Tumgik
#kinda like some of y’all have never lived in hot climates and it shows
pixie-circle-au · 4 years
Text
Chapter Two: Roller Skating Isn’t Easy When You’re Gay
Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four (Coming Soon)
Content Warnings: Food [DM or send an ask for something to be tagged]
Words: 1504
Editors: Aqua (@duckswithbucks)
Taglist: @fandom-nerd-girl555 @justmeandmygayships
Notes:
I struggled a bit with this chapter, but hopefully it’s satisfactory.
“Listen if either one of you god damn bitches messes this up, I will personally find a way to make you suffer.”
“Damn, Janus, gay much?” Virgil snorted, leaning back on the snake’s bed.
“Don’t worry, we won’t scare off your little crush.” Remus giggled.
“It-- Is that what you guys think this is?”
“I mean you do be kinda actin’ special ‘bout him.” Virgil said, smirking.
Janus breathed in, “I. Do not. Have a crush on someone I met two weeks ago. It’s just that he’s new and… sensitive. I mean, he told me to watch my language when I said ‘damn’. And you guys… just, don’t scare him off. He needs friends, he’s been here for half a month, he’ll wanna know some people before school starts on Monday.”
“Alright, loverboy.” Teased Virgil. The snake simply cast a disgruntled look at the other before heading out the door.
The three waited for a few minutes in Virgil’s living room. When the doorbell rang, Virgil stood to answer, but Janus pushed him down. “I’ll let him in, you’ll thank me later, Anxiety.” 
Patton was standing in the doorway when Janus opened it, and he was holding a plastic bag with some box in it. “Janus!”
“Hey Patton, why don’t you come on in.” The feral pixie stepped inside the threshold and looked around the room, smiling brightly at the two others. “This is Virgil,” Janus pointed to the emo-looking teenager with heavy bangs, who nodded shyly, “and Remus,” he gestured to the other one, who waved excitedly at Patton.
“I’m Patton, y’all and uh,” he stepped forward to Virgil, “Since this is your house, I brought you some cupcakes. My dad always says it's nice to give a gift of food when you enter the threshold of someone new, so he made me make these.”
“Uh, thanks,” replied Virgil in a quiet, deep voice. 
“Aw, you're a bit shy, aren’t you?”
Virgil blushed, and laughed nervously.
“It’s alright sweetheart, I’ll put these in the fridge for you?”
The elf nodded and Patton went into the kitchen to do just that. As soon as he was out of earshot Virgil whispered to Janus, “I… take back what I said. He is so sweet I swear. You could get diabetes from talking to him.”
Janus giggled and Patton strolled back into the living room, beaming. “Shall we go?” The others nodded, standing up.
“I’ll drive us,” said Virgil, holding up his car keys. [AN: The legal driving age in this world is fifteen.]
“You don’t wanna take the bus?”
“Ha, I got a car now. I am never taking another bus in my life.” 
The car in question was a bit old, but still worked fine. It was his late aunt’s, but she’d passed away a few months ago and Virgil became the owner of the car. The four climbed in, Virgil in the driver’s seat, Janus in passenger, and Patton with Remus in the back. 
“So, Pat, you’re new in town?” Remus smiled at the pixie from across the car. 
“Yeah! I just moved here with my family, better climate, less… traditional ideas.”
Remus cocked his head in confusion.
“Uuuuuh… I’m gay,”that certainly wasnt the reason he was here, but Janus, glancing back the the two in the back seat, couldn’t tell if it was a lie.
“Oh well, then you’ll fit right in.”
Patton smiled. There was mild chatter in the car, mostly about what each of the teenagers had done over the break. After about twenty minutes, Virgil pulled the car into a parking spot and the four climbed out of the car and headed into the rink.
Pop music was being blasted over the sounds of roller blades speeding around the rink. A birthday party was happening on one side, so the sounds of children’s laughs filled the air. Virgil handed the money to the cash register and the teenagers, save for Patton, pulled out their roller blades.
“Hey Pat, you gonna go get your rentals? Unless you have skates I mean.” Said the snake.
“Uh no, I don’t-- Uh--”
Janus stepped up to Patton. “Have you ever skated before?”
“...No.” 
The other pixie chuckled and took Patton’s hand, leading him to the skate rentals. They picked out some skates, with four wheels, for the young pixie, and then headed over to the benches to get them on.
“Do you need help?”
“Is this right?” Patton showed Janus the skates, and the snake gave a thumbs up before standing.
“So, you’ve really never skated before.”
“Nope.”
Janus smiled, “Okay, well, take my hand and I’ll teach you how.”
Patton nodded, and the other pixie helped him stand. “Don’t be nervous,” said Janus softly, “Just focus on me, and what I tell you.” The more experienced skater gently grabbed the waist of his companion. “We’ll just walk out to the rink, and I’ve got you, so you won’t fall.” Patton smiled at this, while still a bit nervous. Janus blushed, hoping the other wouldn’t notice. 
The two stepped onto the rink, and the snake gently moved the cat’s hand to the railing. He rolled back a bit, holding just Patton’s arm.
“Just push your feet like this,” Janus demonstrated, moving a small amount. The other pixie copied him shakily, and they slowly travelled around the ring, Patton’s hand always on the railing and Janus.
By the time they got around the first time, the inexperienced skater had developed a slow but consistent rhythm, and was able to slowly skate. He barely touched the wall at this point. Janus couldn’t keep from grinning at the frankly adorable human.
“Hey Pat?”
The cat stopped, his focus broken. “Yeah?”
“You did really good. Do you wanna go around again? Maybe off the wall this time? I’ll still hold onto you though.”
“I--sure. And, thanks for teaching me, I was kind of hoping I’d just… figure it out somehow.”
“Of course! Now, do you wanna take a break first?”
Patton shook his head, so the two continued. During the second lap, Janus was still gripping onto the nervous skater’s arm, but by the third, they were merely holding hands and gliding freely. Look at me, holding hands with a cute boy while roller skating, thought Janus to himself.
They were soon beckoned by Remus and Virgil, who were leaning on the side of the rink. Carefully, they slowed to a halt and stepped off the rink, Patton’s steps wobbly. 
“Do you guys want some food?” Asked Virgil upon the two teenager’s arrival. 
The snake shot a glance at his feral counterpart who muttered a shy “No, thank you.”
“I could eat.” Declared Remus, patting his stomach. The group headed towards the small restaurant, chattering quietly. The group ordered one hot dog each, except for Patton, who instead chose a simple glass of water. 
“So I see Jan here taught ya how to skate,” said Remus, finishing a bite of hot dog. 
Patton looked up, nodding.
“Yeah, he learned very quickly,” Added Janus, casting a subtle smile towards Patton. The pixie returned it with a bright grin.
After they ate, the group returned to the rink. They did a few laps going slow for Patton, but after a bit Janus and Virgil decided to do some quickly. Remus, however, stayed behind with Patton.
“You know, Jan is totally into you.” Remus said, smirking.
Patton giggled, “I noticed. I don’t even know what I did!”
“Well you are pretty sweet,” the deceptively beautiful teenager lifted Patton’s dramatically and looked into his eyes. The pixie snorted, and Remus followed.
“So you aren’t as oblivious as may have been implied?” The silver-haired human implored.
“I may be… hm ‘innocent’ as one might say, but not oblivious, surely I’m not ignorant.”
“You know, I think you’re a lot more than people see at first glance.”
Patton smiled, and the two finished skating, chatting merrily as they went. 
***
Virgil pulled into the driveway of Remus’ house and the four headed inside. “I’ll get the cupcakes!” Shouted Remus as he ran inside, leaving the door open for the rest of the party to get inside. The three of them shuffled into the living room and soon Remus came out bearing the tray of sweets. 
“I hope it’s good. I’m not so good at baking, I nearly burned them.” Patton said, chuckling.
The three others took a cupcake each and ate it in their respective ways. A cam chatter ensued as Patton got to know the others better.
“Uh, Patton.”
“Yeah, Virgil?”
“The… They were really good.” The emo teenager gestured to the cupcakes, offering a nervous smile. Patton returned the smile.
“Thanks, kiddo!”
“Did you just call Virgil ‘kiddo’?” Asked Remus.
“Ha, yeah,” the pixie blushed, “I guess it’s just the dad instincts kicking in.” The group chuckled. The conversation went on for a bit longer, but soon it was time for the teenagers to go home. Virgil drove the pixies to their houses before heading home to his, and each had a lot to think about as they went to sleep.
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sillyfudgemonkeys · 4 years
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Late to the slapping discourse but I think another thing is, well, p much everybody, be they makoto fans or haters, despise that confidant, especially due to eiko hogging up so much screentime, so seeing makoto slap her was likely pretty cathartic
sfdjkhla I get where ya coming from anon, but sorry you just reignited this fury inside me again I’mma just rant (not at you, just at the void that is tumblr, I’m just mad and I have more to say about this topic apparently laskfdj;af Just know you didn’t do anything wrong, but your ask did make me think of something new so yay!). Tho tbh, I’ve seen other Mako haters hate that she slaps Eiko for my similar reasons (aka Mako is a pretty bad person who gets away with some bad shit because she’s an main character and we need to be “on her side”). But I don’t think that slap should’ve been viewed as cathartic (tho I get WHY people do), or the fact that it is showcases a big (writing) problem.
(also sorry this is all over the place, I’m writing it very quickly, while quickly reviewing her CoOp, before I go to bed)
Y’all know I hate Makoto, and I think her CoOp is hot garbage, but I don’t actually blame Eiko for it tbh (I mean Ryuji/Anne’s are just fine with juggling other chars, despite having their own issues.....not so much are because of said side chars, it’s other things but again the side chars are juggled just fine with Anne/Ryu). I don’t really hate the char, I think she’s fine. She’s a pretty friendly person, maybe a tad airheadish but she’s not mean (at least she doesn’t say mean things without a reason). Hell I think she does her role pretty fine, it’s Makoto who fails to overcome flaws (mostly her hotheadedness and applying these new view points she’s learned). 
If the writers intended Makoto’s slap to be cathartic no offense but fuck those writers yo. Because it showcases Makoto really is unable to understand any other person’s mindset (at least in practice), does her own selfish shit, and gets rewarded even tho she hurt someone or failed to actually do the bare min to make up for shit she’s done (like the Kamo arc, sorry but you had her say it yourself writers “it’s not that I couldn’t do anything, it’s that I just didn’t care enough” your whole “adults make me do things I don’t want to/they are mean :(” bs doesn’t mesh well, you don’t actually resolve or address the flaw of that char, you just shoved responsibility onto someone else....with that something else isn’t really explored/expanded upon either). Basically, if that slap was cathartic, I think the writers failed....I mean they already did fail with them actually writing that slap in, but they failed at their theme/moral to boot.
So when I have Makoto, who’s CoOp literally starts out with her wanting to learn new perspectives (and you know, maybe kinda learning a little EMPATHY) it’s hard to argue she learned that shit when she literally is unable to do just that and slaps someone. As well as reinforce the fact SHE SHOULDN’T BE IN THE POSITION SHE IS IN (aka our planner/advisor/whatever). 1) It shows she can’t control her emotions (and if we’re gonna give Ryu shit, she def deserves it too), 2) she can’t come up with a gd plan to save her life (the best plan the PT came up with was the first dungeon in PQ2 and guess what? She wasn’t a part of it, gee I’d be shocked but....I’m not). 
It just showcases the poor writing ability of that writer. Makoto’s CoOp is about her learning new things about society and her peers she’s failing at, and ability to connect/understand the people around her....and at that freaking climax it just shows.....she didn’t learn shit. She’s been saying she did all CoOp, even basically says she understands why Eiko is acting that way, but what does she do with that info? Does’t apply it when confronting her and just reverts to bullheaded Makoto mode. It doesn’t matter what happens after, we don’t see her reconcile with Eiko, all that is off screen. In the climatic moment, she fails to accomplish the goal of what her CoOp set out to do....and she’s rewarded for it. She doesn’t realize why Eiko is upset, she doesn’t try to think of a backup plan in case her first one fails, she acts only on her own emotions in the moment. And no “her friend is in danger of prostitution so it’s now or never” is NOT a good excuse, you wanna know WHY? The freaking, change of heart part of the ENTIRE GD GAME! Any argument of “we can’t always use hear changes” goes out the gd window with like 90% of any problems we encounter when we can just go to the Metaverse (to even just interrogate tbh!). The only reason Anne/Yoshida work is because Anne’s we don’t know till the literal last second and by then it’s resolved itself, and Yoshida is dead set on fixing it himself! Makoto’s CoOp? No, that guy should be bumped from “shady boyfriend” to “yeah this guy is now on our request lists holy shit does he fit our MO”
But back to Eiko, yeah it’s great Makoto is expanding her horizons, so glad she knows what a cardigan is~! Too bad, despite actually knowing her friend’s circumstance and possibly why she’s acting that way, Makoto doesn’t approach it with the level of tact that is freaking needed. Showcasing she’s learnt nothing, nothing from her past mistakes, not from “these new viewpoints I’ve learnt,” nothing from knowing WHY her friend might be feeling this way. She literally just does what she’s been doing. She just has the smoke and mirrors benefit of saying “well I learnt a new viewpoint” but your actions speak louder than your words. You didn’t learn shit. 
Wait....no I’m not giving Makoto enough credit, haha, you see she did learn something, at the beginning of the CoOp, and that’s actually not ignoring something shady going on. Unlike with the Kamo arc. My bad, so instead of seeing her bull her way through feeling “forced” to do something, we see her bulling her way through “caring” this time. But here’s the thing, that wasn’t her arc for this CoOp, her understanding other viewpoints was. She failed. Somehow she freaking failed. It’s a talent Makoto! It’s a real talent you have there!
You know why I think Makoto/Eiko thing pisses me off so much? I have a friend that reminds me a lot of Eiko. She’s nice, def a girly gal type person, as well as other things. She had just begun dating someone I deemed a red flag (not Tsukasa bad like selling yourself or that she was in any kinda danger, but still a “yeah you should know” kinda thing....like...I’d feel bad if I didn’t know about it and I was in her position kinda thing). And you know what I did? Did I take her out into public on a crowded street and yell at her and say you need to break up with him and when she got (pretty rightfully) defensive I then slapped her and got on my high horse and was like “I’m doing this for your own good! YOU  don’t understand MY position, what I’M going through, but you need to know what I’m doing is for the BEST!”? No. That never crossed my freaking mind cause I’m not a psychopath. I instead, took her out for ice cream, sat in a more remote spot for privacy, and reassured her of her emotions and own autonomy and that I cared and that I understand she cares about things and I’m coming from a place of good faith and I wasn’t there to attack her, and then I broke the news to her. You know what she did? She laughed, was happy I was a normal human being with some tact, said she wished another friend of hers did what I did instead of through text. Said she’d take what I said into consideration. She broke up with him a few months later.....cause he was a twat apparently, but our friendship was well in tact and strengthened. And I was barely a year older than Makoto was at the time, AND a super awkward honor student AND my friendship with her was about as new as Mako’s and Eiko’s (AND we were very much opposites like those two hell even more so).
I dunno, it just would’ve been so much more impactful if Makoto, instead of slapping Eiko after she called Mako a “bitch.” Mako stepped forward (making everyone think she’s going to be physical but instead it showcases Makoto thinking rationally for once), looked Eiko in the eye and said “What you think of me is not all that I am. And even if you hate me, know I still think of you as my friend and will be here for you for whatever reason. But I won’t let you throw your life away, not for this scum of a human being. *turns to Tsukasa* Listen to me asshole, I say this not as some honor student, but as Eiko’s friend. You will be delivered justice, and you will apologize to Eiko and all the other girls who’s lives you’ve ruined” to which we either get Tsukasa’s name via asking around (low key Ichiko could probably help), or by getting it from Shadow!Eiko in the metaverse. The next rank we see Eiko and Mako making up, and Mako explains how she’s more than just an honor student (basically the shit she says after she slaps Eiko), and Eiko apologizes for all the mean things she said in the moment and how she felt afraid or whatever other stuff they wanna add to deepen her char or whatever. And we have a theme kept intact, and Eiko even learns about new perspectives (as well as reinforcing this whole moral/theme to the viewer)....but we legit get to see this development for her, and we learn how to do it with compassion and understanding and not ‘slap to be dramatic~!’ bs (because then it comes off as like....using force to change someone’s behavior.....and like????? probably not the best message ESP for P5′s setting). You can dislike Eiko, but the CoOp technically became just as much as her arc as Mako’s and the fact we don’t see the resolution is poor. (btw the “how/when” it would’ve taken place would’ve been rank 9 still, we just wouldn’t rank up till the mementos mission was done, that or restructure the link but the former is easier)
So....yeah....maybe it’s the fact that Makoto’s CoOP belittles how teens can actually resolve these problems. Maybe it’s the fact we’re supposed to root for Mako’s bad behavior. Maybe it’s the fact when it came down to the wire, Mako didn’t utilize the knowledge she has been bragging about getting over the CoOp. Maybe it’s the fact she resorted to violence when there was another avenue to take. Maybe it’s the fact we never see Makoto actually hit a bad guy/aggressor (instead we have to save her from those) but instead only see her hitting her so called friends. Maybe it’s the fact of her showcasing flaws that she shouldn’t have (her hotheadedness and shitty planning skills). Or maybe it’s the fact we root for a “cathartic slap” in favor of doing what this CoOp is supposed to be: teaching Makoto AND the viewer about learning to see someone else’s perspective, and coming up with a plan that we never would’ve thought of to help fix that issue. Sacrificing a big theme/moral of the CoOp for something “dramatic.”
But I don’t know why I should be shocked, this is P5. Contradictions everywhere, in the lore, in the themes, in the writing, in the morals. Just. Everywhere. 
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artificialqueens · 5 years
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Cruising for a bruising, Part 5 (Branjie) - Q-Tip & TheDane
Authors note: Thank you everyone for your patience, and for keeping up with this crazy story that Q-tip and I are having so much fun writing!
“We co-dependent, a restricted area, an invitation only kinda party and my dick is first, last and fucking second on that guest list”
/
Brooke was a master at damage control, and Vanjie thanked the gods for it. It had saved their asses countless times, mostly because both of them had a problem keeping their hands to themselves in public places.
Vanjie had barely even recovered from her orgasm, still clinging to her boyfriend, before Brooke had pulled up her sweats and detangled them. She calmed Detox down, the other queen relaxing the moment Brooke had explained that they hadn’t touched anyone’s stuff, Brooke effortlessly standing like a shield between Vanjie and everyone else, the tension in the room officially lifting when Silky made a joke about how someone’s stuff had been touched, everyone erupting into laughter.
Vanjie managed to escape somewhat unnoticed, throwing on her caftans and getting back to her makeup table, everyone else still chatting with Brooke on the other end of the room. Everyone except A’keria who was watching her with a smirk, Vanjie seeing the reason the moment she spotted herself in the mirror. Her mouth was a war zone of red and purple, Brooke really going in on the kiss without a care in the world, but most of it was salvageable, her eyes and brows still in place, though her contour had been halfway destroyed by Brooke’s hands on her face.
“Hey.”
Vanjie was blending her foundation as she peeked over her shoulder, spotting Brooke who was standing with a sheepish grin on her face, a disaster of lipstick matching her own, Brooke’s cheeks still dusted with pink. She had changed too, the lilac color of her caftan just as gorgeous as the first time Vanjie had seen it.
“Do you have room for one more?”  
Everyone else was hustling out the doors, all ready and finished. Brooke held up her makeup bag and her mirror, and Vanjie realised that Brooke was asking if they could redo their faces together.
“You sure you’re gonna keep your mess to yourself miss thing?” Vanjie smiled.
“I’ll do my best?”
Vanjie pretended to consider it, gently tapping her brush against her chin. It was a true rarity that she had the upper hand in moments like this. Usually the roles were reversed, Vanjie running around like the confused but enthusiastic puppy needing Brooke’s attention more than she needed air, but if there was one person she could never say no to, it was Brooke.
“Good, cause I don’t want you messing up my shit.”
Brooke laughed, and Vanjie moved aside, Brooke sitting down next to her, instantly moving right up against her, their thighs touching. Brooke caught Vanjie’s foot under the table, hooking their feet together, her hand resting on Vanjie’s hip. They never got ready together, their original unspoken pact of keeping a professional distance in the werk room carrying into their lives off the show so naturally they had never discussed it. In their L.A apartment they each had a drag room, the fact that they needed that space as high on their list as room for Brooke’s cats. Vanjie hoped they could possible get a dog too, though they hadn’t found the perfect one just yet, both of them still traveling so much Brooke was sometimes scared Henry and Apollo would forget who she was all together.
Vanjie drew an invisible line down the center of their table, Brooke’s eyes following her finger.
“That’s your side Mami.”
Brooke snorted. “Sure.”
“Here.” Vanjie handed Brooke a makeup wipe, her boyfriend taking it and wiping her chin, Brooke’s palm covered in red from holding her face in place, Vanjie’s cock twitching.
She talked about it loud and proud, Vanjie happily proclaiming to the world how strong Brooke was, sometimes even semi stalking Brooke at the gym to take video of her to brag online, but few knew how fucking hot she found it that Brooke was stronger than her. Vanjie almost lost her breath sometimes at how easily Brooke could pick her up and throw her around, hold her above her head or press her against a wall.
Vanjie grabbed an extra wipe, taking Brooke’s hand and rubbing the lipstick off. She rarely got to be so close at this stage in the process, Brooke peeking into Vanjie’s mirror to make sure the last of her ruined makeup was gone before she plugged her own in, the light turning on. Vanjie picked up her beautyblender, quickly going in with her heaviest duty dermablend, the high temperatures on the cruise making it even more of a struggle to make sure a mug stayed on. Brooke was painting too, her boyfriend touching up with Krylon instead.
“This is nice.”
“Real nice.”
Vanjie pushed one of Brooke’s lipsticks back, her things already migrating past the invisible line.
Brooke had been nominated as the messiest queen with a unanimous vote from the season 11 sisters, and Vanjie would have to agree, though Brooke would defend herself all the way to her grave. Brock was normally fine, her boyfriend never bringing enough stuff to truly get messy, but Brooke had a way of exploding everywhere.
They had brickered about what makeup belonged to who more times than Vanjie could count whenever they were forced to share space to get into drag. It was the reality of a drag queen’s life that you sometimes get ready in sketchy bathrooms or half broken toilets, which was also why they always tried to avoid working with each other on individual bookings. Vanjie more often than not feeling like she was playing some sick form of memory cards when she was once again sat with two almost identical bottles of pros-aide, trying to decipher from the washed out labels if it belonged to Brooke or to her.
“Just don’t make a habit of coming here.” Vanjie looked at Brooke, a smile playing on her face as she pushed Brooke’s makeup with her hand, Brooke’s stuff already inching her side of the table. “I ain’t got time for your messy ass on the regular.”
Brooke laughed, pressing a quick kiss against Vanjie’s temple. “I love you too.”
/
Detox was sure she was going to crack a rib, everyone singing along to “Drag is magic”, Nina somehow managing to make a show with kids music not only entertaining but straight up hilarious as she pranced around on the stage, wearing a giant dinosaur costume and shaking her tail to the chorus.
Brooke was dancing too, her movements most of all looking like a noodle that was waved around in the air. Detox hadn’t expected to have anywhere near this much fun on the cruise, yesterday’s water fight and today’s wardrobe spectacle something she had tucked away in the most secret parts of her heart for a rainy day and when drag wasn’t fun at all.
Detox had known Brooke for years, and considered her a friend, a fierce and formidable but also incredibly uptight friend. Detox used to see it as her duty to loosen Brooke up, to introduce her to the fun sides of life, to make sure Brooke also remembered that life was more than competitions and being the best.
Normally Detox would be doing her all to get Brooke drunk and find her some trade, to make sure she was having fun, but as she watched Brooke hoist Vanjie up, settling the smaller queen on her shoulders so Vanjie could see everything, Detox realised Brooke didn’t need her for that anymore. She had Vanjie now, and probably a dinosaur costume in her near future, if the screams of delight coming from Vanjie were anything to believe.
/
“You ready for the stage?”
Brooke looked at Vanjie one last time, his boyfriend a vision in gold. They were sitting backstage, Vanjie going over her cue cards one last time. They had eaten a late lunch, Brooke hitting the gym with Kameron while Vanjie had just taken a short nap in full face. Brooke coming back to their room, gently waking Vanjie with a can of red bull, his boyfriend already bouncing off the walls once again.
“I was born ready.”
Brooke had to agree. He had never met anyone so effortlessly fun, and though Brooke would rather dance an entire performance en pointe without toe nails, he knew without a shadow of a doubt that Vanjie would kill the afternoons entertainment. There were only minutes until the clock struck 10, and one of the most anticipated events of the cruise was about to take off. The Vanessa Vanjie Mateo quiz sold out in minutes the moment the tickets went online. Originally, Brooke had not believed his ears when Vanjie had pitched him the idea, her Silky and A’keria jotting down the outline of it in a single afternoon filled with wine and Chinese food while Brooke had been in Toronto.
“You look it.” Brooke smirked, grabbing Vanjie’s hips and pulling her in. “You always look like perfection.”
“Awh.” Vanjie smiled, running her cards down Brooke’s face. “I think you’re full of it Mama.”
“But is it working?”
“A little too well bitch.” Vanjie leaned down, kissing Brooke, her hand twisted into Brooke’s leather jacket. “You better be keeping those ears open cause I expect you to be the winner of tonight, you hear?”
“We’ll see.”
“Vanjie!” They both looked up, Brooke blushing as one of the stage techs showed their face. There had to be something in the water, or maybe it was just the climate, but Brooke felt unable to keep his hands to himself. “You’re needed!”
“Yes ma’am!” Vanjie threw a thumbs up in the direction of the sound guy, a last smile playing on her lips as she looked at Brooke.
“Gimme kiss?”
Brooke tugged on the gold tassels of Vanjie’s dress, the two of them kissing one last time. “Can’t wait to watch you.”
“You better.” Vanjie laughed, and Brooke released her, the crowds cheer filling his ears before he even truly realised that she was gone.
/
“Holla’ in the house!” Vanjie slapped her microphone, laughing loudly when the audience jumped. “It’s Miss Vanjie Vanjie Vanjie bitch and tonight, TONIGHT, we’re playing a little game. Y’all always creeping and peeping up in my DM’s and my Twitter, but not today Mary, oh no today I!-” Vanjie pointed at herself. “Vanessa Vanjie Mateo gets something!” Vanjie smiled brightly. “In my hand I have a stack of super secret crazy kooky ninja level questions about me and Brooke Lynn’s personal business.”
The crowd cheered, and Vanjie would have stopped, but she was already on a role.
“The rules are real fucking simple. You guys get it right, I take a shot! B-U-T, if you hos get it wrong, y’all have to drink and pay me a dollar. Why you ask? Cause it takes a lot of money to look this expensive, and I wanna take my boo on a proper resort vacation experience, okay? We talking little umbrellas in the drinks and a private beach so I can oogle his junk like I damn well please. We all comprende?! Good! Cause here comes the first question!”
/
Watching Vanjie on stage was an experience like no other, and Brooke always enjoyed it more than he could put into words. He had tried to explain to once, to explain how brilliant Vanjie was, but even then it had come off jumbled and crooked, not at all justifying the intense pride, warmth and love Brooke felt in his chest whenever he saw Vanjie in her element.
Tonight however, he saw a Vanjie who was rapidly getting more and more drunk as she tossed back shot after shot, her estimation of the stalking capacities of the gays aboard the ship clearly not calculated correctly. Brooke had originally sat on the edge of the front row, laughing along and waving when it was required, making sure that Vanjie could easily spot him if needed, but right now it seemed like Vanjie needed a water, more than she needed anything else.
The crowd laughed, Vanjie taking another shot and Brooke stood up, making a quick line for the bar, brushing past Nina, Raja and Cracker who had all volunteered to distribute shots to the guests.
“Can I have a water?” Brooke grabbed his phone, quickly filming Vanjie who was loudly quizzing a fan on the lyrics to her track “I’m Vanjie.”
“Sure thing stranger.“ Brooke looked up, the voice weirdly familiar, and that’s when he realised that he knew the bartender, the blonde hair and striped t-shirt giving it away at once.
“Justin? Hi!”
/
“Woop!” Vanjie drank her shot. “I didn’t expect y’all hos to be so goddamned clever. This whole thing is blowing up in my face in record speed!” Vanjie laughed.
Vanjie had no idea why she had never done this before, the firing back and forth with the audience making her feel like a regular Alex fucking Trebek. She was losing miserably, but this was still easily the most fun she had had at a gig in a long time when she wasn’t dancing.
Vanjie switched to her next card, a giant smile breaking out on her face. “Alright homos, here comes a hard one.” The room spinning slightly but this was one of her favorite questions of the night, a bonus round she had spent extra time on to make sure she would earn at least a few coins. “What’s the original name, and yes you heard me correctly, of the ballet where my boo thang himself, Brooke Lynn Hytes, was cast as the part of death at the Cape Town City Ballet?”
Vanjie’s eyes swept the room. She couldn’t see Brooke, but she knew she had to be out there somewhere.
“I’m real proud cause I went to the trouble of googling this shit myself. Full Nancy Drew mama, I even got myself a reddit profile and shit so y’all can hit me up on there too, and I did it all on pacific ocean wifi, so you KNOW it’s true love.”
There wasn’t not exactly silence at the question, but there certainly wasn’t any correct answers either. Vanjie heard Coppélia and even Dance Macabre, that fairly enough did show up if you googled ballets with death.
“Still no correct guesses?” Vanjie smiled. “I thought you freaks were all up in his life story, creeping and shit.”
“Is it La Bayadére?”
“Wrong! Also that ain’t dutch my dude, that’s a french name if I ever heard one, but dotcha’ all worry, I’mma be a good judy and let you name the english version!”
Someone shouted Swan Lake from the bar and Vanjie was getting ready to enjoy her victory rain of dollars, when she noticed who else was sitting at the bar, Brooke not even looking at her, his back turned to the stage as he talked to the bartender. The same bartender that he spoke to the day before, fucking Justin smiling at Brooke like he was the most amazing thing that had ever ordered a drink.
“Anyone here knows the english version?!” Vanjie yelled, raising her voice but Brooke didn’t even flinch, didn’t even move . He just stood there, the back of his head looking like he was having the time of his life.
“It’s fucking Vier Litl…” Vanjie looked at her card. “Vier Letzte Lieder! Everybody! Fill your glass and take a shot.
Everyone was raising their glasses, but all Vanjie could see was Brooke not paying attention to her.
“Yo! Brooke Lynn Hytes!” Vanjie was nearly screaming, but Brooke finally finally turned around, his eyes wide, her microphone nearly redundant at this point. “You know I’m the greatest good you ever gonna get, so you best pay attention boy!”
Brooke lifted his beer, a smile on his face like Vanjie wasn’t funny, like it was all a joke, and Vanjie was burning, anger swirling with the tequila in her stomach. Brooke’s face was not at all like she had imagined when she had written the question, the affection and admiration she had so hoped for now amusement like she was some animal in the zoo Brooke found fun to have around.
Usually when Brooke attended her shows, he was all but rolling on the floor in genuine laughter, and here he was, smiling like she was merely amusing. Despite the churning in her gut and her fingers tightening around the poor, abused microphone, Vanjie kept a brave face on, quickly moving along because if there was one thing she was, it was professional above all else.
/
“Alright bitch, I’m ready to leave!” Getting off stage was always the greatest relief, the last of the guests herded out the door by the staff that was now walking around, mopping up the floor and putting chairs back in place. Vanjie had taken a lot longer to get off stage than she normally would, her world spinning, taking her lashes off taking three entire tries, and she had every intention of forcing Brooke to shower with her the moment they got back to their room, her chest already rumbling a little at the pure delight of the idea of Brooke soaping up her body and easing away the pains of corset and heels and way way too many shots.
“Brock! Where you at?” Vanjie stepped out of her shoes, picking them up and putting them in the gym bag she had stolen from Brooke earlier in the day.
“One second!” Vanjie looked for the voice, her stomach dropping completely when she realised Brooke was still sitting at the bar, her boyfriend’s jacket laid over a chair, the beer bottles multiplied from the day before. “I can’t find any paper.”
“Paper? Why the fuck you looking for paper?” Vanjie walked over, her feet hurting with each step she took.
“I just need a moment baby.”
“I have an idea.” Justin smiled, completely ignoring Vanjie as he wrapped his fingers around Brooke’s arm, quickly pushing Brooke’s jacket up, like it was something he was allowed to do, Justin putting the pen in his hand to Brooke’s skin and very clearly writing down a phone number. “There, now you can call me. I’d love to see-”
“Oh, FUCK, no!”
/
It all happened so fast. Vanjie grabbing Brooke’s half empty drink and throwing it in Justin’s face, the liquid splashing everywhere, some of it hitting Brooke as well.
“You think you can look at my man like that?! I’m not some dumb ass ho that can’t see shit!”
Vanjie voice was so loud Brooke swore the entire ship was looking at them, every  staff member still presents stopping dead in their tracks.
“You wanna play games?!” Vanjie threw the glass down, the entire thing shattering against the bar top. “Well let’s fucking play!”
“What the-” Justin wiped his face, the man looking completely shocked, his shirt soaked.
Brooke had seen Vanjie fight before, his boyfriend a ball of emotions, a firecracker that was always ready to go off, but it had never exploded because of him before, and Brooke had a sinking feeling this was all somehow his fault.
“Oh bitch, don’t you try! You’ve been flirting since the moment you saw him! You think we some package deal where you can fuck one of us and we cool? Well guess again! We’re exclusive, bitch! We co-dependent, a restricted area, an invitation only kinda party and my dick is first, last and fucking second on that guest list cause guess what? I can go twice!”
“You’re insane.”
“I’m insane?!” Vanjie grabbed Brooke’s arm, throwing it down on the bar. “Then what the fuck is this?! A number? You don’t do shit like that to another man’s man!! And you!” Vanjie turned to Brooke. “I never should have trusted you.” Vanjie released Brooke, turning on her heels, rushing out of the room before Brooke even had the chance to collect his composure.
“Jose!” Brooke stood up, ready to run after Vanjie. “I- oh fuck!”
Justin looked down, a thick piece of glass peeking out the top of Brooke’s palm, from where he had planted it flat on the counter.
“Shit!” Brooke grabbed his hand, blood already pouring everywhere.
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