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sevlgi · 3 years

Text

aphrodisiac

requested: no

group: twice

pairing: mina x fem!reader

genre: fluff, extremely mild and short angst

contents: witch!mina, love potions, college!au

warnings: none

synopsis: You’re broke and desperate, so you don’t think twice before taking a love potion that’ll make you fall in love with a mysteriously perfect girl. But maybe you should.

a/n: hehe i like the idea of this!! i’m just not sure how well i executed it 🤔 happy valentines day, my loves ❤

word count: 6.0k

While everyone knew that working the 9-12 weekday shift at the campus bookstore was the worst job you could possibly get, you didn’t feel quite as exhilarated to have been laid off as you should have.

As the one who had suffered at the hand of old Mrs. Lee for almost the entire duration of your time on campus, you knew the torture better than most. So it was an understatement to say that you were exhilarated to be free of ironing book pages out and restocking the shelves at Mrs. Lee’s whims, that you were practically beaming when you got the email.

But on the other hand, it wasn’t like you had much money to spare, or like you had the ability to find another job in the crowded university. When you felt your wallet in your back pocket, completely empty save for a couple crinkled receipts, the grin faded from your face; after all, it would be even harder to survive without the aid of your measly salary.

So as you pinched together a couple quarters to buy yourself a consolatory iced chocolate, you found that being let go from the shittiest job in the world didn’t feel as triumphant as you had expected. Not when you were, once again, scouring the papers stabled to the lightposts around the campus for anything that offered a quick paycheck.

Well, almost anything.

“I will not.”

“Why?” Lisa was close to whining, though the pout that she directed fully at you did her no favors. “You said you needed to get paid.”

You sighed, “I said i needed to get paid, not launched in the air like a damn cannonball.”

Lisa scowled and tapped her fingers on her face, her hands still cupping her chin as she attempted to convince you. “Come on, the dance team’s willing to pay. It costs less to pay you than to get a dummy, so--”

“That’s not helping to convince me,” you warned. As desperate as you were, and as much as you liked Lisa and her fellow dancers, you definitely didn’t trust them not to launch you in the air and break your neck. “Are you sure that you don’t know about any other job offers? Anything that won’t murder me?”

She considered it, chewing on her bottom lip. You could feel other students eyeing where you sat, one of the only seats in the incredibly tiny boba shop, but you refused to budge until Lisa gave you an answer. “Oh! There is one I can think of, actually. You know the bio lab?”

“Yeah.” You watched her suspiciously, arms crossed. “I’ve been there a couple times. Why?”

“Well, it isn’t a normal bio lab,” Lisa mumbled, leaning in as if what she was about to tell you was the greatest secret in the world. “A lot of them are witches, you know.”

It wasn’t like you didn’t believe in witches, or the supernatural-- both had been proven to be true eons ago, and almost half of the students attending your university weren’t completely human. But you were still a little skeptical that the pretty and equally brilliant girls who ran the campus’s bio lab were... “Witches? Are you sure?”

“Why would I be lying?” Lisa rolled her eyes. “I’m friends with a couple of them, and I know that they’re doing an... experiment of sorts, and they need--”

“Lab rats,” you finished for the dancer. In all rationality, being a lab rat for a couple of young witches with access to a high-tech lab was probably worse than getting launched up in the air by a dance team, but when Lisa slid a flyer over and your eyes widened at the offered money, you instantly stood. “Take me.”

Lisa pouted but stood anyway, taking the flyer back to squint at the tiny scribbled building number. “I can’t believe you trust Mina more than you trust me.”

“Mina? Is that the name of the ‘witch’ I’m selling myself to?” you asked, slightly sarcastic but also slightly curious. At the dancer’s nod, you exhaled lightly and shoved your seat in just to watch the next people scramble for it, and hummed on your way out, “Then let’s meet this Mina.”

Maybe it had something to do with the fact that your entire school was close to dilapidated, but something about the bio lab was almost creepy as you approached it. Lisa had long since set off for the dance room (something about Seulgi breaking Ten’s ankle, she claimed), so you hesitated in front of the cloudy glass door alone. But the thought of the $600 dollars scrawled onto the flyer scrunched in your fist prompted you to push the doors open and step into the lab.

There was already a decent amount of people buzzing around inside; you recognized quite a few of them and nearly laughed at the amount of students willing to possibly be poisoned. But you took the nearest empty seat as someone appeared at the front of the room.

“Wow, this is a great turnout.”

The crowd chuckled lightly, and your eyes nearly bugged out at the sight of the girl standing at the front with papers in her hands. Honestly, she was the kind of girl that you imagined people wrote love songs about-- absolutely perfect without having to really do anything, elegant and soft in a way that still stood out. She smiled slightly and waved, eyes darting around the room. “Hi. I’m Mina, I’m part of the coven that sent out the flyers.”

You joined in the chorus of greetings, but your eyes stayed fixed on Mina at the front of the room. You could see several other girls lurking around in the shadows, probably the other members, though they kept beckoning Mina to speak on her own. “Um, I’ll just... explain the project to you,” she chuckled nervously, darting over to the computer.

Once a slide was displayed on the wall, she rushed back to the front and explained, “Being a potions-focused coven and also biology majors, we wanted to conduct an experiment. A love potion, or an aphrodisiac in scientific terms.”

Murmurs arose around you, and even your eyebrows scrunched together; as far as you knew, aphrodisiacs weren’t real, and if they were, they were probably illegal. In response, Mina raised her hands and her voice slightly to call out, “Hey, hey. It’s an experiment. We were originally planning to accept all of you, but... I think it’ll be hard to conduct an experiment with 50 people, so please fill out the form we pass out.”

And like that, Mina joined the rest of her friends in passing out the clipboards. You didn’t watch them, only scanned the lab for any signs that you were about to die, so when you were tapped on the shoulder, you almost fell off your stool. It was Mina herself, a slight pink tinting her pale skin as she held out one of the forms to you. “Uh. Thanks.” You accepted it with a bow of your head, staring down at the paper. It looked legitimate, with areas for your age, your height--

“What’s your name?”

In your haste to read over the paper, you hadn’t noticed that Mina hadn’t left. When you looked back up, you could feel heat burning at the tops of your ears, and you answered, “Y/N. Y/N Y/L/N, though you’ll read it on my application.”

“Oh. Of course. Thanks for coming, Y/N,” Mina mumbled, bowing before moving on to someone else. You noted that she didn’t ask for the name of anyone else, but you passed it off and turned back to the form. Since when did becoming a coven’s lab rat require your blood type, anyway?

After nearly a week, you had almost given up on being accepted into the experiment. But just 5 days after turning your form in, you got the text.

Unknown number [4:57] Is this Y/N Y/L/N? My name is Mina, we met at the bio lab last week. I’m texting to tell you that you got accepted into the program; we’re meeting at the lab again at 9:00 tonight to discuss the experiment further.

You [5:00] yeah, it’s me. i’ll be there.

It wasn’t like what you wore to the meeting mattered; all you were doing was being briefed on exactly what was about to happen to you. But all through your classes of the day, through your futile studying, you couldn’t keep your mind off the experiment that you had somehow been accepted into, and whether it was a good idea to go at all.

Suffice to say, you went.

“Y/N?” the girl at the entrance of the lab asked. You recognized her from the week before-- dark hair, bunny-toothed smile. “You are Y/N, right?”

“Yeah,” you answered, shifting your weight from one foot to the other. “Why?”

“Oh, nothing,” she smiled. “We’re just taking roll, making sure everyone’s here. Take a seat inside, if you will.”

You obliged, nodding awkwardly before brushing past her. To your relief, the lab was nowhere as packed as it had been the week before, 7 people including yourself seated on the stools as the girls fiddled with test tubes in the back. One pair of eyes in particular lingered on you, before Mina was pulled back to talk, but your cheeks warmed nonetheless.

“Okay, everyone!” someone else announced, clapping her hands together. “My name’s Jihyo, I’m the head of the coven. This is Nayeon” -- the bunny-toothed girl from earlier waved-- “and Mina. We’ll be explaining the experiment to you today.”

She pulled the projector down and Nayeon stepped up, flashing a grin at all of you. “Basically, we made an aphrodisiac. And to test it, we’ll have all of you do the exact same things with the exact same person-- Mina.”

Mina stepped forward this time, and you couldn’t help smiling at the shy smile that tugged at her lips. “To keep conditions equal, you’ll all be going on the exact same 2 dates with me,” she explained. “I’ll take notes on how you act around me, and we’ll test how you feel about me at the very end. Any questions?”

The room was basically silent and honestly, you couldn’t see a downside to it either. Take a potion once and go on dates with a pretty girl, then get observed like a hamster on its wheel so you could get paid? A million times better than your old job. “Great,” Jihyo nodded. “Then, we’ll get started. If Y/N could be the first one? You’ll just go into a room with Mina to get interviewed and take your first dose.”

“Don’t die,” someone called out as you passed, and you flashed a glare despite not knowing who it was. Nayeon giggled as she opened the door for you and closed it behind you, leaving you in what you assumed to be a supply closet. Romantic.

“Hi,” Mina greeted softly, already seated across the table. “I’ll just ask you a series of questions, if that’s okay.”

“Go for it.”

“Rate how attracted you are to me on a scale from 1 to 10.”

Your jaw dropped immediately; for the first question, it was awfully invasive, especially when Mina voiced it with such a straight face. But you straightened your spine and answered stiffly, “9.”

It should’ve been 10, but you weren’t trying to look like a literal creep; Mina only hummed and marked a circle on her form, moving on to ask, “Are you considering dating anyone else at the moment?”

“No.”

And in that manner, the questions passed decently quickly, with Mina asking them as flatly as possible and you answering them with the exact same tone. As soon as she set the clipboard aside, though, she returned to her original sweet state. “I’ll just have you swallow this now, if that’s okay.”

The test tube was cold to the touch when you uncapped it, and the liquid inside was suspiciously clear. But you barely gave it a passing glance before downing it like a shot, asking with narrowed eyes, “Is it supposed to taste like nothing?”

“Well, we figured that not everyone would like to taste tequila once a week with none of the good effects,” Mina chuckled and placed the empty test tube in its place.

“How fast will I see results?” you questioned as you stood. “Like, am I gonna wake up in a cold sweat tonight because I can’t handle how much I suddenly love you?”

The girl shook her head, though it was a bit hesitant. “I don’t believe so. It should only become more prominent once you see me more often. Which reminds me, I’ll text you about our first date as soon as I can. Thank you for participating, Y/N.”

You snatched your jacket up and stumbled your way out of the room as quickly as you could, hoping no one was looking as you closed the door behind you with a quivering pulse.

Despite the witch’s words, you were sure that the potion was already taking effect. Why else would your heart start to throb terribly as you looked at her smile?

mina [8:16] Hello Y/N! I was wondering if you had class today?

Mouth full of cheap cup ramen noodles, you stared at your phone screen. If Mina was asking you about your schedule, she had to have something planned (for the experiment, of course. You weren’t delusional). And you weren’t sure if you were mentally ready to see her shy smile again.

But when the thought of the $600 dollar check popped into your head, you reached for your phone and started to type again.

You [8:19] hey, mina. i don’t have class, actually, is this something about the experiment?

mina [8:20] Yes! If possible, please meet me at the front of the school, we’ll be visiting the food trucks at the beach. I’ll pay!

Your stomach growled at the thought of the renowned food trucks at the beach by your university, and you typed out a hasty agreement before stuffing your phone into your bag and setting off for your apartment. There was no way you were enjoying such an opportunity for good food (and perfect company) in a slightly ramen-stained hoodie.

Thankfully, Mina didn’t seem to mind you being late when you approached her. “Hi, Y/N,” she smiled and hitched her bag higher up her shoulder. “I’m glad to see you.”

“Hi,” you breathed. Well, at least you tried to-- you could barely remember how to function when faced with Mina in a slightly cropped red top, her hair tied up in a little ponytail. But you followed her down the street well enough, towards where you vaguely remembered a fleet of various food trucks to be. “So, have you already conducted this part of the experiment with everyone else?”

Mina shook her head and answered, “No, you’re the first. You took the dose first, so you’ll be a bit like the guinea pig within guinea pigs.”

You snickered at that, nearly tripping over one of the raised cracks in the ground. Sure, the way down the hill to the beach wasn’t the safest one ever, but at least it was convenient for conducting test dates. “The lab rat. You know, this doesn’t seem remotely like a scientific experiment.”

“What do you mean?” the other girl asked, eyes on yours.

Coughing, you looked away from her gaze, though you could feel her still staring at the back of your head. “I mean... it’s not exactly normal for 7 people to drink a potion that tastes like nothing, then go on dates with a pretty girl and treat that as testing.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

“That’s what you got from my whole spiel?” you sighed in disbelief, turning to look at Mina. She laughed, gums showing slightly and her eyes twinkling, and you were forced to turn to the front yet again. “Whatever. Which trucks are we raiding first?”

And as it turned out, Mina was... generous. You were tempted to ask how she was going to keep herself from going broke if she bought that much food for everyone, but watching her bring yet another load of snacks over to where you sat on the wall, you weren’t sure if she cared too much. “Hey. Are you gonna pay for every date?”

“Hm?” She looked up from her Americano and considered the question. “Well, yes? I mean, we planned for the second date next week to be the fair, and I wouldn’t want any college student to have to pay for those overpriced tickets.”

“Aren’t you a college student?”

Mina hummed lightly and dug into her ice cream, sucking thoughtfully on the spoon. “Well, my parents are... well off? I’d like to put it that way, at least. And I think that when I can, I’ll use that to make others happy. Or to further our coven’s experiments.”

“Rich family,” you observed. “Cool.” To be honest, you didn’t really care about how much money anyone’s family made, but it was nice to have all that food paid for. After all, the sheer amount of things Mina bought could’ve covered several months worth of the finest ramen that the restaurants around campus could’ve offered. “Then why’d you end up going to college here with us normal people?”

She raised an eyebrow jokingly and gathered her knees to her chest. “Am I not a normal person anymore?” When you opened your mouth, slightly sheepishly, she giggled and waved a hand, answering, “I ended up choosing this college because my best friends came here. We’re all Japanese, and Sana wanted to come to Korea, so Momo and I just came along for the ride.”

“Ah.” You turned to watch the sky, the sun melting golden into the surface of the waves just a couple dozen feet away. You understood why it was called golden hour as you watched bright yellow rays flicker in Mina’s eyes and glow in her hair, and you had to resist the urge to pull out a camera and capture the feeling of a first date, as much of an experiment as it was. “Makes sense. Then-- how’d you find your coven? I don’t remember a Momo or a Sana.”

“Our coven is a bit... unconventional,” Mina nodded. “It’s just me, Nayeon, and Jihyo. You know that most covens form as children, and they train together, but we only met in college. See, none of us had our own coven, so it was natural that we came together. Momo and Sana aren’t witches, or we should’ve been together.”

You nodded in silence, prompting her to go on. And she did, a soft smile pressing her lips against her teeth as she thought about the girls eh seemed to consider her friends, or her family. “And, well, none of the three of us have had great luck finding someone to love. Or, to love us,” Mina added as an afterthought. “A love potion was just the first thing we fixated on.”

“Finding someone to love you?” you repeated, hand pressed up against your cheek. “I don’t mean that I don’t believe you, but it’s kind of hard to imagine that it’s difficult to find someone to love you. You’re pretty great, Mina.”

She laughed, “I’m glad you think so. But there’s a reason why we chose me as the one to test the potion with.”

“Oh yeah? And what’s that?”

Mina looked you right in the eyes, a kind of softness swirling in the brown of her own eyes, and responded equally quietly, “We chose me because we thought I was the hardest to fall in love with.”

“Bullshit,” you responded instantly, heat rising to your ears immediately after. But thankfully, the Japanese girl only looked endeared, and you continued, “I mean, I don’t know if this is just the potion talking, but you’re awesome. I... I think I’d like you even if I wasn’t part of this damn experiment.”

She blushed, the hue of her cheeks matching the pink clouds in the sky. “Well, I think you’re exaggerating on that. But it’s not them, I just volunteered myself. I think people just misunderstand me, you know? It’s hard to find the right person for you when you don’t let people see you. And-- I don’t even know why I’m telling you this. On a first date, too.”

“Hey.” When she looked away from you, you reached over to squeeze her hand. Mina didn’t look back up to you, but you knew she was listening from the way she chewed at her bottom lip. “It’s okay. I know what you’re saying. And I can’t say I know you yet, but I can say I wouldn’t mind knowing you. I’d like it, even.”

Mina laughed, barely loud enough for you to hear, and squeezed your hand. “Thank you, Y/N. I think we should finish our food before it gets cold.”

“Oh, yeah.” You let go to reach for one of the many desserts displayed in front of you, barely fazed by the topic change. “Wouldn’t want your parents’ money to go to waste.”

“Please let that go,” she whined.

“Not a chance,” you winked in response, laughing at her pout. “Not. A. Chance.”

“Lili, I think I’m done for.”

“Like, literally?” Lisa asked mindlessly, receiving a light hit on the head in response. “Ow, what was that for?”

You whined, “This isn’t funny. I can feel myself falling, and there’s no cushion underneath me for me to fall onto.”

The dancer rolled her eyes and reached for her milk tea. “Okay, Miss Overdramatic. You know falling doesn’t work like that, no one’s kicking you off a cliff. Especially not Myoui Mina.”

“I’m not being kicked off, I’m sliding.” You made the motions with your hand, a despondent expression on your face as you scowled, “I’m slipping through a puddle of aphrodisiac, that’s what, and Mina poured it at my feet.”

“Okay, enough with the metaphors, I’m not an English major,” Lisa sighed. She tossed a chip at your face, as if being smeared with salt and oil would wake you up from your Mina-induced trance. “You’ve gone on one date with her and spoken to her approximately twice, I think you aren’t falling just yet.”

“Did you forget the part where I’m drugged to fall in love with her?” you deadpanned.

Lisa paused at that. “Okay, I did forget that. Then what? There’s an explanation as to why you’re feeling this way, and there’s a way to get rid of it. Once you get your paycheck, you just stay away from Mina, should be easy enough, since you never met her before this. And you wait for the potion to wear off.”

“Does it wear off?” you groaned into your hands.

“Did you never ask?” Lisa asked in disbelief. “Wow, Y/N, ever heard of fine print?”

You smacked her with your rolled-up notes yet again. “Shut up. But I have a date with her tomorrow, and I don’t know what to do. I’m feeling like this because of the potion, sure, but I’m still feeling like this! And Mina has 6 other people vying for her now, all under the same effect as me. And it feels... bad.”

“Eloquent,” your friend sighed. “Then I have the perfect solution for you. Don’t go on the second date.”

“I need the money,” you shook your head. “Gimme another one.”

Lisa considered it, sucked on her straw as she did, until she shook her head. “I got nothing. All I can tell you is to enjoy it while it lasts, then just... wait. And if it doesn’t wear off, Jisoo unnie’s studying law.”

As horrible as her suggestions were, you could admit that you felt the slightest bit more assured. In the worst case scenario, you could sue Mina for winning your heart, and in the best, the somehow blissful stabs at your heart would be alleviated soon enough.

As it turned out, you got a chauffer to the fair. Not an actual one, of course-- it was just Jeongyeon, introduced as one of Mina’s friends who could actually drive.

You really weren’t intending to talk to her at first. She was quiet, too, didn’t even turn on the radio once she started driving, but when something that Mina said crossed your mind, you had to speak up. “Hey, Jeongyeon. Can I ask you something? About Mina?”

“Shoot,” she answered simply, keeping her eyes on the road.

“Do you think Mina’s hard to fall in love with?”

Jeongyeon glanced at you at that, her expression slightly quizzical. “What do you mean?”

“She said something yesterday,” you explained. “Mina said that they chose her for the experiment because they thought she was the hardest to fell in love with. She said-- something about being misunderstood?”

The older girl nodded in understanding at that and blew her hair out of her face. After a short pause, she sighed, “I think that’s more of what she thinks than the rest of us. Mina... she thinks she’s unapproachable, you know. She doesn’t open up easily, so I’m surprised she told you that at all. But... she’s been hurt several times, and a lot of people think she’s mean or something similarly stupid just because she’s quiet. That’s all.”

“Oh.” You wet your lips and looked forward to the road, where you could see the fair’s Ferris Wheel already in the distance. “I see.”

And that was that. The two of you fell back into silence, and as comfortable as it was, it only gave you more time to think about what you wanted to say.

Maybe you could see why they would choose the girl who thought of herself as unapproachable and quiet to be the test, but they also didn’t seem to think about the obvious warm color to Mina that she presented. She was quiet, sure, but she was sweet, kind... there was plenty to fall in love with, and even if there wasn’t magic coursing through your system, you thought that you could’ve fallen in love with her anyway.

After bidding goodbye to Jeongyeon at the entrance, you found Mina waiting for you by the fair entrance. “Y/N!” she called out, though her voice still wasn’t loud. You could’ve spotted her anywhere anyway, and made your way over. “You’re a bit early.”

“You were earlier,” you smiled. “So. Are we ready to go in?”

“Absolutely.” Mina linked her arm in yours slightly hesitantly and surprised the both of you, but you took it in stride and swung your arm slightly to bring a smile to her face. “I’ll get our tickets, you get in line.”

“I can pay for myself,” you protested, but she waved you off. “...Okay then.”

The fair was loud, a bit too loud to hear Mina’s voice if she talked normally, so you found yourself leaning in every time she spoke. You really didn’t mind it either, feeling her words tickle your ears-- maybe it was closer than you should’ve been comfortable with, but there was a certain adrenaline pumping in your blood that you weren’t really used to. So you continued on, fed cotton candy to her despite her blush, shared a soda, won a teddy bear for her. Nothing that should’ve made your heart beat as fast as it did.

Nonetheless, time ticked by all too quickly, whirling past in a gust of quiet laughter and honestly terrible jokes. The sun set yet again, the streaks of pink and purple across powder blue oddly similar to the first date you had gone on. Mina checked her watch and frowned, “I think we only have time for one more ride before Jeongyeon comes to pick us up. What do you think?”

You barely had to ponder it before you pointed at the tall, neon-lit Ferris wheel with a smile. “Classic date ride, of course.”

“Classic,” Mina laughed in agreement. She let you tug her towards it and stood in line with you with no complaint, digging a selfie stick out from her bag. “Should we take some pictures up there? It’d be a waste of a beautiful view if we don’t.”

You shrugged, “Of course. Might as well have some pictures to remember our last date by, right?”

Mina looked caught between saying something and staying silent, but she settled with a quiet, “Sure” before starting to set her phone up. Your hand in the crook of her elbow, you tugged her forward when it was necessary, keeping your eyes away from her red-tinted lips as much as you could.

Soon enough, wind was blowing your hair off your face and the cart of the ride was creaking slightly under your weight as someone started the wheel. “Whoa,” Mina laughed breathlessly and peered over the edge. “It’s really high up.”

“And we’re only starting,” you agreed, tugging her back by the wrist. “Don’t fall over, I don’t want to get off this ride with a murder charge on my hands.”

“Hm.” Mina reached over to set the selfie stick on the seat opposite the one the two of you shared, shoving you to get you to match her smile. “Come on, 1, 2, 3.”

With every click of her phone camera, you felt yourself coming closer to her, until you could feel the rise and fall of her chest beside you. You were almost at the top of the ride in barely a couple minutes, the soft sunlight almost blinding you. As you waited for the next camera click, you felt Mina’s hand creep up your arm, up, up, until her slightly cold fingers rested on your neck.

And then she tilted your head, fit her nose right next to yours like it belonged there, and slotted your lips together. You couldn’t think, much less fight whatever force pushed you up against her. You kissed back as best as you could with your senses battling within you, until you realized that the camera shutter had gone off at least ten times.

Mina couldn’t meet your eyes when you did pull back, and she reached over to fiddle with the camera. “Was that a part of the experiment too?” you questioned, your voice raspy.

“Maybe,” she answered, and your heart sank. But she looked up with a smile, her eyes just as confused as you felt. “And maybe not.”

“Oh. Okay,” you said dumbly, then reached over for her hand. There was nothing left to say, anyway, nothing that the slight swell to your lips didn’t already say for you, nothing that wasn’t conveyed when you leaned over to kiss her again.

The idea of allowing a love potion to work its wonders on you was like allowing yourself to be tossed into a trap. But instead of a cold, rough, and terrible trap that you would actively try to escape, you found the trap to be warm, cozy, a place that you wanted to stay-- and a place you knew that you would eventually be ejected from by force.

Once you were in the trap, though, there was no way you could pull yourself back out, especially when you didn’t really want to escape at all. You stayed up for all the nights leading up to the last time you would talk with the bio lab, just thinking about what you would do if everything that had passed by in the last couple weeks was just a figment of an aphrodisiac-induced haze. After all that time, you still didn’t quite know.

But Mina texted you often enough to pull you from that stupor. Thankfully, it wasn’t like one of those stories or dramas, where the main leads somehow fought after their first kiss-- maybe that would’ve been easier than being pulled in deeper. Instead, the two of you talked every day, even if it was only for a little while, and Mina was only worsening whatever situation you couldn’t seem to get out of.

And eventually, the day came where you’d be paid, a day that you had been looking forward to, until you began to dread it.

“Well, doesn’t someone look like a newlywed,” Nayeon greeted at the entrance with a smile, though she didn’t seem to be mocking you. “Come on in, Y/N, we’ll get you started right away.”

The closet was the exact same as it had been the first time that you stepped inside for the interview, but Mina’s smile was much more warm. “Hi, Y/N. How’re you feeling?”

“Good. Fine.” You cleared your throat and attempted to peer at her clipboard. “Questions for me?”

“Yes,” Mina nodded, flipping the pages over. “Are you ready to get started, then? On a scale from one to ten, how attracted are you to me?”

“Ten,” you answered without hesitation this time, and your smile only grew when Mina flushed.

“Okay. Are you considering dating anyone other than me right now?”

“No.” You shook your head, but gulped slightly and leaned back when Mina leaned forward to observe you.

“What about me?”

You paused, blinked, though Mina didn’t seem like she was going to move until you answered, “Yes. I would date you, absolutely.”

She flicked through the pages listlessly before setting them aside and turning back to you. Somehow, Mina looked like she was about to drop a bomb on you, her lips quivering as she calculated the right words. “I... Y/N, I have to tell you something. About the experiment.”

“I’m not going to die, am I?”

Your shitty attempt at humor did manage to prompt a smile from Mina, but she remained serious. “Not that. But- do you understand control groups? In experiments?”

“Um. I think so?” you answered, racking your brain for whatever limited knowledge of science remained with you. “It’s the normal group, right? The one that isn’t experimented on.”

“Yes, just about,” Mina nodded. She reached for your hands and clasped them within hers, eyes pleading for you to understand something that you hadn’t heard yet. “Y/N, you were the control. I... we had to make sure that it was the potion working, and not me, and you- we used you for that. You were never given any potion.”

“I...” you stammered out. Every instinct in you was screaming out to pull away from Mina’s grasp, to question every aspect of your existence that had led up to you being tricked into loving her. Somehow, everything being real only made it feel more fake, even though you now knew that what you had felt was completely you. “I don’t understand.”

Mina said softly, “You fell in love with me, or at least liked me, on your own. You didn’t work as a control group because the same thing happened to you as it did to the others, even though you never took the aphrodisiac.”

“So,” you faltered, “all seven of us fell for you. I’m just the sucker who’s in it for real, huh?”

“I was willing to sacrifice my own feelings for the experiment,” Mina clarified, shaking her head. “I knew I would fall for one of you, but I didn’t think that you, as the control, would be the one who I fell for. And who fell for me.”

Silence fell over the two of you, though you remained there, hands clasped together and eyes meeting with a clarity that speech could never capture. But you tried anyway. “Okay.”

“Just okay?” Mina questioned.

You smiled weakly as a response, “Yeah. Um... how about we go on another date to talk? After you finish interrogating everyone else?”

Mina let go of your hands and let you stand up, but you could feel her smiling at your back as you closed the closet door behind you. Like a repetition of when you thought that you’d be induced into loving her, your heart beat in your throat as you leaned against the wood.

But when you knew it was real, when you knew that it wasn’t magic seizing you by the hand and pulling you into the unknown, you smiled. Because it felt... right.

#twice #twice x reader #mina x reader #mina imagines #mina scenarios #twice imagines #twice scenarios #twice reactions #twice mina #mina #mina myoui #myoui mina

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alitheamateur · 5 years

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The Grind-Chapter 20

A/N: Short chapter, my little loves. I promise, I’ll make it up to you all!

Several days passed before I found time to speak to Colt again. The heat of summer simmered to a boil now, and the city was booming with business. Well, my business anyway. The business of fighting. There were weeks I easily attended no less than 4 fights, leaving little hours in the day to manage the gym, sleep, and work. Tia wasn’t pleased with the slack in my workouts, but with no choice had to accept that my career came first on the list pf importance.

One particular mid-morning as I sat with now numbing bottom cheeks, and dozing eyes during a mandatory sales meeting with the entire floor, I felt a slight vibration in the silk lining of my linen blazer. A text message.

Colton: Good morning, L. If you can find the time in your so very busy schedule, would ya’ mind giving me a call?

Liv: Good morning, you. In a meeting. Call soon.

A couple minutes passed, a reply.

Colton: Not that I’m desperately waiting or anything. But I’m desperately waiting.

20 minutes of closing messages from the Pilot’s owner who had flown in from Chicago, felt as if they passed like the slow oozing of thick, maple syrup. The single thought on my mind was hearing his gruffy, morning-time rasp on the receiving end of my phone call. The wall of reserve I had trapped him behind, was crumbling messily like a piece of the Parthenon. The tapping of my toes was probably rattling the office ceiling on the level beneath me as I waited for an answer. One ring, two. Three. Four.

Damn it, I’m gonna get voicemail.

“Hello, Miss Elliott.” There he was. I had previously went well over 400 days without hearing that voice, and yet here I was panting after not hearing it for a measly week.

“What can I do for you this morning, sir?” My voice no doubt breaking from nerves.

“How was your big important meeting? They make you the boss lady yet?”

“You didn’t hear? I bought the place out. I’ll be a millionaire before the year is up.” The hoarse laugh my joke pulled from him was all the satisfaction I’d needed for the day.

“Remember us little people, ight? No, really. I did have something I wanted to ask you about.” I was unsure of where he was leading the conversation, but I was picking up the bread crumbs to discover the mystery.

“Okay, you’ve got my attention.” If anyone happened to glance through the open window pane of my door, they would’ve seen a grown woman, much resembling the likes of a 13-year-old teen talking to the class hunk on her cordless home phone, chomping the bits out of an oversized wad of gum. I wondered if he’d still be sending butterflies loose in my belly in the next 20 years.

“Would you uh, maybe consider goin’ out with me this weekend?”

I wanted more than anything to say no. I wanted to keep him biting the baited hook a wee bit longer. But, before I even parted my lips to answer, I knew I was going to take him up on the offer. I can’t recall exactly, but I know there was some God-forsaken, over-the-top 90’s ballad chiming in my own head.

“Are you asking me on a date, Ritter?” He was going to say it, I wanted to leave him without a shred of dignity just this once.

“I am, 2-1. If that’s alright with you?”

YES! FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS HOLY, YES.

“I’d be happy to. Do I get any details about this date?” Is it possible to die from an overflow of happiness? Like, a happy heart attack? I feared I might be the first occurrence.

“Nope. You’re gonna have t’ wait it out, nosey!” He hadn’t forgot that journalistic character flaw apparently. Brief goodbyes were swapped, and I’d swear he held quiet on the other line waiting for me to hang up first. Not that the ever-ruminating man would’ve owned up to that charge.

The eve of what felt strangely similar to our first date, he had gotten in touch with minimal information, only telling me we’d probably be outdoors if the weather cooperated, and asked politely if I had any requests for the evening. Without any reservation or dwelling on the possibilities I could’ve ran wild with, I only asked if we could take the bike rather than his truck. I missed it. Whether it be the dangerously close proximity it forced our bodies into, or the roaring sputters of the engine under us, I just missed it. I would’ve kissed him had he been present for his remark.

Colton: Missed the ol’ Harley, did ya’? It’s a good thing I replaced that little tear on the seat that ripped your skirt then. I’ll gas her up for you. Anything for my girl.

No labels of a relationship had been discussed, but deep down, he knew I was his girl. I knew it. Tia knew it. Andrew knew it. My boss probably knew it. Hell, the cashier at Whole Foods probably even knew it. I didn’t bother with arguing the title.

With the mode of transportation was decided, and I had been warned we’d be spending time outdoors, I had to adjust my attire according. The dress I had settled on no longer an applicable contestant, I pulled out a khaki, pocketed utility romper. The elastic of the airy, cotton sleeve binded around my mid-forearm, leaving my new bangles on clear display around my wrist. A loose braid settled low on my neck, tied with a matching floral scarf I was doubling as a ribbon-like accessory. Flat gold sandals, and midnight black aviator sunglasses punctuated the very thought through ensemble.

I was seated in a lawn chair right outside my door, listening intently for the approaching rev of a motorcycle, and frowning at the painfully wilted potted daisies I had unintentionally neglected this summer. I reviewed the pep talk I had given myself earlier in the bathroom mirror that probably would’ve had me committed, but it had taken the edge off of my stage fright, so when I saw him wheel into the lot, I didn’t feel like fainting. Entirely…

I stood instantly for a clearer view of him pulling the helmet from his head, desperately pining for a glance of his gorgeous, relaxed face. His lids were slightly squinted due to the blinding of the sun that wouldn’t be setting for several hours, and he had definitely groomed his auburn locks, and matching facial scruff for the occasion. I should’ve descended the stairs quicker, but I wanted to spy on him from the shadows for as long as discretion allowed. His clothing rang tried and true to his usual sense of fashion, in dark denim worn out at the knee, and a crisp, bright white tee, with 3 small buttons at the neck. He’d left all but the lowest unclasped, and his sleeves cried out in a wide stretch over his more tanned, tatted arms.

“My chariot awaits, huh?” I lulled seductively behind my still covered eyes. He had just hung the helmet over the handlebar when my presence apparently startled him due to the jumpy way he turned about face.

“Shined it up just for you.”

“Little ol’ me? You shouldn’t have.” The harmless courting already underway was setting a frisky tone for the evening ahead.

Without a reply to my open-ended question, he strolled with purpose closer to me ruffling a hand over his head. He pulled me into his embrace with an antagonizing timely pace, and my spine busted with pops loudly beneath his tight arms. I didn’t want to break free, but I was sick with curiosity of what he had planned for the two of us, so I pulled back hesitantly.

“You ready to head out?” I smiled. My old friend, the familiar helmet was handed to me as he moved to get settled on the drivers seat.

“Let’s get this show on the road, gorgeous.”

tags: @torialeysha @eap1935 @mollybegger-blog @littleluna98

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bomberqueen17 · 7 years

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Phooey. Today has been a lackluster day, to put it mildly.

1) forgot my coffee on the counter on the way to work, ugh

2) unceasing anxiety over how ungraceful America’s fall from world superpowerdom is being, and how many people are going to get killed by it, Jesus fucking Christ. Bring back the fucking guillotine already.

3) I’d been absently planning on taking up transcription/subtitling work online for extra cash since I’m not getting paid for the farm work like I’d hoped, but Rev turned me down and said only 12% of applicants are accepted so I should work on my grammar (!) and reapply in 45 days (!!) so-- I’d really just absentmindedly assumed that was something you could just pick up, but apparently they’re extremely choosy? I would bet actual cash that my application was flawless, but they must just be full up at the moment. I don’t know. The other site’s call for captioners used to ask for English language and now doesn’t anymore, so I doubt they’ll want me either. Wahh, I was so foolish to think that money would just work itself out. I don’t need very much, I mostly just need gas and insurance and tolls and car payment, and I’m incredibly lucky, I know, but I’m going to be struggling to get that if I can’t come up with an income source. Maybe I’ll have to cut down how much time I spend on the farm after all. I’ll give it a shot for June, anyway. (They were going to pay me, for real, this year, for really real, but CSA signups are down and they took such a hit on the loss of the pigs and some chickens too, there was an Incident in the chick brooder, and they’re going to have to take out an operating loan, and i’m like, do not borrow money to pay me that is counterproductive, and I was really counting on picking up something freelance and remote and I clearly was counting on it too much.)

4) I just in a fit of pique went through the entire Duolingo Spanish program-- I’ve already completed it, but you know how the strength bars deplete over time? My “fluency” never went above 38%, and now it was down to 30% even after I’d completed the entire program, so today I went back and filled in all the strength bars. All of them. At this point the entire program is filled in gold, I’ve completed the entire thing, there are no more exercises waiting for me to do-- and I’m still at 30% fluency. So, I don’t know how they measure it, but I’d really been looking forward to having some kind of accomplishment, and I’d figured it would at least go up one measly percentage point if I finished the entire program, right?

No.

5) I made pulled pork in the crock pot and it’s such a beautiful day that all I want to do is go to the hot dog joint down by the Niagara River and people-watch and sit in the sun, and i can’t, because I already made dinner. When I’m at the farm, I cook dinner almost every night, but Dude goes out and eats takeout, and so when I’m here, he doesn’t want to go out or eat takeout, he just wants a home-cooked meal-- so I’ve cooked every night this week, and will until I leave again, and dang it all I really want is cheap takeout but that’s all he ever eats so he can’t stomach the idea of it. I should really leave him with some premade meals or something but I am not his goddamn mother and he is an adult, if he’s tired of takeout he can make himself something. Also I know for a fact that if I pre-make him anything and put it in tupperware he’ll forget it exists and I’ll have to throw it away when I get back. Ask me how I know! Go ahead and ask me.

6) One of only three programs I ever use on my ancient work computer stopped working today, apparently irretrievably-- I’d reinstall it, but the DVD drive in that computer won’t function anymore. (I think it’s just stuck shut but I have no idea how to get it open; I already tried prying it, and that was months ago.) So I can’t, I just have to, I don’t know, somehow figure out a way around about half of my job.

So, I’m grumpy. I’m just real grumpy. Maybe we can go out for ice cream tonight. Maybe I’m too grumpy to live. Grrrr.

#personal #about the author #whining #nothing but whining #you'll never achieve your dreams if you never start on them #i know that #but you have to have somewhere to land before you jump #you know?#ugh #nothing will ever work out #and we're all going to get tweeted into a nuclear holocaust anyway #so it's all futile

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bethanymcateer-blog · 4 years

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Ten Blunders Most Lottery Players Make

Which Mistakes Are you Producing?

Confident you can easily stroll into just about any store and buy a lottery ticket. It really is just that straightforward. That is just since it ought to be. Playing the lottery is often a entertaining and straightforward diversion using the possibility of a major payoff. You, even so, are a a lot more really serious player. The truth that you happen to be reading this shows that. You happen to be motivated adequate to wade by way of detailed facts to find out how you can cut out the poor habits and practices and locate a better solution to play the lottery in an intelligent manner. Here can be a list of ten also widespread blunders that lottery players make. Each and every single one particular of these things could be costing you ticket cash, time, frustration, and maybe even millions of dollars. Study them, take them to heart, and then put them into practice.

1. Playing the Wrong Lottery Games

Have you ever really regarded as which games you play and why? How much funds do you really require to win? What quantity of winnings would make an impact on your life? Right here in Texas we've lots of diverse options. You are able to play a big multi-state game like Mega-Millions with Huge multi-million dollar payoffs however the unfortunate odds of only 1 likelihood in 175,711,536 of taking house the jackpot! Wow, that is one particular ticket for each of more than half the population with the U.S.A.

Around the other hand the Texas Two-Step lottery prize begins at $200,000 and has typically reached a million dollars. The odds of winning the smaller sized game are only 1 in 1,832,600! By switching from the Mega-Millions game for the Texas Two-Step you improve your opportunity of winning a

prize by over 95 times! Place one more way you would need to get 95 Mega-Millions tickets to possess exactly the same odds of winning with 1 Texas Two-Step ticket.

Inside the region you live you'll find likely the exact same options in between compact games with tiny prizes like pick thee games, five and six ball games with mid-range payouts, and also the massive multi-state games with amazing odds against you.

two. Playing Birthdays as Lottery Number Picks

Trust me, I know. You have got a series of numbers that you just have chosen determined by your children's birthdays plus the day you got married and your mom and dad's wedding anniversary date. Negative move. Here's why.

Once you choose 사설토토사이트 numbers according to meaningful dates you limit your choices to the number of days within a month. In other words you happen to be limited to numbers from a pool of 1 to 31. As an instance in the difficulty in this technique feel about this. Within the Texas Lotto game six numbers are drawn from a pool of 54 numbers. 54 numbers give you a whopping 25,827,165 probable combinations! Any time you choose from the pool of numbers ranging from 1 to 31, how lots of combinations do you assume you can find to choose from? You'll find a measly little 736,281. Consider about that. Any time you opt for in between 1 and 31 you get 736,281 doable combinations BUT you completely, positively drop out around the other 25,090,884 probable combinations! Picking birthday numbers decreases any chance of your obtaining the winning combination by virtually 97%. That's insane.

I know, you study about quite a few people today who chose birthday numbers and won millions. I also realize that your string of birthday numbers has Exactly exactly the same chance of getting drawn as any with the other 25,827,165 possible combinations. It is true, each and every combination has the exact same chance of getting drawn. Still, are you prepared to reduce out nearly 97% of one's possible winning probabilities? I am not prepared to give up practically all of the possible winning combinations simply to work with sentimental possibilities. My goal will be to play smarter than that.

3. Inconsistent Playing

Consistency pays. It is actually for your advantage to become slightly fanatical about producing positive you will be within the mix for each and every drawing. Lottery corporations regularly chant the mantra 'You Cannot Win If you Do not Play' as a sales tool, however they are correct on the funds. You cannot win in the event you never play! You'll want to under no circumstances miss playing the game of the choice, the 1 you might have set your sights on winning. If you cannot afford to play some method you will be fond of or as lots of tickets as you wish you could possibly, should you have no partners to pool money with, whatever the purpose, you'll want to Constantly have no less than 1 ticket in every single drawing within your game.

Some lottery guides give the assistance to remain out of particular overplayed drawings. Possibly if the odds are extreme, the competition as well fierce, or the payoffs as well tiny, then yes. But in general there is no good cause to sit out. Believe about this, what when the numbers you meant to play were selected the a single night you chose to watch that rerun of that sitcom as an alternative to traipse out in to the globe to get your ticket? If that takes place, do not call me to cry, though I would like to hear the story. Just do not anticipate a shoulder to cry on. You have been warned. Sitting out with not even one particular ticket is definitely the very same as saying you do not want the chance of becoming filthy wealthy this week.

4. Playing Also A lot or Too Tiny

You must 1st decide which game may be the most effective 1 for you personally to play, than make a commitment to play it frequently. Subsequent it will be wise to produce a quick spending budget of what you may afford to play or what you happen to be comfy wagering. I as soon as read about a young immigrant man in Houston, Texas who won many million dollars. Great news! Then I study that he played several hundred dollars worth of tickets each week for various years just before winning. I in fact worried a little for him. Absolutely everyone has a budget they're able to reside with but most couldn't and wouldn't want to devote that substantially money on lottery tickets. Was he married? Was he neglecting his family? Did he possess a gambling issue?

So please, commit on lottery only the excess small amounts you could ordinarily invest on coffees or other treats. Don't spend cash you cannot afford to shed. Make sure you can afford the game you play. But ensure you also play, at the least after in each and every drawing. The one headline you might by no means see is definitely the individual that didn't acquire a ticket and nonetheless won the lottery.

five. Utilizing Faulty Information, Math, or Systems

Quite a few systems have superior written advertisements than actual materials and plans, and others use cumbersome application or call for endless hours of drudgery and record maintaining. Quite a few are some form of wheeling system that performs very best (and only a little bit superior than just possibility) when you can afford to purchase numerous tickets within a drawing. It truly is effortless to shed interest when a lot of operate is required and the possibility of winning doesn't modify a lot with all the technique. Seek out the ideal techniques of playing, ways that produce a lot more winners, require tiny or no perform on your element, and are uncomplicated to work with.

6. Playing Popular Combinations of Numbers

Study this meticulously. It could be a very good idea to avoid strange combinations of numbers. Examples could be 1-2-3-4-5-6 or 49-50-51-52-53-54. Avoid sequence choices for example 5-10-15-20-25-30 or 2-4-6-8-10-12 or 7-14-21-28-35-49. Never fill out a lottery slip by checking all of the boxes around the left, or ideal, or spelling out a number or letter or word using the darkened squares around the play slip.

Why? For the reason that in every drawing you will find dozens, occasionally hundreds, as well as a large number of people performing the same thing as you. Envision going to bed right after checking your numbers and knowing you had won a million dollars, only to wake up the following morning to discover 99 other people are sharing your million dollar dream. Hey, any lottery win is much better than no lottery win, but a million dollars will take you a great deal farther in life than $10,000! Go for the big one, and in case you have to share, hope it is having a lotto pool partner as an alternative to 99 strangers.

7. Being Tempted By New Plans and Schemes

You'll find dozens if not hundreds of difficult plans and schemes available that use slick advertisements and empty promises to sell the most recent flavor of information and facts on ways to win the lottery. One particular error lots of players make will be to fall towards the temptation from the slick marketing and empty promises. Are you currently one particular of those folks who generally must try just about every new lottery "winning" program you see? Do you get tickets a single way for a few weeks and then entirely switch your procedures? Lottery games are largely a losing proposition. The odds are Enormous and against you. Spending money and time on various faulty systems, plans, and computer software takes away out of your aim of in fact taking property the large one particular. Uncover one particular very good system and stick with it for the extended haul.

8. Providing Up On the Dream As well Quickly

Have you ever heard of your 'loser's limp'? It's stated that numerous a football player will make a beautiful run down the field, magically skirting previous opposing team members, only to slow and falter within the final handful of yards, getting tackled, and failing to make that all vital touchdown. You might have seen players do this very issue and wondered what in the world they had been undertaking. At times it tends to make me even wonder if the darn game is fixed! Truth is though, loser's limp is true and to be located not just in football but in every single human endeavor. It's constantly darkest prior to the dawn is what they say. Remember, when you never play you can not win. That 1 drawing you miss might have already been the 1. Persistence pays!

Don't quit on the dream. You may win the lottery! A person will!

9. Spending Revenue on Much less Efficient Games

I'm not a massive fan of, nor can I ever recommend that you commit money on, 'scratch-off' style games. Lottery odds are undesirable enough but in the event you dig deep inside the odds and payout figures on scratch off tickets, WOW, they're a significant hole in the ocean in which to toss your hard earned money.

I can practically hear you saying "But come on, they're a entertaining diversion". Hey, it really is your funds so devote it how you need to invest it but know in advance it's a losing proposition. Unlike the lottery exactly where creative varieties have identified a number of strategies that could substantially have an effect on the odds creating it a likelihood worth taking, scratch-off tickets are like shooting within the dark. Typically the bullet will hit you!

When you are going to inform me about Uncle Louie who "always wins with those items," effectively, I've dozens of buddies and not one of them ever has returned from Las Vegas with tales of losing revenue. They ALL won. Having said that do the casinos spend the electric bills on all of those neon signs? For the smart player scratch-offs are not an alternative.

10. Not Using Guaranteed Lottery Numbers

You have got countless selections on the best way to strategy lottery games. You may just blindly purchase swift pick tickets and let fate have its way with you. How has that worked out through the years?

Or you'll be able to invest massive amounts of cash into difficult systems, really hard to find out software program, and keeping records of cool and hot numbers, quantity sums, wheeling possibilities, plus a thousand other details, and in the finish have just concerning the similar opportunity of winning the lottery as if you started.

Or it is possible to make a smart option and use a proven technique that utilizes a proprietary system to pick essentially the most most likely numbers to become drawn, so potent that you are guaranteed to win lottery income!

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catherinesnyder · 5 years

Text

What is creativity? The ultimate guide to understanding today’s most important ability.

Creativity is one of those traits that people seem to have an intrinsic understanding of, but if you actually ask them to define it, they get tripped up. It’s easy to come up with a list of creative people (Frieda Khalo, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, Einstein), and the outcomes of creativity (a novel, an invention, a new way of looking at the world), but it’s difficult to wrap your head around the actual concept of creativity. The more I researched this article, the more I realized creativity is an incredibly nuanced phenomenon.

by rvasilovski

But you have to start somewhere, so let’s begin with a definition:

Creativity is the ability to transcend traditional ways of thinking or acting, and to develop new and original ideas, methods or objects.

Let’s break that down:

It’s an ability It’s also an ability to run a mile, or to do calculus or recite a Shakespearean sonnet (Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?). So creativity is a skill that is specific to an individual. For some people, it might seem to come naturally, but it is something that anyone can improve at if they give it the time and effort.

It transcends traditional ways of thinking or acting Transcending means you’re going above and beyond. It’s recognizing the limitations of what already exists, and trying to improve upon it.

It develops new and original things I think the key word here is develops. Creativity goes beyond imagining: it’s about developing. If it’s an idea, you go out and do the research to prove it. If it’s a new process you try and test it to see if it works. If it’s an object, you build it.

Great! And now that I’ve provided you with that enlightening definition, let’s wade a bit deeper and try to really understand what creativity is (and why you should or shouldn’t care).

Creativity is a relatively new phenomenon —

Creativity has only been a thing for the past 60-80 years or so.

“But wait,” you say, “what about all those amazing artists and inventors of yesteryear. Are you telling me you don’t think Mark Twain and Sir Isaac Newton weren’t creative? Preposterous!”

I am certainly not one to dis the fathers of Tom Sawyer and gravity. What I’m saying is that the concept of creativity as we understand it—even though it seems so ubiquitous—wasn’t really part of the popular lexicon until midway through the last century:

From Google’s Ngram viewer

In many ancient cultures, ideas or advancements that we would attribute to an individual’s creativity were deemed “discoveries.” Even artwork was seen as an imitation of nature rather than a form of creation.

In the medieval Christian world, creative ideas were positioned as divine inspiration. Did you do something awesome? You owe god a high five for sending that fantastic idea your way, my friend.

With the dawning of the enlightenment, we started to see a gradual shift towards individual responsibility, but even then the focus was on imagination and intelligence—both of which are definitely part of the modern definition of creativity, but not quite the same thing.

by E·the·re·al”

Where we really begin to see the emergence in the idea of modern creativity is in the 1920s. With the birth of psychology1 at the end of the 19th century, paradigms in the western world shifted to focus more intently on the individual, and our unique capabilities and personalities. (Another one of those things that we think as innate—personality wasn’t really a thing until Freud.) Creativity as an ability, or a personality trait, first gained popularity after Graham Wallas’ book Art of Thought. In this work, Wallas presents a model for how humans approach problems and think creatively.

And thus, the modern idea of creativity was born. Since then, psychologists and researchers in other disciplines have only continued to develop the idea into what we understand today.

So does that mean that no one was creative until the 1930s? No, clearly humans have had the ability to think outside the box and develop new ideas for a long time. What the current focus on creativity does show is that it’s a valued quality in our culture right now. The focus on it as a coveted trait can probably be linked to the rapid development of new ideas and technology in the past century.

Creativity is a pattern of thinking —

So we know that creativity is an ability that allows people to develop new ideas, but that still feels a bit vague and intangible (kind of like saying swimming is the ability to not drown in water—technically true, but not particularly useful if you’re going for a deeper understanding, or ya know, wanting to not drown). Put on your floaties and let’s dive into the deep end.

All skills originate in our brains: whether it’s physical (learning to do the breaststroke) or mental (learning to solve an algebraic equation), it’s all about neurons in the right part of your brain firing over and over again until what you’re doing becomes ingrained.2

Creativity is the skill to transcend traditional ways of thinking and come up with new ideas. But where do these new ideas come from?

Forget left vs. right brained, it’s all about the networks.

Like the persistent “we only use 10% of our brains” myth, the concept of left-brained = creative vs. right-brained = analytical is total pseudoscience.

by LittleFox

Yes, there are parts of our brain that have specific functions, but it’s the connections between these areas, and the subsequent networks they create which creates cognition. For example, if you’re trying to climb over a log that’s fallen on a path, you’re likely engaging the network which links the parts of your brain that process visual images and govern motor coordination. If you’re explaining to a friend how to climb over said log, add in the parts of your brain which control language.

When it comes to creativity, neuroscientists have identified three large-scale (and aptly named) networks of the brain that are important:

The executive attention network helps you pay attention and focus

The imagination network allows you to daydream or imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes

The salience network let’s you identify when things you have buried deep in your brain are salient to the world around you (e.g. you’re going for a hike and taking in the scenery, and you notice this plant… realize it looks familiar… and that it’s poison ivy! And you just saved yourself from a terrible itchy rash.)

The more active these networks are in your brain, and the more they work together, the more creative you are.3

So going back to our original question: what is creativity? Creativity is a skill that allows you to draw understanding of the world around you, connect those observations to your existing knowledge reservoirs, and imagine new applications of your knowledge on the world.

Is there a connection between creativity and intelligence? —

This study purports to find a positive correlation between creativity and intelligence, but our in-house statistician was dubious of the results.

So if it’s all about what’s going on in certain brain networks, does that mean that creative people are smarter? I wish I had an easy yes or no answer for you, but the study of creativity is still a pretty new thing, and the research isn’t entirely settled on this matter yet.

In 1999, researchers Sternberg and O’Hara provided a framework of five possible relationships between creativity and intelligence:

Creativity is a type of intelligence

Intelligence is a type of creativity

Creativity and intelligence are overlapping constructs (they have some traits in common)

Creativity and intelligence are part of the same construct (they’re basically the same thing)

Creativity and intelligence are distinct constructs (there is no relationship between them)

There are studies that provide evidence in favor of each of these perspectives, but thus far none has been overwhelming in its conclusions. So essentially there’s nothing that shows if you’re smarter you’re more creative. But there’s nothing showing that there’s not a correlation either.

Are children more creative than adults? —

If you do a Google search on creativity, you’ll pretty quickly run into an article that mentions a study run by Professor George Land that seems to show that children become less creative over time.

youtube

The gist: Land worked with NASA to develop a creativity test that would help them select innovative engineers and scientists for the space program. In 1968, he and colleague Beth Jarmen gave the same test to 1,600 children and found that—shock—98% of five-year-olds were apparently creative geniuses. And we all just got less and less creative as we aged, until only a measly 2% of us adults qualify as creative geniuses.

by fritzR

Now, maybe I’m just bitter because I’m jealous of all those child prodigies and their ideas that would allow them to be astronauts, but I’m a bit skeptical of these results. Sure, they make for great clickbait and feel-goodry (just embrace your inner child, ignore the pressures of society and you might be able to qualify to go the moon!) but have you spent any time with a five year old recently?

My colleague has a son about this age: this past weekend he linked together a Barrel of Monkeys to create a ladder for his green army men to climb.

Not only is this adorable, but it’s an amazing example of out-of-the-box creative thinking. But real world application? Maybe not so much. (Though I’m having a fantastic time imagining this scenario!)

Fewer synapses = fewer monkeys?

Young children have amazing brains: they develop literally trillions of neural synapses in the first few years of life. Then, through a process called synaptic pruning, those connections decrease over time, as some of these synapses are used and others aren’t.

In other words, kids connect all sorts of weird things together in their minds because they haven’t learned that these things don’t necessarily go together yet. This ability to make connections between seemingly unrelated things—also called divergent thinking—is an important tennant in creative thinking. But it’s just one part of it. And probably why I’m not quite ready to trust the Space Program to child geniuses just yet.

But this highlights an important question:

How do we test for creativity? —

Some of our designers excel at divergent thinking. Flying turtle by Fafahrd Deustua.

The original creativity tests developed in the 1960s are tests of divergent thinking. A couple examples of these include alternative uses (how many different ways can you think of to use a paperclip; the number and originality of your ideas impact your score) and incomplete figure tests where you’re given a line on a paper and asked to finish the drawing (uncommon subject matter, implied stories, humor and originality earn high marks).4

Other researchers have tried to measure creativity through self-reported creativity questionnaires and social-personality approaches (where they look at a mix of other personality traits and try to find a “formula” for a creative person). Both of these methods have some inherent biases.

So while divergent thinking tests have been criticized, they are currently the most accepted measure of creativity. (Though I’m very curious to see where the neuroscience takes us.)

Why should you care about creativity? —

I hope I’m not being to presumptuous when I say everyone wants to develop new skills or grow their abilities. (Who wouldn’t want to be a faster runner or a better poker player?) But we all have limited hours in the day, so you can’t practice to get better at everything. Why is creativity one of those skills you should spend time developing?

by InQueen

Well, if you care about your career, it’s probably worth the investment. Both individuals and businesses value hold those with creative qualities in high regard. According to a survey by Adobe, people that identify as creative earn 17% more money than those who don’t. Similarly, in a survey of 1,500 CEOs, IBM found that creativity is the number one trait needed for business success.

And yes, the data from these surveys is based on opinion or self-reported creativity levels, but even if the scientists might squawk, it’s probably worth paying attention to. Basically, your boss and your boss’ boss both think creativity is important. And that makes sense as the definition of a creative person is literally someone who comes up with good ideas and can bring them to fruition. In today’s world, that is exactly the fuel that drives business success. So if you want to get ahead, start churning out those ideas like a barrel of monkeys. (Am I doing it right?)

Can you become more creative? —

Absolutely! Creativity isn’t a magical gift bestowed to just a few lucky individuals, it’s a skill that you can hone and develop. The trick is figuring out how to flex your creativity muscles.

1. A number of things happened at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries that shifted our world view, from the discover of relativity to the invention of mass, fast transportation, new ways of communicating across long distances, and of capturing reality (i.e. photography and filmmaking).

2. This TED Talk on how to practice effectively is great. It offers a great explanation of the impact of practice on our brains.

3.All that being said, there are some compelling evidence that our current education system is not setup to nurture the type of creative thinking that we value in today’s society. Which makes sense if you consider that the basic structure and curriculum of schools (at least here in the United States) comes from the 19th century.

4. Interested in more? 99U has a great article with 5 classic creativity tests you can try.

The post What is creativity? The ultimate guide to understanding today’s most important ability. appeared first on 99designs.

via https://99designs.co.uk/blog/

What is creativity? The ultimate guide to understanding today’s most important ability. syndicated from https://www.lilpackaging.com/

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helenpattersoon · 5 years

Text

What is creativity? The ultimate guide to understanding today’s most important ability.

by rvasilovski

But you have to start somewhere, so let’s begin with a definition:

Creativity is the ability to transcend traditional ways of thinking or acting, and to develop new and original ideas, methods or objects.

Let’s break that down:

It transcends traditional ways of thinking or acting Transcending means you’re going above and beyond. It’s recognizing the limitations of what already exists, and trying to improve upon it.

Great! And now that I’ve provided you with that enlightening definition, let’s wade a bit deeper and try to really understand what creativity is (and why you should or shouldn’t care).

Creativity is a relatively new phenomenon —

Creativity has only been a thing for the past 60-80 years or so.

“But wait,” you say, “what about all those amazing artists and inventors of yesteryear. Are you telling me you don’t think Mark Twain and Sir Isaac Newton weren’t creative? Preposterous!”

From Google’s Ngram viewer

In the medieval Christian world, creative ideas were positioned as divine inspiration. Did you do something awesome? You owe god a high five for sending that fantastic idea your way, my friend.

by E·the·re·al”

And thus, the modern idea of creativity was born. Since then, psychologists and researchers in other disciplines have only continued to develop the idea into what we understand today.

Creativity is a pattern of thinking —

Creativity is the skill to transcend traditional ways of thinking and come up with new ideas. But where do these new ideas come from?

Forget left vs. right brained, it’s all about the networks.

Like the persistent “we only use 10% of our brains” myth, the concept of left-brained = creative vs. right-brained = analytical is total pseudoscience.

by LittleFox

When it comes to creativity, neuroscientists have identified three large-scale (and aptly named) networks of the brain that are important:

The executive attention network helps you pay attention and focus

The imagination network allows you to daydream or imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes

The more active these networks are in your brain, and the more they work together, the more creative you are.3

Is there a connection between creativity and intelligence? —

This study purports to find a positive correlation between creativity and intelligence, but our in-house statistician was dubious of the results.

In 1999, researchers Sternberg and O’Hara provided a framework of five possible relationships between creativity and intelligence:

Creativity is a type of intelligence

Intelligence is a type of creativity

Creativity and intelligence are overlapping constructs (they have some traits in common)

Creativity and intelligence are part of the same construct (they’re basically the same thing)

Creativity and intelligence are distinct constructs (there is no relationship between them)

Are children more creative than adults? —

youtube

by fritzR

My colleague has a son about this age: this past weekend he linked together a Barrel of Monkeys to create a ladder for his green army men to climb.

Fewer synapses = fewer monkeys?

But this highlights an important question:

How do we test for creativity? —

Some of our designers excel at divergent thinking. Flying turtle by Fafahrd Deustua.

So while divergent thinking tests have been criticized, they are currently the most accepted measure of creativity. (Though I’m very curious to see where the neuroscience takes us.)

Why should you care about creativity? —

by InQueen

Can you become more creative? —

Absolutely! Creativity isn’t a magical gift bestowed to just a few lucky individuals, it’s a skill that you can hone and develop. The trick is figuring out how to flex your creativity muscles.

2. This TED Talk on how to practice effectively is great. It offers a great explanation of the impact of practice on our brains.

4. Interested in more? 99U has a great article with 5 classic creativity tests you can try.

The post What is creativity? The ultimate guide to understanding today’s most important ability. appeared first on 99designs.

via https://99designs.co.uk/blog/

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mohanmekap · 6 years

Link

hen you buy that next great computer, do not hesitate to install security software on it. If the need to secure something personal and important to you is a natural instinct, yet that instinct does not naturally extend over to a device that is increasingly becoming the centre of our attraction: the computer.

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I have used many antiviruses during last ten years and, as some antiviruses earlier which I have used seems to give a few quirks and possible problem and compatibility issues with UAC during install and it did not turn it on when it finished process.

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I do not know, may be unique in my case I had seen Norton 360 had the worst detection rate a measly ten per cent, I am taken aback by that score, that I ran the malware scan again just to be sure.

Coming to the payload tests most of the suits except VIPRE could not detect tier 1 payloads, but the exception is exceptional VIPRE which detects and stops the virus from entering your system.

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What is more surprising is that AVG firewall detects it as suspicious but then it recommends that they be allowed through. K7 Antivirus detected the incoming packer from my test PC server, but could not detect the pay load or attempt by the payload to connect to the server.

The K7 and Panda Antiviruses are terrible when it came to files transfer at default settings, with both suits taking an astonishing 48 minutes and five minutes respectively to transfer my two GB bundle of assorted files. Obviously, this extended transfer time is because the AV engine was scanning the files while writing to the disc.

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Conclusion:

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Take a tour inside Vipre antivirus software program