There were parts of Etza's route I wasn't completely satisfied with, so I spent a lot of this month tinkering, adding, fleshing out, editing, etc. for their route. I'm happier with it now compared to where it was when we entered this month, and especially with Wudgey's help, I'm excited for Etza to get the love they deserve!

I had a small, optional goal for myself to start Kuna'a's route, but honestly, I felt like between work with the Enhanced Demo, Etza's edits, and just generally feeling a bit tired after being Super Productive in January and February, I decided to give myself a break. That being said, I'm relatively confident I'll be getting started with Kuna'a's route next month, and I'm excited to dive into their route (and the Fae routes in general, teehee!).

Vui is on the very last of the BGs I need from him..... So I am in mourning.......

Kidding but not kidding. Vui has done an amazing job of putting the backgrounds for Alaris together! They're absolutely stunning, and by the time we get to the next devlog, he will have finished ALL of the BGs for Alaris! It's been about a year and a half in the making, which is kinda crazy to think we have been together for this long (and working on the full game for this long), but it's definitely A Moment.

In celebration of him reaching this milestone, I wanted to highlight some of the BGs he's made for the game! The theme is early morning; some of these BGs are in the demo, and some are in the full game hehe. You'll have to guess the context of the mysterious full game BGs :')

Sneak Peek: BG Showcase, morning strolls around the world of Alaris

I also thought it's been a while since I showcased a CG here. While I don't play on showcasing many of the full game CGs on public devlogs (I do show them on my Patreon!), I wanted to show a little snippet of this specific CG.

Why, you ask? Well, for the OGs, you might remember I showed a sketch of the CG during the Alaris Kickstarter---whenever the hell THAT THING happened.

I finished rendering it now that I got the BG for it, so I wanted to show a peek of that sketch that I showed oh-so-many-years ago.

Sneak Peek: Kayn Full Route CG I want to lick him

Generally for art progress, I've been working on CGs as well as some promotional materials, which I'll be getting to in the next section \o/

Now for the Exciting News!!!!

I have two bits of exciting news. The first is...

Sneak Peek: Selection Screen for Alpha/Beta Access (OUUUUGGGGGHHHHH)

I STARTED CODING KAYN'S ROUTE!!!! The first act is already "done" and ready for beta access. And I'm hoping to finish the other two acts within the next couple of weeks. It is crazy to finally be able to code some of the full game routes. Even if they're not at the "final version" or early access stage, it is Extremely Rewarding to finally experience the scripts I've been writing in the game!!! With the CGs.... Extended Screens..... Just seeing the script with visual assets and not just a Google Doc is SOOOOO FSEIKLFJSEILE

Sneak Peek: Chapter Character Cards (AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA)

The second piece of Exciting News is that I have a release date for the Enhanced Demo. YEEEEAAAAAA. It's finally happening!!! Please stay tuned over the next couple of days...... An Exciting Announcement is on its way...................................

I didn't do much market research this month. If I'm being honest, I actually struggled a little bit this month with like...... burnout and workaholism guilt. I wanted to take a break after getting the demo ready for public release, but I just couldn't bring myself to fully rest. It felt like there was so much to do (not just with Alaris, but also with real world/work obligations) and all these looming deadlines was starting to get to me.

I'm hoping next month because I'll actually be Releasing the demo (oops, sneak peek of general release date teehee!), I'll be able to feel like I can take a break. But it also sucks a bit that I feel like I have to Earn It. I think with Alaris being a Kickstarter project, I want to get the game in your hands as soon as possible, but of course it's not to anyone's benefit if I burn myself out in the process and end up with either a worser project or taking even longer to finish it.

I did...... start Stardew Valley again since it is the ultimate dissociation/break game for me. So far it's been working! But we'll see how it continues <3

LOOK AT MY FARM!!!

Should I marry Sebastian or Elliot.

Anyways, hope you all have a great rest of your month, and I'll talk to you Very Soon with an Exciting Announcement! <3

#alaris #devlog

[xieyaohuan]

Homelander's "bedroom"

I made a long two-part post (pt 1; pt 2) reconstructing the layout of Homelander's penthouse today. One of the things I had been suspecting and set out to either confirm or disprove was the idea that Homelander's bedroom is not separate but part of his large open plan space, behind his large TV wall.

And it totally is!!

Most of this was already posted in the longer penthouse post, but I wanted to make a separate post explaining just why I am now officially and 100% convinced that Homelander has no real "bedroom" per se and instead has his bed essentially in his living room (which has no door, so pretty much anyone can walk in).

Beyond the obvious implications this has for writing fic, it's another super fascinating insight into the character of Homelander.

We never get a full picture of his bed in the show. Instead, what we got were some additional promo pics of Homelander standing in front of his bed:

And of the mirror ceiling above his bed:

In the various episodes of season 3, we never get a full visual of Homelander's bed, BUT we do get glimpses of it:

In S3E7, there's this:

This is the weakest evidence, but this scene is what first made me think Homelander's bed was probably behind the wall with the large TV. I mean, that looks like a bed. Also note the mirror wall beside the bed:

In S3E6, we get another glimpse of the bed in the Mirrorlander scene, including the paintings and nightstand on the left hand side of the bed.

The visual is not super super clear, but:

However, the clearest evidence is in S3E1, when Homelander checks up on Stormfront, and we get this snapshot:

The bedroom corner is the left part of the picture, and both "Birth of our Nation's Flag" and "President Lincoln, writing the Proclamation of Freedom" (see here for a more complete list of paintings) are clearly recognizable.

There are some additional paintings in the S3E1 scene/screenshot when compared to the promo pic on top, BUT those additional paintings also show up in the mirror ceiling still that was released separately (you can see the top of the frame of the additional painting in the bottom right hand corner):

These three scenes taken together allow us to place his bed pretty definitely here, on the opposite wall from the window:

Stormfront's bed was in the right-hand corner by the window, but she's dead, so it has been removed. What we can also see in this picture is another mirror wall, marked in orange. (On the other side of this mirror wall is Homelander's big TV).

So, tl;dr, his bed is placed inside the open space of his penthouse facing his large glass front and has large mirrors to the left, the right, and on the ceiling.

Here is where it is relative to everything else:

The bed is marked number 6, and the mirror walls to the left and right are marked as 14 and 14b. I'm not going to explain all the other numbers (they're all explained here and here), but a couple for reference are

1: The huge TV screen; 2: the doorless entrance area; 5: the ugly brown couch; 12: the staircase leading upstairs; 13: the large US flag on the wall; 15: where Stormfront's bed used to stand; and 17: the Mirrorlander mirror.

Happy fic writing and psycho-analysing, all!

#homelander's bed #homelander's bedroom #fandom resources #fic resources #homelander analysis #homelander #the boys

[miodiodavinci]

How do you feel about making official ZOLA stuff?

We're all proud of you!

THANK YOU W A A A A A A A ! ! ! ! !

like i've said, it feels absolutely unreal w i think a lot of the initial shock has worn off, but i do very much remember the thought of my artwork appearing on the official site giving me such intense butterflies i thought i might pass out again w

but right now i'm just ! ! ! ! relieved ! ! ! ! and exceptionally happy that they've received such a warm response ! ! ! ! ! rice and i have already seen a lot of people comment positively on the bits we'd been hoping for, like the the tuning fork headphones, wil's long hair, yuu's little fangs, etc....

honestly it feels like someone took the rush i felt back when i was working my way towards the donut hole release (and the subsequent explosive response ! ! ! ! ) and stacked it up on top of itself several times w wanting to do well, putting in tons of hours, frantically rushing to meet a deadline, being exhausted but then being revived from my grave by the love and kind words people have w

even if it was hell to do all of it on top of my university work and internship things, i'm still super glad i got the opportunity to do it ! ! ! ! and even more glad that rice was by my side ! ! ! ! ! (and very patient even as i ended up making more work for us at times w)

truly, it was a dream come true (and still is currently skdjfhglkdjs)

#mio answers things #darkstarcocoa

[razberryyum]

Favorite moments from MDZS manhua chapter 253 - 254:

(covers novel chaps 109 - 111, adapted in audio drama S3Ep16-17, donghua ep 35 & The Untamed ep 50)

The Guanyin Temple saga comes to an end

Chapter 253 from last week consisted mostly of Wei Ying sleuthing and figuring out who's the mastermind behind everything since his return

All of a sudden WangXian looking super chibi cute comes outta nowhere to attac

I just... really liked these flashback panels of when Wei Ying first returned, then as Yiling Laozu and then getting to see Mo Xuanyu as himself before Wei Ying took over his body. Thank you MXY for giving up your life and body so WangXian could finally be together. I hope you're happy wherever you are now, and may your next life be tons happier than the one you gave up.

Chapter 254:

Wei Ying's reaction 😂😂😂

I'm amazed Uncle Lan didn't spit up blood.

Seeing the juniors flock to WangXian made me a little emotional. Uncle's reaction just made it more perfect. Also I think this is the first time I heard anyone call Wei Ying "Laozu Qianbei". 😂 If it happened before I somehow missed it.

😢😢😢

Yes this got me emotional too 😢😢😢

And this too...Jiang Cheng looking on like an outsider. Also the soft look he had on top when he was talking about Chengqing. If MXTX-laoshi ever was generous enough to produce one more extra, I really hope it includes a scene where WangXian has dinner together with Big Bro Xichen, Jiang Cheng, Jin Ling, and the other juniors, and they're all happy and having a great time.

😭😭😭 This is the final stretch folks, just two more book chapters to cover and the main story will come to its conclusion. The manhua sped through chapter 110 this time so who knows how quickly it'll cover the last two main chapters. There's of course the full on consummation ppp scene coming up but I'm not holding my breath that we'll get much for that officially (hopefully manhua artist MTXJJ-laoshi will post the uncut version on her Twitter). I really hope they'll cover the extra book chapters too cuz contrary to what some people have been led to think, it's not just about WangXian ppping (altho there is definitely a good amount of that too🔥). The extras are so wonderful and I really hope they get covered in the manhua as well.

~

Official raws of the manhua (behind paywall): Kuaikanmanhua

Order English release of the og MDZS novels (mother of all adaptations) at Sevenseasdanmei

MDZS carrd for all adaptations of MDZS: here

Thank you to Exiled Rebels for first fan-translating the novel!

Panel translations by this lowly one, shortcomings are therefore inevitable.

#mo dao zu shi #mdzs #wangxian #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #the untamed #founder of diabolism #wei wuxian #lan wangji #mdzs manhua #lan qiren #lan sizhui #mo xuanyu #jin ling #jin fairy #jiang cheng #nie huaisang

[clarepreed]

First Date

Story Content and Summary - 5,563 words. After recovering from the events in Stressed to Death, Ginnie and Holly are on their first official date. Despite their obvious chemistry, a freak accident threatens to tear them apart forever. Commotio cordis, on-site resuscitation.🏳️‍🌈

--

Ginnie waited on a bench outside the restaurant, repeatedly wiping her damp hands on her sundress. She wasn’t sure she’d worn the right thing; she liked this dress, and she thought she looked pretty in it, but now she was worried she was too dressed up. Or not dressed up enough. Ginnie tapped her fingers on her thighs, rocking slightly on the bench.

I’m too early. I’m just going to sit here and nervously sweat, she thought. Holly will worry if I seem nervous.

Then: When do I NOT seem nervous?! 

Ginnie huffed at herself and stood, automatically smoothing her dress down in the back and patting the skirt to make sure she hadn’t dropped her wallet or her phone.

“Hey, Ginnie! Are you okay? Am I late?” Holly’s husky voice interrupted Ginnie’s spiraling train of thought.

Ginnie whirled around, her face blushing hot. Holly stopped a few steps away on the sidewalk, looking cute in slim fit brown pants and a boat necked shirt. Ginnie squeaked out: “Hi! No, you’re early! Um… I’m just nervous.”

Before Holly could reply, Ginnie blurted: “Just a normal amount of nervous. Not ‘die on the sidewalk’ nervous.”

Ginnie was looking at Holly’s nose, but she still took in the strange expression that passed over the other woman’s face.

I’m making her uncomfortable.

Ginnie opened her mouth to apologize, but Holly interrupted her, her mouth breaking into a wide smile. “I want to laugh, but I don’t know if I should.”

“Oh, please do,” Gennie said, her hands twisting in her skirt. “That’s why I said it. I joke a lot when I’m nervous.”

Holly took a step closer, her hands plunging into her pockets and then pulling them straight back out. Her eyes skimmed over Ginnie, setting off a warm tingly feeling in Ginnie’s belly. “Hey, um, you look really pretty. That’s a nice dress.”

“It has pockets!” Ginnie exclaimed, demonstrating by slipping her hand in one.

“That’s great. Uh… may I give you a hug?”

Instead of responding verbally, Ginnie lurched forward and threaded her arms around Holly’s ribs. She squeezed the taller woman tight.

“Yes,” she murmured, her lips brushing Holly’s collarbone. Holly’s arms folded around her and they stood for several seconds in silence. Finally, Ginnie said: “You smell good. Spicy?”

“You smell sweet. Like candy.”

“That’s because I ate a bunch of Jolly Ranchers on the bus.”

Holly chuckled. They were embracing for much longer than normal, or so Ginnie assumed. Not that she minded. She could hear Holly’s heart beating fast and strong beneath her ear. The other woman’s embrace was warm and firm. Tears suddenly pricked Ginnie’s eyes, and she murmured: “Thank you.”

Holly leaned back, though she didn’t release her grip on Ginnie. “Are you okay? What are you thanking me for?”

“It’s just that we haven’t seen each other since I got out of the hospital. Texting isn’t the same. Thank you for saving my life. I hope I’m not making you uncomfortable.”

“Not at all, Ginnie. I’m really glad you’re back in the city.” Holly laughed. “I was afraid you’d decide to stay with your parents. I mean, if you did, I was going to ask you out anyway. But it’s nice to have you here.”

“I’ve never dated a woman who hasn’t had at least one super long-distance relationship.”

“God, that’s so true.” Holly squeezed her and then released the hug. “Ready to eat?”

“Yes! This is my favorite restaurant!” Ginnie gushed, gesturing for Holly to follow her. “The owners are from Seoul and Atlanta. The menu is small but really varied and even my parents were happy with the food! They have the best starters… The acoustics are good inside, too. It’s never too loud. This place is my comfort restaurant. I hope you like it!”

Holly stepped up to the door and pulled it open. “After you. I looked up the menu when you suggested this place and it sounds great. Of course… I just really like food.”

There was a small line at the host stand, so they joined at the end. Ginnie pointed up at the vaulted ceiling. “They have art up there! Little sculptures of birds.”

Holly stepped close and looked up. Ginnie felt something at her side and glanced down, spotting Holly’s hand held out to her, palm up. She reached down and took it, a blush running up her chest to her face. Holly bumped her arm against Ginnie’s. “Was that smooth?”

Ginnie snorted and clapped her free hand over her mouth. 

“I made you snort,” Holly said, looking over at Ginnie. Holly pulled her pretty lips into yet another big smile. “And blush.”

Dropping her hand down to fidget with her skirt, Ginnie said: “I like you.”

Holly squeezed her hand. “I like you, too.”

“I don’t feel as shy as I thought I would,” Ginnie murmured. They were getting close to the host stand now. 

“Good. Only good vibes tonight.”

“How many?” the host asked. “Two?”

“Yes,” Ginnie and Holly spoke simultaneously.

“As soon as Tom gets over… Here he is. Enjoy your meal, ladies.”

They followed the server, walking through the dining room, still holding hands. Ginnie registered small sounds; the clink of silverware on plates, the murmur of voices, soft instrumental music. A snapping sound, followed by a sharp zzzzzzzzzt!

Something small and dark flew at them, too fast to avoid, and she heard a soft thump followed by a short huff of air from Holly. 

Holly dropped like a stone, so suddenly that Ginnie had little time to do more than clench the abruptly limp hand in her own. The weight on her arm jerked her down to one knee. Holly sprawled face down on the floor, making no effort to break her own fall.

“What the fuck was that?” she heard someone say, their voice loud in the quiet room.

“Holly?” Ginnie heard her own voice, high-pitched and wobbling with surprise and worry. She released Holly’s hand and turned to put both of her knees on the floor, her hands resting on Holly’s back. Her date lay still and silent, unresponsive to her touch or her voice. “Holly! What happened?”

Ginnie shook her, then looked up. The room fell silent; a few seconds later she heard someone tentatively call out: “Hey, is she okay?”

Crawling around to Holly’s other side, Ginnie leaned close to her face. To her shock, Holly’s big warm eyes were open, staring, seeming to look through her. Her lips were slack, a glistening line of drool stretching from the corner of her mouth down to the floor. 

“HOLLY! HOLLY!” Shouting in her panic, Ginnie dimly registered that she was kneeling on some kind of cord or rope, and she reached down to touch it. “What…”

“Is she breathing?” Tom the server asked.

Ginnie closed her eyes so she could concentrate and leaned closer, lifting the back of her hand next to Holly’s lips. She waited, her other hand coming up to stop her ear, using the closest one to listen to any sounds that might come from Holly. Eventually, however, she opened her eyes and stared up at the red-faced server. “N-no…”

“I’ll… I’ll get the manager,” Tom said, staring at them for several more seconds before scurrying away.

“Fuck the manager!” someone said. “Call 9-1-1!”

Ginnie rocked back and forth for a few seconds before she shook her head violently and reached for Holly. 

I need to put on her back, right? Ginnie pushed on Holly’s shoulder and hip, rolling her clumsily onto her side and then tipping her onto her back. Holly flopped as though her bones had dissolved. Ginnie gasped, spotting a dark stain soaking into her pants. She peed herself? That can’t be good.

“That!” a woman’s voice. The dining room was growing loud now, as people shouted and pushed back their chairs. “That thing on the floor! That’s what hit her!”

It should be me, Ginnie thought wildly, desperately trying to filter out the sounds in the room. Holly’s the one who knows what to do!

“Someone call 9-1-1, dammit!” a man shouted. A glass smashed to the floor and someone ran by in clicky-clacky high heels.

“I did! I did, I’m on the phone—”

“Miss!” A woman’s voice cut through the din. “I’m Melissa, the manager. What happened?”

Melissa crouched at Holly’s other side, then reached out to tip her head back, opening up the line of her neck. She leaned close, her ear by the unconscious woman’s slack mouth. Holly’s tan skin was growing ashen by the second, and Ginnie realized with a sick feeling that her lips were turning blue. “She’s not breathing!” the manager snapped, and then she leaned over Holly, her fingers moving along the lifeless woman’s ribcage.

Ginnie watched as the manager pressed the heels of her hands between Holly’s breasts and then pushed down hard. Holly let out another huff of air, and Melissa called out: “One!”

Numb with shock, Ginnie stared as the woman’s clasped hands pumped Holly’s chest, making her stomach pop up against the waistband of her pants. She could see the shadow of her ribcage bobbing up and down in time with the shrug of her shoulders. 

“…six, seven, eight, nine, ten—Miss? Are you comfortable giving her breaths?”

A few seconds passed, and Ginnie stammered: “Wh-what? Breaths? Yes, I…”

“Tip her head back to keep her airway open! Twenty-three, twenty-four…”

Ginnie’s hands shook as she rested one hand on Holly’s forehead, then the other on her chin. She vaguely remembered doing this years ago in her college health class. Of course, that had been a mannequin. Not happy, sexy, kind Holly.

Help her, help her, help her…

“…twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty! Pinch her nose, NOW!”

Ginnie pinched Holly’s nose and then bent over her, hesitating only a second before drawing a deep breath and sealing her mouth over Holly’s. She heard a rush of air between them as she exhaled forcefully. 

“Faster!” the manager ordered, and Ginnie gave Holly a second quick breath. Holly’s mouth was soft and damp, her skin still warm with the life that had flowed through her moments before.

Then the manager continued chest compressions. Ginnie remained hunched over Holly, her fingers pinching her nose and her other hand on Holly’s chin. She could feel her head wobbling from side to side as Melissa worked on her. Her gaze fell unbidden on Holly’s dark eyes, staring up at the ceiling. 

“Holly, Holly, Holly, Holly…” she muttered under her breath. Her own heart pounded a panicked rhythm. 

“…ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen…”

“There’s an ambulance on the way,” a man said from somewhere above her. “But my friend went looking across the road for an AED!”

“…twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty!”

Ginnie was faster this time, her mouth closing over Holly’s and delivering an efficient breath that made her date’s chest rise before she broke the seal. It rose again quickly with the second breath. Holly’s forced exhale blew into Ginnie’s face as the manager resumed chest compressions.

“One, two, three, four, five, six…”

She felt herself rocking over Holly’s motionless form and made herself stop, swallowing hard. Her eyes burned with unshed tears, though Ginnie couldn’t identify what she was feeling other than panic.

“—flagged one down at the intersection! They’re coming!”

“…eighteen, nineteen, twenty…”

“An ambulance?”

“Are we in danger from the other—”

“—cops coming, too? ‘Cause—”

“Twenty-eight,” Ginnie muttered in time with the manager before dragging in a breath for Holly. She covered her lips, hoping they weren’t cooling off, that she was just imagining things. Two breaths, two lifesaving kisses.

I wanted to kiss her for real, she thought, and then blurted out: “Is she dead?”

No one answered her.

“…nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen…”

Ginnie released Holly’s nose and patted her cheek. Her voice came out quiet and broken. “Holly, Holly, Holly… No…”

“…nineteen, twenty, twenty-one…” Chest compressions looked painful, though Ginnie knew Holly couldn’t feel them now. She thought she could hear the occasional crackle when the manager’s hands forced Holly’s chest down to beat her heart.

They hurt later. They hurt a lot later. They’ll hurt her later if she—

“…thirty!”

Ginnie pinched Holly’s nose and pushed two breaths into her lungs. A tear rolled down her cheek and dripped onto Holly’s chalky face. Ginnie wiped it off with the back of her hand.

“Everyone out of the way, let the medics in!” boomed the same man looming above her.

Everything seemed to speed up. Two people in dark blue uniforms pushed through the crowd, wheeling a gurney as they hurried across the room. Someone put a hand on her shoulder and said something she didn’t understand, though when they grasped her elbow she got the idea. She found herself sitting in a chair close by as the medics relieved the manager and one of them pressed gloved fingers into Holly’s neck.

“I’m going to close service,” she heard the manager say. “Quickly. No bills, no to-go boxes. Just politely get everyone out of here. I have to call Gray and tell him…”

“What happened?” the other medic asked, though Ginnie wasn’t sure who he was talking to. He’d opened a duffel beside him and was holding a plastic piece next to Holly’s face.

“Something hit her in the chest,” Ginnie said. Her voice came out too quiet, and she cleared her throat as he slipped the plastic piece between Holly’s teeth and turned it. “Something hit her in the chest and she just… fell…”

The first medic had already started chest compressions, and his hands looked huge against Holly’s chest. She could see Holly’s chest sink and her stomach bulge up each time he rolled his shoulders down.

“That’s it!” the man with the loud voice said. A man with a bald head and broad shoulders leaned into Ginnie’s line of sight and pointed at a silver-colored hunk of metal laying on the floor. An eyelet protruded from the top with a piece of frayed rope threaded through it. Several feet away were the scattered remains of a sculpted bird. “Those fucking birds, man…”

“Strike to the chest,” the second paramedic said. He finished assembling some kind of mask with a large bulb on one end and a line of tubing that lead to what Ginnie recognized was an oxygen canister. As the first medic paused compressions, the second pressed the mask to Holly’s face, lapping his fingers over her chin. His other hand squeezed the bulb twice.

“Get her on the monitor,” the first paramedic said. “One, two, three, four, five…”

“Cops are here,” the loud man said. “Uh, wife wants me to get out of your hair; I see her waving from the door.”

“Thank you, sir,” the second medic said. He’d pulled what looked like a duffel with an old school computer monitor in the front close to Holly and then drew a pair of shears out from another bag. He snipped the neckline of Holly’s shirt without preamble, then quickly cut through to the bottom when his colleague lifted his hands. He snipped Holly’s lightweight bra down the middle and across the straps, and then compressions resumed.

Ginnie blushed as Holly’s chest and stomach came into view. The other medic cut off the rest of Holly’s shirt while the first thrust his hands rhythmically into her sternum. Holly had moderately-sized, round breasts with large aureola, which wobbled in time with each chest compression. 

“Miss?”

Ginnie blinked and looked away from Holly, toward the source of the voice.

Tom, the server, stood next to her, trying not to look at Holly. His face was pale aside from two ruddy spots on his cheeks. “Um, we are closed. I am sorry, but we need you to leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere!” Ginnie gasped, incredulous. Anger made her face go hot and a few more tears squeeze out of her eyes. “That’s my… that’s my… that’s Holly, and—”

“Not her, Tom! Jesus, go back to the front.” Melissa, the manager, stepped between Tom and Ginnie. “That’s her girlfriend!”

Ginnie looked back at Holly. The man with the mask was giving her breaths, and as soon as he laid the mask down, he reached for a large packet. He cut the top open with the shears and dumped out a set of what Ginnie recognized as defibrillator pads and leads. As the first medic continued rocking his weight into Holly’s sternum, the second tore the backing off the first pad and smoothed it onto the skin above Holly’s right breast.

Holly’s head tipped to the side. Her eyes were still open, wide and startled-looking. Her chin nodded with each compression. 

“Miss? Miss?” A hand gripped Ginnie’s shoulder, and she flinched, pulling herself out of the manager’s grip. “I’m sorry, jeez, I… What’s your name?”

The second pad went on Holly’s side, below her left breast. Shortly after, an angry-sounding alarm filled the air 

“What?” Ginnie asked. The compressions looked scarier now that Holly was half-naked. She had an athletic body, but Ginnie thought her collarbones and fingers looked delicate, and the extended line of her neck appeared fragile as the medic turned her face back upright, pressing the mask over her nose and mouth. Ginnie gripped the seat of her chair, swaying side to side.

“Your name, sweetie.”

“Ginnie.”

“Pause for analysis,” one man said.

“There’s our backup,” the second said. Two more paramedics walked quickly through the restaurant, carrying their own set of bags.

“V-fib. Charging to three-sixty.” 

Ginnie’s eyes darted from the newcomers to Holly, sprawled on her back with a medic pushing hard and fast on her chest. The medic suddenly raised his hands, and the other said: “All clear. Administering shock.”

“Ginnie, how—”

Holly’s torso jerked, and her limbs flinched. The second her body stilled, the original pair of medics switched places. Another pair of gloved hands found Holly’s chest and started forcing her sternum down toward the young woman’s heart. Steady beeping sounds emitted from the cardiac monitor.

“What have we got?” one of the new paramedics said. “I’m James, this is Sandra.”

“Chris and Scott. Witnesses say our patient, Holly, was struck in the chest by that counterweight. She was in ventricular fibrillation when we analyzed and I’ve given her one shock. James and Sandra, I need her intubated and her blood pressure.” Chris handed over Holly’s mask. “I’m going to prep a push dose of epi.”

“What?” Ginnie remembered that the manager was trying to talk to her. “What was that? I’m sorry…”

“Don’t apologize, sweetie. Do you have a ride to the hospital when it’s time?”

“A ride?” Ginnie briefly squeezed her eyes closed. “A ride to the hospital?”

“I can take you. If you came here in an Uber or something… let me drive you.”

“I rode the bus…” Ginnie pressed both of her hands to her face. She could hear one of the medics quietly counting out chest compressions.

“Okay,” Melissa said. “Why don’t you let me drive you? I’ll pull my car up behind the ambulance and we can follow them.”

“Okay,” Ginnie said. “That’s fine. That’s fine. That’s… fine.”

“Do you know how to get hold of her family?” Melissa asked. 

Ginnie dropped her hands into her lap and opened her eyes.

The view was even more frightening now. Four paramedics working on Holly. One of them injected something into Holly’s outstretched arm. Another continued to perform deep and rapid chest compressions, making Holly’s body rock and her stomach pop. A third pumped up a blood pressure cuff. The fourth, a woman, had Holly’s mouth open and a metal device wedged between her teeth. The woman held a tube in her other hand.

“Pause compressions,” she said. She was lying on her stomach, her face close to Holly’s.

Her name is Sandra.

The medic pumping Holly’s chest stopped. She saw Chris pluck a stethoscope from around his neck and plug the earpieces into his ears. Sandra quickly but carefully fed the tube down the metal device and into Holly’s throat.

Holly’s family.

“I have her mom’s number,” Ginnie said, her hands slowly reaching for her dress pocket. Chris had the bell of the stethoscope to Holly’s chest. “I… I can text her.”

“You’re in,” Chris said. “Continue chest compressions!”

Sandra unhooked the bag and used white tape to secure the tube in place, taping one end to Holly’s cheek, winding the tape around the tube and then tearing it off and pressing the end on Holly’s other cheek. She did this with a second piece of tape and then reconnected the bag. Ginnie watched her squeeze the bag between every ten or so compressions. 

Ginnie slipped her phone from her pocket, unlocking the screen automatically.

“Will you be taking her to South or Harper?” she heard the manager ask.

“Harper,” Chris said. “Pause to analyze in five, four, three, two, one… Come on, now… Still in v-fib. Charging to three-sixty.”

“While you’re texting her mother, Ginnie…” the manager paused until Ginnie looked over at her. “While you’re texting her mother, I’m going to move my car, okay?”

“Oh… k-kay.” Tears ran down her cheeks again, this time at the thought of telling Holly’s mom what had happened.

“Everyone off? Clear…. Administering shock.”

Holly bowed up and relaxed. James slid in and took over chest compressions. Ginnie noticed he had black gloves instead of blue like everyone else.

Holly’s face was more visible now that she’d been intubated. Staring eyes. Full lips parted around the tube protruding between her teeth. There was a quiet whooshing sound every time Sandra squeezed the bag. Scott leaned in with the shears and cut from the waistband of Holly’s pants down to her knee. Then he pressed his fingers into her thigh crease.

Ginnie cradled her phone in her hands, opening the messaging app. She didn’t want to contact Holly’s mom. Not while they were resuscitating her. Not while a stranger shoved his hands between her breasts. Not while a tube ran down her throat. Not while a man connected her to an IV bag. Not while her pulse points were exposed and pressed.

Not with her ashen skin and bruised chest, her staring eyes.

What the fuck do I say? ‘Hello, Mrs. Diaz Aguilar. It’s Ginnie. We spoke that one time. Um, I have bad news. There was an accident with a bird in the restaurant. I don’t know what happened, but something hit Holly in the chest and now she’s dead.’

Ginnie swayed side to side, trying not to break out into sobs as she typed out: This is Ginnie Courier. Holly had an accident. They are going to take her to Harper General.

“Administering amio,” she heard Chris say.

The paramedic’s hands on Holly’s chest made noises with each chest compression. His gloves squeaked against each other and her soft-looking skin. His weight thumped into her unresponsive body. Ginnie wondered if she would still hear puffs of air escaping her if she were closer.

Her mind trailed back to her own time in the hospital, before her parents had made it up to see her. She’d wake up and Holly was always there, holding her hand. Dozing sometimes, but waking up as soon as she stirred. She was tender, even though they were essentially strangers to each other. Strangers with crushes and a strong, if newly formed, connection. Even in her hospital bed, her chest burning with pain, Ginnie felt her body respond to Holly’s touch. Holly’s smile. Holly’s voice.

I should have tried to kiss her then, she thought. But I was afraid it was too soon.

“Analysis in thirty seconds,” Chris said. He finished cutting off Holly’s pants, leaving her in a simple pair of hip-hugging underwear. Ginnie watched him run his hands and eyes over her legs; she assumed he was looking for injuries. As soon as he released them, Holly’s legs rocked in time with the relentless thrusts to her chest. He hadn’t removed her shoes, and Ginnie realized with a pang that they were both wearing a pair of high top Converse shoes, just in different colors.

“Pause compressions for analysis…” Chris had his fingers to the crease of Holly’s thigh again, and his eyes were on the monitor. “Still in v-fib. Resume compressions while I charge to three-sixty, then I want Sandra to sub in on the next round.”

Ginnie’s thumb hovered indecisively over the “send” symbol, the digital paper airplane that would send Holly’s mother down a spiral of anguish. Her own parents hadn’t learned of what happened to her until she was already stable. It had to hit differently. Even so, her parents had been acting strange ever since. Mom was over-solicitous. Dad kept giving her money.

Holly’s body rocked under another ten chest compressions and then the paramedics all leaned back, raising their hands.

“Everyone clear? Administering shock now.”

Holly flinched, her back coming up slightly off the floor, her breasts shaking, limbs jerking. She’d barely stilled, alarms screaming, before Sandra slid into place, her hands slotting between Holly’s breasts. The cycle of compressions and breaths continued. 

Ginnie sent the text, shaking with sadness and trepidation.

“One, two, three, four…” 

Holly remained limp. Scott squeezed the bag, sending oxygen into the tube running down Holly’s throat. Chris gave her another injection. Sandra rolled her shoulders over her hands, palms pumping Holly’s sternum. Holly’s stomach bulged, and her legs rocked.

Ginnie’s phone vibrated in her hand. She looked down and saw that Holly’s mother was calling her. Instantly, she felt as though her throat had closed up.

I can’t…

“…nine, ten! One, two, three…”

“Hold compressions! Rhythm and pulse check!”

The medics pressed their fingers to Holly’s neck, wrist, and groin. That’s when Ginnie noticed her eyes were closed.

“Holly?” she whispered.

“Sinus rhythm!” Chris said, sounding excited under his professional facade. “Pulse confirmed. We’ve got her!”

What’s wrong?!!!!! Holly’s mother texted. What happened?

Holly is aliv, Ginnie texted back, her fingers clumsy. call n a minute

Then she clutched her phone to her chest, rocking as she broke down into sobs.

Days later

Ginnie paced back and forth across the waiting room, her hands busy with a plastic tangle fidget. She had the vague feeling she was bothering people, but she felt like she had to keep moving or she might explode. She kept her path as far away from other people as she could. She had a single earbud in, her favorite playlist cranked a little too loud for hearing safety. She was trying to drown out her own thoughts, though she didn’t want to put in both earbuds and miss someone calling for her.

Ginnie’s mind kept filling with terrible images: Holly staring up at her with dead eyes, Holly intubated, Holly’s bruised body sprawled out under a paramedic’s thrusting hands.

Holly is okay. Her mom said she’d let me know if anything changes. I’m going to see her in just a bit and she will be okay.

“Okay, okay, okay…” she muttered, her voice muffled underneath her mask.

“Ginnie?” A familiar woman’s voice interrupted her anxious train of thought. Ginnie looked up and spotted Holly’s mother, Gena. The older woman looked tired but happy, her gray-streaked hair pulled into a messy bun on top of her head and her generous lips drawn into a big, encouraging smile. A surgical mask dangled from her left ear. “Hey. Are you ready to come see our Holly?”

“Yes!” Ginnie blurted, quickly putting her earbud back in its case and dropping it into her bag. After a moment’s hesitation, she dropped the tangle inside as well. “Is she okay? Is she awake?”

“Yes, she’s awake. And she is doing much better.” Gena held her arms out to Ginnie. “May I have a hug?”

Ginnie nodded, her voice disappearing somewhere deep inside of her. She let Gena embrace her, her own arms sliding around the other woman’s back. Gena squeezed her tight.

“I know you said you didn’t do much, but my understanding is that when EMS arrived, you and the restaurant manager were p-performing…” There was a long pause, and when Gena continued, her voice was husky. “You were helping her. Every second was important. Thank you, Ginnie.”

Ginnie felt her face burn hot as she squeezed the other woman back. After a moment, Gena released her and leaned back to look her in the face.

“I’m not stressing you out too much, am I? Holly, bless her, was worried about stressing you out. I suppose I don’t blame her after what happened to both of you.” Gena pulled her mask back over her nose and mouth and gestured at Ginnie, apparently not noticing that Ginnie was looking everywhere but Gena’s eyes. “Come on, Holly will wonder what I’ve done with you.”

Ginnie followed Holly’s mother down the hall, her fingers worrying the strap of her crossbody bag. Eventually, they arrived at a room with Holly’s name written on the marker board next to her door.

“I’m going to go get some coffee,” Gena said. “Holly doesn’t have a roommate as of this morning, so the two of you will have a little privacy. Can I get you anything from the cafeteria?”

“No, but thank you,” Ginnie said, though her attention was already pulling her into Holly’s room. She didn’t hear Gena’s reply.

When she stepped inside, she spotted Holly instantly. Looking smaller than her true height, leaning back against pillows with her hair tied back. Her eyes were closed, full lips slightly parted. Ginnie hurried to the foot of Holly’s bed and then froze, her fingers tapping against the thumb of each hand. Holly opened her eyes and yawned.

“I’m sorry,” Ginnie blurted.

“What for?” Holly asked, yawning again.

“You’re tired. And they wouldn’t let anyone but your mom come see you in the ICU…” Ginnie felt her throat grow tight and her eyes water. “But I am really happy to see you, Holly.”

“You can take your mask off in here, Ginnie.” Holly rubbed her eyes and pushed herself up higher on the pillows, wincing. “If you want to.”

“Oh! Can I help you with something?” Ginnie asked, hurrying to Holly’s side. Then she snatched the mask off her face and crammed it in her bag. 

“No, I’m okay. But thank you for asking.” Holly reached out for Ginnie’s hand, tugging her closer. “You look pretty. But tired.”

“I’m fine.” Ginnie wrapped both of her hands around Holly’s. “How are you feeling?”

“Sore and tired,” Holly said. “But otherwise I’m really good. I have one more test and then I get out of here. It’s looking like I’m going to be fine. I guess sometimes people have to have an implanted defibrillator after something like this, but my heart is okay.”

She tipped her head at the monitor at her bedside, then gestured at the leads snaking their way out of her hospital gown. “All this stuff tickles.”

“I’m really glad you’re okay,” Ginnie whispered. A tear trailed down her cheek. “I thought you were going to die.”

“Oh, hun, please don’t cry.” Holly squeezed her hand. “I’m okay. Thank you for helping me.”

“I didn’t know what to do! If the manager hadn’t stepped in… Holly?”

“Yeah?”

“When you feel better, will you teach me what to do? I took CPR in college but I didn’t really remember…”

Holly fell silent and her cheeks flushed pink. She reached up with her free hand and tried to ruffle her hair, only to remember that it was still tied back.

“Oh, I shouldn’t have asked!” Ginnie blurted. “I wasn’t thinking…”

“No!” Holly protested, letting out a nervous laugh. “I want to teach you. When I’m not so sore, and I’m out of here. We can… practice.”

“Thank you.” Ginnie sighed. “I don’t want to feel helpless like that again.”

“Hey,” Holly said. Her face was still pink, and she gave Ginnie a sly look. “I can think of something else we can do while I’m in here.”

“Yeah?” Ginnie asked.

“Kiss me,” Holly said, her voice husky and deep. “Please?”

“Before one of us dies?” Ginnie asked. Her heart hammered in her chest, and she felt the tiniest bit lightheaded.

“Sure,” Holly said, chuckling. “Whatever, I just want to kiss you. Please.”

Ginne released Holly’s hand and stepped closer to the bed. She knew her fingers were cold, but she touched Holly anyway, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, then tracing her jaw with her fingertips. Leaning in, she pressed her lips to Holly’s.

Holly’s lips were soft and warm, and Ginnie felt her hands come up, cupping the back of Ginnie’s neck, threading lightly through her loose hair. 

Instantly, Ginnie wanted nothing more than to climb into Holly’s hospital bed and stretch out alongside her. Their lips parted simultaneously, and the kiss deepened, tongues plunging and hands clutching. Holly took an audible breath through her nose, her chest heaving.

Ginnie broke the kiss, worried by the panting sounds coming from Holly.. She kissed around her soft mouth and murmured: “I’m sorry, I’m smothering you.”

“I’m okay!” Holly protested breathlessly. “I’m not dying, that was just really good! I think we’re on to something!”

“I promise we’ll do that again when you’re out of the hospital!” Ginnie kissed the tip of Holly’s nose.

“Can we do it again now?”

-- Ginnie and Holly return in Practice.

#resus writing #cpr resus #female resus #wlw love

[jazeswhbhaven]

Happy Official New Year 😊😊

From the peeps that were here since my previous blog in October, to the ones who just got here, I wish you all a wonderful new year!!!

2024 is gonna kick off something solid and that I can promise to my best of my ability.

Here for the remainder of the week you'll be seeing some requests post (mostly like 5 a day because I scheduled them out) along with a mix of reblogs and whatever rambles I think of.

Also please look forward to the following for January!!

🖤Music Headcanons and Playlists

🖤New fanart of Mammon compared to the first one I did of him last year

🖤Longfic chapters finally being released!

🖤OC charts and dyanmics with their ships!

🖤My first audio react!

I have some reacts that I need to post/finish and that will show up when it does because those take me the longest. I think I'm pretty much the only one I've seen so far go into detail about the spoilers in the events which is why I mark them as such in case no one cares to see them like that.

I thank you all for your patience while waiting for your requests, and I appreciate the hype and love. Being super dedicated to a themed blog is new for me so while I work through the challenges, I do love the support. Phew, the adhd just be winning sometimes along with my chronic fatigue and other irl stuff. I'm looking forward to 2024 with you all. Let's love up on our bois something fierce. Because well...when 2025 is here and Touchstarved releases....you may see less of me as I go love up on my angel Kuras and my bby fox boi Vere....(￢з￢)

#jwhbhaven blog updates🖤 #whb #blog stuff #happy new year everyone

[amalgamateofficial]

Amalgamate Chapter 20 Preview

OMGGG I was so happy to see so many people follow the new Official Amalgamate blog after I finally got it off the ground a few days ago! To anyone who happened to reblog that first post, thank you so much! It's hard for me to get the word out between chapters, so that was super helpful! :D

Anyway, I'm glad I can finally share Amalgamate content in a public space other than AO3! And sharing content means giving you all a status update on the next chapter.

As of right now, chapter 20's 1st draft is about 95% finished, and then I'm gonna start doing some hardcore editing. I tend to add additional scenes during editing, though, so maybe 95% is a generous estimate, but still -- ! ;;;;;

If you'd like to see a preview of chapter 20, I'll put it after the cut so anyone who doesn't want to see any chapter 20 content before it's released won't have anything spoiled. That being said, I consider this a spoiler-free preview :)

Apologies for that preview reading a liiiiittle rough, but this is still a 1st draft, and I haven't had a chance to give these scenes a whole lot of polish.

I also apologize for how ominous that preview reads when it's sitting in a void without context. Those of you who've never dealt with me on Discord or social media before are about to find out that I'm kiiiiiiinda a massive troll :3

-- Doctor Haifisch (or just Jamie if that's easier than referring to me as a German shark with a PhD)

#danganronpa v3 #drv3 #kokichi ouma #kaito momota #ouma kokichi #kokichi oma #momota kaito #danganronpa #amalgamate #danganronpa amalgamate #amalgamate danganronpa #drv3 amalgamate #danganronpa v3 fanfic #drv3 fanfic #idk how to tag anything i post on this blog help #okosan is best bird

[chirpsythismorning]

Did you see the Piggyback script dropped?? Thoughts?

The script is pretty much what I expected. If Mike's monologue had won out on the writer's twitter polls last summer, it would have looked the exact same and even back then I would have felt the same as I do now.

They knew that this script would be available to the public when they submitted it for an Emmy. They knew fans would be running to find out the 'truth'. I highly doubt they would release a script that revealed El's true feelings about the monologue, on a random afternoon, still almost 2 years before that reveal. That would diminish all of the work they put into keeping this surprise under-wraps. If they had released a script that gave away El's true feelings, the jig would be up, there would be no room for people to speculate about milkvan or byler anymore. Byler would clearly be endgame from the perspective of everyone if they had revealed that El was upset with what Mike said, including milkvans. S5 would have been spoiled with still 2 years of waiting left. And so, why would they do that?

Something I also want to point out, is that the script that the supporting cast/crew get, has to be bare bones to avoid leaks.

The leaks that tend to come out in the cases that they do, are from folks that are working below the line. Basic BTL employees sometimes have to have access to scripts in order to perform their duties.

And so a revelation that El was not happy with Mike's monologue, being written blatantly in the script, then being given to up to 100 people, poses a huge risk of a leak.

They want the audience to finish s4 believing that Mike's monologue was everything El wanted to hear and that they are now back together with no problems. That's indisputable. And so having their script contradict that, in a season that has no intention of addressing it, would be very confusing for everyone casually working BTL involved, who are being fed one story publicly and seeing a completely different thing on paper.

When it comes to the Duffers though, they definitely have a script that includes all those details that dozens upon dozens of BTL are not going to have access to.

Here's what I mean:

You'll notice that Matt is holding a script here that says Matt Duffer in big block letters across it.

There would be no need to have this big display of this script belonging to Matt, as like a watermark on literally every page, unless what's on it is unique and it's important that no one else has access to it.

It also makes sense he would need to give Noah and Finn pointers on the spot in the moment, considering a lot of Mike and Will's scenes have a record for having little to no details in the script, making it come off like every interaction between them is unscripted and impromptu. And while I do think Noah and Finn are fully capable of some in the moment ideas, I highly doubt every single scene between Will and Mike is improvised.

Considering what scene this is in this picture, I'm gonna guess Matt was reminding them of the knee tap here, which I doubt was in the script that the dozens of BTL got that day. For example, according to the piggyback script, the byler shoulder grab was unscripted... But really was it? They wrote that scene to parallel with the s2 super-spy scene and so they knew that original scene ended with a hand hold... I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that the Duffers (and even probably Noah/Finn's) scripts included it, but the scripts with bare bone details given to random PA's didn't have it...

I would assume at best that the Duffers, directors, the handful of officials at the very top managing each department, and the main cast have a way different script than what the hundreds of average crew members are getting.

This is also something that would allow them to pinpoint who leaked things. Because if a script with a Matt Duffer watermark got leaked, they'd know that whoever had access to that script, less than a handful of people at most, would had to have leaked it. But considering those people are probably very very trusted by the Duffers, that would never happen.

And so they can sit comfortably knowing that any leaks that happen, are not going to have all the details that relate to things they don't want fans to get too close to figuring out right now, least of all the entire audience. Because they give out those bare bones scripts, knowing that they could be leaked, and so they avoid those details with full awareness of the worst case scenario.

I will say, something that really stood out to me though about this script is that SOOOOOO much ended up being different on screen than what it originally was in the script... Like entire scenes are either missing or there are scenes that aren't even in there that ended up being added the day of it seems (I guess originally Jonathan and Nancy were going to be on the roof?). Which just goes to show that the writing process never stops, least of all during the filming process. It's there constantly. If an actor wants to change the wording of a line or if they want to go about a scene differently, a writer needs to be there to green-light it.

Another thing that had me cackling after reading fans thoughts about the script on Reddit, was how some were acknowledging that Nancy's feelings about the situation between Steve and Jonathan were sort of missing (her POV), and everyone agreed that it was probably to keep the love triangle uncertainty up in the air...

All I could think was DAMN! These Wheelers!!... I'm sure if I even presented the comparison they would deny it, despite being able to recognize it in the script for Nancy. Just like they're willing to recognize that Jancy/Stancy is a love triangle, but are incapable of acknowledging that Byler/Milkvan is as well.

With roughly 2 years left until ST5 is gracing our screens, and with filming not even having started yet, us bylers need to realize that this back and forth of validating both sides won't be put to a stop officially any time soon.

While that might be hard to hear, the good news is that they're gonna continue to create uncertainty for both sides, including milkvans.

Because the reality is, byler isn't queerbait because they have every intention of following through with it. And so that means stuff that constitutes as bait will continue, bc for them it's just literally foreshadowing.

And so when s5 is really starting to approach and posters drop and we see yet again that Mike and Will are being paired up in promo... It's gonna be hard for milkvans to insist this isn't queerbait anymore. And it's gonna be hard for them to insist none of it means anything when they fully expected to go into s5 with little to no byler interactions and with Mike and El being in love and in their endgame fluff era...

In the mean time, get ready for uncertainty if you're already at risk of byler doubt. Just remember that all of the evidence in the show doesn't evaporate bc they want to keep fans guessing during hiatus. They don't want anyone to feel 100% certain right now. If anyone is, best believe that they're ready to throw something in the mix sooner than later that will inspire doubt. And it'll continue to go back and forth like that until right before s5 drops.

#byler #st scripts #the piggyback #mike's monologue #again I want to say that noah and finn are talented #but lets be real #there's no way ALL of their scenes are mostly improvised #a lot of what they do is DIRECTED by the DIRECTOR on the day of the shoot #and while it is a collaborative process with the actors being able to give their input in the moment #they need somewhere to start to even make those changes

[tokyokookmin]

MY FAVOURITE JIKOOK VOCALS

I'd like to grab a chance when my new love, Letter is out. This a post dedicated to all of my favourite jikook vocals be it on or off stage. This post will highlight their "two shades of tender in a tug of war". Please be prepared to reminisce about the old jikookery days. Don't say I didn't warn you! Let's get it~~

ALSO! I am not ranking the vocals. What song comes up to my mind first grabs the top spot.

LETTER FT. JUNGKOOK

There's no official MV for this lovely song and won't likely have one as it is meant to be a hidden track. Just putting this lovely cover by Elisssa here. Check it out!

MY UNIVERSE

Like the tweet says, their raw vocals are absolutely beautiful. Their voices hits different, you know? 😭❤️

RUN

Yes, you're hearing it right, it's not that run bts song, but the hyhh era song. My forever favourite song, run. A song that makes me so energetic whenever I feel down. It enlightens me so much. For jikook? Good lord save me! They are wild 😂.

1. Seoul Final 2019

Psst, you saw this coming, didn't you?

Yes yes, you're still hearing me rambling about my favourite moment of 2019 (I say this "favourite moment" thing for everything 😭 I just can't choose!!)

2. BTS HONG KONG 190321

This moment is so underrated. I'll be sure to create a post just for this day and song. Highlighting all the pictures.

STAY GOLD

A beautifully written song by bangtan. Soulful lyrics and heartwarming meaning.

1. BTS STAY GOLD CDTV LIVE

Stay gold outro has got to be one of my favs. Just jikook staring at each other while ending the song. Pure comfort.

2. BTS STAY GOLD LIVE

BAD DECISIONS

A super cool and hip song. Dedicated to the fans. JM's and JK's voice blend in so nicely!

FOR YOUTH

A song which never fails to capture the feelings in my heart. Forever fav. An intimate song released before the hiatus, it depicted our journey together of both army and BTS.

1. BTS FOR YOUTH LIVE COMEBACK

2. BTS FOR YOUTH KBS LIVE COMEBACK

3. BTS FOR YOUTH TMA MUSIC AWARDS

WHO

(LAUV, FT JIMIN AND JUNGKOOK FROM BTS)

"Feeling hypnotized by the words that you say"🎶

A collaboration between Lauv and JIKOOK.

THE TRUTH UNTOLD

TTU is a song that carries a lot of emotions and it's very well executed by BTS. The vocal line surely knows how to change their mood during songs and I applaud them for their professionalism. Ok okay, but I'm still not gonna deny that jk cracked up when Jin didn't hit his note well 😭💜 (my JINKOOK heart)

Do you remember the time where they changed the lyrics from "and I still want you" to "But I still want you" while facing eachother, still not breaking their locked gazes when the lights went out?

SEOUL FINAL 2019

I lost track of the source, if anyone of you knows where it's from, please let me know! For now, enjoy their harmonious vocals!

WE DONT TALK ANYMORE PT.2

Nothing to say. Just embrace their vocals.

LIGHTS

Something about this song makes me feel it's meant for jikook. I'm not saying the lyrics but their body language here is......

RUN BTS

A MASTERPIECE.

HONNE'S "YOU COME TO ME"

Jikook's cover, ya know?

Happy 7 years to this cover~

FILM OUT

I briefly started blogging on this platform around this era. Film out contains a lot of emotions. I love the beat.

BTS SOWOZOO

2. BTS CDTV LIVE

This post was long due and it took me a long time to get all the materials. My drafts got deleted and I got upset. That's why it took a while to be redone, lol. Anyways, please enjoy and support this post since it took a really long time to get it back on track. ENJOYYY~

Sincerely, tokyokookmin.

#Youtube #jikook #koomin #kookminers #kookmin #jkkrs #jkk #mingguk #minkook #jimin bts #jungkook bts #JJK #PJM #JM #JK #jungkook jimin #bts park jimin #bts jeon jungkook

[casualevan]

New To Superman?

*Swivels around in villain chair petting a cat

So, you just caught up with My Adventures with Superman and you want to know what to read or watch while you wait for new episodes? SAY NO MORE! Here’s a list of personal faves of mine!  Now some notes, different writers have different takes in different decades and the publishers can play it fast and lose with continuity. So going from one story to another, you might notice some changes. Like weather or not Clark’s parents are alive or if Lois dating Clark etcetera etcetera. Don’t worry about it, just roll with it.

Now lets get started with THE SUPER LIST! 

Superman: Birthright 

A solid starting point graphic novel. It’s got everything ya need for his origin story and is a fantastic character study of Clark and his arch enemy Lex Luthor. The art is pretty good as well and does a great job of showing both sides of Clark’s character and power. If you love the show and want to see how the books handle the Man of Steel’s first run in Metropolis then you got yourself a fun book.

Next we’ll get into some movies! Now, you can watch most of these on hbomax so let’s all vote with our wallets and support the official release! That way studios don’t make us wait ANOTHER 20 years for a Superman cartoon. 

Superman: Unbound 

Superman faces a cosmic alien super computer named Brainiac! Braniac’s deal is he wants to put cities in small bottles and then blow up the rest of the planet he collects them from. It’s a cool conflict cuz it’s a villain Superman can’t just PUNCH into submission. As Braniac can just download into another body if he did. So Superman is gonna have to get super smart to out smart a super computer..... listen the movie’s writing is better than mine, trust me.

Superman Vs The Elite

Oh, here we GO! Okay so this full movie is based on ONE issues of the comics. ONE. Not a 6 part mini series arc collected into one trade paperback. ONE COMIC! It was THAT GOOD! Superman meets some new heroes on the block, THE ELITE. They’re GRITTY and DARK and SERIOUS ANTI HEROES who aren’t afraid to KILL the bad guys! They’re also here to try and force Superman to retire his wholesome way of saving the day. This movie has amazing action animation and phenomenal writing that shows why the core character of Clark being kind still resonates with audiences when given the chance. (You’ve probably seen the big speech from this movie passed around youtube a lot and rightly so. This is a good one, go watch it!) Now, Superman has one of the all time iconic origin stories, but how does his story end? Well lots of writers have tried their hands at it. A few of them are good but my personal fave is probably ALL STAR SUPERMAN

Lex Luthor finally finds a way to beat Superman, but Clark isn’t going down without a fight and without saving as many lives as he can. It’s a grand all star parade of all the wild and wacky pulp adventure camp that has built up around the legacy of the Last Son of Krypton. If you want a satisfying conclusion to Superman’s story then it’s hard to top this one. Heck the book is also pretty damn good too! 

There is... a LOT of Superman content. 80 years worth to be exact. This list is far from complete and is only meant to serve as a starting point for diving into all this Super Lore. I for one am glad My Adventures With Superman seems to have lit a fire under the fanbase and I’m happy to welcome all you new readers and watchers to one of my all time favorite Superheroes.  HONERABLE MENTIONS! 

SUPERMAN SMASHES THE KLAN! It’s exactly what the title says. Go read it! It’s inspired by the old school radio show (podcasts for your grandparents) that had REAL WORLD IMPACTS in the USA. 

Finally, the 40′s Cartoons

These are a BIT dated and light on actual plot and character but there’s a retro charm to some of these.  Okay, That’s enough from me. What are YOUR top recommendations for new fans? Let me know in the reblogs! 

#my adventures with superman #superman #clark ken #lois lane #clois #MAWS #dc #DCU

[honeybear-yammy]

Love At First Sight

Warnings: cursing

Pairings: Rudy Pankow x Female Reader

Summary: In which when Rudy and Y/N are on a live with the rest of the Outer Banks cast, Rudy confesses his feelings for Y/N.

© Honeybear-Yammy, please do not steal, translate, copy, or transfer my work.

You drove into the parking lot and got out of your car. You walked onto the set with your bag and your script. A few of your co-stars were there but you were early. The rest of them should show up in a bit.

"Hey y/n!" You herd Madison say behind you. You smiled and turned around and she ran over and hugged you. Madison was one of the people you got to meet before hand. The two of you practiced lines together and became good friends, the two of you have even hung out a few times.

"Hi Maddie!" You laughed and hugged her back. 

"Here, I'll show you where everything is." She said with a smile and led the way. You followed her to the trailer. 

"This is basically where you'll get your appearance ready for the show." She said. Madison was already ready, wearing Kiara's clothes. 

"Okay, I'll stick around here and get ready then." You smiled.

"Sounds good!" She smiled and walked out of the trailer. You put on the outfit you decided to wear for the first day in the pilot.

Once you got into the clothes you sat down in the chair to get your done and makeup. There was not much to do for that so it didn't take long at all. Once they were done you grabbed your phone and walked out of the trailer. 

Now Madelyn, Drew, and Rudy were all here and Chase, Jonathan and Austin were already here with Madison so everyone was here now so they were ready to get started. You all got in your places and started the first scene at the renovated house when the Pogues have to run from the police after they catch them there. 

You guys had to re-do the scene a few times but you eventually got a good take. You kept working and doing the scenes. You couldn't help but smile sometimes just by looking at your co-star Rudy. He was so adorable and sweet. He was also.. so fucking hot. 

You were happy your character got to be around Rudy's character JJ a lot and that the characters had a good friendship. Rudy was also super kind to you. He was so sweet and friendly towards you and you couldn't help but smile. 

You also couldn't help but be amazed at how good he portrayed JJ. He already fit the character so well and his acting was a 10/10. You were head over heels for him. You of course didn't want him to know that, just incase he didn't feel the same way. 

You knew you wouldn't know unless you went for it but, you were scared. Plus, it was just the first day and you didn't want to ruin things before it even started. So, for now you decided to try to make friends with him and sure enough it worked. 

You, Rudy, Chase, Madison, Jonathan, Madelyn, Drew, and Austin were all sitting together getting ready to do a livestream to promote the show. Outer Banks has officially finished the filming but has not been released to the public yet. 

At this point, with how close you and Rudy were all your fans believed you were secretly dating. Even some of the cast questioned if you were dating. They always joked around saying the two of you had to be dating secretly, but in reality you were just best friends.

Rudy was your best friend now. No one knew you better than Rudy did. He knew you better than you know yourself. You honestly wished all those rumors are true. You wished he felt the same way you felt about him.

The two of you were messing around playfully poking eachother and laughing while they were setting things up. Madison recorded the two of you and put it on her Instagram story with the caption "I love these dorks." 

Everything was all set up now so everyone sat down. You sat in between Rudy and Drew. The live started and you all were greeting the fans that were flowing into the live. The livestream got high in views very fast and you all got started. It was April 10th so the show was coming out in 5 days and everyone wanted to hype it up the few days before the release.

All the comments started flowing in. A lot of people kept commenting things about you and Rudy.

"Oh my god! Rudy and Y/N are so cute together!"

"Are Rudy and Y/N dating?"

"Rudy and Y/N are endgame!"

"Rudy and Y/N have to date soon!" 

You were reading all the comments and chuckled slightly. "Guys, Rudy and I are not dating or anything. I mean he an amazing guy but we are best friends." You chuckled. 

"Yeah. I mean we are friends but, if we are being totally honest here, I would not mind at all if we dated." Rudy said. You looked over at him surprised. 

"Really?" You asked shocked. 

"Yeah.." Rudy chuckled a little. "I've liked you since the first time we worked together but, I didn't now how to tell you and I thought you wouldn't feel the same way. I also didn't want to ruin the amazing friendship we have." Rudy said. 

"I like you too Rudy.." You said with a smile.

"It's ok if- wait really? You do?" He asked shocked. 

"Yeah.." You smiled. "I've liked you since the first time we worked together too." You said with a chuckle. The two of you were staring into each others eyes still shocked that the two of you felt the same way. You both seemed to be waiting for one of you to make a move. 

All the comments started flowing in about you and Rudy's emotions exposed.

"OMG! I knew they liked eachother!"

"OMGOMGOMG!"

"OMG! They need to kiss now!"

"YES! MY ENDGAME IS HAPPENING!"

Even the cast was watching you all, waiting for something to happen.

"Well? Kiss already!" Madison said. 

"Yeah, make the fans happy and just lay one on her Rudy." Chase said. You giggled softly as Rudy pulled you over and kissed you. You smiled and put your hands through his hair and he pulled you close. 

The two of you kissed for a good 3 minutes before you stopped realizing you were making out in front of your co-stars and on a live with thousands of people watching. 

"Well, Y/N.. would you be my girlfriend?" Rudy smiled. 

"Rudy, of course I will be your girlfriend." You smiled with a giggle and pecked him. After awhile you guys ended the stream and you and Rudy went out for a walk and to take photos again for Instagram. You were happy with him. You were the happiest you have ever been.

You knew Rudy was the one for you and you knew you wanted to spend the rest of your life with him and he felt the same way about you. In the end, the only person you ever really needed was Rudy, and now, you have him.

Author's Note: tysm for reading!

#outer banks #outerbanks #obx #obx cast #outer banks cast #rudy pankow #r. pankow #rudypankow #rudy #pankow #rudy pankow x reader #rudy pankow x female reader #rudy pankow x fem!reader #rudy pankow x f!reader #rudy pankow x oc #rudy pankow x you #rudy pankow x y/n #rudy pankow x plus size reader #fluff #obx fluff #outer banks fluff #obx cast fluff #outer banks cast fluff #rudy fluff #rudy pankow fluff #tw #tw cursing #tw cussing #tw swearing #tw language

[call-me-rucy]

So guess who just had a mini freak out because they learned that Eternal Diva WAS actually released on dvd in their country, despite thinking the whole film was unavailable (well...officially lmao) for like, a decade??? Idk where I got that idea from, I legit thought physical copies were some super rare, limited release thing that never left Japan (despite having an English dub??? Again, no idea why I thought that, it just was never available online when I searched for it over the years I guess). But anyways, long story short guess who found a second hand copy in perfect condition from a reputable retailer for under 3 bucks + free shipping :D

Hiya there!

(Lutias, is this you? I know Lutias was looking at Eternal Diva stuff last night but that is hardly enough evidence to make guesses about your identity.)

Nevertheless, "released on dvd in their country". European friend, I'm assuming! I'm very happy for you! Yes, Eternal Diva was released as dvd and bluray and collections sets and whatnot in several european countries. Not that it was easy to come across, mind you! If you didn't have access to internet shopping, you had to be right place right time. (I own an English dub dvd instead of Spanish dub because I only ever found the movie at a random shop in the UK on a trip!)

I'm so very glad you got it! And so very cheap, too! Congrats, and enjoy!

Also, thanks for the ask! Feel free to send more to brag of your dvd when you get it or to reveal your secret identity to the world :D

#professor layton #eternal diva #professor layton and the eternal diva #thanks for asking #ask

[mysteryshoptls]

SR Rook Hunt Port Wear Personal Story: Part 2

"My very soul is aquiver."

(Part 1) Part 2

[Crane Port – Whistle Park]

―A few hours later

Deuce: Welcome!

Customer: I'd like one churro!

Ace: Okaaay! Thanks for your purchase～

Ace: Aah, so busy, so busy. But we're selling pretty good, at least.

Deuce: Yeah, true! …Huh? I don't see Hunt-senpai anywhere.

Kalim: If you're looking for Rook, he's gone off to do his committee member work. It's almost time for him to switch out with one of us though…

Rook: Don't fret, I've returned.

Deuce: Thank you for all your hard work, Rook-senpai. You seem pretty busy.

Rook: Fufu, I've got my hands full with both my committee member duties and this food stand. Both are such fulfilling work, so I am fully enjoying myself.

Rook: It looks like we are about to be bereft of our churros dough. We should prepare some more while we have a lull in customers.

Ace: Ah, you're right. I'll fix some up right away!

Rook: Now then, it is time for Group A to bring smiles to all of our customers with our churros!

Grim: Ookay, then… Everyone's super focused on their work.

Grim: Now's my chance! Time to grab that grub!

Grim: [munch, snarf, gulp]!! Mmm～, these are so sweet and delish!

Rook: Oh, my, Monsieur Fuzzball. We can't have you sneaking bites of our churros.

Grim: Shoot, they found me! Ruuuun!!!

Deuce: Ack, what're you doing, Grim?! Stop running around! It's dangerous to tear about like that in a narrow space!

Leona: Ugh, so annoying… Pipe down, furball.

Grim: Nyack! Leona's over this way… Gotta go the other way!

Ace: Woaah!? We're gonna crash!!

[CRASH]

Deuce: Waaah! The flour Ace was carrying went all over the food stand!!

Everyone: !!!

Rook: ...Oh là là! Everyone is covered from head to toe in flour.

Ace: Ahahahah! Deuce, you're totally white!

Deuce: You're the worst of all of us, you know!

Ace: Geh, really?! I went all out and set my hair n' everything for the Fest, too!

Leona: You got some nerve completely coverin' me in flour, you spiky-haired brat.

Ace: I-It wasn't my fault! It's totally Grim's fault for bumping into me!

Leona: You're just as guilty, you couldn't stand your ground. I'll make both you and that furball regret it.

Silver: Zzz… Zzz…

Deuce: Silver-senpai is fast asleep, so he hasn't even noticed that he's covered in flour.

Ace: In a way, he might be the luckiest of us all, then…

Kalim: Ahahaha! We all match!

1. Everyone, are you all alright?

Leona: [Yuu], you're covered in flour too, you know.

2. C'mon, Grim, let's apologize.

Grim: No way! I'm outta here!

[camera shutter sound]

[Courtyard]

―A few days later

Deuce: [Yuu]!  The winner of the photo contest was announced on the official Port Fest website.

1. Oh, was that being announced today?

Deuce: Yeah. They just released it earlier.

2. I wonder if I won the grand prize?

Deuce: What, were you actually going for the win…?

Rook: Monsieur Spade, and Trickster. May I join you for the anticipated results reveal?

Deuce: Oh, Hunt-senpai. Yes, of course we don't mind.

Deuce: Uhhh, so first place was… Ah!

Deuce: IT'S HUNT-SENPAI!!

Rook: Oh, my word, is it? What an honor.

Deuce: They also have the winning picture on here. …Oh! This is…

Deuce: I didn't even realize that you had snapped a pic of when all of us were covered in flour.

Deuce: And to think that you actually entered it into the contest and even took the win!

Rook: Well, what do you think? Monsieur Spade and the others look to be having a grand time, no?

Rook: Do you not think this photo is quite beauté?

Deuce: Heheh, yeah, definitely. Do you think I could ask you to burn a copy for me as well?

Rook: Oui! Of course, I would be happy to!

Deuce: Oh hey, your photo won a prize too, [Yuu]!

1. Awesome!

Rook: Congratulations, Trickster!

2. Really!?

Deuce: Yeah. That's great!

Rook: I can't help but be rather curious as to what kind of photo you submitted.

Rook: Monsieur Spade, may I borrow your smartphone?

Deuce: Sure, here you go.

Rook: Haha, well, isn't this a surprise. Who would have guessed that I would have been the subject of your picture.

Deuce: This is a great photo, [Yuu]!

Rook: I see… So, this was my expression while I was performing on stage.

Rook: [Yuu]-kun, do you think I could bother you for a copy of this photo?

Rook: I will be able to recall back to my time as a Port Fest committee member, as well as the passionate show we gave then, every time I gaze upon this picture.

Rook: That would be a mémoire more beautiful and valuable than any gemstone.

Rook: This Port Fest… It was truly très bien!

(Part 1) Part 2

#twisted wonderland #twst #rook hunt #ace trappola #deuce spade #leona kingscholar #kalim al-asim #twst rook #twst ace #twst deuce #twst leona #twst kalim #twst silver #twst grim #twst translation #twst port fest

[alexissara]

I Don't Know Which One is Love Volume 1 Review

Note - This Manga currently has not been officially translated, you should bother Manga companies to release Volume 1 then buy it if you end up liking it too.

So this is a manga I saw on Pixiv randomly browsing Yuri and then I had to find scanslations cuz this art featured above made me think, "Poly lesbians, I'm in". It didn't end up being that but a lesbian Harem manga which has potential to go into the Polyamarous route, I hope it does but for Volume 1, I accept a bit of monogamy brain. Plus it's by the creator of Cheery Amnesia which is the series that helped me start to deal with my fear of memory loss and just a story I love a lot.

The story starts off by showing a bit of lesbian reality, the protagonist getting rejected by her long term crush in high school when she finds out she got a boyfriend. Her dreams and heart crushed she is determined to get a girlfriend as she enters college. 5 women meet her each of which instantly start to fall for her. Some are more blunt while others are more subdued, we get a look at each in their own chapter with chapter 1 and chapter 6 being chapters where we get to see a higher amount of the girls and even a little bit of the interaction. There is a flow between the girls in her new college life and it moves smoothly.

Romance here is very fast pace, our protagonist is in love instantly and most the women are falling for her instantly and falling deeper the most they hang out. So far we haven't gone super super deep into any character but we have seen some interiority for each of the 5 women. I really enjoy the blazing hot pace and much prefer it to slow burn and this is a thing that really makes this series stand out to me. The first volume ending with someone asking her to be her girlfriend and then another girl walking into the room.

I think this story really shows a cute sense of humor, gags are mostly in over the top reactions and great facial reactions but it's solid for a story that is trying to keep a fast pace, it doesn't need big jokes. The art style is very cute but not in a way that makes the horniness creepy, everyone is clearly an adult and drawn like them. As of chapter 7 the horny doesn't turn into sex and it is mostly people desiring other people. I like that each girl represents on of the 5 senses in their desire for Mei [our protag], it's a cute way to short hand a difference in attraction. It's rare to get a bigger look into desire and it is something most harems totally fail to do.

This story features Student/Teacher relationships as one of the 5 relationships. While it doesn't bother me at all when their both adults and as of this volume because of the power dynamics she actively choses to not go further with the student, yet. I know this is a very potentially triggering subject so I think anyone going in should know, hey if you don't like this, it's there maybe skip this one. I should also warn that there is a character who is not really following consentful boundaries, our protagonist likes it and is pretty happy about it but still this is also potentially upsetting.

Personally I really loved this manga and I really want to see more of it, I hope it's successful. I have worries about a potential forced "I can only have one GF" route as a polyam as fuck girl I can't relate to that. What I can relate to is a bunch of girls being in love with me and me loving them back. I really hope to see more of that going forward but this volume served as a perfect introduction to the characters an world and I hope we can see these loves all develop and bloom.

5/5 Stars

#I Don't Know Which One is Love #Review #Manga Review #Yuri Review #Yuri #Yuri Manga #Harem Yuri #Yuri Harem #Lesbian Manga #Lesbian #Lesbian review #Potentially Polyam #Potentially poly #queer manga #GL #GL Review #GL Recs #Yuri Recs #Sapphic Recs #Sapphic Manga

[tswaney17]

I Do Bad Things with You - Part 33

Happy @elainarcheronweek!!! We're celebrating Romance Day with a little update on this fic, ignoring the fact that it's been 84 years since the last one...🙈 I've been working around the clock on parts for this, hoping to get it onto a weekly posting schedule, but I wanted to do something special for Elain Week (and Az week 😉). This isn't a super long update, but it sets us up for the next one. Which, I think you'll really like. 💋 Anyways, hope you enjoy it! I had a lot of fun with this piece. It was inspired by a few individuals. They know who they are. 💙💜💚

My fanfic account: @tswaney17fics​​​

My ao3 account: tswaney17

Please let me know what you think about this update. I love getting your feedback. Constructive criticism is always welcome. 💕

Catch up here.

Credit to @featherymalignancy for Cassian’s nickname, Cash. 😘

Trigger warnings: violence, sexual assault (minor mention), language, NSFW

Word Count: 5,448

Elain woke to her alarm going off at a quarter to six, Azriel having already slipped from their bed at five for his morning workout with a kiss on her bare shoulder and another on her lips when she offered him a sleepy smile. Since they had officially become a couple and she started back at work a few weeks ago, they had fallen into a comfortable, steady rhythm. They worked around each other like magnets.

It was easy, even with her ever-changing shifts, which he took in stride and did whatever he could to compensate for them. Elain was so grateful for Az’s go-with-the-flow attitude when it came to her schedule, dropping her off for late evening call-ins and picking her up at ungodly hours in a delicious pair of grey sweatpants and black sweatshirt that she wanted nothing more than to snuggle into when they got home.

They still hadn’t crossed that line in their relationship and she knew it wasn’t because her body hadn’t been prepared for it. But every time they got close, her mind seemed to lock down and she froze. Elain hated herself for it. One, because she wanted to move forward with Azriel—ached to take that next step with him. And two, she felt like she was disappointing him in a way by continuing to hold off, though he’d deny it fiercely. It was still something she had concerns about in the back of her mind.

He had made her feel safe, knew he’d take it slow with her until she felt comfortable in her own body and skin; would never push her into anything she wasn’t ready for. Though Azriel seemed like a male in charge, Elain knew she would have complete control when they finally took that step.

Her mind had wandered so far into her worries, that it took the knock on the bathroom door for her to realize she had been on auto-pilot the entire time and was currently in the shower washing her hair.

“Elain?” Azriel called through the door. “Do you mind if I come in? I need to shave this morning.”

“That’s fine, come in!”

He padded in, already stripped from his workout gear, and was down to his boxer briefs. Every chiseled piece of him on display—well, almost every piece of him. Though the tightness of those black Calvin Kleins did nothing to hide what was stored beneath.

Elain swallowed hard as she watched him make his way toward the towel rack.

Grabbing the white cloth, he slung it around his hips and then worked his underwear down his legs and stepped out of them. Opening the shower door, he beckoned her forward. “C’mere.”

She felt everything turn red under his scrutiny, though he’d seen her naked plenty of times now. Az felt inclined to give her a few orgasms a day. Some mornings he’d forgo his workout to “wake her up properly” as he put it. Others, he’d focus on her after work. Wanting to take the stress of her long day away, one release at a time.

Elain had the sudden urge to cover herself, feeling unexpectedly shy, but she didn’t as she stepped forward, out of the spray of the shower and to the open door.

When she was close enough, he used his one hand to grip her under her jaw and brought her mouth to his for a slow, sensual kiss. His tongue slipped between her lips; stroked hers in an erotic dance that had her knees going weak.

She moaned lightly into his mouth, hands sliding up his muscled chest till they could bury into his mop of sweaty hair. Elain didn’t even care that he had just worked out. Only that he kissed her so deeply, so heavenly, she felt herself pulse between her legs.

Az broke off their kiss, panting slightly, and flashed her a smile that would break a girl’s heart. “Good morning, beautiful.”

She laughed, her voice slightly husky from the kiss. “Someone is happy this morning.”

He gave her a pointed look. “I’m always happy with you, Elain.”

Her cheeks flushed at the double meaning and she shoved him out of the shower. “Go shave, you dirty bird.”

Azriel barked out a laugh. “You started it,” he stated, shutting the glass door.

She shook her head, eyes rolling as she finished washing her hair. Though she found it very difficult to focus on her tasks as Azriel stood over the counter, the sharp razor slowly gliding up the strong column of his throat. Shutting off the water, she opened the door and reached for her towel, doing a half-dry before wrapping it around herself. Elain used her second one to towel-dry her hair, then rehung it.

Her eyes followed the smooth strokes of the blades up his neck. Something about him standing there, looking like some sort of sex god in his low-slung towel, knowing he was nude beneath it, with a sharp object gliding up his throat made heat run south of her body and collect between her legs. How was shaving so damn attractive? Her mouth parted slightly.

Hazel eyes met hers in the mirror and he paused his movements. “See something you like, love?” he asked, a smirk pulling on his lips.

Elain folded her towel securely around her, strolling closer to him. He watched her closely, lowering the razor as she approached him on silent footsteps. She placed a hand on his back, reaching for the blade in his hand. “Let me finish for you.”

His brows shot into his hairline. “You want to shave me?”

The corner of her mouth quirked up. “Don’t trust me with a sharp instrument?” she challenged. When she managed to finally pull the razor from his fist, she added, “I promise not to mark up that pretty face of yours.”

Azriel laughed deeply. “It’s not my face I’m worried about, baby.”

Elain pushed him over to the closed toilet seat, having him sit down on top of it. “You do realize I work with scalpels and such for work. That my cutting has to be precise. My hand is steady. Your jugular is safe with me.” She reached for the hand towel and folded it to form a makeshift pillow at the edge of the counter. “Lean back.”

He did as instructed, resting his head on the countertop and supporting his torso with his abdomen. “This is not all that comfortable,” he admitted, laughing.

“Well, I suppose I’ll have to be quick then. Now shush.”

Elain was diligent with her work, making sure she got every single hair on his neck and face with each pass she made. She worked as quickly as she could, knowing Az was uncomfortable, a fact he made clear with a heavy breath he blew out every couple of minutes. Though when he started to fidget, she had to scold him. “Stop wiggling or I’m going to nick you.”

“Sorry,” he muttered, voice hoarse.

She paused, pulling the blade away from his neck to look him over. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, let’s just finish.” He swallowed hard and she tracked the movement with her eyes.

“Az…” she tried. Then she caught the fidget again as her eyes swept down his body and she realized why he was uncomfortable and antsy. “Are you, turned on by this?”

He huffed out an indignant sound. “Well, yeah! You’re standing there in nothing but a fucking towel, looking sexy as fuck, holding a blade to my throat, and apparently, that turns me on. Yes—I know it sounds bad, but fuck I’m trying hard right now to keep it contained and fighting a losing battle.”

Elain’s hand fell as her eyes searched his. This was it. She could offer herself to him in some way or another and give him what he clearly needed. “I—” she started, brows furrowing.

Azriel’s hand came up, knuckles brushing over her cheek in comfort. He waited patiently for her to speak.

Her heart clenched as her mind, once again locked down. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I don’t think I’m ready.” Failure weighed heavily on her like she was buried beneath a bed of sand. A brick formed in her chest.

“Hey,” he said, voice strong. “There is nothing wrong with not being ready, Elain. I can wait until you are; until you’re comfortable with moving forward. You know that.”

She sighed, head bowing. “I know. I just hate feeling like I’m disappointing you.”

“You are not disappointing me.” His hand curved around her cheek. “You could never disappoint me, Elain.” He brought her head down for a sweet kiss. “I would wait a thousand years for you. Forever.”

Elain huffed out a soft laugh, the air ghosting over his lips.

“But I’m not going to lie and tell you that this is going to go away on its own. So, once you finish, I’ll have you step out while I handle the situation real quick if you don’t mind?” His thumb brushed over the apple of her cheek.

She blushed as she murmured, “What if I didn’t? Step out that is.”

He blinked at her in surprise. “Will you be okay seeing me do that? Touching myself like that?”

Her cheeks heated even more at his words, at the thought of him touching himself. The image of a man jerking off had never been appealing to her, but somehow the idea of it being Azriel doing it to thoughts of her was undeniably sexy. Especially since she was the reason he got so turned on in the first place. Realizing he was still waiting on a response, she said, “If it becomes too much, I’ll leave. We said baby steps. Maybe this is one of those steps?”

Azriel regarded her carefully. “Baby steps,” he repeated and then smiled, pulling her down for another slow kiss. “Okay, please finish me up. My back is starting to twinge,” he begged against her lips.

Elain made quick work, completing the last two strokes up his throat, and then used a warm washcloth to wipe away the excess shaving cream. She hauled him up by the back of his neck into a proper sitting position. “All finished.” Threading her fingers through his dark mop of hair, she kissed his cheek, before cleaning up his razor and other shaving utensils. After a minute, she realized he hadn’t moved from where he sat. “Az? Are you going to shower?”

“Yeah, just trying to get myself there.” He took a few deep breaths. “I’m all right,” he said more to himself than to her. Rising from his seat he made his way to her, stopped to squeeze her shoulders, thumbs digging into the soft spots beside her shoulder blades that had her melting, and kissed the backside of her head. “Thank you, El,” though she wasn’t exactly sure what he was thanking her for. Releasing her, he strode for the shower, rehanging his towel and giving her a view of his bare, gloriously toned backside.

Holy fucking shit.

She had to grip the counter to keep herself upright.

If Azriel was an ass man, well, apparently so was she. Elain’s face reddened at her train of thoughts as she watched him in the mirror turn the water on. The frosted glass around the center of the shower prevented her from seeing anything directly, but it didn’t stop her from seeing the movements.

Az was gentlemanly enough to keep his deliciously sculpted back to her, but she watched his muscles ripple with the stroke of his hand that was wrapped around his cock. His movements were quick and long, and it almost looked like he did some sort of rotation.

She tried to look away, to focus on finishing getting ready. She really did. But Elain was mesmerized by how he pleasured himself. This beautiful, successful, undeniably sexy male, who loved her, cherished her, got turned on by her so badly he had to fuck his hand to get rid of his boner. Elain felt powerful by the knowledge.

And then his arm shot out, planting against the wall as he grunted and came. His large body heaved as his strokes quickened and he rode out his orgasm.

Elain’s body turned molten, the throb between her legs becoming nearly unbearable. She bit down on her bottom lip until she almost drew blood, breathing heavily through her nose. Grabbing the edge of the counter in a brutal grip, her head bowed as a small whimpering sound came out of her.

Oh, gods. Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods!

She glanced in the mirror to see if he had heard her and luckily found him with his head under the spray of the shower. Small miracles, she thought. Taking a deep breath to settle her heavy breathing, Elain clenched her thighs together and tried to refocus on getting ready for work.

Tried to.

~~~~~

Azriel knew Elain had watched him get off. He could feel her eyes on him. It didn’t bother him, her watching him pleasure himself—in fact, he reveled in it. The idea that she didn’t get uncomfortable enough to have to leave the bathroom had him reeling in pride. He had done that. Helped her reach that level of comfort and trust.

Opening the shower door, he reached for his towel and quickly wrapped it around his waist. When he looked Elain over, he froze. She was still in her towel, putting on mascara. But what caught his attention was the tightness of her body, her shallow breaths, and the very obvious clenching of her thighs.

She was hot from him and what he did in the shower.

He stepped forward. “El,” he said slowly, meeting her gaze in the mirror. “Are you okay?”

She lowered the wand from her lashes. “Fine.” A pretty lie. The throatiness of her tone would’ve given her away if her body hadn’t.

His eyes dipped down to the splotch of red on her chest. Another tell-tell sign of her arousal. “Why don’t I believe you?”

Elain closed the tube of mascara without taking her eyes off him, which was slightly impressive in itself, but she didn’t answer him.

Azriel took a step closer to her and decided to take a different approach. “Did you like watching me, Elain?” Her rounded cheeks were dusted with pink. “Did you like watching me stroke myself?” he questioned her, voice deep and husky.

Her legs pressed tighter together.

Checkmate.

“Are you turned on, my sweet girl?” he asked, reaching for her and tugging her body into his.

Elain whined, falling into his chest.

His hands ran up her bare arms, lightly touching her skin, tipping her head to the side to give him access to her neck. He dragged his lips over her pulse point; felt it fluttering faster than a hummingbird’s wings.

She hummed, reaching one hand back to grip his hip. “Az,” she moaned and gods, if that wasn’t a shot of adrenalin straight to his cock. He really fucking loved when she moaned his name. Elain let out a sigh. “We’re going to be late.”

“No, we won’t,” he murmured onto her skin. “I can take care of you quickly.”

A half-smirk pulled at her lips. “Think very highly of yourself, do ya?”

He growled, nipping at her skin, and twisted her in his arms to claim her mouth. Elain melted against him, hands clutching at his shoulders as his tongue swept into her mouth. He licked, claimed, and dominated her between her lips, an arm wrapping itself around her trim waist to keep her steady against him, the other hand tilting her jaw in a way he liked it.

Lifting her, Az set her on the edge of the counter and slotted his hips between her legs. His hands slid up her thighs, mouth sucking down her jaw to the sensitive part of her throat where it met her shoulder.

Elain’s fingers dove into his hair, tugging the damp strands hard enough to make him groan into her neck. Her back arched into his chest, hips wiggling in search of friction.

He made his way back to her mouth, kissing her filthily until she was left mewling. “We don’t have time for multiple orgasms this morning, so we’re aiming for one big one.” Azriel pulled back to look at her face. “Do you trust me?”

She was a panting, wanton mess. “Yes. Please, Az. Please just make it better,” she moaned, bringing his lips back to hers.

Groaning, he shoved her towel up to her hips and let his fingers skim over her slit. “Jesus fuck, Elain. Your fucking soaked.” He had found that, despite the trauma she had been through, Elain had a voracious sexual appetite, even if they had yet to fully have sex. It excited him to no end, knowing that when they did finally take that step, she’d have the will and the drive to keep up with his…stamina.

She whimpered, dipping her forehead onto his chest.

He looked at her then, took in her trembling body, and realized how badly she needed this. Wasting no time, Azriel dropped to his knees before her and threw her legs over his shoulders. His tongue swiped up from her entrance to her clit before he sucked it into his mouth.

Elain lurched, crying out, and grabbed at his shoulders, or what she could reach of them with her legs in the way.

Tugging her hips forward, he exposed that back, tight, ring of muscle. Az glanced up at her face, watching her closely as he slowly slid his tongue down to her lowered, puckered hole.

Gasping, her eyes flew open as her hips bucked onto his mouth, heels digging into his back. Lust darkened her normally brown eyes to a near black. Sweat beaded at her temple and dripped down her face, falling onto her chest that was now exposed—the towel having fallen off her and pooled around her on the counter.

Elain was a gorgeous woman, but mussed up and sex-addled, she was like an ethereal goddess. Releasing his shoulders, those beautiful, healing hands dove into his wet locks, gripping them in a way that had him groaning between her thighs. “Azriel, gods, please. More. I need more.”

Who was he to deny his queen? Inserting his index finger, Az realized how open and ready she was, and joined his middle with his first inside of her, pumping slowly. His thumb pressed down on her clit, circling it.

Throwing her head back, Elain smacked the mirror, crying out though he did not know if it was from pain or pleasure.

Azriel removed his mouth from her back hole. “Shit, are you all right?”

“Yes,” she tugged his head forward, back to where she needed him. “Don’t stop, please.”

He dove back in, letting his tongue swirl around that tight muscle, working it open for him as his fingers continued pumping into her. Feeling her body relax, he slipped his ring finger into her quivering passage, earning a sensually deep moan. But Az wasn’t finished with her yet. Coating his pinky finger in her slickness, he dragged it down to press against her back entrance.

Elain sucked in a breath, eyes flashing with heat and desire as he swirled her puckered opening.

Watching her carefully, he dipped the tip of his smallest finger into her rosebud, matching the thrusting of his three other digits and the movement of his thumb on her clit.

Back arching, she moaned, loudly, one hand leaving his hair to grab his shoulder on the outside of her leg. “Azriel,” she whined, drawing out the syllables of his name, and fuck him if that didn’t make him instantly hard. Grabbing his shaft with his other hand through his towel, Az stroked himself in time with how he pleasured her.

“Fuck, Elain,” he groaned, placing a sloppy kiss on the inside of her thigh. “You look so damn good, blissed-out, riding my hand like this.” He nipped the sensitive skin, leaving little red marks on her pale flesh. “Do you like me filling you, baby?”

Her body quaked at his words, nearing her climax as she made these pathetic, whimpering sounds. “Y—yes!” she shouted when his fingers stroked that smooth patch of skin, deep inside of her. “Oh god, Az.” Elain’s hand shot to the edge of the counter, gripping it until her knuckles turned white.

She was close, he could feel it. And he wasn’t far off too. He bit down on her thigh, leaving a purplish mark, claiming her. Az loved marking her nearly as much as Elain loved being marked by him. Rising slightly, Azriel replaced his thumb with his mouth and sucked her clit hard.

There was nothing left for her to do but shatter, screaming out a slur of curses, praises, and a litany of syllables that sounded like his name all strung together.

Azriel watched her stomach contract, felt her quake around his fingers from both of her entrances as he continued to pump into her, helping her ride through her high as his orgasm hit. Quickly, he pinned his towel over the head of his cock, catching every skirt of cum that barreled through him as he groaned against her clit.

The vibrations through his mouth made Elain shudder in pleasure and she pulsed against his thick fingers, rolling through either a second orgasm or extending the first. He honestly couldn’t tell whether the one she was having ended or not.

Elain’s body spasmed but he kept her pinned to the counter—her knuckles turning stark white as she let out another deep, throaty moan. It was only when she began pushing at his head, trying to get him away from her overly sensitive center did he remove his mouth from her clit and slowly withdrew his fingers.

She arched, gasping when he pulled out and Az couldn’t help but notice how her body twitched from the loss of him. He settled her legs back on the counter and rose between her thighs.

Her eyes were still shut, breath still heavy, but he knew she could feel his presence. Azriel swept his hands over her hips, up her waist—not to tease but to soothe. To calm her heart and lust-filled mind. He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on the center of her chest.

Another on her throat.

One to her cheek until finally, finally, she blinked those beautiful brown eyes at him.

Elain smiled sweetly and he couldn’t resist dropping another tender kiss onto those luscious lips. She giggled into his mouth. “Hi,” she breathed.

Using his clean hand, he tucked her hair behind her ear and cupped the side of her face. “Hi,” he said back.

Her eyes darted between his. “That was,” her fingers trailed up his strong trapezius muscle, “wow.”

He chuckled. “Wow, good I hope.”

“Amazing. What you did…” Elain pulled his face down towards him, eyes sparkling, “I can’t even begin to describe how good that felt.”

Azriel smiled, ducking his head down to kiss her again. Her soft lips molded to his, pillowing against his until he sucked her bottom one into his mouth lightly.

She moaned but placed a hand firmly on his chest to push him away. “None of that or we will most definitely be late for work.”

“I’m not opposed,” he laughed. His thumb stroked her cheek. “That was okay though? I didn’t push you, right?”

Elain couldn’t fight the affectionate grin that took over her face. “You were perfect, as always. I don’t know how you seem to know what I need—what I can handle, but you do. You push my limits but you never cross them, Az. You allow me to explore things I’ve never imagined, and fuck, was that better than I could have ever pictured.” She wrapped her legs around his waist, hauling him into the cradle of her hips. “I’ve never really explored much in regards to sex. It was a standard position or two with Graysen and that was pretty much the extent of our physical relationship.”

He scowled at the name of her ex-fiancé from her lips but kept his mouth shut.

“I know when we were in high school, we were still young and learning how to have sex, but I didn’t think it could feel the way you make me do now. And that’s just by your fingers and your mouth.” Her cheeks blushed most adorably and she huffed out a breath, shaking her head. “I really have no idea where I’m going with this, other than, thank you, Az, for being patient with me. For taking care of me. I know I’m not the easiest partner when it comes to the physical aspects of a relationship.”

And at that, he cut her off. “Elain, I told you earlier that I have no qualms about waiting for you to be ready. We’ll get there when we get there. At your pace and your choosing. You don’t need to thank me for having patience. And for taking care of you. I like taking care of you. A lot.” He dropped a kiss on her pert nose. One to either cheek. Another to her eyelid until she started laughing and then he kissed that sweet sound too.

“Okay, okay! We are really going to be late if we don’t get going now.”

Giving her one more kiss for good measure, Azriel quickly cleaned her up, and then himself, and within twenty minutes, they were both dressed and in the elevator on their way down for work.

~~~~~

Elain was in the locker room, shoving her things into her assigned metal box when Viviane found her. She should’ve known her peaceful morning was about to end. Her friend could sniff out sexual intercourse like a bloodhound, and given what Azriel had done to her that morning, well, Viv would’ve been all over it.

“Good morning,” the nurse chirped, propping a hip against the row of lockers.

“Morning, Viv. You’re awfully chipper today.”

The blonde smiled. “I just feel like it’s going to be a good day.” Those glacial eyes looked her over. “You seem different this morning.”

Elain tensed at the insinuation. “Different how?”

Viviane’s head cocked to the side as she studied her and she couldn’t help but blush under the scrutiny of her gaze. “You’re glowing.”

Oh fuck.

She gasped. “You had sex this morning!”

Somebody a few rows over dropped a set of keys and coughed, to make an obvious announcement of their presence in the room.

“Jesus Christ, Viv! Shout it to the whole hospital,” Elain whisper-hissed. “And no, I didn’t.”

“There’s no way you can look that happy,” she waved a hand in her general direction, and not have had sex. Good sex. Post-orgasmic sex.”

Oh, for the love of—

Viv gripped her hand. “Tell me everything. What position? Is he large? How many orgasms did you have?”

Elain’s face went as red as a tomato, burning in embarrassment, and she ripped her hand away. “Christ, Viv! You are so crude. I’m not telling you anything!”

Her friend made a pathetically, childlike face. “But why! I tell you things. I’ll tell you what Kallias did the other night.”

“No! You tell me things I didn’t ask for and don’t want to know!” She sighed, shaking her head. “I’m telling you, we didn’t have sex…per se.”

Those blue eyes glowed like magic. Fuck, she really was a bloodhound. “So, what did you have, per se?”

Elain felt her cheeks blush. Gods, she did not want to be having this conversation with her, but then again, she kind of did. Viv was different from her sisters. Their relationship was different. And Elain sort of wanted to get some advice from her.

The nurse must’ve seen the change on her face because her eyes softened and she took Elain’s hand again. “You know you can talk to me, right? About anything. Ask me anything. I know it’s been a while since you’ve been intimate with someone. If you have questions about something that you want to ask me, you’re free to.”

Something warm settled in her chest at the comforting words Viviane offered her. She squeezed her friend’s hand, tugging her to sit on the little bench. “Actually, there is something I wanted to get some advice from you on.” Elain took a deep breath, composing herself as she figured out the best way to ask her questions. “Azriel and I have been intimate, just not completely.”

“How far have you gotten with him?” she asked, genuinely curious. “If you don’t mind my asking, that is.”

Elain pursed her lips. “He…takes care of me. A lot.” When Viv’s blonde brows shot into her hairline, she knew the nurse understood her reference. “But every time we get close to sealing the deal, my mind freezes on me.”

She nodded in understanding. “Do you want to have sex with him?”

“Yes. Very much so.” She sighed. “It’s like this hurdle in front of me that I can’t seem to cross and I don’t know why.”

“Have you touched him? Reciprocated I mean.”

Elain shakes her head no. “He keeps telling me not to worry about him, that he’s okay. And even the thought of doing it makes me lock up. I don’t know if it’s the idea of a male body itself that triggers it, but I feel awful. Azriel has been wonderful to me, completely patient with my fears and helping me work through my anxieties, and I feel like I’ve offered him nothing in return. I haven’t offered him anything in return. Gods, I sound like a shit girlfriend.”

“No,” Viviane said insistently. “You are not a shit girlfriend, Elain. You are a victim of an attempted sexual assault. There are things you’re going to have to work through and Azriel understands that. There’s nothing wrong with you and that doesn’t make you a bad girlfriend because of it. Stop blaming yourself for your trauma.”

A tear slid down her cheek but Viv was quick to catch it with her thumb.

“Now, as for the sex, I have an idea that might help.”

Elain nodded eagerly. “Yes, please! I’m willing to try anything.”

“First off, when you two get going, I want you to try and clear your mind of anything and everything other than the moment you’re in. Focus on your body. What it’s telling you and what he’s doing to it. And listen to his. Watch what you do to his body too. Your instinct will follow.

“Second, get on top with your clothes still on and grind on him.”

“What?” she asked, blushing from her hairline to her chest.

Viv chuckled at her reaction. “Keep your clothes on but get off on his dick. It will give you exposure to feeling it again without having the complete, sexual setting you’d have if you both were naked.”

Elain blinked at her friend. “You want me to dry-hump him?”

The nurse simply cocked her head to the side and said, “Yes.” At her friend’s obvious discomfort, she added, “It sounds worse than it is. You’ll get off, he’ll likely get off from it too. It will be pleasurable, and you’ll get adjusted to feeling his cock between your legs. Just try it.”

Well, this was an awkward conversation she was not expecting to have. She was sure her heart was hammering in the side of her neck hard enough for the nurse to hear. Elain swallowed the lump in her throat. To be honest, it wasn’t a half-bad idea. Just the thought made her a bit nervous. “Okay, I’ll think about it,” she finally said.

Pleased by her answer, Viviane wrapped her arms around her shoulders, squeezing her tightly. “I’m always here for you, Ellie.”

“Thanks, Viv.” Releasing her friend, they rose from their perch on the bench. “I suppose we should probably get out there.”

The head nurse snorted. “Definitely. You know the emergency room is a shitshow when neither one of us is there running things.”

Elain tipped her head back and laughed. “That is true.”

Making their way out of the employee locker room, Viviane went to her post to begin her rotation while Elain searched for her residents. Her conversation with her friend seemed to have soothed whatever anxieties she was having and she found herself looking forward to the next intimate interaction with Azriel—hoping that perhaps this time, things might finally come to a climactic end for both of them.

~~~~~~

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